I Hate To Shop

When I have to.

I'm not much of a shopper, but it's okay when I'm just browsing and don't actually need to buy anything. I'm an impulse shopper. I buy what I like when I see it, but I wasn't necessarily looking for it. Not that I buy everything I see that I like. I have learned to appraise an object with deliberate consideration and try to determine if it's really necessary to my life.

Usually the answer is no.

But a few days ago I wandered into a consignment shop with my Mom just for the hell of it. We had just eaten too much for lunch and needed to walk some of it off. So we waddled ourselves all the way next door to browse. Y'know, for fun.

We saw some lovely things. I collect cobalt glass and my Mom wanted to buy a set of glasses for me, but since I have no room for them, I declined (see? aren't I good?)

And then I took a little detour and saw this:

I loved it and decided that this mirror I had to have.

So I took some pictures of it to show my husband so he couldn't complain about it if I just brought it home without a consultation.

He liked it! He rarely likes anything I like. So I called the shop and asked them to hold it for me.

It is now hanging in my entryway. And it looks cool, but I have to get used to it because a non-reflective picture was there before and now I have to look at myself everytime I walk by and I'm wondering if this was really such a good idea. Kind of like how I felt after I saw the blue paint on the walls in the bathroom.

OY.

The decisions we have to live with.

That'll teach me to carefully consider my impulse buys.

Pollen Green Day

I can't get over how green it is outside. Most of the trees have sprung their leaves and they're all the bright green of new leaf life. Add to that the vibrant blue of the sky and it's blinding out there in its brightness.

I am eternally grateful to the gods of nasal passages that I do not have allergies related to nature's coming out party. Although I suppose the requisite drugs might make it enjoyable, I don't think it's worth it.

Case in point, last night my son had his first evening of "track camp". He was outside after an early dinner, running the 100, throwing the discus, and tackling the long jump. This revelry lasted about an hour and a half. Later, after a snack, shower, and some reading, while trying to sleep, he started coughing this awful, barking, full body cough that sounded as though all of his insides were being expelled.

Needless to say (or is it?) that none of us got any sleep last night. He couldn't get comfortable in his bed so he slept in ours for awhile. Then back to his. Then back to ours. The night dragged on and the cough kept us all awake.

It was so bad that he stayed home from school today and is currently napping. Something I should be doing as well. But alas, I have forgotten laundry that needs attention. As well as general cleaning because I have company coming tomorrow.

I have to make an effort to clean out all of the spiders who have moved in to the various corners and window sills of the house. They're everywhere, dropping on you without a word of warning.

I think it's too green for them outside too. Unless they just feel like they're less of target for all of the hungry birds out there. We have a veritable food chain around here.

What's for dinner, Mom?

Rotisseri chimpmunk. YUM!

(Oh, please. You don't think I skewer tiny rodents and cook them on a rotisseri, do you?)

Yes, I know this is a cardinal and not a chipmunk. I may be blonde, but I'm not an idiot.

Most of the time.

On Hold

It's dark and damp today, so I opted against touching-up the bathroom in favor of running some errands. The lighting in the bathroom is really bad. Touching up would an exercize in futility.

Lately I find the prospect of errand-running extremely distasteful. I just don't wanna hafta do it. But I did want to pick up a curtain rod for the bathroom, which I did. I was going to get one in white, but it looked to "country" for what I was going for, so I chose silver instead. I went with my gut. I like it, so no regrets there. Yet.

I also wandered into Pier 1, for which I have a gift card. I've had the gift card for years, forgotten for a while, and lately burning a hole in my pocket. And today, during my browse I found an item I never expected to find. A basket - no TWO baskets narrow and tall enough for the little cubbies to the left of the sink vanity.

Oh joy is mine!

Especially when I got them home and tried them for size. They fit! Miracle of miracles. And, thanks to the gift card, they didn't cost me anything. I LOVE that!

I'm big into repurposing these days. With my unemployed condition dragging on, I'm making every effort to use what I have rather than buy something new. With all the crap we have cluttering up the basement, I really shouldn't ever need to buy anything again (she said, not realizing how that declaration could come back to bite her in the ass).

It's really empowering.

For example, when we moved in, I bought a shower curtain tension rod for the upstairs shower. But the tension thing doesn't work. I kept thinking I needed to buy a new one so the shower curtain won't roll away while someone is in there. Then I remembered I have regular curtain tension rods the right size for that shower cubicle and decided that one of those would work just as well. I used something I had and decreased a little(tiny tiny) bit of clutter.

There's also the shelf I'm going to repaint, and a shower curtain I had made for our last place that will both find new homes in the bathroom. Now I just need to go through my stuff and find enough fabric to remake into curtains.

The starfish hook, I bought. I'm not sure if I like it.

It's very exciting to rediscover a space and new uses for things that are already on hand.

Oh jeez...
blahblahblahrainbowsandbutterflies.

I need to go sniff some of that low VOC paint. Clear my head.