Old Clocks

We have an alarm clock that has two alarms on it, one for Dave and one for me.  At most times I don't hear it, even though it's on my side of the bed. It's there because there used to be a time where I would hear it and Dave wouldn't. To tell the truth, I'm surprised that it still works considering we bought it when we first moved into our house back in Virginia back in 1984.

Why don't we move it to his side of the bed? Well, to tell the truth, I don't know, just habit I guess. But if we both have to wake up early, after he's crawled over me to get to it, if I'm not awake already, he can wake me up.

On days where he goes into the office, I can count on Angel being my alarm clock because as soon as I move, she's right there licking my face and nudging me to get out of bed. Jake and Max will lick my face, but then they'll roll over onto their backs in wussy mode. Rolli can't get on the bed or she'd probably be trying to nudge me out too.

But back to that alarm clock. Our appliances are old too. Our stove is original to the house, which was built in 1979-80. We just recently bought a new one, but Dave has to convert it to propane. Our refrigerator is at least 16, but that alarm clock has them beat, well not the stove because it still works. But it's the only original clock we have that still works. We have other clocks in the house that work, but they're those battery wall clocks that I bought at Walmart. I think I even had to replace one of those. They do come in handy when the electricity goes out and we want to know what time it is.

I can't remember where we bought the alarm clock, probably KMart because I don't remember a Walmart being anywhere near back then, but I know there was a KMart.

Dave collects mantle clocks and we have some really nice ones. One, which does work now that I think of it, has the prettiest chimes that go off. He doesn't have it plugged in though. After awhile, the chimes got to be annoying and boy were they loud. We also have the mantle clock that my grandmother gave to my parents as a wedding gift. My mom gave it to Dave. He has since stripped off the old paint or varnish to reveal a gorgeous grain and two inlays in the front that we didn't know were there until he stripped all the other stuff off. It still needs a new crystal, the original one broke years ago before we got it. He also just bought another one on our return trip from Pittsburgh when we stopped at a big antique mall in Ohio. I'm not sure if that one works or not.

The ones he bought he didn't pay much for, probably less than $30.00 each at antique stores around here, but once he's redone them, they look great. He has gotten most of them running again, but since we don't want to hear clocks ticking all day and don't have the plug capacity for them, they stay unplugged. They're displayed in the dining room, but the one my mom gave him is prominently displayed in the living room on a shelf. I wish I had a mantle to put it on, maybe someday. I'm still looking for the perfect one.