Category: Pics

Bienvenido A Miami, Part Tres

Miami016

First off, let’s give thanks to the hardworking yearbook photographers, who not only captured this great winter wonderland, but would have had to do serious bicep work to carry those old school cameras.

Remember that this was an era before Liquid Paper. Imagine all the retyping that had to be done.

workgettingdidThe editor proofs some copy, smoking what appears to be a redskin headdress feather, but may well be a blurry pipe.

Miami018And check out the fly neckties on these fellows.

staffCheers to the yearbook staff of the 1949 Recensio–may you all have your own blogs on WordPress, if you are still alive.

Real Icicles On Our Fake Icicles

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When the sky becomes so cold that water becomes a solid, that sky needs to go away. That sky needs to summon the sunlight and warm it up to a temperature in which a human can function. Whipping biting bone-chilling wind is the devil, especially when one is trying to pump one’s overpriced gasoline into one’s aging Japanese car. Give me 110 degrees over this any day.

004Okay, Canada. Okay, Yankees up there above the Mason-Dixon line. Bring it. Tell me what a wuss I am and how awesome it is to ski in frosty weather, and how your snowman is the bomb. Tell me 20 degrees ain’t nothin’, that you’ve skinnydipped in Arctic waters and liked it and you can hardly wait to do it again. No, thank you.

http://z1073.com/shes-wicked-cold-outside-photos/
http://z1073.com/shes-wicked-cold-outside-photos/

The weatherman predicts colder weather in the morrow, but really, does it matter? Cold is cold. And he’s not losing his job even if it turns out to be cloudy with a chance of meatballs.

weather

Bienvenido A Miami, Part Dos

H.S. Thobe psyching the crowd up.
H.S. Thobe psyching the crowd up.

Part of the university experience is college ball, and Miami University is no different. Here comes the marching band, flanked by costumed Redskins.

Miami011And just watch how excited the crowds look this Saturday morning! How about that Christmas sweater smack dab in the middle?

Miami010How could they possibly lose with these guys on their team?

Miami012Let’s don’t forget about the ladies, getting their lacrosse on.

Miami013But some prefer to stay indoors and bowl in the air conditioned bowl-o-rama.

Miami014And certainly don’t mess with the gals on the archery team. They’ll shoot your eye out.

Miami015

Bienvenido A Miami, Part Uno

When you think of Miami, you probably think of Miami, Florida. I do. Or the Will Smith song that speaks of the coastal city. You probably don’t think of Miami University in Ohio, of all places, where this picture was taken in 1949. Here is a portrait of dorm life–before cell phones, before TV, before rock ‘n’ roll–where women could look attractive in penny loafers and saddle oxfords instead of 5″ stiletto stripper heels.

Miami001I’d never even heard of Miami University, the 10th oldest public university in the United States. The university, which offered classes in 1824, existed long before Miami, Florida was incorporated as a city in 1896. And that’s one to grow on!

It means you just learned something.
It means you just learned something.

These fellas seem to be enjoying campus life as well. They didn’t need no stinkin’ Blu-Ray or mobile apps to be content.  Just a book and a lamp and some swanky robes. Miami002

At the time, the mascot was the Miami Redskins, but a politically correct climate necessitated a change to the Miami Redhawks. Lame.

redhawks

Back then, it was also cool to smoke, especially while sunbathing–or turning your skin red. Yes, I said it.

smokingNowadays, it’s inadvisable to start a family while in college. And who could afford it under this administration anyway? But in the post-war years, students were often married and raising families. And evidently living in ramshackle cabooses with picket fences built by unskilled laborers.

Miami004This next gathering is a group of gals in the “Outing Group.” It’s not what you think; they went on picnics and hikes together over frostbitten leaves. And apparently, they were keen on swastikas as well.

Miami005Perhaps after a long day of hiking and antisemitic rallies, the girls would hit the town. ( To be fair, swastikas meant “it is good” for years before the Nazi party used it. Let’s take it back, people!). Downtown Oxford, Ohio offered up restaurants as well as a movie theater.

Recensio49005The Miami-Western Theatre (oooh, the British spelling!) prided itself on being the only diversion in a “rather dull town.”

Miami007No worries if you spilled soda pop or melted Junior Mints on your glad rags at the cinema; you could just take them on down to Redskin Cleaners.

Miami008

They’ll clean your dirty cords.

Stay tuned for Part Dos!

Christmas Mold

jelloI don’t suppose Santa would prefer a jiggling foot-high Jell-O mound to a batch of warm Tollhouse Cookies, but it’s better than nothing–and low on calories. Although I would never allow my toddler to sleep under a table for safety reasons, I can confirm that the pose is a common one for children, as though they were kneeling in prayer and simply toppled forward. My concern is the rodent in a cradle on the mantle. ‘Twere I Santa, I would question the hygiene of the home and pass on the gelatin altogether.

Let’s Hear It For The Tigers

1956 Pitahaya Cheerleaders
1956 Pitahaya Cheerleaders

I love this shot for these reasons:

  • the joy on the faces of the cheerleaders
  • the animated boys in the background, chock full of increasing testosterone, apparently holding up the roof with their palms
  • the cat’s eye glasses
  • the multiracial shoulders jam-packed against one another
  • the unadulterated glee on that girl’s face to the far left, and her friend who should have had a V-8
  • the girl on the far right with her hand to her chest, as well as the boy above her clasping his hands, both of them silently saying, “MY stars…”

I was born in the wrong decade.

Autumn in the Highland Lakes

Sans Souci 085A month ago we booked a lakeside rental along the Highland Lakes, not knowing if the week of Thanksgiving would be a balmy 90 degrees as in days of yore, or a frosty 29 degrees, as in other days of yore. One never knows in Texas. As the preschool teachers are fond of saying, “You get what you get, and you don’t get upset.” A nice sentiment, but not quite as catchy as, “Zip it, lock it, and put it in your pocket.”

As it turns out, what we got when we arrived two days ago was not sunny and hot; but what Winnie the Pooh might term a very blustery day indeed, with temps near freezing, and drizzle to boot. However, the foliage was stunning, as far as dying Texas leaves can be, so were not entirely disappointed by the dreariness of the weather.

And although we did not dare to jump into the lake, we did get to glimpse it as we drove along the meandering hills.

Always take your cameras, dear readers. We are older today than yesterday, and our memories fade as we go.