Kichler Living Room Lamp Fix With Cloth Tape

We found a really pretty Kichler drum lamp for the living room. Unfortunately, we didn’t like it after it was installed. The shade on the white opaque glass lamp had what looked like two dark blue/gray stripes on it. It just didn’t look right based on the color scheme for the rest of the room. So I thought it might look better without the shade - just the opaque glass. So I put the shade away thinking we might use it again. The glass only light was better, but it was too small for the size of the room. So I started thinking making about options. I remembered when we first moved in three months ago that we got a can of paint to match our walls - just to have around for nicks and such. So I thought I could paint the stripes on the shade and see if that would make a difference. The idea was for it to blend in to the ceiling rather than make a huge statement. The sheer shade made the statement on its own but it didn’t need the stripes. So I painted the stripes with several coats over several days last week a little at a time. The trouble was I only had a foam brush that was too big for the project. What got on the inside plastic could easily be scraped away. But what got on the outside shade material wasn’t going anywhere. It looked awful when I finished and I was very disappointed - but wasn’t going to give us. I spent half of the day yesterday looking for white self adhesive ribbon and simply couldn’t find a thing. I really didn’t want to get ribbon and then glue it on, and I didn’t feel like driving all over town trying to find it. Then I remembered using bandage cloth tape for an injury I had many years ago. It met all the characteristics I was looking for - “all purpose,” off white, “ribbon texture,” self adhesive. So I luckily found a brand new roll of it in the bathroom cabinet and went to work. I ended up using several layers on the inside to hide the paint mistakes because the tape is somewhat transparent - the only draw back. It’s not the “cleanest” job I’ve ever done because the tape is not taut - so it looks a bit home made. But it does the trick for now - until I can think of something better - or just get to a Michael’s or JoAnne Fabrics to find out how it should really be done. 

Ice Cream Entry Liked Best!

I’ve had a Facebook business page for quite awhile. I use it to upload one entry a day. Sometimes it contains a handmade digital art image of something I painted - mostly custom cat and dog portraits. But more often I put a photo or video of something from the neighborhood. Yesterday there were two hawks squawking and flying around the park that we walk in every morning that I caught on video. Even though we moved to Virginia three months ago, a lot of the images are still of Washington DC because we still visit it regularly for programs at the Library of Congress and doctor appointments, among other things. Every once in a while I will put something on the site that to me seems like it wouldn’t garner a lot of attention, hits or comments. And such was the case when it came to a McDonald’s ice cream cone and smoothie. I think it’s been so hot everywhere that everyone could associate with it and it got more comments than most. So you never know what might catch someone’s eye so it pays to have a variety. I need to keep that in mind more often. 

Watching the Thunderhead

We moved to Virginia three months ago. We have a small balcony off of our living room on the fourth floor. From there we face mostly west and have a view of the sunset - my favorite time of the day and a condition about which unit we would purchase. Our condo on Capitol Hill really didn’t have any particular view. Living on the first floor limited any scene except pedestrians walking in and out of the building and to and from work. Our patio on the back side was surrounded by a fence and another wall. As much as possible and weather permitting, I’ll spend some time on the balcony. Luckily for us there is a balcony above ours which shields us from the rain and also provides an umbrella effect - to a point. The other day it looked like it was going to pour and I kept my sights on the thunderhead cloud that was forming, and pouring - rain on some location in the distance. It never reached us, but it was interesting to see the formation change over time. It feels a lot like Florida around here where afternoon thunderstorms are a very common event. I’m just glad we have a small outdoor space to take in the fresh air, sounds, and provides just the right amount of lovely seating space - and an escape route if it ever comes to that! 

Hickory Hill

It’s usually quiet for us on the holidays. When we lived on Capitol Hill we were in the thick of things. We went to the Capitol fourth concert several times in the twelve years that we lived there, stood by the cannons while the symphony orchestra played the 1812 Overture, and stood on Independence Avenue watching the fireworks down by the Washington Monument. The last couple of years we stayed away from the crowds and walked over to the House of Representatives Park to watch the same display. We moved to Virginia three months ago and are far removed from any fireworks. So today we decided to go out for lunch and then take a drive around the neighborhood. We turned on to a street off of the Dolley Madison Parkway - one we have intended to drive down but never have. And to our surprise we came upon Hickory Hill - Bobby and Ethel Kennedy’s home. There was a small sign in front of the house and the white home looked so familiar because I remembered seeing photos of it as a youngster. We continued on our afternoon jaunt for a while longer. On Capitol Hill we were surrounded by history that went much further back than the 1960’s and lived in an 1890’s building. Now we live in a 2018 home surrounded by a variety of living history makers - some of whom we have seen at the McLean Family Restaurant. I don’t think we will see any fireworks in our neighborhood this evening. Maybe we’ll watch them on TV. 

Pixels Billboard Contest

I’ve had a Fine Art America/Pixels Shop for several years. All of my custom hand drawn digitalart pet portraits are posted, along with my favorite photos of Washington DC/Capitol Hill, autographed baseballs, and scenes from countries we have visited including Iran, France, Denmark, Sweden, and England. Every once in a while the site sponsors a contest. The latest one is for a billboard contest where five winning images will appear on billboards in LA. I know I don’t have a chance in hell of getting selected, because I’ll never get 250 votes to even be considered. But I entered three of my favorite images anyway - just because. And I voted for each one! One image is the goofy dog that gets a lot of attention on other social media sites; one is a bulldog with a flower; and the last one is my “women on the steps of Persepolis.” All three were entered in the Lbrary of Congress employee art show over the years. So, we’ll see what happens. I can only imagine my artwork on a billboard - how exciting would that be!

Goofy dog 

https://fineartamerica.com/contests/billboard-contest.html?tab=vote&artworkid=19488059

Bulldog 

https://fineartamerica.com/contests/billboard-contest.html?tab=vote&artworkid=12471899

Women at Persepolis

https://fineartamerica.com/contests/billboard-contest.html?tab=vote&artworkid=6177037

Tortilla Coast and Fourth of July Prep

One of my favorite Mexican restaurants is Tortilla Coast. It was two blocks away from our Capitol Hill condo and we usually went on a Sunday evening, and definitely when there were no baseball games scheduled. So we drove in to town on Sunday and took our usual route over Memorial Bridge. Around the Lincoln Memorial the barricades were already up in preparation for the Fourth of July holiday. We parked in our old neighborhood and ended up having the usual fare - spinach quesadilla, burrito, and chips, along with a large strawberry margarita that we shared. Rather than ride back home right away, we drive around the mall to see what else was going on. It’s weird to feel like a tourist rather than a resident. We attended many of the concerts and fireworks displays over the thirteen years we lived in DC. The last few years we would just walk over to the house office building park and watch the fireworks from there rather than battle the crowds. Although seeing the cannon and hearing the symphony play during the fireworks was memorable. As we passed by the Capitol the concert stage was being set up. It’s hard for me to believe I worked at the Library of Congress for ten years! There’s something about Sunday evening in DC - it’s so quiet and peaceful - especially in the late afternoon. As we drove along the GW Parkway in the way home there was a lot of activity on the Potomac River. I’m still glad we moved to Virginia, and happy we can go in to the city when we feel like it - on Sunday evening, or after or before rush hour. 

Comcast Xfinity Refund Took Three Months and FOUR Requests

It doesn’t always pay to pay your bills on time every month, but we wouldn’t do it any other way. For thirteen years we had cable and internet service through Comcast Xfinity and never missed or had a late payment. When we moved from Capitol Hill to Virginia almost three months ago, we stopped at the Comcast store in Arlington to return our equipment right after we closed on our new condo. We were told we would receive our refund within a couple of weeks. Luckily I kept the receipt and the hard copy bill with the account number on it because I would be needing it not once, not twice, but three more times. Twice I called and one time I did a chat. I used the “ticket number” and it was referred to as many times. I was told to wait until May 26 because they were tracking the check. My inquiry was sent up the chain to three different supervisors. Nothing I said or did made any difference. The new home address was given on the first day, so that was not a good excuse. All of our mail had been forwarded from the old address anyway. So finally, after almost three months of waiting, the refund check arrived on Saturday. I’m sure everyone has experienced the same thing. And there’s not much you can do about it. Now we have Verizon because Comcast isn’t available in our part of Virginia. Maybe one of these days we won’t need any of them.