Bedrooms - Sleep - Italian Fabrics. . .

 

Rest, relaxation and sleep. 

Something we all need

 to help us through this time.

Do you sleep well these days?

Have you made changes to your bedroom

since the pandemic struck?

This is not my bedroom. 

The photo is of a room I really love. 

So different with it's barely there shades on linens,

walls, armoire paint, and the plain scrubbed floor.

SuzAnna's Antiques

 I would add at least one beautiful thing to the wall - perhaps

this collage of a sweet bird and embroidered fabrics.

Then I found this photo of a bathroom in similar colors.

My first trip to Tuscany was twenty years ago before blogging

 began. A dream visit which has never faded from memory.

 I purchased some linens in the lovely small town of Cortona, 

yes, the setting for Frances Mayes' much loved book

 'Under the Tuscan Sun', later made into a movie.

That memorable small shop was filled with beautiful finished linens

 for bed and table, but too heavy and bulky to bring home. 

I purchased several linen kitchen tea towels though, such great quality, 

and I'm still using them. . . . . . . they have even become better with age.

Looking through storage boxes in the attic last week I came

 across a length of woven linen also purchased there. 

The linen is the color of old gold with a blue thread running

 through it which makes it a different color on the reverse.

It really is beautiful, somewhat loosely woven, with a pattern

of leaves.

The pale peach damask on the chair seat is a piece of fabric left over

 from pillow covers I made years back when sewing home decor

 items for customers.

I've no plans to redecorate a bedroom any time soon, however if I do, 

I may gravitate toward these gentle shades. They certainly bring 

back memories of wonderful past trips to Italy. . . . . . where I stayed

in some very special bedrooms, including a palace in Florence,

an olive farm near Sienna, and a 5 star Venetian hotel.

 

Regarding sleepless nights - do you ever do this?

During these past months I've had nights when sleep is disturbed.

Counting sheep jumping over fences just doesn't work for me!

Instead, I pick a trip to a special place, perhaps a distant island,

 or a city, a safari location, even my expedition to Antarctica.

Remembering my time in those places, and making myself recall

 details. . . . . .believe it or not, I'm soon in dreamland!

Scented ironing. . . . . . . .

 

Yesterday included catching up on a little pile ironing.

Nothing detailed and time consuming, just flat pillowcases,

tea towels, hand towels. . . . everyday items.

I really enjoy making them smooth, feel fresh, and look 

neat and tidy on the linen closet shelf or in the kitchen drawer.

Winter means much less ironing when it comes to clothes.

The linen and cotton tops and bottoms are packed away until

 Spring, warm sweaters and woolly items taking their place!

I like to use 'linen spray' - makes the iron run smoothly, takes out wrinkles

faster, and the fragrance can making sleeping especially pleasant

when you lay your weary head on a freshly scented pillow.

One of my favorites is old fashioned Eau de Cologne which reminds

 my of my dear grandmother.  

This sparkling traditional citrus scent transports the senses to a slower

 pace of life, similar to a journey through sun parched groves of heady

 orange blossom. Lavender is also lovely of course.

I know we've talked about ironing before HERE some years ago,

and many of us shared personal feelings on ironing and some

 interesting stories.

Have a good Monday and a safe and pleasant week

despite the frightening updated COVID news here in the US, 

and in many places around the world.

The weekend brought numbers we hoped would never be

 seen so we must be even more diligent, especially 

now the regular influenza season is upon us also.

Please stay safe.

Shoreline distancing. . . . . .

Different beaches and shorelines - different times.

I took their photos at another time. I watched and thought what patience it must

 take to sit there for hours waiting for a little fish to come and take a bite!  

Was it perhaps boring?

Now I'm thinking how much better it would be to sit there, safely distanced,

my toes in the ocean, the screaming of the sea birds in the salty air, the sun

 overhead and a refreshing sea breeze from the churning waves.

Yes, I would really like to be at the shore this weekend. . . . . . actually I'd like

 to be somewhere, anywhere far away.

Carolina Beach - an annual post-Thanksgiving November visit.

Another time in a better, less stressful world.

Have a good weekend, especially if you are at the beach!

Let's fly away. . . . . .

Flying is really on my mind right now.

In my email this morning there's a lengthy detailed missive

from American Airlines regarding their plan for future flying.

It caught my eye with the promise of earning many extra points -

only thing is when will we ever be able to use them!

Following were reams of information detailing what the airline will

be doing to keep us safe from the virus, both in flight and at the airports

they serve. Goodness me, just getting onto a plane had become hard enough

 prior to COVID-19, now it appears it will be much, much more difficult. . . . and

then one will still sit in that seat and remain afraid both during and after the 

flight is long completed.

Personally I don't think I can fly anywhere yet - especially overseas which is

where I want to go!

I snapped this photo in Kenya in 2016 as our plane came in - and yes, that is the 

runway! - to the Mara to fly us back to Nairobi.  

 I also recall many other wonderful flights in very small planes when visiting African 

countries - it's the main transportation to get about.  

I wonder how those little airlines will cope in the months ahead.

The safari business is suffering just like all other forms of tourism.

All these photos were taken by me during that Kenyan visit.  

The beautiful animals are still there I'm sure, perhaps living life a little quieter

 without Range Rovers and camera-laden tourists bothering them.

Night time curfew has been lifted here but we'll still remain at home. 

Visiting and eating in a restaurant would be a real treat, but staying

 healthy is more important!

Heavy cloud cover, very hot, no rain due today - thinking of baking, 

soup making, with garden watering later.

Anything exciting planned for your day?

River runs through, almost!

It's a gorgeous morning here but will be very hot again later.

I look out over the freshly mown lawn - Bob cut it early evening yesterday. 

The sun was going down. . . .and the stunning 'Strawberry Moon' was

rising beyond the treeline.  It has been an awesome sight the past three nights.

Right now I'm awaiting an estimate visit from a landscape professional.

He will be the first of a few with whom I'm sharing my back yard

 'secret garden', which now, in all honesty, is an overgrown jungle in some areas. 

With an ever growing worrisome drainage problem needing attention,

 help is necessary. It's becoming unmanageable for us alone!

Functional garden pebble art by local stone mason/musician Graham Fry - amazing!

Of course I have my personal vision for the back garden. . . . . .

 . . . . . . but unfortunately not the budget!

Perfection would include a tree removal company, a bulldozer, ten tons of top

quality topsoil, and the best landscape designer with a vision matching my own, 

but with the ability to draw the plan on paper.  

 All that would be followed by a reliable, competent, speedy, affordable,

 landscape installation company. There would be elegant hardscaping such

 as stone walls, pebbled walkways such as above, a pond, a small waterfall, 
an outdoor fireplace with a pizza oven. All would be softened by new, smaller 
trees - some flowering, some just beautiful in their form - thousands of spring 
bulbs, boxwoods, lavender, more climbing roses on the back fence, 
more native rhododendrons.. . . . . and so forth.
Mary, do keep quiet and stop dreaming!!!

We face another weekend which we pray will be much 

better than the last one. Still under a night time curfew, at least
through Sunday, protestors continue each day but thankfully 
no further damage or looting.
Meanwhile, sadly, COVID-19 hospitalizations and deaths continue
 to climb here in North Carolina. We are not going far from home
anytime soon.
Stay well, be strong, and take care wherever you are.

Do you see it?

Do you see what I added to the last little photo?

Yes, us at the beach another time - in a different world.

 I really do wish we could be down at the North Carolina

 shore this coming weekend with the weather being so good.

This is what I really miss right now -

The crash of the Atlantic Ocean waves 

Waving 'across the pond' to family and friends in Europe (I always do!)

The fragrance of clean, pure sea air 

The calling of the hungry seabirds along the shoreline

The line of diving pelicans along an incoming wave

Watching surfers and fishing folk on the beach

Walking along the boardwalk, over the dunes, and along the sand

Meeting and chatting with beach walkers and their dogs 

Searching for a few perfect and pretty shells to tuck in my pocket

then -

Lazily swinging on a wooden porch swing on the boardwalk

Watching the evening fishing trawlers offshore

Washing my feet off under the ice cold water tap on the well-worn beach steps

Pulling my sandals back on

Meandering through the hotel lobby, across the street to Magic Beans for coffee

Catching up with old beach friends of several years

and later -

Showering and dressing casually for dinner out - oh to have a dinner out

and served to me, it has been so long. . . . . 

Breathing the salty evening air blending with fresh fish, shrimps, scallops

Sitting on a beachfront patio with a well-chilled glass of rosé

The orange sunset to the west

Smiling at the arrival of the seafood platter, always "too much" but always eaten!

Perhaps time - well there's always time at the beach - for a nightcap at

 our favorite (and one of America's best) dive bars, The Fat Pelican.

A great night's sleep with the balcony window wide open and the ocean sounds below.

It's so sad knowing our beach friends with businesses must be suffering, hotels too,

due to the restrictions brought by COVID-19.  We hope they will still be there 

when we return and we can support them again.

Please wait for me beautiful Atlantic shore - we'll be back some day, hopefully soon.

Meanwhile another 91F day here, and curfew continues tonight.

A peaceful protest late afternoon yesterday - no local rioting or looting in the 

night thankfully.

Singing the blues. . . . . . .

Good morning from the garden.   

I popped out early for these photos, dew still on the grass, a few wispy

clouds high in the sky.

Something bright and beautiful is required as days of sadness and

concern are still most definitely on our minds here.

Living under nightly curfew - as well as still being cautious leaving 

the house at any time - I am finding more than ever that time in

 the garden is bringing solace and peaceful moments. I am truly 

thankful for this place and nature.

It's blue blooms time, and how beautiful they are right now.

Heat returns today with a high of 91F and full sun.

Watering, especially the pots, will take some time.

Right now it's perfect outside, later seeking a shady spot

 will be necessary.

Dear friends, be safe, be strong, stay well.

Wishing, hoping. . . . . .

. . . . . . . and praying for this country, and the world.

Words don't come easy on a morning such as this!

Be brave, be vigilant, be law abiding, be respectful. . . . . and

 please be loving and caring.

A new view of 'Home Sweet Home'. . . . . . . .

I designed the above for a post just before whispers of COVID-19 were heard, when

 times were different, much different!

Having just completed the master bedroom makeover - waved goodbye to painter,

 floorers, electrician, furniture delivery truck and so forth. . . . . . . . I was already 

thinking about what to do next to spruce up the cottage.

Of course that bubble burst, things crashed, and fixing up, changing decor,

hiring help, and shopping for anything even slightly related to home renovation,

other than filling the toilet roll holders - if one was lucky enough to find any - came

to screeching halt!

Yesterday I packed away the flannel sheets and changed the bedding

 to summertime sheets of cool linen.

Dusted the furniture and passed the mop over the floor.

Nobody comes to visit anymore - and I wonder if they ever will - suddenly 

things don't need to be perfect and I'm taking a rest from trying to be

a perfectionist!

In all honesty, housework is stagnating somewhat around here.

Outdoors is getting more attention, although this week with so much rain

not a lot can be done. Fortunately Bob mowed the grass which now is lush and 

so green. Last night's really heavy downpours crushed the

lovely pots of petunias to soggy messes, even deadheading is hard to do

and will have to wait.  Best to view are the hydrangeas, now fabulous huge 

blooms of many shades of blue as they guzzle gallons of rain water.

Meanwhile, my pretties collect dust on their shelves. . . . . . 

. . . . . but being old, some antique, they seem softened even more and I am

just enjoying them as is in the present time at home.

Weather woes, wrens and wondering!

It's due to start raining again later today. . . . . . . and continue until Sunday!  

Enough is enough.  Yes, rain is great for the garden, too much rain along

 with predicted evening thunderstorms is not.

The above snaps I took yesterday. It was peaceful outside, the plants

standing tall. . . . . . except for three unruly rabbits nibbling my sunflowers

 to the ground, and the pack of four young squirrels fighting for the bird

 feeders like circus aerialists performing acrobatics.

How lovely the many songbirds birds are, just happy to eat quietly

 in between perching in the fig tree, or coming to the porch. 

A Carolina wren, my favorite bird, just sat on a chair outside the

window . . . . . chirped 'good morning' through the glass before

 hopping off on the hunt for breakfast.

Did you read the New Blogger notification of the late June new interface
  which popped up this morning?

Rather unnerving and not expected. I'm still stressing over

Adobe Flash closing down end of year and wondering how hard it

will be for non techies, like me, to learn the new version of PicMonkey, 

my personal photo editing program!

I thought being in lockdown would bring me much more time, and patience,

to work on things which might make life more pleasurable for this

 new future we are going to live in!

Instead, at this point, I feel like I'm falling into a crevasse, or off a

precipice, heading down into the depths of a darkness I may not be

 able to survive in.  Will this new world throw we seniors into the abyss?

I hope not because I do still have the proverbial 'bucket list' floating

about in the back of my mind. . . . . . . and believe me, I like to think 
I'm not over the hill yet! 

Do you feel up to learning a new blogging platform and editing

 program during this questionable worldwide order we may be facing?

Will you keep your blog going no matter what?

Perhaps we can share with each other any technical challenges

which may befall us in the months ahead. . . . I would be so grateful 

knowing we can rely on each other if need be.

Wishing you a good day as always.