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What on Earth!? Archive
Things we've found that the previous owners left behind. (Its a long story...)June 13, 2003
What on Earth!? (a brief explanation of all this stuff...)
We bought this 1914 bungalow from a woman whose family owned it for 70 years. With all that history and an interest in collecting (plus quite a bit of cash which they didn't spend ON the house), they'd developed quite a houseful of things from around the world. Like this:
As a result, we gave the seller a 30-day rent-back period after the official "closing" to sort through and remove her family possessions (well, we didn't charge her any rent, actually. Just utilities...we felt sympathy for her...there were so many things to sort through). Then, three days before she was to move, we received a letter...
Continue for more of "What on Earth!? (a brief explanation of all this stuff...)"
June 13, 2003
The First Batch
If you have a particular story or comments about the item, use the 'Comment' link below each entry. (As in" My grandmother had one of these, and she used to make us....)
You can send all correspondence to owners@houseinprogress.net
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June 16, 2003
The Second Batch
Item #1
This is a Buddha from Japan in Bronze. He has an incense burner in his lap. I need to some research on his markings/history.
Thanks to Naomi M., I have more information about this little piece! (look under Comments for this entry...)
Item #2 - Happily Adopted
A Zenith H725 AM/FM "Portable" Radio. Works beautifully.
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June 17, 2003
The Third Batch
Okay, we knew it had to happen sometime. Get down to some "nitty-gritty", marks on the bottoms of things, and all that. What is this stuff? Is there a market for it? (Albeit a small one) Can we finance our new bathroom tile and kitchen repairs from these things? Or just buy a new tea cozy?
Item #1--Has new home
Part of the "branded" collection. Tarnished silver top and filigree over glass. Between silver exterior "cup" and top is the word "Nestle" in the glass.
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June 18, 2003
The Fourth Batch
Well! I rummaged through the historical papers and postcards and tickets and menus and so on today while waiting for the pest control people.
This family is certainly well-traveled. And at interesting times too.
Picture this...it is well after World War I. A young "L" enters law school at some point...single, attractive and smart. With well-heeled parents who have invested in international stocks and real estate (and I don't know what else) that allow her to "see the world" with a girlfriend DURING THE U.S. DEPRESSION (1929 - 1936). Her future spouse, W, is also traveling the world at this time. I don't know if they knew each other yet or not. But there they are, our globe trotting pair.
Item #1
Someone was in pre-WWII Germany in 1930.
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June 19, 2003
The Fifth Batch
J's unexpected journey through the linen closet...is a trip back into her grandmother's all-American "kitsch-en".
And yes, make us an offer on those things that haven't been adopted. We have thousands of things in this house. No kidding. And we will be having a garage sale within the next month. But wanted to give bungalow folks and friends a chance to see and perhaps even own a little Americana at garage sale prices.
You can send all correspondence to owners@houseinprogress.net
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June 20, 2003
The Sixth Batch
Some Japanese and Chinese Items
Paper Items Sample: We know the owner brought back items from 1931 China and Japan...we just don't know which items are from "when." I believe they went back during the 1950's as well. We have other paperwork from 1931 that places at least the one of the couple before they were married in Japan.
Porcelain Items Sample:
Blue flower piece: Writing says "Nishikawa Japan" with a border above and below. I think there is an artist's signature (?), but I cannot understand it.
Spotted piece: This only has a signature or name. I cannot discern it.
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June 23, 2003
The Seventh Batch
I am so tired from endless cleaning. You'll have to guess the story of these items and send in your guesses. Are they related? Are they even identifiable?
Items...Random or no?
Boy Scout Bandana!
Note: There's a neat story someone sent about this. Check out the Comment entry from WC...
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June 25, 2003
The Eighth Batch
More random (or no?) pictures of items from "the house."
Item #1 - Has new home
I am obsessed now. Many people who have come over to gape at the museum which is our house turn over everything they look at. Now they have me doing it too. Like I know what I am looking at?! This dish says "Royal Albert, Bone China, England, Cotswold." I was in Cotswold for a lovely weekend after working outside of London in June of 2000. Other than that, I have no idea what this "mark" means.
Item #2 < Adopted
There was nothing on the bottom of this coffee can. But there are a few different ones in the house and people seem to like them anyway.
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June 26, 2003
The Ninth Batch
It's Ladies Day (or Night) here at "What On Earth?" Or, at least, the stereotypical Ladies persona created by marketers earlier this century.
But I'm digressing into a rant about marketing and feminism. Which would pretty much wreck the lightheartedness of these pages. So, we can talk about that topic on postlacesociety when it is up and running. ("Lace" as in "shoelace" as in a bunch of clog, sandal and Teva wearing pals blogging about modern topics of interest. You know who you are.)
Note: These are all being handled as a seperate kind of sale to be announced later. Some are available online at the Estate Sale
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June 26, 2003
The Tenth Batch
(A's on deck for the page tonight :)
Original Prints
Here are some prints that J photographed today...
And they're signed....
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June 29, 2003
The Eleventh Batch
tacky, tacki, adj. 1 : not having or exhibiting good taste: as a : marked by lack of style : DOWDY b : marked by cheap showiness : GAUDY
HOW CAN YOU TELL THE DIFFERENCE???!!!
Today we present you with a variety of items. But! Are they "kitsch"? Or "tacky"? (Or neither?!) I'm still a beginner on this topic. "Kitsch" is actually a genre of collectible. And can create some really cute results when displayed the right way. But how does one distinguish between "kitsch" and "tacky"? Can you tell?
We're going to test your knowledge by offering some photos of items left in the house...and you can give us YOUR opinion.
Item #1
A tissue holder made of yarn. Kitsch? Tacky? Neither?
Item #2
Pictures made from the bark of trees. These are unmarked. Could be Mount Fuji in Japan. Could be something in the Western U.S. We're not sure. But they are all about being three-dimensional.
Item #3
A photo of Boris Yeltsin superimposed onto a hanging banner. Very tiny. Maybe 7 inches high.
Item #4
A slightly blurry picture (sorry) of a "faux" ship's wheel clock (unless the ship was 4 feet long...then it isn't faux it might be real!) from Telechron. It's electric and it still works.
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June 30, 2003
The Twelfth Batch
I have a brother-in-law named Mark. And, although he is a pretty cool guy, this game is not about him.
A "mark" according to one of the MANY definitions of the word in the Oxford Dictionary means a "badge, brand, device, emblem, hallmark, label, seal, sign, stamp, standard, symbol, trade mark."
Many things have a mark or label or signature on them. Picasso's signature is a "mark." The words "Coca-Cola" is a "mark." Even "Made in Japan" is a mark. People who watch "The Antique Roadshow" dig marks.
Marks can help you to discover the story behind items, even if that story is as bland as "Hmm. She bought this at Walmart."
Item #1
A mark can be very clear...but its origins can still be pretty mysterious. (The writing on the front of the plate says, "Combined Thresher and Harvester at work near Connell Washington.)"
Item #2
The statue base is wood. I know the statue is not plastic, but what is it? Ivory? Something else? And who is G.R.? And what's with the fish?
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July 1, 2003
The Thirteenth Batch
I'm ready for a loooonnngggg weekend. Which means less babble, more photos for a few days. Still! See if you can "Name that Mark!"
What do these marks tell us about these items?
Item #1
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July 2, 2003
The Fourteenth Batch
Item #2
Item #3 Adopted
Item #4
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July 6, 2003
Batch #15
It is time for another installment of "What on Earth?!!" Today's what on earth has us trying to sort out items that are very definitely future garage sale from possible private sale or eBay items.
Garage sale items are usually:
a) Too big or WAY too fragile to ship.
b) Just don't warrant eBay charges.
Some things are obviously garage sale, albeit some very COOL garage sale items. And when we get that garage "sale friendly" (i.e., there is room to PUT things in the garage), you're all invited. Camping in the backyard is possible for roadtrippers. Less adventurous roadtrippers could make a weekend of it in one of lovely Chicago B&B's or hotels. You may fulfill your garage sale dreams here. Or you may just enjoy all the bungalow and Frank Lloyd Wright sightseeing that our fair city has to offer. :)
Slidetrays and storage boxes. Four cardboard boxes of them. < Two boxes full of slide trays are adopted
A lovely pleather carry-on bag:
More luggage. A set of "That 70's Show" Samsonite:
More Samsonite. This a little newer...in the box. (Took out for photos) Oh yes. And all baggage has keys for locks. Nifty eh?
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July 8, 2003
Batch #16
Today's game is called...
BUNGALOW...OR NO?
We've found quite a few items around the house, which COULD belong to the bungalow era of this abode. OR they could belong to a more recent era (like the 50's or 60's...). OR they could belong to a different house entirely. (Remember, W was a collector...who knows where this stuff came from. We are still finding windows in the garage that we are fairly sure did NOT come from this style of house.)
YOUR job is to guess BUNGALOW...OR NO? And to also tell the rest of us what the item is.
There are many items that we hold up and play these games with. "Could be a hands-free clamp? An Art Deco cigarette holder? A torture device? Your call...."
Now it gets to be YOUR CALL!
For example, WHAT WAS THIS?
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July 9, 2003
More...BUNGALOW...or NO?
We're back with BUNGALOW...OR NO? Everyone has been so helpful in identifying things that we are starting to sort it out...sorta.
Here's the latest batch (remember to click on the picture to make it bigger):
This is A < Adopted
This is B
This is C
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July 11, 2003
Batch #18
Overloaded "to do" list...no sleep. Quick random batch for all you "what on earth?!" fans out there. (And yes, there are things on this page that we have not figured out. Though we know the last one is...an antique toaster. No joke.)
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July 11, 2003
Staring at the ceiling at 4 am...
I don't know why I can't sleep. But, man. Birds get up EARLY! They started their little morning bird songs at 4 AM! I wish I didn't know that.
But the "What On Earth?!" fans are excited because that means I'm going to try to go to bed early. So it's pictures of stuff, stuff and more stuff. (There's an especially exciting flashback for you North Park University fans.) And remember! Click on something to make it larger.
From vintage Japanese Comic books to Coca-Cola....
< See this on the Estate Sale Site
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July 12, 2003
Bungalow Context
I am starting to realize why I am as fascinated with the history of this house as I am with fixing it....I need context. The big picture. The story.
I mean, who slept in the room I'm sleeping in for all of those years? What did they think as THEY stared at the ceiling not able to get to sleep at 4 am?
I've been corresponding with a very nice person who I found by doing a search on the last name of the oldest deed we have on the house...Kjeldsen. I found her daughter's email address and, like a big geek, wrote her daughter about my research project. That day, the daughter's mom answered me...she is a first rate researcher and great geneaologist! I'll share more of what we found in the next installment.
Tonight, though, I need some bungalow context...
Like, this thing?
This needs a context.
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July 14, 2003
Random Stuff
I was just yanking stuff out of boxes today and taking pictures of it. For awhile, I tried to have a system. Now...whatever. But our garage sale this Fall is going to be a BLAST!!!
Part of going through things is wondering about how it ended up here. What was it originally intended for? And where did it come from? And when?
When I pulled this out of the pile, all I could think of was "Hmmm. Brainwashing little kids...1947-style...." (Click on the picture to make it bigger)
But when I opened up the record jacket (it folds open), I SERIOUSLY freaked out.
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July 16, 2003
Playtime with Batch #21
Oh BOY!!! Look what we found in an old wooden chest!
Do any of these bring back memories for anyone? Or do you wish they did? :)
Item #1
Item #2
(Cut glass bowl not included...but we had to put the marbles in something close by...those are Peltier Banana marbles)
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July 18, 2003
Batch #22
Just a box full of stuff.
< Some of these on the Estate Sale Site
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July 20, 2003
Stockperson at "Someone Else's Life Mart"
It's like I've opened up the door to a big closet and all of the contents have fallen on me.
Some days there is wonder and other days (especially hot, sticky ones) it easy to feel like a lowly stock person at "Someone Else's Life Mart".
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July 22, 2003
Our Next Play Along Game...WHERE on earth...
are these things from?
2 points if you guess the correct continent
10 points if you get the country
100 points if you get the city and can prove it (because sometimes I don't even know THAT!)
Just fill in your answers in the comment form below. You can use a "nom-de-plume" if you want to take a chance but don't want that advertised in our forum!!
p.s. I threw in 1-2 "ringers" so be careful....
GOOD LUCK TO ALL! Oh, and click on the picture to make it larger.
Item #1 < Adopted!
Item #2
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July 23, 2003
Flotsam & jetsam
It's amazing, how much there is to learn about things.
What do my things say about me when I've left them behind? The sweater on the little train in the Swiss Alps. My wallet in...many, many places like that field where we went on the Apple Holler hayride in Wisconsin. My car keys..um, also many places.
I guess these things say--"she's not paying attention to the details, is she?"
More flotsam and jetsam from the upstairs tonight...
You know, I don't think I ever appreciated their musical versatility until I heard the Sons of the Pioneers sing "Tumbling Tumbleweed" AND "Tiny Bubbles" on the SAME audiocassette.
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July 25, 2003
Lights, Cameras, Action!
Someone I met today heard our story and wondered if the PO left behind any cameras. Boy, do we have cameras!
< Adopted 
And that's just for starters...
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July 29, 2003
Hmmm. Where to research these?
Sometimes, it is easy to figure what something is and where it is from.
And then, sometimes it is not.
No mark, but we don't care. It's perfect bungalow style and color. Picture doesn't do it justice.
< Adopted
We like the "crazy stork"...but he has no mark either. What is his story?
< Adopted
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July 30, 2003
Um. What is this?
Okay. We give up.
What is it?
Here is the top of what we saw when we opened the box...(and yes, those cogs and wheels were just lying there.) (Remember to click to make it larger.)
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August 4, 2003
New Game...Trash or Treasure??
Tonight, in honor of my sister Elaine's birthday, we bring you....
le garage. And an edition of...
TRASH OR TREASURE????!!!! (Click on photo to make it larger.)
(Elaine IS a treasure...just wanting to clarify. She is the younger, smarter, cooler sister...and she is very TALL. And can easily clobber me.)
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August 6, 2003
What is value?
Has something ever caught your eye and made you wonder...hmm? What IS it with that? It looks quite ordinary and yet...maybe not?
That's pretty much how we spend our days here at Chez Stuff. And 99 times out of 100, the article in question is quite, quite ordinary. Taking-up- too-much-floor-space ordinary. Hard-to-vacuum-around ordinary.
And then, there was this wooden bowl...which popped up (of course) at 3:00 in the morning when I couldn't sleep... (click to make the picture larger)
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August 7, 2003
Modern Design? or Mod Squad?
Because, well, I have no clue.
So here is a random offering of items that could be Modern Design...or Mod Squad...or neither. (Remember to click on the image to make it larger...)
< Going to experts
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August 12, 2003
Chicago, My Kind of Town: Part 1
Going through the historical paper and books in this house is like peeling back an onion. Layer by layer, we learn more about the previous owners. And it's just as FUN to share the wacky stuff as it is to share the "finds".
These are things we found from "Chicago". (Remember to click on pictures to make them larger.) If you were doing the bungalow archaeology in this case, what would they tell YOU about the previous occupants? :)
< Adopted 
=Adopted 
< Adopted
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August 13, 2003
Chicago, My Kind of Town: Part II
And not that I'm saying anything...but I'll let this 1959 issue of the U of C magazine speak for itself:
And, just for the record (off-topic), I think Al Franken is hilarious.
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August 17, 2003
The Tuba Mouthpiece of Michael Lind
So, as we are leaving church this morning, C, a friend and neighbor who had come over in the first days of the house debacle, stopped us in the narthex.
We had found three mouthpieces in the house that C had investigated. If you are a professional musician, a mouthpiece is incredibly important and also can be very expensive (on a musician's pay!) Each individual musician has a mouthpiece that works best for them.
There were two that were given to another pal from the church who plays tuba and also has a neat band, Red Vinegar.
The third mouthpiece was a Vincent Bach-New York mouthpiece.
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August 18, 2003
Is there such a thing as synchronicity?
As I was typing in our website address to blog a new entry tonight, I had to laugh. Unconciously, I had typed "houseOFprogress" at a time I think that we are SO FAR AWAY from progress right now. A is much more positive. He thinks that we have made tremendous progress in our planning. I am more morose. I keep seeing the dust on every surface and wondering, "How will we ever be clean again?"
However, in exploring items and meeting people regarding the house, I am more curious about Jung's concept of synchronicity, that principle which explains "meaningful coincidences" such as a beetle flying into his room while a patient was describing a dream about a scarab...an acausal principle that links events having a similar meaning by their coincidence in time rather than sequentially. He claimed that there is a synchrony between the mind and the phenomenal world of perception. *
Do I believe in the theory of the collective unconcious? I don't know. I don't NOT believe in it. Do I believe that Michael Lind's mouthpiece found him through us and C somehow? Or that an item here will finally find its "owner of purpose"...at least for the time being. Or that a house was meant for someone?
I don't know. I wish I had as much faith in those things as I do in my other kinds of faith :) Maybe I wouldn't notice the dust so much.
Tonight is a random collection as we sort out some plans and get back to you with those stories. I did not choose a theme for these, unless you are wishing it so of me from our collective unconcious.
This book from 1900 is fascinating for so many reasons. It documents the Palestine of the Ottoman Empire in photographs and gorgeous maps.
-Adopted!
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August 23, 2003
what on earth?? random mix.
OK. It's late and we just got back from JG's B-Day bash. Happy Birthday, big guy. You don't look a day over....40 :)
So, I'll make this one fast. Plus, I have a lot of very VERY cool news about possibly finding the relatives of the Niels Kjeldsen, the first owners of the house that we know of!!! (And maybe even the builder!) Or, they found us. We are so excited. We'll fill you in tomorrow.
Meantime, here are some randomly-chosen "what on earth" items to amuse and entertain...
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August 25, 2003
What lasts?
Too hot to do work in most of the house today. Our windows will be (hopefully!) fixed soon and we will have some ventilation. Until then, we hunker down next to the A/C and keep taking inventory.
I have been nervous about handling the historical paper. The house's dirt and dust have discouraged me...I don't want to ruin anything. Even the word for some of these paper items--ephemera--means "something that doesn't last, something that is transitory in time." But I don't want to be responsible for rushing it to an earlier demise! On the other hand, I've wanted to look around for ideas for Rubber Trouble at Slumberland.
Vintage advertising is fun for this. Art Deco, Art Nouveau...a lot of designs might look good as stamps! (Wendi would know more about what makes a good candidate...) A short stack of Harper's Bazaar magazines from the 20's and 30's looked like a good place to start.
-- Adopted
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August 28, 2003
Preparing for the backyard BBQ with friends weekend
In other years, on other holidays, we've had to scrape around for things to use for gatherings with family and friends outside.
This year, WE ARE SET!!! Kinda.
We have the "Beef...It's Whats for Dinner" thing...scary enough to make vegetarians dive into the bushes. (Click on picture to resize)
This is a SERIOUS steer. If I could only remember which ex-Bull player he looks like...help me out guys!
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August 30, 2003
Life hasn't changed much, has it?
I took Wendi's suggestion (at Rubber Trouble) and scanned some of our old magazines for advertising. And do you know what I found?
Same stuff, different decade. Clothes, liquor, cigarettes, jewelry, furniture, perfume, lingerie, cars. Except everything was from the 1920's and 1930's. And most of the things were line drawings instead of photographs.
And there were fewer "truth-in-advertising" laws back then. Obviously. (click to make picture larger)
OUCH! The chin...THE CHIN!
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September 5, 2003
Remnants & Bridges
Remnants: a small part or portion that remains after the main part no longer exists
What will be the remnants of me?
It is hard not to think of these philosophical questions as we poke and prod on through these things.
Someone must have loved Alma Sutton very much to have made her this box for Christmas.
But...who was she?
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September 6, 2003
Freak out factor
You know, this house has a very high freak out factor.
So, we're researching and tagging last night with the full intention of still having an estate sale. Some of the items will only be sold through the website because we don't have time to go through them now (like most of the ephemera).
Today, we also found out the making the bathroom work will most likely cost more than we had planned for in our budget. So we were kind of down. Whatever leaked up there back in the 1950's seriously damaged the floor and ceiling below, possibly got between the walls and pushed out the wood lathe. Which can't be reused if that is the case. Some days, I want to weep for this house. It deserved better.
We squared our shoulders and kept tagging. But certain items kept drawing me back to them. Like this plaster or chalkware "sculpture" (?):
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September 13, 2003
Okay. Does EVERY home come equipped with a blowgun?
One of the stranger items we found while dilgently digging out the basement this weekend.
Hey K! You're gonna put somebody's eye out with that thing!!
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September 14, 2003
Makin' Bacon
The 70s was a wonderful era. Bell bottoms. Great rock and roll. Cooking bacon vertically...
Wait, cooking bacon vertically!?
Yes, now you too can cook bacon using authentic 1970s methods with the original "Bacon Maker and Meat Rack" by Nupac!!!
Why cook bacon vertically, you may ask? Well...
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September 16, 2003
different stuff different day
sometimes it is enough to wander through the house and point the camera...*CLICK!*
You see Bambi-- Adopted
And a 12 foot long bamboo fly fishing rod
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September 18, 2003
Bungalow Sleuth Award :)
When I was a little girl, I wanted to be Nancy Drew.
Honest! Barbie? Bo-o-o-ring. She was so INTO herself. But Nancy? She had ALL of the fun. Always chasing bad guys and using flashlights and solving mysteries. THAT sounded like the best time to me!!
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September 19, 2003
Lost the manual?!
Not these owners! Not only did they buy and keep everything they saw, they were serious about manuals.
Of course, there's more...
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September 22, 2003
Buried Treasure Mateys...Argh!
Many more times than we have thought possible, we get a variation on the following comment when people hear about this house: "Man! You lucky ducks! All of that treasure!!! I wish it had happened to me!"
Um.
See, there's this thing about "treasure". It has a limit. When you stumble across a, say, really cool coin on the beach. Or a great bargain at a garage sale. THAT is fun! Because you can go home, put it on a shelf, look at it when you want to.
Then there is this.
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September 25, 2003
Hurray! Two people dear to us...
...announced their engagement and I am digging through the basement for ideas about what to get them...(wink, wink)
(double-click to make the pictures larger)
This seems too anti-"equal rights"...
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September 27, 2003
Amazing connections
This house is full of amazing, wonderful and just unusual connections. Sometimes it is finding something that you remember from your childhood or from a movie set. Sometimes it is getting to witness someone else's memories (which moves my heart).
Sometimes you find things that make you wonder, "I wonder if this place still exists?" or "What was happening in the world when they bought this pocket watch?" And sometimes things seem driven by divine intervention.
Last night and this morning, I "met" a jazz musician from Portugal through his father, Mr. Lincoln T. Beauchamp, Sr., Attorney at Law.
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October 3, 2003
Foundry Design, or...the Die is Cast ;)
What on earth is in the basement today?
Stuff made out of metal. Specifically, stuff that I think was made in a "casting process." What do I know about this process? Practically nothing. But my dad knows a lot.
I know this is a flower frog. You put it in the bottom of a vase or bowl and it helps your flowers stay arranged. I know that.
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October 4, 2003
If it's breakable...it is SO outta here.
"What on Earth" fans will appreciate the next few weeks as we frantically try to catch up on the majority of your research and tagging. We live in the basement now...though that makes things awkward because Dave the Cat escaped twice today. He's been doing that lately.
Here he is looking all "What? Who? Me?"
Do not fall for his, "Oh, I am so tired!" act. This cat opens doors. With no opposable thumbs. That we know of. (If you look closely, you'll notice he really never sleeps...that eye on OUR right? Slightly open and incredibly alert.)
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October 6, 2003
Fraternal connections :)
It was a pleasure conversing today (via email) with KW of the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity at the University of New Mexico.
These connections are taking us all over the place.
It started with this:
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October 9, 2003
The "Do Not Call...or send sharp knives...list"
What ever happened to GOOD swag? Swag is the business person's term for "stuff given out by advertisers--promotional products" and is probably an acronym. I have no idea what it stands for.
Now, you get a phone call. And thus, the Do Not Call list.
GOOD swag used to include pen knives--those seemed quite popular. As in this folding knife from Swift & Company, meatpacker in Chicago who helped inspire Carl Sandburg...and a lot of labor organizers :)
(Click on a picture to make it larger)
But Swift & Company is no more! Still, its swag lives on...in our basement.
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October 10, 2003
The Adoption Process
Our new friends and neighbors, S & T, are NEAT people. They teach art in Chicago's schools.
They also bought a bungalow in need of some repair. Maybe not as much...they have excellent taste!
T is interested in vintage cameras, so we were happy to invite them over (they are two doors down) to look at the "stuff". Here we see S happily looking for treasure...
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