Sunday, February 10, 2008

TIF February Challenge - gathering thoughts


I've re-read my previous posts where I just let the memories flood out. There seems to be one overwhelming theme, I'm old enough to remember when life was much "simpler", slower paced, less complicated. Girls were destined, mainly, for teaching, nursing or clerical occupations, and when they married, they didn't go out to "business" again unless in dire circumstances. This only started to change in the 70's with "female liberation" and the reported bra burning episodes. Now I don't recall seeing anyone actually do this, but it was reported on the TV so it must have happened, VBG !! Personally, I don't feel so liberated lately. There is always the obligation to DO something instead of sit and stitch, relax, sleep, daydream if you choose. You're expected to belong to groups who volunteer and do good deeds, cook fabulous meals for your family, earn an income, be a fabulous wife and lover, mother perfect children who never get into any trouble, have a fabulous slim figure, exercise and be super fit, have perfect white teeth (gosh I HATE Zoom Whitened teeth!!!!)......... phew, how can you call all that liberated?

I'm digressing....last night my son and his wife visited for a meal, and I mentioned that I remembered "Autumn Leaves" by Nat King Cole being played on a wind-up gramophone at home when I was a child. I was obsessed with finding out what tune was on the reverse of the record, so he offerred to check an online music dictionary he uses. Did I mention previously that he was an amateur DJ and has played at large parties at Luna Park in Sydney? Very prestigious!! Anyway, in no time at all I had my answer. "Love is a Many Splendored Thing" was on the reverse of "Autumn Leaves" and apparently we had been looking on the wrong list, it was a 7 inch record not an LP. For some reason Autumn Leaves is my favourite, I just can't stop humming it!!
Here is a photo of the lovely man on a more modern album cover, our version of Autumn leaves was a bakelite record in a brown paper sleeve with a hole in the centre to show the label on the record, no fancy printed glossy album covers in those days !!

So it looks like that will be my focus for the February TIF. Not sure how it will be interpreted just yet, still working on that one, but at least now I think I have narrowed it down. You see, even the holder of a Black Belt in Procrastination can make snap decisions sometimes, LOL.

5 comments:

Doreen G said...

Glad you found the answer Christine it turned out what I had was a Nat King Cole LP called "Unforgettable" and Autumn leaves wasn't on it.
My son is a DJ as well in one of the nightclubs in Canberra

Magpie Sue said...

Hey, you could do a lot worse than Nat King Cole for the TIF challenge! (Like those primitive versions of monthly "protection" and garter belts for nylons!)

Erica said...

I could have told you what was on the back of Autumn Leaves - I've still got it on a 78!...somewhere....

Margaret said...

I have been mulling over your liberated women comments all weekend - I think you've hit the nail on the head. I've always thought the working mom vs stay-at-home mom 'war' was a made up controversy just to keep women apart, and now I'm sure I am right. Men don't want us getting together and comparing notes and realizing that we don't need to do everything we do around the house or at work or with the kids. Of course my husband doesn't fall in that category since he encourages my embroidery and Jane Austen addiction and puts up with lots of dog hair coating the house. But I feel so bad for the women I meet at PTA meetings who always seem so stressed. I want to ask them what their husbands are doing.
Maybe it is time to start a new women's liberation movement.

Carmen said...

yes margaret, the real liberation is no make all (house, work, children, etc) alone, but together with the patner of our lives,for example: in saturday i make all the clothes stuff (wash machine, etc) and my husband, make all the meals (breakfast, lunch,dinner,etc), maybe the next revolution must be this.