Me, Myself and Memories

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  Noreen 1:10 pm on May 6, 2025 Permalink  

  Sunny Tuesday 

  There are things that come about automatically.  It was guaranteed that this was garbage pickup day.  Today after the stroke of 12 a.m., Blue Cross and Blue Shield would take our monthly premium out of our checking account.  This Tuesday morning being at PT at 8:30, I would come home feeling quite a bit of discomfort from Mike.  So be it all.

  We had a good day in Mankato yesterday.  The little red pickup got TLC from Jiffy Lube.  The transmission fluid was changed out, the worn serpentine belt was replaced, the tires were rotated and the usual oil and grease job.  It is road ready for sometime to come.

  Dennis need not check in with the hip surgeon for six months.  The x-ray showed no problems.  The only item that was stressed was to stay upright for a moment or two before taking off walking.  That’s good advice is for both of us.  Give the bodies a chance to react.

  We got home at five.  It was agreed to have a sandwich for supper and call it good.  The groceries stayed in the bags until this morning.  As it got warm yesterday we had agreed that nothing that needed to be kept cool would be bought.

  Dennis took the zero-turn and mowed the 1.3 acre for the first time this year.  I commandeered the house with groceries that needed to be put in place as well as several loads of laundry.  Dennis is going to do our original lot tomorrow.  His back was in need of a break and what better break than doing it with an A&W soda.

  I have a new exercise to do before I see Mike next week.  It is one to keep the knots in the calf of the legs to release rather than make Charlie-horses. 

  A good day was had and tomorrow will be another and then another and then another.

  With that I will take my leave.  ♥

   
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  Noreen 2:27 pm on May 4, 2025 Permalink  

  Summer Sunday 

  Going from a spring day into a summer day.  Welcome to Minnesota.

  The success I had yesterday in the yard gave me a very sound deep sleep last night.  When I don’t need a bathroom break during the night, when morning comes I am on a beat-feet mission.

  Dennis had my small gallon sprayer that we had gotten at Harbor Freight loaded and ready for me this forenoon.  It was sneaking up to the huge dandelions and giving them a good shot right into the heart of their greenery.  It was a lot of bending from the waist.  North of the patio sidewalk, there are Hosta slowly making it out of the soil.  I didn’t want any overspray.  I have an empty five gallon pail to strip over individual Hosta to spray the area around them.   In some areas there is greenery coming up as thick as the hair on a dog.  It looks like someone had an abundance of green sprinkles that were scattered.  Time will tell if the stuff I hit today will have tell-tale evidence of dying.

  When I came in at noon, the first thing I did was change into something cotton for a shirt.  I felt very warm.  Two hours is about all I can take with yard work in this day and age.  The shoulders and arms start to buck.  Dammit!  I tried doing some hand stitching after coming in, and taking out more stitches in error than good ones, told me a lot.

  It’s a good thing we have leftovers for supper. 

  Tomorrow at ten Dennis has a VA appointment here in town.  At 1:45, the ortho surgeon wants to check on Dennis’ hip replacement and Dennis’ mobility.  The x-ray was done here at our clinic last Friday.  There will be checks and balances with Dr. Stuart up and until the one-year mark. 

  I believe, that a blog post for Monday will not take place.  After the ortho appointment, I do want to stop for several items on my grocery list.  Not to worry . . . I’ll be back on Tuesday.

  With that I will take my leave.♥

   
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  Noreen 3:12 pm on May 3, 2025 Permalink  

  Saturday 

  What a great spring day.

  This morning, the studio found me deciding on the fabric for the binding of the purple quilt.  It will take 260 inches for the binding.  I cut enough three inch wide strips to equal that.  The strips are sewn together.  I checked the temps outside and the studio went dark.

  I got in some gardening this morning.  Twenty plus years ago, I had bricks outlining a flower bed off of the concrete patio.  It was time to realize that those perennials had not made it through this last winter.  Too many warm days, followed by cold rains that left a layer of ice.  We have the sweetest three tined fork.  It was perfect for me to use the fork to flip out the bricks that were in the dirt.  It will allow the mower to get closer as grass is spreading.  The bricks are on the west end of the patio.  I do have a barter system going with Dennis’ granddaughter Sadie.  When she visits and brings her tee-shirts for a quilt, grandpa Dennis will know by that time where he wants the bricks put.

  I have not kept up with the public school’s calendar.  Today is prom day.  I give Dennis’ daughter from Silver Bay credit for coming to St. James for Addison’s prom.  It has given the opportunity for visiting and catching up with her siblings and for Dennis and me.   

  Dennis has his two-gallon gas cans filled.  Batteries in the Sears rider and the zero-turn have been checked.  I have an inclination that tomorrow the 1.30 acre is going to be mowed.  We drove past it this last week and I would say it has greened up nicely.

  Last night as I was winding down snuggled in my bed, I ran through ingredients I had for a Saturday night supper.  Sure enough.  I now have my blue speckled round roaster ready for the oven.  A bag of refrigerated shredded hashbrowns, a diced onion, 8oz of sour cream, 1 can of cream of chicken soup, two cups of shredded cheese and some bacon bits tossed in for good measure.  I had two different types of the shredded cheese.  350 degrees for 50-60 minutes.  I know there will be a container to put in the freezer for another day.

  We do enjoy pan seared raw, deveined shrimp.  I took a batch out of the freezer this morning.  Enough butter in a fry pan to coat the bottom.  The shrimp get tossed about until their gray appearance turns pink . . . and they are done.   Five o’clock supper coming on.

  With that I will take my leave.  ♥

   
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  Noreen 2:24 pm on May 2, 2025 Permalink  

  Quite the Day 

  Actually, yesterday was quite the day.  When I had gone down into the studio, it had the scent much like a smell that could have resembled Spring Touch spraying our yard for weeds or spreading liquid fertilizer.  I passed it off.

  Last night, I was going to wash up some dishes and the water was barely warm.  When Dennis went to wash up for bed, there was again barely warm water.  I went down to the basement and the circuit breaker was tripped for the hot-water heater.  No hot water, a circuit breaker tripped, and a bad smell.  Too late in the day to call the Watson boys.

  This morning, first thing Dennis called.  They were here within thirty minutes.  The bottom element of the electric water heater had burned out.  There was the rest of the story.  With an hour’s time the boys had the old unit drained, had it out of the house and a new one in place.  Brandon said there would be hot water after an hour or so.  On the old unit I had written 11/06/2020.  The unit that went out of the house was still under warranty, so we will be getting a bill for the installation.  If I remember correctly, this new one’s warranty will pick up what the previous one had been warrantied for.  Kind of like a round robin.  We thanked the fellows for the quick service.

  Dennis had inquired about the water heaters that heat on demand.  That would be ideal for new construction.  An old home like ours would need extra items for it to be installed and not be cost-effective in labor or parts.

  This was a gray cool day.  I had made up my mind to not work in the studio, to give my shoulders, hands, and back a break.  I had wanted to check out some sites on YouTube and the day has passed.  Amazing what can be gleaned in new knowledge if I just seek and search.

  On a sad note.  Some time back I had shared that our neighbors across from us on Stauffer Avenue would not be able to live in their home any longer due to Chuck’s health.  Today several vans have been at their home.  The signage on the vans referred to a company that would clear out a home for estate purposes.  As I said . . . sad.  New neighbors sometime in the coming weeks or months.

  With that I will take my leave.  ♥

   
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  Noreen 2:42 pm on May 1, 2025 Permalink  

  A Duck Day 

  As damp and wet as it is today, the ducks would have had a great time in the puddles.

  An intense day was had in the studio.  And . . . it all happened before twelve noon.  All of the channel quilting and the stitch-in-the ditch has been completed on my purple wonder of a quilt.  In all honesty, this is the first time I have used flannel for the backing.  But this was perhaps the one and only time that everything would fall into place to use this beautiful purple plaid.  For it being approximately 52″ x 72″, it’s not even the prescribed size for a twin sized bed.  Perhaps I was just weary, but it sure feels heavy to wrangle under the needle.

  I did put a few pieces of fabric on the quilt to see which would work best for the binding.  That decision will be for another day.  I have not decided what to stitch in the plain purple blocks.  I feel more comfortable getting the binding on to cover all the raw edges now that I have the quilt trimmed of excess batting and backing.  I did manage to get a 45mm replacement blade into one of my rotary cutters after nicking myself on both hands for a total of four times.  It was a package of five blades.  To prevent rusting, they have oil on them.  I had tried to slide one blade off of the five.  Man, were they stuck together.  No serious injury was caused by this endeavor.  I do have a cutter ready to be put into service.  

  When I came up at noon, Dennis and I shared a bite of lunch.  We had planned on doing some tidy tidy in the potting shed this afternoon.  With the rain showers and it being chilly, that got postponed.

  With the rain, I do see some perennials coming up north of the patio porch.  I’m not in any hurry to rake out some of the leaves and such until I see what made it through the winter.  I do know my Fern Peonies, two plants, don’t have as many stalks coming from the tubers as in other years.

  With that I will take my leave.  ♥

   
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  Noreen 11:34 am on April 30, 2025 Permalink  

  Whew! 

  Whew!  I have had a great session in the studio.  Sometimes when I tackle a step in the quilting process and take it slow, miraculously the next step comes to mind.  I had no idea how to quilt down the two borders.  The center of the quilt is busy enough to carry the entire quilt.  I already had the walking foot on the sewing machine with the seam guide already attached.  I decided to channel quilt the two borders at two inches apart.  I do not have any definite plans on the center blocks.  They are large enough that there will need to be something done.  Sometimes, less is more.  I had already free-motion quilted them prior to deciding to make this quilt.  The original plan was to make pillows.  Seriously . . . making and stuffing eight pillows!  I have more to channel quilt but the shoulders gave it up.

  

  

  When Megan was visiting, she wanted to make something for Nicholas.  She finished it off by using the guide on the walking foot and did a lot of hatch quilting on it.  Her hatch design was about two inches apart at the intersections.  Sweet! With that coming to mind today, it was a huge surprise when she texted me with an attached photo.  Megan interned at a girl’s shelter during early spring.  Someone had donated a really nice Singer portable sewing machine.  No one knew how to use it.  Megan took it home to her apartment and cleaned it, and checked it out.  She even bought a small amount of fabric and took it back to the shelter.  When Carrie’s were here for Easter, Megan shared that the girls at the shelter were thrilled to actually sew some squares of the fabric together.  Megan gave me kudos for having taught her enough to pull it all together for others. 

  Today all of the dead lilac trimmings from last Saturday made it to the tree dump.  There was even a cedar bush that got cut down.  Years ago a birdie popped a seed and the trunk of the bush was now as big as my closed fist.  Time flies and some things grow faster than others.  Had we tried to buy a small shrub and get it started . . . the rest of the story.  

  With that I will take my leave.  ♥

   
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  Noreen 2:37 pm on April 29, 2025 Permalink  

  April Showers 

  I think what we had yesterday was a bit more than a shower.  We have an old steel folding chair on the front deck.  That I picked off of the sidewalk.  We were very fortunate. 

  The tree across from us left a huge amount of pollen on the street.  What a mess.  The city had their street sweeper out this morning for here and several other areas.  When I went outside this forenoon, I do believe the forceful rains did a great job of washing the house off.

  Dennis is taking it slow today.  Over the weekend and yesterday the ole cowboy’s adrenalin had been kicked into high gear.  Several days of R&R, he will be back.  

  My studio time went well today.  Seeing the quilt sandwiched on the table is a lot different than getting the heft of it under the needle.  There is no race for completion.  I did have a chair next to me to help with the heft of it.  One pass around the 52″ x 74″ and I called it.  I had a few items to take care in the checkbook division.

  Our homeowners insurance increased to the point, I looked at it twice.  We have not been singled out.  The insurance and the sharp rise in estimated market value for 2026 real estate taxes has been spoken of in various settings. 

  Supper is Manwich sandwiches, coleslaw, dill pickle flavored chips and perhaps some real pickles.  We kind of like the bread and butter ones.  Lots of turmeric flavoring.

  With that I will take my leave.  ♥

   
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  Noreen 2:26 pm on April 28, 2025 Permalink  

  Possible Weather 

  There may be possible weather issues for us later on.  With the wind gusts we are having, it wouldn’t surprise me.

  I spent the morning in the studio.  First thing was to fill my plastic shopping bag with different goodies that are in our pantry that needed to get to the first floor today.  I don’t trust myself with hands holding items.  Slip my hand through the holes in the top of the bag and I feel safe.

  

  I sized up the next step in my purple quilt.  I knew I wanted to put the walking foot onto the sewing machine.  There is a scissor-like prong, seen in the photo, that needs to fit over the same shaft as where the screw is for inserting a needle.  When sewing, it allows additional grab bars on the bottom of the walking foot to help feed the fabric through under the needle with every stitch that is made.  There is also the grid guide that can be inserted into the back of the walking foot.  If one line of stitches has been made on the quilt, the guide can be either pushed in or out to follow that line. By staying on the previous made stitches it allows for even spacing without markings being made on the quilt.

  It may seem like a lot of fuss.  No, it is being able to sew more efficiently with perhaps a better outcome.  Just as a refresher, I plugged in a YouTube on Bernina’s site on the walking foot.  I may not use all of the functions frequently, so why not take the time to check it out.

  Once I had done an oil check, a new needle, I closed down the shop.  Several hours gave me the confidence for the next time I visit.  The first stitching will be done by stitching in the ditch on the two borders.  That will allow many pins to be removed securing the sandwiching.  It may be difficult to see on the photo, but there is a metal guide on the right hand side of the walking foot.  This is ahead of the needle.  When that guide stays on the seams where the borders have been sewn, the needle comes down right into that seam, making my thread almost invisible. That is why it’s called stitching in the ditch. 

  We may or not be in for rain.  Time will tell.  I know looking out my bedroom south window, Dennis is checking his little red pickup’s oil level just as a trusty trucker would. 

  With that I will take my leave.  ♥

   
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  Noreen 2:28 pm on April 27, 2025 Permalink  

  A Sunday 

  Yes, I would call this a day of rest for those at Stauffer Avenue.

  Much was accomplished yesterday.  I started out the cool morning on Saturday with a gallon size pump sprayer with weed killer in it.  The sprayer was half full as I was using up what had been left in it from last fall.  It still seemed plenty heavy to carry while also using my cane.  Several postings back I had visited about Dennis and I taking out last year’s Russian Sage.  On Friday when I fixed the small flag off of the front deck, I couldn’t believe what I was seeing.  The Russian Sage are in a raised bed next to the south side of my bedroom porch.  We had put pavers in years ago to give give our small home some dimension.  It worked.  What I had not counted on was that this year, for the first time, there were little Russian Sage plants coming out in between where the pavers met.  So many, so many looking way too healthy.  Not only there, but in the cracks of the cement sidewalk off of the front deck.

  Dennis told me the spray would take several days to show itself working.  Believe me, I will be keeping an eye out.  Nothing like giving them a second treatment if needed.  Many had told me how unusual it was to see Russian Sage come back year after year.  I must have gotten a hardy variety when I purchased these three plants from Drummer’s in Mankato.  This will be the fifth year of them in this spot.

  That is how our Saturday had begun.  From there it had just kept rolling.

  After a slow Sunday morning, Dennis chauffeured me about town.  We needed kitty litter from the Family Dollar Store.  From there it was to the Dollar General for the hard candy called Lemon Heads.  In Dollar General they are $1.00 for a five ounce bag.  In the grocery store they are $1.89 for five ounces in a box.  Go figure.

  The grocery store was our last stop.  Dennis needed distilled water for his CPAP machine.  The store has great carry-out fellows, so I bought three gallons for what will last for three weeks. I had not shopped since the week before the Easter weekend.  The groceries are unpacked and the day of errands is over.

  Dennis called Charlie and Dennis can go out to Charlie’s to unload the Cub tomorrow after five.  Good news.  The little red pickup with the loaded trailer has been in our drive since yesterday.  Dennis had hoped that the rain that was forecast for last night would have been a bit more forceful.  Not.  When we got home from errands, Dennis rinsed off the tractor and mower deck from the winter’s dust of being in the back garage as well as leaves caught on the mower deck from using it last fall.

  This next week is a quiet one.  I could not get any PT appointments for this next week and Mike thought it would be a good test run to see if he and I are making good head-ways.  I will continue with my exercises each and every day.  Appointments are on the calendar for the two weeks following.

  The coffee shop in the grocer’s had biscuit and gravy for one of their breakfast specials.  I brought home a boxed meal for supper.  It is one of Dennis’ favorites.

  With that I will take my leave.  ♥

   
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  Noreen 3:25 pm on April 26, 2025 Permalink  

  A Busy Day 

  It was a disappointment when Dennis’ daughter Sandy didn’t make it over for Easter.

  Today worked out for Sandy and her and Tom. They really got a lot done for us older ones on Stauffer Avenue.

  Tom brought his chainsaw and now all the dead lilacs have been cut down and piled out of the way to dry.  Lilac wood is hard and will take a while to dry even if for all practical purposes they were beyond putting out a blossom.  Dennis’ propane torch was used to take out the dried plume grass from last year.  The plume grass grows and spreads like quack-grass.  I don’t mind it as it is a pretty ground cover and puts out seeds that the birds enjoy during the fall days.

  Dennis had grass seed that Tom spread in an area of the acre where there had been nothing of any good just a few short years ago.

  Dennis now also has the Cub-Lo-Boy loaded on the implement trailer.  That will be going out to Beckious.  Charlie is along highway #4 north from St. James and always has various items for sale as well as his repair shop.  This is a perfect time for the Cub with the belly-mount mower to have a for-sale sign on it.  Dennis will call Charlie to find out when Charlie will be home to get the Cub unloaded.

  Yes this has been a good day.  Many items marked off of the to-do list.

  From here Sandy and Tom were headed to Darfur as their fire department is having a Smelt feed at six. 

  We will be having something good for supper.  As long as it is hot, Dennis will be content.

  With that I will take my leave.  ♥