Descent Into Kansas

As my brother- in - law Tom says:
"Into the Canyon of Abyss!"

For Memorial Day
a couple of In Memoriam tunes from Kansas:

People of the South Wind

There are some who can still remember
All the things that we used to do
But the days of our youth were numbered
And the ones who survive it are few

Oh, I can still see the smiling faces
When the times were so good
Oh in the all familiar places
I'd go back if I could

To the people of the south wind
To the people of the southern wind
To the people of the south wind
To the people of the southern wind

Well it's a hard thing to face the music
But it's somethin' everybody's got to do
So I hope that I can always remember
All the crazy times we had to go through

Now it's a dream that is slowly fading
Oh I don't want it to go
All of the memories are evading
And I want you to know

It's the people of the south wind
It's the people of the southern wind
It's the people of the south wind
It's the people of the southern wind

Now we've traveled all across the oceans
And we've seen what there is to see
But I guess it's not the proper solution
'Cause it's all about the same to me

Now I look back and it makes me wonder
Why we just couldn't see
All of the battles we fought and won there
Oh I wish that I could be

With the people of the south wind
With the people of the southern wind
It's the people of the south wind
You're the people of the southern wind

It's the people of the south wind
It's the people of the southern wind
It's the people of the south wind
You're the people of the southern wind

It's the people of the south wind
You're the people of the southern wind
It's the people of the south wind
You're the people of the southern wind

*********

Dust in the Wind

I close my eyes
Only for a moment and the moment's gone
All my dreams
Pass before my eyes with curiosity
Dust in the wind
All we are is dust in the wind

Same old song
Just a drop of water in an endless sea
All we do
Crumbles to the ground, though we refuse to see
Dust in the wind
All we are is dust in the wind

Now don't hang on
Nothin' lasts forever but the earth and sky
It slips away
And all your money won't another minute buy

Dust in the wind
All we are is dust in the wind
Dust in the wind
Everything is dust in the wind

~ Lyrics to both by Kerry Livgren ~

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These songs and more on my current post

"Transportation Has Undone So Many"

@The Fortnightly Kitti Carriker
A literary blog of connection & coincidence;
custom & ceremony

[See also: Handful of Dust & Sunset and Evening Star]

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Clipping saved by one of my Kansas grandmothers,
sometime between 1954 & 1965.

Flower & Flower Moon

The Annual "Rare Treat" Iris

In the following poem, Emily Dickinson longs for a way to traverse the distance between life and afterlife. Other poets have described the beautiful iris flowers (aka "flags" or "swords") as messengers from the afterlife, traveling back from the otherworld, offering new perspectives on mortality and light.
Under the Light, yet under,
Under the Grass and the Dirt,
Under the Beetle's Cellar
Under the Clover's Root,

Further than Arm could stretch
Were it Giant long,
Further than Sunshine could
Were the Day Year long,

Over the Light, yet over,
Over the Arc of the Bird—
Over the Comet's chimney—
Over the Cubit's Head,

Further than Guess can gallop
Further than Riddle ride—
Oh for a Disc to the Distance
Between Ourselves and the Dead!

by Emily Dickinson

Partly Cloudy Flower Moon (Pre - Eclipse)
~ May Moonbeams ~

Thanks to my friend Claude for the Dickinson reference.

Just a Little Social Distance

Happy Birthday to my twin brother Bruce!
As you can see, we've been
social distancing since way back when!

Summer 1972 ~ Lake Michigan with the Family
Bruce, holding White Phoot ~ Kitti, Diane, Aaron

May 25, 1970 ~ Our 13th Birthday

June 3, 1975 ~ High School Graduation

Steamer Trunk

My grandparents' storage trunk
containing old books and so much more.
Restored by my brother Aaron & sister - in - law Pam.
Their notes below . . .

Detail inside the lid.

The steamer trunk we rescued, after cleaning it
& airing it out & adding about 3 inches
of cedar chips to help get rid of the musty smell.

Our antique furniture section of the basement.

Tom said:
"The one we carried was completely shot and fell apart."
Ah, the joy & sadness of old steamer trunks . . .

Northern Girls

Remember the Northern Girls? My sister Diane and I had the two above on our bedroom wall when we were in grade school. As you can see below, they were toilet tissue adverstisements that could be ordered as frameable prints.

On a recent excursion through a storage unit full of old papers and photographs, I came across the following three pictures. I am guessing that my mother ordered them back in the early 1960s as a set of five, framed two of them for display, and stored these extras for future use. So it looks like now is the time to get them ready for sweet little Ellie!

Adorable Commercial Art
by Frances Hook

Purdue Happy

Ellie says: Happy Retirement to Grandpa!
And we say Happy Nine - Month Birthday to Ellie!

Remember -- whether retired or not yet enrolled,
you can never have too much Purdue Snazzy --
like these cute headbands and stocking hats!

Sunset and Evening Star

Sunset and Evening Star
Window by Tiffany, circa 1910

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Crossing the Bar

Sunset and evening star,
And one clear call for me!
And may there be no moaning of the bar,
When I put out to sea,

But such a tide as moving seems asleep,
Too full for sound and foam,
When that which drew from out the boundless deep
Turns again home.

Twilight and evening bell,
And after that the dark!
And may there be no sadness of farewell,
When I embark;

For tho' from out our bourne of Time and Place
The flood may bear me far,
I hope to see my Pilot face to face
When I have crossed the bar.

By Alfred, Lord Tennyson (1809 -1892)

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This poem and more on my current post

"Sunset and Evening Star"

@The Fortnightly Kitti Carriker
A literary blog of connection & coincidence;
custom & ceremony

1965

Side by Side Secretary

A million thanks to my brother Aaron & sister - in - law Pam for rescuing and repatriating this proud old family favorite. How lovely to see it, as it was meant to be displayed, full of life and interest, and just a touch of mystery! Long live the old brown furniture!

I still remember arriving to visit the grandparents every year at Thanksgiving and glancing way up atop the cabinet to see the leftover Halloween candy in miniature brown paper bags. How we kids delighted in these stale treats! In honor of the good old days, Pam and Aaron have promised to place a bowl of expired candy up there anytime we should come to visit.

********************

Similar Syles ~ but not from our family
photos from ebay

Continued @ Steamer Trunk

Goodbye Old Brown Furniture

This sweet little rocking chair was handmade
by my grandfather Paul for my mother Mary
when she was a toddler.

As it has survived
~ somewhat the worse for wear, yet succesfully! ~
into the 21st Century,
Gerry plans to refurbish it
for continued everyday use
by our little grand-daughter Eleanor!

I know it has become hugely popular to say, "Your kids don't want your old brown furniture," and not only among the down-sizing sensationalists who coined the phrase. Even AARP, Forbes, Kiplinger, and The Wall Street Journal have jumped on the bandwagon. Surely I'm not the only one out there for whom this tiresome cliche -- right up there with the pejorative "Karen" and "Okay Boomer" -- doesn't ring quite true.

Okay, Baby Boomers are always an easy target, but it's not exactly clear to me in this case whether they are supposed to be the inheritors or the distributors of all this cumbersome, undesirable treasure. Perhaps both?

While not expecting my adult children to delight in my household furnishings, looking back the other way, I actually have a soft spot for the interior decor of my dearly departed parents and grandparents. However unpopular the old - era dressers and headboards may have become, their charm will never be lost on me.

Hopefully, Ellie and Aidan will continue to see the charm in the little rocking chair -- built by their Great - great - grandfather Paul and rebuilt by their Grandfather Gerry.

A Visual Ode
~ much missed and beloved old brown furniture ~

To be continued . . .

May the Fork Be With You

A good day for some recent food pics!
Eat it with a fork or
eat it with a spork -- your choice!

Cathleen got out the Spiralizer!

Butternut squash (L), sweet potatoes (R)

Inside the Bundt Pan ~ Outside the Bundt Pan!

1/2 batch in a Bundt Pan
If you make the full recipe -- it is a true POUND cake!

A perfect fruitcake for Spring -- bright yellow & red!
I love all the dark Christmas spices,
but this cake is such a nice change without them
because it stays so bright & pretty.

Perfecting the Family Style Nachos

A new favorite -- baked instead of micro-waved.

Happy "May the Force / Fork Be With You Day"

. . . and for tomorrow ~ May 5, 2021
Happy Cinco de Mayo!

Pass Nothing By on May Day

~ May Bouquet at Grandma's Getaway ~

May Day

A delicate fabric of bird song
Floats in the air,
The smell of wet wild earth
Is everywhere.

Red small leaves of the maple
Are clenched like a hand,
Like girls at their first communion
The pear trees stand.

Oh I must pass nothing by
Without loving it much,
The raindrop try with my lips,
The grass with my touch;

For how can I be sure
I shall see again
The world on the first of May
Shining after the rain?

Sara Teasdale (1884 - 1933)

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~ Marion's Blue & White China ~
See the miniature set?! ~ [lower left]

~ All Previous May Day Posts ~