Tag Archives: cottage

Apr29

moving to simplicity.

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and so I have sold the cottage 

the place where I have lived the longest

 where I have spent some of my best years

after a whirling roller coaster ride of a sale

each grandie takes a fairy house

to begin a village at their own home

family and friends help with the first steps

to move the things that I most want to keep

into a small space

(some of my grandies working hard)

then arrive at a daughter’s house

for a short stay

with olive the cat not the oil, in tow

while I await my new home

still to be in ann arbor

as I move to simplify my life

and live near what matters to me most

 family, friends,

the natural beauty of a park, the water, a garden

and a town which is only a short walk away.

(not my new home, but pretty comfortable)

in what can best be described as a ‘math miracle”

there is room to spare after filling this small space

with only my favorite things.

interesting to consider how much space

we would each need

to store

only those things that we really want to keep.

the adventure continues

along a path that is never a straight course

but always exactly right where I need to be.

—

“all deep changes are preceded by chaos.”

-deepak chopra

Dec10

laughter is the sun.

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as the snowfall arrives

there is a soft quiet

a world of white outside

while inside

 the cottage is filled with color 

 the center of the snow globe

 i’m clearly drawn to whimsical animal art

and yes,

that is the wing of a  peacock kite you see in the upper left corner.

—

“laughter is the sun that drives winter from the human face.”

-victor hugo

Mar5

ants.

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17039343_10155045208037365_1186576793748822287_o-2

it’s that time of year again

and the ants have stopped by for their annual visit.

as i now know that their newborns may outlive me at this point

i may just leave my cottage to them in my will.

—

“if ants are such busy workers, how come they find time to go to all the picnics?”

-marie  dressler

—

image credit: mentalflossmagazine

Sep12

if a window of opportunity appears, don’t pull down the shade. – tom peters

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benderconstructioncompany.com

called a guy

to get a quote

to replace

two tiny windows

in my cottage

 dripbook.comhe came from

a national chain

friendly

salesy

schmoozy

trying hard

but

too

too

too

much

song and dance

and

it went on

and on

and on

bilingualmonkeys.com

he made me take a quiz

i just wanted

something

a

step

up

from

saran wrap

and

it didn’t

have to

be

able

to withstand

armageddon

nasa.gov

he used

his special

infrared light

to demonstrate

the heat factor

all i wanted

was a clear piece

of glass

to keep out

snow

bugs

 flying squirrels

and

large enough

to allow

a

friendly fireman

to

fit through

he had

no

sense of humor

and

was

nervous

Jumping Lemurs In Madagascar

and so

next

we

began

the

jumping

on the glass

test

the whole thing

took two hours

he made a series

of  fake phone calls

to his office

to get me a

very special deal

and i waited

for his phone

to ring

while he was ‘calling’

then

 i thanked him for his time

he packed up his things

headed out

with all

of his equipment

and i kind of

felt for him

mybaycity.com

called another guy

and

this guy

was

standing

at my door

when i opened it

a couple of days later

a gentle giant

with a smile

and

a handshake

my hand

disappeared

into

his bear claw

of a hand

he came in

sat down

asked me

what i wanted

measured my

two tiny windows

he was calm

told me about his daughter

how proud he was of her

almost a doctor

asked me

about

my own children

we laughed together

 he used to build houses

now a window guy

 guessed the age of my cottage

more than 100

he was right

gave me the price

a very good price

no frills

no quiz

no jumping

no lights

no calls

he was here for

a half hour

he will be back

to put

my

windows in

very soon

–

it’s about listening first, then selling.
– erik qualman

—

image credits: benderconstruction.com, drip book.com, bilingual monkey.com, izismile.com,mybaycity.com

Aug11

kindness, like a boomerang, always returns. ~author unknown

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leslielane.com

this summer

i’ve so enjoyed

spending time

at home

in my cozy little cottage

with

family and friends and animals

and

thinking back

to

last summer

when

i set off

on

a long journey

to see my family

in their home

so far away

and when

i returned

and walked in

i was

left

speechless

when i found

what was waiting for me

IMG_1533

on my table

was a basket

of fresh peaches

and muffins

and notes

welcoming me home

and

they were

filled with

so much

love and caring

IMG_1535

a surprise gift

had been

given to me

by my dear friends

who

in my absence

 had

completed many projects

i had been talking about

for a very long time

mainzer cats

they had planned it all

and worked together

for weeks

husbands, wives, children

to make

my cottage

even more of

a home for me

they had

clipboards

and shifts

and materials

and money

and sweat

and tools

and time

and hard labor

and they

asked

my daughters

for my

colors

and ideas

and wishes

and dreams

and most of all

what i saw

when i walked in

was

an incredible act

of

human kindness

and

i

couldn’t believe

what they had done for me

and

i cried

and

my daughter

said

‘mom, all of your stories end with you laughing or crying or sometimes both’

and

isn’t that the way

 all things should end?

IMG_1534

you can’t live a perfect day without doing something for someone who will never be able to repay you.

~john wooden





—

image credits: leslielane.com, mainzercats

Jan3

and on the third day, she rested.

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Imagewith the first blizzard of 2014 still ongoing, and crazy outdoor games behind me, 12-18 inches of snow on the ground, and temps with a high of 2f, it is a day to sink down into the cottage, away from the outside world, the cold, the snow, the people, the noise, the light. 

today is all about books and music and movies and cup of my chernoblyl blend coffee and time spent creating art and writing and napping and a warm bath, and soft pajamas and softer blankets – calm, warm, peaceful, quiet, cozy, comfort. and i will embrace every slow minute of it. 

Image

Be he a king or a peasant, he is happiest who finds peace at home. –Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe