NYC Baseball caps and bonnets

When I was 8 (1969) we moved to NYC and lived in Columbia Student housing so my dad could attend school at Columbia University. 4 kids in a 1 1/2 bedroom apartment with a kitchen smaller than a very small bathroom. The fridge was below the counter. We were in NYC for 3 years.

The first year my mom got wind of the Metropolitan Opera Children's chorus auditions. We knew some kids from our ward (church) who were in it and my mom drug Merrill, Debbilyn and me down there to audition. I remember singing "My Country Tis of Thee" for the audition and I got in. Debbilyn was too young but got in the next year with Merrill after his year of singing lessons from a lady in the ward (his voice changed mid season and he was instructed to not sing- he had solo parts carrying a cross across the stage etc.)

I had short interesting hair. The interesting would be the way my mom cut my bangs. I think they learned in Relief Society (oldest female organization in the world) that you could cut straight bangs if you put a piece of cellophane tape on the bangs and cut. The problem was you needed to be a general contractor to get a straight line, so a bunch of us girls the same age had bangs that sloped this way or that and we were fine with that at the time..... I digress......

NYC... anyway my mom had me grow my hair out. If I was going to be in real Operas at the Metropolitan Opera in New York City I needed to look like a girl. My first opera was La Boheme where I was a little orphan boy that ran across the stage singing and bothering the toy maker. They put my beautiful hair in a cap!

Caps are good and I have gotten into caps now that my hair is long. When I wear a baseball cap I can go an extra day (or two or three..yikes!) without washing my hair. I even have matching ones. If only the pioneers crossing the planes had baseball caps...... you know what? they did!! They had original baseball caps.. bonnets to hide their gross hair too. I feel so connected with my ancestors right now.