Me, Myself and Memories

Updates from Noreen Toggle Comment Threads | Keyboard Shortcuts

• 

  Noreen 4:41 pm on February 3, 2021 Permalink  

  Sounds of the Our Town 

  We live on one of the thoroughfares of our town and our home is about 24′ from that thoroughfare.  There is noise 24/7.  As it were, we do become accustomed to whatever passes by.  The trains pass by a block to the north around the clock.  The trains need to blow their whistle each time they cross over an intersection.  I rarely hear them.  

  What I do clearly hear is the lone snowmobile that has taken to whipping around our neighborhood.  There is an ordinance prohibiting them in town.  I believe this is a young fellow that lives east of us and thrives on taking his chances of making a whip every once in awhile after dark. 

  The noise of that snowmobile doesn’t bother me much as it brings back the times and memories of when my dad bought a snowmobile on the farm.  Dad was moving right on up.  For him it was an easy way in the winter to get from their farm retirement home to a bit up the gravel road where my brother was on the home farm place.  Dad was always on hand to give a hand when Michael needed it.  

  Needless to say this brought on an entire new dimension when the grandsons came to visit grandpa and grandma during the winter months.  It gave dad a kick to share his toy.  There was no end to the fields that the boys could travel.  I am sure there were some outrageous experiments and adventures that were not shared when it was time to call it a day and the snowmobile was parked.  Boys will be boys.

  I do know that my sister’s family also had a snowmobile, but it wasn’t the same when we visited and my sister’s two boys and Kevin took theirs out.  Uncle Orville’s take on letting the boys enjoy the experience and fun was different than grandpa’s.  As it turned out . . . no one ever came back bleeding or with broken bones.  

  I have never been on a snowmobile and I am just fine with that.  I was more into making snow angels in the snow . . . either by design or just as often . . . accidently.  For those that have a sled, I know it must be a good adventure gliding over the fields of white snow where no one else has traveled.  When I was younger I was a chicken and now I love my titanium knees too much.

  Today I checked often from the sewing studio to try and catch a glimpse of the sun . . . not much to glimpse.  The wind and the milder temps did allow a few ice cycles to fall.  Dennis went to the corner store after lunch. The way people were stocking up and gassing up, you’d have thought the blizzard of the century was about to happen.  That may well be what is coming, I will wait to be surprised.  The amount of snow that we may get will definitely alter the sounds of our town. 

  The picking of the stiches today went smoothly.  My comeback on this project is stronger than the setback.  Several more days and I will have the project ready for the next attempt.  I do think of that “next” often as I sit and pick.

   
• 

  Noreen 4:05 pm on February 2, 2021 Permalink  

  A New Cook 

  Stauffer Avenue has a new cook in the kitchen.  Dennis decided it was time for a hotdish.  Maybe he was sick of me making totally healthy food . . . or didn’t care for the oatmeal the other night and was making sure there would not be a repeat.  Whatever.

  While all the prep was going on in the kitchen, I stayed in the sewing studio and even entertained Dennis’ son-in-law, Tom.  Tom came over to chat and he likes to sit in the rocking chair in the sewing studio.  Tom is a high risk for the covid as he is recovering from surgery.  I felt honored that he knew he would be safe with us.

  Groundhog’s day is telling us we are on the tail end of winter.  It doesn’t really matter much to me.  Taking each day as it comes is a surprise every 24 hours.  

  After Tom left, the quiet of the sewing studio was rather pleasant.  No noise to speak of.  Picking stitches gives pause to reflect.  One thing that always astonishes me is that my children are grown.  Going down memory lane with them in the spotlight is enjoyable.  How can time slip by so quickly?  It might be a step in the right direction if I would remember how old I was.  I don’t feel my age and I sure as heck don’t need to do the “Mirror, mirror on the wall” routine any oftener than necessary.  I have earned my smile lines many times over.  Save the best and leave the rest . . . remembering that will always leave sweet feelings in the heart.

  My responsibility for supper is to pop Dennis’ concoction in the oven at 4:30.  Seeing as how I set out the ingredients for his dish, I know we will have a very nutritious supper.  Those not familiar with the kitchen on a daily basis need just a bit of help to allow them to feel confident they can pull it off.  Yes . . . he did complete with the dishes of the prep having been done.  Priceless.

   
• 

  Noreen 4:59 pm on February 1, 2021 Permalink  

  Reactions 

  For every action there is a reaction.  Oh my gosh!  When I came down into the sewing study this morning . . . how much reaction could I take from my actions of yesterday!  

  It is unfortunate that the strong arm of logic doesn’t come down and smack us one when we are on a journey that has no positive ending.  Yesterday I proceeded to baste around each of the 25 blocks of the Santa sandwiched quilt . . . with the sewing machine.  I must have been under the influence of the wicked witch of quilt boo-boos. 

  This morning all I saw were wrinkles within each of the twenty five 10″ blocks.  I must have walked around my church tables quite a few times in utter amazement that I had done this.  This was not acceptable.  Lena would be shaking her head. 

  I remember a friend of mine, Sharon.  Sharon has been working on some piecing of a table runner and as hard as she worked, it just got harder to accept.  The result was taking the entire project apart stitch by stitch as she knew she would never be able to enjoy the project going forward.

  I will be taking all the stitches out of this huge basting debacle until I am down to the individual pieces; the backing, the batting and the quilt top.  I will begin anew.  If not, I fear I would be so upset with it going forward, there would be only one option . . . destroying it.  Buck up Grammie.  Find your good sewing chair and slide it up to the church tables and begin picking stitches.  Making that decision, I felt uplifted.  I can do this!  There will be no updates on this project for some time.  

  Having come to terms with my timeline for quite some time, Brett called and asked if I would ride with him to Old Alley Quilt Shop in Sherburn.  Absolutely!  In the five years that Brett has been quilting, he never sought out Old Alley.  Brett was fed up with JoAnn’s quality, more like . . .the quality in fabrics and choices.  Brett was amazed at the quantity of choices in colors and in bolts of fabric in the store.  What was sought was found.  Using 108″ wide for backing is wonderful to use  rather than the 44″ fabric that needs to be pieced perhaps as often as three times.  There was no end to the choices.  He is working on two king size quilts.  I have a sneaking suspicion that Brett will make the 26 mile journey in the future when a need arises.   

  The damp gray day is noted on the arthritis.  I have no doubt that sitting and picking stitches will give the arthritic fingers a good workout.  It is touted that “keep moving” is the key to keeping arthritis mobile.  Have I got a deal for my hands!  The reaction of this project will bring about not only good feelings of the heart but also in the hands and fingers.

   
• 

  Noreen 3:57 pm on January 31, 2021 Permalink  

  Sunday 

  We missed the snow that we had heard so much about.  We are entertaining more gray skies.  Sunny days are far and few in between.

  As in so many Sundays that have gone before, KNUJ radio station is playing its tunes in the background. The difference is that while I am piddling around with invisible quilting thread, Mom would have been sitting at the round oak kitchen table darning socks of various sizes.  Both tasks being equally challenging.

  I have gone too far with the Santa quilt to turn back.  Slow and steady and it may yet be a finished project.  Never let it be said that my stubbornness has me turning my back on a challenge.  Yup, sometimes I may not know what is best for me . . . until blood, sweat and tears allow me to see the end of the tunnel.  I find myself shaking my own head in puzzlement.  Having courage is more important than having confidence when action is decided upon.  Perfection is not the ultimate . . . doing the best I can is my ultimate as I am bound to learn a lesson or two for the future.

  Dennis has been using the mild day to take more ice off of the drive.  It has melted enough for water to get under the ice and then it peels off more easily.  When he came in for our three o’clock break the aroma of a pork roast in the oven has spurred him on for one more bout of ice clearing.  

  Tomorrow is a new month but the same old, same old on the news programs.  It has driven me to KNUJ radio for most of the day.  There are times when the polkas get to be a bit much, but the saving grace is some local news in between.

  May the new week bring a smile or two along the way.  It may be that the smile will be catching.

   
• 

  Noreen 3:54 pm on January 30, 2021 Permalink  

  Heavy Gray Air 

  The forecast has been for less than good as to what is coming towards us during the evening hours.  When I awoke and peeked out from the flannels I closed my eyes.  When I did get up it was 9:15.

  I didn’t seem to have missed anything by sleeping in.  The entire neighborhood was quiet . . .  not much traffic and the evergreen outside my bedroom window was still.  Dennis was coming in from the patio porch and he was heading for a nap in the recliner.  I set about doing the first floor ditties.  

  Once the local effort of the first floor of our home is done . . . I am free to go!  I toddled right down into the sewing studio.  Today was the day to finish up the affirmation blocks that I will use later on for a quilt.  The sixteen embroidered blocks will be set into a quilt top for Megan’s college quilt.  I am not rushing into that time, as it is coming too fast.  2022 graduation will be here before I know it and before I like it.  As long as I had the bee in my bonnet there was no reason to not get with it.  It will take a few sheets of graph paper to figure how the rest of the story in the quilt top goes.

  With those 16 blocks tucked into a folder it gave way to putting all the spools of thread back in numerical order.  Dust bunnies were taken out of the bobbin area of the sewing machine as well as giving the machine a grease and lube job.  The flash drive that holds all of the 27 designs (I only chose 16) as well as the paper folder with instruction of thread colors is going back onto the shelf with the rest of the goodies that can be chosen for embroidery.  The sixteen blocks were a total of 634,000 stitches.  The quilt for Kersten’s Pokémon remains the high stitch number.  Taking each step the way it presents itself makes for a tidy sewing studio.  Nothing feels better than starting a project when items can be pulled from their storage for a good clean start.

  I do not have to look very hard for that new start.  The vintage Santa quilt has been sandwiched and will be the next item under the needle.  Tomorrow, deciding how it will be quilted will take some time.  Thread color is a question.  There is just as much red as there is green.  I have a spool of Sulky invisible thread.  I am kicking that idea around for the top and using green on the back as that is totally green.  I may need to do a bit of experimenting on scraps to see how the sulky thread does.  Always something to learn.  That is why quilting never ever gets old.  The Santa quilt will be finished before I entertain anything else.  There is a lot of time in the quilting and then the binding.  I was determined to do this quilt from A to Z and not take it to Old Alley for finishing.  Megan’s embroidery was a good break from the Santa quilt and finishing up the quilt is a good break from the embroidery.  Two to juggle is as far as I will go for unfinished projects, aka: UFOs . . . unfinished objects.  I have heard from others that too many UFOs can be paralyzing.

  We are having leftovers of a variety for supper.  Time to clean out the refrig.  Neither Dennis nor I waste much, regardless of what it may be.

  May your weekend be more enjoyable than the gray skies.  May the weekend also be safe if the bad weather descends.

   
• 

  Noreen 3:39 pm on January 29, 2021 Permalink  

  Out on a Limb 

  An acquaintance and I were sharing time this summer.  The conversation got around to our families.  We no longer live across the farm section from each other.  Life partners may take our children to destinations that we never even thought of.  It may not only be geographical but also following pursuits of the heart. 

  I was reminded that some of the most savory fruit of a tree is out on the farthest limb, away from the trunk.  Hmm.

  It takes belief in self when our children strike out to get to tip the of the limb to take what is perhaps one of the sweetest moves of their lives.  Staying close to the trunk doesn’t pose too many risks.  In time, the “what ifs” and the “if only” may cause regrets.  Staying close to the safety of the trunk may cause them to loose out what they were destined to for their happiness and contentment.  

  I have forgotten . . . where I am at right now on Stauffer Avenue, is the result of me going out on a limb many years ago.

  As my children face choices as to which limb is of their choosing, and that choice may change in years to come, their vision of their limb is very personal and individual.  I can do for Carrie and Kevin just what my parents did for me.  Raymond and Lena gave me their unconditional loving support.  Love, support and trust from me . . . it’s here for them.  Their happiness . . . wasn’t that the goal when they left the nest?

  My nest, out there on my very own limb, will always be there for them to visit for soaking up that little bit of extra nurturing that is timeless.

   
• 

  Noreen 5:05 pm on January 28, 2021 Permalink  

  My Social life 

  Nothing had been planned on Stauffer Avenue for a cold Thursday.  Changes were abound when I received a text from nephew Brett complete with a photo.

  Brett had a king sized quilt top put together and nothing left for the three borders to finish the top.  It warranted a trip to Brett’s house.  I went.  I saw.  I came home to seek and search in my stashes.  I am thrilled to share from my many pieces of inherited fabrics.  Who knows?  Sometime in the future I might very well enjoy purchasing new fabrics for a project.

  Brett had purchased a kit online.  The fabrics included Grandma-type fabrics.  Some flowers and some prints that looked like the dress shirt prints from my grandpa’s era.  I returned to Brett’s sewing room in his basement with options.  The options scored . . . big time.  I left him to enjoy this project.  Mission completed.

  I was dressed, the car was warmed up, so I stopped at June’s home at the east end of Stauffer.  We had not caught up since before Christmas.  That took me to 12:30.  When I got home Dennis had just finished a bottle of Boost after a great forenoon nap and he was doing up some dishes.  Sweet!

  Dennis may have had ulterior motives.  The RFD television channel was not coming in.  We got the magic number off of the Mediacom box and I was on hold with Mediacom until an oriental tech support person could help.  I do enunciate very clearly to get to the heart of the problem.   After an hour . . . RFD was ready to be enjoyed in the patio porch lulling Dennis into a nap via his rocking chair.  I do like keeping an eye on him through the bathroom window that is 20′ from the patio porch.  

  My quest was to make soup via Shoreland Lunch soup mix.  It is really good and quick.  I had cubed leftover chicken in the freezer.

  The phone put the soup mix on hold as Aunt Janet from Brownton called.  She hasn’t been out and about much due to covid.  Chatting was needed.  When I closed down the phone we caught up to the tune of 57 minutes.

  I am back on the trail of getting the soup mix reangled.  It is down to the last step of simmering and it smells wonderful.

  I have had quite the social day plus helping out the ole cowboy to get his RFD channel up and running.  There have been a few spits of moisture on the windows.  Nothing serious.  It is on to a Friday tomorrow.  The time does go on with or without us.  I choose to participate.  It is far better than the option.  Take care.

   
• 

  Noreen 6:59 pm on January 27, 2021 Permalink  

  Bumming 

  Today we went bumming.  Dennis had some items he wanted to check out at Harbor Fright in Mankato.  Dennis found what he was looking for.

  We now have a container for multiple sizes of batteries.  We now have all the batteries in one location within his new container.  What I came away with was I now have four new “C” batteries and one “AA” in my vintage radio from Kevin.  I think at one time is was labeled as a radio for a bathroom.  It has been promoted to my sewing studio radio. I was amazed how clear the stations came in.  Dennis did have to clean out some yuk around the smaller area. 

  We had a great day and did a bit of stopping and seeking and searching.  Priceless.

  Tomorrow is a day for usual and customary.  A break now and then feels good.

   
• 

  Noreen 2:18 pm on January 26, 2021 Permalink  

  Good Advice 

  Alright, I admit it, yesterday was pretty close to a pity party day for me.  It happens.  Good thing it doesn’t happen often here on Stauffer Avenue.  I thought I was above that . . . ya . . . right!

  Sure enough, today, it’s a new day.  No one else had had their grubby hands on it here on Stauffer Avenue when I awoke from a good night’s rest.  I grabbed it and I am enjoying it.

  I had spent time yesterday in the sewing studio stitching out a block of the affirmation collection called “Wisdom.”  Too bad I didn’t take the good advice from that block.  Taking long and deep breathes can do oh so much in healing one’s mind.  The good thing is that even on a less than good day I have been keeping up on my exercises that were given to me from PT.  I have had a full week of the lower body staying on track.  Were it not for the icy hit and miss conditions of our drive and street, I would enjoy taking a short walk in the sunshine.

  The walking had been one of my favorites in the past.  I began sloughing off after the painting of the garage and a few other yard projects because . . . it hurt to walk for any distance.  Yup, I put off making the PT appointment until it was a daily hurt and it took that much longer for Mike at PT to work through it.  I thought I was sharper than that.  Ya . . .  right!

  I do, and I am Dennis’ adult daycare provider for many things that Dennis doesn’t or can’t remember for himself.  So what does that have to do with and for my wellbeing?  If I don’t take care of myself, I will become helpless and worthless for myself and my family, and for Dennis.  I thought I thought more of myself than that. Ya . . . right! 

  Perhaps a good old pity party is needed once in awhile to give yourself a good old fashioned kick in the hind end to realign the mind while working on keeping the old body realigned.  Hmm.  

  It’s a good thing that God gives us a new piece of paper every day to put upon it what our path will be for ourselves.  Putting “self” first does not always come easily.  I need to take the good advice and practice the good advice that I know I have for myself each day.  Me first . . . and the rest will follow.

   
• 

  Noreen 4:37 pm on January 25, 2021 Permalink  

  Making Do 

  We are a community of friends that may all be deemed vulnerable.  Dennis and I are the most daring as we try to continue doing and going where we need to and where we want to go.  It may keep many close to home as the local buzz in our town continues to stress to those our age to stay close to home and . . . wear masks . . . do not feel that covid happens elsewhere.  

  Today one of friends that was in the stitchers group did quite a bit of texting back and forth.  Anita lives in Mankato and had been a quilt shop owner herself in times past.  Anita had visited my home with the stitchers a while ago and she was determined to get her area organized.  I wanted to catch up with her and encourage her.  When we had gotten together as a small group in Baker’s Square we shared and supported each other in what we were currently doing and contriving with our projects.  Networking has been missed.  Making do with texting does make some of that isolation less daunting.  Dennis just doesn’t have the same lingo that is desired in the sewing studio.  

  I do have acquaintances within our town.  You need to have a shared connection, a shared passion to feel friendship also known as kinship.  The years of a w-2 form job allowed for many acquaintances but no strong friendships.  What it all comes down to, is that today I feel a deep loss of my sister.  Today it is weighing heavy.  Elvera has been gone for four years.  I doesn’t seem like that much time has passed.  When three o’clock comes around on a weekday . . . that was our time for sharing coffee.  It was a phone coffee date as she lived too far away to have a one on one.  Elvera was a quilter.  Elvera was a mom.  Elvera and I had family history to fall back on and did some “remember when” time.

  I don’t think many realize how important that “remember when” time is until there is no one to remember with you.  It can be a lonely feeling.  

  Oh well.  Dennis is in the same boat.  When Dennis wants to reminisce I do a very good job and have the attention span to allow him that time even if I have no idea what he is referring to but participate as well as I can.  It is a gift that I can do that for him.  

  Tomorrow is a new day.  Tomorrow is time for new thoughts, a new outlook.  I don’t think the gray day that we have had today and . . . way too many days of, has done me any favors.  For the remaining day of January 25, 2021, I will make do.