collections

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It always fascinates me to discover what people save and collect. Perhaps it is just a dysfunction of mine... but I love the whole psychology behind it. Shows like "Clean House" and "Hoarders" are a guilty pleasure of my TV watching time...

One of the things my mother and I have been doing is going thru clothing and personal items of my dad's... and packing up some things that might be beneficial to someone else. And in the process... I am re-discovering weird and wonderful things about my dad. For example... he loved to dress well. Not that he was vain or anything... far from it. But he had a certain pride in his appearance and liked to be clean, and pressed, and presentable. ((None of this ... shorts hanging out of his pants... which are down to his knees... kind of thing like you see some people dressing like.)) He had a ton of ties. He used cloth handkerchiefs. His socks matched his outfit. He actually shined his shoes. Yah, I know.

And it got me thinking about what we all collect and save... and how it reflects on our personalities so very strongly. I would not classify myself as a hoarder... but there are certain things that I can't get rid of either. I know... shocking. I have a deep love of fabrics and threads and buttons and such. I am sure this comes from my grandmother... who not only could sew anything she laid her eyes on... but often did. I keep old books. I justify keeping them to myself by saying they are reference material for art... but in reality... I just love old books. I get this from both my grandmother and my father. And I am obsessed with little bits and bobs and little anythings that I can potentially make into jewelry. I can't help it. My daughter jokes with me that it is because (in the Chinese zodiac)... I am a dragon.. and dragons love to hoard all kinds of shiny things... and she very well could be right. Who knows where I get that from... but it is definitely ME.

*photos by Elaine A. Russell

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Everyone seems wiped out today. Not sure if it is the weather (still raining most of the time)... or just everything catching up with us.... but it is one of those days when you wish you could stay in bed. Even Sabrina is content to curl up on a couch and let the world disappear for a bit.
Fortunately, I made a big pot roast the other day in the crock pot... and I do have some photos for my blog... so I just need to get a photo for the day ( for my 365 photo every day - photo challenge).



A friend of mine asked me yesterday where I find all the interesting things to take pictures of. I am not sure that my "subjects" are exactly riveting... (especially today)... but I try to take photos of things that perhaps we see every day.... but don't really see. I try to make what most people see as "ordinary"... perhaps a bit more extra-ordinary....



The photos for today were taken over a 10 minute break from running errands yesterday. I stopped near the Hershey Farms on Route6; and took 4 or 5 photos of the cows, the geese... the creek... simple, ordinary things that the people here see every day. I added a retro color filter scheme... to make them all look a little golden; a little vintage... and that's it. I'm not really happy with the photos of the cows... but they were being shy, and every time I tried to get a little closer; they would take off. Plus... using a simple point and shoot sometimes has it's limitations... and in this case... not much of a telephoto zoom. Some days are like that....



And this last photo is our submission for this week's Echo Challenge. Brenda (my partner in crime) did the photo of the guitars and I did the photo of the stickers. The theme for this week was "collection."
You can see everyone's entries here
And here is a link to Brenda's Blog

Laura's house....


*photo by Elaine A. Russell



So... Laura is a very interesting person. The daughter of 2 avid antique collectors... she said she never anticipated going into the "family business." In fact, she said she went in the opposite direction, becoming a clinical psychologist. She has 4 degrees, and an insatiable curiosity about the world.. and the people in it. She is also a fantastic artist herself.
Her home is also her place of business, with several rooms devoted to the "collections" that people come from far and wide to see and buy portions of. She caters primarily to collectors, enthusiasts, and artists. Drawers, shelves, cupboards, closets... even entire rooms are full of interesting items.

It is easy to lose track of time in a place like this. Believe me. Hours went by like mere minutes.
More tomorrow.. but in the meantime.. enjoy :)

I am also including a link to a video from YouTube that shows an interview with Laura.. and it helps explain things so much better than I could.

YouTube Interview: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=alwqmjdH9fM