I have worn a bow tie since medical school and through 30 years of medical practice (except for 2 years service in the Army). It never failed to provoke and obtain a degree of authority that a radiologist needs to convince fellow doctors. I did try for a 3 year period to combine the bow tie with a short ponytail. The ponytail seemed to avert attention from my bald pate, but the bow tie (like Dumbo’s feather) did not distract from my regard.

I have since retired to the northwoods, and have on occasion worn a bow tie on snowmobiling adventures. The guys in the bars do not seem to give a damn what I have on my neck. They are far more interested in my machine and its performance. Like Dumbo’s feather it seems to have lost its powers.