On the First World Problems list, there’s good and bad news.

Good: The other Emmie Blind that my sister found in Tampa arrived in my mailbox yesterday. Huzzah!

These photos were taken late in the day, so they’re a wee bit dark.

Gosh, I love these blinds.

The look is so much cleaner. Since we have a room filled with much loved furniture and decorative items, not to mention a piano and a dollhouse, cleaner and crisper is the way to go on these windows.

The bad news: I got an email from PayPal and then another from eBay saying my order for the fourth Emmie Blind had been canceled and my money refunded. Apparently the seller had neglected to adjust her inventory and the 31″ blind was no longer available.

I was not a happy camper.

I cannot find any more blinds in the 31″ length on eBay – or anywhere. I’m so disappointed! If any of you, even those of you who live in foreign countries, see one, please grab it for me? I tend to think that won’t happen, but hope springs eternal.

Poop.

I added the runners to our hardwood floors in the kitchen.

Again, darkish and grainy. Not my best photos.

They really help Dame Scout as she navigates the kitchen. She always walks between the island and the kitchen counter, then turns and walks to her water dish. No short cuts. She has her path and she sticks to it.

Thanks for all the great comments on yesterday’s Fun House Tour. I’m so glad you like our decorating style!

Oh, this time change is messing with me! I went to bed early because my body told me it was an hour later than what I read on the clock. Consequently, I was up at 5:30 am.

Do not like.

Remember to vote today. Though I am about as disillusioned and cynical as they come about our government these days (and that means everyone involved) and a country which seems to favor corporations and big money over people, I still have a wee bit of hope. Even if I didn’t have hope, I would still vote. It’s a right that we shouldn’t take for granted. We’re now seeing people who have faithfully voted all their lives turned away at the polls because of Voter ID laws. I can’t imagine how that must feel.

My mom never learned to drive. Therefore, she had no driver’s license. Would she have been turned away at her advanced age? Don’t get me started.

So get out there and vote.

Happy Tuesday.

Hello bed! Though the mattress I slept on in Hartford was fine, this baby is heaven. I’ve been sleeping longer since I got home. Today I slept in until almost 8:00, and I’m usually awake by 6:30 or 7:00, at the latest. My back always has to adjust to a change in mattress and that will take a few days, but to say I love this mattress is an understatement. Not to mention this sunny bedroom – there was no real light in the bedroom in Hartford, just that cut-out in the wall.

I love you, big old California King bed.

Remember my plea for the Emmie blinds from IKEA? My order from the seller on eBay was waiting for me when I picked up my mail yesterday. My sister bought the other blind from IKEA in Tampa. She’s sending it to me this week. So two of the windows have the Emmie blinds and one doesn’t, which gives me the opportunity to show you the difference the new blinds make.

On the left, the old tie-up blinds. On the right, Emmie.

I’ve come to hate these. The ties are always sloppy. Even after cutting them down in length, they’re still too long. When I tried to roll the blind up to approximate the idea of the Emmie it worked for about two minutes. Then the sheer weight of the fabric dragged the whole thing down.

I cannot wait to get rid of this one. Meredith, please pop that blind in the mail….please?

So much cleaner looking! I’m going to tweak the rod holders so they hang perfectly. But, I have to say I love these. After hanging them yesterday, I decided I wanted to get one more for the bathroom, but unfortunately, this particular width is sold out. Darn it.

And continuing with my IKEA theme, when I ran into the IKEA in New Haven, I grabbed an Ektorp slipcover for my blogging chair. Imagine my surprise when I took it out of the box yesterday and it was not off-white but khaki. My power walk through the store had me grabbing one of the boxes that showed the $29 price, which is the price for the off-white covers. I didn’t know it was also the price for another color.

There it is. You can see the off-white I thought I was getting on that pillow. But I sort of like it. It will definitely do for a while. The khaki color is picked up in that red pillow, so it seems to work. And it echoes one of the colors in the rug.

If you look closely in the lower left hand corner, you’ll see a bit of Scout lying in her tunnel.

There you go. That’s the house update for today. I did lots of raking yesterday – several tarps filled with leaves were toted up to the woods. More to do, but I had to make time to take Scoutie on a walk.

Happy Tuesday.