Mockingbird Hill Cottage

Mockingbird Hill Cottage

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Home For A Brief Visit & The Chair

January 8, 2017 at 9:53 am by Claudia

Oh heavens, it’s cold here! This morning it was 15 degrees, but it felt like 2 degrees. I’m sure it’s the same in Hartford. It’s supposed to hit 50 degrees on Wednesday. Go figure.

I successfully dodged the snow yesterday and made it home by about 11:30 am. There were snow showers along the way, but no accumulation. Don was here when I got home and after I unloaded the car, I saw a large box in the den containing…my new chair! When I ordered it from Pier One, I had it delivered to our local store, rather than pay the addition $150 to have it delivered. Cripes! No way. I figured that if it was too big for the CR-V, Don could borrow a friend’s truck and bring it home. It arrived on Wednesday and I got the message from the store while I was in rehearsal. I called them back to tell them Don would be picking it up in the next couple of days, but Don, that good guy, surprised me and picked it up the same day.

So we unpacked the box. But first, we took the chair it was replacing out of the den and managed to drag it upstairs to the studio. That chair is vintage and it’s very, very heavy. (I am determined to get it reupholstered because the lines are really lovely – I’ll take a photo of it sans ill-fitting slip cover later today.) It would be the perfect chair for Don to use downstairs in the living room.

We then attached the legs and I vacuumed the floor, and there it is:

Taking a photo in the den is somewhat difficult, as there are windows on three sides of the room. This was taken late in the afternoon yesterday. Isn’t it pretty?

And with the lights on. It’s very firm and for me, that’s good, because it gives great back support. It also sits a little higher than the other chair – interesting, because I was worried it would sit lower – and I really like it. Of course, my back has been having to adjust lately to two different beds, two different sofas in the apartment, neither of which has any support, and chairs in the apartment that are not meant for lounging, so it’s been complaining a bit.

Here is the profile of the chair:

That’s a sort of faux leather on the side.

Gosh, I’m crazy about it!

Today, there is laundry and cleaning to be done. And I have to take down our pretty white Christmas tree, which has been up a bit longer than usual due to the fact that I’ve been out of town and Don doesn’t want to mess with it. I brought the Christmas decorations I used in the apartment home with me, and I’m going to store them in the cupboard under the stairs.

We watched the documentary about Carrie Fisher and Debbie Reynolds that premiered on HBO last night. It was lovely. But it was so bittersweet and poignant in the face of their deaths within a day of each other. The whole thing doesn’t seem real.

Tonight, Sherlock  with my husband and then tomorrow, it’s back to Hartford for tech rehearsals.

Happy Sunday.

Filed Under: cottage, decorating, den, Don 32 Comments

Beat the Snow

January 7, 2017 at 8:13 am by Claudia

Three to five inches of snow is headed toward Hartford this morning, but not, supposedly, toward my home in the Hudson Valley, so I’m going to try to get out of here early and beat the snow. Fingers crossed. The weather is unpredictable, and if I feel like it might be more trouble than it’s worth, I’ll wait until tomorrow.

But I’d really like to get home for a couple of days, starting today. I need to see my husband. And my new chair, which Don picked up for me the other day, bless him!

So, this will be quick, then I’ll jump in the shower and start to ‘assess the situation.’

Don likes cigar boxes and wanted me to stop by a local cigar shop here in downtown Hartford to see if they had any empty boxes for sale. On the way home from rehearsal, I peered in the window and saw that they did. So, I pulled open the door and walked right into a cloud of cigar smoke courtesy of a guy who was standing at the counter, talking to the owner. To his credit, as soon as he saw me, he moved away, but the damage was done. Plus, I quickly realized that there was a smoking lounge in the back of the shop! Yikes.

I picked out three boxes (only $2 a piece!) and hightailed it out of there. But the smell of cigar smoke surrounded me. I had to open the windows in the apartment and air out my clothing!

They’re neat looking, aren’t they?

We had our final run-through in the rehearsal space yesterday and, boy, was it fun! Darko’s vision for a production never fails to astound me. I wasn’t sure how this was all going to come together, but I’ve learned to trust Darko and on Thursday, I could really see it coming together. Yesterday – perfection! And it’s hilarious, as well!

Can’t wait to see it with costumes, lighting, set, and sound on Tuesday. We have an extremely talented cast and they are having a lot of fun, as are we.

A cheery view of the yellow alstroemeria for you today.

Wish me luck with my ‘beat the snow’ journey home!

Happy Saturday.

 

Filed Under: Hartford, On The Road, Shakespeare 20 Comments

Flowers, Reading & Run-Throughs

January 6, 2017 at 9:54 am by Claudia

The afternoon sunlight was casting its glow on the flowers yesterday. Very photo-worthy. The flowers, by the way, that were purchased nearly three weeks ago and are still going strong. Alstroemeria: more bang for your buck, and very little in terms of bucks if you buy them at Trader Joe’s, than any other cut flower I can think of.

I woke up with a very stuffy head this morning. I’m not sure why. It did start to snow overnight, but very little has fallen. At 5:30 am some sort of heavy machinery woke me up (one of the drawbacks when you live downtown) and because I can’t always tell what time it is by the light that enters the apartment, I got up, looked at the clock in the kitchen, and promptly climbed back in bed. It took about an hour, but I finally went back to sleep, whereupon I was jolted from sleep at 8 am by a police siren. Ah, the joys of urban living!

Today is the very last day in the rehearsal room. We had a run-through yesterday and will have another one today. The Bollywood number is simply delightful. I was laughing and clapping and completely under its spell. My friend Peggy is the choreographer and she is simply amazing. So: another run-through today and then everyone and everything moves to the theater. Tomorrow will be what is called a spacing rehearsal, where the director goes through each scene and adjusts the positions of the actors on the set. This set, as do most, has levels – and buildings and doorways and docks and boats…so all of that has to be dealt with. On Sunday, tech will start.

Since I’m not needed tomorrow or even Sunday, I’ll go home tomorrow morning for a couple of days. I’ll return for Tuesday’s rehearsal, which will be a continuation of Sunday’s tech, starting wherever they left off on Sunday.

I’ve reached the halfway point in Believing the Lie.  That means I’m 300 pages in. It’s quite engrossing and I’m most definitely hooked. She’s a very, very good writer. I also pre-ordered (something I never do) the upcoming new release from Deborah Crombie, Garden of Lamentations, which comes out next month. I had a very modest credit with Amazon, so I applied it to the book and I only had to pay half of the hardcover price.

It’s Friday. My head is stuffy. I’m drinking my second cup of coffee. I’m writing to you. Soon, some oatmeal and then a shower, where I’m hoping the steam will clear out my congestion. Fingers crossed.

Happy Friday.

Filed Under: books, flowers, Hartford, On The Road, reading 26 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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