October 28, 2011 - Recycle to Rufus

This week I am back on Cape Cod helping mom get ready to emigrate to the Golden State. 36 years in a big New England House with a lot, a lot of stuff. Much of it is packed and we’re selling plenty more. The attic had a few hundreds albums (for you kids, albums were a big disk of vinyl that a magical needle would be used so you could listen to music in the olden days). We found someone who took them all away today. They were much loved and many were played hundreds of times. But if I want the song now, I’ll just download it.

Out of the rack I pulled out the Rags to Rufus album (back when Chaka Khan was singing with Rufus). The cover was a photo collage of images of embroidered denim. All us cool kids had moms who embroidered denim for us. So today for the 2011 Project, a bit of recycled Rufus.

June 30, 2011 – The Adventure People

Because today was such a nice day, it seemed right to take the Adventure People out for a little photo shoot. Until last summer, they were lost in an attic on Cape Cod. The Fisher-Price Adventure People finally made it to the West Coast where they can go hiking in their sensible shoes and have, well, adventures. The Adventure People were Carter-Era toys that looked suspiciously like the Village People. Back from the days when they saved endangered species, joined the Peace Corps and put up solar panels. It was an era when Barbie learned math and GI Joe had a beard.

More photos from their adventures can be seen here.

May 22, 2011 – 8 Tracks

Remembering 8 Track Tapes always makes me cautious when the latest iGadget comes along. When my friends are a buzz over some new thing I reflexively make the same cynical remark over and over, “It’s the new 8 Track….” Once in a while I am even right. When you think of how large and clunky an 8 track was and the amount of music we now can fit into such a small little device, it is pretty cool. The way we acquire, store and play music has radically changed in the last 30 years and especially in the last 10 years. Yet with all the changes, we still are listening to the same music that used to be available on 8 Tracks. Well, not always, I can’t imagine many people are still listening to the Bay City Rollers or Tony Orlando.

March 3, 2011 – Banana Seat

I had a different idea for a piece in mind for today. Then I came across this sample of naugahyde. Blue glitter naugahyde to be more specific. What sort of fabulous cow must have produced this stuff? I’ve been saving it for a future project for a few years. It’s a sentimental thing – my first bike had a blue glitter naugahyde banana seat. The bike is long gone. Even if the bike still sat in some basement on the East Coast, I’d have the good sense not to ride it anymore. I know some folks think that it’s hip and cool to ride old, little kid bikes. For me, it’s just kind of silly. As silly as if I tried to fit my size 13 feet into an old pair of size 7 keds. It’s not going to happen. But I do have to say, the first time around, the banana seat was cool.

January 29, 2011 – Afro

Is the Afro back? I have some old class photos from the 7th Grade. Anyone can laugh a little at the outfits we wore, and if we’re talking the 1970’s, the hair always dates the photo. My shaggy mop of big hair is one thing, but nothing beats some of my African-American classmates. Afros so big they expanded to the borders of the photo filling out their respective little rectangles. One of my 12 year old pals has let his hair grow out. It is getting pretty big. A few more months and he may fill out the picture too.

Yes, it looks likes the Afro is back…