When we moved, we decided to get rid of our old sofa because:
A) It was really old
B) The cushions were torn
C) It smelled kinda funny
D) We didn't want to move anything more than we had to
I am a person who will almost always sit on the floor rather than on a piece of furniture. I'm klassy like that. I realize that most people are not like this, and that we've never really had adequate seating for visitors, so with this in mind we decided to procure The Sofa.
M. Ameliabee's late grandparents had sofa/loveseat/chair set in the Front Room in their house. Those of you from northern climes might not be familiar with the concept of a Front Room, but they are a common fixture in many homes where I grew up.
What is a Front Room? It is a formal living room, with an aggressively "nice" feel to it--it is as close to a furniture showroom as most homes get. Front rooms are located (naturally) in the front of the house, usually very near the front door. Bonus points if they are separate rooms off the front hallway, and not the room through which you enter the home. If the front entrance is in the Front Room, most traffic is diverted through a back or side door and the front door is used only for Front Room people.
This room is reserved for Company--and not just any Company. Your best friend or neighbor or kid's friends will be entertained in the kitchen or living room. My two best friends from high school had front rooms at their houses, and I never set foot in either one. Kids, regardless of age, are
not allowed in Front Rooms. Clergy members, local bigwigs, teachers, people who need impressed with your above-white-trash worldliness and wealth are entertained here. Of course, these rooms are found only in the better class of homes or in homes which aspire to the better class.
We didn't have a Front Room, as my Mom's house is very old and has only one huge room downstairs, plus the add-on kitchen at the back. Instead, we had the Nice China which was hauled out for special occasions or when my Mom needed to impress someone. My most vivid memory of the Nice China was in my mid-twenties, being driven to my Mom's house by my boyfriend and his friend. This was the culmination of the worst time of my life, and I was in no shape to drive myself. I needed some time to pick up the pieces of what remained of my life and figure out where to go from there. Mostly though, I needed to feel comforted and safe--so Mom's house seemed pretty logical. But, I realized this wasn't going to work the minute we got there, because my Mom had out the good cups and saucers, teacups and glasses for my boyfriend and his friend. She was in all-out entertaining mode, impressing them with her wit and charm, looking daggers at the daughter who was resting her head on the table, crying as quietly as possible.
Okay, Wow. That got sad and self-indulgent there. Sorry about that.
Anyway. This is all to say that we inherited the Psychedelic Living Room Suite from Rob's grandparents. Mr. Ameliabee, as some of you know, has a fondness for Very Loud Colors. He inherited said fashion sense from his grandfather, Pop, who never met a loud floral pattern that he didn't like. Family lore has it that, back in the day, the grandparents were in the market for a living room suite. Pop saw this one at a furniture store, and without consulting Gee Gee, Mr. Ameliabee's grandmother, brought it home. Gee Gee was notorious for being picky in such matters, but in this case I think she had a point. She tried to coordinate the rest of the room with the couch, but it just wasn't possible. I've decided now that I too have The Couch, you can either spend a lot of time hating it and trying to cover it up, or learn to love it for its own unique charms. I'm going for the latter. Kind of like my relationship with my Mom--if you remove your expectations about what things *should* look like, you can start to enjoy them for what they are; a rather comfy couch, and a woman who loves in her own way.
Here is the couch, and yes, that is AJ in the corner. I asked him what he thought of the couch and he said "I died for this?" You did indeed. My apologies for the crappiness of the image here. Blogger will Absolutely Not upload images for me today. So, my only recourse is linking from Flickr. Click on the photos for better versions.
As you can see, it is a truly eye-bending combination of Gold and Bright Royal Blue. Wow.
Here is a detail of the pattern.
Whenever I spend a lot of time examining the pattern closely, I think of
The Yellow Wallpaper, and make myself stop.
