Name calling

At last, here is the rug. It is a 1920's Chinese Wedding rug, approximately 5' x 8', in blues, pinks brown and purple on an ivory ground. Cindy is looking for as close to $3400 (the dealer appraisal) as she can get. Here, too is "Endora", the Diva of Divans. Endora was going to travel to her new home with the raspberry-haired Terri Ford, today, but it has snowed, and as she is too long to allow me to close the back of the mini van, she will have to wait for a day when we can keep her dry.

Terri is responsible for choosing the name, though I put her up to it. I grew up with Josephine, the wood cook stove, and Mathilda, the dress-form, and it just seems that there are certain inanimate objects that truly have a personality of their own. Besides, it confuses guests in the most amusing way, when you refer to these things by name. I swear, visitors too polite to ask would be obviously trying to puzzle out if we had some elderly aunt in the attic, which us kids thought was hysterical. Yes, we were odd children, but in the best sense of the word!

Yesterday I read more on Carole Hyder's website, and came across an intriguing thing about naming your house. She says that we care more about things when they are named, and that if you are living in a less-than ideal home, you can have a better relationship with it if you give it a (positive) name. I started calling our house Belle Ami, shortly after we moved in, just because she seemed to want a name. It comes from the town we live in, Belle Plaine, and the fact that the house was built by Friend J. Whitlock (the second or third). I usually shorten it to Belle in conversation.

Mr. Q., who is much more comfortable with things finished to perfection and a high shine is not always as in love as I am, with the old dame. I think I'll encourage him to call her by name, and maybe even a title of mama or tia, as he is very good to the aunties and grandmothers of his own culture, even the shabby beggars on the street. For today, it will probably improve his love for the place (and me???), if I go work on some of the unfinished decorating projects around here.

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving, and are ready for a magical Christmas/Solstice/Hanukkah season! I am truly grateful for all of you.