Violet and Ira Meet, Marry, and Multiply

This is the third in my "Virtual Sitting Shiva" series of Blog postings of memories of Violet (Stark) Glickstein, my dear wife of 57 years, who sadly passed away November 27, 2021. [The first posting in this series is Here]

THE BROOKLYN POST OFFICE DELIVERS!

The photo below shows the miraculously delivered letter I mailed to Violet, back in June 1963, in what turned out to be a successful attempt to contact her.  The address I had was off by over a mile! Yet, some dedicated Post Office employee went out of his or her way to correct the address and deliver it! (I'm proud to be the son of a Brooklyn Letter Carrier who walked miles each day, in all kinds of weather, with a mail sack on his back.  My Dad taught me to respect every person who earns his or her keep in a lawful occupation.)

Violet wrote the following letter in reply.

THAT WAS IN JUNE 1963.  

ONCE I HAD HER CORRECT PHONE NUMBER AND ADDRESS, I TURNED ON THE CHARM.

AND -- LONG STORY SHORT, -- WE WERE MARRIED A YEAR LATER!

Some necessary context is called for here. After graduating from the City College of New York, in January 1961, with an Electrical Engineering degree, I was working in North Plainfield, New Jersey and renting a room in nearby Westfield. On weekends, I'd stay at my parent's home in Brighton Beach, Brooklyn, NY, where I pursued my social life.

WAS IT MY POETRY THAT WON HER OVER?

Starting in June 1963, we'd date on most weekends. Starting on July 22, 1963, and each month thereafter, I composed a love poem for Violet. This continued until we got engaged on Thanksgiving Day, November 1963.

Here we go!   

What do you think so far? Pretty good poetry considering that I'm an Engineer?

NOTE: In previous Blog postings, I've stated that I have no literal belief in Judaism, or any other religious system based on a Superior Being external to the Universe. For me, "God" or "Lord" or "Cupid" and similar names are merely short-cuts that refer to an essential NATURAL (not in any way Super-Natural) self-organizing feature inherent in the Universe.

That is what the Founders of our great experiment in free people governing themselves were referring to when they wrote about "the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God" in our Declaration of Independence. [Note capitalization. Do not put your trust in any source that pretends to quote the Declaration yet fails to capitalize these words.]

The poem below refers to the "Parachute Jump" in Coney Island, an easy boardwalk stroll from where I grew up in Brighton Beach. I've searched for the first photograph of Violet and me together, and I believe it was taken at this location in September 1963. 

OK, here it is! Thanksgiving, November 1963, when I formally asked Violet to be my wife.

Readers familiar with the poetry and prose of Lewis Carroll, particularly "Through the Looking-Glass", a sequel to his "Alice in Wonderland", will remember The Walrus and the Carpenter, who trick a bunch of fat Oysters to trot along to a beach party, only to discover they are to serve as the main course! (click for lyrics)

The photos below may be the earliest surviving pictures of Violet and me in the same place (just not in the same snapshot). We are with my first "Toffee", a very smart and streetwise dog who was some kind of a terrier mix. We got him when I was still living with my parents in Brooklyn and attending City College in Manhattan. 

Years later, when Violet and I lived in Apalachin, NY, I purchased my second "Toffee", a purebred Golden Retriever who had much better papers than me, see The Virtual Philosophy Club: Search results for toffee (tvpclub.blogspot.com).

Toffee was (at least in my opinion, and Violet's) the world's best and nicest dog. We went through obedience training, tracking, and agility together.

He knew lots of tricks. In the morning he would fetch his collar, my pool shoes, and the newspaper. He would follow hand signals or voice signals and stay, come, sit, roll over, and so on.


One of his best tricks was balancing a dog biscuit (or four, see photo) on his nose until you snapped your fingers.







I wrote to our daughter that "Toffee was so smart he must be partly Jewish!" She wrote back that she thought Toffee was telling his dog friends that his master "Ira was so smart he must be partly golden retriever."

Our granddaughters loved him and called him "uncle Toffee". Vi made him a food dish with that appellation. We were "mommy" and "daddy" to him.

Although I am not a literal believer, I have no doubt Toffee is now in a beautiful park just outside of Heaven, restored to his youthful vigor and playing with all the other dogs.

Every once in a while, one of the dogs stops playing, sniffs the air and perks up his ears ... and then runs to greet his master. Together, they cross the crystal bridge into Heaven.

God be with you Tof - See you on the other side

HOW TIME FLIES WHEN YOU ARE HAVING FUN!

50 YEARS OF MARRIAGE - FLAG DAY, JUNE 14th 1964 to 2014

TOP: We were young and foolish when we got married on June 14th 1964. 
BOTTOM: But look at what 50 years together has done! Lower middle photos are distorted using iPad "twisted" camera feature, but that is how we really feel! Ira (and Vi)

PILOT AND CO-PILOT FOR LIFE

Fifty years ago, a few days after our wedding, I rented a Cessna 152 and flew my new wife from Chatham Airport in NJ up to Niagara Falls, NY, stopping in Binghamton, NY for fuel. (Little did we know that less than two years later I would accept a job at IBM Owego, in the Binghamton area, and we would live and work there for nearly 40 years!)

TOP LEFT: Vi and Ira, Co-Pilot and Pilot for life, prepare to depart from Chatham Airport in Morristown, NJ. 
MIDDLE: We stopped in Binghamton, NY to refuel.
TOP RIGHT: Inflight on our "Honeymoon Special" adventure! 
BOTTOM: We rented a car and spent the night at the aptly named "Honeymoon Motel"on the Canadian side. 

We flew home the following day but the weather got bad so we had to spend the night at a hotel in Binghamton, returning the rented airplane in NJ the following morning.

OUR "GREEN ACRES" FARM DAYS

Early in our marriage, I took a job at IBM Federal Systems, Owego, NY, not far from Binghamton!

We purchased an old farm house with three barns and 88 acres of land in Newark Valley, NY, about 12 miles north of Owego.

TOP LEFT: Vi's parents, Gilbert and Clara Stark, visit our farm where we raised sheep. We had a kerosene heater in the kitchen and propane heaters in two other rooms. Our bedroom lacked any heater at all. I can still imagine what they were thinking "What have you done to our daughter?"

BOTTOM LEFT: Ira's parents, Morris and Ruth Glickstein, visit our farm. With the help of the New York State Agricultural Extension Service, we built a 1/4 acre pond on our land above the house and barns. We sometimes camped there.

RIGHT: Vi and Lisa get close and personal with one of our Angus beef cattle.

Some more views of our "Green Acres" FARM DAYS (1965-1973). 

TOP: In addition to the very old house and barns, the purchase included Trixie, our loyal dog. We built a dirt road up to the pond we put on the land above the house and barns.

BOTTOM LEFT: Me with my Dad Morris on road overlooking house and barns. Dad enclosed the front porch and made major improvements inside the house.

BOTTOM RIGHT: I'm in the middle, shoveling the chicken manure left over from the hens raised for eggs by the previous owners. Steamy and pungent, but great fertilizer!

ALSO SEE:

1. Wedding and Farm Days 
2. Passing the Genes and Memes
3. Computers R Us (Ira and Vi's careers)
4. Retirement in The Villages, FL
5. Our 50th Anniversary Baltic Cruise (Air Travel and Shipboard activities)
6. Our 50th Anniversary Baltic Cruise (Land-Tours)

So, please join me in thinking about your good and eventful times with Violet. Read subsequent postings on this Blog about events I remember. If you'd like, you could put on some slippers, sit on your couch, and join me and others in a "virtual" Shiva for Violet.

Love to all, and specially elevated kisses and hugs to Violet, from her husband,

Ira Glickstein

Click for LAST posting

Click for NEXT posting     

NOTE:  This is the third of our "Virtual Sitting Shiva", the traditional Jewish custom of relatives and friends devoting seven days to specially remembering the deceased.

Violet and Ira Glickstein were married in 1964. See our 50th Anniversary memories in the following postings include highlights of our life together.

CLICK THE HYPERTEXT BELOW TO JUMP TO YOUR TOPIC OF CHOICE

1. Wedding and Farm Days 
2. Passing the Genes and Memes
3. Computers R Us (Ira and Vi's careers)
4. Retirement in The Villages, FL
5. Our 50th Anniversary Baltic Cruise (Air Travel and Shipboard activities)
6. Our 50th Anniversary Baltic Cruise (Land-Tours)

50th-0 CELEBRATING OUR 50th WEDDING ANNIVERSARY (tvpclub.blogspot.com)