embark.

A short update: 

The last 6 months have flown by!! As 2011 begins, we find ourselves 1,500 miles away from 2010, embarking on a new chapter of life.  About a month ago, we were offered a job in central Pennsylvania (seemingly in answer to our deep desire to adventure outside of Texas for a bit.) Within 5 days, we were packed tight into two vehicles driving across the United States. We left most of our belongings in a storage unit in Texas, and we are now exploring this corner of the world, just us and the dog. 

Since I have traded my wide-open work space for a four-room apartment on the second story of an old victorian home, the size of projects will definitely be decreasing.  I think this is a good opportunity to push my limits and re-discover the vast boundaries of digital media.  I have a few projects in mind, but it may take a while before I feel comfortable enough to share. On the flip side however, the never-ending snow on the east coast this winter is creating an awesome background for cozy knitting projects.  More to come soon...  

grind.

Just checking in... It's job hunting week and that means that from about 6:30 am 'till I fall asleep I'm scouring the web for my new home.  As an update, we're looking to get out of Texas (fingers crossed) just for the fun of it.  We're really (really) hoping for Boulder/ Denver area.  We'd settle for Phoenix / Dallas / Austin, or gee, if we had to, San Francisco / Portland / Seattle or overseas. (:  It's a fun time in life where the doors are wide open, we have no ties and we can just see what happens.  Or, worst case scenario, doesn't happen.  Then we end up right where we're at now moving just a hop down the street. Ugh. Please no.  So, shameless plea, if you know of anything even remotely interesting going on in these areas job-wise for an architect or a ceramic artist please contact me! Thanks!

For now, back to the grind......

strip.

Since my bike is nearly finished, it's time for a new project! 

My husband and I are just starting out, and there are times (with much thanks to our families!) that our hodgepodge of donated furniture feels a little like a goodwill showroom.  So, my plan of attack is to re-finish a lot of the big stuff to match, such as the bookshelves, a desk, a drafting table we've acquired, and a set of chairs.  First up: the desk.  My husband had this desk in his bedroom in the "bachelor pad" when he lived with roommates.  It's a great piece of furniture, and recently I learned that on top of that, it's a family heirloom!!! Since I found out, I've been trying to learn a little more of the history of the piece, since their family has a few more pieces belonging to the set that I'd like to try and clean up.  

But it's really much much more than that... "Olive & Myers Manufacturing Company" was a mattress and furniture manufacturer founded in downtown Dallas in, I believe, 1900. At that time, one of the founders, also the vice president of the company, was Horace Elton (aka H. E.) Spalti.  This guy was my husband's great-great-grandfather!! The company in itself has an amazing history.  The headquarters were located in a very prominent building located in downtown Dallas; today it is know as 2220 Canton Lofts.  H. E. Spalti later became the president of the company, and in the mid-50's Olive & Myers officially merged with a Houston manufacturing company, Myers & Spalti, to become Olive, Myers, & Spalti. My husband's great-grandfather, Horace Duncan (aka H. D.) Spalti became president.  Vera B. Spalti, H. D.'s wife,  was a name that I was already familiar with; my husband proposed with her engagement ring, and I wear it every day. (:

Here are a couple of pictures of the historic part, and a bunch of the beginnings of the project:

Also, here are some of the links that I found during my "google-fest" on Olive & Myers:

Texas Historical Markers- Myers & Spalti Manufacturing Plant, Harris County, Tx

Looking for answers- Forum discussion

A Dallas firm, Selzer Associates, renovates one of the warehouse buildings of Olive & Myers

Location of the old warehouse complex in Dallas, Tx:

go.

Sun! Finally, a day off where the sun is out! Though, technically, that first part isn't really true... We were planning on heading out of town to get some work done, but it's just too gorgeous outside.  So, even though our estimated departure time was, oh, about now, I dragged all of the bike non-sense out of the shed.  I'm currently in between coats of white on the stripes, then comes the black, some sanding (for sure!) and the text... then a final glossy coat and a week to get all the parts up to par.  If the weather will cooperate, there's a light at the end of the tunnel! I could be cruising by mid-June.  Pshhh... dreaming again...

p.s.- I'm still alive, that was really the reason for this post. Hah. A house guest, a rehearsal, a wedding, a handful of thunderstorms, and hundreds of dollars later... I'm still alive...