Sepia Saturday: Early Days of Television, and Barbie Dolls

In his introduction to Sepia Saturday 823, Alan Burnett writes: 

"Back in the 1950s and 60s, people often wanted their television sets included in photographs; those box-like, round-knobbed sets were the status symbol of their time."

This reminded me of probably the only "TV photo" that I have from my early childhood. It's in my first photo album (put together by my mum), and when looking it up now, I note that it's from the autumn of 1957 - which means I was only two years old when it was taken. 

My mum's note (in Swedish) below the photo translates: The child in the Age of Television - or "Look, it's snowing". ...  "Snowing" referring to the fact that more often than not, back then, there was nothing on to watch - and even when there was, the image might often be rather blurry and "snowy"... And here I'm obviously just staring at a blank screen! 

The TV belonged to my maternal grandparents, and the photo is from their living room. Regular TV broadcasts in Sweden did not start until 1956, but my maternal grandfather was always keen to try new inventions, so did not wait long to get one... My own parents did not get one until years later, I think. 

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I'll combine this with a few photos I snapped from my flat screen TV a few days ago. There was a short documentary on about the history of Barbie dolls, and some women of different ages collecting them, and "remembering"...

As some followers of this blog may recall (I know at least Meike does!), some years ago I gave away most of my own old Barbie dolls, but decided to keep two - which have since been "living" on a shelf next to the TV in my sitting room, rather than tucked away in a box. And when something Barbie-related is on, of course they want to watch with me...

 

"My Barbie and Me"

Looking in my old photo albums for TV-related photos now, I also happened to find the  photo below of my first three Barbie dolls, from the summer of 1965 - and taken by me with an old black-and-white camera then rather recently "inherited" from my dad:

Barbie, Ken and Skipper

Checking up on things now, Barbie dolls were launched in Sweden for Christmas 1963. I doubt I was among the very first to get one, so more likely that I got these three for my birthday + Christmas in 1964. The Skipper doll is the same one that I still have (at some point in early history, she had a haircut); while the Barbie doll is the last one I got. She came with three different wigs, so is really kind of "three in one". But I prefer her in this one: 

(Repeating a photo from Easter)

Cherry Blossom and Magnolia

 

Today I managed to combine a pharmacy errand with a sunny walk + checking up on the progress of spring in the city centre. The first blossoming tree that I've seen this spring caught my eye outside a hotel I passed on my way into town (above). After my errands, I took the way through the city park and along the river towards home.

 Magnolia tree, and flowerbed with hyaciths in the foreground. 
(The round black building in the background is a restaurant/café.)

If memory serves me right, the big tree to the left is a maple tree.

More cherry blossom at a parking lot by the river.

 

A cherry blossom, or sakura, is a flower of Japanese cherry trees. (The cherry fruit is from a different species of tree.) Most of the flowers are white or pink with five petals. There are about 400 different types of cherry trees.

Magnolia is a genus of at least 210 species, or more; named after a French botanist, Pierre Magnol. They existed before bees, so are believed to originally having been pollinated by beetles. Fossilized specimens of magnolia have been dated to 20 million (!) years ago.

(Facts picked from Wikipedia articles.) 

Forsythia

  

We're enjoying warmer temperatures this week, around 16'C in the afternoons, and more and more colour is coming back into the surroundings at last... I didn't walk very far today, but stopped and snapped a couple of photos of Forsythia hedges now bursting into bloom here and there in my neighbourhood. (The yellow brick buildings in my immediate surroundings all look very similar - but there are different kinds of flowerbeds and hedges around them.) 

 

 

I have a forsythia branch in a vase at home, too - but that is a fake one, not stolen from one of the outdoor hedges... As some followers might remember by now, I have a number of different fake branches and flowers for this vase, which I vary with the seasons.

Forsythia flowers are produced in the early spring, before the leaves. The genus is named after William Forsyth (1737–1804), a Scottish botanist who was a royal head gardener and a founding member of the Royal Horticultural Society. (Wikipedia)

Wood Anemones

 

A friend pm:d me the other day and suggested going on picnic some day this week and look for wood anemones. I had to reply that alas, "me and ny knee" still do not feel up for such undefined adventures as unknown woodland paths and outdoor picnics.

However, there is a place quite close to home for me where wood anemones grow; and after having been to post a letter today, I decided to walk that path on my way home (only a very minor detour) and check if they were in bloom yet. They are - which means Spring Has Sprung! Quite enough adventure for me, for now... :)

Spring Flowers, Fashion & Memories

 

Daffodils and pansies in a flowerbed along the ground floor of the old town hall (where there is a restaurant with an outdoors terrace outside).  

Two shops or 'establishments' had balloons on display outside - I don't know why.

Yesterday (Saturday) seemed a good day for going into town for a couple of errands. One of them was to hand in a few items of clothing at a charity shop; and thus having things to carry already on my way to town, I took a bus part of the way. (It doesn't save me much time, but it does save me a few steps, which hopefully my knee might appreciate.) 

Having disposed of my bag of old clothes at the charity shop, I went across the square to where they sell new ones... And actually found what I was looking for: a long and wide denim skirt, with elastic waist. For summer, I might have preferred it in a slightly thinner material - but on the other hand, being sturdier, it can be used all year round. Anyway, it came close enough to what I had in mind, and I bought it. My main purpose for wanting to add this item to my wardrobe just now is that it will cover any kind of leggings, knee sleeves, bandages or support stockings etc that I might need to wear underneath it...! 

I remember when midi/maxi length skirts came into fashion back in my youth - it was 1970-71, when I was 15 years old and in the 9th and last year of our primary school. When the autumn term started, the midi/maxi skirt fashion had not yet reached Sweden - or at least not the town where I was living then. But we had two new students arriving from abroad - two sisters, who had just moved to Sweden from Austria (probably Vienna) - and they both came wearing midi length coats in some red shiny material. And at our graduation, the next summer, I myself was wearing a midi length skirt with buttons down the front, and shorts underneath... 
 

On my walk back home, I was glad to see more spring flowers spreading and brightening up both lawns and flower beds.

Scilla

 

An old grave in the cemetery re-used as flowerbed, with yellow daffodils and crocus.