"Once Upon a Time"

This may look like a photo of a rather inept tablescape, snapped by a rather incompetent photographer, but its not.  What it is, is a modern day fairy tale.  And like all fairy tales, it begins with....

"Once Upon a Time," a long, long time ago, a penniless princess met an equally penniless prince.  As you might expect they fell hopelessly and totally in love.  Even though they were practically paupers, they decided to marry and live on love.   They had a small wedding with only their most favorite subjects in attendance.  Because they had literally nothing in the way of possessions, their loyal (and loving) subjects presented the happy couple mostly with the coin of the realm.  This was a blessing for they needed many, many basic things for their rented castle.  With the generosity of the gifts the couple was able to set up housekeeping, but agreed not to furnish the castle with luxury items but rather with things that would be usable everyday and provide for their needs.  The prince and princess dreamed of one day bringing great wealth to their kingdom and then, possibly they would consider adding luxurious accoutrements to their household.

Many years went by and although they were no longer penniless, their's was never the richest kingdom.  There was always some expense necessary for the kingdom.   So rather than getting wonderful crystal stemware, they replaced the transmission in their carriage.  Rather than investing in beautiful silver flatware, they sent the prince back to college to get a Bachelor's degree, then a Master's.  And instead of warm glowing fine china to grace their table when they entertained in their kingdom, they found they had a new little princess to clothe, and feed, and educate and so on and so on.

Over time, life went on and they didn't suffer because they never got around to getting their own luxurious things with which to set their table. Even the princess stopped wishing for a "someday" when she could choose her own special china and silver.  They made do with some inherited pieces and gifts, and even with things called "stoneware" and "stainless", and ....(gulp)....."glass"!  They never felt deprived. They were happy with their work, their family and especially their very own junior princess (granddaughter) who decreed that they would be Princess Grammy and Prince Poppa  for evermore!  Yes, they made a good life and lived happily ever after, even lasting together all the way to retirement age.

The End 

Whoa, Nellie!!  Hold the phone!!  What??  The end???  The end??????   That's not much of a fairy tale, you're probably saying.  Where's the fairy godmother?  Where's the three wishes??  Where's the magic??   You call that a happy ending???  What happened next?  Were the princess and prince sentenced to a life of parties with paper plates?  To cocktail parties with plastic cups??  To holiday dinners served on (shudder) everyday dishes??  Surely there must be more to the story!

(Oh, all right, all right!    Sheesh,everybody's a critic!    Okay, back to the kingdom.....)

One day Princess Grammy was making a royal visit to a local shop.  It was a shop filled with many gently used, but serviceable items.  All kinds of goods displayed on rack after rack by the proprietors of the shop.  The proprietors were very nice people filled with GOODWILL (ahem....hint, hint!) and sold most of the items for very little money.  Princess Grammy was looking specifically for a particular item needed for an upcoming theatrical presentation in the kingdom and the Shop of Goodwill was always a good place to look for such items.  As she was about to leave the shop, something caught her eye.  Her heart began to pitter-pat as she went to examine what appeared to be a stack of dishes.  She asked about it and was told the following story: 

It was a complete Service for 12 (!) of Mikasa fine china in the Amherst pattern (which is no longer made.)  In addition to the 12 place settings (dinner plate, salad plate, bread and butter plate, cup and saucer) there were 12 soup bowls, 11 small dessert bowls, sugar and creamer, two serving bowls, a medium-sized round platter, a large oval platter, and a gravy boat (not all shown below.)

[Although a thoroughly delightful, beautiful, and especially charming princess (hey, its a fairy tale!), Princess Grammy is a terrible photographer!   As there is no royal photographer in the kingdom, she tried her best to photograph some of the pieces. She apologizes for the crumminess of the pictures!!]

The china was beautiful.  The colors of the design were red, gold, and black on white.  The pattern was colorful, classic, and striking.  Princess Grammy fell in love.  She really, really loved it, but she knew she probably couldn't afford it (as usual, the castle needed a new fence and Prince Poppa needed new brakes for his carriage.)  She suddenly realized that the set would be AUCTIONED on the following Saturday. Auctioned??!!  Really??  Perhaps there was hope!  This was, of course, the Shop of Goodwill!

Home she ran just as fast as her not so tiny glass slippers would carry her.  She went to tell Prince Poppa of her discovery and he could see how much she wanted that china.  Together they agreed they would attend the auction (they went incognito, of course.)  They also agreed that they might even bid if the bids were in an affordable range but they would bid no higher than $300 (surprisingly, the coin of the realm was U.S. Dollars) If the bidding went above that, they would give up.

The day of the auction arrived, Princess Grammy and Prince Poppa planted themselves right up front.  Prince Poppa agreed that the china was as beautiful as he had been told!  At the appropriate time he began to bid.  Princess Grammy crossed all of her fingers.  (She would have crossed all of her toes too but she was afraid she would fall down!)  There were two other bidders but before long one dropped out, the bidding continued until finally Prince Poppa made their top bid....."$300.00!" he said.   Princess Grammy held her breath! 

And....

there.....

was............

silence!! 

Going, going, gone!  Princess Grammy yelled "Yay!"  and Prince Poppa grinned and all the other people clapped their hands.  It was theirs!!  A full service for 12....91 separate pieces!!  And they got it for a mere $3.30 per piece!!   That didn't even put a strain on the royal coffers!!  Princess Grammy finally had beautiful china of her very own!  After all those years.  What a joy!  They took it all home, used it for their Easter State Dinner, and  now it sits in 5 separate boxes until Prince Poppa gets to work on the new/old china cabinet to make a place for their new/old china!

And so, now  Princess Grammy and Prince Poppa are really living happily ever after! 

The E.....oh wait!! 

One more tiny, little thing.....did I happen to mention that when the Shop of Goodwill first received the china,  it was in a large box labeled, "Grammy's China"!    (Prickles at the back of my neck!!) Now is that magic, or what?!!

Like I said, a modern fairy tale!   Maybe the best one since "The Princess Bride".....but that's a whole 'nother "Once Upon a Time".....

The End 

(Really!)

**************************

 I've joined up with....
   


I'm participating in Tablescape Thursday at Between Naps on the Porch.

Go visit all the participants of Tablescape Thursday. Lovely table settings, with lots of imagination!!

You'll love it!

I've also joined up with: 

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBI-Se6DzoZAv7FoNKP2CIcmCXWHyMTFLLoOzok29SCXhvzSxJJbcFp-qNfASuLQoZ68VGvUKc8hpXQtVfYK2ISIM3nDd6mKKVVeFQ0z_wcwGpS6oVVkrQ88Gm7pf9S3eWwFyFTizH7Mw/s1600-h/Seasonal%252520Sunday%252520Teapot%252520copy%25255B6%25255D.jpg

"Hard to Believe" -- Exhibit C

Of all the really big coincidences in my life, this is the one that continually blows my mind!

You may (or may not) realize that Mellodee is not really my name.  My own name is kind of boring and "Mellodee" has a history in my life (a story for another day perhaps).  Quite a few bloggers use pseudonyms for a variety of reasons.  However, today's story requires that I tell you my real name because therein lies the tale!

When I was born, my parents picked Linda for my first name and Lou for the middle.  My last name was Johnsen (with an "e" please, Dad was Danish.)  Mom, being a Catholic, wanted to have me baptised as a Catholic too.  There was a small snag that put a bit of a monkey wrench in the choice of names.  I don't know if it's still true, but at that time, the first name had to be the name of a Saint and there was no Saint Linda (hmpf! go figure!); so the name had to be altered a bit.  On my birth certificate I am Linda Lou Johnsen.  On my baptismal certificate I am Louise Linda Johnsen.  Fast forward 20 years....when i got married my legal name became Linda Lou Durkin.

Fast forward another 25+ years....my daughter, Ratchlet (NOT her real name either!) met the love of her life.  His last name is Drga.  It is of Czech origin and is pronouced "dur-gah".  Thus after she was married she used "Durkin Drga" as her last name.  Interesting, but not all that much of a coincidence.... right?

Well the thing is that with a husband, she also acquired a Mother-in-Law.  Her name....wait for it....is Linda Louise Drga!!

So there you have it, the daughter of Linda Lou Durkin married the son of Linda Louise Drga!  Confused?  So were a lot of people!

(Is that Twilight Zone theme I hear???)

And that, boys and girls, is COINCIDENCE!! 

(So don't ever say there is no such thing as coincidence!  Just come into my world and I can introduce you to one!)

"Hard to Believe" -- Exhibit B

As I said yesterday, coincidences abound in my life.  Little ones like everyone encounters and big ones that are almost too "hard to believe".  Let me assure you, though, they really do happen to me.  Here's the story on Exhibit B!


When we decided to move to Austin from CA, the decision was made pretty quickly and things moved along at a fast pace.  We came to Austin to look for a house and become acquainted with the city.  It was going to be a quick trip, just four days, and at the end I would be flying out of Austin to Lake Wales, Florida for my 35th High School Reunion.  Then back to CA to start packing!


The gods were really smiling down on us about this move!  We found a house on the very first day we looked!  It was a nice house, but one of the biggest points in its favor was that it was on a golf course with a country club!  A dream come true for the Big Guy!  I think he envisioned a life of non-stop golf! 


We went to the Club to explore, Mikey being interested in the course and the locker room, my interest was more for the dining room and the pool!  They all turned out to be lovely and our enthusiasm kept growing.


As we walked around the grounds, trying to find the entrance back into the club from the pool, a fellow in his early thirties or so was coming out of the locker room door.  We must have looked lost, because he stopped and asked if we needed help.  As we didn't really need help, we struck up a conversation (mostly about what a great course it was and that it was a great place to live --  I don't think he was on the payroll, but he sure gave a ringing endorsement).


He told us a little about his family, including the fact that his undergrad degree was from Univ. of Florida.  I am always interested in talking about Florida, so I said that I had grown up it Lake Wales.  Hey, he said, my Basketball coach in college was from Lake Wales!  Really, I said, what was his name, thinking I might know the family or something.  He said, Aubrey Whitaker.   AUBREY WHITAKER?????  REALLY??   Not only was Aubrey in my graduating class, he had been a friend and I would undoubtedly see him at the reunion I was going to in 3 days!!!  Wow!  It was almost creepy!! 


We chatted a couple of minutes then went on our way.  Even after we moved here, we never, ever saw him again.


Now really, how often does that sort of thing happen to you?   For me, it happens a whole lot!   It seems like I'm always humming the theme from the "The Twilight Zone" for one thing or another.  Well, do you blame me?


Exhibit C coming tomorrow!

"Hard to Believe"

At different times, I have come across several books (mostly mysteries or spy stories) where one of the characters says, "I don't believe in coincidence."  I've even heard real people say it!  Well, it's hard for me NOT to believe in coincidence!


Why???  Because coincidence has always seemed a part of my life!  Some times it's just little coincidences like running into a friend at the library or buying the same dress as your worst enemy, or both you and your husband stopping to pick up a pizza for dinner.  Nothing major there, just kind of serendipity that pops up from time to time.  


A more impressive coincidence I keep experiencing is that Ratchlet and I will unknowingly and frequently wear the same colors or similar outfits.  For instance, we'll meet up for lunch and we'll both be wearing Khaki pants with a Hot Pink sweater; or we'll both be wearing dark blue jeans, with a green t-shirt and a denim jacket!  It's ridiculous!  Mother/Daughter outfits are cute when the daughter is 4, but it's silly with two grown women who really have different tastes in fashion!  Nevertheless, it happens a lot.  It's totally unplanned.  We don't discuss it ahead of time.  We never check out the other's outfit before we leave home!  It doesn't happen all the time, just frequently enough to be noticeable by other people we're with!  Sooo, it must just be a coincidence! 


In the past year or so, sometimes M-t-G joins our little coincidence!  If we are wearing pink or purple, we look like multi-generational triplets!  How obnoxious!!  (Of course that's because M-t-G pretty much ONLY wears pinks and purples!  So I guess that doesn't really count!  LOL!)


But these are small things, just kind of funny.  The sort of thing you just shake your head at and say "Again??  I don't believe it!"   And life goes on!


Other times, things happen that I cannot in any way explain except that it's coincidence.  And sometimes they are doozies!


Exhibit A:


As you know we are from Chicago, then we lived for several years about 50 miles south of San Francisco.  I don't know about you, but in our family no matter where you live, if you have guests from out of state, it's pretty standard to take them to "see the sights".  In this part of CA,  one of the must do's is to take your guests to see the Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz in San Francisco Bay.  Everyone wants to see them.  We took a lot of folks there over time.


On the day in question, we took our 2 friends who were visiting from Chicago.  For a little while Cath and I wandered down to water's edge and walked in the sand and dipped our toes into the Pacific, just to say she did!   The Big Guy and Helen stayed up by the bridge talking.  


Then we went back up to re-join the two of them.  As we got closer we could see that Mikey was talking to some people.  There was a man and a woman whose faces I couldn't see, but they didn't look at all familiar.  I said to Cath something about how Mikey would talk to anyone and often did.  When we got there, the woman was looking right at me and had a huge smile on her face.  I thought maybe it was someone Cath knew, but she looked as puzzled as I.  The guy was still turned away when I walked up to them.  I smiled at the woman, sort of half-heartedly.  I mean, I never knew who Mikey would find next!  We didn't know anyone in San Francisco, so who were these people?


I finally looked at the guy with sort of just a quick glance, still smiling my half-hearted smile.  Then I did the classic double-take, I squealed (bursting eardrums all around, I'm sure), and jumped the guy!  We hugged and laughed for a long time.


Okay, have I built up the anticipation enough?  Are you ready for the big reveal??


It was Dan, one of our oldest and dearest friends, and his wife Judy.  Dan was the Best Man at our wedding and he was Ratchlet's Godfather!  Originally from Chicago, Dan had moved to Toledo when he married Judy.  We hadn't seen him in five or six years!  We kept in touch, but not all that frequently, so we had no idea they were coming to S.F. for vacation!!  Nor did they expect to run into us.  What were the odds??  Amazing!


It was one of the biggest and best surprises I ever had.  The sort of thing that is "Hard to Believe"!Totally unplanned and completely unexpected!! It was great!


So, if that's NOT coincidence, what would you call it?


I'll share Exhibit B tomorrow!  Stay tuned!