Author: kerbey

1960s, Culture, Fun, Funny, High School, History, Humor, Nostalgia, Photography, Pics, Vintage, Youth

Water, Water Everywhere

kerbey

The ’64-’65 school year in Alexandria, Virginia may have had some rainy days, but the students at Hammond High School made do. Whether it was tromping through puddles on the way to third period…

… or splashing dirty water upon their teammates, they persevered.

Yet even when the sun came out, they still seemed obsessed with water.

Perhaps it was simply cleanliness they craved, like rinsing the grime off the fins of a car.

Perhaps they wanted to watch their garden grow.

It appears the campus was never dry.

Even when they left campus, it was for water.

Class of ’65, don’t fall in!!

Art, Austin, Culture, Fun, Funny, Nostalgia, Photography, Pics, Vintage

Browsing the Antique Mall

kerbey

A bouffanted, bespectacled lady side-eyed us soon after we entered the Austin Antique Mall. She rocked a sombrero better than a nearby cheetah rocked his cowboy hat.

We perused aisles of knick-knacks, some of which made zero sense, like this limber colonial.

Large, upright sound systems beckoned us, but we hadn’t the cash for them, snazzy as they were–and just my style.

Some rooms we only glanced into, fairly certain we didn’t need such breakable wares.

Toys abounded.

My husband recognized this from his boyhood.

Other finds proved wearable, like this skull dress and peacock boots (perhaps not worn together).

Some items were on the verge of extinction, like this cigarette machine.

We rounded the corner past a Koken barber chair and a disturbing Buster Brown.

The Savior himself seemed to be saying, “Enough shopping already.” His mom stayed silent.

That was good enough for us. Our wallets remained in our back pockets and we left the remaining vendor stalls for another day.

1940s, Austin, College, Culture, Food, Fun, History, Nostalgia, Photography, Pics, Texas, Vintage

Dine & Drug

kerbey

While it would seem curious now to make plans to meet up with friends at your local Walgreens or CVS, time was when drug stores had soda fountains and lunch counters.

These University of Texas students enjoyed coffee with friends, exchanging notes and cramming for tests, with a view of pills and potions behind the glass at Home Drug in 1948. Today, these brown bottles might prove too tempting for thieves, and certainly not appetizing for patrons in the booths. Did y’all ever drink a soda or take in a BLT at the local drugstore?

1970s, Austin, Culture, Fun, History, Nostalgia, Photography, Pics, Texas, Vintage

Clarice’s Tavern

kerbey
Round Rock, Texas, early 70s

Seated at the glossy counter is owner Mrs. Clarice DeBack, surrounded by her wares, transistor radio, and packs of smokes, all beneath the Jax beer sign (the mellow brew). The tavern served bar-b-q, sausage, chili, and burgers. I imagine at one time, this tavern ranked among Oldenburg’s “great good places.”

Culture, Fun, Funny, Hair, Humor, Nostalgia, Photography, Pics, Style

When She Hairsprays Your Lips Instead

kerbey
America 24/7, shot by Jim Burger, 2004

Now, look, before you criticize the style, let me just say that’s pretty dang close to how my hair looks in the morning. It takes a LOT of work to get it tamed, and I imagine that’s why Evelyn Bartkowiak visited Phyllis’ Hair Design in Baltimore every other week. I feel you, Evelyn. Actually, thanks to a quick interwebs search, I was able to see that Evelyn passed in 2016, and not only did her obituary include her work as a welder in airplane cockpits in WWII, but a dazzling smile (thanks to the accompanying 16 minute video included, of all 96 years of her life). Cheers to Evelyn for a life well-lived!

1940s, College, Culture, Fashion, Fun, Hair, History, Nostalgia, Photography, Pics, School, Style, Vintage

Swope Is A Real Last Name

kerbey
University of Kansas, 1941

Delta Sigma Theta was founded 99 years ago at Howard University. This chapter of ladies studied as Jayhawks in Kansas. While Greek life itself has never mattered to me, what does matter is pictures. And I love this one. Not just the dresses and the hair and the double strand of something too jagged to be pearls, but I love old people names. Oreta, Betty Lou, Ivor, Cozetta, and even Dymple. Look at them subbing in Y’s 80 years ago, like they do today. (Think Kyndyll instead of Kendall.) And of course, there’s Dorothy Swope. I bet she traded that surname for another in the next five years, but on this day, in that dress, she was a Swope.

Yearbooks offer windows of potential. Young people on the precipice of adulthood, away from home, focusing their career paths, making friends, falling in love. Who knows what these women accomplished, how many people today remember their names? Maybe one reached 100 and still exists. But now they’re on the internet, forever preserved in youth, smiling in a time before Pearl Harbor, not knowing what would come.

1950s, Advertising, Art, Celebrities, Culture, Fun, History, Nostalgia, Style, Vintage

We Had It All (We Had It All)

kerbey
1954

… just like Bogie and Bacall. ♪♫♫ While sparking up may have been a turn on for his much younger 4th wife, Bogey’s health would head south soon after this ad. Turns out smoking’s not good for your lungs. But they sure looked cool at the time.

Esophageal cancer was his diagnosis, which led to surgery, and included removal of his esophagus, two lymph nodes, and a rib. Ouch! Bogie wasted down down to 80 lbs and passed away in early ’57. Lauren Bacall smoked for decades and died just shy of 90. Life’s funny that way.