Exchanging Portraits (Part 56)

Dresden, Germany, 1944. A cousin of Mr. Irene's Dad adjusts to life as a Displaced Person.

July Days

Parry Sound, Ontario, Canada, July 1959. Mom reported last night that one of the house-search television shows featured an episode focused on the Parry Sound/Georgian Bay region. Mom fondly remembers the beauty of the area, but she can't imagine having a vacation home on a remote island (that led to a short discussion about medical emergencies). Mom noted that when she and Dad stayed in Parry Sound, the closest grocery store was about 10 miles away, and it was a lousy store.

She also fondly recalled the time spent blueberry picking. Mom reminded us that she lost interest in picking after the rattlesnake incident. ("There were snakes there!")

Holiday Weekend

Parry Sound, Ontario, Canada, July 1959. Here's the gang before the friends started to frolic.

Shade

Near Parry Sound, Ontario, Canada, August 1959. We used that umbrella for many years.

Welcome, Summer

Near Parry Sound, Ontario, Canada, August 1959. This photo is from the summer when my Parents vacationed without me. That trip generated my favorite home-movie clip of Mom and Dad.

"The suburbs are the best reflection of Russian life – vast and meaningless, ugly and violent, littered with scrap metal and plastic bags. But also full of melancholy beauty during a radiant chemical pink sunset."

Bohemian suburbs.

Afternoon at the Beach

Parry Sound, Ontario, Canada, July 1959. The women and girls stay onshore.

Welcome, Summer

Parry Sound, Ontario, Canada, August 1959. My Parents enjoyed that first summer after I was born. Although the Weimaraner belonged to friends, Mom and Dad liked to frolic with the dog.

Exchanging Portraits (Part 1)

I've noticed how many friends gave me portraits of themselves—most often from high-school-senior sittings—as mementos. I run across them periodically when I'm scouring for photos for the blog. I'm charmed by the tender, young sentiments my friends wrote on the back of those images.

It's also charming that earlier generations engaged in the same ritual of friendship. I'll be posting some of the images in this new little series I am starting today.

Kaunas, Lithuania, April 1, 1932. This fellow is a friend of my Dad's older cousin, Henry.

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

Russian Self-Reflection

Natasha, a younger sister of my paternal Grandmother, Tatjana, sent this photo to Tatjana in 1963:

"Penza, 1940. Take a look at your little sister as she was 23 years ago!"

Thanks again to my dear friend, D, for translating the texts from Russian to English.