I remember years ago when the news and latest would come out, my thought was, yup, more to go wrong. We will be making a trip to Bird Island tomorrow morning. This time the sewing machine is going to have a sleep over in Bird Island until every nook and screw has been gone over. Surprisingly, neither Dennis nor I am upset about it. We bought the machine to use and let me tell you it does get a work out. Since Thanksgiving it has put on approximately 800,000 stitches. Is it worth a road trip . . . absolutely. Who else could have more fun in retirement than having a reason to get up in the morning and at the end of the day, having had good clean fun with something tangible to show for it. It beats sitting up at happy hour with a small laundry basket in front of you for all the scratch offs that won nothing. Dennis and I are looking forward to the day as you know dog gone well, Athman’s Restaurant will get a visit from us.
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Noreen
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Noreen
When you think the wind has no more gusto, be prepared. I will take the wind and a few sprinkles any day over snow. Dennis has been manning the main floor of our home today. It seems like it was meant to be a stitching type of day. As I loaded an embroidery design into the sewing machine, I did wince a bit when the stitch count came up 29,614. There is no better reward of time and talents well spent. I wandered back and forth from the ironing board to the Sears machine.
Mom loved her thread and fuzz. Rain or shine, snow or ice the barn chores always came first. From there she made sure the hen house was well tended for those precious cackleberrys. The last chore before Mom and Dad had breakfast was to wash the milk machine milkers. It was a job that had to be done right after the milking morning and night to make sure all was clean and ready for the next round.
I can about bet that the last of the rinse drops were hitting the milk room floor from the wash job and Mom had eggs and toast going for her and Dad. To get back to Mom’s fuzz and thread . . . it was her passion and she made no excuses for spending as much time at her sewing and quilting as she could squeeze in. She could have something going in the oven or on a cookie sheet and still get a stitch or two in between time.
Perhaps My love of fuzz and thread is in my genes or . . . I glean a lot of satisfaction from trying new things and creating something that perhaps no one thought to try. While the wind is howling, I still keep an ear tuned in case Dennis needs something on the main floor. Without notice or fanfare he wanders down and uses the computer in the sewing studio for a card game or two. It doesn’t hurt that he may find a snack of peanuts while he is at it.
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Noreen
The howling wind today could be heard in the far corners of the basement, yes, even in the storage closet that was once a cistern. I had to do a “phone consult” today in regard to one of my projects. No point in spending energy, time and products if the right choices are not made.
Dennis came down into the sewing studio and put his stamp of approval on some fabric choices I had laid out on the church tables. The embroidery unit can let me know when it needs attention while I have actually several projects in the works. Dennis enjoys taking some time to get in a few games of solitaire on the computer we have in the sewing studio, and he can then take a few minutes to swivel his chair and watch the stitching and also enjoy a few peanuts for a snack. We have a full service sewing studio and it is so appreciated and enjoyed. I have said it often, “We have a sweet life here on Stauffer Avenue.”
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Noreen
Good Day on Stauffer
Lots going on in the sewing studio. The embroidery unit running and to the far right with my Sears is where I have been doing straight stitching. I feel so fortunate that at the end of the day my mind is weary as well as my body. I couldn’t even guess how many trips around my sewing tables I make in a day. It’s like a modern day “Ring Around The Rosey.”
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Noreen
A gray day that had snow flurries. At one time when I looked out the tiny floating snowflakes looked just like the little feather tufts that leak out of Dennis’ winter nylon jacket that has channels of feathers.
I had a great day of stitching. It can’t always go perfect though. Dennis was in place to see what a thread mess can be made when a sewing machine bucks. It was my fault in not threading it correctly. Several attempts, only one thing to be done is to take it slow and take it apart to the point of the problem. The problem was a piece of thread the size of an eye lash that had gotten wedged under a spring. Five o’clock the sewing studio shuts down. It is never a problem wondering what to do tomorrow. I like it that way.
Life is good and there are blessings abound.
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Noreen
Ever Faithful
In 1968 I spent one entire township assessing check of $200 on a Sears Model 1820 sewing machine. The first huge project on it was when Sharon Skolberg asked me to make kitchen curtains for her using several of the decorative cams, no less on lightweight fabric that would allow the daytime light to brighten her kitchen. Forty-nine years later it still has a focal place in my sewing studio. The embroidery unit can stitch away and I am able to do some stitching on the Sears machine. Truly a great investment. If the Bernina holds up half as well, it will be wonderful.
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Noreen
Sometimes it takes that last ditch thought to get to the bottom of a problem. Nephew Brett got his sewing machine tuned up by my people in Bird Island. They pin pointed the problem and had put down a solution for him to follow up on. When my cell phone rang and I saw it was Brett . . . I cringed. The free motion foot they had put on to replace the bent one was of a plastic Mylar type until Brett would go online to order the specific foot needed from the Husqvarna Viking site which was of hard metal.
The interim foot had lasted for only several hours and it was in pieces. “Have you gone online and gotten the order in place for the appropriate foot?” “No . . . not yet.” All I could tell him was to dig the original foot out of the garbage and take a needle nose plier to it until the needle would pass through the center of it and not force the needle to hit the face plate. By the way . . . that was one of the problems as to why Brett was breaking needles.
A call later, the needles were still breaking. As I looked at my own machine doing an embroidery design, it dawned on me. I finally ask him how fast he ran the machine. “Wide open.” I was amazed. I asked him how much the machine vibrated running at full speed. You can imagine the response. What made this fellow who has expensive machines for cutting concrete and steel to think that a sewing machine needed to also have some reasonable speed control.
The last phone call . . . “It’s running like a champ.” Why I had never asked about the setting of the speed is beyond me. Never assume. You know how that ends up. “Did you put your order in for the new foot? That metal tweaked with a plier may be weakened and cause some problems if used for many hours.” “No, not yet.”
I now have a slight headache. Gotta love those who do try something that is out of their wheelhouse.
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Noreen
We really have a reason to take it easy this evening. WE elfed! Dennis did a great job manning the 120 miles on roads that were less than good as we traveled to Bird Island with sewing machines. The best part is that all three of the machines were serviced and we were able to bring them all back to St. James with us. My machine was under warranty . . . no charge. Brett and Jody have bills for their service work under my Friends and Family Benefits. The next time their machines need servicing they need to bring them in on their own and pay the usual and customary price.
Dennis went straight to his recliner when we got home as I knew he needed to stretch out and let his body recover from being held tense quite a bit of the time.
We had a chance to swing in and say “Hi” in Fairfax. A special part of any trip that takes us north. I know we will sleep good tonight as we felt our home was going to take flight last night as the winds were extreme.
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Noreen
Look Mom! A walk with no hood, no gloves and a light summer jacket. It may well be the last good day for a safe walk.
I took the advice that was found on the YouTube for the sewing machine problem . . . Zilch. By the time I went to bed, I had an email from the good folks in Bird Island and we have an appointment at 9:30 Tuesday morning for a service of the Error Message 1010. December 1st a new download of the most current firmware was forwarded to all the Bernina dealers. It’s a good thing we get all bases covered at one time. I will need to set the alarm. By all indications we may have some winter on the roads tomorrow and Dennis doesn’t take any chances in driving faster than the roads allow.
The sewing machine is loaded in the pickup . . . and it has company back there. Brett is sending along his Vikings sewing machine for a going over. He bought it on Craig’s List. Most likely ten years old but it has “issues.” He fought with it all last winter and now that his concrete business is giving him some quiet time, the last thing he needs is machine problems. Then there is a Brothers Disney Model sewing and embroidery machine to fill in the trio in the pickup. Jody bought her machine on eBay and can’t get anything but a mess under the bobbin area. We are making the trip and why not help out some people who want to enjoy their passions and machines and not get burned out before they get a good start.
I did let “My People” know we were coming with a load of machines. Dennis and I will spend however long it takes in Bird Island for the machines to be gone over and repaired. Waiting seems a better call than making a second trip in several days. It could be a long day but I know Dennis does take great naps in his pickup. I have cell phone numbers for Jody and Brett in case there is major, major repair problems. Dennis and I are doing a bit of elfing for the season.
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Noreen
Something, Something—
Something about the moon? It has been bright these last nights. Today, on Stauffer Avenue it felt as if a witch had flown across the moon.
I was in the sewing studio and I had to stop and really listen. No! We couldn’t have a mouse chewing his way into the basement. It sure sounded like it. I went to inspect and it was water dripping onto the plastic of the toilet paper package. “Dennis, is there a problem?” Dennis was doing dishes in the kitchen and yup . . . sure enough . . . there was a problem. The plastic piping leading from the right sink had become disengaged leading to the left sink. Dennis was already on it in the kitchen with as many extra towels as he could gather after he had shut off the water. I , on the other hand was gathering towels and moving whatever I could out of the way of the water that was now following whatever path it wanted to take to drip into our storage closet. Nothing had been moved against said piping . . . hey it’s plastic, does it eventually loosen itself from the house shifting. No matter. We were on top of it upstairs and downstairs.
Back to stitching. We have a small refrigerator in our basement and I felt a cool drink of bottled water was due. What! I am stepping in water! The plug in of the refrigerator on the north basement wall was dis-engaged enough that the refrigerator was totally defrosting. Not that it didn’t need it. That outlet is the type that each of the plugin connections are at an angle. It has been on that wall since the mid 80s. The refrigerator plugged into the top outlet . . . well not so good anyway. More mopping up.
Back to stitching. I am really enjoying a project and it has been clipping right along. I did have to take several
S.O.S. calls from nephew Brett. His concrete business is closing down for the season and he is about to get back to quilting. From early spring to early winter it was like starting over with some of his mindset. I turned back to my sewing machine to change from one color to another and all I got was a message that had me puzzled. I did turn off the machine and restart it . . . but nothing. I took the machine apart from every angle that is available to me. Restarting it several times. Nothing. I went online and got squat for good information. Monday morning I will be calling my people in Bird Island and setting up an appointment. Three events within several hours on Stauffer does make one think that there is something abound. The sink has been remedied, the refrigerator is back on track to doing its thing. The sewing machine is what it is. It’s not all bad. We don’t mind a road trip. Dennis does enjoy having a bite to eat at the Athman’s Café in Bird Island and if we are making the trip we may well take Brett’s sewing machine with us as he has been having issues. It has been an eventful day on Stauffer. Nobody died. It’ll all turn out o.k.