June 14, 2011 – Bear Flag

165 years ago today, in 1846, Sonoma experienced the Bear Flag Revolt and the declaration of the California Republic. The short-lived republic lasted less than a month until California was “annexed” by the United States during its war with Mexico. Mexican historians would likely tell a different version of this bit of history. Although all parties involved tend to ignore the native Californians who had been living here for thousands of years before any Europeans arrived.

The lasting legacy of the Bear Flag Revolt is our state flag. Our flag is a modern version of the flag designed in 1846 by William Todd. It featured the red star from a lone star flag from an earlier rebellion in 1936. The 1846 flag had the addition of a grizzly bear, a red bar and the words California Republic. Hypothetically, if we were to have our own country, California has a ready-made flag bearing the name California Republic. It’s been our official flag since 1911.

My favorite part of the Bear Flag’s history might be this little bit I found on wikipedia:

In 1953, the design and specifications for the state flag were standardized in a bill signed by Governor Earl Warren. The Californian state flag is often called the "Bear Flag" and in fact, the present statute adopting the flag, Gov. Code 420, states: "The Bear Flag is the State Flag of California."

Code 420 indeed! I love California.

June 13, 2011 – Aerogramme

1) Fold first at notches, 2) Second fold, 3) Seal top flap last.

This is what you did with an aerogramme after you had filled it with as much information as possible. Nice tight small handwriting or a typewriter really helped. I found some unused aerogrammes from 1984 today. These were the special ones with an Olympic theme. In those days they cost 30¢. It was the cheapest way to send a lot of information overseas. They were franked with postage and designed to be folded-up, licked and sealed. The backside made it’s own envelope and the rule was you couldn’t put anything in side. In some countries you could buy aerogrammes in stationary stores and affix stamps to them. They were ideal for broke students and also immigrants. It was an inexpensive way to send a letter back home. And, as there were never any additional contents, the mail was not as likely to be stolen in countries with a less than reliable postal service. It all harkens back to the days when receiving a personal letter was a pleasant event. About five years ago the U.S. Postal Service decided to let the current stock run out because there hadn’t been any demand for aerogrammes in many years. I can’t remember the last time I sent an aerogramme, it’s been over 20 years.

June 12, 2011 – Sunday Afternoon

There are a number of pleasant distractions for a Sunday afternoon here in the Bay Area. Yet, if I were in Madrid, I could add bullfighting to the list. I actually have never been to a bullfight and really have no interest in seeing one. Yet there is something I find compelling about the imagery. When it’s depicted in an Almodóvar film, bullfighting becomes downright glamorous. I wonder if there is an artist somewhere in Spain who would look towards America and say the same about NASCAR? I suppose it is always possible to see something in a foreign culture that is not really there, but that would be a stretch. The imagery of bullfighting in art always draws me in as well. Can a corpse be stunning? It can if it is Édouard Manet ‘s painting of a dead bullfighter. Today’s inspiration and material came from something a little more ordinary — some vintage bullfighting postcards and a ticket to a bullfight in Madrid on a Sunday afternoon 50 years ago.

June 11, 2011 – Frozen Desserts

This is the time of the year when we are reminded that San Francisco is a different place. In a different country called America it is hot and summery. Friends and family there start complaining about the heat. They are either are incredulous, annoyed or both when we casually mention putting the heat on here n San Francisco. Our summer rule is never leave the house without layers, lots of layers.

For all those folks cooking away in America, it’s time for something summery like a frozen dessert. The manual from a 1950’s Coldstar Refrigerator has all sorts of recipes for “delicious” frozen treats. Every desert seems to involve jello. Snow pudding calls for gelatin, sugar, and beaten egg whites. One of these days, when I am feeling particularly ambitious, I’ll have to host a dinner party only using vintage, 1950’s recipes.

June 10, 2011 – Land of Georgia

There is a Georgia as in the former Soviet Republic and there is Georgia in the South, but then there is the Land of Georgia as in Georgia O’Keeffe. New Mexico is the Land of Georgia, or as I prefer to call it, The Holy Land.

This week I bought a kid’s Georgia O’Keeffe art book at the dollar sale on the library steps. All but discarded, I could use it for collage without any guilt. Dissecting and repositioning pieces of her paintings is an interesting exercise in Art History. I quickly realized that in some ways, everything she painted was a landscape. You see it in the flowers you see it in the skulls.

Unfortunately I hear too many people dismiss Georgia O’Keeffe. Yes, her work is very popular. It’s also been over reproduced in the world of calendars and greeting cards. But you know why people love the work? It’s really good. It is a silly type of snobbery just to dismiss an artist solely because her work is popular. And if you know New Mexico, and you can’t be there at the moment, one of Georgia O’Keeffe’s paintings has the power to take you right back. You can feel the summer heat, sense the stillness and you and maybe you can even smell the smoke drifting across the state right now.

June 9, 2011 – My First and Favorite CD

Even back to the days when albums still meant vinyl, I always have purchased and listened to music the same way. Depending on how much I like the album, I tend to play it constantly for a period of days or weeks and move on to the next “new” thing. The ones I really like stay in rotation and make gradual reappearances. I do not think I am unique in the pattern. Ironically, the first CD I ever purchased 20 years ago, the day I bought a CD player, remains an all time favorite that I still listen to regularly. It was a release called The Legendary João Gilberto. The CD contains 38 original bossa nova tracks recorded between 1958 and 1961. It is perfect and flawless. A few years back I was able to see João Gilberto in concert, or I should say, bask in his presence. Today is João Gilberto’s 80^th Birthday. Feliz aniversário!

June 8, 2011 – Caverns

I always like a good cavern or cave tour — the colors, the cool, wet air, stalagmites and stalactites. If they make you wear a hard hat, it even feels like more of an adventure. But if it’s serious spelunking, I’ll pass. That’s what PBS and National Geographic are for.

I bought a whole bunch of postcard booklets on my latest Vintage Paper Fair excursion. I really love these things. I even made a series of handmade one-of-a-kind postcard booklets in 2009. One of my latest acquisitions was a postcard booklet from the Caverns of Luray in Virginia.

The postcard booklet used for this piece was mailed in August 1941 to Mrs. Zraleny at her home in Pittsburgh (see below). I was curious – the house still stands on Lotus Way in Pittsburgh (thanks Google Streetview). The surname Zraleny seems to have vanished (it’s not on Goggle). It might be one of those names that was altered and Americanized in the last 70 years.

I have never been to Luray Caverns. I might just need to take a trip to Virginia.