Another productive day

Got up for breakfast but it was too early, before 7am. So I went back to bed, to meditate with my ipod. When that was over, I thought I remembered Bruce Boxleitner (Captain Sheridan in B5) from an earlier series called "The White Shadow". But when I looked it up on IMDB, that was Ken Howard. So where do I know Bruce from? Turns out to be The Scarecrow and Mrs. King. I looked that up on Youtube, and what I found was lots of montages put together with love songs. You'd think it was a show about romance. But no, it is a spy show. Anyway, he's pretty hot in the montages. On Youtube one video seems to lead to another, and soon I found myself watching Pierce Brosnan on the David Letterman show denying rumors that he was going to be the next James Bond. Ha, ha. Now in the mood for breakfast, I prepared and ate it. I also read e-mail. I posted a tutoring announcement to Craig's list. I realized that I was feeling better than yesterday and I attributed it to the hydrogen peroxide treatment, so I did it again today. Then William called to tell me he had found a TV antenna. I got an e-mail from Chris about impending inclement weather. So I went outside and did some raking to get some fresh air while the getting was good. Actually it was hard to quit since the lawn (aka weeds) looks so much better after I rake. Still, it was threatening to rain. I unloaded and restacked the dishwasher. I went down to sew. I finished the corners of the purple and green quilt top, and cut and sewed on the last point of the blue quilt top. I am quite pleased with both. Then I found AV cables and took the PS2 upstairs to the small TV. I hooked it up with a controller and a mat. William called again to get my address so he could mail the items. Then I tried out DDR on a very simple song. I made a 'c'. Well, it has been a long time. So I tried again, doing much better. Or so I thought. Still got a 'c'. I took a break with my laptop. I was watching a free-motion quilting video when Chris came home. I tried DDR one more time, but still only got a 'c'. Must be rigged. Chris made a large omelette for our supper while I took a shower. Then we ate. I wrote a few notes for my blog and then went to the piano to warm up vocally. I had planned to go to choir practice, but wasn't quite sure that I am not contagious. So I went long enough to pick up the music for Sunday and came home. I can practice at home without infecting anyone. Chris and I went down to watch 2 episodes of B5. In the second episode the oldest being in the universe convinces the Vorlons and the Shadows to pass beyond the rim with him. Suddenly the war is over. So now how do they fill another season and a half? Maybe I'll find out tomorrow. Anyway, it was still early enough for Chris to work on some personal project on the computer. So I called up the latest episode of Castle on my computer and ran it full screen. That way I can watch it from the recliner. After the episode played, I saw that there are Castle quizzes on the website. I did three of them. I made a 70, an 80 and a 60. Time for bed.

What is it?

When I got up for breakfast, I saw the bread machine waiting for me with its lid open. So I started a batch of bread. Then I prepared and ate breakfast. After breakfast I remembered the old hydrogen-peroxide-in-the-ears trick for stopping a cold. I think it is supposed to be done at the first sign of a cold, so I did it twice during the day. I also folded two baskets of laundry and put most of it away, pulling out some of the raggedy socks. I took another hot shower, but it did not get as hot as yesterday. I looked online for lost dog postings to see if anyone had lost the dogs we found last week. Their time at the animal shelter is limited. And I posted in fidofinder.com. My jar of coconut milk was collecting a buildup of coconut solids, so I cleaned out the jar, and started a new batch of fermentation in another jar. It was about noon then and the sun was out, so I raked 2 boxes of leaves, pinecones and straw in the side yard. The cones were hidden like Easter eggs in the thatch. The ones I did not see, I found with my feet. Finally I went into my sewing room to work on the kaleidoscope quilts. I am so excited about my latest idea that I can't wait for me to finish it so I can see how it will turn out. While I was working, Chris came home and I was surprised to find it was after 5. He had supper while I ate lunch. Then we read our respective e-mails for awhile before starting season 4 of B5. This seems to be the part where it gets weird and dark and violent. Chris just went to bed, so I guess it is my turn now.
**I did not take any pics today, so here is one of something I found while unpacking that I have not been able to identify. **

Wild violet blossoms are tasty

After breakfast, I drank hot tea wrapped in robe, trying to sweat. I also deleted 300 pictures from my camera because I kept getting the 'memory card is full' beep. I had to do them one at a time while pinching the battery compartment shut. It seems to hold about 700 photos, so I may delete more tomorrow. Then I took a hot shower. There were a series of long interviews that came out around New Year's Day that I have been meaning to listen to, but did not want to spend so much time in front of my computer. So I had the brilliant idea of playing them on my laptop in the basement while working on my quilt tops. I added trapezoids to the wedges of the kaleidoscope, piped in between. I sewed them in pairs, and then sewed the pairs to the kaleidoscope. Maryann skyped me then to talk about her medical issues (still in pain), and the bright colors on black quilt. She wants to buy it for her son when I finish it. William called to tell me what he had found at Goodwill during lunch. He suggested I get a job. Then I continued my chat with Maryann. The sun was brightly shining the whole time. But when we concluded, and I made myself a salad for lunch, it went behind the cloud. I sat outside to eat it anyway. I found the wild violet blossoms growing in the yard are very tasty. My nose kept running. It is officially a head cold now. I got tired of killing trees to keep my nose dry, so I did yardwork, letting it drip all it wanted. When Chris came home, he gave me a tissue and we went inside. He fixed himself supper, and I went back to work on the kaleidoscope. He came down when he was ready to watch B5. We finished season 3. It is starting to get weird. Went to bed...did not post to blog.

Sewing in the sun

We did not go to church today. After nearly infecting someone with a depressed immune system yesterday, I figured it was safer to stay home. Maybe if all contagious people did that, I would not be sick now. We ate breakfast and read e-mail instead. I drank two cups of white tea with honey. My throat improved considerably but now my nose is running. It was such a nice day that I had to go out. I laid in the grass and read for awhile. Then I tried a little sewing. I added a pocket to my sling purse (which it has desperately needed for a year). But I needed the fresh air. So, since there are outlets on the patio, I set up the patio table, covered it with an old sheet, and set up my sewing machine. I patched a pair of Chris' jeans, set in points on the blue kaleidoscope quilt, and brainstormed a way to use up the leftovers from the green and purple one. Chris did two loads of laundry and went to the grocery store. I fixed myself a salad for supper. Chris made himself a chicken burrito. Then we watched 5 episodes of B5. Tonight I know exactly what photo to add to this blog post. But I'll do it from the desktop computer so all my pictures are on the same hard drive.

Push the waves, hit the tiger, parting the horse's mane

After the usual morning routine, I googled the address of a lady who has started a Meetup for Tai chi and yoga. It is a new thing and I was the first to come. I wrote myself some notes for the trip out and back. I dressed in loose comfortable clothing. I filled a water bottle. Then I headed out 1 hour before even though it should only take 40 minutes. I was supposed to get on 72E, but there were no signs for it. Nevertheless, I followed the route as shown on the google map. I ended up on 72E, but all the signs were for 72W. Do they try to confuse me on purpose?
This place was truly out in the country. Her house is next to a field of cows. First we talked about tai chi and yoga. She had me sign a waiver in case I got injured. Then we stood on the lawn and faced the sun and the mountain. She showed me the moves and we tai chi'd together. Each movement set had a name to describe it (see title). I found it to be a gentle and meditative practice. The cows came over to watch. After a bit we retired to her porch where we talked of many things. We had a connection. When I learned that she had MS and was taking a drug to suppress her immune system, I was worried about 'sharing' my sore throat. When it was time to go, she held out her hand to shake in friendship and farewell, but I had to refuse and I told her why. She seemed to understand. It was a long drive home, and mostly uneventful. But when I turned off of 72 to get on Memorial, I found the signs confusing. Again. Fortunately I did get home, though not without some trepidation. Chris was on his computer playing with voices; I don't know which ones. I tried to have a bite to eat, but was too tired. So I laid down for a bit. Then I fixed myself a salad and finished of the last of the organic beef. I watched the latest episode of BBT on the CBS website and then, since Chris was still playing, I started an episode of NCIS. By the time I finished, he was finished, too. So we went down to watch B5 together. As usual, he has gone to bed now, and I am wondering what photo to post since I did not think to take one at her house.

A Dr. Seuss moment

When I woke up, my throat was on fire. I tried meditating it away and was partially successful. I meant to do the Silva meditation, but it has been so long that I couldn't remember all the phrases. I drank some water, read some e-mail, had breakfast, and read more e-mail. It was cooler than yesterday, but it felt good to get out of the house. So I raked inside the fence. It was windy which did not help. I also raked by the flower bed. I picked a few greens, blended them, poured over a salad. I also had a green egg from the carton of chicken eggs I bought yesterday. A little ham would have made it the perfect Dr. Seuss moment, ha! I took a nap after lunch. I was feeling much better. I cleared space for the small TV upstairs in the family room. Then I went into the garage. Using a level, I shimmed cabinets that Bob brought over weeks ago. Then the countertop fit much better. I swept the floor, moved boxes and other stuff around to make some room. Then I opened the pingpong table. I intend to clean it off so I can use it for quilting. But the level of each side did not match. Not sure how to fix that. Changing gears, I finished the blue kaleidoscope circle, but now have to come up with a background. I went up to google images of other kaleidoscope quilts for ideas. Chris came home with two burritos from the Mexican restaurant on his way home from work. His was the spicy beef and mine was beef tongue. It has been a while since I had that. All sorts of 'tongue' phrases are now occurring to me, but I will resist them all. This is a G rated blog. I could not eat all of the burrito shell or the rice, but I did eat the meat. Chris finished it for me. Then we watched 4 episodes of B5. Chris went to bed and I am about to join him.

You just never know how the day will go

I remember awakening from a dream. I can't quite put it together, but my husband was in it. My throat was still scratchy, so I used the colostrum again. I read e-mail for 20 minutes, and then made breakfast. I took a shower, dressed, and took my supplements. My friend Claire was going to call me so we could go out together. So to await her call, I read tapping articles in my e-mail. I did some tapping inside, and then outside, just in case there was anything inside that could interfere with my energy system. I went back inside to use the restroom and heard her on the porch. She had brought her van. I climbed inside and she drove us out of the city, northward. However, as we were preparing to turn onto a side road, we spotted two pit bulls walking around in the road. They seemed oblivious to the traffic and the danger they were in. Whereas most people would just drive by without stopping as long as they did not hit the dogs, Claire blew her horn and opened her back door and ushered them inside (with a little help from another driver). Kudos to her for bravery. The dogs were reluctant to go in, but acted quite friendly (but smelly) once inside. She turned around and drove to the ARK, a no-kill animal rescue shelter. The shelter had no room for them, but lent us leashes to tie them down in the back of her van. Then she drove to Animal Control. They were willing to take the dogs. Since their collars had no tags, I can only hope the owner(s) will find them there. Then we went on to Alison's place. It was not so far in the country as I had imagined. She raises dogs, chickens, geese, horses, and bees. And her neighbors are well within sight. It was interesting to arrive and be greeted by a flock of chickens hoping to be fed. Alison was in the front yard with a very small, cute dog on its bathroom break. She brought us inside. She showed us around and downstairs she has a frig with soap and creme making ingredients. The cremes are very nice, most of them scented. She invented the recipe herself using beeswax from her hives. They are really neat - solid like a bar of soap, but just a little comes off on your hands when you handle it. I got two of those and a jar of honey. We went out to the yard to see the chickens and the hives. The dogs were excited to have company. Then we stopped by the garage where she had cartons of eggs in another frig. I got a box of chicken eggs and one of duck eggs. We left them in the house and went to see Claire's 'new' house. They have not moved in yet so it was empty. It was interesting to see what previous owners had done to the place. There is a stove top exactly like ours. I wanted to take the panel off to take a pic of how the left side was hooked up, but my screwdriver was too small. Oh well. When we got back, Alison made tea and gave me an orange. Claire played with the little dog, who was amazingly cute. She wanted to take it home, but it is promised to someone else first. After a nice chat with Alison, Claire drove me home. I showed her around my place and let her taste my fermented coconut milk. She had given me a taste of the coconut milk that she makes from coconut flakes. While we were talking in the living room, Chris came home. Earlier she had mentioned that she and her husband play DnD, and I wanted her to meet Chris since he likes role-playing games too. After they met, she got a call from her husband and had to leave. I really enjoyed spending the day with her and meeting Alison. I showed Chris what I bought. I thought the different colors of the eggs were really cool. Then Chris fixed asparagus and we had chicken to go with it. We checked our e-mail. I got one that proclaimed that my order had arrived. I found it on the front porch - raw nuts! When Chris finished his e-mail, we went down to watch 4 more episodes of B5. And after B5 comes bedtime.