DAY 3: SHENANDOAH

Hello and a special welcome to new Neither Snow visitors. I'm so grateful that you've stopped by thanks to some recent posts (here, here, here and here). To all: please forgive the radio silence. Since I last posted, we've been frantically packing and preparing for a move to Los Angeles, where we'll be stationed for the year (please drop a line if you'd like to collaborate out west!). It was a neverending parade to and fro all of the usual "we're moving" locations (post office, big box stores, Salvation Army), not to mention finishing up some fantastic projects inbetween, which I will share with you momentarily.

We are taking two weeks to cross the country via I-81 and then to I-40, and camping along the way. I write to you from the Big Meadows Lodge of Shenandoah National Park. It is just stunning.  The golden light through the leaves is bewitching, the sunsets a swirl of salmons and blues. There are many Amish families here and I've been captivated by their bonnets and handmade dresses that I spot every once in a while in the meadows. More pictures from the trip coming soon. But next up: a tribute to Mary Heron. 

ELFRETH'S ALLEY

I had so much fun this weekend playing a tourist in my own city with Lindsay. We headed to the annual Elfreth's Alley Fete day which celebrates the country's oldest residential street. It was a treat to tour inside the beautiful, historic homes. And Maureen from the Philadelphia Calligrapher's Society was on hand with quills and parchment samples from Pergamena. In no particular order: quills, parchment, fife + drum (don't you love the red heart on the uniform?), doorknocker, tops sold in the giftshop, the terrific mix of patterns on the apron, shirt and skirt of a woman spinning yarn, her red foot, yarn, a hankie, an old oven.

153 - 154: 6.3 + "this is very important"

One of my very favorite paper stores in Berlin was Druckerei J. Müeller (Neue Schonhauser Str. 16) in Mitte. The shop is tucked away in a courtyard and offers a charming mix of very official looking rubber stamps, old metal type, and products they produce in-house. Here, three of my favorite. First, these blind press note cards that I sealed with some washi tape (bought at  R.S.V.P, a reader suggestion -- thank you Surfire!) for gratitude letters 153 + 154. Second, and not a product per se, the stamped bag they give you, in Fraktur font, to contain your purchase. The owner folds the flap, punches a hole and inserts a brass clasp. So thoughtful. And finally, they print these quittungen, or receipt books, on an old mechanical letterpress. I. and I ventured back to the printing area and talked to the man overseeing the production. He took a receipt, turned it over, held it toward the light and delicately stroked the back, where the impression could be seen. "For the people who use these," he said (and by people he means service people, business owners, shop keepers, etc.) "this is very important. Being able to feel these lines, and feel the texture." (And yes, the photo of this dear man standing next to his press didn't come out). The front of the receipt says "Original Letterpress    Druckerei J. Müller Berlin-Mitte." The man said that, even to his surprise, his customers refuse to use mass-produced receipt books because the seonsory experience, craftsmanship and paper quality is so important. This revered labor-intensive process for such an ephemeral product very much reminded me of the letterpress fax cover sheet Emily of EmPrint made for the YU Contemporary artspace (also the location of her studio). Emily, you have a septuagenarian kindred spirit thousands of miles away.

BRITAIN ALONE

I had forgotten about this awesome stamp I picked up in England last summer. I think it's a good counterpoint to two patriotic stamps that have recently been released: William + Kate from the UK and the Statue of Liberty in the US that actually depicts the faux statue in Las Vegas. Let's remember more substantive philatelic decisions, shall we? This series commemorates sacrifices made during WWII, and the quotidian triumphs that led to victory. Including:

"Essential to the war effort thousands of unmarried young women were conscripted to replace men called up for the armed services on farms."

"Local volunteers, often First World War veterans were ready to fight in the event of an enemy invasion. Shown here is Doncaster’s ‘Broomstick Army’ still awaiting their uniforms and rifles."

"Essential to the war effort thousands of unmarried young women were conscripted to replace men called up for the armed services on farms."

And, pictured above: "As on the farms women stepped into traditionally male roles in industry to release men for the armed services."

Adventure

On Sunday our dear friend Jack-- eminently knowledgable about the city’s history and architecture -- took me and Andrew on a private tour of housing in North Philadelphia. We drove through neighborhoods that had been redlined; past blocks that were completely abandoned; through streets with boarded up homes and empty lots. And we also meandered through areas of revival with people on their stoops, tending their gardens and walking home from church. I was struck by this door of an old abandoned house. It is remarkable that the delicate etched glass has managed to survive everything else around it.