cold, white, cold ... argh

cabin camera shots ... always trying to catch the sunset out there .. my timing is always off, evidently the neighbors left on their dining room lights .. and off to the left .. is a camera, I think we need to back it up a bit, it's always trying to see thru the screen door .. next weekend will try that when I get out there to check over the joint

sunset tonight from the office 

the leafless trees are kinda cool .. but they'd look better with leaves on them.

and the cabin, again, keeps me calm(er)

I'm cold, tired and cranky and it's November 28th .. that my peeps is an issue.  I attempted my homework .. not going so well, laundry is perking, dishes are washed .. need to fold clothes, read my book and go to bed.  end of story.

endless disruptions the last couple of days .. lost focus .. and can't seem to find it .. need to find it for tomorrow -- working alone.  

blessings arrived yesterday -- had a pile of crap for Nelson Printing .. Nate - picked up my jump/thumb drive on his way to work .. and by 3:00pm, Ryan delivered it all back to me .. I was stunned .. they are so good to me.  

 

argh ..

she was a cold and angry lake this afternoon

either the weather dude missed the forecast or I wasn't paying attention very well .. it snowed Saturday and Sunday .. really not necessary

the week ahead isn't looking very rosy either - so I shuffled vehicles and garages .. moved Ruby to the back of the shop (but not to bed yet) and parked the truck in the house garage.   it is a close fit .. no shutting the overhead door and wandering in the house ... 

it is life ..

 

evil mother nature

swans!  the turkey day road trip ... we saw swans ... huge birds 

Ruby had a birthday this week ... 

I've been driving her a lot during the week 

and I just checked the cabin camera's

wth -- this was supposed to be on Sunday 

argh - here at the farm too 

I loaded up homework at 2:00 and came home to work -- in the basement cave so I don't see outside ... or pay attention to anything else -- a couple of odd projects that need concentration and when I'm tired of thinking I find a corner or two to clean .. 

the cleaning and purging of daisy lane is never-ending -- seriously a lot of shit around here ... since my foray into ebay was pretty successful -- I tubbed up some stuff to sell next spring/summer when I have more time .. 

I tried to avoid the black friday / small business saturday deals -- that was an epic fail ... I scored some deals at Maurices, Lands End (twice who can resist 60% off), Old Navy -- $15 jeans that will hopefully fit my ass, Kohls  (because I love writing out a check to pay off my Kohls card) .. 

Sweatshirts, flannel shirts, dress pants, t shirts (for mom), boiled wool slippers, wool socks, jeans (from two different stores),  dressy sweatpants, fleece lined leggings for winter -- some of this was for Mom - :)   -- I avoided the temptation of a new wintercoat --  .. no sneakers .. toner for the printers, battery back up systems, post it notes, general office stuff  ... coffee m/m's -- and I'm waffling on chairs -- one for the office ( desk chair ) and a fancy matching one for the living room .. ... Amazon emailed me about a book sale -- might be the prudent thing to be purchasing .. 

self needs to remember the 12 bags self took to goodwill last week ..

I'm a freaking idiot 

 

Happy Thanksgiving

so many things in which to be thankful 

sunrise this morning was a reminder of the beauty that surrounds us and gratitude for the little moments  - it was simply stunning ...

 

hmmmm Saturday ?

Monday night birthday treats 

KK is the best cake baker

broiled lemon on the left and apple something on the right

he pulls out a mini sifter right before cutting and dusts 'em with powdered sugar

the bird camera caught Mr C this morning 

it was a sign

signs are everywhere 

so today's adventures 

1.   office -- new sign in and logins w/TR .. I got in not sure if the rest of the crew can get in 

2.   payroll lots of payroll .. once I got in -- I worked before the shit crashed

3.   home for lunch and leaf burning ... 

            asked Lee for help -- he had us rake them over the bank ... to dry to burn 

4.  dashed out to the cabin ... checked things out .. need to rake out there 

5.  subway for supper on the way home 

6.  closet purge

           I am a clothes HOARDER, I have TOO many clothes, I like CLOTHES a lot.  The Jeep is loaded for a Goodwill run tomorrow .. 9 bags -- to be fair, I purged in August and that stuff is still in Ruby's trunk -- some of it is fabric from that purge.  I packed away two small tubs of summer stuff and a tote of sandals .. the rest is all over the place .. 

           I have a pile for ebay -- new with tags -- time will tell, I have a pile of rags, and 9 freaking bags for the thrift shop .. my summer dresses are in clothes bags and on a hanging rack in the basement ... I have a 2 tubs of old (but clean) snowmobile suits  .. JHC... 

           The next time I shop -- my computer will self destruct .. seriously .. I need to learn to live with a capsule wardrobe -- I've been saving them on a pinterest board .. I'm nuts, just plain nuts ... 

           And there's a pile in the sewing room that need hemming, mending, remodeling ... JHC ..

           I have a 4 cube unit and a 6 cube unit to put together yet -- not for clothes (well, shoes, hats, etc) and other "stuff" because I have a lot of "stuff" ... argh

 

chaotic week

catching the sunsets from the office front steps ..

wednesday was really busy -- tree cutters arrived -- took down 5 ash trees and hauled away all the tree stuff .. stump chumper came today and chumped the stumps -- it's now a bare backyard 

most likely all were infected with EAB

moments -- need the moments this week

Monday the trash group was on the road -- lots of really cool things ... behind us is a pile of compost ready to bag and sell -- 100 days ago it was leaves, brush, and food waste ... 

 

habits? traditions?

    I'm an early riser -- always have been -- always will be.  Since the end of the busy season I've kept up my early weekend starts.  5:00am .. me, my laptop, coffee and the sunrise.  Time to read, surf, shop, reflect -- check out stuff , research things ... 

   I start laundry, clean kitchen and bathroom, vacuum (without hearing aids #2 hears nothing) .. it's just my way of getting things done and not wasting weekend time on chores ...

   This weekend is no exception -- it's 6:00 ish .. I'm on laundry #3, the litter box has been changed -- basement is ready to vac, my homework is organized on the cave desk, bed is stripped -- cat is staring at me (beast) .. and I'm getting ready to surf.  

yes, I have an app on my phone that tracks the important things in life -- the winter solstice .. cannot wait for the days to get longer and the sun to return ... the grayness of yesterday was exhausting ... I went to work and managed to knock out multiple projects -- the upcoming week is kind of busy so the more I get done ahead of time the better.

The building is almost ready for winter -- all but one plastic window kit has been installed -- this year this project has been a struggle -- I wonked my knee coming down the ladder 10 days ago . and every time I go up and down .. the pain returns for a couple of days  .. argh.  Most of the furniture moving is done -- new workstation created and I need to do something in my office .. that will need a deep cleaning at the same time .. maybe next weekend ... 

and I always track freedom .. I need a better attitude I should be anticipating and enjoying the challenges of the season -- so many unknowns create chaos -- it's hard to articulate -- but there's always change happening that is out of my control and I'm a control freak that hates change ... my NYE resolution should be learning to roll with the flow -- that will never happen ..

more education

thursday I started the day out in the cave .. and at the lunch break moved to town

it's eerie seeing how similar both of my desks have become

well, 3rd street has windows ...

two more education gigs and I'm done with them for the year .. 

minnnesota next thursday

more minnesota (from mn rev) the following week ..

 

11/09/23 time ...

the normal inbound commute

the cabin had a visitor yesterday

and the view from this morning's commute .. I'm in day two of a webinar and going to view it from home .. Mom isn't feeling well and neither am I ... fortunately, unfortunately opposite ailments ... 

she as a sore throat and no fever and so far negative ... 

I have tummy troubles - I think life/chaos has caught up with me -- usually the result -- but then again the salad I had for lunch yesterday from gypfoods might have been the culprit -- it didn't go down very well and I kept eating it .. yesterday was just a goofy day ..

 

living life large

it is important

be active be respectful of others choices

so I left the office at 9:00ish

1   went to Mankato to Green Tech Appliance Recycling

2   what a shit show -- but I got rid of a truck load of dead appliances 

3   stopped at the hardware store on Riverfront - bought rakes

4   the hoarder had no leaf rakes amid his treasures -- for real 

5   stopped at the grocery store .. cookies on sale

       raspberries and 1/2 price Halloween candy 

6   dashed to Johnson Hall to VOTE

returned to office - 10:40ish

that's living life large ... 

and then met mom and the aunties for lunch at the DQ ... 

and today's Amazon deliveries:

swiffer and supplies for home ... it is good to be me

Conference Wednesday and Thursday -- Individual Income Tax -- back room dude was going to sit in .. he's (or was - not sure) in the hospital with pancreatis (cannot spell it) .. things were looking better yesterday -- he may make part of it .. sitting staring at a screen might be okay .. the manual/book is 1,063 pages .. huge ... 

holy shit it's 3:45 already and frankly other than the mad dash to mankato I haven't accomplished a whole lot of anything today ... there will be homework in my future ... again, yet, still ..

 

pffft goes the weekend .. eh?

a weekend of labor camp:

1   lawn/yard/driveway got mowed at the farm
2   blew out the leaves/dust from the showroom
3   stacked up pallets for disposal
4   loaded truck with stuff for appliance recycling
5   took a drive to the cabin - just because
6   cooked
7   laundry
8   tossed all the flower pots and planters
9   moved the hose carts to storage
10 took down the screens 
             (porch/front/patio door)
11 went to work (not for long)
12 took returns to Kohls & Old Navy
13 had some retail therapy (see below)
14 bonded with the vacuum cleaner 
15 finished my book
16 listed treasures on ebay 

I'm now plotting and planning my week .. I have a two day conference/webinar on Wed/Thur and prepping work before/during and after ... and just attempting to control my general chaos

and after Kohls (returns) and shopping -- scored a Nike tunic sweatshirt -- warm and comfy for winter -- mom hit the lode of deals ... and the idiots moved stuff around again in the store .. argh ... returned a sweater to Old Navy and didn't buy anything .. but 

Joann Fabrics -- had their calico on sale for $4.99 -- last day ... lots of pretties -- 12 yards ( she grins) and the yarn bargin bin had some treats too ... need yarn to crochet during the conference ... 

before snow happens
I still need to:

1   take down the clothes lines
2   get snow plow on truck and ready to rumble (shit)
3   get leaves to driveway from front yard and burn
4   cat shack needs to come down and dumpster filled
5   Ruby needs oil change and bath
6   truck needs to be vac'd and bathed
7   Jeep needs to have weather techs ordered
8   my starlink receiver needs to get moved
9   trees need to be cut down
10 mow grass at office (hopefully this week)
11 clean office garage 

and then this shit starts all over in the spring ... 

I never ever

coming home and mowing the lawn for 3 hours in 45' weather might not have been my best idea -- but the job got done -- some of the leaves got chopped .. I spiral mow the "big field" like this pic .. no tree ...in the middle ... but it takes less time -- no turning of the corners ... ( the big field is 1/2 acre ) .. lots of deer nesting happening and lots of deer poop

I'll be shivering and sneezing for the next 10 days ... 

get tired of the views from the lake -- whether in person or via the camera ...

I spent a lot of time out here but it never seems like enough 

it was the summer of projects and adjustments

need to adjust to more lake time

we drove out last night -- before supper and impending darkness

hate that damn darkness

checked out the tree project

and came home to this

the dang thing kept eating even

while parking and yelling at 'er

 

egads

new rug -- seems appropriate for me

squirrel is missing his/her/its tree .. 

not a good sight ... to be fair -- all the kohls arrived in separate packages

1 - amazon

4 kohls

1 lands end

there may have been an earlier amazon (too)

(filters for the well, underwear, cutting boards, gel pens, t shirts/mock necks for mom, shoes, dress, blazer, polar fleece sweat pants, fleece tunic, rechargable puck lights for above the copier, double faced tape for window kits, mattress pad, toner cartridges for the fax machine) 

missing the swiffer and supplies (for home) - plastic window kit and insulating blanket for back door 

it was a productive shopping trek from the chair on Saturday morning ... 

frankly, the dress looks fabulous :) I waited for the sale and it was worth the wait ...

 

Halloween Change

it was a busy day on Maple Drive 

the big maple had a nasty crack in it near the V .. well, it was hollow from the crack down ... and "smelled" according to the chainsaw dude ... 

not sure how he could smell anything -- it was 30' with a 35 mph wind blowing off the lake -- he had to be frozen solid

and it's gone

we'll miss the shade 

we will not miss the leaf raking, the falling d

ebris after every wind event

new possibilities for landscaping 

new sunset views 

never get tired of 'em