thea quilts

2012-01-29T07:36:00.000-08:00

Small proof that I haven't been captured by a band of roaming Gypsies. Life around here is just a little busy right now. Alright, a little busy is not nearly strong enough. There is so much to be done of an organizational nature(eeeeeek)that I just grabbed some plastic bags off the shelves the other day and decided to see what was in them. Pieces of the above quilts-that's what. I finished the rows on the Avignon/Sandy Klop piece and put a border on it. It will make a sweet little wall hanging for a new space and there will certainly be lots of those coming soon. The Bali hand dyed blocks just needed to be put together and that will most likely be the same. A small wall hanging.

When I made the last baby quilt I was together enough to make a lot of nine patch blocks (above in Whimsy fabric) for a second quilt and good thing I did. I'm currently finishing that top for a niece's baby. This fabric has been a favorite of mine but now that I'm on the third quilt made with it, I think I've seen it enough for a while. It goes to the shelves and will stay there for a while.

The happy couple is coming with Lucy later to have dinner with me. I have some work to do around here before that. It's another bright shiny day in January(unbelievable joy) however the sunshine just points up the amazing amount of dust I have ignored for too long. Off to Vacuum with the super sucker and do some laundry. Maybe I can work in a little sewing before they arrive.

I almost forgot to mention that I bought one of those light therapy lamps from Amazon. It should be here in a couple of days. Many of my blog friends have mentioned that they are aflicted with SAD which is essentially a feeling of depression and sadness in the winter time from the change in daylight hours and sunlight. These lamps are supposed to help with that by flooding the room with light that mimics sunlight. You need to have it on at least an hour and they recommend it in the morning and even as a wake up light. I read a couple of reviews that also mention how much better the light is for reading. I'll let you know how it turns out.

ALSO...what the hell is up with Blogger? No matter how I configure a page as soon as I hit publish it totally screws everything up and re-configures the page any old weird way....Grrrrrr

Talk soon...

Dude!!

2012-01-15T07:42:00.000-08:00

Me and the boys want to fill you in on the latest.....Aren't these the best looking pair? Let's face it-Corgis have taken over my life and heart.

I thought that since I have no sewing to show for myself maybe the boys would make up for it. I found them on Google and since I am mentally 12, this is the best I can do to razzle dazzle you with stuff so you won't notice how the name of the blog is soooo not what's going on.

Rumor has it that Lucy made off with a hot blueberry muffin last night. I hear that she swallowed it whole and then realized that it was still pretty hot. Much water was scarfed but Lucy says that food filched from people always tasted best-even hot.

We had a meeting with our architect to finalize some design ideas followed the next day by a measuring session where they went from roof to basement and all around. Measuring for the final drawings to take to the Town for approval. It's a bit of a crap shoot as to how things will be received and how long it will take to get permits. Meanwhile, we have to audition some contractors that have been recommended by various people. Fingers crossed, we can begin construction in spring. Essentially, the entire older portion of the house, my in laws original house before we added on ours, will be torn up and re-constructed. I figure on a lot of noise, a lot of dust, and a lot of patience needed by all of us. Hmmm. Noise cancelling headphones may be the way to go for me. One of the really good things is that we will be getting a large dumpster and that means that I can go into the attic and get rid of things from 1990. How very easy it is to close that door and go on with life. Ugh, wnat a lot of junk up there.

In the meantime we are planning a big trip to a wedding in late spring. Our niece is getting married Memorial Day weekend and my BIL Bob has spent a long time trying to get the best flights and reservations. The whole famdamly is going so there is much to co-ordinate. We have a friend who is consruction savvy and will take the reigns while we are gone. It often seems like nothing happens for years and then all of a sudden you have two very important things at once. Like tv, there's nothing on for two months and then one night every darn thing is on at 9pm on Sunday. I have no tech skills so even though I hear rumors that I have a tivo-like service on our cable, I haven't figured it out yet. That leaves me with The Good Wife and Downton Abbey to sort out. I'm a big fan of Good Wife but just now I am reading about Lady Almina Carnarvon who is the basis for the wife in Downton Abbey. It's a really fun book to read and taken from hstorical documentaion by the current Countess of Highclere. Highclere is the castle where Downton is being filmed. There are chapters on the upstairs and the downstairs. Fun reading for me anyway. Unless you are a history buff you might find it all boring. I am also reading Moveable Feast, it's a compilation of stories by famous writers in various countries and their memories of meals in those places. Great stories, I highly recommend it. Anthony Bourdain does the forward.

I'm not sure if it's a good thing but we have yet to have the white stuff falling outside. Don't want to say the word for fear of jinxing it. It did turn bitter cold in the last day though. Bright and sunny for now so ....whew.

I better attend to some laundry and think about dinner-or maybe I'll just go get the Kindle Fire and read some more about Lady Almina. Oh! I almost forgot. I finally read a book I have had forever and it just got lost in the shuffle. I'm a big fan of Alice Hoffman and The Red Garden is wonderful. It is written in her special style. All the stories a about a town in the Berkshires from it's inception to the present. The stories are rally wonderful, sort of magical, and every bit Alice Hoffman. If you have read Practical Magic or Blackberry House you will remember the way she writes. Her characters are often imbued with some type of magical powers or abilities to survive terrible things. She makes the people jump of the page. There are not a lot of true storytellers left in the literary world but Alice is one of the best. Magical realism

Talk soon.

The unexpected sweetness of life

2011-12-28T10:16:00.000-08:00

Not sure what to write about today until I made a trip to the grocery store. Strange where small moments of sweetness pop up. I don't usually have too much good to say about grocery shopping-the price and quality and annoying clerks are usually the main topics. Today, I had this lovely experience.

One a week(sometimes more) I go to the Sushi bar at the grocery store where a very kind and well mannered young man began working about a year and a half ago. The bar is called Danny Sushi and over the course of this past year + I have gotten to know him a bit. We became friendly and a stop to chat was always on the list for me. About half way through the year+ he began to ask me if he was saying things correctly in English and would I correct him if not. I told him I would be happy to help. Then when I did help him with different confusing things he would add some little treat to my purchases-free of charge. Crab rolls, Shrimp shumai, stuff like that. I told me one day that he would make any rolls that I wanted. Even ones that normally don't appear in his case. This led to some very delicious things. He made me Futomaki and Tamago rolls. And so it went for months. Last week I picked up my sushi and gave him a nice pair of gloves commenting that his hands needed protecting since they are the hands of a Master. We laughed and wished each other a good holiday and that was that. Today I stopped by to wish him a happy New Year. He had made me my favorite rolls and shrimp shumai when he saw me in the store-all free of charge. I nearly wept -it was the most touching thing from this man who barely knows me. A tiny gift but full of special care and goodness. We did the bowing to each other thing which, if done well ,can lead to much laughter. You bow, I bow, you bow again, rinse, repeat. Very funny.

There is much to be happy with in the world. Most of it is the sweet stuff, the tender stuff and the small gifts of friendship.

I want to thank you for the gift of yours and wish you a simple, sweet and healthy year ahead.

All the news that's fit

2011-12-26T04:48:00.000-08:00

Hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas, or depending on what you celebrate, a lovely day. I'm almost afraid to mention that the weather is still kind of wonderful for December. It will turn around soon, I'm sure, so until then...woohoo!

I managed to get through the day, despite some feelings of sadness, because I started my day with a visit from Lucy. The Happy Couple had brunch with Dani's family and left Lucy here to enjoy the full-on spoiling of the pup. I was pretty proud of myself for the job I did on Christmas dinner. Roger was the chef who handled the big jobs in the kitchen like Leg of Lamb and Prime Rib. I had never before cooked a Prime Rib. Now I have. With such an expensive piece of meat I panicked a little thinking about turning it in to pot roast instead of the juicy roast it should be. Yay Me! It could have been a little more rare but the last 15 minutes made for a bit more done than I would have liked. Still, it was soooooo goooood. Nine pounds of gooood! I missed the fun that we used to have of cooking together but all in all it was a lovely day. We finished the left overs yesterday.

Dani & James surprised me with a Kindle Fire. It was a really big surprise and I played with it all day yesterday. So many apps! I downloaded several games and played so much yesterday that I ran down the battery by 10 last night. I guess the games take a lot of power. Anyway, I love it. My best pal Terry got one too. To illustrate the difference between her and I-I have books and games-she will download practical things like notepads and financial stuff. She really is the adult in this relationship.

Further good news, we got the preliminary plans for the new addition on the house as well as an estimate of the cost. Big Gulp but not that surprising. Now we will have to decide what gets done and what waits for another day. The new house and the refurbishing of the old section will be our priority right now. Some of the other stuff goes into the maybe next year file. The 3-car garage is the biggest thing that will have to wait. It adds nearly a hundred thousand dollars to the total. That's a hundred thousand too much right now. It's this type of thing that makes me miss Roger the most. He would have handled this whole thing with no mental trauma. Me...not so much. I will just have to wrap my little brain around the thing and take big breaths.

I'm going to clean up the house today and make a trip over to the cemetary. Roger's headstone was placed on his grave a few days ago. It took a lot of time since I had a beautiful locomotive etched on to the stone for my train collector. Now that it's up I'll go and put some greenery there.

I'm learning to live with my feelings not overwhelming me all the time. Life is not so bad, it's just different and I guess I have to live with that. Or maybe a better way to put it is to live with it at peace. I've been very angry and sad for so long. Like a great heavy thing to carry around daily. The weight seems less now and I work at not being angry & sad daily.

Wishing you all a Happy New Year. Hope to be back soon.

new day

2011-12-07T14:48:00.000-08:00

I wrote the last entry in an effort to get what is probably known as closure- it's time to try to move along. Thanks to my dear friends who have virtually held my hand and cried with me.
Time to stop crying and get busy living.

Hey! It's almost Christmas!!
I've decided that I need a little of that.

For the past few days I have been trying to shake off the remnants of the flu. All I can say about the flu is WOW. Didn't know the body could do that. Not pretty at all. When the sight of food on the Food Network makes you nauseated you know it's bad.

Before the on-set of the flu last week we had a visit from the Architect who will be drawing up the design for our house construction. It was exciting and a lot of fun to watch James & Dani talking about their wishes and desires for their home. BIL Bob put in his needs and wants-new bathroom suite and bedroom re-design in the old wing of the house to include a sitting room/office area. The decision to totally destroy the killer staircase in the old house. My Late FIL Jim built that part of the house and as much as I loved him...he had no instinct for design. He was an engineer in aerospace development. Aesthetics...not so much. Never has there been such a steep, narrow dark staircase. Still, his good original bones of a house will be a good base.
All of the things that need attention in my world are cosmetic. New floors and appliances-full paint job, new oven and vent hood and after the financial dust settles, a slightly larger kitchen and desk/computer area. That can wait till we see how far our shekels will take us.
Right now, the most important part is to get the kids into a house and out of their shockingly expensive, massively overpriced apartment. In order to accomplish that we need to make Bob a nice new space. He is of the opinion that he does not want to negotiate stairs anymore so his suite will be on the lower level and privately accessible. Since Bob loves to sit on the porch we will build him a new one. The one he has now sits where the new part of Dani & James house will be. I'm waiting, not too patiently, to see what the architect has in mind.
Today is Lucy day..woohoo. That will keep me busy.
Also in breaking news-two beautiful babies were born in the last two weeks. A nephew for me and a baby girl for my hair dresser Diane. The quilt made from Whimsy fabric has finally gone to it's new home.

The Year

2011-12-06T09:24:00.000-08:00

Ordinary days winding along in familiarity
Do the dishes
Clean the kitchen, load the dishwasher
The phone rings
In a moment life changes forever in all the worst ways possible.

Love suspended
Your life disappears before your eyes

The love of your life remains only in photos that tug at the heart
Silence is less than golden It is, in fact, frozen and icy
Everything you believed about your life ends with the electronic drone of a machine that counts breath and heartbeats.

You find yourself awash in space
Your bed is enormous, yet you only fill up half.
Half the pillows still can't muffle the cries "Can you still hear me?" "Please God, let him hear me?"
You think of all those guilty moments you had wished for more personal time. More of that illusive peace and quiet. Both are a blessing and a curse.
You have two of so many things.
Cars, clothes, shoes, papers, magazines, the list goes on.

Friends watch you become someone else. Changed forever.
Things that seemed so important all pale.
All of the issues of so-called importance lay at your feet in printed words that neither move or excite the passion they once stirred.
For now nothing matters
Nothing really brings smiles but once in a while the sudden loud outburst of laughter at some TV dialog makes the room ring reminding you of how very empty a space it is. You are guilty of surviving.

People remind you about time healing things.
All it reminds you of is that nothing will ever be the same.
No warm embrace
Big arms will not warm this frozen heart again
Tears may stop
Time will pass
Memories will fade until the sharp intake of breath comes at remembering those private, funny, gentle hours.
No one will ever look at you like that again.
The absence of this love is forever

Drag yourself through the year from one event to the next
Grateful for the remaining family diversions and distractions.
At the end of it, you must find a way out of this fog
Hold on to what is left
Remember what is lost
Pray for inspiration that lasts more than an hour at a time
Try to save the day for yourself
Make a new life

Live on

Sometimes you forget to look back...

2011-11-26T13:07:00.000-08:00

I was cleaning up some stuff on the computer and I saw a few posts ago that I had gotten a message from Christine Thresh asking about Potato, bacon and cheddar soup. Sorry Christine-for 2 reasons. I missed your comment and I'm one of those people who cooks by the seat of my pants. I always vow that I will make a recipe and write down the step by step and then I hardly ever do. In this case I happen to have a recipe of sorts. You may want to pare down the quantity but even though this seems like a lot for one, I really love keeping left overs in the fridge for lunches or dinners during the week. It keeps very well for about a week or more not that it lasts that long usually around here. When I have a leftover rotisserie chicken I shred the breast and add it when re-heating. It's good like that too. I never freeze this soup since it makes the potatoes grainy and mushy when you defrost it.

6-8 slices thick cut bacon cut across grain into diced pieces
1 large onion- diced medium
1 cup celery - dice medium
4-5 medium potatoes cubed. I use Yukon Gold or red bliss-they hold their shape and don't get too mushy.
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1-32 oz. Kitchen Basics chicken stock (no salt)or a good strong stock you made.
1 small can cream of chicken soup
2 good handfuls of grated cheddar-I use 4 cheese Mexican by Sargento just because I have it on hand from enchiladas.
4 oz. sour cream
1/2 cup milk or fat free half and half(I like the half & half)
salt and pepper to taste

In a dutch oven cook the bacon on med. high slowly until it's very crisp and rendered. Spoon out to drain on paper towels. Leave about two tablespoons of the bacon fat and throw in the onion and celery until tender.

Add the potatoes and saute them a little with the veg. in the bacon fat 5-10 minutes keep stirring.

Add the entire container of chicken stock and the can of cream of chicken.

If you find the potatoes are not fully covered add a bit of water or more chicken stock. Stir well and let simmer till the potatoes are fork tender.

In a bowl mix the sour cream and half&half till creamy-add to pot and stir. Taste for seasoning. If the soup seems too thin-make a little roux with the broth and flour and whisk into pot. Cook a few minutes longer to cook the flour.

Throw in two good handfulls of shredded cheddar and stir into soup until everything is nicely blended. Last thing before serving throw in bacon pieces and parsley-stir and serve.

As with many of these chowder dishes, they taste even better the day after.

Hope you enjoy Christine! Sorry I didn't see your comment sooner.

How lucky am I?

2011-11-19T09:25:00.000-08:00

I am the lucky recipient of this beautiful Madonna piece from my good friend Debra. I cannot seem to take a decent picture lately so I hope you can get an idea of how lovely it is. Here is a better shot on Debra's blog http://debraspincicdesignstudio.blogspot.com/search/label/Madonna%20Quilts-Small

It will be on the wall keeping the "Dear Mother" Madonna I got earlier in the year company. She puts so much work into these wonderful quilts. I'm sorry the detail isn't better. Lovely lace bits and pretty buttons surround the image and great emboidery frames the image itself. Thanks Debra. I treasure both these Madonnas and I think the best thing for me to do to preserve them better is to have them framed. Otherwise I see them getting too dusty with time and that would be a shame. If you haven't seen Debra's work-make time and enjoy . Along with being a generous person, she is sublimely talented and as busy as a bee. I first discovered her work when I was looking for Madonna images and quite by accident came across her blog. Back then I couldn't imagine being fortunate enough to have any of her work. Now I have two!!

I'm going to finish up a couple of things for the Food Pantry and them head to the machine. It's a lovely sunny day here but all I can see right now is my super dirty windows...Long past time for a good cleaning. Maybe this time I should hire someone.
Talk to you soon.

walkin' the dog

2011-11-12T06:36:00.000-08:00

I don't know what's going on with blogger but I'm losing my patience. No matter how I design the page to look it re-sets everything with huge blank spaces and I can't seem to figure out how to stop it. Sorry for the way these posts are laid out but it just does it's own thing and becomes very very frustrating

Welcome to the fall on our property. Hundreds of trees insure a blanket of many colors. It's very beautiful but best not to ask my son about it right now. He's got the blower and the rake out and is tackling the big yard cleanup. He will growl at you when provoked. I'm really just kidding. He's always been the most important part of the fall yard work. He's the one with the best back and, for now, the best stamina. You can see some of what I have mentioned about the climb up to my house. This first picture is only half the climb up. There's about another 100 feet up to the back porch.

Here's Lucy wondering what there is to stop and fool around with when a walk is calling.

These shots are from Thursday while we were off on the wildlife hunt. We still have a huge amount of leaves on the trees and the weather is different every day. Hotish, cold, really cold, semi-hot. Weather lottery.

I am doing some shelf stocking tomorrow at the Pantry and helping with the children's groups remaining to be seen. We have such abundance at this time of year it's incredible to see what the shelves look like now as opposed to February and August. Not getting a lot of sewing done but I wanted to check in to say HI!

Aunt Chilada's for dinner...yum

Talk to you soon.

knew it would happen one day.

2011-11-10T07:07:00.001-08:00

First, let me show you a photo of my faithful sentry. She is standing guard because, I kid you not, there's a buck with antlers and a lot of horns, outside on my property. I very nearly came face to face with it a while ago and we had a stare down which resulted in scaring the crap out of both of us. What I did see before moving inside was that he had a wound on his shoulder and it appears that someone tried to shoot him but was not successful except to graze him. He's over on the property next door right now and I'm trying to get a better shot but it's through a window and the screens are still on so everything I shoot comes out screened...rats. Anyway, I can't get blogger to let me move photos again so here is the only one I could get so far. He's the brown spot in between the two tree trunks about center. I'm hoping since he was moving in the direction of traffic that he will return to the relative peace of our property. Lots of places to hide. I guess I'm going to call town hall to let them know since I wouldn't want him to run into traffic and have anyone, including him, get hurt.

We've always known that we would encounter deer some time in the near future since the east end is covered with them. Out at the Lab where Roger worked they were on protected federal land and he would stop to photograph them in huge numbers of 100 or more. Trouble was they starved in the winter. As enormous as the land is out there it's not enough to sustain huge herds like that. There was a plan to allow hunting for a limited time but a great outcry from Peta people put the squash on that. Let me just say that those same people pulled up their tents and left the animals to die of starvation once they had their publicity finished. Not nice.

Anyway, Lucy and I have just come back from our walk where we went in search of the deer. No sign of him. Hope that wound wasn't worse than it looked. I see that the police are around looking for him. Don't want to know how that will turn out...

I'm kind of tired today since yesterday was spent at the Food Pantry with multiple visitations of Brownie Troops and Cub Scout Troops delivering food. One of the funniest parts is that the kids get so excited when you tell them that they can unpack their items and place them on the shelves. I bet if their Moms asked them to help unpack groceries they would run like the wind. We were so grateful for their enthusiasm since they had a couple of hundred bags of groceries and that would have meant a lot of bending and lifting for Sally and I. They had lots of good questions too. The Moms obviously had prepared them well and good for them. We've had kids who come in and stand like zombies. That's a touch audience. By the time we were finished late afternoon, I stopped for sushi and treated myself to dinner. Then I fell asleep. Those kids can really wear you out but all in all it was a lot of fun. The kids left telling us that they were going to bake pies and cookies for Thanksgiving and deliver them to us.

I am making potato, bacon and cheddar soup for James this evening. We have been having dinner on Thurs. evenings since Dani is in school until late. I'll send some home for Dani. Maybe we will have a chance to talk about our building project. I'm getting very excited at the prospect and hoping that it will make the winter less loathsome by anticipation of a spring build.

Anyway, if I get a better picture of the buck I'll post it. How I wish I had the camera on me when we came nearly face to face. He was beautiful.

Off to do some laundry. Talk soon.

Keeping busy

2011-11-07T09:08:00.000-08:00

This is the material for the other baby quilt that's up next. It will be very simple. 5 in. squares with a couple of borders. Next to it is the new bag I got from Suzan "the reluctant quilter". That woman can really make a beautiful bag. I've had more people tell me how pretty it is. Her company is Hazelnut Deux and her bags are gorgeous and well made.

These days I am trying to be as busy as I can to avoid the thoughts that are clouding my head. Soon it will be a year that Roger has been gone. I am trying to fill the hours with good thoughts and there are many right now. We are planning a large addition to the house come spring. Getting our wish list together so we can talk with an architect who is going to help us with a design. We are, essentially, building another whole house on the property for James & Dani. This suits my BIL Bob and I very well since we adore them and it will be helpful to both of us since it is a large property to maintain and having help will be nice as we are not getting any younger or in any better shape. It's a lot of fun imagining the new house and it looks like we may just squeak by without having to get a variance since we may be able to make it fit into this large property without coming close to the neighbors. We have a good relationship with our neighbors-like to keep it that way. It looks like I will get a new and larger kitchen, possibly a small deck off my bedroom, and hardwood flooring. I also get the best thing of all. A house with family in it again. Oh! and Lucy-can't forget Miss Lucy!!. I must say it's very quiet and sort of lonely here. I can go the whole day without talking with anyone but myself. It's not good for me. Depression creeps up kind of fast and lingers. How funny and unusual for me to find at 63 that I need a life and people around me.

Last week I had a super week of friends with time. It seems that it was a good week for all of my friends to have time to do stuff. Yay! I went to dinner with Geri at Taormina, lunch with Dani's Mom, Cheryl, at the Greeks, Thursday night quilting with Terry and Pam and out shopping alone on Friday for some necessities from Macy's.

I still have my work at the Pantry and it is our very busy season. Seasonal workers are looking for help for their families for the winter and we have a large number of veterans who are needing help as well. The VA hospital is a few miles away and it breaks your heart to see what's happening to these people who are returning from service and having trouble dealing with memories of war and physical injuries. It makes all of us try doubly hard to get our donations and grocery gift cards in place so at least they can be assured of a meal when they are hungry.

I'm going to fire up the machine and get to work on the new baby quilt and then I don't want to hear about birthin' no babies for a while!! II have so much to catch up on sewing wise.

I'll keep you posted.

Golden

2011-10-23T08:10:00.000-07:00

The days are really golden around here right now. We have a lot of color in some areas but, amazingly, there are some trees that are still only tinged with color and for the most part still green. A few rainy days will take care of that.

We went on a little visit to North Carolina to check up on the old folk. Aunt Mattie and Uncle Don are in their mid nineties and now in assisted living. Mattie is still very sharp but Don is failing a bit. I'll take 95 if it could be on those terms. Mattie got a kick out of my Kindle and she learned some games on cousin Susan's I-phone. That woman is pretty sharp. She enjoyed playing solitaire. We visited them several times and did a lot of lunches and dinners at some great places around Davidson/Mooresville. Davidson is a college town about 20 miles outside Charlotte -Mattie and Don live in the retirement village there. It's quite the place for that kind of thing. They had a cottage on the property for many years and then, due to illness they had to move to the assisted living facility. Anyway, being a college town, there are many really nice places to shop in and eat in. We picked a place called Toast and had a great brunch one day. The food was very good and we ate on the lovely patio outside. Very nice.

Our flights were uneventful which is all you can really ask for these days. I have been catching up with the laundry and a bit of housekeeping and now I can return to the @$!%*# baby quilt that never ends. One down and one more to go. Our niece is having another baby in December so another, hopefully much quicker, baby quilt is on the way.

Dani is nearly finished with this semester of school and her schedule for the next is mostly in the evening so I will not have Thursdays with Lucy. I will miss our crazy days together but probably get more accomplished since I am so easily distracted by the cuteness.

Well, off to make some chicken soup(it's very chilly here) and back to the machine to finish that quilt.

Hope to have something to show soon. Talk to you tomorrow.

Update to last post.

2011-10-10T04:29:00.000-07:00

I received this note from my good friend Debra Spincic of Debra's Design Studio regarding the Basics Quilt gather that I wrote about yesterday.

Please add to your post today about the Quilt Drive that I will gladly machine quilt any tops that are sent my way. I know that alot of people would contribute to these kinds of causes more but the machine quilting holds them back. They can dig out some old UFOs and I can use those. I have plenty of fabric or sheets for backing, no problem.
If they will send me the top, binding enough to finish it and $5 for batting, etc. I will finish the tops into quilts and send them to the Basic Housing address. I'll get a box started and send a load at once. I have a few here I can save & send.

On another note, my 1000 Pyramids quilt I made for the Golden Retriever Rescue Fundraiser auctioned last night for $525. A man bought it for his mother for Christmas. Nice man, eh?

xoxo
Debra

A better friend you can't imagine. Debra does a lot of donation work. We met through the Quilts of Valor program and that's only one of the many good works that she has had a hand in. I sent her offer to Victoria, who I think may be away for the weekend so I'll probably hear from her later. I'll keep you posted or check with Victoria at Bumble Beans for information and an address for Debra. It's a generous offer from Debra who will quilt and send your donation to Basics for you.
I'll talk to you soon...

Thursdays with Lucy and Helping those in need

2011-10-07T13:57:00.000-07:00

My friend Victoria, of Bumble Beans Blog has been working her fingers to the bone for a while now on a project that means a lot to her as well as the many families in NY who are in temporary housing through a group called Basics Inc.. Please take a moment to go to her Basics site by clicking on the blog above and, if you can, help with a donation of a quilt. All the info is on the link and on her site there are some very simple ideas for a fast and easy quilt of any size. They need all kinds and sizes. It's a project that began with a simple question from Victoria to the man in charge of this group. She asked if they could use some quilts and how many. He responded by asking if she had 700. So far I think she has gathered and and made around 300. Winter is coming and they need many more. Go see what she's up to. That woman can work faster than anyone I know.

And now, for some Lucy...

I know it's not Thursday but this post never made it past being saved and now it's Sunday morning.

As you know, if it's Thursday-it's all Lucy. We have a contest to see who can out smart the other and I'm sorry to say that Lucy has been winning lately. I have to scan the room really well to imagine how little furry paws and jaws will find various fun things to run and hide with and eventually tear to shreds. How can something so cute be so shreddy!! Those beautiful little white teeth are like razors. She loves to screw with your mind as well. It's the challenge of the game. She knows that I can't run that fast and her funny , short, little paws try hard to gain a pawhold on the wood floor to make a getaway. Very funny pup.

On another note, I will be away from the blog for a few days but I should be back to blogging again by the 12th. Nothing serious, just some work that needs doing. Hope you take a moment to look at Victoria's blog. It's a good cause and a great comfort for families who are trying to get a new start in life. Food, shelter, and comfort. Sounds simple but it isn't always that easy.

Back soon

I call shenenigans or Sunspots

2011-10-04T08:15:00.000-07:00

I tried to post yesterday. Really I did. Stop laughing back there. There are gremlins afoot. It's either Blogger, our server, or some mystical thing that has to do with sunspots. I'm giving it another go.

About a week or ten days ago I got an e-mail from our cable company. Normally I don't complain much about cable since they really are pretty good and certainly very fast as they claim. (Lets discuss how crappy digital tv is someday though.You know, the constant freezing of the screen and the efforts to sync it back up that take just enough time to lose half a program) But I digress, they stated that there was work being done and we could experience problems with the server. They also said that in an effort try and not screw with us too much, work would be done mostly between the hours of midnight and 6 am. That works for me. I have a Kindle, the answer to all technology problems in my world so I'm prepared. Besides, if I'm on the Internet at those times you can be fairly certain that I'm having a serious problem since I am distantly related to Rip VanWinklezzzzzzzz.
Then I saw an article in, I think, the Times regarding the major solar flares that are due to cause us to run screaming from our electronic hardware in the next months. As a side note, you may remember that Roger worked in science as his job for 35 years. One of his favorite answers, as well as many of his colleagues in the community, to the question of why some piece of technology wouldn't work was...sunspots. Once when I couldn't get the TV to work and nothing went right he looked at me with a very serious face and said...sunspots. It became our personal mantra for everything that goes bump in the night, to why my cake fell apart or the car made a funny noise. I really miss that sense of humor of his so much.
I'm beginning to think that this is how the world will end. Sunspots will drive humanity insane and we will all perish in the onslaught from having to do without our electronic stuff.
For instance, I just found a photo of some shoes I bought from Land's End. Nice Suede Penny loafers. The photo somehow deleted itself or I would show you how cute and preppy my little loafers are. Hate to admit it but I'm the last, sad, aging preppy around. I don't like bling, or blouses that are covered in sequins and stuff and if you could see my closet(heaven forbid) you would find the worlds largest collection of chinos and linen shirts. I spent a good part of yesterday looking for some clothing to wear in NC next week. I came home with three things and one doesn't fit right. There are beautiful sweater sets and tweed sweaters in the stores but frankly, there would have to be a major change in NC weather for me to need a sweater in October. It's still in the 70s here for the rest of the week. So I guess I'll take my nice linen stuff and hope there is an iron in the room. Linen always looks like you just got out of bed midday but I like to start out crisp. Wish I could iron my face.
Just in case you couldn't imagine this post getting any more boring...I spent the morning interviewing families for the Adopt-a-Family Christmas program. Specific wants and needs for each family are our goal so lists must be gathered and sizes etc. so that the various churches in our community and ask people to help and know that they will have a guideline to help the givers.
So good people of Bloglandia, that's where my morning and some of the afternoon went. Now I have laundry and some clean-up to do and then...praise the heavens...I can maybe get to the machine and work on the crosses above. I'm still trying to get back to doing something with them after months. That is if I don't run into any more sunspots.

what I did on my summer vacation and then some.

2011-10-01T09:08:00.001-07:00

For a slightly computer challenged person like me, blogging, it turns out is something you should really keep at. "From not doing you must re-learn all that you have un-learned"....Yoda.

That's not such a bad thing. Life is always an interesting and sometimes fascinating lesson. I believe that I have had enough lessons for a while. We are never to old to learn but frankly right now I'm caught up for a bit.

Life around here these past months has been a journey to find... me. I found that I am one of those women who focused on doing a good job as mother and wife and when both those things were taken away from my daily life I became the proverbial basket case. In our daily lives we sometimes say to ourselves as artists or workers in cloth, "when will it be my turn". That is not to diminish the experiences of motherhood and wifery. They are years I would not have changed or given up for any reason. Now and then the universe throws you a curve ball though and the choice becomes not your own but some universal crankypants attack. Everything you know to be good and right suddenly stops like one of those freaky roller coasters and you have mental whiplash. In the last couple of weeks I have begun to feel something familiar within returning. The desire to create and the burning desire to feel something that resembles normal again. I know that things will never be the same without Roger but I have come out of this phase of uselessly begging the universe to make it all right and give me back what I lost. Things will simply be different. How they are different is now my choice to make.

Perhaps dealing with getting some etching done on Roger's headstone was a trigger and perhaps taking o a new position of more responsibility at the Food Pantry have contributed to a somewhat new outlook.

Above, you will see two of the reasons I have for getting up each day. My wonderful, smart, Daughter-in-law Dani and, of course, the amazing Miss Lucy Goose. Dani is back in school studying for her CPA and has a very long day on Thurs. I get to watch Lucy until James gets off work and then we have dinner together. By Thursday night I am wiped out and happy. Lucy makes me laugh so much. She's the definition of wild thing but so much fun to play with. Besides, the exersize is good for me. I have done way too much eating for comfort these past months.

My hairdresser Diane is having a baby in December and the quilt above is for her baby. I have begun to straight line quilt with the walking foot. It's easy stuff but in order to keep it neat you really must pay close attention and go slowly. Hope to be finished soon.

To all of my friends who took the time to check up on me this time I was missing in action, thank you so much. I can officially call myself an American now and have a passport!! I was so excited when they finally approved my getting Roger's Social Sec and let me change my name officially that I stopped on the way home by Roger's grave and sat talking to him. His biggest fear since 9-11 was that the bureaucratic nightmare at government agencies would become a serious mess for me. It was a serious mess for a while but in the end the wheels turned slowly and finally proved what we knew all along. I've been a citizen since 1951 through my mother's naturalization. Whew!!! I think I have finally gotten all the paperwork assiciated with Roger's death done with and can relax and take a deep breath.

Well, I'm off to set up the machine and get this baby quilt done as well as spending some of the day doing paperwork for the Pantry-financial paperwork for a change.

I've loved catching up with all the beautiful work you all have been turning out. Also the donation work turned out by several good friends. Stop by Debora's Design Studio(link on left) and see all the great work she's doing with donation quilts. Bumble Beans sent me a postcard yesterday to show the quilt that was made with donation blocks that some of us sent her for her "Bloggers, Friends & Family Signatures" quilt. Victoria's blog is on the left as well under Bumble Beans. Mad Talents all around.

Back Monday.

Life in slow motion

2011-08-02T06:49:00.000-07:00

I'm still waiting for the results of my x-rays on the knee so in the mean time I thought I would let you know I'm trying to make the best of it(even though I appear to be backwards on the surfboard)

Catching up with work for the Pantry since that only requires sitting and I'm watching some netflix. Reading a few things on the Kindle, or as I call it, the best invention to come along in my world EVER.

Bob left for Alaska this morning pre-dawn and is well on his way there by now. He will be back in a couple of weeks. It's pretty quiet around here for now.

I need to go to the Pantry to pick up some paperwork and I get to use the special parking places right outside the door which helps a lot. I don't like this feeling at all though. Moving slowly is not my thing & it requires a lot of patience(something we might all agree is lacking in my profile)

I keep thinking things like, "I'll just run out and do thus and such." Not so much!! One of my stops is to get a bag of thistle seed for my beloved Goldfinches. I'm out and they look angry...

I'll let you know what the Dr. says as soon as I can locate him. Back soon.

Busy work & pain

2011-07-27T13:43:00.000-07:00

I've been trying to keep myself busy but the gods are conspiring against me I think. Some of you may remember that my right knee has been giving me some trouble from time to time. Well, from time to time has now moved up to all the time. Along with the pain in the knee that now goes on forever, I am favoring it so my hip hurts too. Crap!

An appointment with the Dr. on Thursday will begin what I hope doesn't lead to surgery but perhaps physical therapy instead. There is so much I want to do in my house but the pain gets really bad after only a half hour standing on the foot. All of this is making me a bad combination of cranky and depressed. Not a good place to be. The hip thing is keeping me from sitting long enough to write letters for the Pantry so now I am behind on that as well. Can I get some more whine with this pitty party....

Anyway, I have not progressed to far on James's new quilt but I did manage to find a few more blocks for the Kaffe piece above. I should really lay out and observe blocks more carefully. I would have moved a couple of those around where there is too much light together. What I really need is a handwork project. Something small and manageable for couch potatoing.

I'll let you know how the Dr, goes tomorrow. I suspect the first thing will be a series of x-rays to see what the actual damage is. As per the Stones-what a drag it is getting old. I am writing on the blackboard a hundred times-I will stop whining like a 90 year old.

Yours truly,

Bad Patient with no patience

2011-07-17T11:55:00.000-07:00

Look how innocent little sleeping puppy looks. Miss Lucy has exhausted herself and fallen asleep. She is such fun to have around but when she decides it's bedtime, that's it. Fun's over. Time for napping.

The quilt in progress is a replacement for the one that some adorable little sleepy puppy tore a hole in and pulled out the stuffing. Lucy has forced me to have m quilts done on the machine or long-arm professionally. She likes the little ties in the quilts and goes at them full force until there's a hole. The batting is an added fun feature. Good thing I love that pup so much. Anyway, I found my Japanese fabrics and began a replacement quilt for James. I will have to send it out to be quilted though so that little tiny, itty, bitty, teeth can't play with ties and batting.

I decided on a Chinese(or Japanese) coin pattern. Not too complicated and goes together pretty fast. I have quite a bit done and enjoyed the first season of "In Plain Sight" on Netflix while I worked. That's one of my favorite shows and I had never seen the first season which is now available on the instant viewing option on my computer.

We have said goodbye to our wonderful company and another great visit. I'll talk more about that tomorrow. For now I just wanted to check in and say HI! I'm still kickin" and thankful for AC and power. The humidity is back and I hear next week the temps are going up again. Good time to be inside and busy...or napping. We'll see what the day brings. I may just take my cue from Lucy.

Little check-in

2011-07-11T12:42:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to let you know that I'm alright. I have a house full of wonderful visitors and I'll get back to blogging sometime soon. Hope the summer is a good one for you all as well.

I turned off the comments till next week but thanks for the e-mails checking up on me.

Back next week.

Little bits & pieces

2011-06-30T06:00:00.000-07:00

It's either feast or famine regarding time around here. Lately it's been feast. Since I've taken back my job at the Pantry I am having to re-learn some things on my computer. Roger had installed some new Office programs and I'm having a bit of a learning curve. Also having a little problem with my wireless keyboard and mouse. The keyboard keeps making double strikes so I wind up with sentences that go like this-II amm soo tirred of havving to correcct every damnnn sentencee. Grrr. Only happens sometimes.

Above is the first of a couple of baby quilts that I need to get done. The color is off a bit in the photo. The "Whimsy" fabric is brighter but I just don't have time to go figure it out right now. I will give it a border and call it a day...NEXT!

I'm deep into the immigration/social security maze. It's really being kind to call it a maze. It's more like a big steaming pile of mess. I begin to wonder if it would pay to have a couple of drinks before trying to tackle the whole thing.

The other day I had dinner with my oldest friend going all the way back to 6th grade. We didn't want an actual dinner so we ordered a couple of appetizers-fried calamari and baked clams and enjoyed a couple of drinks down at the beach at sunset. Great company and a lovely setting. This place makes the best fried calamari EVER. Plus, I got to catch up with Linda. It's funny how you can not see each other socially for a year and pick up right where you were last time. We live a half mile from each other and all these terrible months went by. Linda came to Roger's funeral and when she saw me the other night, she just hugged me and said, "Wow has this past year kicked your ass, or what?" Yes it has but I'm kicking back at last.

I have a graduation party this weekend. Dani's sister, Victoria, has graduated high school and is on her way to being a nurse. She's such a lovely young woman with a sweet personality. Very smart kids in that family. Yesterday, I got little Miss Lucy for the day. We sort of wear each other out but in a good way. Lucy also saved me from the big bad kitty that was hiding under my car....such a brave girl. She spent the day patrolling the front door making sure that the chipmunks, squirrels, and birds didn't get to me. I feel so safe now... At any rate, I'm sure she slept really soundly last night, I know I did.

I'm off to the grocery store, Pantry, Post Office, and then home for some work on the quilts.

Have a happy 4th everyone.

Brand New Day..

2011-06-20T07:00:00.000-07:00

The lawyer who has so kindly taken on my immigration case thought he had pretty much seen everything. That is until he met me yesterday in his local office. The office is is a town not too far from me and in large Hispanic area. I found myself opening the door to a scene kind of like something you might see in a movie. It was such a wonderful experience. A very small waiting area filled with people speaking one of the most beautiful languages in the world, Spanish.I have had a number of years of Spanish and many of the people who come to the Pantry are Hispanic so I'm used to helping people with their English. This place was such an experience. The many dialects and the lilting sounds of women as opposed to the more defined and sharper sounds of the men. I could have sat there all day just to hear more. When I opened the door 2 of the women who were waiting stopped talking and actually welcomed me to sit next to them by moving their papers and handbags. I seriously think they wanted to get a closer look at the gringa grandma with blond hair, blue eyes and find out what on earth I was doing there. One of the secretaries came to take my info and kept saying my name and asking me if I was there regarding immigration??? Are you sure??? Who recommended you to this office. I asked her to speak in private for a moment because there is nothing further from my personality than to expect to be treated like someone special because my friend is a major political guy in the area. All I asked him to do was to recommend someone who would know what they were doing with immigration law. My friend had made a personal call to the lawyer and called in a favor. That was not known to me until the end of our meeting.

At any rate, I handed him all the paperwork pertaining to my birth and history which included very fragile papers from 1948 and he became very excited by the fact that I had an antique green card. Apparently, such things have not been in use since the dark ages. He called all the lawyers in to his office to show them what one looked like. To boil it all down to less than a novella, my father was an American soldier during the war so it automatically makes me a citizen. I have the records of that birth and several other papers from Germany that make clear those facts. There is a notarized letter from my mother giving the details of my life from the beginning. Anyway, after much discussion it was decided that the best way to proceed would be to apply for a passport. While the passport people are throwing up their hands and screaming. the lawyer will have the German documents translated so that when the passport office send them back to the lawyer we can proceed from there. There is no point sending them the German papers now since they will just be annoyed and not know how to read them. So I'm looking at about 8 weeks till they start asking for additional info.

The best and most amazing part of the day came when I was waiting for something to finish printing and he asked me what I do. I explained that for the past 13 years I have partnered with my friends to run the Food Pantry through the auspices of the Ecumenical Council of Churches. He was quiet for a moment and said, "I have decided to take your case pro bono." He went on to tell me that many of his clients had commented in the past how much they had been helped by the Food Pantry and he believed that we were doing the work of the Lord there. He said he had spoken to a number of clients who told stories of how one or the other of us had given them enough money to get gas for their cars to get to them to work. I had tears in my eyes by the time we were done. No one has ever told me anything so lovely in all the time I have worked at the Pantry. It's not the kind of thing you do for thanks. It was a moment I will never forget and when I think back to all the times I handed over $10 or $20, I had a renewal of faith in that office. Since I am not a wealthy woman but I am comfortable enough, I have written a check to the lawyer to help with the legal costs to someone who cannot afford his services. It was the least I could offer and I will do it again.

On the way to his office I kept thinking and praying that Roger would be looking over my shoulder and help me not to screw anything up. I felt his presence more yesterday than I have since the trip to Maine. It was a truly lovely feeling.

I hope I'm quoting it correctly,

"Hope is the thing with feathers that perches on your soul and sings the song that never stops at all" Emily Dickenson

The small quilt above is the one I made for Roger many years ago. It hung in his office since the early 90s and I made it as a joke since his pet peeve was having to wear ties. It came back home a last month when his office was packed up and the personal contents were given to me. It made me laugh to see it. Wearing ties made him bananas.

This & That with a Weiner

2011-06-15T15:02:00.000-07:00

Here's something pretty to look at while I discuss something icky. Lets chat about "The Weiner". First, let me assure you that he is not my congressman. He works his magical charm far off to the west near NYCity. Actually it's Queens. Whatever the scene of his horrible behavior it comes as no surprise to me at all. He was and remains a despicable human being but then look who he has for company. At least Barney Frank doesn't have the cojones to defend him although he is being defended by Charles Wrangle. Who better to be a big defender of sub-human behavior than good old Charlie. If Charlie is the arbiter of decency we're are so far up that proverbial creek that it's past the point of the paddle helping. Just hold your nose and pray for shore. Weiner has been a cry baby irritant for a long time. Whenever they need someone to throw a hissy fit and act like a bad child..Weiner's your guy. He, of course held himself up as another arbiter of social conscience, decency and civic pride. No one likes him and now we're not sure his lovely wife does either. The rats he serves with have all deserted him and are busy distancing themselves from his aberrant behavior. Even, Chuck"the schmuck" Schumer has cast him off and that was his only pal. Schumer used him as an attack dog and now he's done with him. The Weiner is roasted....sorry couldn't resist. This afternoon I saw a news report that showed his wife entering the garage to their apartment. To be a fly on that wall for an hour...whew. He makes me want to take a shower just looking at a newscast with him in it. Enough of him. The highlight of the past two weeks has been the headlines in the NY Post. They are too funny for words and I blatantly stole the Weiner roasted from them.

On the immigration front and 180 degrees away from Weiner is my friend Linda and her husband. Linda and I go back to 5th grade. Her parents owned what was once one of the only liquor stores in the area back in the early 50s-60s. We remained friends and although we don't see each other that often, she is my oldest friend and still so dear to me. Her husband is a wonderful guy who is pretty high up in political circles around here and she put him on the trail of an immigration lawyer for me. Today, I got a call from the lawyer. He said, jokingly, that when he got a call from Linda's husband early this morning he was a little worried that he had done something wrong. We had a laugh over that and he asked me to tell some of the basics of the story. He is going to see me on Sunday in his office at 10 am!! I don't know what I will do to thank my friends but I'll come up with something. I feel so much better just knowing that someone is on the case and he apparently told Linda's husband that he would take good care of me. Thanks Goodness for friends in high places. I am blessed.

I worked on a baby quilt with some of the Whimsy fabric by Joanna Figueroa today. I have two baby quilts to turn out in the near future and at least one is nearly a top.

Tomorrow I will go back to work for the Food Pantry in my former position. I've been helping but not doing my old job. The final meeting of the season is tomorrow at 9 am and they asked me to come back. Nice to be wanted even if it is because they can't find a bigger sucker than me. Seriously, I do miss many of the people at the Ecumenical Council. Don't miss those 9 am meetings though. I'm still plodding along in my jammies at that time. Must set alarm for tomorrow. I don't have to go far though, just up to one of the Presbyterian Churches that is holding tomorrow's meeting.

I'll get some shots of the quilt blocks or top tomorrow. Back soon with more news.

and now, for something somewhat different

2011-06-11T08:22:00.000-07:00

Who better to paraphrase than Monty Python?

Before I start here's a little 12x12 tile piece I was fooling with. Victoria of Bumble Beans got me started on this. I may sew some more later. I like the randomness of it. Sort of like my life right now. A bunch of different stuff colliding together and I love using every tiny piece of Kaffe fabric. Just can't throw that stuff away.

I have a little, sweet and a little bitter to share and then I'll clear up some of the questions you have asked and comments you've been kind enough to leave me.

The sweet-It is, as some of you know, the birthday season around here. May and June contain birthday's for nearly everyone in the family with a few exceptions. My dear friend Terry and I were treated to a fabulous dinner at the other quilting friend, Pam's house on Thursday evening. After the meltdown at social sec. you may well imagine that I needed something to perk me up and Pam had just the ticket. Pam & Bill live about a mile or so from me on a hill above the village and over the harbor. It's a sweet old house that they have made beautiful inside and out. We'll talk about their garden more in a minute. I am blessed to have two great cooks as friends and Pam really outdid herself using one of the numerous Ina Garten cookbooks that one or the other of us has given her. It pas to keep your friends in great cookbooks. She made a baked pasta dish that was delicious but the true highlight of the meal was Bib lettuce and tomato with Ina's Green Goddess dressing. We were among friends so we made total pigs of ourselves and used the garlic bread to sop up the dressing. Truly, you could have just set a loaf of garlic bread and a bowl of the dressing before us and it would have been A OK with us. The recipe is on the Food Net. site under her recipes. It's made of mayo, sour cream, garlic, scallions, and basil, OH MY. Yum.

The bitter of the evening came in when we sat down in front of her lovely picture window with the grape arbor outside and Pam said, "Before you start, tell me what's missing from this picture?" Hey, no grapevines. Pam's grape arbor comes from a 130 year old gnarly trunk that looks like a Japanese watercolor come to life. Well, it did. The grape wines covered the trellises and cascade down the sides of the porch and made it a joy to sit under and the place where her grandchildren liked to play outside in the shade. You won't believe what happened. Last week while Pam and her husband were gone, the new loudmouth neighbor next door had his tree guys come and cut down the vine-on Pam & Bill's property. There is about 150 feet of property between their house and the grapevine...the one on P&Bs land...and a good sized fence to boot! Those people had to come onto their land to cut down a 130 year old trunk, the stump of which now sits dead and staring Pam in the face. She is a great gardener and just sitting in her garden you are overwhelmed with the sweet scent of honeysuckle and the amazing plants and trees. Stunning nastiness. Not only that but when they introduced themselves to the neighbors with a cake, the guy made some snide remark about all the trailing vines all over and what's that about. Yes, the vines trailed all over.....Pam's property and porch. If ever there were two people who clip, trim and care for THEIR property it's P&B. It was dark and stormy while I was there on Thursday but I'll try to get pics when I'm there next. Last I heard P&B are going to buy wisteria because it's fast growing. the bill for whatever it takes will be left with them. This jerk who sits in his yard in a wife beater with his belly hanging out shouting to all on his cell about how much money he made this day or that with a Jersey Shore accent. Enough to make you lose your Green Goddess dressing.

Regarding my SS situation. Thanks so much to you all for commenting. It must be confusing to you as it is ever confusing to me still. Here's some of the deal. I do have a birth cert. from Germany. Unfortunately, my mother listed my name(here goes, hang on to something solid) as Dorothea Louisa and her maiden name. On other paperwork from Germany my real father is listed. The name she used to come into this country and to be naturalized is different than those two names and she made me use it in papers from the orphanage and in early school records. She also dropped the Dorothea Louisa and began using Doris for me during those years. Is the room spinning yet for you?

Flash forward thorough those days and several other men to about 1960 when we came to this village. The last of the "stepfathers" John or John the Jerk, you choose, was supposed to have adopted me. Two years ago I found out he never adopted me. That's just how she said it to my brother. "He never adopted her" in a nasty tone of voice. Too bad since very document from that time till my first marriage has me listed as his adopted daughter. School records, high school diploma etc. Not to mention the fact that he was the worst human being you can imagine and had I known that he was nothing to me I would never have put up with his crap even for a second. Rather than what happened, I would have punched him back without thinking twice instead of waiting till I was 18 to tell his sorry, drunken, butt goodbye. But no, I was a good girl then. That and they often reminded me that if I wasn't, I could find myself in some other place. Often wonder if "some other place" might not have been better than there. Anywhere, but there. Of course, all of that led me to all of this and I wouldn't have changed a thing since it brought Roger and James into my life.

Where my dilemma comes in is trying to explain all these things to government drones. Civil service workers in NY. There may be many places in the county where civil service workers are very pleasant people but let me tell you it's a tough find here. They dare you to make them care and let you know that you're pretty much taking up their valuable break time.

Well, thus ends today's daily broadcast of "Dee Dee in Dire Straights"

Tune in Monday for the next episode. Episode #3 in which our heroine finds herself handcuffed and deported to some far off German location. Thank goodness our girl can still speak some and read most fairly well.

MUST keep sense of humor...keep repeating...MUST keep sense of humor.

Love you guys!!

Legal Wrangles

2011-06-09T10:44:00.000-07:00

Imagine yourself doing something that should be relatively simple. Now, imagine that you find yourself at the top of the biggest pile of crap you can envision. Throw in the INS and Social Security and you have a somewhat clear picture of where I am today.
I may have mentioned to some of you at various times that I was born in Germany after the war. German mother/American soldier father, now deceased. Never met that father until the mid 80s. Took me that long to find out who he was due to my mother's giant crate of lies opening somewhat and a trickle of info coming to light. While Roger was alive, he did everything he could to research and glean some information that led to finding that I am not an illegal alien. Here's the twist- I'm not illegal but I'm not quite legal either. Again, lies my other told...could fill a book and nearly has already. A mountain of paperwork. Along the way, I was never allowed to change my name to Roger's legally since there was no birth certificate and when we finally got one from Germany, the name was different, the location was different, and it went into the file of lies marked MOM. Along the way she had a succession of men that we lived with the details there are to gruesome to go into but lets just say they'd make a 1950s bad movie staring Lana Turner or someone like that. Along this twisty path we had to do our taxes with my former name to keep things legal on our end. Twenty-seven years worth of tax forms. All nice and neat and on the up and up. Records of my divorce from first husband, marriage to Roger, Social security cards for Roger. My social sec. that I've had since high school graduation. All good things nice and neat. Record of my entry with my mother into the US in 1952 when I was 3ish. Good stuff right? Even the name of the ship and military papers from it. Sounds good huh? My mother's naturalization papers when she became a citizen...all excellent right??
WRONG, WRONG, WRONG....
Yesterday my darling DIL Dani took me over to SS to register to receive Roger's benefits. I told them why I was there, presented the death cert. they asked me for proof of who I am and then, then, the giant crap hill began to crumble under me. They started to look up my SS# and a big gust of angry wind hit me in the face in the form of several official people who kept saying things like. Holy crap!! This doesn't make any sense. What are these names?? Why is your birth date different in several papers that were filled out by....guess who!! Out of what appeared to be about 20 people in the office, many of them became involved in the conversation and their tone of voice, while not nasty, was very frightening. They told me they cannot do anything for me until I have dealt with Immigration. Please excuse my language when I say this but if you think SS is a mess, you cannot imagine what a cluster f--- immigration is. I need a lawyer who can present my case and keep a cool head. I was in tears just trying to get to the right person to speak with who then told me this was something they would need to deal with in person(no surprise there, even I can't figure it all out)and it might be best to have a lawyer familiar with immigration law try to sort it out. Social Sec. has asked me to return at the end of the month to fill out all necessary paperwork for the benefits which they will hold on file until I can present a passport or clear proof of citizenship. Even if that goes slightly smoothly, it will be more than a year before I see any of that-thank goodness I have some money to fall back on.

Tomorrow I will be 63. I have lived here for 60 years-53 of them in this village. There is no way to describe how I feel right now except to say that I am depressed, angry, and not a little scared. My mother has been the direct cause of every bad thing that has happened to me since I was 3. She lied, she abandoned me in an orphanage in St. Louis to people who beat me with switches that you were required to go and cut from bushes outside, she lived with men who wither beat me or worse. They were disgusting drunken animals and I was regularly told that I had a new Daddy from time to time. Non of them adopted me but they made me use their names so that's part of a record I must now explain to people who are similar in attitude to what you may have experienced at the DMV in your life at one time or another. They are cross-eyed and dumbfounded by the end of only a few minutes and I am frustrated knowing that in the end they will just pass me on to the next drone...
All I feel like doing is sleeping and yet I can't. Last night was filled with that dream where you are falling. No hard figuring there. Mostly, I miss my darling Roger, who would have at least been a rock next to me and found a way to comfort and make me feel even a little better. Now there is no going back. I'm in for a penny or pound as they say. Waiting to hear from a friend who has some connection in the court system here. I want to find a lawyer and at least she can tell me who not to hire.

On the only happy note, James will be 27 Sunday and we are having dinner. Dani' birthday is the 15th-Terry's is the 17th and so on it goes.
I hope whoever you are reading this that your life is going along a lot more peaceful than mine right now. Unfortunately, you can count on my return with more crappy details soon. If you do, please say a little prayer. I really need it now.

Whew... computer crisis averted

2011-06-04T13:23:00.000-07:00

Thanks to my own personal geek squad(Hi James) I have my stuff back. Thank goodness, and James, my pictures were floating around in the ether waiting to be found along with some programs and personal info that I would have hated to lose. Thanks too for all the tips you sent me. We do have an external hard drive and that was one of the things that Roger would have done and I didn't know about. I'm fairly sure that one of the thumb drives around here contains a backup of all my programs and files as well. I remember Roger telling James to make sure to back up the files before they did any work on the computer-just in case.

Sooooo.... here's a run down of my week. Sewing-0. Playing with the adorable Lucy-10. Some shopping and a couple of visits to the nursery for plants. I got myself a lace cap hydrangea in the color above. Something I have wanted for a while. Not quite sure where I'm going to put it yet. I have a few options. I bought two very large pale lavender impatiens hanging baskets to hang on the crook at the side of the yard. The color is so ethereal that it almost glows in the twilight. Lovely.

Now I just have to feel a bit better(hopefully tomorrow) and get things planted. My right knee is really giving me a difficult time. Of course, if I would keep in mind that I'm not 40(or even 50-gad) and stop running around like a crazy person playing with the dog it would probably be a good thing for the knee. Last week Lucy and I invented a new game. I call it Bone Hockey. Lucy has one of those big bones, filled with peanut butter that she has licked clean as a whistle and she likes to run around with it and make it go under couches and chairs and coffee tables. Then, she sits and cries for you to get it out. I take a broom and sweep the bone out...rinse, repeat, rinse, repeat.... It occurred to me last week that once I get the bone I could use the broom like a hockey stick and make her run after it. About 10 minutes in, I'm prostrate on the couch and panting harder than the dog. Who the hell came up with this brilliant idea anyway? Ahem...I feel so bad that my yard and property are not closed in so she can't be off leash outside to play. Oh well, what's a pup to do?

Today, Terry and I got up early and went on a pilgrimage to Fairway Market. For those of you who are not familiar with NY. Fairway is a place where you can go to get all sorts of delicious, high end, and ethnic foods. The really big Fairway is in the city but in recent years they have expanded to the island. It's not exactly near me but Terry used to live in the area where they built one and so she is my fearless driver. Driving Miss DeeDee. At Fairway you can spend $25 on a piece of wild Alaskan salmon should you feel the need. I moved on to other items. They have olive oil and balsamic in 20 different kinds at a bar with bread to nosh. Then there is the barrel bar of olives, pickles of every imaginable sort, the cream cheese bar and the finest bagels around. Not to mention Eli Zabars bread at the bakery. Terry did the most damage. I only broke a hundred. Our thought was you have to try something new once in a while and boy did we. Artisanal Salami made with red wine and fresh baguette with real Italian Fontina... It just doesn't get much better than that for lunch. Worth the trip. Next week, "Uncle Guisseppi's" out east. I'll eat salad all week and it will be worth it. I guess my taste buds have re-awakened. I cooked a couple of times in the past week and enjoyed it.

I have two movies from Netflix. The Black Swan and The King's Speech so I'm set. I could use a good bottle of wine though. Maybe I'll go raid my BIL Bob's stash. We all have similar taste around here. Handy!

By the way. I received my Madonna piece from the Alzheimer's auction and it is even more beautiful in person than the photo. I've dragged everyone in here to see it and the reaction has been wonderful. Great work Debra. I'm so lucky to have gotten it. I'm going to have it framed. It has a hanging sleeve on the back but I would like to see it framed in a lovely way and that way it's more protected too. So happy with this purchase.

Talk to you soon.

eeeeeeeek

2011-06-02T13:17:00.001-07:00

I've had a major computer malfunction and now all my photos and video and TV is gone. Just letting you know I'm OK but not sure how this is going to get fixed. The photos are the part that's really getting to me as there were many of Roger, the family, our vacations and Christmas etc. I'll be back when I can get this mess fixed. Things learned in the last few days-NEVER open a window that claims to be from Windows and tells you that your computer is at risk and your hard drive is compromised....EVER...just sayin'
Hoping to be able to do some sort of restor program and get back to where it was last week. Haven't figured that out yet. It offers to restore only to yesterday and that's the day that the s--t hit the fan. I'll check with James when I can or welcome any info from computer saavy friends.
James ran a malware program to get rid of the virus and I'm back but have none of the programs or folders or pictures I had. All my favorites are gone(not really a problem,I can get that back myself by re-doing them). It's the photos and TV/media stuff I am missing.
Hope to be back with you soon.

Look what I got

2011-05-27T10:41:00.001-07:00

Look what I bought from the Alzheimer's Quilt Initiative Sale. It's a Madonna piece by Deborah Spincic. I
I've admired her work and specifically the Madonna pieces for years. I can't wait to see it in person. So lovely.

Sorry I've been missing for so long but I have been helping a friend with some awful problems and trying to get so many things done personally that the blogging has just gone by the wayside. Since losing my gardener, I'm finding it really hard to do some of the work myself. Back problems make it hard but knee problem make it nearly impossible. As a consequence it's taking me twice as long to do half as much. I did make a couple of spiderweb blocks which I will show soon. The best news of the week is that my hair cutter, Diane, is having a baby in December. They have been trying for so long that it's just the best news ever. So, of course a quilt is in order. More on that later.
It has certainly turned to summer here and thankfully I have a new a/c. I'm predicting a very humid summer. We have had nothing but wet, wet, wet and humid. Not my favorite thing but given the state of disaster in the rest of the country I'm shuttin' up. I would like to know where all the help and celebrities are for the people of the mid-west...hmmmm. They must all be busy with important things like winning awards. Where are folks like Clinton and Bush? They must be busy still helping folks in Haiti...yah...that's what they're doing. Just wondering why people are still living in lean-to cardboard shacks and defecating in holes in the ground. They raised MILLIONS!!!It sure seems like we are the first to put our hands in our pockets and help the world in general and somehow the biggest mouths in this country can't even bother to show up to help those who have lost everything in middle America. I'm speaking about both sides of the isle and those loud mouthed celebrities who fly around helping people in rain forests and such. Rant over...

Last night I had a lovely dinner with the "girls of quilting". Love my friends so much. They are both having such a hard time right now
with personal family issues that it was great to see them smiling and actually laughing. I'm puppy sitting tomorrow. Love!
Hug your loved ones tight. Talk to you soon.

Roger's violets

2011-05-19T10:56:00.000-07:00

These violets are from a basket that came when Roger passed away. It was a whole basket with several small pots grouped together and they were so pretty. As with so many of the flowers back then I contemplated pitching most but remembered than Pop used to love the violets too. He kept them under a plant light in the other part of the house by his desk and really enjoyed them when they flowered. One of the many changes in life right now it that I'm kind of at loose ends regarding a schedule. I don't really have to be anywhere at any particular time and since "making dinner" has gone by the wayside too, I can plan my day as I wish. One of the things I missed being a mother and wife was having a lot of time to take care of things like plants. That, along with the fact that I have few windows with good sun kept me from fussing too much about them. Besides, life was busy with kid and husband stuff.

Over the course of the winter I've been nurturing several of the plants I received including these lovely violets and they have rewarded me with beautiful full, fat, blooms. I have another couple not shown and they seem to be a very light cross between pale pink and very pale violet. I'm really enjoying this particular aspect of singlehood. Years ago when I was on my own I had many beautiful house plants but over the years filled with other distractions they all went by the wayside. I think it's the frustrated gardener in me. My back and knees are a problem and outdoor gardening is very hard for me.

Anyway, this week has, once again, slipped away from me. I had some banking stuff to take care of - new accounts and other stuff. Some meds I have been taking for my knee and arthritis pain upset my stomach a lot and that coupled with the cold wet days just made me sort of useless and not feeling like doing much but reading and cuddling up on the couch. I'd better get on with things because we are coming into the birthday season. Everyone has a birthday in the next month or so.

I swear I will get more productive. There is just so much to take care of and it overwhelms me. Good thing I don't drink...hmmm..

I have the blocks cut for a spiderweb and I just need to mark them and get going. Always wanted to make something with these blocks. Hopefully I will get a chance to start later. The machine's out and waiting.

Talk to you soon.

Trip stuff...

2011-05-15T09:21:00.000-07:00

I'm back and lookee what I found in Maine while we were there! Seriously, We stopped at the Owl's Head Transportation Museum and they happened to have an exhibit of classic MGBs. As you may remember, I had an MGB that was my baby for 14 years. It was a newer model(72) but my baby nonetheless. And red too!

The trip was lots of fun with a few minor tears thrown in. Only on my part and I tried to keep it from the kids. We stopped at Thunder Hole on the Loop on Cadillac Mountain and since it was a favorite spot for Roger, all I could see was the image of him basking in the sun on those rocks as he did for so many years. I kind of lost it quietly and took myself off for a little quiet weepies. By the time James and Dani got back in the car I was OK and we proceeded on.

We stayed in a very beautiful hotel right there at Bar Harbor called the Harborside Inn & Resort. It was well worth every penny. Since it was a week or so before the season opening, I could actually afford to pay the tab without getting a bank loan. The only downsides were that many places hadn't yet opened and they were re-surfacing the main drag but that didn't stop us from going places and doing things. It was just a little bumpy here and there. We found a delightful restaurant for dinner one night and had a fabulous meal. Dani did some on-line searching and found a place for breakfast called Two Cats. Everything was made to order and just delicious. In all the time Roger and I had gone there we never ventured up into that part of town and discovered the place. I had a lobster omelet and they made biscuits to die for with homemade strawberry butter. Excuse me while I wipe the drool from my chin...

All in all it was a lovely time. I wish we had gone directly there for the few days but as we were planning I thought it would be better to make a stop in Boothbay rather than drive for 9 hours all the way to Bar Harbor. Boothbay was really closed up pretty tight. We did manage to find a place to eat there the one night that was a kind of neighborhood grill. The food was excellent though.

My son did all the driving except for a brief time by Uncle Bob. Dani and I sacked out in the back nearly all the way home.

We all missed Miss Lucy very much but she was getting special treatment by Dani's sister Victoria who sent photos to Dani's phone regularly.

I dog sat on Wed. while Dani had some plans and Lucy and I wore each other out. I had her again yesterday...ditto. She was exhausted from guarding me from the evil squirrels and birds and the occasional cat. Today, we are finally getting some rain. Thank goodness. The green tree stuff is everywhere including our noses and sinuses. I welcome a good rain to wash away some of this sneezy mess. As for the rest of the day, I'm settling down with the Kindle on which I downloaded Mah Jong and Solitaire. Very addicting. Tomorrow I will get out the machine and do some sewing. If nothing else, I got some new pants that need hemming.

For the rest of this day I'm napping and reading and the finale of Survivor is on tonight. Every time I say I'm not getting sucked in but here I am again.

Hope you have a peaceful day-more tomorrow.

Back next week...

2011-05-05T05:15:00.000-07:00

I'm taking a little road trip with James & Dani and Bob. We only have a few days so I'll be back by the end of next week. We all need a break from the daily lately.

Bringing the camera. Talk to you soon.

Remembering Harry

2011-04-30T15:42:00.000-07:00

If you don't like the weather wait 12 hours and see what happens. We've gone from hot and sunny to damp and drizzle to sunny and springy and back in a weeks time. Rollercoaster. Not complaining since there are so many who have been so badly damaged by this weeks weather. My heart goes out to those people down south who have lost everything. So sad. I wonder how they have the strength to go on but them what else can you do.

I had some sad news in my world today. Over the years I worked in the Food Pantry I met many people who were kind and generous. They would give what they could and help when they could. Several of those people became good friends over the years and some became like family to me but in a special and different way.

Many years ago I wrote a thank you to a Physician who lived way out on a lovely stretch of land called Eaton's Neck. It's 3 or 4 miles away and the neck of land twists around the Bay and the entrance to the Harbor. Beautiful place. My best friend all through school lived out there and I would spend many weekends of my youth at their house. Kind of a wild place back then. Anyway, my friend Harry lived out on the neck and was a retired Physician, writer, & Professor of Medicine at some very great Universities over the course of his life. He was even a visiting Fellow in Nuclear Medicine at the Laboratory where Roger worked. He was very old school and when I use the term gentleman, I can hardly think of anyone to better hold the title. It was an honor to know him and a delight to talk with him. He had a wicked sense of humor for many topics, especially politics. We became pen pals over the course of 25 years. He began our letter writing friendship telling me that in all his years of donating to worthy causes he had never gotten a letter so well written and meaningful. I have many letters from him thanking me for thanking him. It became a running joke with us. Thank you...no thank you...no, no, thank you.

Over the months of Roger's illness and his death I lost track of Harry and for a time someone else took over the thank you notes. Not long before Roger passed, I heard that Harry's wife Helen had died and I sent him a letter of condolence. He replied and we began our friendship once again in letters. Today I found out that Harry died. How I wish I had gone there to see him. He gave no idea that he was ill except in retrospect when I said I hoped to see him soon he replied that he didn't get into town much lately. The thing that really floored me was that Harry was 89. You could have knocked me over with a feather. He seemed like maybe 69 and was so bright and quick and smart that I just never imagined him not being around for a long time.

There are some people who effect your life in such a sweet and important way that losing them leaves a great hole in your heart. I often ran into Harry in the Library and so, in our letters we would sign off by saying, "See you around the stacks". I will miss him more than I can say and this village will miss a genuine gentleman. I hope that Harry is hanging around the stacks in heaven and he runs into Roger in the section on fishing. What a great conversation that would be. My great good fortune is that I have many years worth of letters to re-read and chuckle over so that I can always remember Harry.

Back soon...

Busy days and tasteless food

2011-04-25T09:54:00.000-07:00

I was hoping to get back to sewing today but there are a number of important things on my plate today and tomorrow. I'm in the midst of transferring investments over to me and setting up new accounts. Among other things I have to go and open a new account and get papers signed that allow transfers from retirement accounts to be made to me. All very important stuff but I would rather play with fabric. Maybe later in the week. Tomorrow I have my check-up at the Dr. The one where he yells at me for not taking better care of myself these past months. Rats!

We had a quiet day yesterday. The kids came in the morning for brunch and I made scones, scrambled eggs and some sausage. Not sure how this widow thing is supposed to go but I found myself not even wanting to cook and not at all enjoying the results. It put me in mind of that movie, Eat, Drink, Man, Woman. The chef's wife passes away and he looses his sense of taste and desire to cook. That's how I'm feeling lately. I've always been a really good cook and it seems to be another thing(like creating) that I have lost my mojo for. The scones are a favorite around here and even friends have asked for them to be made. Yesterday they tasted weird to me. No flavor, not good at all. Everyone said they enjoyed them and they were all eaten but to me they had no flavor and I would have never recognized them as mine. Really hope this phase passes. Heck, I hope it's a phase. In the movie he only gets his mojo back with romance...not happening here.

The weather here has predictably turned from early spring to summer in two days. I need to scoot to Best Buy and get a new air conditioner for my bedroom. The one we have there is alright but it has some glitch in the electronics and will suddenly stop working from time to time. Also, I want to buy one that makes less noise if that's possible. Some of the ones we have had are so loud you can't hear the TV or hear yourself think above the noise. Recommendations??

Well, for now I must be off to the bank and try to keep my eyes from crossing while listening to the whys and wherefores of banking stuff.

Talk to you soon.

it's the Easter Pup

2011-04-20T07:14:00.000-07:00

Finally got a few pictures of the Easter Pup. Miss Lucy came to visit. She is one fast little maniac. Crazy Lady. Anyway, ever since she first came here she has never gone near the stairs. Well, Lucy discovered the stairs now. Those little legs made a quick hop up while I wasn't looking because she heard her Daddy up there. The coming down part was not so great. She hasn't learned to be a graceful girl yet and tries to come down as fast as she scoots up. Can you say ass over teakettle. I stood at the bottom to try and slow her down but she dodged me and took off sideways over the couch in a leap of freedom. Tomorrow I get to Lucy sit since Dani is taking her test to get into the CPA program in September. Fingers crossed. That's a smart daughter-in-law though so I have great faith that all will come out alright in the end. I'm sure she will be thrilled to be done with it. She's been studying for months.

It's a fairly gloomy day here added to the fact that we had to go to a wake for a family friend last night and the funeral was this morning. Needless to say I was not happy about being in that place again. I did run into a friend I haven't seen in a couple of years. Husband of an old friend I've lost touch with for various reasons(see; selfish, pretentious, witch). Turns out they divorced...holy crap! How out of touch am I. You would never have imagined that these two would divorce but there it is... Thank goodness it was amicable enough and truthfully I'm happy for him. He's a great guy and the wife was all about the money. He owns a very prosperous business and, miracle of miracles, she left him for someone richer and a bit younger. No surprise there. Anyway, it took the edge off being at the funeral parlor to be able to sit and chat with him. He got to keep the incredibly beautiful house, the business he created 45 years ago and the guy she ran off with died within a year. Now she can be the fabulously wealthy widow she always dreamed of being(no kidding). Life sure does turn out strangely sometimes.

I'll try to get some work done but as Lucy is coming I have to make sure that every single thing is put up high since she likes to grab things and run, chew them and return them to you a lovely, slobbery, mess. Truth is I don't really care that much but my cashmere scarf almost fell victim recently so I better pay attention. I guess I'm baby proofing for the four legged baby.

Sleepy babies....well, one of them anyway.

Happy Easter or Passover which ever you celebrate. Talk to you soon.

bits & pieces

2011-04-16T11:02:00.000-07:00

There's a very old saying that goes something like, "whom the gods would destroy, they first make crazy." Well, just call me crazy... Seriously, what in the name of sweet mercy was I thinking. Never again. I love paper piecing for small works but this was just plain nuts. The one good thing about it is that it creates such complete tedium that you can fall asleep while doing it. After I posted yesterday I was determined to get somewhere with this and I did. What a mess all over the kitchen floor and I will have to get the tweezers and go over all the bitty bits, but I made some headway.

In the bin with this was that little 9-patch I finished a while back and never put the binding on. I managed to finish that just before I fell into a coma last night. .

We are having a stormy day here. High winds and heavy rain predicted for later. Tomorrow is supposed to be somewhat better. Last night Bob and I went out into the side yard around midnight with flashlights. There was an unhappy threesome of raccoons shrieking at each other. No doubt a failed amorous adventure. In all our years here we couldn't recall such a wild and crazy fight and for cripes sake it was 25 feet up in a very thin not to sturdy tree. The lights were coming on all over the neighborhood to see where the hell the racket was coming from. Most times that we have this sort of thing it just sounds more like cats fighting. Last night was like someone being murdered in the yard next door. They didn't even stop when we shone a very bright flashlight on them. Ain't love grand?

Further signs of spring- the farmer's market is back in the village. Haven't been yet and the bigger market down by the harbor is about due to open. Fresh veg to look forward to. Some fish and lobster too!!

I'm going to sweep up this mess and take a nap. Back soon.

Anniversary quilt-part deux

2011-04-15T14:46:00.000-07:00

Here's a cautionary tale for today boys and girls. Never put off till next year what you could have done ten years ago. Or something like that. This is half of the quilt I started about ten years ago as an anniversary quilt for our 25th. Roger really loved these fabrics and enjoyed buying them for me over the course of our frequent trips to Lancaster and Maine and other places. He teased me from time to time that it probably wouldn't be finished in our life time. Little did we imagine through the joking and laughter how prophetic that would actually be. I can across its other half recently and then last weekend James was in the basement and came across a big bin that held a number of supplies including fabric, blocks, and accessories. I remember at some point telling him to just put the bin in the basement till we were finished with the move to the sewing room last year. The I completely forgot about it. Now and then I have wondered where a certain thing had gotten to like my multiple rotary cutters and box of small safety pins and certain blocks. Talk about too much stuff. I am hanging my head in shame.

Anyway, he came upstairs and reminded me about that bin in the basement. I just looked at him and was sorry to say that I had completely forgotten about it. Into the basement I went to see what was there. Like a kid in a candy shop I opened it and was thrilled to see many things I had forgotten about. Among those things were multiple rows of these blocks all sewn and waiting to be put together. think sometimes about the last few months and feel like I fell into a coma of some kind not really caring about much of anything. All of these wonderful things staring back at me in that bin, like these blocks, was sort of like waking up or coming home.

Needless to say, I put the blocks together and now I need to join the two halves. The only bad part about it is that there are miles of paper to rip off the back. Paper piecing always seems like such a good idea and sometimes it is...but not this time. Today I sat and ripped about half the blocks and in the quiet I thought about Roger and how much I wish I had finished this and given it to him to sleep in peace under.

Moral of the story...don't wait till it's too late. Life will come along and kick your ass.

Have a beautiful weekend-hug it up!! I'm going for a walk and look at the green popping out everywhere.

Autograph blocks

2011-04-13T08:52:00.000-07:00

Gerrie's poem made me laugh so much. See yesterdays comments. So funny.

I can't imagine how this entire morning got away from me but sleeping in till nearly 9 may have something to do with it. Last nights loud and scary storms may have too. Love those spring showers and May flowers but enough with the lightning and thunder already.

Meanwhile it's almost noon and I've only got 3 blocks to show for it. These are for Victoria over at Bumbles Beans. On a sadder, related note, there is a young boy missing from her daughter's school in Manhattan and here is the info. I hope by the time I get this blogged he is found safe and sound. There seems to be so much horrible news around here lately. Surely something good will come of this. Fingers crossed, prayers said. You say some too.

UPDATE_Alex was found-all is well.

I am running even later than usual because I took an hour out of my already late morning to go to the post office to mail my taxes(grrr) and then I took myself to the beach to see the wild waves and think about ways to be more healthy and avoid having to pay that much in taxes next year(holy smoke). I really wanted to walk the boardwalk but the mist was coming down heavily and it began to rain steadily minutes after I arrived. It was beautiful to see but very damp and cold. Tomorrow is supposed to be better. I'll try again then. We have had a lot of wet weather and I'm sure that once the sun returns it will warm up fast. Trips to the beach remind me of Roger so much. In a good way though. It was something we often did on days when it was too wet to do much else outdoors.

Anyone watch the Good Wife last night? Is that the last episode of the season?? Hope not. Don't want to wait till Sept to find out what happens but they often do that to us don't they? I got the second season of Nurse Jackie. Watched most of it Sunday night until way too late. What a great show that is.

Back to work...Talk soon.

Back again...

2011-04-12T05:36:00.000-07:00

Some sweet spring flowers for you all. First, thanks to everyone who sent me messages, both private and on the blog, and checked up on me during these past weeks. I suspected all along that once the terrible winter ended I would snap out of it and feel human again. Roger's death and this past winter-from-hell really caused a storm of the century in my head and heart. Gradually, as the sun returned and the garden began to green-up I felt like a return to the living. The first sign of that came one recent morning when the window next to my bed was open enough for me to hear the birds in the thicket. That was followed by a chipmunk sighting in the yard and suddenly I felt like it was worth getting out of bed again. My family and friends have pulled me out of the gloom more times than I can count. Of course, a little Lucy loving always helps. Such a joyful little darling.

Yesterday I pulled put some fabrics for an autograph block for V of Bumble Beans. If you haven't gone over to see what she's up to grab a cuppa and spend a couple of minutes there. Very liberating. Speaking of liberating, I had a wonderful conversation on the phone with Debra of Debra's Design Studio(link on the right). That really perked me up. She put out a call for nine-patch blocks for a quilt to be auctioned for charity. It came out so lovely and she is now quilting it on her long arm machine. Can't wait to see how it turns out.

One of the most unfortunate side effects of these past months is how much I comforted myself with comfort food. Everything is tight and I feel like a slug. A return to Curves is on the list of things to do. I need to get moving again.

On that note, it's time to get dressed and get out to do some errands so I can get back before the thunderstorms predicted for later. On the list of good things I am enjoying lately, the Kindle is at the top. I have read more in the past weeks than all of last year. Problems with my vision caused me to cut back on the reading and he Kindle allows me to make the font large enough to be comfortable for me. I have to say that it's the best thing to come along in a long time. I got the case with a light so I can be anywhere and see clearly. LOVE!!Between that and Netflix I have kept myself entertained during the worst winter ever.

OK, off to the store, the Library to see Terry, the bank for a loan to buy gas and running between the raindrops back home to work on some sewing. Thnaks for stopping by.

Back tomorrow

2011-04-11T13:27:00.000-07:00

Hi All! I'll be back tomorrow. I wasted so much time this morning setting up the new look that I ran out of time for the important stuff...like actually writing something. I've been up to a bunch of things and have finally dusted off the machine and fondled some fabric. I'm working on an autograph block for my friend V of Bumble Beans(in sidebar). Playing with the adorable Lucy and generally trying to get on with life. Things will never be the same but they will be alright-just different. The sun is shining and the trees are greening. Life goes on....

Breaking for a bit

2011-02-28T07:01:00.000-08:00

I'm going to be gone from the blog for a bit while I sort out my new and different life. Thanks for all your kind words. For now I just don't have anything interesting to say and I cannot find my creative button anymore.Everytime I start to write it sounds like a whine and that's no way to make life interesting for readers. Back when I have something to show or say. Meanwhile I am grateful for your friendship and help.

Interlude

2011-02-17T12:36:00.000-08:00

The lack of posts coming from me are due to a couple of things. One of them is a rare few days in February. It's 61 degrees today. Wow is that a welcome thing. The heat's off and the windows are open for a little while. Out with the winter mustiness and in with the fresh air. I know this is just a small blip in the winter weather that is still to come but boy am I going to breathe it in. It's yummy!

I have all but finished giving away Roger's clothes to various clothing drives and while there are still some items like jackets and suits and shoes, for the most part, that's a done deal. There's another clothing drive on the 22nd. It's a tough job but it has a freeing effect to it in that I have a whole chest of drawers that I can spread out my stuff into. Not the way I wanted to have more room but there it is..

BIL Bob is away on his cruise to Cozumel and hopefully enjoying himself. I'm doing a lot better being alone than I thought I would. In all honesty, my friends and family are filling in really well. Dinner with the newlyweds and Lucy, Tonight, shopping and dinner with Terry. Movies and dinner Saturday with the newlyweds and Monday next week dinner with my good friend Jeri. I may never cook again!!

In the meantime, I am taking the opportunity to do a little spring cleaning and read my Kindle. I have several books loaded on and am currently reading one by a favorite writer of mine. It's "My Reading Life" by Pat Conroy. It's a good read by a wonderful writer. Sort of a literary autobiography of his life. I have "A Widows Story" by Joyce Carol Oates that I have scanned the first pages of and it looks good but since I'm in a tenuous place right this minute, I'll save that for another day. It may be a little too real right this moment. Some of the days are good but some of the nights are not so good. There are moments I now refer to as DUH moments. Things that are real but haven't hit your brain in a permanent way.... until they do. Things that make you shake your head and wonder if your losing your mind. Things like looking at pictures of Roger smiling and knowing that you will never see that face in person again or hear that laugh. The scent of a sweater or that pillow that you can't part with-things that just make your heart ache. Right after Roger died the answering machine had a glitsch and the message was lost. I thought I would go crazy at the loss of his voice on that silly message. Sometimes I wonder if we're better off not loving. It has to be less painful than this is...sometimes...but then I see that picture of him in Alaska holding that enormous salmon with the biggest smile on his face and I realize how blessed I was to have had it for the time I did.

Anyway, back to the cleaning and a shower before Terry picks me up. She really makes me laugh so much that it's just what I need right now.

Talk to you soon.

Moving along

2011-02-10T09:58:00.000-08:00

Thanks to all who commented regarding the little foo fah of yesterday. My skin may be a little thin just now but I seriously can't stand passive aggressive behavior. Particularly from someone who has not one clue who they're dismissing with that syrupy finger wagging.
Next!

Most of this ice is finally gone. That something so beautiful to look at can be so scary is a wonder of nature itself. Those icicles are killers. Bob left for two weeks in Florida and a cruise to Cozumel. Being here alone is a
learning experience. Surprisingly, I slept well last night. Of course there was no howling wind or storms so we'll see how that goes.

There's the basic layout for the crosses so far. Certainly can't say I'm rushing things. I have been catching up with various bloggy friends and they continue to amaze and delight. Get yourself a cuppa and go see this years photos from Jan at Bemused-Photos from the Tokyo Quilt show are, as always, just fantastic.

The kids came over with Lucy last evening and we got enchiladas and burritos from Aunt Chiladas. Not bad for take out. Those guys really know their stuff although I think that most of the guys there are from Guatemala. In fact, most of the cooks at our local restaurants are from there. Many of the families used to come to the Pantry to get help while they got on their feet. They have done well and have a lot to be proud of.

Tonight I am heading over to my Friend Pam's house with Terry for our sewing night. We haven't had one this year yet because of the weather. It'll be good to be out and great to be with friends. Speaking of friends...you could have knocked me down with a feather when I answered the phone last evening and it was a call from my good friend Debra Spincic. All they way from Texas. I really enjoyed our talk. She has the lovliest voice. Her Madonna pieces are really so wonderful they must be seen to be believed. Anyway, it was a realy pleasure to be able to have a real live conversation. Check out what she's up to. It's always fun and informative.
I'd better get going if I plan to be ready for later. Thanks again for all the support and friendship.

NY snark

2011-02-09T09:48:00.000-08:00

Here's Lucy! Little miss is what keeps me smiling.

Here's what doesn't make me smile. A comment from someone who clearly doesn't know me at all and misinterprets my NY sarcasm for something other than what it is. I don't expect anyone who "knows" me from the blog to really "know me" but most of the friends I've made in bloglandia and in personal correspondence are good friends who have stood beside me in these past horrible months, genuinely wanting to do something to help. To anyone who thinks that I don't appreciate that every day I say...pft! You add the sound effects.

At heart, I am a comedian with a sharp, very dry, sense of humor. It has been a necessary companion these past months of Roger's terrible illness and death. If not for my sense of humor I would be in a ball in the fetal position in bed. To say that I don't appreciate my life or my place in this life is to not know me at all. I have resumed my job of 13 years at the Pantry where I am , among other jobs, a listener. I listen to women who have been abandoned by louses and left with children to feed and no marketable trade. Women with no means of supporting themselves or the medical and social needs of having two children with Autism. Men of many ages who have served our country only to have been forgotten and left to find their way while not fully being able to understand what has happened to them. Most cannot even look you in the face, so bleak is their pain and guilt. I am cosidering another offer as well for a job in one of the churches in the village. I will most likely take that job too in a month or so.

For anyone who thinks that I'm sitting in some ivory tower complaining about the lack of help from the little folk toiling in the fields let me set you straight. I spend my days doing for others as much as possible and now I am trying to make sense of my own life too. The loss of my husband of 37 years and friend for some 40 has been devastating and nearly unbearable to me. My chin is up though and not being one to bitch and moan, I go through the days with a smile on my face and think of how very fortunate I am that Roger was savvy enough to leave me comfortable and cared for in a number of ways. I have a wonderful, if creaky, old house that is mine all mine and don't owe anyone anything but taxes. For nearly 6 months I went to the hospital everyday and, until the end, believed that my dearest friend and the love of my life would come home again. We spent out time together, as short as it was, really in love with each other. Last week was our anniversary and I had intended to write a little about our life together. Roger gave me the first home I have ever known in all my life. He spent so much of his time planning things for us to do and ways to make me happy and to feel safe. If it were not for him, I doubt I would have survived the things that happened to me years ago. We took a long-time friendship and turned it into a love story that our friends still comment about. It was one of those "if not for this, then that would never have happened" things. He made it easy to fall in love because we were already in like for years. There's a lot to be said for a boat ride on the Sound on a May evening at sunset. I still get a little tug at my tummy when I think of that night. I wanted to spend the rest of my life trying to make him as happy as possible and tell him many times over how much he meant to me. When I think of how sick he was those last weeks it causes me actual physical reactions.

So, if someone thinks that my personality is defined by not appreciating the plight of those around me who have to make their way out in the storm when I get to sit here being crabby and annoyed at the plow guy and the state of my driveway, let me just say, "you have no idea who I am and , clearly, no appreciation for NY snark. To each his own but stay out of mine.

Sliding along with a side of worry.

2011-02-07T15:17:00.000-08:00

Here are some 15 minute play blocks I made with American Jane scraps. I don't belong to the 15 min. play group but I guess I'm playing along anyway. The most work I did this week was on the crosses blocks which I uploaded but for some reason appear at the bottom of this entry. Go figure.

I am worried for my friend Joanne. She was so helpful and kind to me during Roger's illness and now she is facing serious problems of her own affecting her husband's health. I can't stop thinking about them and I'm too far away to do much of anything useful. Maine is a long way away. Think good thoughts for my friends if you are so inclined.

I have had a bit of a horrible week here. Last Friday would have been our 27th anniversary. Friday was the culmination of a really awful week. I could feel myself stating to lose it all during the week. I was finally done in by the snow and ice. As I've mentioned here (too often, sorry)-I live up here on a hill. A rather big hill in the best of weather. Throw in a little ice and, putting it mildly, we're screwed. The addition of 4-wheel drive does nothing in the face of a couple of inches of solid ice frozen over a fairly deep crust of slush. Couldn't find anyone to come and help and Bob had many important meetings and a company dinner thing during the week. He just closed his eyes and kept going over the ice which made it even slicker. James tried to come and help but his car actually got stuck sideways in the drive with the bumper over the Belgium Block. Then, while attempting to remove the inch-thick coating of ice on my Explorer, without my realizing it, the plastic end came off the scraper and the metal part scratched my windows and left a scratch in the hood of my pretty car. There was so much of this ice covering the already deep snow that it looked like the glaze on a donut outside. Ice EVERYWHERE! I never made it out of the house one day after last Monday until yesterday. I'm the last one to get hysterical about the weather and I usually don't even mind being snowed in but this last couple of weeks have really done me in. It just brought to light all the things that Roger and James used to do to make life function smoothly around here. Strangely enough, there are a number of people in town who do plowing but once that ice set and crusted and got driven over, nothing but chemicals and higher temps was going to move it. A good friend of ours worked for the Town for 35+ years and recently retired. He was the guy who plowed the roads around here. Naturally, after 35 years he could plow on a dime and was very good at his job. They have a new plow guy and I'm sure in time he will get the hang of it...that is if a mob carrying flaming torches doesn't get him first. All over town people are going crazy because he has done the worst job of plowing you could imagine. The road I live on is good and wide-wider than most around the village. He has turned it into a one and a half lane mess. I see the same thing all over. Around the Library is a pretty big mess as well. Oh Lord, this just seems to be the winter of our discontent...sorry Mr. Shakespeare.

Yesterday we went to the annual Super Bowl fiesta at Joe & Jeri's house. Lots of people came this year since the temps went up to 46 and it was a spectacular day. More please! Anyway, I just go for the goodies. One of the ladies makes cream puffs. Forget all the other food. I just wait for dessert and the cream puffs. Although I did have a glass or two of a nice red....Oh, and maybe a couple of snacky things...alright, maybe more than a couple....and some shrimp...and a smidge of pulled pork...yes, that's right, a smidgen. That is if a smidgen were a very large spoonful on a nice roll....urp!

I did manage to do some sewing and took the advice of Gypsy Quilter on framing the crosses. It does look nice-thanks a bunch for the idea. I've got about 12 blocks done. More pics to come. I've really strayed from the original concept of making a quilt that looks like the one V, of Bumble Beans made. That's still something I want to do because I covet that quilt so much.

BIL Bob is leaving for 2 weeks+ on a cruise so I'll be hanging around here getting used to life in a new way. I used to think it would be good to be the Queen. Not so much now. I'm having dinner with James & Dani & Lucy later this week and with other friends next weekend. I'll get used to it...eventually.

Stay warm..

Hibernation ...grumble

2011-02-01T13:16:00.000-08:00

I believe that I have a full load in my pick-up now. No mas.....kay?

James came and plowed us out the other day and thought it would be funny to level off the pile of snow in my car. Plenty of traction now even without 4-wheel drive engaged.

I worked a little more on the crosses but I am unhappy with the fabric used to surround them. It's flimsy and not in a good way. I think I will find something nicer and start over. What the hell else do I have to do anyway. Well, I could spend the day staring at the ice dam in the roof over on Bob's side of the house. It's making a lovely pattern in the ceiling tile that looks a lot like the map of Texas. That is if Texas were growing into a much larger state. Seeing $$$$ there as well as having to re-paint his living room since some little trickles are finding a path down the wall on that corner of the house. I guess that's what happens in a house that was built in 1940. The problem is that it's not getting warm enough for the snow and ice to cascade off the roof and it's just lying there all heavy and wet. Old house=weak pressure points and seams. Like I said..$$$ ahead for Bob. Right now you can't even get a ladder up there to find out what's up since there are many layers of ice built up in front of that part of the house. We'll see how long it takes to get this job done. Since he is going to the Caribbean in a week something tells me that it will be a fine day in spring before we address this issue. Praise the Lord, my house is on the sunny side and nice and tight-also much newer.

The other picture up there is the view out my kitchen window looking at my neighbors across the way. All that land used to be an apple orchard. There are a couple of trees life but they are in sad shape. Up to the left is a huge manor house with an attached greenhouse that once belonged to a family that owned the orchard back to the 1700s. It then belonged to friends of ours for many years. He was an orthodontist by trade and a woodworking genius by nature. The whole house is lined with fabulous cherry bookcases and wonderful woodwork of all types. You would think you landed in England and were visiting the country squire for a little fox hunt. It now belongs to another orthodontist and while they use the greenhouse and have a fabulous vegetable garden across this view I am showing, they never did much to save the trees. I can remember the scent of apple blossoms that was so intoxicating in spring. Just opening the windows and inhaling made you sigh with pleasure. When the snow is gone, there are many raised beds for vegetables and flowers all across this piece of land now. I know they are a large Italian family but I can't imagine how they can use all of it in one season and I have met the Mrs., a very wealthy Italian woman in designer clothing and finely manicured hands who speaks little English even after 20 years here. Somehow I can't imagine her getting sweated up in the making of Sunday gravy. They have a staff for that I'm pretty sure-I see them out there keeping those beds perfectly manicured just like Mrs. T's hands. Nice folks though. I see them now and again walking their basset hound Alice. Alice will occasionally escape and wander over to our hillside and, not being the smartest kid in class, forget how to get home. Love old Alice.

Speaking of doggy wonders, Miss Lucy was taken to be spayed yesterday. We made a big fuss over her on Sunday knowing what an icky day Monday would be for her. She's home now and a little doped up but that's probably for the best since she needs to be careful of the sutures. Keeping Lucy quiet for 5 days is a challenge that my Daughter-in-law, Dani, will have to do this week. I can't really get out of here to go and help much with this ice and snow. Lucy is probably better off without an audience anyway.

Well, I guess I'll go back and look for some nicer fabric for the crosses. This is when I really appreciate having the stash. Stay warm and try to avoid the germs floating around. Something with alcohol will help with that!! Cocktails anyone?

Whimsy Flimsy + left overs

2011-01-27T09:28:00.000-08:00

Are you sick of seeing this yet? Don't know what's up with the camera either but the picture quality is awful. Apologies.

Maybe it's as cranky as the rest of us. Another 15 inches of the white stuff fell since yesterday. Can I call a truce with the universe? I can't even get to my car to get in it and engage the 4-wheel drive. Very tiresome and my favorite plow guy is busy until tomorrow some time. I need to look elsewhere I guess.

Hope you are in a safe and temperate place. Back soon with more.

Whimsy Baby!

2011-01-25T12:50:00.000-08:00

Since it's doing that thing with white stuff falling again...sigh...I just wanted to update you all and show the "Whimsy" fabric I found locally. I really didn't expect my local shop to have any of this stuff left. That's what I get for making stupid assumptions without fact checking. I got some yardage and another jelly roll and began making these fun blocks for a postage stamp look. This fabric is so pretty and the colors are very springy. That's very important right now because yesterday I awoke to 8 degrees. What the hell kind of temperature is 8?

In other news and possibly along the lines of a minor miracle, I got myself zipped into a pair of my jeans today. I know...who could have thought it? Not me since I have been the very picture of self medication through junk food lately. Combine that with being stuck up here on this icy hill and that should, by all rights, make for an even fluffier Dee. Maybe there is some universal kindness at work here that couldn't bear seeing me cry any more than I have been already. Seriously, I can breathe too...double sigh. The crud that attacked me last week is almost gone. Thank goodness. I was coughing so hard my sides hurt. Combine that with missing out on a visit from the kids and the ever adorable Lucy coming to dinner on Saturday and you have one grump Dee.

That was then and the "Whimsy" find has put a smile on my face now so all is as well as can be expected. I do need to get to the bank and out for a haircut soon. Actually a haircut and some color. My roots are taking over and not in a very pretty way. More like in a gray way...ugh.

OK peoples I'm going back to the machine and not coming up for air until I have nine of these big blocks for a baby quilt. After that it's back to the crosses I was making last week and a smaller version of the psotage stamp for me, me, me. That's my story. Hope you are all having a good week. Back soon.

The Crud....snort

2011-01-21T14:16:00.000-08:00

Wish I had something better to show you. Even the quality of the photo is not very good. I came down with The Crud two days ago. My days have been filled with that hazy thing that happens when yo have to take codeine cough medicine. I keep walking past the crosses and just don't have the energy to think that much about them. Today I finally picked them up and put them aside for the day. Better luck tomorrow. I'm coughing so hard that my sides hurt and the sneezing and wheezing is getting even to me...yuck. Hot soup helps and hot tea. We got more snow today and now the temps are dropping to the single digits with a wild wind off the water. This winter really sucks. O.K. I have now evolved into a whining, weather detail giving, non-creative person. Going back to bed until I can, once again, be a productive human being.....wish me luck.

By the way, yesterday I got a letter from social security asking me to fill out a form for the one time death benefit for Roger which amounts to around $250. and I swear, my hand to God, it's 6...six pages long and wants to know everything about me back to who I dated in High School. Seriously, they want to know who I was married to before Roger and why we divorced. That was before 1980. I'm tempted to just file it in the round basket and forget it. Please don't get me wrong. I'm not so loaded that I can throw away money but seriously, you have to see some of these questions. How on earth is it that we hear so much about people scamming the government when they want my life story for $250. Unbelievable except when one remembers that they are dealing with the government. Then it all makes sense. They are buried under a mountain of paperwork and they hope you are too.

Stay warm people!

Thanks to Libby for the quiltshops.com idea and for the suggestions for fabric from Terri. I found some Whimsy. Bloggy friends are such a gift.

Poking my head up

2011-01-17T14:37:00.000-08:00

Sorry for being gone so long. This new life takes getting used to. I think I've finally got most of the paperwork out of the way...whew.. you could paper a room with all that stuff. Not fun.

Last week I got out the sewing machine and started in on a couple of things I had in mind for a while. As I've mentioned before, I'm crazy about any of the American Jane fabric but the Breath of Avignon is a particular favorite. Anyway, I fell in love with my friend Victoria's red cross quilt when she showed it before Christmas. Every time I get a chance, I go back and look at it again. Maybe it's the crosses and my feelings of faith are more on the surface right now, but I am really drawn to the images and her use of color is fantastic. When I see this quilt it just POW...smacks you in the face with it's stark beauty. She did a fantastic job of quilting it herself as well. The woman is so talented it makes my hair hurt. Go to her blog to see a new tutorial for innovative flying geese.....go on.....hurry up. You won't be sorry.

Soooooooo, my thought was to dig into my beloved Breath of Avignon jelly roll and turn out a whole lot of crosses. I'm not positive but I think I will keep this to a large wall hanging size. Victoria makes king sized quilts but she lives in a loft in NY city with room for that kind of work. While my house is big, it doesn't have that kind of floor space to accommodate a king size piece. Old house-small rooms. Someday I hope to take down several walls but that's another story for another day.

The other thing I'm working on is a baby quilt for a friend who is a first-time Mom. Lord knows when I'll get that done though since I can't find any more of that "Whimsy" fabric line by Joanna Figueroa. If anyone knows where I can find it let me know. I tried Fat Quarter Club and Hancock's and Jelly Rolls 2 go. Found more Breath of Avignon but none of the other line.

My son and DIL have been coming over often to have meals with me and it's very welcome. My DIL, Dani, has pretty much decided to return to school for her masters to become a CPA. She has put out so many applications it's ridiculous and they might as well bite the bullet and get her a degree she can work with. It's so difficult right now. The cost of living for a young couple is crazy around here. I will try to help them in any way I can. The thought of them moving away is to awful to contemplate. Besides, I need my grand-pup nearby. Life without Lucy would be very gray indeed. There has been some talk of adding an apartment onto this house to make a place for them. We all love the idea. It will just take time to work out details...Oh, and did I mention $$. Roger and I did that to live here and there's plenty of room for another addition.

I'll try to update more often. Some days, I find it very hard to be cheery and, in fact, to keep getting up at all. Time, and a little warm weather will do wonders. This awful winter has got us all down. We have been so spoiled by the past few years of little snow and ice. Where's some of that global warming I hear so much about?

Back soon.

Touch of Spring

2011-01-03T08:54:00.000-08:00

Going through old photos I am reminded of how wonderful, and patient, Roger was at taking photos of flowers. These are blueberry flowers on his infamous 3-blueberry bush. Ironically, this past summer, the bush produced about 20 actual blueberries. He would have loved that. I'm showing these because I can't find the damn charger for the camera and I wanted to show what is going on but I can't yet. Oh how I miss my photography staff. The holiday just didn't happen for me this year. I found myself having a really hard time keeping it together beginning a few days before. The answer for me was to totally ignore the date. Family and friends made it a little easier. Bob got me a Kindle for Christmas and a lighted case to hold it. The kids got me a gift card and I got another from Dani's family so I had my crack computer wiz(James)set it up with a wireless connection and I downloaded a couple of books. Nothing outstanding but enough to hold my interest for the evening. I read the entire first book the evening of the holiday that will go nameless. It worked out fine. Bob had too much partying and fell asleep early. He slept till nearly noon the following morning. It's end of year at his business and he's been working 15-17 hour days for 2 weeks. It finally caught up with him.

The following day of the holiday that will not be mentioned, I cooked a turkey dinner for the kids and we had a great bottle of champagne to make mimosas with. Boy did that taste good. As I mentioned to another friend, nothing was the same but it was alright and that's the best I an hope for right now. Of course having Miss Lucy around gave us all a laugh as well as watching "Despicable Me". Just what I needed. A few good laughs. I can highly recommend it to chase the blues.

We are having a small taste of spring for a few days now. The temps were around 50-52 the last few days. I'll take however many of those I can get until the inevitable February ick sets in. The snow has nearly all melted which is very nice too.

I took out the sewing machine and worked up a few 16-patches in Breath of Avignon in a Honey Bun, which is 1 1/2 inch strips of the line. The bright Provencal colors are so pretty and of course I love any fabric by Sandy Klop. Her American Jane line is one of my very favorites. As soon as I can locate the charger I will show you what little I accomplished. It's been so long since I did any work that my skills need sharpening...a lot.

I'm making the leftover turkey into a dish I saw on Judy's blog. It's a Chicken tetrazzini but she makes it with turkey too. I've got a lot of left over turkey to use up and it makes for good comfort food.

As you may imagine, I am throwing a lot fo stuff away and giving a lot to charity. There are many things that I'm not tackling right now-too painful- but some things just scream out to be addressed. Clothing that will fit no one else in the family-some brand new with tags, and some really well worn(see; holes and rips in t-shirts) and some things that have hung in the closet for years that Roger insisted on keeping but never wore. He kept the suit we were married in. That got to me when I came across it. I try not to spend too much of the day doing that. It's too hard. A little at a time.

I'm still enjoying my Netflix deliveries. I got the first season of "Damages" with Glenn Close and am enjoying that and looking forward to the second season. Next up is "The Riches" a series on FX that I wasn't able to watch when it was out except for a couple of episodes. I really liked it and have both seasons on order. Also, back to my favorite BBC shows I have "The Forsyte Saga" and, on order but not yet available for a couple of weeks, "Downton Abbey". I should get the second season of "Cranford" since I didn't see that either.

Gotta go shred some turkey and do a bit of cooking. Hope to get the camera thing straightened out later....grrrr

White Out

2010-12-28T06:36:00.000-08:00

We buy our birdseed by the 50lb bags and feed a multitude of wonderful little birds all year round. When I got up early this morning the trees were laden with all sorts of little feathery critters waiting patiently for breakfast. Since we hadn't yet began to dig, we made a space on the porch rail outside and threw out some seed. They are so small and darling.

Bob and I went to our good friend's Joe & Geri Sunday for brunch. They only live in the next town over but the ride home was a knuckle-biter. We left at about 5 just as the real wild wind and snow started to come down. The snow thunder and lightning was a surprise. That really woke me up from my drowsing off the all day eating binge at "Open House at the McCabe's". Who expects lightning in a blizzard? I thought the thunder was just a truck rumbling by.

I got a Kindle and a Kindle case as well as a gift card for Amazon. I'm finding my way around it pretty well. The directions are very clear even for someone who is computer challenged. I like the way it feels in hand and the print is so clear and dark. Love it!

I will have to make a couple of purchases in the next few weeks for myself. My dishwasher is on it's last legs and this wireless keyboard that I am writing on has a number of keys that are either stuck or not working real well at all. The x and the c are a problem, making for very funny words at times. Now I really must proof the writing or I sound like I've been in the Christmas punchbowl a little too long.
Speaking of that I did have a lot more wine than usual. That translates to two glasses and a margarita.

Christmas Day dinner at Terry and Jim's was a lot of fun. The food was amazing and of course time spent with my dearest friends is a special event in any case. We are always running and going and never have the time to sit and just talk. Wonderful. It did us a lot of good.

Christmas Eve I made Shrimp Scampi for James and Dani who brought Miss Lucy along for a fun time. I understand that she was, at first, thrilled with snow and soon after...not so much. Those tiny legs are only about 5 inches tops. There is 2 feet of snow out. She has had enough of the wonder of snow already. Frankly, I'm with Lucy.

I finally un-covered my car. Wow am I going to be sore tomorrow. I need a few things from the store like milk and, of course, bagels. Last night I made a pot of bacon, potato, spinach chowder. It was very good. So good that my son even loved it. One of the best things about winter has to be soup. Easily one of the best and easiest meals. Throw a bagel in the toaster and a small salad and your set.

Hoping to find my way to the sewing machine very soon. For the moment I'm stuck in paperwork hell. One of the insurance companies is asking for the original policy and I have turned the house upside down. I have years worth of paid premiums proof but I can't find the original policy...dang.

I've run out of places to look and now am hoping that he may have kept the policies in his desk at work. I will contact our friend Tom later to have a look see what he can find. Hope there is a way around it if it doesn't turn up.

Off to the store. Back soon.

Christmas rush...

2010-12-23T13:49:00.000-08:00

I thought I would just update you on things around here since I don't want to worry anyone. Thanks so much for the many messages I have gotten both on the blog and personally.

Even though it will take some major getting used to, I am trying to slap on a happy face and proceed with some Christmas cheer. I'm not one of those people who can sink myself into a miasma and wallow. Roger was not that kind of person either. So a little rundown of these past weeks and what's to come. Deep breath....

I am making Christmas Eve dinner for James & Dani and Bob. We are having Shrimp Scampi, Basmati rice, salad and something undetermined & yet to be bought by Bob at Copenhagen Bakery tomorrow for dessert. Christmas day we are going to my best bud Terry's house for dinner. There was some mention made about margaritas. Fine by me but a nice Cabernet would be good too. The day after Christmas our friends Joe & Geri are having a family open house thing that they do every year. Everyone brings something and the table is usually groaning with delicious stuff to eat and drink. Yes...this is my way of keeping moving. If I can get past these two holidays I will be alright. I feel like the white rabbit in Alice. No time to stop I have to go etc.

My schedule has reverted to pre-marriage time. Years ago, before we married, I used to be a night owl. Staying up to watch movies and such till all hours. Roger's work schedule kept me more grounded. In bed my 10 and up at 5:30. No reason for that anymore. I'm finding the nights a little hard but manageable thanks to Netflix. The movies are arriving and flying back out in the mail in record time. I just finished the last season of The Tudors and am looking forward to some older BBC mini-series stuff I've ordered. I should order a few more things since I think my cue is getting low and there is NOTHING on TV during these two weeks but re-runs. Any suggestions out there?

I've been inundated with paperwork from various life insurance policies and am waiting to hear from social security. The paperwork is daunting and if you miss a day of organizing you need an afternoon to figure out where you are. I have all but a few thank you cards for various things like flowers and fruit baskets etc. done. That can really get to you after a few dozen of those so I've been doing them every other day or so.

I'm hoping to clear the decks of the funeral details and thank you cards so I can get back to having some life without being sad or depressed daily. I do keep running into people in the grocery store who didn't know and last week I had an interesting thing happen at the bank. There was a check for Roger's final pay and he had many weeks of vacation time so that went into the check as well. Being that it was a substantial amount and made out to the Estate of Roger I rightly assumed they would be handling the check differently than any old deposit. They asked me to see the bank manager. Turns out that she lost her husband 6 months ago and she took a lot of time out of her schedule to explain some important things to me regarding things I should and should not do for a number of months + to see that the deposit was verified by her personally through the Lab where Roger worked. She gave me the number of her bereavement group and her personal cell number if I needed to talk to someone about all this. You really meet the most amazing people sometimes.

So here we are at the end of 2010. It's been a hard year and I don't expect it to be always easy in the coming year but I am putting one foot in front of the other and moving forward slowly. Now and then something reminds me of Roger and it's hard not to cry. I'm giving myself permission and not trying to keep from doing that. I guess that's part of the process. My eyes look like I've had surgery. Red and swollen a lot of the time. I need some cucumber slices or tea bags for my bags.

I wish all my dear friends, bloggy and otherwise, a beautiful Christmas and a New Year full of promise. My wish for you all is that you make the most of your time with loved ones. In the end, it really is the one thing you can't buy. Hardly anything else matters as much or is as precious.

I'll be back...

Thank You All so much.

2010-12-11T15:16:00.000-08:00

I'm doing alright but missing my best friend a lot. Just the simple act of chatting in the evening. Things you don't think about much while you have them. Relatives have returned home to the pacific northwest after much delay and cancellation of planes due to weather. I am now in the middle of financial paperwork hell although I must say I've had a lot of help from the Lab where Roger worked. They are guiding me through the maze and being a big help. I am grateful.

The last day we had with Roger we all talked about the many things we loved about him and how much we wish he could have talked to us in those last hours. He had a hard time at the end and remained whatt we always called stubborn Irish. Even the Doctors and Nurses remarked on what a tough guy he was. People from various parts of the hospital came and hugged me and told me how honored they were to have known Roger over these months. Nurses who had been with him for months cried at the end. A little later when it was all quiet, James said to me, "I sure wish I could go get Dad a margarita." Roger couldn't drink in the last two years due to meds. He was never a big drinker but he sure missed those margaritas. A couple of hundred people came to the wake. Many of the engineers that Roger had worked with over the years and many friends and family. After the funeral we all went to a local pub and ordered margaritas and toasted Roger. It was a real old fashioned Irish/Italian wake with a Latin twist. He would have loved it.

I want to thank you all for your lovely messages. I was comforted so much by all of them. One of these days I will return to sewing and blogging. I just need some time to get things sorted out and get past all that has happened.

I will love him always. He gave me the gift of a wonderful life. I just need to figure out how to go on without him.

2010-12-03T16:03:00.000-08:00

Roger passed away quietly this afternoon at 5:45 in his sleep with all of us surrounding him. Thank you for the blessing of your friendship and your kindness.

Enough...

2010-12-02T06:25:00.000-08:00

Can't think of a way to write the words. We are in a hospital nightmare holding pattern. Everything that can go wrong has already and there are no more answers...only patience and prayers. Roger has decided he has had enough and refuses treatment. He has been through hell these last few weeks much of which I haven't spoken about. Last week during dialysis his blood pressure nearly bottomed out and he went into cardiac arrest- they had to shock him to bring him back. He has made it clear he wants no more of that and so the legalities have been put into place so his wishes are followed. His kidney Dr. is a kind man who spoke with him this morning and Roger made it clear that he doesn't want any further treatment.

We are all devastated and in pain but if you could see what has happened to him in these last 2 weeks you would understand why he's had enough.

I thank all of you for your prayers and concern. I'll be back when I can. My heart is broken.

Miss Lucy wishes you good turkey!

2010-11-20T08:47:00.000-08:00

Lucy is wishing you a Happy Thanksgiving with all the trimmings...get a load of those ears...sigh

Friday BIL Bob & I went out to the laboratory where Roger has worked for 30+ years and met with several people who are helping me with various financial matters regarding Roger's illness and sick leave. Everyone was so nice it was very heartwarming and sweet. People came out of the woodwork to say how much they missed him and his bosses told me that not only was he missed as a person but his outstanding work over the years in bringing contracts to the Lab was sorely missed as well. Roger has made so many friends in the industry that I get e-mails and messages from near and far. Over the course of the years he has brought many millions of dollars to the Lab and they acknowledged how much his absence meant to the whole staff. They were helpful in directing me on how to proceed with long-term plans for that absence and how it would most benefit us. Roger is on family health leave right now and that will last till Feb. After than he will go on long-term health care leave which would allow him to return to work within a years time or remain on long term until Social Security kicks in in his 60s. Roger is only 55 now so that's a long time during which he will get more than 60 percent of his current pay. I can also ask to have a pay out of his vacation days, of which there are a whole lot +they keep accruing even now while he's out. We have often teased about how the Lab is like a country club. It is very much like a University in both setting and manner. It's a beautiful place. Roger always took a walk on fair weather days and since the Lab is federally protected, there are huge flocks of turkeys and deer. We only saw turkeysthis time but I have seen photos of the hundreds of deer.

I was glad to have Bob along with me and thankful that he took some notes on the info-there was so much of it. All of this made things seem a bit less frightening on the income front.

Last night James & I went to visit Roger in the late evening. He was a little bit alert but he tries to talk and with the tube in his throat you really can't understand much at all. It becomes frustrating for him and you can see on the monitors that he is becomeing agitated. We didn't stay long but I could see he was really happy to see James and even smiled at the conversation about the new grand-pup Miss Lucy.

Tomorrow I will head out to the bakery and get a tray of really excellent cookies from the Copenhagen Bakery for the Nurses and Drs. who got stuck with working Thanksgiving. For the valet guys at the hospital who have been so good to me I will get gift cards for Starbucks. They don't even bother parking my car in a lot now. They just back it up a few feet and leave it in front of the hospital. They are really nice young men.

Bob & I are going to our good friends, Joe & Geri for Thanksgiving. We are looking forward to having a nice dinner. We've got the mashed potatoes, desert & wine. I'll go to the hospital in the morning that day. Thanksgiving won't be the same nor will it be easy but I have to get out and have a few hours of conversation and friends. I hope that you have a delcious Thanksgiving and hugs your loved ones extra hard.

2010-11-16T11:08:00.000-08:00

This past weekend the newlyweds got a puppy. Lucy is an adorable 9 week old Corgi. She has fur like a little bear and her ears are bigger than almost anything else on her. Short chubby legs- more body than legs. When she moves the front half starts before the back half gets going. Very funny. After a visit to see Lucy and fall in love, we went to Catfish Annie's for lunch. It was the best day I've had in a long while.

If you're too squeamish don't read on.....

Roger still has an infection that is drug resistant so gloves and a gown are still the norm each day. Yesterday, he was operated on to replace a feeding tube that had begun to leak. A new one put in and while they were in there they drained 8 liters of fluid from his abdomen...8 liters. Sorry if it's too much info but that's the kind of thing we are dealing with daily. This morning he has put out another liter. The surgeon has sent off some of this fluid to a lab to be tested in the hopes that they find something that will explain why this massive swelling keeps happening. I was able to see and talk to Roger this morning. He can say a few things in a raspy voice since the trach tube is in his throat. You have to listen carefully and get as close as possible. Mostly he just sleeps or rests with his eyes closed. He is not interested in even having his glasses on and since he is blind as a bat without them, communication is nearly non-existent. I hold his hand and talk to him for a while and then he waves me away. He has a lot of his Dad in him. It's not easy but I can't stop to think about it or I will lose it altogether. Gotta keep on going. I guess if it were me I'd be pretty grumpy too.

Just checking in to say Hi. I've been getting up so early in the morning but it gives me the chance to sit and visit with bloggy friends. Haven't commented too much but I am stopping by now and then. Talk to you soon.

Thanks Ladies...

2010-11-06T08:54:00.002-07:00

I turned on the comments again due to the many e-mails I got from the best people in the world...you.

When I think about writing lately it always seems to be so needy sounding. Comes off sounding like I need a lot of cheese with all that whine. I'm not used to being the one who needs. I've always been the one who is strong. Some of the best relationships I have are with people who have needed a lot of support and comfort recently. I guess this turns out to be the time when my problems are becoming seemingly insurmountable. Anyway, Thanks Ladies for the messages and several eye opening e-mails that slapped me upside the head. Left o my own devices, I am the ostrich with my head firmly planted in the sand. Your thoughtful messages pulled me out.

This morning I went to see Roger and there was a sign on the door that said he has an infection and gloves and a gown must be worn. If that doesn't get your mind going in the morning nothing will. One less way for us to communicate...one more thing to worry about. Now I can't even touch his forehead and hold his hand except through plastic....sigh.

In order not to lose what few brain cells I am managing to hold on to I decided it was time to get out the sewing machine and some fabric. I put it all on the kitchen table yesterday and there it sits. I keep walking past the stuff not doing anything with it. Last night I thought about this for a long time. I think that I am avoiding anything that makes me feel good because I feel guilty having enjoyment. Wrap your head around that one. Before all this stuff started happening, I thought I was a fairly normal woman with reasonable thoughts running through my head. Now I am in a daily state of panic due to the many unknowns we are facing. I thought for sure that by the time I was this age I wouldn't have so much to worry about. In the last 3 months most of the things I used to know the answer to have become questions with no clear answer. Having been through hell once in my earlier life should have prepared me for it happening again. It hasn't and I'm in a position where I may find myself without options I thought I had.

I'm going from this to the sewing machine and do something simple. I'll try not to enjoy it!

little update

2010-11-04T13:08:00.000-07:00

I closed the comments for the time being. At this point I feel as though you have all sent me a warm embrace with all your beautiful comments and to ask for more time and time again seems like to much. I feel the good vibes and am thankful for the prayers. Please don't stop the prayers.

For now, I will just keep this as a journal of some of the things that are happening. I'm hoping that it will give you an update and let you know what's up. It will also give me an outlet for some of my emotions.

What's up this week has been in some ways a positive thing. Of course, the way things have been going with Roger, positive is a relative term. Last week was a very bad week. There was too much Atavan building up in Roger's system and for many days he just wouldn't wake up. Since he was still intubated he couldn't talk even if he had been awake but not to have him open his eyes at all was very hard. Fluid was building up in his system and he was, once again, massively swollen. The kidneys weren't working and it became a serious problem. Dialysis was needed and done. Some improvement but not enough. They speak to me in hushed tones and hold my hand like a child. Maybe that's because I feel small and ineffectual and am projecting that most of the time. By weeks end the tubes needed to come out of Roger's throat to ward off infection so on Saturday, they did a tracheostomy. After that he began to come around and his eyes opened now and then. He had grown quite the beard with all the hardware all over his face so they offered to have a woman who does such things for the patients shave Roger. He looks like himself again...well sort of. Each day he was a little more awake and trying to communicate. Unfortunately, some of his communications are not so good. He has two good friends from grade school that wanted to come and see him. Every time I mentioned it he would become very agitated and then his tubes would need clearing and he would be nearly choking. The nurses said that it is often the case with people like Roger that they just don't want people to see them like this. Whatever his reasoning, I must abide with it for now. Getting into a major state of agitation is not helpful to him and perhaps when he is better things will change. He even waved off his Brother Bob and more or less told him to go away. Of course he's not going to do that but it was sad nevertheless.

Today I went in this morning and spent some time with him. A surgeon came in to let me know that they needed my signature for the procedure on Monday. He will have a new line put in for dialysis and another pic line for meds. The prognosis for Roger is not great and it depends on who I speak with to what degree I worry. I'm trying very hard to be patient and keeping in mind that it took a long time to get him well enough for rehab before. When Roger asked me where he was today and I told him, I also mentioned that it was November and a kind of frosty damp Thursday outside, he closed his eyes and a tear fell down his face. August seems so far away.

That's where it stands today. I'm beginning to believe that there is hell right here on earth and we are in it.

In brighter news...

James and Dani are coming home from St. Thomas and their honeymoon today. They sent me a couple of pictures. I'm so glad they could get away and enjoy this time with each other. They hit it lucky with their reservation. When they arrived, they were shown to the wrong room and so they talked to the woman in charge and had a nice conversation about their wedding and all that has gone wrong for the family in these last months. They were put into a suite with a huge balcony overlooking a gorgeous bay. People really can be generous and kind. The Concierge has sent hem to several places where they didn't have to spend too much but got great meals.

I can't begin to tell you how much I have missed them. Living without my best friend is hard enough but without them it seems empty and way too quiet.

Give your loved ones an extra hug. Lately all I can think of is all of the things that I didn't do and say when I had the chance. I'm trying to remember that last good day and I can't. Did I kiss him goodbye or did we just wave at each other like sometimes...can't remember. I can remember that he had a few days off and we did some of the things we liked to do together

Faith & a diversion

2010-10-30T10:03:00.000-07:00

It's really hard to keep going in the face of what's happening but go I must. If not I will find myself in the fetal position sucking my thumb and waiting for the earth to stop spinning.

There are no good things to report regarding Roger. He is being kept comfortable and I visit him most mornings early. It's the best time to find a parking space and not fight traffic and it seems to be a great time to find a nurse and even some Drs. to talk with. They really are doing all they can and I can't spend each day crying so I must keep moving. I'm trying not to let fear immobilize me. It's a battle I win some days and some days it's bigger then me.

Again, thanks to all of you for your prayers. Roger needs them now. I've often heard more religious people refer to the phrase, "Give it up to God" That's where we are now. This morning I was looking in a desk where Roger kept his rosary from many years ago. There was a prayer book and some other things and now I can't find them. I'll keep looking. I don't know why but I feel I must find them. Sounds irrational coming from me but I have discovered a vein of faith I never knew I had and it seems like there are forces challenging all that I have come to be at peace with. I feel that I must find these things like something inside me is making me frantic to discover where they are. Crazy emotions.....

Anyway....

For a small, and colorful quilty diversion I would point you in the direction of Amy's blog for the bi-annual Quilt Festival. Doesn't cost a thing to see hundreds of beautiful quilts on as many blogs. I entered twice before and can tell you it was fun getting sweet comments from people I never heard from before. Don't have anything to show for myself this time around but I can recommend the Festival for a great pastime. Hope you get a a chance to stop by and see the amazing amount of quilts. Scroll down a little it's a BIG deal.

Talk to you soon.

Moving along...

2010-10-25T06:17:00.000-07:00

Thanks for the beautiful messages I received from various people. Your kindness is a gift beyond measure.

I have been to see Roger now that he is back at Huntington in the ICU. He is intubated and in a light sleep. Today, they are going to do a CAT-scan and various other tests to see where he stands. I mentioned in an e-mail to a friend that when I hold his hand it seems that he is becoming smaller and farther away. That's how it feels. If they can turn this one around it really will qualify as a miracle to me.

I'm throwing myself into several projects that have languished over the last months. Things that need attention but I just keep walking past them unable to concentrate. It feels good to get lost in a project right now. Keeps me from thinking about what may come. I spent the weekend returning calls and replying to e-mails from very good friends and family. By last evening I felt all in. Last week the newlyweds picked me up and took me to their house for dinner. It was so nice to see them so happy and to be out of the routine. They are headed out to St. Thomas for their honeymoon. I think James & Dani worried about going with his Dad in this shape but we have told them to go on and enjoy their time together. St. Thomas is not so far away and they deserve a honeymoon. This was the only time they could both get off.

I'm off to do some errands and stop in to see Roger. Talk to you soon.

Wedding...finally!

2010-10-05T06:05:00.000-07:00

Hi there! No, I ahve not fallen off the edge of the earth. Roger is in rehab not too far from our house so my days are now filled with spending some time with him and catching up with all that needs to be done since the earth stopped spinning two months ago. At least that feels like what happened.

I couldn't figure out the mystical, magical method for making these pictures appear in order but, at least, I got something posted. The lovely hand handsome couple over here are my son's Mother and Father-in-law. Aren't they great? Such wonderful people. My son is very fortunate to have this family for support.

The pillow at bottom was made by his MIL Cheryl and the shot of those gorgeous Galasso women is awesome. So pretty. The photographer took some fun shots and I got a huge kick out of them.

Anyway, I'm off to do some clean up and then to the rehab center.

Thanks for checking in and saying hello. I really appreciate all your good thoughts and prayers. It's going to be a long haul but we're finally on the road.

2010-10-01T05:02:00.000-07:00

Just checking in to let you know that things are moving along here. Moving like molasses but moving nonetheless.

Roger is healing up nicely from the surgery. is breathing is doing very well and the sleep apnea c-pak thingy(tech term) is helping enormously. He was not expelling CO2 so he was confused and exhausted before the treatment. Now he's clear and thinking up a storm.

Physical therapy is working with Roger daily. It's slow going as you might imagine, for someone who has been basically immobile for nearly 8 weeks.

We are now looking at 2 rehab places nearby. He will need months of work but any steps forward are good ones.

He is asking for some types of mental stimulation such as reading and listening to books on CD. I got him "The Girl With the Dragon Tatoo" and several other ones.

Erika, who has been staying with me since the wedding, is going home to PA on Sunday. It's been wonderful having her here. She's great company and a big help. We have enjoyed our trips out for lunch, especially the Texas cheese fries at Chili's. It's probably a good thing she won't be here for a while since it's way too easy to jump in the car on a bad day and head for the fries.

Once again, thanks for all the good thoughts. I hope to be back with anything sewing related at some point soon. After I clean my house....agh! I came out of the fog yesterday and had a good look around. Seriously, it's a mess. Piles of paperwork, junk mail, unfolded laundry, and general dustiness. Yuk.

Life in slow motion

2010-09-18T05:50:00.000-07:00

Even though the days seem to fly by I feel as though life is in slow motion. Wish there was a button to push for that.

Here is a photo of our good friend, Rich & his younger daughter Erika. She has been staying with me since the wedding and made the days a lot brighter and easier to handle. I don't know why there seems to be a double photo showing in many of these pics but it's all I can do lately to get up and function like a zombie throughout the days.

Roger is still in CICU. He has had so many problems. One after the other. Mostly breathing and infections. He is now off the breathing tube and infection free. Hoping to get him out of this unit and in to a regular room sometime soon. His initial surgery is healing well but I spend the days feeling as though I'm sitting on pins and needles waiting for the hammer to fall again. He does have a lot of confusion and what is called hospital psychosis. Trouble figuring out night and day and such.

I awoke yesterday with the feeling that I needed to do something very un-hospital like. I took Erika to the Cheesecake Factory for lunch and Michaels craft store. It was busy and noisy as usual but it was good to get out and enjoy an hour away. After that we went over to see Roger before it started to get dark. I have a problem driving at night. I can do it but it's not my favorite thing and I'm getting uncomfortable with it. Now that the fall is setting in and days are shorter there won't be many trips after sundown.

Roger's brother Bob has been stopping by the hospital on his way home from work. He is finished with his series of rabies shots now and hopefully we will not encounter another icky bat around here for a long while. That was one expensive bat bite.

Erika likes old movies so we are watching some she hasn't seen. The other night we watched "White Heat" with James Cagney on TMC and last night I pulled out my DVD of the old Joan Crawford soap opera "Mildred Pierce"

I have to go and do some errands now and certainly do some laundry. Can't seem to focus on anything. I wish that would stop but no matter how hard I try I just want to sit and stare. Erika must be bored to tears.

Thanks for all your good wishes. Talk to you soon.

checking in again

2010-09-09T04:54:00.000-07:00

I can't possibly thank you all enough for the kind words and good thoughts you've taken time to send my way. It makes the day much lighter to come home and be able to take a few moments to read your comments. Thank you all.

I wish that I had some wonderful, exciting news to offer you all but while some things are improving for Roger, other things are not so good. They can't seem to wean him off the breathing tube. It has to come out since it will erode the esophagus over too much time so the next thing is putting in a tracheotomy tube. That means he can heal and in the near future go to a re-hab center but if he has any other breathing issues they can get oxygen to him through that tube immediately. The Dr. says it was very difficult to get the tube in and having to do it again would be even harder. Meanwhile, his Gastroenterologist tells me he is healing well from the gall bladder removal and pancreas infection problems.

I haven't had a minute to get photos from anyone and organize anything so here are a few more of the ones from my camera-sorry for the poor quality. The lighting was just very dark and in order to lighten then they got grainy. No matter-there are hundreds more out there and I hear that the video will be available to us sooner than we thought.

Above is BILBob, good friend Geri and our friends daughter Erika. Bob rented a stretch limo. It was great fun for all and gave me the opportunity to have a few delicious glasses of Cabernet. The food ws delicious at Il Mulino and never stopped coming. Little plates of fabulous Reggio Parmigiana and Sopressata. I had the veal Marsala and could have licked the plate. If you are ever in a city where they have an Il Mulino restaurant...go. The dinner was in the wine cellar and could not have been more lovely.

Bride, Bridesmaids and Deer in the headlights

Dani's Mom Cheryl, Me BIL Bob,Bride and Groom

Inside the chapel for rehearsal
This lovely chapel looks old but was, in reality, built not so many years ago by the husband of a patient at St. Johnland where Dani's Mom is a nurse. They have restored and re-painted the inside recently and are currently re finishing the pews. They were not finished in time for the wedding which is why you see the folding chairs.

Rev. Garret Johnson-Groom with best man

Chris and BIL Chris in foreground

Back with more when I can.

checking in

2010-09-07T05:04:00.000-07:00

Thank you all so much for your good wishes and prayers. The day of the wedding rehearsal, Roger was taken into surgery that afternoon. There were several issues including two large areas of fluid that were obscuring the pancreas and getting larger by the day. I sat with him until they took him up-left all the important numbers and cell numbers-ran home and although I missed the rehearsal, I made the dinner. It was a lovely evening with people who are very important to us and the room was filled with loving wishes, prayers, and even laughter. My son has wonderful friends and Dani's family and friends were all very comforting.
That night I called the nurse in charge of him and she said he was well sedated and being made comfortable as possible. They put in a breathing tube and various other lines. His gall bladder was removed as well. The pancreas was infected and that was taken care of. He currently is being fed through a feeding tube and is still sedated. They need to keep him very still so he won't try to pull out the tubes and IVs. There is talk of taking out the breathing tube today or tomorrow. Day by day is all we can do.
Excuse the poor quality of the photos. I don't have much on my camera and the lighting was very low. Dani's Dad Chris hired a video guy. The dinner was superb and it was so wonderful to see the happy couple finally married.
It doesn't look it in these awful pictures but I lost a few pounds these past weeks and my dress was too big for me. It tied at the waist so it didn't look too bad but it just felt uncomfortable.

below are my niece Alicia, my Brother Pete, SIL Diane, gal pal Terry and me.

Below is James friend Dave, who I've seen grow from a small boy to a man. We love Dave.

Getting ready to cut the cake

rehearsal at the Chapel-I hear it was very hot in there and they couldn't get a lot of the windows open. Fortunately the wedding day was much cooler and they got the windows open and a breeze throughout- it was lovely. Here are the Bridesmaids and Bride

Back with pictures as they get e-mailed to me by various people. This one came out so dark that it got fuzzy trying to even lighten it a bit. Diane took some of these for me since I was at the Hospital.

I'm trying to have faith and strength. Forgive me if I don't comment often. When I get a solitary moment I am checking in on you all and your words of comfort mean a lot to me.

Talk to you soon.

Stuff is too polite a word.

2010-08-31T14:51:00.000-07:00

I 'm fully aware that crap falls on everyone and life gets in the way of things but I can't help thinking that I must have done something really bad in a previous incarnation for all this stuff that is happening to the people I love. I realize that we don't have fatal diseases and life can surely always get worse but could we just get from here to Saturday without another load falling on us? A hurricane...REALLY??? A fricken hurricane. How about a plague of locust?

The good-
Roger seems to be improving. There's so much complicated stuff surrounding that I won't even try to explain. Suffice to say they let him have jello and chicken soup today. Possibly real food for dinner. BIL Bob is over there now so he will report in later. I was over this morning and they got him up for a very brief sit up in a chair. He's very weak but so far the news is getting better.

It's not much but it made me feel human-got my hair done.

The bad-
Roger won't be at the wedding or the dinner. There are certain medical procedures being done that preclude getting out of there that soon. Kidneys and infection stuff-nuf said.

I got stuck in a small elevator with a very pregnant young woman this morning while I was over there. We had a pleasant conversation and tried to be patient. Half hour later we said goodbye to each other and I wished her good health for her and the baby. I had flashes of me trying to deliver a baby in a small elevator and something ran through my mind that sounded like "don't know nothin' about birthin' no babies" Mercifully the engineer opened the door about that time so my sanity returned...if only for a brief moment.

Everyone I spoke to today asked me what I thought about Earl?? You know, Earl, the fricken hurricane. Go Away Earl!!!

I am on my knees praying. I just need Friday night at 7 and Saturday at 4:30- that's all

It's a really good thing I don't drink. Maybe I should start?

More stuff...sigh

2010-08-27T05:17:00.000-07:00

Roger is back in the ICU.
This time it's nearby and very professional with his own team of Drs.
He's got an infection in his system most likely from the Pik line that was removed last Sunday when we broke him out of the hospital from hell. His blood oxygen was low and blood pressure was jumping around too much. I can't tell you the difference in the two hospitals. They were on him and medicating him within 45 min. A whole team of Drs. and very professional nurses. Had him out of the ER and into the ICU within a couple of hours. Answers to questions were immediately answered clearly and he had a bunch of tests immediately. I slept soundly for the first time in weeks last night just knowing he was over in Huntington-5 miles from me.

Other than feeling sort of weak and looking pale, Roger said he felt alright. The cardiologist wants him to be on an IV diuretic to get rid of that amazing amount of fluid in his legs and his right arm. He told me that he would most likely lose about 20 lbs of fluid in the next days.
Before this happened yesterday, he was getting around with the walker well and sometimes without it. Once we conquer the swelling problem, he will be a lot better just from not having that excess weight to drag around. Other issues will improve because of that as well.

I'm trying to remain positive. It's not likely that Roger will go to the wedding dinner but since the chapel is only a mile or so away we are trying for the actual wedding ceremony.

Talk to you soon.

I'll be brief & thankful

2010-08-25T05:05:00.000-07:00

Roger is home. We broke him out on Sunday
Many health & home & wedding(Sept 4th) issues to deal with. BIL arranged for some construction to happen(grrrrrrrrr rrrrrrr rrrr) the week before the wedding-Valium anyone???
Sleeping is not an option. Intravenous caffeine for me
You know those photos you see of the damage after the tornado/hurricane whatever?? My house looks a lot like that.
Holding it together-but barely. I know things could always be worse.
Bless you for your prayers.
More later

Amazing true stories

2010-08-20T04:18:00.000-07:00

Quick list of stuff

1. Roger is improving-slowly. May come home in a day or so.

2. BIL Bob got bitten by a bat. Got medication and series of injections over a couple of weeks-no I am not making this up.

3. The bat was in our house...eeeeeeeeeeekkk

4. the bat came out and flew around because I was screaming at it like a soprano at full volume. It was a toss up which was more frightened- me or the bat. Opened windows and removed screens- stopped screaming, turned off lights near the stair well where it was flying around. Three freakin' hours later the bat finally found his way out.

5. Not before he hid behind a very large bookcase full to brimming with all manner of stuff that James and I had to unload and said stuff is now laying all over the floors and surrounding area and has now shed all the the dust that an ignored bookshelf can hold all over every other item in the house.

6. Carrying a crucifix and avoiding my BIL(kidding)

7. My dearest friend is going through some serious family issues. This is causing us to have a running "can you top this" type of phone conversation. Yesterday we were neck & neck until told the bat story. I took home the medal.

Please continue to say a prayer if you are inclined. I continue to remember that what does not kill us makes us stronger.....RIGHT?

Prayers answered

2010-08-16T17:14:00.000-07:00

Who ever you are, whatever you asked in prayer, someone up there is listening. Roger has improved steadily in the last day and a half. He was awake and taking fluids today. Ice water & ginger ale and grape juice. Thank you, thank you, thank you one and all.
I will sleep tonight for a change and if he continues to improve they will put him in a regular room by thurs.
I have so much to catch up on. Back soon with more detailed news. For now, and for a change, the news is much better. He ate green hospital jello today and pronounced it ambrosia! That's hungry

update on Roger

2010-08-15T07:28:00.000-07:00

Thanks for all the e-mails and comments. Things are not good. Roger is having a very hard time breathing. Pancreatitis is getting better but other problems have arisen.
More later...

Update, There was some small improvement today. He was more alert and could breath easier. Keep those good thoughts and prayers coming. He appears to be listening. Today was a tiny blessing and so welcome.

Not all Bad News

2010-08-14T09:25:00.000-07:00

Thanks everyone who left me such nice words to cheer me up. I got some personal e-mails that were a big help too.

Yesterday was a bad day in the beginning and it gradually got slightly better over the course of the day. There were problems with medications. He is on a bunch of stuff and because of the current problem he has been off some of those and on others. Lots of problems with insulin and cardiac meds-long story. He had some of what the Dr. called "Hospital Psychosis" and didn't know where he was-became disoriented and was in a panic. He is in the ICU where they can give him the immediate care he may need 24/7 so I felt better for that. I just talked to the nurse taking care of him today and she said he seemed much more lucid and was able to carry on a conversation more clearly today. Yesterday was a nightmare that went on all day so I was happy to hear good news this morning. Bob & son James went out to see him last night-I think seeing James was a very good thing. Maybe remembering that seeing his son get married in 3 weeks is the goal to focus on.
He's having respiratory problems so they are giving him special meds and treatments for that. I'm heading out there with my BIL Bob in a while. If I can only get him well enough to come back here where he is familiar with his Drs. and surroundings(our hospital is 10 min. from my house) it will make a huge difference. I also told him yesterday that he needs to stop being and engineer for a little while. After speaking with the Drs. and nurses yesterday they said he was not all that lucid and began questioning-became panicked at what they were doing. All of that did nothing for his blood pressure. I've decided that hell is being in a hospital 45 miles away from your husband. Doesn't matter how nice it is or how nice they are. It's pure hell.

Talk to you later

Techniphobe or old fart..your choice

2010-08-13T04:54:00.000-07:00

What is this strange thing that happens when you suddenly are forced into a new situation and are completely out of your realm and you look in the glass window at a reflection and say, "who's that old fart?" Turns out it's you!

Thanks to you ladies who were kind enough to leave me the sweet messages. Made my day and Hey Judy! Want to take a ride to Riverhead? I thought not but thanks for your lovely comment.

Roger is still in the hospital but doing better. Yesterday was a mixed bag of ridiculous. Can't go into detail but let's just say that I hope to get him out of there REALLY soon. His care is wonderful but his patience is running out quickly and I think that being so far from home makes him(and me) nervous. It's a 45-50 minute trip on the expressway. If you know anything about Long Island you know to stay away from the expressway at all cost. Anyway, he's in Riverhead...way out east of us near the end of the island and near the lab where he works which is where he works and became ill. Riverhead is a very old part of the island with much agriculture and many miles of grapes for the lovely wines they produce. In the center of Riverhead there is an old fashioned roundabout traffic circle like they still have in Boston and other New England areas. The joke goes that you can get in but you can't get out. Rogers hospital is right there on the northeast corner of the roundabout. Anyway, I'll be the old broad going around in circles with a blinker on...round and round...forever. Fortunately his room faces that corner so he can see me and wave.
I ran into another problem of a minor nature though. No cell phone. I'm a technophobe and hate cell phones-hate them. Now I have to drag myself into this century and go buy one of those things from hell because there is no way to communicate with the rest of the family. Luckily two people were kind enough to lend me theirs yesterday and boy did I feel like a jerk. I didn't even know what to do to make a call. Did I mention how much I hate cell phones? People look at you in a weird way when you ask for a pay phone. Also I have a little bit of a hearing problem and I find it so unpleasant to talk on them. I'm thinking that the guys at the store are going to get a huge kick out of trying to teach me how to use a cell phone. Happy to provide entertainment to anyone I can.
So anyway, this is the old fart, technophobe signing off for now. Back with news when I can.

stuff

2010-08-11T06:35:00.000-07:00

Just checking in to let you know the stuff that's happening.
The good....and the bad

1. The bad-Roger is in the hospital. He will hopefully come home today or tomorrow. Serious dieting and grumpiness to follow. Knew it was coming. He's stable and getting better but hungry and tired. Hospitals are not the place to get any rest.

2. The good-We had a visit from friends. Did a lot of stuff and shopping. Lunch out east at a favorite place. Wonderful help from our friends while they were here. I got shoes and a bag for the wedding and I think we are all pretty much set for the big day.

3. The good- we are getting some work done on the house in the form of new windows. The guy is coming tomorrow to take actual measurements and it should be about 4 weeks from then. Sometime in Sept. It's a job that needed doing desperately and will make a huge difference in the appearance of the house as well as heating and cooling costs.

With all that's going on, good and bad, I really have become a bad blogger so I'm grateful for anyone who still checks in now and again. Miss my sewing machine and fabric but I just can't seem to focus on anything right now. My brain hurts. Please say a prayer for my husband. I hope they let him come home today-he's not a happy camper in any hospital let alone one 35 miles from home. I am going to have to be the food Nazi starting tomorrow. Not good!

Back with news when I can.

Surprise Shower for Dani

2010-08-02T02:54:00.000-07:00

We had a surprise Wedding Shower for Dani yesterday. It was fun and kind of exhausting. Dani's family and friends are such fun people. I've been enjoying the experience of getting to know her Mom a lot better in the past couple of weeks. We have shopped for shower supplies and wedding cake and balloons and other stuff. Cheryl is so much fun to spend time with. I hope we get to do more things together soon. By the way that is her sitting next to Dani in the pictures. Pretty Lady!

Thrown in with the fun has been the experience of being around girls. Being the Mom of one son/child, the girls are a lot of fun and a whole new experience. They did a great job of decorating and made a wonderful day for Dani. All in all it was a lovely day in a pretty garden with perfect weather.

Now we will pray for another day just like it for the wedding in a months time. Please join me. We need all the prayers we can get. The Chapel where the wedding is to be held is not air conditioned. They have many ceiling fans and it is generally a cool place in the wooded surrounding. By the way, we will be entertained by a harp player during the chapel service.

This tiny thing that Dani is holding is a miniature cheese grater that my friend Diane included in the box of goodies she sent. Dani got a huge kick out of it...thanks Diane. She loved getting all the gifts and we enjoyed oooooing and ahhhhhing.

These lovely ladies are wedding party ladies surrounding the bride. Dani has the most beautiful friends and family. Beautiful inside and out.

I have so much to catch up on so I'll go do some of those things that fell by the wayside in the past days. Only one thing left for me to get for my wedding outfit-shoes...or as I am now referring to them...fricken fracken shoes. The result of never wearing shoes anymore and existing in flip flops is that my feet have gotten wider than they were. Shoes, which have always been my favorite buy are now a pain in...well...the foot. So far I have returned 4 pair of shoes that I thought would do but not so much. Even for an hour never mind a whole day. When did my feet get so fat? I can account for the rest of me but the feet?? Yikes!

Anyway, have a good day. Talk to you soon.
It's time for my nap...zzzzzzz

weekend notes

2010-07-17T12:14:00.000-07:00

How much fun is it to be served breakfast by your son and DIL-to be? LOADS! Their apartment is just so nice. Lovely little courtyard outside and pretty grounds.

I was doodling around for a 15 minute sew and made a couple of kimono blocks. They are different sizes as I am trying to make them part of a wall hanging with asymmetrical blocks with an Asian flavor. It's such a happy time around here and I'm looking forward to Sept when I can get back to more than the occasional 15 minutes. My fabric is calling to me.....

Our server finally got straightened out and the e-mail is back. Right now the sky is nearly black as night and a fairly intense storm is about to hit. I'm so hoping that by early Sept this weather will be better. By better I mean less humidity and bugs. This has been a really awful year for both.

I have some things to take care of in the wedding department so I'll talk to you soon. Nor much interesting here so I appreciate anyone who has stuck with me. Better quilting days are coming!

Grrrr

2010-07-16T05:45:00.000-07:00

No e-mail and a lot of PIA stuff with the server in general. Hoping they fix things really soon. Second day of no e-mail. ...grrrrr
Just went up to get dressed-air cond. compressor won't turn on. 94 degrees today.
Bad moon rising? Be afraid...very afraid...
James & Dani moved into their apartment yesterday. Well, they moved some things. It's an on-going process. I promised not to act like a total blubbering fool and failed miserably. All his life, this is the thing I prayed for. For James to find a good woman and have a happy, normal life. Everything is exactly like I always wanted for him. They are so adorable together and it's really kind of fun watching them get their apartment set up. The learning curve for James will include such things as no food in the bedroom, no feet on the couch, and lifes biggest lesson of all-no one is going enjoy car parts the way you do and no one else thinks they're attractive. Today I got up in a good spirit and felt much better. I have much to do and just checked the e-mail. Still not working but I'm told it's an island wide problem and cablevision has taken their phones off the hook so none of the millions of people trying to talk to them are getting through. Don't you just love technology?
Gotta go check the ac. Turned it off and left it for a while and turned it on again. The compressor came back on but how long that will last is anyones guess. Looks like an expensive weekend.
Stay cool

sailing along

2010-07-12T04:59:00.000-07:00

Unknown territory-that's what we're sailing into. In less than a week, James will be in his new apartment. He and Dani need everything that is necessary for daily life. I told him to think of his day from the time he wakes up to lights out. That's what you need to have on hand to start. Small things like a way to make tea & coffee, an alarm clock, toiletries, simple things like cups to have that coffee in. Even with all this going on, I envy them this wonderful time. The excitement of a place of their own and even the decisions that need to be made on everyday choices and needs. It's such an exciting time and so sweet. Happy memories are bound to bubble up just thinking about it.

Yesterday, I was bubbling up with the above mentioned happiness and couldn't focus on anything except the fact that I still didn't have anything to wear to the wedding. I grabbed the keys and set out for an adventure. Since the weather today is going to be back up around 90, I figured I'd better get going before I pass out in some dressing room from heat exhaustion. I found two things that are very nice and looked comfortable as well. Light and breezy is the theme for early September. Now I need some light sandals to finish the look. Maybe tomorrow.

We booked a room for the wedding rehearsal dinner. I had been there before and the food was good but I didn't like the way the room was laid out. When we saw the room again on Saturday, they had set it up completely differently and we loved it. We didn't want a bunch of separate tables but would rather have had one long table so we could all chat with each other and it would feel more like a large family gathering. We have to get back to them with our food choices and such but otherwise that's a wrap.

I would love to spend some time in the sewing room but I'm just so overwhelmed by the amount of stuff to get done I'm virtually twirling. I did manage to spend some time doing the 15 minute play with fabric that Victoria from Bumble Beans has going on her blog. For 15 minutes you make fabric out of scraps. I made four blocks and sashed them. I'll get a picture later. It comes out looking like crazy quilt blocks so as soon as I can find my box of embroidery thread I will try a bit of that.

Gotta go and do some laundry. Talk to you soon.

Torpor-look it up

2010-07-06T05:34:00.000-07:00

We are melting just like this lightbulb. This heat is very unusual for Long Island. More like a late August heatwave. Trying not to complain. The powers that be say it will be up near 100 today. It's always a few degrees cooler out here near the water but at those temps-who's counting.

We had a quiet 4th. Lots of good food and watermelon. It's a particularly good year for watermelon. Very sweet. It's really the perfect food for the heat.

There is little desire to do much of anything even in the air conditioning. I have some videos to watch and Roger just finished a book he tought was pretty good. It's a Michael Chrichton book that was from a found manuscript after his death. The book, "Pirate Latitudes" is something I plan to crack open later. What is it about this type of weather that makes us like zombies? It feels like everything is in slow motion and I'm in a cooler place than some. Makes me think of the word "torpor"-walking around like the un-dead. It's not that I could ever imagine living in this type of climate anyway but when we get this heat wave stuff it just reinforces my feelings about it. I guess I'm just a northern girl at heart. Normally one could go north for some relief but I've been reading my friend Joann's posts from Maine and the heat is as bad there as here. She works in a greenhouse-imagine how much fun that is right now.

I would spend some time sewing but that room is the lovely sunny one that I adore in the cold months. Not going there today air conditioning or not. Maybe it's time to get some kind of shades for the daytime on those sunny, side windows.

This summer, along with the heat, we also have a huge bug problem. Much of the stuff I planted is being eaten by who knows what. Everything looks lacy, and not in a good way.

So I'm here, plugging along and praying that the heat we are suffering now will not return in Sept. for the wedding.

Talk to you soon

Falling into place

2010-06-30T09:23:00.000-07:00

Here's a shot of a dining area at Il Mulino, where James & Dani will have their wedding celebration. It's a very lovely, highly recommended, upscale Italian Restaurant in Roslyn. There are several Il Mulino in various places across the country. Las Vegas, two in Atlantic City at Trump Casino, and so on. I'm just so happy for them. Everything sounds delicious and the place is beautiful. That's some of what's happening. They finally got their apartment which they can get into in a couple of weeks so now the push is on to get things of great importance like furniture. It's a cute place and a very nice apartment not too far from us. Last weekend they met with the Minister who will marry them who also just happens to be one of my husbands oldest friends. It won't be long now before they are in their new home. I'm excited for them and a little un-settled at the same time. When I look at James now I get this funny watery sensation in my eyes and have to look away a bit. Keep repeating to myself that this is not an ending but just a new part of our lives. Deep breath...
I have been in a bit of a cleaning frenzy that I suspect comes from the desire to keep moving and not think too much. Last week I had some pain in my knee and a whole new pain in my hip of such intensity that it was causing me not to want to do anything but sit around feeling blue and old. I discovered an arthritis med that made the pain go away in those places and for the first time in years I had no pain in the number of other places that I guess I've become so accustom to. I felt like shouting from the rooftops "This is what it feels like to be pain free!!". Anyway, a few days of the med. and I feel pretty good so I resumed my walking on the treadmill and being more active. It doesn't seem to bother my stomach either. Fabulous.
I got some more dvds to watch since TV sucks so much right now. By the way, Nurse Jackie is sooo good. I can't wait for the new season to be on dvd. The Mel movie(Edge of Darkness) was good too. A little action adventure is good for the soul. Now I have rented Mad Men's last season. I read somewhere that The Good Wife will be available in early Sept. on dvd. Today I am watching a mini marathon of "In Plain Sight" which I highly recommend. The characters are great and the actors are wonderful.
It's time to go figure out what's for dinner and wash the kitchen floor. Fun Huh?? Sorry for the lack of quilting stuff but right now I'm just overwhelmed with other stuff. Soon enough there will be time for lots of things like sewing. Thanks for hanging in there with me.
Talk to you soon.

Heat+humidity=Movie Marathon

2010-06-22T08:30:00.000-07:00

As some of you might know, I don't deal well with heat. In fact I don't deal with it at all. You could just drop me off in a place where the temps never go beyond 65 and I would be eternally happy. Since I live in this humid, damp, coastal village summer is not always a plus for me. I have a sort of love/hate relationship. Ever since i was blessed with that change of life thingy, as Roger often says, my thermostat is broken. I get very warm and can't seem to adjust. Hot, hot, hot. On that note, I made a few visits to places I needed things from this morning and my last stop was the video store. Since I hadn't been for a while and since I'm not aware of anything that was drawing me there, I decided to see what I was missing. The movies all looked awful except for two. I got these two. I'm making Mel small since I can only take him in small doses. Maybe he won't go spouting a bunch of religious crap if I keep him tiny. Just shut up, stay sober for 10 minutes, and act Mel. That's all we're interested in. Of course I had been waiting for Young Victoria for a while so that was a happy find.

After that I went directly to the TV section since we do not get HBO or Showtime and I love getting a whole season of one of the programs so I can enjoy the entire story in a short time. The new season of Big Love isn't out yet and The Good Wife isn't out either. Those are my big wants. Nurse Jackie was a program I heard a lot of good things about so I'm giving it a go. I could watch these things on the computer through HULU but the computer is downstairs and I can't sew or really sit in front of it all day. Well, I could, but then there will be questions from the family as they look for clothes to wear and food to eat. Party poopers!

My current project is finishing up a few things I uncovered during the move to the sewing room. I found the small diamond piece I had made. I'm contemplating what to do to finish it. Piano key border? Not sure.

Sorry about the mess with these pictures but I can't seem to get blogger to move anything around like it used to.

I'm off to do some laundry, ironing, and movie watching. Hope you are staying cool.

This & That

2010-06-17T06:46:00.000-07:00

I think I'm finally getting to the point where I can up-load photos without scratching my head until it's sore. That the photos are not very good-hopefully that will evolve soon. I am, after all, a constantly evolving woman...bwahhhaha. Click to see a larger and better shot.

Here's the small piece I made from strings of Kaffe Fasset fabric. It's really busy work and after a bunch of these, you really need to work on something verrrry plain for a while. Maybe something Amish and without any print. I honestly enjoy the Kaffe fabric but after a while it feels like you are in the middle of a fabric storm. A bit of a frenzy. I need a major clean-up of my work area which is already very small without the addition of piles of wildly patterned fabric. Anyway, there you can see what my birthday brought my way. A jelly roll and honey bun of American Jane, Breath of Avignon. I love her fabrics and after a little eye rest will find something fun to make with them I've been admiring some of the wonky star quilts I've seen around the blogs.

A squirrel update-I'm thinking they are smarter than I may have imagined. Ever since I wrote the last entry about them in the cherry tree, I haven't spotted a squirrel eating anything but the birdseed we so laughingly put out... you know... for the birds, har har.

Today is Dani's birthday and I hope she's having a great day. She's probably at work so how good the day is may be relative. James will be going to her house tonight for a family celebration. I just can't believe how much we have come to love her. All of us just think she's the best. Happy Birthday Dani! It's also my good friend Terry's birthday. She is away for a couple of days so I can't wish her a great day in person but I am thinking of her and hoping that the next year is a thousand percent less interesting. You may know of the Asian blessing/curse, "May you live in interesting times" I'm fairly sure that Terry would like a boring and less interesting year. That's my wish for her.

I must go and de-clutter some space. Talk to you soon

Wildlife

2010-06-15T06:35:00.000-07:00

As some of you know from posts a while back, we have a good sized piece of property that is heavily covered with trees. It is, right now, at it's prettiest. With all the rain and not too many days of relentless heat, it looks like a forest out there. All the vines have grown up and around and into the trees and bushes. Maybe it's something rebelling from the German in me but I am in love with the garden at this time. If my Oma was alive she would have gone at this garden with a ruthless physical zeal until everything was in its proper place and trimmed to perfection. Maybe it's the small portion of me that is Native American that loves to see the wild take over. That could be the reason for my joy in seeing the lush honeysuckle vine that has only recently appeared outside my bedroom window and bolted into the surrounding bushes. Maybe it's the reason I am thrilled by the volunteer wisteria vines that have taken hold and even popped up at the bottom of the driveway. Who knows?

For any of these reasons, and because they come along with it, and because you must take the good with the bad, we have squirrels by the score. A few years ago there was a beautiful bush outside the kitchen window, the offspring of which are growing along side of where it once lived happily. No one seems to know what kind of bush it is but we were all sure of one thing. t was beautiful in all seasons. Pink tiny flowers in spring fat green berries in summer that turned crimson in the fall and then, to finish the season the tiny leaves turned a lovely russet. Out of all the things in the yard I loved this bush the best. After many years of admiring it, one spring as the flowers were turning to green berries on the long thing branches that draped themselves to the ground, the squirrels discovered that the berries were delicious and the long, lovely vine-like branches were a lot like a fun ride. They would begin at the base and slide down the branches in a shower of leaves and berries which they would then pick themselves up off the ground and eat. Happy little squirrels. So much for the bush. Over a few months, they denuded the bush and since they ate the berries the thing never replenished itself and one day it literally fell over and died...whump...sad.

The problem was, for me, that I laughed so hard at the stupid squirrels using the bush as a slide that I found it hard to go out and do battle with them. They outnumber us many fold and I would have had to stand guard all day. It was just bigger than me.

This spring, as I was admiring the wild cherry tree outside my window, I noticed that it had set its cherries. The tiny little itty bitty berries(danger Will Robinson)were coming in and looked so pretty. At about that time, I also noticed a rustling in the tree. Something bigger than a little bird. No, some THINGS bigger than little birds were in there. Yeah, it's the squirrels. They've discovered the cherry tree and they have found that in many ways it mimics the fun they had on that bush that magically disappeared a while back. They hang upside down and pull the cherries off much in the same way you would pull the tiny branches off a stick of rosemary. I went out a few times and threatened them. They scoff. I'm lost. Gardening around here requires more patience than I can sum up some days. The cherries are not edible. They are tiny and more berry like than real cherries and most fall on the ground where, up to recently, the critters were happy with the treefall. Now they have discovered the source.

We have been celebrating the birthdays. This weekend was James 26th and my birthday was last week. Since James and I like the place, we went to Sushi Park. Dani went with us and we had a great dinner followed by strawberry shortcake. Thursday is Dani's birthday and my friend Terry's as well. June is a very fattening month around here.

Speaking of fattening, I must get to the store for some things for dinner. Light meals are in order so I need some fresh veggies.

Talk to you soon.

Things that make me smile.

2010-06-08T08:09:00.000-07:00

Here are a couple of the things that make me smile lately. I mentioned yesterday that my dear friend Gerrie in Portland sent me a combination birthday/feel better gift. I asked my super-patient husband to help me this morning with the photos. Anyway, Gerrie made this sweet piece that is now hanging in my sewing room. The slip of paper that the hand is holding says Pearls of Wisdom. Next to it is the card by her daughter Lisa. What the photo doesn't convey is the fabulous hand dyed fabric that Gerrie used to make it. The photo doesn't do it justice. I am blessed by her friendship and generosity.

Speaking of beautiful things, there is the mandevilla plant I bought for myself. It's growing in leaps and bounds and has a mind of it's own. We may be overrun by the plant by seasons end. The flowers are such an intense, almost magenta red, also not well represented by the photographer...bad Dee bad.

I have a hair appointment today and none too soon. My gray/white/whatever roots are coming into blossom too.

Back with more stuff tomorrow

Wonderful friends far & near

2010-06-07T06:38:00.000-07:00

I'm showing you this group of blocks since I think it's what I will put together next. There are a few more since I took this shot but it will essentially remain a wall quilt size. The picture is there because I remain a brainless twit and have forgotten everything I learned last week about up-loading photos to this cursed Bill Gates horror of a computer and as we all know, blogging is no fun without pics.

I want to thank all of you for the nice comments regarding the blog. I think I'll take a page from Rian, who blogs when she has something to report that may interest you. I'm hoping that will be more often since things around here are popping and snapping like bad electrical wiring. So on that note I will try to do better. Much thanks to the elusive Judy from Northport, who is still successfully hiding from me in a bunker nearby.

The wedding plans are sipping along with, a minimum of issues that I'm sure will be resolved soon. It's going to be fine. That's my mantra..oooommmmmm..oommmmmm. There, that's better.

We are into the crazed Everybody's Birthday Month around here. The photo that I'd like to show you is what I got from my darling friend Gerrie Congdon in Portland. She sent me a beautiful small piece called "Pearls of Wisdom" I promise to show you all when I can get Roger to help me again with this upload situation. The thing is that in making what they call improvements, we have gone from clicking twice and up-loading to going through an un-believable crapfest to even get to the photo album. Why anyone calls this an improvement is beyond me. Sure does make one feel like a moron though. Anyway, along with the beautiful little art piece Gerrie included a card designed by her brilliant daughter Lisa. Double my pleasure!!

I'm ordering a jelly roll of American Jane, Breath of Avignon, a line I have admired forever and I was lucky enough to find one left at the Fat Quarter site. I'm so in love with anything from American Jane. Those colors make me smile. The photo above is American Jane blocks from an earlier collection. Happiness.

Anyway, among the other things that make me happy, besides you all, is my new Weber Grill. We were due for a new one and this is a pleasure to use. I'll be making ribs later, hurry on over. Bring drinks!

Some questions-some answers-

2010-06-02T12:30:00.000-07:00

These are the blocks I am working on in the Robyn Pandolph fabric. Even though I tried to fix the colors, the one on the left is truer to the real tones. The red dot is more of a wine color and the green dot is more soft and olive. Well anyway, it's coming along a block at a time.

I planted flowers today and my body is screaming from the shoulders to the knees. Getting old is not pretty. It's taking me days to plant a couple of trays of flowers that normally would have been in the ground a while back. I planted a sweet potato vine in among some other stuff. Just for giggles. The lady at the nursery said I should be able to pull up some sweet potatoes in the fall. Clearly she doesn't know who she's dealing with. Around here I wouldn't be surprised to see a critter sitting in the flower bed in Sept with a salt shaker and a fork full of potato. Makes for interesting viewing.

I had meant to lay out all the blocks that I finished and take a picture of them for you but that will have to wait till tomorrow. It's late in the day here and I need a big cold drink and a lot of pain meds.

One of my favorite blogging people quit blogging today. It made me think about my reasons for starting this and how I feel about it now. Not sure. Maybe I need to think about it when I feel better. This blog has not turned out to be what I originally intended. I wanted it to be more of a journal of my thoughts and my life and opinions. Since the blog got discovered by local folks, I don't feel free to comment on things and give my true feelings about things like politics. It's not that I'm a particular political pundit but I have been slammed viciously in other places for speaking my mind. I guess I thought I had a tougher skin. These past few weeks some things that are very hurtful have happened culminating in a REALLY hurtful experience this past weekend when I opened the paper and honor was bestowed on numerous people for their work in the community. Not one mention of my name and I've been at it for 12 years. People were honored who left and retired more than 2 years ago. I've never been one to stand in the room screaming "look at me, look at me" but I guess the old saying about the squeaky wheel is true. They even honored a woman who came 6 years after me. When I mentioned this to the director of the Ecumenical Lay Council, of which the Food Pantry is one off-shoot, he told me they only honor people when they leave. With that, I told him I quit. I actually thought it would be unkind of me not to come back in Sept after my son's wedding, and finish out the busiest time of the year. They can look for someone who will write over 500 letters in December and pay for the postage and all costs associated with the job. It's the printer ink that kills you(kidding). I really loved my job and the communicating with so many generous people in the community. It was a time sucker but I made it what it is today. Time to pass it on to someone else. I will miss it but it will leave me with a boatload of time. That's the upside.

Anyway, I think that this accounts for my mood and then reading that a good friend won't be blogging just made it a kind of sad day all around.

Well, I'm off to try and do some more blocks and try to regain my sense of humor and question if it's time to re-think the blogging thing. Maybe just come back in another bloggy form?? I'll let you know and I appreciate ever one who is nice enough to comment. You make the day much brighter. Thanks.

Missed you so much

2010-05-27T03:54:00.000-07:00

I hardly know where to begin. So much has happened while I was lost in space.

A few days ago I tried to upload some photos of a new piece I'm working on but I'm still in the throws of not getting Windows 7 and the myriad ways that it makes computer life easier.....NOT. I have come to the conclusion that I now get it completely when people say they want to beat up Bill Gates. Go away with your stupid useless "improvements" At some point why can't they just leave well enough alone? It used to take me less than 5 minutes to upload pics. I could do it while my tea brewed and bagel toasted. The photos from the other day are somewhere off in the mist. I have no idea where they are.

All this is by way of explanation why I'm showing you fabric instead of blocks. I cut into my stash of Robyn Pandolph goodies and have 7 blocks complete. I'm hoping to be able to show you soon. I'm making Ohio star type blocks with lots of polka dots as the complimentary fabric.

It is birthday season so we celebrated Rogers by going to PA to visit our best friends Rich, Diane, and their daughter Erika. We are hoping that Erika will come and stay with us for a time this summer.

DIL to be Dani's parents came home from Italy the other day and I was lucky enough to be the recipient of a beautiful crucifix from the Vatican. I got all chocked up when I un-wrapped it. What a thoughtful thing to do. They are such good people. Yesterday, I took the plant I had bought for Cheryl to her and she let me see the gorgeous photos they took in Rome and Florence. Just beautiful.

On the Food Pantry front...I'm done. I have left he building with Elvis. I gave them till June to find someone to take my place and they did. Sadly, the person they found is the treasurer...you remember, the one that goes missing all the time. As my friends Sally and Tammy have already said, there will soon be some angry donors in our village. I don't mean to imply that the job can't be done by anyone but me but it certainly can't be done by someone who already doesn't do the job she signed up for. Wait till the fall season when there are nearly 500 letters between Thanksgiving and New Years. Twelve years was enough for me. I have so many personal family things going on now that need my attention so it was time to say adios. The job began to take over my life.

After James & Dani get married in Sept. I can get into my sewing room and stay there most days. At least that's my plan.

I'm hoping by the weekend that Roger can help me with the photo thing. It's no fun without pictures. I have been so busy that I missed the "Spring Quilt Festival" and a couple of "Interpret This" series. Sorry ladies. I plan to get around and see what lovely things you have created soon.

hello goodbye

2010-04-27T11:54:00.000-07:00

I have men, drywall, paint, and dust. All of it going on around my sewing room. So, for now, I've put my machine in the safety of its case and covered up the computer in there-lots of dust...lots. Can you say wet-sanding? UGH! I'm doing some hand work on the Kaffe piece when I get a chance and there's a rumor that the men will be leaving in a day or so. Nearly done is a term I keep hearing. I see a lot of painting going on. One of the guys loves to sing. I believe that he's Spanish and can understand a lot of what he's singing. BIG HUGE voice full of songs of unrequited love. Oiy Vey!

Hope to be back in the swing of things soon. Sorry I haven't been checking up on you guys-talk to you soon.

This & That

2010-04-21T06:22:00.000-07:00

Hi Gang! Can I get a Woo Hoo for Mozilla? My son put Firefox on the new computer and all appears to be right with the universe. Now if the guys get finished with the drywall and painting, I can get back into my room and fondle some fabric again.

The allergy season is upon us with a vengeance this year. I've had to resort to an inhaler, cough syrup and the occasional Benadryl to get through the night. The result of which is that I feel like I'm in a fog.

I notice that many of my bloggy friends are taking time off to do springy things. I need to get to the local gardening store to check out some flowers. Last year James got me the most beautiful hibiscus in the prettiest shade of pink. I would like to find another of those. We don't have a lot of space with good sun. I say this because most of the yard is in intense full on sun during the hottest parts of the day. Over the years I have found that it works best to plant the front bed with sun tolerant plants rather than too many flowers. They just fade away in that harsh light. This hill that we live on is bumpy and claybound. Unfortunately, my back no longer allows too much of the kind of work that would fix that soil.

I'm having a major staff problem at the Food Pantry. Our treasurer resigned and the search for a new sucker...eh... treasurer had resulted in the powers that be hiring someone who is not only not a good candidate for the job but also missing in action. This change took place 3 weeks ago and I've not heard a single word from this person since then. I rely on the paperwork being forwarded to me from said treasurer in order that I may send the thank you, memorial donations, and grocery gift cards to the right people. Today, I went down to see my partner in crime, who runs the day-to-day action at the pantry itself. In the mailbox there was a stack of about 60 or more letters containing checks just sitting there. Some of that money should have been deposited weeks ago. My partner, Sally also goes every weekend to COSTCO and buys a palette of food costing around $500. There are 3 receipts from her purchases, which she charges on her AMEX. That's $1500. on her personal charge account that has not been reimbursed. There are donations in memory of a person who has died which require 2 letters each and they are 3 weeks old. Memorial donations should be acknowledged immediately. Not 3 weeks later.

As you may have sensed, I'm a little pissed. I think this woman was talked into doing a job she really didn't want and she probably figured she would do it when she gets a chance...sometime. here's a rumor that she may appear tomorrow and Sally says she will call me when & if she gets there. We will be having a conversation. All of this is by way of reminding you that "no good deed goes un-punished" and "things can always be worse"-I'm living in a cliche.

I just got back from the Pantry and a visit for tea at the Library with my best pal Terry. Picked up a few good books which I'll write about tomorrow. Right now I have to go address the problem of the Laundry, which I capitalize, since I swear, that stuff multiplies overnight and thus has a whole life of its own. Someday it will overwhelm me when I open the door and I'll never be found again. Shhhh...Does that stuff look like it's moving closer to me??? It makes for a good horror story. She went to do some laundry and we never saw her again.

Send out a party if I'm not back soon, will ya?

Wherein I don't embrace change.

2010-04-19T07:09:00.000-07:00

New computer-windows 7
Taking a deep breath and counting to ...a million

Went to the baby shower Saturday night. I'll keep it short and sweet-we were finally served dinner at 9:30 (Got there at 6) Pam, Geri & I were chewing on the tablecloth by then. The food was really good-at least what I can remember since I inhaled it unchewed in minutes. The place was nice and the room very pretty but VERY NARROW. More like a corridor. It made getting around kind of difficult and I couldn't really get any pictures worth showing. Since I wound up being the driver, my plans for having a few were dashed and I had to remain completely sober. A nice buzz would have helped a lot.
The result; I love my best friend Terry more than you can imagine and I love her son(I love both of them)too. I wish things were a bit different with less tension but it was a nice welcome for the baby about to be born very soon. Nuf said...
The quilt and diaper bag went over really well. I ordered it from Suzan at Hazelnut Hill who I've mentioned before. It's gorgeous. I really wanted to keep it myself. It's a perfect travel bag and very chic. When I can show you a picture I will-soon I hope. The next bag I get will be from Suzan. Getting tired of giving these very cool bags away. I want one for me.

I will return when I can figure out why the world needs windows 7. I really was so comfortable with my old computer. This is still a little overwhelming and it does things that it takes time to figure out. I don't have that much time right now.
Hope you have a lovely day. I've got men replacing sheetrock today-dust galore and I can't go anywhere. They're almost done, thank goodness.

Found objects & the search continues

2010-04-14T12:50:00.000-07:00

As I unwrap the various layers of stuff stuck in limbo(the closet) and move things to the new room, I keep coming across things I started and never went any further with. This is one of those things. The rows were un-sewn and stuffed into a bag a while back. Probably in the mid 90s from some of the fabrics. I really love making triangles but I stink at it and I'm fairly sure that's why it got stuffed into a plastic bag and forgotten. In my new found mind set where I stop being hard on myself and just have fun, I put the rows together today and even though nothing lined up I'm enjoying looking at it. I'll throw a border and binding on it and use it for a table topper. This was so old that I actually found the triangles had been outlined in light pencil. I must have cut them by hand...BY HAND...can you imagine? Based on my usual math avoidance and sloppiness, it's not really as bad as I thought when I found the bag. It's wavy but wavy and done is better than another UFO.

It's another pretty spring day here and the temps are even a little chilly. I don't mind that since I'm not a hot weather fan. Spring could go on forever as far as I'm concerned. Besides, I need to find a wedding outfit/dress whatever and the faster the time goes by the more panic there is. I do have some information that I'm willing to share but it's not good news. All the pretty dresses are in the small sizes. Crap! Further, I can't find anything in a nice suit with pants. You know what I mean? Perhaps a pair of silk pants and a pretty flowing (coveryourbigboobs) silky top and light jacketkimonowhatever. Now you understand why I'm thinking of having a cocktail at 4 in the afternoon. The sun is over the yardarm isn't it? I leave you with a picture of where I should be sitting to get my sanity back.
Talk to you soon.

Cooler heads and temperatures

2010-04-09T07:41:00.000-07:00

Thanks to everyone who read and commented even though I was having a minor meltdown. My friend Rian was right. I just needed a cookie, or something like that, a treat of some sort. The something like that was Sushi. I visited my local sushi maker and had a spring roll and a spicy crab roll. That, and the fact that the temperature has returned to something like spring is making me a much happier Dee. My photographer got a couple of shots of early spring in the harbor. Not too many boats right now but in a week or so there will be a lot more. One of those shots shows a boat pulling the free- floating docks into place. After a long winter people can begin to use them for small boat tie ups or to fish off the docks from. Is it flounder season yet? I think it may be.

Yesterday I finally got off the stick and finished the baby quilt. Not sure if I mentioned it but I decided to try my hand at quilting it with the walking foot. I did some echo quilting around the blocks(straight line-easy) and finished it up yesterday. I also bound it with the walking foot which is not something I normally like to do but I always forget that a baby quilt is going to get the crap kicked out of it and doesn't need to pass muster from judges in a quilt show. It looks perfectly fine and I can check off that thing from my list.

The little nine patch that I made a while back from civil war type fabrics is almost finished. When I'm done here I will finish putting the binding on and that will be another finish. Wow! Two thing in one week. Can you stand it?

Well, I'm off to figure out what's for dinner and then head to my sewing room. My sewing room...doesn't that sound lovely. It sure does to me. I'm finally growing comfortable and happy in my new space. It need some work but for now I'm a happy camper.

Loves & Hates

2010-04-06T07:39:00.000-07:00

I should probably tell you to proceed at your own risk.

Kinda losing my patience with Blogger. I can't seem to make the pictures appear the way I used to. They won't move to another spot either so just bear with me. It may just be that I'm a little cranky since we are having July in April. Not a happy thing for me. My very favorite time of year is spring and anything over 65 really annoys the crap out of me. Humidity is not my friend. The stores are all still being heated and I need to go shopping. Last week I went and finally gave up it was so hot and airless. What are they thinking. Open a frickin" door.
And now, for something completely different... The "Amish Abstractions is so beautiful you just want to make everything in it. Most especially this 16-patch you see here. I could probably tackle this one since it isn't black and I might not go blind doing it. It's a beauty. Wonderful book. Those people who own these quilts are very fortunate. I can't imagine letting go of this particular quilt though. Maybe establish a collection somewhere and let this one stay home.

Other wonderful things I have read lately are, "Fear the Worst", by Linwood Barclay. This guy can really get you to ignore every other thing going on because you can't put down the book. I recommend it but don't start at night. It's like that potato chip commercial where you can't eat just one. You'll never get to sleep. I am going to go to the Library and get another of his books tomorrow. He has several out and one new one on the way. I love "discovering a writer" and then finding he's already written a bunch of books. Woohoo!

I am enjoying "Committed" by Elizabeth Gilbert of "Eat, Pray, Love" fame. Very interesting and touching story about putting your money where your mouth is in a relationship. Fun read.

The one book I don't have a picture of here is "Cleaving", by Julie Powell, whose book was made into the movie Julie/Julia. Not sure what possessed little Julie to go off the deep end but her book is HORRIBLE. I can count on one hand the number of books I'm tempted to throw in the trash(as witnessed by our overflowing library) this is one of those. Only the fact that it was a Library book kept me from flinging it into the wind off the dock. It's gruesome but I can get past that since I get the whole thing about a chef wanting to be a professional butcher and know how to properly carve apart an animal for the public consumption. What I don't get is her "voice" in this book. She's nasty, cheating on her husband(who must be a complete dork to put up with her crap) and writes a book about it. She uses her husband as a poor put-upon sad sack character in the book but refers to the lover by an initial -nice touch...not. I rarely hate the written word but I really hated this book. It's snarky, nasty, condescending, and hateful. I'm not a prude, I know people have affairs(I worked in retailing for 14 years...the stories!!!) and do things undercover but she seems to gloat about how she is fooling her husband who comes off seeming like a real moron. Not a pretty picture and I wonder if she will regret how she comes off in this sad piece of writing.

Anyway, for some reason or another I seem to be Miss Crankypants today. So I'll leave you and go do something productive. I need to clean the filter in the air cond. upstairs just in case! Couldn't sleep well last two nights since the room as very hot and the love of my life still gets really cold with too much air on him. The meds he takes do that to a guy. Funny thing is he used to be the one that got hotter than me. Now we have dueling thermostats.

Hey! What day is it??

2010-04-02T08:38:00.000-07:00

Wow did this week get away from me. Time just seems to be flying by. REALLY! All those trite sayings about the blink of an eye are true. I'm working on the baby quilt doing machine stitching...eeeeeek. I'm trying not to be to critical of myself and a friend suggested a very simple approach to the machine quilting. I went to the machine and tried all the fancy stitches, thinking that I would use one of them as a single tack every few inches or so. It's not bad and better than tying it to death. I'm not in love with that anymore.

We have taken to asking James about things in terms of "the last whatever here at home", as in "what would you like for Easter dinner for your last one as a single guy etc". The result is that we are having Thanksgiving for Easter. Turkey with all the trimmings. Roger and I would dearly love to have a great piece of roast beef or Leg of Lamb. Red meat is supposed to be out for the BIL Bob(not that he doesn't filch the extra burger after he's finished his chicken.) The Happy Couple doesn't particularly like lamb. It's not a fav for James and Dani has the whole " eating Mary's little lamb " problem so turkey it is. Good thing we are happy with that choice and frankly what smells better than a turkey cooking? Sadly for me, I think the temps are going to be near 70. I'm hoping it won't get that bad here near the water. We do tend to get the off the water breezes that keep things sort of cool. Here's hoping!

Roger put up a design wall in the sewing room for me. I can't wait to get going on some of the things I've started that are just a bunch of blocks right now. Got the cork boards up too. Thanks Honey!
Terry and I drove out to JoAnns last night. I started quilting and realized that I was nearly out of plain white or ecru thread and I had no lavender or yellow at all. Since the baby quilt needs either of those, I picked up a couple of rolls of each. There was some half priced Easter stuff that Terry needed for a child's basket. Other than that, not much to get excited about.

I have much to do to clean up around here and I hope to get back to the quilt and at least work a little on it today. It's so beautiful out. Spring is pushing through and that subtle green is everywhere. Just lovely.

Hope you have a beautiful weekend.

2010-03-29T07:57:00.000-07:00

I'll update the blog later but I wanted to give you a chance to go to the "Interpret This Blog" for the monthly reveal. Really great work and once again, I love seeing everyone's take on the subject. So many artists, so many ideas. Wonderful. Leave them a message if you can. They really appreciate the kind words and critique.

2010-03-22T11:35:00.000-07:00

Happy Monday. Hope your weekend was as sunny and happy as mine was. Here are two of the things that made my weekend happier. I'm finally coming down the stretch on both these tops. You probably don't remember but The nine patch was double the length. As I was putting it together I realized that half of it would make a perfect table top piece for one of my very favorite people. So I separated it in the middle and made one top for her and I'll keep the other one for me. I don't have any more of that cheddar yellow or the small red border but I'm sure I can find something pretty close somewhere and isn't the search half the fun.

One of the happier things this weekend was seeing the wedding dress of my Darling Daughter-in-law-to-be Dani. The dress is so lovely and it made me tear up a little just to see it. I told her she should just sit her Mom and I together between a large box of tissues. Things are really moving along now on the wedding front. The happy couple registered at Bed Bath & Beyond and Macy's so I'm sure they will be getting a lot of lovely things. I'm getting very excited and nervous for them. What a sweet time this is for Dani & James. It makes you remember all those feelings of so long ago. Very sweet memories and sweeter still to realize that they still going strong.

As you can see from the picture above I also put together the baby quilt. I need some backing and then I'm almost done. I wish I could machine quilt this but I'm not great at it so I guess I'll tie this one all over the place.

Roger took Friday off and we went for a walk on the beach. It was so hilly and such a mess from the terrible storm of two weekends ago. It made walking a bit harder than usual. Couldn't get our footing very well. I suppose the Village guys will drag and clean the sandy beach sometime soon. There's a lot of trash laying around that blew in. Still, the temp was 67 and very sunny so it was a nice moment.

I had better get back to catching up with some house work and laundry. Talk to you soon.

top o the mornin'

2010-03-17T07:56:00.001-07:00

If the temps keep up the current way we'll all be walking in clover soon. I've been around here long enough to remember snow in April though so I remain cautious. Hope you're finding a good way to enjoy St. Paddy's day. We're being typically non-traditional around the McDonald House. Yesterday I went to the grocery store where they were being typically annoying by charging sirloin prices for corned beef. The least expensive piece I found was over $17. I'm not cheap but I'm not an idiot either...I'll wait till tomorrow when the corned beef is on sale for half price. It's still too much but you have to have some corned beef now and again if you hope to remain a registered Irish soul. It's funny about those prices. Years ago I used to get lamb shanks and skirt steak for next to nothing. No one knew about them and few people wanted them since they didn't know how to cook them properly. They were really cheap. They've now been discovered and you can't get them for a reasonable price to save your life. Not sure how people with larger families do it. Braised lamb shanks are so good it's ridiculous. Two smallish lamb shanks yesterday were around the $9. mark.
Crazy!

On a "Support your local talent" note, I ordered a diaper bag from my favorite bag maker Suzan. She has a company called "Hazelnut Hill" and I had a bag made for my DIL-to-be for Christmas that was just beautiful. On her blog she is showing the diaper bag she made for her darling new Grandchild. I thought that would be a great idea for the up-coming baby shower. So I ordered one and she can get it to me by the date I need it for. She really makes beautiful bags. They are so well-made and she always uses fabulous designer fabrics.

I'm still working on the several projects that I showed in the last post. Managed to put a bunch of circles into the Kaffe Crop Circles wall hanging. I think it looks really good but I did manage to forget how ungainly it is to sew all those circles. Round and round I go.

James and Dani are full speed ahead on the wedding plans. Dani begins her training period for her new job at the end of the month so I think she would like to get a few things settled before long. It's not a big fancy production but it will be a nice wedding with dresses to get and cake to order and center pieces to pick and so on.... The time really flies by. It's nearly April-the wedding is the Saturday of Labor Day weekend. Yikes. What's worse is that I have to find a dress. What I'd rather have is maybe silk pants and top. We'll see what I can find.

Well, I hope your day is green and lovely. Don't forget Suzan if you need something one-of-a-kind and beautifully made. I'm not getting paid to promote-her work is just lovely and she's a really sweet & funny woman.

Talk to you soon.

Crop Circles and garden pathways.

2010-03-12T11:10:00.000-08:00

I put aside this Kaffe piece I worked on a few weeks ago after not being able to decide how to do the quilting. I've now decided that I'm going to make a number of circles on it as quilting. It's very angular and I think the roundness of the quilting design would be perfect. That's what I'm up to today. Well, that and grocery shopping and laundry, kitchen clean-up(much needed), and
maybe some more work on this. Those lines you see are the original quilting lines I drew with water soluble marker. It's getting spritzed in a while and then I'll work on the all-over circles.

I have been watching Victoria of Bumble Beans make these small pieces that look like garden walkways made of broken tiles and I really wanted to see if I could get one put together quickly for some handwork. I miss doing that and I'm sort of tired of the only other things I've got to work on...(adult ADHD?) Anyway, I have bags of bits and pieces so it took about half an hour to find myself a pleasing arrangement. We'll see how long I can keep up with the applique since my hands are very arthritic feeling lately. Maybe I should learn how to do that on the machine? How hard can it be?

Sorry for the quality of these photos. I think the camera battery is going. Everything looks drab and fuzzy. Maybe it's my eyes.

I spent some time playing around with the arrangement of these baby quilt blocks yesterday as well. They look so bright and cheerful. I really hope the Mom likes the quilt since I know nothing about her and we haven't even met yet. Lets hope it works out. The shower is in April so I'd better get going a little faster. I think I'm just going to tie the heck out of it and say it's done. I think the happy couple are registered at Babies r Us, maybe I can find them something to go with it.
As you all know, I vow never to make another quilt for a baby every time I make another quilt for a baby...sigh.

Back soon with more.

Spring is sprung

2010-03-09T06:32:00.001-08:00

I had to find this image on the net since the crocus in my yard are so far up on a hill and virtually un-reachable, except by the squirrels and chipmunks who probably moved them there. At any rate, if I could climb up there, this is what you would see popping up. Daffodils to follow and hyacinth coming along soon. Now we just have to make it past the next few weeks without the S word. It's really a lovely day. The air smells sweet and the birds are singing.

I'm working on Food Pantry issues today so I can work on sewing tomorrow. Also, it's haircut/color day tomorrow. It can't come a moment too soon. When I made the appointment it was after a haircut that was really just a clean-up trim. Not thinking that by 6 weeks later I would be totally frazzled by the mess that is my hair today. I'm not fussy about much except my hair. If it looks(like it does now) raggedy and out of shape I'm a cranky mess.

There was good news in our world last week. Our DIL to be Dani got a job. She has been searching for a while and had many resumes out. The job market has been so horrible that things kept falling through and she was in that terrible go-round where they wanted someone with experience and how can you get it when you can't get a job. Finally, last week she got hired for what seems like it could be a good job. I'm very happy for her and for James since we wondered what would happen to the wedding date if some of the pieces didn't fall together. Fingers crossed, now things are looking up and they can resume looking for possible places to live. It's very expensive around here but I'm holding out some hope that maybe a miracle will happen. I would love to have them nearby. Time will tell.

Yesterday I got a fat quarter selection of the new April Cornell fabric you see above. I can't seem to make the picture move to where I want it and I'm done trying to play nicely with blogger. Anyway, It's so pretty I can hardly stand not immediately getting in to it. For today though I will just have to fondle it and think of something pretty to make with it. Maybe a birthday present for a friend is a possibility. It would also make some pretty, girly, dresses in that pattern I bought last week....hmmm

On the the paperwork. Back soon.

I wanted to add that I finished that book, "A Reliable Wife" by Robert Goolrick. It's not big so one night and an afternoon did the trick. It's really well written but toward the end it could have been a bit better enriched with more explanation of the characters intentions and the explanations given just didn't seem to justify the attitude of the bad guy. Not sure that makes sense but the character of the son and his long separation from the father just left me sort of cold. I felt loose ends didn't get tied up for me very well and mostly I wondered why the father would want him back and further why the son spent his life in such ruin. Even at that, it's a book worth giving a read. The writing is very good and he manages to make the weather and the land a character. Kind of Steinbeck-like. It has very violent moments and some sexual content. Give it a go. I really couldn't put it down for most of the book. Like so many books I've read lately, the ending left me wanting so much more.