Swag

I'm a couple of weeks behind on this one, but I want to post it nonetheless. When Faith and Mom drove through Chicago on their way out to Twin Falls a couple of weeks ago, they stayed overnight with me. In addition to getting to spend a few brief hours with my family members, I also scored the following excellent items, that I'd like to take a moment to brag about:

First, a magnificent pair of vintage brass earrings that date back to my mother's hippy days, and which I convinced her to part with. I used to play dress-up with these when I was little, using them to set off a lovely yellow chiffon nightgown and matching wrap that I was especially fond of. I dressed them with something a little more appropriate and wore them out on the town on Friday. I received many compliments, and my cabby made a very hard play for me. I turned him down.

And second, a hilarious oddity that will really only be appreciated by anyone who grew up near Norwich, VT, where there is a very old general store called Dan and Whit's. This store is one of those magical hold-outs that never seem to change. It's actually quite trendy, and always has the latest thing in cheese and organic produce available, but you can also find garden hoses, thick wool plaid shirts, enameled tin cookware, sewing notions, Mad Libs, the Farmer's Almanac, hardware, light fixtures, bicycle pumps, WD 40, The New York Times and pretty much anything else you can think of to want within its labyrinthine walls. Shopping there is one of the things I most look forward to whenever I visit the homestead. The last time Faith was there, she discovered this gem, and brought me a bottle of it:

In addition to the fact that Dan & Whit's chose California merlot to represent them among oenophiles of the Upper Valley, there are two further hilarities associated with this bottle of wine. First, and most obviously, the picture, which is circa 1984, smack in the middle of my childhood (although, except for the make of the cars, it looks exactly the same now). And secondly, there is no year on this wine. It is without vintage. Excellent.