…to Adam. Isn’t this heading pic fabulous? It is one of my favorites. Adam continually scouts out places that are undergoing renovation or are being demolished…looking for the unusual or interesting. He was so taken with this place which was actually in our deteriorating downtown area, that he and Suzanne contacted a local bride they had shot recently to come and have another pic made there. She was excited and so were they. He went down to check his lighting before she came…and it was already torn down…gone forever…except for this wonderful pic. They were all so disappointed. It is actually the space between 2 old buildings they were taking down.

Thanks, Adam, it looks terrific!

Today’s the day…I have to get back in the routine of school. Wow, much has transpired since we started Christmas vacation. I sort of wish I had another week..or month!
By the way…it IS warm enough to wear short pants here today!

By the way #2…I WILL get the Christmas header down soon…my computer mastermind of such things has been very busy…watching washing machines! 🙂 Love you, Adam!

Every time we return to the former house, we find dirty clothes! So, my new washer and dryer have been getting a real work out! It is one of these new front loading kinds, and so far, it seems to be working well. I never seem to see any water in the clothes, however…so I’m not sure what it uses!

Today, Adam came by and visited with Alex for a while, then I heard him call me from the other room. “Mom, have you watched this washing machine work?” he said. As a matter of fact, I had not. I just throw my clothes in and leave…believing it will do what it says it will do! But, I got up and went into the laundry room. There, sitting on a step stool right in front of the washing machine, sat my 33 year old son. Head in hands, he was watching the washer as it went through the cycles. I laughed and asked him if he knew how he looked sitting there in front of a washing machine fascinated by its operation. He laughed and said that he had just never seen one like this before. Then he began to tell me the things he had observed sitting there…and I found my self getting pulled into this show in the laundry room. Yes, I pulled me up a stool, too, and together we sat there amazed at how this thing was cleaning with so little water! It turns one way and stops and then turns the other. He discovered that the timer that sets at the beginning of the load, does not just count down. It adds minutes sometimes, too. Why do you suppose it does this? Do you think it senses the clothes are not clean enough? And how does it know this? I suppose it must be like those electric blankets that ‘sense’ when you are warm enough and then turns itself down. That kind of thing just rattles my chain. I know when I am warm enough and I think I know when my clothes are clean enough. Or maybe I just always thought they were.

Oh, well, this is waaaaay more thought than I ever wanted to be giving laundry today. But, the point of this post is not what the new washer and dryer can do. It cleans and dries clothes…that is enough for me to know. But, this boy of mine…the one who is most like me…has my temperament…and my eye for the unusual. (Yes, there are some ‘not so great’ qualities he got from me, too…but, let’s just not think about that. M’K?) He took the time today to sit and marvel at the intricate working of a machine. Something about that fascinated him. Something about the workings of it intrigued him. And, I am proud as can be to say that he took the time to sit right there and marvel at it for a little while. Don’t we all get so caught up in our busy-ness that we have little time left for WONDER? Do we just let it all pass us by, and accept that it is something new…but, forget to marvel at the minds of men and women who continually reinvent the products we use?
Do we think we will seem ‘childish’ if we express that wonder?

Well, Adam, never, never, NEVER lose the sense of wonder! It will keep your mind alive…it will make your soul sing…and it will bring a smile to your face. Thanks for reminding me of that today.
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EDITED TO ADD: My sweet DIL just told me that this washer ‘knows’ that the soap is not out of the clothes and that is why it adds more time. Maybe I am using too much detergent. Thanks, Suze!

Do you want to repaint your living room or kitchen this new year? According to Pantone, the company that aids designers by predicting future color trends, yellow is to be the big color for 2009. ?

Here is sit in my studio at 4:22 this morning…Jan 2. It still does not feel comforable to sleep here. Many strange noises and sounds. Also, I find myself waking up and following a path to the bthroom that I would have taken before we moved. I am ending up out in the hall befor I wake up and realize I am quickly becoming senile!

I am very, very happy with my house. It is quickly becoming a home…as I lay in the treasures I have collected through the years. My BFF, Shirley, came over on Sunday fternoon and stayed until Wednesday morning! She lives to have a project! And this was one more project. She can do more that 10 other mere mortals ever thought about doing! She started on my studio shelves soon after arriving, Tina came over, and befor the night was done…so was the studio!! It looks wonderful! It looks fantastic! It looks terrific!

The next morning, Monday, Tina had taken off the whole day, so they had as their mission the Sheep Suite! I have always adored sheep, and have collected some very nice ones through thee years. This guest bedroom is where I decided they would be displayed…thus, the Sheep Suite! The banished me to jobs in other parts of the house such as sorting books in the library, and going through boxex in my closet. They had the fun part! Does this look like a place you could come and spend the night?




Then came Tuesday. Shirley was here alone, cause Tina had to go back to work. I had spent Monday evening separating all the books into categories, and labelling the artifacts to be displayed. But, I was unable to help. I had woke up feeling bad and only got worse as the day continues. So, I hit the couch in the studio. Shirley spent about 5 hours fixing the shelves in the library. They are amazing! Look!






And, in between all the big projects, we worked on the kitchen and dining room, too. Here are some pics of it:










These are NOT the chairs that will go with the table…but some we are using until we get the right ones!
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This is all I have for now…more to follow!