School Again

I have finally been to all of the classes I will be taking this semester and it really seems like a lot of work! I am taking a lot of my education and teaching courses.

Things here have been really hectic with the weather. The snow and ice have made school and travel a complete nightmare.

College is a very strange place. I'll never understand the "college experience." For people should be experimenting with budgeting, cooking, studying, working and overall living on their own, a lot of the students seem to be not practicing any of these things at all.

Throughout the sememster, many students never learn to budget their time and end up missing assignments. Some students only show up for class a few times a month.
Many students spend way too much time socializing, going to parties and hanging out with friends. Not to even mention underage drinking and other illegal activity. 

I hear girls in the halls talking to their friend about how "so and so" is cheating on his girlfriend and how stupid people were acting at that "underwear party" on Friday night (I would not believe such a thing existed if I hadn't heard people talking about it myself.)

Something that astonishes me even more is the pure number of girlfriends and boyfriends, I hear fighting over the phone. I can't imagine that people stay in relationships where every call is a fight.  Has the standard of relationships been set so low that people think that daily fighting is "normal?" I know not every day in a relationship is perfect but shouldn't there be more perfect days than not?

I even overheard a girl telling her friend that her father was so mean because he wouldn't let her boyfriend sleep over because he was afraid they would sleep together. She then said that it was pointless because her mother already knew that she had already slept with him and was keeping it a secret from her husband to protect her. This girl said she didn't want to lose her father's trust. I felt like asking her why she does things that she is not comfortable telling her parents about. If she wants to have her parents trust, why deliberately break their trust?

Whatever happened to movies and popcorn on a Friday night or study groups? Some of this stuff is just too much and the worst thing about it is that they really don't seem happy. Many of them are regretful. Why is this behavior cultivated and promoted around educational institutions? Maybe this is a case of "it's always happened at college and it only seems more prevalent now." So, what do you think? Has college always been this way?

Colonial Games: How to Play Blindman's Buff

I think I will be starting a new Colonial Games post on Fridays detailing how to play different Colonial games. I know it's not Friday, but I would like to get a head start.

Blindman's Buff (or Blindman's Bluff) is a very old game that has been recorded in ancient Greece and has been popular all throughout the late 15th century through the 19th century.

The game is normally played outside or in a spacious area such as a barn or large room. One person's eyes are blindfolded. The other players will, make noise, tap and push the "blindman" slightly while the "blindman" attempts to catch one of the other players.

 



Once the "blindman" catches a player, he or she must then try to guess who they have caught. If the "blindman" guesses wrong the other players will clap to let the "blindman" know to let the prisoner loose. The game continues until the "blindman" catches and identifies another player. The caught player will then be the blindman next.




The other players must take care during the game to make sure that the "blindman" does not get hurt. They should signal to them if they are too close to a wall, piece of furniture, hole ect.  

How to Preserve Old Photographs

My Grandma and Grandpa on their Honeymoon in 1948.

It's a snow day here and everyone is snowed in. I thought it would be the perfect day to sort through and label all of those family photos that have been collecting over the years. Although I am very strict on how I keep my photos, my family has a notoriously bad system of keeping their photographs.  

My grandma gave me the photo at the left yesterday. My grandmother and my grandfather went on their honeymoon in Miami. My grandmother said that they had to take the bus all the way down because the trains were full of soldiers and that they still couldn't get meat. She got sun poisoning and was subsequently very sick. Her photos are really cool but are seriously degrading because of the photo books she has them in. The albums that were popular at the time were made with paper that contains acid which helps break down photographs.     


 Before you can preserve a photograph, you need to identify what kind of photo you have.

Types of Photographs

·         Daguerreotypes  (1840s-1860s) These photos are really fragile and most were placed in glass frame cases to protect the image. The image is printed on polished silver. These have a shiny , mirror-like quality to them. These are normally reversed images due to the photographic process used to make them. 

·         Ambrotypes (1854- 1880s) The picture is a negative image printed on glass and is backed with black paint, paper, or cloth to make the image appear as a positive. 

·         Tin Types (1850s)  Image is printed on an iron plate. 

·         Carte De Visite (CDV) (1860-1870s) The image is printed on paper and glued to a heavy card, frequently including studio information on the front or back of the card. These pictures are normally 2 ½ x 4 inches.  These were printed in sets of 8 and were given to friends and family.   

·         Cabinet Cards (1870s- 1900s)These photos look like CDV’s but in a larger size, 4 x 6 inches and were glued to heavier card stock.  

My Great, great Grandfather, Paul.

·         Gelatin (1890s-1960s) These images are glossy images printed on card-stock. The images are in true black and white.

This is my another picture of my Grandma. The original photo is in clean black and white, it looks brown because of the lighting.

·         Resin (1970s photos) These normally have a brownish tint.

How to Clean Photographs:

Daguerreotypes: Daguerreotypes normally have tape around the edges to prevent the image from tarnishing. To clean Daguerreotypes, you need to remove them from the glass or case while wearing gloves. Put the image in a safe location and clean the glass with distilled water, diluted dish soap and cotton swabs. Make sure the case is completely dry before replacing the image. The image is far too easy to scrape off if you clean the image, but due to the tape around it, the dirt is normally just on the glass anyway. 

Ambrotypes: If the image is sandwiched between two glass plates, the glass can be cleaned carefully using cotton swabs and rubbing alcohol. Make sure that you only touch glass and never touch the image or blackening. If the ambrotype only has one plate of glass, do not attempt to clean it, it is too easy to accidentally chip the black paint or image. Never try to open a sandwiched ambrotype. 

Tin Types: Tintypes are normally in cases and can be scratched easily.  Only hold the tin type by the edges and clean with compressed air. 

Carte De Visite: Cartes De Visite should only be cleaned with a soft brush or canned air.

 Cabinet Cards: Cabinet Cards should only be cleaned with a soft brush and canned air.

All later photographs: Modern  photographs should be cleaned with canned air, soft brush and lint-free cloths.  

How to Store Photographs

After cleaning, Daguerreotypes, Ambrotypes and Tin Types should be stored in archival paper envelopes which can be made cheaply and easily using acid free computer paper. Make sure that after you make the envelope, you remove the photo, write the photograph information on the envelope then replace the photo and seal the envelope with a little bit of tape. Many people suggest that you store These types of photographs upright but it isn’t really practical unless you have a large number of them. Place your envelopes in a box, labeled with the photos contained therein. Store in a drawer or closet where they can be protected from temperature fluctuations, dampness and light.  

Cartes De Visite, Cabinet Cards, and modern photographs should be stored in acid-free albums (modern scrapbooks are normally good). Use photo corners to attach the photos to the page and be sure to write the photograph information on the paper to avoid having to remove and replace photos unnecessarily.

 

The Do’s and Don’ts of Photograph Preservation

-Don’t keep photos in contact paper books, the glue ages and browns and also ruins your photos.

-Don’t fold, tape, rubber band or paperclip photos. Tape eventually browns over time and will eventually hurt your pictures. Today, we can digitally reassemble a torn photo.

-Don’t glue photos into photo albums or they will likely be damaged when removed in the future.

-Always write the name or names of the people in the photos, the year and the location with a photo safe marker or lightly with a pencil. Regular pen ink deteriorates and can harm your photo.  (Really, do this. In a few years you might not remember as well as you think you will. It will also help your great grandkids in the future; it’s horrible to have a box of photos of unidentified people.)

-Always keep photos in temperature controlled areas (closets are good,) the extreme temperatures in attics will damage photos.

-Always use an archival scrapbook (the ones currently sold in craft stores are archival and contain no acids) and photo corners. Most older albums are actually bad for your photos.  

-Always hold photos by the edges, don’t touch the image.

-If you can, wear cotton gloves when touching photos.

-Make a copy, store the original.  If you display a photo, the light will eventually fade it, always make a copy and store the original safely.  Physical and digital copies of your photos also back up your photos if the original ever gets destroyed.

This photo of my grandmother was damaged in a house fire.

Torn photo as a result of being glued into a book.

Making copies is very important. If you display a photo, the light will eventually fade it, always make a copy to display and store the original safely. Physical and digital copies of your photos also back up your photos if the original ever gets destroyed. 

A lot of people don’t like to display copies because they think that they lack the charm of the original. Photocopying and art techniques can create an image that is practically indiscernible from the original and also preserves the original.      

 

This CDV is not only a copy but completely fake. It was made completely with modern photographing techniques and art. We keep this photo around as an example of what can be done to copies to try and preserve the charm of the original. Always make sure to write on the back of copies that they are not the original so you don't confuse future generations. Remember a lot of museums make similar replicas of their sensitive artifacts so the originals can be preserved for the future. You can even tell people that they are replicas--they will probably be really surprised.      

Phew! That was a lot!

Ex-Libris Bookplates and Poems

Bookplates, printed markings to indicate ownership, have their roots in the 15th century Germanic territories. Bookplates reached their popularity in the mid to late 1800s, when libraries both private and public needed to assure that books would be returned. Ex-Libris means "from the library of" and was frequently inscribed on bookplates.  Bookplates were printed on heavy paper and glued into books by the purchaser.

Bookplates normally included the name of the owner of the book as well as images that would remind the borrower who they borrowed a book from such as a family coat of arms or an image of the owner. They started out as individual works of art until the mid 1800s when they were mass produced, the printer only changing the name on the inscription.

Another tactic used in the 19th century to prompt a borrower to return a book was the use of book rhymes or sayings written in the front of the book.

Some popular sayings were:

"This book belongs to _____________________
Neither blemish this book nor the leaves double down,
Nor lend it to each idle friend in the town;
Return it when read; or, if lost, please supply
Another as good to the mind and the eye."

 "If thou art borrowed by a friend, 

Right welcome shall he be,

To read, to study, not to lend,
But to return to me.

Not that imparted knowledge doth
Diminish learning's store,
But books, I find, if often lent
Return to me no more." 

"If this book you steal away,

What will you say

On Judgment Day?"

"Everytown is my dwelling-place

America is my nation

______________ is my name

And Christ is my salvation."

Ex-Libris poems were more common in the 1700s and were later surpassed in popularity by bookplates which printers began to mass produce them cheaply.

Anne of Green Gables Nut Cake

Andy and I haven't been seeing much of each other lately due to work, school and the snow, so tomorrow night we are going to get together and watch Anne of Green Gables (The 1985 Version.)

We might even bake a few Anne of Green Gables treats. I think we might try to make a Hickory Nut Cake using a recipe from 1902. In the book series, A nut cake, topped with pink icing and walnuts is given to Mr. Harrison to apologize for Anne's mistake of selling his cow.

Below is the recipe from 1902, it sounds like a "toothsome concoction" like the one is described in the book.

 Anne of Green Gables Nut Cake

Ingredients:

- 1/2 Cup Butter
- 1 1/2 Cups Sugar
- 3/4 Cup Milk
- 2 Cups Sifted Flour
- 2 Teaspoons Baking Powder (Rollings Reliable Recommended)
- 4 Egg Whites, beaten stiff
- 1 Cup Hickory Nuts, ground

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Sift the Baking Powder and the Flour together in a medium sized mixing bowl, add the ground nuts. In a separate bowl, cream the Butter into the Sugar add the Milk. When thoroughly mixed add the Butter mixture into the Flour mixture and add the Egg Whites. Grease and Flour 2 9 inch loaf pans. Bake for 25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out of the center clean.

For the glaze: Mix 1 1/2 Cups of Powdered Sugar with a Tablespoon of Vanilla and enough hot Water to form a stiff paste. Spread on the cake once cooled.

Hickory Nut cake was very popular around Anne's time, it is also known to be one of James K. Polk's favorite foods. Hickory trees are native to most of the eastern U.S. and their nuts are probably familiar looking to most people. As kids we used to sail the pieces of the outermost shell of hickory nuts like little boats in the local creek. Hickory nuts have fallen out of favor due to their extremely hard shells.