Beach Blanket Bingo: Three Generations at the Shore

To honor Sun Screen Day—as well as the random, little-known Memorial Day weekend—I thought I'd post this eclectic collection of beach-oriented snapshots I found, documenting 30 years of the Vasilev family hanging out in the sand. Clearly, they were very into the sun.

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It all began in Japan. These preceding pics are about 64 years old. They feature the Vasilev matriarch Natalie Vasilev and her daughters—the Seoul Sisters—at a beach near Kamakura, sometime around 1951. From what I'm told, the Vasilevs (or Vassilieffs, or Vasileyevs, depending on the source) weren't big on sunscreen.

This is Seoul Sister Tatiana—aka Tanya Sarsfield—swimming in the Meguro Pool in Tokyo. According to the internet, the Meguro Citizens Center Gymnasium Pool has, basically, been around forever, and continues to be a favorite.

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After immigrating to the United States in 1953, their love affair with the beach continued. In the mid-1950's, Natalie Vasilev began renting a cabin by Russian River for three weeks every July, so her daughters (and, eventually, their children) could enjoy life by the water.

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I believe these pictures were taken about 15 years later, in the Summer of 1970 or 1971. They feature Lena Vasilev and her husband, Frank Storti. You can see pictures of their wedding here. Also pictured are Frank's daughters Margo and Lisa Storti, as well as second-generation Vasilevs Sean Sarsfield (far left) and Marie Thomson (far right).

And this must be the early 1980's. I'm thinking the Dire Straits, Blondie, Rick Springfield era. These two feathered-haired girls were Seoul Sister Svetlana's daughters, Natalie and Marie Thomson (aka "Tasha" and "Rhea"). They were fixtures at the Russian River every summer for years, and—by the look of it—the party-est of animals.

It's important to remember sunscreen—even if you're just sitting in ankle-deep water, reading National Geographic.

And we conclude with this snapshot of Natalie Vasilev from the very early 1980's. After 30 years at the beach, she still looked good. Must've been the sunscreen.