Saturday, December 02, 2017

Old ornaments



Hi there! Thank you so much for your comments, it made me very happy to read them. (And yes, I have made the cats.) xx

I am grateful that of the wealth of the internet and its interesting contents, you come here to read my posts and leave comments. 

Today I’ll show you a few Christmas ornaments that I really do not like. I think they are Christmas ornaments, but maybe they are not.
On this log wall, there is a clock that measures time loudly and chimes every even hour and half an hour. We sleep upstairs, this clock is downstairs thus it does not keep us awake. It has never bothered me, because I grew up listening to it. It has always been in this house. Sometimes when I listen to the pounding, it brings back my childhood, very much the same way when certain smells remind you of something or tastes wake up strong images of the past. Think about it, I have listened to this same sound in this same room since I was a child… I don’t know just how it makes me feel… it is little odd, maybe… little scary, I am not sure if it is good or bad. I decide here and now that it is good, I mean, too late to think otherwise! We had the clock serviced few years ago, the room felt empty, because this steady hammering belongs to this room. I doubt that I am very much attached to it, more like I am accustomed to it.

But the ornaments you say…

They are hidden inside the clock. I am not certain how they have come to us, I believe they have been in my husband’s grandparents’ house or his aunt’s house, and I wonder if he remembers seeing them there. We have never discussed of the ornaments. I have not dared to share my dislike of them with him. I am not usually this considerate, and don’t seem to have any problem revealing him the truth, even when I know he does not want to hear it, but Christmas ornaments hold a special place in my heart and I have been afraid that this is true with him also. Come to think of it, I have known him more than 34 years now and during these 34 years he has never shown any interest in Christmas ornaments. But, there were few years before these recent 34 and maybe he was interested in ornaments then. Maybe he grew up with these ornaments like I grew up with this clock. We really need to sit down to talk about this. 

I have thought that I have hidden them away, but maybe he has always appreciated me of keeping them dust free behind this glass door. I sincerely hope they are not a family heirloom and you will understand me once you have seen them. (I am afraid they are special, because one of them was broken at some point and someone has lovingly glued it together. It does not look like this someone has sighed with relief seeing the gnome cracked and tossed it away being grateful that the universe has saved him/her of the reason to keep it.)
This elf or gnome has a gun, and his expression is mean. Totally bizarre. Anyway, to be able to tolerate his behavior, and truth to be told the only reason he can live amongst the ornaments is the reason that I have always thought that it is a hunting weapon. Honestly, it does not look like one. It is probably illegal. Even if I refuse to consider anything else but hunting weapons, it is still disturbing. One should not be waving guns around Christmas time. He stands behind the chime bars.

The other elf or gnome has startled or stoned expression on his face and it looks like he is either eating something or he has a pipe in his left hand. Or then, and this is a troublesome thought, he is afraid of the gun man and covers his mouth because he is terrified. Think about the tension inside the clock. I bet the loud hammering covers all the hostility that must be going on, or maybe this clock is the reason for this all. The strong beat might be driving them crazy.
The third guy, he is on his knees. Is he hitting the pig? Or even worse? Sadly, many pigs end up on plates, especially around Christmas time, but can this be happening here? I have looked and looked at the little grey guy, and I cannot tell. The more I think about this, the more I feel that I must rescue the pig; he could have so much better life somewhere else.

When they came to us, I put them inside the clock and I have never taken them out, I don’t want to touch them too much. They stand there all the year round, I see them every time I wind up this clock, which is once a week, totaling in 52 times a year.

Now I have two questions… no, I have three. Are these really Christmas ornaments? When and where were they manufactured (there is no "Made in" -label)? And the third one, to which I cannot find an answer is, what was their route before they ended up being trapped in my loud clock?

I wound up the clock since it is Saturday. The clock will chime in a few minutes that it is half past eight in the morning. It is accurate today, since I have moved the handles. It is usually slow, getting close to 10 minutes behind when it is time to wind up again. It is not black dark outside any more, the color is dark blue, the sun rises at 1018 today and sets again at 1350 (0150pm). The temperature is -3ºC (26F), with the wind factor it is -8ºC (18F), which makes lovely, mild weather for a pleasant walk with the dogs.

Hope you have a good Saturday,
Wool with you,
Lene

12 comments:

  1. Anne14:17

    I think the grey gnome is dancing. And they look old to me, and not like Christmas ornaments. More like garden gnomes. But I am no expert.

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  2. Lene, Is there a pattern for the kitties?

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  3. HAHAHAHA love this! I have an idea... make a tiny red cape for the man with the gun, or a target for him to be shooting at. I think the other man is eating something, make him a tiny basket filled with apples. And if the man and the pig are not attached to each other, tip the pig up on his back legs, so it looks like the man is asking him to do a trick!!

    You should be writing a book, your stories evoke such emotion. Thanks for sharing.

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  4. Can't really say much about the ornaments, though I can appreciate that they do not appeal to you (me, either). However, the clock made me stop in my tracks as we have almost the same clock on our wall (in US). The woodwork design is almost identical with a few minor minor differences, such as: ours is made of dark walnut; the inner workings are slightly different; and it doesn't work! Oh, and no gnomes inside. Since it doesn't work, there is no steady pounding which is good because this clock is just down the hall from the bedrooms. Think it was bought in Germany.

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  5. Hmmm..........can you 'accidentally' drop them?

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  6. Anonymous19:45

    They might be Heisner terra cotta gnomes. Not sure if those had marks on them, but the ones I've seen are quite odd. Might have value to a collector?
    My sympathies. I've been saddled with antique doll heads from the 1800s and am slightly perplexed.

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  7. You could rearrange the group so the armed gnome would be guarding the others. Maybe the one with his hand to his mouth does see something that makes him afraid, but not the armed gnome. There is nothing in the third one's hand so he isn't making plans for the pig, I would say. I favor the suggestion that they might have a better home with a collector.

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  8. Definitely rescue the pig! He deserves to live with peaceful others. Maybe the hitting one should be aimed at the one with the gun? Yikes. I think I would have "disappeared" these guys a long time ago............

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  9. The pig definitely looks sad; THAT would bother me!

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  10. I think it's time for these decorative items to "disappear." They are all ugly (There: I said it!). They don't seem like Christmas ornaments to be but rather just figurines. As to how they got there...I have absolutely no idea and cannot even hazard a guess! Time for a chat with your husband....

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  11. Like you and the others, I am worried for the pig. I did enjoy your descriptions though, I have to say.

    We have a few ornaments that my husband thinks are great, and I really don't like. I'm always relieved when they end up on the side of the tree that faces the wall.

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  12. Lene:

    I am with you. These don't "feel" like Christmas ornaments, or at least how we regard ornaments in this day and age. Perhaps as Bridget said, if you feel obliged to bring them in to the open, they could face away from your family.

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