The Soul of Shippy Hollow

I have uploaded two companion videos that illustrate the heart and soul of Shippy Hollow. My premise is that its soul is derived from its history, people and place. And you’ll have to check out the next post for my definition of heart…

People seem to enjoy hanging out at Shippy Hollow. They always have. Pat’s grandparents – Floyd and Hazel Shippy - began living here in 1924. Their home was always the center of their family’s lives. We still have people come down our driveway and introduce themselves as having spent time here in the way back with Floyd and Hazel. It still amazes me, and I continue to be humbled by it. Pat lived in the apartment side of this house when she was young. She came back for most major holidays throughout her life. When we first considered buying the house from the estate after the deaths of Floyd and Hazel, it was to be a weekend getaway for our hectic Seattle lives. But as we began spending more and more time here, eventually we were sucked into its “vortex”; a word our guru - George Dawson - used to describe our home and its allure. He always used to say that the vortex exists here because of an underground river flowing (barely) beneath our home. That would explain our tepid fear of winters and five sump pumps. Anyway, this video attempts to pay homage to the history of this place.

Liner Notes: The photos are from Ginny’s photo albums and a trunk that she keeps at her house. Restoration was courtesy of PhotoShop. I wrote the music specifically for this video - it's called "The Old Front Porch". And yes, the lead instrument in the main tune used in the video is a saw.

The companion video's link: The Heart of Shippy Hollow