Dean Martin - Christmas Blues

Christmas with Dean Martin. You can't go wrong!

ALERT!

Please Help Me Find These Lyrics!

I'm looking for the words to a childrens song or poem that my Grandfather used to sing to my Mother and then later, to me. I'm hoping someone can help...I will post the words I know and if you've heard it before or know of it, I would LOVE to hear from you...
please remember that these words could be totally mixed up but I'm posting them as my memory permits..


Pa, he got him a great big Billy Goat,
Ma, She washed most every day,
She Hung the wash out on the line
and the gosh darn goat he came
that way!

Now I know darn well there have to be more verses to the song. My mother can't remember them either.

If Only I'd Known!

Christmas at Grandmas House

 True Story c0ver January 1954-Cover Girl: Myrna Hansen, Miss True Story of 1954. Miss Hansen is wearing
DuBarry's new Flatter-Glo make-up----the shade; Champagne Beige. Her lipstick is DuBarry's Rose Geranium. Photo by Ozzy Sweet.

Ahhh, beauty. Why have women stopped looking like this? We've exchanged beautiful, smooth stockinged legs for tramp stamps and visible thongs. YUCKY! My grandmother never went anywhere in public without her coral lipstick and matching pantsuit. She had her hair "Set" at the salon at least four times a month. A "Set" consisted of a shampoo, a roller set, a sit under the dryer, a comb out and a style. She had a wonderful

collection of make up and beauty products that went back to the 40's, maybe even further, that I spent hours examining and experimenting with as a girl. She had the greatest collection of shoes that I clicked around the house in (isn't that every little girls dream, big girl shoes that make real, big girl noise?) and that I mixed and matched with her many purses, hats, bead strands, etc. I really wish that I could wiggle my nose and I could go back to my grandmas bathroom beauty cupboard
before she decided to clean it all out...just for a while!




Bermuda for CHRISTMAS! I would love to go to Bermuda for christmas...all expenses paid of course. Especially if I could ride in one of those long-range "Pressurized"planes. Well I sure as heck hope the damned things are "Pressurized" or we'd be in one heck of a Christmas Pickle now, wouldn't we?
BOAC inaugurated the world's first commercial jet service on May 2, 1952 with the "Comet".

Vintage Sleep and other stuff

I seriously enjoy hanging out at Square America. I can spend the whole evening just indulging in  the sweet vintage/vernacular photos that are so marvelously set to the creative beat in Nicholas Osborns mind. I LOVE this place! If you havent checked it out yet, I'm horribly ashamed of you. It's been around awhile now but I swear, every single time I visit feels like the first time. The above photo is part of a selection of photos that depict people in various stages of sleep.

John Garfield...One handome dude!

Wow! John Garfield was one darn good looking actor. I can guarantee that I would have tried really hard to dig up two bits for a Garfield movie back then.  Where have all the good looking men gone? OH, I know, I know, they're still out there but it seems like men these days are missing something. I know that's only an opinion but I've run into a whole heck of a lot of women that feel exactly the same way.




Now, back to Mr. Garfield! This guy struggled.  He fought his way straight up out of the squalor and wrechedness of New York Citys Lower East Side during the great Depression. New York City was one of the hardest hit areas of the country during this time. The grief Mr. Garfield faced in the early part of his life was more than any child should have to bear, but bear it he did. A detailed biography of John Garfields life can be found HERE. A great site for true Garfield lovers.

I must say that John Garfield is one of my very favorite actors. I love his movies and will force my eyes to stay open and watch the entire picture if it happens to be showing at 2 a.m. So what if I look hungover the next day.I quit drinking ten years ago, so it's the good kind of hangover, I deserve it!  Look at those eyes! Look at that brooding face! What woman wouldn't want to fall straight into those manly arms and have him carry her through the crashing waves like he did to Cora (Lana Turner) in "The Postman Always Rings Twice"?







Mr. Garfield gave us 32 movies to choose from today...I think. I'm not absolutely sure of that one so if anyone out there knows differently, please enlighten me. I don't like being wrong, it's a terrible aspect of my personality.

32 movies just isn't enough. It's not fair. There should have been a whole heap-load more but alas, there wasn't. There isn't. There never will be because Mr. Garfield was horribly screwed by our government when the House UnAmerican Activities Committee or HUAC for short, went on their shameful witch hunt and finally, inevitably, zeroed in on him.  John was one of hundreds of people who were ruined by blacklisting. John suffered from a heart condition which he had been stricken with in childhood. The severe strain of the HUAC trials and the ensuing blacklisting is thought to have literally broken John; mentally as well as physically. In the final part of his life he struggled as well. John spent all of his time trying to find proof; proof of his love for America and proof that he had never in any way hurt the country that he truly loved. The devastation that he felt finally killed him. At the very young age of 39 on May 21st 1952, John succumbed to a heartattack.

Favorite Childhood Poems and Shirley Temple!

When I think of Curly tops from days gone by, I can't help but think of the sweet, cherubic face of Shirley Temple. What little girl didn't want those wonderful curls bouncing down around her ears at one time...at least during what I call the 'Princess Years', between the ages of 5 and 6 and a half. A short window to be sure. I have a great pic of myself around that very age getting all dolled up for my very first day of Kindergarden, my hair all set in pin curls. I asked my mother to scan the photo for me so I can post it here.

There was a little girl  
who had a little curl
right in the middle of
her forehead,
and when she was good
she was very, very good
and when she was bad,
she was horrid.

Dear GOD, look at those DENTURES!

I have to admit as one of nearly 40 million denture wearers in the USA, I was somewhat taken aback by this photo! The HORROR!
Can you imagine this terrible contraption in your mouth? Honestly. I can't get it out of my mind that I've seen those teeth somewhere before...hmmmm. Wait a minute! Here they are!





I began to wonder about the history of dentistry and have learned many a thing since then...mainly that I'm grateful that it's the year 2009, when it comes to teeth anyway.

I've also learned these things;


a) your barber was also your dentist in the 1800's. Not always, sometimes
he was your GODFORSAKEN BLACKSMITH!!!!!!





b) Going to the Dentist/Barber/Blacksmith hurt sump'n fierce!
sump'n reeeaaaaallllll fierce!!





c) I thought my grandma's dentures were old!
dentures found fitted snugly in the 200 year
old corpse of an Archbishop! Arthur Richard Dillon
of Narbonne, France who died in 1806. WOW!

The Best Damned Glorified Rice Recipe you will ever taste! (Moms Cherry Pink Cloud)

I was specifically searching for a perfect vintage add
for Maraschino Cherries. I've looked high and low and have had no luck whatsoever. I've decided to post some other great old cherry stuff instead but I'm really, really searching for a true Maraschino cherry advertisement. Anyone out there have one? Let me know, I'd sure love to share it here.

Why Cherries?
I have just made one of my favorite treats, full of pineapple and yummy maraschino cherries! A delicious recipe that my mother made when I was a kid in the 70's and 80's. I'm guessing it originated from one of the wonderful cookbook recipes that find there way here, but then just about everything I ate as a kid came from one of those swell cookbooks. I collect them now. The recipe I made is one my Mom calls "Glorified Rice", it consists of cool whip, pineapple, marachino cherries and cold rice. When I was a kid mom used minute rice, regular cool whip, whole marachino cherries and that was that..sometimes she used a can of fruit cocktail. I have changed the recipe around a bit and renamed it "Moms Ultra Heavenly Cherry Pink Cloud". It is Soooo yummy that I lie awake thinking about it when I know it's in the fridge.  It consists of these simple, yet memory inducing ingredients:



Moms Ultra Heavenly Cherry Pink Cloud Recipe


3 cups cold cooked Arborio rice*
(Arborio is a must as other rices seem to harden in this particular recipe after more than a day in the fridge. The taste and consistency is perfect with arborio)

2 tubs of extra creamy style cool whip

1 can crushed and drained pineapple


10 or more finely chopped maraschino cherries
(to taste)

1/4 cup of the maraschino cherry syrup

1/2 cup granulated sugar



cook and cool your rice. put it in a large mixing bowl and

add the remaining ingredients above. Mix well and

refrigerate for an hour or so. The colder it is, the better.

The maraschino cherries and the maraschino

syrup give it a wonderful pink glow.  I have used up to a half cup of the syrup. It's really a personal taste thing.

I think it's perfect to round out a summer meal or just to

munch on any time. My husband absolutely loves it and is always asking for 'That cloud stuff!'

My kids love it too. The stuff keeps well covered for up to 5 days in a nice cold fridge. It never lasts that long here.

Drunkenness is a Disease and I can Cure it!

This was the famous slogan of Leslie E. Keeley, a civil war surgeon who announced his "cure" for alcoholism in 1879.

Keeleys cure consisted of gradually tapered off doses of whiskey : eight ounces the first day, six ounces the second, four ounces the third and (by God!) none from then on. Four times a day he (the patient) gets "gold chloride" injections and every two hours he takes a "tonic".*
Knowing what I know about alcoholism, the treatment must have been rather uncomfortable. The Keeley Institute was opened in 1880 for persons addicted to the "immoderate" use of alcohol and opium. The cure treatment was centered on the the "gold chloride" injections which were of a secret preparation.

Keeley's cure became world renown.

According to a Time magazine article printed on September 25th, 1939;
" Keeley clubs flourished all over the U. S., proud Keeley alumni sported shiny gold buttons, preached excitingly confessional sermons to female temperance societies. The same article stated that " Keeley stoutly boasts that it has cured 17,000 drunken doctors since it first opened its doors." Drunken Doctors? Wow. People believed in this treatment. Bi Chloride of Gold clubs were organized by patients in 1981. They met every morning, greeted trainloads of newly arriving alcoholics, heard speeches from members and read letters from graduates filled with encouragement. Branches of the club held services, concerts and fundraisers for poverty stricken alcoholics. State governments were petitioned to pass Keeley Laws that provided funding for chronic inibriates who could not pay for treatment on their own.

At one time there were over 200 branches of the Keeley Institute across the united states and Europe. Injections of the secret concoction of gold had been administered to over 300,000 people! Reports varied widely as to the real identity of the ingredients in the gold injection. Strychnine, alcohol, apomorphine, willow bark, ammonia and atropine were among the suggested chemicals. It was proven that there was never any "gold" in the injections, but by this time the hope that he had instilled in thousands of people had done it's job. It really didn't matter that there wasn't any real gold at the end of the rainbow.

Keeley had managed
to change the the American collective of thought that Alcoholism was the product of weak will, sin or just plain lacking in morals.

The Sugar Plum Tree

The Sugar Plum Tree

Eugene Field

Have you ever heard of the Sugar Plum Tree?
'Tis a marvel of great renown!
It blooms on the banks of the banks of the
Lollipop Sea
in the garden of Shut Eye Town;
The fruit that it bears is so wonderously sweet
(as those who have tasted it say)
That good little children have only to eat
of that fruit to be happy next day.

When you've got to the tree
you would have a hard time to
capture the fruit which I sing;
The tree is so tall that no person could
climb
To the boughs where the Sugar Plums swing!

But up in that tree sits a Chocolate Cat
and a Gingerbread dog prowls below,
and this is the way you contrive to get at
those Sugar Plums tempting you so!

You say but the word to that Gingerbread Dog
and he barks with such terrible zest;
that the Chocolate Cat is at once all agog,
as her swelling proportions attest.
And the chocolate cat goes cavorting around
from this leafy limb unto that,
and the Sugar Plums tumble, of course, to the
ground;
Hurrah for that Chocolate Cat!

There are Marshmallows, Gumdrops and Peppermint
Canes
with stripings of Scarlet or Gold,
And you carry away of the treasure that rains
as much as your apron can hold!
So come little child, cuddle closer to me
in your Bedtime Pajamas or Gown,
and I'll rock you away to that Sugar Plum Tree,
in the Garden of Shut-Eye Town.

More Stencils!

Another lip stencil photo.(see post 'Lips and Eyebrows') I would love for anyone to share these "Beauty Guides" type of photos if they happen to have or run into one. Eyebrow stenciling, Hairline shaping, Lip stenciling, eyelash application...of course, they should be vintage photos.

Mad Men Season 3, It's nearly here!!

Season 3 of MAD MEN is coming on Sunday. I can't wait to see where we find the cast this fall. I have been impatiently waiting for this moment. What is going to happen?

What of Don and Betty? What did she tell him at the kitchen table that night? "I'm Pregnant." Too easy. "I had an affair." Unheard of. "I wan't a divorce." I can't imagine that. I'm unsure exactly howthey're going to haul in the strings they left us dangling on at the end of last season.

What of Pete, alone in the office with his rifle? Surely he can't kill himself off! Whom else will I hate then? Wait a minute, I forgot...Duck is the new Ass in my book. If I remember right, I was left feeling a little sorry for Pete.

How is Peggy going to shake off this annoying Preist, Father Gill? It seems he is becoming a real thorn in her side. Her underhanded sister, Anita, seriously bugs me. No beating around the bush about the sibling rivalry here.

I want more of Joan. More, more, more. My absolute favorite scene of hers so far, and there are many, is when she shames and humiliates Paul Kinsey nearly to


death.

Joan: "Mr. Kinsey? Is something wrong?"

Paul: "I'm avoiding you, or haven't you noticed that after three days?"

Joan: "Are you worried about the typewriter? I'm not going to tell anyone, although
you were so brazen you don't deserve clemency."

Paul: "what'd you say to Sheila?"

Joan: "Who?"

Paul: "Sheila. My Girlfriend."

Joan: "Describe her to me."

Paul: "Very Funny."

Joan: "I know what's first on the list."

Paul: "Oh My God, I knew you were a lot of things..."

Joan: "I'm not a phoney."

Paul: "You're so proud."

Joan: "It's so obvious why you're seeing her. A supermarket checkout girl?
conversation must be stimulating. 'Lettuce costs a nickle.'"

Paul: "What a relief. You're just jealous."

Joan: "Because you're the one who got away? You, out there in your poor little
rich boy apartment in Newark or wherever, walkin' around
with your pipe and your beard, fallin' in love with that girl just to show
how interesting you are...Go ahead, what part is wrong?"


That was the BEST BURN of all time. You could actually feel paul seething!

Well, I'm looking forward to Sunday along with a slew of other Mad Men lovers. It's hard to keep something so darn perfect to yourself!

Song

When I am dead, my dearest,
Sing no sad songs for me;
Plant thou no roses at my head,
Nor shady cypress tree:
Be the green grass above me
With showers and dewdrops wet;
And if thou wilt, remember,
And if thou wilt, forget.
I shall not see the shadows,
I shall not feel the rain;
I shall not hear the nightingale
Sing on, as if in pain:
And dreaming through the twilight
That doth not rise nor set,
Haply I may remember,
And haply may forget.
- Christina Georgina Rossetti , 'Song', published 1862"

A Dirge

"Why were you born when the snow was falling?
You should have come to the cuckoo's calling
Or when grapes are green in the cluster,
Or, at least, when lithe swallows muster
For their far off flying
From summer dying.
Why did you die when the lambs were cropping?
You should have died at the apples' dropping,
When the grasshopper comes to trouble,
And the wheat-fields are sodden stubble,
And all winds go sighing
For sweet things dying."

Christina Georgina Rossetti (1830-1894) , "A dirge"
photo "Untitled" Winogrand

Collections, collections, collections!!

I love collections. In fact, I could spend all day just admiring the collections of others. I especially love collections of the vintage type. Collections require so much effort, time and love that you can't help but stand in awe of some of them. I would absolutely love to see some of your collections out there and share them on this blog. Please share anything you have!

In an earlier post I said I would leave a link for a site I had visited where ULTRA COOL COLLECTIONS of vintage board games, etc. were shared. Here is the link:

http://www.4gamesgoneby.com/

While checking out some of these wonderful collections, I saw a board game that brought me back 35 years. I used to play it at my Aunt Doris's house when our families would gather to celebrate Thanksgiving or Christmas. My Uncle Clarence would pull down the creaky attic steps and carefully make his way into the black hole above. My sister and I would wait, anticipating the treasure that only saw the light once a year. We watched the ceiling as items rumbled and slid around on the attic floor punctuated by thumps, curses and mumbling. Finally, Uncle Clarence's face would appear smiling down at us, a swinging, dusty light bulb illuminating his head from behind with a it's weak yellow-orange light. "Look out!!" he would shout and the cardboard box would tumble down the ladder steps to the floor. Nicole and I would tear open the box and carefully remove the treasures one by one. An old toy truck, red and made of rubber, a handful of weird shaped wooden blocks, a family of small dolls with eyes that moved in their heads and real eyelashes that blinked, and last but not least, the coolest board game ever, "ELOPING". (1946 Game Creations Inc. New York) In the 70's when we were little kids the board game was already old. Everything in the box was old. The toys had belonged to my Aunt Patty when she was a girl and now she was old too. To us kids, anyone over the age of 12 was a "big kid" and anyone out of high school or married was "Old". Aunt patty was probably 20 something at the time we played with her ancient toys. We played ELOPING most of the day until the all the festive sounds and wonderful smells culminated into the delicious holiday meal and it was time to eat. I've never seen ELOPING anywhere else since then until I ran into the above site. I would love to have a game of my own.

The Invisible Wall

It had been awhile since I'd read a good book. I mean a reeaally good book; one you can really sink your teeth into. The kind of book that when you get close to the end you tend to turn the pages much more slowly and begin to suffer an uncomfortable feeling of anxiety with each completed paragraph. It's going to end soon...then what am I gonna do? Inevitably, the story ends and you have to lay the book down. Damn. When I found "The Invisible Wall" by Harry Bernstein, I was immidiately taken in by the fact that mr. Bernstein was old. I don't mean just a little old...big time old! Mr. Bernstein published his first book at 96 years of age. I had to buy it. I even put back a couple of items in my grocery cart at Target in order to make the purchase. I know a twelve dollar paper back isn't a whole heck of a lot of money but times are tight dammit.

Anyhow, this is a wonderful book. I immidiately put it in one of my favorites sections, which consists of towering, dusty heaps of books that teeter precariously wherever they stand...the fireplace hearth, my bedside table, great vintage tv trays, etcetera. Then I began to worry...according to the prologue there would be a follow up and even a third book! Could that really happen?! I HAD to have the second book for sure, "The Dream". .
If Mr. Bernstein was 96 when he wrote "The Invisible Wall", he could very likely fall ill or become too weak to complete "The Dream". This couldn't happen. I had to have the second book. I began my search quickly. I wasn't even going to consider the possiblity of a third book right now. I searched Target again. I was sure it would be there. The invisible wall was chosen as a Target Book club pick. Surely they would have the Dream as well, right? NOT RIGHT. No book. I would search out the library next. I found "The Dream" rather quickly. Not surprisingly, it's sister book, the Invisible Wall was checked out. I got lucky though and raced home with my treasure The dream turned out to be as great as I thought it would be and better. You're missing out if you don't read these books. Now I'm waiting for "The Golden Willow", the third and final installment. I'm so pleased that Mr. Bernstein was able to complete these memoirs. Stories like his need to be told, shared, absorbed and thought on. I look forward to sharing these.