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It was only a matter of time before I heard scampering on the deck.
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And once baby chuckies find the deck?
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They’re hooked and treat it like a playground.
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It’s adorable.
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They run and spin like whirling dervishes.
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In and out of the railings, under the grill.
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Until…
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They spot a cat.
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And have to investigate.
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Lord Dudley Mountcatten was riveted.
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No vacation with my husband is complete without at least one trip to a junk filled hovel an antique store.
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The Newport area doesn’t have many but he found this one off the beaten path on the way to Tiverton.
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I’m not sure what crime this plant committed to be locked up in a cage, but it seemed relatively happy.
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Calling this place an antique store is a stretch. It had no name, no organization, no clever displays …
There was just stuff, a lot of it broken, everywhere… piled on top of each other.
My husband was in heaven.
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He found a stash of old BB gun air rifles and was transported back to his (more than slightly dangerous) childhood.
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I spotted an old phone similar to one I wanted for the man cave/Barn Mahal… but like everything else in this place it was useless, the guts had been torn out.
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Husband found a gun he wanted to buy but didn’t want to overpay. Since we were in a cell phone dead zone, he couldn’t look it up and had me take a picture for later.
Continuing our scenic drive we made it five minutes down the road, past a vine covered pole in the shape of a tree…
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When he pulled over to research the toy gun. Turns out it was worth 3 times the $50 asking price so he had to have it. Whipping the car around, we went back to the crap filled hovel store… only to find the old lady had closed. At 2:20 in the afternoon, on a Tuesday.
The husband was bereft. He searched the door and windows in vain for a phone number, but found only cobwebs.
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We drove on.
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Down through Tiverton…
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Past Little Compton…
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To Sakonnet Point, where this stack of rusted anchors reminded me of our resort’s artwork.
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Lovely waterfront areas all.
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And in case you’re interested? This house is for sale…
https://www.compass.com/listing/1660-main-road-tiverton-ri-02878/1755162903387237009/
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For a mere $13,250 a month.
If you buy it let me know, we can meet for cocktails on the porch.
😉
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After a week and a half’s worth of moving, organizing and inconvenience… carpet day arrived.
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With one poor guy doing the whole thing alone.
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He said he’s been doing it that way for 30 years and prefers it, so okay dokay.
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By afternoon, there was carpet fiber everywhere. By the end of the next day?
We were ready for before and after pics.
The den, with its old rippled carpet.
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The den, with its smooth new carpet.
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Not only was there a horrible ripple in the old carpet, but His Lordship had found a loose end by the threshold and proceeded to lift it by scratching on a daily basis.
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New, tightly tucked and cat proofed threshold.
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The office… with the old absolutely hideous dusty rose/Pepto Bismol industrial carpet the previous owners laid.
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Still can’t believe I lived with that abomination for so many years.
The office… with its new soothing beige.
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Pink.
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No pink.
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I’m a neutral girl at heart and was thrilled to see that Barbie inspired flooring make its final journey to the dump.
We purchased the same pricey Karastan carpet that we had laid in the bedrooms and hall last year so it would all coordinate. The store told us there was no guarantee it would match exactly as they would be from different production runs, but I don’t see any difference.
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New to the right, last year’s to the left.
We’re pleased…. and very glad things can now get back to normal.
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Have you ever been to a cat cafe?
I hadn’t, but always wanted to… imaging myself sipping a cup of tea surrounded by purring felines. So when I saw an advertisement for one right on our planned route for the day, I had to stop.
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Mind you… though the husband loves cats, he wasn’t totally on board with this plan.
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It was a small place, with everything appropriately cat themed.
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And though I wanted iced tea, all they had was chai… which was grossly over sweetened.
No matter… we were going to pet some cats!
Or were we?
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Turns out my dream of leisurely sipping and petting was ill formed as the actual cats are not allowed anywhere near the food and beverages. They’re in a separate room, which because we always have bad timing… was hosting a book club that wouldn’t be done for another half an hour.
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At that point the husband wanted to leave, but he loves me and indulged my desire to stay. With 30 minutes to kill we ordered overpriced sandwiches to go with our overpriced beverages and settled down to wait.
When the book club ladies started filing out of the chambre des chats, we disposed of our trash and made for the door… where we found a sign.
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At this point my husband really wanted to leave as he discovered it would be $20 for us to enter and pet cats… for 20 minutes.
But remember….
He loves me.
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So in we went.
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All the residents are up for adoption.
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And most of them were asleep.
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With the exception of little Miss Attitude…
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And this poor fellow who was thin and looked ill, though we were told he belongs to the owner and is just old.
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There weren’t a lot of cats, maybe 6.
We weren’t allowed to pick them up or sit with them on our laps.
And there was definitely no leisurely sipping and petting.
Conclusion?
Cat cafe – great idea.
Mediocre reality.
🐾
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Baby chucks are showing up regularly at the buffet now.
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And though this little guy had apples and blueberries to choose from…
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He went with the baby carrots.
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Time and time again.
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😊
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Finished with the indoor tour of Chateau Sur Mer, we headed outside.
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The original estate was 40 acres, but in its current preservation status , 17.
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There are some wonderful old growth trees.
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With low hanging branch seating.
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There aren’t any gardens here,…
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Just expanses of well manicured lawns and trees.
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But there is a moon gate.
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Though the gate is locked and the stairs to the top are cordoned off.
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This is as high as you can climb.
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Giant burl….
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Or hobbit hole?
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Either way it was a lovely place to stroll.
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😊
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The red bitch is alive and well…
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And driving Lord Dudley Mountcatten crazy.
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She scampers all over the back deck to get his attention…
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Then perches on the back of a chair in front of the window, chattering nonstop to taunt him.
So close, yet unattainable.
It’s a kitty’s worst nightmare.
😉
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Continuing up to the second floor of Chateau Sur Mer in Newport ….
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We had to stop and gawk on the way.
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Fabulous woodwork aside, the hand painted crawling vines, lattice and greenery were quite something.
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No one is allowed on the third or fourth floors…
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But there’s plenty to see on the second.
This is the Butternut bedroom, so named for the light walnut bed and furniture.
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As always, the ceiling was so much more than white.
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Various bedroom and private sitting rooms for the family.
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You realize when you tour these mansions, the first floor is for impressing guests…
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The second is for day to day living.
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This mahogany and white tile bathroom is exactly as it was back in the day.
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With hot and cold running water it was pretty high tech.
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Except for the throne, which looks more like an indoor outhouse.
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Here’s the staircase to the third floor which we couldn’t access, though my husband did try.
😉
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It’s early June in Maine and that means rhododendrons.
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For a pure burst of color they’re hard to beat.
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And I’m not the only one who loves them.
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Dozens of big beautiful bumblebees happily sip nectar.
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It’s a lovely time of year.
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As we continued our tour of Chateau Sur Mer, a photo of the original 1852 home and the subsequent 1873 renovation.
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This portrait of the owner and his daughter creeped me out a bit.
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I can’t give you any specific reason, just an overall vibe.
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The dining room was a focal point of the home , with the upper part of the walls covered in Spanish leather that was stamped, silvered and painted.
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It’s all original and in relatively good shape.
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The matching chairs show a lot more wear.
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The fireplace carvings were lavish.
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With French majolica portraying disturbing scenes of a hunt.
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Cavorting Bacchus figures are enjoying some wine…
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With this amply endowed creature pouring.
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This sculpture gazes longingly at an iced tub of champagne and I got the feeling a lot of drinking went on here.
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Chateau Sur Mer is a house of exotic wood. And in order to prevent it from fading, most of the heavy drapes in the house are drawn. This made for some very dark photos and required me to edit them here so you can appreciate the richness.
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The butlers pantry was fully stocked.
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With some absolutely amazing silver.
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Nothing I own is anywhere near this elaborate…
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And I still have a hard time keeping it polished.
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I wouldn’t doubt there was a servant whose sole job was keeping this collection shiny.
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Finished with the downstairs …
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We made our way around the central hall …
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And headed for the staircase, which was a work of art in itself.
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River's world..... 