Monday, March 22, 2021

Black and White

 

on the rock, above the abyss

I like the above picture, taken during a trip in my last year of high-school.  Me, sitting on a rock and looking down at the abyss below.  No fear!

These days Fear seems to have gotten to me.  'Stay Home,  Stay Alive'  is not just a slogan; there is  truth in it, especially now, in the atmosphere of  euphoria caused by the appearance of vaccines, and the cancelling of most restrictions.

 
So, until fear subsides, and I go to places not only for the essentials, but also for fun and pleasure,  I find refuge in old pictures and memories. 
Here are some music and fashion memories in black and white:


playing the violin

 in a duo at a Purim party 
 
The violin in the picture  belonged to my brother. The talent too.  I took lessons but nothing good came out of it. At a later stage I fancied learning guitar playing. I had a good voice so I thought accompanying myself with a guitar might be a beginning of something...a musical career perhaps.  I  got convinced, however, for my own sake, to give it up .

dress decoration

In those days, it was fashionable to add white decorations to a garment , for a nice final touch - either around the neck or at the bottom (as seen in these two photos - near the book shelf, and with the violin).

I also had a few dresses made by my Mom of cotton fabric with dots. Oh, how I liked that kind of cotton  and that kind of dress!! The background was usually vivid red or blue, the dots - white.

 

dotted dress

The top with the squares pattern in the picture below was crocheted by my Mom; she was good with the crochet. Besides the top, which was very beloved by me and it serviced me for many years,  she left me some crocheted scarves and shawls.

               crocheted  top - squares pattern

During most of my younger years I wished my straight hair were curly / wavy. This made my life quite a misery; I needed  hair rollers, special perm lotions, and often a professional hairdresser. 

Time, money and chemicals are not a good combination.  Looking back at those times I ask myself what was all that about. The curly / wavy style was hardly flattering; it even made me look more mature.

curly hair top


 curly hair top2

(Speaking of chemicals,  I've never colored my hair, though. 

I 'm used to apply from time to time, a paste made of the popular Henna plant powder , intended mainly for strength and volume). 

Wearing a hat is a Must in our summers, especially if you intend to go to the beach.  Well, I hated hats mainly because I believed they made me look shorter than I was already. Hats  were ok for me to wear at Purim fun parties, or , by contrast , a black hat at funerals/cemetery visits.

at the beach

The elections and Passover are knocking at the door.  Hopefully, things go smoothly with no political violence and no violation of the remaining pandemic restriction regarding crowds and social distancing.

See you soon!

 



 

 


45 comments:

  1. It has been fascinating to see these pictures of the young (and very beautiful) Duta. Thanks for sharing!

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    1. Thank you for your very kind words. I'm glad you like the photos, and greatly appreciate what you think of them.

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  2. Such wonderful memories and photos! Oh, I miss my grandmother making me dresses. Especially, pants. She really was quite good, but only let me cut out the patterns.

    I love your adventures. That is a little scary in that first one.

    Awesome that you took violin and guitar. I wanted to play guitar, but I wasn't that good. However, I had a friend who taught himself and I guess for the first time I met someone with such determination. Of course, he also likes to tinker with electric guitars to make them have life again.

    Such a wonderful post. All the best to your health and further adventures!

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    1. Thanks, Ellie.
      Garments made by mothers and grandmothers are always a fond memory.

      Looking back at the first picture, it is a scary situation to sit above an abyss. But I was young and confident that nothing bad could happen.

      All the best to you too!

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    2. It's amazing some of the places we go like this. And no worries then. I too have looked back on situations, wondering..what was I thinking. Sometimes, I wish I had that young attitude more and yet..not really. Hope you are having a good week. At least I found the link so I could get the appointment for the second COVID shot. I heard on the news that they are taking appointments by phone now.

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    3. Age is a crucial factor. At an advanced age one doesn't dare taking risks.
      Wishing you the very best with the second dose of vaccine!

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    4. I hope you are having a good end of March. We have had more rain this month than most of winter, in spite of the snow. Then the wind kicked in so March has been on the cold side too. But we have planted peas.

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    5. It's cold here too, especially at night.
      We are celebrating Passover; it lasts from Friday (26.3) to Friday (07.4).

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    1. Sweet of you to say these things, Christine!
      In those days, I didn't see myself as such. I whined about my height (wanted some more cm), about my straight hair (wanted curls and waves),and was appalled of how I looked in the pictures.
      I suppose I was not the only one with that attitude. That's how things usually are when you're young. You wish what you don't have.

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  4. I greatly enjoyed these photos of yourself, Duta, and thanks for sharing them as not everyone would be so forthcoming. But it is always nice to learn a bit more about a fellow blogger and to see them in past times. I like the curly top photos. I hope you have a Happy Passover celebration.

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    1. Nowadays, I wouldn't dare 'torture' my hair for curls or waves. I don't even color it; just trying to keep it clean and healthy.
      Thanks for enjoying the photos, and for your Passover wish.

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  5. HI Duta, Great post and photos of you in b/w. Sometimes black and white photos are full of `color` in that they are so expressive somehow!! Love seeing all the music and fashion photos and the Purim costume and your fearlessness!! Keep on sharing your adventures and strength and beauty, and remember perfect love casts out all fear (1John 4:18)!! Much love!♡

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    1. Right. Sometimes black and white photos are more powerful than the colored ones.
      "..love casts out all fear" - what a wonderful, true expression!
      Sending you love and blessings!

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  6. How wonderful to see you when younger and for you to tell us a little about yourselves. Pretty young lady and you haven't changed a bit :)

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    1. You've made my day with your generous words, Margaret. I feel blushing under my, yes -let's face it- aged face skin.
      These days, we're all concerned about health, less about beauty.

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  7. Old pictures are like the life we ​​live again. Thanks for the interesting post!

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    1. "Old pictures are like the life we live again" - very well put! I like that and will remember it, Victoria.

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  8. Love all your old photos. You were fearless in that first photo!

    I took a lot of music lessons, too, when I was a teenager and younger. But I always say that the most important thing I learned was to appreciate those who have accomplished what I couldn't. The good ones make it look easy and those of us who'd tried know better.

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    1. I totally agree with you about learning to appreciate those who did accomplish what I couldn't. That applies to any aspect of life. I may feel a bit of envy, but appreciation is the predominant feeling.

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  9. I have loved each and every one of these photos. I had to laugh at your comments about hair -- what WERE we thinking back then? Plus what a fun way to get to know another part of you a little better. (I love the first photo so much, especially.)

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    1. I'm glad that at my advanced age, I still have some decent hair on my head,and I'm not going to harm it with rollers or chemicals.
      Thank you Jeanie for your very kind words about the photos in this post.

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  10. i adore old photos:) they are the relicts of the past time:)

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    1. Indeed, they are, Kathy. Relics, in the sense of mementos, souvenirs - that follow us along our life, helping us, sometimes, overcome difficult times.

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  11. Great photos and memories for you, Duta! I've always liked black and white photos, something we rarely see these days it seems. We have a ton of old photos, but for some reason I really don't much enjoy looking back at them, too nostalgic, sentimental for me, esp when seeing those who are no longer here. Good thing that you enjoy doing it! Take care

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    1. There is sadness when looking back, but then, as our present and future don't seem to be very bright, perhaps the past memories will help and strengthen us.

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  12. Your beauty resonates to this day. I also wanted curly hair. My hair hardly holds a pernm, but in the 80s I had a shoulder length curly perm, all that big hair. LOL I have noticed that many women do not worry with their hair anymore.

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    1. Thank you, Linda.
      Well, perhaps women of a certain age, don't worry about style any more; style requires chemicals and work. These women prefer to go natural and keep their hair simple and healthy. .

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  13. The photo with the violin does stand out, I suppose.
    Well, there comes a time in our life when most of these past photos become dear to us, even delight us.

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  14. I've colored my hair, permed it, bleached it blonde but I've never cut it short after I got older. My dad cut it once when I was a kid and I didn't like it short. My hair is long enough to sit on and I don't do any dying or bleaching anymore.

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    1. You don't say! "long enough to sit on.."
      Wow!
      Anyway, I'm glad you stopped dying and bleaching it. You've got a treasure - keep it safe and healthy!

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  15. Lovely photos, DUTA...you were a good-looking young woman. A lovely young woman looking ahead into the future. :)

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    1. Thank you, Lee. "..looking ahead into the future" - I see you smiling. That's OK. I'm not sure there's a future even for the younger people.

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  16. I really enjoyed seeing your photos, I love old pictures! The first one is especially beautiful :)

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    1. ן believe you, Natalia. Like you, I enjoy old pictures that document aspects of the past and might change our perspective on things.

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  17. You're very stylish, Duta. So glad to see your pretty and happy faces.
    I like those black and white photos that keep all memories and histories.

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    1. 'Stylish' - that's a word I like. Looking back in time, I think ,perhaps, shape and colors of clothes were chosen to suit my figure well. It helped that my Mom could sew and crochet some, from time to time.

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  18. Simpler times.

    You look like a fashion model!

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    1. Hi, Sandi. It's good to hear from you.
      I'll have to update my post as I forgot to mention my mother's crochet work. She was very good at that, and she made me several shawls and top shirts. I rarely use the shawls (see one in the next post) as I'm too short for that kind of item.
      Thanks for the compliment.

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  19. Thank you for sharing more about yourself here.
    I enjoyed seeing all of your photographs and as others have also said you do look great :)

    Stay safe and well.

    All the best Jan

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    1. You're welcome. Glad you've enjoyed viewing my photos. Many thanks for the compliment,
      Best wishes to you and Eddie!

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  20. A younger Duta sharing a look back through the lens of yesterday's camera. Truly delightful to see and read these episodes, times that live on, unchanged mentally and in our album of yesteryear.

    You portray natural beauty and a certain look of confidence. Well, that's how I view it. Too many of today's young ladies try too hard to look like pop stars or glamour girls thus losing their true natural prettiness. Sad, in my eyes.

    Great post. Thanks, and kind regards. Philip.

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    1. ן'm delighted to hear from you, Philip!
      Hope things are well with you and your family. Pity you've stopped blogging, as you have such intelligent and interesting things to write about!
      Anyway, thanks for your comment and the very kind and warm words about my post. It really makes my day.

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  21. What a beautiful young lady you were and if I am not mistaken, no makeup either correct. Love the dress you are wearing in the violin picture. I had a dress like that only with sleeves and it was a lavender color. When I was in grade school I got to play Lucy in the Charlie Brown Christmas play and I wore that dress, I wish my mom had kept it. Your mom was crafty like my mom, sewing and crocheting. It's so fun looking back at pictures of our youth isn't it? Thank you for sharing your beautiful pictures.

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    1. Thanks for the generous compliment, dear Alicia.
      My Mom was indeed crafty. I cannot crochet, but I can sew. I've managed to self teach myself with the german Burda method, if you've heard about it.How proud I was to sew a dress or two for my mother!The feeling is priceless.

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