its time for take off!

another allan de lay photo from portland, OR (his are my favorite to list, they are easy to describe, scan well, and they are such unique 1950s images)

there is just something so satisfying about selling something you treasure.
i stare at a single picture for a while, post it, describe it, & then check at every possible moment to see if it sells. When it does i am ecstatic! who knew that i would find so much excitement from selling a single picture?
the best part is that i know when someone purchases something they are going to get something better than what they can see in the scanned photo. Our photos are always better than the scanned images! you cant say that about a lot of things.
ebay is an interesting world. it is filled with the unexpected, from constant changes in the html code (grr) to selling pictures i never dreamed would go so high, or not selling pictures that i thought would.

in a way its a tiny microcosm of american society. in the old days people use to go to their town auction houses to bid on items they could normally not afford. today they go to ebay.
but the economy is affecting everyone and i found out an alarming statistic. january of last year we had 6x's the amount of people visting our pages!! its funny, i would have expected sales to go up--seeing as one can determine their own price for an item (you dont have to spend an arm & a leg!). i guess one never knows... heres to the hope that sales will begin to take off once more, not only for me, but for all of the sellers who are supporting their families....

the approach of the cupid

(this photo is from 1909, now on auction, my favorite of the week-beautiful baby dressed up as cupid!)

Cupid is coming!
I've seen him hanging from the fixtures at CVS, the candy aisle at the grocery store, & popping up on many websites.

Cupid cant help but remind me of the valentines days when i was not married...when i was waiting & hoping to be struck by his arrow!
when you're married or in a relationship the bar gets set pretty high, but when you're not in any relationship at all, a simple grade school valentine will do.

funny how we expect so much, how stores, ads, & movies set us up for unrealized goals. although i don't want their kind of valentines day in my head i'm always thinking of what he should get me for valentines day: "oh, those roses would be nice" or "wow, i would love to have him make me dinner like they did in (insert movie title)

Who is cupid anyhow?

Cupid (according to Wikipedia) is from Roman Mythology & was the god of erotic love & beauty.
Then how come he is so often pictured as a small helpless cherub?

while i do not believe that cupid is a god, i do believe that Love is a force...that God is LOVE.

this God of love is a lot stronger than the cutey with the bow & arrow. although that lends itself to a poignant word picture. why was the cupid used a symbol of love?
Is that how love is?
One moment you don't even believe in love and then suddenly out of nowhere it strikes you, and at that moment you are completely different than you were before. You change because love is so strong, it overwhelms the other wavering emotions & sets things straight.

I guess its true.... "to love & be loved--is the best gift in this world"

Oh, how I miss Paris!

There's just something about the French.
They do things right.
They eat excellent foods & stay thin.
They make gorgeous lingerie.
They speak french.
And they enjoy the finer things in life.

Its only been 2 months since I was last in Paris, but it seems like years ago. Paris is such a unique & lovely city. When I was there last I remember thinking "I feel at home." Finally. There's not many places (beside home) where I do feel at "home" I love Europe.
Sometimes I find myself driving past strip malls & vast parking lots here, wondering, "why am I living here?" Don't get me wrong, there is something so beautiful about living near family, but it is definitely not the urban sprawl.
This photo is from a french postcard. At the bottom it says "Bonne Fete" Which basically means Happy Holiday or direct translation "Good Holiday".
Its little pictures like this that remind me of all the good things about Paris. (Yes, there are some bad things about Paris too...aka the fact that everything is very expensive!)
Au revoir, Jjay

GIRLS & THEIR DOLLS

GIRLS & THEIR DOLLS
I am a long time doll lover. As a child my mother use to take me to a place called Shirley's Dollhouse. It was there that I was able to pick out my first doll. I had been given dolls before that, but my first time picking out my own doll was a big deal. I can still remember how crowded that shop was, and what a tough decision it was for a little girl to choose one lovely doll or another lovely doll. As I grew older I added many dolls to my collection. One in particular I found in my mother's old store, that she used for a display. I remember asking how much it cost & returned the next day with all the pennies I could find.
What is our strange bond to our dolls? We name them, we take care of them, and even today its hard for me to just shove them in a box in storage.
This Photo captures a girls love for dolls. It shows them playing with them, talking about them & to them. The picture at the top in a way illuminates the human nature of the dolls.
Funny, I can remember taking "wedding photos"of my barbies marriages (don't even get me started on barbies!!). This collection of photos is from an excellent photographer named Allen J De Lay. He worked for the Oregonian Newspaper in Portland, Oregon. Chatham Ho Store is featuring many of his photos if you want to see more or buy these :) Its a great feeling to sell work from a photographer, the quality of the work is so high & so unique. enjoy! Jjay

Publish Post

Obamabilia

I teared up today watching the Inauguration. I would have cried but I was in a gym full of people who seemed not to care. Everything kept going on as history was being made. I wanted to shout across the gym "STOP! Doesn't anyone care?" but I didn't because I'm sure they do care, but at that moment they cared much more about themselves & working out not to notice .

It was then that I realized that History is made all around us & often times we miss it. As I watched I wondered if years from now I would remember where I was on this day.

You know what I mean, everyone remembers where they were on September 11th, or JFK's assasination. There are a few moments like that in my life as well:
My first kiss
When I first learned to Drive (with my dad in a church parking lot)
When Mother Teresa died
The weekend of the 2005 Tsunamis ( We were at Disney world, which made that reality all that much worse) & Hurricane Katrina.
And possibly today .... I wonder.

Years from now will the future "vintage items" be Obama pictures & memorabilia? (Obama + memorabilia=Obamabilia) Most assuredly yes!!

This photo would sell well....Its an old photo of Our President Barack Obama in 1963 in Hawaii.

No seriously today was a special day. A day of hopes realized & of dreams come true.
How powerful to stand with our African American brothers & sisters and affirm them. Affirm that they can make a difference & change their communities. How powerful that President Obama can shake the hands of the old Party boys, join the ranks of 43+ of the most powerful white men in history and stand in solidarity with his other half...I am impressed & I am blessed by this.

And then the most amazing thing happened...Later in the evening I watched Bush's welcoming home speech. He seems 20 years younger already & told a lot of funny jokes. Somewhere inside of me, the frustration with him melted away and I appreciated the fact that he had worked hard as president. Its not easy being president...
Good Luck & God's Blessings President Obama (you're going to need it ;)

Jjay

Getting My Feet Wet!!!

I have finally ventured forth into this foreign land...EBAY! It is an uncharted territory for me... I carry with me the road map my mom has given me and I am hoping to not veer too much off the path!

It is an exciting and scary thing to work on someone elses business. There is a great sense of responsibility not only to that person, but also to their customers.

My favorite parts about this journey are the treasures I have found along the way. I found this photo--and I love it. The true reason is because I love to wear dark lipstick..dark sexy red lipstick..and that is exactly what she is wearing.. it struck a chord with me.. Maybe someone else will enjoy it too. At least I hope so.

For some reason, I think this year will prove to be a year of building my self confidence. What a sense of accomplishment it is to begin something and follow through with it. I cannot wait for all that is in store! Literally.. In the Chatham Ho Treasures Store...
Jjay

Snapshots of our lives

In this digital age, where most of our pictures remain on our laptops and life speeds quickly past, a photo is indeed a snapshot of our lives. A moment caught in time. A visual aide to help us remember special moments or people we would have otherwise forgot.

Since December I have been to Iowa, Illinois, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, & Oregon, not to mention all of the states I have driven across. While I have been packing, moving, and driving across the country I have thrown many things away, said goodbye to dear friends and relatives and have been greeted by new ones. I have had to learn to let go and move on.

Because of this, I long to hold on to special moments in my life. If we cant hold on to people, or to time, or even to places, we can hold on to a picture of those things. We can hold in our hands a memory. We can cherish a person and remember a special place.

In a way these photos come to life, because they carry so much life within them. Not just my own photos, but the photos of others as well...

If you stare at them long enough you can imagine what the child in the photo is going to do next, or what that young man is thinking. If I stare at my own photos long enough I can remember the thoughts I had while that photo was being taken, or the smell of the flowering tree in the backround.

Im not going to include a photo in this post, instead, I want you to take a photo that may be tucked in a drawer, or in the original envelope you received it in, and look at it again. This time remember. Remember the thoughts, the emotions, the smells, the sights, the weather that day, or the feeling of that persons warm hand on your shoulder as they squeezed you to say "cheese".

And maybe, just maybe, you will put that picture on your wall instead of hidden in your drawer...
Jjay

NEWS FLASH: Daughter Jjay is working with me!

This is me and my beautiful daughter Jjay....

For the next few months, I have to go through all my mom's things...and get her house and estate straightened out...so I have taught my daughter Jjay to list for me..and she will be taking over the correspondence of the photos and the blog in the next few weeks...

She is a real writer..so you will probably get a lot more information from her...at least I know you will get more antidotes! She has now fallen in love with photos too..and I have actually walked her through my photo room..and she has found all sorts of special images to post!

I also recently aquired a large ( and I mean LARGE) estate of photos from a photographer from Oregon...a newspaper man..oh one of my favorite types to list...because they are sooo fun!

So you will be seeing loads of NEW NEW fun items...lots of BEAUTIFUL wedding photos...and there are even some one of a kind CHERUBS coming soon!!

I cant wait to have her help me...(I am a happy momma!) so in the next week, if the writing looks better..and the blog is updated...well..that is my beautiful Jjay

2009 will be fine.....

Cathi

A New Year is upon us..and things I have learned through grief

My mom with our dog Christmas 2007

My oldest daughter with her dog and ours Christmas 2008

It is a New Year... 2009....the evening news continues to be challenging...as well as Chicago weather..it is winter...the holidays are over...and it is my first year without either one of my parents..

but through this time, there are some things that I have appreciated and learned while I have been going thru the grief of this past month....



I wanted to share them...maybe they can help if any of you are going thru anything.....



(these are in no particular order)



1. Animals...My daughter came from out of town and brought her dog all the way across the ocean to see us...(we have another dog here)... Having 2 dogs were actually a real help...they hugged and let me cry anytime I wanted to.



2. Family......Having my daughters all around has been wonderful...having family around during times of grief is more appreciated than anyone could know. Even my brother was my best friend this whole holiday season. (and I think that is the first time since I was about 5!)



3. Cards, notes, letters, emails...all are so GREATLY appreciated during times of grief..they are like using crutches to get you through to the next steps. Anything spoken or shared gives so much strength....it is amazing the type of strength that the gift of kindness and sympathy has for the person who has lost someone.



4. Photos....um...need I say more...I love them...I surround myself with them..and they help, making you know just how precious that person was. (you should see my computer room..it is a picture wall)



5. Videos...I came across old videos at my moms home..and we turned them on..and there was my family 20 years ago...on a summer day..and it was soo nice to see my parents and my children when they were small..and me when i was smaller too!! (ha) oh we live in a wonderful age..where we have so many things to keep the memories alive and close to our hearts.



6. Time alone... to think...to pray....to cry....to be grateful.



7. Candles.....hmmmm...an old tradition..people light candles for people all the time...i just love the smell and the flicker.......the warmth they generate...



8. Google....I google all the time..stories of others who have lost and what they have felt....it helps to read and to learn from everyone...although we all know it is coming ..a day when we have no parents...we are never really ready.



9. Friends....all of you...internet friends...my girlfriends...my mothers old friends...friendship..one of lifes greatest gifts.........


10. Old letters.....old cards...old writings.....have brought me so much comfort...my mother saved it all...and for all of that I am grateful.....



Have a wonderful new year....Make all sorts of new memories...and dont forget to take loads of photos!!!(someday your children will love you for it!)

Cathi