Not having the chance to compare the two, I swear this Santa is the same style as the one that memorializes "Bucky", my nicknamed brother who pre-deceased my birth. I remember Mom painted Bucky's at least twice and there may have been more touch-ups. Bucky's is far cuter, has more personality, and has a cute candy cane instead of an icky ribbon stuck on his left mitten. It's funny how both have chipped paint on the toes of their boots. As with the wee-winking-tree, I found this on e-bay along with the celluloid reindeer (in different sizes but sans styrofoam sleigh) that pranced through a billow of glass beaded garlands across the top of the TV every year.
What I haven't found: the bas-relief paper mache reindeer that used to leap across the living room wall, angels crafted from Ivory Soap bottles, gilded trees created from pasta encrusted cones, and tulle angels appearing to float when pinned on drapes. Holiday corsages created from metallic leaves, chenille stems, glass beads and baubles, ribbons, bottlebrush trees and wreaths, pinecones often painted and glittered, and ribbons are almost common. There are plenty of Nativities out there but Mom's is the only one that has a cow with horns of metallic springs along with: cool angels, four wise men, enough sheep for sacrificial slaughter during any major holiday, and, of course, palm trees rescued from my old dinosaur play set. And as much as I have looked since having internet access for ten years, I have never seen a picture and only a terse reference to my PEZ holiday candy dish.
Wednesday, December 20, 2006
Christmas Nostalgia: Paper Mache Santa
Saturday, December 09, 2006
I'm an artist?
Here's what I've been making:
And this:
Plus this:
And my current favorite:
No wait, it's really this one:
Have I suddenly embraced my inner psychedelia and poured myself on canvas? I wish. No, the simple truth is I did it the old fashioned way and cheated with used a computer program and now you can too.
click the image to beginKaleidoscope Painter is furiously fast and fun for creating instant images. The colors are as brilliant as my old black-light posters and are easily changed. What a brilliant time waster. And my apologies to the real artists out there.
Thursday, December 07, 2006
Quiz: If you could be a doughnut...
I didn't intend to have another quiz so soon but I couldn't resist with this one. It's just for fun and not very accurate (well I don't think so) because my favorite doughnut is a buttermilk bar. Although on over-thinking it, I do like a luscious chocolate.
| You Are a Boston Creme Donut |
 You have a tough exterior. No one wants to mess with you. |
Friday, December 01, 2006
Christmas Nostalgia: Wee Winking Tree
I remember we had two of these little trees. A battery powered a light on the inside that shined out through the sides and made the star glow. Ours, as was typical, were broken and I don't remember the lights ever working. And I'm still wondering where the patterned base came from as I don't remember it at all. If you had asked, I would have said it was definitely solid colored. But what I do remember is the little star on top. For some strange reason I always associated it with a pat of butter. I was delightfully surprised to see these being offered on e-bay.
Wednesday, November 29, 2006
Let's Go Shopping
Blogs available for mass circulation have been around for about four years and have really proliferated in the past year, including yours truly. You can find blogs about any subject or hobby, no matter how arcane. But even I wasn’t expecting to find today’s subject: Shopping Malls.
I have no idea what I was looking for or where I found it, probably a link on someone’s sidebar, but there it was. The title Malls of America seemed odd enough and, because I always have a nose for the quirky and the bizarre, I clicked on it.
“Vintage photos of lost Shopping Malls of the '50s, '60s & '70s” were the self-described words on the main page. The picture in the accompanying post sure looked like the interior of an older mall. I thought it would be a send-up of the ridiculousness of earlier times but that wasn’t the case. From that very first post it was obvious the author had a real affection for older malls. It is partly the nostalgia of an earlier time but it is also admiration for the architectural styling of these malls. Think about the malls you have visited recently. Doesn’t it seem that most malls being built are slight variations of one or two basic styles? Tuscan – stucco with tile roofs - or Cape Cod – wood siding with almost nautical details – are the choices I find. These early malls have elements that make them stand apart from each other. The motto of those times was “do your own thing” and these were the building equivalents of it. Exterior shots usually include vintage cars (who knew then!), distinctive light fixtures, and well-remembered signage.
Well, that was intriguing enough for me so I continued reading. As I scrolled down the main page I almost had a coronary. There, in all its early glory, was Bayfair. Yes, my little Bayfair in San Leandro was starring in a blog written by a guy in Michigan. I always think of Bayfair as being below the minor leagues when it comes to Bay Area malls, and yet there it was. The description of it was spot on and the comments made by other viewers added detail. Well blow me over; I’m still not quite believing it. Click on the picture for the large version and you can see what the neighboring hills used to look like. The Bayfair post can be found here.
Bayfair was the closest real mall to where I grew up. It was close enough that when I was in the upper grades at Lewelling Elementary, friends and I would ride our bikes to it. We never bought anything, even food or drinks, but enjoyed being out and the novelty of visiting without parental units.
I also found an entry for Southland in Hayward when I used the handy search box in the upper left corner. From the large fountain and sculpture outside Sears, the bird aviary near Woolworths, and the fish fountain by J.C. Penney, it’s all there. I started visiting Southland as a young child and grew up without being aware of the distinctive style inside the mall. The Southland post can be found here.
Even as a little kid, I always thought it was odd that Woolworth and Walgreens were right next to each other. I always preferred Woolworth because it had a pet department on the lower level. Leeds shoes was opposite and always had a perceived air of cool and trendiness when compared to the Tom McAnns store further on. I almost forgot that Smiths mens clothiers was next to Leeds.
One of the commentators was also used as a resource guide, BIGMallrat. His specialty is malls in Northern California and Nevada. He reviews current malls and his posts are often about the early days of the malls. And yes, of course, he has posts for Bayfair and Southland. Check out the comments for added flavor. BigMallrat’s website is here. Posts for Bayfair are here and Southland’s are here and here.
And if you’re still interested, how about:
South Shore in Alameda:
hereStoneridge in Pleasanton:
here, current info hereHillsdale in San Mateo:
here, here, here, here, here, video
BIGMallrat's guide to Real Malls in N. California and Nevada is here.
His reviews are up-to-date, include official websites & expansion plans, and are based on the following criteria:
Size, Architectural Appearance, Cleanliness, Occupancy, Stores, Store Quality, Parking, Location, Services, and Uniqueness
Monday, November 27, 2006
Quiz: You speak like a ...
| What American accent do you have? Your Result: North Central "North Central" is what professional linguists call the Minnesota accent. If you saw "Fargo" you probably didn't think the characters sounded very out of the ordinary. Outsiders probably mistake you for a Canadian a lot. | |
| The West | |
| The Midland | |
| The Inland North | |
| Boston | |
| The Northeast | |
| The South | |
| Philadelphia | |
| What American accent do you have? Take More Quizzes | |
My result is not a big surprise, considering my mom's parents were from Canada. I was sometimes thought to have come from elsewhere rather than being the 2nd generation Bay Area Californian that I am. I like to imitate the speech patterns and accents of the people I meet here in upstate New York and worry that I'm adopting their sounds into my speech.
Friday, November 24, 2006
Post-Turkey Day
The lucky ones that made it. I can't tell if they are escaping, commuting, or going shopping but I'm glad they lived to tell the tale.
Tuesday, November 21, 2006
Robin Sparkles
One of our guilty pleasures is How I Met Your Mother. It has surprised me that the second season is better than the first and we look forward to watching it each week. Last night’s show was the best one yet. Part of the episode dealt with the mysterious past of Robin, the tall dark haired woman. Her boyfriend is Ted, the main character and all around nice guy, like the Jerry character on Seinfeld but without the stiffness and cynicism. SPOILER ALERT! Plot development revealed. Watch the video
The area we live in is technology deficient. We do not have cell phone coverage, high-speed data lines, or cable TV. This isn’t because we’ve rejected the modern world and it certainly isn’t by choice, at least for the first two. We would like to have them but they are not available to us because our topography hinders cellular transmission signals and the houses are too far apart to make cable lines financially feasible. Heck, we can’t even get voice mail on our phone plan. Many homes have satellite dishes for TV and a few have them for Internet usage. We don’t watch enough TV to justify the monthly expense and data transmission with satellite is unreliable and frequently down due to local weather conditions. This explains why our TV viewing is limited to broadcast signals from Albany. We have evolved our viewing habits to what the three networks air because those are the only ones we receive.
Ted tries to discover what Robin is hiding in her past and discusses it with his friends: Barney, Lily, and Marshall. They reach the conclusion that Robin is hiding an early marriage she made in Canada. The best part is Robin uses the marital fiction to hide the real story – she used to be 80s pop princess Robin Sparkles. If you know Alanis Morrisette’s early background – another Canadian 80's pop princess – then her backstory is even funnier. The song and video are excellent at detailing the 80's elements and Robin shines as a video star, all with an impeccable accent.
Monday, November 13, 2006
Sister's Birthday
Was the instigator, ringleader, and commander of all the hooliganism and shenanigans when I was a tiny kid. Was always up for playing baseball and endless hours of skating, hopscotch, jacks, and pick-up sticks. Was the only child I have ever known to color every page in a coloring book starting from page one and completing the others sequentially, all without skipping a page or crossing lines. Accidentally pulled me out of the top bed in a bunk bed and knocked the wind out of me. Taught me how to ride a bike. Had the cool games of Life and then Twister and let us play them with her. Had an amazing and incomparable collection of gumball machine charms (with way too many faucets).
She's the one who:Bought me my first razor. Wasn’t afraid to be seen with her
She's the one who:Sunday, October 01, 2006
The In-Laws
My wife’s parents are visiting with us. They are warm, interesting, and engaged with the world and are always a pleasure to be around. It’s been too long since I’ve seen them.
Not many years ago, we had the stupendously ridiculous notion of starting our own nursery. An important feature was extensive plantings to showcase our unusual offerings. Most of the garden was on a hillside and some of the sections were so steep that I fell off of them several times.
My in-laws came up to see us from their home in Santa Barbara. Sometime during their visit they volunteered to help weed, and put in several hours removing wild radish from the planting beds, including some of the steeper sections. I was worried they might slip and discreetly worked near them. But I needn’t have worried. All went fine, the gardens were improved, and we felt tired but good at the end. It could not have been easy for them as their lifestyle is highly urban and doesn’t include this type of manual labor. But they kept at it, never complaining, knowing the importance it was in our lives. Quality people.
Saturday, September 30, 2006
First Post
Welcome to the first posting on my new blog. It's pretty exciting for me as I never saw myself being here. But as with most things in life, change is a constant. Whether we wish, plan, dread, or are indifferent to it, change will happen.
Most of the postings will be about gardening and plants, living a rural life, and our place in relation to the land, plants, and animals that encompass us. But as with most people, I have many and varied interests that will be popping up from time to time.
And how come the name Honey Hill? It's the hill ridge that rises on our southern border. It isn't named on any map but is locally well known. It is a comforting presence through the seasons and has been a source of inspiration and exploration.
