At this time of year there are a few empty cubes to give the eye a chance to breath whereas at Christmas time it is packed out with festive decor. So let's start at the top and work our way down and I will try and give you an idea of how all this stuff came together. At the top left is a fabulous woven basket that was a generous gift from Eric and Kate out of Frog Hollow Farm in Kentucky. I met them several years ago via Markie and they are two of the nicest people you will ever meet. Retired military, they love their farming and oh do they love to travel. They are off for a month in October in Italy and then a fantastic cruise. Looking forward to hearing all the details when I see them on the 7th of November. They got it for me when we were on a trip to Copper River Canyon and it was given to me on the day Obama won the South Carolina primary, often considered the turning point in the election in 2008. Next to that is a water bottle I snagged in Las Vegas earlier this year when I saw the very last performance of Bette Middler's show and it is a logo bottle for her Tree foundation in NYC. Next up is a metal casting of the Chrysler building, my favorite building in the world. I found it at a Pottery Barn years ago when they had one on the top floor of Pioneer Place in downtown Portland. The shopping complex was a redevelopment of downtown and that is when the downtown Fred Meyer went away. How times change. Freddy's is gone from there and now so is Pottery Barn. The piece is sitting on a copy of Emily Post's Etiquette, yes I have a copy on hand. In front is a small square basket that I got in Mexico when I was gifted the large basket mentioned above. Love, love, love the locals work.
Working our way to the right is a lovely heart sculpture I got at Art in the Peril which is a wonderful event over Labor Day in Portland in the north art blocks. At the back there is a white urn I got years ago at Christmas and it was filled with greens and roses, just stunning and have always liked it. That sits on a wooden box GE gave me years ago and holds old coins I have collected over the years. In front of that is a picture of a man that I think is just amazing and so it gets pulled out every year and enjoyed during the summer months. He is at a waterfall and has an gorgeous butt. I happen to enjoy a man's tush! Then there is one of the limited edition bottle's that Jeff Crandall aka Wonderful did for me for my 50th birthday celebration. He is a truly gifted artist. It is topped with a wine stopper that Jodie and Rob gave me for Christmas. A dear, dear faerie friend Rhoda Roadkill gave me the next piece which is a statue of Mercury. I cherish it and hope he is feeling a little better these days. Behind that and to the right is a glass vase that I like. Don't have a clue when it came into my life, been with me a while. And in front of it is a candle holder that is striking of a man bowed down holding the holder itself. Love this piece and found it at a museum shop in NYC. Another candle holder of sorts is setback and not very noticeable. I got it in New Orleans and it is a courting candle. What is that you might ask?
The courting candle was brought out into the family home when a young woman began to attract serious suitors. The candle holder was set up in the room where the suitor was allowed to visit with the single daughter of the family. The father, mother or other male family member who lived in the home if the father was deceased or at war would determine how long the suitor could visit. The candle, which was dominant home lighting during this time period, would be the timer that provided a quiet reminder and uninterrupted "date" for the couple.
I just thought it was cool. and in front of it is a silver framed picture of yes, another man's back side. Behind that is a wonderful ivory milking pitcher I got year's ago from Spiegel Catalog, Chicago, 60609. Yup, still remember that tag line from years ago. Well, Spiegel went bankrupt and I have kept it as a memory. Next to that is a picture out of the Dievx Dv Stade 2004 calendar and still my favorite of all time. In front of him to the left is a glass holder with rocks and a candle to have on hand if power goes out, simple as that. Looks nice and blends in. Finally at the far right is a spiral preserved plant I got a few years back because I just travel too darn much. And it works. No muss, no fuss! Boy, is this taking so much longer than I thought and heck we have not even made it to the HUGE Crayola Crayon on the side that I brought all the way back from New York City when I moved to Portland in 1992. But hey, I am so getting ahead of myself and we have to move on to the rest of the story. We're walking, we're walking, keep up with the tour please...
OK, so now on to the shelves and top shelf left to right the first cube has a whole lot of travel books I have collected over the years and just can't part with. I am such a sucker for books. In front of them is a picture of me as "The Mardi Gras King of Queens" that I dressed up as at a faerie gathering one year and supposedly single-handily am responsible for the entire destruction of the sea-turtle and dolphin population in the Breitenbush River. (Yes, this is a running joke, don't take life so seriously!) There is a bejeweled miniature grand piano I picked up at the Liberace museum this year and well, it works. 
Finally there is a blue glass goblet that you can see to the right and it was the cover picture and Jeff gave it to me as a total surprise gift for my 50th birthday. Totally blown away and love it! Next cubicle holds a tin that Meier & Frank issued when The Portland Building opened. It was a gift from Hardy Myers, Jr. His father was Speaker of the House and a nice guy, while his Mom wanted to be so nice and yet was just a bit high strung even for me. Oh well, moving along there is a great picture of Mom & Dad on their wedding day back in June of 1953. Next to that is a small wooden box that I love and for the life of me cannot remember who gave it to me. In the center is a stack of books to get to with a ceramic apple on top I got from a guy who ran a shop on Christopher Street Shop with his partner. Paul Belardo was his name and he was a hoot. Always had a story to share and we talked for hours. I have a glass table that came from his shop and I bet there is another trinket or two around here from then. In front of that is a Shaker oval box that is filled with a lot of "stuff" that I enjoy pulling out every year or so and going through and yet will not let go of, go figure. And on top of the box is a ceramic gecko I found on the Copper River Canyon trip. Next to all of this is a vase I got from an old friend in NYC and the only piece of Baccarat but it holds something even more valuable and that is a collection of agates and rocks my Grandfather Joe gave me. He was the only grand parent I got to know on my Mom's side of the family (Platko).See, the next one is empty and so we get to take a breath. And the final cube on the top is a salute to Hawaii. Markie took me there in 2006 s I recovered from a Testicular Cancer procedure. Oh what a trip with massages and driving through pineapple fields plus the helicopter flight. Well, there is a picture of us at The Feast at Lele with a cute little gay Hawaiian boy who we saw later at the only gay bar in Kihei. The jar of sand actually, in full disclosure, comes from Long Beach, WA and I got on a trip when I was having some real mental challenges and went over there for a weekend and Michael was a dear friend and keeping that near me means a lot. There is another picture of an awesome butt and an ashtray that Mom & Dad brought back from their first trip there years ago.
The next row is going to go a bit quicker in that the first cube is a collage of photos from different faerie gatherings at Breitenbush. Next to that are more Art Books and in front of them is a picture taken by Sandy last December of Mom, me and Janet at the Space Needle. I really like it and the frame! Next cube is my clock I got years ago at Pottery Barn. Keeps on ticking! The next cube holds 5 copies of the Griffin & Sabine series that I enjoy and on top of it is a piece of art that I got at The Great Art Party and in the end I knew I knew it from somewhere in that Markie had donated it. Too amusing! The last cube has a photo frame that will be in a future post in that there is just too much going on to explain now.
Third Row has more Travel Books and in front of that is a little trinket box that has a Las Vegas sign on top of it. Pretty ketch if you ask me and next to that is a lovely box Judy Boyd gave me to replace one she had broken by mistake and I treasure it. Then we have a picture frame covered in seashells I made and has a black & white picture of a guy bending down. In front of that is a glass box I found at Fireworks here in Seattle and really liked. Made by an artist out of NYC and I got to slide in a lovely picture of a man dancing on the cover. We catch our breathe and move on to more books and there is a Snow Globe of NYC in the background while up front there is a classic rendition and a modern rendition of an the inukshuk, which is a stone marker that has been used by the Inuit to help guide through the northern Arctic terrain for centuries. This was the figure that was used as the basis of the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, BC. Love them! Finally, the final cube has a potpourri of things starting with an old "Brownie" camera that has been turned into a clock and in front of that is a toy checker cab because I love those old cars. To the right is a "Rockettini" Glass from Radio City Music Hall and in front of that is my dazzling grand piano pinky ring I got at the Liberace Museum. All these rest on a hand made paper journal by Pan from the faeries and under that is a story about how Haystack Rock is not a rock at all and it is quite a fun story to read.
Yes, we are going to whip through these last two rows by starting with the cube that has a collage of faeries sitting on a book that is the history of Playbill, the theatre program you get when you go into any major production in NYC. In front of that is a wooden spoon Erik brought back from Peru for me.
The blank space leads to a cherished gift as it was the last thing David Jackson ever gave to me. A modern fruit bowl. He died all too young this year just days before his 39th birthday. I am still stunned. The next two cubes have a lot of Christmas books and snow globes. I do love snow globes, but not the glitter ones - ICK! Finally on the bottom are more Art Books and Cook Books in the first cube and the next two hold baskets which are filled with saved treasures. Then a cube filled with books that you cannot see due to the big chair and then a cub filled with all the rest of my Christmas books and DVD's. There is also this cool replica of that art column that stands outside Powell's Books in Portland. It is supposedly the 12 books that influenced Michael Powell the most over his life. See the real deal here. And so we have reached the end of another really long post. Oh my! The bi chair was a gift from Mich and I love it. The pillow on the chair is one I found at a florist in Portland and is a tribute to NYC and one that just makes me smile every time I look at it. Hopefully you have made it to the end and are not too exhausted. Cheers!
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