War Memorabilia
I’m sitting here watching a bit of Saving Private Ryan with some family that is visiting. I’ve only seen bits of the film but I’ve heard it’s fantastic. I should probably watch all of it sometime, tonight won’t be the night though. This is a good time though to share with you a Joe factoid. I really like antiques, especially war memorabilia. I don’t own any, I don’t feel the need to do so, but I do love seeing them in museums. Helmets, bayonets, old photos (I love those), propaganda posters, tanks, newspapers… everything. I find them all fascinating. It’s amazing to think that these war antiques were used or carried by someone during times of war. To me it’s a pair of boots, or a canteen, but to someone else, they where the boots they had on as they marched in far off lands. Through the mud and the rain as they fought the enemy, those items carried them through it all. Oh, the stories they must have. I love going in military surplus stores and looking at the older items they have. I even like the Nazi stuff. No, not because I’m a sympathizer. I see them as I see any other piece of war history. Fascinating.
How do you feel about war memorabilia?
[Update] – We stayed up and watched the whole movie. It was just as great as everyone said it was. ^_^
Play Asia
November 3rd, 2012 at 10:37 pm
i enjoy war memorabilia as well. i dont own any really, but it would be cool to have some. i want an M1 Garand but those things are really expensive now. and yeah, you should definitely watch all of Saving Private Ryan some time.
November 4th, 2012 at 10:43 am
I come from a military family,and although I dislike military fiction,I find military history quite fascinating. Joe,our navy may be a joke today,but at one time,we had one of the best. There was also the point in our military’s history where our combat boots disintegrated on the feet of our troops…
November 4th, 2012 at 5:37 pm
I love the history and I actually own a small piece of it. My grandfather gave me a bayonet he took brought back from WWII, I haven’t found out exactly what kind it is but he told me it was German.
November 7th, 2012 at 9:13 pm
That is very cool. I hope you have it out on display in your house. ^_^
November 5th, 2012 at 5:49 am
i bought myself a black out lamp some days ago.
i will make it a nice and cool bicycle lamp for my beachcruiser…
it´s interesting for me to still find 60 year old thing´s wich are nearly in perfect working condition.
but i am always very aware about what happend and what they were used for.
November 5th, 2012 at 2:30 pm
Having been in the army and fought in desert storm, I have a lot of personal memorabilia. My medals and insignias are displayed in a frame. Some of the things I brought back are in a shadow box. A dummy grenade, an M-16 magazine, a K-ration opener, a container of sand from Iraq, a can of Pepsi from Saudi Arabia, some Iraqi money including a bill with Saddam Hussein on it, and a pack of these little Indian cigarettes called ‘beedies’ that look like joints. Guys in my unit really had a laugh when officers saw them smoking these things and they would freak out thinking it was pot. Of course, I also have all the letters and cards I received from home. Those were most important to me.
November 7th, 2012 at 9:09 pm
Wow, that is all pretty cool. I seem to remember you mentioning you where in the military, but I had no idea you where in Desert Storm. Are you still apart of the army now? I’d also like to stand up and say thank you for your service. I may not be an American, but I respect those that go out and fight/defend their country. Good job soldier (salute)! ^_^
November 7th, 2012 at 4:25 pm
Both of my grandfathers fought in WWII (one European, the other Pacific), so I have some odds and ends from their service. Surprisingly, no one else in the families wanted them, so I got the lot from both. Most of it is pretty unimpressive (patches from uniforms, dog tags, and whatnot), but the absolute best thing that was passed to me was a Japanese flag from a warship that is signed by the Japanese crew. It spent many years in a cigar box and has some water stains, but I’m totally getting that thing framed with a small plaque listing the names and their romaji. I just need to research how to long-term mount and frame an old flag as to protect it from light exposure.
November 7th, 2012 at 9:05 pm
Wow, that is really cool. I nicely framed flag like that would look just awesome!
November 10th, 2012 at 12:31 pm
Yes, Saving Private Ryan is a very good film that is worth watching. The opening sequence on Omaha Beach is a must-see.