That Bustling Throng

     Once upon a time, Chicago decided to retool the Loop.  State Street, in those days a bustling shopping district, was redesigned with bigger sidewalks and smaller streets.  Motor vehicles were banned except for cabs and buses, and the whole area was renamed the “State Street That Great Street Mall”.  Vast sidewalks would give peopleContinue reading “That Bustling Throng”

FUZZ ORDAINED: Air Academics

Arthur Braling was less prepossessing in the world of primary colors, but so many things are.  He was not without a certain charm, red curls combed high above a bright, eager face.  He wore a red necktie over a white shirt, not because Mershon College had any rules about this, but because he happened toContinue reading “FUZZ ORDAINED: Air Academics”

On My Summer Vacation I….

     The unofficial start of summer, Memorial Day, has come and gone, despite the fact that June is not quite here yet, and the vacation season is upon us.  Vacations became a major subject with postcard artists around mid-century, when postcards stopped being everyday communication ad became brief messages from far away (postage went up,Continue reading “On My Summer Vacation I….”

FUZZ ORDAINED: The Angel and the Phronik

     Unfirom blinked.  He could still see the survey crew, and the park.  Now, though, there were new colors, paler shades of the real greens and blues he’d seen a moment ago.  This alternate August N. Griese park always bothered his eyes.  It was out of focus.      The grey-haired human costume had vanished, returningContinue reading “FUZZ ORDAINED: The Angel and the Phronik”

Scurvy Rapscallions

    A jolly collection which came into inventory here in Blogsytown is about one fifth of a set of Corsaires.  These are colorful portraits of freebooters and privateers (I don’t see ANYOE using the word “pirates”) from Dominique Leroy here–a captain also known as the Pistol Corsair, who was captain of the Foudroyant (Lightning)—to ship’sContinue reading “Scurvy Rapscallions”

Fuzz Ordained: Chapter One

            Cool dawn found the park in the possession of those people too busy to use it at any other time.  Two men in their sixties and one in his forties were making their way around the track in pursuit of their health, none paying much attention to the woman of indeterminate age whose shortsContinue reading “Fuzz Ordained: Chapter One”

Who What Where Game

     Those of you who have been paying attention (both of you) will recall my constant wailing about the Real Photo Postcards (rppcs) and found photos which leave us mystified because no one, back in the day, bothered to write anything on the back.  Details which might have fleshed out the story of the placesContinue reading “Who What Where Game”

Fairy Tales & Such

     Folklore has been passed on in many ways throughout the years, from Grandma’s tales to the Interwebs.  By “folklore” I mean to suggest any sort of knowledge passed on outside of classroom, from stories of Jack and his adventures with princesses and/or giants to that limerick about the Young Lady from Ryan.  Such informationContinue reading “Fairy Tales & Such”