Closets

Last year I saw a post from someone, can’t remember who or where, that had started a project to clean out closets.  I’ve done pretty well with our bedroom closet over the past, oh, I don’t know, five years or so, but the other closets were getting pretty out of hand.  I am not someone who hates to throw things away, but it takes me a while. 

So this weekend, I tackled a couple closets.  “Why two at once?” you might ask and I wish I had an answer for that cause it created a lot of chaos.  I just found I needed to move one thing from Closet A to Closet B but that meant I had to make room in closet B and so it began.  

Closet A had a lot of old pictures from my kids high school days in it.  So,  of course I had to sit down for an hour or so and look at those.  Closet B had some childrens books so, of course, I had to sit down and look through those.  I prepared a box for Goodwill and prepared a bag for trash.  I stacked some things for recycling and re-stacked closet shelves.  I was feeling not so bad about the progress.  I managed to condense some boxes and move some cardboard out.  Good for me.  Until I looked at the guest room bed.  I started placing things that needed yet to be determined on the bed.  Old coats, gloves without mates.  Hangers.  My broken reindeer, which is a sore subject around here, and I can’t seem to get rid of it.  

To add to all this chaos, I also sorta started on Closet C.  I began to wonder how this person who posted that she cleaned one closet a month or whatever it was, did it.  I decided to move some cleaning supplies from Closet A to the laundry room (yes, I agree, the laundry room makes much more sense.  Why would anyone put cleaning supplies in Closet A?) But, I needed to do a little spruce up of the area where the cleaning supplies were going.   What’s that? Two empty laundry detergent jugs? Really?  Well, that’s going to mean they need to be turned upside down in the bathroom sink to make sure I get every last drop of detergent out.  Oh, goodness...look at that toilet, I really need to clean that.  Where are the cleaning supplies again? Why don’t I just go ahead and create room in this bathroom closet here for the cleaning supplies I need in here.  Oh, me oh my.  Is that a load of towels that need to be folded? I’ll just throw them on the guest bed and get back to that later because right now I need to scrub the toilet, make room for cleaning supplies, wipe down the laundry room floor, and good gravy the laundry detergent jug just fell over and now, the detergent I was trying to squeeze out is running down the sink drain so I didn’t get it anyway.  

And there are towels on the bed, on top of the coats and the books I pulled out for the grandchildren but need to clear a space on the end table shelf.  All the while, I am making a mental list of the decorating ideas I am coming up with but have yet to share with hubs, who has walked through the house grumbling about lunch a couple of times.  I have also made a list for him, yet to be sprung, and it begins with my broken reindeer.  I am about to make his day. 

Anyone who has known me or my family for any length of time, or who lived in our neighborhood, knows that we had a great family dog named Seymour for 15 years or so.  He was a delight.  A good dog through and through with one brown eye and one blue, and we loved him.  

We haven’t wanted another dog for a variety of reasons but I started really wanting a dog a few months ago.  Hubs was not as convinced as, well, we had a lot of freedom, he said.  We can just go whenever we want.  I bought that for a long time.  Until I realized we never just go somewhere, anywhere.  We just stay.  

I spend a lot of time on my own and decided a small dog is just what I wanted.  One that will ride in the car when we do “just go”, and one that will love the grandkids and not bark, and not make a mess, and won’t shed so much.  In other words, the perfect dog. 

Needless to say, its been a struggle.  I have found a couple dogs that were close but either too expensive, too old, too big, or, in more than one case, too sick.  But, I kept looking.  

I found my dog! I have a friend who posted on facebook that she had a friend looking for a good home for her small, young, polite and adorable yorkie dachshund mix.  Oh my word.  She is so sweet, so well behaved, so pretty.  She’s my dog! 

I picked her up today from her heartbroken owner.  The owner just felt giving her up was in the best interest of the dog.  She loves her and I was sad for her but after spending some time with her, I agree that her decision to let her dog go was the best for her.  She carried the little dog to my car and now, she has her home with us.   Grandkids will love her, she hasn’t barked a peep and she is perfect.  

I am so happy! 

Now that gets my goat!

I sorta hate the media..the press…news. I don’t usually say that I “hate” something. Well, wait a minute, yes I do. I say it all the time.

I am not, I repeat, NOT, voting for Mitt Romney.  Secondly, I am really riled up over the media reaction to this Hilary Somebody who said in referencing Mrs. Romney that “she never worked a day in her life”. That led all sorts of people to respond to her statement – including Mrs. Obama for crying out loud - that stay at home moms deserved some respect, and of course they “worked”.

I am pretty sure that’s not the point Hilary Whoever was trying to make. I think she was talking financially and how Mrs. Romney could not relate to struggling families economically. I am pretty sure she was talking about Mrs. Romney being a woman of privilege ~ a whole lotta privilege. A ton of privilege. It had nothing to do with her parenting choice for crying out loud, or whether homemakers, mothers and others, deserved respect for what they do.

Why oh why are we so quick to jump all over a statement, take it out of context, change its meaning and run a dang presidential campaign on it? It matters not whether Mrs. Romney is a stay at home mom or goes out to perform neurosurgery at the crack of dawn, the point Hilary Whosits was making was the woman is golden. She has been since hooking up with ol’ Mitt, the multi billionaire, and maybe even before but, I’ll be honest, I haven’t bothered to check. They are rich for goodness sakes…stinking rich and she lives a completely different life than the rest of us…or to quote Hilary Unfortunate, “Lets face it”.  She may not relate well to you and me. You know any stinking rich people? STINKING rich? I think you may find them a bit out of touch with daily financial struggles…just a guess cause I don’t know any STINKING rich people of the Romney’s level.  

Gosh, I hate media manipulation almost as much as I hate political manipulation. For goodness sakes is there anyone in their right mind who doesn’t agree with the statement that Mrs. Romney has never “worked” a day in a purely financial reference, which was the dang point? I am so incredibly outraged that female politicos all over this country including Mrs. O, who is one of my faves, are twisting this statement into some sort of platform on which to set up camp. Do you really think Hilary Stepped Right In It was disparaging stay at home moms? Seriously, do you? If you do, have you even bothered to listen to the whole presentation or are you reading the ONE sentence and listening to pundits who are manipulating the interview and creating a national fallout in defense of stay at home moms everywhere? How ridiculous. You know what she meant. Stop making this a statement about something it was clearly NOT about. The woman is filthy rich. Filthy with it. Talk about dumb…this debate has been about the dumbest I’ve heard since Alexander Haig said he was in charge. Do not manipulate me. I won’t stand for it.

Here it is!

Spring.  This is the real spring, not the spring we just experienced that was really the oddest winter on record.   I am very grateful for the odd winter as, well, I started that job, you know,  and the one thing I feared was my drive in the winter.  Well, I didn't fear it, I'm not that kind of gal...but I did not want to do it.  Typically, if I don't want to do something, I don't.  Glad it worked out for me! 


Life is very pretty looking out my window.  I love sunshine, I love flowers and I love the lake when its quiet.  I love the light at dusk and how the flowers seem to absorb all the light possible throughout the day and for that very short time period,  just glow at dusk.  I love when its grey out, the whites are so white.  Like the swans that station themselves just off our shore line when the lake is quiet.  


 The flowers seem to have taken off and everything is blooming at once instead of on "schedule".   It makes the yard look amazing, riotous even.  It will change as the blooms start to fade all at once, too, I suppose,  but for this week...well, its fantastic.  


Spring has sprung, ladies and gents.   I hope you are able to get out and bounce around in it! I will! 

Turns!

I have been away from my blog but have a very good reason ~ a new grandson! He’s super and sweet, a bit of an early arrival but all okay! 

My life has taken so many turns and some days I am surprised by where I am.  The other day, I was thinking of my age.  I’ve written about my age before and its not something that I get super hung up on or anything but, I am really surprised by my age at times.  Even more surprised by my hubs age! Seriously, I am married to an old man.  Not really but when I hear him say something along the line of “Now that I am almost 60...” I think to myself “Wow, he’s old” and have to remember that although younger than him, I am not far behind.  Now, I’m a grandmother to three beautiful babies and I am surprised at the turns it has taken to get here.  But, here I am! 

A few weeks ago, our son and his beautiful fiancee arrived to stay with us for a few weeks.   We talk weddings and we talk jobs, music, travel.  They will be here only until she moves on to her next assignment as a travel occupational therapist.  In the meantime, we are enjoying the time and learning more about the boy we raised that is now a man.  Speaking of age, it surprises me when I think about this soon to be 32 year old that is my boy!  He said to me yesterday “I use to ride my bike all over town” and I realized yes, when he was 15...and that was a very long time ago.  

The big benefit that comes from them being here, however, is the cooking.  He’s a fine cook and she’s as creative as can be.  She thinks “Well, why wouldn’t that be good in there?” and in the dish it goes.  She is also a vegetarian, which brings a new and exciting element to our evening meals.  Several times in the last couple of weeks I have come home to surprises from them at the table.  

We all know how boring our weekly menus can become...cooking the same thing week after week.  But, with them here, it’s shaken things up a bit and may even challenge me to think a bit more creatively for the menu, as I want to be considerate of her vegetarianismness..(yes, I made that word up).  

One day last week I reported at work that I went home the night before to find falafel and salad and other yummie goodness.   We talked about how nice it was to get home from work, find the meal ready, tasty and different. One of my favorite co-workers stomped her foot and said “I want a vegetarian to come stay at my house!”  So, there’s my challenge to you...invite a cooking vegetarian to stay at your house! You won’t be sorry! 

Spacey

The space exhibit at the art center where I work is coming down next week ~ it's been up since January and leaves March 11.  I'll miss it.  We have had about 700 school children visit this last two months, the center is often alive with little voices.  


The great thing about our center is that it is both art gallery and art education.  There are classes there almost every day and we have a close relationship with Michiana Industries and Social Learning.  We host social events and sponsor the summer art festival, which is in its 35th year.  It's an all around great place. 


I hope more of my friends and family are exposed to art in their community this year.  Whether its coming to see our center or another location, expose yourself to some art.  Last week, we had a young man playing his cello in the gallery which houses the Earth from Space exhibit and it was awesome.  To have the music and the images together.  Well, now, awesome is a word but it's not even close ~ it was goose bumpily.  


I remember being hesitant to visit something I was not familiar with...an art gallery? Okay, I'll give it a shot.  It made me apprehensive.  What if I don't look like everyone else? What if I don't fit in? But art, and art education, is for everyone.  Even you. 


Our local media did a fabulous job, along with our director of marketing, of getting the word out to people about this exhibit and we have seen many new faces.  It's great to hear the "Wow" and "I had no idea this was here".  


My center is supported by donations and grants...not taxpayer money.  We have a membership opportunity as well, with members receiving a couple of little perks for their investment.   Shameless plug.  However, if you are looking for a worthy not for profit to donate to, or want to support art education in your county, let me know and I'll get you some information.  


Come see us at Lubeznik Center for the Arts before space moves on; or come see us when the circus sideshow exhibit goes up in about a week! Long live the arts! 

Bring on the chickens

If you are like me and have been married for more than, oh, let’s say 15 or 20 years, then you may need new stuff.   A few years ago I replaced all my towels.  My old towels went in to the rag basket, making hubs a happy man and my new towels, purchased one or two a pay period over a few weeks, went in to the linen closet.  This made me happy.  I also replaced a set or two of sheets,  when they were on sale and when the color was right.  I even bought extra sheet sets! Since the kids were all grown up and out, I even had a guest room. 

My towels are okay as I have since remodeled bathrooms and have a few newer towels and the sheets are holding up just fine.   But, my appliances.  Goodness.  Replaced when the kids were in high school, they are not doing so well.  I have duct tape on the bottom of my microwave door, a broken handle on the fridge and last week an oven knob tumbled to the ground and rolled around my feet.  

That brings me to the television.  A few years ago we purchased, along with dining room furniture and our bedroom furniture, a beautiful oak entertainment cabinet for our modest television.  This again was purchased after saving, planning for it,  and while the kids were in high school...so 10 or 12 years ago.  We’d like a new television, a flat screen to mount on the wall, which would save quite a bit of space in our small living room.  But, what about this beautiful oak cabinet? It’s too deep for the flat screen, too deep for a blanket cabinet, can’t be converted to a china cabinet...but, it can’t be worthless, can it? 

It’s a dinosaur and on one hand, it’s holding me back.  On the other hand, its beautiful, solid, oak and matches all my other furniture.  I’ve talked to the amish furniture makers, where I purchased it, and they said it would cost as much to repurpose the wood as to buy another, more modern and appropriate cabinet for today’s technology.  But besides that, they weren’t really interested in the wood.  

Then I realized that this is how it happens.  This is how things become the antiques of the future.  Have you ever wondered why people in the past put dining room cabinets out in the barn, or out back or even used as firewood?  Why the victrola was in the chicken coop?  I guess I am going to have to get some chickens, so this entertainment center will have a useful life.