said the "Bells of Rhymney"...

Last April we began the expansion of the den. It had always been too small. Now that we have three grandchildren, it was obvious that room would be hopeless. And now that it's done, the expanded version of the room is wonderful. In the spirit of improvement, along with the expansion, we've been updating things in the house as well. While I'm still working it seemed like a good idea. We bought a new toaster oven, a new washer, a new dryer, a flat screen TV in the den, and a smaller flat screen in the kitchen. All these things have bells attached. Last Saturday, it was like living in a bell factory. When the washer was done, it played a little tune, as did the dryer. The toaster oven chimed when it was finished, so did the microwave. Strangely, so did the coffee maker. The little flat screen in the kitchen chimes when you turn it off or on. The old folk song "Bells of Rhymney" came to mind - "Ah, what will ya' give me, said the sad bells of Rhymney..."

This week-end we decided to celebrate the return of our upstairs porch for human habitation - and put up all the spinners and chimes that we had outside. One set of bells I bought ages ago never really responded to wind. LA doesn't have big gusts - but I think short of a tornado - these bells would never sound. We hung a dryer clamp by a string and put a round paper wind catcher under the clamp. They now ring very nicely even in a gentle breeze. Now outside - "said the bells of Rhymney...."