Broken Frame

We have had it for a long time. It’s a picture frame that is made out of metal pieces with hues of green and blue. Inside the frame is a photo of me and my husband in Iran. It was taken in 1996. I am wearing a chador that my husband’s brother made for me. I didn’t need to wear it most of the time, but I had to for this place - a very religious site. So when I was dusting around it the other day, I haphazardly placed it back in its spot. A few seconds later it came crashing down to the floor. All of the tiny metal pieces around the photo splintered apart. They are a decorative element. So I gathered them all up and placed them in a baggie - thinking one day that I will eventually glue them all back in place. Since the frame - from a distance - looks the same, I haven’t been inspired to put it back together. I will hang on to the metal pieces. I just don’t feel like doing anything about it - now. 

Removing a Persian Carpet Isn’t Easy

When we moved from our Capitol Hill condo to northern Virginia seven months ago, we kept most of the furniture we had, except for a black leather couch. The Persian carpet was quite large - 12x14, but would fit in the new space “okay.” Last month while we were visiting our friends and colleagues in Milwaukee for two weeks, we decided to get a new look for the living/tv room space. We met with our favorite designer - who did our whole Milwaukee house room by room - and got a much smaller and single color 8x10 carpet. So before the new carpet arrives, we needed to get the old carpet out from under the tv stand/bookcase. And this wasn’t something we would be able to do on our own. We thought we could use a car jack to raise the piece just enough to pull out the carpet, but the jack was too high. So we called our very reliable and dependable do everything guy and his wife to help. Before they came I unloaded the bookcases and drawers to lighten it up. It took awhile to figure out the best way to do it, but once we moved it away from the wall and get behind it, we managed to pull it out. So I was able to tie up all the wires and cords behind the bookcase, and then we all moved it closer back against the wall. It’s actually five pieces, and moving it as a unit requires coordination! Then I rearranged all the junk on it to declutter the top and rearranged the items in the shelves. Lesson learned: don’t put heavy bookshelves on top of the carpet. It looks so much cleaner if the carpet is just in front of it. My eufy RoboVac can easily travel under the furniture to clean the floor. So now we have no carpet and the place looks unfinished, but it’s nice to see more of the wood floor. Hopefully the carpet will arrive soon.