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Wednesday, July 24, 2013

Foiling The Klepto-Ghosts of That Old House


They are still at it, our kleptomaniac ghosties 
here at That Old House.
Check out this post from October 2012 . . . .

As an update, nearly a year later, and the 2 Williamsburg Royal Scroll dinner forks and the teaspoon are still missing, and now . . . they have been joined in exile by still more of this beautiful flatware that I've only had for two years.
An old tablescape.  Johnson Bros. dishes, Royal Scroll flatware.

Come on, ghosts! 
This prank ain't funny anymore.

And another old tablescape.  A breakfast tray, I think.
Johnson Bros. Indies Blue china,  Royal  Scroll flatware.

So, against my inclination to use this nice flatware every day,
I'm going to leave it in its drawer, unmolested, and keep an eye on it.
Meaning, obsessively count it.
Over and over and over again.


And a third old tablescape.  Mish-mash of Home Goods and thrifting finds.
And, of course, the Royal Scroll.

But we need flatware to useor we're going to get
awfully tired of sandwiches, and slurping our soup from thick mugs.

Love me some grilled cheese, but not for Thanksgiving dinner.

After spending countless hours cruising the web for knives and forks and spoons 
that I could live with, and that wouldn't bankrupt us,
I hit on Mikasa French Countryside stainless flatware.


It's not cheap, unless you are me, and get lucky.
Because, through sheer dumb luck, I scored service for 12 
in this pattern on Amazon for a price that was astounding.
The cheapskate gods were smiling on me that day.

Top, the new French Countryside.  Bottom, my 2-year old Royal Scroll.

 On Amazon, there was only one set left.  And now, there are none.
Because that one set is mine, all mine!  (Cue cackling crone laugh.)

So, for now, we'll use this Mikasa flatware as our everyday,
and it will live atop Jabba The Hutch in a glass vase, 



so both we and the ghosties can easily find it.

It looks a lot like the Royal Scroll.
Old Stuff
New Stuff

It's almost as heavy, also 18/10 stainless, and with similar lines.
I am hoping to fool the ghosts into stealing it instead of the other.

See?  Here are both patterns together.
Don't you think that will totally confuse kleptomaniacal ghosties?
It will absolutely confuse my husband, and he is at least as smart as our ghosts.

Please, Ghoulies & Ghosties & Long-leggedy Beasties - stop stealing our stuff!
But if you must, please steal the cheaper things!
You can find what you need to feed yourself right here:


Don't open the drawers; there's no Royal Scroll flatware in there!
And please don't steal Gilda the dog.

Flatware, clothes, books, garden tools -- so many things
have gone missing since 2008.  Where are you keeping it all? 
Let me know; I may hire you as closet organizers.

And now . . . our moment of real:
So there I am, snapping pictures in my not-really-ready-for-primetime kitchen,
and I realize that A) there's the back and tail of our dog Dylan
in the bottom of this shot, and B) the dishwasher is open.
Oops.

Happy Wednesday, blogging friends.
Now go count your flatware.  I did.  Not good news . . . . -- Cass

11 comments:

  1. Oops -- MORE gone! Do you check the pockets (or suitcases) of guests as they leave? (Just kidding about the suitcases!! -- but I would check pockets!

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  2. I have had the same problem since my parents moved in to live with me....I see the correlation but they don't!! LOL!!! I love my stainless flatware but I got it many, many years ago with Betty Crocker coupons and they don't make it anymore. One of these days I will have to breakdown and buy new....for now I just supplement it with plastic.

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  3. Lucky break for you!

    I'd say good luck but you may need
    a security guard instead.

    :o)

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  4. When we had little ones it was socks and silverware that disappeared, but now......???
    Both sets are lovely, but have to admit that I am partial to the older set.
    That old saying just flashed into my mind...Lock the doors and bolt the windows! (((hugs)))

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  5. I had to laugh at your post. My mother used to insist upon counting silverware before anybody left on Thanksgiving. It always made me feel like bad company - however she had the awful experience when she was first married, of having her entire sterling silver set accidentally thrown away and my father had to search the town dump! He found it and saved the marriage...

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    Replies
    1. Well no wonder she checked for missing pieces! Holy smokes -- her STERLING got tossed? What a nightmare . . . and something that I'm sure would happen to me if I had sterling. It's probably a very good thing that I do not, or the missing flatware would REALLY drive me totally nuts!

      At parties, it is easy for someone to scrape off a plate, and send a fork along with the scraps, but I've never used my Royal Scroll flatware at a big party, there are no kids in the house, and we CHECK for runaway forks, spoons, etc., all the time when we clean up.

      It's a mystery; if I truly believed in ghosts who stole cutlery, I'd be really scared!

      Thanks for visiting ... Cass
      PS I'm guessing it was your Dad who accidentally tossed the sterling? How funny!

      Delete
  6. We finally gathered together a set of Betty Crocker stainless - in the very pretty St. Ives pattern - we saved the Betty Crocker coupons and sent them off for place settings until we had service for 8. (Way back then you could send in only coupons and get premiums from Betty Crocker). I was so proud of the pretty flatware - I loved it so. Many, many years later - our three children were adults - and we moved to Washington state - the silverware was no where to be found. We searched the unpacked boxes - and the still packed boxes - not a single piece - I was heartbroken - how could my beautiful silverware be completely gone (I think it went to your house to visit).

    Over the last few years I've found pieces of it at thrift stores - but they have had the silly habit of breaking up a set and putting mis-matched pieces in a bag - so I've had to buy a lot of silverware that I didn't want to get the pieces I did want - but now, except for enough iced tea spoons - I have service for 10. I tried ebay but that Betty Crocker stuff is outrageously expensive for the most part - and there are few pieces of St. Ives (maybe everyone's went missing).

    Funny how silverware does that. And every time I open my silver draw I smile and am content!!!

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  7. Yes this is a reality of life, at my house as well. Where do they go?

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  8. I have had the same problem with a paring knife that belongs to a set. Could not be found anywhere. I really think my house sitter threw it away by mistake. But I still look for it.
    Glad you found a great set on Amazon.
    Mary

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  9. First it was the socks.
    Then it was the bras.
    Things got serious, and it was the teaspoons from my everyday pattern.
    What next?!
    Is there an international ring of thieves interested only in the minutia of domestic life?

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  10. Your new flatware is an amazingly close match. Congratulations on getting a bargain!
    Nancy

    ReplyDelete

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