Mockingbird Hill Cottage

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Fish’s Eddy

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Another preview – another great audience. And simply incredible performances by the cast. I love this musical.

Two more performances to go today and then I’m on my way home tomorrow. As always seems to be the case with me, I’m looking forward to getting back to the cottage, but sad at the thought of leaving this lovely cast and creative staff. I’ll be back to check in, of course, but I feel like I’m leaving my children and I’m not entirely comfortable relinquishing control for a week or so!

Yesterday, I traveled to Union Square and then made my way to one of my favorite shops, Fish’s Eddy. Fish’s Eddy is located on the corner of Broadway and 19th – it’s been there for years. The store is all about dishes and glassware, new and vintage, with a dash of activism and humor.

You know how much I love china.

The activism I mentioned is evident in one of their display windows (if you follow Fish’s Eddy on Instagram, you’ll see more of their activism.)

They recently held a book launch for the new book Why We March. All proceeds, by the way, go to Planned Parenthood. I bought a copy.

The entrance. Don’t you just love the tile?

There’s a lot of treasure here.

Mugs galore.

Gorgeous dishtowels.

New designs like these cardinal glasses. Yes, I wanted some, but I have absolutely no room for them.

Vintage restaurant china. Be still my heart.

I did buy two pieces of vintage china (like I need them!) I’ll show them to you when I get back home. Right now, they’re wrapped up in paper and I want to keep them that way as I have to transport them home via the bus.

I could have gone crazy but I held back.

I remember coming here over 20 years ago when I was living in San Diego. Every year, my colleague and I would go on an ‘audition tour’ to audition students for the MFA program. New York, Chicago, San Francisco. If I had a big enough break in the day, I would dash down to Fish’s Eddy.

Since I’m usually in and out of NYC in one day, I rarely have time to visit favorite shops. This was a treat.

Small world story: This morning, I ran around the corner to the coffee shop to get some coffee to go. There was one other young woman waiting in line behind me. Suddenly, I heard, “Excuse me…are you the dialect coach for Hartford Stage?” Stunned, I turned and answered “Yes!”  It turns out she is Olivia, one of the students from the Hartt School at the University of Hartford and she was in one of the Shakespeare productions…Romeo and Juliet? I’m not sure., but it was recent. But as soon as she said her name, I remembered her. What are the odds?? And, she just moved to NYC yesterday!  We had a nice chat.

I’m continually amazed at what a small world it is – even in the Big Apple.

Okay. I’m off to get ready for two performances of Anastasia today.

Happy Saturday.

 

 

 

Leaves Gone, Book Sorting & The Glad Game

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10-24-stool

It’s a cloudy, gray morning. Here’s hoping the sun will make an appearance later in the day. This industrial stool has made an appearance in countless photos on this blog. I will often use it to stage a photo of a new piece of pottery. I suppose I love the combination of the worn wood and the bricks on the chimney.

Right now, with the move of the loveseat into the middle of the room, it’s functioning as a side table. The pottery is Russel Wright, the wood block print is vintage. I can’t remember where we found it, but we’ve had it for many years.

10-24-mccoyandbakelite

A familiar sight around these parts: McCoy pottery and bakelite.

I was sitting in the den this morning talking to Don and I noticed that one of the braces for the bookshelves was askew. After investigating, Don and I realized that the wood shelf is slightly bowed. That happens with pine, with any wood, actually. So we took the books off that shelf and rearranged things so the distribution of weight was more even.

And then I started sorting through the books. Which, after I’m finished with this post, will lead me into the bedroom, where I will continue to sort books and put aside any that I don’t need. I was wondering what I would do with the day – now I know.

Yesterday was unbelievably windy – all day long. And now the leaves are off most of the trees. It’s shocking. Yes, there are trees around here that are still in full color mode, but many are bare. In our case, our sugar maples seem to shed their leaves first, and the catalpa leaves shrivel up when we have frost of any kind, the trees surrounding the house are now bare. Sob.

I really, really, really hate to say goodbye to the leaves. The positive is that we have very little to rake at this point and we won’t need to clean out the gutters.

My feeble attempt at The Glad Game. Remember Pollyanna? I think I’m going to be on the lookout for a vintage copy of Pollyanna. I love that story.

Happy Monday.

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Collecting: A Wee Bit of Madness

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3-1 white rose 1

This is what happens when you’re completely and utterly enchanted by something…say, Roseville Pottery…and you’re sad most of the time and your back hurts and you’re stuck in your chair and you need something to cheer you up. And you figure that this particular something, which is on eBay and is a new pattern for you, might be a neat addition to your collection. And then you are the only bidder, so, come on ! It’s a no-brainer.

This pattern is White Rose. The vase is 7 inches high.

3-1 white rose 2

The other side. I really love the shape, which is different from any other piece in my collection.

3-1 shelf

On the shelf in my office.

It’s a wee bit of madness this infatuation I have with Roseville Pottery. And I fully recommend a little madness of this sort for everyone. It’s so much fun!

3-1 priceguide

Also in yesterday’s mail was the price guide for Roseville that I ordered through Amazon. It’s clearly self-published and simply lists prices by the numbers assigned to each style and pattern. For instance, this particular vase has “Roseville – U.S.A” and the numbers 983-7 in raised script on the bottom. 983 denotes a specific vase in the White Rose pattern and 7 indicates the height of the vase.

No photos. Just updated, and that’s the key, prices for every item in the Roseville Pottery line. The many reference books I already have are full of gorgeous and very helpful photos, but the prices are out of date. This particular little book is updated every year.

I couldn’t help but check out the pieces I’ve purchased and the amount I paid for them against the price range given in the pamphlet. I’m happy to say I’m doing extremely well! Always less than half the amount given, sometimes much  less than that.

Check out the font used on the cover of the pamphlet. I must admit it makes me chuckle.

We’re most likely heading to Florida sometime next week for a visit with my family. We need a break. We need sun and sand and the smell of the ocean. We especially need my sister and her family, including Little Z and Max, her dog.

It will be nice to have a little vacation. That’s an understatement.

Happy Tuesday.

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Lambs Like to Party

Lambs Like to Party

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