Category: Florida

Ballad of the Battle of the Mold

Armed only with grit and determination
(and a brush, rubber gloves and a tonic for mold eradication)
Fair maiden set forth one morning in May
to for once end this harbinger of death and decay.
Pandora (the music, not the lady of myth)
Heralded maiden’s approach as she addressed the green filth.
“Begone!” she cried and the mold did not budge.
“I gave you good warning, now perish you sludge!”
Fair maid sprayed and scrubbed, her back bent at odd angles
She swept sweat from her eyes and made her old arms jangle.
After hours of labor she rose from tired knees
Expecting to see a sight which surely would please.
Instead a difference she could not discern
“Dammit,” she muttered. “Let Studly have a turn.”

   

One small section of our wall taken before and after. I guess I made a bit of a difference.

Is it too early for a glass of wine?

Peace, people!

Scraping Mold

I’ve got an important job to do. It involves mold and a scrub brush. I cannot believe I’ve agreed to take on this task. 

Watching Rain

swift darkness descends
in the middle of the day
thunder follows hush.

deep in the forest
lightning scorches mighty oak
searing stricken arms.

once thunder crashes
still silence pulsates with rage
nature’s violence

anticipation,
exhilaration, and fear
fill glorious storm

tapering rainfall
arrhythmic beats signal end
skies lightening soon.

  

Here’s My Sign

Finally I had the opportunity to get out and do something crafty in Tallahassee at Another Time Around, a wonderful shop specializing in repurposed and rescued furniture.

Kim Parr, the shop’s owner and furniture refinisher extraordinaire, guided me, along with several other participants, through the fundamentals of chalk painting. The process is easy. I was pleasantly surprised.

My friends know that while I’m not particularly gifted in the visual arts, every now and then I have delusions of grandeur and decide to create something.

In my imagination I’m always going to be super surprised and pleased by my efforts, but I just didn’t inherit any artistic genes. That didn’t keep me from having a great time though, and I learned a lot in the process.
Plus I created a cute item to take for our family reunion auction:

Everyone seemed to have a positive experience, and I’ll attend another session. Who knows, next time might be my big breakthrough.

Other participants let me snap photos of their finished projects to share with my readers. I think they turned out beautifully:  
   
If you live in the Tallahassee area I highly recommend a visit to Kim’s shop Another Time Around at 4523 N. Monroe. 

She’s has a beautifully eclectic collection of furniture for customers to browse and she’ll do custom work, as well. I took a few pictures on my way out last night:   
       

After taking two full hour to create my little sign, I’m in awe of these larger projects. She has given me some ideas I might need to pursue. I wonder how Studly Doright would feel about having his motorcycle lift chalk painted? You know what they say–it’s easier to ask for forgiveness than for permission.

Here’s a link to Kim’s page on Facebook. Check her out. I don’t normally promote businesses on my blog, but I think Kim’s got a great business. She’s a keeper.

https://www.facebook.com/AnotherTimeAroundTLH
Peace, people!

  

Too Much

Studly Doright and I are doing some home improvement projects this spring. His man-cave is approaching completion and we’ve found someone to help turn the area leading up to our front door into a mini courtyard. After that we’ll tackle our back porch which is lovely but almost unusable during the rainy season due to drainage issues.

In preparation for the courtyard project I’ve been browsing Pinterest and wandering around two of the local nurseries looking at paving stones, outdoor seating groups, and large pots and planters. My goal is to make the area pretty and low maintenance.

Even though I’m no gardener I enjoy trips to the nurseries. There’s such an abundance of colors, textures, and scents. And ornamental junk. Lots of ornamental junk.

  
Now, I have nothing against ornamental junk. I can see me owning a metal rooster or an ornate concrete birdbath. The problem is that I’m not sure if I’d know when to stop. 

  
Could I draw the line at one rooster or would I need a dozen metal hens and a few chicks to add to the display? If I buy the concrete birdbath do I then follow up with a concrete bench, a concrete fairy, a pair of concrete children reading a concrete book, and an array of concrete stepping stones?

  
We’ve all seen those yards that have so many little animals or whirlybirds or garden gnomes that one cannot even see the lawn or the front door. Who is to say that one lone rooster won’t lead to an entire flock?

Studly assures me he won’t let it come to that. Oh, look! A metal dolphin!

Peace, people!

Prepositional Journey

Drove to the beach

Picnicked on the pier

Waded in the waves

Sipped at a beer

Napped beneath the sun

Strolled upon the sand

Searched for seashells

Listened to a band

Gathered up the towels

Rinsed off my toes

Drove into town

Rubbed lotion on my nose.

sea

Clouds blend with ocean 

Waves overlap sandy shores

Salt tang hangs in air

  

World’s Most Pitiful Garage Sale

Our little neighborhood of Lake Yvette planned a community garage sale for this fine Saturday morning. Eagerly I joined the ranks of those willing to participate. Gamely I priced some of the treasures (junk) that we moved from Illinois to Florida a little over a year ago. 

I’d forgotten that the roofers were coming this morning. They were supposed to have come on Thursday, but we had rain so they rescheduled. Now there are nail guns hammering to the mind-numbing tune of an air compressor, not to mention a truck partially blocking my driveway.

Here I sit, surrounded by treasures (junk). People stop and look for a few minutes before saying something like, “How do you stand this racket?” 

I answer, “Huh?”

Then they leave. 

I’ve taken in $3. My portion of the ad was $10. My signs cost $7. Only $14 until I break even.

Peace, people!

Oh, Studly Doright is on the golf course, I get 100% of the profits. How much is 100% of nothing?

Another Time Around

Many of my faithful readers might recall that Studly Doright and I moved to Tallahassee, Florida, a little over a year ago. The move was a transfer for Studly, so he had built-in contacts and connections while I was left adrift on a new, yet familiar ocean–that of being the new, yet old, girl in a strange town.

With no kids in school and no full-time job I pretty much spend my days in aimless limbo, exploring little boutiques and eating at local cafés. I know, it’s a tough job, but somebody’s got to do it, right?

Today I popped into Another Time Around, a shop specializing in “Pre-Loved, Shabby Chic Furniture & Accessories.” Immediately I was struck by the creativity and artistry of proprietor Kim Parr. 

 
Kim’s work can be fun and funky or chaste and classic, and she will do custom work, as well. I even signed up to take a class in chalk painting! Imagine that! Me. Painting. Maybe someone should warn Kim of my dire lack of talent and tendency to klutziness.

 
Here’s just a peek at one of Kim’s creations. It started life as an octagonal end table. Now it’s a super cool pet area with a place for toys or even another pet bed on top. The details are so clever; I just might need this. Scout and Patches would probably bicker over who got the top bunk, though. Cats.

  
Here’s another pretty piece, even though my photo doesn’t do it justice. I wasn’t planning a blog post while I was wandering around the shop. 

I can’t wait to visit Kim’s shop again. So, keep mum on my klutziness issues. I’ll post a picture of the project I complete following the chalk painting class on the 19th of May. I’m not sure what I want my picture to reflect–chances are it will either deal with wine or cats. Or wine and cats. 

Seriously, look Kim up online at www.anothertimearoundtally.com and on Facebook she’s “Another Time Around TLH.” I seldom do plugs for businesses, so you know I really like her. 

Her pieces remind me a lot of my sister-in-law Lyn’s work, so I’ll shamelessly plug her site, too: TexanIslandGirl on Facebook.

Great day! Great discoveries! Peace, People!
 

Feeling Nerdy

I stopped in at Fallout Comics in Tallahassee today where they were celebrating “free comic book day” by giving away, you guessed it, free comic books!

Many of my fondest memories revolve around comic books: Tales from the Crypt, Archie, Richie Rich, Superman, and Fantastic Four, among others, and it was fun to see several generations of fellow nerds browsing through the stacks in the store, often in family groups. 

Comic book stores have evolved considerably since my day, though. Now the graphic novel and role-play games make up a large portion of the inventory. 

Aren’t you a little short for a stormtrooper?

After finding the droid I was looking for (above) I headed to the back of the store to visit with a group of local artists who were busy promoting their own projects. One young man’s work stood out from the crowd, so I pledged a bit of money to his Kickstarter campaign. His name is Daniel Hooker, and his work is outstanding.

While I was figuring out the Kickstarter process Daniel sketched a picture of one of my favorite comic book characters from the expanded Star Wars Universe just for me.:

 

Mara Jade

 If you’re interested in learning more about Daniel’s project go to Kickstarter and search Line of Ruin. I believe you’ll be impressed.
And if you haven’t read a comic book since you abandoned your teen years, it’s high time to renew your acquaintance. 

Peace, people.