OTHER COOL THINGS is the blog page where I go off topic. In other words, this is a page where I ramble about a wide variety of subjects which have nothing to do with the Cross House restoration or Emporia.

OTHER COOL THINGS is where I might suggest a great new restaurant. Or a movie I enjoyed, or book. Or a favored blog.

OTHER COOL THINGS may — fasten your seat belt — open discussions about dangerous subjects such politics or religion.

OTHER COOL THINGS will, in short, be a page where I ramble about anything which captures my special attention. Like, perhaps, a nice moment I had with my favorite cat Gilda.

I love comments, so please do not hesitate to toss your two cents in, even if you disagree with me.

My blog posts are below. Enjoy!

 

Gilda. My favorite ever cat.

Gilda. My favorite ever cat.

Octagon Progress

      In addition, I am wary of any antique wood tables. I looked but everything I found was either $$$$, too solid, or not a complement to the oak bedroom set. I want the set to stand out AS a matching set. Any additional wood antiques in the room will likely dilute this…

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An Exciting De Lacey Report!

  I wanted the paper for the Long Bedroom, which will be mine. But, it was discontinued like five minutes before I went to order it. Drat! Drat! Two rolls were found on eBay, so I purchased them. My thought was that I could at least do a wall in my bathroom. About a year…

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A DAZZLING ANNOUNCEMENT! Window #43!

When the Cross House was built 126-years ago it had 43 stained-glass windows. This is incredible. Amazing. I do not think I have ever been in a Victorian-era house with so many stained-glass windows. Even more amazing is that that over this 126-year period, with so many many many changes to the house, including being…

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Octagon Bedroom. Mudding Begins!

With my computer landline still being offline, it has been hit or miss if I can post anything by using my smartphone as a hotspot. For most of the day this has not worked but it seems to be working now! So (drum roll, please), I present this post!     And tomorrow? Monday? Two…

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I’m Baaaaaaack!

So, because my landline is down, I thought I was on hiatus until Tuesday, when the AT&T repair person arrives. Then I thought: Could I use my iPhone as a hotspot to “power” the desktop iMac? I can! Hence, this post!        

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Poo!!!!!!!

My internet is down. Till Tuesday! So, no new posts till then. I am doing this one on my iPhone! Happy holidays everybody!

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Octagon Pondering…Nevermind.

Remember everything I wrote in my previous post? Forget all of it. My plans for the bedding were based on the bedding I have used for forty years. But…I have never had a bed from the 1890s. And such beds have footboards.       Rhonda also pointed out something I had not considered. There…

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Octagon Pondering

So, with the bed in place, the new mattress, and curtains, I have been pondering duvets covers. There will be a fabulous Hungarian goose down baffled-quilted duvet, of course, and this will need a cover. The priority is that whatever I select….           I have looked for green/red/blue chenille covers but…

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“Pompeian” fixtures by Lincoln!

  My online vintage lighting store.     For many, many years, I had a set of 1920s lights stuck in storage, by Lincoln. The set needed a ton or work, and I was worried that I would not be able to restore the highly distinctive polychrome finish. But now? Squee!            …

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Octagon Progress!

Recently, I did a “sleepy update“, about the bed in the Octagon Bedroom. Old beds have a common problem: modern mattresses do not fit. However, it turns out that the bed I purchased in January DID accept a modern full size mattress, but not a modern box spring. So, I ordered a custom box spring…

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Housecleaning

With the south facade wrapped up for now, and with the new custom-sized bed arriving Tuesday (!!!!!!!!), today I cleaned out the Octagon Bedroom and adjacent Sewing room. The rooms have been my work station for most of the year and were filled with wood scaffolding, shingles, tools, and general debris. Quite the mess! Now,…

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A Visually Uninteresting Update

When I post a new update, I like to include images which I think y’all will enjoy. Sometimes though, things are happening at the Cross House which are visually…dull. This does not mean to suggest that nothing is happening. Indeed, this week, while visually uninteresting, has actually been quite exciting. But, without exciting images I tend…

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New Kitty…

   

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Shiny Sill!

    In order to get the metal sill covers in place, the bottoms of the vertical trims need to be cut short. Because the bottoms were rotted, I did not reinstall them but replaced them with PVC (the white bits). I will only paint the vertical edges of the new sill. Any paint on…

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Just One Word

Please scroll down…                                    

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Punching Up Crispy

In 2017, I did a post about making the Cross House crispy again. This is a goal vital to me. But, I have been so busy this year on the endless shingle shingle shingle fucking shingle work on the south facade that I…oh, the horror… unknowingly allowed the house to become (me, bursting out crying)…

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Do You Like Being Played?

This is a political post. If interested, please scroll down.                                   Here are some headlines from the last 24-hours. All are from Republicans: Pam Bondi Makes “Fake Ballots” Claim On Fox & Friends Trump Supporter Jenna Ellis And Tucker…

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Be Calm!

This is a political post. If interested, please scroll down.                                               We’ve all been told for WEEKS AND WEEKS AND WEEKS to ignore the early results as it will take time to count…

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My Plumbing Wishlist

I am prepared to order a period-correct custom-made soapstone sink for my 1894 kitchen. And a non-period faucet. But..I hesitate. I hesitate. It is all Walter’s fault. I have never met Walter, but I fell down the rabbit hole of his website. You see, Walter is a vintage plumbing obsessive. He restores and installs. A…

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Send This To Everybody You Know

This is a political post. Scroll down if interested.                                              

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