A Change Of Pace

The Christmas holidays are rapidly approaching.  My anticipation of them has usually played out by Halloween because merchandise arrives in the  stores earlier every year.  It kind of eliminates the spontaneous joy of it.

That being said, it can be a time of nostalgia.  The catalogs are already a couple of inches high on my reading table and I find them more enjoyable than my usual diet of politics.  One of my favorites is The Vermont Country Store , the best source I know for all things past like bubble lites for the tree.

Of course this is for club members only.  We of advancing years.  Remember Black Jack chewing gum?  And Beemans and Clove?  How about Necco wafers?  Ribbon Candy?

Have you seen a bar of Lifebuoy soap anywhere in the past twenty years?  Remember when the Fuller Brush man went door to door?  If I weed through some drawers of "stuff" I may actually find some of their brushes purchased way back when and stashed away at some point for a newer design, if there is such a thing when it comes to brushes!

And scents.  I remember wearing White Shoulders when I was a young working girl.  So did just about everyone else in our office.  And English Leather for the guys?

With all this dancing in my head like material sugar plums, we're off for the week.  The fish pond is winterized, the trees pruned, the grass has had its final mowing and the irrigation system has been blown out.

We'd even be going in a vintage '70 Olds 98 Regency except, as with us, it's parts are beginning to fail.  The sensor system that beeps when anything needs attention is malfunctioning.  It won't shut off.  We have yet to find a mechanic who knows how to fix it and Hub hasn't yet had the time.  Thus I've got my new car, The Old Bat's Mobile, and that is what we'll be driving.

The Olds has joined the boat in the shop, both now Hub's tinker toys for the winter.  Speaking of Tinker Toys, you can get them through the catalog too!  Ah,  the good old days.  It may be selective remembering, but it's good for the heart - and the soul.