2014/02/26: My Poodle Telephones!

This past weekend I finally got around to doing some crafting/sewing. 

I found 2 old-timey phones in the trash in my building.  Of course, I immediately thought of poodles!  These phones both are in working condition.

I had a couple of the fuzzy tubular scarves that I purchased at Goodwill.  These tubular scarves make crafting easy.  I removed the handset and cords from phone #1 and painted around the number buttons with white acrylic paint.  Opening up the pink tubular scarf, I inserted the first phone.  I folded under one end of the scarf, leaving about 6-8 inches of excess fur at the back of the phone.  I cut off the excess at the other end.  Then I glued and folded the scarf around the phone, cutting small holes for the number buttons and the cord openings.  I carefully glued around these openings.

I then took the handset and inserted it into the remaining portion of the scarf.  I took the excess on one end and pulled it into a rubber band, forming one ear.  On the other side I made a loose covering for the spiral cord.  I folded up and hand sewed the cord cover so it wouldn't be so bulky.  When I tuck back the cord it looks like another ear.

I inserted a piece of balsa wood into the bottom fur cover and glued it to the underside of the phone.  I glued a clothespin with its base to the wood and glued a large pink puff ball to the top of the clothes pin. Then I pulled the excess fabric over these pieces, taking a rubber band to tie the end of the clothespin to form the pouf of the tail and securing with a few stitches.

I added some doll eyes and lashes that I already had in my stash, used a button for the nose, glued in a felt tongue and tied a bow on an ear.
 I attached the handset to the phone base and plugged in the phone cord.

Now I just need to figure out how to make the phone bark instead of ring!

I decided my pink poodle phone needed a mate.  So I covered the phone #2 with a blue tubular scarf.  I took some photos as I worked on it.  This phone was a dark brown so I doubled the scarf over the phone to cover the dark color. 

The handset and cord were permanently inserted into this phone so I had to work around them.  I left the brown spiral cord uncovered and made both ears the same way by cutting off a piece of scarf. pulling the excess fur and gluing the fur onto the handset, folding it as necessary. 

I wrapped both end of the fur with rubber bands to form the ears. 

I made the tail from the excess fur on the back side of the phone - securing it with a rubber band and some stitches.

I cut out white felt ovals for the eyes (no more eyeballs in my stash) and sewed on black buttons with white thread for the pupils.  The nose is a button.  The tongue is red felt.

Aren't they just the perfect couple!

February 18, 2014

I'm feeling very happy today!  I just returned from the Student Center.  There are patios around the center with tables.  I ate my healthy lunch there today.  It's a beautiful day so I walked to the center and ate outside.

Working at Rice University has been the one stable constant in my life during these past few turbulent years.  It is a great comfort to be somewhere familiar with people I have known for years.  I am so grateful that I have this job!

February 12, 2014: D Day Anniversary!

What a difference a year makes!  I have been a free, single woman for one whole year today.  Life is good!

Tonight I celebrated by having dinner at Olive Garden with my good friend, Bert.

My house has become a girly retreat- pink poodles, teapots and dolls abound!  I even have my own live pink poodle, Sweetsie.  I always wanted a cute female poodle.  Back in the 1950's there were all kinds of kitschy pink poodle ceramics, lamps, toys, etc.  Now my childhood dream has come true.

Sweetsie used to be white but with the help of a fruit punch koolaid rinse (no sugar added, of course), she is my little living toy.

February 11, 2014

Mom was discharged from the hospital this afternoon.  Her leg is in a splint.  Bedford Place plans to keep Mom in a reclining wheelchair during the daytime.  That way she can be with other people.

I have attached the photo I took today of Mom's new room at Bedford.  She has a roommate now - Virginia.  She is much happier because she is not alone in the room.  The room is large and has its own bathroom.

This is the photo that I took of her Mom this evening.  She was very happy to be back at Bedford Place.

February 10, 2014: looks like another eventful year

I was in bed all day Saturday, 2/8/2014 trying to recover from an upper respiratory infection.  When a cold gets into my lungs I become very sick.

My cell phone was on vibrate because I had been at the doctor's office the day before.  I happened to pick it up on Saturday evening and then I found that I had received 4 texts from Mom's personal care home.  Mom had been brought into Oakbend Hospital because she had 2 broken bones in her lower left leg.

This is the email that I received from Linda Papas, the supervising nurse at Bedford Place:

Linda Papa	Feb 8 (2 days ago)
to me

good morning

\

this is to inform you that your mom has  had an accident yesterday , she has bruise on her right leg, redness and swelling.

Per caregiver they reported that when they were transferring her from wheelchair to bed not knowing that her right leg was not in  proper place and they grabbed her/help her to be transferred to her bed.

We informed Dr Capocyan and advise to have x-ray

We received last night the x-ray result and found out that there was a  fracture

in the right distal tibia with mild displacement.

Today, we are going to send her to ER at Hermann Memorial SOuthwest.

Linda Papa	Feb 8 (2 days ago)
to me

sorry its not Hermann memorial  its oak bend hospital

I spent Sunday at the hospital with Mom waiting to speak to the surgeon, Michael Maier.  He never came in.  Mom was on morphine and pretty confused.
This morning I made some calls and got in touch with Dr Maier's assistant, Abel.  He said that the doctor did not want to perform surgery - just splint the leg, then put on a cast followed by a boot.
 Dr Capocyan who admitted Mom is the one associated with the Bedford home.  He lives out in Richmond - over an hour from here so he put her in a Richmond hospital.  He will probably discharge her tomorrow or Wednesday.
I stayed home today trying to get well enough to go to the office tomorrow.  If I would stop wheezing all night I could get some good sleep and get well.
I'm not sure what the process is to get Mom from the hospital - if the home orders the ambulance or I have to arrange it.  I want to do what is best for Mom.  It is very frustrating trying to get clear information.

I have been extremely fortunate to have Bert in my life.  First he was helping me recuperate - even making me chicken soup.  Then he spent Sunday at the hospital with me.  He is a true friend.

January 27, 2014: a smelly day

Today started out just fine.  It's my day off and I slept until 7:30 AM.

I was in the bedroom cleaning my closet and I heard weird gurgling noises.  I went in the bathroom and there was sewer water on the floor.  The toilet bowl was totally empty.  I started throwing down towels to sop up the water.

I went to check the other bathroom.  The same thing!  I called the city.  I thought someone might be working on the sewers.  But, that wasn't the problem.  I called my plumber.  He came right over.  The sewer line to my house is partially busted.  He fixed it enough for a few days.  He has to come back later with a special camera to put down the pipes and figure out all the damage.

Luckily, my friend Bert was here today.  He brought out my water vacuum and worked on the water on the floor in the bathrooms.

There's always some kind of problem with a house.  This has been a very stinky one!

January 17, 2014

I'm happy to say that I survived the holidays very well.  But, I am also so happy that they are over.  There are just too too many memories associated with holidays.  It made it difficult for me to focus on the present.

I am pretty content with my current life.  It's been over a year now that I have had the house to myself.

I've spread out through the entire house.  At first, I wanted to keep a guest room set aside and ready for visitors.  I still have the bed in the room but today I am moving all my patterns and books down to that room.  This frees up a lot of storage space in my sewing room.  I moved most of the clothing that I've made onto a rolling rack that I placed in that room.  I hadn't realized how much I've made until I put it all in one spot.

I put one of the cats' litter boxes in the bathtub in the second, rarely used bathroom.  It's now their favorite spot.  I wish the cats would not get so enthusiastic with scratching the litter.  Then I wouldn't have to sweep it up so often.

Home maintenance is a necessary nuisance, though.  Maybe someday someone will pay big bucks for my property.  Then I can move back to a townhouse.  I sold my townhome in Bellaire for this house.  Originally, my son, ex-husband, my mother and I lived here together.  A big house was useful back then.

In the meantime, I am putting the house to good use.

Right now I am looking at all my pink poodles that I gathered in one corner of the family room.  It makes me smile just to look at them.  My real live pink poodle, Sweetsie is sleeping next to me on the sofa.

My home is a happy place to be!