Bearing/Baring All at Show 'n Tell

If we needed more space and had to move locales for Show 'n Tell f where's more appropriate for our new meeting place than La Crosse's Historical Society? Once a church, our group will have no space issues here.

And what better story to start with than a church story of a little girl's first confessional... You see this little girl had just learned her 10 commandments and the language used was a bit foreign to her vocabulary.  Words like "thou", "coveting", "bearing false witness", and even "committing" but the word "adultery" seemed obvious enough. Adultery, ya know something to do with a grownup like disrespecting them/the like. So as the newbie confessed the sins of a 7 yr old when she added adultery, priest blurted out in a loud voice, YOU had SEX? She didn't know what SEX was but it sounded bad and she hightailed it screaming out of the confessional booth. If that wasn't bad enough her father reprimanded her about such terrible behavior screaming in church not understanding what had happened. She hasn't been back to the confessional since... Who could blame her?

Other stories were definitely less traumatic but still amusing to say the least.

The inheritance from a relative of a cutlery set with what you think is valuable bone handles until you wash them for the first time in the dishwasher and the handle melts. Oops bone doesn't melt. Faux bone handles back then were made of 'celluloid'. This silverware now just gets hand washed.

 Or your friend who once hydrated dry seaweed in front of you sends you a care package with something you have never seen before but has a note that it is the dried squash insides. You slice this thing and and boil it but it's still too tough to eat. You try frying it after you boil it. Still tough. Guess you have to discover another way to eat this stuff called "loofah"...

Or drama memories from being the stage manager but becoming the lead role since the gal who got the part had other obligations. Your big chance. So you got to perform the play within the play during which Lincoln was shot. It turns out it was Lincoln's wife who made him choose this play rather than a more popular play in town. History could have been different...

 Memories of Mom by saving and using every morning the same plastic coffee measuring scoop you Mom used every day...

 The museum receives many donations but this traditional Hmong outfit was a gift from the Hmong to that very 'same' Mother who used that measuring scoop. A Mom who gave of her time to helping the Hmong resettle when they came to this area. A very giving Mom indeed.

The museum will now add a newer perspective to their collections of the diverse minorities who moved to the Coulee region...



 Cleaning house can "stir up" old memories upon finding hidden stuff. Sometimes we keep papers, a lot of papers. These can evoke memories i.e. the time your parking wasn't the best. Seriously was it that bad?  Snippets of humanity/the 
  

 mailing tube within which was the banner a college friend made you when you asked him to remind you to bring back your umbrella to school after break. 

Nice friend.

Or maybe you find a good new read and it's the book cover that intrigues you. The author lives in Pennsylvania but the story is a Wisconsin one as he lived north of here but has chosen our main street as his book cover. There's the Bodega and Leithold's Music Store next to it. Funnier yet when I shared our stories at home, Natureman knew the book from my description as he's also read it.

Not knowing how large our group would be and I needed to leave early, I saved my Show 'n Tell until last because I wanted to hear everybody else's stories. I wore Mardi Gras beads you know the kind girls have thrown at them for baring their breasts in New Orleans. If you don't remember the story of me bearing all in the End of the Rainbow Valley here's the link... Show 'n Tell for Adults is the best. Bare Facts.