Look at Books – Let’s Bring Back…

Welcome to the past. Where men used to handle their issues with swords, and women rocked white gloves. Birthday parties could be celebrated lavishly at midnight, and one’s penmanship meant something. Sigh…I love this book. It’s like pulling back the curtain on a world I’d love to have been able to be a part of (until I had to deal with my period or getting dental work done). In short, it is a candid reference book of things, people, and concepts that the author, Lesley M. M. Blume, feels should be brought back to popular culture. I couldn’t agree more. Here are just a few entries from the book:

The Barbizon Hotel for Women in New York City. Opened in 1927, it served as a safe haven/charm school/dormitory for young women (and many a young Hollywood starlet) traveling to The Big Apple alone. Ooh la la…For a fascinating look at the history of the Barbizon Hotel, see this Vanity Fair article.

The famous building has now been converted to million-dollar condos and goes by the moniker Barbizon/63. Sigh…

Dunce Caps. Let’s face it. If you don’t know why we need to bring these back, you need one yourself. The End.

Nécessaires. Back in the day (and in this case, I mean the into the late 18th century) when travel was often unpredictable, many wealthy folk carried with them cases containing things like silver cutlery, gold scissors, and toilette accessories. If you do a Google search for “necessaires” today, you will find this has evolved into to the lowly cosmetic bag. Not quite the same at all. Oh, how I wish to whip one of these out at Applebee’s after being supplied with a poorly washed fork. “Don’t worry,” I’d say in my best Joan Crawford voice, “I’ve brought my own.” Then POW! Voila…

The Palmer Method of Penmanship. Handwriting used to mean something. The care and execution of a beautifully written note or letter spoke volumes about one’s demeanor and upbringing. A beautiful cursive form was like sex on paper. No more. It’s all text fonts in weird acronym lingoes and emoticons. Not to mention the outright (yet ridiculously convenient) travesty that is the e-vite. Now, am I a total hypocrite? Well, yes! LOL – I haven’t sent a paper product via US Mail since the 90’s, and I was a little late the party as it was! BUT! I still think we need to stop the chicken scratch and busy typing and go back to the simple, carefully choreographed bliss that was proper cursive penmanship. Because I truly believe that a capital ‘Q’ should look like a giant fancy ‘2’.

By the way, if you don’t agree, check this out, and then go here and practice already…:) Let’s do this.

Serious loveliness…

Tangee Lipstick. Still in production after seventy years, this is that inexpensive orange lipstick that goes on clear and changes color until it becomes the perfect shade for you. I don’t know – sounds like cosmetic magic gold to me, and the reviews on the Vermont Country Store website where it is still sold seem pretty solid. Done and done. I don’t see how any lipstick manufacturers could even compete with this…

Hmm…I’ll keep you posted.

Again, I can’t say enough as to how entertaining this book was, as well as educational. I will be ordering her other editions as well, which include:

What would you bring back?

The Inappropriate Past, Pt. 3 – Looking at Literature

7 / 24 / 128 / 6 / 14

Needless to say, when I saw the copy of Christian Girl’s Problems: Manners and Morals for Christian Girls (Bertrand Williams, 1946) at the rental house we were staying at in Colorado with friends, I walked around reciting bits aloud to anyone who would listen, pausing only to pass it off to someone else to do the same. I will warn you, that this discussion does take a candid look at some highly sexual notions from the late 1940’s. I will use direct quotes that may offend sensitive readers. Then there’s the rest of us…

Firstly though, let me say that I take no issue with the Christian religion. People are entitled to their beliefs and I have the utmost respect for anyone’s choice. What I do like to explore in this book are the outdated notions of proper behavior for a young lady, the downright improper comparison of a girl’s physicality in relation to success in love and life, and the dramatic ways in which the author chooses to describe situations of moral ambiguity. In short, it’s a hoot…

Here are some quotables:

“Don’t make yourself common with all the boys by petting…Be natural with boys, but make them keep their distance. They will want to maul you and paw you with their hands. But your warning must always be, ‘Hands off!'”
“You should never allow a girl to explore the secrets of your body, and on the whole it is better to keep your body covered in the presence of your girl companions. Many high schools require girls promiscuously to take their showers in groups. This is a bad practice, and one you and your parents should fight to a bitter finish.”
“Capitalize on your defects…If you are homely, make up for it in charm and graceful movements.”
“Woman’s work may be broadening, but her sphere remains in the home, and the girl who will be happiest in the future will be the one who knows how to build a charming atmosphere for her husband and the children who will bless her life.”
“Doctors tell us that ninety per cent of the boys practice at one time or another self-abuse, and more than sixty-five per cent of the girls engage in this habit…This habit drains from your body vital fluids which nature demands to build a graceful and healthy body, and when you practice it, you are threatening your future.”

You should know that each chapter includes scenarios of the good handling of situations like the ones mentioned above, juxtaposed against scenarios of poor decisions. It is amusing to say the least. I have not yet decided whether to sell my copy yet or not…thoughts?

Vintage Ideals – Food is Love

8 / 31 / 118 / 6 / 14

Ah…the family dinner. Is there any notion more comforting than the family gathering around the table for a hot, delicious, home-cooked meal?

“Mmm, Mom, this roast is delicious!”

“Glad you like it, Bobby. Now take your baseball hat off at the table, son.”

Then each member of the family would gaily recount the day’s events, wonderful as they were.

“I hit a homerun!”

“I got an A on my spelling test!”

“I got the Henderson account, honey!”

Oh, can’t you just see the gleam in their eyes? No?

Maybe you’re a child of the seventies and eighties, like myself. Most family dinners were fish sticks and canned corn or Happy Meals, between soccer and mom’s Aerobics class. Or maybe when you did sit down to dinner, it was only to glare across the table to your evil older brother or bore everyone with the details of Star Search (the original American Idol).

I’m a mother myself now. And I find myself doing the exact things my mom did, when I’m sure we both hoped for the scenario up top. Is it possible? In this day and age? How? Can we stop and remember that food can be love and life in itself and that our families are so worth it?

In her book, A Homemade Life, Molly Wizenberg shows how to do just that. A beautiful food memoir, Molly demonstrates through recipes how our lives are (or can be) so intertwined with food and meals that some of our best memories are born from experiences with cooking and food. Touching, romantic, funny, beautiful, and sad, this book is a wonderful journey through a life as seen through the kitchen. I found myself wanting to make recipes I would never had given a second thought to because of the life and personality Molly provides them through written word. Braised cabbage? Sounds beautiful. Thanks, Molly.

Want pictures and more of Molly’s recipes? Check out her wonderful blog at: http://orangette.blogspot.com/

Did you read this? What did you think? What’s your favorite food memoir?