The theme for Sepia Saturday 173 is "odd". It encourages us all to hunt through our shoeboxes full of old family photographs in search of the unusual, the singular, the bizarre and the just plain odd. The kind of photograph that makes you ask "What on earth was going on there?"
And if you want odd, meet my brother. Here is a photograph I took of him back in the early 1960s during a family holiday in a caravan in Scotland. His kilt is a tartan car rug, his sporran is a sweeping brush, his chanter is an old telescope and his pipes are an upended tripod.
He was always on the odd side, my brother. When we were young we belonged to Halifax Library and as both of us were devoted readers we found the limit of three on the number of books that could be borrowed at any one time somewhat restrictive. My brother therefore decided to invent a third brother - Kenneth I seem to recall - who was issued with his own tickets. To cover his absence from the library, my brother invented a convincing back-story which involved chronic diseases and a variety of domestic disasters. This meant that my brother and I had to fetch his books for him. The only problem was that my brother forgot to pass on to me the various stories he had made up about "our Ken" and when I went to the Library I would be met with questions from the staff such as "is his leg any better?" or "is your Ken feeling brighter now the good weather has come?".
My brother - and let's name names, my brother Roger - continued along this somewhat odd path throughout his life. He built boats and sailed them to far off shores, he made a living as an artist, an author, a sculptor, and a repairer of all things mechanical. He built houses, started schools, lectured and taught in many different countries. Currently he lives on the Caribbean island of Dominica and he has just re-activated his own Blog (Sculpture Studio) which is rather an odd coincidence. As for my fictional brother Ken, I wonder what happened to him?
See what other odd things Sepians from around the world have been up to by visiting the Sepia Saturday Blog and following the various links.
That is CLASSIC! Where are Trinny and Susannah when you need them?
ReplyDeleteI am inspired to dig up a family photo of my own and post it.
What a great photo - and this sounds like kind of prolonged stunt my father used to come up with. For example, he devised a series of fictitious books to report on for school, about William the Goat (i.e., Billy). I reckon Kenneth is by this time the head of a haggis-tinning plant or some such.
ReplyDeleteYour brother sounds like a lot of our Talented and Gifted kids that attend our schools. They don't fit the norm because they are thinking at a faster rate and sometime higher plane than the others. I like that the imaginary brother was well taken care of when he had no way to get to the library on his own. Two thoughtful brothers attended to his needs for sure is beyond humorous.
ReplyDeleteI would really like your brother...creative, devious, imaginative. Cool guy. When I taught I always liked the little guys who dared to be different and in so doing be themselves.
ReplyDeleteI just found a photo of Ken and yourself on that holiday......
ReplyDeletehttp://goo.gl/dEuS7
Love it Nigel, Perfect (I was the one on the right)
DeleteNigel, you're a hoot.
DeleteHa ha!
DeleteOddly enough, I can so believe this! What an awesome photo to dig out for this! You have a delightful family Alan, past, present and beyond!
ReplyDeleteI'm glad Ken isn't around to see this! He'd never be able to show his face again.
ReplyDeletei love his creativity! Why don't people dress up anymore? I posted a photo of my uncle dressed up for this week's odd topic.
ReplyDeleteOff to check out your brother's blog!!
That is so funny about "Ken". One of best friends in jr. high pulled an in school library prank ... she and some other friends kept checking out books and stuffing them into a locker. They were trying their best to empty out the library. She also invented a imaginary person to run for student council; put up posters, got him on the ballot ... but the gig was up when it came time for speeches on the stage and the candidate couldn't make one, lol.
ReplyDeleteWhat a fun post Alan. I'll be back as soon as I can; my weekdays are still not under control for blogging yet. All my A-Z stuff was made in Feb.
Kathy M.
This was fun! Loved the picture and the backstory!
ReplyDeleteWonderful - you always bring a smile with your posts. I'll bet Roger won't thank you for this one!
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure that your brother's going to be too pleased with your choice of photo this week. I'm tempted to subscribe to his blog just to see what photo of you he'll post in retaliation.
ReplyDeleteThat photo is too funny. You can tell from the photo that he's definitely a very creative guy. I'm not a bit surprised of all his talents and creativity.
ReplyDeleteNancy
A perfect choice, Alan, but I suspect that Kenneth must have his own blog with incriminating photos of both you and Roger.
ReplyDeleteRoger seems a real character with talent and ideals to aspire to. A grand post and photograph!
ReplyDeleteIf Roger and "Ken" are the odd ones,
ReplyDeletewhat does that make you?!?
;)~
HUGZ
I Imagine that was old library up near Percy Whit? A Fine old building.I forgot about the 3-book limit!How's Ken's leg these days?
ReplyDeleteIndeed it was Tony - Belle Vue I think it used to be called. Ken still has a limp (I think)
DeleteLet me tell you, my sibling Kenneth is alive and well. I understand he's considering setting up his own blog in order to correct any fallacious stories that may be circulating about him.
ReplyDelete:)
DeleteAlan ..Oh that photo is something else..your brother must be so much fun..or really annoying. Dominica..that must be almost like living in heaven compared to Minnesota. I have never been there but if it had sand and sun I am certain I would like it!
ReplyDeleteCertainly there are more "Ken" stories to share?:)
He was really quite clever, what a guy. And boy, do I wish I had thought of inventing a twin sister so I could check out more library books!!
ReplyDelete