Me, Myself and Memories

Updates from September, 2023 Toggle Comment Threads | Keyboard Shortcuts

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  Noreen 1:39 pm on September 5, 2023 Permalink  

  Tuesday feels like Monday 

  Days of the week can be a conundrum for Stauffer Avenue’s older ones.  That is why our calendar has a spot on the dining room table.

  This morning with stain pail in hand, Dennis did do a walk around the front of the house where our deck is.  Sure enough, there was a spot here and there that needed some stain.  When the brush was put into the pail, it did not have a problem touching the bottom of the pail.  The top of the pail was stepped on and will be set aside until some time later.  There was plenty of stain to do the anchor posts of the deck.

  It was time for a grocery run.  We use a few items that we can’t use up by the sell by date . . . milk.  We generally use it to make instant potatoes.  This evening it is beef wieners and beans for supper.  Yesterday while working on the deck, there were wafts of people in the neighborhood doing grilling.  The aroma of hot dogs sure smelled good.  Thus . . . our fare for supper.

  Dennis’ one request was ice cream.  So be it.  My add-on was butterscotch topping.

  The air is heavy with clouds that look like they might have a shower or two in them.  That would be welcomed.  Over these last days there were several Hosta that just plain gave up.  The leaves are totally burnt.  Oh well.  There is always next year for perennials.

  There may be some 70s in the rest of this week.  Sweet.

  I am heading back to my cherry chair for some stitching.  I finished a book last night and have not yet pulled out another one from my stash.

   
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  Noreen 2:01 pm on September 3, 2023 Permalink  

  Sunday, Sunday 

  Hello my Sunday peeps.

  This was a good productive day.  The second string of the deck staining project was on board.

  The 18-wheeler, chicken hauler’s strong arms came into play to help stain the deck boards.  We took turns to allow for coffee drinking.  It worked out great and no one was placed in a spot that had it been necessary to jump off of the deck.  We were done by 9:45 this morning.  Take that for the heat of the day yet to come.

  What remains of our project, are the areas . . . the 2 x 4s under the flat board, aka: the place for my coffee cup to sit upon.  Spots clearly show up that need to have some of the slate-colored stain applied that were missed.

  It never sounded like a wham, bam project.  Oh so many areas that needed covering where spindles were built into the project.  The one gallon pail of stain will suffice and my 1.5″ bush will also make it to the end.  The size of the brush was determined by what my hands could grip comfortably.

  Upon completion for the morning, Dennis decided his eyelids needed to be checked for cracks.  I decided to sit upon my cherry red chair and read.  That was followed by some stitching.

  After the nap was over, Dennis fielded the next project.  The black shutters that are on our house windows seem to have faded.  I didn’t realize it until I compared the south facing windows to the north ones.  The north side’s look as black as the day we put them on.  The south’s side look more like a gray from the hot sun over several decades.  Hmm.  I sense another project.  The shutters on the three south windows will need to be taken off of the house as the slats are not solid.  Besides . . . neither of us are up for being on a ladder.

  For now . . . the quiet of the day is now prevailing.  Sweet!

   
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  Noreen 3:36 pm on September 2, 2023 Permalink  

  Here We Are 

  These days are like a seasonal re-run.

  Staining, stitching and reading right here on Stauffer Avenue.  Nothing can be accomplished if I don’t stick with it.  

  Today the stairs and toe kicks of the deck were stained.  Ugh!  Again with the black flies!  Mouth clinched or they would have flossed my teeth.

  Today there were three needles loaded with embroidery floss that were stitched. 

  Thus far, one chapter of my book has been read.

  It is beyond warm outside.

  I am fixing chicken tenderloins for supper with sides of cottage cheese and jellied cranberries.

  Dennis is manning a load of Curry work clothes in the laundry.  Nothing feels better than tugging on clean clothes every morning.  For myself, I must say there is one pair of pants that is laundered over and over that will take me through this staining process.  The pants are showing the slate black stain, but my shirts . . . not.

  Here is to this three-day-long weekend.

   
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  Noreen 3:53 pm on August 31, 2023 Permalink  

  We are Home 

  We are home from the big town of Mankato.

  The staining of the spindles on the deck steps went well.  The breeze was hard to leave.  I did have an extra cup of coffee before gathering up the phone and the grocery list to head out.

  Dennis now has a product that should work on all sorts of nuisance vegetation that usual weed killing sprays can’t take out.  Before we came home, Dennis gave me a tour of the blue barn acre.  It is showing definite signs that someone is on board in the tidy, tidy.  When I have finished the deck project, I will be on board to lend a hand.

  The traffic going to and from Mankato was a good indication that this is the last summer holiday.  We will be tucked in here on Stauffer Avenue and leave the last of the summer festivities to others.

  My studio does get a brief visit now and then.  Plans have been in place for projects and will be on hold for a bit.  After taking care of that which is needed to maintain our property, there will be many chilly to cold days to stitch to my heart’s content.  Dennis is always on the same page with me.  If repairs are put off, where do you start when it all falls down around you! 

  Nothing more is going to be started for today.  Before we left Mankato, we stopped at Hy-Vee.  There is a rib, mashed potatoes, gravy and corn meal to heat up.  A $6.00 meal that beats a fast food option.

  Perhaps some reading or stitching will close down this Thursday.

   
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  Noreen 1:25 pm on August 29, 2023 Permalink  

  Tuesday the 29th 

  It is Tuesday and all is well on Stauffer Avenue.

  My stint at staining went well this morning.  The ground level of the spindles has been stained on the north side of our front deck.  Not quite enough of a breeze to keep the black flies at bay.  Ignore, ignore is all that could be done.  If all goes according to plan, I will do the west ground level of the step spindles tomorrow.  Doing only the amount of staining until my known level of discomfort tells me to get that brush cleaned up.

  Dennis came around to show the ground wasp he had taken out.  Its mistake was getting into the patio porch.  They are nasty looking things even when they are dead.

  After sharing a cup of coffee with Dennis, we headed to the blue barn acre for the next quest.  The lot line to the south has been nothing but a dumping site over decades.  Don’t know whose crap it is and we don’t care.  There has been plenty of activity on the lot to allow those on the other side of the lot line to realize . . . no more.  Today my job was to drive the little red pickup along side the south line as close as I could to the point of today’s quest.  Dennis used his fork to snag foam mattresses and drag them out of the weeds.  Sitting on the end-gate of the little red pickup he could then get them drug to the pile that will eventually be hauled away while I was driving.

  Leave it to Dennis and me to stay busy while being safe.

  It is mid afternoon and I plan on doing some stitching and reading until supper time, which we have decided will be Subway.

   
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  Noreen 1:48 pm on August 28, 2023 Permalink  

  Bright Sun 

  The sun being bright this morning had me washing up my brush for staining by 10:30.  I did get the spindles done on the west side of the front deck.  It may have been a bit of a reach standing on the grass, but any additional height would not have allowed for me to get under the top railing.  Tomorrow I may do the north side of the spindles.  Lots of shade with no glare of the rising sun.

  I spent some time stitching after calling the deck work done for the day.  I could not believe my eyes.  I had never seen such a small ant crawling along my fabric.  My bedroom porch has just had a thorough going over and no bugs were seen.  The cloth I am stitching on is sixteen stitches per inch.  You can see the squares of the fabric in the photo.  You really have to look closely to see anything on the fabric.  But . . . the ant is there, barely the size over one of the squares.  Even kitchen grease ants are larger this this one.  I looked the entire cloth over and found only one more.  What a mystery. 

  The afternoon feels warm with that bright sun.  That doggone dewpoint really makes the difference.

  I will check on you tomorrow to see how your Tuesday is going.

   
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  Noreen 2:53 pm on August 23, 2023 Permalink  

  Surprised 

  Surprised that a niece of Dennis’ from Mora would be out and about for a visit.  That then encouraged a cousin from Sleepy Eye to join in for a visit.  Quite the afternoon of catch-up.

  It is a bit cooler than yesterday. 

  My local effort was doing a batch of egg salad this morning.  It has been in the refrig since noon.  My way of thinking is that an egg salad sandwich trumps hot soup for supper.  

  I may finish out the afternoon with a bit of stitching.

  While I am in my bedroom porch, I have noticed a lot of wasps hanging around under the south awning.  Dennis will need to take a peek under the awning sometime.  I had noticed the neighbor across the street out with a spray can that was shooting spray up to their eves yesterday.  Lots of wasps this season.

  Tomorrow is another day.

   
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  Noreen 1:51 pm on August 22, 2023 Permalink  

  My Quiet 

  When the temp is nasty, I am in my quiet zone.

  Today, I am switching off from reading to stitching and then back again.  That will continue for a few more days.

  In temps such as this, I don’t think I would venture out of town.  Hot road surface, hot tires . . . not a safe mix.

  The fare for supper is frozen waffles and Jimmy Dean pre-cooked sausages.

  May everyone take the advisories seriously.

   
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  Noreen 2:12 pm on August 20, 2023 Permalink  

  A Breeze 

  There is a breeze out this Sunday afternoon, but don’t let it fool you.  Dennis and I went to the blue barn acre to check on his weed killing spree.  After taking a drive around the acre we did take a whip around town.  Dennis had the windows down on the little red pickup but a clammy feeling persisted.  I am back in my home, seen enough.

  The bedroom porch is totally back together.  I did several stitches on my hooped cross stitch project from my command center.  A new book is open on the angled book stand with several paragraphs read.  Yup, I remembered how it all went.  I have been using a small table that Kevin and Kersten used on the day of their wedding for a guest book.  Upon that table is a Sauder 28″ x 28″ board that was a portion of a computer stand in times past.  This makeshift, repurposed unit is perfect for the router and my book stand.  I have the clamp-on adjustable cross stitch hoop holder on the southeast corner where it can be swiveled off to the side when I am reading.

  There was wasted space on this table unit.  No more.  Dennis has fitted the 12″ square base of this table to hold a shelf that is six inches above the floor and will rest on the braces of the table.  Here on will rest my new, free library books.  I had been using the wall shelves for books and other sundry items that have now been put back up on the east wall of my bedroom porch since the paint job.  What I have since decided is that I will have some items on the bottom shelf.  The two shelves above that may remain empty for now.  I cannot reach them safely without the kitchen step stool.  I think this qualifies as living smarter.  Living safely.

  After this latest run of heat subsides, I plan on beginning to stain the front door deck that was installed around the Easter weekend.  With my 1.5″ brush and perched upon the old office chair that we have on the deck, I will be able to stain the spindles of the railing.  No bending over . . . no reaching high.

  A light supper for Stauffer Avenue.  Dennis thought he might try some of the frozen waffles that are on hand.  Hmm.  I thought oatmeal sounded good.  Whatever!

  This old wordsmith always holds all of you close.

   
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  Noreen 1:17 pm on August 12, 2023 Permalink  

  Hello Peeps 

  This blog update is coming today from someone that was too pooped to pop yesterday afternoon.

  My first stop was the library to pick up books from the outside “free” rack.  No worries about keeping track of renewal or returns.  I scored five books that looked of interest to me.  The next stop was our local hardware store.  With curtain sample in hand, I picked out a color of paint for my bedroom porch.  I purchased one quart.  I had already painted the wood grain paneling some twenty years ago.  It’s not a matter of the paint soaking in but rather laying on top.  I will see how well it goes for me.  It may take some time.  If I need more paint, it will be handy for me going a few blocks to purchase more. 

  It was now on to Mankato.  A list of errands in Mankato always means a lot of shoe leather will be burned as well as the tip of my cane becoming quite hot.

  Our front deck has now been in place long enough to consider staining it.  We thought long and hard before making a decision.  Home Depot was our target.  We wanted a full coverage job and not a transparent stain, and the color would be as close to black as possible . . . slate.  Our roof color, the foundation painting, and the shutters are all in that same color pallet.

  In visiting with the clerk, she said it could very well have a sprayer used to put it on with a follow up brush to work it in.  The next stop was Harbor Freight.  For $2.99 a half gallon sprayer may very well do the trick.  Three were purchased.  One for my bug spray.  We had bought one previous that Dennis is using for weed killer.  Very sweet little sprayers.  The secret will be to have the nozzle set correctly for the area being sprayed. 

  It was then on to Sam’s Club, Hy-Vee and finally to the pulmonary doctor to have Dennis’ CPAP prescription renewed.  A very interesting visit as they, on their computers, know how many hours an evening Dennis uses it.  The interesting thing is that last year when they ran a check, Dennis stopped breathing three times an hour, while using the machine.  Very acceptable.  In the recent months, it has been as high as 34 times an hour.  Wow!  In checking, Dennis’ doctor has put in a prescription for a new CPAP machine.  His, that he is using, was new in 2016.  Dennis will be doing an overnight sleep study in September so the new machine can be calibrated for current medical needs.  That’s all I have to say about that.

  Today we had company from Gibbon.  Two fellows, age eight and three, picked up their two t-shirt quilts representing their dad’s time on the Gibbon Fire department.  Sweet.  Cousin, Wayne Opitz, and his wife Jean, came along with Michael and his two sons.  What a great visit.  Good family time.

  We had rain again, four times out of five days, last night.  No storms.  Very thankful.

  It’s a great day even if there may be rain showers coming in the week ahead.