We attended one of the most beautiful wedding ceremonies on Saturday, followed by a garden reception. I hope to post a few photos and thoughts about it soon, but wanted to share just one thing that I saw, standing guard like a steadfast soldier in the garden; a bit of whimsy and, I thought, a nod to the Queen in the far reaches of Chicago’s western suburbs on her Diamond Jubilee.
There aren’t too many of these left in operation now Penny. A few have been preserved, but the modern phone booths just dont have the same feel. My entire social life as a teenager was arranged and conducted from one of these, as we had no phone in our house. “My phone box” was 200 yards up the road from my house and I would get very annoyed if anyone was using it when I needed it. How things change.
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How they change, indeed, Janice. Around these parts, we can’t even find phone booths any more. I always loved seeing these red ones from Great Britain. What a neat piece of your history with your “phone box”; a story to tell from your blog sometime? Which reminds me of my own. When we lived in the city of Chicago, a big ethnic family all in the same house, my grandmother decided that since no one wanted to pay the phone, she would just have a pay phone installed in the vestibule of the two flat.
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Aha! I’ve been looking for one more “taller” stationary piece for the front garden! Why on earth didn’t I think of this? Of course, I’d be hard pressed to shoehorn something that size into the allotted space though, assuming I could even find one!
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IF you find one, let me in on the secret, Karen, although about all I can afford at this time would be a cell phone.
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You could step inside and phone Her Majesty a message! It’s amazing how something that I’ve seen in the streets of England has now become an exotic garden feature. The red sits well amongst the green.
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Wouldn’t that be fun? This was really placed strategically in the garden, just around a bend. I did a double take when I first saw the red, Juliet. It was fun to see it in this delightful garden.
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I’d love to have one or two of these someday, Penny. They even have a graveyard of them of sorts, apparently, where they can be bought for a price.
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I think you need two, Andra. Now, that’s a graveyard I’ve never been to.
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The phone booth looks right at home in the garden. It’s sad that such things are rapidly becoming obsolete. On the other hand, waiting to use one, not having the correct change, and finding the one page you needed in the directory missing wasn’t a good thing.
If you saw any of the festivities on the Thames today, I’d like to hear your thoughts.
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We’ve really gotten used to the convenience of carry our phones with us, haven’t we Marilyn? Those who have IPhones or their kin just look up the number in the palms of their hands. Still, I miss the sight of a phone booth at times.
I wish I had some thoughts to share, unfortunately, I was so busy today and yesterday that I didn’t get to see the festivities. I’m sure that they will repeat and I hope to see some of the Jubilee. Were you able to see any of it?
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Let’s have these installed all around cities and towns and people talking on their cell phones in public should be required to do so in the booth!
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Ha! Now that’s an idea, Janet! Cell booths?
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I love it! It looks like the Bobby is going to pop in to ring up Scotland Yard. Maybe he is going to report on the whereabouts of the Royal Family.
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Ha! Or, Sherlock Holmes, perhaps? Or, maybe it’s a magic phone booth and is really an elevator. You open the door, the light comes on, the door closes, and, rattle, rattle, there they are. The Royal Family, floating down the Thames to throngs of loyal admirers.
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I love the phone booth, and the setting is just wonderful! I hope you will post some more pictures. I’m sure it was a lovely setting! Debra
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It was so very lovely, Debra, and I hope to post some pictures in the next day or so to share. The phone booth was lit up come nightfall and it, in turn, lit up the garden.
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Oh, a picture! How lovely to see that nestling in the greenery….in fact, it is perfectly placed, as the old boxes used to exist in some overgrown village locations 😀 Beautiful. Thanks for the picture…
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A village phone box in a semi-country garden near Chicago. Isn’t it fun? Yes, it was nestling in the greenery. My original vantage point saw it through the arch of a fruit tree and my curiosity had me excusing myself from a conversation to see what the big red box was doing there. I surely wasn’t disappointed.
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Re: the Queen’s barge on the Thames, Sunday.
I do hope you get to see some of the photographs. The Queen is 20 years older than I and there’s no way I could have stood the entire trip in the wind and rain! She was phenomenal. I missed the wedding last year due to the tornadoes of April that left us without power so was detemined to see this. She looked lovely as usual.
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I’ve caught a few news clips, Marilyn, and only wish I could have seen the event in its entirety and in real time. I’m so glad you were able to see it and that you took the time to come back and comment. Thank you. A few of the newscasters this morning remarked about the Queen’s resilience , standing for hours in the inclement weather – a fete I am sure would have had me ready to drop to my knees. She is a very amazing woman!
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Penny, I’m having such trouble getting on line in my scarce free time (visitors and an intermittent internet connection that I’,m commenting just on this latest post but have read and enjoyed the others.
We still have a red phone box at the top of the lane to the village, but you can only use it with a phone card, not cash. I also know of a red phone box in the garden of a British expat in Normandy, obviously to remind him of the country he left behind.
We watched the main part of the river pageant yesterday afternoon and, like you, were filled with admiration for the sheer stamina of the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh on that cold, windy and wet day (not more than 50F in early June!)
Now to see if I can post this…..
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Dear Perpetua, I am so sorry to hear that you are still having internet problems. I know how frustrating that can be. I do hope it gets resolved for you soon.
These red phone boxes are quite the commodity to have, it seems. Have you ever photographed the phone box? (I’m hinting at a possible picture on your post, of course.)
I missed the river pageant, only catching bits and pieces early this morning. I am so disappointed at not seeing it. I’m one of those Americans who woke in the middle of the night to see royal wedding, and wanted to see more of this historic celebration. There’s still tomorrow. I can’t imagine that kind of stamina, Perpetua, especially at their ages.
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Oh I miss the old red phone boxes. Thanks for the reminder and happy Jubilee!
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You are so very welcome, Nicola, and happy Jubilee to you as well.
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What a fabulous celebration yesterday was! The Thames river flotilla was spectacular! I loved all the history and the old photos of her were so beautiful!
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As I mentioned, ruefully, I missed the river celebration and have just caught a few glimpses. You know, I rarely miss these sorts of things. Oh, those old photos are truly magnificent and what a steadfast royal the Queen is. I’m hoping to catch a bit late tonight, Sunday – and rely on my favorite blogger, of course.
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