what about the plastic animals?

77

Today would have been my mother's 77th birthday.  Happy birthday, Mom!  Assuming this picture was taken close to when the film was developed, I'm a perhaps-not-yet-noticed little embryo in the photo.

Catskill Game Farm

We went up to the late Catskill Game Farm once when I was a kid.  It was about the most miserable day ever.  It was so hot and humid.  Unrelenting, miserable muggy heat is all I remember.  When my father sees this photo he says "That was a hot day" then he shudders.  At least I got a rubber-tipped spear out of the visit!

Aunt Mary

Doris, Judy, Mary and Carol DeLong

Aunt Mary at Aunt Judy's

Mary, Jesus, Doris, cherry cake, Judy and possibly Dougie

On a horse!

Aunt Mary

My Aunt Mary passed away last week.  She led a full life.  Raised on a dairy farm in upstate New York, she went to school to become a nurse.  She became a nurse and a nun.  The latter doesn't happen too often to Methodists.  After a few years she left the convent and moved to Long Island, where her younger sister, my mother, lived.

The first wedding I went to was when Aunt Mary married Gaspar.  They enjoyed bowling and traveled all across the country.  Aunt Mary also loved a good laugh, the Mets (which requires loving a good laugh) and a good bargain.  It can safely be said that nobody ever left Aunt Mary's house hungry.  In recent years she made it clear, in no uncertain terms, that she did not like A-Rod.

Aunt Mary was generous to a fault.  When shopping with her you had to be careful not to show too much interest in what was on the shelf --otherwise you might find yourself with a case of olive oil or shampoo.  She remains generous to this day, providing all who knew her with a lifetime of fond memories.

A Worldly Puzzle

The globe puzzle caused a lot of teeth-gnashing over Christmas.  The last few pieces were difficult to get in.  I was about to give up after dropping a piece into the center had a small-fingered assistant not come to the rescue.

Constant Style

Evidence that my sartorial choices have remained constant through the years. Not sure what I was doing with my arms there.

More fun: This seal thinks it is a squirrel. The Arcade is reason enough to visit Cleveland. That picture is from 1901. It was beautiful when I was there in the early 1990s and it has since been renovated.

Beer and a Burger

I was a Rheingold man in my youth.

My Sister, Me, and My Monkey

From left to right:  Judy, Joe, furry red monkey.  I can remember almost every detail in this photo but the monkey.  The sled, the paper chain I made, the train set, the balls on the tree, the braided rug, and my sister are all familiar to me but I have no recollection of the monkey.  You'd think I'd remember a creature that looked like that.

I scanned a bunch of old family photos over the last couple of days.  Way too many of them, especially the color photos from the mid-1960s through the 1970s, have become faded or have lost all sharpness.  A few of them will appear here in the near future.

Santa's Butt

Formerly banned in Maine.  Deemed worthy by very serious reviewers.  Santa's Butt Winter Porter was enjoyed by my father and me on the night before Thanksgiving.

Happy Birthday, Zoe!

She is turning eight today.

Two Dollars

This two dollar note from the Somerset and Worcester Savings Bank of Salisbury, Maryland has been in my family for a long, long time.  The bank issued $1, $2, $3 and $5 notes during the Civil War.  They were printed by the American Bank Note Co. of New York.  From what I gather most of the notes had either green or red overprinting on the front and an elaborate geometric pattern on the back.  I don't know why this note has neither.