happy birthday

happy birthday mrs roder!

if my memory is correct today would have been 68 .. I almost forgot but Neetsie posted your pic on Wastebook ... and psft the light bulb went off in my scrambled brain

I was just thinking of you the other day ... there are those moments when "what would Coc say" pop up in my daily dealings -- always, always bring a smile .. and a moment of clarity

miss you so much ..

I'm going to to destroy some more weeds today and I will go peek at a couple of gardens on my weekend travels ... and smile.

ps.  when I was attempting to rescue Donna on Sunday morning --- you were the first person I thought of .. you were my accomplice when I had to break into my own house ... good grief .. those were the days ... and the Dam Store pie ... 

lists, endless lists

ruby had a birthday last week .... took 5 1/2 years to get this far ....

grass is appearing at the happy place 

unfortunately ... one must walk thru

this water to get to it ... 

slowly going down 

slowly

this dude thought he should shake is antlers at me .

wrong move dude

and first on my list ..

dropped a package off for the new home owner

towels were on sale ... dark blue towels ...

and a watermelon bath mat ... because his house is located on one of  our patch spots :)

List:

1.  basement

2.  bedroom

3.  shower 

4.  project packing

         the scrapbooking divas and I have an adventure planned.

5.  finish THOSE pillowcases ... they are driving me mad.

6.  laundry -- it never ever ends does it.

7.  pack lunch

8.  reload iPad with books

manic monday ahead

 I may not be spelling manic correctly -- you get the drift.  It is however a beautiful Monday morning.  Ah .. where does the weekends go ....

 I made it to the happy place for most of Saturday -- our dock, "beach", grass is still underwater -- it will take a long time before we see any progress on that front ... but I had work with me and projects were finished.

 The entire sewing weekend was spent on those goofy pillowcases ... pressing, trimming to size, stitching, serging the seams -- the serger managed to come un-threaded -- damn.  That is a project I care not to repeat - ever ---

 Mankato in the rain is a PITA -- but I scored a couple towel sets for Nick -- made it to Joann Fabrics.  Sewing machine needles were the only thing I needed -- 8 yards of fabric, 4 gizmos of yarn, interfacing, and a quilting ruler later -- $110 -- ya.   After that binge - it was back to pillow cases.

  Starting to pack for the "retreat" weekend.  Too many projects too little time.

Today's Project List:
1.  Mower the freeking grass -- just gotta do it.
2.  Trash to the curb.
3.  Gas in the truck.
4.  Oil change.
5.  Vac out truck.
6.  Vac basement floor (serger mess)
7.  Laundry

milestone ... golden milestone ..

so, it's Nick's golden birthday ... 25 on the 25th

he's had quite the year ...

lost 60 lbs -- lots of running

training for the "warrior dash" 

was the "personal attendant" to this lovely bride ... 

he and his buddy Billy (the one on the left) were both attendants

Marissa must have been nuts

become a member of the St Peter Fire Department

(lots of schooling and training over the last 7 months)

built and (became) a homeowner 

(I think he might even get to move in shortly ... gas, water, plumbing life is good)

and he puts up with this this crazy Auntie

who drives a pretty red Ford

doesn't drink his beverages at the happy place

who can't decide on an ATV

does my heavy lifting (still need that damn piano moved and 

my spiff new desk moved home)

Happy Birthday Nick !

weekend pix

the summer project at the office is to finish scanning and shredding the shit stuff stored in the basement .. 7 boxes awaiting the shred truck ... and 5 more as of today .. I'm in the purge mode (that is a good thing)

asshole, the cat, likes to lay under the boat ... 

50 potholders, assembled, quilted, trimmed -- ready for binding

our beach and dock are underwater at the cabin ... literally

this is the bottom step ---  

the entire point (both sides) are under .. getting in the storage shed involves wet feet ..

can barely see the dock to the right of the neighbors boat ... yikes

memories ....

 one of my favorite pictures -- in the top 5 

I took it the morning after Grandma passed away 

it was foggy this morning too 

9 years and 364 days later

I went to supper with the elders last night 

our waitress was one of her favorites from the County Kitchen days

seriously -- it was ....

so today is going to be a lake day --

me, my book, the paper, lawn chair

a little baseball on the radio, an iced tea, a cookie

maybe a spot of sewing

scattered

I'm a bit scattered lately -- reoccurring theme (sorry) ... one of my favorite t shirts states "Ringmaster of the Shit Show" ... I need to find one that says "Your Drama is not My Drama" ... 

Just another hot sticky day in paradise and we're all freaking nuts.

366 days

366 days since the vertigo and dizzies hit ... yesterday ... 366 days of ringing ears and less than perfect balance.  I still hesitate when walking across the street .. it's just not level enough for my brain to process -- yesterday I flipped up my glass and had the re-occurring self speech ... "damn it - you can do this" -- and I did .. 

glasses seem to make the street crossing worse -- so I flip them up -- after all I don't need to see the car that hits me when I'm jaywalking .... and I'm a regular jaywalker ...  

my new prescription sunglasses are missing, so is the "flamingo" mouse for my surface pro and alas, the home garage door opener has been AWOL for a month ... it's my life ... 

purge

since it's a "wet" year, I've had two (sometimes three) dehumidifiers running in the office basement -- two of them need to be manually emptied ... so every trip up and down is an opportunity to purge -- 15 boxes of old "stuff" has been sorted, scanned and shredded.  Feels good -- 

last night was hair cut night.  90' and 100 % humidity and storms in the forecast -- extremely short hair is most welcome

and on day two of "getting my shit" together continues today ....

on to it.

just sayin'

  I gotta get my shit together and

       work smarter ...

       work less ....

       have more tolerance for the idiots that irk me.


 Just sayin' ....


Happy Tuesday Peeps!

oh shit, it's Monday, again.

  I need to figure out how to make Monday's vanish.  I just do.  

  It's a mindset -- must re-train my brain.  Might be too late for that to happen.

  So, it was another fast weekend in Hooterville.  I spent Saturday at the cabin, the weather forecast predicted warm -- but it was really nice.  I read, punched out two hours of continuing ed, visited with the neighborhood cat and plotted out some vacation plans.

  Potholder production continued -- up to 34 ready for binding.  I switched to pillowcases -- I had 30 cut out prior to the Maker Fair invite -- so yesterday I pressed/prepped and started the "burrito" method of construction -- the first 10 have their "burrito seam done -- need pressing/squaring and final seams done.  I think I'm going to serge the bodies rather than french seams.  Need to use that serger.  

  I did a fast dash to the office on Sunday -- payroll taxes wait for no one.  At high noon, I'm loading up piles of brush and hauling it to the City pile.  Because a smart woman does that at 90' and 100 % humidity.  The piles are gone -- hope to add more piles this week.  15 minutes a day does wonders.

 Hop to it!  It's Monday!

good grief ...

I shared the potholder pix on instagram and wastebook last night -- 53 years of sewing (and one of my 4H sewing leaders is still alive ) .. and well, 53 years later I'm still making potholders -- really fancy potholders .  my goal is to have 100 done by the maker fair -- I've got 20 done and ready to bind and last night I chopped up more batting scraps and insulbrite for 20 more ... 

I'm going to Pine City with the scrapbooking Diva's and I'll be binding a lot of potholders!

my 4th of July boat cruise picture was on TV last night -- KARE11 does a "cabin cast" weather forecast -- I submitted this on Sunday (?) my phone/wastebook and email lit up with messages from those who saw it ... ... I was watching House Hunters .. after all, bickering spouses selecting a new home is always much more entertaining ...

ahhh Tuesday ....

  yep, Tuesday, already.   Board Meeting at the Govt Center (always promises to be interesting) ... Ditch gigs in Gaylord, downtown Gaylord -- equally interesting. 

  and I'm dressed for the events -- navy tank dress (yes, a dress), green floral kimono (my new best wardrobe choice), strappy sandals -- jewels -- yep, dressed. 

  my right heel is acting up.  especially in the mornings -- tender when it hits the floor.  Dr. Internet has a diagnosis -- I'm having the internal debate about the foot doctor.  Icing seems to help -- and not walking at night.  Might try walking again tonight and see what the morning brings.  Sunday morning was awful -- mowed office lawn on Saturday night. 

 tonight is back to the Bernina -- Sunday night I laid out 4 more potholders -- speeds up the process -- less thought more action!  I'm going to need a binding party at some point in this process ...

 so yesterday I had a list of projects ...most of them were completed.  Add a new book to the iPad -- Dr Sindrah ...

  the cabin we looked at had a formal offer, at LIST PRICE ... wth ... it was a nice spot but WTH ... it was a beautiful location (nice and flat), cute cabin (very nicely done) .. no parking and a nasty-ish driveway -- it's really crowded on the road down there .. cars in the ditch etc.... the weekend holiday might have made it worse ...but LIST PRICE --

M

July on Daisy Lane

Dad's little garden is looking good -- fenced to keep the critters at bay --- or attempting to keep the critters at bay ...

nothing beats a handsome row of cabbages

some of them have been "nibbled" a bit

it is Daisy Lane

the row of Yucca's have 7 bloom stalks on them ... 

kind of regal looking up close ...

It was a relaxing yet productive weekend -- 4th of July festivities, fireworks, boat cruise, a lot of sewing on the fancy potholders, a bit of quilting at the happy place, a lot of cleaning at the happy place -- a tour of another cabin (not in our budget) ... mowed the office grass, did a little homework, supervised the furniture move in at Nick's  .. and now it's off to finish a couple of income tax returns -- after a shower ....

Independence Day at the Lake

Jake likes the boat !

it was a pretty sunset -- 

and when the bugs arrived -- I did the best I could with what I had ...

the first sunset pix was with my "camera" .. this one and the next were with my phone

the boats waiting for the fireworks to begin .. it was rush hour on a tiny lake :)

Happy 4th of July

weekend warrior

notice anything --- there is no table piled with boxes in my office ....

I worked most of Saturday and Sunday ...

shit got done !!1 

(well the boxes aren't done -- just moved to better location)

no pictures of the other rooms in "This Old House" it was a productive weekend.

I walked again last night -- 8:00 pm  the wildlife is not getting ready for bed like we humans do on Daisy Lane - I had a herd of deer, a bunch of turkeys, a pheasant (1) and a coyote.  No camera .... we'll see what this evening brings.