Men and Wallpaper

My friend of ilovemyhouse blog's post yesterday reminded me of what my best friend and I went through when we decided to redecorate her guest bedroom. Men and the cost of WALLPAPER~they just don't understand it.
Several years ago, one late spring afternoon, my best friend and I decided that we were going to change out the outdated duck border in her guest room, so off we went to the department store and found a Martha Stewart border...it wasn't very much money actually, but enough that we thought we had better clear it with her hubby. We went back to the house, braced up for adversity, as we were accustomed to confronting~ all the while rehearsing our plea for the need of the demise of the duck, duck, goose. There we sat, across from hubby who had his face completely covered with the paper version of the news of the day...sat side by side muttering our rehearsed pleas of need which seemed to be running out of our chins beneath our bowed heads. The newspaper stayed in the same position..then the question...How much does it cost? Pinching ourselves (so that we would already be hurting when we heard the negative response and then it wouldn't hurt so bad) we spewed out the answer in the most enthusiastic positive voices we could muster..."Only $40.00"....The newspaper came down and hubby looked like a deer in the headlights...$40.00!?!!he grumbled.."No, you know we have to start the swimming pool maintenance and that costs money.." My friend's head bowed lower with disappointment. Mine went higher. "Ok, thanks friend's hubby". "You are probably right."
My friend looked at me in surprise as we left the room and I told her not to be discouraged..."this presents me with a challenge since I am so used to negative responses from my "No,the answer is No~ no matter what it is, NO" husband (not KennyRogersLookAlikeBeforeThePlasticSurgeryWentWrong~ the one before who looked like a Polar Bear). Come on, let's go upstairs and see what we can do". She opened a closet door in the duck room and inside were leftover rolls of pretty flowered wallpaper from the former home owners. "Ah, I said. "We work in your decorating shop, we are both very creative. We are going to make our own border out of this flowered wallpaper. I'll cut while you get the ladder and remove the little waddlers". Late into the evening till my back ached from curvature of the spine, I sat and meticulously cut individual flowers from the sheets of paper while my weary friend tore and scraped till she and I were both about to whine. "Lets just keep on, I prodded from underneath a bed of flowers. You are almost done and then you can rest and I'll start wetting and pasting." In another hour and a half we had the flowers scattered artistically across the tops of the walls as if blown by a gentle breeze. We were so pleased with our selves for having made the bed, arranged the vignettes on the dressers, hung pictures and fashioned a creative window treatment..all by 11 pm.
Hubby peeked in while on his way to bed..."Uh huh,looks nice. It's getting late, girls." We winked at each other..I wonder what he was really thinking...we love him! He feeds our imaginations!
We went downstairs and had a wonderful late supper of hot dogs on bagels...she can make a wonderful meal out of anything!