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Freakish Weather, Basketball & Roseville (All in One Day)

April 5, 2016 at 9:02 am by Claudia

I bet you’re thinking I’ll go on and on about the snow which fell all day long yesterday, or the current temperature of 22° which feels like 11° which means we had a hard freeze last night or the fact that our postman almost slid into my car during the storm as he tried to back up at the top of our drive leading me to run outside and move my car forward and leading gimpy Don to come outside and move some planters and the birdbath so I could move it forward some more leading the postman to shovel out around the rear wheels of his truck, which finally got him safely out of the driveway. Or the funk that both of us were in, especially Don who has been housebound for over a week, as we watched the freakish weather happening outside our cottage.

No, I’ll show you this, instead:

4-5 grape hyacinth

Unexpected beauty in the snow: a single grape hyacinth springing up from beneath the rocks that define one of the planting areas.

Oh, and I’ll scream: Villanova won! That basketball game was incredible, right down to the wire. With 4.7 seconds left in the game, Kris Jenkins shot for 3 points. He made that shot when there was .1 second left; the ball left his hands and was in the air as the buzzer sounded. Basket. Unbelievable.

My throat is  little raw from screaming. Villanova hasn’t won since 1985, when I was in graduate school in Philadelphia. They played Georgetown in that game and since every news item in Philly was about Villanova, I watched that game in my apartment in South Philadelphia. So, when I had to choose teams for the friendly competition in my brother-in-law’s family, I chose Villanova – a salute to that time in my life 31 years ago. I still won’t win the competition, as my other 3 teams were out of the running fairly quickly, but I don’t care. Yay, Villanova!

The postman drove up our drive yesterday in order to deliver a box that contained this:

4-5 cosmos1

An eBay win. This Roseville pattern is Cosmos, made in the thirties.

4-5 cosmos2

It has a little chip inside the upper rim, which is fine by me. I got it for a great price.

I’m trying to collect all of the flower patterns, though some are quite rare and undoubtedly out of my price range.

This particular vase is diminutive at 6 inches high.

4-5 cosmosonshelf

See?

As I was waiting to grab some phone time with my Russian neighbor (it ended up having to wait until this morning) I sat up in the office and created an inventory list of all my Roseville pieces. To my surprise, I now have 25. I’m going to do that with my McCoy and egg cups, as well. It’s good to have on hand for all sorts of reasons. I remember what I have, what I paid and what it’s actually worth. Though I’ve been collecting McCoy for so long that I sincerely doubt I’ll remember what I paid for anything – likewise, the egg cups.

It was busy work, but fun busy work.

Today, Don goes back to the doctor. He is definitely getting better, but there’s still some redness and pain, so he needs more antibiotics. I will keep prepping for Anastasia. I have to drive to Hartford on Thursday for a read-through of the musical.

Happy Tuesday.

ClaudiaSignature140X93

Filed Under: collecting, Don, Roseville pottery, social media 44 Comments

Tuesday Stream of Consciousness

March 8, 2016 at 8:21 am by Claudia

3-8 sunset

• Another glorious sunset. Our house faces west, so as I sit in my chair or go about my business in the living room, this is what I see.

• Trip plans: We’re heading out tomorrow morning. Cannot wait. I’m currently plotting a route down to Florida that avoids the hell that is the Washington D.C. area and, instead, takes us through some beautiful country – courtesy of my Facebook friends. As I looked at the map today, I got those anticipatory butterflies that I get when I am about to explore and see something new.

When I was on the road more, especially when I worked for a theatrical touring company, I loved to explore whatever city I was in. I’m always up for getting out, walking around, exploring, and learning new things. Dallas; Cedar Falls, Iowa; Owensboro, KY; Gainesville, FL; Ft.Lauderdale, FL; Birmingham, AL; Charleston, SC – just a few of the places I was able to explore when I was on the road for a few days here and a few days there. Often, I had to pick up a car rental and drive many miles from the airport to the theater and I’d explore along the way.

Don loves car trips. It will be fun.

• Yesterday. This arrived….

3-8 doublebudvase1

I know. I succumbed again.

It’s a double bud vase in the Clematis pattern. Need I say that it was a great score on eBay? It was.

3-8 doublebudvase2

The other side. Isn’t it beautiful? Several Roseville patterns have their own version of this double bud vase. As crazy about Roseville as I am, I can see collecting all of them.

Stop me.

3-8 rosevilleonshelf

There it is on the shelf; though I’ve since changed it out with the basket that Barbara sent to me. The double bud vase is now in the china cabinet in the den. I can see it from my blogging chair.

I may change that. We’ll see.

Can one have too much vintage pottery? My short answer: No.

3-8 geranium

• My over-wintering geranium is blooming again! This little experiment was a complete success. I’ve been watering all the plants so they’ll be nice and moist while we’re gone. Even the succulents got a dash of water.

• Blogging Etiquette Question: Am I the only one who gets irritated when I see posts from bloggers where lots of photos are taken directly from a post on another site/blog? It seems wrong to me. Yes, they usually link back to the original source, but if they’re basically taking all the photos from the original post, who is going to click the link? (And often the name of the original blog is hidden – you have to click through to find out who it was.)

It seems a bit like cheating. The blogger gets a post out of it without doing any of the work. Not quite fair, I think. Though perhaps the photos get a wider audience? Still, it doesn’t sit right. Far better, in my humble opinion, to say something like, “You should see this wonderful home or apartment or miniature or whatever that I saw elsewhere – here’s the link.” And then the original poster gets the hits, which is the way it should be.

Just wondering. It’s been bugging me a lot lately.

Lots to do today.

Happy Tuesday.

ClaudiaSignature140X93

Filed Under: blogging, collecting, gardening, On The Road, Roseville pottery 64 Comments

Collecting: A Wee Bit of Madness

March 1, 2016 at 9:30 am by Claudia

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.

ClaudiaSignature140X93

Tagged With: Roseville PotteryFiled Under: china and pottery, collecting, Roseville pottery 53 Comments

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Welcome!

Welcome!

I live in a little cottage in the country with my husband. It's a sweet place, sheltered by old trees and surrounded by gardens. The inside is full of the things we love. I love to write, I love my camera, I love creating, I love gardening. My decorating style is eclectic; full of vintage and a bit of whimsy.

I've worked in the theater for more years than I can count. I'm currently a voice, speech, dialect and text coach freelancing on Broadway, off Broadway, and in regional theater.

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