Granny's gold couch

Remember when I asked you to choose which couch I would write about? No? It’s been too long? Well, then, this will be new and exciting for you.

Or not. I am writing about a couch.

After tallying up the votes, it has become clear. You all are dying to know about my grandparents’ brown, gold and orange flowered couch.

[You all have weird taste. Kidding. But seriously? Orange flowers?]

Are you wondering why it’s taken me so long to get around to writing this post? Part of it is only that I’m a mess, always behind and doing things last-minute. This, I’m sure, comes as no surprise. But the other part is that I have so many random, seemingly unconnected thoughts and memories with that couch. It’s actually been hard to figure out how to write about it.

So I decided to make a list. Then I decided to do it on Tuesday. And that is how I came up with this Top Ten Tuesday list.

The Top 10 Things I Love About Granny’s Gold Couch:

1. It was retro before retro was cool.
2. As kids, we never had to worry about spilling. Those hideous flowers really hid stains well.
3. I have so many pictures of my cousins and me sitting on that couch, all bunched up together and laughing. Or posing. Or all looking in different directions. (above) You know, we didn’t have digital cameras back then.
4. It really was comfortable!
5. I know this well, because Mark moved into his first apartment around the same time Granny moved into assisted living. She sold that couch – and a matching chair, side tables and two orange lamps – to Mark for just $100.
6. If it hadn’t been for that couch, we probably wouldn’t have had anywhere for visitors to sit in our first apartment after getting married. With it, we had ample seating for our couples’ Bible study, various “dinner parties” (a.k.a. Little Caesar’s pizza for all or a taco bar on a card table), and just hanging out with our friends.
7. Owning and living with that couch in all its gold and orange flowered glory really made me appreciate the first couch we bought. Blue and green plaid, if you’re wondering, for quite a bit more than $100 (and, sadly, quite a bit more than we could really afford).
8. Back to the fact that I grew up sitting on this couch at my grandparents’ house . . . just thinking about it has taken me on a rabbit trail down memory lane, bringing to mind the sounds of Channel 5 news and Hee Haw, the taste of pudding cups and Pop Tarts (okay, that one isn’t a stretch), the sight of a wooden calendar and green coveralls, and the simple pleasures of feeding the birds, eating a brisket and going to the beauty parlor.
9. The couch’s matching chair made a great spot for the birthday girl to open – or, at least, pose with – her presents (below).
10. And apparently, the couch was so great that they bought it twice! Look at those pictures. The two chairs? Not the same. Both are gold, brown and orange. Both have flowers and fake wood. But they are different chairs. That, my friends, is priceless.

So, what about you? Are any of your memories connected to furniture?

ALSO - if you haven't taken my blog survey yet, would you please? It really won’t take more than a few minutes, and I really want to know what you all think about what goes on around here. Thank you!

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