My mom had a talent for picking up really great junk in junk stores. I don't mean she could find great USEFUL things in junk stores. She couldn't find the expensive antiques or the great door fixtures or stunning cabinet fixtures. Okay, some of the time, she could find this stuff. But that was rare. More often, she just found really cool stuff that served nothing beyond a decorative purpose.
She would walk into a junk store and come out with broken brass horns that looked really cool when she hung them. She'd find odd bits of carnival glass that she'd set in windows to catch light. She'd pick up baskets with holes in them or rusted bits of pipe and hang them on the wall. None of it served a purpose beyond just being in the room and looking interesting. But it always looked very interesting.
You know how in places like Chili's and Friday's....chain kind of date night places where you can eat and there is a pretense of it being all "hip?" All that crap they have laying around that looks contrived and cheesy and so artificial it squeaks? My mom could decorate like that, and when she did, it truly looked eclectic and charming.
I totally can't do this. I used to think I could, but over time I realized that my early 20's decorating of cheap candle holders and fake ass Walmart bookshelves just really looked . . . well, white trash as hell. My tastes in decor have become rather practical and minimalist, probably do to the fact that anything I look at, I judge on how cats will shred it, puke on it, or get hair all over it. If any of those scores a yes, I don't really want it in the house.
Despite that, I still wish I had my mother's talent for finding great junk. Not so much because I want to fill my house with stuff, but because I remember how thrilled she always was when she found a great piece. My mother wasn't really all that happy of a person, but on the occasion of excellent junk finds, she was truly delighted. I still remember that smile she would get.
You know, the thing about genuine happiness is that is causes its own unique smiles. We smile a certain way when we think of someone we love. We smile a certain way at memories, our eyes light up at the moment of certain victories or unexpected surprises. I'm sure the smile I have right now, thinking about how happy finding this stuff made her, looks like no other type of smile I get.
When I think about Mom, sometimes I get really upset because it's difficult to put positive spins on her life. There were so many bad moments, so much pain and hurt. Junk stores though, and the finds therein, those are positive memories. I'll always love junk stores for that reason.
She would walk into a junk store and come out with broken brass horns that looked really cool when she hung them. She'd find odd bits of carnival glass that she'd set in windows to catch light. She'd pick up baskets with holes in them or rusted bits of pipe and hang them on the wall. None of it served a purpose beyond just being in the room and looking interesting. But it always looked very interesting.
You know how in places like Chili's and Friday's....chain kind of date night places where you can eat and there is a pretense of it being all "hip?" All that crap they have laying around that looks contrived and cheesy and so artificial it squeaks? My mom could decorate like that, and when she did, it truly looked eclectic and charming.
I totally can't do this. I used to think I could, but over time I realized that my early 20's decorating of cheap candle holders and fake ass Walmart bookshelves just really looked . . . well, white trash as hell. My tastes in decor have become rather practical and minimalist, probably do to the fact that anything I look at, I judge on how cats will shred it, puke on it, or get hair all over it. If any of those scores a yes, I don't really want it in the house.
Despite that, I still wish I had my mother's talent for finding great junk. Not so much because I want to fill my house with stuff, but because I remember how thrilled she always was when she found a great piece. My mother wasn't really all that happy of a person, but on the occasion of excellent junk finds, she was truly delighted. I still remember that smile she would get.
You know, the thing about genuine happiness is that is causes its own unique smiles. We smile a certain way when we think of someone we love. We smile a certain way at memories, our eyes light up at the moment of certain victories or unexpected surprises. I'm sure the smile I have right now, thinking about how happy finding this stuff made her, looks like no other type of smile I get.
When I think about Mom, sometimes I get really upset because it's difficult to put positive spins on her life. There were so many bad moments, so much pain and hurt. Junk stores though, and the finds therein, those are positive memories. I'll always love junk stores for that reason.
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