Happy Halloween

 so I'm watching a webinar, typing on the blog, surfing the internet and crocheting on a scarf this morning ... two hours of busyness. 

 the Keurig is brewing coffee (plain and fru fru) nicely --

 the sun is shining - it's still windy and it's freeking cold. 

 I miss summer and fall. 


evening edit:  Mrs. H. sends me an email ... Keurig at the office?  ...  ya - it was a good sale!  and it's aqua .... need to find a home for it ... it's too tall for on the counter -- under the cabinet -- who'd a thought -- modern gizmo/old house issue ... 

wait 'til she sees the standing desk that arrived today -- some assembly required -- hmmm might need elder assistance on this one ....

ta ta

Happy Halloween!

afternoon ATV cruise

a couple more shots from my Saturday afternoon ride ... it doesn't appear that I accomplished much on my list -- but the day is not over yet ..

I'm ready to take the self study exam ....

the sewing room is ready to vaccuum

the window quilt has been pressed, the backing is stretching  -- I need to select a back ...

I did pull fabric from the "collection" to donate to the church quilting ladies ... just need to hook up with the right ones and deliver it ....

I'll get gas and wash my truck on Tuesday ... tomorrow is a Ruby day.

I'm about to sit down with my laptop and plan out the next week or so ... focus -- keeps me focused...

Mom and I went back to Mankato for lunch -- HyVee -- the Chinese in their deli is pretty tasty ... and a half cart load of groceries --- then I made a stop at Joann Fabrics ... haven't been there in months ... did good -- picked up a Christmas print for a new Christmas table runner and 5 yards of a pastel watermelon print for a quilt back ... and it was on SALE!!!!

enough -- the projects await me.

the last Saturday of October

and the list for the rest of the weekend ....

1.  Finish self study seminar

2.  Order shit from Office Depot

3.  Bake the coffee cake

4.  More of the never ending laundry

5.  Gas and wash the truck

6.  Sewing room

     a.  fabric purge

     b.  plan project for next weekend.

     c.  quilt the window quilts for "my" office windows

     d.  finish the binding project

     e.  vac/clean the sewing space

     f.  put together the new clothing rack

     g. deliver the MF clothing rack to the office

  

7.  Deliver the quilt magazines to CK

8.  Plan out the week!

ya, I'm big on the lists lately.  Keeps me focused when I'm not really focused.  Did my Mankato run over the lunch hour what a zoo.  Traffic and crazy busy people everywhere.  I did manage to score everything on my list ... toothpaste, body wash, coffee -- returns, deposits at the thrift shop .... it's the life I lead.

busted out my ATV and took a farm tour this afternoon ....

I never thought I'd live to see an eagle riding the thermals -- I was gassing up the ATV and 5 of them were soaring above me ...

bessie, the camo atv

see that critter swimming in the pond ?

what kind of critter?

no one knows

beaver? turtle? wood chuck?

it dove underwater when I made noise -- and didn't surface ...eeekkkkk

Life on 3rd

moved my desk -- my view is now out the window ... not sure if that is a good thing or not -- but I'm not looking at the alley any longer -- that is a good thing

the wind has howled for 2 days, it is cold in my office -- so on went the plastic window kits -- keeps the drafts down -- won't eliminate them -- but it helps ... 3 windows done -- 8 to go ...

I found this newspaper clipping in my desk -- (it too got cleaned) .. 1979 ... "honest to goodness genuine old fashioned" ... yep ... 

7 days of black & whites

there was a facebook challenge streaming thru the threads -- post a black and white picture every day for 7 days -- no words no descriptions

it was hard ... I live in a colorful world 

and I'm not silent

day 1 -- missing my weekends at the lake

damn miss that place

it keeps me calm and focused

a dried up sunflower from a couple of seasons ago

cornfield - this fall

 

 my red truck and one of the last large loads of melons -- fall 2016
I miss the pix of a truckload of watermelons ...
I kind of even miss the work ...

the field behind the house on my walk last Sunday -- worked up and ready for spring

the daily chaos of 3rd street - February 2017

Day 7 -- from November of 2010

there is a time and place for everything -- and October is not the time or place for snow and cold.

hmmm --- snow --- October

wth -- snow is in the forecast -- and measurable snow.  no.  just wrong.

so Ruby was scheduled to go to Mankato Ford and have her airbags replaced tomorrow (Friday)  yes, those pesky airbags ... they finally have the parts ...  I called this morning and cancelled the appointment -- the Service Tech found it amusing that my baby does not leave the garage when it snows. 

she's not leaving the garage.  end of story.  she ain't made for snow.


back to the projects.

Darkness

I hate the darkness of the changing seasons.
It's dark on the inbound and home bound commute.

Hate it, just hate it.
Hate is a strong word -- but dislike isn't a strong enough adjective to describe my fall/winter blacks.  This morning it seems particularly dark -- must be the wind (and evidently clouds) and the damp cold that seems to settle in ...

Too windy to put out the trash this morning (the cans are relatively empty anyway) -- picking trash out of the fence is worse than the darkness --




It seems I need a list (a project list) to keep the darkness out ...

home:
1.  finish the bedroom remodel - the vac awaits me
2.  unpack/photograph/measure the unsold quilts
3.  fabric purge

office:
1.  vac/scrub out the window wells
2.  apply the plastic (adds to the darkness)
3.  mow the lawn one last time
4.  haul out the trimmings
5.  move my office furniture
6.  finish the closet scanning project.

fun stuff:
1.  finish my book
2.  deliver truckload to the thrift shop
3.  deliver fabric to church ladies
4.  go ride my ATV

I am a clothes horder

yes, it is true -- I have too many clothes and I spend too much money on them.

today was closet purge -- I purged a lot.  5 garbage bags for the thrift shop and 2 for the trash -- large garbage bags. 

nothing was sacred -- even the well worn favorites got tossed.  shoes too.  grungy socks.  gone. 



I'm moving on to the quilt magazines and bookcases this evening.  the purge continues. 
I have a tub of quilts for the warming tree .... yarn is also an issue ... my new goal is to stash money every time I think I need something.  I should be rich by spring.


the harvest of 2017 shit-show continues ... per elder #1 the JD wagon train is moving from Le Center to Lake Prairie -- smack dab in the middle of Sunday rush hour -- this ought to be entertaining.  traffic was up the wahzoo when elder #2 and I came home from the cabin .....


no cabin time -- just popped in to measure the fridge space -- I may have scored a free fridge -- one that keeps the food cold. 

bucket lists and project nights

I've been a good worker bee this week.  Every day and every night there has been a project started and finished. 

Monday:  Lots, I mean lots of office projects.

Tuesday:  County road tour day -- me and the troops in the Veterans Van ... once I got home I sorted out all the bins of completed scrapbooking pages by year ... found the EMPTY albums and 2 loads of laundry.  I uploaded, edited and ordered pictures from Walgreens.  (with a 40% coupon).

Today:  Awesomely gorgeous day -- the loose scrapbooking pages got inserted into sleeves and into albums.  Check!  2 more loads of laundry, it never ends.  My projects for the crafting event are organized into a pile.  My tech project -- I went into my itunes and made up new playlists and downloaded them to my iPod ... tunes are important!

Somehow, I don't think this new found progress is going to continue.

Just a Monday Night ..

I got the Redmen after Planning & Zoning and parked Ruby next to Keith's Harriet ...  Harriet is looking really good .. dang she's my new favorite teal color ...

Ruby celebrated a birthday on the home bound commute last night -- serious brain fart going on -- but I think I've had her 4 summers ... which puts it at May of 2013?  dang maybe it was May of 2014?  I should know that ... anyway 12,000 miles on her ...

May 9, 2014 -- I had to go look it up --- 4th summer of Ruby ... and 3rd summer of the lake ....old age can be hell ....

Bison (Buffalo) oh so cool.

I'm hungry and the green grass is along the road --

the bison at minneopa put on quite the show for us yesterday ...

up close they are smaller than I thought

oh so cool.

and a dash cam view --- via mom and my phone .. it was so cool.

and the Day After Maker Fair

this is the sea of shoppers in the Annexstad building 1 hour into the Maker Fair -- it was a crowded, jumbled out of control free for all ... well, free for all might not fit - but wowzer it was jammed -- frankly I think the organizers needed to tweek a lot.

1.  The aisles need to be wider for shopper safety ... it was nuts.

2.  No strollers -- there just isn't room for them ... 

3.  2 days ... instead of one ... might spread out the sea of humanity.

4.  tighten up the merchants a bit better -- which would probably leave me out of it ... that's okay.

5.  food, need more food and spread it out.

6.  need a building captain in each building -- that stays in the building.

6.  more toilet paper please -- paper towel ... hmmmm

I saw this crochet sweater coat on a shopper -- believe me it looked a heck of a lot better in person ... I creeped (with the telephoto ) and took this shot ... it was cool.  yes, I'm a dweeb.

I got away from my booth in the beginning and bought these twin tin trees.

coolest thing ever.  expensive, but darn cool.

need more.

My truck is unpacked, tables and chairs are put away -- tubs of leftovers are at the office -- I'm going to be a vendor at the Scrap Shacks Fall Crafting Gig next Friday and Saturday .. storing in the back room of the office is less steps than the basement at home.

I'm not sure if I'll do this again.  I was a tad bit disappointed at my booth location (okay, I was pissed) the whole thing was a bit disorganized (okay a lot) .. but the shoppers were having fun and there was a whole lot of them ... time will tell.

Maker Fair

somewhere floating in cyber space is are pictures of my almost fully loaded F150 ... my wares are in the truck .. as are the tables, racks, props -- and other necessaries in life ..

then wandering the basement this morning I had the "what is in that tub on top of the piano" moment -- more finished goods!  two pillows ... damn I almost forgot them.

here we go!

3rd Day of Old Age

  I knew this week was going to be brutal but WTH.   Extended income tax returns are due on Monday and a few of our clients seem to think they need more time ....  all about the daily drama of 3rd Street ... some of us just lead a disjointed/disorganized/don't give a shit life.  Not my drama.

  Meeting day in Mankato this afternoon -- Transit gig at Vine -- then a 90 minuted layover to the next gig in North Mankato -- what to do for 90 minutes ... hmmm

      zee options are endless but here is the short list:
              Walmart (I only go once a year)
               Barnes and Noble
               The Mall
               Target
               Joanne Fabrics

     the Mall just might be the winner -- depends upon the weather -- if it is nice and sunny I might drive down to Minneopa and check out the buffalo ... if it's cool, cloudy and windy I might go to the Mall and walk .... I brought my sneakers with me.

     I sat at the sewing machine last night -- finished a dress, attached the binding to a table runner and finished the back to a pillow and stuffed the pillow in the quilted case ... the zippy bags still need their linings whip stitched together ... if I get home before 8:00 tonight they may get finished and then I'm done!  Thursday night is dedicated to loading the truck .... and cleaning up the sewing space ... really cleaning up the sewing space. 

Birthday!

ya, always good to celebrate the 57 trips around the sun ... especially on a Monday and my dislike of Mondays is well known. 

it was a beautiful sunrise -- $73.00 of gas & a trip thru the car wash -- the truck was nice and clean -- until it started to freeking rain, again.   damn.   but the rain is over and we had a sunset ...

freeze/frost warnings for this evening.  no, we haven't picked our meager squash crop, it will be fine -- the cold temps change the sugar content and make them sweeter -- it is a good thing. 


I'm having a hard time giving up the cabin this year -- dang -- it truly is one of my favorite places -- it is hard to explain -- but it was good to disconnect from my other worlds for several hours (well sometimes more than several hours) a week .. decompress ... no phones, no TV, just the radio and a book or project. 


My Maker Fair wares are priced, pressed and packed -- there are a few other items on my sewing table but if they don't get finished -- that's okay -- the only thing I really need to finish is a table cloth for a 4' folding table ... I could use a quilt and call it done!  Jan will be my helper.  We'll have a blast.

So my birthday resolutions (New Years' Resolutions don't seem to work) -- who am I kidding these probably won't work either ... but ...

1.  Walk more (reoccurring theme to self)
2.  Sew more ... or quilt more?
3.  Less Facebook ...
4.  Less Social Media ...
5.  Travel more

last day at the Happy Place for the Season (way too many pictures) sorry ...

I went out early  ---  with my iced coffee and newspaper -- all summer long -- I've went out early and had Sunday morning deck time ... I could make an entire album of Sunday morning deck time ... hmmm there's an idea 

and everything is clean up, put away, defrosted ... tossed out and/or hauled home -- I left the planter boxes -- they are still blooming ... landlord winterizing and shutting off the water tonight --- argh -- but we're in for 2018 -- 

2017 was a great summer -- can't wait for 2018

road tripping

  so Ruby and I had two road trips yesterday ....


  I had a noon speaking gig at Nicollet Schools -- Life as a Nicollet County Commissioner and how local government operates --

and this is what is in the parking lot -- I knew something was up -- it is Homecoming Week and it was "farmer" day ... lots of flannel/denim and straw hats -- and evidently, someone drove their tractor to school ...

the pressing questions from the kids -- Who is your favorite Commissioner?  Least favorite?  How much are you paid?  Why doesn't Commissioner Stenson return phone calls and email messages?   oh my ... hopefully I didn't ruffle any feathers answering 'em.

road trip #2 -- back to Nicollet to load up Jane stuff and haul it and her back to her new digs!  Ruby can hold more than I thought!


and I didn't make it to Schmidt's Meat Market on either trip -- WTH.  I need beer sticks!

only on a Wednesday

prepping for winter -- Amazon delivers window kits and 2018 planners and I don't have to go to Menards and get irritated

the purge of the storage closed has begun -- the scanning, the shredding, the tossing --- need binders we'll have lots ... I'm trying not to think about how much money I have spent on binders, etc over the years ....

kick ass boots with 3 inch heels -- I have a speaking gig (as a Commissioner, not a CPA) tomorrow at Nicollet High School ... might attempt to impress the kidlets with a skirt and kick ass boots -- and then again, slipping, falling and crappie flopping might not leave the best impression ... we'll see how they feel in the am ... 

I bought these lovely boots on ebay for $40 -- ros hommerson's  ... $300 retail ... they fit my skinny foot and fat calves perfectly .... ignore the pile in the upper right corner -- it's a pile of clean clothes for the thrift shop!

well -- the missing has phoned home.

sometime in June, my faithful fitbit went missing -- it was a couple years old and stood the test of time -- seriously -- in the pool, in the garden at the cabin ... nary a blip ...

so after a couple of weeks I ordered a new one --- new one is identical to old one -- except the damn thing keeps losing its charge (after 36 hours) -- irritating.

so now I have two ...argh.

and below are my zippy pouches ... 8 of 'em ... more to come I found some interesting drapery fabric in the stash and heavyweight interfacing ... I think I've finally got the zipper installation mastered.  They are cute -- lookout 31 --- 

Maker Fair

just got my building assignment for the Maker Fair

the freeking horse barn -- that should smell just delightful


and yep, lost a little steam after opening up that mail.
wth.




so ... life rolls on.