Wednesday, July 12, 2006

Round Robin Challenge: Americana

"If you live to be 100, I hope I live to be 100 minus 1 day, so I never have to live without you."

-Winnie-The-Pooh

In 1902, President Theodore Roosevelt, while on a hunting trip in Mississippi, displayed an act of compassion and respect in a moment when he didn't have to. He chose that day to spare the life of a tired, frightened bear which had been caught and tied to a tree for his presidential hunting party, because he felt it would have been unsportsmanlike to take it's life. This act of reverence made national headlines the following day, when Clifford Barryman, an editorial cartoonist for the Washington Post, wrote a cartoon montage of the incident. The title of the front page story was, "Drawing The Line In Mississippi." After reading the story in the Post, a shopkeeper in Brooklyn, N.Y. began displaying bears in his shops window that had been crafted by his wife, who made them from soft plush and gave them two shoe button eyes. The shopkeeper, Morris Michtom, enjoyed an instant success with the sales of the handmade bears, and eventually asked, and then received,permission from the president himself, to call the bears..."Teddy Bears." The rest is cuddly, Americana history. :)

I have always been an avid bear collector. At one time, I had almost 200 bears of all shapes, colors, and sizes in my collection. One day they were stolen from my storage, in my sorrow, I made a decision to not continue with that hobby, but every once in a while I do treat myself to a new bear, which mostly sit in areas around my desk. I now have about 15 bears...and a moose, named Ross. LOL. And now I only purchase them from Boyd's Bears, of Gettysburg Pa. Each of my bears holds a special place in my heart, and because they are handmade, each one has their own special personality. LOL. Yep...on those difficult days when nothing seems to go right, I have been known to hold a conversation with my bears. But only if my cat, Elvis, is busy. :) Now remember...

"If the person you are talking to, doesn't appear to be listening, be patient. It may simply be that he has a small piece of fluff in his ear."

-Winnie-The-Pooh :)

Cosette, author of the journal, "Pandora's Bazaar" chose "Americana" for this edition of the Round Robin Challenges. Thank you Cosette, this was a lot of fun. Tis the season after all. :) Please pay a visit to the other members of the Round Robin Challenges, simply follow the links below. And if you want to join us, you are most welcome to come along. Simply pay a visit to the official blog of the Round Robin Challenges, read the current entry, leave us a link as requested, and you are in! If you haven't played before, take a moment to read the ***Welcome Entry & Rules Of Play*** And don't forget to come back to the Round Robin blog on Thursday, to find out what our next photo challenge will be. :)

-OndineMonet
"My Bears"
Berkeley, California

Linking List

Cosette... Pandora's Baazar

Carly... Ellipsis... Suddenly Carly

Karen... Outpost Mavarin

Julie... Julie's Web Journal

Valorie... Retrospect USA

Maryanne... Inside The Gilded Cage

Pamela... My Photos

Brad... We-Is WELCOME NEW MEMBER!

Tammy... The Daily Warrior

Suzanne... New Suzanne R's Life

Steven... (sometimes) photoblog

Connie... MOMENTS TO REMEMBER

Janet... Fond Of Photography WELCOME NEW MEMBER!

Amy... My Life And Pictures


13 comments:

Globetrotter said...

What a wonderful bit of Americana trivia, darlin' Carly! I had no idea that that was the origin of the term of teddy bears!

I love the Boyd bears myself, and it's remarkable how much some of them are valued at! When I first moved to Florida I took a teddy bear making class from two folks who design teddy bears for Boyd's. (wish I could remember their names, but I have their cards somewhere.) In one 4 hour session I made the most adorable little bear! I was so proud of myself that I bought a pattern and went home and made another. THat was it though. I went from Bears to paints!

It's easy to see why bears are so collectible. They are as diverse as people themselves. There's a wonderful teddy bear museum down here in Naples, Florida. I wish you could see the variety of handmade bears there!

Hope you're doing well, Carly and I apologize for being an infrequent visitor. Believe me, it's me and my freaking ADD brain that can't seem to sit in front of a computer any longer. But I must come back more often, as it's always a treat to come here.

Hugs,
MAryanne

Tammy Brierly said...

I never knew that story, cool! I'm sorry your bears were stolen, how sad. I love Pooh & Piglet :) Cute bears!

Suzanne R said...

I love your take on Americana in your entry, Carly. I hadn't thought of the warm, cuddly aspect of it but you have truly shown that it's there! And I have always been a sucker for teddy bears! :-)

Anonymous said...

Hey, great minds and all that, huh? Love your bears!

DesLily said...

awww love the teddy's.. but you left out poor Ross!! He's going to want equal time ya know!

Anonymous said...

Great job. Earlier tonight, my friends and I were sitting around the dinner table wondering about teddy bears. I'll be able to share this story with them now. Thanks.

Anonymous said...

Hi Carly. This is such a good entry! I never knew the history of the Teddy Bear. How fun!
Pamela

Karen Funk Blocher said...

Funny how Julie took on the TR end of that story, and you did the bear end of...hmm, that didn't come out right, ;) U have a few bears, including one I bought for myself in junior high or high school. But I wish I still had the little Steiff one I kept ogling in the hobby shop when I was 12.

Anonymous said...

OH-I ALSO HAVE A FEW BEARS THAT I LOVE ,NOT REALLY A COLLECTION THOUGH.I ENJOYED THE REST OF YOUR BLOG ,TOO,
CONNIE
http://journals.aol.com/maxsox5/MOMENTSTOREMEMBER/

Brad said...

Carly

I have a confession to make. I have a bear. He is 44 years old. He has no eyes, ears or mouth. His name is bubuh - however, I'm certain that his name is baby talk for the word "bubbles."

FYI - I'm 44 also.
Whew - I'm glad I got that off my chest.

Thanks
bg

Anonymous said...

Americans are collectors, a good piece of American History. Nice Bears!

TropicRedbird said...

Cute Bear Family!! I didn't realize the FULL story behind the teddybear! Thanks.
Valorie
http://journals.aol.com/redbird914/yakittyak/entries/626

John said...

Brilliant angle!