If you are a child of the 80's, you might know the song, "It's Just Another Manic Monday." Just like the song's lyrics, "I wish it were Sunday," ring true for me, too.
Oh, how I love Sundays! Take today for example: late September complete with cats napping in the warm sun and open windows with curtains billowing from what is very soon going to be a crisp breeze. I'll take this weather any day, but on Sundays, it "feels" different. Even this room looks different which is saying a lot since during the week I work from home in this very spot. How else can I explain it better than to say that the energy is just different. It's brighter. It's sunnier. It's free-er.
My favorite Sunday afternoons are typically preceded by going to church followed by brunch, preferably with a lovely coffee and a mimosa or two. Think a sunny, informal neighborhood joint and eggs cooked just right. Back in my single days I longed to be married to a man who would enjoy this exact routine as much as me, and I'm so happy to say that we said "I do," so we do (enjoy this Sunday routine, that is)! As a bonus, we even listen to the re-broadcast of "A Prairie Home Companion" on the radio. Oh, utopia!
Once we're back home, out come the flannel PJ pants, t-shirt and those obnoxious fluffy socks with skid-proof pads. Okay, today it was a bit too warm for all the layers, but you get the point. In either case, while I'm sure my husband would prefer something a little less "homey," he lets me indulge.
In my unattached days, I kept the rest of the afternoon quiet so I could listen to my thoughts, the wind rustling through the dry leaves, and the occasional car that whizzes by. Quiet. Sitting on the couch with legs curled under me skimming over cookbooks. Compiling a shopping list. Browsing Pottery Barn and Crate and Barrel sites online, an upgraded experience from flipping through the old-school mail order catalogs. Imagining the possibilities. (Maybe new curtains?)
In my single days, my quiet "I don't have to run day" afternoon extended until about 7:00 PM, just in time for PBS's "Nature" followed by "Masterpiece Theater." Now, with a husband and his love for Hi-Def TV and surround sound, the quiet afternoon is a memory, a compromise of trading in single life for a relationship. Turns out, though, that I like my brunch with coffee, mimosas and my husband better than the quiet, and PBS is better in Hi-Def with surround sound.
Sunday, September 27, 2015
It's Just Paint! Part 2 of 2
Nearly two years went by with no change to my paint color in my living room. The then "new" paint color, even after a lot of changing on my part, never did work. After hours of staring at the wall with a hopeless feeling that things were doomed to end sometime soon, but without an idea on how to make a clean break, a twist of fate turned to my favor...
One Sunday afternoon, I strolled through one of my favorite stores and voila! Out of the corner of my eye, new drapes with lovely horizontal stripes of cream, green, and mocha and a hint of texture caught my eye. Were they the missing link to my decorating dilemma? Within a moment and a quick swipe of my charge card, I was the proud owner of inspiration I needed to solve my "decorating dilemma."
To my amazement and excitement, they fulfilled all my hopes and dreams! Everything finally started to fall into place. Found a new shade of paint called "rich cream" that not only worked with the green wallpaper in my dining room, but also the Mexicana red in my kitchen and over my fireplace. The drapes were indeed the key to my decorating dilemma.
It's amazing what a new coat of paint can do... suddenly things came into focus. A couch I had my eye on for a few years was now mine with another swipe of my credit card, and with the help of some good friends, the flat screen TV was hung above the fireplace, the TV armoire re-purposed, and the discovery of jossandmain.com (and yet another swipe of my credit card) accessorized my living room.
And that was just the beginning! Not soon after updating my living room did I find the perfect color for my bedroom (French white, by the way), and some amazing accessories, some from jossandmain.com but all on sale with more swipes from my credit card, I might add.
For the most part, these changes were easy. It's one of those things that works when the time is right. Admittedly, it did take a little elbow grease and determination to pull it all together, though, but it was all worth it.
The new paint colors and I have been together for awhile now. We're committed, and we're happy. That's not to say we won't have a few bumps in the road ahead of us, but at least I knew I'd make some mistakes. Just like life, it's not the mistakes you make, but how you fix them that matters, so I kept some touch up paint to make things right again, and the friendly staff at Hershfield's kept the names of the colors on hand, so we can always fix as needed.
Seven years and 3 days was all it took to find the answer to the decorating dilemma and to transform my living space. We said our "I do's." While this commitment is for forever, who's not to say that serendipity (the equivalent of popping into a store on a random Sunday afternoon and finding the perfect drapes) will surprise me in other areas of my life. And that once found, there will be a never-ending supply of touch up paint to keep the new finds as exciting and new as the day we met.
It's amazing what a new coat of paint can do... suddenly things came into focus. A couch I had my eye on for a few years was now mine with another swipe of my credit card, and with the help of some good friends, the flat screen TV was hung above the fireplace, the TV armoire re-purposed, and the discovery of jossandmain.com (and yet another swipe of my credit card) accessorized my living room.
And that was just the beginning! Not soon after updating my living room did I find the perfect color for my bedroom (French white, by the way), and some amazing accessories, some from jossandmain.com but all on sale with more swipes from my credit card, I might add.
For the most part, these changes were easy. It's one of those things that works when the time is right. Admittedly, it did take a little elbow grease and determination to pull it all together, though, but it was all worth it.
The new paint colors and I have been together for awhile now. We're committed, and we're happy. That's not to say we won't have a few bumps in the road ahead of us, but at least I knew I'd make some mistakes. Just like life, it's not the mistakes you make, but how you fix them that matters, so I kept some touch up paint to make things right again, and the friendly staff at Hershfield's kept the names of the colors on hand, so we can always fix as needed.
Seven years and 3 days was all it took to find the answer to the decorating dilemma and to transform my living space. We said our "I do's." While this commitment is for forever, who's not to say that serendipity (the equivalent of popping into a store on a random Sunday afternoon and finding the perfect drapes) will surprise me in other areas of my life. And that once found, there will be a never-ending supply of touch up paint to keep the new finds as exciting and new as the day we met.
Sunday, October 20, 2013
First Date
Noon. Coffee shop at the corner of Main and First. I arrive 10 minutes early. You arrive 15 minutes early. You're sitting at a table for two situated against the wrought iron fence that separates us from the crazy world on the sidewalk. It is a warm fall day, with a backdrop of golden leaves on maple trees.
Without any conscious effort, you notice me walking across the street to greet you at the coffee shop. "That's her," you think while taking a last minute account of your appearance. You're little bit nervous, because our witty email banter has led us to this point. You wonder, "Will we share the same chemistry in person?" But, as I approach, your nervousness wanes. The woman that you have been bantering with online is standing right before you now.
You know I am a little nervous, too. While you stand to greet me, you look deep into my eyes and say, "Where have you been all my life?" and lightly kiss my cheek. You can tell that I'm trying to hide my uncontrollable blushing which only grows the more I try to control it.
We sit for a moment in silence waiting for the other to start the conversation, but something in us knows that we both want more than coffee. You suggest a great lunch spot a few blocks over and we spend the afternoon attempting to out wit each other.
Realizing that at some point the first date must end in order to start a second date, we reluctantly wind down our conversation. We stand at the entrance of the restaurant. You, with your hands in your pockets nervously looking around. Me, trying to act normal. You say, "hey, I had a great time." "Me too," I say.
And then who knows...
Without any conscious effort, you notice me walking across the street to greet you at the coffee shop. "That's her," you think while taking a last minute account of your appearance. You're little bit nervous, because our witty email banter has led us to this point. You wonder, "Will we share the same chemistry in person?" But, as I approach, your nervousness wanes. The woman that you have been bantering with online is standing right before you now.
You know I am a little nervous, too. While you stand to greet me, you look deep into my eyes and say, "Where have you been all my life?" and lightly kiss my cheek. You can tell that I'm trying to hide my uncontrollable blushing which only grows the more I try to control it.
We sit for a moment in silence waiting for the other to start the conversation, but something in us knows that we both want more than coffee. You suggest a great lunch spot a few blocks over and we spend the afternoon attempting to out wit each other.
Realizing that at some point the first date must end in order to start a second date, we reluctantly wind down our conversation. We stand at the entrance of the restaurant. You, with your hands in your pockets nervously looking around. Me, trying to act normal. You say, "hey, I had a great time." "Me too," I say.
And then who knows...
Saturday, April 24, 2010
It's Just Paint! Part 1 of 2
It's a rainy Saturday Spring morning in Minnesota. After a couple of really nice weeks and above average temperatures, I guess it's okay. It's a good morning to drink coffee and ease into the weekend.
I admit that I'm feeling a little frustrated thanks to a mess in my condo (or "flat" as I prefer to call it). It all started in February when I thought I should consider repainting a wall in my living room. I've lived here for five years (almost to the day!), and the really long living room wall has annoyed me since Day 1. It's been mostly empty, and I keep thinking one day I'll just get really inspired and figure out what to do with the space. Five years later...
So in February, I thought I should live on the edge and take some radical action. Sitting and wishing wasn't going to change anything, and my muse apparently got a better deal somewhere else. So, I picked out a color, and with reckless abandonment, I just went crazy. Within two nights, I painted the whole wall, and then the next weekend, I painted two more walls.
But here's the thing: I really didn't like the color from the beginning. The rich Tuscan amber color I thought it was going to be turned out to be more like the pasty "fleshy" Crayola crayon color I chose to color white people as a kid. I knew I didn't like the color after Wall 1 was completed, but instead of picking another color and cutting my losses, I made a conscious decision to go to the paint store to purchase an additional gallon of paint. Before I knew it, I had expanded the color around the next two walls. I really thought that if I painted more walls this color, it's Tuscan tones would glow, and I'd like this color as much as I had hoped.
Now I see the error in my logic: Adding more of something you don't like doesn't make you like it any better! However, like in any bad relationship where an investment has been made in hopes for a better tomorrow, I continued to try and make it work. So next up? I thought that removing all my decorative items from the walls, fireplace mantel, and TV armoire might help. It seemed to make sense since now the picture of a map of France looked too green, and the cranberry-colored candles just looked stark against the fleshy color. I relocated the family portrait from the TV armoire over to the mantel, and I switched the location of the Tuscan olive jars (one being the color inspiration). However, a few items were non-negotiable and would stay in place - the mantel clock and the the black and white photo of my sister, mom and me at my sister's wedding.
The Tuscan olive jar that served as the color inspiration faded into the wall (duh! rookie mistake). Rearranging and even removing some of my favorite items including the area rug in the living room and the window treatment I sewed without a pattern did not help the color win me over, either.
The net result...it's never going to work between us. I changed my living room for this color! I turned my back on some of my favorite things! I really, really tried!!! And what did the paint color do for me? Nothing except look good on paper - literally. It just was what it was from the very beginning despite an occasional change in lighting that gave me the illusion of hope.
It's okay that this paint color isn't "The One." That's okay. We had some fun, got people talking and learned something in the process. We'll be friends.
So back to the paint chips. Back to the paint store....this time for just samples vs. a whole gallon. Not sure if the next paint color will stick, but eventually one will. Or not. But this one is definitely not.
I admit that I'm feeling a little frustrated thanks to a mess in my condo (or "flat" as I prefer to call it). It all started in February when I thought I should consider repainting a wall in my living room. I've lived here for five years (almost to the day!), and the really long living room wall has annoyed me since Day 1. It's been mostly empty, and I keep thinking one day I'll just get really inspired and figure out what to do with the space. Five years later...
So in February, I thought I should live on the edge and take some radical action. Sitting and wishing wasn't going to change anything, and my muse apparently got a better deal somewhere else. So, I picked out a color, and with reckless abandonment, I just went crazy. Within two nights, I painted the whole wall, and then the next weekend, I painted two more walls.
But here's the thing: I really didn't like the color from the beginning. The rich Tuscan amber color I thought it was going to be turned out to be more like the pasty "fleshy" Crayola crayon color I chose to color white people as a kid. I knew I didn't like the color after Wall 1 was completed, but instead of picking another color and cutting my losses, I made a conscious decision to go to the paint store to purchase an additional gallon of paint. Before I knew it, I had expanded the color around the next two walls. I really thought that if I painted more walls this color, it's Tuscan tones would glow, and I'd like this color as much as I had hoped.
Now I see the error in my logic: Adding more of something you don't like doesn't make you like it any better! However, like in any bad relationship where an investment has been made in hopes for a better tomorrow, I continued to try and make it work. So next up? I thought that removing all my decorative items from the walls, fireplace mantel, and TV armoire might help. It seemed to make sense since now the picture of a map of France looked too green, and the cranberry-colored candles just looked stark against the fleshy color. I relocated the family portrait from the TV armoire over to the mantel, and I switched the location of the Tuscan olive jars (one being the color inspiration). However, a few items were non-negotiable and would stay in place - the mantel clock and the the black and white photo of my sister, mom and me at my sister's wedding.
The Tuscan olive jar that served as the color inspiration faded into the wall (duh! rookie mistake). Rearranging and even removing some of my favorite items including the area rug in the living room and the window treatment I sewed without a pattern did not help the color win me over, either.
The net result...it's never going to work between us. I changed my living room for this color! I turned my back on some of my favorite things! I really, really tried!!! And what did the paint color do for me? Nothing except look good on paper - literally. It just was what it was from the very beginning despite an occasional change in lighting that gave me the illusion of hope.
It's okay that this paint color isn't "The One." That's okay. We had some fun, got people talking and learned something in the process. We'll be friends.
So back to the paint chips. Back to the paint store....this time for just samples vs. a whole gallon. Not sure if the next paint color will stick, but eventually one will. Or not. But this one is definitely not.
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