New Post for Saturday, May 31st- New Calendar Page Tomorrow.

I am giving up;  I tried to get over to the left side but- nothing is working and I could keep doing the same thing over and over again- expecting a different outcome but...that's the definition of insanity.  And I already know all about that.

Ah...look at that.  I did nothing and it decided to revert to normal operational procedures.

It's raining... a few days later than Tru Green specified in the comments section of my bill...regarding watering in the product they had applied to the yard.  The grass hasn't been mowed.  Those guys have disappeared YET AGAIN.. I'd mow but husband bought a complicated walk behind....he had to start it and then I mowed....I do not know how to start it....and eventually he forgot.......so I hired guys to mow. This is how my life ends....I forget how everything works.  

I was puzzled by the sewing machine a few weeks ago.  Happy that I bought the simplest one they had. On -Off- Forward- Back... I cannot recall how to wind a bobbin but was NEVER any good at it...which is why I buy the black and white pre-wound ones.  Black and white go with everything....sort of.

I had a shower this morning...something I try not to do in the morning- having to do with a drop in blood pressure if I haven't had breakfast.  It's why I have a chair in the shower with me.  But nothing out of ordinary happened and I shampooed my hair and even did a conditioning treatment.  Hair looks exactly the same. Feels the same. Clean or dirty.

Yesterday's book- I have 80 pages to go to finished Shipped by Angie Hockman.  It's the Library copy- I have another copy in my bookcase.  I forgot to pick up my reserved book at the Library yesterday. And it's one I really want to read.

I have a soccer game to watch.  3pm on CBS.  Tracker episode on CBS at 8pm and Hallmark has two additional Love on the Danube episodes..... One of the three long long River Boat Cruise Romances.. Sort of why I am reading Shipped.  Also on a Boat Cruise.  

Thunder....oh my.   Well, that's it for  today.  I don't imagine anything exciting will happen...hopefully the Soccer will be interesting........?

Better Late Than Never. Friday May 30th. Sunshine here in Maine

 Pie.   Sigh....I really would like to bake a Pie.

I think people can be divided by liking Cake or Pie.  My mother always preferred to be making and baking Pie for a  Holiday Dinner.  We never had more than one pie- so I always liked the Quilting Group Potluck Dinners......Many Pies.  I actually LOVED the Quilting Group Potlucks.

Seems there are troubles with the comments part of MY blog.  Either here or with the sender. I offer my email address to whomever has had problems. So far....but actually Dear Readers-- the number of comments I get in a week would be ZERO most weeks.  I do NOT generate conversation.  These days.

The posts are more like Journal Entries.  What I did or didn't do etc.

I forgot to pick up my reserved book at the Library.   Sigh.  I forgot. And the gals at the desk did not remind me.

I also forgot to look at the books on tape (discs)...I was considering listening to a book being read to me while I sewed on my squares.   Now that I am taking the squares down to the sewing room and slicing the edges into even-ness- the finished work looks more "controlled".  More enjoyable and I only sew for the time it takes to add four side strips and then I stop.

That's it for now....I won't worry too much about the comments...hardly any one writes one these days... But the one Reader with comments now has my email address. If any of you need it- just ......well, you can't comment..so I have no idea what to tell you....and I am laughing.

Good Morning- on Thursday, May 29th. Tru Green has been and gone.....the Lawn Mowing Guys have NOT been.......

 I keep being invited to send $100 to Flax and get a random pile of clothing in my size from them in exchange.  All from the way back shelving of the Flax Barn.  I have Flax clothing but not in the regular rotation.....and none of it has been rotating in quite a few YEARS....decades??????  I don't like any of the colors in this pile (the blue looks okay).  I also regularly cycle thru the LLBean clothing from the Employee Store (in MY closet).

I wouldn't mind a few more pairs of the BEAN black knit pull on Capri  pants I love a lot and if they still made the Camp Shirt- Square BOX Shape with two small squares sewn to the top and sides- aka......short sleeves I would love to have a few more XL or XXl.  To wear ALL SUMMMER LONG.  Plain WHITE. NO DARTS.  No Fitted Shape.......that was the updated version.  Awful. Just awful. Not Camp.

Today I have on a lovely blue (so many blue shades are not lovely) stripe shirt- I own two of them- LLBean.  If I had a way of taking photos of myself I would.  I am going to lunch today and wanted to look nice.  

My hair is a bit out of control...hair cut next week.  The curl is trying to overtake my head. I am "naturally curly' when my hair feels like it wants to be.........It has to get to a certain length and then goes a bit wild.   When I let it grow longer- that ends the curl.  The weight straightens it out.

Well, this has been a strange post....and it might be the lack of eating breakfast before typing.  So- Oatmeal, Newspaper Reading, Suduko Puzzle Failures, and Vitamins.....My day begins. Ah, and instant coffee.  My one cup per day......

If you are having trouble commenting here...... use my.... email.... jsuley@comcast.net.  I know...I am opening myself to getting all sorts of trashy mail......I delete just about 99% of what comes in- unread.  Just be aware of that and be clear about WHO you are.

Daily Notes for Wednesday, May 28th. Sunshine here in Maine. 69 degrees at 9am.

 Yesterday's Square.  Not finished as yet...  and crooked.  (something I had not noticed).........but the strips are not being "cut" so. yes, they would be odd sizes.  When tearing strips they do sometimes have one straight side and one uneven CUT side.

I MIGHT pull out the gardening tools and fill the two planters out front and actually plant my annuals in them....get started on SUMMER.  Which ALSO means wrapping them at night and unwrapping them in the morning.  I don't SEE deer like I used to but I am certain they will be visiting if I have edibles out on the front walk.  Everyone likes a free Salad Bar.

My Lunch Buddy and I will be having lunch at the old place (in a new location) tomorrow......I will be having eggplant parm and a gin and tonic. (not driving)... we have had enough of the new restaurant for the time being.  And I can actually get take out as it's just a few steps away from the Library.   If I EVER start driving.......and I am thinking about it..... I only go to a few places and they are mostly next to each other... or just a very short walk.

I was doing the hand sewing on the above cloth while watching season one or two of Bones...before they decided (the directors)  to have the two become romantically involved.  At this point in the series no one is involved with anyone and both are irritated by the other...... I might want to actually go back to reading the BOOKS.......like Will Trent...the books are 100,000 percent BETTER.

I think I might like the shared friendship aspect of the series more than the dead bodies and bones.

I watched 5 minutes of news and am very very sorry I did that.  And we haven't had the Birthday Parade as yet.......gosh...I never thought this sort of crap would happen- or be ALLOWED to happen.

Maybe Two Gin and Tonics with Lunch Tomorrow!!!!!   Sounds like the lawn guys are here.

Tuesday, May 27th. Sunshine and 54 degrees here in Maine. I woke up before it was even 7 AM.

 Different colors. I am trying to take a photo of what I am working on each day- we'll see how long this new thing lasts.  Going looking for matching fabric wasn't part of the plan but....now that the fabric tubs are available.... why not?????  Son helped me get the BLUE tub down off the shelving.  Really dead weight heavy tubs.....too much fabric????????  I found what I was looking for and added two borders yesterday.  More today of a different color- different TUB.

So far the iPhone is co-operating with picture taking and sending.  Or I am. Co-operating with iPhone.

As I find a fabric that will play well with the others....I add strips to the already started items.  I do the sewing by hand so it takes longer....I need things to fill my day.  Hand sewing is nice.

The book I am reading has gotten scary (Linda Howard)...I don't like scary....so I stopped reading. I actually am sort of tired of reading....I know...how could that be true of "book a day" Joanne? But no reading yesterday. Zero. I had a slight flash of something- a book I thought I might read that wasn't scary but....can't recall what it was. Reading Danielle Steel has upset my book reading....I don't like the books but I keep reading them...

I DID find a fabric to use on one OTHER rectangle/square....wow, I had thought I had NONE of that green left..  Now to actually get that going--happiness!!!. I will continue to add strips to the four sides until I feel they are at maximum potential and then I will STOP. At least I hope I know when to stop.   NONE of the squares or rectangles will ever "work" together.  So hopes of a larger finished piece- NOT HAPPENING.  But I am pleased they are no longer potholder sized. Getting past that size is a real victory for me. I am now moving toward placemat size and hope to jump past that as well.  Like rocketing into space with square shapes..

Yes, mismatched squares or rectangles could be sewn into a Modern Crazy Quilt.........but if I wouldn't like looking at it- pretty much anyone else would not like it either (and I like some really weird stuff).I have been known to make things that quilters do NOT enjoy looking at...but this is Maine and they are Traditional Quilters and I am Insane.

But such a Loveable Insanity....No..that's not even close to who I am.  I am Friction. 

I still HAVE NOT made anything with the Rhubarb....but it's safe in the freezer....not going to waste.

addendum to last post

 The green with the circles...undercloth- I go searching my green tub looking for it...Feels  like I had some. Feels like a NEED it...but no there is none.

Daily Notes- Sunshine here in Maine...on May 26th. 57 degrees at 8:30 am. I need to put on my socks. No newspaper Monday.

 Fabric.  Handsewn pieces- one to another.  From a bin of scraps.

Eventually nothing will match anything else and the pieces will be totally random and messy.  The ones tied with a bow- visited the neighbor one street over (with me)....

If my daughter visits I will ask her to pull the green tub down off the shelving unit...too high and way too heavy for me to lift and move....  There has to be some green in the tub I can use.......right now I am using scraps from the scrap bin.  Nothing goes with anything so this could never grow into a "useable" item. I need to search the blue bin as well.

Dark Matter continues to bother me. My son says worrying about is futile.

I am reading Linda Howard's Dying to Please.  It's going where I do not want to go.  And that's when I stop reading.  Move on to recorded British Soccer or French Tennis.  I may have outgrown tennis, Actually gotten bored of it.  The way my single digit daughter explained things to me long ago. Bored of it.

I have some plans for today...which might include making pie crust (spell check wrote a different word twice)..........I have everything I need for the Rhubarb Pie Filling.  Just need to thaw it out.....I found my scribbled recipes (ha) for Microwave Cake in a Cup.  Mix a few tablespoons of assorted things plus an egg and into the microwave and et viola....cake in a cup.  I was working then- at the greenhouse- so ten or more years ago...possibly close to 20.   I was happy then....hard to believe.

My desktop calendar has only a few narrow spaces unoccupied by art or newspaper headlines.   In a few days it will be June and a blank calendar page....hopefully less rain.  And warmer- I am still wearing wool socks and a sweater here at the end of May.  In Maine...But the Sun is shining.  I watched Anderson Cooper last night on 60 minutes...Roman Emperors.   Yes, it sounded very familiar.

Semi sunshine and cooler Sunday....59 degrees. Watch Open Wheel racing from Monti Carlo.

 You get to look out the front window.  Birdfeeders, mid lawn garden spot, driveway and cross the road neighbor's roof.  The grass isn't as smooth and green as it has been in previous years... when Tru Green visited the correct house........

I decided to wake up the iphone and use it a bit.   Two photos.

It's cold in the house but perhaps my own fault for NOT having a sweater on....65 degrees.  

I finished the Danielle Steel set in Paris and New York City.  A bit in the country side of England as well. I can see why they might be very popular....escapism.  Room Service.  

Pizza later today....I waited till the race was over and then had my breakfast oatmeal...  I think I am going to find a sweater - I'm cold...  And I leave you on this note...I watched PBS yesterday -Black Holes.  I got the impression we (on Earth) could be sucked into a black hole at any time....no one knows what happens after that.   I feel pretty certain.......we die.

What's On My Mind for Today- Saturday, May 24th. Chilly and very WET here in Maine.

 An image from the internet-- no flowers growing here. Zinnias.

I walked out to get the newspaper.....I woke up before my Son did...that's a first.  Oatmeal was good.  Coffee is bitter but..that's okay.... reading the one Danielle Steel book I got yesterday. Also bitter.

I selected four Bosc Pears for my "Fruit of the Week" and was arranging them on the counter-- like Life Drawing Models.......tempted to do a drawing today if the tv offerings are AS dismal as the weather.

I must be getting "over" whatever......has been bothering me and making me morose.  I went looking for green fabric yesterday- one I remembered....didn't find it.  I found something else and thought- "is this what I remembered and got it wrong???"  I didn't want to use the green I found. Felt "wrong".

I have a feeling that Quilting has used up all the oxygen and will now go into hibernation until it's next re-birth... in ten or twenty years....with new fabric patterns, colors etc.  I might tea dye my colorful stuff and make it darker and well, darker.  Like my mood.   I let go of the wildly colored juvenile stuff..  though I keep finding a riot of red, orange and gold in the storage boxes.......and I am wanting mossy green......

I seem to have a haircut appointment next week....I doubt I need one as my hair is very very short. Still. It seems to have stopped growing.....does that happen as we get closer to 80????  I know my ears have kept growing and are getting very large.

My hands are cold....I need to turn on the house lamps...it's very dark in here....very wet outside. Very still as well...not a breeze to move the leaves.  I need to finish the Danielle Steel and move on to something else.  I doubt my choice of books this week was a success.....More likely "I just don't want to read"...... a new experience for me at 78.   Not wanting to read.  I returned half the books from last week- unread and didn't venture into the bookcase either to try an old favorite........I hope it's a passing fatigue with books... I have always enjoyed reading.....which fills my Life when I have nothing else............

I filled the recycling box on the back porch...we have enough plastic bags.....I got rid of the ones the daily newspaper arrives in....365 of them??????  Or More.  Would be nice if one or two of you wrote me a paragraph of your own news????????  Like a typed conversation?????? 

Daily Notes- Friday May 23rd. Damp and possibly some wind and rain coming our way.

I did some landscaping work yesterday.. Pine .tree pruning (lower branches) to let the nice pink Camelia have the spotlight.  I discovered Lily of the Valley in ABUNDANCE in the abandoned Fenced Vegetable Garden.  A sharp shovel and I'll harvest enough for that front ornamental bed (which is just plain DIRT right now.   The weather is not good for just transplanted annuals so...good thing I didn't do that.

Grocery Shopping....I did buy pears for this week's fruit and I thawed out frozen raspberries to mix into my Honey Yogurt and Bran Buds. Last week's peaches didn't get eaten...My appetite is not great and I hate being forced to eat.....we do NOT have regular meals...he eats what he eats and I....don't. At least with husband I was making him breakfast, soup or sandwiches for late lunch and remembered to make something for myself.

I was up late last night finishing up a book....to be returned today.  I did spend time thinking...not the best thing for me to do....I regularly think about the many many mistakes I made in my lifetime...most that I have significant regret about.  I should just write them down and then dig a hole in the Way Back and bury them or set the papers on fire.  I can't change anything.....I just have to accept the mistakes and do better if an opportunity for change is offered....in the next Life.

The dismal weather does nothing to cheer me up.

I have a bag full of books.....and I have about 26 English Soccer games recorded on the TiVo.  And a bunch of Sherlock off BBC America.  Bones might be on today....I like the older ones.  I miss Law and Order which is rarely if ever on any more....which is why I have the Soccer.

That's all....a dismal day outside and inside....And in my head.
 

Daily Notes for Wednesday May 21st... Cloudiest May in Years. Sadness is cloudy.

Pies

The Pie Fairy hasn't been around dropping off a nice fruit pie..  I might even enjoy the Pie of the Month Club...if I knew of one.  That sent pies to the backwaters of Maine.But the Rhubarb Fairy (my daughter) left me a large bag of tender rhubarb stalks- just picked yesterday.  I'd love to bake a pie. I will trim, wash and chop the stalks and layer them in flat trays and freeze them...then bag them...ready for pie or jam making.

Grass is being cut....blower is removing any cut grass from sidewalks or drive....Sun has come out. Perhaps it happened as I typed the word PIE.  It's glorious.  I love it when the Sun Shines in this forested yard..

My visit to the neighbor one block over was a delight.  We talked about books, husbands-  and how it is nice to not be living with them....had tea and cookies and I admired her lovely framed art on all the walls. she had great artist's work-- a life time collection.

I wish I had purchased paintings and drawings over my very interesting and well traveled Life. I wish my walls were covered in framed ART.  I am tempted to get out the paints and brushes and make one more picture and have it framed.  And then....perhaps another.....etc. 

Sun has now gone.....now it's back.......sliding in and out ...  In the old Days I would be in the back garden tending to the vegetables snd herbs....(now just a weedy mess)......how did everything I loved slip away from me???????  Has it happened to you as you grew older????? 

A Murky Damp Dark Tuesday here in Maine. May 20th. 55 degrees

 We are greening up here- slowly- not like this as yet.

Tru Green arrived this morning.. YES!!!!! ..and we got the Lawn Treatment (no charge) that was applied to the next door neighbor's yard (also no charge as I refused to pay for it) weeks ago.  It might have rained overnight- it feels very DAMP and Chilly and I am happy that I waited and didn't put my happy little annuals out into their new containers. Too cold.  The furnace just kicked in to get the inside of the house up to 64,  My Winter Setting..... at the end of May.  Weather is certainly ODD this year in Maine.

I am going to visit a very nice woman I met at a Christmas Dinner Party this afternoon.  She lives one street over. We both like Cooking and Reading... and drinking tea.  I am expanding my borders..........of friendship. Being less reclusive.....We are going to see what each other likes to read and might eventually exchange books if we do read similar things.

I am reading a Linda Howard book...not the one I thought I had checked out...but one that I do enjoy reading.  Troublemaker.  It was such a surprise when I was reading the first page and thought- oh, I got the wrong book.... and then realized I was actually glad I had gotten this one.  I am going to try and order others from interlibrary loan....

My library got rid of a significant number of Howard books over the years. I am sad about that...my library has gotten rid of so many good books and kept an odd assortment of things that never seem to get checked out.  When I am selecting books I often hear others mumbling that there is nothing they want to read on the shelves. "Someone else" decided what they should and should not read".

This morning I looked in the closet for a fresh pair of LLBean Misfit Twenty Five Cent Pants....All labeled with the same size and all different....I'm wearing the third pair I pulled out of the closet and tried on. Smaller than the pair I had been wearing....same size on the tag-newer looking.  Some of them have the actual size written in black sharpie...and I am only guessing at that.   These fit really nice- the pair I put in the laundry basket were extremely loose and most of the corduroy surface has been worn off.  The rear end was worn smooth and thin....soon to become donor repair patches for the others.

I am CERTAIN that I will be wearing these 25 cent pants on the day I die. Hopefully, the smaller sizes. I believe old women shrink- thought I haven't AS YET.  I have pants labelled from 14 to 22.  Short, Regular and Tall. No label is correct.  My closet is a regular Fun House.   

Monday..Monday. Clouds and Rain? Here in Maine.

A Biscuit Day

If I had any biscuits...but I do not.

I applied some new to ME product other than my hair- very aromatic....I'll need to wash it out of my hair after hitting print.

I went into the sewing room and dug thru a few tubs of cloth (sorted by color) and couldn't find what I was looking for....the blue tub was on a high shelf..and way too heavy a lift, hold, turn, drop  for my right arm socket......so I gave up..  I started a book but gave up soon after.   Susan Wiggs- the Oysterville Sewing Guild.  Dark things happening.....drugs, death, lies etc.  

Some morning headlines- 

Sorry I have to wash this crap out of hair.....

 

Daily Notes on a Sunny Sunday in Maine...not warm...but sunny. May 18th. Repeated Image????

   

Sunshine....Open Wheel Racing to begin the day....Oatmeal, coffee and now a big mug of Sweet Tea. Pizza later.  I slept well enough.....to not recall not sleeping.

Not sure of the temp outside...66 degrees.  We got plenty of rain so the grass is happy......

I feel COLD...like my internal thermostat has failed yet again- my fingers are very cold.  I have on two layers and wool socks.  Thermal shirt and wool sweater.  My mother said I was born with ice cold hands and feet....so this is my normal reset?????.  Even in warm weather.

I often consider taking pictures of stuff- just normal junk around here and putting them on the post...like my cup- which ever one it is.....or my bowl of oatmeal....which always looks exactly the same. A lot of things here in my Life look exactly the same. So perhaps tomorrow you get an image of my Morning Mug of Coffee or the first afternoon cup of Tea.  Today a repeat of this hummingbird bird.

I started a book yesterday....about a bookstore- you know I like them,....BUT I didn't like this one. Too many words to say something.....I got tired of it.  I didn't need more evidence she was wearing old boots and the floor was wet. Or the shelves in the old Book Store were too full.  I'm sure it is a great book but...not for me.This book store was in Perth.  Australian book.

I watched a bunch of weird stuff on  tv before I decided to just haul myself off the bed.  I had finished Fast Women.  And nothing I selected from the book shelves....none of it was enticing.   For me, a book has to be "of the moment"......of the moment I want to read it.  Otherwise- I take it back unread.

I sorted cloth and tucked the pieces of scraps- I am working with scraps right now- into sandwich bags. So I don't have to restart every time I want to start a seam or two.  I still can't find any of that green stripe....so I have to make the fourth side a different green stripe and it's bothering the Virgo in me. I can usually go off the color chart wheel easily enough...but something- I don't know what-- is saying NO this time. And I can't seem to be able to maneuver around the problem.  It's Me not the Cloth.......

So no hand sewing and not finding a book I want to read.......gonna be a long long day.......... Soccer  (plenty in the recored file) but wish there was some Law and Order.... (only on Monday's right now) And it's NOT Monday...

 

Daily Notes- Saturday May 17th. Damp Cloudy and wet here in Maine....the grass seed might like the weather?????

 Occasionally, out front in the ornamental planters- I will see a hummingbird.  Rare here where I live. A Cardinal couple (male and female) is feeding at the bird feeders on the front porch.  Chipmonks and squirrels (rodents) are eating seeds off the porch floor.

I watched MSNBC yesterday for about 40 minutes....that was enough.  Then I watched Soccer. then I went searching for another scrap of a green stripe fabric....ZERO.  I have three sides done and need one more scrappy strip of 5 inches.   None.  The strips are torn so had to come off of a large piece.

I am reading Fast Women by Crusie.  We are on a very very fast roll to the ending.  I have read this book many times and wonder why it isn't in my bookcase.   They order Chinese often and eat it in bed.  I am really wanting some potstickers.... used to make them myself years and years ago...mine were fantastic. I used the processor to make the chicken into a thick paste....made the dough...rolled... cut... filled.. folded. Then in the pan to steam for a while then the lid off to get crispy on one side.  Never had any left over.. Made my own dipping sauce as well.   

Had one bill to pay.

I've recorded the morning cooking shows on PBS.  I like watching them but they don't actually hold my interest the way they did when I cooked.  The morning quilting show bored me these days as well.

I will have to choose another green fabric for that fourth side....not happy about it.  I have made two new squares in the past few days...hand sewing...the seams.  None of them match any of the others. All are one-offs.  From the handfuls of fabric scraps.  I like each and every one of them...quite a lot.

I am rolling the extra Swiss and baked ham up minus the flour tortilla.  Eating that for lunch.  Having coffee and oatmeal for breakfast.  I have yogurt and fruit if I want that later in the day.  One pear left and two peaches.   I have a small amount of my Mother's Day ice cream every other day.  What I really crave is French Fries. No reason......

FLAX is having a Mystery Pile of clothing in size of your choice for $100.  I looked at the clothes on their site....will NOT be buying the Mystery Pile.  I might have a few pieces in the closet....I could pull them out.  Nice colors.  Not sure what I weighed when I bought the stuff....my weight has been all over the place in the past 20 years.  I'd love to be able to wear the smaller things.  

I am considering a Gin and Tonic...  later today. And possibly frying up a pan of frozen (freezer) pot stickers. Even though my daughter threw out all the bottles of things I would use to make a dipping sauce. Or NOT.  Making anything.

Daily Notes--Friday, May 16th. Cloudy with a good chance for rain.

 Chickpea Noodle Soup.

Looks interesting.

I might need to change into something warmer for the Library Grocery Store Trip.  Weather fluctuates between Damp and Cold and Warm but No Sunshine.  No sun right now...

I might need a jacket or something warmer to wear for the Library Grocery which is in the regular Friday Rotation.  I also need to start thinking about items to buy for the week- what am I going to EAT????? 

I have almost finished off last week's tub of Vanilla Yogurt.   I don't want more of that.  I thought last week was going to be WARMER. This is Maine...and on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean.  Not Warmer.  It's very cloudy and chilly today- no sunshine.  I'm okay with it as I filled in hole and sprinkled grass seed yesterday.

Daily Notes for Thursday, May 15th. Lots of sunshine here in Maine...64 degrees. Waiting for Tru Green..

 While watching Bones, Season Two......I gathered a few scraps and made some squares... this was number three.  Needs one more border...or more and will become something larger. I like the yellow green cloth but will look to see if I have a patterned piece in that color...before sewing.  All done by hand. right side strip needs a trim.

I could finish faster with the machine but then...what would I do?  Hand sewing fills more space. I don't have a book to read.....how that happened is a mystery to me.  I do recall having a British baking show book...  have read it several times- I think I could read it again-----after Tru Green...

And I have very very large storage tubs (multiple- perhaps a dozen) of colorful cloth in the sewing room sorted by color... and it's fun to go looking every so often......and Find Something Wonderful. I think a photo tomorrow will entertain all of you.....of the shelving etc.

At some point I might just sew all these various squares together to make a Very Crazy Quilt sort of thing. Before this- I made them into Potholders as gifts....but everyone I know has a couple already and no one USES them.  Still unwashed...   I could also make placemats.  Mine are getting dull and grungy.

Son found a full box of plastic gloves in the Jeep.  Husband.  No clue as to why but then....even if we did figure it out- wouldn't make sense.  I might keep them...or they will go off to Goodwill. Would be fun to fill with helium and have waving on the porch or mailbox.......the thought of that makes me laugh.

Hand Balloons.

On that note of Whimsey..... BONES Season Two.  Yesterday it was Christmas Repeats. Dead Santa.

Daily Notes- Wednesday, May 14th. Sunshine and 60 degrees.

 I think this image is from the Library..  on one day a month they have an "exchange" of items like this. I was going to go but learned it's more of a chat group for old men. I don't need to be doing that.

Soccer today.  At 2:30.  And as a coming attraction PBS has something about Bees.  WOW.

I did a load of wash yesterday and folded and put the clean stuff away (two check marks in the well done box).  The collar on one of my work shirts (men's) was frayed into a hole so I mended that....Used the backside of a strip of blue cloth...not an exact match but good enough. Shirt also has some stains on it...the title "work shirt" is fitting.

I had planned to hand sew another square.....but mended instead. While watching Bones season two.

Work is being done at the end of the street (lunch buddy house). Getting a new roof.  All the guys working speak Spanish and no English.  This is Maine.  They traveled a long way to a very strange State for work. I think most workers working here in Maine are from "somewhere else" as Maine is packed tight with Old  White People.  The young ones leave as soon as they can. I can hear them screaming RUN!!!!! Because they can't AFFORD to LIVE Here. The Old Ones are on waiting lists for Senior Living being taken care of by people from "somewhere else" who might speak English. At least that is how it looks to me......

I HATED living here for the first 10 to 20 years......now I like it...  or I have been lulled into thinking I like it.  That's some sort of thing that happens.........mind controlling so they retain tax payers.

Lunch Buddy told me about squirrels that lived in HER Chimney....does NOT end well.  I need to call some chimney people...have a heavy duty screen put on the chimney opening........She didn't have glass doors covering the fireplace-- I do__ 

Daily Notes from Sunny Warm Maine.....Tuesday, May 13th.

 Someday my garden beds will look like this.  Fully loaded with color- but not so much pink......

Life goes on......countdown till we find out if Tru Green finds the right house....two more days. Neighbor is worried about mulch- they haven't measured for it yet and my daughter hasn't started mulch yet on the oceanfront properties she works on.  So I am staying calm...... she is also getting a new roof and having the house painted......ready to sell if they get into an assisted living place.  Waiting List.

Daughter has told me the wait is usually SIX YEARS for the larger two or three bedrooms spaces.......so I'm out of luck on that. Might be easier just to have daily help...at home.

Had some of my Mother's Day ice cream....very very delicious. While watching Bones. On TV.

The garbage and recycling have been picked up.........I used the LARGE recycling container today.

And that's all that has happened....well, I did move all my greeting cards to a drawer so they are more readily available for sending......closer to the stamps and the address book.  Also in a drawer.  Now..to actually have PEOPLE to send the cards to.......add to find the address.

Breakfast....oatmeal, coffee and the newspaper.....get this party started.

Monday May 12th. Sunshine and 61 degrees.

 Art Supplies.....I might color something in the book today.  Been Awhile.

I called to change my hair appointment...for some reason...my hair isn't growing.... doesn't need to be cut. It's like my body is stuck in "idle" and not moving to stop or go anytime soon.

I FINALLY finished reading Flat Share.  It took me so long to read that book- it's like my reading is also stuck in"idle".  Is this what it's like being OLD??????  Have I finally tumbled headfirst into OLD?

I sorted thru a box of things on the unused couch....ribbon.  Why I have so much ribbon is beyond me- and it's the gift ribbon kind not the Baltimore Quilt silk ribbon.  I have that and an unfinished Baltimore small work...lots of silk and layered rose petals.  Made out of silk.  I used to do that sort of thing and actually teach others how to do it.  I had a very interesting Life.....once upon a time.

I noticed greeting cards in the box so after I hit publish I am going to move the cards to the drawer in the dining room...where I have other cards...and if I need to send a card- I will have ones to choose from. 

Now...well, I intend to just close my eyes and NOT nap until I bore myself enough to turn on the tv and watch a soccer game.  British Soccer..   And then perhaps Bones for an episode or two.  And another book.  

Mother's Day was quiet.   I was quiet.  The Sunday Pizza was as wonderful as it always is.  I had mine with a large salad.  My intention today is to layer yogurt, Bran Buds and fruit in a glass jar.   Possibly two jars...and then have something to eat when I get hungry.  I purchased this small tray with three kinds of fruit.  Berries.  Red Blue and Black.  I usually enjoy yogurt, bran buds and fruit.

That all....my Life has condensed into nothing much.  I was noticing the cloth strips I collected to sew into squares about 6 inches all around when finished..  I enjoy doing that when I am not reading.

I also decided this morning to put any socks I find in the sock basket, with holes in them,...into the garbage can.  I have no interest in mending them......I have dozens of pairs of socks.... The basket is tall and full to the top...I have husband's socks in there as well as mine.  And if only one has a hole- I will let it be single till I find another single...put them together...No one pays any attention to older women. No one will notice.

A fresh thought...I will get those socks out of the garbage can- they are nice ones- and make fingerless hand warmers out of them....for my hands when I read books this Winter.  Great Plan...

I'm Not DEAD Or SICK just Forgetful.......Sunday, May 11th

 I wish I could say I got this for Mother's Day....No... I got a nice tub of the "frozen custard" I like  ... I haven't had any as yet...  But this hunk of cinnamon whatever sure looks delicious. I need to start baking something once a month.  

Discovered my daughter has "Butt Loads" of Lily of the Valley growing along the cement basement line of her house (her words).  She doesn't like the stuff......I have a sharp shovel.........No need to buy anything. Happy Joanne Day.

Still trying to finish reading the Flat Share.  I put it down to watch Soccer and put it down to make Sunday Pizza and put it down when I realized I hadn't posted today.  

My lawn looks amazingly smooth and very green... Atmospheric RAIN and the Mowing Crew.  This happens after weeks of rain.  Next week I hopefully will get fertilizer/weed treatment unless the Tru Green man does someone else's lawn on my street..... AGAIN. Then I might have to ....I don't want to do it myself...so I guess I'll have to call and rant and whatever.... I Should get FREE Lawn Treatments like the Mistake Houses get...I've never been a Mistake House.  It would be a Horrible Mistake not a good one if it was my house.  That's how it rolls with my LUCK.

Well, I'm tired, it's late.... the Soccer was good but not great....the Sunday Pizza WAS great as usual.  I didn't have an open bottle of red wine.....but I could have made a nice Gin and Tonic minus the lime wedges. 

But Minus the Lime Wedges ????  No, just flat out NO.  I always ask for extra lime wedges.

I think my daughter bought me my favorite jelly filled  super large Shortbread Cookies.... Smile. She had to go to Urgent Care to have a tick removed from the back of her shoulder.  Lives alone so....and nurse gave her Doxy.....so full service covered by her insurance.  Tiny deer tick...worst kind. Glad she noticed it.

Daily Notes- Friday May 9th. Clouds and a good possibility for Rain. No need for the furnace. Spring Warmth.

 Someone else's kitchen in possibly the South of France?   I've deleted the image from the picture file so this will be the last time I use it.  At some point I will start taking pictures myself and using them at the top of the post.  I can't recall why or when I stopped.  I might just take a picture every day of my socks and shoes. I have a huge basket FULL of socks. And usually wear the same three or four pairs of socks over and over.  I like the small table and two chairs...I imagine tea and cake and a nice conversation with a friend.....in my next Life....hopefully in that next Life I will be friendlier..in person.

No soccer game yesterday on CBS and I know one was played- I saw it on the sports page....

So far, I like the new American Pope.  Surprised by the choice.  Not surprised that FOX thinks he was chosen to support Trump.   That's some Kool Aid they are sipping.

Reading and nearly finished with The Bright Side of Disaster by Katherine Center.  I've read it before but still a good read.  I'm closing in on the end.  I still like the Lost Husband best of all... well actually I like the Bodyguard best of all Center's books.  The Rom-Commers is quite good also...I bought a hard cover copy for the bookcase.  Cried at the end.

The grocery shopping list has about five or six items on it.....can't see how we will get thru a week. I need to add things I am almost out of---oatmeal for sure.  Flour tortillas would be nice and some cheese.  Ham. I'm using up the sample sized toothpaste the dentist gives me.

I'm thinking about changing the date of my next haircut...my hair hasn't really grown much....and she cut it super short....will probably make her testy.........might even hang up on me.  Control Issues.

It looks a bit damp outside.  The Big Oak Trees are starting to produce leaves.  The squirrels are trying to find items to furnish their nests.  I think several are living in my chimney.  It's not great but I will Never be having a fire in that chimney so........the glass doors will keep them in the chimney .....not in the house.

I might buy bananas.  They were causing me to have acid reflux.  And now that I don't eat them...I no longer have reflux... I have no idea why.  I still have a few pears from last week's fruit purchase. I don't want apples.  I don't like grapes.......Cherries are way too expensive. I will possibly just stand in the fruit section and not choose any of it.  I'll let you know tomorrow... I must eat breakfast....NOW.

Daily Notes on a Damp Cloudy Day In May--- We are expecting RAIN.

 I've forgotten their name yet again.   Wow....I must be really worse off than I think I am.

I have European Tournament Soccer at 3pm on CBS. (Lilies of the Valley?).  I wrote checks for two bills.  There was no mail in the box- so mail could have come already- I'll wait and before soccer go get the two envelopes out of the mailbox until tomorrow. I washed dishes that were in the sink...Son has gone out to eat lunch.

I ate quite a bit yesterday...nothing that looked like a meal...just something and then something else.  I've forgotten what it's like to sit at the table with someone and eat together.... all that is left today is some bread to toast and enough ham and cheese for a flour tortilla roll up.   I'm trying to stay away from the cookies and the two ice cream bars in the freezer.   

I have one of those weird recipes that arrive in my computer mailbox...I now recall how to turn the oven on- so I could BAKE something...but it all seems like "too much trouble".  This is what old people are like.  Not wanting to do anything more complicated than microwave cooking- or toaster oven. Or crackers in a box.  No wonder we end up in a Care Facility...........

Nice chat with cross the street neighbor...HE DID SEE Tru Green drive NEXT DOOR and do the treatment....so, a witness.  His wife was weeding and sitting on what looked like a padded tall skateboard with four nice sized wheels.....saves on the knees....but not sure I could get up OFF something that rolled. My center of gravity is not where it should be, in my humble opinion...and never has been. All of my 76 years I have fallen down QUITE a LOT. And it is always a surprise.

I was thinking about college this morning (trying not to have to get out of bed too early)   (I fell down a lot in college). and typing....realized I could have typed....could have gone to the college book store and got a fresh ribbon and some carbon paper and regular typing paper for the typewriter I OWNED.  I could have practiced and actually made spending money typing papers.....this is the sort of thing that occupies my BRAIN.  Re-writing my LIFE.  So many possible course corrections and improvements.  Easily done. If I just could think straight back then...but I couldn't. Not then.  

I know myself- I would also have corrected and improved the papers I typed for other people.  It's how my brain is wired...... which is annoying to every one around me.

But none of that happened--THEN--...it did happen later in Life.  When I typed and proofed papers for publications. Somehow, I knew how to type- which has always mystified me. Previous Life????

Any Way.....Son has gone out for lunch.  I have just polished off my large bowl of oatmeal and am here typing and then on the couch reading....Get Lucky or Bright Side of Disaster.  Kathleen Center.  Yesterday was The Lost Husband. Same author....tomorrow is Library and I haven't ordered any thing.  Sigh. Which usually translates to having NOTHING to read.  But I can raid the Bookcase here at home.  Fall Back.

Or the two Linda Howard Books I like reading.... I am on the cusp of another "Austen" read alike marathon.....I have what I need here in the bookcase.  I wrote Lilies of the Valley on the desk calendar for tomorrow when I forget yet again.  Well, perhaps Bones is on BBC right now.  First Season.  Getting to know the characters...... and then European Soccer Championship Game. At 3pm.

Daily notes- Wednesday, May 7th. Cloudy but not actually raining-----yet. 58 degrees. Still too wet for grass cutting.

 I wish I had some biscuits....but then I would eat them all.....I don't need to be doing that. when I get bored or anxious I tend to eat mindlessly.....anything I can find....

It's a bit chilly here in the house....but was uncomfortably warm last night...so warm I had to get out of bed and turn down the furnace regulators. And that's saying something as I have been running cold for the past 18 months.  Wearing a thermal shirt, a sweater, corduroy pants and wool socks.  Still chilled. I need a scarf around my neck.

I found a recipe for Lemon Raspberry Cornmeal Cake in the King Arthur daily email.  I read the comments first......Not enough fruit etc etc..............but the notes did mention : double the berries and I could even sub in rhubarb which I have.  I also have raspberries... I have No Lemon. But I do have this stuff I can add to water to make lemon water.....good enough.  That's my New Motto- good enough.

Son showed me how to turn on the oven and also showed me the chart of how to use the new stove...it was right there (on the counter next to the stove) but..like anything you see several times a day for a year- you hardly notice it....I think the instructions for the new microwave are also there....and daughter taped the ones for the new Air Fryer to the machine itself....if I was ever to use it.  I usually like to know what is going to "happen" before I just use something new.  Like an air fryer...... supposed to make frozen things crispy.  And hot.

All the back yard daffodils have dried up... My JOB now is to go into the bed and snap the dead parts off. Without tripping and falling down. sigh.

I watched European Soccer on CBS last evening.... there's another game today...a championship or something. Excellent playing....I am looking forward to today's game.  No commercials.  There was a great deal of singing from the crowd.....I like that part especially.

Ah, some Sunshine!!!!!!!

Polka Dots on the Mailbox

 I do it so the Lawn Service- Tru Green ACUALLY services MY LAWN and not the neighbor's lawns.

I got an invoice in the mail for Lawn Services and- not here...So I said the mailbox has polka dots.. then went out and added them- On THE NEW MAILBOX-  (which did not have them)

I'll eventually paint them on when I find my white acrylic paint....

Daily Notes from a Very Very Dark and Wet MAINE...... Instant Decaf today......yeah!!!

 Nothing much happening here...watching the grass and weeds grow... in the RAIN

The squirrels got into the bucket holding the netting I use to protect my ornamentals in the Summer Planters.  I got several of the lower ones and son got the ones from top of the ornamental cherry. I even found some over past the driveway.....nesting materials???? I topped the bucket with a brick.  Make them work harder to get the netting..... 

An "Omega Block" weather pattern continues to dump rain on Maine.  Flooding is beginning to be a problem.  My Grass is getting rather tall and clumpy....some spots taller than others. No lawn care when the grass is sopping wet.  My Lawn Guy sent an email.  

I entertained myself by watching National Geographic - Tombs and Mummies.  Lots of sand.  No rain.

I lost track of DAYS and had to remind myself it's only Tuesday.  Seemed like Thursday.

I decorated my desk calendar with black polka dots.   Turned up the thermostat- get some heat in here. I pasted white polka dots on my mailbox- couldn't find white paint.....probably up in the Attic.

I tried for a few days to recall the name of the perennial that loves cement....has tiny white bell shaped flowers.  All my books went to Goodwill....I would like more of those little plants to go along the sidewalk in front of the porch.  As long as they are contained by the cement- they can't infest other spaces.  I am stuck on Lily of the Valley.  I need to look for an image.  I recall very clearly where they existed in the Perennial Yard... Back left corner.  Eventually they cover the entire area where planted.  Okay with me.

The older I get the less I care about controlling my landscape plants........so...that's it. 

Daily Notes- Monday May 5th. Clouds and a very good possibility for Rain.

Chopped Salad.

Ever since the overnight upgrade I have been having trouble getting things in the right places. 

Today is No Newspaper Monday.  Since I had no paper to occupy myself I dialed Tru Green. To mention a bill and no lawn service- yet again.

Now I need to find the white paint to add polka dots to the mailbox.....

Daily Notes on a Dark Wet Sunday Morning..... in May.

 I had blueberry bushes in the back garden for years....Had to cover them in netting so I got some berries before the birds ate them ALL.  One time, enough to make a batch of Blueberry Jam. Was so GOOD.

MY book (started yesterday) is The Pumpkin Spice Cafe.  New England location.  A city woman has arrived to take care of her aunt's cafe until the aunt returns.  It's one of "those" quirky towns only found in romance books.  Everyone in everyone else's  business.   So it's not Maine.  Cause here in Maine no one cares about other people's business.  At all. (laughing)

Well, I am hungry so I need to get my oatmeal in the microwave and heat up some water for tea....at some point today my daughter will bring over the jar of instant coffee she got at the Health Food Store. She is very very busy at work (landscaping) and very tired when she gets home....and like her mother...can't get herself into a long hot shower to remove all the sand and dirt fast enough......that was me after arriving home from the Greenhouse Job.  Covered in sandy grit.  So...I know how tired and dirty she is when she finally gets home..  

And a nice cup of sweet tea is fine....with me. today.  Coffee tomorrow.

Open Wheel Racing from Miami - wonder if it's still raining there?

My Lunch Buddy took her husband up north to the Very Best Greenhouses and they filled the trunk with flowers.   Which are now on her back deck in the rain.  Mine are on the sunporch.  When the Sun shines and heats the porch up- I turn on the ceiling fan.... so not happening today..

Saturday, May 3rd. Sunshine and Cold Feet. I left today's wool socks somewhere...but not on my feet!!!!

 Roasted Potatoes ----- lovely.  but none in my house.

I have two small potatoes left and will be using them for my next pot of SOUP.   Which I will get started on after I eat breakfast, put on my socks and read the newspaper.  Oh, and take my pills.  Vitamin and Statin.

Yesterday was a Very Bad Day.....my son was very concerned about my mental health.  I was, also. My book selection only made things worse.  I will try for a very much More lighthearted book for today... and we found my coloring work book so I will be doing that today as a Happiness Project.

Sometimes spending the late morning and afternoon with an old friend is NOT a great idea.....

So, I have to line up a few things to do when I am feeling depression creeping up on me...a few happy things.   And not forgetting my water intake.   And eating real food......  And not reading books with drug addicts and such.  I wasn't expecting that from Danielle Steel. 

Anyway, I'm here and I'm not crying so that's a check mark in the Win Column for today.  I have the heat setting moved up- it may be sunny but the house is cold.... I also need to check on my annual plants out on the Sun porch... I have to monitor their soil moisture as well when the Sun shines.  Mine, too.

Anyway, I made it thru yesterday, I'm still here.....thinking more positive thoughts than yesterday.  I slept well and now I am going to make myself some breakfast and a nice heavily sweetened cup of tea and get on with things...PBS Cooking Shows etc. and few of the 25 British Soccer Games I have recorded on the TiVo.  And my coloring pages....happy things.......

Daily Notes for Friday May 2nd. So far...... it's dark and chilly here in Maine. Where are my socks????

 This tiny chipmunk was in my feed this morning....I think he or she is adorable.  I do NOT find the real LIVE ones adorable.  And we have plenty around the yard.

Yesterday's outing was good.  We started out at the Freeport Thrift Store......my purchase was three Trade Paperback Books....$3 each and they gave no evidence of ever having been read. I had considered a very nice white linen short sleeved blouse covered in shiny gold dots.  Boden.  I recalled that label from decades ago......very very nice fabric and well made. European.  If it had had a collar I might have purchased it...

Unmarriageable by Soniah Kamal- Pride and Prejudice in Pakistan,  Had to buy it.  Second book the Coincidence of Coconut Cake....cover has a picture of the cake sitting on a pile of newspapers.  Amy Reichert.  Three is a copy of the Rosie Project by Graeme Samson.  Bright yellow cover with red print. Have read the book before but now I own a copy......

Today is Grocery Shopping Day....And Library Day when I pick up all those Katherine Center Books. I plan to read the Lost Husband first but--I do often change my mind.   My Library bag is full. to return.

It's cold in the house.

I purchased plants (annuals) for my two containers.. I got a tall plant I had a few years ago that has deep blue flowers...it will center in the large planter by my steps.. I'm going to check out the herbs at the grocery store today.  I want to have a container on the back deck full of herbs this summer.  And some edible flowers.

I might even sit out on the back deck- every day.  One can dream.

We had lunch at the Dinner Type restaurant on Maine Street.  I had a cup of vegetable beef soup and then a BLT.  Potato chips on the side.  It was the best meal I've eaten in quite a while. Since Christmas.

I also learned all about the tall guy wearing what looks like an adult Boy Scout Uniform who washes all the store front windows on Maine Street.  I had thought he was homeless and doing the windows to pick up some cash... My Friend says he is a Town Employee.....................washing the windows...he has one of those buckets on wheels.   I used to roll one of those around the store attached to the greenhouse and mop the floors before we closed.  Clean start to the morning.  I'd actually enjoy washing windows...but I wouldn't wear the green Boy Scout shorts.  Or the Hat....or the Shirt or the Bandana.  I'd also put the water bucket in a wagon with good tires.... proper equipment.  While I watched..... the bucket on wheels got stuck and almost dumped the contents in the guy's boots.  I do not think he is an employee. Of the Town. But...Patty always is Right.

Good Morning...it's Thursday, May First. May Day I think? Sunshine and a bit chilly here in Maine. 50 degrees

 Bright Flowers.

The sun is shining but it feels chilly here in the house.  Patty and I are hitting the road in about 45 minutes....  we haven't done one of these "road trips" in quite a while...so it should be fun.  Just around the area not out of state or anything and we might have lunch.  then I'll be back home.

It feels chilly in the house today....odd.

My neck and shoulder are hurting again and I think (know) it was due to reading a book from cover to cover yesterday.   It was a follow up book to The Bookshop book by Susan Wiggs.  I don't recommend you read it though. ......it was dark and a major part of the book the lead character was in jail.  It wasn't what I expected or wanted...... Sugar and Salt.

The newspaper news has dragged me down and I didn't even feel like trying the Suduko... maybe later. I don't watch any "news" because it's also not "good for me" emotionally.   I have my books but might try to do some coloring in one of my books.......last time I tried I made a mess.  so I gave up.

I haven't felt this depressed since Nixon was President (just prior to being turned out of office) theres's just this heavy feeling of hopelessness.....no one is riding in on a white horse to save us.

Septic Service across the street... and some of the taller shrubs are in bud right now with perhaps 25% opening in colorful flowers.....I wish....when I knew their names...that I had made a chart and written the names on it.  Now- after all those years as a Master Gardener and my work at a Greenhouse...I can remember the names- I think it's a Rhododendron.  I'll ask Patty when she gets here in 22 minutes.

Pretty (90%) sure that's what it is.