LIFE GOES TO A PARTY

I'm going to veer a little bit here-- usually I write about the difficulties and little misteps of living alone for the first time. Things you don't want to tell the children, because they might think you are deteriorating.

But there are some things that you do want to tell the children before these things get lost forever. People of your own age like to remember these things, the little pleasures of the way life used to be before e-mail and Walmart, video games and Lindsay Lohan. First you have to tell the children that there wasn't any television. At this they sort of cock their heads as if to say "Yes, I believe you but that is so bizarre I can't comprehend it."

I am beset with nostalgia now. The latest was remembering the glories of LIFE magazine. I hear that there is a version of LIFE still, but it cannot ever resemble the LIFE of the 40's . Nothing could match that. It came every week, huge and glossy with beautiful scarlet edgings, with a wonderful photo of something or someone on the cover. The kids fought over it, to see who would get it first. But LIFE was for everyone, and as the war went on the magazine was even more intriguing.

I was a typical bobby-soxer crazed by Frank Sinatra and not too serious, so I loved the more frivolous articles. My favorite was a feature titled "LIFE Goes to a Party." The editors picked a party, any party, and gave it a two or three page spread. Remember the debutantes? They were my very favorites, particularly one named Brenda Frazier. She had a sweep of dark hair, and glorious sparkling strapless dresses. I wonder whatever happened to Brenda Frazier. Does anyone know? Surely she could never get old --she's dancing somewhere.