Memory Objects

We experienced many great things on our trip to Manitoba: A gorgeous trip to Riding Mountain National Park; a beautiful al fresco dinner surrounded by poplar trees and fragrant breezes; Diet Coke chilled to the exact perfect point of chilli ness just to name a few highlights.

But for me, the number one goal of our trip was to spend time with family and to get a little more insight into what ’lil Mr. Andrew’s world was like.

Mr. Andrew’s dad’s house is filled with momentos of the family’s trips around Canada and the world. I took a few pictures of some of these treasures.

Pictured up top is a flag with a picture of the earth on it. It comes from Mr. Andrew’s dad’s days of working for the UN. I think it’s based on a picture of the earth taken by the Apollo 11 astronauts.

On top of having a collection of mismatched chairs, there is also an assortment of orphaned mugs and pots. This is a Wade Irish Porcelain pitcher designed by James Borsey. It is a green color with blue on the inside and on the bottom with the shamrock mark with J in the middle. This and a mug seem to be the only survivors of a whole service.

Wade are most famous in my memory of the tiny figurines that came in Red Rose tea. Mr. Andrew says he remembers that his Dad kept a bunch of them in a row in his office. Here are some of the tchotchkes on his desk now, including a souvenir elephant from when they lived in Kenya.

Other random odds and ends include this Pacific Northwest carved Orca wood plaque.

This huge ceramic pot.

And this needlepoint depiction of a Navajo Yei figure. I tried to get the specific stories behind these pieces but Mr. Andrew’s dad’s tales tend to meander so their origins will have to remain a mystery.