Daily Notes- November 9

                                                    

Riley in the morning.  He's had his walk (8am) and his morning pills plus a hemp oil treat.  I had hoped it would make him want to eat (ha!).  So far, no.  G is reading the paper and eating breakfast to the left of the dog.  My chair is directly behind him.  He likes when all three of us are close together- always has.

All the puddles of rainwater were frozen solid this morning.  Riley was disappointed in not being able to get a drink.  He likes outdoor water much more that indoor water.

I didn't do anything with cloth yesterday.  Finished my book.  Made chicken soup for G and the turmeric broth for myself.  G was very pleased with his soup- mine was tasteless. All those vegetables and no taste at all. Very disappointing.  Next time I might brown the vegetables in some oil and then add the water?  Or not make it again.  Vegan broth is really a waste of time.

I did manage to remove all the outer material from the black walnuts (about 35).  They had blackened and softened and everything came off easier than when they are green.  I wore gloves but my right thumb- used to push on the husk- is rather brown.  Stained.  Due to a hole in the glove.  I have my non-reactive enamel kettle ready to add the walnut husks and water and simmer- I have to add water to cover the "fruit" and simmer on medium low for nearly a day.  Then let sit and cool overnight. Then I will strain thru cheesecloth to make the ink (with added alcohol).  The solids can be used to dye cloth (with added water). I won't be making the quart or so of ink the author of these instructions made.  I just need a small jar.  So there will be plenty of solids and liquid to color cloth. and daughter has given me her little crock pot.  I can use it to do any slow cooker dyeing of cloth.  I read about this method on Graceandmending.  A blog that I don't think is active anymore.

Today I have Washing Machine Pages to write as I have a small load of people clothing and another of dog blankets.  I try to change out Riley's bedding more frequently as he spends much of the day on one or the other of his beds.

I went up into the Magic Attic- the cloth closet-- and found (in the different color way stacks)-  that I had five different colors of the circles (dots) fabric from the last post.  I have a blue, green, orange  and even a black/brown along with the pink you saw a few days ago.  It was fun to find each in the stacks of cloth.  The black/brown was a real treat to find. When I was addicted to buying fabric like some women buy shoes-- If I liked a certain fabric and it came in other colors- I bought them as well.  In this case-- it was a very good thing.

So, today is G's day to go off in the car and I will stay home.  I now understand the need for respite when caring for a loved one (human or animal).  The caregiver just needs a chance to drive or walk away from it and come back refreshed.  I have been making trips to the grocery more often and to the library.  I was supposed to have a coffee date this week- but Riley had that emergency appointment (fever) and I had to cancel.  I am going to email and see if we can reschedule.