Bringing out the Wedgwood China

When The Hubby and I married a jillion years ago, we registered for--and received--fine bone china from Wedgwood.

It was gorgeous--black-and white mythological creatures. Thin gold bands:

It's called "Florentine," and it was wickedly expensive. "You better enjoy what you have," my dad joked, "because nobody's ever going to buy you another piece of that stuff!"

We received service for 8, plus two little "fruit bowls" and a few serving pieces:

We loved the silky feel of the china, and the fantastical beasts romping around the edges:

The china reminded us of sword-and-sorcery books, which we both like to read. And of "Dungeons & Dragons," which The Hubby played a lot in college:

Besides being expensive, it has to be hand-washed, so it was always a pain to use it. Once kids entered our lives, it was also a very bad idea to have fine china around. We ate off unbreakable plastic (them) and inexpensive pottery ware (us). This beautiful stuff lingered in the back of a closet, year after year:

Recently, I decided it was time to pull it out. The children have places of their own. So there's only two of us for dinner, meaning there's only two plates to hand-wash. And when our adult kids come to visit, they're capable of carefully handling good china without smashing it to bits--they even jump in to wash dishes without being asked!

So I shuffled some things in the pantry around and made room for the Wedgwood. Now I can use it every day:

It's important to me to make room for a little beauty in the everyday. Even if that means sharing space with the jarred pasta sauce and the chips.

Workin' It, Part II

Forgive me for two dog posts in a row, but I had to share:

This is my man Won Ton, rocking' his new Doggles sunglasses!

Workin' It!

Here's a photo I took of a beautiful Italian hound dog on my last day in Italy. I almost didn't snap the shot, but at the last moment, I turned over my shoulder and saw what she had around her neck:

Look at that bling! The girl is workin' it. As you head into the weekend, amp up your look, just for fun. Pile on extra bangles, rock a bow tie and button-down instead of a polo, or toss a lightweight scarf around your neck.

Let Ms. Thing here be your inspiration. Have a happy Friday, everyone!

Boston in May

 The Hubby, The Boy, and I were in Boston recently:

We were there to witness Harvard's 363rd commencement ceremony. Yup, you read that right: three-hundred-sixty-third!

 Lovely Daughter #2 received her Masters' degree:

Harvard graduation is a huge affair, literally. All the undergraduates AND graduates gather together to mark the occasion. Harvard Yard was a sea of black and crimson:

I loved this woman's outfit, so chic and perfect for the weather:

And I loved this man's attempt to get the shot he wanted:

Of course, this is what it was all about for us: the happy graduate, with her favorite professor. The little embellishments on the fronts of their robes are called "crow's-feet." The reason why has been lost in time. The different colors indicate the different schools granting the degree:

Like most graduations, there was pomp and ceremony:

And mortarboards and friends:

 And there were some very, very proud parents:

 Congratulations, LD#2!

June Cute Animal Roundup

Just for fun, here's a roundup of cute animal shots I've collected during the month of June. This is "Olivia," the nine-month-old kitten of my Lovely Daughter #1. Olivia is pretending to be a "stuffie":

This multi-toed sweetie lives in Boston, where I met him. He is moving to the San Francisco area with his owner, who got a new job there. Good luck on the West Coast, kitty!

This is "Ruger," who comes to my gym with his owner, one of the instructors. He has an adorable way of parking his butt on the bottom step of the stairs:

Ruger is a big-dog mix--American Staffordshire, Chow, and who knows what. He is 85 pounds or so of pure, sweet love, and I adore seeing him every time he comes to the gym.

And finally, this is my Mu Shu, looking extra derpy as he tries to figure out how to jump on the hammock and share my lap with Won Ton:

Good luck on that one, Mu Shu!

Blissful

My middle name is "Bliss." It's a relatively unusual name, but it's easy to find in commercial settings, including a jewelry store in San Francisco's Pier 39:

A restaurant in Barcelona:

A vintage coffee can:

A rose ("Sheer Bliss," which grows in my garden):

And, of course, it pops up a lot in ad copy:

I love my "Bliss" name. Thanks, Mom and Dad!

My Trash, Somebody Else's Treasure

A few days ago, I got real with myself: I had a whole bunch of odd bits in my storage shed that needed to be tossed. Or given away. Or a combination of the two.

These were things I'd picked off the curb, myself, and was hoping to rehabilitate, someday.

You know how that goes: "Oh, that chair would be so cute if I sanded it and painted it and added a cushion...."

Except you never get around to it.

So I put everything out on the curb. Then, throughout the day, I watched the pile slowly diminish.

First to go was the taller chair and the urn on the smaller chair (above). They both disappeared within an hour of going out to the curb.

My handyman liberated the two front picture frames. He said he'd give them to his wife, who's a crafter. I'm glad they'll finally get the attention they deserve; thank you, Mr. Handyman!

The terra cotta pots stayed on the curb until after dark, when somebody swept them up. The oval windows were spirited away sometime between my bedtime and coffee the next morning.  

Around noon the second day, everything was gone except these two window frames. Then a sweet young woman knocked on my door, introduced herself as a crafter, and asked if I would mind if she took them. 

Would I mind? Certainly not! She saved me a trip to Goodwill.

And now my storage shed is uncluttered again.

Welcome Back, Me.

Wow, how did that happen?

A month went by, and I dropped off the face of the planet.

Or, at least, off the face of my own blog.

Nothing dire happened: I just got overwhelmed by a lot of good/fun stuff.

And a little bit of annoying/time-sucking stuff.

So, here, in no particular order, is what I hope will be a long line of entertaining posts.

First up, my favorite new photo of my eldest pug, Won Ton:

Petco sells Princess Leia bunheads! Be still, my silly heart!