What's atop your dresser?

Just popping in for a quick post on how my new frames turned out! You may remember the other week when I thrifted a bunch of 1930s frames for a couple of bucks. Well, since I don't have a lot of 8x10 modern photos with a vintage look, I decided to put in a couple of my favorite 1930s celebrities, big band leaders Harry James and Glenn Miller.

I got the original B&W photos from Etsy seller Chihuahua Snaps, for $5 each. That's a great deal if you look online. Though I was sorely tempted by this autographed photo of Miller in GravelGertie's Etsy shop.

I didn't want to risk hanging them on the wall- I'm not sure how sturdy the hanging hardware is after all these years- and just propped them up across my dresser. 

On the left is my other 1930s frame- a blue mirrored one I've had for years- with one of our wedding photos. Without actually intending to, it appears I've created a blue and silver theme. The silver dresser set was my grandmother's, and the red embroidered cloth was done last year by my mom (thanks Mom- I love it!)

*xoxo* Glenn! I know he's not the stereotypical Hollywood-handsome guy, but I just have a thing for him- plus, we share the same birthday.

How dreamy is Harry James in this photo? I know he wasn't the most like-able guy, but lord, could he play. As a trumpet player, I only wish I had half his talent.

So what do you have atop your dresser! Feel free to blog about it and post a link below!

Happy Birthday Glenn Miller!

In honor of Glenn Miller's birthday today (b. 1904) and mine (b. 1975, LOL) I thought I'd share with you my favorite Glenn Miller tunes. If you've never heard some of them before, they're well worth the download- follow the links to the iTunes file.

Glenn Miller was, by all accounts, a decent but unspectacular trombonist (I can sympathize). After playing for years as a sideman alongside some of jazz's greatest talents he formed his own orchestra in 1937 but was unsuccessful until 1938-39 when he developed his famous "Miller sound" by adding a lead clarinet to the more traditional saxophone section of his big band. By the early 1940s, Miller's band was the hottest in the country with a string of hits including "Tuxedo Junction", "In the Mood" and "Moonlight Serenade". He and his band were featured in the films Sun Valley Serenade (1941) and Orchestra Wives (1942).

When WWII broke out, Miller longed to be of service to his country. But at the time the armed forces employed only more formal concert bands; there was no place for modern swing music. From late 1942 until 1944, he led a relatively undistinguished group of musicians in the traditional marching band style. Finally, he was able to persuade the Army Air Force brass to permit him to form a swing band and a full string orchestra to boost morale of the soldiers abroad and the homefront. He made hundreds of recordings in England, many of which were also recorded in German and broadcast across the continent to listeners behind enemy lines.

In late 1944, after the Allies had stormed into France, Miller wanted to take his band directly to the troops in Paris. In preparation for the move, he boarded a single engine transport to fly across the English Channel. On December 15th, 1944, in the fog over the Channel, his plane disappeared and no trace of the aircraft or its passengers has ever been found. Major Glenn Miller is still officially listed as "missing in action".

As I've mentioned in previous posts, Glenn Miller's music was probably my jumping off point into vintage culture. I've been listening to it since I was 13, and boy, that makes me feel real old today when I say that has been 23 years! Most of these are on the "hot" side, and totally disprove the notion that Glenn Miller was strictly a "sweet" band.

1) "Peggy the Pin-up Girl" (also in honor of yesterday's passing of Jane Russell)
2) "American Patrol"
3) "Caribbean Clipper"
4) "Mission to Moscow"
5) "Song of the Volga Boatmen"
6) "Johnson Rag"
7) "Serenade in Blue"
8) "Jeep Jockey Jump"
9) "Moonlight Cocktail"
10) "Stealin' Apples"

I could probably keep going forever. What are your favorites?

The Big 3-5

Today is my birthday. Thirty-five years ago I arrived on the scene (that would be the scene c.1975) to change my parents' lives forever. Haha!

Now that I'm a mom myself, I realize what a big deal a birthday is to a parent. Your kids birthdays often mean more to you than your own. No wonder my mom has already called me twice today (and it's only 3:15, so there's plenty of time for another call tonight...). As a matter of fact, she usually calls me at 8:45 a.m., the exact time I was born. Today, she restrained herself until 9:15, but only because she was already on the phone with someone else at 8:45.


My college friends still tease me about the time she called me at 7 a.m. my freshman year and sang "Happy Birthday" over the phone. Needless to say, I wasn't real thrilled. I promptly went back to bed and slept through my first two classes.

But now I understand. I remember everything about the days my son and daughter were born. The weather, the ride to the hospital, the exact time of their birth. Who the nurses were & what my doctor wore, what I ate after the delivery, all of these details are ingrained into you on the day you give birth to your child.

And that's the part of being a mom that no one can tell you about. You have to experience it for yourself. You are truly a changed person when you have a child, and on my birthday I think I owe it to my mom and dad to just say "Thanks." Thanks for giving up everything you loved for awhile and putting me first. Thank you for providing for me, for supporting me and for tolerating me when I made stupid mistakes because I didn't listen, and when I succeeded on my own merits and knew it.

Oh, and because most of you come here because of the vintage angle, I happen to share my birthday with someone you may have heard of: Glenn Miller (b.1903).