09 February, 2017

“The Owl & The Peacock!”

 Alright then, while I’m in a rather productive mood, I think I’ll start another Chronicle installment this evening. (smile)  It occurred to me that as of this date, I have not written about any of the pieces that I might call my “Birds of a Feather” Series.  This series will feature all of the birds except my Eagles, which will have a series of their own.  Obviously, either “Fly like an Eagle”, or “Soar like an Eagle” will end up being that series title.

However….this particular evening, the two “Birds of a Feather” that have captured my attention are these two very beautiful Goebel Crystal pieces.  I have to tell you, that when look at these two pieces (and a number of the other ones that my friend Rita gave me), I am immediately reminded of the very wonderful period in my life when I had the pleasure, privilege, and extremely good fortune to have been in the company of a woman to whom I mattered!!  Man….what a fabulous set of memories I will always have of the time(s) we spent together.

Rita is a wonderful, dear friend.  Meeting her was one of the very best things that ever happened to me!!  From 1993 when I met her, until 1998 when I determined (very foolishly to my regret) that she and I were destined to be lifelong friends, my life was a whirlwind of great trips, and incredibly enjoyable, memorable experiences with the great group of people she introduced me to in her social circle.

Suffice it to say that this incredible woman was so very good to me that it frankly scared me to death, and I couldn’t bring myself to feel worthy of her!! Yeah…TMI, I’m sure.  We coined the phrase “complimates”, to describe how well we seemed to be when were together, and I truly believe, that Rita will forever be the one that I should have made the effort to try to have a real relationship with!! (sigh)

I’m supposed to be talking about the crystal, I know….but this is so intriguing because it is one of those times that telling the story of the glass is not so much about me finding an object (that I liked) in a mall or antique shop, but of the kinds of memories of the interactions with some of the important people in my life that these items trigger in my mind.  So I ask that you indulge me for a few moments.

Alright….so I think it was in 1995 or so, that Rita and I were enjoying a really nice weekend in Palm Springs, CA, with two of our friends Ted and Diana.  I had never been to Palm Springs at this point in time, and it was very nice. (smile)  Yeah, Rita, Ted and Diana had no problem going hither and yon on a weekend, or for longer travels around the globe, but the desire to experience the world for me ended after I got out of the U.S. Air Force in 1974!!

Anyway, during one of our afternoon shopping excursions (okay, the women shopped we guys just drank beers in the desert sun and carried bags!!), we came upon a crystal shop.  Uh-oh….now for the first time during the trip, I’m interested in something other than where the next Beer & Burger joint or Steak Restaurant is. (ha,ha,ha)  It’s a pretty high end place, (as one might guess in this desert playground of the stars), and the items in there were considerably out of the “Skip price range” shall we say. (smile)

I was perusing through the place, and liked the look of both the Owl and the Peacock, but I was more interested in the Big Cats, and a couple of other items that I had seen there to tell the truth.  However….I was soon to learn that Rita thought that these two pieces were really nice, and that they should be part of my collection.

Inasmuch as this was relatively early in our friendship / relationship (such as it was), I certainly believed that once I would make my opinion known regarding an object for my collection, that she would perhaps consider the topic a done deal.  BOY….was I wrong!! (ha,ha,ha,ha)  After hearing her point of view that these pieces should be mementos of our Palm Springs visit, I thanked her for that thought, and suggested that I’ll probably find something else to fit that role.  As it occurs to me, when I tell the story of the Vancouver Elephant, it will parallel this story exactly!! (ha,ha,ha)

Needless to say, the discussion was cute, and at no time did it escalate into an intense exercise, don’t get me wrong.  It was just that I was so surprised (and gratified) that Rita would take such a strong interest in my little hobby to the point of engaging me in that type of discussion. I wanted to find a “Lion, or Tiger or Bear, oh my!!” and my lovely friend determined that I was walking out of there with the Owl or Peacock….even if it meant that she was going to purchase it for me!! (ha,ha,ha,ha)  Well….

That’s exactly what she did.  Now, because she really liked them both, and literally could not decide which piece was going to make it back to L.A., she bought both of them and presented them to me!!  I was a bit embarrassed at this point because I certainly did not expect to receive such a gift.  I definitely did not feel comfortable having Rita buy both of those pieces, as they were not “thrift store items”. (smile)

I was to discover over the period of the next couple of years that Rita was a force to be reckoned with, and I was going to enjoy every minute of it. (smile)  I love both of these sculptures because they were among the first of many pieces that she and I would engage in very wonderful debates about, and then work together on accumulating.

The Palm Springs weekend was really great, but the story does not end here.  We made a run over to Palm Desert, CA during that weekend, and while I had lost the “battle of the birds” so to speak, what happened in Palm Desert represents the continuation of my search for, and resulting acquisition of “The King of the Mountain”.

I imagine now that it would behoove me to make that my next installment!! (smile)