Look what I got

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

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...

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...

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

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

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

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

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

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

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...

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

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

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

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

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

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.

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

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

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!

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.