Yours 'til Niagara Falls

Inspiration Hits Close to Home

Inspiration for home decorating is pretty idiosyncratic.  There are as many ways to arrange one's possesions as stars in the sky.  One particular image has resonated with me for years.  There is a British children's author and illustrator named Jill Barklem who has written a delightful series of books called Brambley Hedge.  Her paintings depict a world of well-dressed mice who live in a gentle world of abundance and happiness.  Many of the stories have plots revolving around residents of Brambley Hedge celebrating happy events and doing nice things for each other.  I have a tea set from Royal Dalton with seasonal illustrations on all the pieces.  My favorite one is Winter:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The picture on the right is my interpretation of that cozy scene.  I'm pretty happy because I finally got my fireplace inspected and cleaned so I can use it with confidence.

Another inspiration that struck me on this lovely Sunday involved making banana bread.  It might have been because I had some bananas that were past the point of no return.  Mostly, though, it gave me the chance to play with my new dolls:

They are measuring cups!

A Trip to Albion

My maternal grandmother was born in Albion NY in 1891.  My mother and her sister have often mentioned that they would like to take the 90-minute drive to visit the town.  Today was the day we made it happen.  It was the very best kind of a day for a road trip.  Western New York is having a string of perfect weather.  The leaves are about half changed and not many have fluttered down.  

Our first stop in the tiny town of Albion was the church my grandmother attended as a child.  Back then, it was St. Joseph's.  Now, after a diocesean re-organization, it was combined with another parish and re-named Holy Family.  It is a beautiful church featuring massive amounts of pink marble.  The alter is exquisite. Here is a picture: (credit Woj Photography)

   

This photograph makes it look considerably larger than it really is.  Being that it is indeed a small world, the priest that celebrated the mass was my aunt's former pastor In Niagara Falls.  Furthermore, this priest's father worked on the railroad with my grandfather.  He even had a story he remembered about my grandfather, Daniel Buckley;

Dan Buckley and a companion were walking down the street.  As they walk past a local gin mill, they notice a man stagger out and proceed to vomit.  Seeking to comfort the afflicted, Dan Buckley lays his hand on the poor man's shoulder and says, "Better an empty house than a bad tenant".  

And so it goes...

My New Old House

So... this is my new house.  I've been living here for about a month.  I'm just mastering which switch goes with which light.  I'm also re-learning how to cook now that I have a gas range.  As I have mentioned to some people, I am opening up boxes that have not been opened since two moves ago.  The newspaper I used to wrap the items has a 2004 date, so it has been a while.  

And so it goes...