Tea Room The 24th - San Francisco Painted Lady!

[Tee2072]

Welcome to the 24th incarnation of the One-Child Tea Room. Not that you only have to have one! Just so long as you enjoy chat, tea, coffee, cake!!

The usual rules apply - no bunfighting. If you like that sort of thing, go elsewhere.
Other rules: bring . Or .

Our ongoing voyage take us to one of San Francisco's Painted Ladies!

We've brought the Aga over, it's in the back in the cosy kitchen overlooking the back garden. The chintz sofa is in the front room, under the bow window! All of the pillows and duvets have come along as well!

What's that? The Priest Hole? It's just over there --> behind the bookcase!

Mellors is upstairs, preparing the bedrooms for naps and such.

The aspidistras are thriving as they overlook Nob Hill! The horses have found themselves stabled in the Garden, which is much larger than these places usually are in this city!

So come in and have a seat!

::tea hurries off to Powell Street to catch the Cable Car to Ghirardelli Square::

Perhaps explain that he's like the wind? as in, you can't see the wind but you can see its effects, you don't step on the wind but it's everwhere around you. Sometimes it's very quiet, other times very noisy - I don't know, I'm losing my way with this analogy!

Yes, a ramp is the answer. Not much room though; maybe a spiral staircase?

Gisbourne, hee hee!

Something similar to Thumb's analogy seemed to make most sense to the YD when he was 6-ish. Although he then maintained that he couldn't know if God was real, because he couldn't see God (If you remember the kerfuffle I had with him over his investiture as a Beaver)

Sob - it was a storm in a teacup and now I have a bee in my bonnet...

T'was simply that this afternoon Milk was invited to sleep at a friend's tonight and I said "Yes" because I saw it as a fun thing for her to do and a rare opportunity for me and Beer to go out somewhere fun together.

I accepted there and then and began to make plans for an outing. Beer did not agree. He rejected my 'trip out' idea so instead I thought we could watch a movie together... but Beer much to my surprise and sadness refused to and went to bed at 9 o clock moaning very loudly that it was the worst night ever on account of Milk not being around and the dog being in a mood with him. I told him in a teacher voice "YOU are being VERY cruel." Not really my finest hour as I too had been quite cruel in my unthoughtfulness - I never once asked him if he would mind if Milk went to her friends (he did) or if he even wanted to do something with just me (he didn't)...

BUT on the + side of life earlier on today Milk and Beer finished off the Brittany shell necklace for Wriggle and Milk has posted it. - YIIIPPPPPPPEEEEE!!!

oh tea!! that is terrible - he didn't want to spend time with just you? And he was angry that you let Milk go out to a friend's without "checking with him" first??! That is very sad indeed.

And for heaven's sake disabuse yourself of the notion that you had been cruel - of course you weren't! You (rightly) thought that it would be a fun thing for Milk to do, nad you (understandably) thought that it might be nice to have some time for just you and Beer - what is wrong with that? Just because it turns out that Beer is a [insert rude words of choice here], that is not your fault, it's his.

You might want to do some evaluating of the situation here, I think - see what is Beer's problem, that kind of thing. :(

Thanks Thumb. x

Oh, Tea, that sounds grim. Bloke and I have just had a fun evening out watching True Grit because Girl is on a sleepover. To be frank, I wouldn't have had the nerve to say this if Thumb hadn't already plunged in, but it's very thoughtless of Beer to imply that an evening with just you is an awful evening. Perhaps you should kick him on the shin recognise that this is his problem, as Thumb says.

Tea, I too am at Beer's response. Most people would jump at the chance to spend quality time with their partner. For him to make you sound like a third best option after Milk and the ruddy pet would have earned him a night outside with his suitcases if it were me. For what it's worth. Planning him a lovely surprise evening with you is not something that is abusive or thoughtless by you, so please do not think that it was.

(love the mixed expressions about storms in teacups and bees in bonnets, by the way - great visual stuff )

And grr to any other partners who are making life difficult for our lovely tea room inhabitants, too. How difficult is it to help lift a chicken house?

I think this calls for cooked breakfast. Ah, I see Mellors has already provided some! Wonderful.

Morning all.

Tea I am joining the brigade. To not want to spend time with you alone is just not on.

LCT woke me up at 630. MrTee got up at 7. I went back to bed. When I got up again? LCT sound asleep on MrTee. MrTee says he fell back to sleep about 20 minutes after I did! So why did he get me up?!?!

Oh look. Mellors and Sebastian are rustling up a gourmet Sunday lunch for us, to be served on the verandah.

One last word to Tea - Please don't, on any account, let Beer prevent Milk going on sleepovers because he feel the need to have her at home all the time. If she doesn't want to go, that's fine, but the decision should be based on her wants and preferences, not his. Girl is more than twice Milk's age, but we have reached the point where all birthday parties seem to end in a sleepover (eek) and girls who can't or won't sleep over do miss out on a lot of the fun.

Anyone for sherry ?

My parents didn't like me to go on sleepovers, purely because they (Mum) didn't want to have to host the return party. So I did very very few - I can remember all 3 of them.

Do boys get into sleepovers as much as girls seem to?

T42 - I am still concerned that you "took on" feeling thoughtless and cruel in your decision - why on earth did you do that? Is that what Beer said to you? Or is that the way he makes you feel about lots of things? Am still very :( for you about that.

I am not a fan of having kids over at ours, only ever stayed a friends house once as a child myself

Don't really feel I deal with my own daughter very well and having more just freaks me out!

Was very brave for my daughter's birthday in Jan, and she had 2 friends staying over! Was supposed to be 3 but one couldn't make it

My daughter spoke to a friend yesterday and was asked to stay over, it was short notice but no reason for her not to go so she got picked up about an hour or so later

Joining the 'ed group. Tea, WTH was up his butt? Not wanting to spend time with you? You're gorgeous and fun and sound like you'd be a pleasure to be with... I can't imagine what his problem is. :( As thumb says - don't take his criticism into yourself. People's opinions of us are not us, if you see what I mean. I'm explaining it badly - does this make any sense?

Hi all. First of all, I am sending a hug to T42. Second I am going to inform you that
Kittenito has developed chicken pox. The poor lad was supposed to be going to a birthday party this afternoon.

Bummer about the chickenpox, Catita. Here. Have an unusually-coloured Scotch.

Can I have an unusually coloured Scotch too please?

In an overwhelming situation and no idea how to cope with it right now. A scotch might be just the thing. Can't say any more than that.

Oh dear everyone - I really am feeling very very bad for moaning about dh on t'internet!!! Especially as I promised I never would.

Thumb - I was giving a balanced account. I was assessing post-discussion where perhaps I had been unreasonable and unthoughtful too. All stories have many sides and I think if I had have discussed with him first he would have felt less like I was dragging him along unthoughtfully with my concept of fun.

JM - THANKS for saying I am "gorgeous and fun and sound like you'd be a pleasure to be with" and I REALLY get what you mean about the difference between what people say and what you are. Reminds me of an Alan Sillitoe quote nicked by The Arctic Monkeys "Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not"

Cat - Chicken pox!!!! Well I did see him rolling around with Wriggle in the tearoom garden - maybe he got it from her??? How's it going?

We are just back from a Bach concert. The music was WONDERFUL. BUT The woman sitting next to us kept putting her program on her face so she couldn't see Milk and when she wasn't doing that she kept looking at Milk and rolling here eyes because she obviously didn't like Milk being there. I was wondering whether to move for the second half but after meeting most of the singers in the toilet (HOW exciting!!!) we return to discover SHE had moved. The thing was Milk really was on BEST BEHAVIOUR occasionally whispering a question about the music in my ear very quietly with hands cupped and doing a bit of seated mock conducting but that was it. At an afternoon concert in the 'burbs with good children's and OAPs prices thus an audience fairly families and chatty Grannies heavy. GRRRRR - REALLY she had ABSOLUTELY nothing to moan about!!!

::hands Amber another usually-coloured Scotch::

And, lo, what's that I see? Why, it's Mellors, with the keys of the tea room Jag (who paid the import tax on that, I wonder) ready to take Amber for a relaxing spin along the coast.

Have fun, me lovelies!

Perhaps we could go next, Tea? I fancy Mellors a Bellini in a beachside bar.

Have only just spotted that Mellors was gardening in his scanties. I hope he put his chauffeur's uniform on before he took Amber off in the Jag.

Yes I think that is a wonderful plan Maud - By the way the sleepovers evolved from the bus between one of Milk's friend's and our place stopping at 9 o clock and that we kept missing it and had to carry tired or sleeping children over a mile home so it ws the more logical way of doing things. The sleep overs really are LOVELY; and like you Maud, I wouldn't deny Milk of them... generally I LOVE her friends coming here too so it is nice for everyone.

Ok, Tea. Let's get on our fascinators and Mary-Jane shoes and prepare to hit the town. Who else wants to come? Perhaps we'd better leave the Jag in the garage and hire a charabanc. Of course, we don't know what time Amber and Mellors will get back ....