Romance: The Good, the bad, and the ugly

Since February is the month of love I have decided to do a series of posts on Romance. First, please take a look and a listen to my new playlist featuring my favorite love and in some cases anti-love songs.

Today's post is about the ugly side of romance. The times that make women want to swear off men.

One of my first romantic experiences was early in my sophomore year of high school. The sophomore dance was called the Twirp Twirl and the girls asked the guys to the dance. The custom was for the girl to take the guy to the dance and then to dinner.

I was going to buy a new dress for the dance. I already had it picked out, but, if I didn't have a date then there would be no reason to buy the dress. I remember it to this day. It was velour, burgundy in color, a long dress with a white collar and it tied in the back. At this time, I was about 5'5" and all of 98 pounds. I am not kidding. My selections were limited as almost nothing looked good on me. Yes, I was a beanpole.

I asked Bob from my science class to the dance. He said "sure". Afterwards, I wondered if Sure meant yes I'll go, or was it a sarcastic comment as in no way I would be caught dead with you. I remained the optimist.

I bought the dress and anxiously awaited the night of the dance. I confirmed plans the day before.

The night of the dance my mother drove me to Bob's house and then the both of us to the dance. We were having a fairly nice time. Well there was punch and some dancing. Then Bob spied the very curvaeous, most popular girl in our class. She was wearing the same dress as mine! Well, except hers was blue and she was blonde and oh yeah, it looked much better on her. Bob said to me, doesn't Gail look pretty in her dress? Not once that evening had he even commented on my dress! I was heartbroken and as you can imagine both the dance and dinner were a bust!(No pun intended) I had lost my appetite and couldn't eat my dinner so he ate both of our dinners. He said he had been starving himself for two days. The silence at the table was deafening and I heard the couple in the next booth say, "Aw, poor kids they must have had a fight".

Today I laugh about that night and I bet Bob would not even remember it. Sure wish I had a photo to show you all. I know we took photos that night. I guess I must have burned it.

I promise the next post will be more upbeat and filled with sweet stories. I'll reminisce about the good romantic experiences.

The perfect Valentine

Here's my man for Valentine's 2010. I know it's a little early to be thinking of Valentine's Day but the more I think about it the more I'm convinced that Oscar will be my best Valentine.

I mean just look at those soulful eyes! He is attentive. He knows how to relax. He's not a morning person and neither am I. He's a good cuddler.



He keeps himself in good shape, he's lean but muscular. And he's not afraid to show his sensitive side, I've heard him cry on occasion.

Oscar and I met on Valentine's night two years ago. So I think it was meant to be. He will be my perfect Valentine for 2010.

Flea Market Finds

It's Saturday and a perfect day to visit a flea market. I chose to go to a flea market I had never been to before. This one was in Revere, Massachusetts in the basement of St Anthony's Church. I had heard from friends that this flea market
had some great finds. I am usually looking for teacups (because I don't have enough), linens, and interesting old books. Occasionally I look for jewelry.

When I entered the basement of the church, I was overwhelmed. A quick scan of the space and I almost headed back out into the cold. I have no interest in old records, shot glasses, dishtowels with crocheted tops, and tupperware. No offense to those that like things like that but it's just not MY thing.

I did go through each aisle because you never know. There were a few teacups for sale but nothing very pretty or interesting. Finally, one bright shining light.
There was a table, beautifully merchandised. She used wooden boxes and crates to display her wares. She had old books and interesting items. She was eager to speak with her customers. I found out she used to be a merchandiser at a department store.




Every item I bought came from this one woman's display. The books and the old magazine caught my eye. They will be great for display. I will enjoy reading the poems and the magazine has some wonderful old ads in it.




The hatboxes will make elegant storage pieces and hold any clutter at bay. I think I will use them on the bookcase in my hallway.



This sweet little miss spoke to me. The seller told me she thought she was about 40 years old. If you looked at the back of her you would see she was originally meant to be a pajama bag. Do you remember those? I do, I had one when I was a kid.




Here's another view of her. She may just sit on the chair in the living room. Not quite sure where she'll look best, but, I am happy she has a new home. All she needs is a name.



This interesting item is part of an iron fence taken from a baptist church in Lynn, Massachusetts. The woman at the booth told me her husband does a lot of restoration work and he had to do work on the church fence. It was my good fortune to run into her at the flea market. She thinks the piece would make a nice doorstop. I think I will just display it on a shelf. To me, it's just really cool to look at and it doesn't need to be functional.

So after a disappointing start, I think you can see I had a fun time at the Revere
Flea Market!

A walk around my neighborhood

A day off and fresh fallen snow, the perfect opportunity to take a walk around my neighborhood and snap a few shots.



I like seeing remnants of Christmas decorations, especially in the snow. We're so busy at holiday time we often miss our own neighbors decorations. So I took them all in today.



I think blue houses look so pretty in the snow.



This is my favorite house on the street. It's a Gothic cottage and it was once a train station. I actually was interested in buying this house some years ago, but,
it was too pricey for me. It's funny that I ended up buying a condo on the same street.



An icy lantern in the front yard of the gothic cottage.



Another shot of the cottage. I do love window boxes. Sadly, there are none at my condo. Actually I kill plants and flowers.



Even the porch screens had snow on them.

I just love how the neighborhood looks when it snows. Everything looks so small, almost cozy in a way. You would think it would be feel colder after it snows but sometimes it's just the opposite. Once the storm is over it usually warms up and the air is clean and refreshing. It's quiet except for the crackling of the snow beneath my feet.

I'm already looking forward to the next storm!

What I like...

What I like:

Rediscovering a favorite coffeehouse.

Snuggling into my new featherbed and down blanket on a cold winter's night.

Making plans to reconnect with old friends in the New Year.

Not being so busy at work and leaving for the day at a normal hour.

Finding well loved clothes in the back of my closet that still fit me.

Blasting my music knowing there's no one upstairs to complain.

Discovering interesting movies on Netflix.

A long weekend.

Cat with Water

I don't usually post videos from You Tube on my blog, but, the cat lover in me
couldn't resist. This was sent to me by a coworker today and I am sure you will
enjoy it as much as I did.

The star of the video reminds me of my own Molly. She loves the water too!

Snowy Saturday and a Trip to Harvard Square

A storm was predicted and it had already started to snow. I planned to stay home with the kitties on this snowy Saturday.



I usually make a trip into Harvard Square before Christmas. I love to browse in the unique shops and people watch. There are many great eateries there too. This Christmas I didn't make it to Harvard Square.

So I was thrilled when my friend Kim called to ask if I was interested in going there on this Saturday afternoon. It was snowing and cold but Burdick's Hot Chocolate was calling.

We drove in and parked at Harvard University since Kim had a parking pass. Harvard Yard looked gorgeous in the snow as we walked through it.



At Burdick's we walked past the man keeping count of how many hot chocolate lovers were in the shop. Maximum occupancy is 49 and it is strictly enforced.

A winter wonderland awaited us. Twigs and branches were suspended from the ceiling and glass snowflakes and icicles dangled and caught the light. It was quite beautiful and an idea I may use in the condo mext Christmas.



Here's an overall view of the shop. See how cool it looks?




I ordered a small dark chocolate with a cinnamon luxembourger just like the macarons in Paris. The photo is blurry due to the fact that I was suffering from chocolate intoxication. Just the smell made me woozy with excitement!



Here's the outside of Burdick's, the steam on the window just adds to it's mystique. We browsed a bit in a few shops and then it started to really snow so we crossed Harvard Yard and headed home.

It was an enjoyable spontaneous excursion!