Me, Myself and Memories

Updates from June, 2026 Toggle Comment Threads | Keyboard Shortcuts

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  Noreen 1:48 pm on June 17, 2026 Permalink  

  Bright sun on a Wednesday 

  We have had spurts of rain with the last spurt being a downpour for about five minutes.  We’ll take what we can get.

  Yesterday’s trip to the sleep study lab in Mankato was interesting.  The sleep mask that Dennis has used for the last nineteen years is being discontinued.  An entire new head gear with fasteners that are different are in the plan.  We are never too old to have to adapt.  His prescription has been updated at the Mayo Store and a sample that was tested right then and there was sent home with Dennis.  Time will tell.  I left Dennis to-it last night at bedtime.  I can’t do it for him.  I stayed up long enough to hear that he had met the challenge.

  As of last night Dennis has 30 banana nut muffins in individual sandwich bags in our freezer.  Horray for Dennis.  Horray for me.  No more make a sandwich for the breakfast box each day.  Would Dennis have made one for himself each day?  I tried that.  I am better off doing the muffins knowing he is not taking all his meds on an empty stomach followed by carcinogens of the cigarettes and allowing the stomach acid to build into a medical situation.  I realize my own path to resistance and not wanting to make hospital visits when Dennis would and did call from a hospital bed wondering when I was coming to see him.

  Yesterday, I brought home from Sam’s 2 lbs. of strawberries for $4.99, which would be one 1 lb. package here in town.  This morning I pared them, crushed them and have two freezer bags in the freezer with some for this evening.  A little backup plan helps. 

  Speaking of backups, Sam’s rotisserie 3 lb. chickens are the best for $4.98.  Dennis’ grandchildren that live in Mankato make special trips for them.  Our grocery has a small chicken for $9.98.  For supper, we had planks of chicken breast meat with a savory sauce I made.  I boned out the remaining chicken and there are two freezer bags ready for oven meals sometime.  Our freezer is looking mighty fine. 

  There has been no stitching for several days along side a dark studio.  Get the jobs done around the first floor before play time. 

  With that I will take my leave.  ♥

   
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  Noreen 2:21 pm on June 12, 2026 Permalink  

  A Turn 

  Today is Friday and a bit of a turn to what Dennis says feels warm.

  I could agree with that.  With an old paint brush, I swiped away all the loose dirt near the south side of the home’s foundation.   I could easily see the burrowed little ant hill holes where the driveway concrete met the home’s foundation.  Squatting as low as the titanium knees allowed, the ant powder went into the holes with just a bit extra that they may want to drag home.  There was a flurry for a time.  Since the last time I had put down the powder, we had had rain.  Yes, Dennis, the sun on my back felt warm.

  It has been days since I have seen one of the larger black ants dare to do the scouting of our first floor.  I will be diligent with my powder as I know where I can get more.

   I stayed in the studio until 1:30 this afternoon after I had buttered toast and fruit for breakfast.  I finished up two projects that have been in the works since February of this year.  It feels great not to have unfinished projects that have been languishing.  The sewing machine is ready for a new spell of stitching.

  My bedroom porch is vibrating this afternoon, as the internet company is drilling under the county’s concrete street.  Across the street I see little mounds of dug up dirt.  Plastic was put down before the fellows started digging.  A people’s company that knows how to do their work while keeping things tidy.

  With that I will take my leave.  ♥

   
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  Noreen 2:49 pm on June 9, 2026 Permalink  

  Decisions 

  It is my belief that when Minnesota weather turns to hot and humid, those that can, adjust for the duration and exposure.  Look who is talking.  There are two vulnerable older ones having the wonderful benefit of not being outside. 

  From this forenoon to mid-afternoon, the fellows working with the new cable company have been out in the full sun.  They all have had water bottles every so many feet in the grass of the blvd.

  During Monday night with a shower of rain driven by a burst of wind, I will need to re-apply my ant powder dust along the foundation of the house.  KNUJ mentioned possible storms during the evening hours.  I’ll take a wait and see.

  I do have a studio project going that needs to be fully finished.  It has been dragging on too long.  I have been doing the conveyor belt on the project . . . completing one step on the individuals in total and then moving on.  Step five went well this morning.  Working on the church tables that are two bricks higher than the original height . . . I did well until my back said it was time to shut it all down.  There is always tomorrow.

  With that I will take my leave.♥

   
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  Noreen 2:58 pm on June 2, 2026 Permalink  

  Taste Buds 

  This evening’s supper is all about taste buds.  The Braun Schweiger liver sausage has been sliced and popped back into the refrigerator.  It takes a very sharp knife to get that job done.  The red onion has been sliced into perfect thin slabs.  There is a sandwich and soup supper coming up.  Dennis and I have both been hankering for this sandwich.  You either hate it or enjoy it.  The soup choice is up to Dennis.

  Dad, Raymond, would have been the first to slide up to the table for Bran Schweiger and onion.  Fine dining restaurants call it Pate.  His slice of onion would not be a thin slab.  One of his favorite sandwiches was of one ingredient: a thick slice of raw onion on Lena’s fresh homemade bread buttered up.  Sure do miss that fellow.

  It’s been first floor living so far this week and I will admit, a rather lazy one.  Catching some quilt show videos does entice me to start something with threads and fuzz.  I need to keep in mind all the steps required to get to the end-gate.  I don’t know if I am up to it and there is no one anticipating getting a quilt.  I need to really think this through.

  Persevering with my one floss thread over one cloth thread is challenging to say the least.  It’s been a long time since I stitched a pattern that has ten or more color swaps in a one inch square.  I did it when I was in my “Christmas phase” but that was some time ago.  This project I am doing because I started it and I don’t want to leave for a time when it might be pitched.

  With that I will take my leave.  ♥

   
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  Noreen 2:25 pm on May 29, 2026 Permalink  

  Good Session 

  A good session was had in the studio this forenoon.  The last of a collection was embroidered out on some hand towels.  Those towels had been purchased for the express use of the machine embroidered function.  Having them be ready for whatever occasion arises feels good.  Last week when AJ brought Amanda to meet us, one such finished towel went home with Amanda.  We wanted to make her feel welcomed and that will ensure her remembering our home.  

  It’s not unusual that I have sent a remembrance home when we have had visitors.  The visitors enjoy taking something home with them and it keeps me on my toes with familiarity of the process to have good quality finished items.

  OESD is a site that I do shop from for designs.  The selection is by category with thousands to choose from.  When I first purchased my Bernina, it came with a gift card from OESD.  I have only invested in one brand of thread, Isacord.  I do have several storage cases holding thirty spools each for selection.  It is manufactured in Germany.  Staying with OESD, the thread chart for designs lists in the order used and the number and color of Isacord thread to use.  One can always go off the suggestions with a different color-way.

  When I choose a design, it is so easy to pull the spools of thread I need and line them up on the table in sequence for when needed.  I have purchased designs from other companies and then downloaded their colors with their reference.  It’s a pain in the neck as hues of the same color could be in infinity.

  Just today, I scoped out some designs from OESD.  If you purchase the collection, it is cost-wise rather than one at a time at perhaps $3.00 to $4.00 each when the collection may have thirteen designs for $24.00.  All of my choices are keep in my history if I ever find that one of my USB drives has malfunctioned.  Another plus is the OESD, for a nominal reasonable price will load an order onto a USB drive and send it out.  Well, well.  Look at me being spoiled.

  My day-to-day itinerary may have some challenges to comply with, my creativity need not be one of them.

  With that I will take my leave.  ♥

   
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  Noreen 2:21 pm on May 26, 2026 Permalink  

  Happy Summer 

  Last week it was a chilly atmosphere in the studio.  Today, it felt just right.  Talk about a theater of seasons.

  Again I worked on an alteration in the studio.  I had ordered an item online.  After waiting for an extended time for it to come, when it came the size was off by 2 to the excess.  I contacted the business and it was a mix up within the sizes from the US sizing to the European sizing.  All was checked over and the result was that it was a error on their side.  I didn’t need to return said item and the correct order would be forthcoming.

  I am not frugal but I had the opportunity to see if I could make a do-0ver.  Lena would have been up for the task.  Snip here, trim there.  She could take the collars off of dad’s blue chambre shirts when they frayed, flip it over to the underside and in a heartbeat dad never appeared to be in dire straights of going to town looking anything other than dapper as always.  Yes . . . those were the days when dad would come in to change out of his chores overalls into a pair donned as “town overalls.”  Call it self respect when going into town on business of either a thousand pounds of cattle concentrate or purchasing a new piece of farm equipment.  Dad ran a high-end business.

  It’s a warm afternoon and Dennis cleaned the garage floor for our car.  There was enough of the winter’s collection of kitty hair tufts to make a new kitty as the strong leaf blower got into every corner.  Outside it looked as if there were cotton balls flying through the air. 

  Before it got warm this morning, I baked out a pound of the Black Label thick cut bacon on a cookie sheet lined with the wide foil.  No mess when all was said and done.  Six of the smaller cucumbers have been peeled and a red onion sliced in very thin additions.  The sauce is some mayo with bit of salt to pull out the moisture of the cucumbers with a teaspoon of sugar.  Supper is bacon sandwiches and creamed cucumbers.  No additional kitchen heat added to this day.

  With that I will take my leave.  ♥

   
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  Noreen 2:19 pm on May 25, 2026 Permalink  

  A Busy Holiday 

  Sweet day with quiet sunshine.

  Dennis had an agenda . . . I had an agenda.  With our breakfasts and coffee we told each other “catch you later .”

  The huge plants that Dennis has tended since I retired have now gone out to the east patio.  Over winter months they sit in pans in the patio porch so when watered, any water that wants to run out the bottom keeps the floor dry.  You have guessed it.  There is a ring around where the pans sat made up of cat fur.  Time for the shop vac.  Not so fast.  The floor of the pickup garage bugged Dennis more as the floor was a gravel mess.  Any type of gravel imaginable had drug in over winter from the tires as Dennis steered the little red pickup into the garage from Stauffer Avenue, a gravel alley.  Pieces of cardboard that had been on the floor were going to be going to the burn ring.  Dennis’ plans, Dennis’ day.

  In the studio sits my wonderful Bernina QE . . . quilter and embroiderer.   The straight stitching it does isn’t half bad either.  Lena had taught me all sorts of tricks of the trade using the treadle sewing machine that had a permanent home under the north two kitchen windows.  It could be called into service as quickly as the leather belt could be strung onto the wheel.   I had a list of clothing items I had planned to alter and they were all on the table next to the machine.  Altering clothing and mending clothing is not the most desirable in the creative world, but a necessary evil.  All lights possible were in service allowing for a bright working relationship.  The Twins were playing in Chicago via KNUJ.  Sewing chair pulled up and head down, I tackled my task.  Not a hitch or a miss as the hours slipped by.  Success.

  I took a bottle of diet Lipton’s Green Tea out to Dennis.  It’s not carbonated and we have enjoyed it for decades.  The only problem is the case comes with 36 bottles and a plan has to be in place to purchase it, get it in the car, get it in the studio for a few bottles at a time in the refrigerator.  Come to think of it, when Megan was a toddler visiting, she got a bang out of sharing my bottle.  No harm was done appeasing a sweet child. 

  The floor for the little red pickup was as clean as a concrete floor that is pitted can get without water and soap.  He was tending a fire of all of the cardboard that he had drug out.  The little shrub that was finally put to rest was brittle as nettle and fed the fire.

  Dennis and I shared the bottle of tea and we did get caught up with each other.  We both had accomplished much with just enough left undone for it to be used as seed for another day.  Sweet.

  Happy Memorial Day!

  With that I will take my leave.  ♥

   
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  Noreen 2:19 pm on May 23, 2026 Permalink  

  Saturday 

  It’s a great day out.

  I’ve been busy enough that my email account was not opened for several says.  When I know I have no appointment emails on their way, it seems there is plenty of other media to keep up with.

  This morning Dennis’ nephew Matt Curry came calling to see Dennis.  Matt is from Windom where he grew up as his dad worked for Toro.  Matt works for AgCo in Jackson.  You could put money on Matt’s visit on or around Memorial day.  The fellows were in the patio porch solving all the world’s issues.  Matt’s brother Mitch couldn’t come with.  Mitch works at Toro and they have been having problems getting parts, so Mitch was putting in a short day at Toro today.  

  We are sure there will be no more killing frosts.  The two huge plants that Dennis has tended over quite a few winters in the patio porch are now out getting some fresh air.  They sit in the area that we filled in after we gave up the Koi pond.

  A few hours were put in at the studio.  It keeps me on a good routine, rather than spending the entire day hand stitching with a YouTube running in the background.

  With that I will take my leave.  ♥

   
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  Noreen 1:39 pm on May 22, 2026 Permalink  

  Good Times 

  The session in the studio went without a hitch or a glitch.  Working towards using some stash and getting it out of storage feels great.

  Dennis’ new PVC flag pole kit came today.  Great timing as the rains have made his Veteran’s American Flag a bit too heavy to stay off of the grass flying off of the old one that had bricks securing the pole to stand upright . . . well actually leaning quite a bit.  If this flag pole lasts as long as the previous one . . . hats off.

  The rain doesn’t really want to give me a break.  Seeing as I do not melt, I am going to don my rain jacket and make a break for the grocery store.  Nothing heavy is needed, just a few goodies for us for the holiday weekend plus some protein fixings for our suppers.

  It’s always interesting to find out how much rain has been received by the KEYC news over supper.  According to our neighbor Randy’s gravel yard . . . its a bunch.

  With that I will take my leave.  ♥

   
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  Noreen 2:14 pm on May 18, 2026 Permalink  

  Heavy Air 

  We had a wonderful rain in the evening hours of the 17th of May.  The skies were lit with lightning that brought thunder, long past bedtime.  

  The studio brought a challenge today.  I took my eyes off of the project under the needle for a bit too long.  The spool for the top thread had shredded and there was a whole bunch in between the top spool and the needle.  The bobbin thread had continued to do its due diligence on top of the design.  Taking the hoop off of the machine and then deciding to either fix the project in the hoop or in the machine.

  Any craft will give you a challenge once in awhile.  I sat and picked out an entire letter with a seam ripper, tweezers and a sharp scissors.   The sewing machine I started very slowly as I had really wanted to get the last 31 minutes of the design done without literally throwing in the towel.  KNUJ kept me company.  When I thought I had it conquered,  I ran thread through the tension disks much like flossing it to make sure there was no undo tension.  Success.

  Silly ole me.  I should have checked the bobbin before starting up the machine.  Nine minutes left and the bobbin was empty.  Living and learning has no time element.  You just suck it up and work through so that when the project is done, no one else is the wiser of anything that has gone before.

  With that I will take my leave.  ♥