The Vestibular Monologues: Pottery and Pilates

That hutch looks so lovely in that corner.   

I wonder if the urge hits me hard because my family has always been very small... all that is left now is my brother and his two kids. With additional siblings and more family activities, I might have felt differently.

oneofthegirls said:

That hutch looks so lovely in that corner.  "> 

Thank you... yes, I like it a lot. Jim didn't want it, probably because he feels NONE of the urge and might even feel a need to push back against the incursion of my family's style and history into our house. But I knew we would end up buying a cabinet for displaying things anyway, and why not use the one we have, if it's in good shape and goes well with our table and the style of the house??

Oh, that looks just like the hutch my mom had.  She loved it so.  It looks perfect in your home.  Happy holidays.

I never would have thought I'd want that hutch. Our more recent styles have tended to be much more contemporary, à la Pottery Barn or Crate & Barrel. But then we bought a replica of a Colonial saltbox house in New England. I plead coercion...

Nah. It hits us all differently. I still think of dad and mom as MY  dad and mom. Each of my siblings had their own personal relationship as well. It surprises me sometimes when we talk of it  all. The memories I have of grandma's summer table now being in sister Nan's kitchen are completely different for her. And all of the furnishings from. Grandma and grandpa's bungalow that are in my sister Clare's house - I thought, why does she want them?   She was  never even  there. Then a boyfriend at the time explained it's because she was never there. she was too young to have the memories that are yours and this is her way of being a part of them.

I think of my cousin Gail raised as an only child since she was 5 when her twin brother was killed. The content of her memories of her mom and dad are no different than mine with my mom and dad. And each of my 10 siblings has personal memories as well that sometimes I don't  know what they are talking about. 

Cousin Gail has no immediate family. No siblings, no mom and dad, no children. Yet her life is just as full, just as painful, just as silly, as mine.

PeggyC said:

I never would have thought I'd want that hutch. Our more recent styles have tended to be much more contemporary, à la Pottery Barn or Crate & Barrel. But then we bought a replica of a Colonial saltbox house in New England. I plead coercion...

Contemporary mixed with your stuff looks full and rich to me. I wouldn't expect Jim to relate to your family stuff but as long as he can appreciate it has meaning for you, that is what is is all about.

Just tell him to sit back and admire those wonderful, rich and mellow wood tones!

I had left grandpa's painting in my home in Florida when I went up to NYC and live with cousin Gail. I was talking on the phone with my daughter in our house in Florida and she said she was having a fun night of painting. She didn't have any more canvases and so was painting over this old canvas she found. I asked where she found it. And. She said it was hanging on the wall. I was horrified! Didn't she see the signature was Claus Engelschjon???

I gave her instructions to wipe the new oils off with turps and thank God the painting is safe and with me still.

Eta: my daughter now knows it has value to me and is so sorry that happened.

Peggy - It sounds like you need to go into the notifications portion of settings and turn off most of it. You don't REALLY want to get notifications about every little thing (even from the people whose posts you're ok with), right?  Also unfollow anyone that you are friended with and don't want to unfriend but don't want to see their stuff.  And on any post that you see that you really didn't want to see, click the little down arrow in the upper right and you will get a menu that will allow you to do some additional customization of what you do or don't see.  Hopefully that will help with a good percentage, at least, of the offending posts.  Good luck!

Also, perhaps more for filtering ads and such, but also to give you more control over what you see, I highly recommend the "Social Fixer" app.  www.socialfixer.com

It REALLY improves your Facebook experience and works in all the popular browsers except Internet Explorer.  (If you are using IE, I recommend switching to Chrome or Firefox.)

I think I managed to get things on FB under better control by downgrading the ex-in laws from "close friend" status to "acquaintance" status. Fingers crossed. I'm just tired of seeing my ex-SIL crawling in and out of doll house stuff with a toddler I've never even met. 

Time for an update.

The Renaissance group starts rehearsing again in a week. I am so looking forward to it... Can't even tell you.

Meanwhile, we have received a very good offer on my mother's house, just 9k below asking. I think we will counter on a point in between, but most likely we have a deal.

This means we'll be able to refinance our current CT house so as to get rid of the private mortgage insurance and lower the payments by half. That will be huge. We can pay off one car and get a loan to buy a new one to replace our ancient CRV. And we can get rid of the carpeting upstairs and in the basement, and renovate the kitchen and do a cosmetic upgrade in two bathrooms. BIG, BIG TIMES.

Of course, for me, there is an undercurrent of sadness. The home of my childhood is going away. It has already changed so much I don't recognize it. Such is life. 

Oh, boy. We have a small bidding war shaping up. Wow.

I am waiting for a call from our Long Island realtor.

This morning the phone rang, and I saw it was her. I answered, and she said, "Say you love your realtor a whole lot." I obediently said, "I love my realtor a whole lot. Why, what did she do?" 

She had gotten the first bidder up to a full price offer without even trying. They want the house THAT much. Then, another bid came in, also full price. Now, she is working on them and I believe one other couple to see if it will go higher.

What a relief, particularly if we can close quickly and without issues.

Hope your realtor is able to get you a great offer and a stress-free closing.  Your "to-do" list is pretty impressive.  

Everyone's year should be this good!!   

Peggy, I see you're also posting on the knitters' thread but it's waaaay to long since I checked there. Got any fun projects?

I think we will have a full-price deal at least. My only worry is what might turn up at inspection. The house is rather old, and Mom neglected things a bit the last decade or so. She couldn't handle it, and she was always indignant when we offered to help.

Joanne, I have made a few things recently, but have gotten out of the habit of taking photos or even talking about them. Right now I'm working on a tubular scarf/wrap made of sock yarn in a soft blend of wool, silk, and cashmere. It is light and airy and can be worn as a scarf or pulled over the head and shoulders as a kind of hooded cowl. At least, that's the plan! I sort of invented it. I love the yarn colors... Kind of like a red maple in the fall, with shades of burgundy, Amber, and cedar. 

Sounds dreamy! And a pleasure to fondle too.

Just catching up with you, PeggyC. Happy New Year. I'm trying to get to South Orange for January 27th so I can sing MoTown with the community group (SOMA Sings, I think). I like your hutch in that room. I hope your brother is doing okay. And I am glad your mom's house is garnering full-price. Some terrific progress!

Yes, things are whipping right along.

The last word on Mom's house is a full price offer from a guy who grew up about four doors down from us. He was a few years younger, so my brother and I did not know him, but Mom knew his parents. His mother still lives in the house four doors down, and he desperately wants to buy ours so he can be near enough to help her as she gets older. Karma, right?

My brother is actually sounding happier than he has in years. I suspect his marriage was not very happy. His divorce will be final about the same time we close on the house sale, and he has been seeing a nice woman for a couple of months now.

Incredible stuff going on! But all good for the moment.

Oh, hell. I am thinking it might be Tigger's time. She is ancient, although we aren't sure just how old any more. At least 18, most likely more. 

She has been seeming very stiff in the hind legs for some time, and confused. Her fur is falling out in patches. Tonight, she tried to go to the bathroom in her bed instead of making any attempt to get to the litter box.

I shut her in the bathroom for a little bit, so she can do what she needs to do. I put her bed in there with her, but she started crying to be let out. She pooped on the kitchen floor.

So I let her out and put puppy pads under her bed. She is having trouble settling down, though. I think I'll have to shut her in the laundry room tonight when we go to bed so she doesn't ruin furniture or a rug.

Meanwhile, she isn't eating much. I guess tomorrow I will have to take her to the vet and see what they make of it. 

I so don't want to do what I can see coming...

Sending hugs. And hopes it's just a small, easily fixed thing. 

This is such a hard winter, for so many.

Sorry Tigger is not doing well. I know how upsetting it is. Sending good wishes your way and hope everything turns out for the best.

It makes me feel a little desperate, because nothing would be easy to fix with this cat. She is feisty to the max. She won't let anyone handle her, so pilling or giving liquid medication is out of the question. And she is cutting way back on food, which for her is NOT a good sign, and that means I lose another avenue to deliver medication. I have worried for a long time that if her kidneys fail, sub-q fluids won't be feasible for her. She fights absolutely everything.

Breathe.    with luck the vet can give a big booster shot of something that will set her straight enough until another major problem comes along.  

Hugs.

 >< 

So sorry that you are going through this. It's never easy.

She is actually doing a bit better today. I got up holding my breath, wondering what I would find when I came downstairs, but all was peaceful and clean.

Still, every day I see evidence that it won't be long. Ain't anxiety fun?

I keep wanting to write 'she's a tough old bird' but I know that's just soooo wrong!!