Christmas cards and advertisements range the proverbial gamut from religious to ridiculous, as you can see in this sampling. Each conveys its message with excellent artwork, photography and color, hoping to attract the buyer who in turn wants to convey a particular theme or feeling. The Victorian era cards depict a wide range of celebration, usually involving children. Ruddy cheeked children. Big, dark-eyed children. Beautiful children. Really unreal and dreamy children.
I remember the winter when we got a brand new 1957 Ford station wagon. It was the first new car I could remember our family having in Paso Robles. The spartan interior and long lines will long be remembered. It may have been right after Christmas when this 'present' appeared. Can't remember.
And, of course, what would Christmas be like without using it to sell cigarettes or hard liquor? This was the perfect opportunity to lend an imprimatur to a number of vices, thus sanctifying their use and by implication, misuse. Shame on you, Ronnie, for keeping all your friends hooked on that nasty habit.
Your guess is as good as mine when it comes to explaining this unusual greeting. Were there pigs milling around the manger? Or maybe they would soon grace the Christmas dinner table. Or the couple who sent out this card looked like pigs, or acted like them or smelled like them or ? I really like the expressions, though! They look like a couple I'd really like to visit with.
Have you cut your own Christmas tree? We did that one year, but didn't drive to the mountains to do it. It was as close as a tree farm a few miles north of us. My favorite trees have been the ones I've bought live and planted afterwards. The first one, an Aleppo pine, was planted in the early 90's in the backyard and grew along the ground before heading heavenward. About 20 years later, it took vengeance and came crashing down after a strong winter storm. Thankfully, it hit the house, but no major damage resulted. I'm still burning its remains in the fireplace!
No comments:
Post a Comment