Day: 25 June 2011

A Little Taste of What’s to Come…

Tchad

As I emptied Greg’s apartment I was having to, for the first time in my life, say goodbye to someone with whom I have no romantic relationship and to whom I am not related.

Try explaining that to a client while you are falling apart and can’t do the work you need to do.  They have no reference point for it and end up thinking that you are just screwing with them.

In any case, as I was having to decide a week or two ago exactly what I was going to do with the things that were important to him.  I had promised him as he died that I would do things right and that I would try to make it all as right as I could.

When I said that to my mother she said “What the hell does that even MEAN?”.  She was right, of course.  Making things right is such a weird way of putting it.  For me it has more to do with a lot of post-death apology than it has to do with any Platonic sense of Rightness.

In any case, the piano.  I put the ad up and waited.  No one bit.  I wanted to see $300 out of it, but it wasn’t forthcoming…

Then out of the blue I get an email from a woman who wants it for her son.  He is three and his father is a composer.  There really was no better customer than that.

Greg had gotten the piano for his high school graduation and it just seemed right that his life-long passion should be passed down.

They came and picked up the piano and I was thrilled.  The little boy was SO EXCITED.  It was great.  They sent me a video of him playing, but he was so excited that his dad played while he just hit every key.
So before they got there, I was feeling a little maudlin like I have been since the 8th of March, and so I recorded a video of me playing the piano.  I am not very good.  I only remember a few things here and there from childhood.  But it will be nice to click on this link and see it on Youtube as long as they are around.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QMU3wd9FMM0

And here is the video that she sent me the day they came and picked it up:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=muSQJv3nH00
The piano held its tune pretty well through the move.
Ok.  That is two posts in one day and I think I am done until tomorrow.

More Ebay fun awaits.

T

 

So Far So Good.

Tchad

Today has been pretty good so far.

Yesterday, as part of my purge of the workroom I sold my Singer 31-15 Industrial sewing machine.

It made me sad, but it went to a good purpose:

Matt and his boyfriend James picking the machine up from the workroom.  They were super excited about it.  Mat had been texting and emailing all morning so that he could be the one to get it for James.  We spent some time talking about what they do and the machine.  In all, I think that the history of the piece will carry on.  It will certainly get more use than it was getting up at the workroom.  You can read more about what James does here:

JamesSommerfeldt.com

That is James on the left and Matt on the right.

The history of that machine, just in case it gets sold and someone looks up the serial number:

I bought the machine from a guy named Petar on the near West side of Chicago. Here is the text of the history he knew of it:

We acquired the machine when my mom bought a cleaners located at 3521 W. Fullerton Ave.  We moved to the space in 1966.  Before that someone else owned the cleaners throughout the 50s and early 60s.  Around 1970 we were forced to move because we lost our lease and the building was sold, so we moved next door to 3523 W. Fullerton Ave. where the machine stayed until 1979 when we sold the business.  Fortunately, my mom took the machine with her to our home in Park Ridge, Illinois and had an alteration business going in the neighborhood – we lived at 1029 S. Prospect – we had a completely finished garage – it was a story and a half and the first floor was carpeted – the previous owners had 8 kids so they had made the garage into a family room.  So the machine was there until 1992.  After my moms death in 1988 and my father moving to Italy and getting remarried, we sold the house and I took the machine to my apartment at 8654 West Summerdale Ave Apt3s.  It was there until 2000, when I bought a town home in Round lake Illinois and moved it along with the rest of my things there.  I was there until the fall of 2003, I sold my town home and moved back to the city, however I was renting a room from a women and didn’t have room for most of my stuff, so I put it into storage with Midway Moving and Storage – they have a warehouse around Pulaski and Lake Streets.  It was there until November 2006 when I purchased my current place and put it into the storage room.  The machine has essentially been unused since 1988 when my mom passed away, however I really tried to take care of it.  That is about all the history i know.  it has been moved around a bit – would be interesting to find out what it was doing pre-1950s; I guess that will remain a mystery.

The serial number is: G521375

It is a Singer 31-15

I am especially happy that yet another creative gay guy owns it.  Keep it in the family, so to speak.

And that is it.  The things we surround ourselves with have these rich histories.  Sometimes they are mundane and work-a-day like this and sometimes they are more exciting.  The point is that we are connected to each other by more than just our humanity.  We are connected through our tools and artifacts.  They are tangible things that tie us together as human beings.