New blog location

I've decided to migrate my blogs to one new combined location. To that end, all new posts will be appearing there and all old posts have been archived there.

Additionally, I've decided to open up the topics, since I was feeling limited by having separate blogs focused on only one thing. This means that sometimes I'll be talking about movies, sometimes gardening, sometimes cheesemaking and sometimes family slides.

Or anything that strikes me. If you like what you've read here, I think you will also like the new blog as it develops.

Please come check it out: http://bravetiger.wordpress.com/

Mt. Washington

It looks like my parents took a trip to Mt. Washington in 1970. Here are a few photos from the journey. It seems that the road up to the top wasn't paved yet.

Philadelphia, miscellaneous

Here's a batch of random shots from the Philadelphia / Pennsylvania trip in 1982. Above is looking at Art, Maryann, Eric, Lisa and Arthur as they travel on the road ahead of us in their yellow station wagon.

The group of vacationers visit a fountain.

Mom in front of some building.

Some historic boat.

Liberty Bell

During the trip to Pennsylvania in 1982, we stopped in Philadelphia to see the Liberty Bell.

From Left to Right: Mary-Ann, Lisa, Kate, Jer (legs only), Eric, Josh, Arthur, Art.

From Wikipedia:

"The Liberty Bell is one of the most prominent symbols associated with the American Revolutionary War. It is one of the most familiar symbols of independence within the United States, and has been described as an international icon of liberty and justice for all. According to tradition, its most famous ringing occurred on July 8, 1776, to summon citizens of Philadelphia for the reading of the Declaration of Independence."

Depth of Field

I got this picture of Jer printed and framed for his birthday last week. It came out really nice as an 8 x 10. In among the same set are a couple other shots from the field in front of the house.

These slides were processed in September 1982, so Jer was 3 1/2 and I was 8 1/2.

Ball Pit Madness

Mom waving from a ballpit. I'm thinking this must also be from Sesame Place. I can remember it smelling like feet.

Or maybe I just imagine that it must have smelled like feet.

Below is Lance, Lee and Kate.

Fun time's over as Jer gets hauled from out of the pit.

A Smile is a Frown Turned Upside Down

Mom and Jer at some theme park in Pennsylvania, slide processed September 1982.

The slide below seems to make it pretty clear that it's Sesame Place.

Below: Jer, Ernie, Kate W, Me, and Bert. On Jer's shirt: "A Smile is a Frown Turned Upside Down." On my shirt: "Lousville Kentucky," and a picture of a horse. I had never been to Louisville until October 2006 while on tour.

Hancock Shaker Village

In this same batch of slides with the photos of the house are a big set of pictures from a visit to Hancock Shaker Village. The slides are dated July 1975 on them, which is when they were processed.

Above is the main barn on the grounds of the village.

This one is housing. Very dormitory-like.


Big ole' stove and rocking chairs. Notice the dressers. The shakers were very famous for their furniture building skills. If I remember correctly a lot of the buildings on the grounds were workshops.

From Shakershoppe.com:

"The Shakers were the largest and most successful Utopian venture in existence in their time, with an estimated four thousand to six thousand members in eighteen principal communities from Maine to Kentucky by 1840. The Shakers peacefully pursued the vision of their English founder Mother Ann Lee (1736-1784), who came to America with eight followers in 1774. They turned away from the rest of society, which they simply called the World. They lived in large families that were both celibate and communal, devoted their lives to work, and celebrated their love of God in the rousing dance worship that gave them their name. Simplicity was their hallmark, they cared little for worldly goods.

"As they created a new, more perfect society, the Shakers also produced a visual environment of such quiet power that it continues to impress the observer centuries later. Shaker work, devoid of any unnecessary ornamentation or frivolous detail, endures."

Smorgasbord

Here are a few random slides from July 1975. Above, a nice shot of a rose bush.

Below, the exterior of the house and yard. Some of those trees have been chopped down and replaced with others by now. The big tree peeking up above the roofline is the apple tree that used to live in the backyard. I'm not sure that you could take this same photo now without the new garage in the turnaround obstructing at least part of the house. Also, the driveway was not yet paved at this point.

Below is Frosty, an ice cream stand my mother worked at for a while in South Hadley. I have one very clear distinct memory of visiting her there. I can remember going around back and inside and getting a free ice cream cone.


It's either a hair salon, massage place or kung-fu studio now. I can't keep track and never think to look when I drive by.

Pretty much all of my strong memories from any time before the age of 25 involved free ice cream in some way. That might be why I eat so much ice cream now, as a way of tying memories to the ice cream experiences so there will be something I can remember 30 years from now.

We'll always have the ice cream.

Choo-choo!

As I've said before, the problem with grabbing this first batch of slides is that most of them pre-date the births of my brother and sister. As a result, it's going to seem like I'm just here to post pictures of myself being cute as a kid. I swear I'm trying to put up stuff that isn't all about me.

Today, though, I can't help it, since the box of slides I scanned tonight contained nothing but pictures of me. These are from, I would guess, Easter 1975. I look like I'm ready to conduct a train.

1976

I think that this must be our neighbor Tim B, since he's the only guy I know who had horses in the neighborhood. This slide was processed in December 1976, but I would guess that it's taken a few months earlier than that, based on lack of snow.

Below, a few shots of the house, also from 1976.

The kitchen. Note the slate painting on the wall. I can remember many spider plants like the one on the right from growing up. The natural light coming in is from the glass door that led to the back yard off of the kitchen, before the addition. I think the hutch is still in the house, but painted blue.

The living room.
My bedroom. My mother painted the Winnie the Pooh murals on the walls. Sadly, they no longer exist. I like the Winnie the Pooh doll leaning up against the Winnie the Pooh wall painting.

Digression: The Last Fifty Visitors

We've reached 50 visitors. I'm sure a lot of them are the same folks, but there are some oddities in the page visitor data.

For the curious, here's a map showing the locations of the last fifty visitors to the blog. I only sent the link to a few family members, so I'm not really sure how people are finding it and who's looking at it exactly.

It doesn't look like fifty because, I think, there are some clusters. Like for instance, Holyoke, South Hadley and Chicopee would be practically on top of each other from this view.

I find it interesting that the page has had visitors from Portugal, Croatia and Romania.

Hello! Thanks for visiting.

Dad at 22 and 23

Here's a few slides of Dad from the same batch as those of Mom yesterday.

This first slide is labelled "XMas 1970." It looks like Dad is eating a chocolate. In December 1970 he was 22.

Below: Dad reading on the couch, April 1971 and, below that, mowing the yard out behind the little house, by the creek, July 1971.

These two are after his birthday in 1971, so he would be 23 by the time of these slides.

Pay bills, make a cake

Here, in slides that were processed in April of 1970, my mother pays bills (and sticks them in envelopes and puts stamps on them), then bakes a cake.

At least, I'm guessing it's a cake. There's flour, baking soda and sugar. I guess it could be cookies too.

Things of note:

- Looks like they had a pet bird, as evidenced by the cage hanging on the wall to the left of the fridge.

- These slides were taken during the few years that my parents lived in the "little house," where my grandfather lives now, before they built the new house and within the first year of their marriage.

- I think the kitchen table may be the same table I currently have in my recording studio, with the p.a. and boxes of microphones stacked upon it. It looks identical.

Epcot Center

Wondering where the stuffed Figment came from? Why, Epcot Center of course!

In 1983 my parents and I, along with Uncle Rick and Aunt Mary, went to Disney World and Epcot Center. I remember Epcot being a gleaming beacon of the future.

Epcot at the time was an honest to goodness slice of the 70's image of what the future might be (even though it opened in 1982). Looking back at it from the perspective of 2008 it kind of seems very, well, kind of dated.

And who remembers Epcot having such a groovy vibe? (See the slide of the mosaic wall.)

Even the name is groovy. Did you know it's an acronymn for Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow? I didn't.



Journey Into Imagination, where Figments are born.

More Jessica

Here's my mother with Jessica, all bundled up the cold weather of December 1983. Notice the ever-present Figment and the head of the stuffed drumming bear peeking up on the left.

This was taken in the basement living room. Like the paneling?

Below: two more of Jessica from the same day.

There's the edge of a lobster pot, which had a glass top to make a coffee table. The lobster pot is now living outside by the pool shed. Our big old console TV is in the background, where now a 50" plasma sits.

Cousins, 1983

The cousins pose for a photo. From left: Jeremy, Randi, Jessica, Brendan, Josh.

Brendan's not looking too happy about it all.

This slide was processed in December 1983, but I don't know if it's part of holiday festivities or not. Typically, from what I can remember, we had Christmas Day at my parent's house, so it may be from that but it could also just as easily be from some other get together. It's probably not from Thanksgiving, since we always did Thanksgiving at my grandparents' house.

Stuffed

There's Jessica with a stuffed, drumming bear. Below is Jeremy with the same bear and Figment. The third slide is me, with just Figment.

For some reason, the darker interior slides are coming out with a banding to the image. I'm not sure if this is some compensation that's happening on the scanner side or something in the original slides themselves.

The Family, 1983

Jumping now to December 1983 (and a particularly dorky photo of myself ... thank you, braces for correcting this), here's the family. Jessica at 9 months, Jeremy two months short of five, and I'm a month shy of 10.

The couch we're on is the old spindle bed that was converted into a couch with the addition of some pillows.

Today, I'm Thirty-Four

I'm using the fact that today is my birthday as an excuse to post these pictures of myself from September 1974 when I was 8 months old.

I finished rescanning the first carousel last night (which is where these photos are from) so I should be onto other things after this, and away from just posting cute pictures of myself as a baby.

For today, though, that's what you get. Enjoy.



Seeing myself getting a diaper change keeps me humble.