May Day Mayhem....

It's always lots of fun until someone gets a broken leg....and fingers....and messed up clothes.

It all started when I decided to fix a few problems with the Crooked Cottage this morning.
I complained yesterday about the front of the house not staying open. It is massively heavy and must be held open with brute force.

I decided that the best way to do it was a chain system.

I found some copper chain in my jewelry stash and nailed one end to the back of the house. That way, when not in use, it can hang down behind and not be seen.

I measured and cut a length of the chain that was exactly the length to hold the door open. You can see in the photo, this is as far as it will swing.On the other end of the chain, I attached a copper ring that was part of a bracelet clasp.

On the top corner of the door, I put a copper nail for it to hold onto. The ring simply slips over the nail to hold it. It works quite nicely and when the front is closed, the nail at the top doesn't really show at all.

In case you didn't notice, as soon as I got the chain installed, Tessie decided it was there for her amusement and first tried it as a tightrope....That hurt her feet, so it was decided that she should swing hand over hand across the expanse.

Zar begged her not to do it, but she would have none of it. I couldn't watch.

I went around to the inside to fix another thing that has been bothering me. I greatly dislike the bright colored brass piano hinge that holds the door in place.

I decided to darken it. I simply used rub on metallic to cut the shine. I will tape it off and spray it with fixative when I am finished.

Here you see the top half darkened and the bottom half still shiny. I definitely like the darkened portion better.

I stopped half way through the job when I heard a crash and a crunch on the other side of the wall.

I heard an "I told you so!" from Zar.

Then a wail from Tessie...."I think that I need a new knee! You're right. It's not fun now."

By the time I got to them, Zar had Tessie sitting in a chair. He was holding on to her foot, that was strangely angled, the knee pointing upwards and toes pointed towards his right hand....

Yup. Broken leg and broken fingers. It's a lucky thing that Tessie heals fast.

Unfortunately, every time she gets into an accident, she insists on being rewarded....New clothes and new hair. Her logic? "As long as you're fixing my leg, you may as well fix the rest of me as well....."

I suspect that it was not so much an accident as it was a sneaky way to get all new stuff. She is out in the family room, yelling for attention. I guess I should go fix what's wrong.....I wonder how she would feel about wearing a full body cast for a couple of months.....?

See you tomorrow.