More is More. Sometimes.

He who lives in solitude may make his own laws.

(Publilius Syrus)

Got a big packet from Blue Cross, another one from Medicare, and I guess I missed the date to get my SS checks started. This is all too much for me to comprehend, I can barely arrange for my Fosamax prescription to be refilled! Here I am pondering how this happened to me:Note I am wearing my tiara, but the old glasses. I didn't know someone was taking my picture.

Wow, things have been nutty since I got back to Boston. Today a friend from the 1960's came by on her way to Maine with her two grown daughters and husband. She was one of my best pals back then, but she moved to southern CA and put down her roots there. It was so much fun to meet her fabulous beautiful and accomplished daughters and make fun of the Housewives of Orange County. One of the girls was even named for my own daughter because she liked the name so much.

But that was simply a little break of sanity for me. I got on a tear to download more of my stuff and so started sorting through a few cupboards where I knew I had stashed old Ironstone. I loved this stuff in our old Victorian and used pieces all over the house. Since I took 23 years collecting it from one cheap flea market to another, it was kind of special to me and I just couldn't get rid of it all back when we moved. Some went into a storeroom in boxes but most got secreted away in the backs of cupboards so I could visit once in awhile. So now I know I have to deal with it and started getting it all out into the light again and here is what happened:

Ohmigawd...

OK, so I need to be committed. This doesn't take into account the things I have already sold at the yard sales, or the things I took to Florida, or the five chamber pots in the bathroom, or a few other things. I counted over 200 odd pieces (counting a set of plates as 1 item). So then I took little pictures of all of them, yup- one by one little portraits against a white background so I could always have them to look at. And as I was taking the pictures I decided that this was the subject for my new handmade book so kept that in mind as I progressed.

This is not good stuff, only picked because I loved the shapes and the repetition of shapes with like things grouped together. For instance,

Little house salt and pepper shakers- I have two sets, but one set is more beat up than this one. Cute, huh?
A cheese or yogurt strainer. Only have ever seen this one but love it for the conehead.
My match striker. I don't use matches hardly at all, but I'm ready to try and light my fancy pens. This is part of the stuff I keep on my desk: a toast holder for mail, a celery holder for loose pencils and paper clips, this for pens, a stamp holder just to twirl instead of work, and some other loose desky things.
Ironstone ladles, truly one of the most impractical things in my collection. I have three and don't ever even bring them out except for photo shoots- the handles are simply too delicate and it's amazing they have been around for 150 years. Puts alot on my head if they get broken!
One of six little individual teapots that were supposedly made for the railroad. All are different in shape and from two manufacturers, but all have that cute silver tip on the spout.
My (precious-to-me) rubber glove molds that I bought at the Brimfield Fair on a hideous rainy day. I picked out three, and as I was walking away, the table they had been on collapsed and the rest of them went crashing to the ground, smashed forever into the mud. Fortunately for me the guy who I was buying them from saw that I didn't have anything to do with the rubber-glove-mold catastrophy. So they have always had a special SAFE place.
These were little watercolor cups made from Ironstone- they stacked up as high as you want and they have a little lid that sits on top. If you let watercolor evaporate, you can add water and start all over again.
These too were sold as watercolor cups but I think they aren't. They are a little small so I think they had some other industrial use we don't know about any longer. But I have something in mind that no one had ever contemplated- two of these are going to become a book cover for my Ironstone book! Now I just have to figure out how that will ever work...

It has rained pitiously for weeks now- I know many of you are going through the same east coast bout of cold and wet weather, but this is getting absurd. One of the drawbacks is the poor doggie who cannot handle thunder any more. She turns into stainless-steel-dog, stiff and cold. I have tried soothing her, tried ignoring her, tried distracting her but nothing worked until this:
Molly in her THUNDER-COAT! I saw the ad for this online, and pooh-poohed it like a Sham-wow or a Popiel Pocket Fisherman. But the devil came and infiltrated my brain and I said what the hell, and ordered it. Anything for the poor terrified dog. They said it also works for fireworks. It's basically a nice snug dog tee shirt held tight by velcro straps. At 2 AM it started thundering again, I found her half under my bed and pulled her out to strap this thing on her. I then put her on top of the bed and she was calm and relaxed and even stopped panting in spite of the noise and lightening. Within a few minutes I checked to see if she was still breathing and she was sound asleep. I simply can't believe this thing! It's worth twice the price AND she looks cute in it too!

Through all this I have packed up five huge plastic tubs with fabric and other various stuff, then yesterday my boxes arrived so I got two of those filled up and decided I have to be careful because they get too heavy very easily, I've packed up all the books and magazines where my work is included - two smaller book boxes, and cleared off the bulletin board. I've rolled up all my quilts except the ones that are going to Lowell in a few weeks, and I have sharpened about twenty sets of scissors- many were from my mom's stuff. Believe me, I will never have to buy another scissors. All this stuff is being stacked in the hallway for the movers, and to get it out of my way so I can put together more boxes! Only 18 more to go. In addition I have 15 quilts that are very early and certainly not something I want to hang ever again so I am leaving them here- temporarily stacked under the piano. This place is a disaster area.

There is no companion that is as companionable as solitude.

(Henry David Thoreau)