In the Blink of an Eye

Life is funny sometimes. In the blink of an eye, circumstances can completely change. One more word is spoken, an impulse becomes a choice, and suddenly, life is never the same again.

It has always fascinated me to think back in time one minute or one hour or one day, and so on. Where was my life at this time yesterday? 12 hours ago? If I had done this, would that have happened? If I had said this, would it have helped? I suppose that's just the process I go through when evaluating the choices I make and the words I use, good and bad alike.

One minute, I am planning on working out troubles with my girlfriend in Florida. Sixty seconds later, I'm packing the remainder of my belongings (I had been mostly packed throughout September.....Freudian?). Fast forward one hour, and I'm at the Alabama state line. Twelve hours more, and I'm sound asleep in Texas. It never ceases to amaze me how quickly life can change.

At the time, it seemed like the worst possible outcome, but as that moment and that day have passed deeper into history, I realize that it was the best possible outcome. The worst part for me is living with the fact that I deluded myself into believing she had more depth than a plastic swimming pool sold at Wal-Mart . That, and I miss her dog. That's life, though. You place your bets on situations you believe will make you happier, and then you live with the outcome. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose.

Estimates vary, but the average person will speak just over 123 million words in a 2.5 billion-second lifetime. It's a lot like sports I suppose. A couple plays that could go either way determine the outcome. Three words like, "I love you," change the course of life instantly, but represent a tiny percentage of the total words used in a day, Two words like, "I'm leaving," and life's trajectory shifts yet again. Five words that required all of two seconds to speak, yet had drastic impacts on nearly two years of my life. If that doesn't make you think, it certainly should.

Anyway, I'm happy to be back in Texas. I missed my family more than I knew. I missed cheap dry cleaning. I missed H.E.B. (if you aren't from Texas, H.E.B. is the greatest grocery store ever). I missed teeth. I missed seeing UT and A&M stuff because the "Roll Tide" crap really ground on my nerves. And, I missed having 8 billion items on Craigslist from which to choose, so let's get started, shall we?

I came back to Houston with one piece of furniture (a cedar chest, which hardly counts), so I'm using all of the pieces I'm posting, except for one. Nevertheless, it was fun finding and renewing them. The journey is the reward, right?

Is this really what is sold at Pottery Barn?
He had them listed as coffee tables, and
clearly, they are not.

Using them as nightstands for the time being. I need to get some lamps.

Found this gorgeous antique dresser for a song. It
was in a scary neighborhood, I didn't take my pistol,
and it was missing a handle......

....found an exact handle on eBay, painted it
white, stained it espresso, y voila!

This was the first piece I bought. I don't
understand how people can sell such
beauty for so little, but they do.

A dear friend gave me this idea, so I can only take credit for the execution.

Bought this cute desk from the nicest woman.....

.....painted it white, and used Mod Podge to adhere pages from a
19th Century Louisa May Alcott book onto drawer faces. 

There are a few other projects that I will save for the next post. I really would write more (and more frequently), but I get exasperated with the formatting issues I have with blogger.com. Until then, mind your words and value the seconds because you never know which ones will change your life.