LiamLicks: 6/7/20

Sunday, June 7, 2020

Pandemic Project Number 1, Done, before Phase 1

MY MOM HAS PANDEMIC PROJECT

I finished one pandemic project

Went through1300 slides

Culled out my deemed worthy 250

Shared with the family as I went

as the weeks went on, the numbers of viewers grew

I have a family FB PM chat group and occasionally shared with friends and family via text

I shared by taking iPhone photos of 1x1 inch slides thru a 2x2 inch viewer

It worked for a temp solution and having people on the current journey

The following collage has photos of the project room
the slides share the table with our GoT 4D puzzle
in the center you will see the legacy box sizes

Digital companies are vying for my business

Waiting for the best offer

I have my slides in the carts of 3different companies

I was told to wait for 60% off

They are now up to 40% from 20% and 15%

I will share via a link when digitization done

My parents documented all events and no one else has what I have

The slides are

My legacy

as well as the Ancestry tree I created

With thousands of entries

my gift to all

I told the family since I did not reproduce

Ancestry

and the slide digitization

are my contribution

to future generations

as are our Ancestry relatives

Plus now through Ancestry

we have the second McNiff family

joining in...my grandpa James McNiff had two families

one in NY and one in RI

Many more McNiffs

And we all

Look alike

Many dimples

short

blondes

we have connected

I was praised by a dear friend for my work

Our text exchange

Great work Carol.

Few can match your dedication once you commit

me-Being an addictive personality is an asset in some activities

The slides begin in 1949 with my parents, Ruth and Charlie on their Catalina honeymoon

They eloped on 1/20/49

The slides end in 1974

unknown to them Ruth's younger brother eloped the same weekend

I am familiar with some

of the photos and was looking to see them again

The ones I selected here are from the fifties and sixties

Below is a collage of some I have been delighted in rediscovering

Clockwise...starting with the large photo...

Carol, parakeet, Buddy Boy, on my glasses, sister Lois 1955

Now the minis, top right down

Carol, with my real life doll, Lois and Howdy Doody...1955

-Grandpa Mickey Coughlin Carol 1954

Cousins on the couch to the right, father Charlie in the middle

Lois, Carol Sharon, cousins 1961

Highlands NJ

Lois Carol Ruth

cousins Wedding 1966

Easter1965...I dyed my hair black

The slides show a life with a lot of Summer on the Jersey shore

a family tradition from my mother's childhood.

The Highlands

Asbury Park,

Point Pleasant

Atlantic City

I know I passed Bruce Springsteen at Asbury Park on my 9th birthday

We did not have a car so getting to these places was not easy.

We spent a lot of time at the Port Authority Bus Terminal,

and the start of any trip involved a bus and subway from our apt. in Flushing.

Our 1965 trip to Block Island RI took almost a day. Train, bus, ferry....hours, Amtrak, swimming

LIAM DEVELOPED A GREY BEARD THINKING OF THE TRAVEL TIME

The slide journey showed trips to Europe and all over the US. As I said above, we did not own a car but my father Charlie worked for TWA so we flew for free.

I am enjoying the slide trips and I am looking for a photo
I had it in my mind for 58 years
what was it?
In 1962 I attended the opening of the TWA "bird" terminal with my father.
here is the link if you don't know of it
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TWA_Flight_Center

the TWA family affectionately called it the bird

our SSA group has planned an outing to the TWA center which opened as a Hotel and a kinda museum

see link
https://www.twahotel.com/

The photo.
It was there.
A photo I had not seen since 1962.
My mother had told me it was time for a print dress for this special occasion.
I did not know 'til years later that she gave up her spot for me.
I LOVED that dress
here I am at 12.
I even had bows in my hair.
Orange anklets.
white flats
See the old TWA plane behind me!

AT TWA FLIGHT CENTER OPENING 1962

I now have many print dresses. My faves have been purchased at

The Farmer's Market in Fort Pierce Fl

I think all of them are a homage to my first print dress

Here I am with one of my evocative TWA type dresses.

left 12 year old me, right current time 2020

Ah, this one photo was worth the entire pandemic project of 1300 slides

We had difficulty getting my father off the couch in the early sixties and so Mom Ruth traveled.

Italy1961

Ruth was brave and fearless. She went to Italy by herself.

Holland and London 1965

She took my sister and I to London and Holland. An 11 and 14 year old. I remember hearing Ticket to Ride at Heaththrow airport. Beatles invasion.

Ireland 1967

In Ireland our tour guide in Killarney commented how fortunate we were to be "well

to do" Americans... able to travel. I disabused the guide of this notion. I told him we lived in a city housing project, did not own a car and both my parents had to work to support us.
Ouch.
Got him.
Ruthless

Portugal 1971

Our trip to Portugal was memorable because my father left his wallet home. In those days there were no credit cards, at least not for us and we barely survived the week on our pooled $100 among the 4 of us.

We rebelliously bought sombreros at the airport with our remaining escudos (Portuguese currency in the '60s) and wore them on the plane home.
We did not allow my father to buy one
he was known as El Cheapo
thereafter