The allure of the telegram

I was wandering around an antique shop housed in a former granary in Northwestern Michigan earlier this week and spotted these three unused holiday telegrams from 1950. They were 50 cents each, so I had to have them. They are such a vestige of the world BI (before internet).

I received just one telegram in my life but never forgot it. I was in 3rd grade and my beloved teacher, Mrs. Suplee, had been hospitalized most of the school year. I was beside myself with concern. So, I saved allowance money for months - as well as other money I earned - in order to send flowers to her hospital room.

Her response came via Western Union. First, there was a phone call; that was followed by the delivery of the paper telegram. It was exciting beyond words! To me, telegrams were the stuff of presidents, movie stars and other VIPs. Next time I am home, I am going to see if my dad still has that telegram stashed some place. I am betting he does.

Comfort food

I've been jumping back and forth on pieces for various exhibits, and finally returned to the food memory series. Not sure yet when the show will happen but I'm so deep into it that I figured I might was well continue the series. This piece evolved from the comfort found in coming home every night and knowing that dinner will be on the table. The scalloped red edges are from a cooking feature in a 1939 issue of McCall's magazine. The woman was snipped from the cover of a Christmas issue of Ladies Home Journal. She was making cookie press cookies with her daughter in the original illustration. I'm still working on toning down the background layer of dinner menus and on perfecting the steam coming from the enormous pot pie - an illustration from a 1930s children's book.