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Friday, April 29, 2011

Time Sepia Saturday 72 (Click here to get to the Sepia Site)

Uncle Carl's sketch  about 1950
Above is a postcard sketch done by my Uncle Carl in about 1950 after he completed  a commercial art certificate program through the University.  Uncle Carl about whom I've written  several times on this blog is 93 and living in a care facility in PA, the last of my tribe, Mom's brother.  Today he no longer sketches nor draws though each time I go there I take along a set of colored pencils, regular pencils,  pens and a tablet hoping to re-awaken his interest in drawing.  He always takes them and then either gives them away or hides them in his room, saying that his days  of drawing are over but I don't give up; there is a stubbornness gene in the family that I have in spades.   

After he returned home from WWII he enrolled in commercial art courses using  his GI educational benefits.   He was a natural  artist, a gene that runs through  the Ostrowski family, but he was unable to make a living at it.  Instead he went to work for the local gas company as a repairman, lineman, meter reader, all activities that allowed him to be outdoors, and supplemented his income by painting commercial signs.  Often he would take a photo of something and then sketch or paint it. 

Cleaning out his home, I found this card and was astounded at the precise detail;  I don't know the purpose of this sketch, if this is something he sold or did this just to amuse himself.  When I asked him about this watch sketch he said, "Oh I did lots of those.."  Often when  painting a commercial sign he would first sketch it in miniature.  What concentrationhe had to reproduce  perfect detail; today time has taken that skill along with many of his physical abilities.       

We will soon be making our journey to visit him and check on things; he and his wife had no children so after his sister died in 2009, the responsibility came to me. I had to be the one to get him into the facility with help from his  doctor; he calls it, "the Club" and is amenable and content there.  Time has marched on, to the beat of a strange rhythm.  No one expected Uncle Carl to outlive all his siblings; he has outlived heart bypass surgery in his 60's, high blood pressure  and genetic high cholesterol.  He takes no medications other than when he gets pneumonia or an infection that necessitates antibiotics.  Still it is sad to see someone who was once so robust weakened,  with dementia and unable to live in his own  home.  

This is a photo he intended to sketch someday, but time got away from him; it was on the wall in his basement workshop.  He had noted, "my favorite girls"  on the back; the girls are his wife Marge who passed in 1997 and me. His sisters used to ask him, "what about me" which would geta  big laugh from Carl in reply.  After Marge told me he was planning to sketch this  each time I visited over the years I had to ask if he had sketched us yet; he'd reply, "Sometime you just have to wait."  Somewhere I have a better copy of this on which he had some tiny black spots, maybe from an ink pen or paint brush.  
1986 Left to Right Aunt Marge, Uncle Carl, Me
One of our  visits  to PA.
Last week the director of the facility where Carl resides called me, setting my hair on edge, as I braced myself for bad news answering the phone. I know he can go at any time.   No bad news instead they had a photo to email to me.  A young boy had been in the previous day visiting and he and Carl really hit it off. There are some kids like this little boy  that Carl just likes right away.   The boy showed him his electronic phone  game and the photo below says it all.  Carl became enthralled with it; he was always interested in electronics and cameras.  The look on this child's face is priceless, can't you see him thinking, "Oh why did I show him this and when is he  gonna give it back!" The facility director said he was sending this onto home office with a caption, "Never too old to learn."   
Uncle Carl with the boy's electronic
As always to enjoy others' posts  in the Sepia activity, click on the title to this post to go to the host site. Alan's timely photo surprised me who just knew we would be doing Royal Wedding theme, and not so.  I am relieved at the choice.   

14 comments:

  1. So many references to time in this post. The watch, the running out of time to go back to his artwork. How frustrating. A reminder that time marches on.
    Nancy
    Ladies of the grove

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  2. It is a very accomplished sketch indeed. And I do love the story of how you always take along paper and pencils when you visit your Uncle - that stubbornness is to be cherished and maybe one day, one day, when everyone has left and he is alone in his room, he might take the pencils and paper out and revisit his past.

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  3. The look on that child's face is priceless. How times change - I wasn't allowed to touch my grandson's iPhone last weekend as he said I wouldn't know what to do with it.

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  4. That drawing of the broken watch is unbelievable. It looks like a photograph. Looking at it, you almost expect to see the second hand moving. Such talent and the detail is perfect, almost. At 20 minutes past the hour, the hour hand should be about a third of the way up toward the ten. I probably wouldn't have noticed that if it wasn't for my RR experience where accurate timpieces were required. Only 21 jewel pocket watches, and only two makes were acceptable then and they had to be cleaned, inspected and regulated on a periodic schedule. The designated jewelers had 'loaner' watches so you could continue to work while yours was being serviced. And it was not uncommon for an 'official' to ask to see an employee's watch. You'd better have it and it had better be right. Sometime, after I left that line of work, accuracy of better wrist watches, block signals, and Centralized Traffic Control spelled the end of the classic railroad watch.
    Tom

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  5. Yes Alan that is what I hope too, left alone who knows it might entice him...but he is stubborn too; we are related.

    Tom, such intriguing information about time on the rail road.

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  6. PS to my post. Tom's comment reminded me that when I saw the watch card I too thought it was a photo or a copy. I soon saw it was not.

    Carl did a huge sketch, black and grey shades with pen from a photo he took of the Canadian Indian man who was a guide for him and his group of guys who went to Canada every year to fish. It is magnificent and he had framed and matted it and hung it down in the workshop. I gave it to Marge's nephew, Lowell, who admired it and timidly asked if he could have it. I was pleased to give it to him as he looks in on Carl, living near there, keeps an eye on things to help out. Lowell remembers when Carl did it over three days. The Indian Guide has a home where he is appreciated. I had no place for such a thing although Jerry found it striking too.

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  7. The watch looks like one of the old watches my father had back then.

    I love the picture of your uncle with the boy.

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  8. Oh great theme post on the time.....funny thing how watches are becoming less and less these days with everyone using their cell phones...I was checking out new phones the other day and was totally surprised to see one of their phones had a clock for the main screen...imagine that in Sepia of posts of today's tomorrow!

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  9. so true Karen. I am often asked what time it is when people see me wearing a watch which I do infrequently despite my fine collection of them. I had not thought how true it will be, no one will wear watches. I decline because for too long I lived life having to do, be, etc. at a time. Now that I don't have to do that I resent time deadlines or committments.

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  10. Carl Still Has A Keen Eye For Detail.

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  11. Pat, a nice recollection of your Uncle Carl whose watch drawing is amazing for its detail. Hope all is well on your upcoming visit. And the photo of Carol and the boy was wonderful. Maybe he needs one of those gadgets for himself.

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  12. Pat I had seen the watch photo before I'm sure. At least I THINK I'm sure. I love the pix of the three of you! Your personality just beams through as does Carl, his own man and a teasing heart!! But Carl and the "electronic Youngster" truly takes the cake. You had told me about this, however, "A Picture Is Worth A Thousand Words"!!!!!Sandy

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