Friday's Favorite Corner

I've been bad lately about posting my FFCs. Today, I remembered; and low and behold actually have something new, a not-yet-decorated corner--which is quite an oddity for me. It's been there for a whole ten minutes and nothing on top yet! Go figure.

Ya got a minute?? This is a doozy.
Guess what this is? And, guess where it came from. 1-2-3. Give up? For those that have been with me for a while, this is a piece from the now-notorious French auction! Yahoo! I received my crate today--today as in three months later today--three months and a week, to be exact. Lordy Lordy. Isn't it gorgeous (but not as in Johnny gorgeous, of course)? I am just beside myself to finally get everything! RAPHI! I got my shipment!! He probably was wondering if I would ever get it. For those of you not familiar with the saga, you can catch up here. Was it worth the wait? Abso-fabu-lutely! Oh, and right up there with receiving it, I didn't even have to pay duty! Uh huh, I said duty free. Because all the pieces were antiques, it was duty-free baby! Wooohoooo. Since I almost had to take a second mortgage out on our house between paying the auction, having the crate built and shipping, I was just expecting to have to give up my first born (sometimes not a bad thing) to pay the duty. What a pleasant surprise.

The lovely crate has been in a warehouse in Nashville for almost a month. I was first scammed into thinking I had to pay $125 to pick it up and found out this was a fee that the shipping company would charge me to do all the paperwork running around--basically to take the paperwork to Customs. After I figured that scam out, I ran out last week on the day it was 110 degrees outside, with my son and his friend (who just happened to have a truck--with no air condition) to get the paper work and then get the crate. No can do. We pick up the paperwork, go to Customs and they say they have to inspect the contents. Well, gee, it's only been sitting there for three weeks, why has no one told me this? I didn't have to ride with my son's crazy driving friend to find this little tid bit of info out!! GRRRR. Okay, the guy's only doing his job, trying to keep our country safe from crazies. Ok. I agree. Fine. They say they will call me after they get to it. Hmmmm hmmmm hmmm, yesterday I receive an email from the shipper saying she was going to have to start charging me to store the crate! Excuse me? I tell her I'm waiting to hear from Customs. She calls them, they say it's been ready since the day after I dropped the paperwork off. Grrrrrrrr. Can I go NOW and pick it up???? Uhuh. Gee, thanks.

So, I was hoping I wouldn't ever have to drive with my son's friend again, but I did. He's a sweet kid, but he scares me behind the wheel. Even the teenager has admitted to his not being such a great driver, hehe. (Now that amazes me. Maybe there's hope for the teenager, yet. Let's hope!) First, they have very loud music playing, some of it good, but some of it really, really bad. They they expect to be able to talk to me while I'm in the back seat the the music is blaring. Hey, I like my music as loud as the next person; just don't expect me to be able to give you directions while some crazy cracked out guy is screaming at the top of his lungs, ok? Oh, and then, after I had given the kid $50 to drive me out and run me around in 100 degree weather, the teenager asks me to fill his tank up, AGAIN! I give him $10 and that's it! Can you believe these kids today!! Man. Ok, so now it starts to rain. We're on the highway, going 75 in the rain. I begin my prayers. All of a sudden, they start talking to me. "Move your purse, get the papers off the seat..." "Wha??? I can't hear you, wha????" MOVE YOUR STUFF OFF THE SEAT! Hmmm, I know the truck is old, but does it matter if I put stuff on the seat??? Lordy, are you ready for this. "A girl threw up there, so get your stuff off the seat...." OMG. Lovely. I'm transported back to my teenage years. Windblown, sweaty, music blaring and the sudden smell of puke. (I hadn't noticed it before, of course.) Lovely.

Ok, I'll speed this up. Of course it gets even better. OF COURSE, it does. We get to Customs, they finally locate where the crate actually is (hey, didn't you guys just inspect it????) --uhhuh, no one knew where it was. We go to the warehouse; and you know the crate doesn't fit in the truck. Nope. Too big. Won't fit. OMG. I just start to laugh. This is way too funny. Thank goodness the guy helping us found it funny too. This crate is now infamous in a select Nashville circle, it's true. We have to take everything out of the crate and get rid of the crate without the "boss" seeing us do it, or else he'll charge us. OMG. Of course, the crate weighed more than the contents. Luckily (for the teenagers), a dumpster was just outside the loading dock. Yep, this is my custom-made French $$$$$$$$ crate in the dumpster. Isn't it beautiful. Is that not the funniest story ever? (Well, not the funniest, but close, huh?)

I haven't even begun to open my china yet. I will save that for another post tonight, perhaps. But, I couldn't resist getting this whole saga down on paper so the kids will know how much this piece really is worth and all the trouble we went through to get it. haha. Someone better appreciate it, damn it! hehe.

Back to Friday's Corner. You know about the French wash table now. Ok. I have two Polish watercolor prints here also. (Oh, and by the way, this is my powder room on the main floor. Gee whiz.) I have this thing for Polish watercolors. Guess it's the Ukrainian on the hub's side that brings it out in me. At any rate, he does beautiful work. I can't find anything on him in English to link to, sorry. But, you can see how beautiful the paintings (prints) are.

Well, just got a call from the teenager. Code 12, he says. He's stranded out in the country with no ride home, joy. Guess where I'm off to. But, first, I must take the old chairs I just bought from the back of my care--a WHOLE other story!! hehe. By the way, I now have a cramp in my upper thigh/byoo-tocks. Must have been from the bracing for sudden impact while driving with the teenagers today. Wonderful.