Spring Break

SPRING is here and I'm taking a break.

It appears I've got SPRING fever.

Enjoy these vintage songs with spring as their theme while I go out and enjoy the season.

When I get my fill of spring I will return.

BELLS ARE RINGING

This is the movie that started it all.

My very first romantic comedy and the first movie I saw at a movie theater.

I was about 9 years old and thought Dean Martin was dreamy.

It was my first love story and started my love affair with love stories.

Daddy usually chose what we watched and he liked westerns.

And prior to this movie all I'd ever been to was the drive in theater, which was a family outing.

After this movie, everything changed and I became a huge movie fan.

To this day I love nothing better than a good clean movie, especially a romantic comedy.

They still make them too--surprisingly.

And while I'm older and wiser and know real life rarely resembles those old feel good movies, I still like them.

Wishbook

 image from Welcome to Wishbook

For a stroll down memory lane click on over to Welcome to Wishbook

At the site you'll find vintage Christmas catalogs you can peruse to your heart's delight.

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 Back in the day kids couldn't wait to get their hands on the Christmas Wishbook.  Ours were from Montgomery Ward, Sears, and Spiegel.

I used to wish for a magic Wishbook--one that allowed me to grab the image and have the item come off the page right into my real life.Instant gratification. Bliss.

The idea of having to fill out an order, mail it and then wait for it to be processed and sent by return mail was agony.  But agony turned to ecstasy when your order finally arrived.

Today we have the electronic catalog. To me it's no better than the old paper catalog. Yes, it saves a little time and allows me to shop the world....but it's not a whole lot different than what we had way back when.

Then There Was Chatty Cathy. Every Little Girls' Dream Gift for Christmas in 1960

First came Betsy Wetsy in 1938, followed by Tiny Tears in the 1950's. In 1959 Barbie was born and in the 1960's  Chatty Cathy. 

Betsy wet her pants, Tiny cried 'real' tears, and Barbie--well she was a sex pot--and Cathy yammered a lot.

I had Betsy, Tiny and Barbie, but no Chatty Cathy.  

If only I'd kept that Barbie I got in 1959.  She was in mint condition when I  finally parted with her--on an impulse.

In a brief moment of good will I gave her to a little neighbor girl.  I'd decided I was too big for dolls.

My loss, her gain.  Original Barbie would fetch a pretty good price today.

Classic Coke Christmas

Another fave Christmas commercial.

LSMFT: Another Great Classic Christmas TV Commercial

Not sure what to get someone for Christmas?

When I was growing up everyone smoked.

Everyone who was anyone on TV smoked. The old movies are rife with it. It was glamorized--like alcohol--so it's no wonder there were so many smokers back in the day.

My parents smoked. I hated it. And I determined in my young heart I would never smoke.

When mom and dad would light up after every meal it gagged me to watch them put their ash in their plate. GAG.

I had chronic earaches as a child and I feel sure it was related to constantly breathing smoke. I smoked vicariously.

Today I can't be anywhere near cigarette smoke. I immediately get a sore throat.

I'm so thankful that nowadays we have laws that limit where people can smoke in public places.

And I'm thankful for the education programs that have informed the public of the dangers of smoking which has led to its decline.  It's a shame we don't target the dangers of alcohol and drugs with the same gusto.

I make no moral judgment on those who do choose to smoke, though I do think it is an expensive, harmful, wasteful habit that increases your risk of lung cancer.

BTW--LSMFT is short for "Lucky Strike Means Fine Tobacco".

Robert Hall

Another favorite commercial here. I've remembered this one for decades.

Etched in my memory is Mom and Dad taking me to Robert Hall and buying me a dressy winter coat for school. I also got some new shoes that day. Red ones.

I was a 'fancy' girl'. But then, in those days girls were not permitted to wear pants to school. And most of the girls did dress up.  The boys were not allowed to wear jeans either.  And shirts had to have a collar and be tucked in.

When the winter weather was frightful you wore a snowsuit over your clothes. Many is the time I've been bound up so tightly in all those wrappings that I could barely put my arms down--think Randy, Ralphie's brother in A Christmas Story. 

Believe you me I ended up freezing all the more so. To stay warm you need 'loose' layers.

Vintage Flinstones

Do you need some Christmas spirit?

This old Flintstones commercial always puts me in the Christmas spirit.  I find nothing beats nostalgia and good memories to arouse some festive feelings.

Vintage Thanksgiving Short

Rawhide and Pie

Another one of dad's favorite westerns. Just hearing the theme song brings back memories--good ones.

With the upcoming holidays everyone needs an easy to make delicious pie. Here is one of my favorites:

Hawaiian Pie

• 2 baked pie crusts (I buy the frozen 2 pack shallow shells--bake according to package.)
• 1 large can crushed pineapple (DO NOT DRAIN)
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 3 tablespoons all purpose flour
• 2 large bananas sliced
• 1 cup of grated coconut--fresh or frozen (I have used the processed too with good results.)
• 1 cup of chopped nuts (I like pecans but walnuts are good too.)
• 1 large tub of Cool Whip or whipped cream if you prefer

 In a saucepan combine the sugar and flour.  Add the whole can of pineapple.  Stir together to mix well.  Heat/cook until thick.  Let cool.

Line your pie crusts with the sliced banana.  Sprinkle nuts over the bananas and coconut over the nuts.  Pour half of cooled pineapple filling over each pie.  Chill.  Cover each pie with half the whipped topping.
 

Wagon Train

Dad loved a good western. This is one in the lineup of weekly westerns we watched at night when I was a kid.

I Was an Ovaltinie

Yep, I drank Ovaltine when I was a kid. Not sure why my parents fed it to me. I was a pretty scrawny kid. With the influence of the new medium--TV-- my parents probably thought I needed it.

It wasn't to get me to drink my milk either. I loved milk straight out of the glass bottle it came in. Remember the paper caps with the tabs? Or the foil caps that were pleated on the sides?

I loved milk so much that I often drank down a full glass before I even began my meal. Which probably had a lot to do with why I never ate much--I was too full of milk.

Crusader Rabbit

Add this to my lineup of much loved childhood TV shows: Crusader Rabbit, the first 'made for TV' cartoon.

Popeye the Sailor Man

As a kid I loved spinach. I'm sure I owe that love to Popeye, another favorite Saturday cartoon I enjoyed growing up.

Sky King

As a kid every Saturday was a big TV day. One of my favorites was Sky King. Here's a clip of the introduction to it.

I Want My Maypo!

I love vintage and I love nostalgia. When I was a kid I loved my Maypo. And this is one of the classic TV commercials that introduced me to the wonderful delightful Maypo.