A Year of LIFE

I worked really hard yesterday and went through the four boxes from the back porch. These were boxes that I had packed and stored at my aunt's, then shipped to myself later. They ended up in a corner on the breezeway and never came into the house - until yesterday. 

LIFE - January 31, 1969 cover. This was Nixon's
inauguration being discussed. 

My breakfast area was a mess - four boxes strewn about the floor and paper from one box littering the area around it. What surprised me the most was the condition of the items - everything pristine, as if I had packed it yesterday. I had one box of "National Geographic" magazines from 1974 and 1975. They weren't earth-shaking issues - a nice cover story on Diane Fossey, but not much else. 

LIFE, June 27, 1969 had the photographs, ages, and
places of origin of 242 soldiers who had lost their
lives in one week in Vietnam. The week chosen,
was late May. It was horrifying - how many fine
young men were coming home in flag-draped coffins. 

I had one box of music from my Mom's piano bench. This box blew me away a bit. There were some things that she had carried with her since her days in Music School (she was a graduate of the Viennese Conservatory of Music) as well as a lot of cello + piano pieces that she bought to play with me. I messaged my nephew whose son started playing cello this school year to see if he might be interested in some of my old cello music and he is. I'll put a box together for him and send it out next week. I won't play again, so someone should get some joy from the music. 

The cover for July 4th's issue was Neil Armstrong and
the upcoming mission to land on the moon. Really
fascinating. 

A box of books I had packed held treasures of my youth, but I'll be taking them all to Half-Price Books and I'll let them find the right audiences. My "Pippi Longstocking" book was in there, along with some heavy stuff like Hemingway and Tolstoy. No - if I want to read the bigger tomes, I'll buy them as e-books. 

On July 18th, the magazine explored the counter-culture
movements in the nation, including "Youth Communes".
This was a year of hippies, free-love, and marijuana,
alongside protesting the war and great music. 

Finally, a true TREASURE. I have an almost complete set of "LIFE" magazine from 1969, starting with the inauguration of Nixon and progressing through that Charles Manson cover from December 19th. It's a phenomenal year and I have every issue. We have the moon landing, the My Lai massacre, the discovery of the bodies from the Tet Offensive, and the youth communes of the counter-culture. There's the "Day of Peace" demonstrations around the nation, and a sobering issue from May 1969 where they put photographs of the 242 soldiers killed in Vietnam in a single week - a yearbook of sorrow. I think I'll want to sell these as a set, so I'll have to check into valuations, but what an incredible find! 

Although I'm missing a couple of key issues for the year
(the one I'm really sad about is I'm missing the
Woodstock issue), I do have the majority of 1969. Most
of them sell anywhere from $5 to $50 or more depending
on the issue. I'll probably sell them as a whole to a
single person. Much easier that way. 

On that note, tonight is Project Runway so I'll be trying to get the episode rundown and photos posted for all of you to view tomorrow. Time for me to get going to the gym - I need the exercise, those magazines were heavy - LOL. Have a totally fabulous Thursday and I'll be back tomorrow.