When I moved to Arizona and took a job at the Tribune, one of the first things I did was get rid of most of my neckties. They’d been required at my last job (the dress code also said: "If trousers have belt loops, belts must be worn") but it was a whole different beast at Get Out — and that beast never wore a tie. In the nearly 10 years I’ve been here, I could probably count the number of times I’ve worn a tie on two hands — weddings, funerals, one day just to freak out my co-workers. ("Do you have a job interview?!")Many men aren’t that lucky. Their careers require ties, which makes neckwear one of the go-to gifts at holidays like Father’s Day. Many of those ties are very, very ugly.The impending of Father’s Day got me thinking: Which Tribune reader has the ugliest tie in the Valley? And how did it end up in their closet?So we’re running an ugly tie contest: Starting May 27, we’ll have a link on the Tribune web site that will allow you to send in a picture of yourself with your absolutely ugliest tie, and a brief explanation of how it came to be in your possession. Gift? Inheritance? Shopping while under the influence?The winner (as chosen by me, with a little help from the guys on the Tribune staff) will receive a wardrobe of new ties from manufacturers like Ermenegildo Zegna (from the generous staff at Neiman Marcus), Nautica, and specialty manufacturers Bird Dog Bay and Belisi. (A full list, with photos of all the prize ties, will be online May 27.)You’ll have two ways to enter: online, by attaching a JPG image, and through traditional mail, as long as the envelope is received by Friday, June 8. So start searching and snapping photos.

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