Project 52: Week 9 {Personal Photography Project}

I'm a bit late in posting last week's Project 52 theme which was "DISTANCE".  Took me a while to think up what I wanted to do and then it was just a matter of finding the time to do it.  Today was finally that day.  LOL

This image comes with a story.  Sure, on the surface it appears to be just a simple wood yardstick…but there's more to it than that.  When we bought this house, this was resting in the kitchen closet.  I never really gave it much thought and just left it there figuring one day it may come in handy.  The catch phrase on the yardstick states "For those good dairy cows, come to Meltzer's Moo Motel.  Cicero, NY on Route 11".  I didn't have any idea what a Moo Motel was so I did a little digging and found that this ruler was given out to clients by a local auction company back in the 1950's.  They sold livestock and farm properties.  Farming was pretty big in this town – at least up til about the 1970's.  And really only within the last 25 years has this town changed from having a couple of small stores, a drive-in movie theater and an A&W diner to what it is today where we have all the major conveniences of suburban living.

I should also point out that while the "Distance" theme could be applied to the fact that this is a ruler, it also has a deeper meaning because the Meltzer family has a long history in our town.  They have morphed with the times and grew their business, and continue to be a strong presence in our community.  Their business has gone the distance and withstood the changes over the last 70 years.  That's pretty amazing, don't ya think?

Here's an advertisement I found from 1956 which gives a glimpse into what this company was doing back at that time.  Today they are still doing auctions – insurance auto auctions (among other things) right here in Cicero.

For those interested in settings, I used the Canon 24-70L at ISO 400, 1/50, F5, natural light, handheld. 

Are you doing your own Project 52 or Project 365/66?  If so, please post a link to your images in the comments below.   🙂