Vintage

  September 29, 2023

Some things are better old. Aged cheese, vintage wine (so I’ve been told; I wouldn’t know a good wine from a bad one), Linda and me. We both like antiques, probably in part because we are ourselves of that general vintage. I like that word—vintage—it sounds better than old. 

We live in a world infatuated with new. IKEA has built a fortune by not building anything; it ships it to you so you can put it together. In a couple years, you just throw it out. Something in me rebels at that way of thinking. We have photos on the wall in our back room; parents, grandparents, great and great-great grandparents, a mini family tree that reminds us of our roots. We have stuff that’s been handed down for generations; my great-grandfather’s Civil War musket, his discharge papers from that same conflict. My great-grandmother’s platform rocker sits in our back room; the same rocker that I was sitting in when I squished my brother’s finger; Linda’s dresser that was her grandmother’s, her father’s racing goggles. 

Two of my favorite antiques are my upright basses, a 1936 King Moretone, and a 1952 Epiphone. The wood has settled in, so they sound so much better than newer ones. I just love playing these instruments even though Linda questions why I need two. Telling her that having a backup bass doesn’t impress her at all. After all, I don’t have a backup wife!

Speaking of wife, vintage is good. We’ve learned each other’s quirks and laugh at things that years ago would have gotten under our skin. The statistics for marital longevity are appalling; it’s no wonder that so many teenagers struggle with depression and anxiety when the stability they should be able to count on explodes in their faces. Like anything with any miles on the odometer, we both have our share of dings and dents. The paint is a bit faded, the upholstery sags in places, but we still have many miles to go, and traveling together suits us fine. Unlike IKEA, even though we built our marriage ourselves, we aren’t about to get tired of it and toss it out. “Till death us do part” is still our mantra, and a good one it is. We both like vintage.