Hot Keys

Granny and I on the piano, 1982.

Hey gang.

As you know, my grandma passed away at the beginning of last month, and for a couple weeks afterwards our family had to schedule memorial/funeral services and, for lack of better term, loot her house.

Besides the three car-loads of plunder I amassed over those two weeks, the main prize I was after was my granny's piano, which she had in her house out in Iowa and that I used to play on whenever I'd visit her.  I called dibs on that right from the get-go, and was ready to fight any of my siblings or cousins for it, but I think being the eldest in my generation - and the only one who can actually play a piano, and who has children that play the piano - it didn't come to that.

Granny's piano, in her house

After the dust had settled from Granny's passing, I scheduled the piano to be moved from her house in Clare to ours in Midland, and used a guy my brother had previously used (when they had his wife's piano moved up from Detroit.)  This guy, Ray, was a real pro, and was decently priced for the moving and tuning of Granny's piano.

Long story short, we have a piano in our house now. . . finally.  Granted, we'll have to go through this whole Goddamn process again in a year or so when we actually buy a home, but at least now it's among piano-playing Houghs once more.

Behold. . .

This is a vintage Kimball Console piano, and is a pretty middle-of-the-road instrument.  Not a piece of shit by any means, but not top-shelf, either.

When it came time to plan the move, Ray and I both came to the conclusion that we couldn't move the instrument through the front door - the turn was way too tight.

Instead, we went through the garage door and through the kitchen.  It took awhile getting the instrument up those two steps into the house, and unfortunately we scratched the front of the instrument on the way in through the door.

No, that's not Bernie Sanders.  The piano was pretty out of tune (it had probably been at least five or six years since anyone had touched it), so it took him awhile to bring it back into shape.  He gave it a 'rough tune,' as it was too far out of tune to give it the perfect tune (still, playing it you couldn't tell - he said unless you really knew what you were doing you wouldn't.)

Yes, of course I bought a Star Wars songbook for our new piano.  Here you can see (if you really look close), about a third of the way from the left front of the piano, the quick touch-up job Ray did on the three-inch scratch.

He didn't have the tools he needed on hand to completely touch up the instrument, so he unscrewed and removed the front panel of the piano and took it back to his shop for the weekend.

Almost immediately, the new household addition became a hit with the kids in the neighborhood. . .

Abby and Reba 

. . . and Reba's twin brother, Ruben.  We ended up getting the front panel back on the piano on Monday (Ray's definitely a prompt dude), and were happy to find the instrument looked as good as new.  So now we finally have a piece of Granny's love of music in our house (besides those two of her ukes, I guess), and this old Hough family heirloom can serve a new generation of young instrumentalists.

- Brian

The Diary of Marion (Heeb) Harte

You guys aren't going to believe this.

So the other day I was in a thrift store, browsing through old books.  I do this a lot, as I like books a great deal and have established a small library collection of my own over the last two years.  And, when not nabbing my books on such sites as Amazon, Ebay, or Half, I enjoy the thrill of the hunt in second-hand antique and thrift stores.  I've found all kinds of treasure there - hundred-year old books, autographed books, first editions, etc.  Sometimes you can get them in mint condition, too.

Diary of Marion Heeb

Yes, thrift stores are a treasure trove for fortune hunters likes Yours Truly.

Anyway, so the other day I was at a thrift store perusing through their hardcovers when I stumbled upon a vintage-looking book that had been tucked in the back.  It was stamped with the date '1945,' so that right there was reason enough for me to pick it up for closer examination (I'm a big World War II fan as well.)

That's when I opened it up and realized what I was looking at.  A woman's diary.  From 1945.

Doodles on the inside cover

Yes, readers - a hand-writtern, first-person account of 1945.  A young woman, living in New York City in 1945, describing her daily life during one of the most pivotal eras in modern history.  Her name was is Marion Heeb.


I've only read a couple pages, and flipped through here and there, but I've come to the conclusion that she was in love with a man named Edwin Harte, who was serving overseas in Europe during the War.  Eventually, this Edwin guy makes it back home to the States and proposes to her. . . so I'm assuming he survived the war. 


The craziest part about this diary is the first-hand, personal experience you get surrounding such important dates in human history.  I mean, this Marion woman talks casually about the fall of the Nazis and the end of the war in Europe.  Even crazier, three months later she talks about how her and a few friends make their way down to Manhattan and just so happen to attend the famous end-of-the-war victory celebration in Time Square that followed the Japanese surrender:

This book is like a frickin' time capsule, folks - it's mind-blowing how different day-to-day life was like seventy years ago.  This Marion chick talks about writing multiple letters per day to friends and family members.  No television, no computers, no iPads, no smartphones - lots of community events, lots of social gathering. . . people weren't so disconnected via technology back then.  It makes you pretty depressed when you stop and think about how dependent and untrusting we've come in such a short timespan.

So what am I going to do with this book, you might ask?  Well,  I thought about it, and the diary really doesn't belong to me.  How could it?  I think I'm going to try and decipher a few more clues and see if I can't find out if this woman is still alive (I'm assuming she would be).  I can then get her address, via cyberspace, and mail it to her.  I'm sure she'd want it back (I know I would).  Honestly, how her diary from such a tumultuous period in history ended up at a central Florida thrift store is beyond me.

I'll keep you posted with what else I uncover, folks - stay tuned. . .

- Brian

31 Years

Well, it's that time of year again. The anniversary of the day I came out of my mom.

I'm 31 Goddamn years old today. Hooray for me.

The only good thing about turning 31 is that I'm not turning 30, so, while I am one year closer to the dreaded 4-0, I'm not having to go through that whole ordeal of entering a new decade of age. That's a pain in the ass I don't want to have to do again for a long, long time (say, nine years).

So, this year wasn't as bad for me. I still stocked up on my ritual half-gallon of Sailor Jerry, and I still devoted a good portion of my day playing vintage video games and watching old cartoons from the '80s, but not nearly as much, and I wasn't morosely depressed to the degree I was last year. We also went shopping and went out to eat - so all in all it was a good day.

...and Kris made pirate cupcakes this year. I love pirates.

- Ol' Man Hough

The Haul

Ahoy, treasure seekers!

The Houghs once again set sail this morning for the semi-annual Hunter's Creek Community Garage Sale. If you'll remember, readers, we're big fans of plunder in this family, and, like last year, today we walked away with our fair share of booty.

(I'm on a pirate kick today, if you couldn't tell).

So, what's the big whoop, then? What'd we score this time around? Well, we dropped approximately $33, folks, and for that amount, we scooped up a treasure trove worth of awesomeness.

Observe:

1. Paperback bookcase - $5. Not one of those 'this is sweet!' purchases, but, for five bucks, it got two boxes of books from the move off our utility room floor. Sure, we've still got four boxes piled up and pissing off Preggosaurus whenever she needs to retrieve a cleaning polearm, but hey... little victories.

2. Toy Lawnmower - $3. Little Tikes convinces kids that this piece of machinery will really cut grass, but upon trying it out personally, I have determined that it does not.

3. General Electric Vintage Radio Alarm Clock - $3. Large, blue L.E.D. display. Silver, big-ass buttons. Premium (imitation) teak paneling. The Man-Room is now equipped with the ability to tell time... vintagely. Think I'm freaking out too much over a clock radio? Here, smurf this out. Evidently I'm not the only one who thinks this old radio is cool. There. In your face.

4. Two Hardcover Books - $1. Baby Laughs by Jenny McCarthy and Best Little Stories from the American Revolution by C. Brian Kelly. (Guess which one's is Kristina's and which one is mine.)

5. Antique Wooden/Iron Chest from Mexico - $3. Another Man-Room purchase, ideal for storing my smoking pipes, tobacco, and related hoo-hah. One of my favorite purchases from today's adventures.

6. Two Storage Bins - $2. Okay, so this was one of Kristina's purchases, 'cause apparently 'we needed a few around the house!' I know what you're thinking, trust me. Hooray. Storage bins.

7. Old World Globe Pencil Holder - $0.50. For the Man-Room writing area. C'mon!

8. Three Ice Cube Trays - $0.30. Meh...

9. Framed and Autographed Pencil/Lithograph of a 18th Century War Frigate - $5. There were three of these beauties, each going for $5. If I were single, I would've purchased all three and hung them in every, possible area of blank, wall space. Being married as I am, I realized I only had room for the one, which was - surprise, surprise - in my Man-Room. Still, for being framed, numbered, and autographed by the artist himself - and being a warship - I kinda wish I would've bought all three and put the other two in storage. Oh well...

10. Original 16 Bit Sega Genesis Gaming System: Console, Standard Controller, Fighter Stick SG-6 Advanced Controller, and 24 Games with original Players/Operating Guides - $10. This was, hands down, the day's grandest find. Found at our Church's mass garage sale, this bundle of glory was stuffed into a garbage bag underneath a back table filled with old, dusty appliances. Attracted to junk as I am, I was quickly drawn to the massive pile of cords, broken buttons, and faded gadgetry. While digging around this area (the same in which I found the General Electric Clock Radio, by the way), my foot accidentally kicked the garbage bag on the floor. Intrigued by the clatter sound that reminded me of video game cartridges, I bent down, opened the bag, and promptly soiled myself. I quickly asked a nearby volunteer worker how much she wanted for the whole bundle, as it was un-priced. She didn't know anything about it, and sheepishly asked if $10 was asking too much.

I informed her that the price was fair, purchased my plunder, and left before someone could correct the mistake.

Kris wasn't enthusiastic about the purchase, initially (her argument being I have too many vintage video gaming systems as it is), but I think she's warmed up to it a little. I've cleaned up the console and games with some rubbing alcohol and plenty of affection and, to my everlasting joy, every, last game for the system still works.

So there you have it. Treasure found, glory attained, and all for a meager $33.

Slainte,

Cap'n "Mad Dog" McHough