Friday, August 31, 2007
Show and Tell--BIC1/2
Kelli at There is No Place Like Home, is the host of Friday Show and Tell.You can go over to her place to get the guidelines and get in on the fun!
I've missed Show and Tell for the last couple of weeks.
I'm back and ready to enjoy it again.
This week I'm going to share a simple little box and the story that goes with it.
Part of the story is nostalgic, part is just plain silly!
I like boxes. Every once in a while I will find one and get it to display in some little nook of my home. Most of them are just boxes, without special meaning or memories. They hold little treasures, or maybe stand empty waiting for something to fill them up. There is one box on this shelf that does have some special memories attached to it.I found the little mailbox at a craft fair in Maggie Valley. North Carolina about six years ago. We were on a trip with our son, dil, and very young grandson, Luke. I think Luke was about 6 months old at the time. We spent the night in Maggie Valley and enjoyed this craft fair in the middle of town. I found this mailbox with the number 428 on it and knew I had to have it! It is a bank and the PO Box door is an orginal one from an old US post office.
Our family had PO Box 428 for years in the little Texas town where we moved when my Dad, Charlie, married Rachel. My Dad owned the local weekly newspaper. His office/shop was two doors from the Post Office. I worked in the office after school and in the summer. Many times it was my job to go get the mail. So I saw that number a lot. Our mailbox was larger than this one, but I thought it was a good little memento of my family.
The man who was selling these mailboxes told me he could put the number on any box. So, I searched for one that had the combination BIC1/2. I don't mind telling you that combination because that particular Post Office has been replaced and the box with that combination is long gone! Anyway, I settled for FIC. I will tell you in a minute the significance of those letters.
Well--You know I took this trip to Texas last week. During that visit a group of us were at my stepsister's house. Oh! My Word! I have got to do a post on her home before long! Carol is a very meticulous housekeeper. Everything is neat and clean with everything in its place. ALWAYS. She also loves to collect things--Lots of things! I took pictures--You will be amazed! ANYWAY--
I saw this right there on the wall as you start up the stairs. This picture of a mailbox with the number--you guessed it--428--on it. It is difficult to see the number in my photo, but it is there.
I told her about my little mailbox. We laughed out loud. Probably none of the other people there knew why we thought that was so funny. She and I saw the humor immediately.
Here's the silly story--
When we moved to our little town Carol's "Mama." Rachel, and our "Daddy," Charlie, had just married. Therefore, although we had known Carol and her mother for years, we were a new family. There were three girls in the family--my sister Barbara (17), Carol (10), and me(15). Like I say, we had known each other most of Carol's life, but now we were sisters. We were in for lots of firsts.
There were lots of major and important firsts. There was at least one that was pretty minor and unimportant. None of us had ever had a mailbox with a combination. Carol and I came up with the way to remember the combination that I mentioned earlier--BIC1/2. Of course, because we were silly--Barbara Is 1/2 Crazy!
Ha! Ha! Carol and I thought we were so funny! Barbara, on the other hand, was not impressed with our humor. As she told our nephew last week when Carol and I were ROFLOL, "They always picked on me!"
OK--Why did I settle for FIC for the combination of my little memento mailbox? I could not find Barbara Is 1/2 Crazy, but I could have Family Is Crazy.
Labels: Family, Memories, Show and Tell
22 Comments:
What a lovely story and I adore the way the number just keeps popping up in your life. It is a lovely show and tell and I am ever so pleased I came over to visit you today.
Now I am going to pop back to see your post on your trip to Texas.
Best wishes from Australia - Lee-ann
Great family memories!
What a wonderful, adoring story. Somehow I think you should make those numbers 4 2 and 8 to work for winning the lotto!! They seem to be lucky numbers. I love it. [I live in Texas]
Those old mail boxes are neat and your story is wonderful!!!
My dad's mail box for his Real Estate business was 616. I hadn't thought of that in years. Funny how you never forget things like that even after 50-60 years!!!!
Susan
What a sweet box, and a lovely story to go along with it.
What a great story. And such a neat box too.
Myrna,
Great Show and Tell about your mailbox....and I like pictures of old mailboxes....
I was Officer in Charge of our little post office for several years. People could not remember combinations, especially men. They would timidly asked, "will you just hand me my mail today and I'll learn the combination." Of course, they never did.
I've added to my Show and Tell since I posted in the wee hours of the morning....if you have time to return.....Betty
How neat! Our PO boxes have always been keyed, not combination. I never knew some had combinations. :-)
Have a great weekend, Myrna!
Love and hugs,
Diane
What a great story and I love your little mail box.
Linda
I love boxes too. I'll have to show mine soon. Your mailbox is such a great find. I love it when a treasure has a significant connection to our past...
What a cute story behind this, Myrna...I'll have go see if I've read that other post you linked to!
And looking forward to seeing those pictures of your step-sister's house!
We never had a combination lock mailbox, but it is amazing how we remember those things...I still remember my address and phone number from when I was eight! :)
What a fun story and great show and tell. We have the box just like that which was the mailbox my husband and his siblings shared during college.
This is such a great story! I'm glad to know our family isn't the only crazy one, lol!!
That mailbox reminds me of the ones we had in our college dorm!
Have a great weekend!
I so loved reading the story behind that number and the combination! hehe That mailbox is just gorgeous and it certainly was meant for you to have it because of the number!! xox
What a great story and what a great box! I love it!
How neat to have found a mailbox with a similar combination and numbers! We had a P.O. Box in one small town for a couple of years, but I have no idea now what the numbers and combination were. And then for your sister to have a picture of a mailbox with the same numbers is just too cool!
Loved the story:)))
Julieann
Great story! I enjoyed hearing the stories and seeing the boxes!
Katherine
I enjoyed reading this story, thanks for sharing it with us and showing your lovely box!
Best wishes from Germany,
Anita
I love these boxes. Wonderful. I am a birdhouse freak... I love birds, houses, cages. I guess I wish I could fly! Love the stories/memories.
Hugs!
That is a neat story. Very interesting. I love the humor ya'll have.
That is a wonderful story, Myrna! How neat that you found a box with the exact same numbers!!
Kelli
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