Dear Reader:

I have discovered that sometimes when we go to tell a story, another story decides to tell us. This is what happened recently.

The compilation of stories that wanted to open their covers for the blog readers today had to do with fairly recent shops and stores opening in Summerville that each bring their own unique story with them.

Welcome to The Bead Hunters Restore (Beaded Jewelry Repair, Restoration and Redesign.)

Angela Forbush runs this charming little shop (It opened last November) It really brought back memories of the 60’s for me…lots and lots of beads, pearl knotting, costume jewelry repair, clip-on earring conversion/design…and so much more. She also does Custom Design Work!

She told me if I wanted to bring Eva Cate back with me…she would help her design a beaded piece of jewelry…so sweet! She’s located across from the Post Office…and her number is 302-897-9537.

Angela also told me some Summerville history which made my day…her shop and the other little homes on N.Gum were built to house the railroad workers when they laid the tracks through Summerville in the early 1800’s. So many trees were cut down for the laying of the tracks that one of Summerville’s first ordinances was a penalty for cutting down pine trees of a certain size…it is still in the books today.

My young neighbor, Luke, across the street, made this fun antique home address marker, which inspired me to do the same. Mine isn’t finished yet but it will be done on a piece of slate with the numbers of my home address on it…then I will place it in front of the barrel of lantana out front. Here is Luke’s…

For our street to be such a short one…UPS and pizza deliverers end up going up and down, up and down, our small street because the mail boxes don’t match the house numbers in a logical sequential order. Hopefully now between my soon-to-be house address and Luke’s we won’t hear pizza cars screeching their brakes as much.

The slab of slate and numbers can be found at Vintage South- The Warehouse 406 N. Gum Street.

This is a fun place to walk around ..it makes me want to start completely re-decorating my home.

After discovering all these wonderful new places (to me) I started thinking about what I wanted to pick up for lunch and remembered Carrie had told me the tea room “Time Well Spent” was open and Sandy, the cook, was still making her famous walnut chicken salad, tomato pies, quiches, and most importantly those magnificent pop-overs with strawberry butter….I could just taste it.

So I went in and put an order in for the chicken salad, fruit, and pop-overs…it was just as good as I remembered and their delicious tea was a mixture of several berries (strawberry, blueberry, raspberry, etc.) Beyond good!

Here I was so afraid we were going to lose the Tea Room and it is back…as wonderful as ever, with new selections. Nicole Paul and Taylor Stanley are the new owners and couldn’t be nicer. Nicole and I chatted while my order was being fixed..she said they were hoping to start serving Sunday brunch August 1.

*Their husbands are working on cleaning up and out the back yard so wedding receptions, etc. can be held here in the near future. Lots of new ideas and excitement…a lesson for us all…change is scary but it can also be fabulous!

As I walked in the door of Tuesday Morning yesterday…there it was… my new sofa pillow for the den…it was calling out my name and just had to come home with me!!!

Later yesterday afternoon my earlier feelings that yesterday was going to be a “ridiculously amazing” day were cemented by the doorbell ringing announcing Jo and her Colby…my favorite grandmother/granddaughter twosome!

They came bringing me (and the Ya’s) a  book called Devotions for the Beach….It is for all of us! Thank you so much Jo and Colby! I can hardly wait to get started! Will take it to the beach the next time we go.

Then Colby showed me a decorated little rock with this message on the back….Colby told me that it was a new trend now and the idea was to take it, put a picture of it on Facebook, and then leave it somewhere else for another recipient.

*Colby found her decorated rock in the bathroom at Chilli’s in Oakbrook. I love the idea of sending fun things out into the universe to see where they land, how many people they put a smile on their faces, and the stories they can tell.

So until tomorrow…I think the soul needs story to make sense of this old world.

“Today is my favorite day”  Winnie the Pooh

*Jo and Colby helped me try to solve the Ginger Shell’s Mysterious Light mystery…but none of us can find anything logical to explain the pulsating glow. I am going to look for it tonight when it gets dark.* (It is 10:30 and I peeked out the window before turning off the lights in my “office”….at first I saw nothing and then I spotted it again…a pulsating little white light.) The mystery continues.