A Knitted Suit from the 1980s

Columbia, South Carolina, November 13, 1988. I used to knit suits, too (okay, this is a two-piece dress). The sleeves are not Dolman sleeves—I never liked those batwings—but they are wide. I knitted this in Lana Borgosesia's Hilton yarn. I worked the yarn at 7 stitches to the inch: knitters know this is a fine (to some, tedious) gauge.

I loved this garment. It's knitted in my favorite color! I wore it when I taught, and I wore it for special occasions. And . . .  I still have it:

"Red pants, that's France!"

Suburban Chicago, November 1960. This clip reminds me of "Red pants, that's France!" I learned that piece of uniform history during my senior year in high school, when I took "Western Civilizations." Western Civ was the course that turned me on to studying history. I liked the class because we used a college-level textbook,* and the teacher, Sr. Francia Shannon, was amazing. She taught us to use primary sources.  

I think my classmate will remember how we repeated, "Le pantalon rouge c'est la France!"

*Our edition was a hardcover with white binding. I saved it for about 30 years; I think I got rid of it when we last moved. I have a newer, paperback, edition on the shelf—one that I used when I taught the course in the late 1980s. I'm annoyed I can't find my high-school volume. It had my underlines and notes. I'm a purger, but this is a time when I regret getting rid of something.

Air Force One

Columbia, South Carolina, May 1990. President George H. W. Bush arrives in South Carolina's state capital, and ...

... Air Force One parks under the "Columbia, Home of the Fighting Gamecocks" sign.