A stitch in time

[davidlevine]

This is Bunky. Bunky is one of my most treasured stuffed animals, a relic of a time (late 70s or early 80s) when wearing a stuffed lizard on one's shoulder was the done thing in Midwest fandom. It was right after firelizards had been introduced in the Anne McCaffrey books.

Bunky here was one of the first lizards made by a dealer who went on to be very popular, but I feel the later, plumper ones are too self-consciously cute and lack Bunky's personality. His name came from some commercial that included the line "is that what's troubling you, Bunky?" because of his mournful expression.

I brought Bunky along in my pocket when I interviewed at Jim Henson Studios in 1983. Jim Henson himself set him up on his desk, and for a moment in those hands he came alive.

I found Bunky just now on the mantelpiece, where he had fallen behind some books-to-be-read. He was very dusty and, upon inspection, moth-eaten; in some spots the split peas were threatening to come out. I found some purple thread and stitched up the holes. There were a lot of them, and the fabric around them wasn't in very good shape either, and the repairs look a bit unsightly. But they're better than the holes.

Bunky goes on the shelf with the other stuffed animals now. He's one object that is not going to be decluttered away, ever.

Comments

[billeyler.livejournal.com]

The desk Bunky is sitting on looks pretty tidy. Is that part of the home organizer work? ;-)

[davidlevine]

It's the dining room table, and yes :-)

[davidlevine]

I failed to mention that the reason I found Bunky is that the mantelpiece is now completely clear of books-to-be-read. Half of those went upstairs, on a new shelf unit, while the other half are going to Powell's.

[frostfox.livejournal.com]

Yay for Bunky!

[comics geek mode] I remember when Kitty Pryde got a fire lizard, Lockheed. One of our friends had a stuffed Lockheed, we managed to get him to fly at an Eastercon with judicious application of helium balloons, my friend had him following her on a leash for the rest of the con. Happy days. [/comics geek mode}

FF

[airporter.livejournal.com]

I fell in love with Anne McCaffrey right around the time you paraded about with Bunky. What a fine keepsake to have. :)

[billeyler.livejournal.com]

I'll have to finally break down and read something by her. I remember Jim#1 read a lot of her books in the late 70s and 80s, but I must have been reading other things...

I'm sure we have one or two of her books downstairs in the library.

[davidlevine]

It's fluff, and I haven't read anything of hers in years, but I remember the early books fondly.

[airporter.livejournal.com]

Yep, it's fluff - perfect for those days when you don't care to have your brain think about your entertainment.

[kate-schaefer.livejournal.com]

My monitor lizard is really a gecko...

[kateyule.livejournal.com]

In another historical note, the pincushion in the photo is one I made in the early 1970s, working on a Girl Scout badge under Mom's guidance. The top is needlepoint and the stuffing is parakeet gravel. This, too, is not going anywhere.

[beamjockey.livejournal.com]

His name came from some commercial that included the line "is that what's troubling you, Bunky?" because of his mournful expression.

See the works of Eddie Lawrence, The Old Philosopher, whose schtick was spoofing a kind of motivational exhortation that we don't hear much any more.

Hmm... nothing on Youtube...

Just quoting the text doesn't do it justice, but for what it's worth, here's an excerpt from one record:

FX: SAD VIOLIN MUSIC

Hey there, cousin.
Ya say ya can't pull your car out of the mud
and you're in the middle of nowhere and its pouring rain
and ya can't get the top back up
And your paycheck's all blurred and your foot went right through the gas
and your girl's screaming bloody murder
she's scared of the dark
and a stroke of lightning splits your motor in half
and your suit's shrinking up fast
and ya start up the windy road on foot
and sixty yards barbed wire hits ya right smack in the puss
and ya both fall down in the mud
and then a wild animal comes over and runs away with your shoes
and your car blows up suddenly
and your windshield-wiper ends up in your mouth
and ya can't move and the mud's rising up to your nostrils
and you're sinking fast and ya don't hear your girl screaming anymore?
Is that what's on your mind, cousin?

FX: ROUSING SOUSA MARCH

Well, lift your head up high and take a walk in the sun
with dignity and stick-to-it-ness
and ya show the world, ya show the world where to get off!
You'll never give up, never give up, never give up... that ship!

[holyoutlaw.livejournal.com]

I can hear it as I read it. Yeah!

[davidlevine]

Yep, that's the one. I remember a kind of Thurberesque, sketchy animation to go with it. I think it might have been used in a commercial for... insurance?

[holyoutlaw.livejournal.com]

Hidden in your comments to others is that you've decluttered some to-be-read books to go to Powell's. For some reason, decluttered my double and triple stacked to-be-read shelves has been a bigger emotional challenge than anything else, decluttering or load lightening wise.

Congratulations!

[davidlevine]

I also found it a great emotional burden. Decluttering is supposed to make you feel better, but after sorting through a huge stack of to-be-read books and admitting to myself that I was never going to read most of them I was feeling down for the rest of the afternoon.

I felt the same way about the family silver, which we have never ever used. I was just about to call an antique dealer for a quote on how much it might be worth when I realized I really didn't want to let it go. Fortunately, unlike the books, it doesn't take up as much space, either physically or psychically, so I think we can just keep it.

[sdn.livejournal.com]

oh, i can relate to both of these comments, believe me. one has to make some command decisions. i can always buy another book, but certain pieces of family history are unthrowoutable. (which is not a word.)