life : ugly lives here, too


The Bad : Flowers don't last.
The Good : I can get more.

Hi Everyone -

Over the weekend I got to thinking that sometimes our blog gets a little bit too
antiseptic. I'm sure being a Libra and quite the fuss pot has something to do with it. But, that's not reality is it? So in the spirit of keeping it real, here are some pics of the ugliness that resides around our place.


The Bad : Someone else would have done a better job of capturing a photo of the tiniest pink sneakers in the dryer.
The Good : I don't earn a living taking photos of spinning dryers, yet.


The Bad : We've had scaffolding and construction supplies outside since November.
The Good : Our building is getting a solar roof!


The Bad : Our dining room table is often covered with papers. It's the first room you enter in our apartment.
The Good : It's the first room you leave in our apartment.


The Bad : This lace curtain is really dirty and hides dirty windows.
The Good : When I remember, I'll wash it. Also, the dirt is on the curtain, not on the floor, and it hides the dirty windows.


The Bad : We don't have enough closet space in our kitchen for all our groceries.
The Good : We'll eventually drink these and they'll be gone.


The Bad : Our cupboards are so crowded sometimes things fall out onto my head.
The Good : Our cupboards are full and I have a hard head.


The Bad : Someone's dresser isn't always neat.
The Good : He'll straighten it up on his own or if I ask him.


The Bad : We don't always put our clothes in the closet.
The Good : They're always hung up or folded.


The Bad : I have every issue of Martha Stewart Living magazine and some others with no room to put anymore. That's a signed copy of Martha's Homekeeping Handbook on the floor and I'm sure she would not think it's 'a good thing'.
The Good : None - I need help. What should I do with all of these magazines?

Bottom line, with all of the turmoil around the globe these days, we are very lucky to have a pretty nice home in a stable neighborhood. Sure, we could stay home and deal with all of this inconsequential stuff like we
used to. But, who wants to? We don't live in a magazine. We'd rather go out and do something. How about you? Excessive cleaning or fun?

xo, Cindy

37 comments:

Michelle Engel Bencsko said...

Oh good, now I don't feel compelled to show you my house's good/bad, cuz we seem to be living parallel existences.
I think one of the nice things about photography is the selectivness... you don't *have* to show anything other than what you want us to see. But we're glad when you do.

Anonymous said...

I love this post, i completely agree that sometimes the photos in the blog world dont keep it real about how people really live. I guess that is whyI never show my apartment. haha

Cindy said...

please just don't ask me for one of those impromptu self-portraits. i'm not going there ;).

Cindy said...

i'm happy to come over and photograph it for you, jessica ;)!

jules said...

this is such a great post! I often have to remind myself not to compare my messy real life with the lives that are shared on blogs, magazines etc. because they are 'edited'! This is a great reminder that life is messy, and that's ok.

Cindy said...

not that i'm comparing myself, but i always think of martha stewart and all the heat she would get for being 'perfect'. i'm sure she has a junk drawer somewhere. maybe her glove compartment?

having said that, i can't wait for tomorrow when pretty is back - at least in my opinion :)!

Amber said...

I love this post! Sometimes I think that the bloggers I read have these lovely perfect lives. Right now like usual my kitchen counter has stuff all over it. Empty space is just an invitation for me. And I like your glass is half full attitude. I always say "I am blessed, I have a leaky roof over my head".

Deniz said...

i love this post! nice to see a bit of reality, and think it is very brave of you! i rather go out than wash dishes- hell i rather do most things that washing dishes... i wont ever post it. otherwise our appartement is much cleaner when my mr. is away, he is rather a messy man and i had the brilliant idea that i will train him for the last 6 months. yesterday i thought i should just get the message... so got a new solution am looking for a maid
have a fab week

Cindy said...

amber - i think we all just like to look at pretty things and dwell on the niceties of life. sometimes, bloggers can be so open with life stories it makes me nervous for them. this is just some excess stuff.

l'atelier - i love how you call your guy 'mr.' i'm not sure people can learn things if it's just not in their nature. scott is pretty neat although he does leave paper here and there, and usually not in a neat pile. the reason his dresser looks the way it does is because i knocked everything off by accident. good luck with your search!

Pascale said...

Hi Cindy,
This post made me laugh and feel better at the same time. Just like you, I like to show "clean" pictures on my blog. I'm a little bit of a perfectionist when it comes to presentation... The reality however is that our apartment often - or should I say usually - doesn't look as clean as you'd expect from the pictures. One has to live, right?! So, yes, we do have junk sitting around, a pile of laundry waiting to get ironed, dirty little hands on the windows, (unread) magazines in a corner behind the sofa,... not to mention the mess on my working table, where I can work no longer work just because of that mess... I'm not brave enough to show it, but I'm glad you did!

SimplyGrove said...

What a clever post! I tend to over clean but if it ever takes away from fun then I quit immediately!

Cindy said...

pascale - i am the exact same way in terms of perfectionism, but for some reason i got this idea into my head and wanted to do it, really well ;).

simplygrove - i wasn't always that way and could be better, but as with laundry, there's always more to do!

Unknown said...

GREAT post. absolutely great. love the dual perspectives. :)

Anonymous said...

Very nice post indeed, and what your showing is life... It's not that bad at all... It is lovely to me, lovely shots!

Have a great week!

Unknown said...

you are a brave one to post the parts you think are ugly! i love this-- the internet makes everything look so perfect all the time, it's easy to forget there are real people living real lives behind these screens. thanks for the reminder!

Cindy said...

thanks ladies ... probably combining the pretty and the ugly would provide the full picture. maybe, some day?

Joyce said...

A very cute post!

Denise Fasanello said...

This is so true. Thanks for keeping it real. The pretty blog world can get overwhelming...even though I am such a sucker for it. I am actually working on a series called "make the ugly pretty". Nice blog!

Cindy said...

thanks joyce & denise. i'm not sure i'm done with this concept just yet ;).

blue moss said...

thanks so much for this fun post....yesterday while i was making a necklace, i dropped a whole container of all my brass findings. what a mess! tiny brass bits and pieces everywhere! i was thinking that would be a good picture :)

Jude said...

Oh Cindy, I just love this post. ☺ Wisdom and reality with just the right dose of humor for good measure. I've got lots of less than magazine-worthy scenes in my own environs and this reminder makes embracing them that much easier. Thank you!

Cindy said...

i think it would be an excellent photo ... naturally and perfectly-styled.

thanks jude and i'm glad!

Suzanne : : S.HOPtalk said...

A post I can truly relate to in every way. I loved it!

Helene said...

Love this post Cindy and your outlook on things! Inspiring!

Cindy said...

i can't tell a lie, helen - i'm not always so easy going about it. just ask scott. but, i'm trying.

Unknown said...

Thank you for keeping it real. I started to think that I was the only one with messy everything.

Re: Martha Stewart Living Mags
"The Good : None - I need help. What should I do with all of these magazines?"
Solution = mail em to me ^_^

suzanne cabrera said...

I LOVE THIS POST CINDY! Just love it...the good, the bad, the ugly. As the other commenters have already noted, you're in good company!

Ann Marie said...

Wonderful post! Thanks for your honesty, and your wit!

lesley said...

i love this. i think even the 'ugly' can be beautiful - and it often tells a lot more about ourselves. thanks so much for sharing.

Cindy said...

thanks ladies ... it's been interesting. i'm not so much bothered by the content of the photos, but more so the quality. i think someone else would have made their ugly stuff look beautiful with lovely tones, light, etc. ugh! i'm not going to take these pics again, though.

rita, i'll keep in mind ;).

knack said...

too cute......I was led here first by jess gonacha and then saw the link again on blue moss!! Glad I came over and read it..... :)

meg said...

I've really enjoyed reading your blog and I can't even remember how I got here - lol :)

Been thinking about a comment for this post, because 1) I just finished a bookshelf project that I shared on my blog (that gave me fits I might add), and it included scores of magazines... and 2) I just this week posted a bit of a rant about my messy house, complete w/ photos of what was driving me nuts! Hard for me to do it, but I had to do it. Keeping it real I guess :)

Anyway, stop by if you like - www.megibug.blogspot.com

I'll keep reading!
Megan :)

aimee said...

well, now i like you even more. you've got to admit, you made those dying flowers look pretty darn good!

yasmine said...

i love this post cindy...i somehow missed this in my google reader (i read all my blogs through there). i found about it through jess' blog. i love how genuine and un-prettified it is. i love posts like this.

xoxo
yas

Anonymous said...

Love it! Love the realness. :)
tina

Tiffany said...

Absolutely fantastic post.

Anonymous said...

I am new to your blog but sooo appreciate this post! Thank you!