Coconut everywhere

Another audio, another scarf. I finished the blue one from yesterday and started a brown one. This time I am crocheting lengthwise. Sadly the first row is the hardest and lengthwise makes a really long first row. I plan to work some other colors into it. When I wasn't working on the scarf, I scraped dirt from the bricks in the garden to fill in some uneveness in the front lawn. I dug up two bucketfuls, but it wasn't enough. I got a box of packages of shredded coconut in the mail. I opened one today and soaked it in hot water for awhile. Then I put it in the blender. When it was thoroughly mixed, I put it in an old sprout bag to squeeze the milk out. A nutbag would work better but I don't have one. I got 4 cups of coconut milk out of it, making it far cheaper than buying it by the can. Far messier, too. The coconut solids can be dried and used as flour. I just put it in a jar in the freezer. When Chris came home he told me it would get cold tonight. So I draped a plastic dropcloth over my main tomato plant in case we have frost. It looked like it was dressed as a ghost for Halloween. Speaking of Halloween, nobody came. But then the lady next door said that is what would happen, and our porch light doesn't work anyway. I peeled our last three hardboiled eggs and mashed them up with yogurt to make egg salad. After supper we watched episodes of McHale's Navy and MASH season 11. * Here is the next quilt photo from Paducah *

One-a-day plus yarn

It was a rather uneventful day. While watching a video on water (two, actually, but one was so scientific that I hardly understood a word) and listening to more self-help audios, I crocheted. I finished the scarf from yesterday. I folded the laundry and then went in the basement where I dug out box marked 'yarn'. I found a skein of what looked like navy blue yarn for my next scarf. I was half done when I discovered the label was marked 'black'. I started it as a straight single crochet, but it seemed too boring. So I googled 'simple crochet' and found a simple pattern to alternate in bands with the single crochet. I finished it in the late afternoon after taking a break to rake leaves and pinestraw. Some of the pinecones are really nice and I would like to use them for a SS project, but they are so prickly. How do I get around that? My next skein was light blue. I found another pattern and was amazed to find that I could follow the directions. As recently as Saturday I did not know a single crochet from a double one. This pattern requires a little more attention and might not be suitable for mindless busyness. Chris came home around 5 and cooked up the rest of the veggies that go with the corned beef. He futzed around on his laptop for awhile, and then we watched episodes of McHales Navy. Now when we watched MASH, a lot of the one-timers were people who went on to become famous. But I haven't recognized any of the one-timers on McHales Navy.

Practical Procrastination

Before Chris left for work, he turned on the crockpot and put the garbage out by the street. When I got up, I read e-mail and exercised. By the time I was ready for breakfast, I could smell the corned beef. There were no audios today (they start on Monday nights). But I sat and crocheted the rest of the scarf I started yesterday and I began another one. I googled Youtube videos for instructions. I saw the crocodile stitch, but it is complicated. Shell stitch was ok, but requires counting. At lunch I picked two tomatoes and some greens for a salad. Later I took another break to rake leaves and pinestraw in the front yard. You would think the pinestraw would make the ground acidic, but the best, softest grass grows there. I would love to run my bare feet through it, but its like walking on pins on account of the cones. I also put some hot glue on a drawer runner and called Bob. We have false drawer fronts under the stove top. When the Jenn-Air was in there, there was no room for real drawers. But now that we have a regular stove top, there is room. So I called Bob to see if he was demo-ing any kitchens with the right sized drawers. He said he thought he'd have something by Thanksgiving. The other thing I did was to cut a six inch cardboard circle to fit the pipe going out of the house. Bob filled it with insulation, but I taped the cardboard across it to make sure mice can't get in. I was crocheting again when Chris came home. The compelling thing about crocheting is that you never have to get up - unlike sewing where cutting and pinning and ironing are involved. And doing it for charity is a practical reason for procrastinating on every thing else. We had the corned beef for supper. I played the first audio to get posted and kept on crocheting. When it was over, my upper back was hurting. I laid down for awhile, and then we watched episodes of NCIS and McHale's Navy. I have never seen Tim Conway look so young.

Playing along

Chris set the alarm for 7:30. He went back to sleep, but I got up to get ready for church. I warmed up my trombone, then packed it, the stand, and the music. I put everything in the car and drove to church. The plan was to go through the ladies restroom into the old nursery which is behind the sanctuary to get my trombone and music ready so that when the 10:45 choir walked in at the end of the 8am service, I would be ready to both sing and play. I did not realize the the nursery is open to the sanctuary. So I sat quietly until the sermon was over, then unpacked during the hymn. It occurred to me that if I started playing the hymn it would take them awhile to figure out where it was coming from :) I resisted. I sat in an adjoining room with a door into the main room. The choir director found me there and took my music in for me when the time was right. The choir sang, then the pastor said the words that come before the benediction, then I played along with the last hymn. After the postlude, I asked the organist to play notes so I could tune for the next service. I also asked her if she knew "Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring". I have practiced my part of that for four months and was determined to play it, without accompaniment if necessary. But she knew it and could play it from my part. I made a copy for her, and then we tried it out. She said we could use it to replace the postlude of the second service. God must have wanted me to play it too. So then I got my sunday school stuff from the car and set up the craft table. I ran to get the proper paint from the craft closet. On the way back I sat in on the opening session. When the kids were dismissed, I preceded them into the old nursery/craft room. There were 5 girls. They easily created their 'storm in a bottle' craft. Linda, their shepherd, did the hotgluing for me. I had them make handprints with white paint on red fabric squares. When Linda learned about the quilt, she offered to find some fabric for a backing. I did not know she quilted and we will have to talk more about that later. When Sunday school was over, I took a bulletin off of the table and sat in church near my trombone. I was very nervous. Hymns are easy but they deplete my lip, and I needed all my stamina for the postlude. I wondered if I had gotten myself in a pickle. But the hymns went well. And the postlude started out terrifically. That was good since most people left before the end. But the end was sad. First the upper notes went, and then the midrange ones weren't too good either. But when I finished, out of breath, the people who were left gave me a standing ovation. They were very kind. Several came up to say nice things. I thanked the organist for being willing to ad lib on such short notice. She is substituting for our substitute organist. God bless her. Then I packed up everything and Chris helped me carry it all to the car. He went to the grocery store and I went home. I changed clothes and went barefoot out to the garden to pick tomatoes in celebration of 1) doing better that I thought I would, and 2) the performance was over. I danced around the back yard until I realized that the man next door was also out and he could see me. I went in to wash and eat my tomatoes. I checked my e-mail, and helped put groceries away when Chris came home. He cut up cabbage and other veggies and put them in the crock pot with a large frozen roast. I took a nap. When I came back, he had just started gaming with a group I don't know. I wasn't too happy about it because it meant that we would not be watching TV together, time that I highly value. Plus it makes three nights in a row. I raked leaves in the backyard and mowed the grass that got exposed. Then I spent some time in my sewing room deciding what borders to put on the baby quilt. I think I need to make the center larger. I could hear Chris having a great time gaming just above my head. So I asked him to go in the computer room in the back. That made it better for me. I was able to listen to audios on my laptop while crocheting. I am hoping to make 1 scarf a day for the shoebox project at church. Plus it keeps my hands busy so I don't go looking for snacks while the audios are playing. It is almost midnight now and he is still gaming. But I am going to bed.

Another Sewing Saturday

I got up while Chris was still asleep. He came in at 1:30 last night. I made breakfast and took a shower. I skimmed my e-mail, and packed a lunch and some materials for Sewing Saturday. Five ladies were already there when I arrived. I returned Deb's ruler. She showed me how to crochet through turns. Rebecca brought me the copy of XP I asked for. I worked on the donation baby quilt (see pic) and another set of borders for the bargello. When I had done all I could do with what I brought, I packed up. It was 4 o'clock. I planned to go straight home, but then passed the Asian market and stopped in for kimbap. They didn't have any but the man insisted I could make it myself. He told me how to cook the rice and which seaweed to use. So I took the seaweed home, cooked rice like he said, (which worked really well), spread it on the nori, added mushrooms and sweet peppers, and rolled it up using my kimbap rolling mat. It kind of worked. I patted myself on the back. But it did not taste like his. I ate the first one, then made two more to use up the rice, but put them in the frig. Chris cooked a roast for me and some of it went into one of the kimbap rolls. Chris gamed with the voices, one of whom was Michele. He was pretty loud and it was hard for me to concentrate. I practiced my trombone for the hymns tomorrow. I read through the latest issue of Quick Quilts. I did four Sudoku puzzles. Then I went downstairs to cut some fabric squares for Sunday School tomorrow. I put all the materials for SS in my car. Then I made a few more rows for the baby quilt. When I realized that it was 11:30 I came up to post and then go to bed. I have a lot to do tomorrow.

Falling leaves

I was up by 7:30. I am not sure why. But it gave me more time to listen to audio interviews. After breakfast and e-mail, I loaded my laptop in its backpack and went out to rake and mow. I also used the leaf blower to 'herd' leaves out of the carport and onto the yardwaste pile. I also picked a tomato and some dandelion. I called Dr. Angus office to make an appointment for the week of Thanksgiving. The hygienist said she remembered me. That would have been 30 years ago. I wonder what I did or said that was so memorable. I finished the pink scarf. It seemed so easy, but when I tried to do the same stitch with the blue fuzzy yarn, it didn't work as well. I went downstairs to work on the comfy quilt. I found a magazine with a pattern that seemed doable. But the fabrics in the set didn't work so well. So I substituted some of mine. I cut strips in preparation, and even sewed a few together. But then I was interrupted and never got back to it. Chris called to remind me that he wasn't coming home. No problem. I'll just be depressed and kill myself. Where's my fork? (hope his boat sinks, hope his boat sinks...) I spent the evening working through the tapping material from Brad Yates. I also got my unread e-mail down to 20, which is really good. I emptied the dishwasher and restacked it. I was surprised by a roach, but I surprised him back and now he's dead. I cooked up the quinoa that has been soaking since yesterday, and then put it in the frig 'cause its too late to eat now. Chris went straight to gaming after work, so I have not seen him. And now I am going to bed, so he'd better come in quietly...

Bigger is better, right?

I slept late; until after nine. After taking the recyclables out to the street, I followed the usual routine: I played an audio, exercised, fixed breakfast and read e-mail. Playing the next audio, I put my laptop in its backpack and went out to do yard work. I dug up dirt in the garden and used it to fill in holes in the yard. I also found another patch of 'that weed' and plucked them all out. The neighbor got out his chipper/shredder and demolished the pile of sticks I put out yesterday. I think he had a few sticks of his own. I heard a thump on the porch. My Swansons order has finally been delivered. But still no chia seed. It is apparently on backorder. Playing yet another audio, I went into the basement to sew. I put on the last border of the bargello quilt. Then I stared at the comfy quilt fabric kit hoping that a good idea for a quilt pattern would magically appear. Not quite, but I did find a few of my own fabrics that would complement what was there. When I heard Chris come home, I went upstairs. I put some quinoa in a jar to soak. We ate supper (leftovers) and I re-dressed, putting on long pants. I drove to a new place: it was the youth building of a church. They were having a meeting to crochet peanut dolls for their shoebox ministry. I didn't want to do peanut dolls, but I brought my scarf yarn and hook. The leader, who I met at quilt guild, showed me how to make a scarf using a different stitch - one that is easier to see. Of course, it has bigger holes, which is good for seeing, but maybe not for keeping out cold air. She lent me some of her pink yarn because it was not fuzzy, which made it easier to see the stitches. Four other people came. They worked on the dolls (formally known as Lulu the loomed dolly). The meeting broke up about 8 but the leader and I got to talking in the parking lot. When I got home, Chris and I watched the rest of the Warehouse 13 mini-episodes and then some NCIS. I will publish the pic of my crocheting later. I just discovered that with the D-link plugged directly into the laptop I can't use the other port to download pics :(

D-link problem solved

There were several audios from yesterday in addition to the 5 EFT audios I expected. But there were 6 of them plus two bonus ones. It was lunchtime before I finished those. Losing my internet connection because of the short in the D-link cable did not help. Our being here in Huntsville for a year reminded me that I have been using the D-link for a year, too. I decided that I deserve a laptop that doesn't need hangy things like the D-link. So I went looking on-line for a computer repair place to fix whatever it is inside my laptop so it will get signal from the router. When I found a place, I e-mailed Chris to see what he thought. Waiting for his reply, I gathered up sticks in the yard and deposited them next to the property line for the neighbor to put in his chipper/shredder. He uses it for mulch. I brewed tea for kombucha in the crock pot then left it to cool. I scrubbed the toilets. At 3, I drove to Allison's place to buy honey from her bees and eggs from her chickens. When I got back, I called the computer place and looked up its address. Turns out it is a private residence and all I got was an answering machine. I left a message and my number. When Chris got home, he was able to get my laptop back on line. He also showed me how to plug the D-link directly into my laptop WITHOUT the hangy thing. This is so much better. I started listening to an audio, but had to stop it in the middle to go to the church. I played some hymns on my trombone for the choir director and then choir practice started. She said there would be no practice next week because of Halloween, so we have to practice ahead for the next Sunday. So I left after the first piece. When I got home, I continued the audio until Chris was ready to watch TV. We watched two episodes of Warehouse 13 plus some bonus stuff about them getting stuck in a comic book. Around 10 he shut it off, saving the rest for tomorrow. As he set out his clothes for tomorrow, I started composing this blog post.

It has been a year since we left Korea

I realized this morning that it has been a year since we left Korea - and Michele, although we have seen her since, just not Korea. It was a normal Tuesday morning. I read an article about a bra that has been developed (but not yet produced) that is full of electrodes and can detect breast cancer. Pretty cool, huh? Then I listened to today's 5 tapping audios. Tomorrow is the last day for that. I kept up with every day but Sunday. That was followed by laying in the sun listening to a different kind of audio. I had a headache even though I drank two glasses of water, and was hoping connecting with the earth would help. And it did. After lunch I vacuumed the steps to the basement. I free-motion quilted until I ran out of bobbin thread. Then, since I had to dismantle the extension table anyway, I set the machine for regular sewing. I fixed Chris' pants, the ones with the smaller hole. I hung them on his chair. I raked two boxes of leaves in the front yard and mowed that section. I was listening to one last audio when Chris came home. He thought I did a really good job of mending his pants so he wanted me to do the other pair. But how to tell him that I can't fix what is just plain worn out? All the king's horses and all the king's men couldn't hide his bum in those pants again. Well, I did patch them, but I also told him to wear them with black underwear 'cause it won't hold for long. He ate supper while I did the patching. Then I ate supper while he read his e-mail. Then we watched the latest Netflix arrival - Warehouse 13. * Another pic from Paducah *

It was a normal Monday morning. And I cleaned up the kitchen counertop where all the papers were. I put the recyclables in a deeper box. I hung up the coats and umbrellas. I consolidated Sunday School stuff. I warmed my fermented coconut milk over a dish of hot water because it wasn't fermenting fast enough. After lunch I took a niacin capsule. I went outside to find a tomato. I raked leaves in the side yard and collected a pile of sticks. The niacin kicked in and I felt my skin tingling. So I went to my sewing room in the cool basement. As my skin turned orange, I worked on the fourth border of the bargello quilt. When I was ready to sew it on, my machine was still set up for free-motion quilting. I could set up another machine, but where? By then the niacin was wearing off. I went up to read more e-mail. When I got chilly I climbed into bed to warm up and fell asleep. Chris came home and changed his clothes. We ate supper. We had no DVD's from Netflix or the library, so we watched episodes of Big Bang Theory on the CBS website. The pauses and redirects were very annoying, as well as the constant commercials. Then I watched an episode of Castle on ABC. That went much better. As soon as I finish this post, I am going to bed. * Here are my marigolds. I just love the color. *

The alarm went off at 7:30. I had a little trouble getting out of bed. But then I showered, fixed breakfast and ran through e-mail. After I dressed, I pulled out the sandwiches from last night. I cut them into piano keys and used the pumpernickel to make black keys. Then I arranged them on a small decorative shelf. Chris offered to bring it to church later so all I had to carry was my Sunday School stuff. I set my two bags in the craft room and went to the craft closet in another room to get markers. All the markers were stuffed in a large bin. I did not need them all, but there was no way to transport a smaller collection. So I took the whole thing. Back in the craft room I pulled out a few for the kids to use. There were only two 3-year-olds and there were two adults with them - a wonderful adult to child ratio. They tried cutting the foam, but the adults had to do it for them. They did 'draw' Jesus and the disciples on craft sticks, and they marked up the paper sails. I hotglued the sails to straws, and the straws to the inside of the plastic containers. On one side I glued a straight strip of blue foam like a calm sea, and on the other side a wavy strip like a stormy sea. After making the boats, I covered their hands with orange paint and had them put their handprint in the middle of a square of yellow fabric. Eventually all the kids will make one and they will go into a quilt for the fellowship hall.

I cleaned up the room after they left, and took the projects to the fellowship hall to be passed back to the kids during the closing. I also put the markers away and sat in church to wait for Chris. I had burned my fingers with the hot glue and I tapped for the pain and blistering. I was disappointed with the results, but by the end of the day there was no sign of burning. Today was Harvest Sunday so there were veggies up by the altar. The children sang a thanksgiving song instead of the choir. After the service, refreshments were served in the fellowship hall, including the piano sandwich which Chris brought in. I got many compliments on it. Roz, who played the organ this morning turned 85. She got the last sandwich. Chris left before me to stop on the way home. I stayed until the sandwich was gone, and then brought the shelf home. We ate lunch, then spent time with our laptops. I raked leaves in the front yard and in the back for fresh air. Then we took a walk around the neighborhood. After more computer time, we ate supper and I folded laundry. Then we watched episodes of MASH until bedtime. Chris fixed up a care package for Michele and I posted to my blog before turning in for the night.

Getting ready for Sunday

There were another 5 tapping audios today. I listened to 4 of them since one was on either smoking or business. Those I skip. I hotglued a piece of foam sheet to a plastic sprout container. It held well, so I considered that to be proof that when we do it in Sunday School tomorrow it will work. I packed the three plastic containers in a bag for Sunday. One of them had sharp edges so I had to use the grinder installed in the garage. I also put in some craft sticks and a piece of blue foam. I put the bag in my car. I juiced up the remaining veggies in the frig. I also picked some greens from the yard and threw them in. I made veggie pops. Then Chris and I went to Publix for our weekly groceries and fixin's for the piano sandwich. When I got home, I hardboiled some eggs. Chris did laundry. Then he used the leftover chicken to make chicken soup. I made egg salad and used it in 4 sandwiches. That was as far as I could go since assembling the sandwich keys on the board would not fit in the frig. I will have to get up early tomorrow to finish the 'keyboard'. I put some of the soup in a bowl with quinoa. I went outside to see if I could find a ripe tomato. There was a partially ripe one and I ate it. The neighbor boy came over with his friend. He talks like he has had too much caffeine. Ah, to be so young and energetic! When he left, I went inside and ate the soup. Chris started gaming with his on-line friends and Michele. I went in the basement to cut some squares of yellow fabric, and collect other supplies for a second Sunday School project. I have them sitting by my purse so they will get taken out to the car. I read several chapters of "Change your brain, change your body". Then I put together a Swansons supplements order. I also ordered organic coconut flakes. It wasn't quite enough to qualify for Super Saver Shipping, so Chris suggested "Big Trouble..." on DVD. I saw a quilt on-line that is being offered as a BOM and kit for $25 a month. I did not see where you could buy just the pattern, so I got out my graph paper and drew the center and several blocks. Who needs a pattern when I have graph paper? But I did not get to work on it, 'cause it is late now and time for bed.

Ghostwalk of Huntsville

After the usual morning routine, I listened to audios. There seemed to be more than usual today. I went out to rake in the front yard. I tried to use that time to listen, but I kept losing the internet connection. So I listened to the mp3 headset that Kurt sent me. Until it ran out of power. But that was ok, since I was almost done and it was time to eat my salad. I hunted up a board suitable for a piano sandwich. I had three containers that I could use for an alternate craft this Sunday. But one had stickers on it. Since I had a pot of hot water, I put the plastic thingy in there to soak. But it kind of melted into modern art. Then I found an empty container of Nutella. I cut the top off so it would be the right shape. It too had labels, but they came off easier. I opened a box of craft stuff in my sewing room and found some blue and some white foam sheets. Then I went back to the internet to find the project that I saw weeks ago. Only it seems to have disappeared. I tried Google and Dogpile, but there is no sign of it. Oh well, I will have to go with what I remember. Chris came home and changed clothes. He drove me downtown to Sam and Gregg's Pizza. As he drove off, I went inside to find his female coworkers and similar others. There were 12 of them sitting at a table upstairs. They were finishing up their pizza. We all chatted for a bit, then lined up for the bathroom before heading out to the ghostwalk. There was a line of people in front of the hardware store a block away. We purchased our $10 tickets and stood with a LARGE crowd of people waiting for the same walking tour. There were other tours as well. The group we stood with got divided up into 3 groups. Ours left last. Before we left, our guide informed us of a ghost locator app that smartphone users could download for free. It indicated the presence of friendly and unfriendly spirits around the user. I wonder what it is actually indicating. He also told us that everything on the tour has been noted by a medium and seconded by historical documents. When we stopped at each place, he encouraged us to take pictures. He seemed to think that spirits not visible to the naked eye would show up on film, and this seemed to be the case. I couldn't really tell from the angle I saw that camera. We heard some interesting stories, mostly sad. Someone mentioned a basement that might connect with the caves under Huntsville, but the guide said it hadn't been proven. When the tour was over, Daneen took me home so Chris wouldn't have to drive out. She came in for a glass of water. I was embarrassed at the state of the den. But she was eager to get home. I searched for articles on caves in Huntsville. There is one under the courthouse, but no mention of it connecting to a basement. Then Chris and I watched three episodes of Warehouse 13. He went to bed, and I stayed up just long enough to post. * The only pic I have is of the original group. It got dark soon after the tour started. *

High bidder

Exercise, breakfast, e-mail: nothing unusual. It being recycle day, I took out the recyclables and put them in the blue container, and put it out by the street. The meter reader parked in the driveway while he read the meters on either side of us and maybe across the street. I watched the second presidential debate on Youtube. Each one spoke eloquently, but then the other one stepped up and called that one a liar. I don't think I can sully my sacred right to vote on either of these guys. Anybody want to suggest a good write-in? I listened to several audios. I investigated the Christmas kits that Shannon gave me. They are both suitable for the craft although with a few alterations.

I called my parents: Mom is the same and Dad had two teeth pulled. I went outside to rake leaves in the front yard with my laptop in a backpack. I cleared perhaps a third, then mowed that section. Then I raked in the back for awhile. The leaves in the front yard were all brown and crumbly. But the ones in the back yard were fresh and vibrantly colored. It was almost a shame to rake them up. One item from my latest Swansons order was delivered today. I wonder where the rest of it is. Usually the whole thing shows up in less than a week, but now it has been 8 days and no sign of the rest of it. I fixed myself a big salad, and called up the 5 tapping videos for today, and then Chris came home. He made himself supper. We discussed the presidential debate, and then I left for the HQH guild meeting and auction. When I got there, I had to sign for a number, which was used for bidding. The president encouraged me to peruse the silent auction items, so I did (after picking up a comfy quilt kit). All the items were grouped into baskets or bundles. I think a lot of books were donated because every bundle had two or three. The bids were low on most items, so I placed a few bids. I stopped by the membership table to renew my membership. Then I found a seat for the meeting. It was short and then the live auction started. Those items were also in bundles and I might have bid on them if I had looked them over before the meeting started, but I didn't think of that. And really there wasn't time. But others bid. One basket went for over $200. Another for $25. I remembered my camera on the countertop in the kitchen. So I asked the lady next to me if she could take a pic. She had a smart phone and was able to take the pic and e-mail it to me right then and there. Wow! So I made a friend. We talked through the rest of the auction. When the live auction items were gone, the auctioneer started on the silent auction items that were not bid on. I was still talking to my new friend Julie, but one large basket was being hawked for $5 so I raised my card. But so did someone behind me and he sold it to her. I didn't really care. But his assistant pointed me out, and he said he'd take care of me. A few items later, another bundle wasn't selling and he hawked it for $2 and looked straight at me. Absolutely no one was interested, so I raised my card. I didn't want to go home empty handed and figured I had been outbid on the more desirable items earlier. He shouted 'sold for $2' and took my number. Julie and I chatted for awhile longer. The place cleared out and women were standing lines paying. I looked around at the few items still on tables. I was surprised to find two with my number circled as the high bidder. I took the items up to the pay table. The lady found my number in a big wall of plastic pockets. She said there were two tickets for two items for $19. I told her about the $2 item, but said I didn't know what it was or where it was. She didn't know either if there was no ticket. So I paid the $19 and left. I came home to photograph my wins. I also washed a pot and put Chris' folded underwear in the drawers. Then Chris and I watched two episodes of Warehouse 13 before he went to bed. * I don't know why Julie's pic of the auctioneer is sideways. These are the two baskets I won. *

FQ - Arrrgh!!!

I spent the morning doing the usual things - exercise, breakfast, e-mail. Today the tapping audios I was looking for were delivered. Apparently I was not the only one who did not get them. But whatever they did to fix it worked. But it meant that I had three days of audios to get through instead of one. Still, each one was under half an hour, so by late afternoon I was finished. I took an outdoor break around lunchtime. I swept leaves off of the deck. I used the leafblower to clear the patio. I tried on the grass, but that did not work so well. So I used a rake. I plucked a certain weed from the lawn. I don't know the name of it, but it produces lots of seeds. If I mow it short, then it learns to grow short and go to seed immediately. I hate it. So it doesn't bother me to spend time plucking it from the back lawn. It was here in the spring, disappeared over the summer and now is back. But it only grows in the sunny spots. After a few more audios, I practiced the choir piece on the piano and I played through my trombone piece, too. I took a shower and sat in the den to meditate. Chris came home for supper. I went back to my laptop for a bit, and then it was time to leave for choir practice. It was fairly low key. The director let me play the piece I practiced, but for some reason my heart was pounding and I couldn't control my fingers. She might have regretted letting me play. She did not ask me to play any of the other pieces. After practice, she showed me the small aprons she found. They will be great for little kids doing crafts. Then Shannon showed me more craft supplies and some Christmas kits. By the time I got home, it was almost 9. Chris did not want to watch TV, so I quickly cleared new e-mail, then took my laptop downstairs to listen while sewing. I tried free-motion quilting again. The top thread broke regularly. I tried decreasing the tension, using stronger thread, changing the needle, enlarging the hole in the mat, and increasing the speed of the needle. But none of that worked. I had almost given up when it occurred to me to use the feed dog cover plate. I did not think I need it because the mat covered the feed dogs. But it is slightly raised, and it did seem to help. But by then it was after 11. So I took my laptop upstairs to post to my blog and go to bed. * Paducah quilt *

Let me tell you a yarn...

I must have slept in this morning. I got a late start on e-mail, exercise and breakfast. It is Tuesday and there should be tapping audios from the Tapping World Summit in my inbox, but they are not arriving. I have my schedule cleared this week just for them. So I registered again but this time with my alternate e-mail address. Still no sign of them. There were other audios, and as I listened to them I crocheted a scarf. I love soft fuzzy yarns, but crocheting with them is a pain in the gluteus maximus. I am doing a simple design of double crochets. But when I do successive rows, there is no hole where I expect one to be to make the next stitch. And when you think about it, crocheting is all about the holes, and stitching them together. Is it a hole in the yarn or yarn around a hole? Which came first, the yarn or the hole? Maybe I'm overthinking this. I didn't have any yard work for today, so I just laid in the grass for a bit while one of the audios played. Later I practiced both my trombone and the piano. I am getting better at the piano piece, but would not be at all discomfited if someone else wanted to play the piece on Wednesday night. I killed another roach. I rinsed my quinoa and gave it fresh water. I put my laundry away. And I made myself a big salad in the late afternoon. When Chris came home, he fixed himself supper. He showed me another pair of pants that needs patching in the ... gluteus maximus area. I decided to go down and work on the small quilt top that was lying on my new sewing extension table. I haven't stitched anything with it since I made the table. I am intimidated by FQ. I found a whole bunch of things to do first: brush my teeth, tweeze, trim eyebrows, exfoliate... and my sock drawer was speaking to me. But the time had come. I sat in front of my machine and tapped for the terrors of FREE-MOTION QUILTING. Within 2 minutes I had a thread ball under the quilt. Then the top thread broke. I barely got into the second row when Chris came down to watch MASH. Seemed like a good time to take a break. We watched until Chris' bedtime.

Musical Monday

Since it rained last night, my first act this morning was to check the basement for leaks. There were none. Next on the agenda was e-mail. I found one half hour audio I hadn't listened to yet, but its window was open. So I listened to it, and it put me to sleep. Later, I had breakfast and read the rest of my e-mail. I researched the internet for Christmas crafts for Sunday School. Oh, yes, and I did exercise too. But first I had to finish folding the laundry which was laying on top of the rebounder. I found some yarn in the basement that I bought last year to make myself a winter scarf. I planned to work on it while listening to the EFT audios that were supposed to start today. But I did not get any e-mails for them. I installed the new filter for my shower head. I practiced my trombone. I worked outside sweeping leaves off of the deck, and cleaning out the garden. Someone put down black plastic sheets years ago. They were covered with years of dirt and roots, and were falling apart. So I dug it them out as best as I could. I also mowed the grass inside the fence. Then I sat at the piano to work on the choir piece for Wednesday night. I can play chords by the letter name easier than by trying to read the notes, so I determined the chord for each measure in the music and wrote it at the beginning of the measure. Then I practiced playing the parts, which are not in the piano accompaniment. I worked until the sun came through the west window and shone in my eyes. Then I went back to e-mail, but it wasn't long before Chris came home. He put gas in my car on his way. We had leftovers for supper. I cleaned out the dishwasher and put the few dirty dishes in. I found an audio on super foods to listen to while Chris played his game. Why are the super foods so super expensive? Then we watched episodes of MASH until bedtime. I found a roach waiting for me when I came upstairs. But he got away while I was grabbing the flyswatter. Then Chris found him and stabbed him with a plate. I smacked him (the roach) for good measure and threw the body in the trash. Chris brought me a pair of his suit pants that ripped in the seat. He wanted to know if I could fix it. Since there was no matching fabric for a patch, I told him to wear black underwear under it from now on. * No pics today so here is the next one from Paducah *

Stewardship Sunday

The alarm went off at 8. I was nervous about remembering all the items for the craft so I got up, skipped exercise, going straight to breakfast and a quick review of e-mail. I showered, dressed and carried the stuff out by 9. Because there was a meal planned for after church, the craft station got moved from the Fellowship Hall to the old nursery behind the sanctuary. I only know how to get there by going through the sanctuary and church was still in session. I found out at the later service that it was due to an appeal for money. When the service was over, I carried the supplies into the nursery. I set things out on the table. The cord for the glue gun would not reach from the table to the outlet, so I had to clear space on a bookshelf. I attended the opening, and there were very few kids. Out of 7, I had two. So the 'ocean in a bottle' craft went quickly. I spent the extra minutes discussing which items sink, float on the water, or float on the oil, and why. When the bell rang I walked them over to Service Project, and returned to clean up. I put the craft items in the cabinet hoping no one will notice or disturb them. My no longer needed stuff went back to my car. Then the choir practiced for a bit. Then we sat down to wait for church to begin. We had a guest pastor from the Presbyterian church. Actually we swapped pastors for the day. She loves to talk about Stewardship so she was happy to be here. I don't know what our pastor spoke about over there. After the service, pledge cards were passed out and we filled them in and placed them on the altar. Then we gathered in the Fellowship Hall for a catered meal. While in line, I asked the choir director if she'd like me to play for choir on Wednesday night in case they didn't find anyone else. She said yes, and later I wondered what I was thinking. Maybe I wasn't. It was in the bulletin that the kids were going to watch a video of the Charlie Brown Christmas play that is to be presented in December. I wanted to see it, but either it wasn't shown, or it wasn't announced and I missed it. Chris and I drove our separate cars to Publix to shop for groceries. Then we went home. After putting the food away and changing clothes, I spent the afternoon reading e-mail and listening to audio interviews. I also cleaned the dead stalks out of the garden and raked up the magnolia cones by the driveway. I reassembled a planter that the wind had overturned like a naughty puppy. Then I came in for supper. Chris was playing a game on his computer. When I asked, he indicated that he was willing to watch TV with me, but I watched by myself over an hour (and folded laundry) before he left the game and I wasn't happy about it. But we did get in several episodes of MASH before bedtime. * No pics from today, so here is one of the lower greenhouse. *

Whatever floats my boat

I got up early to get through my e-mail before going to the Sewing Saturday. The group is having them more often between now and Christmas. I posted to my blog for yesterday. I brainstormed ideas to make the boats float. I wrapped the boat in plastic wrap, which worked, but didn't look so boat-like anymore. Chris and I had quite a discussion about floating the boat. I was determined to float that boat or go down with it. Then I packed a sewing project,some scraps and lunch and headed for UAH. I was amazed to get there before 11. Rebecca let me in the door since it was locked. Several other ladies were there, too, working on various projects. I told them about my boat project and they had several suggestions I wouldn't have thought of. I cut 4 inch squares of all my scraps and gave them to Rebecca for her charm quilt. The other ladies broke for lunch, so I got out my seaweed and orange. Sorry, no squid. After lunch I put red piping and blue borders on three sides of my bargello quilt top. While we sewed, the ladies commiserated about ex-husbands and being abused or taken advantage of. I just nodded wisely as if I had some idea of what it must be like. When I ran out of border fabric, I packed up and bid the other ladies adieu. I went to Earth Fare to buy raw organic cheese and compare the price to the on-line price. It is cheaper at the store. Then I drove home. I read e-mail outside for awhile. Then back to the boat problem, I tried stuffing two toothpicks through the hole in the boat. This made it float:) Upside down:( And several hours and much e-mail later, I discovered that the toothpicks were waterlogged and the boat sank. So I took Chris' suggestion to boil water and dissolve as much salt in it as possible. That worked, but the boat was still upside down. Still, I have great hope that the boat will not float on the oil, so it will be right where I want it. I listened to some audios while the water cooled. I wanted to be sure the boat floated in cool salt water as well as hot. I looked up the Bible story on the internet to have as much detail in mind as possible. I am not sure these kids will hear the story before they come to crafts so I am prepared to tell it. Then I had to test the last detail - hotgluing the cap on. I searched until I found my glue gun and its stand. I timed the heating, it was only 5 minutes. I put glue in the cap and screwed it onto the bottle, burning myself in the process. Not good. But the glue stayed warm long enough to get the cap on, and it did not leak after it cooled. Perfect. I packed all the stuff in a box for tomorrow. Chris, whose game was finished by then, put the freshly washed sheets on the bed, and turned in for the night. I am about to join him.

Fabric follies

It was a rainy day, so after waking up with e-mail, and a little rebounding, I went into the basement to check for leaks. There were none. At least, none that I could find. Later I smelled stale water. I ate breakfast, and listened to two audios. Then I went into the garage to find some fabric for a Sunday school project. But all my multi-coloreds were mixed together. I pulled the stacks out and filled one entire cabinets with florals. Then another with what I called 'bontanicals': trees, leaves, vines, fruits, but also butterflies, birds, fish, wildlife. I made stacks for child-friendly fabrics, and fabrics with all-over designs. Then I chose the Veggie Tales fabric for my project. I pulled out the solids to find some that matched. The red and yellow-orange I did not have. So I found some prints that matched and went to WalMart to get solids. I also got some mineral oil (cheaper by the ounce than baby oil and the same thing, also lighter in color than cooking oil), food coloring, glitter, and paint, all for the project. I chose a red, a yellow and two greens to go with the Veggie tales. I tried several colors of paint with these fabrics, but all show up best on the yellow. Only black shows up well on the other colors of fabric. So frustrating! So I turned my attention to the water bottle project. Using mineral oil and food coloring improved it a lot. Oh, and the little plastic boats came in! And they fit in the bottle! But they sink. :( Life just isn't fair. Chris came home and we had supper. I worked in my sewing room for awhile, moving things around and looking for craft suppliies I remember having from years ago. Then we watched a DVD full of episodes of Warehouse 13 before going to bed.

Unsatisfactory

I took my container of coconut oil to bed with me. When I woke up this morning it was nice and liquid, just the way I need it to be for breakfast. It turns solid around 68F. I read e-mail, did a little jumping, and took the recyclables out to the curb. I deleted several of the audios, leaving only one. I saw BBC documentary on Youtube called "The men who made us fat". It was about the making and marketing of convenience foods. And the supression of info by the industry about the health effects of the food. Mice on a diet of snack food (salt, fat, high fructose corn syrup) gain weight from the very first day and continue to pack it on daily. I put the laptop in my backpack and listened to the one audio (with Jack Canfield) while I pulled weeds and dug up small trees in the garden. I felt inside the greenhouse and it was warm and humid. I ate a big salad for lunch and some chicken. I poured out my yucky-looking sunday school project and cleaned out all the sand. I then used some sand from the church, and poured the water/oil back in. I diluted the water a bit and it is looking a bit more blue. Still not satisfactory. Our real estate agent called to say that the septic system was backing up into the house and she was going to call a plumber and would call when she found out what the problem was. So I kept my phone with me for the rest of the day. She sent me a few e-mails later in the day. And then I lost connectivity to the internet. I sat here for quite a while clicking on "reload page" over and over, like a rat pressing a bar for food, but with no result. Finally I fell asleep. I got up when I heard Chris come home. And voila, the internet was restored! There was an e-mail telling us that the tank just needed to be pumped out. Chris checked the front porch and found a box. Must have been delivered while I slept. It was the new shower filter. Each one is good for six months. I glanced at Facebook looking for a good link to post to the Yongsan Quilters Facebook page. It gets so little activity that I try to throw something in every week. After supper we finished up the 7th season of MASH. Chris would not start another season even though I told him he owes me for last night. * This pic is obviously from Rock City. We were told that the little houses are now made in China. *

Pounding Sand

With all the excitement of going out of town for our anniversary, I forgot that Charlie was coming this week, today in fact. And he showed up early. And he mowed the front yard first, which was why I didn't know he was here right away. He mowed so that the leaves blew to the right of his mower, and so he moved all the leaves toward the front ditch. But I was distracted for a bit, and then he was mowing the back yard and the leaves were gone. When I brought him his check, I asked about the leaves in the front yard and he said I didn't need to know, that he had taken care of them. Well, I did not see them in any neighbors yard, nor in the street, so I don't know what he did. He said the grass wouldn't need mowing any more but he could keep coming to take up the leaves. He did a nice job, but the leaves drop so fast that by tomorrow you'll never know he was here. So I told him no. I went back to my e-mail and he finished up and left. When I finished, I went outside and collected 11 bricks, and scrubbed them as best I could. Then I spray-painted them black, mostly. I put some in the greenhouse, and some around the tomato plants. I ripped out a lot of dead morning glory vines from the fence. I raked up the leaves inside the fence. I trimmed the four 0'clocks severely so that the oxalis underneath could flourish. I took a break to listen to several short audios and did some meditation to rest my eyes. I have had a headache all day and it just won't leave. I glued the last two Sunday school projects so they are ready to return this week. Then I turned my attention to creating this week's project which is to re-create the bottle of blue water that Shannon gave me. There is sand in the bottom, then blue water, then a light oil, and finally some floating fish. I did not have sand, so I pounded some mortar chips into dust and poured that into the bottle. I didn't have any blue food coloring for the water, so I used it clear. I tried a few drops of blue paint, but it did nothing. Then I poured in some olive oil. But it was too dark. When I shook up the bottle, it just looked like dirty water. Some of the mortar sand actually floats, so it doesn't fall back to the bottom. This is so not good. Chris came home for supper. I had already sampled last night's chicken so I wasn't hungry. I went to church for choir practice, intending to be early to get some sand from the church closet. But for whatever reason, I arrived at precisely 7. Practice lasted for an hour. My phone rang during practice. It was William and I promised to call him back. After singing, I grabbed a bag of sand (hopefully it works better than ground-up mortar), and sat in my car to call William. He told me my Oldsmobile had been in a small accident. After the call, I drove to Hobby Lobby to check for food coloring. But they close at 8. I gave the manager my best pouty face, but he was unmoved. So I went to Target. All they had was gel colors, and even then, not the deep blue I needed. So on to plan B, a gallon of blue bug juice. Couldn't find any. So I went home empty-handed. Chris was playing a game on his laptop. I had left some frozen blueberries in a dish to thaw before I went out. Now I crushed them and poured the juice into my water bottle for coloring. The results were a little disappointing. Waiting for Chris to finish his game, I went into the dining room to write up my blog for later. I read through a few more e-mails, and then watched the latest episode of The Quilt Show which was delivered to my inbox several days ago. Chris still isn't ready to watch TV and it is almost 11. I wish he would just say 'no TV tonight' so I could stop waiting for him. I am going to bed.

Sometimes losing doesn't hurt

It wasn't long before 8 when I got up. I started the first audio almost immediately. I got in some rebounding before breakfast. After two audios, I had had enough. I showered, dressed and went to church. Tamara had said that there would be someone there to let me in. But the church was empty and locked. Six months ago someone told me the keycode, but I couldn't remember it. Still, I went up to the door and tried several combinations, with no luck. Then I saw a small sign with some member's phone number. I called it and explained who I was. He remembered me (my lucky day) and gave me the code. It was odd to be in a deserted church. Looking around, I found the projects from last Sunday, and some craft items laid out for next Sunday. I kept looking for the sand. A lady came in, but it was the former secretary. She opened the office so I could use the phone to call Tamara. I left a message, and we closed up the office. She called back a little later and told me where to find the sand. I also took some paint to experiment with for another SS project. The former secretary and I left at the same time. I drove down the street thinking I would hit the hwy and find Home Depot. But I was confused. I was in the middle of nowhere, and did not know where I was. Ha, ha. But I headed north and eventually found the intersection I was looking for. I had a good time ambling around Lowes. I got a few mums, some lightbulbs, a roller, tent stakes, and high heat black spray paint. I intended to go home by Whitesburg, but then remembered I could go down Memorial to Drake which would put me near Kroger which might sell chia seed. So I went that way, but no, they don't. Still I got cinnamon and flax seed. I forgot to get oil for the SS project. Once back at home, I ate leftovers for lunch. I checked e-mail, then went outside. I put shorter legs on the greenhouse to hold the heat lower to the ground. It got pretty cold last night and our first freeze might not be too far away. Then I got a tube of cement caulk and filled in the crack in the patio. I know, it's a rental and not my problem, but the crack annoyed me and now it is fixed. At least until it spreads some more. After finishing that, I drove the tent stakes into the ground on either side of the greenhouse. I found some nylon string to tie down the frame, but it was tangled. I think I spent an hour detangling it. When that was done, I found some bricks behind the carport and started chiseling them apart, and removing the mortar. I intend to spray them black and put them in the greenhouse. Chris arrived. He changed his clothes and put two chickens in the oven. Then we went out to a German restaurant called Hildegard's. I ordered the liver and onions. Chris got a zigeuner schnitzel. It was all good. I could not finish the sauerkraut, so brought it home. We went downstairs to watch Sherlock Holmes, the one with Robert and Jude. We saw it at the beach but had dozed off in several places. There were lots of scenes I don't remember seeing. Chris was rubbing my feet and noticed a lump on one. He examined it and diagnosed a splinter under the skin and a callous forming over it. He asked when I stepped on something. I think it was a pine cone 2 weeks ago. So after we finished the movie, I got out an exacto knife and a bright lamp. I laid on the bed, and he dug out THREE splinters from my foot. I was tapping like crazy for the pain I expected. But there was none. The splinters were completely encased in the callous. Whew! Chris put the chicken away, and we rounded out the evening with our laptops. * This pic is from the riverfront in Chattanooga *

The honeymoon is over...

We turned off the heater in the room because it kept cycling on and off every few minutes. In the night it got cold in our room. There were no comforters on the beds, so I grabbed the sheets from the other bed and pulled them over us. I also pushed a chair up against the curtain to stop the street light from shining in. And composed my comment card in my head as I tried to sleep. When we arose in the morning, Chris took a shower and went to breakfast. I ate my prepared breakfast mix. My fermented coconut milk was thicker than yogurt. I wrote down the e-mail address for making comments about the room. I cleared my e-mail and packed by the time Chris returned. We just had time to clear the room before the 11am check out. We were going to ride the incline railroad up Lookout mountain, but tickets were $14 each, and the view was practically nil due to the rain. So we just drove home. I was so glad I brought a heavy coat and scarf. Due to the time change, we were home by lunch. Chris took the car to get more nitrogen put in the tires. I picked myself a salad to eat as I cleared new e-mail, and then swept the leaves off of the deck and steps. We spent the afternoon on our laptops. I took a break to build a little greenhouse out of the PVC I use for my quilt frame. I covered it with a plastic dropcloth. Now, as long as there is no wind or rain, it'll be fine. Then we went to Rosie's for supper. Because it is closed on Sundays when we go to Publix, we have never seen it open. But it turns out that they do a brisk drive thru. We sat inside. I got a chicken salad and Chris had a burrito. After we ate, we went across the parking lot to Publix for groceries, etc. We found the groceries, but etc wasn't there. I need blue food coloring to make an ocean for a sunday school project, but all they had were gel colors for icing. I thought about using a blue jello packet, but they didn't have any that was sugar-free. I don't want any bacterial growth in sunday school. We put the foodstuffs away at home. I listened to a few audios before Chris was ready to go downstairs. We watched several episodes of MASH season 7. It was light viewing compared to all the episodes of MythBusters that we saw last night. * Here are a few pics from our vacation that I didn't get to use yet *

Second day of our anniversary trip

As I post this I notice that yesterday's post is not showing up.

We slept in, at least by local time which is an hour later than our home time. I ate one of the breakfasts I prepacked at home. Chris made himself a cup of coffee. There is no frig or microwave in this room. It is rather cheaply appointed considering what it costs and that parking is extra. Chris showered first while I posted to my blog for yesterday and then I showered. I could tell water would leak out of the walk-in shower, and it did. We left towels on the floor to soak it up. Dressed and ready to go, we drove to the Chattanooga Zoo. It seems poorly advertised and somewhat small, appearing in a park. But there were selection of animals some of which I have never heard of before. One looked like a raccoon with a super long nose and it could climb like a monkey - a couti. And then there were the langurs which looked like baboons. And the cotton-topped tamarins - little monkey-like creatures, cute and inquisitive. Lizards, spiders, capybaras, pea fowl, a cougar, deer, turkeys, a pig, goats, Scottish cow, snow leopard, red pandas, etc. Their enclosures were really well done. It was an overcast day like yesterday, but the sun did peek through about 1.

Our next stop was Rock City. I had seen the signs for it in so many places that I thought it must be a tourist trap like South of the Border. But I was pleasantly surprised to find it was more than that. We walked extensive rock trails, through, under, around and over large rock formations. The natural formations were added to and tweaked to make the trails and little scenes possible. Inside Fairyland Cavern, gnome scenes in fluorescent paint were built in grottos everywhere depicting fairy tales. Rock City was celebrating Rocktoberfest with German music and seasonally dressed actors. One lady was playing an accordion. She was near the point where they say you can see 7 states (on a clear day and with the installed binoculars). One of the gift shops was selling pickled vegetables and other unusual seemingly homemade foods. I really wanted a jar of chow-chow. But that pint was $9. And the pint of garlic-stuffed olives was $11. Yikes! We stopped at a wine-tasting booth and tasted three wines. That is when I decided I needed to have some solid food. When we left Rock City, we drove to a Thai restaurant. But it was closed on Sundays. We headed for the corn maze, hoping to find a restaurant on the way. But there wasn't one.

We bought tickets and walked to the maze. We had seen it from Rock City and I wished I had paid more attention. Ha. But it wasn't just for wandering around. They had signs set at certain intersection where the correct answer would tell you which way to turn. But they weren't at every fork in the path, and some questions were badly answered. Anyway, after our wanderings, we took the hay ride. They did have a food stand, but amazingly there were no corn items on the list. We asked the GPS for a Thai restaurant and we picked one from the list. We drove back to the hotel, parked, and took the shuttle downtown. We walked from there to the Thai restaurant, which was also closed. The Indian restaurant across the street was closed, but we had high hopes for the Asian mix place on the second floor. Although they, too, were closed, they opened at 5. We waited about 10 minutes. I ordered sushi and sushimi. Chris got the garlic chicken. It was all very good. After eating, we walked back to the shuttle stop and caught the next trip back to the hotel. Back in our room, we watched TV and read e-mail. It was a relaxing way to spend an evening.

Our 22nd anniversary

We slept in Saturday morning.  Chris got up to put an anniversary card on my laptop where I would be sure to see it.  Then he came back to bed... Later we got up for breakfast.  I read the card and it was very sweet.  We ate and packed at a leisurely pace.  He took a shower and I ran down to the garage to note any leaking, but there was none.  We turned on the dishwasher just before we left.  We drove to Chattanooga, where we went up Lookout mountain to Ruby Falls.  It is a cave and the only entrance is an elevator that goes down 260 feet.  Tours run every 5-10 minutes and are big.  It was half a mile to the underground waterfall, and we spent too much of it plastered against the cave wall to let returning groups go by.  That was the only time we got to stop and stare at the formations.  All the rest of the time the guide was yelling at us to watch our heads and our steps.  I came to see the cave!  The falls were nice, but hard to photograph, especially with a camera that won't flash 'cause the batteries are low.  They had colored lights around the cavern that changed from green to blue, to purple etc. 

Then we walked back.  The guide explained that on weekend nights in October they run a haunted cave.  We saw the entrance near the elevator.  When we got out, we walked up to the look out point.  Then through the gift shop.  From the parking lot we headed toward our hotel, but stopped at a colorful place that sells quilts and tourist trinkets.  The quilts out front were cheater cloth and machine quilted.  But the ones inside were hand-done, in large stitches.  Then we went to our lodging  - The Chattanooga Choo Choo.  They have some railroad cars there for sleeping, but they fill up fast.  We got a regular room, or maybe it is a handicap room considering how big the bathroom is and the walk-in shower.  We rested and looked up restaurants.  Then we caught the electric shuttle to the area near the aquarium.  We ate at The Big River Grille and Brewery.  Chris got the 8-beer sampler.  I helped him sample.  One was called IPA.  I don't know what that stands for, but it was awful.  Chris said it was the hops.  I ordered the goat cheese and hummus salad.  Chris got fettuccine.  Our waitress was a young blonde pre-law student.  After eating, we walked down to the river, and over to the bridge where a wine-tasting festival was going on.  There were members of a baptist church handing out tracts at the entrance. 

I think each person was to buy a wine glass at the first tent and then get samples in it at the other tents.  Everyone seemed to have a glass with the name of the wine festival on it.  We walked through part of it.  I liked the festive energy of the crowd, just like on Halloween night.  Then we stopped at a little shop for a Mexican hot chocolate.  That warmed me up.  We walked back to the shuttle stop.  We caught the shuttle back to the hotel.  We saw a horse and buggy gearing up to give a family a ride through the city.  We walked through the gift shop, and then moseyed on back to our room.  We read e-mail, and Chris started his book.  I should have posted to my blog before putting my computer aside.  I was thinking we should not spend our anniversary on our laptops.

Time-space anomaly

After breakfast, exercise and e-mail, I checked on my plants outside.  I watered them and put the planter where it hopefully won't dry out while we are gone.  I checked on my Sunday school supplies to make sure I had enough for this week.  I got back on my laptop to type out instructions for whoever will take my craft station on Sunday.  But one thing led to another and I found myself on George Takei's Facebook page, looking at all the humorous things he has posted from fans.  I always thought there was something funny about that man, and now I know: he likes puns.  Concentrating on writing instructions just wasn't happening, so I gathered my stuff and left for church.  I passed a big yardsale in a parking lot and nearly ran off the road. I had to be at church before Tamara left, so I promised myself I would come back.  When I got to church, it seemed the parking lot was empty.  6 months ago someone told me the combination to the lock, but I certainly don't remember it now. Lucky for me, when I knocked on the back door, Tamara came out of the office and opened it.  She had moved some of the stuff I needed when cleaning up last week, but I found what I needed.  I set up the table like I do on Sunday morning.  I promised to mail her the instructions. We chatted for quite a bit, then I headed home, stopping at the yard sale.  I spotted our neighbors son there, and when he saw me, he just gaped in speechless surprise.  I explained to his mother that I lived next door to his father.  What was he doing out of school?  Anyway, I found a few clothing items, even one I think will fit Michele.  I also got a book and a thread stand. All for less than $5. The yard sale was to benefit some animal shelter.  When I got home, I threw the clothes in the washer along with all the colored laundry.  I hardboiled some eggs for our trip.  I made up three days worth of breakfast mix and supplements.  Chris came home early.  I asked him to watch the garage for leaking water as I took a shower.  But there was none. So if it isn't my shower, or his shower, what leaked?  Rain?  The water I had seen dried up.  I packed some clothes for the trip.  Chris invited me out to eat, but I was too tired.  So he ate and then we watched a movie called "Funny Face" with Audry Hepburn and Frank Sinatra.  It was a romantic flick, and we ended up going to bed, not posting to my blog.
We woke up to find it was raining, but there was still no water in the garage.  So, the only logical conclusion is, there is an anomaly in the time-space continuum.  Either the water is from another universe, or it is from the past or the future.  Bob will have a heck of a time fixing that.
* I don't know if you can tell, but there are two marigolds in this picture.  One is low and bushy, the other is tall and sparse.  But they both grew from the same seed packet under the same conditions.  More time-space anomaly?  *

No excuses

There were a lot of audios posted this week, and I really tried to get through all of them.  I listened through exercise and breakfast, while writing a check and clearing e-mail, even putting out the recyclables, baking a loaf of bread and gluing the latest round of Sunday school projects.  I Googled images of pea and bean plants to see what I planted in my garden.  Turns out they are radishes.  I like radishes, but they are not very productive at one per plant.  Now the question is: what happened to the peas I planted?  I took a few minutes to lay in the sun.  Yesterday I made myself a short list of things to do and accomplished all but one.  I cut another leg for my extension table because it was rocking.  On my way to the table saw, I noticed a rather large puddle under the pingpong table.  It extended over to where the birds nest in the ceiling.  Sounds like the hall bathroom.  I called Bob 'cause I knew it would make his day.  He'll be over in a few days.  I wonder if it is the shower or the toilet.  Bob asked me to mark the puddle in case it dries up.  So I looked through my craft boxes for some sidewalk chalk.  All I found was regular chalk, but it was enough.  When putting it back, I had to lift my box of fabrics from Japan.  I went through it and found some that didn't belong, so I took those out to make more room, but somehow it didn't.  I washed all the fabrics I took out and ironed them dry.  While they were washing, I hand-basted the quilt top that I sandwiched yesterday.  I carried it over to the machine.  With the extension table, non-stick surface, proper thread color and sewing foot, I was all ready to free-motion quilt.  No excuses.  But I could not think of a design to put on it.  And even if I did, I would be afraid of messing it up since I have no experience in this area.  Chris came home and fixed his supper.  I picked greens from my garden and added some from the fridge to make a large salad.  I also ate some pickled brussel sprouts.  Pickling them seemed like a good idea at the time.  Must be an acquired taste.  Maybe I should have thrown them in with the kimchi.  I squeezed in another audio, and then we watched episodes of MASH.  The last one had Mariette Hartley in it and I can't remember what else I saw her in.  Chris thinks I might have her confused with Marilu Henner, which is possible.

All those home improvement shows paid off

I don't have a ton of small accomplishments to recite like yesterday, but what I did do was remarkably satisfying.  Oh, there were the usual tasks like clearing the sink, checking on the plants, lying in the sun for a few moments, collecting all the magnolia cones and adding them to the yard waste pile.  But two things stand out.  First, I used the table saw to cut a board into a sewing extension table.  I needed a drill and a scroll saw to make the back part of the cut. Then the grinder/sander mounted in the garage came in handy to round some corners.  It was a remarkable fit.  Then I covered it with the non-stick oven liner and now no one will ever know just how great a job I did.  As I cleaned up the sawdust with a broom, I swept away the spider webs in the garage.  Then I found a small quilt top, pieced together some batting and backing, and pinned it all together to try out my new free-motion quilting setup.  Then I posted pics on the guild Facebook site.
 The second thing was taking apart the vacuum.  I took the handle apart first because that is where the switch is.  But it is mechanically connected to the motor so that wasn't the problem.  I took the beater bar section apart next.  It was very dusty and I cleaned it all out.  But there was nothing broken there.  I wasn't going to mess with the motor itself, so I just put it all back together.  For giggles, I flipped the switch, and, miracle of miracles, it worked!  Didn't sound quite right, but it ran.  At that point, covered in sawdust and lint, I took a shower and a nap.  Chris came home and cooked some organic ground beef for supper.  I ate a bowl of that with some quinoa, and then a salad.  Then I went to choir practice.  I was a little early, and yet late.  As it turns out, the choir director sent out an e-mail asking all the women to come early to practice a song with the kids.  But Yahoo never delivered it to me.  She was on the list of people I sent my new address to, but she didn't get it.  Our organist was back in the hospital, so we had a substitute, the same one that played on Sunday.  But she is going to be gone for 4 weeks in a row, so we practiced songs we have no idea when we will get to sing.  We were done before 8 and I was home soon after. I cleared e-mail and went down to hot glue the support leg and try basting the little quilt with the free-motion quilting foot. Then Chris came down and we watched episodes of MASH that I have never seen before.  And now it is time for bed.