Melissa — A Familiar Path

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May 19, 2012 by Melissa Filed Under: daily life, photography

This is how I make laundry detergent now and I love it. I used to make the liquid but it was so messy. Now it’s simple: one box of borax, one of washing soda, one of grated Fels-Naptha soap, one of oxyclean. The oxyclean scoop is the perfect measuring spoon.

I got this for Mother’s Day. I really like it. I’ve wanted one for years, but appliances are never fun purchases.

Miniature car wash. Good for 14 minutes of uninterrupted work time, or until they run out of bubbles.

Paint on her face, not blood.

We got two kittens. I’m sure you’ll be seeing more of them.

Blue sky.

My friends came over! I’ve missed them.

We let our chickens out every evening. We are on this crazy rotation now. Big dogs get out of the pen for about 3 hours a day. The kittens who get terrorized by the dogs right now, get let out in between dog time. The chickens get let out at the end of the day and they put themselves up at sunset. We are so going to have to hire a caretaker when we go on vacation this year to manage our “farm”.

Sunset over baseball.

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Mad about Mad Men

May 16, 2012 by Melissa Filed Under: confessions

I’ll admit, I haven’t been this attached to a television show since Moonlighting was on. I taped every show of Moonlighting and watched them over and over again. I memorized the witty one-liners. I adored the characters.

I have even stronger feelings for the cast of Mad Men. Times have changed, but the habits are basically the same.

I DVR every show. I own seasons 1-4 on DVD. I type my favorite Don Draper one-liners in my notes on my IPhone.

This never happened. It will shock you how much it never happened.

You are the product. You, feeling something. That’s what sells.

Lots of people who haven’t taken LSD already know that, Roger.

I stumbled upon a show on Bravo one late night called Inside the Actor’s Studio and they were interviewing the cast of Mad Men. I have to say I felt like it was meant to be that I turned on my TV at that particular time and it was on that particular channel. I enjoyed the little extras that were revealed in that hour.

There are so many things I love about the show. I love the writing. With so few shows on television that I enjoy, a well-written drama is such a treat. I love the costumes, the realistic touches (all the smoking, no seat belts, tossing trash in the park), I love the bit of history that sparks my interest even further in that era. I love that Peggy has a picture of the president on her wall. How long has it been since anyone admired a president enough to hang a picture of him in their living room? I love that it makes me think.

Did you know there are Mad Men quizzes? I think it’s the only quiz I ever aced.

What do you love about Mad Men?

All photos from amctv.com.

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A new desk

May 15, 2012 by Melissa Filed Under: house

Naturally I searched and searched for a picture of my office before and could not find one. I know I took some, but those elusive before photos always disappear on me when I need them.

My office is a tiny space, smaller than my walk-in closet and right off the living room. I had a ginormous desk in here that made it difficult to even close the door. It was like one of those impossibly small public bathrooms that you have to be just in the right spot before you can open or close the door. I knew I didn’t want to buy another desk. I wanted it to be simple and I wanted to reduce the amount of stuff I had floating around in all those massive drawers.

I was overwhelmed by the stuff I hauled out of there. Lots and lots of loose photos and cds.

My uncle had this piece of wood just perfect for the space. My solution for storage was buying a small file cabinet to roll under the desk.

I’m slowly adding art to the walls that I love. There’s a print I bought in Seattle at the Pike Place market and a “hello daydream” print from etsy. I just got the 16 x 20 of my daughter this week and I have a few more I want to add soon. I made the felt circle garland years ago and I picked up the white shelves at a yard sale.

This little basket holds things I need for mailing to my clients and some packaging stuff. I love having it handy and easy to find right here on the desk.

The bird prints on the wall I ordered from etsy about a year ago. I still love them.