My First Car Shows Up...Sort Of

I'm not what you would call a car person. As long as it's functional, gets decent mileage and isn't too big, that's all I really care about for the most part. But when I bought my first car, I chose one based on its fun factor (first, being relative--my brother actually gave me my first car, a used '68 Pontiac LeMans--because he was buying a new car, he didn't feel he could get much for the old one, and just because he's a really nice guy and I needed a car. The car in this story is my first only in the sense that it's the first car I actually bought with my own money).

After the LeMans died a lengthy death, I borrowed a car from my mother for awhile, but eventually I bought a 4-year-old '77 Honda Civic back in the days when Hondas were not considered to be exceptionally desirable. They were tiny, they weren't very powerful, and this one had a tendency to rust. A lot.

But it was so much fun to drive, and I don't even like to drive all that much. I could fit it into any parking spot, I could push it out of the snow with just a little help if it got stuck, and I could easily wash it in a few minutes.

How small was it? Well, I'm only 5'4", and as you can see in this photo, I can easily rest my arm on the top of the car.

Alas, by the time this photo was taken 4 years after the Civic came to live outside my house, we had a baby on the way, and the back seat of the Civic was so tiny that you couldn't really fit a baby carrier, so it had to go. I've had several cars since then, but this one remains my favorite. I learned to drive stick shift just so I could buy it. In fact, I asked my brother-in-law to go with me to buy it, because I couldn't drive it home myself. He had to teach me the intricacies of using a stick shift and a clutch.

Some days I think about buying another tiny car, but there are so many behemoths on the road now that I'm afraid I might get squashed if someone in a huge SUV or truck fell asleep at the wheel. I'll probably just be happy that at one time I owned this little guy. And if you're wondering why I'm posting about this now (or what the title of this post means), I thought that I didn't have a single photo of the car, but last weekend we decided to cull a box of old slides and...voila! There it was. No longer just a memory but resurrected in photo form, scanned and now an image file on my computer.

So...what was your first (or favorite) car? Share your stories in the comments section (and if anyone wants to send me images of their cars, I'll include them in a separate post).

Have a great day!

Myrna

It's a Sesame Street Kind of Day

I don't get many opportunities to see Sesame Street anymore, but the show will always be a favorite of mine. So I was thrilled when Mashable posted this new video, pairing Oscar the Grouch with the popular Grumpy Cat. Oscar is as fun and funny and grouchy as ever, and Grumpy Cat is...grumpy. Watch what happens when the two get together.

Of course, once I had seen a bit of Oscar, I wanted more Sesame Street, so here's an old favorite, Ernie singing "I Don't Want to Live on the Moon." It takes me back.

Some Days You Just Need a Little Jim Henson and Kermit in Your Life

I haven't been on the computer as much as usual during the past few days, so I almost missed this remix of Sesame Street/Muppets by Nick Bertke. But after watching the video, which was fun, I started thinking about Jim Henson and especially about Kermit, who always reminds me of Jim Henson. Kermit will always be my favorite muppet, and I still miss him and Jim Henson. So beneath the muppet mash, I've included Kermit in It's Not Easy Being Green, which always makes me feel a little sad but which I still enjoy.

There's Something About a Rocking Chair

Every time I see a rocking chair, I think of people sitting on porches, mothers rocking their children, home, friends, comfort. Even more modern rocking chairs can do the trick. I'm not sure why. We didn't even have a rocking chair when I was growing up, but...the chair sets the tone, I think. I love looking at them. And I'd love to have the kind of porch where a rocking chair would look right (actually, I'd just love to have a porch of any kind).

Source


Source


Source


Source

Enjoy your rocking chairs while the days are warm, because every day isn't a good day to sit outside and rock. 

Source

Remember Phone Booths?

They've all but disappeared, except in old movies.

I Miss Harry Potter

I'm experiencing Harry Potter withdrawal (yes, I'm certainly lagging on that one). So, this video of a LEGO Voldemort meeting a LEGO Gandalf made me smile.

Star Trek Movies Through the Years

I went to see the new Star Trek movie on Friday. Fantastic! I thought it might be fun to revisit all the Star Trek movies, so here are the trailers for a trip down memory lane.

Star Trek: The Motion Picture

Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan

Star Trek III: The Search for Spock

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home

Star Trek V: The Final Frontier

Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country

Star Trek Generations

Star Trek: First Contact

Star Trek: Insurrection

Star Trek: Nemesis

Star Trek (2009)

Star Trek Into Darkness

An Office Safety Video from Another Era

From the 1950's. (These things make me glad we're no longer in the 1950's).

Painter (and Painting Instructor) Bob Ross Remixed

Although I don't have an ounce of painting skill, I love watching artists do what they do. I suspect that a lot of other people do, too. At any rate Bob Ross is a bit of a phenomenon. He's been gone since 1995, but his videos still live on, entrancing countless viewers. Here's a fun (and musical) remix. (It's been trending for more than a week, so my apologies if you've already seen it).

This Must Be Why Fashions Keep Changing (Fab 1950s Spectacles)

All I have to do is watch this video and I feel positively thrilled that fashions die out over the years. As someone who has worn...um..."spectacles" for years, I had to laugh at some of the ones showcased in this old video. The audience looks a bit ill in parts, and the last pair of glasses modeled? Priceless.

Lawn Mower Versus Sheep?

This commercial from the past (it looks like the 1960s) attempts to demonstrate why a Jacobsen lawn mower is better than a sheep.

A Trip Back to 1957, Disneyland Style

Some clips of Disneyland that have never been seen (via the Disney History Institute).



Frankly, I have no desire to go back to 1957 (think of the inequality so many groups faced), but I do like history, so I found this to be a fun and interesting look at the way things were.

90 Days Without A Phone or Social Networking

I wasn't overly fond of the title of this video, and yes, I do get the irony of a video about going without technology appearing on a blog pretty much dedicated to (and dependent on) technology, but I always find it interesting and intriguing when people simplify their lives and swim against the tide.

In Memory of Jim Henson

Thanks to Google for reminding me that today is Jim Henson's 75th birthday. If you haven't fooled around with the Google Doodle on the homepage today, it's a fun tribute to the man, with the user being able to interact with the puppets making up the Google logo. (And if you missed it, I'm betting that somewhere on the Internet, there's a video of how it worked. Is there ever not a video of all the most awesome stuff)?

Here's a video explaining the story about that Google Doodle and a bit about Jim Henson, too.



The world lost so much when we lost Jim Henson, and there are many tributes to him out there. This one (in pictures) was posted a few years ago, has a touching soundtrack, and may bring a tear to your eye. I love seeing him surrounded by all of his Muppets.



Happy Birthday, Jim Henson. You are missed.

Wow, I Could Use One of Those

I'm a big believer in alternative energies. I'd love to have an electric car, but if only I had my own oil well...gosh, what more could a girl want?

Image by eliz.avery

Oh, I Hope He Likes My Coffee...

I love old advertising. I'm not sure ads are always a true reflection of the way things were in real life, but this video by Shaun Clayton is a gem. Clayton took a series of commercials from the Prelinger archives and edited them down to the moments when the husbands were being jerks about their wives' coffee. Fun and truly cringe-worthy. I was torn between wanting to punch these fictional husbands in the nose or tell the fictional wives to get a backbone.



via Presurfer

Ah, the Dream Hospital...

I suppose I should be grateful that someone had dreams like this, because medicine has come a long way in a very short time. Still, parts of this made me laugh.


via Bits and Pieces

(I did like the swimming pool)!

Happy Is...

Born on this day: Cate Blanchett, Bobby Darin, George Lucas, Mark Zuckerberg

Today a few nice things happened (including Blogger's return from outer space), so I thought I'd throw together a comparison of two songs, both titled Happy.

They're not new (and frankly I don't remember them very much if at all), but they were the topic of a family discussion recently and the interesting thing about them is that they were released 2 weeks apart, one on the west coast and one on the east in 1967.

Here's the one released on the east coast (by the band Blades of Grass):


Here's the one from the west coast (by the band The Sunshine Company):


Ok, the song is a bit dated, but it's catchy. Any preference?

I'm always fascinated when someone covers another person's hit and makes a hit of it themselves (especially when people forget about the original artist. When Charice recently sang "All by Myself" on Glee, she referred to the Celine Dion hit (made sense since she's pretty young), but when I think of that song I think of Eric Carmen (although I like the Celine Dion version, too). Can you think of any songs that you preferred the second time around?

I Miss The Muppets!

Born on this day: (or rather May 12th) George Carlin, Tony Hawk, Katharine Hepburn and Florence Nightingale, among others (via NNDB)
(This was yesterday's post--scheduled for May 12th--which I had to repost due to Blogger's problems. See post below this one).

I think Jim Henson was a true genius, he helped me remember that we should all access our inner child now and then, and sometimes when his name is brought up or I see characters from Sesame Street, I still miss him and all that he stood for. Here's a "What if the Muppets Made the Movie Oceans 11" bit of fun (via Miss Cellania and Unique Daily).



So, who is your favorite Jim Henson character? (I'm not sure. Probably Kermit).

Have a great day! I hope you find something today that brings out that sense of childish wonder that makes life so special.

A Day at the Theater

By the time you read this I will have gotten back from the theater where I went to see Aida, a production I've never seen. We trot out every few months to a local theater that specializes in mostly musicals. And it's always a gamble since you don't get to see trailers with a theatrical production. But I like the adventure and surprise of that.

The last play we saw was Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, which I was rather surprised the theater had chosen. It's been around a long time and I was afraid it would be rather dated. I also was of the opinion that the storyline was a bit sexist (there was kidnapping involved if you haven't seen it). But after expressing this opinion to some Facebook friends, they convinced me that I might be looking at things the wrong way and that the kidnapping had been set up in such a way that there was nothing malicious about it.

I'm not sure if any of you have ever seen it, but here's the trailer from the 1954 movie:


Have you seen it? If so, what did you think? And if you haven't seen it, what's either your favorite play or your favorite musical (movies count). Or...do you not like musicals at all?

I'll check back in later to see what everyone had to say.

Best Wishes!