Me, Myself and Memories

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  Noreen 12:43 pm on December 4, 2024 Permalink  

  The Dance 

  All things not tied down are doing the dance of the mighty wind today.  It was hard to believe that the actual temps were in the thirties this morning.  The air temps were in the single digits.  Winter will have its way one way or another.

  Dennis had one errand and that was at Lewis Drug to pick up my 90-day supply of my blood pressure med.  Zero $ co-pay.  Sweet.  I know many that are our age who have high drug costs.  Dennis and I are each at about the same amount of out of pocket thus far for 2024 . . . $180.00.  Very sweet indeed.  I cannot count the $299.00 of his Eloquest month’s supply while at the nursing home.  That was extenuating circumstances.

  I turned on the lights in the studio this morning.  I believe I have done as much to the front and cover of the wooden trunk as I will.  The two ends need some extra TLC in the areas of the heavy leather handles.  I could not believe they were still on the trunk.  They do show wear and tear.  Dennis said when the final finish was done on the trunk he would gently and carefully work Neets-Fit-Oil in the handles. 

  On the on-set. I had no idea what to do with the surface of the exterior.  When I realized that some of the original oil-cloth was loose, some tight, there was no way to paint over that.  In the end getting to the original wood would need to show.  I had thought of putting new paper on it, no way with all the metal grommets to fit around.  With so many different woods used on the ends and back, staining wouldn’t do as each wood would take on a different color.

  I have looked on different YouTube videos.  The best bet is painting it after the wood has been sealed.  I have a steady hand to go around all that needs it.  I am not going to do a lot with the metal bands.  I will make sure they have been cleaned as well as the sander has allowed.  The shine that the grommets show as well as the brass that shows on the front and cover as well as the brass from the plate that had the lock in it from running the sander over them, is all its going to be.  My objective for the outside was to have it cleaned and preserved as best I could.  The only out-lay of my resources was the $39.00 sander.  Right now, I couldn’t even share with you what the inside is like.  I really don’t know, nor have I decided if I will do anything after I give it a good look.  Time will tell.  One step at a time.

  We have had times today of the internet being disrupted.  I decided to get my photos uploaded and do the post while I have online access.

  In between time in the studio, I am putting decals on the small wooden blocks Dad had cut for me and varnished them.  Why?  Because I can.  TeeHee chuckling.  They had been in Grandma Schafer’s wooden round box.  They may well go back there.  

  Tuna and pea pasta out of the freezer in on board for supper.

  With that I will take my leave.  ♥

   
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  Noreen 2:52 pm on December 3, 2024 Permalink  

  Too Pooped 

  It is blog time and I am too pooped to pop.

  Usually I do 30 to 45 minutes in the studio and then the lights go out.  I have my church tables covered with cardboard fold-out measuring boards that Kersten found while she was thrifting.  Every good crafter has their tools laid out. 

  I finished the alotted time and was cleaning up with the old Filter Queen Vacuum.  I had the vacuum on with the hose on the table to switch out attachments.  In less than a blink of my eye the dry Swiffer I was using as a tac wipe was gone.  Good grief.  I unhooked the hose from the vacuum and sure enough I could just barely see the Swiffer about 8 inches in.  Why not share the grief.

  Out to the garage I went with the length of the hose for Dennis to help.  Dennis is not allowed as yet to go into the basement, so the grief went out to him.  Everyone knows how steep our basement steps are and they are not by any means a full width of a step.  Dennis doing the steps with no toes on the left foot is cautionary, let alone having a cane for the new hip on the left leg.  I left the grief with Dennis.

  This seemed like a great time to empty the vacuum and get a new filter in place.  Taking the base with the wheel assembly off of the main housing, I went to the south side of the garage and tipped it over.  Oh my gosh!  And what decade had I emptied this beast?  Dennis came to the house with the hose in tack waving the Swiffer.  Sweet!  I will need the next adult that visits to make sure the hose is secured tight to the Vacuum.  I had a horrible time getting the hose off and the end of the hose is just big enough round for me to have a lesser grip than may be needed, just to make sure all is well.  That vacuum now has suction like brand new.  Lesson learned.  Shut down the vacuum when the area that was cleaned off is done.  

  I always share photos of the project each day with Dennis so he feels included in my days.  Dennis asked where these trunks had come from out of the potting shed.  Dennis’ memory is sometimes short.  Our neighbor Jan had asked me last year if I was interested in them.  The trunks had been in the eves of their attic when they bought the house before they had a family.  Their house is a huge square that has been added onto several times.  Their kids are now in their mid forties.

  Then . . . out dribbles a story from the old cowboy.  When his parents came to Minnesota from Nebraska they couldn’t find housing.  They came here to work in the defense plant during WWII.  His mother worked on the line and his dad worked with security.  They rented the upstairs of the house that the Hansen’s owned.  Many owners of the house later, Randy and Jan bought the house.  Now that is a “Wow.”  May we perhaps have family history in the studio?  Amazing what can occur that taps into memories.

  With that I will take my leave.  ♥

   
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  Noreen 3:51 pm on December 2, 2024 Permalink  

  Monday December 2nd 

  2024 is fleeting by with December right in our faces.  If I wanted anything done by the end of this year, I have very few days left to accomplish it. 

  The agenda for the day was Dennis’ PT appointment.  The tight muscles below the new hip need to be worked.  When Dennis came home, he commented on the strength in Dan’s hands.  

  I know Dennis is recovering in good stead when he called his friend Dwayne for a road trip.  Those two haven’t been together since the end of September.  I encouraged it as my agenda was laundry and cleaning the bathroom.

  I did work in a bout of sanding on the old wooden trunk.  The lid to the trunk was tackled today.  I only do until the arms tell me . . . enough.  The front of the trunk has yet to have any sanding done to it.  Many metal grommets to work around as well as the metal attached buckles that had held leather straps to keep the trunk closed.  If only tales could be told.  Perfection is in the eyes of the beholder . . . mine.  I know perfection is not to be had with this project.  Allowing this cleaned up wooden trunk to shelter someone’s passion of items is all that I anticipate.

  The school bus drops a group of kids off at 3:30 each day across the street.  We did get an inch of snow overnight.  Enough snow for the kids to try and manage throwing snow at each other.  The snow is so dry, but I am sure, still feeling the wet of it as it gets shoved down the necks of the winter jackets.  Yup, kids are the same as in my younger days.

  The road-trip boys made their rounds.  First stop was Miller-Sellner in Sleepy Eye.  Each fall they get the latest of the Heston belt buckles from a rodeo that Heston sponsors.  Dennis’s collection started with the first in 1974.  His second belt buckle case has room for only one more buckle, the 2025 one.  A new case will need to be commandeered.  Dennis grandson, AJ, made the second case for grandpa.  I hope he kept the schematics.  The trip wound its way to New Ulm and then all points northwest towards home.  Dennis mentioned having fish sticks at the Cassey’s in Sleepy Eye.

  We are having a tube of Pillsbury Grand baked biscuits with Dinty Moore Stew over them.

  There are light and fluffy snowflakes in the air.  Too bad there is no sun to shine through them.

  With that I will take my leave.  ♥

   
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  Noreen 3:36 pm on December 1, 2024 Permalink  

  A Cold Morning 

  A cold morning to test anyone’s worth.

  I had no worth to test only to ride this cold spell out.  We did have furies over the evening.  With the wind the drive was soon down to bare concrete.

  I spent the earliest of the morning enjoying good rich coffee in my bedroom porch.  After the second cup, I decided to spend some time in the studio.  I am getting the hang of the sander.  Being a wise person, I worked with it for a half hour.  I cleaned it up and out and perhaps tomorrow a bit more of the old wood trunk will sanded.

  This afternoon, I watched YouTubes on old trunks that were re-purposed.  I am on the right track getting the surface ready to be sealed.  I took the time to check where more sanding pads could be ordered.  The sander has an attachment that allows for the width of a finger to be put on to take in very minute areas to be sanded.  As those additional pads were not in any of the replacements to order, I will not use those until the very end of this step of cleanup, saving them for where they really will be needed.

  Megan and I texted back and for forth this morning.  She had flown to Eden Prairie for Thanksgiving to be able to renew her driver’s license.  She was back home by last night.  The boarding was just a tad bit slower as her renewal for her license was now just a piece of paper.  Megan made it just fine.  Megan will be 21 tomorrow on my mom’s birthday.  Sweet.

  We are having Tilapia fillets pan fried with a side of boiled potatoes and green beans for supper. 

  Dennis has PT in the morning.

  With that I will take my leave.  ♥

   
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  Noreen 3:17 pm on November 30, 2024 Permalink  

  Hello! 

  I stand firm in thinking the cold is a fair trade-off of the snow that is hitting in so many unusual places.  I can always dress warmer and within reason raise the thermostat.

  I was wrong yesterday when I commented that my sander had not arrived.  When Dennis went out for his last cigarette of the day it was on the bench outside.  I unboxed the goodies and that is where it stayed.

  My goal for this morning was to go to the grocer’s.  Before that could happen AJ from Mankato was here to visit grandpa and his pickup was in the drive.  I knew I could shop any time.

  Last Saturday the heat bulb burned out in the bathroom.  AJ and grandpa went up to Fleet Farm, purchased a box that had two bulbs in it and AJ didn’t even need to stand on tip-toes to use one of them for the replacement.  The second is in the bunk-house closet.

  Dennis had asked me to engrave a small plate with Jeff’s name on it.  The one I had done pleased Dennis and AJ affixed that to a spot on the saddle that Jeff had won in the all-around rodeo in 1983.

  Next in order for AJ, Dennis asked him to take his propane burner and burn the dead from under the back Hackberry tree and also under the huge Maple tree off of the east patio.  Even with the rain we had had, surprisingly much was burned.  Not all of it under the lilac was torched, but enough that satisfied grandpa.

  Then . . . it was off for me having Dennis to chauffer me to the grocer’s.  A bit of that and a bit of this made for a good haul.  The large can of the Campbell’s Bean and Ham soup hits the spot every once in a while.  Three cans went into the cart.  A container of Cookies and Cream ice cream topped off the check-out.  Dennis has one York Peppermint candy bar each night after supper.  That is his grocery item to get into the refrigerator.

  Alas, I took my sander and hit the studio.  Reading the instructions backwards and forwards, I attached a sanding pad to the Velcro base, lining up the airholes so the dust could go into the attached collector bin.  I stayed with it for only a short time, sanding off some of the back of the trunk and some of one end.  Hmm.  The old Filter Queen’s nozzle fits almost perfectly to the opening of the collector bin.  Enough for the first time.  With all of the metal grommets and metal straps . . . not to worry.  Some elbow grease with sandpaper in hand will be needed.  This short bout really took many hand strokes off.

  Hot pork sandwiches for supper.  Always a good thing to have something in the freezer to pull out. 

  With that I will take my leave.  ♥

   
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  Noreen 4:09 pm on November 29, 2024 Permalink  

  Smug 

  Dennis and I thought we were so smug having everything buttoned up and taken care of.  Not!  Our snow scoops were still in the potting shed.  Dennis came in from doing that task with a grim look on his face.  We have had just enough rain that the base of the wooden door was froze in and down.

  I countered with me getting bundled up and the two of us would work together.  I had spied the ice chipper in the car garage all summer and fall.  I took the ice chipper and Dennis made sure he had his phone in his pocket and the two of us took off down Stauffer to the potting shed door.  Phones are a necessary evil in case one of us had a mishap.  Both of us on our handy dandy canes.

  It didn’t take all that much of sliding the ice chipper under the wood door where there was no ice,  inching toward the iced area and before we knew it . . . mission completion.  I got the door closed as tight as possible with the concrete block.  If a wee creature finds its way into the potting shed for shelter from the cold and snow, bless the little ones.

  The ice scrapper is back in the garage and all three of the snow scoops are by the back door.  God willing . . . they won’t be needed.

  The wind has blown itself out, all is calm.  I am not about to check on the temperature right now.  If I don’t know it . . . it won’t bother me so much.  But I will say, even bundled up for our escapade, my fingers did feel the cold.

  We are having a breakfast type of supper.  Steaming hot scrambled eyes, sausage and hot buttered toast.  There is some blackberry jam just waiting to be spread.

  This black Friday is going down as not very much retail therapy as my little sander did not get delivered as had been mentioned.  Perhaps tomorrow.  

  With that I will take my leave.  ♥

   
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  Noreen 3:26 pm on November 28, 2024 Permalink  

  Oh Yes 

  Oh yes, what a thankful day we have had, right here on Stauffer Avenue.  Text messages rolled in from children (they were the best), from cousins and great nieces.  Dennis was on the phone with his son in Arizona for quite some time.  All is well for many on this Thanksgiving day.

  I will share that as I was sitting on the edge of my bed this morning coming out of a great slumber, I watched little teeny tight beads of snow that soon morphed into beautiful feathery snow flakes.  That has been the case off and on for the entire day.  Nothing stuck onto the grass.  It was just a reminder that it is winter.

  Dennis came in from the patio porch at one time this afternoon to get away from Snuggles.  Way too much lap time that would not be ignored.  When the lap was not to be had, Snuggles jumped up on the back of Dennis’ chair and wrapped himself around Dennis’ neck.  Harriet likes to have her back scratched or petted but that is as far as she is willing to go for attention.

  I have a chair in my bedroom porch that Jeremy took apart piece by piece for it to be trustworthy.  Dennis finds his way from time to time to my guest chair for some chatting or just plain watching the traffic whiz by.  That may go on for some time and then he is off in his little red pickup to check out the town.  Dennis is nothing if not consistent.

  Our meal is light for the evening.  Neither of us has lifted more than a finger all day.  Tomorrow is another day to plan for a hot meal.  Dennis will get over it.

  With that I will take my leave.  ♥

   
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  Noreen 3:31 pm on November 27, 2024 Permalink  

  Why Not 

  Sometime this last September, we had water that came up from the floor drain.  City worker Randy came when I called.  He checked everything over and didn’t have an answer.  We drug out the hemmed piece of carpet and proceeded to clean.  Two days later it happened again.  Randy came and checked things out.  Come to find out there was something going on at the waste water treatment plant and a sub-contractor doing something had caused our water issue.  Randy made note of it.

  Last week an insurance adjuster called.  Amazingly, that I even answered the call.  It seems as Randy’s note of September had been on file and a fellow from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, wanted to close out this issue.  He sent me a PDF and wanted me to fill it out as a claim, sign it, and mail it to him.  Today Dennis took the letter to the mail.  We will be getting a check for $400.00 for the piece of carpet my brother Calvin had given us as the jute carpet didn’t feel good under bare feet.  Why not take the time to get this in the mail.  It will make either the electric bill or the natural gas bill easier to pay.  Wonder of wonders.  It pays to follow up when things happen that shouldn’t.

  While Dennis was going to the post office, he asked if there was anything we needed from the grocer’s.  We did not have a granule of sugar in the house.  You never know if I get the hankering to bake some cookies.  Dennis said he would pick up a 5lb. bag of sugar as that is exactly what the sugar canister holds.  Does anyone want to come over and we could build a miniature igloo out of the blocks of sugar.  I had never cautioned Dennis in checking to see if a bag of sugar was pliable much like he checks the bag of the Circus Peanuts candy bag.  Tee hee.  The bag was as hard as a rock.  Oh well.  As I use it, I will work with it.

  Tomorrow Dennis and I will be tucked safely in our home as many, many people hit the roads for Thanksgiving gatherings.  It’s a good thing for us.

  With that I will take my leave.  ♥

   
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  Noreen 2:08 pm on November 26, 2024 Permalink  

  I Know Not 

  I know not what each day brings.  I do know when the doorbell rings at 7:15 I am still asleep and not willing to jump out of bed and fall.  I took a second and then I could see the Culligan’s truck back out of the drive.  I am sure the softener tank will be just fine until he comes again.  What I will do is jot his next scheduled visit on the large print calendar that is on a stand on the dining room table.

  Coffee had brewed at six this morning, so I got up and enjoyed a steaming cup.  I knew from Dennis’ breathing that he was sound asleep and not heard the doorbell.  Dennis slept in until almost nine.  That in part makes up for the restless nights when it was hard to find a comfortable spot shortly after the hip surgery.

  It was indeed a chilly morning.  Now with the sun streaming into my bedroom porch, it feels toasty.

  I had planned on doing some sewing machine work today, but the air and the floor drove me back upstairs.  I will try it another day.

  When I was putzing with the old wood trunk, I was moving enough that it felt okay to be in the studio.  I have put myself on time-out with the trunk.  What has ensued, is that though I’m basically home 80% of my days, I do enjoy a bit of retail therapy.  Managing the seeking and searching through retail stores in Mankato is more than I am up for.  Especially now that we are in the throws of the holidays, it would be horrible.  What I did spend $39.99 on, postage free, is a small sander complete with a small dust collector from Walmart.  The brand name is Jellas.  Included is a small attachment the size of a finger to get into tiny spots.  I don’t need anything more than this item to take a few of the rough spots off of the trunk.  I still plan on using Mod Podge to seal the surface.

  My purchase will be here on Friday.  I often talk about a balance in life.  Exactly!  Taking care of our household’s accounts and Dennis’ medical items . . . this little item coming on Friday completes my world right now and I feel a balance coming on.

  Dennis is at our clinic for PT.  I have a frozen entrée from the freezer for our supper.  Laundry is caught up and I am pulling out a stitching hoop for a bit this afternoon.

  With that I will take my leave.  ♥

   
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  Noreen 3:18 pm on November 25, 2024 Permalink  

  Oh My 

  Oh my!  When you least expect a text, one comes at six in the morning.  Dennis’ daughter from Casey’s called and offered to take her dad, Dennis, to his Mankato Appointment this forenoon.  With the cold wind ruffling the huge evergreen outside of my bedroom, how could I refuse that type of offer.

  Dennis’ appointment was for 10:15 this morning and he had told me last night to be ready by 8:30.  I have long since stopped arguing about the time needed from St. James to Mankato.  The funny thing is that I usually have a hard time waking him up for such event.  Let me tell you, Dennis is not a morning person.  A side-note on this is that when he was a live poultry transportoligst hauling chickens from west of the Rockies for Campbell Soup, he was always leaving early in case of something less than good happening.  Old habits die hard.

  Denise said she would pick her dad up at 9:15.  I thought he would pace the floor boards bare.  He finally stood in the open door-way of the car garage, waiting.  When Denise pulled into the drive, the car was still showing signs of momentum and Dennis was at the car’s passenger door.  I knew right there and then his hip was on target for good healing.  Too funny not to relay.

  The report was good from the surgery point of view.  He needs to go back in two months.  X-rays here in St. James with a follow-up in Mankato.

  Denise found a new place to eat in Mankato as Dennis was taking Denise out for lunch.  There appears to be a new truck-stop in the area of the Walmart distribution center.  Dennis, taking after my dad, ordered a pork roast commercial while Denise did the burger and fries.  When he got home, he asked me to guess what the bill was.  I guessed $25.00, similar to what our bill would be at Perkins.  Nope . . . $36.00 and some odd cents.  I chuckled.  The ole cowboy was still living the truck-stop prices of when he was on the road with his 18-wheeler.  Denise said he slept all the way home.  Too funny.

  All is well here on Stauffer Avenue.  It may be chilly out but from the sounds of both coasts of the great USA it could be much different.

  Dennis is in the patio porch and I see Snuggles has found a lap and a jacket to burrow into.

  With that I will take my leave.  ♥