Sepia Saturday: A Photographic Memoir

When Alan Burnett, the very nice gentleman of the wonderful “News From Nowhere” (and other great blogs) said tongue-in-cheek that he had been held up from his participation in Theme  Thursday because of his commitments to various other participatory blogs, he happened to mention a fictitious “Sepia Saturday”.  Being the sort of person who looks for new opportunities and ideas, I commented that “Sepia Saturday” sounded like a great concept and that I have a stack of old photos that might fit the bill.  Okay, I don’t really have that many actual sepia pictures, but I’ve got loads of old black and whites and a just a few from the 19th Century.

Alan contacted me and expressed approval of the notion and we are officially launching Sepia Saturday today, November 28, 2009.  So, if you have any old photos you’d like to share, feel free to participate in our new adventure.

Of course, you have all been hearing much about my father since he passed away, but I rarely get to share much about my mom.  (Mind you, she does get quite a bit of screen-time on my Blasts From the Past blog, but it’s not always favourable and she’s a very good sport about it.)  It’s time I gave her a bit of attention here, at Keepsakes and I know just how to do it.

I’d like to share a few photos of my mom, Alice Elizabeth (Betty).  Her maiden name was Harris and her mother’s family name was MacNeil. (in  fact, I  believe in Cape Breton you’re always within 100 yards of a MacNeil.)  She is the middle daughter in a family of 5 children: Three girls— Kay (b. 1923), Betty(b. 1929) and Joan,( b. 1931 and d. in 2005) and 2 boys, James (b. 1926) and Guy, (b. 1939).

Her father, Guy Harris was an unassuming, soft-spoken man who clerked for the Dominion Coal Company that mined the coal below the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Glace Bay.  He loved his family, his homeland and his pipe.

Her mother, Kathleen (Katie) Harris (nee MacNeil) was a wonderful homemaker and a fantastic baker (I know because many the time I sampled her homemade donuts, rolls, biscuits and pies). My mother inherited that skill from her and I’m pleased to say that I’m a pretty good baker myself.

My mom and her sister Joan were Kiwanis Festival piano-recitalists young ladies. (I was too, but with much less favourable results.)  Mom also worked in the drugstore in Glace Bay and made the best milkshakes for miles around. She moved to Halifax, Nova Scotia as a young woman and worked as a secretary, but eventually she took the opportunity to relocate in Toronto, Ontario when her older sister, Kay and her husband Bill, invited her to live with them and help out with their growing family.

On Grey Cup weekend (a big event in Canadian Football) in November 1957, at the Masonic Dance Hall she was attending with her two girl-friends, she met and fell in love with my father, Bill Davison.  The other girls met their husbands on the same night. Alice Elizabeth, known as Betty, and William Henry (Bill) married in 1958 at St. Anne’s church, in Glace Bay.

Below are some pictures of my mom.  She was an adorable child, a charming young girl and beautiful young woman.  No wonder my dad lost his Irish heart to her!

Top to bottom: Mom as a little girl on the front steps of her house on York Street in Glace Bay, c. 1934; Mom (on right) with her sister Joan in the backyard.(c. 1945), Mom doing her bathing beauty pin-up shot in the same backyard(c. 1947).

I hope you enjoyed this first instalment of Sepia Saturday. Please visit Alan’s blog to see his sepia photos and consider joining in the fun.

Kat

“True Lies” or, “You Still Know Nothing About Me”.

Click for source.

Well, it’s been a fun week since Rachel set us off with this game that she saw at Liz’s, I believe and it has just snow-balled.  Keep it going, say I. It’s kind of fun, don’t you think?

Here are the answers to my offering.  I just know you’ve been waiting with bated breath to find out which one of these is the true lie.

 

I love black olives.

I do! I love them on pizza, in a submarine sandwich and especially in pasta putanesca.

I do not like camping.

I don’t!  As much as I love nature, I do not love being in the wilds.  I’m a terrible camper. It’s not the lack of luxury—I can do without a hairdryer and mod cons, but I love my bed too much to sleep in a tent. And let’s not forget how terrified I am of bees.

I have an older half-sister and a younger adopted one.

I do!  I am the middle child between an older daughter that I only found out about 10 years ago.  I have an adopted sister who is six years my junior.

I was a radio disc jockey in university

I was!  In Second year of uni, I had my own radio show, “Mental Notes” where I played mainly post-punk/alternative/ska and tons of Kate Bush!

I once dated a French Canadian who wore harem pants.

I DID!!!  Sylvain Painchaud (I am NOT making this up!) came from Montreal and his fashion of choice was a pair of pants with a crotch that hung down around his knees.  (It was the 80s and he was a trend-setter.) I forgave him that for his accent and his good looks.  Giulia, you can’t relax now.

I am afraid of heights.

I am!  I don’t like balconies, mountain tops, or cliffs.  My dad made me look over the edge at the Cliffs of Moher and I nearly puked! (I was lying on my belly).

I have fished brook trout (dug worms, baited hook, caught, cleaned and cooked them).

Yes! I have.  My uncle in Nova Scotia took me on a fishing trip in the woods to get some trout for supper.  I guess I had something to prove because I did everything and I’m proud of it!

I despise shopping malls.

I do!  I’m a thrift-store, small department store shopper.  If I HAVE to go to a mall, I get in and get what I need and get the hell out!  I don’t like crowds and I don’t like standing around waiting for people with nowhere to sit.  I really hate Christmas shopping in malls the worst of all. 

I have been on the back of a fast-moving Kawaski 750.

I absolutely have—many times, in fact.  We owned it.  Now we have the Mini Cooper for fun, spree-filled rides, but those days on the back of the motorcycle were a blast!

I love to watch American Football (Go Bills!)

I DON’T!!!  It's not so much the sport itself, it’s the racket of the crowds and the television commentators that really gets under my skin.  Unfortunately, as much as I try to like it, I just end up “zoning out” and looking off into space.

I DO like soccer (football).

 

Congratulations are due to Gabrielle who got it right without hesitation, and also TFE who second-guessed himself and struck on the right one!  Sorry, I have no prize to bestow upon you, other than a “Well done, you!”  Thanks for playing. 

Kat

The Fruits of My Labours

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How Not To Cut A Mango

Firstly,
A mango is not
an avocado
and the pit
is not a nut
at its core.
It is flattish,
like a sole-fish,
having curves,vulvar.
You cannot
circumnavigate it
with your knife;
the result is either
a mess
of mashed-up mango,
or a broken blade.
It is impossible
to extract
precise
pieces
of fruit
from a poorly carved mango;
you must do it right,
or be disappointed
in the result,
and the sweet savouring
shall surely suffer
in the absence
of skill.


Kat Mortensen©2009

Revamping an old favourite.

Photo by Kat

Rococo Squirrels

Rococo Squirrels are rampant

In my backyard these days,

Their pudgy arms and stocky legs

Betray their greedy ways.

Where once they lightly scampered round

From tree to tree to fence,

These days they lumber heavily

Beneath their girths immense.

Squat showdowns aren’t irregular

When squads storm my porch-floor,

To scrap and scrape for nuts and seeds

I’ve scattered out the door.

At autumn’s end, the Sumos come

To act out their burlesque.

Rococo squirrels are swirling round,

Or are they Rubenesque?

Kat Mortensen © 2007-2009

And that's the truth ... almost.

Click for photo source.







I saw this over at Rachel's blog, "More About the Song" and couldn't resist testing my followers to see just how well they think they know me.
The list below contains one blatant lie. See if you can pick it out.

Good luck!


1. I love black olives.
2. I do not like camping.
3. I have an older half-sister and a younger adopted one.
4. I love to watch American Football (Go Bills!)
5. I was a radio disc jockey in university
6. I once dated a French Canadian who wore harem pants.
7. I am afraid of heights.
8. I have fished brook trout (dug worms, baited hook, caught, cleaned and cooked them).
9. I despise shopping malls.
10. I have been on the back of a fast-moving Kawaski 750.