I don’t know what the collective noun for cousins is, but on the Schnellinger side it should be “a riot of cousins.” Eight brothers and sisters, born of my grandma Alma Schnellinger, had a total of 32 kids – and that despite the fact that two of the eight became nuns. The rest were typical … read more Day 27: Uncle Ray and the gang
Author: Lisa
Day 26: All is forgiven
The hardest part of moving from Ohio to Seattle was leaving behind all my friends. I flew back there to visit once in the first year, but after that my parents had moved to Arizona and my sisters were scattered in three different locations. There was nothing pulling me back. I was newly married, a … read more Day 26: All is forgiven
Day 25: The lost year
Often it’s hard to see the date on coins, even with a loupe or a magnifying glass. Dirt, scratches, corrosion, all marr the surface. But out of the 1,200+ pennies that I have already sorted, only a half-dozen have been outright unreadable. Then I found this one. At first I thought perhaps the date had … read more Day 25: The lost year
Day 24: Lucky 13
My number 13 tooth has been a problem for a long time. It was probably one of the first cavities I had filled, as a kid. It was my only root canal, done sometime in the mid ’90s, and at the time there were a couple of tiny forks off the root that the dentist … read more Day 24: Lucky 13
Day 23: Vanity and pain
I should have known better than to wear those shoes. But I was going to a conference in Atlanta for women-owned businesses, and I knew that the women would all be wearing fashionable, high-heeled shoes. My North Georgia casual-comfortable Keens would not cut it in that crowd. Instead I wore some black shoes that had … read more Day 23: Vanity and pain
Day 22: A penny from the Empire State Building
There are no end to urban myths, and so naturally there is one about pennies: ‘A tourist tossed a penny from the top of the Empire State Building to make a wish, and killed someone on the sidewalk below.’ This article explains why such a small object can’t kill you. (Note the inaccuracy – the article … read more Day 22: A penny from the Empire State Building
Day 21: The Materials
This sculpture isn’t very tall yet, but I’m planning for the day that it is. I can’t just place and stack the pennies. I had to do some research and experimentation to figure out how to make them stick together permanently. After scouring through many websites of hobbyists, jewelers, and others who work with metal, I came … read more Day 21: The Materials
Day 20: Is it art?
How will I make this pile of pennies a work of art, rather than just … a pile of pennies? This is a question that bothers me. Most days, I’m pretty liberal in my definition of art, but other times I roll my eyes at some of the puffy, BS artist statements that elevate unskilled … read more Day 20: Is it art?
Day 19: The word of the law
In a previous post, I speculated that I might possibly be an outlaw for using $162 in pennies to create a sculpture. Today I decided to get to the bottom of this, and I did what few people bother to do on such questions: I dug up the actual law and read it. Although there … read more Day 19: The word of the law