Sunday, September 18, 2016

Porch Sitting 101

Kate rests on fabric originally $198/yard
Kate and I recently passed a Porch 101 course (see directions below) and it took lots of practice throughout the summer to get it done correctly.

It started with Kate testing the durability of the linen fabric I purchased a few weeks ago. If she lets me, I'm going to have new cushions made for two vintage Haywood Wakefield bamboo chairs that I have been storing in the basement for the past 30 years!  The seating arrangement will be next to a daybed that I purchased recently from World Market.

This will look better, I promise, when the new fabric is applied to the 1950's cushions
And, this will be all be installed in....our new summer cottage! Well, not a cottage exactly, more like a tiny house. Well, not actually a tiny house either. Ok, it is a "park" trailer. Try to focus on the keyword-PARK, not  trailer......Except, that does describe it perfectly. It is a "trailer" that is sort of temporarily parked in a permanent location. It has 640 square feet of living space. After one adds decks, railings, landscaping, and a golf cart, what you have is..... a "home" in a "park." Sigh. I'll show you later.

Nina is on the market :(

Nina tries not to take it personally that she is being sold to the highest bidder
 We just had to admit that we're not rolling stones, or even rolling pebbles. Heck, I have a long history of not moving at all! Same house, same town,  for 29 years. Same favorite vacation destination for more than 50 years (Kennebunkport, Me) and I have to confess, I really am not the adventureous gal you think I am. No, it's true. I'd rather read about the national parks than visit them. I'd rather sit on our newly screened in back porch (see porch course below) than drive a mile down the way to the lake.


back porch

One and only one evening by the bay
Therefore, the Brooks household is going to a summer getaway instead driving a recreational vehicle/motorhome around and we'll see if that fits us better!

This is not to say that it hasn't been an active summer  around here.  In June and July,  I did some library consulting work for the Huron Public Library and enjoyed dipping back into library lingo for awhile.

Dior explores the pet store goodies

I spent a fun week in California with family and got to meet, Dior, mom's new companion,
before heading back to Ohio with Mom for a short stay. In fact, one really cool thing we did was attend a LP record event. That doesn't sound quite right. What we did was go to a studio and sit with a group of 100 people to listen to both sides of the Beatle's Revolver 1966 album. Yep. On a turntable. So cool.

My mom, reading a book on dog training!

My decluttering project took a huge leap forward when I signed up for a booth in addition to a showcase at the Medina Antique Mall in August.

If you see anything you need,  just let me know....

This is not to indicate, in any way, that there aren't still a few things in the basement and attic, and two garages.....After all, I pride myself in writing an honest blog!

Eight ladder back chairs I saved while dumpster diving in 1977
A few weeks ago, Kate had another stay at Medvet when the kidney pills she is on caused a liver infection to surface. This was one day shy of her stay last September for the first of two kidney stone operations in the past 12 months.  Not to worry, tho, even as I am writing this post, Kate is growling and barking at two butterflies in the garden from the comfortable surrounding of the porch.

Kate eyes a butterfly

Jack is doing fine, too, although slowing down due to a bum knee. He is 11 and we discovered he can no longer hear us. I don't mind, Ron somehow doesn't hear me either! Jack, too, enjoys a good porch sit.

Jack is patient and shares with others
Ron passes the front porch course
Ron, never much of a porch sitter, has practiced each morning with a cup of coffee and iPad near at hand! I'm so proud of him.

In mid August,  I headed out to California again. My nephew, Kacey, a Marine in Okinawa, Japan was very ill and I  was summoned to look after my niece, Kelsey, while my brother, David, and his wife headed overseas.

Kelsey and I both love L.A.
With no prior experience as a soccer mom, or any mom at all, for that matter, I valiantly drove my 9th grader to and from school and to and from basketball practice each day. And I provided wholesome meals from around the world.... McDonalds, Starbucks, Maxx's Pizza House, a Cuban restaurant, Rubio's (Mexican restaurant), and Pick Up Sticks (a Chinese restaurant) to name a few of our dinner stops. Breakfast consisted of a quick cup of coffee and her lunch was usually leftovers from the prior evening's repast.

LCpl  Kacey Walker Carlson

I'm happy to report that Kacey and family are now stateside and Ron (who joined me in Ca) and I are both back in Ohio.  Recovery from acute meningitis is a long and difficult path and I have no doubt that my nephew will pursue recovery in Marine fashion.

With only 51 days until Election Day, Paulie and I will soon hit the bricks again for door-to-door canvassing, starting with registering to vote forms, and culminating with driving voters to the polls on November 8.  Here are my campaign promises: I promise not to use Paulie as a human shield from a rottweiler lunging at us from a screen door this time. I promise not to get a speeding ticket on Election Night when driving to the voting sites. I promise not to interrupt drug dealers to tell them all about the importance of showing up to vote and I promise not to go into apartment buildings with posted no solicitation signs. I also promise not to discuss the issues with my family (except for Kate, Jack, AllieCat, Lucy, and, of course,  Emma).

Cat naps are the best!
 I hope you can spend some time on a porch this fall. Kate and I highly recommend it! If possible, bring along a book you have been meaning to start, or finish. Your favorite beverage should be within reach, too. If you have a hammock, feel free to take a little nap. Do not, under any circumstances, do any work of any kind. Failure to observe this dictum will result in flunking our Porch 101 course.