Bringin' Mid-Century back

We did two things this weekend that we've never done as a family. Never. Together. In the one place. At the one time.

First, we all went to dinner! We went to the Paddington Barracks. To a place called FAB - Fish and Burgers. We wanted to go somewhere casual to 'test-drive' the six of us eating in public.

To be honest, we won't go back. The Paddington Barracks is really an overrated transit terminal.

And we were the only ones in the 'restaurant' ... which is really just a whole lot of plastic chairs in a mall ... and the staff spent the entire time we were there, sitting at the bar staring at us! Really! Don't know why.

Could've been because we kept asking them for complicated things such as serviettes or spoons; or the fact the Child 2 spilled his drink everywhere; or that we were all so darn cute. I don't know. Maybe they were willing us ...  telepathically ... to leave.

Free Range Kids photo

So then we had ice-cream. A female customer in the ice-cream shop said to me, "You must be busy with four boys!" I said, "I am busy, but only two of them are boys." And then she looked at me with a quizzical expression, and I then pointed out which ones were the girls. I thought, her cerebrum's going to have some problems when it comes to choosing her ice-cream flavour ...

Then I questioned the fact I don't deck my girl-childs in pink. Or the fact I, earlier that day, let Child One get her hair cut short. Are Child 1 and 4 that ugly they look like boys and the only thing that will define them is a pink ensemble?

So, to make myself feel better, I said, "Let's all pretend we're in New York watching the traffic and the subway."

Moving along ... the next day we then went vintage furniture shopping. Yes! The first time all together ... I wasn't looking forward to it. But, to Woolloongabba we headed.

Grandad reads the blog.

Everyone say, "Hello, Grandad!" Seems that he and Grandma have turned all nostalgic for the Spanish buffet we cleaned, so they want it back. So, it is not destined to be slapped with gloss 70s-orange. Anyway, to soften the blow of losing the buffet, Grandad offered to replace it with something more my taste.

Three cheers for Grandad and Grandma!

That's why we raced out to find something suitable before Grandad changed his mind ... or he forgot he made the offer.

This is a set of Arne Norell safari chairs for about $5000. They were owned by an international pilot who would flat-pack them and bring them all over the world to wherever he was living.

The people in the store recognised me because I look like my brother whom they know, and I caused them some irritation when I bought some chairs off them in the past ...

I said to the owners I'd buy the safari chairs when I get a job. I hope they don't 'hold' them for me ... because the job's sometime off. Though Child 2 paid me 15c today because he acknowledged I don't get weekends or public holidays.

Despite my reputation as an annoying customer, the owners were very friendly and I like them.

 An original Grant Featherstone chair with original upholstery for $2450.

We didn't last long in the Woolloongabba retro-furniture precinct.

LOOK! Bjorn Wiinblad poster in Brisbane! The Husband saw it! $450 ... I had to keep walking! I'm not sure if I should regret my non-purchase. It was framed stupidly.

I got sick of refusing to buy small plastic toy forklifts for $45, or crocheted tigers for $45, or Bobbleheads for $35.

So we decided to leave when everyone, except me and the Husband, started crying.

Or the shoelaces needed tying on the sulking, boyish-looking person whose birthday it was yesterday.