I prefer the ballanced appearance of a good full Windsor, but it's hard to wear with a heavier tie and I'm pretty tall so most of my ties aren't really long enough for me to tie a full Windsor. I'm also lazy eough to want to toss on my tie and get on with it.
My dad was a full Windsor man. He tied them tighter and squarer than anyone I've known before or since. He taught me how to tie a tie when I was in about 6th grade. First he showed me how to tie a full Windsor. We did that one for a while and then he taught me how to tie a half Windsor, or "cheater's knot". After I had mastered the half Windsor he stopped, looked at my tie and thought for a second. After a pause looked up at me and told me not to wear a half Windosr. "Jack Kennedy wore a half Windsor" he said. "He always was a little bit of a sloppy dresser". Yes, I grew up in the kind of household where even tie tying could be combined up with political guidance. The funny thing is that he was dead serious. I can picture us together in front of the bathroom mirror like it was yesterday. To this day I still feel a little guilty going out with a half Windsor. Good times.
