Manic Monday, (or) Diane Designs the Divine Drapes

 I took my final vacation day of 2012 today, just in time to get our long-awaited new drapes.  You know how these things go - take a picture of the "before" look, realize those windows should probably be washed, run around doing that (inside & out), bake some Christmas cookies while you're at it, blah blah blah.  I was never so glad to see the guys show up to intall the drapes so I could finally sit around and watch.  Here we go - this is the living room in the front of the house - before:

 Here is the after shot.  Notice the artwork has been moved around, too.

 Here is the TV room, pre-drapes (sorry, the light was bad):

And after.  Diane helped me move the furniture around so it all looks right:

Here is the kitchen window, "nekkid" as they say in TX:

And here is the nice roman shade, perfect!

Breakfast nook, before:

Here are the valances:

Here's a detail shot, check out the origami effect.  Whoever sewed these paid a lot of attention to matching the fabric patterns between the panels.

Finally, here is the master bedroom, before & after:

Our thanks & Merry Christmas to our friend & fabulous designer, Diane.  I'm sure she will take referrals, we're pretty good customers.  Merry Christmas, everyone!

Wanted: New Editor for the local 5pm news

 Please.

Meanwhile, we put up some Christmas lights last weekend.

Not much news

We're still waiting for our new drapes, they should be ready before Christmas. Guess what we're getting for Christmas? Drapes! Meanwhile, your blogmistress took a short trip to the Big Apple in October to visit nephew Scott. We did some sightseeing, eating & catching up. My hotel was just off 5th Avenue. Here's a nice shot of St. Patrick's Cathedral, they don't make them like this anymore:
I also did a little window shopping at Cartier, but I found this necklace too gaudy for everyday wear:

Ever watch Say Yes To The Dress? That show about shopping for wedding gowns? Here I am at Kleinfeld, striking a pose!

Here is handsome Scott with the NYC skyline as a backdrop. We're on the roof of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

The weather in Texas has finally cooled off, thank God for THAT. Happy Thanksgiving to everyone!

Rain!

It rained here this weekend! If you look at the picture below, those vertical streaks are raindrops. We got 3" of cooling, fabulous rain. WOW what a sensation. The headline of the paper today was about the rain. THAT's what big news it was. Also in the pic below, above the fence, see that brown tree? It's not turning colors for fall - it's dead. There are dead trees everywhere.
Thanks for all your good thoughts. Our drought isn't over, but this was sure a welcome relief.

Fifth Ward Jam

Well, kids, I have a case of twitchy foot so I might as well do a late-night blog post. Last weekend, I checked out this cool bungalow that has been transformed by two local artists and named "Fifth Ward Jam." The fifth ward is a somewhat gritty neighborhood, but it just got a lot cooler with this addition.They have built in a little stage on the front for jam sessions, get it?
Side view:

Another side view. That door leads to the kitchen, which you can barely walk into.

Gotta give credit to the creators of this little marvel, here it is:

Houston followers: It's on Lyons street. You can find it.

Time for "window treatments"

Who thought of that term & doesn't it sound pretentious? Nevertheless, after one year in our new home, we're ready for window treatments. We are both accountants, what do we know about this stuff? Luckily, our fabulous designer, Diane, came up with some great choices. This is the fabric for the kitchen window, it will become a shade. Looks better than the fence, doesn't it?

Over by the breakfast table, there are 3 windows. They'll have this fabric and trim. It's going to be some sort of valance/shade that doesn't pull down - just for looks: The fabric on the left, below, will be drapes under our decorative half-circle window. This is all one big room, so everything has to play together nicely.
We were talking to Diane about waiting so long to get window treatments. Well, they're pricey! Some things just have to wait. We're mature enough to wait. What's the last thing you waited to get?

Garden critters

It's the 10th anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks. I couldn't stand to watch all the TV coverage when it happened. I just tried to carry on as normally as I could. I have been catching up this weekend.
Meanwhile, critters in the yard don't care what day it is. Here's a lizard on the fence:

Bumblebee on the pentas:
That blur in the middle of this photo is a hummingbird, see it?
We're flying the flag this weekend - put yours out!

Compare & contrast

Remember when your English Literature teacher used to give that assignment? "Compare & contrast Crime & Punishment with The Scarlet Letter," something like that. I always hated that one. In Texas, we are having our 21st day of temps over 100, along with a record-setting drought. The weatherman said the other day that it's been over 200 days since we had an INCH of rain. ARRGGHH The whole state is toast! Just 3 years ago, we had Hurricane Ike. That storm went on, and on, all night. It knocked out our power for 16 days. And we woke up to this mess in the yard:

We had to deal with that broken tree limb ourselves - help was hard to find:
Now, we're staying inside, enjoying the air conditioning, and wishing/praying/hoping for rain. Here's a squirrel, cooling his jets in the cool dirt under our oak tree:
Several of our wood ferns look like goners, but they might bounce back:
Desperate times call for desperate measures, so I just got out the sidewalk chalk and wrote a plea on the driveway:
Don't worry, I remembered my manners:
If you can spare some in your area, please send us some rain!

Late bloomers

It's too hot to think here in Texas, but a few things are managing in the garden. Here's a nice sunflower we grew from seeds we bought in Fredericksburg back in May:

When I got home from Hong Kong in February, I eagerly planted tomatoes which did exactly nothing. Suddenly, however, the Stump of the World has taken off, grown and put on blooms. It is shown below, getting support from the viburnum next to it. If it ever produces a tomato, it will be the longest-awaited EVER - probably 6 months. Hope it tastes good.We've had a few showers recently, but we still need a lot of rain. Send us any extra you have!

Everyone would be in love with me!

Farrago blog post

Farrago is one of my favorite restaurants here, the word means hodgepodge and that's what we have on the blog today. First, here's a cool ride, we haven't shown one for a while. This was parked outside the diner in Michigan when we visited family recently:

Speaking of the trip to Michigan, your blogmistress finally got to ride the fabled Dingray bike that her brothers built in the 60s. It was lovingly restored by brother Bill, and it is FUN to ride. The hubs of the wheels are off-center, which makes the bike undulate up & down. The faster you ride, the more it bounces. It was a big hit with everyone. Now I want my OWN Dingray!
Here are the world-famous Daughters of the Potato Famine, my brothers, and our spouses. That's a happy bunch!
Last weekend, we drove to Albany, TX to see the Ft. Griffin Fandangle. It is a prairie theater, half the population of the little town is involved in it, and it's really a fun show. This little shaver must have pulled the short straw, he played the skunk:
We've all been to live plays, but have you been to one with Texas longhorn cattle in the cast? Well, this play has a whole mess of them:

Here's a shot toward the end of the show, the whole cast (minus longhorns) came out for a final song.

Enjoy the Independence Day holiday, everyone! Fly the flag, cook some bbq, and relax.

Memorial Day 2011

We thank our dads, brothers, uncles, and friends who served in the military. This weekend, we got a new flagpole so we could fly the flag. Here was the first spot - it looked nice, but the flag smacked you as you went by. Here's a better location - out in the garden a little farther. A nice little patriotic breeze straightened out the flag so I could snap this pic:
I'm going to donate a pint of my primo O negative tomorrow at the blood center. The next time you see a serviceman, buy his or her lunch!

Pookie goes to a family reunion

Today, hubby and I drove up I-45 to Old Town Spring, TX for a Smart gathering. Just look at that happy little family:
This purple one wins my "Cutest Smarty" award, check out the eyelashes:

I asked the owner, where'd you get those? Think about it for a minute, those of you who use the internet way too much. . . carlashes.com, of course! They're $26.99 for a set, I guess I'll think about those before making an impulse buy. Besides, Pookie is a boy.

Here is a Smart with a vanity plate: SODIT. That's not a very nice thing to say in British English (English English?) The owner of this Smart, an English woman, said the state of Texas would not allow her to have this plate unless she could prove she was in some kind of business that has to do with sod. As it turns out, she owns a lawnmower repair bidness. BAM! The plate is hers.

The guy who owned this Smart has poured a lot of extra money into it - bigger wheels & tires, souped up engine, and these cool doors:

I need to go online and find one of these stickers for Pookie:

Where can I get one? Probably at Youjustgotpassedbya3-banger.com.