But you may never forgive me for the terrible title pun.
Since there are many holidays this time of the year (29 from November through most of January for various major religions!), I’d like to say, whatever you celebrate (even if it’s just Festivus) I hope your holiday and season is filled with love, good people, good times, and peace.
Now I will breach a subject that may be touchy, I hope we can have a respectful and mature discussion about it . . .
In 1950, “To Think You’ve Chosen Me” was written by Bennie Benjamin and George Weiss. The lyrics send a wave of glowing warmth over me when I listen. From sending “those shivers through my fingertips” to “and haunts me darling even while you’re gone,” it speaks as a love lullaby. It is soothing and comforting in its music and lyrics. It creates a space where anything seems possible, where true love exists and may just conquer all.
You may remember my fascination with a salad bowl a few weeks ago. Well, lo and behold, I found a chip ‘n dip with the same bowl and design! It was an eBay find and I snatched it up quickly. I had been seeing this particular type of chip ‘n dip, with a small holder for the dip/sauce bowl that sits on the larger bowl, and had been close to purchasing one, but never knew it came in “my bowl.” It was a pleasant little surprise and has made my fascination, okay, who am I kidding, obsession with these bowls grow a little more. There must be more out there, and searching for them will become a new adventure for me.
“La Vie En Rose” was written in 1945 by Edith Piaf, Louis Guglielmi, and Marguerite Monnot. First, I’ll start off by saying that though I don’t know French, Edit Piaf’s singing gets me. . .right. . .there. While she had a tumultuous life, she could use every experience and emotion she lived through to inject into her music, lyrics wise and vocally. When she sings, you feel it, whether you know the exact words she is singing or not. She wrote the lyrics to some brilliant songs, “La Vie En Rose” being one of the best. And while I can only go off of the translated version, I can’t really offer a more beautiful and enchanting song about love.
Once I get the notion that I want an item, it turns into an unyielding mission that I focus on, probably too much. When the notion arose for a secretary desk, it was no different. I longed for one, preferably one I could paint. However, when the initial search began, my heart quickly dropped upon seeing the average price of one. Whether it was an original, with no work done on it, or one someone had “shabby-chiced,” (I know that’s not a word) the prices were, well, crazy, to be honest. Most I found, online or in person, were $300-600. Cue cartoon me with my eyes popping out of my head and jaw dropping to my feet.
Some of my best finds are the random ones, the ones I don’t even know I want until I see them. This beautiful salad bowl was like a bolt of lightning, jolting me with such awe when I saw it. The fun shape, striking design, and delightful black and gold rectangles and starbursts were of such a combination that I was helpless against its allure. Resistance was futile.
“Long Ago and Far Away,” written in 1944 by Jerome Kern and Ira Gershwin for the movie Cover Girl, is a beautiful and evocative song. Performed in the movie, which in itself is sublime, by Gene Kelly and Rita Hayworth (dubbed by Martha Mears), it invokes such sweet longing finally realized. Even if it’s not Rita Hayworth actually singing it, the sight of she and Gene Kelly on screen together during this song is an enchantment the viewer doesn’t want to miss.
When I got the idea that I had to have a bar cart (or tea cart), the one I envisioned was brass with glass shelves. The initial search online brought up many options with those particular qualities, most with prices far out of my reach (this is an on going theme with me). I found one that Target carried that was within my price range and exactly what I had envisioned. . .except it was from the previous year, so they no longer had it available. If only I had started my search a year earlier, it would have been ideal. Not dwelling on it too long, the in person search commenced. Oh, were there some stunning options out there!
“Time After Time” was written in 1947 by Sammy Cahn and Jule Styne, and introduced in the movie It Happened in Brooklyn by Frank Sinatra and later, Kathryn Grayson.
Oh, this song! I don’t think I can even do it the justice it deserves, but I will give it a tolerable attempt. Listening to this song, and letting it engulf me, brings the feeling as if I could crumble and be swept away on the wind. It’s the ultimate in piercing straight to my unapologetic, sentimentally plagued soul.
In 1956, Chet Baker recorded a version that intensifies this already divine song. It is soft, warm, and lingering, with so much coming from the heart. His vocals glide along with the music, to craft an unmistakable, not only sound, but impression upon the heart. It’s incredibly easy to lose oneself and entwine oneself with the music and the quality it possesses.
There was a green one sitting in the kitchen, under the yellow rotary phone when I was growing up. There was one sitting in my grandparents’ kitchen, under the window, where I could look out and see across my Gramps’ field to my house.
Lovely Shades of Nostalgia 