DOG: Stilladog, The Real Early Years

I chanced to receive this photo from relatives sympathetic to my loss of family photographs so I wanted to take a little walk down "I Can't Remember Lane" too.

First thing you'll notice is these are the real early years. I began life in a monochrome world. Whereas most of Fan's posts on this topic are, while not necessarily cinemascope technicolor, in color at least.

Yeah, that's our backyard. With Uncle Orville's chicken coop in the background. I figure this picture was taken circa 1956. I have no recollection of what kind of stuffed toy I'm holding. But I remember that hat. I hated that God-damned thing. It was 100% wool and the scratchiest son of a bitch you ever had next to your skin. My mother made me wear it at all times during cold weather and I used to tear it off my head. Did I say I hated it? My dad finally came to my rescue and didn't make her put it on me after it became apparent I refused to keep it on my head.

I'm a bit surprised there's no evidence pit fire smoke in this picture. Typically I was not allowed off the concrete walk (seen behind me) for fear of falling into one of several pit fires that were in the backyard. If you fell into one (and my cousin Eddie did in 1964) you'd fall straight through into a burning shaft of the coal mine directly beneath the property. Eddie lived though. He landed on a rock shelf 15 feet down and the fire company was able to save him. Burned up his hands real bad though. But he's alive and still tells the story.