Thursday, December 30, 2010

I have absolutely no use for something like this, nor do I have the space, but there is something so cool about having a corner with one of these babies in it! Plus the color is gorgeous! Found this at my local thrift store near my work....what makes me even sadder is that they only want $50 bucks for it! My boyfriend will probably look at me like I'm crazy for wanting something like this and tell me that I'm better off saving my money...which he's right! If only I was able to be so frivolous!

The cruise was wonderful, they practically had to drag me off the ship kicking and screaming! I was nearly sick when I had to come back to snow! Will post more on the cruise once I go through all my photos n' such. Anyway, as the year comes to a close I want to review all my fabulous trash finds of 2010. This year was slightly more plentiful than last year, and the items I found were truly incredible!

This fabulous cabinet was found back in August...a truly tremendous find!

A peek inside

Why on earth would someone throw out a perfectly good chair? I now use this at my vanity.

My incredibly large, mid-century mod rattan magazine holder

My incredibly 70s looking painted mirror...sadly I broke this after I had it for a week!

My vintage Greyhound Bus ashtray...probably dates from the 60s or 70s. Spotted this while I was riding on the bus...thankfully my stop was the next one! I ran over there like a lunatic to make sure I was the first to get my hands on it!

The black velvet Matador painting and the painted hat were both found lying on a giant pile of snow last winter....I couldn't believe my luck! They were my first trash finds of 2010.

Wednesday, December 22, 2010

Getting ready to go into cruise control, but I thought I would share this hilarious little bit about a lost cat named Missy. Before you get upset about a lost cat, I'll just tell you...its a JOKE and a mighty funny one at that. Enjoy!

Tuesday, December 21, 2010

My friend Ed organizes a "Holiday Lights" tour every year during Christmas time. It was held last week on a very cold and blustery night. We normally check out model trains, light shows, trees and various other Christmas decorations at several different venues. One of our stops is to see A Christmas Carol, which is located on the 3rd Floor of Macy's Department Store. It is filled with animated characters acting out the tale and it is always a lot of fun. This year, as we were making our way through the maze, we were surprised to see something odd about the display. You will have to scroll down to see, but I will tell you this...we could not stop laughing when we saw this!

Charles Dickens gives us an introduction

Scrooge says no to charity

Scrooge and Crachett talking to nephew Fred

The George and Vulture Tavern. Was told that this was a replica of an actual tavern that existed in London

Little boy selling flowers

Not his finest moment

Scrooge imagines he sees Marley's ghost!

Scrooge encounters Jacob Marley and the lost souls

The lost souls

Scrooge encounters the Ghost of Christmas Past

Fun at the Fezziwig Christmas Party!

Scrooge as a young man

Dancing at Fezziwigs' party!

Belle breaks off her engagement to Scrooge

This is where Scrooge encounters the Ghost of Christmas Present (this is what we are supposed to see...but not what we ended up seeing last week.) This photo was from last year.

This is what we saw....what the hell??!! What is going on underneath that robe! Needless to say, we all had sick minds and found this to be hilarious! I couldn't stop laughing as Scrooge's head kept bobbing back and forth!

Christmas at the Cratchets!

Holiday fun at Nephew Fred's house

This is where Scrooge encounters the Ghost of Christmas Future. I apologize for the lousy quality of my camera phone!

Poor Tiny Tim is dead

A brightly illuminated Scrooge has become a changed man and wishes everyone a Merry Christmas!

Thursday, December 16, 2010

This was a lovely little holiday gem called The Spirit of Christmas put out by Bell Telephone for the kiddies sometime in the 50s and ran every holiday up through the 70s. This excerpt features the Mabel Beaton marionettes acting out Twas the Night Before Christmas. This was mainly one of those regional productions, so only those kids who lived in and around the Philadelphia, PA area would see this. Brings back some great Christmas memories for me.

Wednesday, December 15, 2010

I was listening to some Christmas music and gearing myself for some holiday cheer because later this evening I'm meeting up with some friends to check out the local Holiday displays around town. In between all the Frosty, White Christmas and Rudolph songs, I heard Suzy Snowflake. This little gem from the 50s was sung by none other than Rosemary Clooney. I've never heard this song before, but for some reason it sounded familiar...perhaps I haven't heard it since I was a kid in 70s? Who knows! Anyway, I was surprised to see the name Suzy used in a holiday song. So in my searching for information about the song, I came across this lovely little video on YouTube from some Christmas TV special that aired in Chicago in 1953. Enjoy!

This holiday season will be spent on a cruise ship! I'm very excited and a little sad at the same time, since it will be the first time I've spent the holidays away from my family and my pets. I'll be traveling with my boyfriend and his entire family on this trip. We are taking Royal Caribbean to the Bahamas and Jamaica. Thankfully we are not going through the Philadelphia airport and all the body scans and searches, and instead leaving from the Atlantic City airport and flying to Fort Lauderdale, FL and cruising from there. I'll miss seeing my family, and I'll especially miss my pets, but I've made arrangements for someone to come to the house to take care of them while I'm gone. Its definitely going to be a new experience since this is my first time on a cruise ship. I'm a little worried, especially after the couple of cruise ship disasters in the news recently...but I think its going to be a fantastic experience! Also, looking forward to leaving these frigid temperatures too!

Tuesday, December 14, 2010

The holidays are always inundated with holiday movies...and many consider the granddaddy of them all to be the film White Christmas. My mom never appreciated this holiday classic, so we never watched it when it was on TV. I knew that Bing Crosby and Rosemary Clooney were in it, but I never viewed the film to make my own critique...until now. I managed to watch it last Saturday night on TCM, and was truly excited to see a true classic holiday film. Now many folks will probably bombard me with hateful comments, but this film fell below my expectations...I finally understand why my mom never cared for it! It starts off during WWII. The soldiers are making the best of their situation by singing Christmas songs in an effort to bring up the soldiers spirits. Bing sings the title song to the soldiers and then they honor their General who is being re-assigned. It is a touching and moving scene and gets the film to a great start. Shortly afterwards, they are attacked, and Bing is saved by Danny Kaye during the ensuing battle. Danny then makes a deal with Bing to be partners in song and dance and over the years they become famous performers and producers. Danny is constantly trying to push one of the dancing dames onto Bing, but he is not interested in any of those women. Its not until they are duped into meeting a sister act which consists of Rosemary Clooney and Vera-Ellen that Danny realizes that Bing is smitten with Rosemary.

They manage to all end up at a Vermont Inn, through a series of ridiculous circumstances. When they arrive at their destination, it curiously looks like springtime, because the leaves on the trees are still green, even though it is supposed to be December! To be honest, the movie didn't really have that Holiday feeling about it until almost the end of the film. Most of the songs in the film were NOT of the holiday variety...and I swear, if I hear that silly Sisters song ever again I'll jump out of a window! So please, tell me why, of all the holiday films, is this one considered the best of the genre?

Monday, December 13, 2010

It’s that time of year where the television bombards us with an absolute deluge of Christmas programming. You know what I’m talking about: It’s a Wonderful Life, A Christmas Story, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, any one of the thousands of versions of A Christmas Carol. Ever since I was a kid, the Charlie Brown Christmas special has been a favorite of my family. It is the only one that I make an effort to watch each year. The music by Vince Guaraldi, Snoopy dancing around like a lunatic and the saddest looking Christmas tree ever!....what more could you ask for a Christmas show?

This dance scene always cracked me up! I love the twins, and the guy in the back doing the Zombie walk!

Here's how the story goes, Charlie Brown is forced to be the director of the Christmas pageant and nobody will listen to him. They just dance around like a bunch of idiots, while Schroeder plays the piano. Charlie Brown, gets fed up, so Lucy suggests that he get a Christmas tree to help conjure up some Christmas spirit. So, Charlie Brown and Linus set out for the tree lot, where they wander through a myriad of gaudy, metal trees to find the only natural tree in the lot, which happens to be pitifully scrawny and prone to dropping the few pine needles still clinging to it. Charlie Brown insists that "This little guy needs a home" and decides to bring it back, even though Linus objects. As the gang ridicules him for his choice, it inspires him to cry out in desperation, "Isn't there anyone who knows what Christmas is all about?" Linus responds, "Sure Charlie Brown, I can tell you what Christmas is all about." He then steps out on stage, and asks for the spotlight so that everyone can see and hear him and he starts quoting Luke's Gospel.

"I think it needs me!"

Afterwards, Charlie Brown, proudly takes home his pitiful tree and puts an ornament on it and as the tree droops, he is very disappointed, stating "I've killed it!" Then he sulkily walks into the house. Turns out that the Peanuts gang was following him all along and they begin to decorate the tree, making it grand and beautiful...and through the magic of animation, it seems to have sprouted more branches and needles (the one annoying thing that bothered hell out of me as a kid) and now it looks like a proper Christmas tree. The gang starts to sing, and Charlie Brown comes outside, shocked to see his tree look so beautiful. The gang shouts out "Merry Christmas Charlie Brown!" and then begin to sing Hark the Herald Angels sing and Charlie Brown merrily joins them.

Friday, December 10, 2010

This really takes me back. I've always loved watching the animated figures in the store windows during the holidays. Not many stores do that nowadays...but back in the 50s through the 70s, it was a holiday staple. This guy has approximately 80 of them in his collection..which is enormous! I could probably spend hours looking at them. At home I have 2 large animated figures and a small battery operated one. The large ones were purchased at a yard sale by my parents, and given to me for Christmas about 10 years ago. They had their original price tags and markdowns on the boxes. The tags stated that they originally sold for $120 each, then marked down to $60 each. My folks got both of them for $20 at the yard sale! They were so thrilled to give them to me, because they knew I loved that kind of stuff. Enjoy the animated magic!

Wednesday, December 8, 2010

I love the 70s, but there were some seriously bad designs as well as groovy. Below are some of the abominations of the 70s. These were taken from the site EUROBAD '74, an exhibition of Europe's worst interiors of 1974. Enjoy!

For some odd reason, this foxy lady thought it would be a good idea to make an outfit from the leftover fabric from her drapes and sofa. This is an example of matching gone too far. If I had to pick an element I like about this room it would have to be that groovy little red flip clock behind her.

This truly scares the shit out of me! Imagine the static coming off of these in winter! Digging the mushroom lamps though.

This would give any kid nightmares!

Its not easy bein' green...and its not easy to look at this room....talk about green overload! Even the car is green! What was it with everything having to match??

Obviously someone went a little tile crazy here! It wouldn't have been so bad if it wasn't such a busy looking pattern on the tiles. Plain tiles would have been a better choice. Also, they seem to clash with the avocado toilet and sink. Also..is that wall to wall carpeting in the bathroom? Yuck...I'm getting skeeved out just thinking of the mildew underneath!

Hmmm...I'm kind of digging this room. I love the pattern on the drapes and that silver floor lamp is fantastic. Not sure what the deal is with that really super low coffee table. You almost have to sit on the floor just to put something on it! The only thing that really dates this room is the outfits the people are wearing.

This one isn't too horrible....kind of reminds of that furniture called This End Up...which looked like it was made from shipping crates. Seriously, is it just me or does that doll in the corner look kind of creepy?

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Suzy's Stuff

Stuff About Me

Hi I'm Sue from Philadelphia, PA...lover of flea markets, animals, thrift shop finds and vintage furniture, accessories, clothing, vinyl and 8-Track tapes. Interested in interior design, arts and crafts and cooking. Especially love baking! I'm not a vegetarian, but I would like to learn some great vegetarian recipes. I'm also interested in learning more about vegan baking as well.