Wednesday, August 31, 2011

Pinterested in Antiques

  While most of the "antique" finds on pinterest are really only vintage (rather than antique), I'd find it hard to pass up any of these great pinspirations:

             

Saturday, August 27, 2011

Weekend Wags: The Man Too Please

Before summer is just completely over, I'd like to find a man just like this one:

Via Pinterest/Well-Traveled Woman

Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Antiques: Want List

On My Want List:

A French Buffet/Hutch 
Much like the one my mom used to have

Brittany Region French Antique Buffet
http://www.worldsantiquarianscatalogue.com/antiquarians/item.asp?id=942

My First Pair of Staffordshire Dogs

Pair of English Staffordshire Porcelain Dogs
http://porcelain.oneofakindantiques.com/1806_antique_porcelain_staffordshire_dogs_c1850_1.htm

A Cameo Tiara/Crown

Cameo Tiara worn by the Swedish Queen and Princess
http://breeziway.blogspot.com/2011/02/sweden-crown-princess-victoria-and-mr.html

Saturday, August 20, 2011

Weekend Wags: Birthdays

Celebrating birthdays with your favorite pet is the best!

One of my best friends, Analisa, has the most precious little sheltie, Betsie! Analisa recently celebrated her 27th birthday...

Here's Betsie for Analisa's birthday a couple years ago.


And here's Betsie celebrating her own birthday with Sprinkles cupcakes!




Friday, August 19, 2011

Cameo Delights

I spent literally half of my day off clicking through Pinterest and found all of these lovely cameo goodies. If you ask me, they look too good to eat! I can certainly see a ladies-only event decked out in cameos!


Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Happy Birthday Mom!


Today is Mom's 55th Birthday! Happy Birthday to my best friend!


Monday, August 15, 2011

Antiques: Staffordshire

The house we lost just before Memorial Day was full of antiques that my parents had been collecting over the last 30 years, from flow blue pottery, to Staffordshire, to English furniture, American cut crystal, RS Prussia, plenty of golf-themed antiques, etc. My mom's favorite collection--and the one I was most envious of--was her Staffordshire.

Staffordshire pottery was made from around 1740 to1960 and originated in the Stafforshire area of England. Many people of the middle class in England (and later "The Coloines"collected these folk-art creations as mantle pieces. Staffordshire pottery is made from wet clay that potters pressed into molds and allowed to dry. Individual molds were stuck together and fired (to drive out all water). Subjects ranged from stories/poems, to dogs, to figurines displaying acts of battle/victory.

Mom had a few dozen Staffordshire spaniels and a few dozen more Staffordshire greyhounds and other figures. I'm thinking these need to be added to her new collection:


These are especially good spaniels. The detail of the whiskers and the small strokes on their red spots are clues to their value. The puppies are rare too. Also, Staffordshire pieces on bases like this are also an indicator of increased value. I don't think Mom ever had a pair with puppies!


Mom had quite a few greyhounds and greyhound inkwells in her last collection. She has done a great job of replacing many of them. I have never seen a piece like this before. The greyhound is in "action". Those separate legs are phenomenal too.

While Mom may have lost more than 80 pieces of Staffordshire pottery during the fire, I know for a fact that she at least has one quarter of that replaced already. I cleaned up shop here in Dallas at Canterbury Antiques with some great finds. I'm thinking it's just about time for my first piece of Staffordshire.

Saturday, August 13, 2011

Weekend Wags: A is Also for Adoption

I'm a big fan of pet adoption. It's the best way to gain a family pet. With the exception of Brewster (who I like to say I rescued from the puppy mill process, but in all reality bought at a pet store---shameful), I adopted all of mine from rescue groups in Dallas.

Look at these cuties available:

Adopt Echo! (Papillon Mix)



Adopt Thomas! (Norfolk Terrier)

Wednesday, August 10, 2011

Antiques: Metroplex

The DFW Metroplex has plenty to offer when it comes to antiques, but here are my favorite three in the metroplex.

Inessa Stewart in the Design District, Plano, and Baton Rouge. Inessa and her team are extremely creative. You want an antique king size bed? She can make it for you! You want an old dresser to house your modern flat screen tv? That can happen too. Inessa's finds are outstanding and her restoration is truly phenomenal. If I wasn't planning on moving again at the residency, I'd start buying now!

Inessa Stewart, Dallas, Texas
Forestwood Antique Mall in North Dallas. This is Dallas' best antique MALL. Many dealers feature great pieces from furniture to art to small collectibles, you can find it here. My personal favorite feature is
their small tea room in the back. My mom and I were always suckers for an antique mall with a tea room. On more than one occasion I have made more than two trips in one weekend to this place.


Montgomery Street Antique Mall in Fort Worth. Right on I-30, this place is fabulous. Another great mall with more than 200 dealers. They have a great selection of vintage glassware, a large array of furniture, and much, much more. Mom remembered this place from years ago, and it's apparently maintained it's quality over time. I especially loved their great collection of antique medical supplies. This place is definitely worth the drive over from the Big D.

CW Antiques Aisle 5 at Montgomery Street Antique Mall



Tuesday, August 9, 2011

What's Next?

Hey Readers!


On my August list of things to do, I mentioned that I wanted to read more (for residency and for pleasure). I'm doing ok on the residency front, but I can't decide on what book to read next. I've never read any of the Twilight series (I can't get into vampires) or Harry Potter (I don't really care for wizards either). I'm a big fan of chic lit--as long as it's not set in NYC because too much of it is. I was a big fan of The Notebook and my favorite book of all time is Night by Elie Wiesel. Otherwise, I like a good biography or story about history, etc. Basically though, I want a relaxing read for my baths and post call naps by the pool. 

Have you read any great books lately? I've heard the Hunger Games series is a good one, but would I like it?

What do you recommend?

Monday, August 8, 2011

A is for August and Antiques

I mention in my profile that I love for antiques. I haven't spent a lot of time talking about them, but in August I'm going to shed some light on some of my favorite things. It's obviously a favorite, I posted the sign right there on my wall in my living room!



First of all, I grew up around antiques. My mom owned an antique store when I was very young, and we traveled all over the country searching for great furniture and small pieces to bring back to Texas. By the time I was 8 years old, I could pick out an 18th century French armoire from across the room, and on closer inspection, tell you if it was a good deal or not. Even though my mom's store eventually transitioned into solely gifts and no antiques, I never lost my appreciation for the beauty of old relics.

For me, it's the skill that created these antique treasures that makes them so special. In this day in age, when schools are no longer teaching cursive, many traditions and trades have fallen out of favor. Yet, the long lasting artistic skill and attention to detail of the past has created millions of antiques that remain in stellar shape today. Those pieces that are only in "decent" shape? Well, thankfully there are still a few out there that can restore them to their original grandeur.

MS Rau Antiques, New Orleans

Unfortunately, many stores today slap in the word "antique" to their name and yet don't display a single piece that qualifies as an antique on their floors. An antique is something that is over 100 years old. That means it had to be made in the 1900s or before to qualify under this heading. When talking to an insurance adjuster, objects only qualify as antiques if they are dated to 1880 or before (we learned this from experience). However, "antique stores" are filled with shabby chic finds and mid-century modern pieces which are just that--shabby chic and mid-century modern, not antique. Needless to say, it's frustrating to get excited about a new store only to find out it's filled with furniture from the 1950s and 1960s. Good thing there are still a few diamonds in the rough that showcase quality antiques from all over the world--the kind you save up for.

I love the style displayed here, but they are NOT antiques.



Saturday, August 6, 2011

Weekend Wags: Splish Splash

Splish-splash! The nice thing about having 3 little ones, it's easy to bathe them all at once! 



Friday, August 5, 2011

Things to Do in August

8 Things I'd Like to Accomplish to August:

Source
1. More than 10 blog posts.

Source
2. Figuring out a new workout routine (maybe not ACTUALLY going to the gym, but at least getting motivated--baby steps!)

Source
3. Getting my AC fixed.

Source
4. Sleeping more than 4-5 hours a night.

Source
5. Cooking dinner at least once.

Source
6. Finding a new hobby (preferably an active one).

Source
7. Planning my vacations for the fall.

Source

8. Reading more (both for residency and pleasure).


Thursday, August 4, 2011

Yes, It is All About Me, B****

Just about once every three to four months I actually take the time to read through my evaluations for residency. In one year, I had 37 evaluations. That's a pretty good turnout. Evaluations come from attendings, chief residents, and occasional nurses, and they are all anonymous. Altough sometimes it's pretty easy to figure out who said what (and sometimes the attendings put names on them). Today, I reviewed all of my evaluations for my 2nd year of residency. I was very happy with all but one of them. This one in particular pisses me off beyond any doubt...

Please recall that my parents' home burned down when I was on call on May 29th. That means I was post call on May 30th when it was confirmed that this was true. I had attendings helping me find flights home for that afternoon and telling me that I shouldn't bother showing up for my next call because family comes first. One even went so far to say that he'd be disappointed if he saw me in the hospital at all for the rest of the week. I'm thinking, "thank goodness I found that kind of residency"!

Anyhow, I finished my rounds post call on the 30th and came home to pack. I then proceeded to make sure that my next call would be covered by someone (on June 3rd). Once that was done, I let his chief and my chief (for June) know the call situation. I was already scheduled to be off on June 2nd. That meant that I would really only be gone on May 31st and June 1st. We switch rotations on the 1st of every month, so I had only ONE more day on my rotation for May. I called my chief for May to let her know that I was planning on catching a flight home to be with my parents as soon as possible (a flight that my attending had helped me find). For the following day, there were three cases with a really great attending that I had originally been scheduled to cover. These were the ONLY cases scheduled for our whole team. When I didn't hear back from my May chief immediately, I started calling other people that I knew would be around to see if they had any availability (chiefs, other 2nd year residents, etc) to cover the cases I was supposed to cover. I found someone that could help me cover at least one or two of my cases. I then sent a text to my May chief again explaining the situation and telling her that I had done my best to get my work for the 31st covered. I was now EXHAUSTED post call doing all of this and when I hadn't heard back from my chief, I cancelled my flight and rescheduled for the afternoon of May 31st. My June chief had already sent me a text saying that taking the 1st off was no big deal and that he would see me back when the weekend was up.

Later that night, I end up getting a slew of rude text messages from my May chief saying that she fully expected me to come in to round on my patients on the 31st. Good thing I had already rescheduled my flight. I showed up the next morning to round on my 12 patients. I saw all of them except my ICU patients who I knew would be seen by the ICU resident and my attending long before I got to them. My flight was scheduled to leave at noon. I figured if I left the hospital by 11am, I could make it. At 10am, I received a voicemail from my May chief on rounds that was absolutely heartless and rude. She demanded I tell her who all I had seen so that she "could see the rest of my list" and then went on some tirade about how "bad things happen in residency" and she "just couldn't believe this" and that she would "talk to me when I get back". All ending with a loud "UUGGH!" and then hanging up. "What an f***ing b****!" I thought. THIS, coming from a girl that left early on other rotations to take her dogs to get their yearly shots instead of using a day off! (And I'm a veterinarian's daughter so I can sympathize, an ability she obviously doesn't share.) By this point, I was finishing up rounds on my floor patients and had actually been in the process of checking out with my attendings to ensure they were ok with my not seeing my ICU patients for the day, etc. They were, in fact, upset that I had even come in to round at all. I tied up a few things and then left the hospital just before 11am and luckily walked right on to my flight at the airport to make it "home"...only to see the rubble and ashes that was once my childhood home, the place my parents had poured their heart and soul into for 30 whole years...

So back to my evaluation: this chief is the ONLY bad mark I received the entire year. When asked if the resident is dependable (with answers ranging from poor to excellent), she marked poor. This was followed by the comment: "She has a problem with passing work off to other residents as well as not always working well with her team. She has a very "me" attitude."


You know what? Screw her. I don't have a "me" attitude, and obviously the other 36 evaluators didn't feel that way. I rarely, if ever, pass off work unless someone asks me to or I absolutely have to based on work hour restrictions. I didn't like having crap passed off to me, so I try to keep it off others when I can. Other than the vacation I had taken that month (as scheduled almost a year prior) and my scheduled days off, no one ever had to see my patients for me.  In that moment, I (and any one else in that situation) SHOULD have a "me" or "my family first" attitude. If they didn't, I, personally, would think less of them as a physician, as a family member, as a human being--much as I do her.

The really awkward part was running into her at a dinner a week ago as she is all smiles with everyone and acting her usual loud, perky, Texan-drawl self. All I could think at dinner that night was "What a fake bitch." Now that she's done with residency and out in practice (and I thankfully can keep my encounters to a minimum), I'm just hoping nothing terrible ever happens to the poor bitch during her career, because IF what goes around really does come around, no one is going to be willing to step up and help her out while her parents or her husband or her kids or her childhood home dies.




 
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