Top Ten List - Mementos of a Summer Vacation (Part Two - 6 to 4)

Top Ten List - Mementos of a Summer Vacation (Part Two - 6 to 4)

Below are three more summer mementos in the list.

6.Shopping Bargains.  Remember to hit the outlet mall and find your super large beach towel, leather handbag or fine crystal to showcase your vacation shopping talents.  And how about Christmas in July - stock up now and be ready to avoid those December crowds.  You can also shop the local craftspeople and their stores for beautiful jewelry and crafts.

5.Seashells and other creatures.  In addition to seashells there may be starfish and urchin to bring back from the sea. Collect every day and decorate beach style at home.  Some will be lucky enough to even discover a  beach conch shell.  Find  information on beach shells at this link http://www.travelandleisure.com/articles/10-best-us-shelling-beaches.

4.Hats.  One of my favorite hat mementos was a Detroit Pistons black "bad boy" cap that was actually given as a gift on my return home at the airport from a working vacation. Yet, I enjoyed seeing it worn almost as much as the wearer.  Ultimately and regretfully, it was torn up most thoroughly through frequent wear.  Another favorite memento of almost archetypal status is my rice farmer hat woven from straw.  It was a real not tourist item that I used for actual sun protection abroad until finally sporting it on my arrival back home at Dulles airport.  I show a picture of this favorite sun hat in tribute to the many workers who used these hats daily for sun protection in Asia.  They really work quite well. 

To be continued...
And for other great summer top ten lists see this link http://www.orbitz.com/blog/category/top-10-lists/.

Top Ten List - Mementos of a Summer Vacation (Part One - 10 to 7)

Top Ten List - Mementos of a Summer Vacation (Part One  - 10 to 7)

This post starts a series on the things that help remind of the pleasures of summer.  It is a guide to trinkets and take homes of all types that reflect the best of summer leisure.

10.Candy and other foodstuffs.  Certain kinds of candy have become happy symbols of  the sun and fun of a summer vacation.  One of these specialities is salt water taffy a favorite memento of a summer break spent on the Atlantic ocean and often brought back to the office for quick consumption by those who stayed behind to man the trenches.  For another sticky memento there is that famous treat of the summer, cotton candy, often found at the local fair or amusement park. These sweets are short lived but welcome reminders of summer's joys.

9.Pencils, Pens and Paperweights.  At least some of us have returned home from summer break with favors to adorn our desks.  That pencil with the funny eraser top and the  brightly colored embossing proclaims the perfect destination and reminds one that only a little while ago the vision glimpsed a sparkling pool  with float instead of an office desk.  And there are always snow globes to delight with a fast shake of the plastic flakes suspended in liquid. These mementos create a personal desk top environment with the flavor of your vacation paradise, as one eases back into a  work day routine.

8.Postcards (unsent).  Those fine photographs need not always be sent off with that accompanying  "wish you were here" sentiment.  Instead it is fun to save a few cards for a personal collection and display some shots randomly to gently remind of the glory of a favorite summer locale.  And I like to remember to save a couple of brochures and tour maps to plan return travel for another summer.

7.Keychains.  For an everyday reminder of summer travel this is the choice for a take home memento.  Fire up the car engine in the dead of winter with a smile and look forward to returning to the warm climate of your summer vacation.  And if time allows go early and make it a spring break - why wait until the summer. 

To be continued....

More Inspirational Plaques (Business Affirmations)

More Inspirational Plaques (Business Affirmations)

Sometimes words of inspiration are posted as reminders of purpose and passion in a small business.  These collections both inform and provide connections between a staff and a clientele.  The plaques in this post show that there is a sense of humor alive and well at the enterprise where they are displayed.  I leave to the reader to guess the nature of the business.  It should not be too hard to figure out - proof that these are powerful business emblems in small packages. With this post, I send wishes of prosperity to my readers including small business owners. May the words of wisdom and humor in these mementos reach out to you.

Love Mementos - Plaques of Affirmation and a Decorative Plate

Love Mementos - Plaques of Affirmation and a Decorative Plate 

Love

Decorative Plate

Serenity Prayer

The decorative plate in the photos shows a happy home in bright primary colors. It was given to me in my early years as a homemaker when I was beginning to build the physical and spiritual foundation to raise a family.  It has over the years served as a quiet beacon of the goals of the work put forth to provide stability and encouragement to family members. The other two items are plaques which affirm the spirit with encouraging words and ask for patience while providing understanding and wisdom.  These were also gifts to me and are symbols of fond bonds with close friends and family.  May these mementos bring thoughts of your blessings too in your own home and hearth.

Decorative Plate with Happy Home

Wooden tulips (fools in love and money)

Wooden tulips (fools in love and money)

Pink and Blue Wooden Tulips in Stoneware Vase

 Pink and Blue Tulip

My wooden tulips are special mementos purchased by me as symbols of that flower given at times by a fool in love.  In the photo they sit in a very old pottery piece glazed also in my favorite colors of  pink and blue. These blossoms seem symbolic of that kind of youthful love or infatuation that has no real foundation but brightly blooms in the spring each year.  The wooden flowers were bought as a gentle reminder of the short life span of this kind of love.  Funny as well that one of the most foolish investment boom and bust stories in history was centered around tulip bulbs. Yes, innocence takes the same path whether with money or love -  fast up and down. 

Wooden Tulips Fools in Money and Love

For more on tulip crazes see http://www.investopedia.com/features/crashes/crashes2.asp and for the language of flowers go to http://www.languageofflowers.com/flowermeaning.htm.

Summer Solstice Thoughts (and Polished Stones)

Summer Solstice Thoughts (and Polished Stones)

Polished Stones

Mementos of nature's beauty, at first glance the polished stones in this post seem not to rise to the level of an artifact.  But further thought reveals that these sophisticated versions of rocks represent one of our most treasured kinds of prize. Polished stones serve as some of the most important memorials. Even Stonehenge, a celebration perhaps of the solstice, is pure massive stone carved and raised to the sky.  And what of that amazing trend that took the nation by storm in the seventies. Many paid good money simply to "own" a perfectly packaged smooth round stone portending a much greater trend towards "pet" love in our country.  And significantly all of the royal and not so royal jewels that we cherish - diamonds and rubies and sapphires - are at heart simply polished gems celebrating our connection once again to nature.  I expect to enjoy the solstice on June 21st - every minute of the longest day of the summer.  Pretty stones are everywhere to be appreciated too and check here for more information on those popular rocks bought in the seventies at http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1947621_1947626_1947687,00.html. And for a summary of the history of Stonehenge go to http://www.stonehenge.org.uk/.

Polished Stones with Number Labels

Polished  Stones Name Chart

Fridge Art

Fridge Art

Fridge Art - Sunrise

Fridge Art - Sunny Day Abstract

The pieces of artwork featured in the blog today show two different approaches to the display of childhood art.  One tattered picture is casually framed by fridge magnets and shows a sunrise with happy white birds across the blue horizon.  The other piece more formally framed in black is at the abstract end with a blazing purple sun towering above a multi-color rainbow landscape. Still these two versions of the world painted by young persons in my family both represent the wonderful reassurance of youthful joy.  This type of work in childhood is treasured  by parents all over the country sometimes tucked away in boxes or albums, sometimes framed and sometimes diplayed casually.   These mementos are saved with both pride and love. The paintings also are some of the true artifacts of the American home.

Fine Dining (the Cruise Ship Dinner Menu)

Fine Dining (the Cruise Ship Dinner Menu)

One of the best mementos of fine dining is a copy of the menu from the evening.  The menu featured in today's post is a memento of a treasured meal enjoyed with friends by a close relative.  The framed menu also is an artifact that represents the best of a now much more common experience than in years past - the luxury cruise ship voyage.  The best of the best is what you hear of from passengers lucky enough to sail aboard the top of the line cruise vessels.  Along with photos and shopping bargains many bring back symbols of beautiful experiences such as this menu from a particularly wonderful night at sea.  Since I have not yet enjoyed this form of travel, I ask that readers share some of their souvenirs and tell of their experiences at sea.  And let us know was it smooth sailing all the way?

Japanese Geisha Doll circa 1978

Japanese Geisha Doll circa 1978

This beautiful Geisha was purchased on a first trip to Tokyo as a gift to a close relative. The doll is a cultural artifact showing the beautiful craftsmanship in her creation.  She is wonderful to look at from every angle much like many other art treasures from Japan including the beautiful pottery.  She is a representative of all the finesse, grace and finery that enchant a first time traveler to this country and in this culture.

 

Foreign Coinage

Foreign Coinage 

  

The traveler returning home is frequently loaded down with spare change from the countries visited. These small amounts of foreign currency seldom are exchangeable for one's local currency, or if a bank will accommodate an exchange, the rate is very disadvantageous for such small change.  Thus coins like the ones shown in this post are unwilling captives to the laws of foreign exchange and if saved over the years become small mementos of time spent in a specific nation during a certain time period. There are many coins in my collection of small coinage reflecting passage in Africa and Asia.  And for those who may still want to try to turn in their spare change for some value paid here's some links with recommendations http://traveltips.usatoday.com/can-one-exchange-foreign-currency-coins-100667.html and http://www.ehow.com/way_5285182_can-exchange-foreign-currency-coins_.html.

My Globe circa 1980's

My Globe circa 1980's

Since my younger years I have been a fan of maps and globes and their ability to educate and direct explorations to and around about places unknown.  This globe harks back to the times of my youthful travels and is for me an artifact from my experiences around the world in Africa and Asia. I used a globe to understand latitude and longitude and once to develop an around the world ticket with Pan Am picking destinations not too far off a cost effective central latitude to keep my ticket in the thousand dollar price range.  I understood the power of altitude as well to make a warm latitude cold and snowy or a sea level area dry and barren.  I still think Kenya has the most beautiful climate and geography that I ever witnessed.  Check out too that this map shows the Soviet Union as a unified block.  We have lived through and survived changing times undoubtedly.  

An excellent description of latitude and longitude is found at this link http://www.nationalatlas.gov/articles/mapping/a_latlong.html

Cloisonné Salt and Pepper Shakers and Vase from Taiwan

Cloisonné Salt and Pepper Shakers and Vase from Taiwan

The Cloisonné pieces, a vase and salt and pepper shakers, featured in today's post are less mementos and more artifacts gathered on shopping excursions while living for a year as a teacher in Taiwan.  I was not only fascinated with the fine craftsmanship shown in textile pieces in Asia, I also was attracted to pieces of painted and enameled art. These items often were sold in fancy glass walled shops in the museums and expensive hotels. The items displayed below have gained a slight patina of age, now beginning to resemble more the ancient and dynastic heritage of the pieces of this art that have survived through the ages.  I present them as small reflections of this fine work by Chinese artisans. ( A description of this paint on metal art form is found on the Metropolitan Museum website at http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/clos/hd_clos.htm.

Cloisonné Salt and Pepper Shakers

Cloisonné Vase

Cloisonné Vase Inside

 Cloisonné Vase Bottom

Salt and pepper shaker bottoms

Hong Kong and Tokyo textiles - Mianao (Coat) and Chi-pao (Dress)

Hong Kong and Tokyo textiles -  Mianao (Coat) and Chi-pao (Dress)

The bright yellow silk coat or Mianao was purchased in Hong Kong on my first trip to Asia as a gift to a special family member several years younger than I.  It reminded me of the strength of family ties because bright yellow is the color worn in a Taiwanese funeral procession by the fifth generation, a great great grandchild. The yellow is a tag symbolizing the longevity and the fruitfulness of the loved one who has passed.  Ultimately, it was worn in my family as a similar symbol of recognition although there was no funeral involved just a school dress up occasion.  The second featured item in the photos is also from the same trip and is a brightly striped wool cowl neck dress. It was a knitwear dress fashioned in the style of a Chinese Chi-pao, a form of attire worn then as a style of formal national dress by Chinese women.  It was common back in that period for westerners to have a Chi-pao handmade as a token or memento of a trip to Hong Kong. The  traditional dresses from Hong Kong were frequently silk or silk like concoctions covered in beautiful and complex embroideries.  My version purchased in  Tokyo was very much a "lost in translation" type of memento with a flavor of both East and West.  It was very exciting to enter a Japanese department store and purchase this piece which seemed very high style in the late 1970s.  It was bright and colorful like the city in which it was purchased.  It felt like I had acquired an example of the fine craftsmanship both modern and ancient that was everywhere in Tokyo.  The dress was also a symbol like the technology in the nearby Sony store that I visited the same day that "made in Japan" was now a term of pride.  "Made in China" was soon after to go mainstream too for everything from textiles to electronics hastened by investment from businessmen all over Asia.

Fridge Magnets

Fridge Magnets

Fridge magnets are perhaps the Rodney Dangerfield of kitchen decoration; they get no respect.  Yet for young and old and everyone in between, the magnets often are a delightful walk down memory lane that sparks great conversation with the cook and the cook's family. The magnets can tell of great business connections, the accomplishments of loved ones, places travelled to and even the wit or hobbies of the kitchen inhabitants.  These tiny artifacts may quietly whisper of great goals won and dreams fulfilled.  A small memento of the past, the fridge magnet and the items it presses to the fridge, including  pictures, notes, clippings and messages are also the hints of future blessings to be lived. See the lowly fridge magnet given some respect at this link http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2338686/Collector-makes-Guinness-Book-Records-owning-whopping-45-000-fridge-magnets.html.

Mementos not artifacts (Fireflies in glass jars only for a moment) Rocks and Bug Collections

Mementos not artifacts (Fireflies in glass jars only for a moment) Rocks and Bug Collections

Ferns to Fireflies

Some collections contain precious mementos that are clearly in no way artifacts. These nature based collections might contain spiders or butterflies or sometimes just plain rocks. These groupings of pieces of nature often bring back very special memories of a wonderful find, the result of patient hours of search.  When collected in youth these treasures can inspire life long hobbies sometimes inspired by a single piece. Many a gem collector or geologist started out collecting petrified rocks or scratching through the backyard gravel for bright white stones.  And on summer evenings I am reminded of one collection that was too ephemeral to serve as a true memento.  On hot summer days in my youth, the neighborhood would gather in the evenings around the singular occupation of gathering that most marvelous of bugs, the firefly.  In the dusk of late evening with a proper mason like jar with wholes punched carefully in the top, one could create a lantern of fireflies. Friendly little light creatures, innocuous and slow enough to catch, the firefly when pursued could provide a whole evening of fun.  Yet, in the end they were best released back to the air becoming mere fleeting memories.  They provide a testament to the real collections of rocks and bugs that have lasted for their owners as lifetime mementos of nature hunts.  See more about the firefly at http://www.firefly.org/how-to-catch-fireflies.html. 

Mementos not artifacts (Pressed Flowers)

Mementos not artifacts (Pressed Flowers)

A different group of mementos spring from nature and therefore to me do not qualify as artifacts. In this group are pressed flowers. The memory of an event is encapsulated in the petals of a rose or the now withered blossoms of the once glorious corsage or bouquet. Flowers that mark our important social events are preserved for decades as a personal memento to be shared and presented for understanding to the next generation.  Sometimes the flowers are not from a formal event but rather from a pure spontaneous moment - like wildflowers picked on a quiet walk outside or from the yard.  The photo in today's post shows coasters displaying one such spontaneous gift from a young family member. These thoughts today also bring to mind the smell of honeysuckles that graced the metal fences of my childhood playgrounds and which blossomed again recently in a nearby park. These mementos not artifacts bring to mind the perpetual value of spring and summer to refresh and revitalize our hearts. Pressed flowers are joyous mementos of life and love.  

Find some special examples of the craft at these links http://www.preservedgardens.com/how-to-press.htm and http://www.pressedflowerartist.com/aspenleaf.htm.

Red Hot Tamales Luggage Tag And Speech

I was invited this spring to speak at my high school cum laude ceremony on the topic of academic excellence. My thank you token or memento took the form of a luggage tag which was fitting since my topic was the components of your virtual suitcase for the pursuit of excellence, academic and otherwise.  Here is an excerpt of the speech.  (A photo of the tag back is shown at the end of the excerpt.)

Speech excerpt

Academic excellence is also born of tedium and repetition and sometimes even isolation.  This rule that academic excellence often requires at least some monotony is seldom highlighted. Nevertheless you will find that the ability to be dedicated to learning is a quality admired in and expected from graduates of this school.... The journey is sometimes long dusty and cramped but the scenic route is sometimes worth the effort.

Also, excellence is a transferable skill.  If you learn excellence in one place it can be used in other endeavors.  Yes if you learn to climb high and deliver an A plus effort you just might repeat that again when you need to at other times. In this fashion you might see that the scholar athlete is born.

Understanding this trait of diligence and dedication is also the key to understanding your ability to make a valued contribution to your community.  No matter how bright the individual, the race is won by those with the fierceness to work to achieve at the highest levels without fear or embarrassment.  

This learning environment which exists here is one reason why there is a stamp of excellence for every graduate.  As a graduate you will have a branding which as you go forth in the world will serve you well.  Remember no one ever gets anywhere completely on his or her own.  Group travel has its perks.

Finally, seek personal satisfaction. Yes there should be something in it for you.  A smile, a discovery, something that makes you sigh with relief or shout for joy.  This component of your suitcase is where you get to throw tradition to the winds and follow your own path.  It is the pink sequin scarf that you slip in at the last minute that coordinates with everything in your travel bag. It is the source of innovators and iconoclasts.  Personal fulfillment.  

It is even better than its related cousin inspiration.  Inspiration is the overrated lightweight - satisfaction is the heavyweight contender.  Yes as Brando is so famously quoted - I could have had class. I could have been a contender.

A common mistake in academics is an over reliance on grades and a narrow vision for academic excellence.  You can meet the grade again and again.  But the key is to know why you want to be excellent.  If you know why excellence is important to you, you will be able to reach that standard in your life without regret.  

Reach for the stars but carry a map and look for your own special constellation. You will achieve meaning and purpose and academic excellence as well.

The speech closed with a quote from the poem Desiderata by Max Ehrmann; versions of the poem in translation are found at the following links: http://allpoetry.com/poem/8574007-Desiderata_-_Words_for_Life-by-Max_Ehrmann and http://www.businessballs.com/desideratapoem.htm and http://www.cs.columbia.edu/~gongsu/desiderata_textonly.html.

The Bell Collection (Part 2)

More Bells (including a desk top bell)


  

More Bells

Bells on a Ledge including Metal Bell

Bell Collection including Glass Bells

         

A few more bells are provided here from the collection featured in an earlier post.  I include an authentic desk top bell.   For a description of these mementos please refer to the initial post on June 5th -The Bell Collection.