Rain, torrential rain, thunder, and lightning which seemed to go on for hours – we were part of that same devastating storm that has wreaked so much havoc. Fortunately, we are soggy – very soggy – but safe. I’m thinking of all those who were in harm’s way. This one was and is dangerous.
I’ve done something to my lower back and I’m hobbling around the house. I don’t know how it happened, but it just seems to get worse, so I’m sitting here in my blogging chair with a heating pad. Yesterday, I hung around upstairs in the office for quite some time and my desk chair, though charming, doesn’t offer the best back support for this kind of problem. In other words, it made it worse, though I didn’t realize it until too late in the game.
Crap.
I think I stayed upstairs because the downstairs reminds me too much of Scout and I was alone all day, missing her companionship. I didn’t break down until Don came in the door – then I lost it. But I got through the day. Small victories.
I browsed online, looked at the Top Secret Project, noodled around and then I actually did something. I decided the color inside my pink cabinet left something to be desired. No, I didn’t start painting, though that may happen in the future. I grabbed some scrapbook paper that I had on hand.
And I pieced it together (I only had a few sheets) to create a backdrop for the Roseville Pottery.
And the McCoy Pottery.
It’s clearly pieced together and you can see the seams, but I don’t much care about that. This is for me. Now that I have the idea, if I see some wrapping paper that I like I may replace this with something seamless, but for now, I’m happy.
That pink candy box contains letters written to my grandmother from her younger sister, Rhoda. Rhoda died at the age of 15 during the flu epidemic of 1918. My grandmother’s sister, Maggie, also died. I can’t imagine how devastating that must have been. I’ve read many of the letters. Rhoda was full of life, charming and delightful. My grandmother never got over losing her sisters.
I think the pattern and color really help to frame the pottery – the paper functions as a backdrop.
The bottom shelf has yet to be sorted through and arranged. I have to clean out the craft/crap closet first. And I don’t have any more scrapbook paper. So don’t look at that shelf, ignore it. Cast your eyes upward.
That’s better.
Doing something was nice. It was simple, but I made a little change that makes me happy.
Hold on a minute: there’s more McCoy on that second shelf than there is Roseville on the top shelf.
Hmmm. That is a problem that needs to be addressed ASAP.
Happy Thursday.
Love the cabinet! It looks lovely. So nice to know you are finding moments of joy again. Hope your back feels better soon. I have a back that goes out occasionally. I find my does it when I bend over and twist either right or left. I rarely do that anymore. Live and learn.
These back problems are so annoying, aren’t they? Thanks, Tana.
Greetings this morning……
This is the first time I have been on your blog, but I, too, Share your love of animals and wanted to tell you that I understand your pain at losing Scout. Yesterday was a very frightful day for those of us who live in the path of the storms. I praise The Lord that we were spared because at one time it sounded so near. And I hope you have a better day today with some sunshine. Scout will always be part of you and I know you miss him/her terribly.
Wishes for a peaceful day….Patty
Thank you for your kind words, Patty. They are much appreciated.
glad you made it … just hope your back feels better soon!
i, too, love those little changes that feel big, like progress and enough to keep drawing me back into the room to look at them. :)
here’s to brighter days.
kathy in iowa
Sometimes just a little thing will make a big difference. Thanks, Kathy.
I feel very sorry your home is so empty without your sweet Scout. Take time and grieve at your own pace. There is no magic formula for sure. I love the changes to your cabinet! Sometimes it helps to do these little things when we are feeling so low. You have had so much to deal with in such a short time. We had the thunder and lightning here also with torrential down pours. There is such devastation in the South. I think we all need sunshine and spring flowers.
We surely do, Susan. Spring cannot come soon enough! I like the modest little changes to the cabinet – it makes a big difference to me. And it’s nice to feel that I accomplished something.
Hi Claudia – glad you and Don survived the storm. It was nasty for sure in so many places. Love what you’ve done to your cabinet (and really like that the two backdrops are different). I’ve found great (and different) wrapping paper at both Ikea and The Container Store…just in case you are out and about…Take care of your back and take it easy!!
I think I have no choice but to take it easy, Vera. It’s maddening. So, I continue with my heating pad and some ibuprofen!
Claudia,
With such grief also comes physical stress so I would think your back muscles aren’t very relaxed to begin with. Just a thought. I love everything about your cabinet. I love dolls, so I love the top of the cabinet and I even love the bottom shelf. Love the glass containers of thread. Are those oblong tins in the back behind your threads? Whatever they are, they are pretty.
Susan
They’re fabric covered vintage glove boxes, Susan.
And I bet you’re right about the physical stress. xo
I have been looking for the right paper to back the shelves in my secretary. I love how it shows off the pottery so well. Oh yes more pottery please!! I have had continuing back problems since I hurt mine back in October. It is so annoying since it limits what I can do. Like you heat and ibuprofen and rest is about all I can do. Had a late night cry but it felt good I must say. The healing of my heart will take much longer then I ever thought. I hope you have a good day sweet friend.
Linda
I’m a firm believer in crying, Linda. It’s good for the soul, absolutely necessary for healing a broken heart. Thinking of you dear friend and sending you love and support (from Don, too.)
Sometimes puttering around and doing a bit of this and a bit of that is good for our spirit. Glad you made it through your lonely day friend. Your collections are beautiful!
Thank you, Janie. Puttering is about all I’m capable of, but it’s enough for now.
I like the paper on the cabinet. Brilliant idea. I think those Roseville is pretty, but can I confess that McCoy has stolen my heart. Especially that pitcher. I am so sorry to hear about your back. I’m itching to sit at my sewing machine, but I have the same problem when sitting in that chair very long.
You’ve made it through the first day alone Claudia! Although it will never be alright, my prayer is that each day will be a bit easier for you in every way. So glad you and Don were safe from the storms. Mandy said they were awful in D.C. Too.
Blessings,
Betsy
Really scary storms and, I think, even scarier when Mandy is.
The pitcher was a gift from my friend, Kay. Her mom was my godmother and the pitcher was hers. So it’s priceless to me!
The cupboard looks great. I agree the ratio is in the McCoy shelf’s favor right now, so you have nothing to do but add more Roseville!
So sorry about your back. I truly believe we “clench” when we are going through great stress. I know I always do ~ even though I never realize it when I am doing it, but then I do suffer the aftermath of very sore and tight muscles.
And… I noticed the sweet little white bunny on the McCoy shelf ~ so now you can proclaim that you are also decorated for Spring and Easter!! yay!
You’re most likely right about ‘clenching’ – I’m sure I’ve been doing that for the last two weeks. Thanks, Chris.
Small victories indeed! Now, thinking out loud, humor me…are you thinking of editing the McCoy? Heavens no! Must be adding more Roseville then…silly me! I like the backdrops in the top shelves…very vintage inspired. Those were some terrific storms…glad they weren’t any worse for you. Still very windy here…but after the snow melted, it revealed already green grass…small victories! ;)
No to editing the McCoy, yes to adding more Roseville!
Very windy here today, as well, gray skies, puddles everywhere.
Baby Steps. Scout is looking over you. It sounds like you had an OK day fiddling with your collections. Sorry about your back – you may need a different chair, or make a point of getting up and moving every so often. I have back issues too and sitting does exacerbate it. We also had torrential rain, damaging winds, lightning and thunder from that same storm. Strangest winter ever.
I’m absolutely sure I should have been getting up periodically yesterday, but I didn’t do that, unfortunately. I already knew my back was doing poorly so I have no one to blame but myself.
The cabinet looks great – I especially love the blue backdrop, it reminds me of antique wallpaper. It’s a small thing, but as you said, it makes a difference, not only in how it looks but how it makes you feel. Another way that you’ve put your own special touch on the cabinet.
Hope your back gets better fast…
Thank you, Moggie. I do, too.
Glad you are safe from the storms. El Niño here in California sure seems like a bust. No rain in sight for the next week or more. The paper backdrop certainly adds to the cabinet. Have fun looking for wrapping paper or wallpaper samples. I’m glad you had a cleansing cry when Don came home. It’s good to release that sadness. I still cry for my lost loved ones….in fact, I had a dream about my husband last night. He was explaining to me why he couldn’t come back to me, and I woke up crying….even after more than three years….
Oh, Wendy. I’m sending you a big hug. Bless your heart. xoxo
The paper background is a great way to make the pottery stand out.
Years ago I read that stress contributes to lower back pain. “Nonsense,” I thought, “it’s my misaligned vertebrae.” And then I really started thinking about it. Oh, yes, I’m a believer. As soon as I saw your post I thought, ofcourse your back hurts with all you’ve been through.
It does make sense, doesn’t it?
O my I know that back issue to well now mine is so bad its messed up all the time… Feel better soon. Sometimes icing first is better then heating pad. Have a great day with love Janice
Thank you, Janice!
I’m glad to hear you sustained no damage from the storm, Claudia! I don’t watch the news so I’m not always aware of weather events except here until afterwards. Storms are definitely not fun.
But that pottery? That pottery IS fun, and I like the backing on the shelves. Just a thought, but I found cute wrapping paper at Marshall’s this summer that I plan to use for backing a cabinet. It had a good bit of paper per roll, and I think their spring papers should be in stores. While i haven’t pasted it yet, it felt like it had good weight. Home Goods and TJ Maxx carry similar ones. You might want to check there if you need more paper. They are pretty wide rolls and might help you finish out your project which I definitely think needs more Roseville. :-) Yessiree , a girl can never have too many pottery pieces or shiny objects! That’s for sure. ;-)
My great grandmother died in that same flu epidemic so we definitely have that in common.. It wiped out thousands of lives worldwide. I forget the extent affected. Your poor grandmother losing BOTH her sisters! That must have been so awful for her. My grandmother was an only child so losing her mother was devastating. Grandmother died a few years later in surgery when my father was a teenager. i cherish her final letter to my dad, so i know how much these mean to you. I’m happy you have them, and a pretty box for them, too!
xo
Sheila
A terrible epidemic – so much loss!
PS
Hope your back feels better! xo
xo
We too were in the path of yesterday’s storm. we lost power for about 6 hours but that is small potatoes compared with the devatation it leveled on parts of the southern states.
How pretty your pottery looks again its’ new backdrop! Love small but very effective changes and I always appreciate how you find ways to use what’s on hand.
I hope your back begins feeling much better soon.
Me too. It’s a pain in the ____. (Fill in the blank.) I’m trying to take it easy and do only what is necessary.
*against* darn spell check.
xo
The paper looks very pretty and shows your pottery off to great effect. Now I want to try papering the back of my dollhouse hutch as you have inspired me to start a pottery collection of my own (albeit in miniature). I hope you recover quickly – back injuries are just the worst.
I did that with a couple of my dollhouse hutches Barbara. Maybe that’s where I got the idea to paper my life-sized cabinet.
I love what you did with the paper. Rest that back of yours sister.
Meredith
You well understand back problems, sister. It’s a pain!
Accomplishing any small task is satisfying because it prevents it sometimes from becoming the larger task. (Note to self: ‘Listen’ to what you just said!) Wow, I really love that Roseville piece that features so much coral and yellow; yummiest colors…
My jaw drops when I hear of your weather. We are, of course, in SoCalif ‘polar opposites’ right now. I have major rain envy. We are SO DRY my eyes hurt. Was 87 degrees (F) at 1:00pm PST. I slept with a sheet over me last night, not a blanket. Could we get a happy medium?
What treasures you have in the letters to your grandmother! A century ago, so many people were lost to illness and disease, especially children, which is so preventable today. My grandmother lost a sister when she was administered too much ‘ether’ for a rather routine surgery, although I’m sure no surgery was ‘routine’ in those days. It was the 1920s and the sister was only age 29. Medicine certainly isn’t an exact science but it REALLY wasn’t then.
I was so struck, when searching my family history, as to the (too many) numbers of female ancestors who died in childbirth while still so young themselves. Tragic. And we lost so many men, like my great-great grandfather, in Civil War battle, when they just had nothing (if anything) but the most primitive of ways to treat injury/disease on the battlefront (he was an older soldier, too weak to fight, suffering from dysentery, yet he had to keep going back out there to a losing effort; we have several of his letters to his wife and children back on the farm; makes me cry every time I read them; he was so brave and terribly worried for his family). I had another great-great grandfather who was severely injured in a wagon accident and, in rural America of the late 19th century, no country doctor was apparently available or skilled enough to know what to do. Mortality was high for those who came before us. A lot of suffering and hardship.
As I’ve gone through so much of Mother’s stuff in the past three years since she passed, I still get excited when I come upon a ‘vintage’ letter or card. I’m always struck by generally nice penmanship/cursive (handwriting) which I know was probably heavily emphasized in school as it was for me when I was in the lower grades. I saw an interesting art exhibit recently that showcased an exchange of letters/envelopes by an artist and family members of hers who were serving in World War II. The diff in these artist’s letters was that she illustrated the envelopes of each letter she sent overseas and, thankfully, her relatives kept them somehow safe til they returned home. I know my mom and dad would exchange black and white snapshots in their letters but these colorful illustrations on the artist’s envelopes were utterly unique and fun. I was thinking, wow, what a bright spot in a soldier’s day, to get a letter from home that was so personalized and amusing…but what it does for us today is also give us such a look into the humor and even dress/hairstyles of the time, as the artist’s drawings on these envelopes would often depict a bevy of beauties for what may have been a homesick guy yearning for female company! (I’ve since read that more than one sweetheart illustrated her letters/envelopes to a guy overseas. I guess the trend caught on, but I love it!)
So interesting! I love the idea of illustrating the envelopes! If only I had a talent for drawing!
See you’ve joined the ever-growing back problem group. . . . . SO SORRY!
You really need to take care of the back now Claudia – once it has done this you can have it happen again, believe me. It’s usually spinal stenosis or a nerve impingement, and you have to put off any surgery suggested for as long as possible. I canceled my planned surgery over a year ago thank goodness – instead got a second opinion, a BIG computer assisted needle, and did several months of PT. I’m still pain-free thank goodness but I’m so cautious always now, especially bending suddenly, and no pushing the vac or raking – those chores are dangerous for backs.
Beautiful pottery and lovely displays.
Mary x
I’ve had back problems before, Mary. Sometimes in the mid-back, sometimes in the lower back. This time it’s just on the lower right had side of my back and I think it’s a pulled muscle of some sort. xo
Dear Claudia
I’m so very sorry to be so late in sending love and hugs to you and Don. I seldom read blogs anymore but I do keep in touch with a few people and one blogging friend just told me about Scout. While going backwards in your blog to read about Scout, I found out about your daddy’s passing too. I’m so sorry and saddened to hear about these unbearable heartbreaking losses in your life. Please know you are in my thoughts. Sending love and wishes for comfort.
Sally
Thank you, Sally.
Claudia, I found a wonderful back rest for my computer chair at a medical equipment store. It has made all the difference in the world as I sit at the computer. Not too expensive – about $20. I would advise you to invest in one. Love the new shelf paper!
I’ll probably look into getting one, Sharon. Thank you.
Glad that you had your office to occupy your time– I hope the days get better,Claudia. The cupboard looks wonderful. I personally like the pieced in craft paper and don’t mind the seams. It lends to the display in a rather artsy way! The paper you chose are both pretty patterns and compliment the colors in the pottery!
AND! You like it- that helps!
Oh, drats on the back ache! I feel for you– I know too well how a bad back can drain energy and slow you down! Get well!
I do like it, Patricia! It makes me smile.
Those storms were really scary…mt cats kept running to hide..they would no sooner come out than the thunder would start again…The paper looks so nice…That is what I want to do with my new bookcase…did you attach the paper with Mod Podge??
No, I didn’t. I just attached it with glue dots because I didn’t want anything permanent. I want to be able to change it out when the mood strikes, Nancy.
Love the backdrops in the cabinet. Isn’t it just wonderful when you can create something that gives you such a “lift in your spirits” when you look at it out of almost nothing? ☺
It is, indeed. And I was able to do it with what I had on hand – always a good thing!
Claudia did you notice your little blue bookshelf with the lamb in the party hat made Living Vintage’s Friday Favorites #88? That should put a smile on your face…it sure did for me!
Thanks for reminding me, Valerie! She emailed me to tell me it was going up today. I’ll go check it out!