DAY 2: Adventures in Moving a (my) College Student!

The Adventure continues!

PHOTO'S ABOVE:

MC's Bedroom as it looked on moving day...with nary a box in sight, or packed!

As I shared with you in yesterday's post, our daughter had fulfilled just one my preparatory requests: She had made an early appointment with a handyman to help us put her room back into sub-par condition.

Very good! I thought.

However, if you know me, or my daughter, then you must know we're not morning people.

My wife thinks that we're just downright rude!

We're just not Type A's; the happy as heck types who wake up happy, and stay happy!

We do get happy during the day, we just don't start out that way.

So, wary of oversleeping, I telephoned the front desk for an 8:00 A.M wake-up call.

It seemed like no sooner than I got my pillow just right when the telephone rang. I look at the alarm clock, it was exactly 8:00 A.M.

"Hello", I grumbled into the receiver.

"Good morning Mr. Thompson! This is the front desk, and this is your 8:00 A.M. wake-up call!" said a voice that seemed just happy as hell, on the other end of the phone.

"It's 63 degrees and sunny, with a high expected to reach 72". He continued.

"Mr. Thompson, is there anything else I can do for you this morning?", said the human alarm cum weatherman.

"NO!" I answered, slightly annoyed about all of his chatter.

"Very well Mr. Thompson, thank you so much!"

I hung up the telephone. Thanks for what? I mumbled to myself.

MC was sound asleep on the Sleeper Sofa, exhausted from her final exams I figured, so I thought I would let her sleep for a few more minutes, so I rolled over to rest my eyes for a few more minutes, too.

I don't know what woke me, but when I realized I'd over slept, terror shot through my veins! It was 9:20 A.M.

Oh my gosh, we're supposed to meet the handyman twenty minutes ago

"MC, get up...it's 9:20, we've got to meet the handyman! I don't want to miss the guy...do you have his phone number" I barked in rapid-fire dad-talk.

No response.

"MC! Did you hear me?" I said louder and more desperately.

"Yes! I heard you!", she snarled, without so much as opening here eyes.

"Good! Then get up...we've got to get dressed... do you have his number?

"I'm hungry!" She announced.

"We don't have time to eat, we've got to get going right now...like this minute!"

We brushed our teeth, threw on our clothes and were out the door in about five minutes (an absolute record for either of us).

We rushed down the brick paths around the Ping Pong Pavilion and the Croquet Court and through the lobby and out the front gates to our stylish Cube car.

PHOTOS:

Left: The Ping Pong Hut

Right: The Croquet Court
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Fortunately the Niner (her house) was just a few blocks from the hotel, but by the time we arrived, there was no handyman. The guy had shown up at 9:00 A.M., and left. MC reached him but couldn't get him to come back, so that meant that I would have to either let the management company keep our deposit, or I would have to do the conversion. Neither option sounded like a good solution to me.

We decided to use the new opening in our schedule to pick up MC's Jetta from the repair shop (a victim of one of her Niner roommate's), return the Cube car to the rental agency, and then pick up the U-haul van I had rented.

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We spent the rest of the day delivering her furniture, dishes, boxes of stuff, etc...to different friends (obviously very good friends), and were careful not to wear out our welcome. We had so many things in so many locations that I suggested we catalog who got what, and where.

By the end of the day we had only soft goods left to deal with, i.e., mounds of clothing, which appeared more than would ever fit into her car, which MC fondly named Jetta Jane.

After dinner at a less than memorable fast food restaurant, it was back to the hotel, a hot shower and collapse into our beds.

Stay tuned for Day 3: Adventures in Moving a (my) College Student!

ONE LAST NOTE FOR TODAY: You asked who was pictured in the basketball game photo in yesterday's post? It's from the second round of the NCAA Division I Tournament, March 2009.

U of A Wildcats star player, Guard Nic Wise (#13), a Senior who last Spring decided to put his name in the NBA Draft, but later withdrew it in order to complete his Senior Year of College as a Wildcat.

Good move Nicky Boy!

(Photo by Marc Serota/Getty Images).

Good Night Moon

Adventures in Moving a College Student! Day 1

Day 1: Adventures in Moving a (my) College Student!

Last week was the end of final exams for our daughter at the University of Arizona. She was moving out of her rental house, because she is moving to New York City to do an internship with Vogue Magazine for the Spring semester. The plan was for me to fly out to Tucson on Tuesday afternoon, pack her car starting that evening, deposit her furniture with a few friends (all in different locations) for safe keeping, and leave late Wednesday morning.

What started out as a calm, and well planned (or, so I thought!) adventure, turned into three twelve-hour long days!

PHOTOS: The Channel Islands, off the coast of Santa Barbara.
Left: Off the tip of the airplane wing are Santa Cruz, Santa Rosa and San Miguel Islands.

Center: Santa Cruz Island

Right: Santa Cruz Island, close up.

After going through security and redressing myself, I sat peacefully on the plane as we took off from the Santa Barbara airport over the Pacific Ocean. We had a clear view as we passed over the Channel Islands National Park, just off shore from Santa Barbara.

The view of Santa Barbara from the air is really beautiful, but a few hours later as I watched our approach to the dusty landscape surrounding Arizona's "Sky Harbor Airport", I found myself grateful for where we live (nothing against Tucson but I couldn't help but be thankful that we live in Santa Barbara).

Upon landing, I had received a text message from my daughter that said, "I'm picking you up Dadio...I'll be the one in the green "Shrek" car, with a bag over my head!"

I didn't quite understand her message, but she's often full of surprises.

I didn't recognize her car because she was in a rental car, the "Cube". I never did figure out who makes the thing, but it was an interesting piece of automobile design. It's the car with the curved back window that wraps around the side of the vehicle on the passenger side.

The paint was in fact "Shrek" like green (think the movie), and the dashboard was replete with a round disc of shag carpeting, I guess a sort of sub-woofer for the stereo? The headliner's center light was encircled with dimensional rings molded into the headliner material, similar to the rings created when a pebble is thrown into a pond. The windows were huge, and I could see why a college student who may be concerned with "how things look" would want to put a bag over her head when driving this thing. Oh well, it was wheels, and that was fine with me.

Next stop, check in and drop my bags the Arizona Inn, our residence of choice when visiting Tucson and the University of Arizona, where she's a Senior.

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We love the old school style of this hotel, and always request room 127 (pictured), a must when staying there.

It has a fireplace, and a private sun terrace on one side, and a private covered terrace, large enough to entertain on, on the other side, should the mood strike you.

A little about the Inn's History (from their website):

The Arizona Inn was built in 1930, in what was then the desert by the rich and compassionate Mrs. Isabella Greenway, Arizona's first Congresswoman, and friend of Eleanor Roosevelt. Reportedly moved by the number of disabled World War I veterans in Arizona, and in the philanthropic spirit of the New Deal, she had started a company called the Arizona Hut to give them employment making furniture. But, with the Wall Street crash, she ran out of orders, and found herself with enough furniture to fill a hotel, so she proceeded to build the first part of the Arizona Inn, in only three months. It was described as "a simple home-like cottage hotel," where the very rich would move in for months at a time, along with their servants, their lap dogs, and their little habits.

Today, the Inn is unique in its on site cabinet-making shop with its own master craftsman who creates custom furniture pieces for the Inn and restores and copies some of the original Hut furniture so that the spirit, style, and idea of the Inn is kept alive. The furniture is still used today in the guest rooms, dining rooms and public spaces.

The Library in the Arizona Inn, now and then.

This is the most convenient luxe hotel to the University, so I strongly recommend reservations.

Check it out at http://www.arizonainn.coms/

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Next, we drove through the sizable U 0f A campus which has approximately 40,ooo students, and is home to the famed U 0f A Wildcat Basketball Program, led by legendary coach Lute Wilson for the last 26years, until his retirement just last year. Coach Wilson led the PAC-10 Arizona Wildcats to the NCAA playoffs for 24 straight years!

Center Photo: The infamous Wildcat Coach, Lute Olsen.
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Finally, we pulled up to the nine bedroom house our daughter shared with eight other of her Kappa Sorority sisters.

To say the living situation with a total of nine girls was a zoo for our daughter would be an understatement!

Seems this house is well known at the school and is fondly referred to in the local Greek world as the "Niner", in reference to its nine bedrooms (or so I hoped).

I had given our daughter clear instructions to be prepared for moving day, and to get boxes, packing tape, all of her personal belongings gathered up from around the house, etc... so we could get in and out of there quickly.

None of that had happened.

After dinking around for a few minutes and surveying all that was to be done, we thought it best to make a Target run and get the supplies we needed, and vowed to start early the next morning. We had done a number decorating her room last summer when she moved in, because after all we are in the design and furniture business. Though I wished that we hadn't done so much as I surveyed all the things we had to do to put the room back into its original sub-par condition in order to get her out of there. She had scheduled to have a handyman to meet us early on Wednesday to replace the window shades we had removed in order to accommodate her new curtains; to remove the new carpet we had installed over the existing textured and sickly-colored existing carpeting; and to replace the locking door knob on her bedroom door.

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When we got back from the "Niner" house, it was dark and the Arizona Inn was dressed in her Christmas Holiday finery! Their Christmas decorations were beautiful, and understated as I would have expected, just like the Inn.
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The hotel chef made this charming Adobe Style Ginger Bread House, a replica of the original portion of the Arizona Inn, which was displayed in the hotel lobby.
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We had a casual dinner in the hotels Audubon Bar, enjoying the music of the 81 year old pianist, while sharing a banquette with a group of Snow Birds (annual refugees from colder climates) from Washington state and Massachusetts.

Check in tomorrow for Day 2: Adventures in Moving a (my) College Student!

Good Night Moon!

HOLLAND & SHERRY Interior Fabric's Availabe at CABANA HOME

Cabana Home President Steve Thompson announced the addition of HOLLAND & SHERRY Interior Textiles at the Cabana Home Store in Santa Barbara, CA.

For over 175 years, a fixture of London's Savile Row, the HOLLAND and SHERRY name has been synonymous with luxury textiles and fine bespoke men's suiting's. Now, perfectly translated to the interior, the tradition of HOLLAND and SHERRY quality and elegance continues as the standard for refined luxury for the home. Hallmarks of the HOLLAND and SHERRY name such as cashmere, cashmere velvet, wool sateen, and custom embroideries all make up a collection that is unique, yet timeless and sophisticated, and always subtle.




The HOLLAND and SHERRY Custom Embroidery Collection brings the signature of haute couture to the home interior. Fabrics, thread colorways, and designs can all be customized to make each project unique. Choose from Border Designs, All Over Designs, Panels, and Embroidered Accessories.
























PHOTOS: Custom colored embroidery pattern on brown Cotton Velvet; upholstered on an armless sofa.


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PHOTOS: Example of color options (threadways) for the same embroidery pattern. Custom coloring is available to match your color scheme.


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ACCESSORIES: Throws





100% Cashmere Throws


















PHOTOS


Left: Solid Cashmere Throws, available in 32 colors, 58" x 72", $1,989.

Center and Right: Woven Cashmere Throws, 58"x 72", $2,395





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Accessories: EMBROIDERED THROW PILLOWS

PHOTOS


Left: Embroidered Throw Pillow in Klostra Pattern
Right: Detail of Klostra Pattern Embroidery



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PHOTOS: Embroidered Throw Pillows in Urfee Pattern, in two color thread ways.



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TEXTILES


HOLLAND and SHERRY Interior Fabrics include well priced upholstery weight linen, cotton and wool textiles priced from $75-$120 per yard. The patterns are subtle, rich in texture, and are beautifully woven in subdued colors for years of enjoyment.

Many of the interior textiles are woven in South America, which contributes to the economy of underdeveloped countries resulting in an exceptional value for the high level quality found in these fabrics.

Upholstery Fabrics

PHOTOS: Above textiles available in multiple Colorways
Top Row, Left: Pattern-Square - Arica, in Dove, 100% Linen. Top Row, Right: Pattern-Matterhorn, Wool Sateen, in Sable Multi Stripe, 100% Wool.
Bottom Row, Left: Pattern-Basket, in Chocolate, 100% Linen.
Bottom Row, Right: Pattern-Opera Silk Velvet, in Antique Gold, 100% Silk Pile.

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Sheer Window Fabrics

PHOTOS: Above textiles available in multiple Colorways

Top Row, Left: Pattern-Madre, Check Wool Sheer, in Creme, 100% Wool.

Top Row, Right: Pattern-Contessa, Stripe Wool Sheer, in Creme, 100% Wool. Bottom Row,

Left: Pattern-Lago, in Blue/Beige, Blend of 80% Linen/20% Silk.

Bottom Row, Right: Pattern-BeBe, Wool Crepe Sheer, in Creme, 100% Wool.

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Vicuna

Now, not that we're in the men's or women's suiting's business, I thought it would be interesting to share the story of Holland and Sherry's recent development of Vicuna, in quantities large enough to actually make a limited number of dress suits.

Be forewarned, what your about to read is not for the faint of pocket book, but it's an interesting story!

The Vicuna Llama lives in the alpine areas of the Andes, South America. Vicunas produce small amounts of extremely fine wool, which is expensive because the Vicunas can only be shorn every 2-3 years. Vicuna fiber is the world's rarest and costliest fiber. The Vicuna Llama is a protected species, and with the help of the Inca Tribes, the Vicunas numbers have risen and they are now thriving once again.

PHOTOS: The Vicuna Llama
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For their suiting's cloth line, HOLLAND and SHERRY have created an outstanding new cloth innovation, Vicuna Aymara. The incredibly soft and luxurious handle of the Vicuna fleece has made it a most sought-after treasure since the time of the Inca's. Inca legend tells the story of a beautiful young maiden who was wooed by an ugly old king. She would only consent to his advances if he promised her a coat of pure gold. This is how the Vicuna came to have its 'golden fleece'. considered sacred by the Incas, only royalty were allowed to wear the Vicunas precious fleece, also known as the 'fibre of the gods'. It became illegal for anyone to hunt the Vicuna, and death awaited those who harmed these animals.

PHOTOS


Left: A woman's Vicuna Overcoat.


Center Photo,Top: Three bolts of finished Vicuna Wool read for your Tailor.


Center Photo, Bottom: Native Inca traders displaying precious shorn Vicuna Wool.


Top Right: A men's Vicuna Sport Coat.

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It has taken five years to produce enough yarns to manufacture this luxurious range of cloth, and a further 18 months to develop the cloth. The range is being run in 3 colors, 'Pitch Black', 'Midnight' and 'Natural Vicuna'. There are other Vicuna fabrics on the market but HOLLAND and SHERRY have woven the world's first 100% worsted spun Vicuna fabric, it is unique, it is original, it is exclusive, and at $4,000 per yard, it is the most expensive cloth in the world.

Now, wasn't that interesting?



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For exquisite interior fabric, other than the Vicuna Aymara, you can see the entire HOLLAND and SHERRY line at the Cabana Home Store in Santa Barbara, 111 Santa Barbara Street, Santa Barbara, CA 93101. Tele: 805.962.0200.









Good Night Moon