In Memoriam

[rejectomorph]

The cousin who keeps track of things called yesterday afternoon to tell us that my father's last surviving sister had died. She was the last of my aunts who was a blood relative. (I still have two aunts who are married to my two surviving uncles, one on each side of the family.) She would have been 96 this spring. Her name was Velma. I don't think anyone is being named Velma anymore. I remember quite a few characters named Velma in old movies and in books of the early to mid 20th century. Many of them were a bit on the wild side. My aunt Velma was a bit wild in her youth -- she might even have been considered a flapper. She enjoyed dancing and smoking and visiting speakeasies. By the time I knew her, she had settled down to respectable smokeless and alcohol-free middle age. She had acquired religion. When I worked for a while in the family print shop, she operated one of the folding machines. Quick and lively, she moved about the place singing hymns, only snatches of which I could catch over the racket of the machinery. For a while in the 1930's, she lived on Catalina and worked in the pottery there which made arty figurines and such for the tourist trade. The products of the Catalina Pottery have since become collectors items. Whenever I see a piece made at that time, I always think how my aunt Velma might have had a hand in making it. Individual artisans didn't sign their work there, but I like knowing that objects she made anonymously are out there, scattered about the world, valued by their owners.

Velma Marion
1908-2004

Comments

[blue-by-you.livejournal.com]

I'm sorry, Joe. I like that she left a legacy in her artwork and that you shared her with us. There's a Velma on my friends list -- foadnotes.

just a word

[chez-rasade.livejournal.com]

My father died last year. He was a journalist. At the time Hassan II was king of Morocco, he was not welcome in the country. So we had to leave the country for a while. Then we came back to Morocco and he started training journalists in Africa (what we call in French l'Afrique noire). So, there are tens of journalists in this continent who learnt the trade with him...
I like you writing... I only started to write in livejournal today (In french) , but I've been writing in english for a while, especially poetry. I write in a workshop. I won this week :o)
Here is a link if you want to have an idea:
http://spydersempire.com/cgi-bin/spe/gforum.cgi?post=4463;sb=post_latest_reply;so=ASC;forum_view=forum_view_collapsed;guest=45396

Re: just a word

[rejectomorph]

Your poetry has very imaginative imagery.

I have no idea what you have said in your journal, since I have no French at all -- (and me with a bunch of French paintings for LJ user icons!)

And, welcome to LiveJournal. I'm guessing that you were able to join the site because the invite codes are no longer needed. I know it was often difficult for people outside the U.S. to arrange payment, and almost as difficult to find someone to give them a code to join for free. I'm glad they did away with the invite code system. Now it will be easier for people from all over the world to join the site. It should make things much more interesting.

Re: just a word

[chez-rasade.livejournal.com]

Yes, it's very very difficult to pay for anything from Morocco, every dollar sent abroad has to have an authorization from the Ministry of finance, which takes ages. I wanted to get in touch with other people from Morocco but I found out that it's not possible if you don't pay ...
Well, I'll just do without it ...
Next time I'll post stuff in english though it's only my third language ... I will feel as if I was wearing a shirt that's way too small for me :o)