Gransnet forums

Gransnet cafe

Welcome to the *Gransnet Café. This is a non-judgemental space for you to pop in for a cuppa with some virtual friends, seek out advice for a particular problem, or share an update on your life - important or trivial. Feel free to have your say and chat about your day, but please leave any arguments at the door. If you're struggling to find someone to talk to in real life, or are simply looking for a bit of a chat, this is the place for you.

My life on the table

(80 Posts)
Anrol Sat 18-May-19 10:28:48

We are going away to CP in Suffolk with AS & his family for a few days next week. Consequently the house has piles of things ready to take & transfer to the car. I’ve just eaten my breakfast on the semi cluttered dining table. As I looked up it occurred to me the items pushed to one corner of the table portrayed bits and pieces of my character and interests; a vase of pale coloured roses, another vase of fake daffodils, my telescope in the corner, a dress with a spool of cotton on the top waiting for mending, a piece of pottery which has been drying in the sunshine from the window, a pair of gardening gloves & secateurs, a cut up pear & banana, a half drunk cup of tea (how many times do I do this) & a very old map book of England. I was wondering what few items would portray you?

Scentia Mon 14-Oct-19 17:37:08

On my side table. A pair of glasses, my kindle, a nice big bag of crisps maybe a glass of red wine or peppermint tea my grandson on my knee and my dog at my feet. This is heaven right there for me.

MiniMoon Mon 14-Oct-19 16:34:32

Nothing much on my kitchen table. Only a set of salt and pepper mills.
Surrounding me in the living room are, an empty mug which contained coffee, remotes for the tv, and most importantly, a large ball of blue mohair mixture yarn and my crochet hooks.

boodymum67 Mon 14-Oct-19 14:07:54

my wheelchair and my paint pens

suzette1613 Fri 11-Oct-19 20:33:28

I have a large kitchen table with my laptop on it, at the moment (usually on the side dresser). I love my cosy hopelessly old-fashioned kitchen, with its warming range cooker, dog basket and lots of Stuff. Also on the table is a crossword book, a bowl of rather sad looking tomatoes late of the greenhouse, my very useful set of Avery scales (only up to 2lbs, no metric so I have to mentally convert), two old chopping boards and a bag of rather hard runner beans. The vegetables didn`t do very well this year.
I could happily live in my kitchen!

TerriBull Thu 19-Sep-19 08:13:00

This is a nice thread. I envy you Pageturner, I'd like a sleeping cat on my table envy It irks me the table tends to be a general dumping ground. Most of the time it's just the two of us, so we eat at the breakfast bar perched on kitchen stools, so the table accumulates stuff. Two sets of house keys and our car keys, the post, which comprises of the important to be filed away, eventually after a while it's sorted and mail shots/circulars go in the recycling. At the moment there is a "Smyths" toy catalogue, I'm on their mailing list from a previous purchase, I've left it there for the GC to peruse to give me ideas for Christmas. When our sons visit, they always dump their sports bags/or rucksacks there grrrr! they get swiftly moved, I hate that sort of stuff being dumped on table that is used, albeit not everyday, for eating food off.

The essence of our life is spread round the house, such as photos of family, my laptop, husband's tablet, books etc., pens for codeword, crosswords, husband's Spanish CDs and Spanish books. Probably the coffee table is more indicative than the dining room table of our day to day lives.

PageTurner Thu 19-Sep-19 02:54:34

My dining table has a stretched out sleeping cat on it.
In the middle is a Lazy Susan with our last name and
Est.1966, to commemorate our 50th wedding anniversary, given to us by our DG 3 years ago.
I try to keep it cleaned off most of the time.

ginny Wed 18-Sep-19 23:04:44

Not much changed in 5 months. Dining table is just the same . Craft room just as messy but different projects on the go.
A case for DD2s laptop, a box with all materials for the next craft club project, a recently finished crochet blanket, a pattern and 2 beaded necklaces that need finishing plus several other bits and pieces.

Better a creative mess than an idle tidiness.

Barmeyoldbat Wed 18-Sep-19 19:27:27

My life is in two parts, the sofa and the dinning table not far away. Next to the sofa is a footstool piled high with cutouts from the paper, an iPad and an empty yogurt pot with a spoon in it. On the floor in front of me is my sewing, a load of patches waiting to be put together to make my quilt and also a small tray with an empty plate and glass. There are also three books on the floor.
The table is more more formal with a plant in the middle and two baskets that contain his and her paper work waiting to be done. Also my glasses. The laptop usually lives on the table but is on the sofa with me at the moment.
Does anyone use their table for the reason of eating?

Dawn22 Wed 18-Sep-19 18:58:31

First of all - a lovely post.

My harmonica. Sudoku. My phone. A piece of writing. Gym gear. Walking shoes. Comb and lip stick. Photos. Book. My harmonica, first and last.

moggie57 Fri 24-May-19 02:26:25

writing paper/craft items/cat on breakfast table/yes i know cats are not meant to be on table...trays of jewellery(i priced jewllery for salvation army charity shop). magazines on this england /evergreen magazine.kitchen is full of gardening items packets of seeds ..and bird food...i have cleared table of little bits today and cleaned the fridge out.......and vacuumed throughout. made my hips hurt but its done for this week.

cupcake1 Tue 21-May-19 16:40:05

Nothing apart from a decorative flower bowl ! I detest clutter - inside the cupboards however are a different story! blush

ginny Mon 20-May-19 22:53:58

Dining room table has a table runner and a decorative bowl.
Now, my favourite table is in my craft room.
On this table -: 2 ideas books, a partly made lap quilt, my small transportable sewing box, a pack of wool and the pattern for my next crochet project, a 3D fabric caravan that I made at a workshop and some photographs that need sorting.

Anrol Mon 20-May-19 20:28:36

Just loved reading all your posts and thank you for being so generous to share your tables with me. It warms my heart to think most of us are very similar.

lemongrove Mon 20-May-19 13:21:49

My dining table has nothing at all on it, I like to see the wood.
The coffee table near me is another story though, and at the moment has various magazines, a few coasters, two empty coffee mugs, a box of kleenex, a high pile of about seven books waiting to be read, a Kindle, glasses case, a bowl of apples and two birthday cards waiting to be written. Bizarrely, there is also a screwdriver and a red nose ‘wolf’ which DGS must have put there at the weekend.

Tillybelle Mon 20-May-19 12:13:51

justwokeup. Oh poor you! You deserve a huge pat on the back - admin for someone else! That is kindness beyond generosity in my book! Maybe being a thoughtful and helpful person who thinks of others is difficult to represent in objects on the table.

Niobe Mon 20-May-19 10:12:22

My little used pine dining table is 30 years old now and the surface bears all the scars and dents of family life. Usually the only thing on it as an Edinburgh crystal bowl or a vase of flowers. At the moment it has a pile of dried washing on it which I shall iron while watching Homes Under the Hammer.
My new kitchen table is covered with a PVC cloth in shades of grey and beige and on it are 4 placemats to take hot dishes, my husband's iPad and a large glass bowl ( originally bought to make large trifles for family gatherings) containing 4 mangoes and some apples . There is also a label I have made to put on the old garden pot which I was hoping to plant up with bedding plants but it turned out to be made of asbestos. This label reads "Warning- Asbestos, do not breathe Dust". The pot is 1.1 metres in diameter and is wrapped in heavy duty plastic ready for the council contractors to pick it up tomorrow.
On the coffee table I have the tv remotes, my knitting, iPad, mobile phone , some coasters and the current edition of the Radio Tmes as well as the half finished cup of cold tea which will now be discarded for a cup of coffee as I finish watching HUtH and the ironing can wait.

CanadianGran Mon 20-May-19 05:57:47

No dining room, but my kitchen table stays mostly tidy between meals. I do love magazines, and will read while I have my coffee in the morning. It is the centre for newspaper reading, arts and crafts with grandkids, but it does get cleared up constantly.

Same with coffee table in living room. Books, coffee mug, knitting etc. do get put away. In the centre there is usually a smallish plant or vase of flowers, currently a white kalanchoe.

I do enjoy hearing about everyone's items, since it does tell about your life. I like a house to look lived in, but tidy.

Shirleyw Mon 20-May-19 05:12:46

One of my coffee tables holds a lot of my stuff.....slimming world, good housekeeping and good food mag, a pile of cook books I chose for this weeks meals, notepad and pen to jot down menus for the week and shopping list, always a half mug of tea, also on there at present credit card bill lol....

Tillybelle Sun 19-May-19 21:41:14

I know it is very unfashionable but after a period of clinical and disciplined austerity regarding all areas, I have decided to embrace clutter! I like having some things around! Obviously not ridiculously crowded so they are falling over onto the floor! But it's nice to see the things I'm doing and all their colours and simply the variety of interesting things around. It reminds me a bit of my first real job as a Teacher in a Primary school. I loved my classroom! Seeing my things around me sort of reflects that there are interesting and enjoyable things in life. Even the glue-pot, which should be in the cupboard, reminds me that I did some interesting craft and that there is more to come...

Tillybelle Sun 19-May-19 21:28:38

Anrol I sincerely have to say, and do hope I don't sound like a creep, but I absolutely love your collection!

Mine, now I'm a cripple (OK to describe myself thus?) is slightly different from what it would have been.... On the little table and next to me on the sofa:

Dog leads and the small dog's sling. Dog - small. Current 3 or 4 books I'm on. Small dog. Cup and saucer of the week - this week fairly plain one. Flask of coffee. Errrr how can I hide a secret stash? Well, it's Asda's Whirlies (packed with sugar tut tut), small dog, squares of cotton I'm simply edging. Pot of dog treats. Laptop. Dog - small. Sewing Box. Hand cream (very sore hands). Big notebook. Very small dog. Small notebook. Pens. Powered wheelchair + bag - nearby.

travelsafar Sun 19-May-19 19:01:02

I think it would be my bowling bag in the hallway, my knitting in a bag either on the sofa or beside it.The daily newspaper somewhere in the same area. There are usually my tablet and speaker ready loaded with a good story to listen to whilst knitting or the tv remote so i can find something to watch that isnt demanding whilst i knit. I have several pots plants and gardening mags too. Oh yes, my mobile would be beside me too.

justwokeup Sun 19-May-19 17:39:37

What few items would portray me? I can't actually think of anything which says 'me'. I do have quite a lot of 'admin' on my table (which is why I'm looking at GN) but it's for someone else. I think I'm feeling sorry for myself now....

Coolgran65 Sun 19-May-19 17:21:09

Don't have a table in my kitchen. The dining table at the moment is set for Sunday dinner, they all 6 of them arrive in about a half hour. Otherwise it always has a vase of fresh flowers that get pushed to the side for dgc homeworks or a game of ludo. It is never cluttered.

However, my coffee table only a few yards away is a different story. Todays Sunday papers and supplements, one has a half done crossword and a completed Sudoko. My drinking water bottle, phone, tissues, wipes. Biscuit barrell and three empty coffee mugs. (Sis in law called earlier). Spectacles case, two pens, a tape measure, sellotape, blue tack, hand cream, car keys. Letters from Bank and Hospital appointment.

I'm off to tidy/clear up my coffee table......

Happysexagenarian Sun 19-May-19 16:52:24

Half of my dining table is laid for our evening meal which DH is cooking. The other half sports three craft books, the left over remnants of my recently finished Macrame, my pincushion, my next sewing task which I need to draw a pattern for, two Which magazines, a David Austin brochure and a pen. This is actually quite tidy for our table, any flat surface in our house gets cluttered, usually with my stuff. The words tidy and minimalist are just not in my dictionary!

Greciangirl Sun 19-May-19 15:55:17

I agree with lindylou.
I can’t abide clutter.
My dining table just has salt and pepper pot, and two tablemats.

How on earth can you find anything underneath all that stuff.