Grab a Book: Intelligent Edition

Door County, Wisconsin, 1976. If the books don't interest you, then you can play with the ball.

Continuing the Cleaning

Door County, Wisconsin, 1976. Gigi supervises Dad's work.

Evening Walk

Door County, Wisconsin, August 1976. It's a familiar route.

Patient

Door County, Wisconsin, June 1976. Gigi waits for dinner.

Graduation Weekend, in Three Takes

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River Forest, Illinois, June 1976. Where did I imagine I'd be in 40 years?

Remember when 17 politicians ran in the primaries?

That was in 1976. One of the candidates was Terry Sanford, a former North-Carolina Governor and President of Duke University. He later served in the United States Senate.

Sanford also served as chair of the ITT International Fellowship Committee. Sanford and his wife, Margaret, toured southern Italy with the American recipients of the 1983-1984 fellowship.

When I met Governor Sanford, I did not know who he was. During the trip, I learned he was a true gentleman. He was kind in spirit, thoughtful, and buoyant.

Positano, Italy, May 1984. This was a memorable meal: spaghetti with cuttlefish and squid.

Religion Class

River Forest, Illinois, January 13, 1976. Religion classes were mandatory at my high school. Few of us took the classes seriously, and we usually tried to find a course that wasn't very "religiony." This photo is from one of those classes, Marriage Class.

The requirement that students wear uniforms did not mute self-expression.

Forest-Floor Reunion

Door County, Wisconsin, November 1976. Gigi takes the lake path.

November Retreat

Door County, Wisconsin, November 1976. Gigi sits at the base of one of the trees on the "hill."

Related by Marriage: Close Quarters

Evanston, Illinois, October 1976. Things get tight in the hallway of Mr. Irene's dorm.

Island Reunion

Delos, Greece, April 25, 1976. It's a quick stop on the way to Turkey.

Weekend Baking

Suburban Chicago, June 1976. The box of saltine crackers indicates we're making a peculiar torte. It consisted of multiple layers of unsalted crackers held together with a buttercream made from butter and chopped, dried fruit. The torte was very popular in the 1970s among Lithuanians. The recipe mimicked the more complicated preparation of a "Napoleonas."

Here's the recipe, as I wrote it out back then:

Mule's Ear

Santorini, Greece, April 1976. I'm trying for a better shot.

Close-up Reunion

Athens, Greece, April 16, 1976. We continue to explore the Parthenon.

Summer Work

Door County, Wisconsin, July 1976. Dad's clearing the brush along an old lakeside path.

Tablecloth

Mykonos, Greece, April 1976. I bought the tablecloth the woman is holding.

The Artist's Birthday

Suburban Chicago, 1976. This is the artist Bronius Murinas. He lived in our suburb. He was older than my Parents, so we didn't see him often at social occasions. The Lithuanians in our enclave did, however, gather to celebrate Murinas's seventieth birthday; Dad took this photo at that party.

Most families had some of his art in their homes.

Related by Marriage: Graduation season approaches.

Suburban Chicago, June 1976. Mr. Irene rocked those tinted aviators.

(He wore a different eyeglass style here.)

Washing Dishes

Door County, Wisconsin, July 1976. I'm wearing the buzzing bees blouse. I sewed that blouse, and used to wear it often.

There's a shot of Mom at this same spot in this post.

"She wanted students to see it all."

My beloved high school English teacher, Sister Angele, died last week. Some of the reflections at her wake stirred up memories. 

Although I don't share Sister Angele's love of travel, touring Greece with her was a great experience. She was a tolerant chaperone who left us on a long leash as we explored Greece and Turkey. We dodged serious trouble a couple of times. Our group also avoided some of our responsibilities. For instance, we all carried assignments overseas because we had homework. I was supposed to read Vanity Fair during that trip expressly for Sister Angele's class. I started reading the book on the plane ride home.

When we returned to school, Sister Angele pulled me aside into the hallway outside of her classroom. She warned me not to detail our "escapades" to classmates. Sister Angele's message and tone were stern, but her head posture and glint conveyed an appreciation of the mischief.

Santorini, Greece, April 1976. Sister Angele is the teacher who required us to memorize and recite the prologue to Canterbury Tales in Middle English. She taught me not to fear public speaking, and she introduced me to the study of the Middle Ages. She thereby started two threads that ran through my life.