rescue

I have been in rescue mode lately. I think it must be a combination of emerging from sick season, where everyone in my family needed soup and tea, and a need to revitalize after a long winter. Lately, even in my dreams I find myself restoring and taking care of what has been left behind. I have an important decision to make in the next few weeks (more on this later), which is why taking care of my family and birds and plants and little treasures left on the side of the road is very appealing. Distraction!

I was flying solo at Ikea on Saturday, which meant that I got to deviate from the main thruway in the Marketplace section, and I got to look at fabric, frames, and tall skinny glasses with punchy flowers and squiggle patterns on them (more on that in another post) and the garden section. Yay! Spring! Anyway, I was busy looking at some tiny brown clay pots when I saw two succulents in a section marked “plastic decorative plants.” I was all, “Really Ikea? Really?” I stuck my finger inside their dented pots to feel the dirt and leafy debris. Completely dry. Then I dug my fingernail into one of the plant’s leaves and it practically sobbed into my hand. I think they may have been overturned at least a dozen times because when I looked, there wasn’t any dirt in their containers – just a plant and its root ball. They are raggedy and pathetic and kind of almost dead, and they were in my cart within seconds. I loved them instantly. I know plants die all of the time and things get wasted and misplaced and overlooked, but I gave myself permission to feel sentimental and mushy. I figured that these two bruised guys would love the chance to hang out in comfy, snug pots while soaking in some sun in our south facing living room.

So, check it out. I found this little $10 bar stool at the Salvation Army a few months ago. I thought if Tom steadied it a bit with some wood glue and if we painted it with some red milk paint*, it would be the a perfect counter stool for Chick. Unfortunately, even after using much more wood glue than should be allowed on one chair, it is still kind of rickety. And, Tom noticed that it is kind of not completely fixable because the legs are uneven and wobbly. Last week, I broke the news to Chick that it wasn’t going to be her new counter stool, and after some disappointment**, we all decided that it would make a happy plant stand for our porch.

Do you know what this means? Our poor succulents could have a tall, red throne to sit on if they wanted to. Talk about moving up, right?

* I recently discovered that you don’t need to strip off paint/varnish from an old piece of furniture to apply milk paint. Instead, just sand the old surface a little bit and then add some super bond liquid, which you can buy on their website, to the paint before coating the surface with it. Easy peasy.

**If a local friend knows of or sees a used counter stool with a back, please let me know. A certain four year old would be your best friend forever and ever and ever.

xo e