Salinger likes to play with the idea of clothing. It seems cliche to say that someone is wearing a new hat. But I think Holden has found a hat that is just a little off and an expression against the whole named clothing thing. Everything Holden wears has a brand name and I think Holden is using the cheap thing as a sign of his need to break away from the conventions that are all around him. Also I think Salinger is playiing with the hat being turned around like a catcher's in baseball would. Overall I just think that Salinger is making the everyday holy and glow with meaning in his fiction as it sometimes does or needs to in real life. Normally I lurk on the list but maybe I'm starting to put on a new hat. Suerte