There's not much else to do when you're painting except think.
I was just thinking of my mum & how I picked up my dubious skill of decorating from her.
I had occasion to go to the church Harry & I were married in a few weeks ago & from the car park I took this photo of the house I was mostly brought up in.
My dad bought this house for the grand sum of £11,000 back in 1954......it was a lot of money in those days so my mum pretty much had to decorate it herself single handily. I can remember her pasting wallpaper & painting every room. Women didn't go out to work in those days so she had the time but it's a big house. .....only the front bit shown here so it was a big task.
I walked to the church on my wedding day with my father & then we all walked back & had our reception in the big sun room which is on the other side of the house.
Harry & I lived in a flat on the top floor for about 6 months after we were married...you can see the windows at the top.
This house if it went on the market now would be worth almost a million pounds ....a good investment if we still owned it ..ha ha!
I am rambling on but just waiting for second coat of paint to dry so time to spare.
Three good things:
1. Good memories.
2. Celebratory Masterchef starts tonight....yippee!
3. The horses in the field at the top of the road have gone home.....they were getting out so we had to go & shut our drive gate every night before bed in case they got in the garden in the night.
Wonderful and happy memories Pat -- it is good to stop to reminisce at times - and what a beautiful house .So the painting is coming on well -- good for you ! My parent always did their own decorating -and Rod ( my late husband ) and I did ours -- and I continued doing my own until I was struck with Polymyalga and now it is so difficult to find someone,and someone to do a good job !! Looking forward to Celeb master chef tonight !! Beautiful shot Pat !
That's a very special photo then Pat! And what lovely memories.
There are so many things I learned in the same way from my mum and dad, though Mum doesn't rate what she did very highly!! There is such a hugely satisfying feeling when you've done things for yourself...and I've learned to live with the imperfections!!
What fabulous memories! I'm always fascinated by the way one's mind wanders when doing something (dare I say?) monotonous! I always feel there's a message there, somewhere ;)
Lovely memories you have. Love your rootedness, something that a lot of us Londoners (well me and Dave) sometimes feel the lack - foreign parents, moving about the big metropolis for work, affordability etc...
@boxplayer yes thank you Isla....always lived within about a twenty mile radius from home except when I was I n Scotland for a while when a baby.
Pretty boring really but does make for a settled life . Our adventures started when sons went to NZ of course.
What a wonderful home! Yes, prices have changed. If my grandparents had purchased our cottage land on one of the closer lakes to Toronto it would have been worth $2-3 Million right now. They 'only' paid $100 for 7 acres back in the 1920's. ;)
Fascinating. How lovely to have all those memories on your doorstep. I sometimes allow myself an idle daydream in which my mum's dad hadn't sold his farm at the bottom of the market in the 70's...
June 15th, 2014
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There are so many things I learned in the same way from my mum and dad, though Mum doesn't rate what she did very highly!! There is such a hugely satisfying feeling when you've done things for yourself...and I've learned to live with the imperfections!!
Pretty boring really but does make for a settled life . Our adventures started when sons went to NZ of course.