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Wednesday, October 26, 2011

The Desoto

I had written a post about DWTS that was on my blog for as long as it took me to make breakfast. When I re-read it, I was bored with the trivial, silly media coverage I had so haplessly fallen victim to. Yes, I love ballroom dance. It has been my life but is it fair to inject a vial of it onto my followers? Of course not and I thank you dear bloggy friends who commented on that dreadful post. It shows your loyalty. :)

I always feel I should be adding a grabbing of intellectual musings or if the post is about my mundane, at least give my followers a good belly laugh. The truth is, my life has settled into a blissful existence and it amounts to, "Oh yeah, tofu and toast with honey for breakfast. Then I walk with Cody." Oh come Manzanita, at least you recognize "boring" when you see it.

Because I no longer rattle around in the social realm, memories are my next post choice. The vintage car above is a 1929 Desoto, replica of the car my Grandfather bought before the depression. It was my source of transportation as a child. The heater left much to be desired so I would huddle up in the back seat under a horse-hair blanket with my dog Schnitzer and let the melodious hum of the engine lull me to sleep after an evening's visit to friends. Did you ever sit on a horse-hair blanket? It's almost like sitting on a porcupine's quills. But what the heck, it was warm, as a South Dakota's night "is not."

Sorry about inflicting dancing on you. I'll slap my computer keys if it happens again. :)

31 comments:

  1. Today we seem to have a plethora of blogs from you & I'd like to thank you for giving me the rare opportunity to use the word "plethora".

    I LOVE old cars & I never tired of seeing your dance videos. Your flamenco videos kick-started my day!

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  2. Hey, I happen to like DWTS even if it is just fluff...my hubby loves it...wouldn't miss it. Anytime you want to talk trash about DWTS you just call me. I love old cars too and I also seem to be living in my memories lately. October does that to me. Can't say as I ever experienced a horse hair blanket although I sat on a sofa once that was apparantly stuffed with it.

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  3. What fun! My father had a DeSoto when I was a kid.

    I went back and read your post about DWTS. I just saw something about that incident on TV two nights ago when we returned from Chicago. We didn't watch any TV while we were there. Your post about DWTS was very interesting. I rarely watch it now because we seem to be too busy, but I think it's a great show. I enjoyed reading about the judges. Thank you.

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  4. Fran : I've always liked that word too. I feel like I'm outsmarting "Bear of very little brain with big words." Thanks for the fav words about flamenco. It was just that I realize so few people watch DWTS and they are just being loyal and kind. (but bored).

    Delores : Yes, I love DWTS. But I love the judges remarks and scores and I always try to match Len's. The professionals are the cream of the crop in international ballroom and it's so exciting to see what they do with the "stars." Dancing is a lifetime study.... I've put in my 60 years and although I can't move with zip anymore, I surely can spot the mistakes. That's why I think I now make a good teacher. That's what old pastured-out dancers do :) I'd love to talk dancing and vintage cars with you any day. I lied a little. I'm working on some flamenco footwork for a short video on my 82nd B/Day.
    Thanks dear friend.

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  5. You never have to censor what you write about as far as I'm concerned! I love dance in a rather vague unfocused untrained way. I would gladly spend my time dancing if I had the money, talent, and ability, and oh yeah, a Partner!! :)

    I don't watch TV so I have never seen DWTS. The whole idea of the phone in votes seems like it would turn it into one giant popularity contest though. The "great unwashed" (i.e., the general public), are swayed by all sorts of things that have nothing to do with actually knowing anything!

    I have a photo (somewhere) of a big old car that my great-grandfather bought back before the Depression. He couldn't (or wouldn't, I don't know) drive, so he let my grandfather drive the car. The hitch was that Great-GF insisted on going along where ever and when ever they were going! I don't know what kind of car it was, but it was an open car (no top I ever saw)and Mom told me he would sit in the back seat, like an entroned king, and proceed to drive my grandfather crazy with his backseat driving!! The 11 kids in mom's family would have to take turns going with and they used to argue fiercely about whose turn it was!

    Still I guess it was a small price to pay for the use of an auto when you have none of your own!

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  6. Manzanita!! You write fab posts whatever the subject! And we all love you for them! Yes we do!

    And big hi to Cody!

    Horse hair blanket? Vintage cars? Nice! take care
    x

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  7. I never sat on a horsehair blanket for the following reasons.
    1. I'm wicked allergic to horses (meaning I would have been one sad cowboy).
    2. I'd worry about all the bald horses.

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  8. Well, thank you for setting a precedence in which I can delete a blog if I wake up and realize I didn't want to go there. But, for the record, I didn't think anything was wrong with the post.

    Desotos are good, too. :)

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  9. ...sweet memories! And I love old cars, too! To me, the majority of modern autos look pretty much alike, whereas old, 'vintage\retro' cars all have their distinctive appearance! Such designs are no more...:(
    Have a beautiful week,
    Hugs!

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  10. I can tell you one thing Manzy, They sure don't build em like they used to.

    I have never seen a horse hair blanket, but when we moved into this house, the was horse hair carpet padding under the old carpet we ripped out. I was the worst stuff that you can ever imagine.

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  12. What a gorgeous car! And, yes, I have had encounters with horsehair blankets. I never could dance, but I love ballroom dancing, watching it, I mean. When I have TV, I watch DWTS and Derek Hough is my favorite of the professionals.

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  13. Okay, I worked out what 'DWTS', is Dancing with the Stars. Forgive me, but I live in England where they have the equivalent show titled, Celebrity Strictly Come Dancing.
    Anyway, after deciphering what the heck you meant, I suddenly had a visual of you dancin' in a Desoto :)
    Oh yes, before I go, Penny the Jack Russell dog and modest internet star, says 'Arf! Arf!' to Cody....

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  14. I am so out of it. It took me awhile there to realize what DWTS actually stands for. I don't care much for the show personally, but that's because I am not enough of a dancer to be able to see mistakes. However, there are those times when I know a couple was great. I just don't know why. The reason I don't care for it is I suppose the fabrication of it all, but then that has nothing to do with dancing. If I had a TV, I would try watching it once again to try and see what you see.

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  15. Oh, my goodness. A Desoto! It has been a long time since I've heard that Chrysler vehicle's name. They stopped making them around 1960, if I remember correctly.
    Be not afraid, Manzanita. Your always-delighted readers, will endure, I mean appreciate, anything you do!

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  16. Boring? Nope, not at all. I enjoyed the commentary on DWTS. It's the mama's favorite show. She calls Len the old man, which cracks me up since he's 20+ years younger. Your post got me curious to learn more about Len.

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  17. Never a horse hair blanket, but we had a horse hair stuffed sofa when we were kids. When the fabric wore through and the hairs left rashes on our legs, mum covered it with a big old bedspread, doubled over to defeat the horsehair.

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  18. Ok, you made me read the DWTS post as I have been gone and am catching up. I don't watch the show and am just catching up on the Max thing. Sometimes wonder if those things aren't staged to bolster interest.
    You are a stoic person to snuggle up under a horsehair blanket. Awesome looking car.

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  19. I have slept on a mattress stuffed with horse hair, does that count? For a while we had my father's 1927 Model T Ford truck. It was a one ton stake truck, top speed about 20 MPH going down hill. It was a blast.

    (I don't watch DWTS does that make me strange or just not with it?)

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  20. Dear Mell : I can imagine 11 kids vieing for a ride in the big car. What a sight that must have been. One of those big old card must have nearly held them all. Ha.

    Kay : Welcome home. Must be bittersweet to be back. I just didn't want to bore people with my interest. Dancing really is in a minority now, as compared to the the 30's and 40's. Probably because people didn't have the money for entertainment and dancing provided the most fun of all.

    Kitty : Thank you so much. I always appreciate your sweet comments.

    Al : And what's a cowboy without his horse although there was the rhinestone cowboy. You could do the mechanical bull. Years ago I rode what was touted to be the first mechanical bull ..... in a bar in NM. What a hoot that was. I stayed on for a few bucks (not $) but you got thrown into a soft pit.

    Teresa : Why sure. We can change our minds. We're women.

    Zara : Of course you would like the vintage cars as they fit into your retro blog. They are so sturdy and nothing rattles when you ride in them. I actually remember that old Desoto after it passed it's prime and everything felt so tight about it. Today's cars seem to be put together with sealing wax, by comparison.

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  21. Oh Terry, I remember now, they used to use that HH padding for carpets. Thanks for jarring my memory. We know what happened to all the old horses. I used to have to shut that idea out of my head when I used the horse hair blanket. We also had an old buffalo hide blanket. Speaking of buffalo, my brother has been doing some work in the park where the buffalo wander wild and he said he came a hair length from hitting one. He came round a bend in the dark and this mammoth animal was standing in his lane and a car on the other lane. He slammed on the brakes but was sure they would hit but the animal jumped back a little at the last second. He was driving my old pick-up that had a deer guard on but what good would that do against a buffalo??? Now we laugh at it. :)

    Inger : Yes, you do know DWTS... even the names.... Derrick is one of my favorites too. I'm impressed that you've come up against a HH blanket too. :)

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  22. Klahanie : Sorry to confuse you. hummm, dancing in a DeSoto? I like that. I just wouldn't want to go dancing in a Bugatti wearing a long scarf like Isadora Duncan. Cody just looked at me and walked to the door. It would be nice if they could speak human. She does understand Penny's posts when they're in Dogspeak.
    Cheers.

    Rubye : I realize that and that is why I replaced the dancing post after my brain was working from my tofu. Often we assume everyone is as much into our passions as we are and I like to try to hit some middle ground. Must be my Libra Moon. It's a curse, always trying to please everyone. And you end up always being the peace-maker. You are so much better off without a TV. I rarely turn mine on but I do have my favorites. I listen to talk radio or Flamenco music. I have boxes of Flamenco CD's and I suppose when I die, they'll be in all the thrift stores. It's not my kids passion either. Ha

    Rob-Bear : Thank you for sure. You are a most kind and honorable man and you lend my blog style with your visit. Wahoo and you GO man.

    Dear Su-sieee : I knew you'd like the dancing but we are in such a minority. I once started a book, :Flamenco Floozie" but who would read it? I know you would. Ha. Yes, Len is a character and he is 67 I think. He must act a lot younger because he's married to a gal 37 years his junior. Holy Moly. And she's number 3. Kinda reminds me of Xaviar Cugat. Remember when I did that post about him. Now those men are labeled "love addicts" and it is a personality disorder. Wish I had known about that disorder back when I was with children's father (but it was only coined during the 80's). So glad Mama likes DWTS and you watch it together. Love and peace.

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  23. Oh River : I know those old sofa's too. They usually had wide wood arms and when that horse hair poked out of the seat, it was painful. Ha.

    Patti : I agree with your suspicions. The reason that show has enjoyed such a long popularity is because of the little personality problems that THEY MANUFACTURE. Maks has always been the outspoken one and he had a run-in with the judges on last years's season, too. I get caught up in it and after I had published that post, I thought just that.... I had been a victim of their media. Oh well, it's like the old radio Soaps. Ma Perkins.... ever hear of that or is it before your time? You da baby !!!! My aunts used to be so tied into that soap..... had to listen to it every day.
    I bet you can relate to horse hair now with the shingles .... only yours is much worse. Hope you are getting some relief.

    Bish : OMG... a mattress of that stuff would be murder if it got a leak. 1927 ... don't you wish you still had that? Those old cars had thingy on the steerng wheel was was called a "spark." You always had to adjust that..... don't know what it technically did. And then the crank. Did you have to do that to the old pick up?
    Not watching DWTS makes you normal. I figured out I'm the not-so-normal one. I was just talking to my friend Marilyn (of 51 years) and we were talking about dancing and flamenco. She played flamenco guitar all those years. I knew I never missed a dance lesson in my 60 years of dancing. I made my lessons my priority and all things came after that. I set aside a time for practice and never missed. I would put a peanut butter sandwich in my purse so I could go from work to dance class and eat while I was getting into my dance clothes. So you see... you're the normal one. Ha

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  24. Love the car!
    And I, for one, found your post VERY interesting (since as you know I am a fan of the show!)
    Don't apologize for anything you post. This forum is for us to say WHATEVER we want to, and to say it for whatever reasons we want to. Anyone who is not interested at the time is free to skip and go on to the next.
    Just my humble opinion...albeit strongly stated.
    xoxoxo, cd

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  25. Beautiful car! Your 82nd birthday!? get out of town!

    I too had to go read your DWTS post and I posted there...

    I enjoy reading about all sorts of stuff... beautiful old cars... people who are young but old by societal rules. I'm wearing white after Labor Day in protest of all the rules...

    I think blogs ought to be about whatever's on our minds... only thing we can almost have control over! sometimes. ;)

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  26. I really wish I could dance and I'm so envious of anyone who can throw some moves! Please talk more about it. :)

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  27. Loved your post here, I like dwts, especially Maks and Derek and Anna and Edita (who is not on this season)
    My earliest car recollection is my dad had a '36 Plymouth (rubbery canvas most of the roof. He had a 47 Kaiser too.
    My first car in '60 was a 52 Caddy convertible, Maroon colour.
    Yeah I like old cars too.

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  28. What a car! Yes, I know the horse hair feel. Not pleasant.

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  29. Never sat on a horse blanket. I love DWTS, but I put all the scrapping under "it makes good TV" and enjoy the show.

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  30. Wish they still made cars like that and yes, I have sat on a horse hair blanket. Also, sorry I missed the boring but I find it hard to believe you boring. :)
    Jules @ Trying To Get Over The Rainbow

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  31. I happen to love dancing too :). And what a lovely memory about the car. One of my special memories as a child is riding around in my grandmother's car. I don't know why, but that felt like a very safe place for me to think and daydream.
    Miriam@Meatless Meals For Meat Eaters

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