Mirror, mirror....

I divide my time between two houses, one in Michigan, the other in Tennessee. In both of them I have mirrors hanging everywhere, not just bathrooms and bedrooms but the living room, dining room, kitchen, basement. It's not because I'm vain, I like to look at rooms backwards.

First I admire the general appearance. Without fail, each room appears more spacious. I cannot figure out why. I marvel at the still life quality, the colors in the furnishings, the angle of a chair, the views out the windows. It's like I'm looking at a different house.

When I'm done with that, I move onto the main attraction; I try to see what's going on in the spaces that are outside my range of vision. I twist, and turn, stand on my tip toes, lean in, lean out. Since I have so many mirrors, I can spend countless whiles moving about the room, seeing it from different angles.

I know the concept is not new. Alice did this very thing in her "Adventures in Wonderland." But I didn't get the idea from her. I started this practice as soon as I was able to climb up on a chair and look in a mirror.

It's great fun and I suggest you give it a try.