Tag: nostalgia

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"Hey, that's a pretty neat old popcorn machine."

"Yeah, we've been trying to get rid of it. Nobody will take it."

"Really? I wouldn't mind having it."

"OK."

And that's how I inherited a vintage 1950s movie-theater popcorn machine.

I was on one of my research trips for the upcoming book Weird Oklahoma and was visiting the Shortgrass Playhouse in Hobart, a community theater that's reportedly haunted by the spirit of a man whose 1918 headstone was mysteriously discovered upstairs during renovations.

While I was being given a tour, I spotted the art-deco-style machine collecting dust in the corner. I was joking when I said I'd take it off their hands, but the owners were genuinely excited that someone was actually interested in hauling it off. So, last weekend I returned with a friend of mine to roll it out and lug it down the fire escape.

After I unloaded it at my father's workshop here in Texas, I scoured the Internet for any information I could find on the machine. I shouldn't have been surprised to discover there are quite a few people out there interested in restoring old popcorn makers, all of whom are eager to share what knowledge they have. ... Continued

I just love this photo by Flickr contributor David Gallagher that captures the subtle shine reflected by a row of midcentury, commercial fiberglass chairs. Chairs like these are often overlooked, but I personally love their simple aesthetic. Plus, they're often surprisingly comfortable.

Maybe it's just me, but it seems like we're surrounded by these slick little guys, yet when I try to think of the last time I actually sat in one, I can't remember exactly where it was. Stephen Coles over at the Mid-Century Modernist, however, seems to have figured out where the majority have gone to herd: the laundromat!

Coles has even determined the source of most of these wonderful old chairs as being furniture manufacturer Krueger Metal Products, who in 1967 became the world’s largest folding chair and table manufacturer. Plus, he points to a fantastic Flickr pool dedicated exclusively to laundromat chairs. You should certainly check it out.

I was never a frequent shopper at Trader Joe's during that short time I lived in California, but I did like to pop out of work on occasion to have one of their caesar salads in a plastic box and to roam the aisles perusing all the unusual foods.

Still, I thoroughly enjoyed this amateur commercial produced by Carl Willat of Carl's Fine Films, who used his cell phone to break the establishment's no-camera policy and exemplify the Trader Joe's experience in video and song. It's just as I remember it.

These days, I'd probably take more advantage of Trader Joe's, but sadly there are none here in Texas.

After posting about the great retro valentines available at Fred Flare, I did a little searching to see what else I could come up with.

I was pleased to find a great collection of vintage valentine images over at 7 Deadly Sinners, some of which, like the Freudian banana card pictured here, can be just a little bizarre.

Plus, Perpetual Kid offers another set of retro valentines for purchase, comprising 10 really awesome space-themed cards.