Many Old Stories | Family History

I hope someday I will be wise enough to document my life in pictures so that my progeny will have photographic archives to learn from and enjoy. More importantly, I hope I will live a life worth documenting. My Grandmother's albums were acquired after her death in 1992. Sifting through them, I've found moments of periodic greatness worth sharing.



My Dad spent more than a year or so at the University of Natal (which is now the University of KwaZulu-Natal and includes a campus in Durban) in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa after recieving his doctorate in plant pathology. During his stay, he did much travelling. The pictures above and below were produced from slides which I have found and intend to make digital...perhaps creating an entire website or blog devoted to shots of Africa in the early 1970's (an unusual time period for African photographic documentation..) I also scanned the backs of the pictures to show my Dad's original captions done using a typewriter.
One of my Dad's favorite stories is of how during his time in "the lab", he refused to use some of the newer word processors of the time and opted instead for typewriters. His collegues laughed at him. He preffered being able to type on any 2D surface as opposed to more limited formats.




One of my favorite pictures from the collection, Rhodesia is now Zimbabwe (and was known as Southern Rhodesia under British rule until April 1980). The Peugoet took him everywhere.
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My Dad has had a few good cars in his day, aside from the Peugeot. This VW Carmen Gia (originally Karmann Ghia) convertable from the late 50's looks like a graduation present...today it's worth up to $15,000 if perfectly restored. One day I'd like to get one.

I recall my Dad mentioning something about his first car being bought with spare change he collected over years and years (typical old man story). Perhaps this ivory colored beast? From the hood ornament, it looks like a Cadillac. I'll have to ask.

This is the VW Notchback I grew up riding in...proof my Dad is terribly oldschool. The picture is taken in front of my Grandparent's old home in Culver City, California before the thing had deer dents in it.

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Growing up my Dad was an avid player of the accordian (which he didn't love) and a skilled horse trainer (which he did love) under the guidance of a guy he calls "Red Kennedy". He also loved cats, and still does.









With some black bear cubs in Yellowstone.





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My Dad with early, somewhat primitive looking lab equipment. This could be at Oregon State or University of California in Davis..or the Netherlands. He wrote many papers on things like Potatos and Filberts.

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My Grandmother much later, on a bus touring Europe. The surrounding photographs were from Vienna.