A non-facebook past life.
August 15, 2023
Rediscovering Vintage Photographs
During the past month, I have been helping my mom clean and sort boxes, in the attic, garage, basement and all the nooks and crannies in our home so we can eventually have a garage sale. It has been a journey — needless to say some finds have been extremely helpful in remembering the stories of my "youth" 🤣. I now have a shelf dedicated to photos albums and a massive amount of film envelops to sort through.
Do you know how quickly any projects can quickly be derailed by finding old photos?
VERY quickly.
Hidden in the garage attic; my art table made by my grandfather, all his darkroom gear, and two extremely heavy boxes of yearbooks and photo albums. I'm just glad that many of the photos I have of my 20s-30s were and will remain tucked into these photo albums and nowhere to be found in an online world. Photos of friends in the past, clothing and hairstyles of the 80s and 90s, and many trips taken to celebrate milestones.
My first catamaran trip.
My first visit to Los Angeles.
My second white water rafting trip.
My first visit to the Guggenheim.
These few photos are like miniature time machines tucked away in paper envelopes, rediscovered joy. Adventures that had apparently packed their bags and moved into the basement of my brain.
I found 2 scrapbooks that I had supposedly started and never finished, like many of my projects or “distractions”. These portals into the past whisked me back to a time when shoeboxes of photographs held the promise of endless enchantment whenever I stayed at my grandparents. As soon as I would get bored. I would head to the hunch and pulled out one of the 10 or so long skinny shoeboxes filled with small squarish prints my grandfather had made.
My pile of envelopes were very much unorganized but showed photos of trips we’d taken as a family, photographs of my entire high school life shared between my two loves, choir and art. Those “ I wonder what they are doing” thoughts flashed by, wishing that in someway we would have stayed in touch better.
Its tendrils weaved through the tapestry of my thoughts and emotions, inviting both tears and smiles. Photos of family no longer around, but hearing their laugh or seeing their face when I close my eyes. Nostalgia. I have been wrapped in it’s warm embrace and dripping in its tears over the last few weeks. That cozy feeling on a hug that lasts for a few moments longer. The yearning for a not to love in the past but to wish that my current had this feeling. Somedays it does.
Procrastination — my achilles heel.
One of the many things I left in LA was a trunk that has all of my negatives, some prints and artwork. This fall “I'm hoping” to take a trip west and pick up the things I had left behind. There are so many projects that need to be completed.
I’ve got to STOP procrastinating and watch some YouTube videos so I can understand how to reseal an RV Window. A small leak began this spring which I was able to temporarily seal so it didn’t cause any damage. Of the many things I've learned RV are definitely not of the same solid construction. I’m handy-ish, which means I know enough to get me in trouble. This also means I know my limits when It comes to taking on tasks.
I love learning new things but sometimes the tasks are overwhelming and extremely daunting and I have put off this task all summer.
I’ve got to STOP putting things off that need to be done so I can get back on the road.
I’ve got to STOP - stopping one project to take on the next and then not getting to that that project I was working on again for weeks. It’s not productive - I waste time and it’s beginning to irritate me. I have a fantastic idea for my Etsy shop, but that idea required creating it, then determining how I can make it, what materials I need. What printer I need to drop a few hundred on. What photos I need to mass produce for upcoming art shows (yes, I am diving in head first). What tables I need, what information I need. Setting up square, dedicating the time to actually create the final product. Ordering bags for customers, or recycling the ones I already have. The list is freakin ENDLESS. It’s feels overwhelming, but I know once I have it dialed in. It will make sense.
Hartville Flea market — HERE I COME!!
On the list:
2 Foldable and Light Tables
2 Chairs
Table cloths
Calculator
Tent?
Bins to carry products
Prints 11x14, 8x10 and 5x7
3 Display Bins
3 Canvas Samples
1 Metal Sample
Packaged, printed, sealed and ready for purchase.
Other handmade art, creations and work I designs
Square Payment / eCommerce Drop-Ship options.
Bags
a URL display
Speaking of…
I’m behind…nothing new — my plan is to always “try” and get a blog post up by 10am on Tuesday. This week’s chaos begins with a plan to have a garage sale. The last couple of weeks we’ve been working on getting things out of the house and into the garage. Needless to say - I wasn’t actually told the date, if I was - well I didn’t hear it. So I’m off to create signs, help price and literally get a pop-up store ready.
#tuesdayswithjoy
