Kilt Culture

[macwilkin]

If I may recommend a book to you:

Highland Heritage: Scottish Americans in the American South by Celeste Ray. See if your university library has it or can get it on interlibrary loan.

I think you'll find it a very interesting read.

Regards,

Todd

[string]

If I may recommend a book to you:

Highland Heritage: Scottish Americans in the American South by Celeste Ray. See if your university library has it or can get it on interlibrary loan.

I think you'll find it a very interesting read.

Regards,

Todd

Oh dear, and here I was avoiding my homework, now you're giving me some.
wait, if I admit to avoiding my homework here Yeti will give me the evil eye and make me do it anyway.

[macwilkin]

Oh dear, and here I was avoiding my homework, now you're giving me some.
wait, if I admit to avoiding my homework here Yeti will give me the evil eye and make me do it anyway.

Yep, that's what we history teachers do best!

Seriously, check it out. Ray is a sociologist and her insights on the Scottish-American community are very interesting. You'll find quite a bit of similarities to the reenacting sub-culture, although the book is not as funny as Tony Horowitz's Confederates in the Attic.

Cheers,

Todd*

*ex-reenactor. I still do some living history now then for USNPS.

[auld argonian]

Since you asked...and, really, no one around here ever really asks; they just think I've gone looney and keep quiet hoping that this is just a phase that i will grow out of...

I've known about the Scottish side of my family for a long time. They're the ones who have always seemed to have been the more adventurous and artistic ones and I flatter myself in thinking that I've got more of their characteristics than those of the other parts of my family...certainly, from the standpoint of appearance, I look like all of those old photos of my mom's dad's people.

The kilt thing never seemed like anything that made much sense but then I was watching TV one night and saw Monarch of the Glen and there was Duncan. Duncan is/was the handyman on the estate in Monarch and he always wore a kilt...usually with a t-shirt and a leather jacket and combat boots. It just looked like a very normal way to dress...a definite alternative to "conventional" dress but another choice and it looked a bit more fun and a bit more dashing (I felt desperately in need of some dash in my life...this is way back when I was about 52)...so what the hell.

I started looking online for kilts and saw nothing but major $$$$'s seemed to be involved until I found this bunch of nutters who pointed me in the direction of "starter kilts". I still don't have THE TANK yet but I do have a couple of wool 5 yarders and a USAK casual and a couple of SWK's...got an Argyle Jacket from ebay recently...sporrans. I'm not an "every day kilted" guy...just an "I wear it now and again...couple times a week, depending" kind of kiltie.

How have the people around me reacted? My daughter (now 16) thinks it's great and is my co-conspirator and co-kiltie. My son (19) thinks it's ridiculous and has "blogged" about how dumb it is on his facebook pages. Sadly for me, my wife doesn't seem to think that there's any "dash" happening at all...I had hoped that she would have found it a tad romantic and fun but no dice. I have a very good friend (a woman) who is convinced that I have become a cross-dresser...her husband (also my friend) kind of gets it but is still uncomfortable around me when I show up in a kilt. I get the usual number of younger people who think it's cool and a couple of insults thrown at me once and a while. All in all, I'm proud to wear it and I enjoy it.

And so it goes.

It has brought me here to this forum and this has been a great experience with some really super people who are smart, witty, over-educated (you know who you are!) and united in their kiltiness. I've had the pleasure to have had a beer or two with several of them and that's been pretty good.

Wouldn't change a thing.

Best

AA