Memory lane: What a trip!

As I mentioned in my last post, I went over to my parents' house this week to look through boxes of my things that have been stored in their attic for the past few years. My mother, bless her heart, pulled out the ones she knew I'd want to go through, making it that much easier for me. Of course, I wasn't in my "blogger" mindset, so I didn't bring my camera to take "before" and "after" shots. I wish I had.

When I arrived, there were four boxes of varying sizes and shapes and a bunch of plastic garment bags protecting (more or less) some old dresses. I jumped right into the boxes, curious as to what they held. The first was full of books. I went through a phase where all I read were books by L.M. Montgomery, author of the Anne of Green Gables series. Did you know she wrote upward of 20 books? Well, I think I read all of them, and most of them were in that box. I have kept the eight Anne books with me as I have moved from apartment to apartment, but the rest of them? Not interested.

On to box two. Old stuffed animals, random toys, and a petrified rubber ball. Toss 'em! The only keeper? My Rubik's Cube.

Box three? Cabbage Patch Kids and their clothing. Despite the fact that I pined mercilessly to have one Cabbage Patch Kid -- and ended up with two because we put them on hold at different stores and one was regular and one was a preemie and how could I not have one of each!?!? -- I have no interest in keeping them. My poor, dear mother. I bade farewell to Claudia Trista and Rona Joy, who I'm sure will enjoy being freed from their box as they are given to The Friendship Center.

Growing tired of boxes, I switched to the dresses.

The first one was a sweet little pink deal with lace at the neckline that I wore for my brother and sister-in-law's wedding in 1992. So, as pretty as it is, it's out of date, and I don't see myself wearing it again. Plus, the lace at the neckline has yellowed considerably (I'm still not sure I ever washed it after the wedding). Pass.

Second was a purple velvet-and-taffeta number I bought at a re-sale shop to wear for Chamber Singers during my junior year of college. Not an altogether unattractive dress -- the back view is shown here -- it's still in decent shape, but I won't have a use for it now. It definitely evokes its era. Perhaps North Park would like to have it in their theatre costume shop?

The third dress I came across was my second Chamber Singers re-sale shop dress. Looks like I got a little more daring my senior year. Black velvet, off-the-shoulder bodice with a green and black tapestry-like flowered skirt. Kinda fun, but the color has faded near the bottom of the skirt. I'll ask NP if they'd like this one, too.

Fourth was my junior dinner-dance dress. The dress was Laura Ashley, periwinkle blue with pink flowers on it. Jon, a childhood friend, brought me a single pink rose, and we drove to the dinner in his parents' old Chevy Nova. We spent a better portion of the night comparing eyebrow-maintenance techniques. (Well, not really, but we could have! Look at those things!) I'll keep this dress on the off-chance I ever have a daughter who will enjoy laughing at it (and, thereby, me) when her prom days come around.

Dress five. Senior prom. An emerald green Jessica McClintock mini-skirt dress with huge bows on the off-the-shoulder elastic straps. I still can't believe my mother bought it for me. Really. She tried to get me to find something else, but I would not be swayed. This one's a keeper. Not that I'd ever wear it, but again, any daughter I might have will certainly get a kick out of it. My date was Bob, a boy who attended high-league at my church.

Another bridesmaid's dress was included in the pile, this one from the wedding of friends Valerie and Greg. This dress is probably the most timeless of all of them, a true classic in style and color, and it's in perfect shape. I'll probably hold onto it for a little while longer.

Finally, dress number seven. My college graduation dress. Also Laura Ashley, this black silk dress screams 1996 with its shapeless, over-sized overlay. At left, I'm wearing it on graduation day as I stand on my parents' front porch with friends and fellow grads Katherine, Chris, Jennifer, and Gus. It's in perfect condition, so should it come back into style some day, I'll be all set. Another keeper.

Okay, the last box. A long-and-low storage box containing old school papers belonging to my brother and me. This was fun. I found old report cards, honor roll and good citizenship awards I don't remember receiving or deserving, and plenty of drawings done, photos taken, and stories written during the years of kindergarten to third grade. Enjoy!

Laurie and me on the first day of kindergarten

My first kindergarten project

Who isn't?

Sunday school, 197? I still remember that dress.
(I included this one more to display the stellar framing skills
of the photographer -- sorry if it was you, Mom --
and the stunning curtains in the background.)

Peter's response? "HA! Fat chance!"
(That was two days ago, by the way. Not in 1979.
In 1979, he just shrugged and went to eat dinner.)

At the end of the evening, I had whittled everything down from four boxes and seven dresses to half of a 12-inch-square box and four dresses. Strolling down memory lane is fun, but the trip becomes burdensome if you keep everything you find along the way.