DAY 88

Recently a great aunt died.  I am haunted by the lack of time I had to spend with her and I remember her fondly as she was the one who helped me recover after gallbladder surgery.  Sleeping lightly in a chair in the next room over and waiting on me in her cool but diligent bed side manner.  While I struggled to recover from the ill effects of anesthesia she helped me up when visitors came with cards and flowers.  She helped me through a nasty divorce reminding me every so often that I was going to make it and I knew she understood exactly what I had been through if not more.  She gave me a niche in the local cemetery when my daughter died unexpectedly, turning all rights to the prepaid burial site over to me so that I would not suffer financial grief after a terrible loss.  She was there for me.  And I, maybe too caught up in my own survival, rarely was there for her.
 Alas I am a quick learner in life.  What I have learned from all this is to fight everyday to keep out the idle things that can consume you.  Do not give way to an ego that subscribes to mass emails to feel important but essentially take up far too much time to delete.  Clean up you inbox (your yahoo or juno or gmail) and your life inbox.  Accept nothing that is a time waster.  Begin with the end of the day in mind and focus on what you want your life to  consist of.  Make sure you have time for those who make time for you even if they need you very little. Be there to say hello.  Smile, laugh and play because all too soon it will be over.

DAY 87

Decorating with dolls around the house can be tricky.  First you must remember if you have dolls everywhere and you live alone "Be Happy".  However if you are paired with someone that also has a hobby you must share the real estate in decorating.  First you must think "win win" and then be fair.  If you have dolls in the living room than he may want his hobby displayed in the same area.  In my house we are all about Knight Rider for my big boy, Bionicles for my little boy, and dolls for me.  The three tier shelves we have in the hallway have a little from each of us displayed, which is fair!  Sometimes it can get tricky and someone may want to put a "not so serene" picture over your bead, well, I leave that argument up to you, but for now I am exercising my right to display dolls and here is one I have tucked into the corner of my book shelf.  After all hubby does have his own book shelf and he can do what he wants on his side.  But don't misunderstand our house is small and very utilitarian.  Nothing is just for show as we do not have the square footage for such luxuries.  So play around and see what works for you.  I truly believe a good collection should be shared.  

DAY 86

Here is another doll collector but he lives in Bulgaria and his interview is in.....yup you guessed it Bugarian.  However his collection is beautiful to look at and you can tell he is talking about Barbie wearing designer clothes as he says the name brands.  He also talks about "Barbies around the World". He mentions Kent and Barbie and I loved seeing the Barbie he has with long straight hair.  So gorgeous!
Check it out.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hklB0HF7ocw&feature=related

DAY 85

MONDAY 4,2011
I wondered if the were people that had collections in large numbers and if anyone had a notable collection for Berenguer?  So in my research this is what I have found so far.  Perhaps I will strive to be the first.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pIOSmEbgW50

DAY 84

I went to my first doll club and decided my time would be better spent doing something else other than vying for the approval of a bunch of people i don't know.  And what i mean by that is this, apparently you have to have at least ten dolls of the age of 40 to be accepted and that is only after you have presented your wares and the group has an additional meeting without your presence to discuss your viability to the club.  Not for me.  So I am starting my own doll club with the premise of collecting in hard economic times and for what you can do on a small budget. So right after that in spite of the 40 year old doll club I bought myself a used Lee Middelton for under $20 and am very happy to have it.  Here is a darling little photo....

DAY 83

Today I am learning so much about the doll world.  I have connected to a woman who has a doll store and 40 years of knowledge, and a new friend who invited me to the local doll club. While we were on the phone sorting out the details w\he had shared with me some incredible information that I was not aware of .  One thing I wanted to share with you is an alternative to American girl.  Just an FYI, here is the web site, check it out.   http://www.mytwinn.com/Custom-Twinn-Doll

DAY 81/ 82

Yesterday and today was spent(hours scanning internet pictures)  trying to devise a way to display my ever growing doll collection.  After consulting with a new doll store owner in the area, I was down to the boring task of putting up shelves with much reluctance.  Finally my ever wise husband said perhaps you should make a rail so that is simulates a crib side but fits in the 30" x 30" space you have available. So alas we were headed off to home depot but got sidetracked and wound up a t a baby consignment where we found a bassinet to hold the dolls I am working on for My Muneca Project and a changing table that we can mutate into what we need.  So tonight I am going to be very busy drawing up plans for hubby.  Dolls are fun but finding room for them in a small space can be a challenge.