Patches Pal and Gampa

Matt's blog and request led to this post. Puget Sound natives of a certain age all remember our beloved TV clown J. P. Patches. And they probably also heard on the news, Facebook or Twitter that J. P. Patches had his final public appearance last Saturday at at the Fishermen's Fall Festival at Seattle's Fishermen's Terminal.

Matt's blog post brought to my mind when I was in fourth grade and entered a poster contest. I was very proud of my crayon drawing of Esmerelda, J. P.'s rag doll. I had my own Raggedy Ann doll that I hadn't given up still in fourth grade so I loved drawing Esmerelda. My poster won "Honorable Mention" - I believe this was the first time I'd ever heard that term. I was thrilled to go up on stage and recieve a Patches Pal iron-on transfer from J. P. Patches himself. I don't have a photo of my poster nor of me on stage but I mentioned to Matt that I thought I still had my sweatshirt that I ironed it on to somewhere. So, Matt, here it is!

From Visiting Vintage

The shirt is stained and the transfer crackled but as you can see I never could part with it.

In a way, J. P. Patches connects me to my Grandpa, too.  My Grandfather, Howard Johnson died when I was eight.  I don't have a lot of memories of him but he enjoyed paint-by-numbers in his free time.  He painted a clown for me.  I actually never really understood sad clowns but this is the one painted just for me - he signed it Gampa which is apparently what I called him when I was two.  So despite the frown on this clown, it resembles J. P. Patches to me.

From Visiting Vintage

So, J. P. and Gampa - thank you for the smiles and the fond memories from childhood!

Back to School and College 1959

Our district is starting up again today, the day after Labor Day.  I enjoyed this cover of the September 12, 1959 Saturday Evening Post.  I love working at an elementary school, so I'm going back-to-school myself. But, wouldn't it be nice to relax on the sofa with a cup of coffee for some alone time?

From Vintage Goodness

Carefree college coeds circa 1959 enjoying autumn between classes

From Vintage Goodness

Labor Day

Labor Day usually indicates the end of summer to me.  However, I do want to remember the real reason for the holiday weekend.  From the facts page found on the United States Department of Labor regarding the holiday:
Labor Day, the first Monday in September, is a creation of the labor movement and is dedicated to the social and economic achievements of American workers. It constitutes a yearly national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of our country.

And I can't pass up an opportunity to share ads from the September 12, 1959 edition of the Saturday Evening Post that demonstrate American strength, prosperity and well-being of our country

From Vintage Goodness

(not that I like promoting cigarettes, but I do love the firefighters with their old trucks)

From Vintage Goodness

From Vintage Goodness

From Vintage Goodness

Happy Labor Day to all but especially to those who sweat; in the words of Mike Rowe the hard-working Americans who make civilized life possible for the rest of us.