Hi! Welcome and thank you for joining me for today’s Happy List.
This week on the blog I shared how I transformed a broken clock into the prettiest picture frame for a wedding photo. I also wrote about a current obsession of mine, hammered copper paint. I like what I like!
I also like, no, LOVE it when this blog is a conversation, not a monologue. To that end, thank you for all of your comments, support, likes, shares, etc. here and on social media. If you want to connect with us, you can always comment on this blog post or send an email here. You can also reach out on Instagram or Facebook. Please feel free to share our website or social media accounts with others too.
Now, here’s what you’re waiting for, the Happy List!
MY KIND OF CAMPING
If I had to sleep outdoors, I’d choose to sleep in this greenhouse in Sweden. Doesn’t this look lovely? Even the floor is amazing.
See more pictures here.
(image: Bertwig Fastighetsförmedling via My Scandinavian Home)
MAN VS. HORSE
Do you think you could outrun a horse on a 50-mile course? Do you think any human could?
Well, there’s a race for that in Arizona.
We listened to the most fascinating RadioLab episode called “Man Against Horse.” We learned so much about why we can run, why our butts are critical to running, and if a person can outrun a horse.
I don’t want to spoil it for you, so please listen to it the next time you turn on a podcast. You’ll learn so much and be on the edge of your seat wanting to know what happens.
P.S. Handy Husband said he’d do this race if he didn’t have to travel so far to participate. Now I’m trying to convince him Arizona isn’t that far from New Jersey. Ha!
MEDIEVAL RIDDLES
Can you solve this medieval riddle from the 7th century? It was written by Saint Aldhelm and included in the Aenigmata, a collection of 100 of his riddles.
Spawned without seed, produced in ways of wonder,
I load my sweetened breast with floral plunder;
Kings’ honeyed fare grows gilded through my flair.
Sharp spears of fearsome war are what I bear,
and I beat – handless! – craftsmen’s metalware.
For the answer, go check out this Medievalists.net article. (Yes, I have eclectic reading interests.)
If you solved this one, there are 9 more medieval riddles in that article.
BOOK CLOCK
Time to get crafty! Marissa from One CrafDIY Girl turned a hardcover book into a clock.
If you have a big bookcase full of books, this DIY would look really neat sitting on a shelf.
(image: One CraftDIY Girl)
DIY STUCCO SECTIONAL
I implore you to go see the before photo of this porch created by Jenna Sue Design and then keep scrolling to see the photos of how they built this stucco sectional with the arches.
We’ve never built anything like this, so the process was fascinating. I kept saying to myself, “Oh! So that’s how they do that.”
(image: Jenna Sue Design)
Also, I’d love to do an outdoor tile project someday.
IT’S HOT OUT THERE
I’ve owned the sun hat shown in the picture at the top of today’s blog post for over a year now and it still looks brand new even after getting it wet in the pool.
I got it because it has fuller coverage than my visors, it can be dressed up to wear with my dresses, and it rolls up so I can easily travel with it.
(image: Amazon)
As an added bonus, Handy Husband said the hat reminds him of Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman. I’m sure that means he likes it, right?!?!
I DID NOT KNOW
I’ve never once thought about it, so I did not know until this week that bowling alley lanes are oiled AND have different oil patterns. Meaning, the oil is applied in varying patterns by a lane machine.
You might be good at bowling at your local bowling alley in Podunk, America, but you’re not going to be good everywhere. That’s because your local bowling alley is oiling the lanes to help you out.
Not enough in my case.
On the professional bowling circuit, the lanes are oiled to be much harder. This is called a sport pattern and the key to getting consistent strikes is knowing where on the pattern the ball needs to land.
I have an entirely new appreciation for this sport now. Learn more here. If you want to learn about the professional bowler who bowls with two hands, read this.
P.S. I don’t have any bowling alley pictures but if you want to take an old bowling ball and turn it into a lawn orb with small rocks, I’ve got you covered. Click here.
COPPER COUNTERS
Color me intrigued. Apparently, if you can wrap a present, you can wrap a big sheet of copper around plywood and make countertops.
I wonder what type of counters you can make if you are skilled at stuffing tissue paper in a gift bag?
Go check these counters out for yourself in this Domino article.
(image: Domino)
FOOD FOR THOUGHT
“Throwing shade or throwing light?
One takes a little more effort than the other.
While throwing shade might be more fun, it eventually runs out of energy. It’s designed to end conversations, not start them, to intimidate, not encourage.
Turning on lights helps everyone.”
Thank you for reading today’s Happy List.
Be good to yourself and others this weekend.
I’ll see you back here on Monday.
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