Other Cool Things

The other day I was sitting at my desk. It was late in the day but still daytime. Then something caught my eye out the window. Oh. Oh! OH! Scampering past was a mother raccoon and SIX babies! SIX! It is unusual seeing them during daylight hours but with SIX babies to nurse I assumed…

  Today I feel shattered. The last time I felt shattered was on 11/8/16. The time before that? 9/11/01. What happened today? Donald Trump announced the US withdrawal from the Paris Climate Accord. This is a big deal. This is a huge fucking deal.     So, as of today America sides with but a…

                                      The new owners who did this stated that they loved the house. “We didn’t want to mess with it.” Huh???????? They messed with every inch. They willfully took every distinctive original feature and threw it away or…

Last night I stepped into my bathroom to take a pee. As I finished this vital task, I stepped away. Then a bit of movement caught my eye. The room was dark, only lighted from the adjacent room. I stared at the wall. What was that? High up on the wall is the toilet tissue…

Are you sitting down? Do you have sunglasses on? Are you drunk? All three are required to view the following. Scroll down…                                     Kelly just posted on her blog, Old House Dreams, the MOST over-the-top, meticulously preserved, eye-popping,…

        Kelly has a lot more images. Be prepared to weep. And rage.    

For a long time, I thought I saw him before I knew I saw him. Just before going to bed each night I would look out through the front window – the nightly ritual. How many species of creatures might be nibbling up the last remnants of food left earlier on the porch for the…

JC blogs about his 1923 Foursquare. He also blogs about fixing clocks. And upholstering fixture. And making fine cabinetry. And other cool old houses. And renovating houses for friends. He is young, too. Disturbingly so for someone with so many talents and so much friggin’ experience. After I read his every post I felt like…

Yesterday, Ashley brought something to my attention. She warned me that I might faint. The warning proved timely.                                                               The house appears in mint condition…

I end most of my days reading a bit in bed before turning off the lights. For seventeen years this ritual was hugely blessed by my cat Gilda. As soon I settled in, with book in hand, she would snuggle alongside the left side of my chest, and drape her paws and head across my…

Travis sent me an email with attached images. He also wrote: “I thought you might enjoy seeing someone screwed up a 1931 kitchen.” Oh. That didn’t sound good. So I, with trepidation, looked at the images. But…WHAT was Travis talking about?                            …

    I just go bonkers over such intact rooms, and at the same time fear that the new owner will tear out all this beauty to “update” the house. Let’s all pray for this Spanish/Deco treasure.    

Yesterday I wrote about the extraordinary arrival of Spot in my office. The poor dear is skittish to an extreme and spends her time in the house mostly hidden. But yesterday she appeared on my desk, and then stepped into my all-too-happy arms. Tonight I was working at my desk when I heard an almost…

I was working to finish the restoration of a 1960s crystal chandelier for a repeat client. It needed to be in a box tomorrow morning for FedEx. While working, Stevie cat sauntered across my desk and bonked against my chest. This, as he recently taught me, was the signal that he wanted my lap. Being…

NOTE: This post is under the heading of OTHER COOL THINGS on my blog. This is where I reserve the right to post about things other than restoration, like about kitties or a movie I liked or, eek, about politics!   During the 2016 election campaign I paid a lot, and I mean a lot, of…

In a previous post I wrote about my efforts to protect the historical narrative of the 1894 Cross House. If X feature is missing, like a bathroom sink/vanity, I will do research to learn what sink/vanities looked like in 1894, and will then go on the hunt for such an item. All the lighting was…

Recently, I mentioned that I had lost 26 pounds. This thrills me. But my pants kept falling down. My belt had no more of those little holes, and about a month ago I began constantly pulling my pants up as I walked around. This was annoying, yes, but the solution was a trip to Walmart…

I can’t watch or read any news right now for I get instantly depressed. Moreover, with being knocked out by a flu, I am also finding it hard to concentrate. A double whammy. So, it was with immense pleasure that I happened upon the website to The Landmarks Trust, a UK-based organization which does something…