Requiem: Chain wallet.

I was 17 when I bought this wallet from a kiosk in the mall.  For years it reminded me of boyfriend #3 because he had one too, though it was bigger than mine. Then it just became my wallet. I bought it because it was bad-assed, and I liked hooking my keys to my wallet.  I was probably in my 20s the last time I had the wallet in the pocket and the chain attached to my belt loop.  Now I appreciate the chain because I can hold the wallet and wrap the chain around my wrist, keeping my wallet and keys handily together.

Once upon a time the front had an embossed leather Harley Davidson symbol, but it fell off sometime in my 30s.

Aside from the leather giving out on one of the snaps, I've spent the last year or so worried that the pockets are too loose to hold the cards in anymore.  So it was time to shop for a new one.

Thanks to a birthday amazon.com gift card (!!) I paid $0.38 for this wallet.

Things I like:  the amount of pockets it has to hold cards, plus the bigger bill holder part (made for larger Euros, as you can see by the "money" that came with it).

Things I don't like?  The chain.  It's too thin, too long and I don't like the clip that holds my keys.  I'm going to see if a jewelry shop can swap out the old chain for the new one.

Thanks Jan! If I keep this wallet as long as I had the last one I will be 63 before I need a replacement.

Requiem: Food processor.

Oh humble and hard-working food processor, I've had you since 2001.  You were my first appliance purchased after I moved to Portland.  And now your top has disintegrated, leaving me unable to convince you to grate the Fels-Naptha to make the laundry detergent.

I'm hoping I can purchase a replacement, because your motor is still running like a champ, so this may not be a final requiem.

Requiem: Serger Needle Theader

Oh lovely needle threader, you've been with me since the first threading of this serger.  I love your large size and how many times you've come in handy, because sergers are rather difficult to thread.  I am sorry that your wire finally gave out and I had to reassign you to the dust bin. 

Requiem: dresses.

I think I found this dress at Savers, but I can't be sure. It's straight polyester of the late 60s/early 70s variety that is quite thick and sweaty and never breaks down.  The dress is SHORT.  I wore it ironically with bright green fishnet stockings and knee-high boots for "green and gold" spirit day my senior year of high school. I also had my longest false eyelashes on.  You can't get a sense of scale when it's laid out on the table like this, but looking at it today, I marveled that I had ever been that small.  It was one of the first dresses I wore when I was starting to get an idea of what powers my body had, if I dressed a certain way.

The label.

This dress was inherited from an Aunt (I can't remember if it was Pat or Carol.  The length makes me think Aunt Carol had it first because she had the legs, but the lace around the collar makes me think it was Aunt Pat's.)  It spent many years as a "dress up" dress in the dress up box.  I can remember wearing it when it came to my toes.  But I grew up and it was another high school discovery.  Also quite short.  I love the purple and orange pattern. It's pretty worn out, which is too bad.

Another brown polyester dress probably bought at the same time that yellow one was.  I don't ever remember wearing this, but I have a clear memory of H. wearing it, again ironically, for a spirit week dress up day.

Aside from the indestructible nature that comes with polyester, this has a great back zipper and, I discovered as I was searching around for a label, was homemade.

This came from the Salvation Army Thrift store and was my favorite dress for many years as a child.  I had a thing for old fashioned dresses so this was an incredible find.  I wore it for Halloween one year, and then any time I could after that.  Always for dress up.  I even fashioned hoop skirts from the circled bit of plastic that came with the lawn dart set.  This is homemade too, and still gorgeous.  If it was anywhere near fitting, I would have kept it, but someone else will get to be thrilled to find it.

Requiem: Rubber Scraper

Received for Christmas one year from my Aunt Carol ("It will not melt up to one thousand degrees! One Thousand Degrees!" she said more than once) there is also a larger green one.  It's been a handy fellow, not melting at all and very good for scraping the last bits out of the peanut butter jar.

Sadly, the silicone has given up the ghost.

Requiem: shirt and skirt

You wouldn't know it by looking at me, but I have a great affinity for clothing.  Sometimes  I look at J.K. Rowling--she of the vast wealth--and think, "Were I suddenly to find myself in a position to not think about money, I would most likely look as good as she does."  Not that it's that easy, of course, but the money does help.  I could have a good hairdresser that didn't just disappear, I could schedule Pilates sessions with Deanne, I could have someone else do the cooking, and I could hire someone to find me incredibly beautiful clothing that looked great on me.  Don't get me wrong, I think I do okay clothes-wise, but my wardrobe is quite minimal and largely consists of second-hand goods, because that's what the budget provides.

Which brings me to this shirt.  I found it in a consignment store (the spendy one I don't go to anymore, partially because we've moved and it's not in my normal trajectory of things and partially because the prices are a bit high) and loved it, both for the designer name and for the colors and the fit.  Alas, the fit is no good anymore so it needs to move on to brighten someone else's day.  The material feels great.  Quality material makes such a difference.
 

I've rarely been the kind of girl that guys notice and comment on.  This is okay by me, as I place the random guy commenting on the random girl in the category of I have named: sexist things we are hopefully moving beyond as we slowly but steadily progress to a gender-neutral society. (A girl can dream.)  I can report that guys adored this skirt.  I have never had so many random comments ("nice skirt!") as when I was wearing this.  It was bizarre, as it seemed to be no different than any other skirt I owned, none of which invited comment.  I told a friend of this strange phenomena and once she found herself walking behind me she understood and explained.  Apparently the two separate layers shift with the normal walking motion and make a rather mesmerizing spectacle.  Ah.

Good to know.  And since it doesn't fit me anymore, someone else can enjoy the ogling.

Requiem: Canon PowerShot Digital Elph

Oh beautiful camera, you are not fixable.  And this is a sad thing, because you have been my constant companion for the last six years.
 

I resisted getting a digital camera for a very long time.  I had always enjoyed film photography, though I enjoyed it less once everyone else was suddenly carrying around a camera.  Back in the day of print film, only the dorky film people with the big cameras could take the really good pictures.  I liked being one of those people.
 

But a strange thing happened when I got you, darling camera.  You were so small that I could carry you anywhere.  I never had to decide if I was going to bring the camera along because you were so small that you just came with me everywhere.  And, unlike all the small film cameras, you actually took good pictures.
 

And with the whole blog thing happening, and I had somewhere to put all those pictures I was taking aside from a drawer in my dresser.  So we spent our years together, until that dreadful day when I dropped you and you split open.

The loyal part of me wants to repair you, but the sensible part won out.  For less than the cost of repair, I now have a brand new camera.  But you were always my first, little friend.  And I won't forget you.

Final daily paper.

RIP seven day Oregonian.

Requiem: Bookmark

At some point during the Kenton Library Book Group, David, our book group leader, offered us free bookmarks he had received.  They were promoting the 2011 Jane Eyre movie and had a  picture of Mia Wasikowska and a pretty blue tassel.  Sentinel pulled off the tassel right away, but I started marking my reading goals on my bookmark and just kept using it.
 

As you can see, this carried on for quite some time.
 

Here's Mia's profile peeking out from a reading goal.

I'm taking a three-month hiatus from book group because a writing class conflicts with the time.  I'll be back in August, and I'll find a new bookmark to keep track of my progress.  This is a good time to let this bookmark move on.

Requiem: Fox 40 Classic

This is not a picture of my trusty Fox 40 classic which I have owned since the summer of 1994.  There is no picture of that beloved whistle because after years of service, I lost it.  This is the replacement.  The original was black.  In 1994 I think they only came in black, unlike today when everyone can get their favorite color.  I bought the whistle the summer I was a lifeguard at Wild Waters, which was an awful place to be a lifeguard.  We rotated from station to station all day long, spending 7.5 hours per day standing in the sun.  If I had gotten a job at a public pool I would have been outside for an hour at a time, maximum.  If I ever develop skin cancer, I will blame Wild Waters.

When guarding the water slides we had to indicate when children could go, by motioning them forward as we watched to ensure the person in front of them was far enough along that they wouldn't collide. Because of that,  "Can I go yet?" is permanently in my book as the stupidest question ever.  "If you could go yet, I would have motioned you forward." I told more than one child in an exasperated voice after hearing the question for the fiftieth time that day.

I bought the Fox 40 Classic because the regular old whistle I was issued did not stand up to the rigors that is guarding at a water park.  Watching the pool portion was the worst as it was a frothing mass of unsupervised children, many of whom didn't hear me when I whistled at them to stop whatever rule-breaking activity they were doing.  I learned quickly that if you blow a normal whistle too hard it makes a very wimpy "cccaaaa" noise that inspires laughter from the few that can hear it, while the hoodlums I was whistling at carried on with their rule breaking ways.

The Fox 40 Classic, one of my fellow lifeguards told me, never does that because there is no ball in the whistle.  The air travels through chambers.  It's pretty darn loud too.  I ponied up the then-exorbitant fee of $5.95 for my own and, wow.  That whistle gets attention.

There was only one summer of life guarding for me, but I kept the whistle around.  When I started working at an elementary school and added "recess monitor" to my duties, I pulled out my trusty Fox 40 classic.  It's been causing children to cover their ears when I blow it at recess for over six years and it deserved more than to be lost somewhere between the playground and one of the K/1 classrooms.  But that's what it got.  Sorry trusty friend.  

Requiem: Bread & Circus Sweatshirt

I worked for Bread and Circus Whole Foods Market for a few years at the turn of the century.  Every once in awhile, the managers would roll around a cart full of t-shirt or sweatshirts and every employee would get one.  It was a nice perk.  I've been wearing this one for a good ten years now, much longer than I ever worked for the company.  I've held on to it because it's easy to throw on over anything, and, it's a reminder of my time at the Fresh Pond Bread and Circus.  The color has faded a bit, but it was always a weird shade of blue.  I suspect they may have gotten a discount on a bad dye lot.  There are bleach stains and oil stains and paint from projects and at least one hole.  The neck is frayed and the sweatshirt just keeps on trucking.
 

Today is its last day, though.
 

I'll save the logos, and say goodbye to the rest.
 

Requiem: Water Bottle

I was in the observation phase of my graduate degree in education.  This meant I took the train and bus an hour each way to Aloha High School and wandered between several Social Studies classes for an entire day, never really feeling like I should be anywhere.  The Social Studies teachers (all coaches, fulfilling my history teacher stereotype*) hung out in a shared office--no one seemed to venture into the staff room.

Due to the lack of access to drinking fountains and running water, I quickly became dehydrated.  My solution?  Buy two Nalgene bottles, fill them in the morning at home and drag them with me every day.

But then the whole BPA thing came about.  I'm pretty sure these are old enough to be BPA bottles, but I can't tell because the symbol on the bottom has rubbed off.  So I finally got a new fancy glass water bottle and am retiring this one.  Matt has just adopted it for rolling out his foot.  The second water bottle I still use at school. I'll look to replacing that one soon.

*Why are US residents so incredibly ignorant of their own country's history?  Because a lot of people hated history in high school.  Every time I encounter someone who professes such hatred I ask them if their history teacher was a coach.  There is always an amazed pause and they say, "How did you know that?"  I know that because a lot of high schools fill their social studies positions with coaches.  In fact, sometimes they advertise them this way.  I couldn't apply for a Social Studies position in the David Douglas school district because I could not also coach boys' JV basketball.  Hiring this way ensures all the coaching positions are filled, but are the best Social Studies teachers being hired?  I think we have evidence that in most cases they are not.

Requiem: Hairbrush.

This hairbrush was a present in either high school or early college.  My friend Sara had a brush like it and I loved how good it felt on my scalp.  Before this brush I had been using a tight-bristled brush with a blue handle that came from Avon.  Except for periods of short hair, I've used this brush daily for a very long time.

But it's a bit worse for wear.  In college, I tried to use it as a hammer and discovered that wood, when pounded on a steel dowel, yields to the steel dowel and you get splinters.  The side you can't see has been ragged for 16 years now.  It's also losing bristles slowly but surely.  They fly off at random moments during the morning brush and Sentinel goes after them followed quickly by me, so he can't attempt to swallow them.

Getting rid of things like this is very hard for me to do.  Despite its ragged appearance and decades of hair oil buildup on the bristles, this brush still works, so I feel like I'm casting away a slightly crippled child.  On top of that, I can't donate it, because who wants a broken, crusty brush?  After I took this picture, I left the brush on the table for a good week or so, before taking it to the trash bin, thanking it for its service and tossing it in.  I feel guilty every time I drop another bag of garbage on it.

Requiem: Curtis Swimming & "wedding" dress

At Cottey College we lived in suites, a group of dorm rooms joined together by a living room, kitchen and bathroom.  At the end of the year, most suites would have Free boxes, which we wandered about taking advantage of, kind of like an early form of naked lady parties.  It was from a free box I got this sweatshirt.  I can still picture the woman who owned it previously, she was tall and blond in that reassuring Nordic way.  I wore the bajeesus out of this sweatshirt and then tried to make it last a bit longer by practicing some needlepoint on the frayed edges.  This was a great companion.

Interesting coincidence.  Cottey College is located in Missouri and when I was living in Somerville, Massachusetts, my downstairs neighbor saw me with this shirt and excitedly queried me as to where I got it. It turns out that he went to the very same Curtis High School as the original owner of this sweatshirt, though he didn't know her.
 

I call this my wedding dress as it has made appearances at many weddings.  I bought it for Teresa's wedding   in the late 90s, but that was just the first of many.  I love that it's red, form-fitting and has an interesting pattern.
 

But what I really love is the back detail with the fabulous crisscross straps.  Many other people love this detail too and have told me so.  Goodbye beautiful wedding dress.
 

Requiem: tank top, jewelry box, mirror, bag.

This was a great tank top which I bought at the Junior League Thrift Shop soon after I came to Portland, when that Thrift Shop was located downtown.  It moved (there's now a vitamin store where it used to be) and eventually closed, much to my horror as it reliably had good stuff.  There was a mattress store occupying the space, but I think that's turned over too.  I loved the stripy nature of this tank top, but I think my advancing age means I can no longer go without a bra.  And I don't care to invest in a strapless bra just for one shirt.
 

I was 18 and off to college.  My family dropped me off at my school, but before they did we stopped to visit Aunt Fran and Uncle Stacy.  At some point in the visit, Aunt Fran offered me this jewelery box.  "I thought you might want to have some place to put your jewelry," she told me.  I hadn't thought of that, and I didn't really have much jewelry, but I liked the idea and happily accepted.
 

It's been a good jewelry box and served me well. Now it's time for someone else to use it.
 

I can't remember when I bought this mirror, but it was pretty significant for a stage of my life.  It might have been the stage with roommates, when you can't spent forever in the bathroom, so some of the grooming migrates to your room.  It's a great mirror, with standard and magnifying options.
 

I find it strange how I get attached to the oddest things.  I've had this bag from the Gap for over ten years.  I can even remember the two pair of jeans that the bag transported home for me.  For years, this bag has held a leotard, tights and ballet slippers.  I've decided to let all of the objects go.  Thanks Gap bag, for being a plastic bag in my drawer for so many years.
 

Requiem: 3 shirts

A coworker at Bread and Circus gave this to me for my birthday one year.  At the time, I was wearing army pants with inserts of plaid down the side seams (it was the late 90s.) She thought this shirt would go nicely with those pants.  I disagreed (too much army in one place for an unenlisted person) but I wore the heck out of this shirt. It's pretty threadbare.  I also used to often wear it without a bra.  (See above about late 90s)
 

When I lived in Somerville, a thrift store opened and I found this shirt there.  I loved it because the 1984 games were the first Olympics I remembered.  I probably would have had memories of the 1980 games, but there was that pesky boycott.  I think the thrift store was supporting a charity that turned out not to be so charitable and that's why I can't find the thrift store in the quick internet search I did.  I used to exercise in this, pairing it with men's boxer briefs.  Again, it was the late 90s.
 

I believe this was my first eBay purchase.  At the time, I was really interested in bicycle touring and I bought this shirt for something like $4.00.  It was a great deal and a great biking shirt.  However, I haven't worn it in years.  So it's off to the Goodwill to make someone else happy.  Knowing the Goodwill's pricing structure, the happy recipient will most likely pay more than $4.00.
 

Requiem: Tempeh Pizza Burgers Recipe

In going through my recipe three-ring binder, I was resistant to throwing out this recipe, even though I haven't made it since the mid-90s. I think it is because this was the first thing I remember making with tempeh and it was delicious and filling, something that a lot of my vegetarian recipes hadn't been supplying. It was a recipe that took a lot of steps though, so I don't think I made it ever again, preferring to pan-fry my tempeh and season it with soy sauce.

Should you so desire to make tempeh pizza burgers of your own you can squint at that picture or seek out the cookbook.

Requiem: Jar

Okay, I find this ridiculous, but I couldn't just recycle this jar without first taking a picture. This is a glass Miracle Whip jar, from the era when all condiments came in jars, not plastic bottles.

It also has masking tape and the remains of a label in my grandmother's handwriting. This was the reason it was hard to let go of. I have many other examples of her handwriting, but I liked the link of the jar across generations.

I've added my own label.

Whew. Pictures taken, now jar can be recycled.

Requiem: Goodbye to dresses

I have a lot of vintage dresses. I love them and at one time in my life, I wore them a lot. Alas, none of them fit now. I've decided to trade them in at my local vintage clothing store. But before they go, here's a tour of these great specimens, all pretty wrinkled due to being rolled up and stored in Rubbermaid containers for many years.

This dress always made me think of a young co-ed, graduated, single and with her first job at a publishing firm in New York City. I also loved the double breasted buttons which worked well for me in this configuration, but never work in coat formation.

And look at the tag! Miss Executive!

Pendleton Woolen Mills is an Oregon company and so I snapped up this suit just after moving here.

I loved the color. The skirt was very unattractive, being a gathered, pleated-at-the-waist, hitting-at-the-mid-calf monstrosity. I had designs of cutting it into something that would work better, but never did.

Ah! My coat in Massachusetts for a long while. It kept me warm on my cold winter morning walks to work.

I always felt like I was in the rock band Led Zeppelin when I put it on.

I love looking at old labels on dresses. Peck and Peck sounds great, doesn't it? And according to Wikipedia, it once was. I know I found this dress one of my go-to classics.

And here it is. It covers most of your body, but the cut is incredibly sexy when worn. It was my first realization that more clothing, properly cut, could be much hotter than wearing less clothing.

See those great seams that cut across the bodice? Those made the dress. It also had a side zipper, which I love! This is the dress I will miss the most.

For awhile, this was my go-to dress. It dressed up and down (in fact, I tore a tiny hole in the skirt while playing pool one time) and I loved the lace around the collar.

Nice, eh?

This was a great summer dress, and a bit revealing for my mid-twenties-aged fun. I wore tap pants and a sturdy bra and was quite cool.

I made this dress for a party. It was my first (and only, thus far) foray into sewing with slippery material. I looked good in it and somewhere I have a great picture of my spinning in a circle while wearing it.

This was a favorite dress in high school and beyond. I loved the seersucker and the simple cut and, it being the early 90s, I wore it in the winter with long johns and converse sneakers.

It had this funny detail on the front.

This was my first dress with a side zipper.

I bought this my senior year of high school and wore it a few times until the freshman 15 caught up with me.

The matching jacket is fabulous and I always felt very much the sophisticated 50s co-ed when I wore this. This was also the favorite of Alexsandra, the woman I was trading with. She said this designer mostly did sportswear, so this was an unusual piece.

Boston in the late 90s/early 2000s was a great place to find cheap vintage dresses. I think I paid $10.00 for this beauty. I loved the color, the belt and the detailing.

Wearing this, I felt like the young sophisticated woman about town.

Another great label! And this dress completely looks like it is styled in California.

Another good Boston buy. I bought this for then-boyfriend John's cousin Karen's wedding. John wore a suit and a green striped tie and we looked great. Everyone looked great! East Coast people know how to dress up at weddings.

Detail of the waist.

This dress doesn't look like much on the hanger, but I loved it because I could wear it any time of year due to the pink or grey. I bought it right before I left Boston and wore it at the going away party we had at the house. I also love that it's homemade and the skirt detail reminds me of those birthday cakes with dolls in them that were popular when I was growing up.

Bodice detail. Someone was a good seamstress.

Skirt detail. I wore this for a party at church and one of the women was overcome because she had made this exact dress for a dance in high school. "Warren, don't you remember this dress?" she excitedly exclaimed to her husband. Warren did not. She told me that she had made it in red and black, which caused a bit of talk at the time.

So ends my tour of dresses. Keep looking for a shot of me in my new dress. And when shopping for dresses in Portland, be sure to visit Alexsandra's Vintage Emporium. Those out of town can click on the link and you can shop there from your computer.