Almost a good idea

I woke up, feeling the bed next to me and that Chris was not there. Since I did not hear anything, he must have already gone to work. I went back to sleep and dreamed we moved to a smaller place and it was so full I couldn't reach things. But the apartments nearby were worse. The sleep app made a noise and soon after, the phone alarm. I shut everything off and went back to sleep.
I got up at 8:45. I brushed, drank water, and swished. I fixed two holes on Chris' jeans. I left the other two for tomorrow. I boiled water for tea and soaking nuts. I rinsed the broccoli mix seeds. I put the pepper plant outside because it was getting gnats. I cut a narrow strip of hardy plastic and made a watch band with it. I taped the ends shut and it seemed to hold.
I checked e-mail and listened to part of a presentation on circular movements for mobility. I made and ate breakfast, then got dressed.
I called LessEMF to find out why the fabric I bought doesn't block the wi-fi signal. The man who answered insisted that it did work up to 98%, and that just because my laptop still shows a full signal doesn't mean anything.
I also called the compounding pharmacy that makes the testosterone and progesterone I have been taking. I wanted to know the side effects. The lady who answered promised me the pharmacist would call by the end of the day.
Then it was time to leave for quilting. I was going to take the banner project to work on, but kept thinking of special things I needed to go with it. So I chose the charity quilt instead. I still had to add special gloves and a ruler and ruler foot. It was after noon when I left.
I drove to the church and rolled my cart inside. I told everyone that the cart was a present from my sister. I stood around talking for a bit until a space opened up for me. I set up my machine and put the ruler foot on. It took me a few minutes to get the height adjusted just right. But then I was able to free-motion quilt on the seam lines. The ruler was not usable without an extension table which I don't have for that machine. But I needed the practice of free-motion. A number of ladies came by to chat. I got the usual question of ' has your husband found a job yet'? I gave the usual answer 'no'.
The target departure time was 3pm. By then I had quilted two rows, one forward and one backward. I think I had to stop twice to address thread issues. Then we all packed up to leave. I walked out with Lauri. On the way home, the tape on my watch band let go and the watch fell off.
When I got home, I checked the mail. There was a stack of letters, but only one was for us. Two were for our neighbor, and the rest were for other duplexes and people who had since moved on. I did not feel like delivering mail door-to-door so I put them in the Outgoing box. I took my machine and stuff inside. Then I picked up a gift bag and went next door to hand her her mail and a small gift. She talked about classes she plans to take. We chatted for awhile, until after Chris got home.
When I went home, Chris mentioned that the front door wasn't locked. He had a piece of mail for me from the post office. I put on my coat and went for a walk. When I got back, I ate some beef and made a salad. I put a sweet potato in the toaster oven. I played solitaire while listening to the rest of the presentation on circular motion. I ate the sweet potato.
After the presentation, I brushed and swished. We watched two episodes of Lost in Space. While it played, I tried to fasten the watch band with a paperclip, but it didn't hold well. After the show, Chris made his lunch and went to bed. I tried to look up some of the characters from Lost in Space, but they were not in anything I had seen before. I wrote up my blog post and went to bed.
* It seems like a good idea if only there was a way to securely fasten the band. *

Sunday sew day

I woke up hearing my phone alarm ring from the dining room. I got up and brushed and swished and sewed a four-patch. I drank some water and whipped up a batch of seed crackers. I put them in the oven, then checked e-mail until they were done. I turned the oven off and took a shower and got dressed. Then I took the seed crackers out of the oven and put most of the pieces in a ziplock bag. I ate some seed crackers and took today's supplements. I put the crackers and a plate in a grocery bag. I also filled a water bottle and added that. I rolled my machine out to the car and put everything in the trunk.
I drove to church, arriving early enough to check my box for the 2019 envelopes. I sat by Don and wrote this month's check. He was writing his weekly check. He did not have the official envelopes so I suggested he check his box later.
There announcements: Jeanne said anyone who wanted a pointsettia should take one. Charlie said to stay afterward to take down the decorations. He also mentioned about the interim pastor not starting for another 4 to 6 weeks. Two retired pastors shared the job today. One led the service and the other gave the sermon. When we went up for communion, Don had trouble and wanted me to hold his hand, so I did. He thanked me when we got back to the pew. After the service, he picked up two poinsettias (he paid for 8) and headed out the door. I picked up 4 more and went after him. A lady in a van had come to pick him up. Mike went back to get the last three. I waited by the flowers, talking to Lars about counting money. The lady loaded all but two of the plants and said Don wanted me to have them. I waved thank you to him as they left. Jim reminded me of Vanco changes. I put the plants in my car. On the way back, Cecelia saw me and we talked about how important it is for older people to move to a smaller house before they have to for physical reasons.
I went in the church to talk to Tim. He said to make an extra spread sheet for any 2018 checks that got put in the offering late. The church was already de-decorated by then, so we left. On our way to our cars, a honey bee came by. Tim said he'd have to check his hive to see how they were doing. I figured bees were sleeping this time of year. Then again, it was a beautiful sunny 64 degrees today.
From church, I went to Renegades. They were just breaking for lunch. I put my seed crackers on a plate with the other foods, and got in line. I chose foods that looked ok without asking the particulars. After the meal, there was a strawberry birthday cake for Jenny. Everyone said how good it was. Hmmm.
Then they all went back to sewing. There was no place for me to set up, so I asked Lynette for a job. She gave me a 7 yard piece of fabric to iron. So I did. Then she suggested I trim some quilts. There were only three that needed trimming. After I trimmed the first one, I used the trimmings to cut binding strips. I folded them into the quilt and put it on a stack. Then I trimmed the second one. I did not like the trimmings for a binding, so I chose another fabric. Someone had fussy cut it, so it looked like swiss cheese. But I found enough yardage to cut binding for that. The third quilt had a roll of binding already tucked in. So all I did was trim it. Then I had to fold up all the trimmings that were worth saving and put the rest in a bag for a dog bed. By then it was 3, and most people had left. So I started vacuuming. It takes a long time to sweep that room and usually several ladies are hanging around just so the operator isn't left alone. I finished the job about the same time the others put up the chairs and tables and carried the supplies out. So it worked out great. Oh, and I bought a dozen eggs from Tina.
I went home, hoping the sun would stay up a little longer. When I got there, I changed my clothes and went for a walk. Afterward, I checked e-mail and ate some beef. Later I made a salad. Chris made his supper. I remembered the eggs and put them in the fridge. I listened to the rest of the interview on Viome results. Then I started one from Carol Look.
I stopped it around 8. I brushed and swished. I put my hair up. I got some tea and we watched a third episode of Call the Midwife. Although I don't want to be reminded of the trauma of giving birth, the characters are endearing.
Afterward, Chris made his lunch. I sat down to write my long narrative. Gabriele texted me that she had an opening in her massage schedule tomorrow. But I will not have time. I finished my blog post and drank water, soon to go to bed.
* This is the quilt pattern that Lynette chose for today. Flo did this one. *

Sew Day

I woke up at 8. I brushed and swished and sewed. My sewing resolution is over but now its a habit. I drank water and soaked a new batch of seeds. I boiled ginger and turmeric to make tea for tonight. I emptied the second food box. Chris pointed out that the pepper plant made a remarkable recovery. Then I sat down to write my blog post for yesterday.
After posting to my blog, I changed calendar to 2019. I hated to throw away the previous calendar, but I have a stack of them somewhere and only every used one. I unpacked my suitcase, putting clean clothes in the drawer. I took things I needed out of my toiletries bag and put them in the bathroom. I vacuumed the suitcase. I swept the kitchen floor. I answered texts. I was all set to make a batch of supplements, then discovered that I had at least 5 days left. So I worked on breakfast. As I ate, I read an article. DuckDuckGo says Google saves all your searches forever to track information about you. But their search engine does not. I listened to part of an interview about Viome results. I washed shelves in the fridge. I cleaned all 6 water bottles with boiling water. I packed my new sewing case with machine and supplies. I used a new pincushion. Then I discovered that it came with a small sewing kit.
I put everything in the trunk, including fleece for a small rug. I drove to the gas station. Of the 6 sets of pumps, three were completely closed and two of the remaining ones were closed on the left. Since my gas tank is on the right, I had to wait in line to fuel up. From there, I went to the library where the modern quilt guild was having a sew day. I set up a table and placed upon it my machine. While the ladies ate lunch, I cut and sorted fleece strips. Then I sewed the strips together end to end. When I had a sizeable ball, I started crocheting. I helped a lady who was having trouble with her bobbin. I figured out that her bobbin was the wrong size for her machine. Sadly the machine manual did not specify what size was correct. But her machine was like the Singer I had at home. I had an extra singer bobbin and it worked well in her machine. I offered to let her take it, but she declined. She had Hobby Lobby bobbins (which is kind of fun to say three times fast).
The time got away from me while I was crocheting, and all of a sudden it was quarter of 5. We had 15 minutes to pack up our machines and the tables and put them away. I stored mine in the trunk and headed out.
I stopped at Hobby Lobby to find magnets and a wrist band for my watch. I did find magnets, but nothing adjustable to use as a watch band. I got some clasps in case I decide to make one. Marshalls wasn't far away, so I walked over there. They did not have bands or watches. I drove down the lane to Target. But all they had were watches and batteries. So I headed back towards base, and pulled in at WalGreens. But I was disappointed there, too.
When I got home, it was dark. I pulled insulated plastic over my plants for the night. I got the mail and brought in my machine. Chris had beef in the oven, having been to the grocery store. I ate some of that while he cooked quinoa. I added some kimchi to that. It was quite tasty. Then I read e-mail.
It was after 8 when I put away supper. I brushed and swished. I drank kava tea as we watched two episodes of Call the Midwife. It was interesting, but a little too graphic for me. Some of the situations were disturbing.
Chris had done laundry while I was gone, including the sheets. So we dressed the bed in clean linens. Then I sat down to write my blog novela for today.
* This is what our president was working on. *

It's good to be home

I woke up early. Chris was still sleeping. I swished and sewed binding. I read e-mail until he got up. Then I made breakfast, and got dressed. I packed my suitcase. Then I listened to an interview until Chris called time. He carried things out to the car while I packed up my laptop and made sure we had everything. I carried the last food box to the car while he checked out at the desk. And then we were on our way home.
We stopped for gas, then turned on the CD player as we got on the interstate. We listened to the last stories of Sherlock. The case said it was a 10 hour CD. It's a wonder more audiobooks aren't like that. When it was over, we started another book called Dangerous Minds. We snacked on figs and dates. When I needed a bathroom break, Chris stopped for a cheese burger and I used the restroom. We arrived in Huntsville about 3:30.
We stopped at the post office to pick up the mail. At the house, we unpacked the car, put away food in the cooler and breakfast box. I watered the plants inside and out. I was surprised how good the outdoor ones looked, especially since the plastic covering had blown off. Inside, the jade plant had died and the pepper plant looked irreversibly dry and wilted. I opened the package from Swansons and put those items away. I called the Three Oaks pharmacy to get more testosterone and progesterone. Since the fridge was so empty, I clean the top shelf, thinking I would get back to clean the others. I made up new batches of spice mix and green mix and seed mix. I ate a can of soup. I searched for the kimchi that Doctor Grace had given me. It was whole cabbages so I cut them into pieces and put them in my previous kimchi container so I could wash hers. I finished listening to the interview.
I moved my laptop to the guest room and sent a message to my tapping buddy. When she called, I answered and we spent about 2 hours talking and tapping, dealing with my childhood issues. I think it was productive.
Then I made tea and put the plastic cover back on the outdoor plants. Chris and I cuddled on the couch, listening to the last CDs of the audiobook. I dozed off several times during the book even though I was fighting it. It would have been easy to let myself fall asleep, but I would have woken up later and had to walk to bed, and then I would be awake, having had a nap. When it was over, we both went to bed.
* This was the sky on our way home *

A long day puts us half way

It was hard to fall asleep with my father puttering around the house all night – until 4 or 5 by his account. Chris had retired to the back bedroom around midnight, which was a wise decision. I must have slept at some point because I dreamed that I told my dad I was never coming back because I couldn't get any sleep. It was 9:45 when I got up.
Chris got up about the same time. While I was in the bathroom, he took the blankets and sheets off of the hide-a-bed. I put them in the washer. I found a can of WD-40 and oiled all the squeaky doors and knobs. There was nothing I could do about the squeaky floors, but the next time Dad pulls an all-nighter, it should be quieter.
I could not brush my teeth because Dad had my toothbrush. When I showed it to him last night, he thought I was giving it to him and I couldn't say no. He really liked the design, and I have better ones at home.
Dad asked me to fix some buttons on his shirt. He said they were hanging by a thread. Upon examination, I saw that the buttons were fine, but the holes were frayed. I repaired two of them. Another one had been repaired very strangely and I would have had to take all those stitches out in order to fix it properly. Much of that shirt had been mended by hand and it needed more. I convinced him he should buy a new shirt. I had just put the laundry in the dryer so we only had not quite an hour. It wasn't enough time to run to the mall. So I found something online at Sears and, with his permission, ordered it.
Then Dad asked me to call and confirm his appointment next week. I thought it was at Sheltering Arms, so I called them. They said his appointment was at the end of the month. I wrote it down. Dad said to call Johnston-Willis, and they had him on the roll for next week for a blood draw. After a discussion, she talked to the doctor and said Dad should come in May instead. So I wrote down that new appointment in his book and on his calendar.
I pulled the sheets from the dryer. Chris and I folded them and he put them away. I realized it was time to leave and I hadn't had breakfast so I grabbed an apple from the fridge. Dad was concerned about an error message that he got when shutting down his computer. So he and I went through the process. No error message, but it did download an update. Chris loaded the car while I looked around to grab last minute things. We hugged my dad goodbye. Chris programmed the GPS in the driveway and we headed out.
We listened to more Sherlock stories all the way from Richmond to Bristol. I was amazed that by my account, we had heard 9 hours of stories all from one CD. And it wasn't over yet. We ate hard boiled eggs and banana cookies on the way. I had a few seed crackers, too.
We checked into the hotel around 5:30 and carried one load of stuff up to the room. Then we went to Logan's Steakhouse. They did not have hot tea, so I asked for warm water. What I got was a glass of cold water without ice. I had an empty water bottle in my purse, so I filled it with hot water from the women's restroom.
Our orders arrived, consisting of steak and sweet potato. I had a mushroom skewer, and he had broccoli. My steak was a little more rare than I wanted. Later I asked for hot water, and she offered to bring me hot tea. However, when it came, it was sweetened, so I did not drink it. Then she brought me hot water, but it was too hot to drink right away.
After getting a to-go box and paying the bill, we went back to the hotel. We carried up a second load. I went to the hotel desk to get a toothbrush. I also reported a very loose outlet, but the clerk seemed uninterested in filing a maintenance order. Chris and I read e-mail for a bit. I felt a headache coming on so I postponed my Skype call with my tapping buddy. A little after 8 EST, Chris connected his laptop to the hotel TV and we watched three episodes of Lost in Space. Then he shut his laptop down and went to bed. I stayed up to sew and type up my blog.
* This pic shows the two-color binding I am using on this quilt. *

And Dad continued eating

I fell asleep a little sooner than the previous night. So when I woke up hearing footsteps overhead, it did not bother me as much. I went back to sleep and woke up to footsteps again later. Chris got up and went upstairs. I took a shower, then swished and sewed for a bit. I got dressed and took my breakfast box up to the kitchen. I made breakfast and took the box down again. Then I went up to eat breakfast and read e-mail.
Marie came down with the dogs and took them for a walk. Al went along. About the time they came back, I left my laptop and went down to pack. I got everything together and repacked my suitcase. Chris came down to strip the bed for Cecily to wash the sheets. Then he packed the car. He had lunch while I tried to finish one last game of Solitaire. Then I shut down my laptop and put it in the case. We hugged Marie, Al and Cecily, then got in the car and headed to Richmond.
We listened to more of the CD of Sherlock Holmes stories. I slept through part of one, maybe more. It was a good rest. We got to Dad's house about 3:30 I think. We went inside to let him know we were here. I talked to him while Chris brought in the luggage. Dad told me about the extra kale. Then he went to the bathroom. While he was gone, I got out his brown bib. I took pics of it with a tape measure so I could make another one. The sad part is that I made the first one, but I don't remember how I did it. While I was at it, I also wiped it clean.
I called Faye and she said she'd be over after some errands. I ate some cabbage soup that Chris had made last week. Dad said he was still working on breakfast. He was up to the fruit and then moved on to crackers with peanut butter. We talked about laundry. He showed me the bag he had collected, plus a kitchen towel. I suggested that his pants needed washing, too. So he asked me to pick out a clean pair from his closet. After he emptied all his pockets and changed his pants, I did a load of laundry.
While the laundry was washing, Faye came over. We had a nice chat and I amended the check that she brought back. I put the clothes in the dryer. When they were dry, I hung up Dad's shirts and pants and put his socks with the other clean socks. I also had some of Chris' clothes too. Dad told us he had a mouthful of denture adhesive and talked about rinsing with warm water. Faye poured warm water in his cup and he swished three separate times. But it did not all come out. He used a spoon to get it off of his lips. I mentioned the powdered kind might be easier for him to apply and not get too much. I helped Faye put the table top tree back in the attic. Then she had to go home and get some sleep for her late shift tonight at the hospital.
Dad was eating with his left hand. (He had moved on to supper.) I put a red handle on his fork to see if he could eat with his right hand. And it seemed he could. So I put a red handle on a pen and he practiced writing his name. It went ok, but he took a primidone and that might have made a difference.
While he practiced, I found myself in two texting conversations, with Kurt and with Jennifer. It never rains but it pours. Then I told Chris I wanted to go to Food Lion and get some powdered denture adhesive for Dad. So he drove me up there, but they were closed. So then we went to WalGreens across the intersection. They had lots of denture creams, but only one powder and it was sold out. Then I selected a package of hair ties for me, and a brand of CoQ10 for Dad. It was BOGO, so I got two bottles. We went to the checkout counter. I was quite taken aback when the total was $87. Yikes! But she said something about a special number needed to get the BOGO price. I had to enter my phone number and zip code. Then the price came way down. Finally we finished and went next door to the gas station to fill up.
When we got back, I told Dad that the powdered adhesive was sold out. I handed him the CoQ10 but he was too skeptical to take it. He wanted to ask his doctor about it first. That was fine with me but I hoped he would remember to do that.
When I noticed the time, I brushed and swished. I sat down to write my blog. I was almost finished when Dad came over to talk. He started by talking about Michele, but we covered a range of subjects. I read info on CoQ10 from the NIH website to him. He seemed to like what he heard. We looked at his driver's license to see when it expires. Then the conversation turned to other things and finally food. Chris made the couch into a bed while I wrote the rest of my blog and Dad continued eating.

First day of 2019

I stayed awake for hours last night trying to get to sleep. Then I woke up when Cecily started moving around the kitchen, unstacking the dishwasher, etc. Later Chris went upstairs in his pajamas. He came back down to get some laundry to add to his mother's. I gave everything I had, so I had to stay in my pajamas. I brushed and swished and sewed binding. Then I went upstairs.
I made breakfast and ate it while watching the Today show, which was on. Cecily gave me some laundry that was dry, so I took it down and put on some real clothes. Marie made scones. I watched some of the Rose parade. When she was done, I mixed up a batch of banana oatmeal cookies and baked them in the oven. Then I hardboiled the rest of the eggs. I stood at the stove where I could see the Rose parade and the eggs and cookies. I ate the chicken innards that Chris cooked last night. I sat at my laptop and read e-mail while finishing off the previous banana cookies. Then I cooled the eggs and put them away.
I suggested Michele call my dad and thank him for his card and check. She used my phone because it had Dad's number in it. He sounded thrilled to hear from her. They talked for a bit, but he intended to go shopping so we did not hold him up.
I spent some time online investigating the effects of pycnogenol and grape seed extract on hot flashes. My eyes got tired so I decided to go for a walk. I announced my intention to the group and the canine members got all excited. So I amended it to “I'm going for an amble. “
I looked up a map of the neighborhood and saw that I couldn't get but so lost. I put on my coat and a scarf, and then headed out the door.
As I walked, I inserted 5 one-minute runs. I also said 'hi' to a stranger as I went past. I went far enough so that I was gone for 30 minutes. When I got back, I sat in living room with the others. But there was only football, so I went up to the computer room where Michele was watching some program called Parks and Recreation. I laid on the bed in there and fell asleep. Michele covered me with her impossibly large circular afghan. Chris woke me for supper.
Tonight's supper featured a rib roast without the bones, roasted brussel sprouts, mashed squash, and pop-overs. It was nice to sit around the table with family and eat and talk. Al said he was old enough to remember when that's what families did. Ha, ha.
Cecily went to bed not long after supper was done. Marie retired to her room too, although she doesn't have to work tomorrow because of the government furlough. Chris and Michele sat in her room watching an Indiana Jones movie on a laptop. I said goodbye to her since she will have left for work when we get up in the morning.
Then I went back to the dining room to finish an audio from earlier and to watch a short video on a chi gung exercise. I brushed and swished while writing up my blog. Chris came down after the movie was over and I suspect Michele went to bed. I finished my blog and went downstairs to retire for the night.
Since I haven't decided what to make for my 2019 resolution, I made certain I had done all the things that are under consideration today: a bit of yoga, a walk, sewing, a power pose, chi gung, and the gratitude alphabet.
* I guess someone doesn't want their picture taken. *