Hoiliday Cook-out

Memories of dances

No hat, no hair down, no dark shoes...and not me!

The girls invited the boys to the prom in the winter time, for four years of high school.  The boys invited the girls to the spring proms.

This was life in a private school in St. Louis in the late 1950s.

So we girls got to dress pretty twice, as well as figure out which boy would be a good dancer.  There were also dance cards where we'd have many dances with other boys besides our dates.

I had 8 prom dresses in high school  I don't remember most of them.  I also learned how to use makeup.  And go to beauty salons to have my hair done.  (I never did the pedi-mani routine, and still laugh to hear young girls think that's "the thing" to do to be girlish!)

I wrote 4 hand written invitations to boys each year.  I only remember one or two of them.  And we already knew who the boys were, because no two girls sent invitations to the same boy.  I think some kind of sign up sheet was done, though I am not sure the boys were necessarily with their girlfriends...but there was some effort to have that happen.  What a zoo!

Miss Barbara Rogers cordially invites

 Mr. David Richmond for the honor

 of his presence

 at the _____ (whatever name of that Prom was)

 on the...such and such date.

  RSVP.

David was my first high school sweetheart, so we went to the winter prom together.  I don't think we received written acceptances...but maybe.  After all, our chosen dates had already been approved by The List.

My sister going to a prom in 1961

But I have memories of at least 2 dresses where I know I had my picture taken before the dance.  My first Prom I wore a pale yellow chiffon with draped shoulders. (It looked ok for a really thin girl.)
And sometime like my junior or senior year I dared to wear a strapless dress, which was held up by nice bone stays around my waist.  I liked the pretty white skirt with huge pink flowers printed on it and a big pink bow and ribbon around my waist which was 22" back then.

Dancing was definitely something I loved.  We'd learned all the ballroom steps in 7th and 8th grade.
Fox Trot, Waltz, Rumba, Cha Cha, Jitter-bug (Yes!) and Swing. Just before the Twist came out with Chubby Checker in the early 60s.  Incidentally, I did go to the Peppermint Lounge in New York on a short trip in 62.

Back to the proms, all night we got to change partners, never knowing whether the music would be fast or slow.  This was the beginning of rock and roll, and we watched American Bandstand remember?

American Bandstand in the 50s

Thanks for the memories, spurred by Sepia Saturday this week!



The themes for Sepia Saturday 280 - post your posts on or around Saturday 23 May 2015 - include boys, girls and dances. The caption on the old vintage postcard reads "In Leap Year - The Ladies after a little wine and tobacco join the gentlemen in the drawing room". So another potential theme you could have is that of "reverses" - occasions when the usual arrangements are reversed. Whatever theme you go with - or ignore, the choice is yours - just post your posts and then add a link to the Linky List below. Here is what is just around the corning:

Grace Lee Boggs

As I'm often a bit late for things, I just discovered an inspiring revolutionary woman.
Grace Lee Boggs.
I figure most people already know about this 99 year old woman.  But if you're like me, here's how I enjoyed learning about her...a PBS - POV production which won a Peabody Award.

http://video.pbs.org/video/2365279681/
If that doesn't work, it's because it expires on May 24.  (This link goes to my PBS station, Triangle Park, and then I click on videos, then on "about to expire, see all") See, I told you I was pretty late to the party.

"Grace Lee Boggs, 99, is a Chinese American philosopher, writer, and activist in Detroit with a thick FBI file and a surprising vision of what an American revolution can be. Rooted for 75 years in the labor, civil rights and Black Power movements, she challenges a new generation to throw off old assumptions, think creatively and redefine revolution for our times."

Grace Lee Boggs with Grace Lee (filmmaker, no relation)

"Spending so much time with Boggs changed her, says filmmaker Grace Lee. She first met the activist in 2000 while making The Grace Lee Project, a movie about women sharing that name, and has been having conversations with her for more than a dozen years. She says Boggs’s unique views helped her figure out how to make this documentary, with its nontraditional approach that focuses on Boggs’s ideas as much as her biography."

Actually several of my most intelligent and activist feminist friends have mentioned her on Facebook, and I was too busy or had my head in the sand to find out about her.  They said last year on a Sunday morning at 7 am there was an NPR broadcast on the radio, and it was fantastic.  Mmmm, that's partly why my head was in the sand, the timing of it.

Even though you may not have time to see this fantastic documentary in 2 days, there are also some grass roots ways to view it.  She is in failing health apparently, and one site asks for donations to help her stay in her home in Detroit, by having viewings of the DVD of this video, with conversations, and it will be provided to those who make a donation.  Mmm, I might figure out a way to do that.

However, the request for donations as well as the video, came out in 2014.  I need to do some more research, or perhaps you might know more about the current status of Mrs. Boggs.  Her 100th birthday is June 27.


Today's quote:

People are like stained glass windows: They sparkle and shine when the sun is out, but when the darkness sets in their true beauty is revealed only if there is a light within.

Elisabeth Kübler-Ross

Archaic or Neuvo-Primitive

I couldn't figure out how to describe these pots in words.

I'm telling FaceBook people they are Neuvo Primitive.

I've had fun making them, though it takes quite a lot more time than a simple cylinder.

Beauty around the lake

It's heavy pollen season here these days. Achoo!

That dusty-colored cloud is pollen floating on top of the water.

The fountain is back though there are now no trees on the dam

Lots of views from the dam at least, the Seven Sisters Mountains, including Tomahawk

Lakeside of dam

Walk across the dam and see grass on each side...which was not the plan

I don't think the beautification committee will do much here this year...even the picnic tables are gone

Back near the Lakeview Center and the poolhouse, the Veterans Memorial now has a gateway

Alas, the brilliant red of the roses turned pink (at least in my eyes) through my camera

Rhododendrons look good 

Quote for today:

There is an undercurrent of energy thrumming through the Universe. Like the wind or a whisper, we can sometimes hear it and often feel it. Most of the time, we sense this energy unconsciously without any tangible proof it is really there. Thoughts, emotions, and the life force in all living things are forms of this kind of energy. So are creativity, growth, and change. The impressions, images, and vague premonitions we get about people and situations are other examples of formless energy.  Madisyn Taylor

Lake Tomahawk for a pair of Canada Geese

Only one couple in the whole lake.  And I'd already walked all the way around and was beneath the overhang from the veranda at the Lakeview Center when I discovered I'm a voyeur.

This couple of geese decided they didn't care if it was 11 am on Monday...they wanted to make some baby geese.

I had my phone out to take pics already, and then just stood there in the shadows and clicked away, while Mr. Goose made sure his mate didn't drown, as he took his time having his way with her.   Well, it was only 1 minute, and I did take about 20 photos, which I'll only post the clearer ones for your (admit it) curiosity.

I bet you've seen lots of birds mating.  I haven't.

She's swimming off stage right!

Quote for today:

Since we probably know ourselves better than anyone else does, then we may very well be the best person to ask for advice when we are in a quandary. One interesting exercise is to try asking for advice from your past and future selves. There is the younger self that you used to be and the older, more mature self that you will become.  Madisyn Taylor