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Post by Eleanor Walsh on Jan 7, 2011 1:26:03 GMT -5
Who was it, Eleanor wondered, that came up with the idea of paint swatches? It seemed such a silly thing, really, as if little tiny colored squares on little strips of paper were supposed to help a person decide it a certain color really worked in a room.
She was standing in the middle of the room, holding up the paint swatches in front of her, trying to pick a color to paint the wall. She wanted to surprise Nora with a fresh paint job when she got home. But what color to use? Seafoam? Aquamarine? Cornflower? They all had such stupid names...
"Oh, heck with this," she said aloud. She tossed the swatches over her shoulder and took out her wand, waving it around, then pointing it at the wall. Immediately the wall turned into a seafoam green.
She looked at it for a moment, frowning. "No, not right at all. Much too... green. How about...." She waved her wand again, and the wall turned a deeper, bluish green. "Oh, ew. No way." She waved it a third time, and was still admiring the cornflower blue wall when the door opened.
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Post by Nora Churchill on Jan 7, 2011 2:12:26 GMT -5
Nora had been out a few blocks away with her large sketch book and pack of kohl pencils. It was one of those rare days where the sun was about three fourths of the way out from the clouds and it felt nice in the sunshine. There were several different people in the small park and she made a mental image of them as she started to draw them. The drawing took her a little while to do but she didn't go into too much detail. After all, the kohl pencils would have smeared if she tried to go into detail and he didn't want her hard work just smeared.
Admiring her drawing, Nora looked back up and the scene was completely different. The man walking with his dog was gone, the little girl and her mother had walked off to a different part of the park. Gently, Nora closed the large sketch book and then looked at her hands. Once again her hands were covered in black. Brushing her hands together to attempt to get some of the excess kohl on them off. She grabbed her bag and put it on her shoulder as she picked up her sketch book to head back to the apartment she shared with her best friend.
Eleanor was probably the only person that Nora could live with. The two balanced each other out in different ways and maybe that was why they were such good friends. Reaching the apartment, Nora reached for the door and opened it. A new color was on the wall and she stopped for a moment to look at the walls.
"Redecorating," Nora asked as she closed the door.
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Post by Eleanor Walsh on Jan 7, 2011 17:08:39 GMT -5
Eleanor jumped at the sound of Nora's voice, then turned around guiltily. In general, household things such as cleaning and cooking and decorating were not her strong point, although Nora wasn't always so great at them, either. But Nora was the artistic one, and Eleanor knew she probably should have consulted her before painting. But she wanted to try and do something for herself.
"Oh, hey.... I was hoping to be done before you got home. This is actually just a test... I was trying to see if any of these colors went with the curtains, before I actually painted. So what do you think of this one? It still doesn't quite go with the curtains, but I like it better than the other two colors I had picked out...."
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Post by Nora Churchill on Jan 7, 2011 17:42:33 GMT -5
Nora let out a laugh. There were only certain people that heard her laughter. She could picture Eleanor's face as she had tested the colors on the walls. "Well, we could always change the curtains," she said with a shrug. "If you like that color, we can go with it and just change the curtains." Nora wasn't too terribly picky when it came to the color of the walls. She didn't want the walls to be too dark however.
"But that color is okay, not too dark. It makes the room look a little more open." Nora took a glance to the walls then to the curtains. Yes, the curtains could be changed no problem. "Were you just repainting this room or were you going to do the whole apartment?"
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Post by Eleanor Walsh on Jan 8, 2011 16:55:38 GMT -5
Eleanor frowned and looked from the wall to the curtains. "I like it... but I like the curtains, too," she said, sighing. "Maybe we could just keep the lights low in here, and no one will notice that the wall is a slightly different color from the curtains. It's not like we have tons of guests up here, or anything, right?"
But she knew that if she left it the way it was, it would bug her after a while. She spent a fair amount of time in the apartment, reading, or trying to clean, or watching the muggle TV set that Nora's parents had rigged to work without electricity. What she really needed was a job, or a hobby, or something. Unfortunately, she could now cross interior decorator off the list of possible careers for herself.
"You know what? Let's get out of here. I'm bored out of my mind."
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Post by Nora Churchill on Jan 8, 2011 17:33:57 GMT -5
She thought about telling Eleanor that it didn't really matter about the curtains, but she knew that Eleanor would end up changing it again anyway because the color would end up bugging her. Nora was just going to let it slide.
At Eleanor's suggestion, Nora smiled. "Okay, let me just put this stuff down and wash my hands. I'm sure that people don't want me getting kohl on whatever I touch." She laid her sketch book down on the counter and headed over the the kitchen sink to wash her hands. She never minded getting her hands dirty every once in awhile, but she didn't want to leave marks of where she had been if she touched anything.
Drying her hands off, Nora kept her bag on her shoulder. "Ready whenever you are Ellie."
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Post by Eleanor Walsh on Jan 8, 2011 19:39:41 GMT -5
Eleanor sighed and put the paint swatches on the coffee table on her way into her bedroom. Their cat, Darcy, was stretched out on her bed, looking rather like a fluffy grey pillow with black stripes. After stopping to pet the cat for a moment, Eleanor went to the closet and pulled out a green top that really set off her eyes. She hadn't even decided where she wanted to go yet, but she always wanted to be prepared in case she met a cute guy.
She changed her top quickly, then brushed her hair and quickly freshened up her makeup before grabbing her purse and heading back to the living room. "All right, I'm ready. Where do you want to go?"
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Post by Nora Churchill on Jan 8, 2011 19:48:30 GMT -5
Nora, on the other hand, didn't bother changing or brushing her hair. She took a seat on the couch in the living room to wait on Eleanor. She didn't mind waiting, after all, Nora didn't liked to be rushed. She liked taking her time to get to places, but she could hurry if she had to.
Once Eleanor came back out of her room, Nora stood up. "I have no idea where we should go," she said with a shrug. "Maybe we should just go walk around and see where we end up." Nora thought for a moment. "Although, of one of those places we end up, can it be that clothing shop that has the mannequin in the window?"
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Post by Eleanor Walsh on Jan 9, 2011 9:57:31 GMT -5
Eleanor nodded absently. "Yeah, OK. That sounds fine. And I could really go for a good cup of coffee. So we can just walk around for a while and see where we end up."
It seemed sort of a metaphor for her life. Always wandering, trying to figure out where she wanted to go. Often, she just let fate take her where ever it wanted. But she really needed more control than that. She was really going to have to figure out what it was that she wanted for her life. If not for Nora, she might have really been lost.
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Post by Nora Churchill on Jan 10, 2011 10:34:01 GMT -5
"Coffee sounds amazing," she said as she opened the door. Nora really needed to get a set job. Sure, she took photos every once in awhile for someone, but she needed something stable. Part of her wondered if she should open up some sort of studio. She could either photograph people, or she could draw them if they wanted a painting. However, she needed more money in order to rent a building. Maybe she should go to one of the shops to see if they needed more help, but part of her knew that she wouldn't be too happy there. The only thing she was truly happy doing was her art and photography. If she had some other job, goodness knew she would be bored.
"Maybe we'll just start at the coffee shop and then just go from there."
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Post by Eleanor Walsh on Jan 11, 2011 1:01:00 GMT -5
At least Nora had her art. Eleanor had nothing. She didn't have any outstanding talents or interests, not really. And she didn't want to do anything unless she thought she could be the best at it. Maybe it was the wrong attitude to have, but she wanted to stand out in some way. Maybe then her mother would come back for her.
"That sounds good to me," she said, nodding. "Coffee, shopping... who knows what else? Let's just have fun."
She checked her reflection once more in the mirror by the door, then started out of the apartment.
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Post by Nora Churchill on Jan 13, 2011 12:58:01 GMT -5
"Good," Nora said with a smile. Eleanor got to see Nora's sarcasm, but it wasn't really like the type of sarcasm that she used with other people. With other people, it could be a little bit more bitter. Sometimes Nora couldn't help it. If people said stupid things, they deserved something like that, or at least she thought so. Eleanor wasn't like that. After all, the two girls grew up together and Nora knew Eleanor better than she knew herself.
"Maybe I'll try something different at the coffee shop this time, even though I say that every time we go." Nora liked to stick with the things that she was familiar with and maybe that was going to be one of her downfalls one day. Although, she could possibly start off small by changing what she bought at the coffee shop.
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Post by Eleanor Walsh on Jan 13, 2011 23:24:28 GMT -5
Eleanor, on the other hand, was the exact opposite of Nora. She never seemed to settle on just one thing; she always had to try something different. It was her way of deciding what she actually liked--she tried everything, and then just went back to the things she liked best. She did this with just about everything she did. Maybe it was being brought up in such a closed-minded atmosphere, but she never wanted to limit her options. She kept an open mind about everything.
"Well, if you chose something I've already had before, I can tell you if it's any good," she replied, shrugging. "But really, just about everything I've had is pretty good, so you probably can't go wrong."
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Post by Nora Churchill on Jan 15, 2011 15:15:07 GMT -5
Almost everything Eleanor liked food/drink wise, Nora liked it too. In fact, Nora ate almost anything. However, when it came to her coffee, she always went with her usual. Today was a new day and she should try something different. There was nothing wrong with changing things up a little bit.
Nora adjusted the bag on her shoulder again as the two girls started on their way to the coffee shop. "I was thinking about possibly selling one of my paintings to an elderly couple. The man approached me earlier about it while I was at the park. I think I might do that, just to have a little bit extra money."
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Post by Eleanor Walsh on Jan 17, 2011 11:43:09 GMT -5
"That sounds like a good idea," Eleanor said,nodding. "We really could use the money. I guess it was kind of stupid of us to get an apartment together, when neither of us has an actual job, huh?" She laughed at this, but the truth was, she felt a little guilty. Nora was usually the one who had the money, sometimes from selling paintings or photographs, and sometimes borrowed from her parents. Eleanor really needed to get some kind of job, even if it was just in a shop somewhere, so that she could contribute to the rent.
"Hey, have you considered taking some of your paintings to the art gallery here in town? Maybe she'd be willing to display them there, and you might be able to sell a few more of them."
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Post by Nora Churchill on Jan 17, 2011 23:03:27 GMT -5
Nora laughed. "Nah, we're doing pretty good right now. I mean we haven't gotten any eviction notices from that odd man." She didn't mind Eleanor not having a job. "Besides, we should live on our own. Quite frankly, I don't want to live with my parents forever, even if I do love them dearly." Nora shrugged. "Besides, we might be able to both have full time jobs if some how my idea magically comes true about having my own photography business." She hadn't really sat down and discussed it with Eleanor about opening a business, but the idea had been mentioned before.
"I thought about going there. I don't think my portfolio is big enough yet to take it there. There has to be more of a variety before I can go ask." When it came to her art, Nora was a little bit picky. If one color wasn't what she had the idea for it to be, she had to start all over. When it came to other things, Nora wasn't too terribly picky. "I'm going to possibly paint Hogsmeade or Diagon Alley and then take it over there. A lot of my paintings are done in the park. I have a few paintings of just people. I'll have to go through all the things that I have already and decide."
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Post by Eleanor Walsh on Jan 21, 2011 1:03:24 GMT -5
"Well, he wasn't that happy with us last month, when we were a week late with the rent," Eleanor pointed out. "I had to flirt with him to get him to agree to give us that extra week. I mean, ew."
She rolled her eyes at this. Yes, she had an ability to get men to do what she wanted by flirting with them, but it was better when the guy was cute. The landlord was not cute. He was old, and he smelled funny.
"I don't know. Maybe I really should get some kind of job in town, just for a little while. To give me something to do, at least. After all, we need money if we're going to start that business. But I understand why you don't want to go to the gallery just yet. Especially if we can start that business.... then we could display your paintings there as well and offer them for sale."
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Post by Nora Churchill on Jan 21, 2011 12:29:51 GMT -5
Nora gave a laugh. "Oh come on Ellie, you know that he's quite sexy and completely your type," she said jokingly. Their landlord was sort of creepy anyway, but he was nice in his own way.
"Exactly, but if we need fast cash, I could still go to the gallery and see what happens. I mean I have some money tucked back for the studio but it's not quite enough for the building. I could go make a down payment on it, but I don't know if I'll get the rest in time. I might try the craft store that is in London. It might be an okay job for now anyway." Nora gave a sigh. Sure, sometimes times could be tough, but some how Eleanor and Nora always made it through.
"We'll figure it all out eventually."
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Post by Eleanor Walsh on Jan 22, 2011 18:41:20 GMT -5
Eleanor wrinkled her nose in disgust. "Oh, please. He smells like old cheese and vinegar." Still, she had to admit that he had never tried anything inappropriate, even when she had to flirt with him to convince him to extend their deadline a little longer. That was a point in his favor, because a lot of guys wouldn't have been so polite.
"You could try the craft store. Or maybe you could find a photography studio to work... just to get your experience up. Oh... and I bet you could sell some of your pictures to the Prophet or to other newspapers on a freelance basis."
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Post by Nora Churchill on Feb 1, 2011 13:40:19 GMT -5
"Freelancing," Nora repeated. "I could do that. It could give me a chance to be nosy." She gave a laugh. "Maybe I could work in the photography studio here in London. They get fairly good business and it is the only photography studio near here." If she got a job at the photography studio it wouldn't be so bad. Plus, it could be a great way to go ahead and get her name out to the public.
"I'll go first thing in the morning to ask," she decided. "I could get a portfolio together tonight if I have to. Would you care to be my model for a few photos? We could do it later today before it gets dark."
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