I Have A List

I actually have a journal where I keep a list of names of everyone I ever knew that died. If I know the cause and date, I write that too. I only read it when I have to enter someone else's name and then I put it away again.

They didn't know I was paying attention.

Two Little Boys

It's so amazing to me how Life works:

I went to an auction one evening about a year ago and was browsing all the cool old stuff, antiques, retro and my favorite of favorites: kitsch, when I spotted some old photographs. Two shirtbox lids filled with old dags, tintypes and other old photos. (see photo) The one that drew me over to the whole shebang was a photo taken of two little boys who were obviously outside playing.(sorry, didn't take that photo!) They were both looking out of the photo and into my eyes. There was an old man next to me also looking at the photos and I said to him that I couldn't believe people would actually throw out or auction off photos of their relatives like this. To see these two little boys looking at me, unbeknownst to them that some lady in the year 2005 would be looking at their little faces and wondering who they were, was a sad thing. I felt as if I had to rescue these photos. The auction started and I bid $20 per box and won both box lids full of photos. I was so pleased!


The next day I sat down and went through all these photos. It was still so sad to me that this was someone's family and they just tossed all these photos aside. After looking over all of them and some documents, letters and even a baby book dated 1913, I decided to put the baby book on eBay. I researched the names and places mentioned and hoped that perhaps a long lost relative of this baby would show up on eBay and purchase back this item. After it had been up for auction for a few days, I got an email from a woman who told me that the book's illustrator was a very collectable illustrator. So I changed the item title and it sold. Then, I decided to put the dags and tintypes up for auction, as well. I really was curious to see if someone would know these people in the photos. I emailed the winning bidder about the shipping costs and the woman who won told me that her husband's relatives were named Sutts and these photos were from the Sutts family from Asbury Park/Brighton Beach area of NJ. I told her that I had 2 box lids full of photos and one large photo of a graduating class from an elementary school that was once there. I offered the other photos to her for free, she only had to pay the shipping, as I was so excited to know that these photos WOULD be saved! In fact, the Brighton Beach Historical Society was getting the large elementary school photo to display.

Now how cool is that?

They don't know

I'm a passenger in my friend's van and we're driving down the street. I can't help but see inside the house as I'm being driven past it. It's dark outside, but the lights inside show someone is home. As I'm going past the house for just a second or two, I see through the window and notice someone walking across the room. They don't see me and they have no idea I'm even there, let alone looking at them. In my mind I think how amazing it is that I am, if only for a fleeting moment, in that house with them. Seeing the framed picture hanging on the wall behind this person... I think it's a woman... walking past the window to who knows where. I wonder what she's doing. I wonder where she went as she passed the window to where I could no longer see her. Did she go to the kitchen? Is she making dinner? Did she stay there awhile or did she grab something and come right back past the window again for someone else to see her on the return trip? What's her name? Is she sickly or healthy? Is she a nice woman? Does she have lots of friends? Hobbies?

And then she's gone. Or rather, I'm gone...continuing on my drive and perhaps seeing someone else in a bit. Maybe the next person I see is eating in a restaurant while they are swallowing a bite of cheesecake, totally unaware that someone saw them swallow that last bit of goodness.