Vintage shopping and tips

By Elizabeth Prata

In the 'fill-a-bag for $5' sale at my favorite vintage store, I came away with some fine purchases.

I sit at my vintage, mid-century Formica and chrome table for most of the day, writing and studying and reading. When I look up from my laptop or my book at the wall in front of me, I want a nice piece of art to look at. I'd had an original piece of art there for many years, which I moved to the bedroom to refresh the different views. It was a painting of the bay of Naples with the volcanoes in the background and a trattoria in the foreground. The piece of art I replaced it with is beautiful (lighthouse on crashing waves seashore) but the proportions were all wrong. The piece was too small. I've been searching for another ever since. I needed big art at a low price. It took a while but I found it.

The poster is on foam of a black and white vintage shot of the Venetian bridge Rialto with a gondola underneath for $3. Sold! The proportions are good and I like the change from my usually colorful art around me to B & W.

A sweet two-tone ivory and creamy yellow teacup went into the bag also. The pottery mark said "Pickard" which was a company I was unfamiliar with. It turns out that the company is a US pottery and china making corporation in continuous production since 1893. They supply the US State Department, Blair House, United Nations, Air Force One, Camp David, Hilton Hotels and many other establishments. Whoa! So cool. The cup is from the mid 1930s and I love it.

This wallet or pouch caught my eye. The red and gold were opulent and I saw that it was well made and in good condition. What could it be?

A score keeping notebook for bridge? In fine Italian paper! Each page displays a different Italian bridge and the pages are edged with the delicate illustration you see below. The cover is soft leather, fine tooled. I'm a sucker for paper. A sale posting for a similar bridge tally notebook reads, "Multicolor & gold Florentine scrollwork. Exquisite color printed graphics. Made in Italy, circa 1960."

The item is most likely from Marcel Shurman. The history of that company goes like this:

Schurman Retail Group was founded by Marcel and Margrit Schurman in 1950. Both European immigrants, they were inspired by a love of fine art and by an appreciation for beautiful, high quality papers and design. They had a vision for bringing a range of products of uncompromising quality to the United States and began importing and wholesaling fine art postcards to fine retailers. Since the early days of the business the company has evolved and in many ways and is now focused in Retail and On-line Brand development. Currently Schurman Retail Group now owns over 300 stores that operate under multiple Brands.

I love paper and especially Italian paper. I was delighted with this find.

I've long wanted to make the front of the apartment look nice, but buying lots of outdoor things can get expensive. So I was happy to find this medium sized birdhouse and the welcome slate, which I popped into the $5 bag.

I already hung the slate up and I'll clean the birdhouse later then put it in the tree.

I am always happy to find usable things that I need and also the charm of the unique finds like the Pickard teacup and the Florentine vintage bridge tally notebook. Sadly, even these minimal purchases will have to come to an end for a while as I have medical bills and vet bills to deal with. Priorities, lol! I know I'll be enjoying these purchases for a long time, and meanwhile, I'm glad there are free libraries around for me to get some more books to borrow! I already got Nathaniel Philbrick's Mayflower which I plan to dig into by the end of the week! Meanwhile I'll be enjoying my past purchases, either using or admiring.

My tips for vintage shopping are:

--Have a list of things if you're shopping for things you need. I had on my list "patio or outdoor items; art for kitchen, mid-century books." (RE the books: not to read, but I want to see the cover design, mid-century books are terrific with the covers and I'd tear them off for use crafting or to simply frame them and hang on the wall.)

It isn't a matter of remembering, since there were only a few things on the list, but holding a list with the items written down sort of confirms and guides me as I tend to get overwhelmed and want to just buy everything. A list forces me to stay the course. (Same for the grocery store).

--Go slow. Vintage shop when you have time. You need to slowly look at everything, sometimes squatting, uncovering a pile, sorting through a box, or just standing still and like an archeologist going grid by grid, look carefully at everything in front of you.

--Understand quality. I don't buy in order to resell, as so many people do. I buy for myself, to use or admire. If you're buying for resale, then knowing quality is important but not the only thing. Resellers have to also know the market, what will sell, and comparable prices.

I like quality, knowing that I possess a nice item. Like the vintage Schurman paper and the Pickard teacup. Does the item look good to you? Feel good in your hand? Will it last? I like knowing that my Pickard Teacup is 80 years old, and there are no chips or cracks in it. Drinking a cup of tea from a chipped and cracked mug is OK, but I also like drinking tea from a cup that feels and looks good as I drink it. Then it becomes a case of not only function but pleasing form and eye-catching beauty. Who doesn't need a little of that in her life?

Happy vintage shopping you guys.

The Golden Hour photos and update on week 3 of summer break

By Elizabeth Prata

I don't have a garden but I live in a beautiful yard with wildflowers and some morning glories and flowering trees. I have a wonderful library, well-stocked for such a small apartment. It is everything I need.

I put "Happy Summer" because I am still happy about summer break. It never, ever, ever gets old. As a matter of fact, the older I get the sweeter summer break becomes.

I'm in week three and this is my update:

Bert my 12 year old cat died and I seemed to have taken that on board in my usual non-expressive, non-emotional way. It's just a fact. He's gone. But the other night I had a dream that I woke up in the morning and got up. As I entered the living room I saw Bert there in his little bed by the coffee table, looking at me with his pretty green eyes. I said aloud to him, "But aren't you dead? I thought you died? Have you come back to life?" And then I woke up all upset.

So I guess I have not taken it on board as yet.

I'm still reading and on track here in week 3 of my Summer Reading Plan. I added a few extra books as needed...I am enjoying Pat Conroy's My Reading Life, and I enjoyed the first third of Grisham's The Reckoning. I skipped part 2 and most of part 3 and just read the last 10 pages. But part 2 was 175 pages i.e long enough, and it felt like old Grisham again and was good enough for me. Especially since I've learned with being disappointed in the last three Grishams not to buy any more books but to get them from the library.

A friend recommended an author I'd forgotten about, Nathaniel Philbrick. I'd read In the Heart of the Sea: The Tragedy of the whaleship Essex when it was published in 2001. (Wow, eighteen years ago!!) It's the true story of the true ship and event Melville based Moby Dick upon. Philbrick has written many subsequent historical books, rapidly becoming my new fave genre. I will reserve Mayflower from the library and grab that one up next.

Since I got pneumonia three weeks ago I've eaten very little through it all. My appetite is just coming back now. It was sort of a relief not to have an appetite, Anyway, during the sickness, I ate mainly crackers, scrambled eggs, and chicken & rice soup. I didn't eat any sweets at all. Now that I'm better, I am trying to keep  up the no sweets and I think it won't be too hard. I ate a small cube of a brownie the other day at Sunday School and it tasted very sweet to me. Blech. I also ate two bites of a pecan roll and I couldn't eat any more of it and threw the rest out.

If I can maintain this habit of no sweets/sugar till school opens again, perhaps it will be ingrained in me enough not to succumb to stress eating at the snack bar in the copy room. And by snack bar I mean bypassing the crackers, granola bars, and chips and aiming straight for the Reese's and the Three Musketeers bars. I'm convinced only stressed educators know the comfort and delight of chocolate during the school day.

When school ended just before Memorial Day weekend I'd had visions of sitting at my patio table outside, re-potting my succulents, reading magazines in the sun, and watching the birds. But that weekend a strong heat wave came in and we suffered through highs in the upper 90s near to 100 these last 2 weeks. This was unusually hot very early. I stayed inside. This last week has been rain-rain-rain. Some places nearby received 6 inches in a day. I don't mind the rain since I don't have to go anywhere or drive in it, and it's kind of cozy to curl up inside with tea and a book.

But now the weather has broken and is closer to the usual for this time of year. I was hoping it would get to be so, before the hot weather of July and August steams in. Temps are supposed to be upper 70s to low 80s with overnight temps in the upper 50s to low 60s. This is perfect. Maybe I'll get to do my patio plan after all.

I also want, while the weather is cooler, to haunt some places in the city and take some photos. I love cityscapes and since I don't travel, Athens GA will have to suffice as my stand-in mini-city. There are some nice cityscapes there, if not the skyscrapers I'd love to snap in NYC or Seattle or Miami.

I know about the Golden Hour but I often don't DO anything about it. This is the hour that as the sun rises or prepares to set, the light turns golden and glowing. The noonday sun is high and harsh, but the sunrise hour and the time just before it sets the sun light turns a mellow yellow and adds a beautiful dimension to photos. I would love to go out and snap photos at 7 am but that would mean, like, going out. Same for the 7 pm sunlight. I never quite make it.

Here are a few pics of the yard this morning at the very end of Golden Hour. It was the best I could do, givne my innate sluggishness during the summer.

The last dew drop before becoming sun zapped evaporated

I liked the colors in the pasture hay and grass

Sun dappled pergola

Enormous pine cone thingies

I love light shining through leaves

Golden morning light on lawn

Old yellow Ford across the street

Rainy Summer Doings Update

By Elizabeth Prata

I love playing with my teacups. I mean by playing, looking at them, using them, and re-arranging them. I like the teacups because of their sweet designs. I love admiring each one uniquely and researching their origin.

The main trouble with starting a collection of anything, is that I live in a tiny place. My kitchen is small and there isn't a lot of space to display things, never mind using up counter space that has to be saved for the daily utilitarian things like the kettle, coffee pot, and utensil holders. And there's not a lot of wall space, either.

Last week I went to my favorite vintage shop because they were having a 'fill-a-bag' sale for $5. I needed office supplies, and also a few terra cotta pots to re-do my succulents. Along the way I saw a sweet Homer Laughlin teacup I could not resist.

However, that "one more cup" put me over the top in terms of adequate storage & display. Cups were stacked on top of each other, something that destroys the whole point of collecting pretty things so as to look at them and admire.

I searched and searched on Etsy and Amazon for a suitable teacup display shelf but I found nothing even after taking over an hour searching. I went to my garage to find something I already own, and thought a wrought iron old CD stand would be good. Its size was adequate to hold some teacups but it was too tall to fit anywhere in my kitchen. Back to square one.

Think outside the box. At the Dollar Store the next day I passed a hanging shower caddy. Hmmm. Only $5. HMMM! I bought it and discovered that it could hold 4 teacups in the unit itself and with two added S-hooks, two more for a total of 6 cups. I rearranged the teacups and voila, I now have a display.

It's not ideal, since I can't really see the patterns on each, and the saucers aren't with each cup, but it is vastly improved over the former stacking up, crowded situation I'd had.

I made a Teacups and Teapots board over on Pinterest if you are interested to see all of them. It's here.

I started (and finished) John Grisham's new book "The Reckoning". The story is given in 3 parts. The first part was the murder, arrest, and trial. Typical Grisham, so, it was good. The second part was a flashback to many years prior to the main event in part 1, and I read elsewhere that of the protagonist (a soldier who was in the Death March in Bataan) the part was detailed and gross about the tortures he endured. By then I didn't have the interest to make the leap to the distant past in the character's life, nor to read gory details of the Death March to Bataan, so I skipped to the third part to read the answer to the Big Question the 1st part hinged on.

I've been disappointed in the last 3 Grishams and I'm glad I got this one from the library and didn't buy it. Part 1 was 175 pages, so, it's long enough to be a book in itself. I moved on. Soon I will reserve "Mayflower" by Nathanial Philbrick, and Gerry Brooks' "Go See the Principal."

I also got Pat Conroy's "My Reading Life" from the Library which I am looking forward to starting today, and pairing with Tony Reinke's "Lit!" which is another book about books and reading.

For binging, I've been watching an old tv show called The Commish, as per Wikipedia- "The Commish is an American comedy-drama television series that aired on ABC in the United States from 1991 to 1996. The series focuses on the work and home life of a suburban police commissioner in upstate New York." In my opinion the main character is a nice man, a great cop, in love with his wife, and a good dad. It's written by Stephen Cannell, who was all over TV in the 80s and 90s writing for so many shows. Amazon Prime has the first season. I also enjoy The Waltons, another family show that in my opinion is heartwarming and clean.

The scene here today, a humid but blessedly rainy day. I plan to stay home today:

Since Bert died, Murray has been sticking to me like glue. He doesn't like me out of his sight, and he's suddenly become more affectionate. I don't blame him. The last scene that he saw of Bert was that poor cat writhing in pain and me hustling him out the door, never to be seen again.

Even though Bert was no trouble, neither is Murray really, it's a lot easier to take care of one cat than two. I would not have thought that, but it's true. I decided when Murray goes, I won't get another pet. This is it. I can't take any more heartache.

I better get to today's reading. On the docket is the Letters of Margaret Paton, wife to missionary John G. Paton in 1800s Vanuatu, and I'll start Conroy's My Reading Life. Probably will slip in a bit of Where the Crawdads Sing, too. I hope you all have a marvelous Friday.

Week one of Summer Vacation: Update

By Elizabeth Prata

So it has been one week since the official start of summer vacation from my public education job began. Of course, the last 4 days of school, the half day with the kids and the 3 successive post-planning days, I was not at school due to pneumonia. I don't call that part of the summer a vacation, lol. It was a difficult week.

Anyway, true to my promise to myself, I put my Summer Reading Plan into action. I've been enjoying the books I chose, and I am enjoying the structure of reading through a mountain of books in an orderly fashion. Again, the books I chose are:

I am truly enjoying the Crawdads book. It's written in a lyrical, almost poetic style but not so intrusively it's precious. Nor does it take away from a driving narrative that rolls along from the first sentence. It helps that I love the low country marshes.

The Internet Inferno book is about James and the tongue and social media, so I love it because I'm extremely active on social media but I also sin on social media. This book helps me be more careful, wise, and measured. Combining it with the Reinke book on Competing Spectacles this is a double whammy about how I spend my time...or not.

I chose the Kipling because I always like to read at least one classic during the summer. I've never been a huge fan of Kipling but I thought I'd give him one more try. It's a book of short stories so I'm not committing to a long story arc.

I read Elmer Gantry last year and loved it. Sinclair Lewis is wordy though. Good words, incisive words, poetic words, but lotsa words. It's the same with It Can't Happen Here, about how America could easily turn from representative democracy to fascism in one fell swoop. I like the subject matter and I enjoy Lewis's writing, so I'm good with it so far. He tends to get preachy so I'll be watching for that.

I'm enjoying the others as well.

Sunday School started back up for the summer and also the Tuesday night Bible lessons. I will be attending both, as the Lord allows. I don't have any social plans, other than a birthday celebration Wednesday night for someone out at a local bistro. I have a huge vet bill from the University of GA from where Bert spent his last few days so I don't plan on shopping anytime soon either.

I did go on up to The Special Store for their $5 fill-a-bag sale. I needed office supplies and that is indeed a great place to get them. Staplers, paper, notebooks, stationery, binder clips, markers, you name it. Saturday, I got some paper, file folders, three clay pots (I want to re-pot my succulents), and a 70-year-old teacup. It's a Homer Laughlin Eggshell Georgian pattern Cashmere. It was made in February of 1949. So cool!

Here is a Pinterest photo of it, not my photo. I'm currently too lazy to get up and snap a picture of the one I got. At some point soon I think I will take photos of each of my teacups and teapots and make a Pinterest board of them. I enjoy seeing others' and they also help me identify the ones I buy. So I'd like to return the favor.

I have also been watching Netflix/Youtube/Amazon Prime. I started watching Monk but Monk's pain is so palpable I only made it through season 1, skipped ahead to when Sharona was gone (didn't like her) and watched a few in season 3 with Natalie. Then stopped. It's too painful to watch the man be in so much pain.

I stumbled on an Australian show on Netflix. It's rated TV-MA which if I see ahead of time I skip but I did not see the rating and I'm glad I didn't, because I have not seen anything mature about the show. It's called Court Justice. It is a reality show about people who commit a crime and go to court, from their pov and from the Magistrates' point of view. They interview the judges and you learn their view of what the law is for, how the things that people do impacts society, and the onus of burden on the judges to balance compassion and justice individually for each case, tailored to each offender but also protecting the community.

The people were dressed appropriately, there wasn't swearing, or any crude scenes etc. The subject matter dealt with involves drugs, drunk driving offenses, traffic offenses, civil disobedience, self-representation, etc. There are some scenes of car crashes, when the narrator is explaining the statistics on drunk driving etc, perhaps those caused a TV-MA rating, but there wasn't any blood of victims seen. I'm sad that Court Justice only made it 1 season, and only 10 episodes. I like hearing about the Law and seeing judges who are good and righteous.

I've also been watching season 1 of The Waltons on Amazon. I watched the show when it first came out, 47 years ago. Wow. Hard to believe it's been that long. It's a sweet show and heartwarming. Unlike Monk, which is just pain-anguish-more pain.

I'm still in recovery from my pneumonia. My energy saps away suddenly and then I have to lie down. My lungs still hurt and I'm still coughing. I stopped at Kroger yesterday and got some chicken soup fixins. I've been living on scrambled eggs and chicken soup with rice. The soup is literally what the doctor ordered and she knew what she was talking about. The soup feels so good going down, is easy on the stomach, and fills me up without making me queasy. The hot liquid and steam loosens the fluid in my lungs. I'm going to make some more for a late lunch. Yum. After a nap. I'm tired now.

RIP Bert

By Elizabeth Prata

In August 2007, I rescued two cats. I named them Bert and Luke. They had been hiding under a row of bushes in Royston, and a friend had picked them up and brought them to the Royston Vet. She then implored me to take them. I was reluctant and she did a lot of convincing, until I wore down and finally said yes, much to my surprise.

They turned out to be the two best cats I'd ever owned. Luke was simply a love bug, enjoying cuddles and purring mightily. Bert was vocal, chirruping and talking to me all the day long. He made this sound brrrrrt when looking out the window, so I named him Bert after his favorite sound.

As they grew the enjoyed each other and me, and they never did a wrong thing.

In January 2014 I rescued another cat. He'd been born in the yard and the neighbor girl on the other side of the duplex began feeding him. Sigh. Then they decided to move and weren't going to take the cat with them since they had a dog who didn't favor cats. I chose to bring Murray in, as the girl had named the kitten. I would feel too bad leaving him outside all the time especially after he'd gotten used to being fed. He also longed for company, running after me whenever I roved around in the yard and asking to be held. In January when a strong and deep cold front moved through, with temps in the single digits, I made the decision to bring him in.

I didn't know that you're supposed to quarantine cat until you're sure that the new one isn't infected with coronavirus or leukemia, both of which were highly contagious among cats. Murray had coronavirus and infected both my other cats, and Luke succumbed quickly, dying of the more deadly version of coronoavirus, FIP, just about two years later in December 2015.

Twelve-year-old Bert did not succumb to the more deadly form of coronoavirus (FIP) but was painfully suffering from degenerative hip disease. His quality of life had diminished and he was in severe pain.

Now it's just me and Murray. Murray kind of doesn't know what to do with himself, as most of his little life has been with two or one cats for companionship. I'm not going to get another cat though, and when Murray goes, I won't adopt any more pets. It'll be just him and me for the duration.

Bert was a very good boy and I'll miss his chirrups and meows and especially his silent meow which was really cute. Here are a few pics of him throughout his life.

Coming home for the first time

Bert loved water and wanted me to turn on a drip for him

Early days, Bert with Luke

Bert's favorite thing to do: nap!

He loved hidey holes

Bert at 12 years shortly before his passing

Summer (Magazine) Reading

By Elizabeth Prata

I started my Summer Reading Plan on Monday and it's going well. It like it, which means I will probably follow it all the way to the end of summer, like I did last summer. It gives structure to my days, and helps me feel like I accomplished something. Plus, the books are interesting. Really interesting!

In between the stack of books I am reading, I also have a stack of magazines I haven't gotten to. My plan was to read the magazines with coffee on my patio in the mornings, before it got too hot. (The patio is concrete). I wanted to get a little sun on my face and perhaps turn from Casper the Ghost to light brown Italian olive picker. I also planned to clip my succulents and maybe re-pot a few of them. That WAS the plan. Georgia weather had different ideas.

It's been August-hot here since mid-May. Unusually hot temps have seared the state and smashed records. So, I am inside. That is quite all right. I am still having a wonderful summer and enjoying the time off. I feel for the folks in the middle of the country enduring the thunderstorms and tornadoes.

I do hope it rains soon. The once lush spring grass has withered and turned brown, as it will do without water When spring sprung, it seemed as if the green velvet carpet over the pastures would last forever. But the Bible says it will wither. The flowers will fade. (Isaiah 40:8). It happened fast, though. I know the grass will bounce back when the rain does come.

Meanwhile, I have plenty to read. :)

Summer is finally here

By Elizabeth Prata

Summer vacation seems like one long string of days with no weekend.

The last day of school for the kids was Tuesday at noon, and for staff around 1:00 today. Saturday I'd planned on attending a wedding, but I currently have pneumonia, so that's out. So is my church service I attend on Sunday. Monday, Lord willing, if I feel better I will kick off my summer break with a Reading Plan and a Photo A Day series.

Last summer I posted a picture a day from my tiny environs of the small apartment and yard. It was a challenge to myself to be creative and look with a new eye to things I see every day. I don't have exotic locations to go to or interest in selfies or particularly good people skills enough to take street photog. So year before last I took a bunch of pictures of macro subjects. Last year was simply a pic a day to tell the story of the highlight of my day. This year I might go for a theme. Things that Look Like Letters. Or, Metal. Or, Monochrome. Or, Diptych collages. I liked the ideas in this Creative Idea series.

This website states, "Many budding photographers find that their work takes a distinctive leap forward once they start working on a photo series instead of just standalone images. This is because a well-conceived photo series will provide focus and naturally guide the photographer towards uncovering and defining their own distinctive style. This kind of project is excellent for those looking to create a portfolio or Instagram feed with a strong, cohesive look.

Summer is a good time to expand my creativity. I'll be well rested and have no work to go to. Perfect time to widen those photography horizons. If I can stay out of the hospital.

I've had pneumonia several times over the years, as well as an almost annual bronchitis until I left teaching. Then the colds and bronchitis and pneumonia stopped. I've been back to education for ten years now and though the first few years I had successive sinus infections, the last five or so years have been relatively healthy. I've only had to take a day or two off work all year. So I thought I was done with all that. Silly me.

At least the timing is good! School was essentially done and I have 9 weeks to rest and recover.

Now that's enough of that. No one wants to hear of an old lady's medical problems, lol.

Summer is here, the Memorial Day weekend is upon us. I hope you all have fun, good BBQ's in the back yard, pools, beaches, books, fireflies, long-off rumbles of thunder, and peace.

But remember the reason for the holiday. Men and women who fought for America and gave their lives, so that we may have freedom to speak, assemble, vote, and...pursue happiness. As you pursue it this weekend give a prayer to families who are mourning a military loved one.

Happy Summer!

It's Saturday, but Summer's a coming!

By Elizabeth Prata

We are in the last days. LOL, not the last days before Jesus returns, the last days of school. We conclude the 2018-19 school year on May 21 at noon for the kids and Friday, May 24 for the teachers and staff.

It's hot, the temps are around the mid-80s, and tempers are about as hot. We love each other, but we are tired and worn out. It's just the way it works. When the last day comes, we are all ready to go our separate ways. When August first comes, we are all joyfully ready to see each other again.

This has been a really good year. I am blessed. I love my school. I love my Administrators. I love my Teacher. I love the kids. This year the chemistry among the kids in our class was smooth as butter most days, and they quickly cohered into a working group of pliable and well behaved children. A dream.

People have been asking each other "What are you going to do this summer?" They plan trips, they transport their kids to various sports camps or Christian camps, they swim in their pools. Whatever people plan to do, they are usually items of leisure and ease. Teaching is hard, wearying adn emotionally draining.

Personally I am not planning any trips, but plan to go home and stay there. I want to make progress on Challies' Christian Book Reading plan, study the Bible, write, and nap. I might go on a photo expedition or two and return with lots of pictures to process.

I call it hermit season.

The bliss of dwelling inside my home in clothing that is sensitive on my skin, being quiet, not having to converse, and being relieved of stresses that an autistic mind encounters, is compelling. I have not written much about these kind of struggles, but they are there and they are tiring. I need the summers.

For now, here are a few photos you may enjoy:

Mid-centrury building, Athens Technical College

Cat shaped car perfume:

Saturday Morning coffee with whipped cream

The Most Inconvenient Bookstore, Paper Planes, Bauhaus, and more!

By Elizabeth Prata

It has been a busy and hectic week, as it usually is at school with mere 16 student days remaining. We have field trips, State Assessment testing, changed schedules, pollen allergies and sinus infections making one last grip on tired bodies, final standards to achieve...

In our area, we finish the school year by Memorial Day. We begin the school year at the very beginning of August. I like the schedule, but it has taken some getting used to after a lifetime in New England starting school, both as student and a teacher, after Labor Day and finishing in Mid-June.

This is a great season of the year though. The green of a southern spring is vibrant and lasts a long time. I enjoy watching the buds burst and the myriad bushes flower into a riot of color.

The anticipation of a sweet summer at home the most powerful lure of my job as a teacher's aide. It's one of the reasons I re-entered education a second time. I love kids and I love teaching them to the extent my teacher allows me to, and being with them and seeing their growth, and their silliness. Kids are cute. But I also love staying at home in the summertime. It's true that I need to live for 12 months on a 9-month salary, but I make it stretch without having to get a second job.

Of course I have a stack of books to read through this summer. I'll do some crafting. Photography before it gets too hot. I refreshed my patio so I'll read outside during the cool mornings. That is about it for plans this summer. No plans to travel. No plans to attend any big events. I call it "Hermit Season." Just church and grocery store. Then home.

Here are some light stories I've read this week. I hope you enjoy. They are along the themes I like: books, art and design, and sweet movies.

Here is a story about The Most Inconvenient Bookstore

Tucked away off the highway in Perdue, Sask. (pop. 300), Crawford’s Used Books doesn’t have a website—but it holds twice the number of volumes as the main library in Guelph, Ont.

Crawford works his way through his book shop in Perdue, Sask. (Photograph by Mark Taylor)

Somehow, even 100 years later, Bauhaus is still fresh. That makes me think about how exciting and ground-breaking it was back in the day.

Bauhaus then:

The Bauhaus school didn’t shy away from the impact of change, but instead embraced it. Students were taught to embrace modern technologies in order to succeed in a modern environment. ‘Form follows function’ was the key teaching of the Bauhaus, and this was applied in the school’s approach to graphic design and typography, as well as architecture.

Bauhaus-inspired now:


I enjoyed this movie out of Australia, called Paper Planes. It's not rated, being a foreign film, but Common Sense Media reviews it as appropriate for 10 and up. See their review at the link. I like clean, charming, small, quiet, movies and if it stars a kid I'm  even more interested. I enjoyed the main (child) actor, Ed Oxenbould.



Here are some spring scenes from my backyard and immediate area I'd snapped this morning.

The mulch awaits...



The Golden Hour...



Good morning: moonset over pine trees at 6:30 AM:



My hosta is growing:



I enjoy the different shades of green across the yard into the pasture next door:



Enjoy the day everyone! Thanks for reading.

Spring Break 2019 Roundup

By Elizabeth Prata

I have four hours left of my Spring Break. At 1:30 I leave for 2:00 Sunday School, then Church service, then Small Group at 5:45. By the time I get home at around 8:00pm, it's time for my nighttime-closing down routine and then bed by 9. So this is it.

I had plans and goals for this week off from school. I didn't go away anywhere exotic. I stayed in my mind, which is exotic enough, lol. I wanted to rest my ACL muscle and let it recover. It had been giving me trouble. Wearing a knee brace helped, but the brace rubbed the skin off the back of my knee and I also wanted that to heal. So, not a lot of walking.

I wanted to nap and rest with the cats, which is very relaxing to me. When I get on the bed for an afternoon rest or nap, they climb on and nestle around me, purring. It's so wonderful. I lay there looking at the ceiling and letting my thoughts wander and listen to them purr.

I wanted to read some books. I have a pile. As any bibliophile knows, the reading never keeps up with the accumulation. I read three books (a disappointment since I'd set a goal of 5). The three I read are listed below. The thing is, I then bought 4 more. LOL, I'm behind once again, happily.

Banner of Truth Trust had a $3 sale. Are there any better words than that? Except Ligonier's $1 eBook sale or Ligonier's Friday $5 sale...or the elders at church piling up a stack of books the church had bought and saying "Here, take a book for free..." Our church is filled with readers.

Here's what I got at Banner of Truth's $3 sale-

Both Sides Now: Ecclesiastes and the Human Condition by Peter Barnes. I am fascinated with Ecclesiastes. I think it's because I was not saved until age 42, and I remember distinctly what it feels like to be lost. I think that is also why I'm so fascinated with grace.

Letters on Revival, by Ebenezer Porter. The author was an eyewitness to the New England revivals, and has valuable insights, warnings, and encouragements. I love the Puritans, I believe because I was raised in Rhode Island, one of the original colonies. My school history days were full of tales of Roger Williams and Anne Hutchinson and I was fascinated by people who clung to a religion so much that they would sail off in leaky boats across the Atlantic to pursue it. Their act was a powerful witness.

The Way Everlasting: A Study in Psalm 139, by E. J. Young. I'm intrigued by the Psalms. I don't really click with them for encouragement the way a lot of people do. I think it's because of my autistic brain not connecting with emotions as much. For encouragement, I like Ecclesiastes and Revelation, that is where I get my comfort, strangely. So this little book studying one Psalm, I hope will introduce me to the majesties I know the Psalm contains.

Books I Read:

Narrow Gate, Narrow Way by Paul Washer
Work and Our Labor in the Lord by James M. Hamilton
Internet Inferno: A Contemporary Warning and Reminder Regarding this Ancient Truth - "The Tongue is a Fire, the Very World of Iniquity, and is Set on Fire by Hell" James 3:6, by Michael John Beasley
Lit! Tony Reinke

I didn't finish Lit! the way I'd hoped. I had also wanted to start and finish The Believer's Joy by M'Cheyne and Idols of a Mom's Heart, two books our church recently gave away. But oh, well, the naps won out!

Things I Bought: (Must. Be. Frugal.)

File folders
Small Birdhouse
Small Planter
DampRid for the closet
All but the DampRid from The Special Store (local vintage thrift shop).

Books I Bought:

Banner of Truth $3 sale-
Both Sides Now: Ecclesiastes and the Human Condition
Letters on Revival by Ebenezer Porter
The Way Everlasting: A Study in Psalm 139 by E. J. Young

Must.Not.Be.Frugal when it comes to books...Axiom does not apply...

From Amazon-

The American Puritans by Perry Miller. One of the guys I follow on Twitter recommended the book. As mentioned, I love the Puritans, and yes, I judge a book by its cover, and I loved the cover. It's pretty. And New England-y.

Fortunately, summer is coming when I have the time off between Memorial Day and July 30, so I plan to read. I am still chugging along on the Challies Christian Book Challenge at the Avid level.

I also had a goal of organizing some things. I have one closet. My drawers were overflowing. I go through my clothes every two years or so and get rid of what I haven't worn, and make room. I was busy talking myself out of that when a friend dropped off two large trash bags of clothes she was giving me, so that rationalization ended that. I sorted hers, kept what suited and donated the rest, along with my own clothes that I needed to move along out of here. I've got one and only one closet in this place and I need to keep it manageable. So I organized the clothes in the bureau and the closet. Feels good! As well as donating.

And this might sound strange, but I also had a goal of organizing my jewelry. I don't like to wear jewelry that much. It feels funny on me, and heavy. I also leave it to the very last second when getting ready for work in the morning, and if I can't work the clasp, or if the strands are tangled, I am 100% likely to just throw it back in the box and go on with my day. I have nearly zero tolerance for jewelry frustrations. But when I do wear it, I get compliments, so obviously, it is important to look nice, or polished, or something.

I reorganized my box and untangled. I also did some surgery of removing the smaller clasps and putting larger links on them, for easier putting on or removal. Needle nose pliers and tweezers accomplished this while I was listening to Laura Twiss explain about Psalms 3-7. Still trying with the Psalms... I also took the time to clean the silver and wash the gold.

One other reorganizing project I had mentally scheduled as a goal, in addition to the clothes and jewelry, was my China display. I live in a 400 sf apartment and the kitchen is small. It has little counter space. And little wall space. I like to display my teacups and teapots in an orderly way. Doing so looks nice, because the china patterns are lovely to look at. Orderliness also affords easy access when I want to actually use them, which is practically every day. However I have some teacups doubled up and I don't like that. The china display is about 90% where I want it to be but I can't seem to get it over the top.

Those bottom two loops are not designed
for hanging cups. But I needed a spot to display them so...

Which caused the saucers to be stacked up apart from their cup

There is an unused space in the corner of the counter. It was jumbled and not used well. In a small apartment, every space counts, even space that's just a few inches. I searched for a long time for corner display shelving at Amazon and Amazon Warehouse. (Frugal tip: scroll to the very bottom of the Amazon.com page. See the Book Repository and Warehouse, two sections of the store that sell the items for lower prices.) Nothing. The shelf I have now actually holds a lot. I got it at a yard sale like 11 years ago for under $5.

Still, I searched for a replacement counter top shelf that maybe could hold more or in a better way. Nada. Stumped, I started thinking...what do I already have that would fit into that space? Something tall so the teapot I put on it will be displayed and not hidden. Hmmm...

Voila! I have a glass vase. It's clear so it won't make the space look crowded and just the right height to put the teapot on. I found a coaster of the right size and placed the Hall's 1920's tea pot on top. It freed up space for the Japanese cups clustered unseen in the corner and allowed me to spread out the doubled up tea cups a bit. The display is about 95% now. I still would like to display every tea cup with its saucer and another wall rack would solve that, but I simply don't have the wall space. I might have to live with this the way it is. As long as I do not buy another teacup...

The bowl is an Iroquois china, Harvest Time pattern, Mid-Century. 1958 - 1969
I use it for a fruit bowl. I have eaten all the fruit. 

I'm blessed to own 8 teapots, 11 china teacups, and three Japanese Yunomi cups. I figured out a way to display them all in my small apartment, somaybe I'm not doing so bad. I found a teabag display organizer on Amazon while I was looking for counter top china display shelving! I put it on my wish list, because the tea cupboard is the next thing I plan to organize.

I know I go on about organizing, but it is frustrating to me to see clutter. Any extra cluttr makes the place seem smaller. I also feel frustrated when I have to hunt, or wrestle things from their spaces to use them. Living tiny means extra steps anyway, you do not want to add to that with extra steps that are under your control. Example, getting a paper towel. I don't have room for it on the counter, so instead of one move, lean over and grab, I have to bend down, open cabinet under sink, take out the roll, rip one off, put back under counter, and close door. Instead of one step, there are now 6 steps. You do not want to add to that by having to reach, hunt, or reorganize, just to get one paper towel. Keep things streamlined as much as possible. Makes life easier.

Movies Watched:

Measure of a Man
East Side Sushi
The Ramen Girl
Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants
The Highwaymen
Barkley Marathons
The Polka King
Carrie Pilby

Youtube Channels Subscribed to:

Centsible Living with Money Mama (focusing on financial frugality and time saving)
Frugal Minimalist (life hack tips for saving money)
Dr. Lori Verderame (appraisals of thrift store items)
Alexandra Gater (home decor/interior design on a budget)

Sermons listened to:
Lots. Phil Johnson, John MacArthur, Mike Riccardi, Sinclair Ferguson, Steve Lawson, RC Sproul...I love these men and the way they exposit scripture. Also heard Laura Twiss for the first time (Paul Twiss's wife), teaching at the Ladies Ministry at Grace Community Church, called Every Woman's Grace.

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As of Monday when I return to school, there are 31 1/2 days left with the kids, and 3 days of post-planning. We're done on May 24. So we are winding down. I can't believe another year has gone by. They do go quickly. I try to be productive and redeem the time. I sometimes feel I could do more. But can I? Should I? I can only do what I can do. I appreciate these respites from the loudness and (to me) chaos of life outside the apartment. My brain has to work so hard to just keep up with normal life. Sometimes I feel like George Jetson on the treadmill after the cat scares the dog and the treadmill speeds up to beyond his ability to keep up.

But Jesus will keep me, hold me, lift me.

Have a great Sunday and Monday everyone. Summer's a-coming!

It's the end of #sluglife. For now...