Expressions and sayings...

Here is one that will be new to you…

“..wouldn’t know you from who shot John”…

Now what on earth is this in reference to?  Well, I went and looked it up – I had to – it’s something MY father and mother used to say and guess what?  It is VERY southern expression and according to the wikitonary – and shockingly – even attributed to a very specific town of Texarkana(close to where I grew up): http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Talk:who_shot_John

 

“Bread and Butter” when on a walk and having to split up (release hands to go around an object) during a walk…  This was used to ward off bad luck.

http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/bread-and-butter

 

Funny world out there, isn’t it?

Are you feeling lucky?.... Well, are ya?

I was just talking with a friend at work and I realized I’m truly lucky, blessed and living the good life.

I’m lucky that I have a husband who works at a job that provides legal services (not to mention a killer salary).  It’s those legal services that got me out of a potential ticket lately.  To which I feel very lucky and blessed that I don’t have to go to court again regarding it and that I don’t have to pay a huge ticket fee.  That would have hurt financially!

I’m lucky that I have a side business that is doing fairly well, even with the transition of the business to another owner.  I just got my first order after the change over.  I’m so lucky that they kept me on and business will continue as normal, even if it has slowed considerably, that business has blessed me with a VERY good income for the last few years.  With enough income I was able to purchase a computer and an iPad and can now travel where I want to go without worrying too much how I will pay for it!

I’m lucky that I can travel… lucky that I have a friend who travels for her job for years at a time and goes to FUN places.  I’m lucky  that she welcomes me with open arms to come and stay with her for a week to go and play in her part of the world.

I’m lucky that I have a job… which if things go as bad as I think they could… may be a short lived blessing.. but I’m also lucky that if it came down to it, we would just pick up and move to the next place and follow the jobs where ever they may lead.  It could be that we end up with a vacation home in Georgia out of it… but we really could move and follow the job(s) if it came down to it.  I’m lucky that my house – if jobs did stay local, but paid less – would make a KILLER “stay”cation place to play for an entire summer, just having friends up and over to play with us!

I’m lucky that I have healthy and happy kids – even if they do drive me buggy by not doing homework and fully applying themselves at all times.  I’m lucky that for the most part they are happy well adjusted kiddo’s with a lot of friends.  I’m lucky that my kids are not afraid to try new things, go new places and expand their horizons.

I’m lucky that I have parents who live close by that are willing to help me out when needed and are flexible when life hands them changes.  I’m blessed that they are still in good health and very easy to live with (just in case), and are very self sufficient.  I’m lucky and blessed to have a great Mother-in-law who loves her grandkids and comes to see their big events – even if it means driving 5 to 6 hours to do it!  I’m blessed to have a home that will support many, many people in it at the same time in comfort and warmth.  I’m blessed to have a hunter husband who has filled the freezer with LOTS of fish…. Now we need to EAT it all!!

I’m just very, very, very lucky and blessed in general…

Organization update

So this week was shelves...I didn't really do shelves, I did desks, under desks and on top of desks - to my defense, part of the task this week was simply "storage" and towards the end it DID move to piles and piles, I have a LOT of.  I have shelves, however, they are down to a dull roar for now... so I chose to concentrate on the desk(s).  I have a LONG way to go, but I can now get to the closet (and even shut it!!) so that's a major plus.  Next up in this room will be actually cull out some of the items I will NEVER use...

Now the question comes, can I be that brutally honest with myself? 

Probably not, however, we'll try!! 

Bench done!

AND let it be known I will NOT do any more upholstery in the future - near or far. 

TOOO much a pain in the butt!! 

Fear of disposing medicines - vindicated

The following is an excerpt from: http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/460159

First, the expiration date, required by law in the United States, beginning in 1979, specifies only the date the manufacturer guarantees the full potency and safety of the drug -- it does not mean how long the drug is actually "good" or safe to use. Second, medical authorities uniformly say it is safe to take drugs past their expiration date -- no matter how "expired" the drugs purportedly are. Except for possibly the rarest of exceptions, you won't get hurt and you certainly won't get killed. A contested example of a rare exception is a case of renal tubular damage purportedly caused by expired tetracycline (reported by G. W. Frimpter and colleagues in JAMA, 1963;184:111). This outcome (disputed by other scientists) was supposedly caused by a chemical transformation of the active ingredient. Third, studies show that expired drugs may lose some of their potency over time, from as little as 5% or less to 50% or more (though usually much less than the latter). Even 10 years after the "expiration date," most drugs have a good deal of their original potency. So wisdom dictates that if your life does depend on an expired drug, and you must have 100% or so of its original strength, you should probably toss it and get a refill, in accordance with the cliché, "better safe than sorry." If your life does not depend on an expired drug -- such as that for headache, hay fever, or menstrual cramps -- take it and see what happens.

One of the largest studies ever conducted that supports the above points about "expired drug" labeling was done by the US military 15 years ago, according to a feature story in the Wall Street Journal (March 29, 2000), reported by Laurie P. Cohen. The military was sitting on a $1 billion stockpile of drugs and facing the daunting process of destroying and replacing its supply every 2 to 3 years, so it began a testing program to see if it could extend the life of its inventory. The testing, conducted by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), ultimately covered more than 100 drugs, prescription and over-the-counter. The results showed that about 90% of them were safe and effective as far as 15 years past their original expiration date.

I feel so vindicated in NOT tossing medications for all these years… I guess I will chuck them when they get close to 15 years old… nawh –maybe not.  Never know when the end of the world will happen, right?  Isn’t it supposed to end this December??  (http://www.december212012.com/) hahahahaha!

Update on Organization efforts and discussion on FEAR

First the fun (?) one… organization…

I’m doing well this week – well, not really, but I’m going to lie to myself and say I am.

Monday – Hair do-dads, sort, cull, get rid of any that you no longer use.  That one worked well for me, I was in my bottom drawer digging for something… and I started chucking hair things out.  I got to the bottom then moved onto the pull out rack under my sink and did the same thing.  Then I moved to the tilt out drawer in front of my sink and did the same thing.  I had a PILE of headbands and pony tail holders.  Why do I have them?  Eventually I get sick of going to the hair dressers and stop doing my hair and revert to letting it grow.  It gets to 12+ inches, just enough to donate and WHACK, it gets cut off again.  I’m going to fight that urge and get rid of all my hair “junk” and see if I can maintain the short do longer this time before apathy strikes and I let it go again!

Tuesday – Clean face products – cull expired items.  Bottom line?  I don’t USE face products.  Well, I do, I use Oil of Oley and have since I was something like 15.  I guess the last few days of this cull will tell all if I’m chucking things I didn’t know I had at the bottom of all the drawers J

Wednesday – Clean out medications – my downfall.  I don’t know what is with me, but I have an apocalyptic view of the world.  Could it be that mom would ALWAYS say “We’re living in the last days”?   (love you mom!)  Could be.  I just have a VERY hard time letting go of meds.  Why?  Well, you never know when the end of the world will come and you’re either very happy you have all those pain meds and antibiotics, or you use them to go out “happy” – ha!  Ok, really.  Yes, I know meds loose their potency with age, but at what point are they of NO use what-so-ever?  I guess I need a book that tells me the half life of the drugs in question – then I can decide if having 5 year old antibiotics will do ANY good when the zombie apocalypse happens.  I didn’t grow up in the depression, but I have a waste not – want not mentality when it comes to meds.  I did toss one thing – have not tackled the meds bin in the cupboard yet, this was from the drawer that had all the hair do-dads in it… it was Pepto that expired in 2006.  Would it still work?  I’m sure if you took two it would make a dent… it’s just not full strength.  I had a hard time releasing my grip over the garbage however!

Thursday – Saturday – clean out a drawer a day.  I guess that has been dented a bit by the bottom drawer and the hair stuff, however there is more to be gone through in that area – matching up razor fillers to razor bodies.  I’m sure they have a mate in there somewhere, just finding them could be a challenge as they could be in different areas of storage.  So, sometime this week/weekend I have to tackle the medicine bin and the drawers – can I count my bin as a drawer?  Ha!  I did the bin a while back in another de-clutter/organize effort.  It works better than the shoebox of the past…. Now take it a step further and get rid of meds that are outdated.  I have a feeling I won’t need a bin after that effort!

 

So maybe fear is really addressed in both of these subjects – fear of letting meds go and fear of going outside of my comfort zone.

 

I have never been shake in your shoes afraid of change.  I have been uncomfortable and a little afraid, but total fear to the point of vapor lock and not being able to DO what you want to do, what you need to do to make something happen?  Not typical for me.  What is my fear factor right now?  Travel.  Did I hear a collective gasp out there?  Yes, I said it, fear of travel.  I jumped on a plane with NO plans and “stopped off” in New Zealand on my way to Australia the first time I stepped foot outside of US Soil.  Yes, you’re reading correctly, not even a trip to Mexico or Canada.  I went to Australia, by myself and without a care in the world.  A few years later, I was off to Europe with my (lovely) cousin Suzanne – with very few plans and NO reservations.  We  just stopped in at youth hostels along the way and went where we wanted to go.  I jumped on weekend flights to Korea.  I even moved overseas without a care if the world too…. Now?  I’m freaked about committing to going to UAE, to going to Europe without plans.  I don’t know if this is just age, or the fact that I have not traveled in 15 years.  Yes, you read that correctly – no overseas trips since we moved back from Europe.  Sad but true.  I have done small trips with kids, with my folks and our biggest adventure in a long time – Alaska.  So, what is with the fear of going to a place I have ALWAYS wanted to go (Dubai – well, I’ll be close – in Abu Dhabi) ???  AND we’ve always said we would take Liz back to her birthplace.  Sigh.  What is WITH me?  Why so much fear over this?  Why so much trepidation?  Today I am facing this fear – fear of choosing incorrectly on mode of travel, fear of the SUPER long flight, fear of going somewhere I have never been, fear of getting off my butt and going.  Today, I’m booking my flight!

 

I’m going to look fear in the face and give it a friendly nod… and move ON…

And I have…. My flight is booked (breathe!!)

This flight arrives the next day
Wed 14 Mar	Departs: 3:28pm from Atlanta, GA(ATL)	DL 1195
	Arrives: 5:20pm in Washington-Dulles, DC(IAD)	1h 52m
Layover in Washington-Dulles, DC(IAD)1h 50m
Wed 14 Mar	Departs: 7:10pm from Washington-Dulles, DC(IAD)	DL 93851
Thu 15 Mar	Arrives: 7:45am in Amsterdam, Netherlands(AMS)	7h 35m
Layover in Amsterdam, Netherlands(AMS)2h 50m
Thu 15 Mar	Departs: 10:35am from Amsterdam, Netherlands(AMS)	KL 449
	Arrives: 8:05pm in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates(AUH)	6h 30m
Sat 24 Mar	Departs: 1:20am from Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates(AUH)	DL 94021
	Arrives: 5:45am in Amsterdam, Netherlands(AMS)	7h 25m
Layover in Amsterdam, Netherlands(AMS)5h 15m
Sat 24 Mar	Departs: 11:00am from Amsterdam, Netherlands(AMS)	DL 71
	Arrives: 2:30pm in New York-Kennedy, NY(JFK)	8h 30m
Layover in New York-Kennedy, NY(JFK)2h 20m
Sat 24 Mar	Departs: 4:50pm from New York-Kennedy, NY(JFK)
	Arrives: 7:35pm in Atlanta, GA(ATL)

 

Total flight time: 15 hours and 57 minutes – making this a 20 hour plus day to get there with layovers

I gave up calculating times coming back.. it’s too scary!

Weekly organization tasks

no picturesa this week. we had to do the following:
Clean night stand drawer - done
top of night stand - done
one bedroom self. I don't really have one. I have the TV console.. but that's alredy done I counted one of my closet shelves instead.
clean out your junk drawer. Ok, done
orgnize your junk drawer - also done..
So there you have it - all done for this week and movingo on to next week as of today

Freezer organization

What I would have liked in the ideal shot is one my most prized things... my candy stash.  I pick up Halloween candy at 75% and 90% off at the end of the season and deposit it in the freezer for the following year... it's a huge money saver for Halloween, and mom tested to know that the candy is just as fresh as the day it went in the freezer ;o)  You KNOW I have to test... I LIKE to keep them in Target bags to keep prying munchies out of them.. so that there IS a stash at the appropriate season... but this is not to be in the new freezer setup.  Sad.

What I also didn't show was the sadly full trash can of freezer burned fish and odds and ends meats that had died a painful death from NOT being identified by date in this freezer!!

So - next up - some dates will be tagged on each of these bins to indicate the year contained... now to get everyone to ONLY get the oldest fish out first... that will be the trick!!

AND we will not even discuss the indoor freezer just yet.. I'm still debating if I'm up for that one.  So far the headache/earache that has been plaguing me for the last few days seems to be at bay... so maybe it will happen today to get the indoor freezer done as well.  Maybe!

It's a few days into the new year and what have *I* been up to?

Lot's - I joined a de-cluttering group and started on the "to do" list for this week.  All in the kitchen.  I skipped around a bit, but the list was:
Sunday, 1 January: Think about who you want to be in this coming year. 

• how about just sane??

Monday, 2 January: Set up a donation station.

• it's called my garage and I tote it to the thrift store when I can!)

Tuesday, 3 January: De-clutter the top of your kitchen cabinets and dust.

• I don't have this - they go to the ceiling

Wednesday, 4 January: Declutter the top shelf of ONE of your kitchen cabinets.

• OK, I started here - in my spice cabinet... so I went ahead with tomorrows goal too!

Thursday, 5 January: Go through your spices and discard expired and old ones.

• Done - oldest one found was 2001 - not bad since McCormick came out with a website a few years back to tell you the age of your spices based on the address... some of mine were 10 years - yes, YEARS old at that time.  Not much better this time, but in my defense they were just peppercorns!

Friday, 6 January: Put all of your canned goods together in one place.

• wouldn't you know it I just bought a can organizer just before Christmas, so this is done too :)  Yeah me!!

Saturday, 7 January: Go through your freezer to let go of old, freezer burned food.

this one will be my challenge, I have already gone to WalMart and picked up freezer baskets to assist in this effort... I'm going to need all the help I can get to put the BIG freezer in order!!  It will have to be by year of fish, then type of fish... fun, fun, fun.  NOT!  Wish me luck!!

So instead of doing THAT tonight, what am I doing?  Playing on the computer, surfing sights and finding cute vinyl to cut for the house...

should have done this one on a MUCH bigger scale, but I did plan it for a different wall, but was shot down :o(

New Years Eve projects

OK, so this was painted on New Years Eve, and posted (in reality) on New Years day... but my justification is that it really DID happen IN 2011

 I like the contrast between the VERY dark yellow in the laundry room

(note door shut JUST enough to hide the semi-permanent pile of laundry on the floor in there...

 yes, there IS laundry all over in there again!) 

You can even see the cucumber green of the dining room from here as well. 

Goes nicely together, don't you think?

Butch working on his computer at the breakfast table.

And a nice view from the living room - includes ALL the colors of the main part of the house... the tan in the upper walls, the green of the dining room and the yellow of the kitchen.

Fire in the Hole!!!

Dad came over today to help me with my lockers... he ground down the sharp edges on the open locker (ripped off the hinges) doorway and helped me swap out the bottom left door with the one that had been ripped off... the one with a working locking mechanism.

 Sparks flying!!

next up... paint...

I think I am going to let Liz have her way and go for a nice Tardis Blue

the center middle open one... and the interior of all the others... I'm really thinking a deep yellow/gold

Sound about right?

Thanks Dad for all your help today - couldn't do it without you!!!

Merry Christmas!

Christmas Eve and Angela can NOT contain herself.  she switched presents about 10 times while the movie was playing (Scrooge with Jim Cary in the background!)

 She finally settled on a BIGGIE!!  Liz's reaction says it all...

"When I was her age..."

Can you hear it now??  ha!

 OH, SNAP!

 Appropriate for her!!

Now I know my kids are older when *I* have to wake them up and get them moving on Christmas morning :o)  What a pleasant change to sleep to about 8am!

Lizzie started into her stocking and kept pulling out 1's... more and more and more came out... until Grandma was shaking HER stocking to see if any had made it into her stocking too :)

 Pile of 1's for her trip money next summer!

 WOW - big stack!!  (looks more impressive than it was!!)

 Angela got a new camera and let me tell you - she is USING that thing!!!

 Grandma has a new monogram for her car (installed and everything!)

 Ah... she's not grown up yet... she's loving the new Chloe :)

 Grandma is right - this shirt is sooo her...

it says:

I have been very good

for the last week or so

let's just focus on that

 Beautiful Christmas ornament for Sally's tree from Robin and Donald

(sure missed having them there this year!!!)

 checking out the new bobby pin holder

 Liz got her all time wish and got her Scoodie!

I think she likes it!

And a Sonic Screwdriver from the "correct" Dr - David Tennant.  ha!

A new mouse pad for Sally with the girls all over it!

SHARK!!

Her Sweet 16 book wasn't as big of a hit for her as it was for Grandma! 

I'm sure she'll appreciate it later in life...maybe

Butch was shocked to find I snuck in a cribbage board from Alaska for him while we were there this summer.. there have to be some surprises in life!!

One HAPPY girl!!

This is the "Oh no, you didn't" look....

When will he learn, I really DO listen.... he got his much awaited IPad 2

She REALLY loves that Scoodie!

We had a shortened holiday season this year.. Butch is busy with work, which I guess is a good thing, because it means in this time of uncertainty that he still HAS a job to go to... so we didn't complain too much when we had to head home early. 

We did get to cram a number of Push the Dummy game, a shopping trip for a little after Christmas shopping and a movie (We Bought a Zoo - LOVED it!) and had a GREAT time just sitting, visiting and being bums!

I, however, will be doing partial days this week in an effort to get a few things done :)

Paint, paint everywhere... and an organization backfire!

What do you think?  We voted the VERY pale yellow - what do YOU say?

I got a can organizer (or two) and I'm not sure it helps when you have SOOO many cans to begin with!  And boxes - oh, my!!!

Ice Skating with the kiddo's!

Skating fun - for most of the 8 kids this was the FIRST time they had ever been on the ice.

This is the 5 girls - three I brought, two met us there - two more joined later... and we also had three boys with us too - a good crowd of teens!

Where am *I*?  I learned my lesson with roller skates.. I was in the bleachers having a nice chat with Ms. T :o)

 NOT speedy, but in their defense... they did speed up eventually!

And no picture of Angela - she decided today would be a great day to start ditching photo ops... sigh... here we go with THAT stage!!

LOOK - a CAR full - and I do mean full - every single seat was taken!!

Wild hairs and lost minds...

Why lost minds too?  Well, I think I'm officially loosing my MIND.

I go into Goodwill, find a treasure (see below) I buy said treasure for $25 plus tax (bonus!).... I head out the door to put this in the car... I unlock the car, I get the seats all folded down and for the life of me can no longer find my kids KEYS  (thanks for the correction was stuck on partial KID fault!).. what the heck?  Did I have them in my hand and decide at some moment that it was just too much trouble to keep hold of them?  Where did I finally find them (AFTER dumping my treasure on the ground and breaking off a corner - insert wailing and crying here)??? UNDER the VERY back seat.  Apparently in my rush to REMOVE the head rest some child decided to wrestle out of it's hiding place under the VERY back of the car and put on -which it's NEVER on so I can drop the back seat at, well, the drop of a hat... goodness.... talk about loosing my mind!!  I thought I was going to have to have Butch get my keys from home and come get me... now THAT would be a pickle.

Anyway, keys found, mind still lost and pretty little treasure made it home and put back together with glue and a clamp.  Whew!

BEFORE:

After a bit of sanding, and I'm thinking I rather LIKE the distressed look and may not even paint it.. what do you vote?  To paint or not to pain?  Think of it as french shabby chic...

what do you think?

 All that is needed are some cute glass knobs - Target here I come!!!

Projects for the last few weekends.

Last weekend I got the wild hair to finally remove the boarder in the kitchen in prep for painting.  I started on the opposite side of the room and turned around to find Butch up to his elbows in the deconstruction... to which he fesses up that he HATES construction, but the deconstructing and tear down is so much fun.  Sigh... So, I had a little help and a few places to patch as well.  Ah, well - the boarder is now gone, gone, gone from the kitchen.  Believe it or not BOTH girls are sad to see it go.  I have to admit it does look a bit naked without it up there...

 And today, I finally put my my saying for the laundry.  I'm still unsure if I like this version...

but I can always change it out if it doesn't grow on me :D

How appropriate that the floor is FULL of laundry?  ha!

Where has all my time gone?

I was looking at my leave calendar, planning all my AWESOME upcoming trips for the new year and wondering just WHERE all my leave has gone.  I didn’t have much, but should have been earning this “much faster” now that I’m earning that big “pie in the sky 8 hours a pay period”.  Someone said I’ll earn it so much faster I won’t believe how fast it accrues.  I have to laugh at that theory, as I am firmly ensconced in the “earn and burn” philosophy.  Sad but true, and my leave records will attest to this too!

So I went back and was looking at where my leave started to take a nose dive this year… I was going along great – just a few hours here and a few hours there max of 8 hours in any given pay period, which in and of itself will kill your leave when you only earn 6 in that given pay period.  Ok, it’s growing quite well then July happened and a glorious trip to Alaska with my family for Dad’s 80^th birthday.  We had such a ball fishing and sight seeing and just enjoying our time in the great outdoors!  We did celebrate his actual birthday last night and not a single picture even with Mom bringing her camera with her to the restaurant.  We went to Olive Garden and had a yummy dinner then on to the High School for Liz’s band concert.  All in all a great night in my books.  Could have been better with a little push the dummy, but beggars can’t be choosers some nights J  Tonight we get to go to Middle School Band concert – yeah us.

Ok, back to the leave count down! (Leave – 48 hrs)

Moving right along and little leave taken here and there to take care of doctor visits, braces, and chiropractor visits.  No complaints… did I mention I enjoy my time off no matter how it comes to me.  Well, with one exception, and we’ll get to that at the bottom!

Next big chuck of time was my Trip with Angela to Jekyll Island.  Now that was an experience… bugs and heat and LOTs of hormonal pre-teens.  Fun, fun, fun!  An experience I will not repeat, thanks.  I think I’m more of the lay on the beach on a blanket than a trudge through the swamp person.  Especially in September in Southern Georgia.  You would have thought it would have been a bit more breezy, and cool – no such luck! (-24 hrs)

The very next pay period was my saving grace and a week in Orlando at a very nice resort and our first visit to Universal Studios (-40 hrs)

The last few nails in the leave coffin was 1) Thanksgiving but only a little as I did partial days off and used comp time I had on the books (-13 hrs) 2) Christmas – I’m still not sure how much time Christmas will cost me… it will either be 28 hours (two full days and three ½ days) or 5 full days for 40 hours… time will tell

Sick leave is a whole other story.  This was my year for visits to the docs.  Mostly the dermatologist, but we’ll throw in some chiropractic visits for good measure.  This was the year for skin cancers and partial ear removal and lots of time off between grafts not taking quickly and the actual surgery itself, thus my one reason I wouldn’t be happy about THAT time off.  I think I racked up 90 hours alone for all of that.  Add to this – Elizabeth had to have all 4 of her wisdom teeth removed this year as well along with orthodontist visits and actual sick kids and I am NOT looking good on sick leave this year either. 

But all in all, I can look back at Alaska, Jekyll and Universal Studio’s trips along with a short trip to Utah to scrapbook and I’ve had a VERY good/bad year for leave.  I had a ball burning through it all!

Christmas... what little I have up...

Was in all reality in place on or about Thanksgiving... and it consists of this:

One nativity that Grandpa Ashwood made.  Butch's mom was sweet enough to bring this down for us this year, so it was promptly put up on the entry table.  I think for safety we should move it to the one behind the couch, but I haven't gotten that far yet!

Another thing from Sally - some very cute place mats with snowflakes stitched on them, matching napkins and some cute napkin rings the girls helped make - such a festive table isn't it?

... up on the roof top reindeers pause....

Oh, wait, no… that’s the squirrels above the drop ceiling running around, disregard.

Ha!  Can you imagine what will happen if one of those ceiling tiles happens to fall with one of those chubby little squirrels on it?  All heck is going to break loose!!!  There is a missing tile in one gals office and she turned around one day to see a squirrel peaking out at her.  Ha!  Love it!

The Bench with promise....

One more of my MANY projects that are ongoing is this lovely (?) bench... to it's defense, it is a very sturdy and comfortable little bench... and it has springs... and for $10 it was really screaming to come home with me as my FIRST ever upholstery project.  I MAY regret this decision yet!

 the bottom is looking OK, but not knowing what those strings are all about.. to keep the springs from springing too far up?  It's a mystery for now...

 So, let the great reveal happen... Angela and I grabbed some pliers and started ripping off the cover to find THIS underneath... EWH.  NOT what I was thinking would be under there.  I'm not SURE what I expected but lovely 50's bridge scenes was not it. 

 Looks like the original/original fabric was in oranges and reds.  No telling what that looked like.

 Angela is definitely my helper of helpers, but she is getting grossed out by this fabric and it's age as well - ha!

 string mystery solved.  Apparently the buttons came off ages ago and the "fix" was to pull the string through the bottom of the bench and affix them to the side with nails.  Interesting approach.  I don't think I'll do it that way.  But OK.  Also the batting is very loose batting, so we opted to chuck it as well.  The strings are stiff with age and heaven knows what else, so I think it's time to go back to the basics for this poor thing!

 all that is left is the burlap.  I debated removing it too, but it's stapled to the springs, and that's just a bit more work than I plan on doing.  I will have to put another layer of fabric over the burlap to "help" it stay in one piece, but for now, it stays.

I have painted the legs white... but pictures of that process will come in a few more weeks as we make progress.