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It’s Only A Flesh Wound!
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Over the years, we’ve had all sorts of knocks at our front door when it comes to the Once-Loved Dolls. Shy ones, eager ones, soft ones…So I KNOW my knocks!
But this one I confess scared me a little. It made me jump! Because I could tell this was not a knock. Someone was kicking at the door! And they sounded almost…angry. Still. I’m much bigger than they are. I flung open the door to give our latest O.L.D. what for, when to my surprise I saw the jolliest face I’d seen in a long time! Then I started laughing. She wasn’t angry, she was excited!
I was right about the kick, however. As with most dolls that started out with magic skin arms, the “magic” had long since disintegrated…
Thus begins the description for doll No. 124, “Flossie the Patriotic Summer Drummer.” You can see her description HERE.
“Flossie” is this doll’s given name straight from the manufacturer. The Ideal Toy company made her, and although she is not marked, her face is unmistakable. She measures 18″ tall.
I love Flossie Flirts! So named because not only do their eyes sleep, they move side to side. In addition to these flirty eyes, many of the Flossies had a new feature: soft rubber, aka “Magic Skin” arms and sometimes even legs.
Think of it! For the first time, dolls had limbs that weren’t hard and unyielding, these you could actually squeeze! They were soft, and you could bend them! I remember my mother telling me about how exciting it was when she and her sisters received dolls with this wonderful new skin that felt so real.
Unfortunately, the new skin didn’t age well. The rubber would either shrivel or disintegrate, so frequently in this day and age, if you’re lucky enough to get a sweet Flossie Flirt, nine times out of ten she’ll have arms and occasionally legs that are misshapen or missing altogether. Such was the case with our Flossie. Hence the kicking at the door. It’s hard to knock when you don’t have any arms!
Thank goodness for the Givers! I found a pair of arms for Flossie that would do.
Since she now had arms, by golly Flossie wanted to use them! What better way than as a drummer? Since it’s summer, why not a Patriotic one? Thus the “Patriotic Summer Drummer” was born. And she has arms that, while they’re not squishy or bendable, will last her a very, very long time.
Fortuitously, HyVee had a “Summer Snack Sale!” Flossie’s drums are made from the bottoms of three Pringles potato chip cans. Urp. How I suffer for my art…
Finally! My first dip back into the pool after a bit of an absence. Summer’s almost over, school’s about to begin again. I’m swimming in earnest now, just you wait!
Many moons ago there was a Flapper named Marilyn. She has already spent a languid summer in Portola Valley, California by now and I’m sure feels very much at home with our dear friend Linda L. Thank you so much, Linda!!
And with that, I leave you! I love you like I love fall! HARK! Is that a hint of yellow in the leaves? No? Not quite yet? Well, it’s coming! You’re my favorite!
It’s Kind of a DRAG
Harvey Korman
…and secretly, I like drag. For some reason, men dressing as women – especially when they don’t really look the part – tickles my funny bone!
Eric Idle of Monty Python
From “Some Like It Hot” to Harvey Korman on the “Carol Burnett Show” to Monty Python to “Kids in the Hall”! So I had to do a little bit of that – but just a little.
Enter Smith & Jones in Chapter 21 A Place For Everything.
Really, that is all I have to say about THAT. Chapter 21 is a short chapter, and therefore, this is a short post!
Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon in “Some Like It Hot.”
Kevin McDonald from Kids In The Hall
Have a SHORT THURSDAY!
Monty Python, Mary Poppins…Gary Larson…?
Chapter 19 Cheerleader Tower uses a lot of imagery for me.
I adore British Humor and have a special affection for Monty Python. This is so silly, but the following line has a whisper of a reference to them. See if you can tell:
(Hazel) almost opened her mouth to suggest that maybe they should wait until her mother arrived. Maybe she would know exactly where the Beacon was, but she quickly dismissed the idea. What would they do instead, twiddle their thumbs?
Two thumbs up if you guessed “The Killer Rabbit” scene in Monty Python & the Search for the Holy Grail, where the heroes are warned of a killer beast with bloody fangs that guards a cave. When they ride up (using coconuts for horses), they see the creature, and it is…a sweet, furry, white rabbit.
“What’s ‘e do? Nibble your bum?”
Okay, it’s probably a stretch, but it IS what I was thinking of, and what I think of every time I read that line.
The next image for me is one of my favorite comic’s from Gary Larson. Here’s the text:
The morning sun was streaming in through the windows, highlighting the tiny particles of dust in the air so that they almost looked like falling glitter, as if they were inside a very large snow globe. At the thought of the attic being turned upside down shaken, Hazel smiled to herself and looked doubtfully up at the ceiling. She could see long slits of daylight here and there. The furniture and lamps would probably crash right through the rafters!
Now, that one’s a little more obvious, is it not?
Lastly is one of my all-time favorites, Mary Poppins. Here’s the text:
“Here! Take this with you, Bets!” Dot was holding up a toy umbrella.
“In case she falls? I doubt she’d even have time to open it up!” said Hazel.
“No, silly! To help her reach!” Dot answered.
Hazel giggled, imagining herself waving to a rosy cheeked Betty as she languidly floated down, umbrella held aloft.
That one’s the clearest of all. Happy Thursday!
Shrubduggery
The following is an accounting of my first encounter with a (live) bat in my house. Ah, how I long for the days when I could convince myself that the chippering sound I was hearing was an insect!
It FINALLY HAPPENED. My greatest fear finally came to fruition!!!
The other night, my cat Riley was messing with what I hoped – Hoped – was perhaps a cicada or other noisy insect in My Closet, less than five feet away from Where I Sleep. I hid under the covers and resisted the urge to turn on my bedside light, less I attract said insect even closer. Riley moved the fight to throughout the house (I could hear it), things finally got quiet, and I went back to sleep.
“A little help, please?!”
In my defense, I was in denial.
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D5 Creation