Brooms up!

Magnet #995 - Minnesota

I've always said that I wasn't going to start collecting these state magnets, because I didn't really want (or have space for) all 50 magnets.

The thing is, I have a good handful of them, and I couldn't figure out why in the heck I had these specific magnets: New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin (2), Minnesota, North Dakota, Montana, Oregon, Washington and Colorado. And British Columbia. About a week ago, my cross-country traintrip buddy explained - apparently, I bought them at the Mall of America, and bought all the magnets of the states we were going to touch on our trip. Bingo! (It doesn't explain Oklahoma, but whatevs.)

I picked Minnesota today for the Quidditch World Cup. Yep. You read right. Another reason to love New York, because you can see Quidditch, a Low-Riders parade, and some antiques, all in the heart of Hell's Kitchen.

After yet another visit to the Time Warner Center Dali exhibition, we headed over to the Pier Antiques Show. I've never been before, and it's not like I'm really in the market for anything new, or old as the case may be. There was a whole section of modernist furniture - which I would totally have delved further into, if I had the disposable income to completely redo my apartment. I love that stuff! Uncomfortable as hell, but supercute!

And of course, we checked out all the fun jewelry - both the inexpensive bangles (yay, cute ring!) and more expensive costume pieces. For my part, I also loved looking at all the Royal Doultons, the Laliques, the cranberry glass, the tiny micromosaics, the kitchenalia, etc. - basically all the really cool stuff that my boys Paul Hayes and Alistair Appleton always dug up on Cash in the Attic.

Across the street at DeWitt Clinton Park, all the kids were out for the International Quidditch Association World Cup. Ya'll, I've never read a single Harry Potter all the way through, but even I know that Quidditch involves flying. When I saw the signs at MIT, I was convinced those smartkids had come up with a way to fly. So when we showed up at the park, I was kind of convinced I'd be seeing kids flying around, capes flying behind them. (What, I've seen the movies!)

Well, there were capes and a little bit of cosplay (ok, a robe here and there), and definitely brooms...although no one's invented the flying broom yet. Muggle Quidditch turns out to be a mix of dodgeball, soccer and a bit of football, maybe some handball and basketball. Oh! And definitely broomball...without a skating rink. Still. Fun stuff!

What I can't get over is that almost 50 teams are taking part in the games today and tomorrow from near and far, with uniforms ranging from the homemade shirts of the NYU teams to the snazzy jerseys of the U of Minnesota team, sponsored by OfficeMax. I'm assuming it's like intramurals, but man, those kids were on coach buses all the way from Minnesota (hence the magnet) to Canada's McGill. Whoa.

That's total dedication...to a sport that didn't even exist before 1997. I mean, it's possible that some of these kids are giving up their firstborns, by the looks of their running around with a broom between their legs. Ouch!

Long and winding road

Magnet #681 - Mt. Washington Auto Road

Uh, I haven't.

In fact, I had to look up where Mt. Washington was. At best guess, I think Save the World Sister went to New Hampshire and went up Mt. Washington Auto Road and brought this back for me?

I picked this, because as I stare 2010 right in the face, all I can think of is just making it past the first quarter of the year, and how there's a long and very winding road before the end of March.

It's odd that I haven't magnetblogged about New Hampshire before. I mean, I've done the state for myself, but not for this mountain. Of course, when I went, it was with an old friend of mine, and we were headed up there to hang out with her relatives for the weekend. It was so long ago, I don't even remember why we went up there.

It was the oddest trip, really. The house we stayed in was filled to the brim with collectibles. Everywhere we turned, upstairs, downstairs, in the attic, in the basement, in the bedrooms, in the kitchens, there was something else the owners collected. Any one item that had more than one of itself made, there were literally dozens of them in the house. Yeah, read that sentence again.

But, I'm serious. Ya'll know how I watch Cash in the Attic, like all the time? This house should have been a prime candidate - I've never seen anything before or since like that house. Now? I would love a second chance to do a good old-fashion rummage about the house - turn over every little piece, explore every nook and cranny, in every stuffed to the gills room.

Well, except for the ammunition collection - that I didn't want to explore, no matter how historical the collection was.

Not. Even. Kidding. I guess New Hampshire isn't kidding when they say Live Free or Die.

If these walls could talk

Magnet #589 - Detail of Teaplate, by Caughley of Shropshire, c. 1790

I took the bus to the hinterlands of London to visit the Geffrye Museum to see their Christmas through the ages exhibition, where they basically redress their Living Rooms exhibit into a Christmas theme. It's fascinating.

The museum design itself has a unique design element of peering through a keyhole, and you really do get to peek into the past. While I'm not a furniture and textiles junkie, I really enjoyed walking through the long corridor of the historic house, where they section off each century's living rooms, showing you a cool glimpse into the past.

Whether it was the Jane Austen-esque room, or the Jane Jetson-esque room, you can almost imagine the family that lived there, the clothes they wore and the lives they led. Having them dressed for Christmas, you can see foods they served, the decorations they used, when they started using trees. Loved it. And, if you can't make it there - they have a cool little virtual tour.

What's cool is that the Geffrye did a fantastic job of merging the old almshouses with the new facilities. As you walk through the centuries, you sense modernity right around the corner and through the doors - literally. By the time you get to the newer wing of the museum you're not time-shocked.

As with every museum I end up going to, I wish I'd had more time to enjoy it. But, I did pick up this lovely magnet - a detail of a porcelain teaplate, made in about 1780, by Caughley Pottery, on the banks River Severn near Ironbridge, Shropshire.

Lord, that cuteboy Paul from Cash in the Attic has taught me so much. Well, not really, but I can Google pretty good. Actually, what's fascinating is that there are pieces like this scattered all over the UK, little pieces of porcelain that are practically older than the United States.

Handed down generation to generation - if these pieces, or even these rooms, could talk, what wonderful stories they could tell.

No, really - talk about Cash in the Attic

Magnet #162 - Blue duck

If you've read any page on this blog, you know that I have a serious anglotelephile (teleanglophile?) habit. I can't stand Brit humor shows, but give me a drama or action/adventure, and I'm your gal. Which doesn't explain my newest obsession at all.

While I was home sick a couple of weeks ago, I was completely sucked into my new favorite show Cash in the Attic, with my new favorite presenter Alistair Appleton and my new favorite valuer Paul Hayes. Basically the Cash team comes to your home, rummages around for stuff to take to auction, and then auctions off the stuff to help raise money for a particular goal.

Seriously. I can't stop watching it. And BBC-A airs the hell out of them during the day, so when I get home at night, there's like five episodes all ready to roll.

Some of the homes are just full of crap. But some of the most gorgeous homes are just amazingly stuffed to the gills with...quality crap. What's funny is that it's really only in Europe that you'd have a beautiful serving plate from the 1700s just sitting in some box in the garage, or you've been using a 1800s sheet music rack as a TV remote holder and just not realized that it's worth hundreds of pounds. It's amazing.

Now, I'm dying to go to my mom's house in North Carolina. Our house is jampacked with flow blue plate sets and other treasures - the result of hot summers of antiquing, with me stuck in some dusty shop while my parents went rummaging around for yet another stack of blue plates. Now? I want to turn over every. single. plate. she owns. Of course, with my luck, the Georgian period plates are really the Bush, Sr. era. Heheh.

Hmmm. I wonder if this little duck magnet's worth anything. I really can't remember where it came from - either it was from Holland, or Dutch country. I turned it over, and it has no markings beyond the magnet. So, while it's supercute, I'd put maybe only 50p - 75p price band on it.

Do I hear 80p?