Summer approaches.

Near Kaunas, Lithuania, about 1930. Boating along the Nemunas River was a popular family activity in the 1930s. Here, relatives of Suzanne—the wife of my Dad's older cousin, Henry—set off for an afternoon ride.
 
Thanks to my Kaunas Cousin for making this photo available to us.

Italy's Little Tyrol

Near Cortina d'Ampezzo, September 1985. If you didn't hear the Italian language spoken here, you'd think you were in Austria.

Edge

Near Lac du Flambeau, Wisconsin, July 1962. Dad keeps me safe.

Related by Marriage: Army Buddies (Part 13)

Near Camp Irwin, Barstow, California, 1951. In this "Army Buddies" snapshot, Mr. Irene's Dad—on the right—enjoys a leave from the base.

Thanks to Mr. Irene's Los Angeles Cousin for making this photo available to us.

A Blurred Memory

Seligenstadt, Germany, about 1946. My maternal Grandfather, Jake—second from right—entertains fellow Displaced Persons at the Žirgynas.

Little Bighorns

Glacier National Park, Montana, July 1970. A pair of Rocky Mountain Bighorn rams inspects us as we hike near Sperry Glacier.

Leaving

Atlantic Ocean, April 30, 1949. Dad's friend rides aboard the USAT General Omar Bundy. The friend looks to the shore of what he called "old England;" this makes me think the ship was transporting Displaced Persons to Australia.

Judo Lady?

"Get ready to hear more about the Judo-loving president of Lithuania dubbed the 'Iron Lady' for her harsh austerity measures used to yank the Baltic state out of economic disaster without any outside help."

Unwinding

Suburban Chicago, December 1964. My paternal Grandmother, Tatjana, has unraveled her familiar hair bun, and she and I relax in the Rec Room.

Before the War

Kaunas, Lithuania, late 1930s. This is my Dad's older cousin, Vytas. The Soviets deported Vytas to Siberia, where he lived in exile for about seventeen years.

Thanks to my Kaunas Cousin for making this photo available to us.

What's on your mind?

Madison, Wisconsin, September 1994. Pupa settles into her new life in our home.

Related by Marraige: Velvet and Taffeta

Chicago, Illinois, December 1958. Mr. Irene's Parents enjoy one of their last "evenings out" as an unmarried couple.

Wild Strawberries, in Three Takes

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Door County, Wisconsin, June 1978. Take off the jacket if you feel too warm.

The Life Box (Part 2)

I wrote here about the Wonders of the Animal Kingdom album into which I pasted the stamps my Parents had collected for me at the Jewel Food Store. I learned recently that grocery chains throughout North America participated in the promotion.

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Verona, Wisconsin, May 2013. My album is in fair shape; it rests in the bottom of the life box. Although we finished assembling the album by the time I was three years old, I enjoyed looking at it for many years. The artwork was brilliant to a child's eye, and I often used the album as a reference after Dad and I returned from our Sunday visits to the zoo.

Sure-Footed Reunion

Brookfield Zoo, Summer 1982. Do you remember "Ibex Island?"

Windy

Lake Nipissing, Ontario, Canada, July 1965. Mom sets down her knitting needles and holds back my windswept hair.

Sometimes, Dad didn't mind mowing.

 
Door County, Wisconsin, July 1980. Dad seemed to enjoy all sorts of tasks in Door County that he didn't take up back home.

Resemblance

 

Vilnius, Lithuania, about 1930. When I first looked at this photo, I thought it was an image of my paternal Grandmother, Tatjana. The woman has similar eyes. She's a relative of Suzanne, the wife of my Dad's older cousin, Henry.

Thanks to my Kaunas Cousin for making this photo available to us.

A Different Terrace

Memorial Union South, University of Wisconsin—Madison. The chairs are the same, but the view differs.

Log Splitter

Door County, Wisconsin, Autumn 1980. The farmer who sold the Door County parcel to my Parents shows Mom how to use the log splitter.

Lining up

Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, June 1980. Baccalaureate degree candidates assemble—by major—outside McGaw Memorial Hall for the graduation ceremony. I stand somewhere under the "7" on the fence, with the History students.

Little Sailor

Near Vilnius, Lithuania, 1920s. We are not sure who this woman is, but she's likely a relative of Suzanne, the wife of my Dad's older cousin, Henry. The word on the boy's hat is "Lietuva," or "Lithuania." Did you know that "Lietuva" means "Rainland?"

Thanks to my Kaunas Cousin for making this photo available to us.

Cherub-Room Ceiling

What is the "Cherub Room?"

The House on the Rock houses the world's largest carousel. This is not particularly remarkable. What is remarkable is that the carousel is completely indoors in the "cherub" room. The ceiling of the cherub room is covered with mannequins suspended from the ceiling. Not resting with just suspended mannequins, Alex attires the mannequins with full sized angel wings and togas. The togas are strategically placed to cover only half of each mannequin. A ceiling covered with dozens of suspended half-naked toga-clad angel mannequins. High concept.

House on the Rock, Dodgeville, Wisconsin, April 2012. Our tour of the attraction ends with a visit to the Cherub Room.

Keepsake

When my Mom and her Father, Jake, decided to leave Kaunas, they traveled to the city of Tauragė. They hoped the Soviet army would retreat. The pair had only brought a few items with them to Tauragė because no one believed the Soviets would prevail. When it became clear that the Soviets weren't going to retreat, Jake briefly went back to the family home in Kaunas. He thought he might collect a few more personal belongings that he and Mom could take when they fled to the west.

When Jake got to the house, little remained. Most valuables had been buried in the countryside. Soldiers had looted most everything that hadn't been hidden. Jake, however, found one thing he thought Mom would like to keep. The item was a small landscape that Heddy—the wife of Jake's younger brother, Zigmas—had needlepointed in the 1930s for Mom. Mom carried the piece with her to Germany, and she's had it ever since. 

For many years, the needlepoint hung in the Door County cottage, and now, it's back with us again:

The first lesson of knitting: don't be afraid to unravel mistakes.

Suburban Chicago, January 1982. Something has gone wrong with the Icelandic sweater I'm knitting. Mom taught me from the outset to "frog" an unsuccessful project. Here, Mom's feet serve as a swift for winding up the yarn.

Related by Marriage: Admiration

New Haven, Connecticut, June 1987. Mr. Irene's Parents beam as Mr. Irene shows off his graduate-school diploma.

Getting Ready for Bed, in Three Takes

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Brookfield Zoo, Spring 1982. The little fellow is happy to obey his mother.

Even a damaged photo helps preserve a memory.

Seligenstadt, Germany, Spring 1946. My Mom—on the right—enjoys the spring weather with fellow Displaced Persons from the camp.

Destination?

Near Kaunas, Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic, about 1960. My Dad's older cousin, Henry, looks worried as he rides the bus.

Thanks to Henry's Granddaughter—my Kaunas Cousin—for making this photo available to us.

It's graduation weekend.

Congratulations to the graduates!

Suburban Chicago, May 1964. My Best Friend's Mom gave me the bouquet of Viburnum to celebrate my Kindergarten graduation.

Nesting Reunion

Austria, July 1971. We're at the Hungarian border, admiring those storks. Why not? It doesn't hurt to hope for some good luck.

Grab a Book: Distraction Edition

Door County, Wisconsin, March 1983. Puppy Meškė diverts Dad's attention.

Related by Marriage: A Visit from a Cousin

 
Suburban Chicago, January 2, 1962. Here's Mr. Irene and  his "Cousin I." Cousin I is Anthony's daughter; Anthony was Mr. Irene's Godfather.

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Suburban Chicago, January 2, 1962. Cousin I's Mom sits between Cousin I and Mr. Irene. That's the head of Mr. Irene's maternal Grandmother, Anna, on the left.

Chicagoans: does that box of Heinmann's cookies from Dominick's trigger your salivary glands? The cookies likely were those thin chocolate chip ones that often seemed a bit overly crispy on the edges. We were a "Jewel family," so I didn't visit Dominick's often. My Parents probably thought it was too Italian. My neighbor took me to the River Forest Dominick's on North Avenue once or twice a year: on those occasions, I grabbed a few hot cookies as they emerged into the bakery on a conveyer belt. The store encouraged that conduct.

Prohibited Places

"The places Soviet tourists could not visit in the 1950s."

"Soviet tourists" is a precious phrase.

An Anniversary, in Three Takes

My Parents married sixty-five years ago today. I should be more precise: their civil marriage ceremony occurred on May 15, and they married in a church on May 16. Mom and Dad always underscored this detail because it was another point that distinguished them from Americans.*

I earlier posted photos from their 1948 wedding here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and here.

Mom and Dad celebrated their thirtieth wedding anniversary, in Chicago, in 1978:

 

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*See, for example, a discussion of the two ceremonies of Grace Kelly and Prince Ranier.

Constitutional Reunion

Athens, Greece, April 18, 1976. The guards at Constitution Square keep poker faces.

Meškė Appreciation, in Three Takes

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Suburban Chicago, May 1983. The "Christmas Cactus" in these shots is still alive.

Roll it yourself.

Near Kaunas, Lithuania, about 1927. My Dad's older cousin, Henry, rolls a cigarette. My Dad sometimes also rolled his own cigarettes: he did so with great joy. I wonder if the rolling of a cigarette reminded him of his beloved cousin.

Thanks to my Kaunas Cousin for making this photo available to us.

Moving in and moving on.

In July 1975, construction of the Door County cottage was complete, and we moved in for a good part of the summer. The tradition continued for almost thirty-seven years.

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