Orange Crush

This is a 10 ounce amber colored, diamond shaped, wax draped, Mae West Orange Crush bottle from the late 1960's. It was given to me by Tammy, of the Town of Mooresville Public Library. It's been under her house with a bunch of others for at least a few years now and wanted to come out. Tammy knows I collect bottles, and I did offer to give it a good home, so she gave it to me.

There is something about glass that is permanent and timeless. If you don't drop it, or otherwise misuse it, a glass bottle will last forever. What I really love about glass from the later part of the 20th Century are the designs and logos which were used. Early on a bottle was a straightforward affair; basically parellel sides with a hole to drink from at the top. But, shortly after Coca-Cola came out with the "Christmas tree" bottle design in 1926, the bar was raised a bit higher. This Orange Crush bottle is a perfect example of that competition.

Notice the way that the bottle is designed to fit the hand more comfortably. This gives the shoulder of the bottle a flaired out appearance which resulted in some folks referring to them as "Mae West" bottles.

There's a fantastic site with the history of all the Orange Crush bottles at
http://www.angelfire.com/yt/soda/Rosman-OC-MaeWest.html

It's a pretty comprehensive site, going as far as giving measurements and capacities, as well as a little bit of information about the designer James Nash, a noted industrial designer of the 1950's. There is so much to be learned about everything surrounding us. This bottle is no exception. Thank You, Tammy, for this beautiful addition to my collection of bottles.

Bottles and Old Houses

I was originally intending to review a book today. It's the story of an Iranian man who comes to America for an education. He then returns to Iran as a member of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard. I actually began writing it, and I will, it's a great book, but I needed a break from his ordeal! So I went for a ride to clear my head.

There are several old houses peeking out from the overgrowth along Shiloh Church Road that I have been meaning to explore for about a year now. Something about the properties spell GLASS to me. And I was pleasantly surprised with this assortment of brown and green glass as well as an old blue cobalt Noxema jar. The planter is nice, too, but that's for Sue. So I was pretty happy with my catch, until I saw the BOX.

The box was staring at me and overflowing with papers that were dying to be unfolded and read. Onionskin, typewritten copies of legal papers, deeds, business correspondence and even a High School Diploma from 1952. But the best was this photograph. There are several other old ones similar to this, but this is the one I like best. It shows the porch still intact with the family all gathered together. Along with the glass bottles and letters it lends evidence that there was once a family that called this old house home.

You have to wonder about the things people leave behind when they leave their homes. Was there a death? Financial troubles? Did everyone simply just grow up and move away and move on, to newer and better lives? I hope so. But I will always wonder why they left so much of their history behind.