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You are here: Home / Archives for Winston

Winston

September 3, 2016 at 9:42 am by Claudia

Feast your eyes:

9-3 winston

Our first baby. Winston.

He left us at the very young age of eight years old. Too soon and devastatingly so.

Right after Don and I moved in together in San Diego, we repaired the fence so we could adopt a dog. Within a week of moving in, we were at the Humane Society. The very first dog we saw was scared, bewildered and broke our hearts. As we read his tag, we learned his name was Winston and, at the age of eighteen months, he had been given up by his family due to ‘allergies.’ (We won’t go into how I feel about that.) We thought he was beautiful. He was listed as an Aussie Shepherd Mix.

9-3 winstoncloseup

But we made ourself look at many other dogs that day. The trouble was, we kept circling back to Winston. He had stolen our hearts. So we made our desire to spend some time with him known to the volunteers and they took us to a special enclosure where we could get to know each other. Winston and Don and I went inside. I set my handbag down. Whereupon Winston promptly lifted his leg and peed in it.

He had indeed claimed us. In the end, we had to wait a few days because they needed to do a fecal test. But he wouldn’t poop. I kept calling them, anxious to bring him home. Finally, they gave up on the fecal test and our new family member came to our house. We parked in the garage and escorted him to the back yard. Whereupon he promptly pooped.

That boy was all about marking his territory.

If you’ve seen his picture on my sidebar, you’ve noticed the pink ball. I asked Shanna to put the ball in the portrait. Winston was the only one of our dogs who always had a favorite toy and took it from room to room. If I went back to the den from the living room, he would pick that ball up in his mouth, walk to the den, and drop it at my feet. He loved his toys. One Christmas Eve, he sat facing the fireplace for hours (I have a picture) staring at his stocking. He wouldn’t move. Why? Because that boy smelled the vinyl toys.

A few years later, he became very ill, vomiting and losing weight. We went through all kinds of tests before we had a diagnosis. His pancreas no longer functioned. We had to give him a powdered supplement with his food from that day on so he could digest it and get the sorely needed nutrients. Until the day we discovered that he had a tumor on his heart, a year after we had moved East, he was happy and healthy and everything we had dreamed of in a companion.

Oh, he was a wonderful boy. He welcomed Scout into our home, after making clear who was boss. They were great companions. (And Scout welcomed Riley into our home, after making clear who was boss, as well!)

9-3 winstonframe

So, I wanted that ball in the painting. I also wanted him on the porch, even though he never lived here in the cottage. I like to think he made the move with us, unseen. And both Shanna and I had the same idea; to paint this one horizontally on the paper, rather than vertically.

The photos I submitted to Shanna were taken long ago, with a not so great camera and the dark background of our Craftsman home in San Diego. And Winston was black, which made it even harder to see details. Somehow she has managed to capture him beautifully. She is masterful with the eyes, isn’t she?

I can’t believe how accurate this is. This is the boy we have been mourning for 14 years. And now he is with his sister and his brother.

9-3 longview1

Someday I’ll show you the view from Don’s chair, but this is the view from where I often sit. As Don said this morning while he was sipping on his coffee and looking at the paintings, “Our kids.”

I can never express in words how seeing these paintings, along with the sketch of Scout (also by Shanna) and my photograph of Riley and Scout – all of them together in their own special place – makes me feel. I can only say that it just feels right. They are our children, forever, and they’re still with us.

Thank you, Shanna.

Happy Saturday.

ClaudiaSignature140X93

 

 

Filed Under: dogs, Riley, Scout, Winston 44 Comments

Portraits

August 23, 2016 at 10:17 am by Claudia

Simply this:

8-23 Rileywatercolor

When this arrived in the mail yesterday, we were both home. We stood together, opened the box, pulled this out, and gasped. Then I cried. Then we found ourselves touching it, almost as if we could pet Riley and have him come back to life. We miss him so.

Isn’t this incredible? Shanna has captured the beauty of our boy. Those ears that I loved to stroke. His beautiful coloring. And his incredibly soft and gentle brown eyes. I could lose myself in those eyes and often did.

Did you notice the bit of butterfly bush and the Eastern Swallowtail butterfly in the upper left hand corner? Heavenly.

8-23 Rileywatercolor2

We may not have human children, but we are  parents. We were/are the mother and father of our three beloved dogs and there’s not a day that goes by where we don’t mourn their loss. Riley, who was rescued from the streets of Paterson, NJ. Who had never had any love or socialization. Who was difficult and scared for a long time but so worth it. Who had heartworm, but survived when we caught it in time. Scoutie, who was rescued from the desert in California, with a tail that had been docked for some reason. Lively and loving from the moment we met her. Winston, who had been given up by his family because of allergies and who was scared and bewildered when we found him at the Humane Society in San Diego. Who was our first child.

As I sit here at my desk and write about them, I find myself crying once again. Rescuing – for us – is the only way to go. Giving a home and a second chance to a dog is rewarding beyond measure.

Shanna has been most generous in these gifts, these treasured portraits of our babies. But now I’m going to pay her: I’ve commissioned a portrait of our boy Winston, because even though we lost him about 14 years ago, before my blogging days and a fancy camera, I think I can find enough photos of him for Shanna to create his portrait, as well. Riley and Scout lived fairly long lives; Winston was taken from us at the age of eight, when we discovered he had a tumor on his heart. He was gone far too soon and I fell into a depression after we lost him. We had Scout, thank goodness, but oh how I mourned him. And I didn’t yet have the outlet of a blog where I could write about him.

All of these portraits will be on our living room wall.

I’m not sure where I will put this photograph, but I just had it enlarged. It used to be the wallpaper on my phone:

8-23 scoutiewithglasses

Scoutie wearing my glasses.

I’m off to Michael’s today to buy some frames.

Shanna, I can never, never thank you enough. I dreamed of finding someone to paint our children, and you were the answer to my prayer. Bless you.

Happy Tuesday.

ClaudiaSignature140X93

Filed Under: dogs, Riley, Scout, Winston 56 Comments

Some Favorite Things, Upstairs Edition

March 12, 2015 at 9:18 am by Claudia

When you’re somewhat housebound in the midst of winter, a day where the sun is streaming in your windows makes all the difference, don’t you think? We’ve had more than a few of those sunny days lately (not to mention warmer temps and melting snow, huzzah!) Our bedroom is awfully pretty when the sun pours in the two tiny windows so I grabbed my camera the other day to take some pictures.

3-12 my pals

My pals. Maggie Rabbit, Wayfrum Holmes and Little Lamb. You’re probably familiar with them, but if you’re a newish reader, I’ll introduce them to you. Maggie Rabbit was made by me from a kit designed by the lovely Alicia Paulson of Posie Gets Cozy. By the way, Alicia has just added more Maggie Rabbit patterns to her shop. They go very quickly, so if you’re interested hop on over. I made Maggie when I was working out of town in Hartford and I love her.

Wayfrum Holmes was given to me by Don when I was about to leave for a six month stint in San Diego. Wayfrum kept me company while I was away from my loved ones. Little Lamb was a lovely gift from Sheila. Maggie, Wayfrum and Little Lamb are my traveling companions when I’m going to be away from home for a longish time.

They are perched upon a vintage hatbox I found many years ago in the Berkshires.

3-12 dogs I love

Right next to them are framed photos of our dogs: Winston, Scout and Riley. (Have to straighten that photo.) The mirror was a gift from my mom. The McCoy pottery piece is filled with pennies. And you can just see my other parakeet lamp, which is sitting on the bookcase because it needs to be rewired, along with at least two other lamps we own.

3-12 roseville

I own several pieces of Roseville pottery but this one just might be my favorite. It’s a cornucopia in the Bushberry pattern. It sits in a place of honor on my dresser.

Uh oh. Now I’m fixating on Roseville and this particular pattern. It might be time to add to my collection. Roseville can be very pricey, but it’s all in the timing. I’ve found some pieces at auction for very little money. If you go to a higher-end antique shop, you’re going to pay a lot more. The very first piece I ever purchased was a little bowl in the brown version of Bushberry. I got it in a little shop in San Diego when we were still living there.

The photo in the background is of yours truly in her office when I was teaching at Boston University. The other piece of pottery on the right is McCoy. It’s full of fabric hearts. The dresser scarf is really a tea towel. (I like it much better as a dresser scarf.)

It’s sunny again today. Snow is melting. I know that March is a big tease and that the temperature will eventually get colder, but boy, do we appreciate this little warm spell. The driveway is mud, of course. We had to put down some straw in Scout’s mini-corral because it’s also a sea of mud. But we’ll take it.

An interesting article in yesterday’s New York Times: The State of Alabama is now investigating a complaint of elder abuse re: Harper Lee and the decision to publish her ‘new’ novel.

Happy Thursday.

ClaudiaSignature140X93

Filed Under: antiques, bedroom, china and pottery, dogs, favorite things, Riley, Roseville pottery, Scout, Winston 25 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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The Dogs

The Dogs

Scout & Riley. Riley left us in 2012. Scout left us in February 2016. Dearest babies. Dearest friends.

Winston - Our first dog. We miss you, sweetheart.

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Lambs Like to Party

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