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::

Can taste curry, fruit and choc. One can survive on such things (er maybe not in the same dish...), and no mouth problems apart from lack of taste so far .

Really impressed with a bank that begins with H and has more than four letters in its name. Just nipped in there and set up a new account in under 15 mins with no hassle at all. Amazing! Hurrah for somewhere with really excellent customer service.

Curry, fruit and chocolate sounds like a rather pleasant mix. Long may it continue!

Well, if they can put chocolate in molé why not in curry?!?!

LCT has started to say nomnomnom. I knew I shouldn't have let him look at LOLCats.

Tee, LOL at LCT. ToddlerScout says it sometimes, too (has never seen LOLCats). Well, it's either nomnomnom or yumyumyum. Tends to be when he's eating something he really likes.

ToddlerScout is the the proud new owner of a pair of walking shoes (as opposed to cruiser shoes). They're only one full-size bigger but they LOOK huge. He's not sure what to make of them but still moves pretty well in them. They have dinosaurs on them, just like his first shoes. He looked like such a big boy in the shop today. Every day he looks more and more like a proper little boy and not my baby boy. and at the same time. Guides last night kept fussing over him. He hasn't had that much attention in a meeting in ages and he totally lapped it up.

Ah. When I said I was going to channel Anna Madrigal, I only meant in the sense of being (as I remember her) a large lady of indeterminate age and eccentric habits. As a law-abiding citizen and non-smoker I leave the marijuana-growing to others.

::prim::

::remembers to say no when anyone offers hash browns for breakfast::

Of course, now I want to read all the Tales of the City books again.

Have just found out (via Facebook, not told personally) that my brother should be becoming a father in October.

I had had the same thought, Cmot.

::Gnashes teeth at the recollection that the books were quite recently charity-shopped::

Your brother really is a, err, character, isn't he?

I think my books went some time ago when we were desperate for book space. Will see if I can get them on my Kindle perhaps.

Yes - I can't really think of it as becoming an Aunt as I know I will never have a relationship with the child. Which is really sad. I hope they have had the decency to tell mum and dad properly - although I'm sure mum would have phoned if they knew

Oh well. At least that means (presumably) that he won't be trying to cadge any of your remaining baby stuff off you, but it's sad, nevertheless. Who do you think instigates this? Is it your brother or his partner?

Did they show the TV version of Tales here? It was in the 90s sometime, as I was at University. I watched at the local gay bar. It was very very good.

I am sorry to hear you won't get to know your niece/nephew, CMOT. Families are odd.

Yes they did, but I didn't like it because it didn't match my mental picture. The pace seemed really slow - everything in the books always seemed (to me) so frantic and lively whereas the tv version seemed to plod along.

As for families, just remember the Philip Larkin quote (although nothing here is about parents).

I don't think I've ever actually read the books! So could be why I liked the mini-series!

I don't have any remaining baby stuff - it all went as soon as it was finished with. Didn't want it sitting there reminding me tbh. Ach, not that I could even handle a baby now.

DB has always been useless, and we were never close at all for whatever reason. But it makes me sad that they spend a lot of time with her family, and none with mum and dad. I know they aren't the most thrilling visit these days, but I made dh go to see his parents for respectable amounts of time when he didn't want to. Cos thats what is right isn't it - they aren't toxic, just old and frail

hash brownies anyone??

how come I can be as active as I like, lug ladders about, rig lights, prune trees etc and my should doesn;t hurt. spend 30 mins sitting on a bus or reading on sofa or lieing in bed and it hurts.

that said I did sleep better last night so either I'm so knackered I'm sleeping through teh pain or its not hurting AS much in middle of night.

morning all. secured a week of work in april/ may today. all over the Royal wedding bank hol, so I don;t have to buy childcare for 4 days of it, Hurrah. BUT i will miss the village street party-
boo hiss.

Just had first piano lesson. using knees up mother brown as a teaching tune. on the grounds that its tune I know in a book I own. i ALSO HAVE SCALES TO PRACTISE - EEK.

Serpent, tales of the city are great books. Started as long running newspaper column in San fran and they are funny and each chapter only about 4 pages long so readable even if, like me, you get to read moments at a time only.
While I love Olympia ducakis I didn't like the tv

oh look! Here come Mouse and Babycakes, two beautiful cats named after characters from the books !

Actually maud beware your inner anna since iirc she was in fact a man
so you might want to steer clear unless you are, of course, Dave the Hairy Armed Trucker

Oh indeed. Although I'd forgotten the pot, I do remember that Anna Madrigal is an anagram of a man and a girl. But as I said, it's really just about the kaftans and love beads.

Well if that's the case I'm channelling Demis Rousous

Hmph. Not available for Kindle, and I was just looking forward to reading them. Will have to borrow in turn from the library.

How about a mimosa ?

I don't know this book/series. Have been thinking I need to start taking ToddlerScout to the library (he loves books but isn't always the most kind to them so have been leary of taking him to the library) but now have something to look for for myself as well.

I have so no idea what you are all talking about!

So I'll ask you a question instead. Some of you are RE/RS teachers, vicars (I think), churchgoers etc. I am going to spend a day next week with a small team of teachers writing new schemes of work for primary RE for my county. We can choose any theme we like (but obviously have to add the RE links). I would like to do one about the significance of water in religions, something about the use of art in places of worship, one based on the idea of resurrection, beliefs about life after death; has anyone got any ideas? It could be based on a topic, a theme or even a painting.

Gah! Just lost a whole post. Hello all anyway. No time to write out again but will just say thank you so much to Serpent for sharing that you too are a member of the never had a full night's sleep since birth of small person club, and have been for even longer than me; I know it sounds awful but it cheered me up so much! Just that it's so nice not to be the only one - I know lots of people in RL whose DC go through periods of not sleeping well, but no one else who's never had a full night's sleep since parenthood began. And now I know I'm not only not the only one, I'm in excellent company! Merci bien!

Have forgotten everything about the Maupin books except that Anna is, as Oxeye says, a man. You clasp away, Maud! My only acquaintance with San Fransisco these days is via Monk. Anyone else watch it?

Right, as Tee so eloquently put it a while back, lack of sleep is kicking my ass (good news about the humidifier and the sleep, btw Tee!) so I'd better head off and hope that insomnia doesn't strike.

Are there still any mimosas?

Good to see you again, Secret.

My very faded memory is that Anna Madrigal is not a man, as she is a transsexual - hence the a man and a girl thing - not a transvestite [pedantic, moi?] I am going to have to read the books again, aren't I? What's Monk?

Serpent - I have no useful ideas, except to suggest that if you're doing resurrection you might also do rebirth (which would bring in some other world religions).

Oh it's bedtime. Night all!

Bonne nuit!

ok Maudthepedant, you do what you like I still think you are Dave the hairy trucker

Serpent, they are a series of books, funny and set in San Fransisco - hence appropriate

Weird, I turned on tele tonight, first time in ages, who was there but Armistead Maupin doing a talking head about writing NEW TintheCity!!

Water and religion - what a doozy. Baptism, immersion, O Brother where are thou, Botticelli, N American people - indeed almost all hunter gatherer/ ancient people/ water gods, nymphs, Tridents and Neptune, Captain Nemo - that's my stream of consciousness for your UnSerp and I;m, not one of the religios....

Agent, lovely to have even part of a post!
night all