Wishing you GOOD TIDINGS...

and a peaceful New Year in which these fellows yell "Good cheer!" as they pass by your door, but do not stop to tempt you to imbibe.



I will be spending mine in bed with a head cold. A jar of Vicks shall be as wild as it gets.

AFTER THE TREE is gone...

there's still a little bit of Christmas left behind.

Click on image to see it larger.

And for me, I'll take the Navajo rug!

BUMPUSES' DOGS and Black Bart

Any minute now I expect to see the Bumpuses' dogs come running along that porch carrying turkey legs. If this doesn't make sense neither will the reference to Black Bart.

Hoping all are making holiday memories.

MERRY CHRISTMAS dreamers

Where's SANTA?

A vintage snapshot of, I believe, children of military families. Your challenge is to find Santa.

Click on image to see it larger.

This is my submission for the holiday Sepia Saturday.

Happy Holidays to All.

Did you remember to SEND THE QUMIBYS A CARD?

Let's go to JULIA'S FOR CHRISTMAS!

Hey gang, let's all get in our cars and drive to Julia Barney's for Christmas. Looks like a nice place which probably can hold quite a few people. Plenty of lawn for tent pitching. What do you think?

She's already proficient at using abbreviations for texting: Thot and pic. Should be a fun time!

Click on image to see it larger.

ERNIE'S DAUGHTER Ready to Clean Up

I don't have a lot of photos of Ernie that you haven't seen, but I do have a lot of his daughter. I figured they should be part of the Ernie collection since either he or his wife took them. Here we have Ernie's daughter in the early 1960s at Christmas time. She's ready and waiting to clean things up once the package hurrah has taken place.


Click on image to see it larger.

Click on "Ernie" in the labels to see more about Ernie and his family.

Buy Your Holiday Gifts at MOORE'S ELECTRIC SHOP

Not a very festive photo, is it? Well, click on it and take a look at it large. Moore's Electric Shop had their store decorated for Christmas. Moore's was located south of San Francisco on the Peninsula.

The CHRISTMAS VILLAGE

Oh to be able to step back in time to visit this tree with the village below. No houses, just little animals.

When SANTA GOT A GOLD WATCH...

was it from the elves hoping he'd retire? Seriously, how many days a year must the elves work? I'm thinking the gold watch was a hint. "Hey old dude, time to pack it in."

And is it just me, or did the kid on the left eventually front a new wave rock band? I'm actually pretty convinced the guy doing Santa is actually Richard Attenborough deep into a part.

A CARD FROM MARGARITE ANDERSON in 1936

I'm sure the kids,  Janice and Wendall Anderson, had a lot to say too.

Click on either image to see them larger.

They'll NEVER TELL

My submission for this weeks Sepia Saturday.

GREETINGS from...

Virgil Larson.


Click on image to see it larger. From the George Kallman estate.

KODAK Christmas Greeting Cards

Click on image to see it larger. (SOURCE: Better Homes & Gardens Christmas Ideas for 1963)

Put the Doll IN THE CART

I find this to be an odd looking doll. I'm thinking it's because there isn't much depth to the sculpting. Sort of a creepy doll, but this little girl is clearly happy so what do I know?

Here's your task, if you choose to accept it. What is the doll sitting in? I know what I think it is, but I'm hoping someone else can confirm it. Someone wiser than me, which means most of the human race.


Click on image to see it larger.

The FAMILY ON THE STOOP

This comes from an old tattered photo album. This appears to be a photo of when the kids came back to visit in Canada. I'm merely speculating about this. The woman on the first step actually lived in Northern California near Ukiah. I'm not sure how many of these people are related by blood or marriage.


Click on image to see it larger.

I have featured other vintage snapshots from this album, including this one of the kids when they were very young.


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Can you figure out which person in the first photo is the one in the second?

Three Kids with a FART FAIRY

I'm pleased to present another vernacular photograph in the fart fairy category. Don't know what a fart fairy is? Take a look here to get the whole picture.

Now, looking at these kids, I'm suspicious the one on the far left, who has been ostracized by the others, may be the one who invited the fart fairy to the gathering. Further evidence is the frown on the middle child. You be the judge.


Click on image to see it larger.

I'll tell you, this is a very challenging category!

CAN'T BUST 'EMS Are for Hard Workin' Folk

When I saw this weeks Sepia Saturday prompt my first thought was of can't bust 'ems, aka overalls. I have photos of my dad on the ranch in his can't bust 'ems with a big smile on his face. He wore them to school for years along with his hobnail boots. I have no idea who the people are in these vintage snapshots.

For me overalls have always been the clothing of hard working people who came home with dirt under their nails and a longing for a good meal and sleep...and country kids.


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Click on image to see it larger.

TWO NEW BOOKS AVAILABLE: I have two books now for sale on Amazon throughout the U.S./Canada and Europe, including the UK. One is a revised version of Tattered and Lost: Childhood, the other is completely new and called Tattered and Lost: Telling Stories. Take a look at the links in the left column to find out more about them or click on the Amazon links farther down the page.

      

I am currently revising the original first volume of Tattered and Lost and hope to have it available soon. Each of the volumes is in a new trim size with more photos at a reduced price from the previous books.

And if you're quick of eye you'll notice a man wearing overalls eating watermelon in the Telling Stories example in the lefthand column.

Name THIS CAR!

Okay car lovers, what the heck is this? I was saddened when I scanned this neg to see it was so blurred, but I figured it was good enough to have car lovers curious.

A driveway dragster? You tell me.


Click on image to see it larger.

Okay...NAME THIS CAR!

Another photo from the Arthur Bowen estate. This photo was also taken in Germany in the early '50s. Any ideas?


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NAME THAT CAR!

Arthur Bowen, son of schoolteacher Gertrude Bowen, was living in Germany in the early 1950s working for the U.S. government. He wrote postcards home to his mother about wanting to buy a car. Amongst the photos from his estate were a couple of photos of cars. Your challenge, should you choose to accept it, is to figure out what this car is. I already know because he wrote the information on the back. 

Any guesses? I think you'll be surprised by this one.

Click on image to see it larger.

BILL BURRUD?

Last year I bought a box of photos that contained images of a woman named Gertrude Bowen and her son Arthur. I think the photos had probably belonged to Arthur. Many of the photos were severely damaged, but still interesting. This is one of the images from the damaged pile.


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I remember Bill Burrud doing some sort of travel or nature films that were shown on tv. Now, I have no idea if this is a photo of a young Bill Burrud with his family or if there is another reason this TV Guide clipping was stuck to the image. Doesn't make sense to me. The man looks like an insurance salesman, not an adventure seeker. Anyone have any ideas?

It's little. It's white. It's from the 1950s. WHAT IS IT?

Other than the VW Beetle, I'm not acquainted with little cars from the 1950s in the U.S. so I'm leaving this open to discussion. Anyone know what this car is? The photos were taken at an Air Force base.






Click on any image to see it larger.