Random Summer Ramblings

Check out these thoughts on things that have disappeared from modern lifestyles.

Reader Contribution by Leslie C. Mcmanus
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by Don Mackereth
A Ford 7000 and a Massey Ferguson 35 on display.

My body may be parked at a desk, but my mind has gone to the beach. Suddenly untethered by the arrival of summer, the old brain ambles down random paths, stops to smell roses, lazily wonders at things past and things yet to come.

Like the whisk broom. Time was, there was a whisk broom in every car. Decades have passed since I last saw one. Same with the ball compass, once a standard after-market feature on the dash of the family sedan. I was not of driving age when the ball compass was all the rage, so I have no skin in the game — but what was that all about, anyway? It seems like overkill, as if the driver was setting out on an Arctic expedition rather than just going to the grocery or the bank.

Frankly it would make more sense to me today, when at least half of the population doesn’t have a clue which direction is north. That is what Google Maps is for, I guess. These days, every vehicle has built-in cupholders. We may not know what direction we’re going, but we’re darned sure going to be well-hydrated when we get there!

Speaking of going — this summer, when plans to attend shows around the country have been totally upended, my mind keeps turning the pages backward, remembering shows I’ve attended in the past. Recently, for instance, I recalled a show in Maryland, where I stopped to watch a blacksmith demonstration. As we chatted, he worked at the forge, forming something so small that his hands hid it from view.

When he finished, he presented me with a tiny but richly detailed horseshoe. The entire piece was about the size of a dime. “Someday,” he said solemnly, looking me straight in the eye, “some archaeologist will dig that up and say, ‘Damn! They used to have tiny little horses around here!'”

Many clubs have cancelled their 2020 shows; others bravely forge ahead. Some folks are making plans to hit the road; others are leaving suitcases in the attic. If you go, take good care! And if you stay put, take the opportunity to think back on shows you’ve attended. Remember the people, the displays, the sounds and smells, the chance encounters, the ice cream. You may be staying home, but your mind doesn’t have to. Here’s to the joy of the summer show season, past and present! FC

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