Questions and Answers

Various materials and precious metals or gems have over the years been assigned to anniversaries  – paper for the 1st up to diamonds for both the 60th and 75th.  I have no idea who established this custom, but whoever it was must have realized that once one has been married either 60 or 75 years, even though a diamond may be forever, they don’t have too many forevers to enjoy and the heirs will soon be grabbing those family jewels.

I have not seen a comparable tradition for birthdays other than assigning precious or semi-precious gems as birthstones to correspond with the month of one’s birth. In the case of April the diamond is generally listed as that month’s birthstone though opal and sapphire have also appeared on some lists.

So today on Alice’s 134^th birthday, let’s add a diamond to the birthday feather for her birthday hat and celebrate with a spot of tea.

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One of the questions I am asked most frequently pertaining to GertrudeandAlice is how I became interested in them and what prompted me to begin collecting items relating to them. As I’ve told the story so many times over the years, certain phrases find their way into the narrative.  With each telling, before I use a phrase, I often try to catch myself wondering if someone has heard me tell this before and should I therefore try to relate the circumstances in a different or more creative way. (So for those of you who have heard this before with those familiar phrases, my apologies.)

It all began almost 25 years ago after reading the book, CHARMED CIRCLE: Gertrude Stein and Company by James R. Mellow.  I’d been interested  for a long time in the art and artists of the  period between the two World Wars and somehow Stein and the artists around her made it even more exciting for me.  After finishing the book, I wondered if it was possibly to find first editions of Gertrude Stein’s works at an affordable price.  I started looking for books in antiquarian bookstores (this was before eBay was around).  I began finding some.  I think the first one was in a bookstore in Santa Fe on a business trip.  I don’t recall which book it was, but I believe it may have been the American edition of WARS I HAVE SEEN. » Read the rest of this entry «