Tag: Houndstooth

State of the Hall

Today Keith and his helper whose name I do not know came to Houndstooth Hall. (ETA: I now know his name. It’s Jay.)

Where it started:

How it’s going:

The black plastic bag covering the hole in the kitchen ceiling is gone, and the job should be finished tomorrow. WOOHOO!

Meanwhile, I’ve been busy, too. Witness the closet doors in the guest room known as “Lynne’s room.”


And the wonders within. On the floor, from top to bottom are a bin of doll clothes; a bin of Monster High Dolls; a bin of Model Muse dolls; and on the bottom, a bin of doll furniture, vehicles, horses, and other marvelous things. Above them, the shelf is full of boxed dolls.

Like this:

And this:

More boxed dolls and doll cases on the shelves on the other side of the closet:

Little blue bin on the left has Monster High Doll accessories. Little blue bin on the right has “character” dolls–that is, dolls who I sometimes dress and pose to entertain and inspire me as I write the characters they represent. Those four small containers on top of that are Barbie and Ken accessories, mostly shoes. They have more shoes than Carrie Bradshaw, an outdated reference to Sex and the City. But probably not more shoes than Imelda Marcos, an outdated reference to the former First Lady of the Philippines who is now 91 years old.

The four orange bins on the bottom are full of individually wrapped dolls. Since I’ve been asked, the total number of dolls in that closet is 456 (edited: 459), acquired over 55 years. Considering that I’m 135 years old, it could be worse.

Here is a cute shot of a character doll who’s currently living in 1974 on paper.

I now know exactly what I have and have catalogued and photographed where everything is. It’s organized and at hand–no more asking Tom to bring bins from our outside storage room and searching for that ONE doll or ONE cape or tuxedo I need. I’m happy they’re inside, climate controlled, and flood resistant or at least easy to quickly move UP should the need arise. And there’s still room for Lynne or a guest to hang clothes and put shoes–and more room can be made by stacking the bins a little differently. But NO MORE shelf space. =)

Mostly I’m happy because the things that fill the Hall–among them, books, music, movies, dolls and a few other toys, stones and crystals, a bit of art, crafting supplies–all inspire me and nourish a nature that has yearned to create my entire life. I never wanted things for the sake of things; everything is a story or becomes one. I don’t know any other way to be and am grateful for everyone who’s encouraged and accepted me for who I am.

A little extra TLC


Although I gave these little friends a moon bath to clear and clean them on the night of the full moon, their home was a dusty mess. Like a Metaphysical Hazel (a reference you won’t get unless you are of a certain age), I decided they were overdue for housekeeping.


First up, got rid of their old cotton mattresses.


I gave their case a good cleaning and put in their new mattresses.


The wands got some cleaning, too.


After a water bath, they’re back in their freshly cleaned home, and some new friends have even moved in.

Good housekeeping makes good energy.

An anniversary

March 10, 2020, is the day I made a firm decision about myself and my life. It was a transport day, and as I sat at the table photographing dogs, I took notice of one of my favorite volunteers as she carried her foster dog our way before putting him on the van. This foster mom was normally all smiles and conversation at transport, but on that day, she was subdued and uncharacteristically quiet.

As I watched her, I thought, She doesn’t feel well. I don’t know if it’s something physical or her mood, but something isn’t right.

And though almost everybody I’d talked to since December about this weird virus seemed to think I was blowing it out of proportion, it all felt eerily familiar, like another pandemic I’d been through.

I’d told my employer in January that I wanted to stop the volunteer photography, and they were trying to develop a photo team to replace me. I could no longer handle the weather extremes, and we’d gone from one to two transports a week. I felt constantly tired and stressed out. I realized that any transport day, any one could stop and talk to me without either of us aware one of us was sick and contagious.

March 10 was the day I decided I was officially finished photographing animals at transport. My actual job could be done from home, and I intended to self-quarantine and research any guidelines I could find from scientists and medical professionals about this corona virus. My decision was later supported by my doctors.

It’s been a long, challenging year. I tried not to make COVID (or racism, or politics) the only things I talked about here or in conversations with friends and family. Some adjustments were easy; others weren’t. I was laid off in April, but I’ve always had many ways to occupy my time. I’m more resilient in some ways than I used to be.

I have a lot of masks. More dolls. More coloring books. A lot of books I haven’t read. Some new music. I’ve purged a lot of excess things that took up space. I’ve given away coloring books and pages to people I thought would like them. I’ve delved into my past for tangible items to display that bring me comfort and happiness. I’ve made some new art to give away.

I know a wider range of people on social media than I used to. I’ve reconnected with old friends, and worried about other, quieter friends. My hair has grown uncolored and uncut for over a year. I’ve lost twelve pounds. I’ve mourned the death of a beloved friend as well as a neighbor who I greatly admired. We’ve been through an extensive bathroom repair, a different kind of hurricane season, and that ridiculous cold snap that still leaves us with unfinished home repairs. Our dogs are fine. Our living situation is fine. I still enjoy it that Tom is working from home.

I’ve accomplished nothing earth-shattering, and I’ve had feelings shattered in unexpected ways. I hope I never get too old and jaded to discover new and wonderful things, but I also realize I’ll never be so old that I won’t be surprised by the grim actions of others.

My ultimate selfie of the past year is this one, because I am sure THIS IS THE FACE I MAKE WHEN I READ DUMB SHIT AND RIDICULOUS PEOPLE ONLINE. It is the expression of an annoyed Ram who does not suffer fools.

So here I am, imperfectly me, a year later. I’m certainly more hopeful about the future, and eager for vaccinations to help me reunite with people. It’ll be a while, but that moment is more real to me than it has been for twelve months.

I wish everyone the best physical, mental, and emotional health, and I hope that you, too, feel more optimistic.

P.S. Please don’t give me a reason to give you The Becky Look.™

Oh là là

I haven’t been sleeping well the last few days, so I started redoing the Writing Sanctuary–the guest bedroom where I write and color and think and apparently give myself panic attacks for no apparent reason.

So… new bedding, and for some reason, the only thing I could find that I liked is French-themed. Which is fine. France is almost like another character in the Neverending Saga.


Tom said he figures this is a prelude to my saying we have to travel to France to do research. That’s fine, too, except for the flying thing and pandemics and…

Also messed around with the bookcase I face daily while I write so I’d have some new things to look at to inspire me.

That’s it. That’s the whole post. Except it felt like something just bit me on the back. I hope it’s not a scorpion. SEE? Shit like that is what keeps me awake.

Tiny Tuesday!

The plumbers came to Houndstooth Hall yesterday as promised. These are two of the three problems they found and replaced.


A tiny crack in PVC piping was the source of one leak.


A rupture in this copper pipe caused another leak.

There was a third leak they fixed, but I don’t have a photo of that one.

They turned on the gas hot water heater and relit the pilot light. All seemed well. It took a bit for the water to get nice and hot, and as soon as it did, I washed dishes and also put the pots and pans we’ve been using for the last two weeks in the dishwasher for a good washing and sterilizing.

Then later… Water was dripping from the kitchen ceiling into one of our cabinets (an empty cabinet! yay!), over our range hood, and onto our stovetop. While Tom put towels in the cabinet, I threw caution to the wind and showered. Then after he also showered, he turned off the hot water.

Today, we wait for the plumbers’ return, but at least we used some of that hot water it took two weeks to get, and we have clean hair and bodies. =)

Frozen pipes are dumb.

Much later, the day is over, and before I get back to writing, ETA:


Another leak is fixed; there’s a hole in the ceiling now.

Our governor has said Texas will open everything and stop mandating masks. There’s a hole in his soul.

Moonbath


Last night, I took advantage of the full moon to give some good friends and helpers a re-energizing moonbath.

Today, I’m still reorganizing them and need to clean off the shelves where they live so their environment will be as clean and clear as they are.


Here are many stones and crystals, including the group that has long worked with me doing energy work. This is not all of them, but I will take care of the others with a different method.


I began with some lavender and sage from a supplier I met through Instagram. She’s also a great musician and singer.


A little blurred, but at the top of the photo is my smoky quartz pendulum. I think he’s been my helper–or I’ve been his–since the 1990s.

Everything I do is in the spirit of mindfulness and healing.

I’ve recently become aware that not all people have good intentions toward me. I’m sad for them and surround myself with this great energy not only to protect myself and my home, but hoping that maybe a lack of success will make them stop and also keep them from stirring up bad karma for themselves. Being kind and holding good intentions toward others helps everyone.

Hope this adds a little magic to your Saturday!

ETA: Best part of my Saturday is the peace of mind I got when Debby was contacted to get her COVID vaccine today.

Midweek Update

In five days, our plumber is scheduled to come to Houndstooth Hall. This is VERY exciting news to me! If things are fixed on Monday, it means we’ll have gone two weeks without hot water in our house. I’m quite tired of doing dishes and bathing in old-fashioned ways (i.e., having to heat water for everything) and am ready to be back to modern-day conveniences.

I shared this old photo on Instagram a while back. It’s Lynne and me on vacation with my parents when we were probably fifteen. This is the trip where we forgot to pack our cassette tapes, though we had our cassette players. The only tape we had with us was Jethro Tull’s Aqualung. Neither of us ever wants to hear it again to this day.

My Instagram followers were quite taken with my knitted purse, and Lynne said she wished she still had hers (she has hers here, too, but you can’t see it in the photos I have). I think hers was slightly different from mine. I don’t know when we let our purses go, but just thinking about them drove me to search online. In what can only be thought of as miraculous so many years later, I found the identical bag.

It’s a little faded by time, but it’s like getting a piece of my happy, hippie youth back in my hands. It’s pictured with a candle I got around the same time. How that candle has traveled with me and been stored in attics and un-air-conditioned buildings without melting is unbelievable. I wish I were anywhere near as well-preserved as the bag and the candle. =)

Lynne is creating her own pattern similar to this to crochet a bag for herself. I can’t wait to see it!