friends

i spend time with different friends for different reasons. i am talking about real friends. friends to drink with and talk about nothing important in order to clear our minds. friends to drink with and bear our souls. junking buddies, phone pals, soul mates, once a year camp over corhorts, the monthly mood menders and the emergency e-mailers.



each friend cannot fill every need. each friend has a special quality. and each friend is needed and special.



i cherish them all.




today i had a wonderful day. spent most of it with a junking buddy -antiquing, lunching and laughing. caught up with my phone pal . and languished with the boyfriend.




friends - can't live without them . . . . .

computer-less

good morning:





i will be without computer access for a couple of days. "she's flaking out again" just might cross your mind, so thought i'd better advise.





soon as i can plug back in - i will post.







p.s. the toyota has returned!!!!!!!!!!!! felt strange driving again.

treasures not for sale

it is assumed that as a dealer i must keep the best. i do. but everyone's definition of "the best" is different.

only the very special find residence in my home. and monetary value is never the criteria.

the above tramp art framed dog is very dear and will never be for sale. by sheer luck i tripped over this estate sale. i plucked the picture of the little dog off the wall and strode out to get a price. i was informed that it was probably not for sale. i would have to ask the owner who was very much alive and present and on her way to an old folks' home. she was the nicest old lady. this had been her favorite dog - ever - and she had painted it before the dog died ages ago. she held it and with misty eyes told me the story. then she looked at me and said, yes, she would sell it to me for $1.00. i felt special and like a vulture at the same time.

but there is another very special reason why this lady and this sale are memorable. the dog she presently owned had been with her for years - like family. she could not take him with her to the home and was very upset by that. she had accepted the smaller of 2 bids on her property because those folks promised to keep the dog with them on the propery as long as the dog lived. the transaction brought her piece of mind.

the apron - another one of those sales where the owner was still alive and present. the starting time of the sale was overdue and the crowd was restless. as i watched, items were being brought out little by little. i noticed every now and then an old lady would come out, snatch up an item and vanish into the house with it. over and over - very odd. a box of costume jewelry appeared and the same wierd scenario began. i approached one of the adults to find out what was going on and when the sale would begin. he told me his mom was having a hard time of letting go of her things. she was being put into an old folks' home. me being me, said something about how much room could a box of jewelry take up? let her keep it if it makes her happy. how sad to think she had to struggle to keep something that was hers.

we will all be in this same boat eventually?

the sale began. the woman had old patterns, tons of spools of thread, pieces of fabric and nothing of any value. she had obviously sewn for decades. spotting a small item all wadded up, i unraveled it. i asked the price. shocked that i would even want it, .25 was quoted by one of the daughters. it had obviously been sewn for one of them when they were very little and kept. i felt sad that she thought it trash. it was the only thing i bought. it is worn and frayed and it will never be for sale.

WWMD . . .





this is now day 6 without my truck. promises are sounding like the old "your check is in the mail" scenario. soon my truck will grow roots at the repair shop.


usually, by this point i would be livid - unglued beyond any possible repair. it's quite eerie - i am not. is it the rain? is it the fact that i am mellowing with age? could it be world events has put this in perspective?



in an earlier post, i stated that the last trip - the one where they took my car as hostage - was my 8th trip for the same problem. fangs should have sprouted by #3 and the manager would have been bloodless by #4. what is wrong with me???



am i becoming my mother! i have physically resembled her year for year in my growth. aside from hairstyles, it's hard to tell us apart in photos taken at various age milestones in our lives. . . . . .okay, black & white vs color would be a give-away. . . . out of 6 siblings, i am her duplicate. trait-wise, we are pretty damn close. still, she has always outranked me in patience. till now.



if this is the reason for my calm - i am honored.



What Would Ma Do?

"if only this (dresser, lamp, cupboard, table, etc) could talk, think of the tales it would tell."

how many times have we heard or said this?

if they could talk, we might hear similar stories:

not long ago, she brought me home full of hope and optimism jumping right into my restoration. i was dirty. i agree. she spent hours that first day scrubbing me. with only the sides and one front door done - she was tired. it was late. she covered me. other projects filled her life. then the rain set in. it got cold. i got scared.

as i was being uncovered this morning, i heard her say, "i need to get you finished and out of here." as she scrubbed, she kept whispering, "damn, you're filthy!". it hurt. i kept quiet. i saw that gleam in her eyes, saw her smiling as i cleaned up. she still liked me!

she painted me all black inside. i didn't look very cool when only my shelves and doors were black. always felt half naked. but i'm styling now!! other cupboards i've seen that were all dark inside looked so sharp stuffed with light colored collections (?) . so will i.

she took a break. i heard her talking on the phone about plans for me. going somewhere called mora's in lake elsinore. seems she's got some pink and green theme-thingy going on there. heard something about lots of flamingos and how i'd fit in. i always thought of myself as primitive but this all sounded kind of cottagy to me. guess i could go either way.

said she'd measure me, put a price(?) on me, and take more pictures once i got there and got all gussied up. so if anyone is curious about me, you may want to check back into something called a "blog"(?) for further pics and info.

she left me to dry. promised to wax me tomorrow. i've heard of waxing - other cupboards, lots of tables and a few benches told me allllll the details. soft cloth, something slippery that makes you shine, and serious hand buffing. yeowowowowowowowowowowow! the anticipation!!!!!!!!!

jan 24th.

usually about this time my boyfriend's mom, ruth, is out here or at least on her way to visit for a month. minnesota is a miserable place to be during the winter. as much as she loved her farm and the seasons, she was "pleased as punch" to hop a plane out.

ruth will be gone a year come march.

always bringing a project or two with her. always tackling stuff around my house and his. always into history - on the museum board in manterville. always planning. always doing. always researching.

one year making a quilt on cemetaries as a theme, we trugged thru the historic one in riverside getting ideas and asking questions. one year, the family cookbook, caused a "page protector" hunt.

not many women love history, cemetaries, fabric stores and old stuff. these were her passions and mine. we got along well. there was only one hairy issue - my table climbing/counter loving cat, stevie. ruth would curl a lip when stevie would jump on the table. one day arriving home at lunchtime unexpected, i caught her talking to and petting him as he stood tall on my dining table. hum.

she loved a good drink and red meat. she loved a challenge, one day she climbed a submarine tower ladder faster than my brother could ever hope to. she loved helping me decorate the shops and could sling furniture right along with me. she loved her independence. . . . .

i still have not tackled the pile of clothes that need mending or hemming - projects she wanted kept for her to do when she visited . . . . .

the photo above is of the grove of trees looking out her kitchen window. the grove where the "drainage tiles" lay. took it last year while out there for the funeral.

she would have been 89 last september.

lounge lizard

beautiful day!

everything sparkles from all the rain.

i am housebound!

my hands & feet are itching to get out and scour.

treasures are waiting to be found. BUT . . . .

upon the 8th trip to the repair shop, it was discovered what is needed is a valve job. pricey piece of work that i was hoping would never have to be done. yes, i was in denial. the valves have been rattling for the last 100,000 miles at least. 183,000 on her now.

so here i lay draped over the window sill and my tickets box. feet and hands will have to take cold showers each and every day till tuesday morning when my toyota will hopefully return. this puts new meaning into an old saying:

"you never know just how much you love your toyota, till it's gone"

we have all heard of karma. here is part of wikipedia's definition:



"The concept of karma is part of the world view of many millions of people throughout the world. Many in western cultures or with a Christian upbringing have incorporated a notion of karma. The Christian concept of reaping what you sow from Galatians 6:7 can be considered equivalent to Karma. According to karma, performing positive actions results in a good condition in one's experience, whereas a negative action results in a bad effect. The effects may be seen immediately or delayed. Delay can be until later in the present life or in the next. Some observers have compared the action of karma to Western notions of sin and judgment by God or gods, while others understand karma as an inherent principle of the universe without the intervention of any supernatural Being."





most times good karma is never recognized since good deeds are more the norm of the human race, thank goodness. unless something monumental happens (good) we all just skip along totally clueless. on the other hand, bad karma is almost always spotted. one reason is the little guy on our shoulder is jabbering in our ear all the while the deed (bad) is being excecuted. then the boom lowers - minutes, days, weeks, months, years later (ususlly depending on the severity of the bad deed) and an "aha!" moment happens. bad karma.



this short tale is of bad karma.



saturday i loaded a very large, very unusual, extremely gorgeous panel for it's move to mora's antiques on main street in lake elsinore. (no accompaning pics because i believe it is sold. should the customer back out, i will post pics.) as i lifted the piece onto the toyota, i saw a large mounting bolt fall out towards the back end of the truck bed. being in a rush, i did not do the search and rescue thing. bad move. should have. it bothered me as i drove away. the little guy on my shoulder got the better of me and i stopped after crossing over some railroad tracks. put on the flashers, and went to retrieve. gone. bounced out somewhere. all i could do now was wait till my luck with tires hit the skids. well - after much car trouble these past 3 weeks, 7 trips in all to the repair shop for the same issue (8th this morning - we will not go there), we, the mechanic and i, thought we had it conquered. got up wednesday morning to take it to get smogged. primped and preened and peeked out the window. the rear passenger tire was flat! karma rang clearly in my head "got ya!"

new years resolution

fabulous exterior antique door surround

i am very sheepishly slipping back onto the on-line blog experience. you do not have to believe me when i say "i will post" - "i will dazzle you with pics of fabulous antiques" because i have let you down many times. BUT since i made only 2 new years' resolutions, this being one of them, i will have to keep my word.

i got a new phone - verizon droid eris - the pics can now be taken without having to drag a camera everywhere i go. not much for carrying around lots of stuff. even a purse is extra baggage in my book. hence, my inability to produce. so, with all that said . . . . .

the above gem is just that!! - but, technically, a building's front door surround. kinda like a fireplace surround but much larger. he stands proudly at 11 feet tall (floor to top of finial) and 7 feet wide at the widest point of the top pediment. the opening is approx 41 inches - since i decided to measure him after i put everything in front - it is an approx.

for years i'd visit and stare at him with bedroom eyes, hoping i could somehow get him to come home with me. i pined - i waited patiently always telling him someday he would. then a call came from the surround's possessor. a move was imminent and he must part ways with the surround. the surround would not fit the upcoming abode. it was not being discarded but being sold!! was i still interested, he asked. damed right, i was. couldn't get there fast enough to make my dreams come true - - - -but still i had to wait a couple more weeks. what a tease! finally, the day came. i was so excited. showered and put on my best salvaging clothes and rushed to get him. as we detached him from the wall laying him on the floor, i gasped. more handsome than i thought he'd be! the tasteless money transaction took place right there - in front of him - and the big guy was put on my truck. it took much work to pad, strap, add boards and widgets to accomodate his physique. praying he'd stay with me, i moved slowly on to the circle in orange, ca.

as bryce stood at the truck admiring the surround he was awed by his size and beauty.

matt, bryce and i quickly ushered him into his new temporary home:

country roads antiques and gardens

chapman ave

city or orange, ca

714-532-3041

you will find the surround in space 1717 - 3rd building - where he waits very patiently against the brick wall. anyone at the front desk will direct you. please visit - he loves adoration - i know. . . . . . .