Friday, October 30, 2015

Two Black Cats...

Happy Halloween!

Evelyn (whoever she was) sent this postcard to Mr. Oliver King of Stonington, Connecticut – she mailed it from Providence, Rhode Island, on October 27, 1915.

“Many thanks,” she wrote, “for the pretty card. You are certainly a very swift traveler. It must seem nice to be able to be in two places at once. I wish I could, I would be in Attleboro now. Hope this finds you well…”

I love this card. I found it at a flea market a few years ago and bought it without question. Am curious about how Oliver could be in two places at once (it’s a good trick, isn’t it?).

Full moon rising up over the silhouette of the city; the backyard board fence; that hunched black cat…
          …and look at the spelling: Hallowe’en!
          I know it’s All Hallow’s Evening (or Eve), which is the start of a three-day observance called Allhallowtide, a time of remembering the dead, including saints (hallows).

No matter: I’ll leave the dead alone – there will be too much life on the streets here! Sidewalks will be thick with children, all costumed up to beat the band! Ghosts and pirates and the current rages – princesses and zombies—staggering up and down the street, going from house to house to collect candy.
          And I’ll stand at my doorway with my bowl of little Almond Joys, admire the costumes and smile understandingly at the Patient Parents who wait at the end of my driveway for their little goblins…(I’ve always wanted to hand stiff drinks to the parents, but…)


 I don’t need the hunched black cat on the postcard, for I’ve got my own. He is 13 years old now, and he’ll be hiding in the rose bushes, wide-eyed and hair-raised, for most of the evening! He’s never perched on a board fence in his entire life, and he’d rather spend the night inside at the foot of my bed than outside with all those screeching children!

So Happy Halloween to all of you from Howard…

          …and me.   

20 comments:

  1. You can at least APPEAR to be in two places at once IF you travel faster than the post card. Happy Halloween!

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    1. Ahhh -- good logic, Wendy! True enough -- what if you and your postcard travel on the same train, though?

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  2. Why don't you let poor old Howard inside? A fun link between him and the cat on the card. Quite a crowd of trick or treaters out and about in our neighbourhood right now as it's already Halloween here, but they only knock on doors if people have put out welcoming signs or symbols.

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    1. Howard's got his own door, Jo -- a swinging Pet Door that lets him go in and out whenever he wants. He's content in the rose bushes (nobody will brave those thorns to get at him); when it becomes too rowdy outside, he'll come in!

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  3. I would love to find some old photographs or postcards, but my area is short on opportunities. A great match for the prompt.

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    1. It's a great card! I don't have many Halloween ones, but this one was so appealing I just had to have it! And I've got several antique stores/flea markets within 25 miles, so do a lot of exploring for treasures!

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  4. Black cats are my favourite. We had two for a long while.

    I heard on TV the other day that there is a tradition in a neighbourhood in Ottawa that the parents are given drinks at each house.

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    1. Howard is named for my great-uncle, Howard Paine Gould. My family has a tradition of naming pets after dead relatives...it's truly an HONOR in my family!

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  6. Good find at the flea market! I always hope to find vintage Halloween things, but haven't yet. Of course, I haven't been in a while ... can't find what you don't look for! Happy Halloween!

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    1. It's all about color and balance for me, Kathy! My photo doesn't do it justice -- it's actually "richer" than the photo -- but I just love it!

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  7. I carved a similar design with a cat and a fence on a linoleum block once. I think I carved "All Howls Eve" too. I've read that it isn't a good idea to leave your cat outside on Halloween because there are people who enjoy hurting cats.

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    1. He opted to spend the Rush Hour inside with me...peeked out my front door when nobody appeared, but took off for the guest room when things got noisy! He's fine...

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  8. Our one cat in particular used to run & hide under the bed when trick-or-treaters came to the door. Our other cats would hide in the hall just around the corner & peek out. They were a little bit scared, but also just that much curious.

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    1. See my response to Postcardy, Gail! Guest room is a safe spot; under the bed is the absolutely best place to be when the street is crawling with trick-or-treaters!

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  9. Your cat is beautiful, and a lovely link to the cat in the postcard.

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    1. Thank you, Lorraine! He is a handsome boy (I tell him that constantly); long-haired, clean, bright-eyed. He's big, too -- 12 pounds -- and very talkative! Do you have cats?

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  10. Perhaps Oliver sent a postcard with a view of one place but mailed it from another. Great find!

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    1. Oh; interesting theory on the two-places-at-the-same-time concept -- and probably the right one! I wonder if the two of them ever got together?

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