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Tuesday, June 5, 2012

Earrings, Mamas, And A Damp Dozy Dog



I never did pierce my ears.
When all my friends in junior high were letting the scary ladies
at the Piercing Palace shoot holes through their earlobes,
my mother's words echoed in my head:


"You will have enough problems," she said, "with the holes
God gave you.  Don't go looking for trouble."

Piercing my ears seemed even less exotic after watching those friends cope with
ear lobe infections, and with running alcohol-coated thread through the new holes
while they sat along the side of the gym waiting to use the parallel bars.
A classmate of mine, in her gym bloomers, flossing her ears.
The shrieking from the Piercing Palace might have had some influence on me as well.

Anyway, this has never posed a problem for me
except for when it comes to buying earrings.
Because most earrings now are made for pierced ears.
This is where Etsy comes in.
I rarely check Etsy, now that so much of its stuff comes from re-sellers
peddling cheap Chinese goods.
Shame on you, greedy Etsy management.  You are not fooling us.

But then there are sellers like Michelle, who sells costume jewelry from the 70s and 80s.
Click on her name to visit her on Etsy.

When I visit, I buy.  Because Michelle doesn't charge a lot, and I like that.
 Are these great old lady clip earrings, or what?

"Mom," asked my daughter Anne, "do you realize how huge these earrings are?"
 Why yes.  Yes, I do.  That's why I bought them.
I figure the bigger the earring, the smaller I look.  Right?  Right???

I bought this pair, below, because I love white earrings in the summer,
and most of mine are just round plastic discs.
So these are now my fancy ones:

 How big are all these earrings?
I put a nice large cashew in amongst them.  Yeah, those gold round ones are killer.
 Mmm . . . I just ate the cashew.

Speaking of killers . . . Mr Dion DiPoochy had to have
a good scrubbing over the weekend, when a mis-step landed one
of his furry paws right into one of his own lawn sculptures.

After tubbie time, Anne wrapped Dion up in big soft bath towels,
and cuddled him in her lap to dry him off.
And he didn't want to leave.
He settled in and sacked out.  Anne took a few pictures with her phone.

His eyes may be open, but trust me . . . there's nobody home.
He is out like a light.


Dion doesn't wear earrings.
At least, not since his Pet Girls
stopped playing Dress Up with him.

But you know what?  Neither of our daughters has pierced ears.

Do you think it's because their Mama told them what my Mama told me?
"You'll have enough trouble with the holes God gave you."

And ain't that the truth?

Happy Tuesday, my friends!  -- Cass


And thank you, Graphics Fairy, for the vintage image of the lady with the branch.

16 comments:

  1. Hey you might be right on the ticket. I think I've seen some of the younger women, who seem to know about fashion, wearing those bigger earrings such as you have displayed next to your now eaten cashew. So you wear those with your head held high, hoping their size does not match their weight!

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  2. Well I love them and would wear them too and I am in my 20's!! I have a big pair of cameo clip on earrings that are my favorites!

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  3. Thanks so much for the chuckles today Cass. I wish I still had the earings from my mother-in-law. She had dozens of them that she wore before and after she had her ears pierced. My girlfriend pierced my ears with a darning needle after freezing the lobes with an ice cube! I did have the odd infection then (15 years old) and uses alcohol and polysporin a lot. I'm glad there are places to have this done safely today! Enjoy the day. Pamela

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  4. Ohhh, that post made me laugh! That's great! Love the clip ons. Dion is too cute! Thanks for the laughs!

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  5. Got a good laugh at what your Mom said. I pierced my own (heard from my mother loud and clear about that) and remember pulling the thread with peroxide thru until bought some good wire earrings that could be moved and disinfected frequently. I am familiar with those monster size earrings - wore many a pair. I also noticed what has happened to etsy. I thought it was suppose to be handmade or vintage/antique only - not so.
    Dion - You may not like your bath, but bet you smell better. :-D

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  6. I am surprised you do not run into big clip on like those at local estate sales. I do not shop Etsy much and am sad it has changed. I wear big jewelry too and set the metal detector off when we entered a cruise ship. The lady officer wanded me between the legs and I said "Shouldn't we have a date first?"

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  7. I just bought a lot of 7 sets of clip earrings on Ebay! But I've been thinking lately about taking the ear-pierce plunge . . . if I do, the earrings I just bought will be yours :)

    Love, your non-pierced daughter

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    Replies
    1. OK Alida --

      As you are an old married lady, you certainly don't need my permission to pierce your ears.
      (Thank goodness; it's lovely when that mantle of responsibility is lifted from parents' shoulders.)
      Just remember what your Grandmother used to say ....
      :-)

      Have I ever told you the story of the lady I saw in the supermarket, screaming because her toddler-in-arms was pulling hard on her pierced earring, and she could not stop him because she was also holding a grocery sack? I'll tell you that one later this month when I see you ... oh wait, I think I just did.

      Love, Mama

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  8. When I got MY ears pierced there was NO Piercing Palace -- you either had a friend do it with a needle that had been heated over a lighter and then stuck in alcohol or you went to a doctor. I went to the doctor! But many of my friends had their friends pierce theirs. Ugh!

    Love the pictures of Dion --

    Ollie says "hi"

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  9. HAHAHAHAhahahahahahahahahHA! HA! Oh Cass, I have NEVER heard that saying!!! I could barely read the rest of the post, I was laughing so hard. Mr. Dion DiPoochy is absolutely adorable, even if he does pass out with his eyes open. Truth be told, I've heard I have done that a time or two in my life!!! Shhhhhhh, that's a secret. Wonderful, Delight-filled post. **blows kisses** Deb

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  10. I LOVE that quote. God bless your Mother's sense of humor! I punched my own holes with a big old darning needle into an iced ear lobe. The "receiver" on the back of the lobe was a raw potato cut in half. Never flossed them...stuck some earrings in and wore them from day one. Holes were not even and more so now that I am older...so....I rarely wear earrings at all. YOU were the smart one...or maybe your Mom was! xo Diana

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  11. That is so funny. I don't have pierced ears either. It was against church rules growing up and by the time I was old enough to make the decision I had no desire to instigate pain and suffering on myself. I watched Chelsea get her ears pierced and was reinforced in my smart decision. lol

    That Dion....soooo cute.

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  12. You are so funny! I didn't get pierced till I was 21, because my mother and grandmother always called it a "heathern" thing to do! When I did succumb, my dentist did it with a hypodermic needle and I had no trouble at all. He informed me it was the best way because the hypodermic takes a plug out of the hole.

    However, having said all that, I think your mother's advice made more sense than mine. Their disparagement of the procedure just made it seem that much more exotic and therefore, more desirable.

    I have a lot of vintage earrings, but of course, I have had most of them since they were new. I suppose that makes me vintage, too?

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  13. Maybe we should have a party -- show us your big clip-ons?

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  14. I was the only one in my family not to have pierced ears. When my grandmother dies when I was 32 I inherited all her clip ons and some screw backs (do you remember them). They are often admired now when I wear them. Love what your mum said, such a wise lady. LOL x

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  15. I had to laugh at your mother's words of wisdom. Don't know that I've ever heard that one before but it is true, isn't it? LOL
    I did have my ears pierced. A lady I did babysitting for had her own little kit for piercing ears....a long needle, some numbing ointment and a halved potato. Yep, you heard right. The potato was to hold the needle in place from the back side. There was only a little discomfort in the procedure and she allowed me to wear her expensive earrings while my ears healed.
    The vintage style clip-on earrings are classics and have a beauty all their own. You're quite the lucky girl!

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