First and foremost, I would like to express my gratitude to all those who gave their "last full measure of devotion" for the freedoms that many take for granted.  Despite being a foreign-born American citizen, I have a profound appreciation for those who to this very moment, are willing to sacrifice being with their families, pursuing their dreams and unfortunately even giving up their lives in the service of their country.

In the passing flash that was the transition from spring to summer, there was this cool morning that allowed me to throw on this quilted vest one last time while rocking these New Balances that I got for the dirt.  Even though sneakers are not normally my thing, I think I'm going to get a lot of wear out of these.  I'm also adding cutoff white denim to the list of items that will likely get heavy rotation this summer, so I'm stocking up on the best fitting, least expensive pairs that I can get my hands on because unfortunately, I also don't do well with keeping white clean.

Besides being the unfortunate name of one of Nelly's less than....good albums, I thought it was kind of appropriate for this post.  One thing about spring weather is that it sometimes seems to be unable to make up its mind about what it will do on any given day.  I found this extremely comfortable and light weight sweatshirt that helped me balance the fluctuation in temperature that day.  Afterall, clothing goes beyond helping a man dress well, it also can and should be quite functional.

One of my favorite things about the Derby of course is the style.  One gets to see some bold colors and combinations.  It also re-affirms my belief that there is a strong place for a hat - a nice wide brim - or two in a man's wardrobe as he gets older.  As it gets warmer, I'm also pulling out the linen, linen-cotton and light weight cottons that I think will go nicely with the couple of hats I've picked up in the last few months.

Off to the Races; Kentucky Derby Weekend - Photography courtesy of Taylor of Kahlu James .