The Istoriaphile’s Corner

“I’m just a Summer Girl,Living in a Summer World…” The only thing is, Summer is ending. That much is obvious, even without the store displays of Halloween Costumes and Football gear. Days are shortening, outside light is yellowing, and the trees have begun their annual game of pelting our metal roof with nuts. (it’s amazing how something that small can make that large a noise!) Autumn is coming again, and it’s time to take stock of what did and didn’t happen this Summer. See More of Friends and Family: Well, yes and no.  Sadly, I missed my High School Reunion again, and I only hope my classmates and hometown will forgive me. On the other hand, my nephew came to see us in June, and I talked with my sister almost every day, which is very good.  Our folks would never have believed we’ve learned to be sisters and friends. Learn to DIY on a Dime: Check.  So, I’m a slave to all of those H&G/DIY shows/pictures/ideas, a truth that frightens my husband no end. (His lawn and garden dreams involve Astroturfing the yard.) The only thing is, we haven’t got the budget for hiring Home Improvement teams.  So this summer I…

It’s time to come clean First Confession: I’m a lifestyle/Home & Garden nut. Even though I nearly flunked Home Ec (twice!) growing up, I really love a pretty house. Ditto, lawn, and garden.  Set me inside a home-improvement store and I will happily spend us into the poorhouse.  Second Confession: We’re already too close to the poorhouse for me to do much home-improvement. Hey, that’s how it goes.  When my husband and I both worked, we had the cash for decorating but no time. Now I have the time and energy needed but insufficient valuta for the home-improvement store.  What’s an H&G addict to do? Answer: Find a cheaper choice. For example, I’ve always loved the look of potted ferns. They say “summer” when I see them  on a front porch. But have you priced those suckers lately? Anywhere between $10-$50 bucks each.  And I wanted at least four ferns, two to hang and two to stand.  Given that price tag, I figured my house would stay fernless this summer. What’s a porch without hanging ferns? A sad thing indded Then, Sunday before last, I noticed my local hardware store was having a garden sale. Big racks of season ending plants were displayed in…

Some projects take more time than others. Twenty-seven springs ago, when I knew we were moving into this house, I bought an old, cedar lined, wardrobe trunk, to use as multipurpose furniture. “It can be a coffee table or a lamp table” I caroled to my overwhelmed husband. “While it stores extra blankets and quilts.” “What we need is more floor space,” he replied, eyeing the battle-scarred box, “and we’re not going to get it with that ugly thing.” “Just you wait, once I paint it, this thing will be beautiful,” I said. And, because I was in a hurry, I poured a quart of ivory paint over the entire trunk and hauled it into the house. It didn’t look good or hold the out-of-season linens like I planned, but it served as table and storage container for decades, first in the living room and then on the porch. With the construction of Darling Husband’s garage, the cedar trunk was emptied of its cache of tools and finally ready for the restoration I promised it years ago. Trunk after years on the porch. This should be an easy cleanup, right? That process has taken the best part of a week…

Ever been slapped upside the head by a forgotten Memory? I’m not talking about the memories with short-cut, easy-access triggers.  Those are the ones you use from every day, stuff like your computer password, social security number and how to drive a car. Other recollections get misfiled in dusty cranial drawers so when you need the information, you walk around feeling stupid for five minutes, saying, “I know (fill in the blank) like I know my own name, what is it?” I’m talking about the memories that pop up out of nowhere and surprise the heck out of you.  That happened to me today. You could say it was a random accident or because Father’s Day is coming up soon. Personally, I think the culprit is cake. See, dense sugar/carb sweets are like cocaine to me and I’ve been trying to live without them for the last 14 months or so.  I’ve been doing pretty well with that too, not even missing the pastries I couldn’t live without before.  At least until a couple of things that happened lately…. See some friends did us a wonderful favor.  I mean HUGE.  And nothing says “Thank You” to a friend like bringing them…

When we were young, And Broke, And starting out in life together, Nothing was more fun than a drive.Over the roads and around the curves we’d go,Grinning like fools, Shouting with laughter, Harmonizing with the radio.Our future, always just over the next horizonThat we sped to on paid-with-pennies gasI didn’t care how poor we were then.I knew great things were headed our way. Well, we didn’t get famous, or start rolling in gelt, But we’ve taken a few bows in our time, And tripped some fantastic lights. Those moments were fine, though not all I expected, And usually not worth the fuss that came with them.I’m happier back in the car. Belted into the shotgun seat, One foot propped on the edge of the dash. Drumming on my thigh to the rhythm of a song That left the charts decades ago. As gray-haired, we still speed down the road, around the corners, and over the hills. Rolling toward an unknown future.Traveling hopefully.