Water may not be the answer

I woke up at 8, and did some intention work. I sewed a strip to one of the charity strip blocks. I exercised and tapped. It was a good coffee morning, without wi-fi. I am not sure if that helped or not. I listened to a soothing track on the desktop computer. Afterward, I mixed kefir grains with aloe, vitamin C, and goat milk for a shot of nutrients. It made more than I thought. I watered the drooping peace lilies. They did seem a little dry, but I can't believe Chris did not try watering them. The one I checked seemed rootbound, so I removed some of the root-bound ball, and added dirt from another pot. I cleaned the bathrooms and the kitchen. I did three rounds of lagin. Then I made and ate breakfast. I read e-mail and listened to audios. I sent one to Jennifer to listen to.
I watched a long documentary covering many subjects, including the ills of a monetary-based economy and how to build a resource-based society. It was almost three hours so I did not listen all at once. I did a lot of paida. Afterward, I took a shower and dressed for choir.
Chris came home while I was still watching. I paused it and went out to check the mail. I got another $2 from the Neilsen people. I sat down to have a deep discussion with him. It was going well but the doorbell rang. Two men had come to fix the refrigerator. I did not know that Chris had called in a work order because it was dripping water in the back. The men took the food from the freezer and removed a large quantity of ice. I worked on my blocks, ironing the latest set of strips and auditioning a border. When they left, I resumed my discussion with Chris. It went well and I think we reached a new level of agreement.
I heated a bowl of bean soup in the toaster oven. While it heated I made and ate a large salad. Then I ate the bean soup. The documentary ended about 6:15. Soon afterward, I left for choir. The parkway was backed up so I did not arrive early. I returned Jennifer's notebook, then picked up the new music and laid down the old one. I sat with the altos and rehearsal began. Some of the music went well, but not the one we are planning to sing on Sunday. Still, she dismissed us right at 8. Doris told me about her koi pond.
I went home via Bailey Cove so I could see the lights of the city, and to avoid traffic on the parkway. When I got home, Chris pulled up Voyager and we watched 2 episodes. He made his sandwich and went to bed. I stayed up to blog and then headed to bed myself. (Peace lilies are still drooping)
* This is another one of Laurie's quilts from Monday. *

Catching up with Dad

I got up at 8. I sewed some sashing strips together and put some on blocks. Then I checked e-mail. I listened to an audio while doing some paida and lajin. I ate some seed crackers with hummus. Then I got dressed and went to the Tuesday group.
I met Jody as I walked in. We talked for a while, then she had to go get something from her car. Beverly came in with her quilt top made of squares from baby outfits. It was nice. But I had forgotten my phone so could not take a picture. I pulled out my fleece rug and cut strips to crochet. I socialized for hours. The other ladies left and April came over. So it was April, Beverly and me. April did not want to go for a walk, so she left, and Beverly and I turned off the lights and walked out.
We went for a walk in the neighborhood behind the church. I was glad to have my heavy coat on.. She suggested maybe we could walk downtown sometime.
I went by the Asian market for kimbap, but she said they were sold out. It seemed pretty early for that. Then again, kimbap is a guilty pleasure so it is not a big deal. I went home.
I made breakfast. Then I did 8 minutes of lajin before eating my breakfast. I also had lunch. I copied Jennifer's notes and put her notebook in my car so I wouldn't forget it.
I checked the mail – none. I read more e-mail. Then I finished sewing strips of sashing and cornerstones to my rows. I pressed them all. I laid them out with green background fabrics to audition for side triangles. Several were good and some were completely eliminated. I chose a green tone-on-tone with leaves. Then I sat down to figure out how big to cut the squares for triangles. There were two ways of doing it and I drew sketches of how it would fit on the fabric. In the end I decided to go with the 17 inch squares cut in half because I did not have a 24 inch square ruler. I used the calculator on my laptop, which made it too easy to check e-mail again. Chris was home by this time and engaged with his laptop. I called my Dad to ask about his cataract surgery and his dentures. He finally has dentures but they don't work so well. And his surgery is tomorrow. I hung up so he could get ready for tomorrow. I heard Chris made his supper. Then Michele called him and they played the dinosaur game. I put on headphones and did a tapping video for strengthening the immune system. I looked up why peace lilies wilt and root rot was suggested, was was being root-bound. I did not want to check the plant while Chris was in the room since he might take issue with it. He seems very impatient with me lately. I typed up my blog post so far.
I cut strips for the set-in triangles. Looking at my diagram, I was able to sew some onto the outside edges of the outside blocks. When that was done, I told Chris I was calling time. He concluded his game with Michele. I got water ready for tomorrow. Chris went to the Fox network and streamed the Lucifer episode from yesterday. We watched most of it, but then something went wrong and it stopped playing. Chris pulled it up on his laptop and we finished watching it there. Then he called up the next episode of Voyager and we saw that. But he fell asleep near the end so we did not see a second one. He went to bed and I stayed up briefly to blog and take my evening supplements.

Quilting

I woke up and 9 and got up right away. I was in a pretty good mood, possibly because the sun was shining brightly. I sewed a bunch of cornerstones to sashing strips. Then I checked e-mail. I did some lajin and paida while listening to audios.
I made and ate breakfast. But by then it was after noon. I got dressed and packed my project into my cart. I rolled it out to the car and put it in the trunk. Then I drove to quilting. It took a couple minutes longer than usual because of road work.
When I got there, the ladies had just finished lunch. I chose a spot to work, but got to talking and did not set up my machine for a bit. When I caught up with everyone, I got ready to sew. I laid out the squares and rearranged them until I was satisfied. Amazingly it did not take that long. Then I laid out the sashing strips and started sewing in rows. The ladies left a few at a time. Then it was just Laurie and I. When I realized it was 4pm, I packed up. She stayed to work on her quilt. I came home and found Chris on his laptop. He told me his interview went really well and that they intended to make a decision this week.
I checked e-mail and ate. I had some chicken, then made a salad, then had two handsful of nuts, and a bowl of blackberries. I guess I had the munchies.
I took my laptop to my fabric room and shut the door. I did paida on my hands, knees and feet while I watched a video on taoist medicine. It was after 8 when I finished. Chris was waiting in the livingroom with the TV on.
We watched two episodes of Voyager. Chris was tired so we stopped there. He made his sandwich. I checked e-mail and saw that Jennifer was trying to call me so I called her. She was making a Swansons order. Chris sat at his laptop the entire time she and I talked. Then he went to bed. I stayed up to write to my blog. I got caught up in an unfinished game of Solitaire from earlier in the day. It was almost midnight till I tore myself away to go to bed.
* this is the quilt Laurie worked on. *

Poverty is big business

I got up about 9. It was a rainy morning. Chris was already up. He showed me the spot where the slow cooker had overflowed, staining the counter top with turmeric. He wanted to know how to clean it. I sprinkled it with baking soda and a little hydrogen peroxide and left it to soak. I read a little e-mail and then took a shower and got dressed.
I had a swallow of some Brain Octane oil and some seed crackers. Then I went to church to warm up with the choir.
After the warm-up, Jennifer shared her notes on the interviews she had listened to. Soon the service was in progress. Afterward, I texted Chris to pour a little vinegar on the turmeric stain. Then there was a congregational meeting to elect the people put forth by the nominating committee and to vote on going to one service. Kurt came over to talk to me about another committee. We were invited by the pastor to join in the first Tuesday night of February.
Thinking we were done, I called Chris to meet me at Publix. But I stopped to ask Ron if there was going to be a stewardship meeting. He likes to talk and it went long. Finally I took my leave and went to Publix.
I found Chris and we shopped, or rather finished shopping. I went home and changed clothes. I ate a can of soup. When he got home, we put away the groceries. I read e-mail. I collated the recyclables and put the glass in bags in my car. (Glass is not eligible for curbside pick-up) Then I broke down all the Amazon and Swansons boxes and put them in the car. In one of the Amazon boxes I found a bottle of black pepper oil that I had missed because it was so small and wrapped in bubblewrap. I took the load to the local recycling center and put them in the corresponding bin. I saw that they also take clothes and shoes. And I returned home.
I watched a documentary called Poverty, Inc. It talked about the global poverty industry and the negative effects of giving free food and clothing to local economies. When free rice was handed out in Haiti, it put the farmers out of business and instead put money in the pockets of the agribusinesses who produce rice elsewhere. Another story told of eggs being given out in great quantities. The local chicken farmer went out of business and had to sell his flock. But the sender of eggs decided to provide something else the next year and so the village had no eggs then.
I paused it to take a quick walk around the circle (since the daylight was fading). When I got back I finished the video. The main speakers said the best charities were the ones who provided support for the creation of small businesses. Long-term handouts were creating a generation of dependent-minded people. Also, if poverty were eradicated, the industry loses. Free secondhand clothing destroys the local industry. Building orphanages over there with promises to feed the educate the children creates more 'orphans'. Parents send their kids there when they lose their jobs. Then some of the kids are adopted by foreigners and the parents never see their kids again. Ads and songs portray Africans as helpless. They need to be no longer excluded (from global markets, loans, etc).
I made and ate breakfast. Since my back was hurting, I did lajin for only 5 minutes in each position. Then I spent some time pinning strips and corner blocks. I put some bubble wrap under my sewing machine so it won't wake up the desktop computer every time I sew. I made up a 10-day supply of evening supplements. I also put a kava tea bag in a quart of water to drink while watching TV.
Chris wanted to watch only two episodes of Voyager so he could go to bed early. But the second one was the first of two parts, and featured the Allies against the Germans on the holodeck. Needless to say, he found time to watch the second part as well. Then he fixed his lunch while I posted to my blog, and we went to bed.

Cornerstones

I think it was after 10 when I got up. I wasn't sleeping, but my brain was going round and round. I went out to the kitchen and Chris told me I got a text on my phone. So I turned on phone and checked it. My massage therapist texted me that she had sent an e-mail. So I checked my e-mail – and then remembered my resolution to sew first.
I sewed a strip to a foundation block. I auditioned some strips of green for corner stones. I chose one and measured it to see how many squares I could get. Then I had to sketch the quilt so I could count how many I needed. It would make about half.
I put on an audio and headphones. I laid on the floor in the bedroom to do the weight loss lajin. Then I took a break before doing the other lajin using chairs and the wall. I drank a quart of water. I opened all the supplement doses from yesterday and added the enzyme that came in the mail last afternoon. Then I made breakfast. The enzyme turned my breakfast from mush to almost a dough-like consistency. Kinda of like flubber.
I listened to several audios while eating. One was on essential oils. They recommended mixing coconut oil with essential oils and putting it in molds for individual servings for swishing.
I went for a walk around the neighborhood, walking down unfamiliar streets. When I got back, I looked up a map to see where I'd been. I made up fresh batches of my chia/flax mixture and the green powder mixture. I washed and ate some aloe. Then I read about the symptoms of menopause. I looked up the flight time to Bulgaria in case Chris gets a job there and I want to visit him: 11 hours. Maybe visiting isn't such a good idea.
I finalized my Swansons order. Then I ate some bean soup, but the beans were still a little crunchy. So I made a large salad and ate it while listening to Jack Canfield.
I cut all the corner stones from two green fabrics. Then I cut as many sashing strips as would fit. I sewed the remnants together and ironed the seams. Chris turned on the TV and we watched four episodes of Voyager. I took my evening supplements after the third one. Chris put away the bean soup. After the fourth, I posted to my blog and went to bed.
* Our peace lilies are wilting and we don't know why. *

Labels and forms

I got up at 8:30, feeling like I hadn't slept much. I sewed a strip to satisfy my new year's resolution. I got on my laptop and posted my blog for yesterday. Kurt said his breakfast was short, not having my blog to read.
I did some head paida with a video. Then I did some lajin while listening to an audio. There was a special lajin postion for losing weight and I tried that one, too.
I made up 12 days of supplements. I checked my orders to see what was coming in the mail, and added the others to my cart. I was $3 short of getting 15% off.
I made and ate breakfast. I watched a video where a doctor took a gauss meter and measured output of devices around his house and car. Some were pretty high, especially the blender. Then I did an online meditation. It was a nice day so I went for a long walk. When I got back, I ate the half avocado from last night.
I read an article praising the new technology of nano crystal electricity: wireless electricity. It sounded like quite a convenience, but would it have drawbacks as well?
I sewed on strips to some blocks.
Then I decided to work on labels as long as I had daylight. I looked for the new book form on my computer. But the computer said the file was corrupted. So I made a new form from the book checkout form. I needed an extra column but it would not give me that option so I just pretended it was there and wrote the info. I called her to make sure it was what she wanted, then I printed the labels and the form. I affixed the labels to the book cards and pockets and put the pockets in the books. All except for one book which had no blank pages. She will have to decide where the pocket goes.
I finished putting the borders on all the blocks. I trimmed them to 14.5 inches and laid them out on the table with sashing. I wanted to pick a fabric for corner stones, but it was too dark by then.
Chris came home from work. He brought me two Swanson boxes. I unpacked the supplements and checked the invoices. I ate some chicken. Michele called Chris to play the dinosaur game. I made a salad and watched X-Files on the Fox website. It was a comic episode.
At 8 Chris hung up with Michele. We searched for the DVD remote. Chris found it under the couch cushion. F-Troop had come in the mail so we watched the whole DVD, about 6 episodes. Then Chris looked up one of the cameo characters. But she wasn't in anything else we had seen. I posted to my blog so Kurt would be sure to have something to read for breakfast tomorrow.

A new way to quilt

I got up at 9, surprised it was so late, but glad for the extra sleep. I sewed a strip to the string block. Then I turned on the router. I deleted the first round of e-mail. I did paida while listening to something. Then I put two chairs together by the wall to do lajin. I was able to stand it longer than before.
I read a few more e-mail, then started a loaf of bread for Chris. There is a high strip of counter top behind the kitchen sink and is open to the dining room. I had some things sitting there and when I tried to add one more, it knocked some empty plastic bowls over onto the side board, which knocked a glass carafe onto the floor where it shattered.
There was glass all over the dining room floor. I swept it up with a broom and a dust pan. I wiped out the plastic bowls which also ended up on the floor. I e-mailed Chris to be careful when he came home.
By the time I made and ate breakfast, it was noon. I got dressed and looked at my project, wondering what part to pack to work on at Stitch-Its. I decided it was too late because they break up at 2 and it always takes me a while to pack up.
Having decided to stay home, I pulled out one of the quilting rulers that I keep saying I am going to try. I put the special foot on my machine. I hunted up some rubberized shelf liner to help it stay in place. Then I put the ruler on a placemat that needed a little more quilting. I couldn't lower the feeddogs so I set the stitch length to 0. (There is a cover plate somewhere). It seemed to work well, except my stitches were too small. On the second round, I moved the fabric faster and it broke the needle. I had to hunt up some new needles. I found a package of quilting needles. I put one in and finished the job. Then I took it out and put a regular needle in.
I was one strip short of finishing a block. So I took all the cut-off ends and sewed them together, plus another piece I found somewhere. I even took the end strip which was frayed and too narrow, and doubled it back on itself to make it wide enough. It was just enough. While I was sewing, Pat called to see if I was coming to Stitch-Its. I said I could stop by and she said she'd drop by my house later.
I listened to an interview: Parkinsons has a scent that some dogs have been trained to identify. Parkinsons is associated with a glutathione deficiency. Intranasal glutathione is more effective that oral glutathione. The more dairy you consume as an adult, the more likely you are to develop Parkinsons.
I did an internet search to find a map of where the float spa was. But I still did not schedule a session. I did more research on lajin and paida. It revealed it is good for incontinence, weight loss and constipation and gray hair.
Pat came over with sheets of labels and four quilt books. She wanted me to print labels for the books and the library cards that go in the books, as well an information sheet for the book of books.
Chris came home from work with a box for me. It contained cacao nibs. I opened the two bags and poured them into a canister. I tried to work with the labels. I was able to download a template online, but there wasn't enough light to see the keyboard well, so I did not type anything in. I made a large salad and ate a piece of chicken.
Then I got ready for my tapping buddy. I heard the skype sound for a text, but when I went to check it, the whole laptop froze and I had to reboot. When it came up, I called her. While we were catching up from last time, I took the laptop into the guest room for some privacy. We spent over an hour tapping doing surrogate tapping. Then we hung up. Chris and I watched one episode of Voyager. He enticed me to bed and I did not get to post my blog until the next morning.

Charity

When I got up, it was just after 8. I noticed that the daylight was strong for so early. I guessed that it would only get stronger as the days went on. I sewed a strip on one of the foundation block. Then I did some lajin on two chairs in the kitchen. I was swishing at the same time. So of course the doorbell rang. I got up to answer it, hoping I would not have to talk. And I didn't, because the UPS man had dropped a package at the door and was returning to his vehicle. It was our new checks. I placed the package at Chris' spot and resumed lajin.
I wore my new slippers that my friend in Augusta gave me. They kept my feet warm during coffee morning. I added some paida to the routine. After all the meditating and coffee, I cleaned up the kitchen and wiped the bathrooms. I vacuumed the floors and cleaned the vacuum filter. I put strong tape on the bottoms of my chair legs and Chris' chair legs.
I could not resist cutting and sewing some border strips to blocks. I cut as many strips as I could, but t it did not seem like enough. I had another similar fabric to use, but wanted to minimize it. I did some more paida while listening to an audio.
I made and ate breakfast just as Chris came home from work. He looked over the checks and was not happy because they did not have my name. He was also not happy about something that he was dealing with at the office. He knocked over the kale chips and I swept up the pieces. I mixed up a batch of seed crackers. I took a quick walk while it baked. Outside was a lovely day. When I got back, I ate a can of organic soup, and listened to the next episode of Broken Brain. I looked up how to record a TV show on my laptop, but it involved connecting to the TV for tuning in to the show. So much for X-Files tonight.
I took a shower. There were a few minutes left, so I sewed some seams I had pinned earlier. I measured a block and was preparing to cut a strip for it, when my time was up.
I went to choir practice. I turned in the music from Sunday and picked up some new music. As I sat in a pew, talking to the other ladies and waiting for practice to begin, a lady walked in with a neck brace on. She asked for the pastor by name. Someone said he was teaching a confirmation class. She said it was urgent. She wanted money to buy special formula for her little girls. Doris took out her wallet and found one dollar and handed it to the lady. Someone told the lady that the class would be over in 15 minutes. She said she couldn't wait, that she had to drive to Nashville to get the formula. Someone took her to see the pastor. The rest of us wondered how in the world she planned to drive 4 hours to Nashville if she had no money. And what kind of special formula did they have that Huntsville did not?
I kept thinking about the lady during the practice. All the music was new to me so I was sight-reading. Eventually I was able to sing the song selected for this Sunday. But I was glad to have a piano to practice a little on my own anyway.
After practice. Jennifer gave me a container of coconut oil that I had sold her years ago. She did not like the taste of it. She told me about her efforts to dehydrate apple slices. And something else that escapes me now. Then I drove home, down Bailey Cove so I could come over the hill and see the city lights below me.
When I got home, Chris was on his laptop. I told him about the lady and he said he would have given her some money. He fired up the little laptop attached to the TV. We watched three episodes of Voyager. I checked e-mail one last time, then posted to my blog and went to bed.

Sprouts

I woke up around 7. I tried doing lajin and paida while still in bed. I had no way to time either except to count and I lost count. So I got up. It was still way before 8. I sewed two scrap squares together. I pressed and auditioned the two yellow/orange fabrics from yesterday. Then I turned on the router, and checked e-mail. I did more lajin but with chairs, while listening to Deepak. Then I got dressed and took out recyclables without putting on a coat. It seemed like a nice, cool, spring day.
When I came to a good stopping point on e-mail, I put on my coat and picked up my purple quilt top. I hopped in my car and drove to the sewing group on Jordan.
Beverly was there. Anita was helping her arrange blocks on a flannel display board. There was some discussion about what to do with the 9 inch squares that were too small. I showed off my purple quilt top, then helped with the blocks. Anita had to leave, but Beverly and I stayed until after everyone was gone.
We went walking in the neighborhood behind the church. It took about half an hour. I was cold at first. It felt like the temperature had dropped. But as we walked, I became comfortable. When we returned to the church, I got in Beverly's car and she drove us to the Asian market for kimbap.
Then we went to Sprouts. I had never been there before, but had heard they sell a lot of organic food. As we walked around the store, I looked for apple chips, and essential oils, and cashews, and a cauliflower. They did not have the essential oil that I wanted. But I also got avocados, mahi mahi, blackberries (which were on sale), organic soup (also on sale) and kale chips. We checked out and when we got to her car, I opened the bag of kale chips. I was hungry. But they were not what I expected. Previously I had curly kale chips and these were flat. We ate some and went back to the church.
We said goodbye and I got in my car and drove back to the arsenal. I put the food away, then ate my kimbap with kimchi. It was good but a little more filling than I remembered.
Then I read e-mail and listened to some audios. I looked into sensory deprivation tanks. I sent a message about them to my massage therapist. Then I found that Huntsville actually has a commercial float spa now. I was highly tempted to schedule a time.
Chris came home from work. I cut strips for sashing from two different orange fabrics. I calculated how many more blocks I could border with my remaining green fabric. Three at most, but there were six blocks left. I tried to decide which blocks would get a different border before the daylight faded.
Somehow I ended up back at my laptop, reading e-mail and listening to audios on plant-based medicine.
At 8 we watched three episodes of Voyager; the last one was the first of a two-parter. Darn. Chris made his lunch for tomorrow and went to bed. I stayed up to write this blog post.

Continuing resolution is a day late

I woke up but stayed in bed, saying prayers and trying to go back to sleep. One prayer was for a continuing resolution so Chris would stay at work. When I got up, it was 7:20. My first thought was to go back to bed, but I tapped. Then I explored fabric choices for the sashing on the remaining leaf blocks. But the daylight was not strong enough to make final decisions. So I sewed two scrap squares together and turned on my laptop.
I drank a quart of water with kava tea bags. I did some paida. I checked e-mail and put on an audio on heart disease. He said a diagonal ear crease is 70 predictive of a heart problem. Of course I rushed to the bathroom to examine my earlobes. Sure enough, there was a crease. So I looked for the earliest pics I could find on my laptop, which were pics from Seoul. I blew one up to see if there was a crease. In one pic yes and in another no. There was a string of selfies I took when I wanted to post a nice profile pic. I remember not being happy with any of them. But now, I would be thrilled to look like that! Oh well. Someday I will look at pics of me now and wish I still looked like this.
Then I did 15 minutes of lajin while listening to an audio. Chris came home about 11 while I was making breakfast. He had just completed a shut down of the office. I finished my breakfast and prepared my project to go to quilting. I decided to pack the blocks, the borders and some candidates for sashing. By the time I was ready to leave, it was raining. I covered my machine and fabrics with an opened plastic bag. I put everything in my trunk and headed out.
It was just after noon when I arrived. I unloaded in the covered zone, parked the car, and rolled my cart inside. I realized I had left my purse at home. Sigh.
Most of the ladies were still eating. I set up my machine and talked to them. A few cleared out after lunch. Dinah gave me some foundation squares to cover with strips for the next charity quilt. She held up the previous one which was now quilted and in line for binding. I wished to take a pic but my camera phone was at home. She also gave me a not-so-nice-looking quilt top to practice quilting on.
Going back to my machine, I trimmed blocks and cut strips, and sewed on borders. I had a good time visiting with the few that were left. Lauri finished her quilt top. It was pretty in blue with hints of red and green. Again I wished for my phone.
I laid out some of my bordered blocks and auditioned them on the sashing candidates. Lauri voted for the light yellow, and Maryanne voted for the darker yellow. I thanked them for their contribution and packed up my supplies. Then I went home.
Chris was still there. We both started making supper at the same time. First I had some chicken, and then I made a big salad. I ate while reading e-mail.
At 6, I turned on the TV and watched Big Bang Theory. Chris joined me after a while. Then Lucifer came on. When that was over, we watched several episodes of Voyager. Chris got a call telling him to come to work tomorrow. Yay! He went to bed and I stayed up to blog and take my evening supplements.
* This is the light yellow sashing candidate. *

A warm and sunny day

I got up at 7:45 and went back to bed when I saw the clock. But sleep would not come so I got up and looked at my leaf blocks. I auditioned them with two similar fabrics. Then I sewed a couple of scrap squares together and got on my laptop. At 9:25 I made breakfast and ate it by 9:45. Then I had to rush to get my shower and throw on some church clothes by 10. I grabbed my purse, a bag of plastic bags, choir music and apple chips and ran to the car. I drove to church, arriving just in time to practice with the choir. Practice went well. It was an easy piece. Then we were dismissed until the service. I gave Jennifer the apple chips. She was pleased and surprised. She asked how I made them. She told me about the granola she makes.
The service went well. I liked the music. It was more upbeat than usual.
After the service, I checked out one of the banners at the front of the church. I estimated it to be 30 by 45. Then I called Chris to tell him I was on my way to Publix. When I hung up, Dawn came by to ask if Chris had found a job yet. We spoke for a few minutes and then I went to my car.
The street to Publix was busy and Chris arrived before I did. We met in the coffee aisle. For the second week in a row my favorite brand of coconut water was not on the shelf in the international foods section. Then I found it in the water aisle. And for a lower price – yay! When we were done shopping, Chris took the groceries with him and went for gas. I went straight home.
When Chris got home, we brought in the food and put it away. He put two chickens in a large pot and added carrots, onions, and garlic. He put it in the oven to cook. A lot of heat came out onto the cook top, so I sliced up an apple and laid it on a cookie sheet in the line of heat.
While I played the next episode on stem cells, I laid on two chairs and did lajin, switching legs when necessary. When I could not take any more, I stopped. I rushed through the episode. Rather than content, it seemed to be lots of people sharing their experience with the process. The interviewer made much about how you use your own stem cells for the process so it should not concern the government. But I wonder if you could use someone elses cells? Certainly I would volunteer my fat cells to harvest stem cells for anyone who needed them.
Chris and I took a walk because it was such a nice day. We walked for about 25 minutes around the neighborhood.
I changed out of my sunday clothes into shorts because it was over 70. Hard to believe. I listened to the next episode of Broken Brain. Today's subject was depression and anxiety. Apparently depression, like autism, is not a disease itself, just a name for a collection of symptoms which arise from various conditions.
When the chickens were ready, I ate some chicken and some juice. The juice was so tasty that I had seconds and thirds. We put the apple slices in the hot oven and turned it off.
I worked on leaf blocks, trying to find the right arrangement. Two blocks did not lend themselves to being placed on point. But one of them was two inches larger than the standard size. So I cut it on the diagonal and sewed the trimmed corners onto the remaining sides, creating a perfect 12.5 inch square, on point. I hope the original maker will not mind. The other square was too small for that trick. I took pics of several arrangements. Then I folded my laundry and put it away.
I went back to reading e-mail while waiting for Chris. I ate a few apple chips from Saturday and he ate all the ones from today. Those were not crisp, more gummy.
Then he made a big bowl of popcorn. We sat in the livingroom and watched three episodes of Voyager. He made his lunch for tomorrow and I typed up my blog.

Lajin

I put sleep salve on my feet last night and then wore socks to bed. I slept really well, but woke up in the middle of the night to pee. After that I must have slept really well again because I got up at 10. Chris was on his laptop. I sewed a pair of squares, then cut some sashing for a block and sewed on two sides. Then I fired up my laptop and drank a quart of lemon water. While listening to The Truth about Stem Cells, I made and ate breakfast. It was a nice day so I took a 40 minute walk. Then I packed up the Christmas tree and wrapped it in brown paper and put it in the garage.
I checked my g-mail. Gabriele sent me a link to a Chinese stretch called Lajin. I followed it and also found info on Paida. The two used together are supposed to increase the flow of chi which helps the body heal itself of all kinds of illnesses and disorders. I tried doing lajin using two chairs. It seemed doable. The paida hurt and I couldn't see myself doing that for 10 minutes on each body part.
Chris roasted a cauliflower in the oven from 2:30 to 4:30. I sliced up three apples and my finger. The apples dehydrated in the oven from 5 to 8. During that time, I read an e-book on self-healing with lajin and paida. I auditioned fabrics with the remaining leaf blocks. I collated the recyclables and pulled out all the plastic bags to return to the grocery store. I practiced my choir music for tomorrow.
I listened to Broken Brain episode 4 until Chris was ready. Then, we listened to the rest of the book on CD. I wanted to finish it while I still remembered the story. There was more book left than I thought, and it was after midnight when it was done. Chris put sheets on the bed while I finished up my blog post for the day. I put the apple chips away, and we went to bed.
* This is the 'before' picture. *

Home made apple chips

I woke up early and must have gone back to sleep because when I got up, it was 9. I almost turned on my laptop when I remembered my resolution to sew. But the quilt top was finished. So I pulled out the blocks for the other side. But to get a good look at them, I had to put away the stacks of purples I had pulled for the first side. I swear I put away more purple than I got out! Then I laid out the two green fabrics I had chosen weeks ago and divided the blocks depending on which one they went with. Well, there's always one that doesn't go. Thinking it might be a while before I actually got to sew, I stitched two squares together from a scrap project that Beverly gave me months ago. Then I turned on my laptop. But the router wasn't on. So while the router warmed up, I searched for greens with a little orange in them. I pulled a stack of them, and set them in a shadowed corner of the living room. Then it was time to check e-mail and get an audio going so I could listen and work on the project at the same time.
Stem cells can be harvested from the patient's fat cells, or bone marrow, or umbilical cord blood. Younger stem cells work better so some people are banking their fat cells now for use in their old age.
I searched the kitchen high and low until I found my slicer. I washed three organnic apples and sliced them up over a plate. I arranged the slices on two cookie sheets covered in parchment paper. Then I put them in the oven at 200 to dehydrate. I set the time for 90 minutes. I made and ate breakfast. I swished with a mixture of propolis, cacao powder and hydroxyappitite. The audio ended and I played another one. I washed up and got dressed for my massage. The 90 minutes ran out and I added more time. I wondered if they were going to finish before I had to leave.
I turned off the oven and got in the car. As I was driving down Goss, the massage therapist texted me to come 15 minutes later. At the red light, I texted back “too late”. As I resumed driving, the phone rang but I could not answer it. A few minutes later, I pulled into the dollar store parking lot. It was closed. But I read her second text which said she would be ready when I got there. So I finished driving and arrived right at 2:30. I checked out the essential oil display, looking for cinnamon bark oil. They had it at $2 more than Swansons. I would have bought it anyway, but noticed that it was only 1/3rd the size.
Gabriele was in the back room, changing the sheets on the bed. She had another customer in another room with needles in her ears. So she gave me my massage, then went to remove the needles from the other person. During the massage, she discussed some ideas that she was considering for her business. I did some stretches while she helped the other, then met in her office to pay. I told her I was not going to schedule another massage due to the continuing resolution.
I left the shop and went home. I noticed that the $ store was open. When I got home, Chris was already there. He told me Rob and Carla were coming by for their TV which they loaned us when we first got here. I opened the envelop on my laptop. It was from the credit card company. I called the number on the back of my card to get the current balance. It was a credit!
The doorbell rang and Rob and Carla came in. We chatted for a bit and then Rob took the TV out to their vehicle. I wished they could have stayed longer.
I took the apple chips from the oven. Chris ate a few and I bagged the rest for Jennifer. They were good, but not as sweet as the commercial ones. Probably a different variety.
I ate some beef and got on my laptop. I listened to an audio and made a salad, adding raw garlic.
When the audio was over, I took the ornaments off the tree and put them in their boxes. I took the wreath off the door and folded it up and put it in the box with a string of lights. I taped the box shut and put it in the garage. I removed the fabric serving as a tree skirt. I mended a bathroom rug and then one of the hand towels that was fraying on both sides. I put white vinegar and tea tree oil in a spray bottle and sprayed the shower curtain. The mildew ran right off. It was impressive.
By then Chris had gotten the TV online with Netflix. We watched three episodes of Voyager. I took my evening supplements and posted to my blog.
* This is the construction going on near the store where I get my massages. *

Really seeing it for the first time

I stayed in bed late, or at least it seemed that way. Maybe I woke up much earlier than I thought. It was quarter of 8. I stitched a seam and pinned another one. Then I turned on the router and sewed the pinned one while waiting for the connection. I read e-mail while drinking a quart of water. Then I put on the second episode of The Healing Miracle, which is about stem cells. Today they talked about all the different uses – cosmetic, joints, brain injury, spinal cord problems, etc While I listened, I finished all the inset triangles and joined the larger half to the smaller half and pressed it.
The episode was still going, so I listened as I made and ate breakfast.
I searched for a bag to fit my largest ruler, but they were all too small. I chose a big one for the cutting mat and rushed out in my slippers. When I realized it, I had to unlock the house and change my footware.
I went to Stitch-Its, taking my large cutting mat, rulers and quilt top. I held the quilt up so Christy could take a picture. Then others held it up so I could take a pic. It was the first time I had seen all of it at once. I put the cutting mat on the pool table (which had a board over it). I put the quilt top on it and trimmed it using the large square ruler and the 24 inch long one. Then I stood around talking to the others for over an hour. When they started packing up, I did too. I was home before 3.
I read e-mail and looked at supplements which needed resupplying. I ordered from Amazon and Swansons and Renewed Health. I cleaned the corners of the kitchen cabinet doors and got a splinter for my efforts. It took me a while to get it out. I pulled out a fitted sheet and put it on the guest bed.
Chris came home from work. I checked the house mail. I played Solitaire while listening to an interview. I made and ate a large salad. I looked up the process for making dried apples, but there wasn't time.
It was a little after 7 when my tapping buddy appeared on Skype. We tapped surrogately for someone in her family. It lasted almost 2 hours. Afterward, Chris and I watched one episode of Voyager. Then he went to bed. I stayed up to make up 9 days worth of evening supplements. I took one dose and put the rest in the supplement cabinet. Then I posted to my blog and went to bed.

Another snow day

I woke up before 8. Chris was already on his computer. We agreed that he would stay out of my way while I pursued my coffee morning. I finished an audio from last night while swishing and getting the coffee ready. Then I put on some meditation music and turned off the heat so I could hear it. But I had to take a break midway to turn the heat on and let the house warm up again before finishing the meditation sessions. It was less than 10 degrees outside.
I cleaned the bathrooms and kitchen. I mopped the kitchen floor and the master bathroom. Chris moved the coffee table so I could vacuum the rug.
By then the coffee buzz was over. I sat at my laptop and read e-mail. Later, I took a short walk. It was cold, but mostly surfaces were dry. Well, except for in the shade, where the sun did not melt the snow and there was ice underneath it. Our choir director put out an e-mail saying that the roads looked good and she would bring treats for those willing to come. I asked what we were singing on Sunday and it was a piece already in my folder. I decided I could practice at home.
I put a turkey burger in the toaster oven. I made a spray with baking soda and oregano oil. I took a shower. Afterward I tried to spray the mildew on the shower curtain, but the baking soda clogged up the spray nozzle. So I dribbled it on the worst spots. I ate my turkey burger and washed some salad greens. While they soaked, I made hummus. Then I finished the salad and ate it.
At 7 Chris turned on the TV for me. I watched X-Files while he was on his laptop. During the commercials, I sewed. At 8:05 he came over to watch Voyager with me. We watched three episodes. Then we had our own episode. I wrote to my blog while Chris fixed his lunch for tomorrow. And we went to bed.
* It did not snow today but schools and the post were closed. The sun melted most of the snow by the afternoon. *

Snow Day

I slept well at first, but woke up with hot flashes (probably the beef) and had to go to the bathroom. It was hard to get back to sleep after that. I got up at 8, about 10 minutes later than Chris did. It was snowing and the post was closed and sewing was canceled.
I sewed a couple of seams on the leaf block quilt and then turned on my laptop. I swished with coconut oil while reading e-mail. It snowed. I tried to take pics but the snowflakes did not show up well. Later I made and ate breakfast. With a pair of kitchen scissors, I pruned the dead leaves from the peace lily. I had some seed crackers for lunch.
I worked on the leaf block quilt. Almost everything I did was wrong at first. I cut squares to make inset triangles, but the first were too small and the next, too large. I cut it into 4ths, but then they were too small. So I decided to cut strips of a very dark purple and add them to the triangles to make them larger. I immediately sewed them to the wrong sides. So I had to rip and re-sew.
Eventually I stopped for supper. I made a large salad and ate it while listening to an audio. I also played Solitaire until Chris was ready. He told me the post would be closed again tomorrow. I am not sure why because the snow wasn't even a full covering on the ground.
We watched three episodes of Voyager. Then Chris went to bed and I stayed up to blog.
* This is the sweatshirt that I bought at Cracker Barrel in Augusta. *

Home again, home again

Picking up from Sunday morning...
The ladies returned from breakfast while I was reading e-mail. They had asked for late checkout, so we sat on the beds and talked. When the time came, Mary went to get a big cart so we could carry all our luggage and gifts to the cars. I rode with Silvia and we followed Mary and Linda to a fast food place so Linda could get her husband some lunch. We went to Linda's house to deliver it. Then we all got in Mary's car and went to visit Celeste.
It wasn't far. I brought along the remaining lip balm, putting it in my coat pocket. Tamara answered the door and called to Celeste. When Celeste came, she let us in. She led us to the den and we stood there and talked. I won't describe the state of the house, except to say there was no carpet and my feet got really cold standing there. I am not sure the heat was on, but there was electricity and water. She had lost a noticeable amount of weight. I gave her the lip balm. I am not sure how long we were there, talking, but we all got cold and tired of standing. So eventually we bid her goodbye and we left.
We went back to Linda's house. I bid Linda and Mary farewell. Then Silvia took me to Steak-n-Shake where Chris was having a late lunch with his gaming friends. She helped me move my stuff from her car to Chris'. Then I went inside. I ordered a grilled chicken salad. Chris ate my crackers and croutons. When I was finished eating, our party split up. Chris and I followed Larry and his son Chris back to Larry's house.
We were greeted by 4 large dogs. It seems each member of the household has their own dog. And they all wanted petting - after Larry put out food of course. We talked for awhile. Chris wanted to brush his teeth but could not find his toothbrush and paste. Larry found it in the backyard where the dogs had chewed it up.
So Larry and Chris went shopping. I asked for a jicama and some coconut water. The dogs kept pestering me and I kept shooing them away because of the dogslobber and hair. Yes, I said dogslobber. There wasn't a lot of it, but I didn't want wet spots on my pants. Larry's son called Trish, who was working in Germany. He talked to her for a bit then handed the phone to me. She and I talked until Larry and Chris got back. Then she talked to Larry. Chris cut up the jicama for me. I think we all had some and then I put the rest in a baggie for tomorrow.
Larry's son has an keen interest in early biblical history so we talked. Mostly he talked and I listened. Larry chimed in from time to time. But at some point he had to go look for his daughter. So he left. Chris and I were going to read e-mail, but Larry's son couldn't not remember the entire password. So Chris and I went to bed early. Larry had us in his son's room, so his son slept on the couch in the playroom next door.
I was still awake when I heard the garage door open and Larry came home. But I dropped off after that. I thought I woke a few times during the night, but Chris said he went to the bathroom and I never noticed. We got up about 7 CST. We washed up and packed the clothes from last night. We talked to Larry who was already up and watching TV. We put our luggage in the car, plus two peace lilies that Larry gave us. He walked us outside to our car and bid us goodbye, saying we were welcome anytime with or without notice. Then we headed back to Huntsville.
We finished the last CD from the book on Saturday and started another one. I ate a bunch of the jicama. I kept thinking Chris would stop for food, but he didn't. I had an open package of coconut flakes. I tried to eat it with a spoon and not drop any flakes. That was unsuccessful. Later, we passed a Korean buffet. I asked to eat there and Chris turned around. But when we parked, the lady came out to tell us that they were renovating and not serving lunch today. So we got back on the road. Later, we stopped at a convenience store for a potty break. Chris got some pork rinds and I spotted a jar of pickled eggs. When we got out to the car, Chris opened the jar for me and I pulled out an egg. It was spicy and not very good. At least we spilled the juice in the parking lot and not in our car. Chris ate his pork rinds as he drove. When they were gone, he asked for an egg. Surprisingly I was able to pull one out and only got a small drop of liquid on me. He said the egg wasn't too bad.
We continued to listen to the book on CD. We ran into construction traffic when we got to Huntsville. But after that we were soon home. We unpacked the car and put the eggs away. We found places for the plants. I ate dried mango and read e-mail. I also typed up the events of yesterday and today, waiting for Chris to get ready to go to the grocery store.
Then we took his car to Publix. We picked out groceries. No coconut water since they seemingly don't carry that brand anymore. When we got home, we put them away. Chris put a beef roast in the oven. I ate a can of organic soup. Then I read e-mail and watched quilting videos. When the roast was done, Chris put some on a plate for me. It was delicious.
Chris was not ready at 8 to watch TV, so I went to my sewing table and worked on the remaining leaf blocks borders. When he finished, we watched two episodes of Voyager. I fell asleep on the couch. Chris went to bed. I got up to finish my blog and turn off the router for the night.
* Sorry for the blurry pic. The dogs were in constant motion. *

Late night with friends

We stayed in bed late. I didn't want to get up and find out that we were snowed in, or the roads covered in ice. But Chris got up and googled the weather and it was freezing, but dry. So we had our breakfast and checked e-mail, then packed.
We were on the road by 10:30. I packed four bottles of water. As I drank them on the trip, we had to make pit stops. We listened to a Stefanie Plum novel on CDs. I texted Silvia updates on our progress to Augusta. We were listening to the last CD when we arrived at the Doubletree hotel.
I called Silvia and she said she would pick me up. It was too cold to wait outside so we went inside the hotel where they were having a gaming convention. We talked to Janet for awhile. Chris went off to find Keith and came back with Greg, too. Then the men left. Janet and I kept talking until Silvia came in. She said she tried to call me but I guess I could not hear it in the noisy hotel.
So I called Chris and he went out to his car to get my stuff. Silvia and I carried it to her car. Then we went to the hotel lobby to wait for Mary and Linda. We had a nice chat. When Mary arrived, we went out and caravaned to our hotel – Ecco. We brought my stuff up and the four of us sat in our room and talked for an hour or more.
Then we went to Cracker Barrel for supper. We asked for the table by the fire. We had to wait for them to clear it, but it was so nice and warm. We talked as we chose from the menu. But when it came time to order, they were out of the special of the day and a few other things. But eventually we settled on something and place our orders. The place was not full but the food was not quick. It was good and that was the important thing.
When the meal was over, I took the ticket to the counter to pay. I had two gift cards and they were more than enough to cover the cost. We walked around the shop, remarking on various items. To one side was a sale rack on sweatshirts. Since it was so cold outside and getting colder, I bought a pretty light blue one. I paid for it with the remaining gift card and put it on in the bathroom. When we walked outside I was mighty glad to have it on! The ladies thanked me for dinner and I replied that it was probably my sister that paid for it. Thanks, Faye.
Then we went back to the hotel. Mary had a food box with chocolates and wine and snacks. She also offered me a bag of fish jerky that she didn't want. I thought it was ok. Just dehydrated fish and salt.
So we sat and talked all night pretty much, catching up on friends and family. We passed out gifts to each other. We joined hands and prayed for Celeste and her family. Finally I was ready for bed. Mary said breakfast would be served in an hour. I thought she was kidding, but no. Anyway, I put on my pajamas and got in bed. The others did too. I am not sure how much we slept, but I think everyone slept some. They got up at nine. They washed up and went to breakfast. Then I washed up and ate my packed breakfast. I plugged in my laptop to recharge and deleted the first round of e-mail and started reading the rest. Then I remembered my blog, so I wrote down what I could remember and posted it.
* this is from the gaming convention. I wish I had a pic of us friends, but we were having such a good time that it slipped our minds. *

Praying for good road conditions

I got up right about 8. I stitched some sashing strips together, then turned on my laptop. I read e-mail while drinking lemon water. At 8:30 my massage therapist called. She wanted to change my appointment time from 3pm to 9:30 because of incoming bad weather. I said ok, then washed up and got dressed. There was a small bit of precipitation. I grabbed my coat and headed out. I arrived just before 9:30. The nutrition store that her office is in, was not open yet so I shivered outside for a few minutes. Then the lady opened the door and let me in. But Gabriele was not there. At 9:32 she texted me that she was on her way. I promised myself that next time she wants me to have the first appointment of the day, I won't leave my house until she texts me that she has left hers
Finally she arrived. I hit the bathroom, then went to the massage room and got ready and laid on the table. She came in and asked if I wanted the table heater on, but I said no. As she went through the massage, she remarked on how cold my hands and feet were. But I did not feel cold at all.
After the massage, I got dressed and met her in her office to pay and schedule for next week. As I walked out, her next client was coming in. It was colder outside and precipitating more. I planned to stop at the $ store on the way home, but traffic made it difficult and I just went home. There was no school today because the forecast was bad. And the base closed at noon, but I was back by 11. I put on an audio and listened while I made breakfast. I ate it while reading e-mail. Chris came home soon after noon. He said if the road conditions were icy tomorrow, then he wouldn't drive us to Augusta. I texted that info to Silvia. Chris also handed me a credit card bill that had gone to our old address in Korea and was now overdue. I called the company to pay any remaining balance and cancel the card. But I had a hard time understanding the customer rep, partly because Chris started the washing machine and the heater was running. This is a small house so it is hard to get far enough away from the noises to hear. Anyway, as it turns out, once I explained that we needed to update the mailing address and the e-mail address and the phone number, she offered to waive the late fees. She also said we had over $100 worth of points on our card and I could apply it to the balance. So I did. I put a piece of masking tape over the numbers on the card so I wouldn't use it anymore.
Then I auditioned a pile of purple fabrics for the role of setting triangles. I was thinking of choosing one, but instead opted for 5 to share the honor. Then I played a few games of Solitaire. I went to the Waterfox website and downloaded the next update. I made up 12 days worth of vitamins while I waited. Then I went online and added replacements to my cart. I looked for other products as well, but never finalized the orders.
I whipped up a batch of hand sanitizer and poured it into three spray bottles, then ran the dishwasher. I tried to make gift bags out of wrapping paper, but they were not as sturdy as I hoped. I ate a cold turkey burger for supper, and a can of organic soup. I tried to find a local store selling apple chips, but had no luck getting that info online.
At 8, we folded laundry and put it away. Then we watched three episodes of Voyager. We dressed the bed with clean sheets. I stayed up to post to my blog and Chris was on his laptop too. I prayed for good road conditions in the morning and went to bed.

An unusually nice day

I don't remember when I got up. I stitched a nine-patch to a sashing strip. Then I turned on my laptop to read e-mail while I drank water. Silvia called to see if we could all rent a hotel room and pull an all-nighter to catch up. I said yes.
When I finished the initial round of e-mail, I looked up CD rates at BBnT. Beverly called me to talk about how to replace a zipper in a jacket. When the call was over, I copied the CD rates to the brochure they gave me. I made and ate breakfast, then got my leaf block quilt top ready for transport. I finished the sashing and blocks on the largest portion. Then I pinned remaining strips in place to be sewn later. I folded it all up and put it in my cart. Then I wheeled the cart out to the car. It was a nice day. I probably did not need a coat, but it only seemed right to take one along.
I drove to Stitch-Its and arrived at noon. I set up my machine at one end of the set of tables. I spread the quilt top and the ladies came over to look at it and see if their block was part of it. I got a lot of nice comments, especially from Marjory who thought making blocks for others was a waste of time since few of them made anything with their blocks. I was glad she was glad. She said I could not move away until I finished it.
I stayed and sewed until almost 3. Everyone had gone except Christy. Then I stopped by Whole Foods on the way home. I looked for black pepper oil but they did not have it. I also looked for apple chips, which they did have, but that brand contained preservatives. I also wanted witch hazel and aloe as two separate products. But they had it as one, so I got that. There was an awful noise that about drove me crazy. The cashier said it was a motorized cart stuck in backup mode and they were trying to get it to turn off. I was glad to walk outside and get away from it.
I drove home. I checked the mail. There was one for Chris and one for the lady next door. There was no way to put it in her box and she wasn't home. So I took it inside. I checked e-mail again. I went for a long walk because the weather was so nice.
When I got back, I put a turkey burger in the toaster oven to cook. Then Chris came home. He put rice and water in a pan to cook, then changed his clothes. We spoke about the hotel room and where Chris would be staying. I made a large salad and let my laptop update itself.. When the timer rang on the turkey burger, it was not done. I checked the temp and turned it up. I had to cook it again. I played a few games of Solitaire then ate the burger.
After a few more games of Solitaire, I moved my laptop to the guest room for some privacy. My tapping buddy called and we chitchatted for a bit to catch up. Then we tapped on my issues for an hour. I felt a lot lighter.
Afterward, I moved my laptop back to the dining room. I drank more water and found a snack. Chris connected the TV to Netflix and we watched two episodes of Voyager. He checked his e-mail one last time and told me that the post would close at noon tomorrow. I wondered if I need to cancel my massage. Then he went to bed while I stayed up to post to my blog.
* This is another quilt I saw at Renegades on Sunday. *

A little good luck

I got up a little before 8. I put on some meditation music. The bread machine was pulled out from its corner so I thought Chris needed bread. I started a loaf of bread.
From there it was a standard coffee morning. Then I took a shower and went to Housing. I offered them a check or cash for the overdue rent instead of the cashiers check or money order that they asked for. The lady said they would let me know in a few hours.
I went home to clean on my remaining coffee buzz. I dissolved a cup of salt in a quart of water and boiled it. I poured the salt water into another container so I could rinse out whatever it was that did not dissolve. Then I boiled the salt water to reduce it. I was able to scoop salt from the bottom and I spread it out to dry.
I looked up info on retired routing numbers. It is standard practice within three years after one bank buying out another. But I could not find anything about notifying customers.
I made breakfast, and ate part of it. I went to the bank to see if we had free cashiers checks as part of our account. But no. Still, I asked if there was any way she could waive the fee and she said she could but only once. So I gave her the info and she produced a cashiers check.
I also picked up brochures to investigate the possibility of changing the other account over to BBNT. I asked but they did not know if a bank has to announce retirement of routing number.
Then I went to Publix, and checked for apple chips. They did not have any. I got pickles and sauerkraut instead. At the checkout, a different price came up from what was on the shelf tag. So the lady re-rang the item. Then for some reason she took another $2 off. So I paid and left happy.
When I got back to post, I went to Redstone Housing and handed them the cashiers check. I asked if the original check refusal would be on our credit rating. They weren't sure but they did not think so because they did not report it.
I went home and ate the remainder of my breakfast while reading e-mail.
Chris came home from work. I checked out hand sanitizer recipes online, but I did not have all the ingredients for any of them. I made a salad for supper and ate the last turkey burger.
Michele called Chris to play the dinosaur game. I listened to them for a bit, then I worked on the leaf block quilt again, adding more sashing and nine-patches. Chris turned on the TV so I could see the last 10 minutes of X-Files. Then some 911 show came on. I listened as I worked but did not watch it because it said some images might be disturbing to some people.
It was after 9 when I interrupted their game. I took my evening supplements while Chris got ready to watch TV. Then we saw two episodes of Voyager. The second one was a two-parter. I guess we will finish it tomorrow.
* This is one of the quilts from Renegades. *

Those scrappy nine-patches

I got up at 7:30. I drank a cup of water, then sewed for half an hour. One of the leaf blocks must have come out too small so the maker put a half inch border on it. Then it was a little too big so I had to trim it. To sew sashing strips on it, I had to press the seam allowances out of the way. There were two blocks like that.
I squeezed a lemon into a quart of water and drank it while reading e-mail. When I realized the recyclables were still sitting in the kitchen, I got dressed and sorted them and took the out to the curb.
When my e-mail was mostly read, I went to visit the Tuesday group. I had my rug project, but never actually got around to working on it. I talked to Jane and Susan and Beverly. I kept thinking the other Beverly was coming, but she had people doing some work at her house so she had to stay home.
On the way home, I stopped for kimbap. Then I went to the One Stop and got a ticket for the DMV. I waited about 20 minutes, then they called my number. I handed the lady our two car registrations and she told me the total. I was going to pay by credit card, but she said there would be a charge for that, so I wrote a check and went home.
I read e-mail as I ate the kimbap with kimchi. I got an e-mail from Becca that she wanted to drop off some fabric scraps but she did not have my number. So I tried calling her and then e-mailed her my number. Finally her husband called me and said they were at the front gate. So I went outside to check the mail and bring in the recycling container. Then they drove up. She handed me a sack of sorted and organized scraps! And she wondered why her phone did not ring when I called. I did not have an answer to that. They left and I took the fabric inside. Opening my mail, I found a 5 dollar bill from the Neilsen company.
Then I worked on the leaf block quilt. I put together three-bar sashing and nine-patches, forcing the corners to match up. I decided they would look better if they were all the same instead of being scrappy. Chris came home while I was sewing. He put the tags on the cars. He wondered why his cost more than mine. I did not have an answer to that.
Then he read his e-mail and practically exploded. The rent check was returned unpaid and the rental agent wanted a cashier's check asap. So Chris called the bank. It seems that Pen Fed bought out Fort Gordon Fed and retired the routing number on our remaining checks. I had never heard of such a thing. Pen Fed offered to send us some new checks for free. But the rental agent still wanted a cashier's check. So Chris told me to go get one tomorrow. Good thing we have a local account as well.
I continued to sew until about 7. Then I put a turkey burger in the toaster oven. While it heated up, I chopped garlic and made a salad. I caught up on the latest e-mail.
Then, a little after 8, we sat down to watch TV. Michele had recommended Riverdale so we watched one episode. We were not hooked and went back to watching Voyager, two episodes. Then we went to bed. But later I got up and wrote to my blog so I could sleep.
My goal was to drink a gallon of water today, but I lost count of the quarts. It was either 4 or 5 so I guess I did well.

An evening with F-Troop

I got up at 8:45. With the theme for Voyager running through my head, I needed to know the theme to ST:TNG. So I stitched a border section onto a leaf block. Then I powered up my laptop and searched Youtube for the theme. Once I heard it, it seemed so familiar. How could I forget?
I read e-mail, then made and ate breakfast. I made up more spice mix. I hadn't gotten an announcement for quilting today, so I called Bertha. Apparently everyone else got the announcement. So I got dressed, and packed a quick lunch. It was raining, so I used my umbrella as I loaded my machine in the car. Then I drove to quilting.
I parked by the curb and unloaded my cart under the overhang. Then I moved the car to the parking lot. The ladies were just finishing lunch. I stored my stuff in a corner and joined them at the table. I had seed crackers and dried bananas.
After lunch, I got out my machine. I did some sewing on the Renegades strip quilt from yesterday. I gave the charity quilt top to Dinah before she left. I showed Lauri one of my new quilting rulers. She wanted to know how well it worked once I used it. Some of the ladies stayed late. I would have too, but it stopped raining and I wanted to get while the getting was good. So I packed up at 3:30 and was home by 4.
When I got home , Chris had brought a box from the post office and left it on my laptop. I put away the supplements from the box. I got the house mail. Chris told me I needed to pay the car tags tomorrow at the place on post. Then he got turkey burgers from the freezer and had a heck of a time separating them to lay in the baking pan. He asked if we were going to Augusta next weekend and I said I was waiting for him to give me the go-ahead, which he said he had already done. So I sent a message to Mary to see if it was too late to plan a trip.
After reading e-mail, listening to an audio, and playing Solitaire, I went back to sewing.
I fixed a leaf block. Then I trimmed the rest of the nine patches.
Chris put the latest F-Troop DVD in the player and we spent the rest of the evening watching the antics of Agarn and O'Rourke. Chris went to bed and I stayed up to blog, wishing I were in bed.
* This is a QOV one of the Renegades ladies was working on yesterday. *

Ah, we meet again!

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I got up before 8, thinking it was later. The thermometer on the back porch read 26 degrees. Chris was already up and engaged with his laptop.
I drank water and read e-mail. Then I took a shower and dressed in a nice top and slacks to stay warm. I made breakfast but only had time to eat half of it.
At 10 I went to church. The car said the temp was 43. I got there in time to warm up with the choir. We had a few minutes to ourselves after that. I kept my coat with me since the church did not feel warm. Then the service started. Today was baptism Sunday, so the pastor had us file down the center aisle and stop at the baptismal font to dip a finger in the water and make crosses on our foreheads.
The rest of the service was fairly standard. The sermon was about how we don't need sin-eaters because we are forgiven.
After the service, I put on my coat and drove home. I needed my sewing machine for Renegades. I hadn't brought it with me because I was afraid it would freeze in the trunk during church.
When I got home, I finished breakfast. Chris put my sewing machine in my trunk. I drove to Renegades, which was a straight shot down Drake. Turnout was lower than usual, but solid. I turned in the QOV top. She was very happy to get it and held it up so I could take a pic. Then I held it up so she could take a pic. Afterward, I worked on a top I had started two months ago. Others worked on the pattern of the month, but then they had been there since 9am or so.
Norm handed out round wooden discs with seam rippers in them. I gave him a lip balm. Tina gave me a bag with 5 homegrown lemons in it.
At 3 we started cleaning up and several of us stayed to wait for Lynette. I helped Tina take pics of the quilts that were turned in today. When Lynette arrived to get the leftover fabric, I gave her a packed of vitamin C. We all talked for awhile. Then I packed my stuff in the car and came home.
When I got home, Chris had already gone shopping. I ate a can of organic soup and boiled water to make bone broth. I held the cup in my hands to warm them up.
I listened to an audio while typing notes for my blog and reading e-mail. When e-mail ran out, I started watching Youtube videos on 5-minute crafts, and 8 ways to make a rug, 100 life hacks, etc. I ate some ham and figs for supper. Chris roasted broccoli stems in the oven, but I did not like them.
When Chris was ready, he turned on Voyager. I drank a quart of water with one of Tina's lemons squeezed into it. We watched three episodes. Then we dressed the bed with clean sheets. I typed up my blog post for the day and got ready for bed.
* Norm is in the background and the seam ripper holder is in the foreground. It is his answer to cutting apart chain-pieced units. *

Sewing at home

I was surprised to see how late it was when I got up – nearly 10. It was around freezing outside. Chris was on his laptop. I stitched a border strip to a block and then fired up my computer. I drank a quart of water while I deleted most e-mails and read the remaining ones.
I was considering going to the Sew Day for the modern quilt guild at the Bailey Cove library. But after several hours, I decided it was too cold and not worth the effort of packing up my project. I made and ate breakfast.
Then I spent the afternoon sewing at home. I made 36 3” nine patches out of leftover strips. Ok, maybe I had to cut a few extra strips so as not to repeat squares in the nine patches. I drew a diagram of the quilt so I could count how many extra strips I needed, plus corner triangles and such. I took a break for supper – two salads and the last bowl of soup. Then I trimmed the squares to an even 3.5 inches.
Chris was playing the dinosaur game with Michele. When I announced that it was after 8, he paused their game. She told me how much she liked the purse I made her. I was surprised that it had arrived already.
Then Chris and I watched three or four episodes of Voyager – including one where the Cardacians take over the ship, and drop the crew on a primitive planet. It was a to-be-continued episode, so of course I had to watch the next one. (The holographic doctor and two crewmen got the ship back and picked up the stranded crew.)
Then I wrote to my blog, not that there was much to write, and went to bed.

My sewing resolution is paying off

I got up around 8. I washed up and got dressed. I drank some water and rinsed some bowls to go in the dishwasher. Then I cut border strips for a block and sewed them on two sides. Finally I could turn on the router and read e-mail.
I deleted most e-mail and read the rest. I looked for apple chips online because Jennifer likes them so much and hers are gone already. There are at least two brands out there that are 100% apples, but they are very expensive online. I wonder if they were in local stores at a cheaper price.
At 10:30 I went for a massage. It was quite cold outside. The car seemed to complain until it warmed up. I took the parkway and it was really fast. It was a shame that the masseuse was 15 minutes late. I asked the store manager about black pepper oil. I had read that mixing it with a carrier oil and putting on your feet keeps your toes warm. She had it, but it cost almost $30. Then Gabriele showed up. I got ready for my massage and she rubbed me from toes to head. It was a good massage as usual. But we didn't talk much and the next person was waiting.
When I got home, I left my coat on because I was cold. I made and ate breakfast while checking the latest e-mail. Then I cut strips and sewed them onto blocks, only sewing two sides and pinned the remaining strips to the center of the blocks.
I wanted a break, so I drained the grains from the goat milk kefir and gave them fresh milk. I drank the fermented milk. The only other thing on my to-do list was to take down the Christmas tree, but I hate to see it go. Then I resumed progress on the leaf blocks.
At 3 I laid down to listen to brain wave entrainment for sinus congestion. It ran for an hour which got tiresome. But I was breathing better.
I was reading the latest e-mail and eating apple chips when Chris came home from work. There was nothing from the post office. He sat down at his laptop and got busy.
Having matched all the blocks with an appropriate purple border, I pulled lighter colored purple fabrics for the sashing. I cut strips a few strips from each one until 7:30. Then I made a large salad for supper while heating a bowl of onion soup.
I played Solitaire until Chris was ready to watch TV. Then we sat through 3 episodes of Voyager. Chris went to bed. I stayed up to blog and to see if tomorrow is a sewing day for the modern quilt guild.
* This is a random pic from the internet showing the sashing and corner blocks I have in mind. *

Progress

I got up before 8. There was a block with a border waiting to be sewn on and so I did. Then I turned on my laptop and router. While they warmed up, I taped Michele's package shut and made a label for it. I also wrote a check to another address.
Then I read e-mail and deleted most of it. I made and ate breakfast. I picked some fabrics for borders and cut strips of appropriate width and length.
Then I bundled up warmly and took the box out to the car.
I drove to Stitch-Its with my sewing machine and notions. On the way I stopped for gas, so it was after noon when I arrived. The parking lot was full, but I found a seat at the table anyway. I set up my machine and conversed with the ladies. Some were working on Bonnie Hunter's mystery quilt. I had seen the reveal yesterday and wished them luck.
About 2pm I packed up, having done as much as I had prepared to sew.
On the way home, I stopped at the post office. It was 2:30 and they were just re-opening the front desk. I waited in line to mail a package to Michele. I also put a check in the mail and bought a book of stamps.
When I got home, I brought my machine inside. I was tempted to leave it out for the next time I go sewing, but it was too cold. I called Dad to see if he had his dentures yet. He did not, but at least he had his hearing aids and we could converse.
I snacked on apple chips and decided it would be better to have a salad. So I made and ate a large salad. Then I made a batch of seed crackers. Chris came home from work.
I worked on the leaf blocks, matching purple fabrics with each block. But one block actually needed a brown border. One block was way too small and had irregular edges. So I took some of the seams apart and re-stitched them.
At 6pm, we watched two episodes of Big Bang Theory on TV, commercials and all. My tapping buddy had canceled for this week, so Iheated a bowl of soup and read e-mail for an hour, then started playing Solitaire. When Chris was ready, we watched several episodes of Voyager. Then he made his lunch for tomorrow and went to bed. I wrote up my blog post and took some baking soda and mimosa pudica. Then it was time for bed.

Choir practice has its rewards

I got up a little after 8. I started my coffee morning, but then paused it to do some stitching so I could turned on the router. I chose fabric for the border of the third block. The strips were already cut, so I sewed on one strip. But instead of cuing music from Youtube, I found something on the desktop to listen to as I continued with exercises and drybrushing and such.
After my meditation morning, I had such energy. I cleaned both bathrooms and the kitchen. I sprinkled baking soda on some tough spots in the oven. I also soaped up the tubs. Then I took a walk, enjoying the sunshine if not the temperature.
When I got back, I filled the tub with hot water and Epsom salts. I soaked in the tub, and washed my hair just before I got out. Then I got dressed and combed my hair. The caffeine buzz was over and I laid down. But then I thought of a question I wanted to look up on the internet, so I got back up.
I made breakfast, then did a search and read results while I ate. Chris came home from work, with nothing to show from the post office. I read e-mail, then ate some leftovers for supper. I played Solitaire for a bit. I was going to make seed crackers, but the oven still had baking soda in it.
I bundled up well and drove to church. My car warned me there could be ice on the road since the temp was 27 at that point. When I got to church, I dropped off the old music from my folder and picked up the three new pieces. I joined Cecelia in the alto row. Jennifer showed me a bag of dried apple slices that she brought me from Canada.
A few more people arrived and we started our warm-up. We practiced the two songs and a hymn. During practice, my phone rang. I could not locate my phone in time, but could tell afterward that the call was from Dad. Did he not have his own choir to practice with? I was going to call him back after practice, but Doris wanted to tell me all about her son's house burning down on Christmas. No one was hurt because they were at church at the time. The artificial tree was suspected of starting the blaze.
After she told me all the details, she went home. I paid Jennifer for the bag of dried apple slices. Then I pawed through my purse looking for my keys. We could not leave until I found them. Then we all remarked on the cold and said goodnight.
I drove home, taking in the view of the city from the top of the hill on Airport Road. Ahh. It was my reward for going to choir practice. That and a bag of apple slices.
Anyway, once I got home, I returned Dad's call, but he did not answer so I left a message. Then I took my evening supplements and Chris and sat down to watch two episodes of Voyager.
It was only 10, but Chris went to bed. I stayed up to write to my blog and send best wishes to my tapping buddy.
* The only ingredient is apples *

Passing it on to Chris

I got up just after 8. Chris was long gone. True to my new years resolution, I headed for my sewing table. Because the purse was finished, I had to think of something else. I pulled out the leaf blocks. I laid them out on point and shifted some around, then took a pic. I decided to take one block at a time, trim it and add a complementary 1” border. Well, the fabric to go with the first block had not been washed. And there went my morning. I had new fabric that hadn't been washed. And I hated to do less than a full load, so I found more. While it washed, I cut some 1.5 inch strips from another fabric and joined them end to end. Thus having stitched, I allowed myself to turn on the computer and read e-mail while the washer ran. I also found a box to mail Michele's purse in. But I had to carefully scratch off two large labels. Then I put the purse in and covered it with paper which I got from the garage (where it was really really cold, like <10F).
I put most of the washed fabric in the dryer and ironed the rest (mostly fat quarters) while it ran. But I had forgotten to set to only mostly dry. When the fabrics came out, they were bone dry. And just as the dryer buzzed, my phone rang. It was Chris telling me he had a slight fever and was coming home and did I want him to get videos from the library?
I had to spritz the fabric while ironing. When Chris arrived, I stopped to talk to him. Then I made and ate breakfast. I read e-mail. I went back to ironing until it was finished.
Then I read articles I had missed before on how the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation takes donations from the very rich, and makes grants to large corporations that they either own or have controlling interest in. The comments suggested Bill wants to reduce the world population through vaccines contaminated with birth control drugs.
Tired of all comments, I went back to the leaf blocks. I cut strips from several darkish purple fabrics. I auditioned some and chose one for the first block. I cut segments of exactly 12.5 inches and sewed them on opposite sides. Then I cut 14.5 inch segments for the remaining sides. I performed the same procedure for the second block.
I quit sewing about 6pm. The next step was to chose a border for the third block and I needed daylight for that. Daylight was long gone.
I went to the kitchen to prepare a bowl of soup. While it heated in the toaster oven, I washed a bunch of salad greens and sprouts. I added olives and sunflower seeds to my salad. When I had almost finished eating it, the soup was ready. I added some chunks of ham to it. It was quite good.
Then I played several games of Solitaire, waiting for 8 o'clock. Then we watched three episodes of Voyager. Chris was falling asleep during the third one. So he went to bed after it was over. I stayed up to take my evening supplements and write to my blog. I prayed that Chris would be healthy tomorrow and go back to work.
* How to make a square out of 13 blocks *