BOUNCE FROM OREGON TO MURPHYS.

It has been long between blogs. I find when I'm busy, I'm really an activist at heart and am inspired to rant about the current incomprehensible political situation, which Jim dislikes.  I have not been traveling!  So I rant. Jim reminded me this morning it has been a year to the day (yesterday) since I left the motorhome and took up the business of building a new house and all that transpires both expected and unexpected.

While in Oregon, I got news of the awful Butte Fire from that distance, chagrined that my friend Deborah Mullen,  a co-worker at the Calaveras Enterprise, was burned out. A devastating experience.
Today, after clearing through pounds of mail, I gathered clothing, shoes, tables, chairs, jackets, and stuff you think people will need in the aftermath of a complete loss of everything of a normal household. Deborah posted a picture on FB  of herself and Husband Steve; "We have each other," she said. Always one to look on the bright side.

After connecting with several recovery, resource sights, it became very clear that the stuff I gathered was not what is needed right now. It is more on the order, of paper plates, paper towels, face soap, q-tips, wash cloths,  canned foods, powdered milk, peanut butter, fresh vegetables, flashlights, lanterns, batteries, ice chests, water carriers and so on. So, tomorrow, I'll assemble a different set of household goods,and make my way to Mountain Ranch, then Valley Springs where daughter-in-law Laurie is holding much of my important paperwork taken at my request from my house during the voluntary evacuation order. I'll start carrying my camera again, if I can find it.

My last day in Oregon, I went to a bridge repair meeting and met some neighbors from the private road we share, many of whom,  I'd never met previously.
I also invited 12 people to a wine and nibble about 4 p.m. Saturday,  before my expected leave on Sunday morning. I thought some of the neighbors might be curious about what my place looked like after watching the slow progress from the outside over eight months of building it.

Hmmm. Four people showed up, three from one family. All but  four answered with some enthusiasm, suggesting they'd be glad to come.
I thoroughly enjoyed those that came.  I'm not a novice at entertaining guests, but I've never been so royally stood up in my life, and it makes me chuckle that I've had that experience at this time in my life. If I were a young bride, I'd have been hurt. Not one person bothered to tell me they could not or would not come. I thought it was strange but those that came,  more than made up for those that did not.
It has been fun furnishing a new house, with nearly all second-hand items and attempting to keep it neat and not over clutter it with stuff as I am wont to do.  I'll eventually get pictures hung and curtains up and take photos; my goal to hopefully find this page a bit more often.

ciao-Mary

FAVORITE THINGS

 There was a time I considered the most important aspect of a chair, comfort.  But, ramblin' about the country can change that perspective. With camera in hand, I continually run into chairs, in shops, on sidewalks, or buildings I visit that strike me as deliberate attempts to seduce the eye with its beauty or quirkiness, or attract the hand with its texture.

Looking at quirkiness, why would anyone build a chair that rocks sideways?

Rawhide makes a clever statement but the statement isn't comfort.

Surprisingly comfortable for street side respite,  but its beauty is what attracts because its placed where it catches the sun to tease you with its shadow.

Hand bent hickory, a rocker with comfort, strength and texture. Comfort to sit up straight, only.

You just want to reach out and polish these seats with your hand to see if they are actually as smooth as they look-and they are.

A place to kneel and commune with God or your soul;  maybe a special spot for a small child to sit and read to grandma. It tells a tale.

Who would I ask about this carved face? The maker is long gone, the chair is old. Makes you wonder?

Too fancy and formal to enjoy, but beautiful. It resides in a famous southern plantation house.

Very intriguing. Looking comfortable, but my eye was seduced by its artistic back, and the smooth texture of the knobs. Definitely not a place to lean back for fear it would break all that beautiful construction.

Comfortable looking, but maybe only for a doll. I have yet to see the chair that I want to plop back into and read a good book without going to a  furniture store.

A rocking chair porch wants to invite me in for a cuppa and a chat with the neighbors, except, ramblers are just passing through.

 For a temporary respite,  a curb or a rock can be a chair, or even a table in this park in Gloucester.

But, for comfort, there is nothing quite like an overstuffed couch or chair. I keep looking for one on the street.