dual personalities

The sun is out and the yard is cleaned up. One set of storms is behind us. But we are still feeling a bit disheveled.

Over the weekend we went to an estate sale in South County where the owners had been greatobsessive collectors. The wife collected dolls, which brings to mind those scary houses where the rooms are filled with those dolls you used to see ads for in women’s magazines–

but these were nice dolls from foreign countries and she had quite a good collection. I have a similar (much smaller) collection which is in the doll case at daughter #1’s house. We had fun looking at this huge collection which was housed in a lighted, built-in case, but did not consider actually buying any of the dolls. Until we saw these two:

Handmade in England, back in the 1950s (?), they are beautiful. They remind me of the huge collection of dolls which was on permanent display at the school I went to growing up. I’m sure they are from the same source. Anyway, I knew no one would want them, so I rescued them–for a song (minus Lamar’s generous discount). I’m not sure where I will put them, but for now they are safe at my house.

Oh, people and their collections! I do not really understand them. It takes a certain kind of addictive personality to really go all out; we see it not infrequently when estate-sale-ing. It is a good thing to remember that you can’t take it with you, and unless your children share your obsession, it will all end up in an estate sale. (Or else in the Saint Louis Art Museum if you are Morton May.)

Collecting is a curious art,
From treasures in a chest.
The value of what’s gathered there
Is in the one who’s blest.”

–Emily Dickinson

This was interesting: 100 years ago, on March 18, 1925, nearly 700 people died as a massive tornado raced across Missouri, Illinois, and Indiana for several hours. Unlike most tornado outbreaks, this was a single, long-tracked twister, ripping primarily through southern Missouri and Illinois. Yikes!

From the I-don’t-ever-want-to-hear-the-word-‘misinformation’-ever-again department, here’s Anne on kooks and cranks, the MSM and the NYT: “For sure it backfired. But still, see, you’re still being judgemental, and you’re not in a position to do that. You can’t judge other people’s motives until you yourself have come clean. You weren’t right on the merits, and other people were, whom you shut down. Until you, the New York Times, breaks down and says sorry, there won’t be any possibility of institutions being rebuilt in a trustworthy manner.”

And as someone noted, due to park ranger cutbacks by DOGE, bears are now tasked with fixing fallen cones…

Have a good day!

*Ogden Nash