nostalgia — pleasure in simple things

Tag: nostalgia

10 cool things about chewing gum

March

Elvis chewing gum. Source

Do you remember the first time you chewed a stick of gum? I can’t. Although, I can remember the first time I got in trouble for chewing gum! That was definitely on my Sunday walk to church with my grandmother – where gum chewing was strictly forbidden! I can’t even imagine what would have happened to me if I got caught with it in the church based on her reaction when it was discovered I was chewing it on the way to church!

After I posted the tutorial on making a fake gum magnet this week, I really got to thinking about gum in general. It is amazing how many different types and brands of gum are available today in comparison to years ago.

When I was a kid, I remember Wrigley’s spearmint, Juicy Fruit, Chiclets, Razzles…around Halloween time; I remember searching for Black Jack gum to use to simulate a lost tooth. I also remember a more exotic gum no one would try called Teaberry. For bubblegum…it was all about Bazooka. I certainly don’t remember anywhere near the selection of chewing gum we have in the stores today!

Ben Affleck chewing gum. Source

Not only are there many more varieties of gum today, but there also seems to be many more cultural references! Did you know it is illegal to chew gum in Singapore? Or that the Navy Seals include chewing gum in their survival kits! For today’s Friday field trip, some fun links showing ten other cool ways chewing gum has become part of our culture:

Nostalgic old television commercials…Remember the Doublemint twins? The Fruit Stripe zebra?

A legendary gum wall in Seattle

“Don’t tell me you know how to make a bomb out of a stick of gum?” -McGyver

Squidward vs. gum

Is gum loosing its pop?

I loved making these gum wrapper paper chains when I was a kid

On Seinfeld… Elaine? or Jerry?

A great children’s book on the history of gum

How to remove gum from your hair or couch

A cool gum wrapper sculpture

Hope you enjoyed exploring a little about chewing gum in our culture for today’s Friday field trip.

Have an amazing weekend, Jackie

1 comment » | nostalgia

diy button anchor wall hanging

February

For today’s Friday field trip, I am turning an item from the past into something unexpected that can be permanently displayed and fondly admired.

While my children were growing up, our family vacations always involved water – even when we were away from our own beach, we were tent camping on a lake or visiting the ocean at a state park.

Shortly after my children were born… I don’t think my oldest was even a year old… I splurged and bought a couple of good quality staple items to be used for our family’s water time…a mesh bag to tote toys (there were always plenty) and a large cotton beach blanket – both purchased from L.L.Bean. Every family trip to an ocean, lake, or pool was accompanied by the large mesh bag filled with water toys and the brightly colored cotton beach blanket.

Over the years, the mesh bag disappeared as the mountain of plastic toys was replaced with sand chairs and Baggo. But, the blanket always remained…that is, until this past summer…when I noticed (to my horror), that someone had decided this old beach blanket, now a shredded mess, should be put out of its misery. I found it tossed in an outdoor garbage can!

What did I do? I immediately took it OUT of the trash, of course – determined to save it and preserve all the memories associated with this sacred beach blanket. I gave it a good washing and decided I would come up with some way to use some part of it to keep forever. After all, this blanket was like part of the family! I can’t even begin to explain all the wonderful moments that happened on and around this blanket!

So, I came up with a wall hanging that serves the battered old blanket perfectly and evokes memories of happy times with my children every time I see it!

If you want to create something similar, here are the steps I used:

Stretch fabric (blanket) onto an embroidery hoop sized appropriately for the design you have chosen.
Sew buttons onto the fabric in a desired pattern. (First, work up your design on a flat surface to determine the buttons you want to use and the size of the design. I was inspired to use the anchor by a photo of a tote bag I saw in Marie Claire.)
Trim the fabric edges and glue them to the back of the hoop edges.
For a decorative edge, attach a thin piece of twine around the edge of the hoop using a glue gun.
Tie on a piece of twine for hanging. (This is a decorative option since the hoop can be hung without it.)
Use a glue gun to add on a ribbon accent.

Have you found unexpected ways to display items with special meanings? I would love to hear about them…I still have blanket left. ;)

Thank you for stopping by.

Have a wonderful weekend, Jackie

Sharing at Craftberry Bush and Common Ground.

Comments Off on diy button anchor wall hanging | diy, nostalgia, sand & sea

displaying a special treasure

May

The most valuable piece of jewelry I own is probably made out of stainless steel. It is my grandmother’s wedding ring.

Most valuable because it is a symbol of the generations…because of my grandmother’s wedding came my mom, because of my mom came me, because of me came my children….how can you measure the value of a symbol like that?

This symbol was the one piece of jewelry I never took off…until recently…when I was getting a medical exam and I was asked to remove it. Well, you know what? I could not get it back on! It seems my finger had miraculously grown in an extremely short period of time! I certainly was not cutting the ring. So, with Mother’s Day still fresh on my mind, and memories of generations of moms filling my thoughts, I decided to create a way to display my prized possession.

I had a beautiful Pottery Barn frame in my closet for a long (too long) time, waiting to be used. I had ordered a bunch of frames for a series of photographs and one had arrived to me broken. The nice people at Pottery Barn quickly replaced it and told me not to go to the trouble of returning the broken one…So I was saving it for a future project. Displaying my grandmother’s ring was the perfect use for it!

To make it look a little more modern, I decided to cover the mat and headed out to the Paper Source that just opened in our area to select a suitable paper. They have such a large selection of archival quality papers in an amazing array of patterns and colors. Rather than choosing something nostalgic looking, I decided to go with something more modern and chose a paper that had a brown matte background with a silver metallic nature design.

It was an easy project. I just glued the paper onto the mat board and sewed the ring onto a piece of linen after adding a piece of ribbon. I love this project…so fitting for a nostalgic Mother’s Day activity.

I hope my next nostalgic project will be one of wedding songs…The songs from my mom’s and my grandmother’s wedding….I asked my grandmother when she was still alive and 92 years old, the title of her wedding song…I wrote it on a piece of paper. I asked my mom the same and added it to the list. My intention was to create something special using the two song titles and the title of my own wedding song.

When I recently went to look for the song titles in the ‘safe place’ I had left them, I discovered I couldn’t remember where that ‘safe place’ actually was! I hope to run across that slip of paper one of these days…I can no longer replicate it since my mom no longer remembers what her song was and my grandmother is no longer with us…maybe I will find that slip of paper before next Mother’s Day. Hope so :)

Thanks for stopping by and sharing some memories with me.

Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

Sharing with Coastal Charm, Craftberry Bush, and Shabby Nest.

2 comments » | diy, nostalgia

easter nostalgia

March

Can you believe Easter is in March and it is already March? This week, Friday field trip is a little trip back in memory to Easter’s past. I will also be sharing some Easter basket ‘goody’ ideas for Easter bunnies ;)

Easter was so fun when the children were young… leaving the carrot with the front teeth marks on the kitchen table so the kids could find it in awe; sure that the Easter bunny had visited and quickly thinking about the treats in store as they scrambled to rifle through their baskets!

My kids are college students now and Easter is celebrated a little differently. It still retains its awe, but in a much different way. It is the one holiday in our family where everyone is together, so it makes for a very special day.

In the morning, my kids still discover filled Easter baskets on Easter morning. They are the Easter baskets I made for them…yes, wove them….when they were babies. My daughter had a thing for yellow when she was small so hers was accented in yellow and filled with yellow ‘grass’. For my son, I made an apple basket and dyed it blue.

The basket contents these days are little different than when they were small, but I think the baskets are just as well received. Not as much candy in recent years, although their favorite candies are still included. My son loves Lindt truffles (red) and my daughter loves pear jelly beans. Jelly Belly brand jelly beans have always been a tradition in the Easter baskets. Each basket receives an assortment box, but my daughter always gets an additional extra bag filled exclusively with the pear flavored variety…that Easter bunny is just so darn thoughtful!

In recent years, egg hunts in the living room are replaced with a GPS egg hunt throughout the town and beyond with teams of twenty-somethings scrambling to locate the hidden eggs and be the first back to grandma’s house.

My young niece and nephews still search the yard for filled plastic eggs that my sister has strategically placed around my mother’s yard. When that is completed and trading of the contents ensues, everyone makes a guess as to how many jelly beans are in the huge glass jar my mom has filled and whose contents were accurately counted the day before. The person with the closest guess wins the entire jar (…and, may or may not share with the group lol). We always think my sister, the math teacher, is sure to win; but that is never the case.

An “oldie but goodie.” I started making these as a Kindergarten room mother…cellophane is shaped into a cone and is filled with anything orange…candy, goldfish, etc…fun!

My favorite part of Easter? Taking the annual ‘goofy cousins’ photo at some point during the day. And, I still love coloring eggs with my daughter which we schedule best we can sometime before Easter. What makes your Easter special?

Do you have trouble thinking of items to include in your child’s Easter baskets as they become college age? Necessities are always appreciated…you can’t miss with socks and underwear! Commercial washers and dryers are brutal on these items! Here is a list of possible goodies to choose from in a variety of price ranges. Remember to consider the recipient’s special interest or college major to make the items more personal. Have fun with it! Send me an email if you need some suggestions.

Easter Basket Gift Ideas

I found these for my nursing student’s Easter basket :)

Candy – favorites or novelty
Band-Aids
Alix & Ani bracelet
James Patrick Keil bracelet
Vitamins, aspirins, etc.
Any toiletry item
Toothbrush economy pack
Lottery tickets
ITunes certificate
Train/bus ticket to come home for a family function
Laundry card, token, or coins
Dunkin Donut or Starbucks certificates
Printer cartridge
Drug store, gas station or Amazon certificate
Chegg money for renting textbooks
Paper cups/plates/utensils
A gift certificate to something local to their school
Key covers – they have fun ones in Home Depot
Cell phone covers – can be personalized/decorated
Family photo – a recent one or one from childhood
Concert or sporting event tickets local to their school
Easter motif socks or boxers
I found these hair brushes in a pattern my daughter is sure to love!
Laundry bag or laundry bag for delicates
Hair elastics
Nail polish pen
Emery boards in funky pattern
Flash drives (these come in silly patterns – surfboards, Legos, sushi, etc.)

I hope you enjoyed today’s Easter nostalgia and some tips for Easter basket gifts. I hope my Easter nostalgia caused you to reminisce about some special moments of your own Easter’s past.

Stop back tomorrow when I will announce February’s book giveaway winner and the giveaway selection for March.

Have a wonderful weekend. Thank you so much for visiting, Jackie

1 comment » | holiday, nostalgia

shopping christmas past

January

friday field trip

In the ‘old days’ I would shop the big department stores the morning after Christmas, excited about getting a good deal – sometimes standing in line for hours to get a few rolls of the perfect wrapping paper or some gift tags at half price.

The excitement for this activity has worn off over the years…mostly because stores never close! Today, there is no big deal about waiting for the store to open on the morning of the 26th! And, the sales start way before the holiday even begins! Today, if you do want to shop the after-holiday sales, it is much more efficient to shop on-line…finding the best availability and shopping the lowest prices for holiday wares.

Still, old habits die hard and I couldn’t resist stopping in a store the week after Christmas. I happen to be driving past an Anthropologie and decided to make a stop. Although there was not very much holiday merchandise left, and certainly no long lines to get inside, I felt compelled to walk around the store. This year’s holiday ‘paper cut’ theme was still displayed and I enjoyed greeting the salespeople with ‘Happy New Year’ and walking around to get some final glimpses of the season past.

So, even though I didn’t stand in a line in front of a department store for hours waiting for it to open, or come home with my arms full of wrapping paper rolls, I realized that I did get exactly what I wanted.

My visit to Anthropologie made me realize that I really don’t want the shopping experience reduced to another computer function…particularly at holiday time when senses are in overdrive.

The experience of visiting a store – greeting people, touching fabrics, comparing the smells of candles, feeling the heft of a pitcher…these are all the things I wanted. I hope these are the things you want too.

A photo of a papercut hanging on a light fixture created by the display staff at Anthropologie…a work of art!

Happy shopping :)

Take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

Comments Off on shopping christmas past | nostalgia

gourmet s’mores

August

friday field trip

August 10^th is National S’mores Day! This week’s Friday field trip is to the campfire to officially celebrate National S’mores Day!

No one can not dispute that s’mores are an American icon. For so many of us, they bring back floods of childhood memories…for me, memories from throughout my lifetime.

In honor of National S’mores Day, I am sharing some ‘gourmet’ s’mores combinations my family has enjoyed over the years at campsites throughout New England. I hope you will try them and get inspired to come up with some of your own creations! S’mores to me are all about camping and Hershey’s chocolate bars. Both of these things bring back so many great memories from my childhood. I am a second generation camper. I camped my entire childhood; as did my children. There are many traditions involved with camping…that’s what makes it such a treasured family experience. Making s’mores has always been one of our traditions. As my children got older and schedules became more complicated, we gave up our annual camping trips…but, not making s’mores.

A photo of one of my family’s ‘gourmet’ s’more flavor – adding peanut butter to the traditional s’more combination.

A photo of our ‘gourmet’ s’more….adding peanut butter.

Of course, the most important component of a s’more is the Hershey’s chocolate bar. When I was a kid, I got the chance to visit the Hershey’s factory in Hershey, Pennsylvania…it was a trip I never forgot…who could forget an entire town that smells like chocolate?! The Hershey’s kiss shaped street lights in town gave an immediate sense of whimsy to the visit. In the days of my childhood, it was still possible to view the huge vats of chocolate as part of the Hershey’s tour – very impressive…the image (and smell) are still very vividly etched in my memory! Don’t miss the opportunity to visit Hershey’s if you are ever in the Hershey, PA area. ( I am not only in love with the Hershey’s products, but also in the great works they are involved in. Check out their website www.thehersheycompany.com to learn more about Hershey’s social responsibility and the Milton Hershey school.)

A photo of my family’s ‘gourmet’ s’more…in this version a Cookies ‘n’ Creme bar replaces the regular chocolate Hershey’s bar.

A Hershey’s bar, a couple graham crackers, a just-cooked marshmallow…the components everyone immediately recognizes as a s’more.

A photo of creating the traditional s’more.

A photo of the Peppermint Pattie ‘gourmet’ s’more. A York Peppermint Pattie replaces the chocolate Hershey’s bar.

Now, I am not knocking all the traditionalists out there, but over our many years of camping, my family has come up with many different variations of the standard s’more. I would like to share some of our favorites with you…they are affectionately referred to by my family as the ‘gourmet’ s’mores.

My favorite is to substitute a Cookies ‘n’ Creme bar for the chocolate. We also substitute the chocolate with a Peppermint Pattie. Both are great variations. The other popular combination in my family is to add peanut butter to the traditional combination of marshmallow and chocolate.

So, go find your perfect toasting stick. Celebrate National S’mores Day.

Create a s’more…create some memories :)

Thanks for visiting, Jackie

6 comments » | food & festivities

butterfly habitat

August

friday field trip

Do you like butterflies? I’m not a big fan. I could never understand the attraction. I never ‘got’ the ‘releasing them at the wedding thing’ or why someone would tattoo a drawing of one on their butt! Of course, if it were a shell or a starfish, I might understand ;)

Raising butterflies as a kid was solely an accident. I would capture a caterpillar in a jar…taking it out periodically to let it crawl up my arm. I would soon loose interest. Coming across the jar in the garage much later, I would find the caterpillar had transformed. Sometimes I would end up with a butterfly – most times, with a scary looking moth.

Even though the idea of visiting the Butterflies! exhibit at The Academy of Natural Sciences in Philadelphia was met by me with lukewarm enthusiasm, I actually enjoyed it. Probably because the coolest butterfly in the habitat landed on me! The tropical garden that houses the Butterflies! exhibit is filled with colorful plants and a multitude of live butterflies from Central and South America, East Africa, and Southeast Asia. There are an estimated 60 to 150 butterflies and 20 to 40 different species on any given day. Adult butterflies usually live one to two weeks (this I didn’t know) and the museum receives new butterflies from around the world each week. I honestly didn’t think any of my photos would come out since a misting of water was constant in the environment, creating a hazy look.

At first, I was really more interested in the plants than the butterflies. Instructions were given upon entering the (very hot and humid) habitat to ensure all the specimens were treated gently. All that enter are instructed to ask for assistance if a butterfly should land on your person, because a museum worker is required to remove it. I had to seek someone out to remove the one that planted itself on my hand.

It wasn’t until that one butterfly landed on me that I became interested in really looking at them…aren’t they attracted to sweet things? ;)

If you are ever in Philadelphia, check out The Academy of Natural Sciences. It is located at 1900 Benjamin Franklin Parkway www.ansp.org

Thanks for visiting, Jackie

1 comment » | garden

favorite childhood book

July

friday field trip

What is the first book you remember from your childhood? When I posed this question to people I know, some common responses were Pat the Bunny and Good Night Moon…I remember reading these titles to my children, but have no recollection of them from my own childhood. The first, and only picture book I remember was Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel by Virginia Lee Burton…What does that say about me, I wonder? It is a great book, mind you, but not exactly the kind of ‘warm and fuzzy’ titles mentioned by my friends.

With that in mind, I fast forward to a day recently when a friend gave me some of those trendy topic cards…you know the ones…they suggest topics to start dinner conversation? Well, the ones I received suggest activities, and this was the first card I pulled out of the pack:

So, I guess I could have chosen to read Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel. I didn’t. I decided to go with the first book I remember really enjoying reading by myself…the flashlight under the covers, I will risk getting in trouble, it’s so good, I like this whole reading thing book. For me, that book was, without question The Mouse and the Motorcycle by Beverly Cleary.

Interesting revelation that the two ‘milestone books’ from my childhood were both considered ‘boy books’…particularly back at the time I was enjoying reading them. Interesting. My Friday field trip was to the local Barnes and Noble rather than the library. I thought I might want to buy a copy of the book to keep for my bookshelf. But, when I saw the cover illustration had been changed – modernized and looking very different from the original book – I decided against it…it just didn’t look like the same book.

I planted myself in one of the comfy chairs in the corner of the bookstore and went about reading my book…to the left of me a girl was reading Psychology Today and to the right, a young man was reading Help Cure Cancer Through Nutrition. There I sit, in the little reading circle, with a book from the children’s section written for an eight-year-old reading level…I wonder what the two neighboring readers thought about my selection?

I’m surprised how much of the story I did not remember, considering the book had such a profound effect on me. Mrs. Cleary, now over 90 years old, was considered a trendsetter back in the 1960’s. She was a librarian that decided to write books for children when she discovered that school age children, particularly boys, couldn’t find books that were written for people ‘like them.’

So, I wonder how I ended up with The Mouse and the Motorcycle…it was definitely taken out of my grade-school library, but I wonder how I chose it…Did the title or cover appeal to me? Did the librarian recommend it to me? I will never know. I just know that last year, when I was asked to name the top six books – of all the books read in my lifetime – that have had the biggest impact on me, The Mouse and the Motorcycle made the list.

Thanks Ms. Cleary, for instilling a life-long love for reading into my life.

To read more about Beverly Cleary, visit her website: www.beverlycleary.com

11 comments » | nostalgia

happy 4th!

July

1 comment » | inspiration

ice cream nostalgia

May

field trip friday

Yes, I do love ice-cream. And while so many others post photos of crocuses to show the change of season, I gauge its coming by when Dairy Queen opens its windows. In the same way, while others look forward to a green bagel or green beer to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day every year, I can’t wait to have the celebratory Shamrock Shake. Summer for me is marked by the moment I step foot into our local Baskin and Robbins each year. The young boy I know that works there starts preparing the scoop of bubblegum in a cup before I even attempt to place my order.

When I look back on why I enjoy these ice-cream moments, I realize it is not as much the taste of the ice-cream, as the memories of these three places. Dairy Queen was a place I would walk to with my grandmother as a very young girl. My grandmother didn’t drive and we would walk to the Dairy Queen on the main road a few blocks away – all the while she would hold my hand in a death grip. The Shamrock Shake came later….I worked at a McDonald’s when I was 16 and was so proficient at the register I was proud to attain the coveted ‘highest cashier of the hour’ award. This meant you had the most sales of any cashier for a specific hour. In essence, it meant that you were able to work the register and pack the food faster than anyone else. (I won’t say how long ago that was, but prices from that time are etched into my brain, and I know the hamburgers were 30 cents back then) It was at this job that I was introduced to the Shamrock Shake, and even if it didn’t taste all the wonderful, it held the significance of being part of my whole employment experience…… Baskin & Robbins bubblegum ice-cream was my treat when I was a kid for completing the 15 mile bike ride from my home to the closest Baskin & Robbins store. We did not have a Baskin & Robbins in our town, so I would make the ride to the town my grandmother lived in to purchase the limited edition bubblegum flavor. It was only sold for a short time in the summer, so in my mind, it quickly became associated with summer.

The nostalgia, not the taste, is what really drives these ice cream purchases. Truth be known, I am actually very much an ice-cream snob. Other than the few nostalgically motivated choices I mentioned, my ice-cream selections are pretty much exclusive to the natural variety. My favorite being handmade and served from a little shop located in a small neighborhood by the shore. The best flavor? Lavender & fig. Hard to believe the same person that would eat a Shamrock shake could truly appreciate the subtlety of lavender and fig, but it is certainly the case.

Walnut Beach Creamery’s ‘sandi annie’ ice-cream – blue vanilla, graham cracker sand, and chocolate covered pretzel goldfish

The International Ice Cream Association has vanilla, chocolate, and butter pecan as the top three ice-cream flavors – with vanilla way out in front. This would not be true in the little shoreline community where Walnut Beach Creamery operates. The current bestseller is cupcake. What is your favorite ice cream flavor to celebrate the season?

2 comments » | food & festivities

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Tag: nostalgia

10 cool things about chewing gum

diy button anchor wall hanging

displaying a special treasure

easter nostalgia

shopping christmas past

gourmet s’mores

butterfly habitat

favorite childhood book

happy 4th!

ice cream nostalgia