Unstuffing Bookcases....

This is a case of "before and after".....I thought that I would have it done in a couple of hours.

It is four hours later and I am still on the before part. I am taking everything out, adjusting the shelves that have fallen off of their pegs and propping up the glass ones in the middle.

This case is about 7 feet tall and 8 feet long. It is so 80s in style, but it is teak and we couldn't replace it now with anything half way as nice without spending big bucks. It is going to stay. I would like to figure out a way to update it. The only think that I have thought of so far is taking off the smoked glass and brass doors....That really won't update it though. It will only allow the dust to get on the things inside.

It was originally in our living room and held the TV in the center section where the southwestern room box sits now.

As usual, I am wandering. As I go, I am rearranging things. Bringing miniatures out of hiding and putting others away.

With Tessie's help, it is taking twice as long. She had to stop and read magazines that catch her eye. Then she switched to stuffing things from different rooms into a bag. She kept saying things like, "Oh! This would look cool in the bedroom!" and "The egyptologist will never miss this." and "Yummmmm! Tacos for lunch!"

When she hit the egyptologist's office, she saved a snake. Yes. You heard me right. Somewhere along the line, she found two kittens.....You know the line..."Casey. They followed me home. Can I keep them?"

Anyway, one of them climbed up on one of the shelves, all the better to pounce on the snake on the next shelf down. Any normal person would be worried about the kitten.....Not Tessie. She was having hysterics about the snake being the one in danger... Only Tessie would start yelling, "Bad Kitty! Leave the pretty snake alone!"

See the bag in the corner? By the time she left, it was full. Poor egyptologist. Now he is going to have to start all over. Dig another hole. Find another tomb. Curses! Foiled again.


Her last stop was the Mexican room box. This is where she always goes to pilfer tacos. Best tacos in town.(Don't tell her that they are the oldest)

This was one of my early 80s boxes. It was back when I was pinching pennies and doing some pilfering of my own. The box was one of a set of stereo speakers that Walter made the mistake of putting in the storage room for later use....I tiptoed in and grabbed it when he wasn't looking.

See the thick walls? Yes, a lot of houses around here are made of adobe and have very thick walls....In this case, it would have been a lot bigger room with thinner walls if I could have gotten the wooden cross pieces that held the speaker in place, out of the box....I couldn't. Thus, adobe. The same for the step up in the doorway. There is a light behind the window. I just don't have it plugged in and I was too lazy to crawl behind the bookcase to do it. So just pretend it is night....

The rug on the floor is one that I copied from a magazine ad. A few years later, some wise soul saw the same ad and turned it into a kit. Her kit was somewhat larger than mine, because she did it on larger fabric. It was a really easy rug to do. All straight lines and squares.

The other one of the stereo boxes disappeared at about the same time. It went to a good cause. It was turned into the first kitchen room box. http://caseymini.blogspot.com/2008/05/down-on-farm.html I did that one for my dad.

I guess I should quit stalling and get back to the bookcase. This could take a while.

"Tessie! Put down that mummy right this minute! NO! I am not building you a pyramid!"

Gotta go. See you tomorrow.