Mary's blog

52 years ago, President Eisenhower signed the National Aeronautics and Space Act, and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration was born. NASA began on this day, July 29, 1958. 

Only 11 years later, humans set foot on the moon for the very first time. A lot of other changes in the world were also happening quickly over the decade following the beginning of NASA. Many people were ready for the future, and it showed even in futuristic clothing designs.  read more...

Jacqueline Lee Bouvier Kennedy Onassis was born July 28, 1929. Today would have been her 81st birthday. She died much too young, at the age of 64, from cancer (non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma). As we know, her husband John F. Kennedy also died much too young, at the age of 46, and her son, JFK Jr., at the age of 38.   read more...

This darling little house was built nearly 100 years ago, and the builders somehow managed to squeeze it between the two larger houses.It's only just over 7 feet wide at the front and 8 1/2 feet wide at the back, so if you can imagine laying down across the width, if you put your feet against one side of the house, you could almost reach behind your head to touch the other side of the house. Front to back, the house measures 47 feet. read more...

If you've seen the movie "A Christmas Story", you will recognize the wonderful voice of Jean Shepherd. He not only narrated the movie, but he wrote it too. Many people recognized Jean Shepherd's voice the first time they saw "A Christmas Story" because they listened to him for many years on his WOR radio show in New York City. Jean Shepherd knew how to tell a story.  read more...

TV had gotten so popular by 1953 that a guide was needed to keep track of all the shows. 1953 was the year that the TV Guide was published for the first time. It was also the year that the TV dinner was invented at Swanson. There's a fascinating story behind the invention of the TV dinner, which you can see here:

The invention of the TV dinner: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MzlkO8LIWrs&feature=related read more...

This weekend is the "Christmas in July" weekend that seems to be growing in popularity every year in retail. As someone who loves Christmas, I really enjoy a little hint of Christmas in July. I'm old fashioned when it comes to malls and retail stores decorating for Christmas too early in the fall though. For Christmas in July, it's just a hint, and then it's gone, which works out great. But, when malls start decorating for the Christmas season at the beginning of October, it feels too early to me. I like to enjoy autumn decorations and Halloween decorations in October. read more...

Kisses! It's Friday and you might be looking for a new look to wear out for the weekend. How about something old? This 1920's make-up look will give you cupid's bow lips. If you don't want to wear your new 1920's lipstick look out, you can still try it at home, then write your sweetheart a note and seal it with your cupid kiss.  read more...

If you've ever visited the ice cream man, you'll love this skit. If you've ever seen this skit, you'll STILL love this skit. 

This is a clip from "Delirious", a 1983 stand-up routine by Eddie Murphy. More than 25 years later, it's still GREAT comedy! I got this cassette tape from Columbia Record and Tape Club YEARS ago (remember that club?) and listened to it so much that I had bits of it memorized.

Sing it with me: "You don't have no iiiice cream, You didn't get none, You didn't get none..."  :-) read more...

Do you remember the song "Puttin' on the Ritz" from 1983? Taco made a 1920's pop song popular in the 80's. I had never heard it before Taco's version, and didn't know until I was much older that the song was much older than Taco. All I cared about at that age was that it was a song that I LOVED and that I loved to dance to. I'd tap dance to it and do jazz dance moves around the living room. Then, I'd hit rewind and do it all over again.  read more...

The video above shows a clip from an episode of the TV show "The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet". They start to realize how much junk they have in their garage, so they decide to rent a trailer to haul it all to the dump. This is when I want to jump into the scene and say, "Whoa Nelly! Let me take a look at what you've got there before you start pitching it. You just might have some treasures there that are worth something!"  read more...