Roughshod - Part One - "I Like"

Roughshod

Part One

"I Like"

            This is not about horses, riding, horseshoes, horseshoe nails or protruding horseshoe nails left protruding to gain traction.  It is not about traction.  Something has already gained traction and this does not need protruding nail heads to enhance its traction.

            This is about lines in the sand that are drawn by a roughshod traction that has been gained by first drawing a sand line and then stepping over that line in the sand to establish a next line in the sand with these lines being a ‘that may be denoted to be’ roughshod sand line; a line in the sand with figurative nail heads left protruding

            To gain traction.

            Stepped away from, it is a moving figurative sense of ordered direction that advocates a ‘roughshod’ way of discerning

            “Antiques”.

            This essay is about antiques and the roughshod directives of discerning them.  It is about old New England antiques and the effect of roughshod lines in the sand with protruding nail heads that have gained traction to...

            To what?

            To destroy them (old New England antiques).

            One may go to museums and see them; the destroyed old New England antiques, arranged in room settings.  The Concord Museum in Concord, Mass. has some.  The MET in New York has many.  No one goes

            To see them.

            Don’t tell me you do.  You don’t.  You visit the lines in the sand... with traction from protruding nail heads.  When you see that you feel you can do that ‘at home’ “too”.  You can.  You do.  It does look just like that; lines in the sand with protruding nail heads to gain traction that have all been... “done”... by... you.

            The ‘what that means’; the ‘result’, is that... you are over there doing that and the old New England antiques are over here doing

            Nothing...

            In their room setting displays that show a semblance of assembled historic design order purposely gathered to demonstrate lines in the sand of ... old New England antiques and their heritage (historic context)... too.  In most cases one has to pay admission to ‘get in’ to ‘see’.  That is not a roughshod line in the sand (paying admission).  It is a ‘way you do this’; “SEE” old New England antiques.  Do not worry that if one should “go see” a room setting displayed in a museum that one will be crowded out.  No... you will not be... crowded out.

            For myself... I find myself... “left alone”.  When I am viewing collected and arranged room settings of New England antiques.  In museums.  That I paid admission to view.  Many times... I have viewed the same museum room setting... many (“any time I’m going by”) times and... have yet to encounter “anyone else”.  There.  Fine; I like that.

            I expect that.

            I do.

            Don’t start a ‘going there’ because of me.

            Anyway... you’d fumble it.  Maybe not... if you “LIKE”... “BOUGHT” a modestly expensive BOOK about the room settings and the objects in them “IN” the museum’s room setting collection and

            READ IT

            BEFORE

            And after

            “YOU WENT” (the restrooms are down the hall on the RIGHT).

            So... noting the above, no wonder that you can ‘do that’ yourself in your house and having it come out looking like

            You did that (destroyed them).

            Old New England antiques.

            Yeah that’s what you did:  You brought in a ‘chest’ you ‘like’ and ‘found’ and have no idea what, as an object of design “IT IS” or any sense of it ‘relative’ to any other chest OR room setting OR place in New England heritage... OR New England history at all except that you have announced that you “LIKE IT” and

            Have no notion that it is, at best, a crummy piece of used furniture

            AND YOU HAVE IT ON DISPLAY

            TOO.

            (Roughshod with protruding horseshoe nails to gain traction).

            The chest (of drawers) you “found” gains traction?  It does.  You “add to it”

            “I collect antiques”.

            “SEE?”

            “I see what I see and SEE THEN

            That I can

            See too when

            I CAN too

            Then.”

            It is potpourri and smells like that too.  It is devastating.  VERY neatly ‘professionally framed’ “I PICKED THEM OUT” arranged wall decoration containing

            Absolutely nothing (the framed object has no merit of art, antique, design, history or heritage) yet you smile at them:  “I did that” (framed and wall hung your emptiness).

            May you imagine how many houses I am “insisted” I go in to... “oh”.  The buffet in the dining room is full of glass and china objects and sets of objects that are, in total and ‘to say the least’, not easy to sell at yard sales and flea markets yet obsessively displayed as a something;

            Not a nothing.

            The buffet would be better shown EMPTY?  No; the buffet is ‘so bad too’ that “It should go... too”.  And does not.  No... they “STAND” full of that crap in the same dining room pose for sixty-five years... until a ‘someone’ “hauls” it “away”.

            No one ever knows anything about anything ‘in there’ ever; during the

            “Whole Time”.

            The ‘whole life’ goes by with the “same crud”.  Not a spark of critical sense; a notice of critique, is ever studied ... upon the whole... “in there”.  Yes that includes the set of four ‘bridge chairs’ and their ‘folding card table’ “stored” “in the garage” after they were “bought at the...

            Stored.

            “WE NEVER USE THEM”.

            YOU ARE USING THEM... as a display object displayed in place (their ‘room setting’) to convey (state) your ‘sense’ of ...ah... ‘design’ in the ...your old New England... no...:

            It is simply “YOUR HOUSE” “IN” “NEW ENGLAND”

            It (the house, the décor and its decorator) is a... ‘squatter’.

            Roughshod.

            Now that is not very much fun is it.  Why don’t you take all that crud outside onto the lawn and sell it (a “yard sale”).  No... you cannot.  The... ah... “HOUSE” would be “EMPTY”.  So come in from the rear.  Carefully travel about seeking a single old New England antique.  Established antiquarians do not expect you to ‘know one’ ‘if you saw one’.  Understand that.  Then apply that:  They will help you.  This (traditional New England decorative taste) is not about what you like.  It is about classic New England decorative taste as traditionally found in traditional New England homes in traditional New England home room settings as best shown by establish museum collections of traditional New England decorative arts often time arranged and displayed in room settings for

            You

            To

            Study.

            And then... “START”.

            With one “THING” and with that being a one thing that you ...collected... with the understanding that it is a traditional New England ‘antique’ of certain recognized (by museum collections) New England decorative design merit.  Starting simple... perhaps a classic ‘Boston area’ “D top” ‘Hepplewhite (American Federal 1790-1820) “card table”.  One table:  One thing.  A real thing in “original condition” (not “repaired, faked, made up”.  Just a real antique).  Tables like this ARE “around” and “FOR SALE”.  Their current prices are ‘modest’ if not actually “cheap” due to the

            Lackluster interest for them.  Most New England homes do not ‘know what one is’ or know too... that it is a classic furniture fixture of the old New England home.

            Either.

            It (these tables) is not past a line in the sand of roughshod nail headed tractioned collecting commonly titled “I like antiques”

            Antiques in the old New England homes are not about what “I like”.  “It’s about what museums like”.  They like old New England culture.  That last word again:  Culture.