Perfect Excuses

Hello,

I had an appointment this morning. I was late, but I had perfect excuses, none of this “dog ate it” stuff from me. First the phone rang when I was about ready to leave. It was my boss and we had some issues to discuss. Then I decided I had better go to the bathroom before I leave. After that it was fine getting in the car and out into the alley.

In the alley however, the garage door remote in the car would not work. Cold weather seems to be a factor. The car must be quite close and aimed directly at the garage door for this to operate. This morning’s negative temps were too much. At least the one in the garage works perfectly. At any rate I had to park the car, get out, walk carefully over the three inch jagged ice into the garage, push the button, unlock the side door, step out, relock the side door, walk back to the car over even more perilous ice along the side of the garage, get into the car, and start to drive up the alley.

A parked van blocked the end of the alley I normally use. That meant being a bit off my usual path. So I decided to just simply go a different way, after all I know that way, but the other way seems more direct.

Pot holes rule these days. I try valiantly to avoid them. It would be much easier if I were driving the only car out there. As it is I have to dodge cars as well. Makes a trip quite exciting! Because I was on the road less traveled the pot hole map was not in my brain requiring special alertness.

On the way home I stopped at Goodwill for their 25 cent Wednesday sale on clothes. I found three long sleeved shirts for Leroy. He says that he does not need any more, but he complains some days about his choices. I figure this way if he likes only one it is a 75 cent shirt and the others go back. Or maybe it is two shirts for 37.5 cents. Or the ultimate deal of three shirts for 25 cents each. If he does not like any or they do not fit or whatever I just made a very small contribution to a nonprofit.

Paula

Leroy Working

Hello,

Leroy wanted to clean the computer room this morning even though I was not so excited by the idea because I have to go to work for seven hours today. He assured me that he would do most of the work. That indeed turned out to be true. I almost felt guilty as I could hear him slaving away. Leroy does not believe in being quiet. If something pains, stresses, or strains him he makes noises such as grunting, groaning, and moaning.

I did help move the larger pieces of furniture as well as put things back. We even found two books that can be eliminated. I also noted a few other books that I will not move again, but I am not yet ready to eliminate them. Surely I will look at those books of poetry. I do not generally read poetry. At a library book sale I purchased a couple books along with the resolve to read some each day. I think that lasted about two days before they were relegated to the shelf. I had this idea that I should challenge myself and extend my interests.

For now, this room looks quite fine and it is pleasant to know that dust is gone for a day. I am not overly optimistic about how long it is before it returns. As Leroy commented, “It would be nice if we did not have the dining room table in here.”

I am not ready to eliminate that table and we do not want to store it in the attic as we feel that would stress it too much. I am grateful that we have a space for it that almost works well.

I am grateful that the snow came after I left work last night and was just a dusting. Leroy did shovel it off the sidewalk because the sun was shining a little and he was sure it would finish the clearing job.

At least with Leroy home I do not have to push myself to clean up the kitchen before I go to work. I was feeling like I would like more time to myself, but now I am wishing that he were home on Wednesday so we could finish the cleaning by doing our bedroom. Moving furniture is not easily a one person job. It will get done, but later.

Paula

Weather

Hello,

I am getting a little tired of the ice because it makes walking more hazardous. Leroy is braver than I am as he steps onto these patches of possible falls. He gets to the end of the patch and looks to see that I made it and then marches on because he knows I can keep up on the clear pavement. I did not think I would complain, but it is creeping up on me. I looked ahead at the weather forecast and we are to still have some morning temps of below zero. Not much melting for a while. This is not MN so why cold so long?

We will visit Brian this weekend and true to form they will have quite low temps. Brian also tells me that they have about three feet of snow on the ground. Surely it will still be there when we arrive.

At church someone commented that the birds are singing and they have seen some robins so spring is coming. I’ll bet the buzzards or vultures are not back as they surely cannot smell their food rotting in this cold. Spring will be a little while. With all of this I am grateful for a warm place to be. At times I am sorry that I gave away my down coat, but pleased that someone else could use it for such a long time. After all it did not fit my head very well. Besides I have survived quite well on my mile long walks without it. I had hoped to get another on the clearance sales, but I waited too long. I have rather long arms and none of the available had long enough sleeves.

One thing about prior experience is that the next time it is so much easier to do the job. This year Leroy did not hesitate to get an appointment to get our taxes done as we had been through it last year. One of our forms was a bit late so we will not get this done until the end of March as that was the first available date. Leroy especially likes to tend to this matter much sooner, but it is still in plenty of time.

Paula

Sunday

Hello,

Leroy did his pulpit supply. When I asked how he went, he said, “No one threw tomatoes. I guess it was ok”

He did enjoy seeing many of the people he knew in the past. When we came to Ely in 1984 there were only about 30 people who came to church on a Sunday. Now there are over 100 and they are looking at going into a serious building project. Also I remember them asking Leroy to make a commitment to stay for three years. That stretched to 15 years so that was not a problem.

I sang in the choir at our church this morning. I was needed as even with me there were only three sopranos. The director also joined us some or all of the time. Word has it that in the past the sopranos were the most numerous. Now we are outnumbered by every other voice even when we are all in attendance. After church we went and sang in the hospital to one of the congregation members. I was happy that it was in this hospital because I could easily walk home.

Because of the warmer weather earlier and the rain the sidewalks were mostly clear of snow. However, iced moved in. Some places it stretched for about five feet or more. I was happy that the temperatures were low enough to have dry rather than wet slippery ice. I did pull out my old lady walk, but I never slipped or felt unsafe.

This evening we will go to church for a meal and meeting. I am happy that Leroy will be able to carry the salad. Surely he will volunteer to take the load for the poor helpless female?

I am happy to know that I will walk four miles today. It does not seem like much of a chore when each mile is done by itself with a rest in between. I love destination walking.

Paula

Predictions

Hello,

Predictions are not always the way things turn out. Even though I feel that the weather predictions are much closer than they used to be it is not always clear what will really happen. We got almost no snow. I was not out so I do not know if there was much freezing rain, but I suspect it was not too bad. Certainly the wind came close to being as fierce as predicted, but we were snug in our home and mostly ignored it.

Leroy has decided not to go to the interview at the church in Wisconsin. For some reason he was not feeling right or good about it. The pastor commented that he did not think Leroy should pursue it since he seemed to have such unease about it. Leroy felt guilty making the call canceling it, but he certainly seems lighter today, so I guess it was not to be. So much for my prediction about our future.

Leroy will be helping out the church here when one of the pastors has surgery. He is looking forward to doing that. It will start in the middle of March and include some or all of April. Mostly it will involve making nursing home visits as well as calling on shut-ins.

I have been thinking about moving my plants and it is a bit overwhelming. I cannot bear to think of parting with them, but to move all is more than will fit in one car. We could use a van from time to time.

When we left Ely, I did sell a number of my plants and I could do that again as somehow I seem to collect more as time goes on. Plants know a welcome place when they see it. It appears that this year my amaryllis will not bloom. I am sad about that, however the poinsettias are providing plenty of color to my life.

Paula

Each Day is Different

Hello,

When he got out of bed, Leroy commented I don’t even know what I am going to talk about with the pastor since I feel better today. He had had a good sleep, contemplated his navel or whatever his source of contemplation is and gotten his feelings organized.

There had been dire predictions of a blizzard so I was not sure if I would be able to get to work, but other than a great wetness, it all looked good. At first I was looking forward to staying home, but I enjoyed myself at my little yoga session so all was good. Being at work was a pleasure.

I was all set to come home early if anything developed. Well we did have thunder, and the lightening must have been there although I did not see it, pouring rain, and hail larger than peas, but smaller than grapes. Those were developments, but not enough to cause me to leave early. Freezing rain is the sure mover.

Luckily the temperature stayed high so I went home with no trouble at the regular time. What a gift!

Leroy reported that he had a good talk with the pastor and he feels much better now. For the moment we are still in the “wait and see” mode, but it is not clouded with fear and doubt. It will all come to the right end or at least something that we can live with. We both want to contribute to the life around us. There will be the right place for us.

Besides that Leroy fixed a picture frame that was sagging. I had taken it back to the store knowing that they would not give me my money back because I had no proof of purchase. The young woman who worked there was able to tell us how to fix it. Apparently we had not followed the directions closely enough when putting on the hooks. We put one in the middle of the top and we should have put on the two hooks out to the side of the picture. It looks great now.

Paula

Dumb Actions

Hello,

I started off the day doing a dumb thing, do you suppose there will be more to come? The humidifier looked as if it were crocked to me so I gently lifted one side and fiddled with the loose wheel on that side. For some reason I forgot all about water running out of the container. When done there was quite a big water area on the carpet. I did soak it up hoping that it had not run through to the ceiling below. Where was my reasoning power?

I did get quite a lot of work done at work yesterday. Part of the reason for that was that three of us were there. Two of us could not work the day before so we came when the opportunity presented itself. I am a bit concerned that I might not go to work tomorrow as we are to have rain that really might be more like ice. The temperatures are predicted to be in that unsure area between snow and rain.

Leroy will not have to go to work again this week, but he will be working on his sermon and stewing about job possibilities. He is to have an interview in a small two church parish in Wisconsin on the 9^th of March. The trouble now is that he has become more excited about a small church in western Colorado. However, the one in Colorado is not so far along in the call process. And maybe if he meets with them he would not be so excited either. What if he were to reject the Wisconsin job and the Colorado one does not materialize? Job searching is not always a well marked road. Leroy does not want to make a “dumb” mistake. I cannot help him in this process; instead he is going to visit with his pastor about the subject. How amazing that he has a pastor to visit with. Usually he just digs holes of despair on his own.

Paula

Guilt and Relaxation

Hello,

By the end of the day I think it would have be quite fine to drive to work yesterday, but it was difficult to commit to that since I had a diminished number of hours left by the time the snow stopped. I had felt that it would be worse to drive out in the country, but I just talked to someone who told me that it was worse in the city and the highway had clear pavement. I hate to think about it, but my boss probably worked a 12 hour day since she is the only one who lives in town. That is where guilt steps in.

On the other hand, Leroy and I spent some time watching the end of the Downton Abby season. That was good because it needed to be returned today and we could not renew it as others had it on hold.

Both of us did a bit of reading and a bit of shoveling. So it was a good day overall.

Today I am enjoying the poinsettias with the sun lighting them up with a spotlight. Also feel a tiny bit of guilt since I have gotten such beauty free. However, I think if they had been left in the church they would be in the compost pile. Not a bad place for them, but there is still joy to be had.

One of our neighbors had made a narrow path in the snow with his shovel all the way to the end of the block going past three other houses. I thought that was quite generous of him as he is certainly not responsible for any other house except his own. Maybe extremes bring out the good in all. Instead of praying for the good and easy should we pray for the hard and difficult to bring out the best in all of us?

Paula

Home Today

Hello,

It snowed quite a lot here so I stayed home from work. Now I feel a bit guilty because it is nice and sunny with some melting of snow on the streets. I would probably find it find to come home tonight, but it seemed late to go by the time it cleared. I will work tomorrow even though I had planned to be home because I work on Saturday.

Leroy and I shoveled this afternoon. It was nice to be out, but the snow was heavier with the warmer weather and our piles along the sidewalk are getting tall so it takes more effort to hoist the snow over those piles. In the back by the garage we are running out of spots to put the snow. A few days melt would be a good thing. It would also be good if the melt was gradual for those people downstream.

The other day I looked out and saw an animal parked in our fir tree. I could not tell at first that it was not a squirrel. After a bit I could see it was a calico cat. Small birds use this tree a lot for shelter and resting. Do you suppose that cat thought it was a good hunting ground? Because it was so high in the air I am not sure how it would manage to catch anything without falling. The next time I looked the cat was gone.

Our landlord has out a large heated water bowl. It looks like a blue large dog dish. I have seen both cats, squirrels, and birds visit it. I had not thought about all of these creatures wanting water.

This morning, Leroy actually came home from work after being there only about an hour. The museum officially closed. That lucky did not even have to clean the car of snow since he parks in a garage. I do envy him that luxury.

He will be doing some supply preaching so he worked on that sermon.

Paula

Slipping Day

Hello,

It seemed like it would be a regular day with temps in the teens and they were expected to rise to the low twenties. Sounded perfect for the walk to church. It even seemed like skirt weather with tights for a little warmer legs that were also tucked into wool socks, leg warmers, and boots. Those green tights seemed a bit loose. They had not been on a body for some time, maybe a year or two. Surely they would be alright?

After about three blocks the tights needed an upward adjustment which was accomplished by unzipping my coat to the waist, slipping my cool gloveless hand in the waistband of my skirt, feeling around for the top of the tights, and hitching them up as much as I was able while walking slowing trying to see if anyone were looking at what I was doing. Luckily on Sunday morning there is not a lot of traffic, wheeled or otherwise.

I went through that process at least two more times before we got to church where I went to the bathroom and made more serious adjustments. By the end of church I needed another serious adjustment. Leroy and I stayed for the brief meal and longer annual meeting after church. By that time there was again serious slippage. “Why did I wear these things anyway?” I wondered to myself, “the elastic must be gone.”

I told Leroy, “I do not know if I can walk the mile home before they fall down completely.”

“Why don’t you just take them off?” he wondered.

“I thought of that, but I am afraid I will be too cold,” I anxiously replied.

We set off and before we got out of the parking lot I could feel them slithering down slightly. The problem at this time is that there are a lot more people around who could witness my adjustments so I only tried twice in this mile that stretched on forever. We just kept walking and I gave the occasional report. It went something like this: they are in the middle of my hips, they are below my hips, and followed by, the crotch is down by my knees. I tried to walk with a bit wider stance to make it harder for them to fall. It was less than successful. When we got in the back porch I unzipped my coat, pulled up my skirt that came just below my knees and showed Leroy those tights hanging almost to the top of my boots. Luckily my coat was long, hiding any interesting action from the public.

Women’s clothes! Those tights are now history and will not be worn again. Who needs warm legs anyway?

Paula

Fruit Riches

Hello,

I went to a church women’s breakfast this morning, Saturday February 15. We were to bring a dish to share. I made a fruit salad. So now I am reveling in much off season fruit in the house. We have fresh pineapple, grapes, and strawberries in addition to the oranges, apples, and bananas that we have as staples during this season. Personally I thought all this made a nice mixture.

When buying the grapes, it was difficult to find a box that looked good, but I wanted grapes because I know that Leroy is especially fond of them. At the check the person working said, “I cannot sell you these grapes they do not look very good.”

“But I want grapes and they all looked a little odd,” I responded.

I will ring them up, you can pay, leave the cart here by me, and go back to find some better ones,” she said. When I came back she thought my second choice was better, but that she needed to go back and go through the grapes. I have never had such a thing happen before.

Paula

Valentine's Day

Hello,

Leroy and I do not do much for Valentine’s Day. But this year turned out to be a big deal. I went grocery shopping and did a little bit of browsing because I dropped off a box of extras at Goodwill. While there, because there were almost no other customers I decided to see if I could find some skinny jeans that might fit me. I do not like to search for these things, especially if there are a lot of people in the same space. The first pair seemed ok until I drew them up to my hips where they refused to go farther. The second pair went up the required distance, but there was too much material in the waste and hip area. The trouble began when I tried to take them off. My feet are no heavier than the rest of me, but they are long and bony with a high arch. At first tug I could not get the leg opening to slide off my ankle and past my foot. Three tries later I had a vision of me stuck in the fitting room at Goodwill with jeans, too large at the top and too small at the bottom. Who could help me? And how could they help me? Besides I did not like the music that was playing and I wanted to leave. By jamming my finger in the leg opening and pulling down forcefully I managed to get off first one leg and then the other. I didn’t need more jeans anyway!

Leroy did help me carry groceries up the stairs so I only had to make one trip up instead of two.

He had hoped I would come home a bit later because he was almost done cleaning the living room. That was to be my Valentine’s Day gift. I did help him move some things back, but other than that he did it all. I consider it quite a fine gift.

We only have two more rooms to clean; our bedroom and the computer room. We will be done with this deep cleaning task. I have to confess that it has been since we moved in so there were some dust bunnies lurking and growing. In the middle of next month we will have been here for two years.

Paula

Leroy is Busy

Hello,

Leroy is just such an industrious person. He has now cleaned out the front closet and restored everything to its proper place. In the process he found a light that had been needed for the light in one of the bedrooms. We had purchased another set of four to get that going again. Leroy had assured me that he had carefully looked for and not found a replacement light. “Are you becoming one of those people who cannot find their supplies and then purchases more?” I demanded grumpily.

“I hope not,” Leroy meekly replied. I am glad to hear that as I have no desire to have duplication in my life. One set of something is quite enough to drag us down.

Leroy cleaned out and refolded items in his dresser drawers. I have not inspected, but I will say they look better than they did. He found some things there that he can eliminate from his clothes, a too large sweater and a pair of mittens. Inspired by that I found a jacket and a new pair of gloves that are too tight for my fingers.  Hate to give them away, but there is no hope for my fingers to get shorter in a painless manner. One of my sweatshirts was also added to the pile. Wednesday, Leroy is going to volunteer at the museum. Because winter is still here, on the way home he can drop off these winter items at the mission that helps homeless people. It is wonderful to get some more things out of our house. I have a few more items that probably should go, but I have not yet reached the emotional point of parting with them.

Now I should work on my closet and dresser drawers in the next few days, right? While the tossing spirit is in residence! After all we have been here for almost two years and items are clinging to us.

Paula

Ordinary Day

Hello,

What does ordinary mean these days? No special jobs to do, temperatures below zero, and beautiful sunshine on the snow in the trees. Zero and above seem like a heat wave. Adaptability comes to the body, even the old ones. When Leroy was in the seminary and we first lived in MN, there were eleven days in a row that it did not get above zero and that was at the end of February. Could such a thing happen here? Even though Leroy does not feel comfortable riding his bike to work I still see bicycles on the street. Those are hardy, daring people.

Another part of an ordinary day is that I did my exercises. A part of that is reminding me to sit or stand with a tight core and straight body, working seriously for some parts of the day. When did I get to be such a slouch?

I just saw another bicycle go by. The temp, in spite of the sun, is still at -8, better than the -15 with which the day started. Go bicycles go!

Leroy will be home tomorrow. I am considering making him a “to do” list so he will not be bored. Do you think he would like that gift?

He has not yet watched his movies and I gather some time will be taken up with that because he knows that I will not especially appreciate them.

Paula

Vanity, Rules?

Hello,

We walked to church with no wind, or not much and the temp right around zero or three above depending on the source of information. I did not want my hair to be extremely flattened so I wore my puffy hat that is not quite so good at the warming job. By the time we got to church my cheeks and the rest of the front of my face where quite ready to step inside.

Going home no such restrictions applied consequently I was much more comfortable with my hooded neck warmer. Beside, the sun was out and the temperature had surely risen. I am grateful for coats with hoods. I have given mine plenty of use this winter. I don’t even like to purchase a jacket without a hood as I never know when I might feel the need for a little something more. With the hood attached I am always prepared.

I cook frequently without a recipe especially when making bean soup. The batch I made yesterday was delicious. Spices or flavorings were: bay leaves, a half stick of cinnamon, cumin, basil, garlic, and onion. I cannot duplicate it because except for the bay leaves and the cinnamon, I have no idea how much I put in. Leroy too thought it was great. At least we will enjoy it a half week.

For dessert there was cranberry gingerbread topped with plain yogurt and unsweetened homemade applesauce. It was also quite good. Sometimes the meals come together and sometimes not.

Paula

Life is the same

Hello,

I cannot remember if I told you, but Leroy had another interview with yet one more Bishop. This one is for the Rocky Mountain Synod. He seemed to be quite fine with Leroy and is submitting his name to a congregation there in far western Colorado. So far the bishops seem to like Leroy, but he has yet to hear from a congregation. I suspect the age is a problem for them even though Leroy has stated that he would like to work for five more years. That may not seem so long, but some pastors do not even stay that long, so I consider it quite a long time.

Leroy worked today. It might be the last Saturday that he works for some time. His boss does not feel it is right to ask Leroy and the other person whose time has been cut so much to work on Saturday.

I shoveled today. It was a nice day to do that. Temperatures were above zero and the snow was falling softly with almost no wind behind it. I would guess that we got at least two or three inches. This morning I told Leroy he cannot complain about too much snow until it gets to be April. If it is still snowing then that would be the time to complain.

We are noticing that the days are getting longer. Leroy does bemoan the fact that he cannot ride the bike to work. On the one day the temp was high enough, the road surface was too riddled with ice and snow hazards. At least we can still walk.

We walked to a concert at Coe College last night. It was quite cold to be out, but the walk is only ½ mile so it was not a problem. As we were coming home some girls came out of the dorm. They were dressed much differently than we were. No hats, no gloves, and short jackets rather than coats. Is it our age?

Paula

Leroy's Birthday Gift

Hello,

I had Leroy come shopping with me so he could select his own gift. I thought he might like some new slippers because the ones that I bought for him last year fit my foot better. Hence I have been wearing my gift to him. He was unable to find slippers, but he did settle on a couple of action movies. That is good because I am ill equipped to meet such a need. Leroy and I have different taste when it comes to movies. I am hard pressed to say that he would like something when I do not have a clue what is available.

This afternoon on a trip to the grocery store, great cool walk by the way, I got him a pound of Swiss cheese. Now his birthday gift is complete. After looking on line he found some slippers that he thinks might be good. He is not quite ready to take the plunge and get them, one, what will be involved to send them back if they do not fit, and two, they cost more than he usually spends on slippers. They are the brand that he is currently wearing. We found them on a special sale. Sometimes special deals are good and sometimes they spoil us for life.

After I came home from the grocery store, we each had a rice cake with Swiss cheese on it. After all I cannot let him eat all of it. He declared it good, “but Schmeir Brick is even better.” I think that is how you spell that cheese. It is a smelly type that we buy from a cheese factory in Wisconsin. I suppose I could look it up on line and order it. Another possibility would be next summer if we are in the area to take a road trip and get some at the store.

We have both been enjoying the poinsettias. I think, however, that they must have had fruit flies on them as we are now inundated. I have put out the cider vinegar and soap. A few, maybe 50 to 70 have been enticed, but there are still many flying around. Then one of those poinsettias just drooped and dropped several leaves. Do you think nine is too many for me to remember to water all of them? Or did it just give up on life?

Paula

The Drive to Work

Hello,

On Thursday mornings I do yoga at 8:00 am. So I get on the road at 7:30 so I can set up and have the door open for the participants.

I went up the ramp to get on the interstate and noticed that traffic was moving slowly, much slower than usual. I moved into the lane with some hesitation. I could stay in the lane that I use to come on and just get off at the next exit, meander through town, and go to work the back way. After a bit of consideration I did move back over to the exit lane, but decided that traffic was still moving and it would surely go faster later so I speeded up a little to get ahead of some cars where there was a bit more space. Are the other drivers thinking that I just used that ploy to get ahead of others? Before the next exit I noticed that traffic in the oncoming lanes was stopped. I could see flashing lights from emergency vehicles on both sides. A couple cars ahead of me moved into another long exit lane again I thought that might be my best move so I followed. I had not been there long when I noticed that traffic going my direction was speeding up a little. I once again made that move to get ahead of some others as the cars next to me were packed together. Now I have moved forward quite a bit, hoping that no one is cursing me as someone who budges in line.

It was not long after this that I saw the tow truck gathering up a dented truck. After that we seemed to be in the clear and it was business as usual, just a bit slower. Frost was visible on the road surface so perhaps all decided to respect that.

All the yoga people had gotten there before me, but I still managed to get set up and ready without starting very late.

Later in the day I learned that there were accidents on both sides of the road on those notorious curves. I was fortunate to have gotten through in a timely manner.

Paula

More About Those Napkins

Hello,

Last May Sophia and Logan came to visit and I briefly thought about finishing sewing names on napkins. By working hard I managed to let time go by and the napkins remained an idea. I am diligent!

Brian tells me that he and his children will visit us in March. The napkins put out a plea to complete them. It was so strong that I could not ignore it. I experimented with stitches, asked Leroy’s opinion, and set to work. The first day I completed Logan’s name because it was shorter, by one letter, than Sophia. The next day I took a little time to get started on Sophia. Now I was excited. I had finished two and they looked ok. A few days later I tackled Nora, wondering why all the grandchildren could not have four letters making them just a breeze to do. Then I moved on to Olivia, rested two days, and started on the last two names that win the prize for being long; Natalie and Alexandria. I had now completed this job which would have taken many people just a week or so and not years. What can I say? I am just good.

Now my plan is to do the last two napkins with Leroy’s name and my name. At least they are not the longest names in the world. After that I will put our children and spouses on alternate colored napkins. My plan is to get all of them ready for our family get together in the spring or summer. Do you want to make bets on whether they will be done?

It might depend on our life situation and whether we move soon or not. Course if I move to a place where I do not have a job, I will have more time and no excuses. Oops, that did not work in the past.

Paula

Arts and Crafts, Who Me?

Hello,

Before you ask me to complete any project that might be in the arts and crafts area, read the following.

At some point my mother embroidered her grandchildren’s’, children’s, and my parents names on napkins. She did not really embroider, but just used the sewing machine and made a quite simple stitch doing cursive letters. I do not think it was easy. It seemed to me that everyone liked finding their own napkin when we visited. I thought it would be a great idea to do that now. I had spoken with Jen about it. She too thought it ws a good idea so she got eight nice napkins second hand, after all we would not want to put too much money into this idea. I am not sure how long she held on to these napkins before she realized she was not going to get at this grand scheme. She asked me if I would like to finish the task.

I readily agreed, thinking that I would be able to do this in short order. However, I put them aside and forgot about them. Rather I did not totally forget, but would wonder how to do this so it would not be too hard. This thinking and wondering went on for a year or two or maybe three. Last year before Christmas as I anticipated the visit of Sarah’s and Miriam’s families I thought I should get this task done. Well after discussions with my sister I managed to decide on printing rather than cursive. Actually I never considered cursive for long, it seemed too hard. I cut some paper the size of the napkin and experimented writing the grandchildren’s names in the space. After I felt competent I wrote the names on the napkins in non washable black marker. After all it seemed to me that black behind the stitching would not detract and besides I would be able to see and follow it. Somehow it was getting too close to Christmas and I was feeling stressed so I put all that aside once more to be completed at a calm time.

Paula

Sun Shine

Hello,

The sun shining in the computer room is beautiful as it lights up the two poinsettias sitting there. A bright yellow primrose is also giving its small but best show. The shamrock is not blooming, but it offers wonderful green color. What beauty is mine!

In spite of the cold I have recently taken two good walks. Saturday I just went around a large section of the blocks close to the house. On Sunday we walked the mile to church. On the way we learned that it was two degrees F. The wind was not strong or it was at our backs so even that was a pleasant fifteen minute walk. We do not loiter on the cooler days.

Someone at church asked me if I had made a cake for Leroy. Oops! Forgot! I explained that usually we have pie instead. When I got home I asked Leroy what he wanted. He replied, “Pineapple squares.”

Luckily I had the ingredients for that so it was doable even if I had not made this recipe in some years. That smart guy knew I did not have the ingredients for many pies. It was a recipe that my mother used to make. I, however, did not frost them. We ate it last night because I work from 1pm to 8 pm today and Leroy works from 8 am to 5 pm. Consequently we see little of each other on Mondays and Tuesdays. With Leroy’s more abbreviated work schedule I am not sure how it will all be scheduled. He is thinking that he might work on Monday and Wednesday.

At any rate with all this togetherness we are getting some cleaning done. We did the kitchen Saturday. We managed to keep arguments to one, but it was a good one. Leroy was upset because I “horned” in on his territory. I am going to try to watch that in the future. Even at age 66 I still have more social skills to acquire and put in my pocket. Will I ever learn it all?

Paula