Hi,
Two posts in just four days, I must have a new housekeeper. 🙂 How else would I have the time to do this. Yes, Rick started just over a week ago and is working out great. When I inspected the three rooms he cleaned yesterday I only find a few very minor issues. He was a referral from Derronda, the housekeeper I’ve been lucky enough to have for three years now. Referrals from proven employees are just about always a sure thing.
For you antique-rs, here’s some leads for you. Artifacts is a shop just across the West End Bridge from here. The gentleman that opened it several years ago was interviewed in the paper about a year ago and said he wasn’t from Pittsburgh, but chose the location because we are basically half way between New York and Chicago, his major markets. Many of his pieces puts mine to shame, really high end items. He’s been so successful that he bought an old church just down the block from his showroom and that now holds his rug collection.
Dargate Auction Galleries just moved their auction house from the East End to McKees Rocks (just down the Ohio river from Artifacts). They are having their first sale August 28 and 29. The old social hall is going to be a pre-view room for up coming items to be auctioned. There’s on site parking and the facility is wheel chair accessible.
Constantine & Pletcher auction house are having a sale this weekend up in Cheswick (about 30 minutes up the Allegheny River from here). Viewing Friday from noon to five and Sunday from nine until ten in the morning with sales directly after.
Margaret Mutschler who had an antique shop in Leetsdale, is retiring and offering the remainder of her antiques through JS Dill Auctions on July 29 in Zelienople (about an hour north of here).
Finally, Royal York Auction Gallery is auctioning off items from the Mary Phillips estate and more this Saturday at nine in the morning. Previews are this Thursday from five until eight and Friday, from nine thirty until three in the afternoon. It is right up Baum Blvd in East Liberty (about twenty minutes from here).
For you vinyl collectors, Charles and Joan just checked out from a four night stay and they collect old records, mainly jazz. They are always perusing old record shops and where thoroughly impressed with Jerry’s Records in Oakland. Rooms after rooms filled with old vinyl separated by genre. They person at the register was a bit colorful, but they had a good time anyway.
Now for a garden update. My neighbor’s finally embarrassed me enough to plant flowers in the tree pits (that don’t have trees yet) from the reconstruction of my street. About half of the street’s residents have taken the initiative to plant flowers and I finally broke down and followed suite. It definitely looks much nicer.
I found the most amazing watering tool. I’ve seen it around for awhile, but never pursued it. It’s that wand you attach to your hose and it puts out a ton of water without a lot of pressure (that would damage the plants). I know, I’m a late bloomer (pun intended), these things have been around for quite awhile and I’m finally catching on.
Audrey from the Little Shop of Horrors has taken up residence here. I had zucchini (an annual) in my garden last year. I had lots of problems with a mold/fungus on the zucchini as well as on my Veronica’s. Since the Veronica’s are a perennial I didn’t remove yet (I hate using chemicals, so I’ll replace them with something more durable once I use up the anti fungal chemical left over from last year). The Veronica’s again have this fungus/mold. I didn’t replant the zucchini this year, but saw these things growing up where I had planted some nicotiana from my Mom’s house and thought that was them. Lo and behold, it was zucchini plants. One of them I swear is growing a foot a day. I have it trailing along the top of the fence and it doesn’t have any diseases, yet. The elephant ears are up to my shoulders, the hibiscus I only transplanted once is chest high and ready to bloom (the one I transplanted twice is still mad at me, but hanging in there). The Arrondo donex along the front fence are all over my head (the plants everyone thinks are corn). It’s high and dense enough now, that there’s nice privacy from the street and Charles and Joan spent time each afternoon enjoying my “beach”. It’s great to see guests relaxing and enjoying the various areas I created for them to relax and enjoy.
Have a great day and it won’t be a week before I post another blog, life is good. 🙂
ed
