John Traugott and Laurence Sterne

This is an article that was published July 29, 1955. It appears to be a rather scathing review of a book written by John Traugott. Mr. Traugott was professor of English at UC Berkeley in California. I can't see who wrote the article, but they were pretty brutal. He says that most of the remarks by Mr. Traugott were "blurred and obscured by his besetting sin, bad writing." Yikes. Saying that to anyone is pretty bad, but to a professor of English! The author of this article had serious balls. What a terrible phrase, but it's the one that I keep thinking of, so there you go. I am not a writer, obviously, but I would love someone to find some mistakes in this article! I had to look up Laurence Sterne. For someone who has had multiple people dissecting his work, he was completely foreign to me. I googled, I Wikipedia'd, and still no sign of recognition. More proof I am in dire need of a better education.

The Backyard

These two pictures were found together in a book. The little boy, looking at the bird, is also seen sitting at the table on the far right. I have stared at that bird many times trying to figure out if it's real, and they managed an amazing shot, or more likely, it's a statue or a stuffed bird. I lean towards a stuffed bird, except the boy is looking rather awed by it which means he has never seen it before or it's actually a live bird. There's your topic. Discuss.
It's summer! Flowers are growing and little boys get to wear shorts. Although, there's a rule. You must wear long socks and only show your knees. Women must have lived in their aprons, so many pictures of aprons. The little boy on the left is adorable. He looks like he needs more sleep though, those bags under his eyes are intense. I am going to guess the 30's or 40's. Great pictures!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year 1979

A Christmas card! This looks like one of those cards you add your own picture to. I mean, this deer was probably in their backyard. I honestly had no idea that you could do this back in 1979, take one of your own pictures and turn it into a card. Maybe that is sad and pathetic to admit. I guess I just think of the 70's like they were a million years ago. And I was alive and kicking somewhere in the 70's! But I will never reveal how much of the 70's I was around for. Suffice it to say, I have pictures of my small self with some cool looking bell bottoms and a crocheted, multi-colored vest on, thanks mom! Ah, the 70's. They gave us killer music and clothes you wouldn't want to be caught dead in.

A Bank Note, 1949

I believe this is a bank note that someone received after depositing 2,000 kroner. The date is August 12, 1949. I have never been good at seeing a kroner, euro or any other foreign money and instantly do the exchange rate and know how much I'm actually spending on something. It's probably not going to kill me, and as long as I'm getting what I want, I'm sure it's worth it, right? $20 for gelato stracciatella in a cone? Completely worth it! But, I do have a better idea of what a kroner is. And not only because I do business with clients in Denmark, but because I have read 'The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo' along with half the world. Great series. Fascinating, fast paced, and a little dark and twisted. You have been warned.

More Bookmarks!

These bookmarks are so much fun. I don't know about other people so much, but I often find the first thing sitting around to save my place in a book, random pieces of paper, a pen or pencil. I've even used a candy wrapper! Candy wrappers always seem to be handy. That's probably not a good thing. Anyway, I don't know how well you can see the first bookmark, it has the impression of a deer on it and says Calgary Canada. I am hoping it was gift to someone and mailed to someone in Denmark. If you live in Denmark, where the average high in the summer is a balmy 64 degrees, why in the world would you choose to vacation in Calgary? Not to dis Calgary, I have been there and it's beautiful, but if I lived somewhere cold, I'm thinking the beaches of Spain would be perfect! The next bookmark is also made of leather and says Danmark on it. Our last bookmark is handmade. That just gets me every time. I haven't the talent, nor the desire, to sit down and do crafty things. I'm glad someone else did though, very fun bookmark.

Tennyson

An article in English! Let me explain something first. When I receive books for Book Decor, I can get 6,000 to 9,000 books at a time. They do not come divided by language or age. I go through each book by hand to divide them by language and by group as I have designated them at Book Decor; Jewel Tone, Designer Mix, French, German, etc. Out of 6,000 books, I will find about 7 books that are actually in English. I am completely rotten and keep all the English language books for myself. For some reason last night, I was standing in front of my book shelf and pulled out a 1911 Poems of Tennyson. Lo and behold, out falls this article about Tennyson! I swear I have looked through this book before and found nothing. Loved that it had a picture, very Jane Austen looking. The article tells about some proof sheets for the 1856 edition of Tennyson's 'Maud' that includes pen-and-ink revisions by Tennyson. And a poem in Tennyson's writing on the title page of the book. This poem has not been found in any of his other writings. The article goes on the explain why this is likely an original by Tennyson. I thought is was lovely, so here it is.

Pleasure in false love
Blights while it charms,
Sorrow in true love
Heals where it harms.
False love maketh
Sane men sad.
True love helpeth
Even the mad.

I'm usually one that needs poetry explained to me, but this one I get. Lovely.

1946 Bergen, Germany

The year is 1946 and this is Bergen, Germany. It's beautiful, and it's nice to know people were traveling to Germany so close to the end of WWII. And, for once, the scene is not snowy. I do wish it were in color, I don't think black and white does this place justice. The name of the person who took this shot was a Enerett Eberh. B.. Oppi. After scouring the Internet for more information on the guy, all I came up with were more post cards with his name on them. Post card maker, picture taker, or artist, I will never know. Maybe it's not a person at all but a company name. Logging another mystery here on the blog. Looks like a nice place to visit though, in the summer.