Arrggghh!!

 I told Beth, but now I share my humiliation with all. On Saturday I was roasting a chicken for supper. We were going to the legion to watch curling, so I set the timer in the stove.  I kept mentioning at the legion that I hoped the timer worked. When we got home the oven was on and at the right temperature. Unfortunately the chicken was still sitting on the counter!  Needless  say we had no supper Saturday. Breakfast Sunday was roast chicken, mashed potatoes, carrots and cauliflower, gravy and coleslaw😊.  Today, after three more meals of chicken Jim decided on hamburgers for supper. (I froze two trays of chicken in gravy for later). I got everything ready and then dropped a full quart of Bread and butter pickles on the floor.  Glass, pickles and juice everywhere. I even had to pull the fridge out to wipe up the pickles and glass. If things come in threes, what is next!?  We’re all under a blizzard warning here, but unless things change we should  miss the worst of it here. Maybe some blowing snow tonight. It looks like it is all going around us.  Lucky and I have been able to go for longer walks recently as the weather was warmer. Today we headed east, but soon after we crossed the mile road I became “snow blind”. Everything was totally white everywhere and I became really disoriented!  We had to turn back to home and it was a while before I calmed down. Lucky had no concerns at all. We have been watching the Scotties, but Wednesday  the Olympics start on CBC and the first broadcast is mixed double curling!  Decisions decisions!  (Ok.   I just went to wash the dishes, and when I came back the cat’s paw was on my phone and the screen said  “Oh poop”. Should I be scared??). We went to Barb’s today. She is still really antivax.  When we dropped by the last few times she is wearing her “coercion is not consent” t-shirt. But it is her choice. And since she’s thinks the whole pandemic is a conspiracy she isn’t concerned about making other people sick. Sometimes you just want to smack someone. (Ooops! Was that out loud?). So now I will finish the dishes and I think a glass of wine is in my future. 

idling my life away

 Still spending most of the day sitting in the kitchen, and either amusing myself with Facebook or watching videos on UTube.  I've given this a lot of thought, and acknowledge that I'm taking my cues from my body, and that's just fine.  But then that niggling thought comes to mind, that my body won't improve if I don't give it a bit of a push, so maybe it's time to push a bit.

A pleasant surprise on Thursday.  A small package in the mail that turned out to be a prize I had won at the latest Manitoba Prairie Quilters meeting.  Evidently there was a draw, everybody on the membership list had their name in, and my name was drawn.  I haven't attended a meeting in three years, and have no desire to, although the charity quilts I make all end up going to the Guild charity. It was four 1/4m pieces of good quality fabric, in very bright, almost glaring, colours.  David and I had a giggle and then wondered what I might do with them.  The only reasonable idea was to make another charity quilt.

Grocery shopping has been done.  We bought lots of chicken breasts, and cooked extra last evening, so that David can make chicken vegetable soup tomorrow.  Today we turned a lot of hamburger into patties and meatloaf for the freezer.  I think maybe our intensions were greater than our energy, but the job got done.  The laundry has also been done today, mainly through David's efforts. I feel guilty, but just don't have the energy to do much of anything.

Don't know if I mentioned it, but a couple of weeks ago, I took a five day mini-workshop off the internet.  It involved painting on fabric to be embroidered.  I have done the painting, and spent most of the last week figuring out what to do next.  Well, I got out a very small embroidery frame, and have asked David to get out my very old floor frame that has been in storage for years.  I'm almost excited about working on this.  I'm wondering if, in my diminishing physical strength, I'm reverting to my first love.  And that's just fine too.

So we struggle on, and wish for a return to "normal", but recognize that we have a pretty good life, and should appreciate it.  And now to eat supper, that was cooked mainly by David.  I think he's earned a healthy drink this evening.

The McGraths

 I don't know much.  I believe it was great-great Grandpa Patrick McGrath who was here in the 1850's, living in Port Hope, ON, who may have been the first to arrive--but I could be wrong.  I would be interested in anything you can find out.  I believe that there are still McGraths in Port Hope.  Any anecdotal info that I remember was much more about the Wastle side of the family.  When I was young, Dad still communicated with the Wastles that lived in Oak Bluff, as well as some who lived in Transcona.  When Amber was about 5, (1977-1978) she and I attended a Wastle/McGrath family reunion that took place in Oak Bluff.  I wonder if there might be any museum in Oak Bluff that might contain records of that, or even a library with newspapers from that time, as I'm sure there were articles in the community papers.

All quiet, (and boring) in this house.  We're both still taking it somewhat easy, and my back problems have made themselves known today.  That sure slows me down.  But it has eased off now, and I don't expect to have any trouble sleeping tonight, especially when I have T3's, should they be needed.  Bill paying and grocery shopping tomorrow.  I have to plan the excursion to minimize the physical demands.  It's just not worth it to push ourselves too much.  Generally, my big event for the day is my phone call with Gail, when we discuss the most bizarre things.  Today it was the pitfalls and strengths of statistics.  Yesterday it was the origins, and integrity of abstract art.  But the outcomes are sometimes more than the actual discussion.  We will argue statistics again, as we couldn't agree to disagree, but the discussion of abstract art has lead to an agreement to plan a "play day" with using acrylic inks for making mono-prints, in the near future.

So we "hunker down", and make plans, and endure the cold and the snow.  And everybody gains weight, just as we did at the beginning of this pandemic.

Family

 Chloe had a school assignment on her family and where they were from. I had info on the Wastles and the Hughes’s, but nothing much on the McGraths. But reading through what I had was really interesting!  Now I want to research more on our family. And fill in the gaps on the info that I have. She needed to know when our family came to Canada and I had no idea. I estimated from the info I had, but now I really want to know!!!

Enough is enough

 Snow again today, and we are all under another extreme cold warning. A year ago Lucky was new to us and we walked the trail quite a few times. This year we can’t even get close to the trail. The snow is way too deep. So I puttered yet again. I Organized the papers I already have for our taxes. Then I went through all my spices and threw out some that I have never used. I also put out a number of new ones. (Chloe had a Sunrise Gourmet fundraiser at her school). Rodney came by and dug out our yard yet again. We sure have relied on him a lot this year. I made comfort food for supper. Goulash and mashed potatoes (kind of like shepherd’s pie😊). I also tried to have an apple, but I guess they were in the fridge too long. They were all solid to the touch, but rotting inside☹️  Tomorrow will be shopping for some essentials (I ran out of milk!). Meanwhile I still have library books to read. I have started to take books off of the “staff recommendation “shelf. Some interesting books that I might have passed over otherwise.  But tonight I will be reading a book that requires no concentration. Sometimes you just need something to occupy your mind. 

All's quiet on this front.

 We had our booster shots early Friday morning, and have both been quieter than usual, with a lot of dozing, or outright napping.  David was complaining of feeling "fuzzy brained", but I had a bit of a headache later on Friday, and was then fine.  We had planned nothing for the weekend, so have been just lazy for the past couple of days. Fortunately, a special nature/animal related channel is on free introduction this week, and David has been glued to the tv.  For my part, there are more and more Time Team episodes.  Otherwise, no exciting news.

I am just about to finish the third of the Arliss Cutter series by Marc Cameron.  These books take place in Alaska, and the research into the local indigenous peoples is excellent.  They are partially police procedural shoot'em-ups, but otherwise an excellent read. I've read two of them since late Friday night.  I plan to check out the library for more, as any book by that author would be worth reading.

The latest charity quilt is finished, labelled and into the delivery pile.  This one hung around the studio much longer than it should have, and I'm glad to see the end of it.  I don't have another one started, nor do I have one in mind.  Instead, this week, I signed up for a free workshop on a British stitchery site.  They offer excellent workshops, with high-profile instructors in hand stitchery, with some mixed media, but you have to subscribe, which is about $46CDN per month.  Not an unrealistic amount, and one can unsubscribe any time.  Some stitchers I respect give it good reviews.  I mentioned it to David this morning, but got a disgusted noise in return, so will give it more thought.  Membership is only open a couple of weeks a year.  Over the past while, I have seen myself slowly heading back to more and more hand stitchery, so this isn't necessarily idle thinking.  

But now I have to think about supper.  For the past few days, meals have been "Catch-as-catch-Can", and I expect tonight won't be any different.  Despite the Booster, David is still reluctant to be out in public.  I can understand his concern, but after four weeks of isolation, I'm a little "antsy".  Then I have to remember that during the first wave, we were isolating for months, and I survived that, so this shouldn't be too difficult. 

Stay safe ladies.

A Sunday quickie

 Good day,

Not too much to report in terms of updates anymore. So I shall write a few words about life as it is. I just opened a bag of licorice allsorts that I had hidden away in the cupboard. I had exhausted all my candies from Christmas and had a real urge to have something - so there you are. I stepped on my scale this morning and it read Error. I tried a few times before thinking it was trying to tell me something haha! So I found another and I am ready to start over again. Maybe not the best idea to follow my progress regularly but then, i know i splurged a bit too much over Christmas. (And my hidden stash does not help matters)

It is still far too cold here - nothing new for you folks I know. I must get out after this message and shovel though, because we had snow squalls last evening and the plough has gone by and left a nice mound.

I made a Shepherds Pie for meal yesterday and it was so delicious - thinking of home and comfort food I guess. I still have left over and looking forward to finishing that today. 

I have been viewing Time Team shows this last week usually just before bed when I have the use of the computer. Never seems to bore me no matter what they are into.

Well, I have a wash on so better go and see to it. Hope all is well there and that everyone is staying safe and well. Take care 😊

Update - new car

 Well....more disappointment.  The engine warning light came on and after several calls to the service dept while they accessed the computer data without a clear picture of what was going on, I was taken in about 4 pm for a diagnostic scan. Turns out there is a malfunction of an oxygen valve (?) which will have to be replaced, and on this particular car apparently there should be a "bra" across the front of the car - like a barrier to keep out cold.Who knew.

They started work immediately but the car will not be ready until tomorrow but luck was with me... they had a loaner. The oldest, smallest car i have ever seen. I asked it I needed to peddle it home. They said it would be good enough to get me home and then back to the dealership in the morning but suggested that I may not want to travel anywhere else with it. Say what??

So here i sit with a glass of sherry and intend to watch Time Team to try to defuse. Wish me luck...

Take care ..😔😔😔

Update - Eyes

 Well...disappointment. My appointment for Friday has been postponed to another time - yet to be determined. The Eye Surgeon was exposed to a Covid patient and therefore has had to cancel all her current appts. Does not pay to get so excited about an appt. 

However, on wards and upwards we go...Lots of snow coming here this morning, but mild. I just had the dogs out and they had a wonderful time and a long walk. The little one, Lily, was great and running and playing and behaving so differently from her approach to the outdoors when it is so cold and freezing, which was a blessing for Bailey, as he loves to walk and wonder but cannot when we have Lily lagging behind and needing to be picked up and carried. 

So long for now..nice to hear from both of you about your reading materials right now. I loved State of Terror so glad you tried it again Pati. Bye for now...☺  

Eyes

 When we had our eyes done, we were cautioned not to buy new glasses for up to a year, as our vision could change more than once during that time.  So it was off to Dollarama, and I still get my glasses there, although David has a new prescription that he prefers.  I was actually told that they couldn't do anything better for me than the old prescription that I bought about a year after my surgery.  This is the pair that has the special focal length for use in the studio, so not really useful for anything else.  Since I only pay $2.00 plus tax per pair, I have a separate pair for everywhere that I might sit for a bit to read or stitch.

I finally started the "State of Terror" book.  I picked it up over a week ago, but had been reading another book that left me with an absolutely chilling concept of how the current American political system could end up, based on where it is now.  I picked up the Clinton/Penny book right after finishing that one, and realized that it was American politics again, and just couldn't deal with it--so disturbing was the previous book.  I tried but just couldn't get into it. So I read the more fluffy British Police procedurals I mentioned in my last post first.  Then tried the Clinton/Penny book again and was off to the races,  Couldn't put it down, but realized that I need sleep last night, so will have to finish it today.

We were quite snowed in yesterday, but the shovellers came late in the evening, and cleaned the driveway.  We'll have to see how good a job they did after lunch when I want to head out to pick up the remaining ornaments that are still at the shop downtown.  We have also realized that there were a few items missed when we shopped on Monday.  I've been quite pleased at how much money we've saved this month, with not going out of the house, but it looks like the chickens are coming home to roost.

Now to get ready for our excursion.  Maybe even get a cup of coffee!

Update - new car

Good morning all, Hope your snow and cold are manageable there it is snowy and blowy here but OK. As long at it remains fairly mild and by that i mean around double digit below zero numbers. We have had the cold weather at minus 35C last week and it was intolerable from my perspective.

Monday was spent back and forth to finalize our new vehicle. A few extra delays thrown in for good measure - after i dropped our old car at 0930 am and with an appt for 2 pm to do the paperwork for the new car, i received a call that the computers had gone out at the dealership and they could not do the garage work as the hoists would not function. Fortunately they had found a loner for me to take home that morning. After all was said and done though, we now have our new 2022 Equinox - the colour was called iron grey but appears black mostly. Not our choice but we'll take it. Actually yesterday I had a good look at it with the sun shining on it and i can see that it is indeed a dark greyish colour so I'll keep thinking it is grey. We bought new front seat covers at WalMart and i installed the buggers but with some difficulty - it truly should be a two man job but c'est la vie!  And I have negotiated the Sirius radio contract and organized the insurance and the car payments and clarified the new summer tires stored for spring as we had them switch our current snow tires to the new car. I read the book a bit more last evening to acquaint myself with some new additions as i will have to instruct Harry. So all in all, I guess I am set. 

I finished my first new book last evening The House at Riverton by Kate Morton, and now set to start another of my new books tonight. I am enjoying reading again but after my Surgery find that my current glasses are not too good. Pati you mentioned that you bought Dollar store reading glasses and were satisfied with them? I'll have to see what to do. My appt with Eye Surgeon is on Friday and I am anxious for her take on my vision after the surgery. Also to check the eye pressure as it increased after the surgery and I had to take some new drops for that. So much to worry about...haha!

So on with the day. Hope all is well there with you both. We are still hearing on the news all about poor Toronto and their recent snow storm issues. Too bad......   Take care.

And now it's Sunday

 How did that happen?  We still haven't been out, although I'm planning to meet Gail for coffee this afternoon.  We plan to  line up our cars in the parking lot to chat, rather than sit inside, as the weather is supposed to be fairly pleasant.  Life remains a roller-coaster.  I have slid back a bit the last couple of days, ending up sleeping and sitting in my chair under a quilt to watch my tv shows last evening.  David has been doing the cooking, and certainly helped with the laundry Friday, but, other than loading and unloading the dishwasher, not much house work has been done.

But, I've been reading.  I have discovered a new author--Anne Cleeland.  Not sure what all she has written, as so far, all I've been reading are British Police procedurals.  Fortunately, I discovered early that this series is best read in order, as one book leads into the next.  They are a quite humorous, as the two well-written, main characters married in haste, and are getting to know each other a bit more in each book.  They are both a little "bent", and somewhat tolerant of shady behaviour in each other, all carried out in proper British fashion.  This is the "Doyle and Acton", series, but when/if I can get hold of any others I'll take a good look at them.

Yesterday, I made the decision to withdraw from the Gallery show I'm supposed to be in for May.  It has been scheduled and cancelled twice in the past, and is looking a little shaky again.  I have no new pieces, and the stress of trying to produce some weighs on me.  I have moved on to new things. I'm able to exhibit for 3 months of the year in the "All Members' Shows", and that works for me--for now.

Well, it's after 11:00, and I'm still in my nightie.  My plan for the day is to do as little as possible, before my outing, in hopes that the outing won't be too much for me.  We cooked a couple of chicken breasts last night, and there is enough for supper tonight, and there are always frozen French Fries. So, no stress there.  I e-mailed Loren late yesterday asking how he's doing, but have not yet heard back, but I'll let you know when I hear.

The newspaper this morning had an article talking about how our future will likely hold regular emerging Covid variants, and that we need to prepare for that.  Whoopee!  Stay safe ladies.

Feeling your cold weather now...

 Nasty cold outside right now and I imagine you folks know exactly what i mean as you have been through this already, The early morning walk for Bailey turned into a quick run to the road and a few squirts and then back to the door - even with his sweater on. Makes you want to just jump into bed and cover up. But that won't happen haha!

Well, apparently the dealership now has our new vehicle and arrangements have been made for Monday to do the changeover. I think that it will happen as planned this time so I will struggle over the weekend to clean it out a bit. Not much but at least take out the floor matts and seat covers and trunk blanket and all the garbage. I had the lady promise that i would not be shot because i brought in a dirty car. One can not even take it to the car wash with these low temps as it would freeze in place. They have all the right equipment inside the warm service space to do that so I have resolved to let them do it. They have to switch the snow tires from the old car to the new car so will have to have it warm and clean to do that.

Lately I have been going through paperwork saved over the years that I really do not need, and Harry is shredding it all. The bags of shredding are been used in the compost but so far are all piled up at the back outside by the compost box for now. 

Now for my breakfast - leftover pizza from yesterday. i had a chuckle when making my pizza to think that Pati you always do your wash on Friday, and I seem to always make my home made pizza on Fridays. Too bad we could not get together and share our chores together.

Take care all... the news is never my favourite thing to listen to lately but I guess I will turn it on now, habe breakfast and let the day begin.. Cathy i watched you again last night - nice reading of your news although I only last for about 30 minutes before dragging myself to bed. Be safe all..  

Two steps forward, one step back

 That pretty well describes our days right now.  We are getting better, and have accomplished the two tasks I set for this week, a trip to the library, and a trip to Walmart pharmacy.  The trip to Walmart this morning was enough for David and he's off to bed early tonight and sleeping soundly.  

On our trip to Walmart, I found some dishcloths that are two layers, soft on one side and scratchy on the other.  I'll be interested to find out how well they work.  I tend to use my dishcloths for a lot of general cleaning up, and they tend to get dirty quickly.  I've tried many methods to get them clean again, none of which work well, so I've decided to buy cheap and throw them out when they get soiled.  We'll see how long that lasts.

My computer has come home from Best Buy with a few problems.  While I've been sick, there has been no way I could sit through a lengthy Geek Squad session, so I'm keeping notes, and will contact them when I have a bit more tolerance.  This means that I can't download any pictures from the camera, so no pictures on either blog.  Having someone come to the house appears to be our best option, but even that will have to wait until we've definitely cleared out isolation period.  So please bear with me, if things don't work well.

There has been no studio work, but now that I take "happy pills" I don't worry about that.  Regardless, I keep planning my "perfect" studio in my mind, knowing that it will never come to pass, and even if it did, I'm probably too old to take advantage of it.  More likely, my future will be making endless charity quilts until all my fabric is gone, and my brain is totally boggled. Hehe!

I watched two episodes of Time Team tonight.  In the first they were digging into a cave, that have experienced a nasty flood in the 1960's, and totally filled up with wet, sticky mud flow, covering any archeology.  They were wanting archeology to prove that the cave had been lived in 6000 years ago, and should therefore be a protected ancient site, and not accessible to damage from "weekend" archeologists.  Very, very interesting, except the crew had to dig their way down through narrow, wet muddy tunnels that sent my claustrophobia through the roof.  I was so glad to find the second show more traditional, and very interesting, so that it modified my fears.  Now I hope that I don't have claustrophobic dreams.

So that's been my day.  Now to read for a minute, finish my wine, and head for bed.

Life??

I had one of those nights last night and kept waking up. When Jim got up I moved to the middle of the bed and stretched out to get a bit more sleep. Suddenly the light went on. I woke up and sat up suddenly. Jim just stood in the doorway and looked at me. The first thought through my head was “is Lucky dead?” He just stared at me and then said “I couldn’t find you”. He thought I was up and he was upset that I got up and didn’t turn on any lights or make the tea. He “heard” the dog outside so he went downstairs and the dog was inside and no lights were on. Instead of assuming he was wrong, and I wasn’t up, he came to the bedroom and turned on the light. Needless to say I was now awake and got up☹️  And how was your morning?😊

Variable temps

 Good morning folks, and hoping that we are all feeling OK today and wishing us all well.

I checked all of our weathers on the net as i do most mornings and see such a variance it is hard to judge just what is going on.  I am really cold here this morning but then Wpg shows the same cold temps although Neepawa seems better. I guess we just go with the flow and take what we get. Although truth be told I would much rather the milder temps ...thank you.

Our new vehicle delivery was delayed and I have no idea when we might get the call but I know the dealership was going to cancel our last payment that was due this week on the old lease, and so now I am a bit mixed up related to money and accounts. i have to go according to what i was told and judge accordingly. But that sometimes messes things up royally.

Harry bought those huge bales of planting soil the other day and has moved them from the trunk to the greenhouse. And I know what is next....cords out and heaters on! Here we go...

I have been doing a jigsaw puzzle on the dining room table and seem to be enjoying the time to sit and puzzle with the puzzle. if all goes well i shall finish it today. There was a time way back that we did puzzles a lot and it was something that I enjoyed although frustrating at times, the excitement of fitting a piece is very satisfying. In my case, I have several cats that think they are to help me with the pieces - gets hectic but I am also happy for the company.  I have also taken a stab at finding my studio again which was taken over by piles of this and that. There is so much i would like to do.

So for now I shall finish my coffee and breakfast and my time at the computer and get on with the day. i must walk up to the Lottery store sometime today to purchase my tickets - cannot go without my dream of winning big haha!

Bye for now...take care all. ☺❤

Struggling along

 Nothing to report from this vicinity except more snow.  David appears to be a little better, but I'm not doing so well, yesterday and today.  Not much we can do except deal with it one day at a time.  Both Loren and Amber are staying in touch.

The things a person learns

 I was checking the blog everyday but there was nothing new. Today I went to post and I saw three posts that I hadn’t read. I learned that my program archived 2021 and I had to click on 2022 to access them in the blog!  Who’da thunk it?!  Today I read the newspaper on NACTV and got a haircut (finally!). And tomorrow I have lunch with my sisters. Life is good. 😊 It has been sooo cold for sooo long. Lucky goes for a pee then asks to come in. When he curls up in a snow pile he is happy, but his paws get cold really fast when he walks…… there have been very few walks in the last couple of weeks. Rodney came by again today and dug out our yard.  He says he’ll probably be back soon since there is snow and howling winds in the forecast for tomorrow. I know we need the moisture, but this is getting a bit much. Tomorrow is meat draw at the legion, but if the weather is as bad as forecast I will not be leaving the house.  I have enough food and toilet paper to make it through the weekend. What more do I need, though it might be iffy on the toilet paper….and of course it is not on sale this this week ☹️  (I have extra Kleenex if needed😜). Tonight we had TV dinners for supper (Jim’s turn to cook 😤). I can’t believe how excited I got as a kid when we had TV dinners. What was I thinking?!  I think next time he decides on TV dinners I will make Peskies for myself. Tonight I think my book and I will be in bed early. 

Stayin' in

 With David being ill, we're just staying put.  From a description in the Free Press, we've accepted that it is Covid.  Mine was very, very mild with one day of congestion and coughing/choking, but yesterday was the first time David showed much sign of life, and actually ate anything.  He's lost about 8lb in the last few days.  Today he's talking better and getting around better, so we can only hope the worst is over, but we agree that he won't be going anywhere until he has stopped coughing and hacking every few minutes.

It wasn't until this Sunday that I even ventured into the studio.  I finished another charity quilt and will be posting about that on the other blog later today.

Otherwise I will keep any other comments until Friday.  Stay safe ladies.

New computer chair

 Good morning all,

I sit here with my coffee in a very relaxing and comfortable new computer chair purchased yesterday at Staples in Huntsville. I am happy to get a new chair rather than the usual ones bought at a garage sale or better still, brought home from the dump store. I was able to set it up properly according to the directions although the sheer weight of the pieces and strength needed to use that darn allen wrench for the screws was a bit much. But it sits, and swings and is just fine. The old one is outside waiting to be loaded for the dump.

The weather continues to confuse me with it being cold (minus 24C) and then next day around the zero point with forecast freezing drizzle and then in a few days down to near minus 30C with wind chill. Best to stay in and complain. Except the poor dogs expect me to take them out. 

All my decorations are now down and boxed up to rest until next Christmas comes along. I really miss my little laser tree which brought great joy early in the morning to turn on and sit in the quiet for a few moments. I will have to find something else to create that mood ? what? 

So hoping all is well there as we all enter different provincial  restrictions and rules for this Covid 19 - omicron variant journey. 

Look forward to Friday...take care.  

Actually Talking

 I'm in as well, for the 7th.  Different New Year's Eve.  I sat in the kitchen reading a book and David sat in the living room reading a book, while Celtic Woman from PBS was on the tv.  We had a few dainties left over from Christmas.  Whoopie!