Tuesday, August 11, 2009

Fun Find and A Mystery!

I went by the Rink Friday to pick up furniture, so I had Hubby with me.   He likes to browse the mall also but is, naturally, more interested in the “guy” stuff.  You know, old toy trucks (do they every get over that), vintage sporting goods and such.  And so it was that I never ever would have even thought to look at a truck lubricating manual if he hadn’t picked it up first to browse through it. 

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I mean really, would any of you have picked this up and opened it?  Not me anyway.

So he opened the cover and noticed that someone had glued old newspaper articles all over the inside.  He was immediately uninterested.  In his eyes, it was “ruined.” 

I said “let me see that thing.”  Of course I had forgotten my reading glasses so I was about as blind as a bat.  I really HATE this eye sight thing by the way!  Anywho, every page was covered in newsprint front and back.  “I think I’m going to buy this, it’s only $4.50 and I’m sure I can do something with it craft wise.”  He shook his head at me, declared me crazy (which he does a lot) and walked on.  And I hugged my little treasure to me and thought of all the ways that I could tear it apart and make fun things out of it.

After I got my treasure home and sat down with one of my 42 pairs of reading glasses (which makes me wonder how I could NOT have a pair with me when I need them) I started to read the articles inside.  The first thing that I came across was a loose article on journalism.

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As I read on I noticed that many of the articles were by a journalist named Frank Colby and were either about the meaning of a word or the correct pronunciation, or the English language in general.

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I was hooked, I just had to know more.

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There were several articles similar to this one, aimed toward women.  Notice what this one says under the picture!

There were also a few articles written by women.  Then almost to the back of the manual, I found a letter from  a college dated 1935.  AND…….

this letter

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A letter written by an Emily (can’t read the last name) darn it, submitting an article entitled “Putting Up With Landladys” to someone.  Be sure and read the P.S.  it is so funny! 

So I surmise that this must have been someone named Emily in and around 1935 with a passion for Journalism.  I would say that this is a scrapbook/journal of her interest in bettering herself so that she could possibly become a newspaper reporter.  I know one thing for sure, in 1935 it must have taken a woman with a lot of spunk, spirit, and determination to pursue ANY career let alone a career in Journalism.

In the end……I just don’t think that I have the heart to disassemble this journal.  It was Emily’s journal about her passion and dream.  I think I’m just  going to scrap over the front cover and keep it intact.  Kind of a shrine to ALL women who have fought to live their dream.

The strange thing about this is…..Emily is one of my favorite girls names of all time.  If I had had another little girl I would have named her Emily, and Heather and I used to talk about her using that name if she had  a little girl.  Weird indeed! 

So here’s to Emily!  I hope that she lived her dream in the end!

Denise

10 comments:

  1. OMG,
    That is so cool!! I would have bought it too! I never would have gave it a look in the first place either.
    Thanks for visiting me, and I'm glad you liked my new bathroom makeover. Yes, I say an axe would be a good start. We started with a hammer.
    Rosemary

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  2. Isn't so exciting when you find a treasure like that. It's like looking into the soul of a lost kindred spirit. i love reading old letters. I have a hard time ripping them apart for projects though so I usual end up just copying them instead.
    Lovely story Denise.
    ...come by if you'd like to get in on my giveaway!
    xo,
    Carole

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  3. I think this really is a treasure. How fortunate that your husband picked this up. Otherwise I hate to think of what would have become of it.
    I think it's quite telling that she made it from a truck lubrication manual.
    Thank yo so much for the lovely message you left me about my daughter. I'm blessed to have such a sweet one.
    Hugs,
    June

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  4. Oh I love bits of the past with a story to them. What a charming find.

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  5. Whoa, Denise! That is one of those "meant to be's"... a kind of gift from an angel maybe! What an awesome find! It is so sweet that you are honoring both she AND Frank this way!

    Hugs,

    Sheila

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  6. An interesting post and what a fab find but what I really related to was the readers thing. What a fun post that could be. i also have them all over the house, by the piano, the phones ( so I can see who is calling before I answer or the machine picks up ), my art room, office, bedside, even the bathroom ( so I can read medicine bottles) Thanks for the laugh and the idea for a fun post.

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  7. What a wonderful treasure to find!

    LuLu~*xoxo

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  8. yes...cheers to Emily! and the same to you, for actually remembering why antiquing is so much fun........the history.....the nostalgia.......the personality of each peice....

    seriously...you could think about that with a pyrex even! (what did she bake? was it famous?)

    but this: oh my- your treasure is so unique -
    how about a really cool shadow box? or design a doll out of what you think Emily would be like?

    do you THINK I've had too much coffee today??

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  9. What a treasure. I wonder if she used the manual because it was the only thing available to her at the time or because she wanted to conceal her dreams? This is the sort of things movies are made of.

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  10. what a fantastic little find...i love little pieces of bits of history like this...
    have a wonderful weekend~
    chasity

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