Mom Knows Best

Mom's Kitchen, originally uploaded by Space Commander.
Space Commander's Mom in her new boomerang formica kitchen, around 1958.

At some point in your life, you had a mother. This person probably had to put up with you for at least the first eighteen years of your life. Do you realize what a hassle that must have been? She already had your father to take care of, and then there were your siblings to contend with. And on top of all that, she decided to go ahead and have you. Don't think she didn't already know what she was getting herself in to either, she knew all to well. Giving up nine months out of her own life, 24/7 non-stop with no relief in sight. And she probably wasn't getting paid time and a half either. It isn't like she couldn't have found something better to do, like taking a trip to Paris or inventing the first transister circuit board. And it didn't stop after your birth (like that was any walk through the daisies). There were years of feeding, burping, and dirty diapers. Hopefully by the time you reached Seven years of age most of you didn't need the diapers anymore. But you were still a chore for her, believe me... every second of every minute of the day.

And here you are today, probably dumping grandkids in her lap and running off, perhaps with thoughts of leaving no forwarding address for her. What does she get for it all? One lousy day of the year, just ONE! Maybe she'll get a greeting card and some flowers. And you can be sure she'll count herself lucky if she gets treated to just one meal that she doesn't have to prepare.

Geeeesh! A person has to be crazy to be a mother.

Thanks Mom.

Love your Mom and all she's done for you - especially for those things which you'll never know about, and for the things you took for granted. Happy Mother's Day!

Blown Tubes and Junior's Big Step

It happened first thing. I got up, raised the window shades, carefully avoiding the minefield of shoes, clothes, and toys which Junior laid down for me, got dressed, turned on the radio.... and nothing. I turned the volume knob up full, and all that came out of the speaker up and down the dial was blank static. Then there was a smell, (one which wasn't that wonderful scent of warm vacuum tubes!) it was much more like the acrid warning of something burning up! Well, that's it. The old tube radio finally gave up the ghost and was officially declared deceased at 10:17am. Funeral arrangements will be forthcoming.

But life trudges on at our humble atomic age bachelor pad!

This day happens to be a big one in Junior's young life. The 9-year old will pass a major milestone by sleeping over at a friend's house, away from home for the first time tonight. I found it's a first for me too. After a quick run to Target to shop for new jammies for my Little Man (we found a very retro-looking pair with a Von Braun-style rocket print), with his sleeping bag packed and ready, we drove over to his friend's and off he went, acting so big. It's a very strange feeling to take your own flesh and blood, who's barely able to dress himself, and drop him off at a complete stranger's house for the night...

Back home I was enjoying a quiet relaxing Saturday, when be sheer accident I ran across this monologue by Jackie Gleason "Apology at Bedtime."

Jackie Gleason - Apology at Bedtime Found at abmp3 search engine

And that reminded me of an old clipping my Grandma E. had hanging in her home, which now hangs in our's...

So there's just no escaping it. There's a big absence around here. My little Junior is growing up before his time!

I hope he'll be able to untie his shoes by himself tonight. I hope he can tie them again in the morning. Maybe... maybe I should have packed that extra pair of underwear after all? =O

*Sigh* It's going to be mighty quiet around here.

Too quiet.

Maybe I should keep the phone close by, just in case ;)

A Danish Modern Duck Hunt

So most of what you bring home from your vintage shopping are treasures that you just happen upon, becuase you happened to be in the right place at the right time. That's what makes it fun. However, there's always a few wish items, lurking in the back of your mind which you are ALWAYS scanning for, sometimes for years before you finally run across the prize you're looking for.

One of my hunts has had me keeping an eye open for a set danish modern ducks. Which brings me to another family history lesson! Okay, so you can all skip down and pick up at the next paragraph at this point... but I'll still have my little stories to tell ;) Dad loved Danish Modern. He collected it. One of the items he'd bought was a set of wooden ducks with metal wings. Growing up, I remember those wood & metal ducks hanging from our walls well into the seventies, always poised in flight... can you see one flying off in the picture below?

Ummm, yeah... that little guy in the photo is your's truely.

Anyways, a long search is over. I found a set of the birds on eBay, identical to my Dad's (insert a big sigh of satisfied relief here), destined to once again hang upon the same walls.... Just another piece of the old home being restored back to it's natural Mid Century state.

Now what's the next thing on my wish list?... does anyone know where to find Italian-Modern cafe curtains??? ;)

Italian Enamel Decorated Floor Lamp

Ohhhhh..... I like this.

Italian enamel decorated floor lamp 1950
Seen at www.furniture-love.com

I might have to get motivated to make one of these. Another project to add to an endless to-do list!

V-M Tri-O-matic

There's nothing in the world like the pop of a phonograph needle on vinyl and the scent of warm vacuum tube innards.

Yep, she works! She's a sweet portable phonograph found recently at the Goodwill. These little gems are becoming so hard to find around my neck of the woods. Remember waaaay back when you used to see them at the thrifts for about 99 cents?

I had to part with more than a buck for this one, but in the kind of unabused condition this one was... I just had to get it!

Fab Fleamarket Finds for $15

Cinco de Mayo? Already??

Well, well, well... it certainly was a busy April bringing warmer weather upon us, and I've been working very hard to do my part to boost an ailing economy :)


This foot stool is puuuurrfect for my pad. I've always had a weakness for mid-century wrought iron. It's airy, light and seems to float above the floor. It also has a handy magazine rack underneath in case I'm feeling too lazy to walk two feet to put my reading material where it belongs. And this was a steal at $15... woohooo!




Harkerware produced several pastel-colored versions of this set in the 60's. I really like the flecked pattern to the glaze of these. The seller had combined equal parts of the Shell Pink and the Blue Mist sets... making for an extremely atomic-looking combo! I walked away with the whole thing for just $15. Go me! Go me!

Atomic Pic of the Day!

BANG!

Ha! Don't you just love going through the old family albums? There's so much that's good blackmail material in there! This goodie is of Brother Dear back around the mid 50's, when a boy would never be caught without at least one trusty cap gun.

Speaking of guns, Junior was kept after school today because he had done a big No-no. What did he do? He was playing with his buddies during recess and was caught using his hand for a make-believe pistol on school property. My, how far today's society has progressed in the age of correctness :P

Needless to say, Junior was very upset by the whole ordeal and had a hard time grasping the reasoning behind the bullying he received from the school system. I gave him some honest advice: when in school, as anyplace else, you have to follow their rules. No need to go into their logic why, because it simply doesn't apply to him or 99.9% of all boys. As far as I'm concerned, a boy is after all a boy, and there's absolutely nothing wrong with that. I wish Society could act mature enough to accept this.

All's Right With the World Again

photo uploaded by pdwroswell @ flickr

Yippee! It came in the mail today! Finally, finally, finally I got the newest DVD release from the Father Knows Best series after ordering a copy through eBay. I posted about this about a month ago, when I couldn't find it locally.

Just for your info, if you're not already aware, I've been a tad bit of a rabid fan of Father Knows Best since way back in high school. For instance, the poem that Bud is supposed to learn, called "The Game of Life" I've been reciting since, well, far too long according to some. Bud plays for the Springfield Peewees along with his pal, Claude Mesner. Kathy's scout troop is named the Little Squaws, and in the radio version of the series she had her own club called the Little Vultures. Kathy's also a bit of a tomboy and hangs around with Patty Davis. Did you also know that Betty's ponytail through most of the first three seasons wasn't actually real? Betty's co-conspirators are Dotty Snow and Janey Little. Mother Anderson is almost always seen at some point in each episode preparing a meal in the kitchen. And Father works for the very seldom mentioned Cavalier Insurance Company.

Speaking of way back when, I haven't seen reruns of the episodes from Season Four since CBN/Family Channel stopped running these... Excuse me, but I have to lounge in front of the television for the next couple of days to get reacquainted!

In the meantime, enjoy this full episode from Season One entitled "Typical Father"...

Arredoluce-Style Lightolier on eBay

Wow! Have a look at this beautiful 1940's Colorful 3 Cone Hanging Chandelier Sarfatti, all original condition. Bidding is still open for two more hours.

See it now on eBay

The Lure of the Pink Flamingo

Well, I really did it now. Today I went to Menards to get eight bags of landscaping rock for the rock garden...

... and I ended up buying a set of pink flamingos.

I don't know...

Its not that I have anything against pink flamingos personally. Its just that they kind have a reputation in our neighborhood, you know? Sort of a kitschy/trailer park/fuzzy dice hanging from the rear view mirror/bordering precariously close to "in questionable taste" kind of rep. But despite all the bad press, there's a quality about them that irrationally appealed to and drew me in, despite myself.

But are plastic yard birds really all that bad??? Do they deserve to be affiliated with such a negative perception by my friends and neighbors? There must be something about pink flamingos which has merit if we look deep enough, beyond the bias. Indeed, my Grandma had a whole zoo of plastic critters decorating her yard. And I know for a fact that at some point she too succumbed to the lure of the pink flamingo (yes, I found the evidence - an empty box - in her attic one day). Surely they can not be all that bad if my own Grandma possessed one.


Maybe it was this fact, the historical family connection, which drew me over the edge. It made the maligned bird so irresistibly attractive to me in a wholesome, down-to-earth, God-fearing, red-blooded American sort of way. By golly, if they were good enough for Grandma, then pink plastic flamingos are good enough for me!

Now if only I can get the neighbors to see things my way...