Ask Vance Blog

More than 4,000 people lined up to peek inside the charming Tudor-style mansion of Civil War historian Shelby Foote today, and I was one of them. Foote died in 2005, and his family held an estate sale on East Parkway so history buffs could purchase treasures from one of the greatest writers of our time. And the "star" of Ken Burns' fine Civil War PBS series, remember.

The house was packed with precious books (many signed by Foote himself), lovely sculptures, beautiful paintings, vintage photographs, old guns and canes and pottery and even a stunning collection (more than 40 glass cases) of butterflies.

The trouble is, I already have all that stuff, as anyone who has tried to walk through the Lauderdale Mansion can attest (along with the fire marshalls).

So instead, I concentrated on the odd and unusual, such as this old decal that carries the cryptic message, "It's TOTEM POLE." The pretty blonde lady seems to be landing in some form of helicopter (look out for those whirling blades!), and the fellow on the ground seems to be wearing an army uniform. But what it means, and being a decal, where it was supposed to go — well, that's a mystery.

If anyone can explain this, I would be mighty grateful.