Once Upon A Tide – Page 6 – This Old House 2

Bare wood and the Egg Plant

Stella’s floors are sanded and awaiting a final coat of stain/satin finish – and then… and THEN! when the water is turned back on in April on the island (not really an island as it’s attached by land but it’s called that for some reason) … I get to furnish with all those finds I’ve been sharing with you here and decorate! I’m also looking forward to working out in the little garden areas surrounding the cottage.

After all that joyous springlike weather, today we’ve got snow, with really cold temps on the horizon and more snow, up to a foot in the coming week. Bleh. The dogs and I mope around the house on days like this – I’ll be on the computer most of the day working on two editing projects for our town.

The horses are reblanketed, K and I brought more hay down from the back barn before the snow.

The chickens who live out in the coop have their heat lamp on once again. As for the littles, they’re doing well – all have survived the first week of chickdom and that’s a good thing.

Speaking of the outdoor chicken coop… for the past few days the guys have been renovating it to accommodate the new girls once they’re old enough to join the others. I call this the Egg Plant. The sign I made for it originally rotted with rain, I’ll have to make new one.

Pepper, Ethel, Rose, Ruby and Star, among others, stood around my feet when I first let them out into the newly wired section clucking away, saying.. OMGsomethingNEWwhatisTHISawesomenessBUTisitSafewheresthetreats,Cheeriosmaybe?

I’m pretty sure by the cluster of clucks.

Shelly

So we’ve got a little “driveway” at Stella’s roadside. It was just a dirt patch before, then became a mud hole with all the workman traffic. We debated what to do with that little area and my choice was crushed shells – I have always loved that look when I have seen it at other seaside residences. Cottages aren’t supposed to be formal in my opinion. The shells for me represent a simpler more natural look than pavement or even processed stone. Because we rarely do something without debate in this house (jeez, it’s not just the politics!) … I was under the impression I had lost out on my bid for a crushed shell driveway. Despite my pleas to keep the natural element vibe and not bring in more foreign material that would look too “processed”…. it seemed as if processed stone were going to be delivered to Stella any day, regardless.

On friday we pulled up to the cottage…. lo and behold!… my son and our friend Steve were intsalling CRUSHED SHELL! in the parking spot. THIS… is an indication that sometimes… some times….. when I stand tall and proud and loud in my attempt to do what I know is right in a situation… I am heard.

Nevertheless… she persisted.

Walking on Sunshine

The weather was absolutely glorious today – no jacket required. I loaded Frasier into the Jeep and we headed over to Stella’s neighborhood to get some exercise and dream a little of summer days to come..

There are approximately 140 cottages on the “island” – which is actually connected by land to the rest of the shoreline. Each is unique with it’s own charms. Some are tucked into the woods among the rock outcroppings, some are along the water. I love this one – about five doors down from Stella –

And this… one of the secrets to making a small space look grand is to add large accents – like the

double door here with transom over it and the large deck with spreadout stairs.

There is a lovely house on that island, not seen from this angle. Can you imagine?

After our walk, Frasier and I sat on Stella’s steps at waters edge and dreamed of warm summer days to come, kayak adventures and ……actually right here in this pic he’s very concerned I’m going to make him get in the water. Which I didn’t. Nevertheless, he persisted.

(couldn’t help it)

On the way home I stopped at the local apple orchard farm market and picked up a few fun things, plus some pepperoni for Frasier. My friend Raven had mentioned this find at that same market and I just had to get some for myself… Maple Milk. Then I spied Lavender yogurt… and since I have not found culinary lavender yet other than ordering online, this was the next best thing, as in I get to see what lavender tastes like in food. Right near the Maple Milk was this Beet Strawberry juice… and I’m here to tell ya….

WOW… all three, udderly delicious! Seriously – if you can find any of these in your local stores, well worth the little extra they cost for the treat. And they’re not bad for you either – win win.

I’m not EVEN gonna mention the Orange Scream today – not EVEN after that obnoxious “rally” in Florida. Earth to Agent Orange – Did you get in touch with Sweden yet? They’ve been looking for you since Saturday night’s ridiculousness in search of the terrorist attack on their soil that they don’t know anything about. Also… week four, and you’ve taken three Florida weekends so far – you really didn’t think you were gonna have to actually LIVE in the White House, did ya. Knowing you, you’ll find a way to get out of it. A girl can hope.

Oh Sh*t, there I go again..mentioning things. Would be awesome if he’d just stop giving us reasons, ya know?

Finds for Stella

When we bought the cottage, for a small additional price, some of her “stuff” came with. After purchase we discovered most of it needed to go in the dumpster as mice had taken up residence. A few pieces were reworked. The dining table and chairs were well worn but still in good shape other than refinishing. We know a woodworking guy who has a nifty machine that -sprays- a refinish on furniture, cabinets, etc. The finish is beautiful, better than I could have done with a bucket of paint and a brush. We figured the cost to have him do it would be cheaper than buying a new table and chairs, although indeed more money than if I had done it myself.

Well. That’s not exactly how it went. While it looks terrific!… turns out the cost was the same as if I had gone out and bought a new table and chairs. One would think the person doing the work would let you in on that before you commit to it…as the whole purpose was to save money. Live and learn. At least it’s one less bulk of furniture clogging a landfill, right?

Now that we’ve got both bedrooms squared away except for mattress purchase, we still need a couch and chair for the sitting area. Do you call it a living room when the whole cottage could fit in a living room? I am loving this tiny house nation we have joined, really loving it. Right now progress is at a halt until the weather warms. That’s when we’ll get to finish varnishing walls and sanding and restaining floors. With the water shut off for the season, I can’t even wash down the bathroom and kitchen. So…..

I love Homegoods – always find something unique and cool and usually for a very good price. A few days ago I needed some retail therapy even though the wallet would beg to differ. Why not go scrounge around for a few ‘house warmers’ for the old girl. My goal is to not have much clutter, and most things should be functional. Also, if they can have meaning, even better.

Find No. 1 – the bedding is going to be ivory and neutrals with a navy bedskirt. My mom and I are born and raised (Staten Island) New Yorkers, even though we moved to CT long ago. She will be spending much time at Stella too – I was looking for a nautical pillow or two, but this one is even better – It’s a good size, so no need for more. Meaning, functional, attractive – score!

I got this big blanket basket and soft seafoam colored blanket for under $40. Who can’t use a little cozy now and then.

I’ve tried, but can’t seem to close this post without chirping about that insane rant by the President yesterday. Holy cow, he’s come undone. If you don’t think so, I got nothing. This is way beyond differences in policy ideas, tightening the security belt, swinging over to the right. For anyone to think it’s OK to behave and speak and slander and lie in the ways that he does as PRESIDENT OF THESE UNITED STATES, that’s just not digestible no matter how you try to spin it. I’m not even gonna bother getting into the details. I’ve learned it just doesn’t matter – if you choose to turn a blind eye, you will be blind. Me? I will keep my eyes wide open.

*sigh

Cookie Love and another great find

I love cupcakes and cookies. My friend Raven shared these on her blog and I have stolen them to share here and on FB too. Terrible thing, but she tolerates me anyway 🙂 We’ve got more snow falling today so I plan to bake these for my people as a Happy Valentine. I do need to go out and find some culinary Lavender.

We checked on Stella yesterday, oh, how I look forward to showing you the progress. We’re at the stage where all that’s left is to refinish the floors – and then I get to furnish and decorate! We found a beautiful bedroom set at a local junk hunting treasure pot, same place I found Edith’s Chair… this time, an Ethan Allen Maple Queen bed and dresser for the second bedroom. An elderly woman had moved out of her large home and wanted to sell much of her furniture. It had been kept beautifully, we got a screaming deal.

My boy built this Clamming Rack for his new hobby – last year he discovered his love for clamming and now has the perfect spot in a great little clamming cove to keep all his “stuff”. Seeing this in place yesterday kinda made my day. Bigly.

If you haven’t caught Melissa McCarthy as Sean Spicy yet, oh, please do. Easy to find on google. I haven’t laughed that hard in ages.

Till soon, Friends….

Hello Operator

So.. you know those bar stools I was searching for to go with Stella’s new raised counter? Anything I found that was “new” was either cheaply made and didn’t feel like it would stand the test of time or the price was ridiculous. ($400 each).

Yesterday the Mr. and I took a ride to a local favorite vintage finds place, the same place I found the rocking horse I revived. More on the rocking horse HERE . It’s called the Trove, and for good reason. It’s full of old treasures and I always find something to love. Not only did I score a few pieces of vintage corning ware in excellent condition in the perfect shade for Stella…

.. but as soon as I walked into the second building in the rear, these two lovelies were standing at attention, just waiting for me.

I could not contain my excitement – I’m sure the gasp was audible across the entire warehouse when I spied No 12 and No 16 right there inside the door. These are genuine Western Union Industrial Switchboard Operator Chairs that had been in use up until the 1940’s when they were replaced with a more modern design. They’ve got obvious wear and will need some caning work and brushing up of their metal. Now, because of that audible gasp, I don’t know for sure how much of a deal we got. The price tag said $475 for the pair – ugh. And the guy already knew I was smitten. (This is where the husband rolls his eyes and wishes I had stayed outside). He did what he always does to counter balance my obvious love for the object of my affection.

Way too much for it, look at the work needed. Nope, lets move on.

And with an audible sigh from me, we do.

After scrounging around for a while longer in the rest of the warehouse, we have to pass No 12 and No 16 on the way out. M walks right past them and I lean over the counter to the owner and say – Is that really the best you can do? Ikea is the next stop. He laughs and says – I can knock off $100. I reel the Mr. back in and ~~beg~~ ask if he’ll reconsider for a lesser price. No 12 and No 16 are now in the garage waiting for a little restoration work by me and hopefully a reasonable caning refurbisher.

Western Union is a financial services and communications company. Until 2006, It was the best known US company in the business of exchanging telegrams. According to Wikipedia, Western Union dominated the telegraph industry in the late 19th century, was the first communcations empire and set a pattern for American style communications businesses as they are known today.

Imagine the history the women seated in these chairs have witnessed.

As we drove home with our new treasures in the back of the truck, M said – “Always feels good to me, using something made long ago, something that stood the test of time, that can serve further purpose.”

They really don’t make things like they used to.

Counter Action

The marble was installed yesterday in the kitchen area and Stella’s little interior is really beginning to pull together. The walls have been washed down with Simple Green (I hate the stuff, something about the smell is revolting to me. Anyone else feel the same? ) and now the floors are begging for attention. The carpentry inside will be done today and we’ll sweep the old girl out before the painters arrive.

It occurred to me we have nothing besides a broom to pick up dirt and sand at the cottage – and the budget is currently screaming STOP – so I’m going to the Oreck dealer down the road to ask if they have any reworked old model vacuums I can buy cheap. We’ve got to get all that saw dust up so that everything can get a fresh coat of paint. Then.. we can decide what needs to be done with the floors – probably a sanding and new stain.

I’m also looking for two bargain bar stools. Fell in love with a bunch in Frontgate catalogue – way out of our price range – in another orbit completely. Maybe Ikea? In my junk hunting adventures, I have not found bar stools anywhere.

Let’s all pause for a moment to gaze at that sink in adoration……

This is the carrara marble we were able to get from our stone source. As I mentioned before, we’ve used this in homes a lot because it’s very durable, goes with a lot and used to be affordable. Naturally we thought it was a good choice for Stella’s kitchen counters until our Stone guy said.. “Well it would have been a good choice but currently the Italians are pissed at us and the cost has tripled. ” What did we do to the Italians? We’re Italian, does that help? A few days later he called with good news, he found a chunk in his warehouse and the cost was reasonable.

A picture of carrara marble in a stone quarry in Carrara, Italy…

The whale knocker has been reinstalled on the door, which needs another coat of paint. That’s Gerard the whale right there- why do I name so many things? Not sure – I’ve had that habit ever since childhood. I still have my collection of little tiny glass animals that lived in a shadow box for many years. On the bottom of each tiny figure are the names assigned, scrawled in pencil.

I was going to end this post with another political rant.. but I’m tired of my own exasperation and I need to set it down for a bit. There’s an adoption even today and tomorrow – I will try like hell not to bring a dog home, the struggle is real.

Till soon, friends…

Be the Light

Yesterday after spending hours at the computer editing for our local publication, I called the Mr. and said – What do we need for Stella, I want to get out of the house for a while. As it happens, we need light fixtures. Not my favorite chore. Why? Because THE VOLLEY. You see.. even though I’m left with the relatively simple instructions to get a single sconce bathroom light for over the sink, a work area light for over that whole kitchen area that has no light needs five foot chain, and get a cheap paddle fan with light kit… and he clearly states pick whatever you think will look good there….. it never happens that way.

Having been married to a builder for roughly 29 years, and he’ll agree with me the word roughly applies, we’ve traveled down this road many times, whether it was our own house or someone elses. (where is the comma there, I’m not even gonna look it up, and I call myself an editor).

I go to the shop and take a look around. I see what I think will be perfect and sit down with the shop owner to discuss price and suitability for the space that will require the light. I even bring pictures of the work spaces because I’m that kind of special. We get most of the way through, and then of course….. there’s a question I can’t answer knowing for certain I gave the right information. I have to make the call into the powers that be. That would be He.

He provides the answer.. and then says the words I knew were coming….

but what is this for exactly.. let me see what you’re picking.

My nose starts to twitch as I send the requested photo from my phone. The texting ensues…

Him: No. Too contemporary.

Me: What? This is an antique replica.

Him: It probably cost more than the entire cottage! Too nice! What else…

Me: Ok how about this…

Him: That’s an exterior light fixture, this is for inside.

Me: Yes I know, it’s also for interior use and I think it would be perfect for that spot. Mr. X says so too…

Him: No. What else..

And so it goes. Suddenly, Mr. X seeing my frustration, points up into a corner of the showroom and says – you know.. THAT one would work but I don’t know how you feel about the look.

Ah, we have a winner. And the price was just right.

This fixture will hang from the ceiling (which is the peak of the roof) of

Stellas “kitchen” area.

Meanwhile.. back at the ranch…we’ve had some very soggy weather lately. I’m not complaining one bit, soggy is better than heavy snowfall and bitter cold. I did some cleaning of the barn, coop and hutch yesterday morning and it felt good to tidy up.

Ruby thought it might be fun to tag along in the gator but actual motion changed her mind.

My 94 year old neighbor stopped by for a visit – She still lives in the home she raised her five boys in, just across the street. Her son pictured here is such a good man – lives hours away and comes weekly to check up on mom and get things done around the house. He cooks for her friends on occasion too. When weather permits, she loves to take rides around the woods on his quad.

When I grow up I want to be like Margaret.

I’ve been a little dismayed at the bitterness I have seen on the internet lately between women who didn’t approve of the Women’s March on Washington and those who attended or supported it. A good friend of mine said she was really offended and didn’t need anyone marching for her rights. She felt women are damned lucky in this country, we have many rights that women of other countries don’t have and we don’t need to be “like men”. *sigh. She felt I was stuck on myself because I have opinions and I express them openly. Those particular words admittedly stung. I thought about it for a while – am I a conceited idiot who thinks her views are the only way? The answer to that is no. Are my intentions always good regardless of the topic? I can say whole heartedly YES. I’m not one to shut up, and I won’t apologize for caring and having a big mouth that expresses it.

As for the March – I’ll tell you what – If women didn’t march in our recent history, we wouldn’t be voting, we wouldn’t have our own credit cards, we wouldn’t be able to take out our own mortgage, we wouldn’t have access to affordable womens health care, and a myriad of other freedoms we now take for granted. There are still issues we face, and this March in particular was about many different things. I have no problem with women who don’t want to get involved – we all have to choose our battles. What I don’t understand is the offense taken. I truly believe if you know in your heart you are doing whatever you’re doing in the hopes of improving things for all, you’re on the right track in life. I’m not going to apologize for it.

Till soon, friends –

Visionary

Saturday was a misty dreary day here in New England. As the peaceful protests happened all over the country and I watched with admiration from afar, we took a drive down to Stella to see the progress the men had made during the week. When I stepped inside, I just smiled big and breathed deep and easy. Already, Stella gives me the restorative peace I need.

Remember the cedar trees a few posts back? My son and a friend stripped them and they replaced two smaller beams that hold up the center of the cottage. The new stove was delivered and this week the carrara marble our stone guy found in his warehouse will arrive too. The walls will remain the stain you see, but currently when we run a hand along the walls, black soot comes off. They will get a good washing down, then a new coat of stain/varnish. The cabinets will get a coat of a creamy white, as will the red cabinets you see under my beloved farmhouse sink.

Side note: My husband has lost 15 pounds on the Nutrisystem diet so far – he’s doing really well. Me? just a few.. still. I have an issue with snacking in between. *sigh. I will not stay on the Nutri thing though – really not enjoying all the gluten in the meals – now that I know the portion size and calorie intake, I will prepare fresh food and try to stay within the same plan as nutrisystem. We both feel better already, partly because of the increased water intake, less food consumption and more exercise we have both committed to.

My son spent a good part of a day moving some of the furniture around to where it will actually live… it was piled up in the “master” bedroom while the guys worked around the cottage doing the structural stuff..

That was then..

… .this is now.

The table and all those chairs came with Stella… we’ll strip and repaint the kitchen set before the season starts, as their finish is rubbing off in places.

The window trim and handles are complete.. grills installed in windows on the sides of the cottage. Here you see the exposed ceiling which we decided to leave as is. The bead board installed – we’ll paint that the same ivory white used in the kitchen.

Still much to do… but she’s getting there…

I know nothing stays the same… but if you’re willing to play the game….. It’s coming around again….

Trees in the House

Stella has several support beams that hold the old girl up. They were whimpy at best, and the Mr. had a brilliant idea…..

I love bringing some of the outside in when decorating/rebuilding. In our farmhouse, that meant the family room/mancave fireplace constructed of stones found in our fields and woods. Two cedars from those same woods have been stripped of their shaggy bark and will be used as support beams extending floor to ceiling and as ceiling beams. Despite our extensive resurrection efforts, we want Stella to retain some of her rustic cabin charm. This addition will add to the cottage life vibe.

Where the old range and refridge once stood, we’ve ripped out the wall that made it all feel a bit claustrophobic and yesterday two cabinets were delivered. Along that newly built half wall will be the range, a work space, and a raised eating bar with room for two bar stools. The stone guy met with the Mr. yesterday to discuss what he might have in the warehouse to fit that space. We’re looking for economy left over scraps to keep the cost down. We were thinking of carrara marble, it’s Italian stuff that normally we can put in a house for a relatively low cost. Apparently we’ve pissed the Italians off somehow and they’ve tripled the marble cost. SO, he’s going to scrounge around and see what he can come up with in his warehouse.

The stone guy said – why don’t you just get rid of that old sink –

Are ya kidding??? Some people just don’t see the beauty in old things. For me, that sink is Stella’s Tiara. When we first visited Stella with a hope of making a good impression with her previous owner, that was the first thing besides the water view I noticed and fell in love with – her sink!

Last for today, ’cause I gotta be me…

Several of my friends are going to Washington to participate in the March. I’ve made a donation and my name is on several posters but I won’t attend, mostly because of my fear of attending large charged crowds with a big hearing impairment disadvantage. I don’t know that I am a fan of large masses of people in protest, seems like someone always gets hurt. However, I’m not one to shut up, either, as witnessed here on my blog. I am so glad people are standing up to say THIS IS NOT ACCEPTABLE, WE WILL HOLD YOU ACCOUNTABLE, WE ARE PAYING ATTENTION. At the very least, there’s that.

*sigh. Onward….