Shirley Wajda

@stwajda.bsky.social

4876 Followers 1374 Following

Historian, curator, knitter of the American experience, daughter & granddaughter of immigrants, waiting for Lefty & CLE World Series win. US material & visual culture, museum studies, women's history, everyday life. Too many projects. shirleywajda.com

Cartoon character Barney Rubble from "The Flintstones." Stocky male figure with blond hair and wearing a ragged prehistoric (likely) fur/hide one-piece costume. He is raising his proper right arm, index finger pointed skyward as if making a point.
Image of a woman seated in a passenger airliner seat. Window curtains behind her at right; seat at left. She wears a white dress with embroidered stand-up collar and front zipper. Her hair is styled in a small beehive. She, with a half smile, looks intently up at the camera. Her face is partially in shadows.
A white and gray cat sitting next to a clock radio with the time reading 2:33.
Newspaper article: Chagrin Falls Exponent. PUBLISHED EVERY THURSDAY MORNING. No. 1 Shute's Block. FRANK F. STRANAHAN, Local Editor. Local and Miscellaneous --Mrs. Hall and Mrs. Hull got into an altercation about the right of possession fo 5 quarts of respberries, near Bentleyville, one day last week, and Mrs. Hull claimed that Mrs. Hall had made too big a haul on the bushes. Mrs. Hall denied the soft impeachment and claimed the whole stock in trade, whereupon Hull made a haul on the bank and Hall tried to haul away the collaterals. Hull hauled Hall over the coals and a lively set-to resulted, in which Hull rubbed the berries hulls and fall into Hall's face, neck and hair. No arrests.
Screenshot of Bluesky's Trending box, listing: 1. Argentina 2. Merino 3. Donald Trump 4. Madonna 5. Messi
Pair of knit socks in burnt orange color and gansey design.
Black and white film still of actress Blanche Yurka in the 1935 "A Tale of Two Cities." Features, at center, a seated woman wearing a Phrygian (peaked) cap on her long dark hair. She has a somber look on her face as she looks into space, past the viewer's proper left shoulder. In her raised hands she holds knitting needles and the knitted piece she is currently making. Behind her sit men with various facial expressions ranging from concern to revulsion.
Color photographic image of two men in striped baseball uniforms sitting next to each other on a bench in front of a wire fence and green baseball field. The men face the field, their backs to the viewer. The man seated at the left wears a uniform reading "BURR 61." The man seated on the right wears a uniform reading "HAMILTON 63."
Furry critter owning all that he sees: clover, wild strawberies, and a utility pole in the right foreground.
War of 1812 naval flag. Dark blue background upon which is stitched in yellowed white threads "DONT GIVE UP THE SHIP."
Screenshot of my steps counter, revealing that I walked only 1,776 steps today.
Film poster featuring the shape of an adult man in white. In his raised proper right hand is a smoking weapon. In his lowered proper left hand is a wad of green currency bills. The words "The Amazing Transparent Man" is superimposed across the center of the poster. A woman in pink costume is at lower left. A man behind a stair banister is at upper right.
Color photo of fake arch constructed of cheap materials and covered to look like stone or marble with some foliate embellishments. Atop are two gold eagles on either side of a gold winged figure. Background shows US Capitol in background.
Mosaic fragment, circa 500 AD, collection British Museum. A man astride a white horse at right.At left and behind the man and horse is a fortification the Vandal, um, vandalized.
Punnets of strawberries with aone rhubarb stalks.
Image of Pantone color card, using the white tarp with vertical blue and black vertical lines covering the Kennedy Center wall on which the words "The Donald J. Trump and" were removed. Below the image of the tarp are the words "PANTONE/86-47/TRUMP COVER-UP."
Lunch atop a Skyscraper, distributed by Acme Newspictures, September 1932. Original caption: "While New York's thousands rush to crowded restaurants and congested lunch counters for their noon day lunch, these intrepid steel workers atop the 70 story RCA building in Rockefeller Center get all the air and freedom they want by lunching on a steel beam with a sheer drop of over 800 feet to the street level. The RCA building is the largest office building in terms of office space in the world."
Two black-and-white cattle stare rather menacingly at the viewer. They stand in a hillside of tall green grasses. At the horizon line above them is a tree against an overcast gray sky.
Group of men (comedians John Belushi, Garrett Morris, Dan Ackroyd, and Elliott Gould)dressed in yellow and black striped bee costumes. From Saturday Night Live 1976 sketch entitled "Home Invasion." Faces of Gilda Radner and Chevy Chase at lower right corner of the image.
Black-and-white photograph and three individuals in foreground with crowds of people in the background. Taken at the Konstablerwache: brick walkway, buildings in the background with scaffolding. The woman and man at the center are smartly dressed and looking at the camera. The woman wears a light-colored coat and high heels. The man wears a windbreaker and dark trousers.
Image shows a large and exaggerated shadow of the crest rail and spindles of the back of a Windsor chair.
Partially knitted sock on bamboo double-pointed needles photographed against black laptop computer keyboard. Sock leg and heel completed. Orange wool.
Image of section of large ochre colored wood drawers with unpainted knobs in storage area of the 1905 Creamery at Canterbury Shaker Village.
Textile showing a pattern of USA founders and presidents as young men either dressed in 18th- and 19th-century garb open to show six-pack abs or shirtless. "LIFE LIBERTY AND THE PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS" in red and a heart with USA-flag motif interspersed between images of the Liberty Bell, Abraham Lincoln, Paul Revere on horseback (North Church steeple in back), Thomas Jefferson holding a scrolled document, his head ringed with stars, and three shirtless men (two playing drums, one playing a fife) based on Archibald Willard's painting "The Spirit of '76."
Bound book with blue cover bearing the words (in white) "My list of bodies I buried in the woods."
Print advertisement for the Canterbury Shakers' washing machine. The text reads: ADVERTISEMENTS. Improved Shaker Washing Machine, BUILT AT SHAKER VILLAGE, N.H. Patented July 23, 1877. [image of large, belt-driven, wood washing machine, with water taps above] Laundry Apparatus, Corn Brooms and Brushes, Hosiery, Apple Sauce, Maple Syrup, &c., &c. Manufactured and Sold by the SOCIETY OF SHAKERS, at Shaker Village, N.H. Correspondence Solicited Address N.A. BRIGGS, Trustee.
New York Times correction added to an article on Melania Trump's wearing of Ralph Lauren at the annual White House Egg Roll: "A correction was made on April 6, 2026: Because of an editing error, an earlier version of the digital summary with this article misstated the type of event that was held at the White House on Sunday. As the article correctly noted, it was an egg roll, not an egg toss."
Color photograph of the cover of a menu featuring a baked potato with wrinkled brown skin, slit in half, with a pat of yellow butter sitting in the slit at the left and a silver spoon in the slit at the right. The potato sits on a decorated plate, with only the nearest part visible. Between the decorative border of the plate and the potato is the word "Menu."
Color image of a cartoon mushroom: the cap is red with large white dots, the stem is yellow-tan with vertically elongated black eyes with white irises. Inedible.
Close up of the head of a mainly white clearly disapproving cat.
2. Funding Restrictions You may not use funds made under this notice for the following purposes: Restricted activities: • promotion of a particular political, religious, or ideological point of view • promotion of gender ideology • promotion of discriminatory equity ideology • support for diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) or diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA) initiatives or activities • environmental justice initiatives or activities • advocacy of a particular program of social or political action • support of specific public policies or legislation • lobbying
Black and white photo of a mammoth pie on to of a raised platform on which is posted a sign carrying the words "National CHERRY Festival." On the right of the 10-foot-wide pie stands a woman dressed in a white cap and dress. On the left is a man dressed in a white chef's toque and white chef's uniform. He holds an enormous knife as if to cut into the pie.
Newspaper headline reading "Rats Thrive on the Humble Pie/ Test Shows Food Value in Great American Dessert is Great"
Two long wood tables next to each other. On the tables is an assortment of pies--17 large and 9 small.
Two apple pies with crumb topping cooling on a sheet of aluminum foil on a counter.
Color photographic image of a blue, gray, and white sock on 4 bamboo knitting needles, with 5th needle and ball of yarn next to it. Sock is mostly knitted: leg and heel complete.
Color photographic image of pies and an apple. Text reads: "Shaker Pie/Pi Day Saturday March 14th Canterbury Shaker Village in Hubbard Gallery 1:30-3PM Free / Join for a slice of pie & informal talk on pie in Shaker and American history"
Woodstock (Vermont) Journal newspaper, September 5, 1820. Featured here are two advertisements appearing together. The top ad features an image of a small house with the text: "For Sale, THE large White House situated on the Water Queechee River, a few rods west of the Court House in Woodstock, formerly owned by Mrs. Olives, and occupied by Maj. Levi Mower. August 28, 1820. WILLIS HALL." The ad below: "Caution. 'THE large white House," advertised for sale by Willis Hall, never was his property, and never will be until he shall have purchased and paid for it; altho he has a vendue deed, which he obtained in a secret rascally manner, when an agent for the owner. BENJAMIN F. MOWER, Agent for the owners. N.B. Any person wishing to purchase a piece of woodland a short distance from the Court-House, can obtain a title from Luke Landphire, with no other incumbrance thereon but another man's land lying on top of it-which will be equaily [sic] as valid as a title from Willis Hall to 'the large white House,' in my opinion. BENJAMIN F. MOWER. Woodstock, Sept. 4, 1820.
Color screenshot photographic image of US President Donald J. Trump behind a microphone attached to a lectern. He wears a blue suit coat, white button-down shirt, and purplish tie. His hands are raised at the edges of the lectern. Behind him are signs stencilled with (for example) "USA STEEL" and "GEORGIA." Beneath this image is the title for KTVB Channel 7 "National prepares as President Trump is set to deliver State of the Union."
Color photographic image of the lid of a dark blue tin full of cheddar cheesecand caramel popcorn mix. Lid carries logo for Garrett Popcorn shops, a Chicago tradition since 1949 in white and gold.
Color image of actress Maggie Smith playing the Lady Dowager Violet Crawley in "Downton Abbey." She is dressed in a brown-red feathered hat and gown. She sits in a chair. Her head is cocked toward a person off screen and to the left. Superimposed over the image are the words "This Super Bowl You've Mentioned, is it by Wedgwood?"
Color image of four women in an office/library/research setting. Behind them are file cabinets and book shelves. To the right is a Christmas tree. The women are posed around the desk: A woman (Katharine Hepburn) is at center, behind the desk and answering the phone. At the right, a woman (Joan Blondell) in a festive black dress is seen in profile and is laughing. At the left, wearing a patterned black dress with white collar and holding a paper cup, is a young woman (Sue Randall). At bottom right, in a light purple dress, is a seated woman (Dina Merrill), also holding a white paper cup. Champagne bottles sit on the desk.
New York Times article title: "Can the White House Border Czar De-escalate Tensions in Minnesota?"
“THESE are the times that try men's souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands by it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman. Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph. What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly: it is dearness only that gives every thing its value. Heaven knows how to put a proper price upon its goods; and it would be strange indeed if so celestial an article as FREEDOM should not be highly rated.”—Thomas, Paine, The American Crisis No. 1
Gray tee shirt on which is printed in dark blue "MIDWEST SECEDE!"
Color image of book: At center is a circular embroidery hoop enclosing a piece of cloth on which there is blue and green image of earth, with pink shears at bottom and a serrated pink line symbolizing stitches. The title above this image reads "GLOBAL CRAFTIVISM SINCE THE PUSSYHATS: in pink lettering. The title continues below the image: "HANDCRAFT RESPONSES TO VIOLENCE, WAR, ILLNESS, AND ISOLATION" in blue. At bottom, in pink lettering: "EDITED BY HINDA MANDELL." The publisher's name, "BLOOMSBURY" in gold appears at center, bottom edge.
Three-panel cartoon featuring a larger "adult" figure and a smaller "child" figure. Each figure is an outline humanoid with dots as eyes, a mouth, head, body, arms, and legs. In the first panel, the adult bends down on one knee to hand the child a rectangular and green currency bill with a dollar sign on it. The child reaches up to take it. The adult says "Billy, it's time you learn about money." In the second panel, the child has the bill in their hand, while the adult continues to speak by saying "and the the importance of..." The last panel depicts the child inserting the bill into a large blue vending machine which bears the words "HISTORY DEGREE." The child looks backward to the adult, who is saying "BILLY NO."
George Washington, in black clothing, holds a sword in his proper left hand and gestures with his left hand, which is extended. He is depicted in an interior featuring gilt neoclassical furniture, red drapery, and a column in the background. By Gilbert Stuart - http://npg.si.edu/object/npg_NPG.2001.13, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=33579
Three-panel color comic strip. In the first panel, a black-haired woman, wearing a dark gray top with white color, is turned slightly to the viewer's rights. They hold a microphone in their raised proper left hand. Above the figure is a word bubble in which appears "Ma'am, what is it that keeps you going?" The next two panels features a woman in white top. They have brown hair tied back in a high ponytail. They are turned toward the viewer's left, speaking into the microphone held in an outstretched hand seen at the lower left of the panel. The words in the bubble above their head reads "My desire to crush my enemies" in the second panel and in the third, "And my sense of wonder."
Part of a page of the 1880 US Federal Census, listing the residents of Mrs. Alcott's boarding house.
Newspaper headline reads: "WAS THERE POISON IN THE PIE? Another Family Violently Ill After Eating Lemon Meringue Pastry."
White and tabby cat sleeping on a blanket. Cat's nose is tucked between his front legs and his tail curled around his back legs.
1960s ad for Art Instruction Schools, which featured drawings of Tippy the Turtle (rurtled head onlu, with face turned to left; wearing cap and turtleneck); Tiny the mouse (head and face looking left, wearing a cone-shaped party hat and bow at neck); and the Pirate (head shot, looking left).
Your 2026 word: picturesque.
Screenshot of a film. Against a black and white lanscape of jagged mountains and cloudy sky are the words "REPUBLIC PICTURES PRESENTS FLYONG DISC MAN FROM MARS."
Color image of Spongebob Squarepants eyeing a krabby patty; or, A rectangular yellow sponge with a face and arms, dressed in a white shirt and brown pants, holding aloft a hamburger bun filled with lettuce, cheese slice, and the Infamous Krabby Patty. Blue undersea background.
US Petition for Naturalization for John Wajda, 1919. Printed with typewritten entries.
Title page of "John Bull's Apple-Pie and the Vermin of Corruption: With Fourteen Cuts, Drawn by Mr. George Cruikshank.: Beneath this title is a woodcut engraving a grimacing man in early 19th-century garb, holding above his head an enormous pie on a round table. The man is also the table pedestal, for three footed legs appear to extend from his waist. The top piecrust is labeled "Treasury." At the center of the pie is a crown. Along the side of the pie appears "WHA WANTS ME?" Seven plates with eating utensils surround the pie. Each plate carries a label: "SECRET SERVICE," "SINECURE," "NAVY," "PREROGATIVE," "ARMY," "PENSION," and "PLACES." Beneath this image is the quotation "'There is a heavy weight upon my senses.;--Fair Penitent." The bottom of the page carries publication information: THIRD EDITION, WITH ADDITIONS. London: PRINTED AND PUBLISHED BY JOHN FAIRBURN, BROADWAY, LUDGATE-HILL. 1820.
Color photographic image of the five-member band, the B-52s, who produced "Rock Lobster." Pyramidal structure used in this group portrait. A white man in white shirt and blue trousers and looking past the viewer's right, sits on a modernist white chair at left; at right a white woman dressed in black top and trousers and red shoes sits in a similar chair. Between them, kneeling, is a white man dressed in a light green turtleneck and gray trousers. He looks at the camera. Behind this trio stand a white man in a dark suit and button-down shirt open at the throat and a white woman with a bouffant hairdo, turquoise drop earrings, a black, white, and turquoise top and turquoise pants.