Mockingbird Hill Cottage — Page 466 — Mockingbird Hill Cottage

Day One Hundred Forty-Four

August 4, 2020 at 9:36 am by Claudia

This is all I’ve got for you today, though I do like the light shining on the desk from the window. When I’m not ready to start in on whatever it is I have to do next, I play around with furniture and take pictures. It helps me to sort out what I might do with each room. I printed out some wallpaper pictures from Itsy Bitsy Minis and taped them on the living room walls. I’m trying to get an idea if it will work well there before I place an order.

Well. It takes me a long time to wake up in the morning and when I got up this morning I was hit by a coffeed-up Don stating that he woke up too early with the thought that he had to get some bottled water. We’re due to be hit by the tropical storm later today (we’re already getting a lot of rain) and if the power goes out, we have no water as we have a well and a pump that is powered by electricity. He’d already made a list. I pleaded my I-need-a-cup-of-coffee-first case. After I finished, we made a list for the store as Don wanted to get there close to the 7 am opening. We’ve already disinfected the stuff he bought, washed the vegetables, and there are several gallons of water in the trunk of my car.

We’ve both taken showers, as we always do after shopping and disinfecting. And now I’m sitting here with my second cup of coffee writing this post. Too much activity too soon for this girl!

We’re due for lots of rain and high winds later this afternoon and into this evening. You know how I feel about winds. Right now, it looks like we have a slight lull, but by this afternoon, we’ll be dealing with WEATHER. I’m a bit nervous, but there’s nothing we can do but be prepared and we are as prepared as we can be without a generator.

If for some reason I don’t post tomorrow, it will be because we don’t have electricity. You never know with these storms, it could be worse than predicted, it could be much less than predicted. But this area is definitely going to feel its impact. Wish us well (I know you do.)

I’m reading Melmoth by Sarah Perry. Just started it, but I loved The Essex Serpent and I love her writing style. Yesterday’s mail brought Hamnet (all the way from England; I like the British cover better and it’s available in paperback there) by Maggie O’Farrell, and I can’t wait to read it. And soon I should receive the new Michael Connelly from The Mysterious Bookshop. By the way, you are the greatest! Several of you ordered books from the bookshop and while I didn’t ask you to order something from them, you did anyway. Thank you, thank you! You’ve made a difference. A lot of small orders add up to a good day for The Mysterious Bookshop.

And heavens, don’t we all want and need a good day?

Alright, my friends. I’m off. Send some prayers our way. I always worry about our very old trees.

Stay safe.

Happy Tuesday.

Day One Hundred Forty-Three

August 3, 2020 at 9:43 am by Claudia

We got quite a bit of rain yesterday afternoon but the thunder that came in the late evening didn’t bring any rain. However, that tropical storm is headed our way and we’re supposed to get a LOT of rain tonight and tomorrow.

Careful what you wish for…

I had to yank on Don’s leash yesterday (obviously not literally.) He took a walk in the morning and pulled some weeds in the rock garden right after that. His medication has a warning about sun exposure, but he had a hat on and it was cloudy.

Late in the day, I saw him going back out there, carrying a weeding tool and when I shouted “What are you doing?” he gestured to the rock garden. I was just about to water the porch plants and as I went outside to get the watering can, humidity that was so high that it felt like we lived in a tropical rain forest smacked me in the face. And it was very sunny. Back in the house. Knocked on the kitchen window. He looked up. I raised the window and said, “Get in the house. Now.” “Just 5 more minutes.” “Don…” “Just two more minutes.” “Now.”

He came in.

Later in the day, he complained that he didn’t feel good, so we had a talk. I told him I was taking charge and that he was allowed to take a short walk every other morning if it wasn’t sunny. No pulling weeds. No mowing. He’s still sick and he’s on heavy antibiotics. To his credit, he realized that he couldn’t do anything and everything, that it wasn’t quite as easy as he thought, and that he had to rest for the next week and a half. He agreed.

He would do the same if our positions were reversed.

I won this little framed painting on eBay. It’s for the English Cottage:

I’m not sure which room it will adorn, but I really love it. It was made in 1979 by a well-known married couple who were miniaturists. There’s a signature on the back.

I played around with furniture placement yesterday as I was waiting for the last of the stonework to dry.

I’ve always envisioned an island dividing the open space on the first floor. I was going to try to build one but I found this piece in an Etsy shop based in Milan, Italy. It has a farmhouse sink, a faucet, drawers and cupboards and the tallest cupboard could be the refrigerator, as I had always envisioned a smaller refrigerator in this space, rather like the one in Don’s studio.

Aga toward the rear (or actual front of the house), large cupboard next to it. Somehow a bit of the paint on the AGA chipped off – how, I don’t know as I had it stashed safely in a cupboard – so I did a little patch, but eventually, I’ll have to look for a paint that better matches that color.

I have a piece coming for the far wall near the sofa. And I want a chair and maybe a coffee table. And lots of books. We’ll see.

There’s so much to be done before I can even think of decorating: the windows, the floors, trim, some beams on the ceiling, the door – which doesn’t fit the frame, so I have to keep adding wood putty to try to make it fit better – then the wallpaper and wall treatments. And that’s just for this room!

That wicker table will most likely go upstairs in the bedroom. But I love seeing it, so it’s in the shot.

Stay safe.

Happy Monday.

Day One Hundred Forty-Two

August 2, 2020 at 9:50 am by Claudia

I have to say, having written this blog for well over 12 years, my decision to do a day count of lockdown/social distancing as the post title has been a welcome break from having to come up with something new every day. I want this virus to be gone, of course, but I’ll miss the ease of my current post titles.

Do you remember the other day when I predicted we wouldn’t get the rain that was forecast for that day? I was right. Nothing. Today, however, we supposedly have 100% chance of rain and thunderstorms, with a few inches of rain expected. I hope that is so because our rivers are the lowest I’ve ever seen. We really need rain. It’s very humid and cloudy out there, so fingers crossed!

I just finished Furious Hours: Murder, Fraud and the Last Trial of Harper Lee. Excellent. Excellent. It’s non-fiction that reads like a novel and by that I don’t mean like historical fiction which involves a lot of guessing and supposition (I’ve mentioned before that I’m not a fan and I know that many of you are, so we’ll agree to disagree!) No, I mean the ease with which Casey Cep writes, the way in which she weaves the various elements of this true story together. Far from dry, it’s completely compelling. The case is fascinating, the people involved fascinating, and as someone who has read everything there is to read about Harper Lee, I learned so much more about her. I recommend it highly.

Yesterday, I went outside to walk around the big garden bed and I noticed a hummingbird moth. Then I noticed another. And another. Turns out there were four hummingbird moths buzzing around my phlox. I’ve never seen more than one at a time. I had my phone with me, thank goodness, and I just kept snapping away. Here are some photos: