ON THE ROAD AGAIN

Took big black in for service on Friday--ashamed to say I had delayed that project. My service center is so out of the way for me, on complete opposite side of Springfield from path to shop. I put a lot of miles on my car, but we bought a hybrid this time around and it runs like a dream and saves gas. I needed to run to Lebanon,Mo. yesterday and was worried about oil change' Anyway, got car serviced, had lunch on historic C Street with husband and grandaughter. The food network was filming opening of new restaurant so I took photos of crew working. Our family business is in the neighborhood and it is fun to watch the transformation of the building. The street has wonderful old structures, many of which have been rehabilitated in last few years. It is historical area, so they are pretty true to period of origin. Took off early Sat. for Lebanon and Tattered Treasures, and did I ever find some cool things. My favorite is a Drs. pharmaceutical case. Looks like a gnarly old suitcase ,but inside has great compartments. Our sister Jean went with me and bought a great green cupboard. Had car loaded, so headed to Ozark to unload cupboard, and back home to clean car out and start working on my "stuff". Open house is just around the corner and I have been procrastinating--imagine that.

WHAT A DIFFERENCE A DAY MAKES

We have rain. Yesterday it was hot and muggy and my husband was feeding the wild animals their weekly quota of corn. It has been so dry, they have gone from eating 300lbs. every ten days to eating that amount in four or five days. Thank heaven we only have one domestic creature to feed, or we would be in bankruptcy. We woke up in night to storms and rain continues at mid-morning. Seemed like a good day to think of fall and open-house at Leolas--took some photos of objects included in inventory and destined for same; Much junk to work on and a cool trunk brought to me by Bud, who keeps our house in decent condition by doing odd-jobs. He just painted fences and touched up porches. My husband isn't so good with tools, but works everyday to make sure we can give someone else a job. I took photos,also, of Danny feeding corn yesterday--and photos of yard this morning. The rain has already made a huge difference.

GOOD AND BAD

If you are a follower of Summer Sundays blog, you are aware of day-trip four of us took on Friday--we love Rockbridge and having lunch at the Trout Ranch. It is an experience in time travel, as it is so much like things were in the 50's. You almost expect to see Andy and Opie fishing in the river,instead we saw an older couple--He was fishing and she was on a lounge chair, in the shallows, reading a book. She was pretty in her one-piece and straw hat. We wanted to respect their privacy, so took no photos. As we drove down into river valley, it felt as though temperature dropped 15 or 20 degrees, and that was a good reason for trip. It is so dry here--the only saving grace is drop in humidity.

We live in an area of unprecedented beauty and unprecedented ugliness. Within a short drive of Springfield we have rivers, streams and lakes that offer all the amenities. Sport boats, sailboats, canoes, kayaks and even some small "yachts". You can fish, bike, hike, bird-watch, etc. The small towns close-by can be stunning, but that isn't the whole story. As wonderful as our trip was on Friday, the short trip I took on Thursday was really, really bad and depressing. I was looking for a photo op., and knew of a farmer's mkt, on the grounds of an old flour mill. The small town is quaint and has a good restaurant and bakery,across the street from a flea-market. What an experience! It had been a couple of years since my last visit to this flea, and it was pretty bad, but bad can't begin to describe it now. Large chunks of ceiling had fallen into some of the booths and vendors had deposited merchandise on the floor in the middle of this debris. I don't think anything has been sold since they opened, because you could not possibly find anything nor is anything accessible if you desired to make a purchase. I left the building and drove a few blocks around town to access mill and mkt. By the time I reached destination I was so bummed I didn't stop--drove home as fast as legal and called sister to plan trip to Rockbridge. Our mother always said there was no excuse for people to be dirty, because you could always find water--maybe they should search for a grass and trash-eating goat while they are looking for water. This may sound harsh, but in our corner of the world it is a real problem.

Now that I have vented, I want to look forward to fall open-house at Leolas. We will close for two days and when we re-open it will be amazing. Can't wait! Now you have the good, bad, and upcoming beautiful.

THE WHEELS ON THE BUS

Seeing the big yellow buses rolling down my country road makes me know the changing color in treeline is not an illusion. The overcast,cooler day made me want to go on hunt for bittersweet and fall foliage. Fall open house,at Leola's, is second week of Sept., so really feel need to stop procrastinating. I always do everything on the fly--don't plan very well. There are a couple of good sales this next week-end, so hope to add to inventory. I always need a theme for my space,as that gives me focus. This time around I am getting away from whites,etc. and going with OUT OF AFRICA. Doesn't that just give a vision of khakis, greys, faded greens? I can always use help, so if you have any ideas? Wanted you to know Leola has a fb page, so come on over and be her friend. The photo is from my porch--the first color of fall.

raccoon eyes

I have tried for two days to write a new post, but could not access blog-said I forgot password. Nothing I did worked, not even through e-mail. Today, like magic, It accepts my password--ADD and high blood pressure. I am noticing a definite change in the tree-line surrounding my valley--walnut leaves always go early,but this is August and there is fading of colors and some gold showing up. We are preparing for fall open house at Leola's, so this should put me in mood. I am in charge of mailers and setting of mood for windows,etc. In case you haven't noticed, my sisters try to keep me occupied and out of their hair. I will attempt,again, to show photos. I took some quick shots of collections I keep about and I wanted you to see who greeted me yesterday morning, as I stumbled past atrium doors with my first cup of caffeine.

Garage sale

Considering the heat and humidity, Leola's garage sale could be considered a success. The crowd gathered early and mingled about until early afternoon. We saw lots of vendors we only see when we all hit the sales, because most of them are sole proprieters and stay close to home. Late in afternoon we loaded up and left-overs went to storefront operated by a charitable organization. We always have fun when we do these events--Linda served lunch. My sons refer to Linda's never-ending tuna bowl as three heads of lettuce and one can of tuna. When our kids were still at home we would gather at Linda's house and she and mom would serve lunch poolside-- almost always tuna sandwiches . Everyone of our kids consider those days the best. I am going to attempt to insert photos, so if they are random you are welcome to my world! I want everyone to know that Jan did not take part in our sale and you should give her a resounding BOO. Just so you know we are not intentionaly mean--we are two years apart and share a lot of friends, so have always been a little brutal with each other. Linda is in above photo,holding her great-granddaughter--Bella. The sign on bldng. in background is from our antique shop we operated for ten years, back in the day.

Leola's Yard Sale!!

Who in their right mind would be cleaning storage when it is 90 degrees and 100% humidity? I am prepping for Leola's yard sale tomorrow,and am grateful to have help. One of "my three sons" is helping load or a heat stroke would be eminent. I will have photos of sale on next post, which should be in next few days--could be sooner . Could also be later! I am adding photos,here, taken during storm on Tuesday. Remember sale tomorrow!!