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FUTZINGDAY IN THE D CHAIR

Well, here we are again, Dearies...in the d-chair doing our thingamajig on a cold and rainyWednesday here in Hoosierville.

I was very very bad last night and stayed up way past my bedtime reading this:

I confess...it felt so good to sit there in the wee hours turning pages that I completely lost track of time. I haven't done that in forever!

I also managed to stitch quite a bit yesterday:

I'm making good progress on those letters...maybe I can finish them this week?

After fishing through the garage a bit I found this collapsable ort container that I have been looking for to use while away from the Happy Chair:

It was a gift from Tomorrow's Heirlooms, and seems to have been made by someone called LBCrafty. If you are LBCrafty or know how I can find him/her or if you know where I might find these little guys, would you let me know? They are just perfect for my little tool kits that I put in each project.

Speaking of:

I finally found tool kit nirvanna with this photo box gizmo from the Michaels. Now I just need to save my pennies for a whole bundle of them and I'll be all set!

(The scissor fob is from my sister's etsy shop. Isn't it so very pretty.)

(Her shop name is SiggysCloset in case I haven't mentioned it before.)

So that's the report for a drizzly Futzingday. I'm going to kick off my shoes, get the headphones on with some good music, and try to stitch the day away! I hope you get to do the same, minus all of the medical paraphenalia!

SCENES FROM A PERFECT SPINSTER TUESDAY...

A nice big cup of damn good with a splash of vanilla cream:

A newly lit crackpot spinster fireplace in the scent Autumn Leaves:

Stitching and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang on the TeeVee:

CALLING ALL CARS...

Talk me off of the ledge, Dearies. I spied with my beady little eyes the Hoity Toity by Long Dog Samplers and now I am obsessing over it.

I think this would be a wonderfully swell piece to play with in November, but I don't have one single clue about the best color linen for it. Keep in mind I am a 28ct Picture This Plus girl or perhaps I could use a piece from my Colour & Cotton collection?

I also had a harebrained idea to needlepoint this on canvas with silk from my stash. I think it's all full cross stitches, which means it would translate to simple tent stitches pretty easily, no?

The investment in the actual chart would be less than $25, which I have saved in my pin money account, but I don't want to foolishly spend on a base fabric that might not be perfectly swell.

Any advice, oh wise and patient ones?

MONDAY

SUNDAY...AFTER MASS

It's a very good thing I have just returned from church, Dearies, otherwise I would still be stomping around CS2 muttering "mucking fichigan" under my breath all day.

(Sorry, dear Miss Margaret. But your Michigan boys simply kicked my Irish boys' heinies all over the damn place last night and it sent me to bed in quite a mood.)

But, an hour in the Basilica beating my bosom has me back to right again, and I'm ready for a lovely Sunday. A roast is roasting and in a moment I will break out the stitching and get on with it. I think I'll stick with my current wip and then switch next weekend...maybe something in the way of some canvas work if I can kit from stash.

(I am a spinster on a budget, don't you know).

Yesterday was cold and rainy and full of naps and a whole lot of nothing, but today is simply gorgeous and has me hankering for a nice walk in the autumn sunshine. We'll see how long the feeling lasts!

I'm thinking a lot about intention lately. For me, I find myself more grateful than ever for this happy little life of mine, and in perpetual awe that I could deserve so very much. You, my friends, are such a large part of that happy little life, so I hope you feel it in your bones how loved and important you are!

Happy Sunday!

BEST. NEW. TRADITION. EVER.

OPERATION GO UPDATE

STARTING WEIGHT: 266
LAST WEEK'S WEIGHT: 249.5

CURRENT WEIGHT: 247.9

WEIGHT LOST THIS WEEK: 1.6 pounds

FIRST GOAL: 252

GOAL WEIGHT TO GET A NEW KIDNEY: 240

ULTIMATE LIFETIME GOAL: 160

FRIDAY!

Happy Friday, Dearies!  I'm here in the d-chair letting Buzzy and Beepy do their thing while I contemplate what to get into today. I had a simply perfect Thursday, so I am still basking in the glow of good sleep, lots of Downton, and a fair bit of stitching.

Life here is quiet and swell...just how we like it. I am in a bit of a stitchy rut and feeling like I might need a good studio day to blow away the cobwebs, but that's what Sunday afternoons are for, right? I am going to attempt a good house scrubbing and a small start on the garage (!) tomorrow, but Sunday will be a fun day.

The garage is filled to the brim with everything from CS2. It is somewhat organized, but the entire center of it is loose stuff that really needs to be sorted. I just haven't had the emotional wherewithal to look at it, much less purge and clean it, but I think it's time. I am going to purchase a bunch of storage containers at the Targets and just start sorting. I'm sure that once I get into it the release of things will be much easier, but I could use a few prayers that the sight of Stewey's big teddy bear won't send me into the ugly cry.

(But...even if I do, who cares, right? Nobody will know and/or see me in there snotting all over my big girl sweatshirt, so if I need to boohoo for a bit, I might as well go for it, right?)

The physical, mental, and emotional work with be good for me, I think. And, if nothing else, the resulting space to park the car this winter will more than make up for the loss of thirty year old business suits and other crap that I haven't clapped eyes on in forever.

So...d-chair today followed by a night out at the Hooters with some friends tonight, a little cleaning and organizing tomorrow followed by the Notre Dame/Michigan game, and then Mass and some studio time on Sunday. All in all a very nice weekend plan indeed.

Oh! I forgot my Downton Saturday abed tomorrow! I absolutely will do that, since it seems to get me off on the right foot.

I hope your very own weekend is going to be wonderful. Come tell me all about your plans for it!

BADA BLING!!

My sister spoiled me with a package of needleminders today:

This prompted me to hunt/gather my entire collection and re-organize them a bit:

And then, because I was feeling extra sassy, I assembled a new project bag with a Halloween wip:

It was a more productive day than I would have predicted this morning. I managed to do laundry, clean up the kitchen and dining room, organize some paperwork, and do my nails! Not bad for a lazy Tuesday!

Now, though, I really do need to stitch. It's been DAYS since needle has met fabric and that just doesn't work very well for Yours Truly!

Night night, Dearies!

SO HOW'S THAT PRODUCTIVE DAY GOING SO FAR?

I'm a complete and total lump today, Dearies. I think it's the weather...cool and cloudy...or maybe it's just me being lazy, but I am quite satisfied to stay here under my fuzzy blanket with damn good, the paper, some stitching, and Downton.

Would it be so wrong to just do that all day?

MONDAY MONDAY

Buzzy is busy doing his thing and I am enjoying a different view today. I thought I was going to be terribly late for chair time today because I was enjoying my damn good, but it turns out I was right on time!

(I did, however, leave the house with a wet head because my hair dryer decided to go kaput right when I plugged him in. Phooey.)

I ended up making a huge vat of soup and cooked it all night in the crock pot, so it will be waiting for me to enjoy when I get home. I also have some lovely little sourdough hard rolls to accompany, so there will be quite the feast at CS2 this evening!

Tomorrow will be my buckle down day, I promise. I have the entire day to clean and launder and tidy and organize and straighten to my heart's content. I am hoping to tackle my closet and purge some old things and move winter clothes around, but we'll see how I do energy wise.

If I get everything done, I'm going to head to the Martins in search of a mashed potato squash. A friend on the Facebook was raving about it, and I figured I'd give it a try one night with the roasted chicken for JB. I will have to forego due to the high potassium, but methinks JB will love it! Stay tuned!

OK...better get back to doing my thing. I hope your Monday is practically perfect in every way! Come tell me all about it!

IN WHICH I MAKE A MESS AND ROAST A CHICKEN...

We went to Mass in the Basilica and then had breakfast downtown South Bend, and I got the bright idea to do a weekly grocery shop and make soup.

Did I mention that I woke up feeling like I had been dragged through a hedge backwards?

I got finished with the grocery shop and just plain ran out of gas. Kaput. Done. Couldn't do one more thing. So I surveyed the mess:

Put a chicken in the oven:

And have decided to call it a day. My eyes are heavy and the big girl sleigh bed awaits. I am going to go take a lovely snoozy nap and will think about cleaning messes and making soup later.

I hope your weekend has been wonderful and that you get your very own resting time today! What's on your menu?

OPERATION HAPPY BIRTHDAY COMPLETE

The plan was: Golf at the Warren, lunch in the clubhouse, visit/tour a health club, dinner at an Italian restaurant (for veal something), and then finally, a special premier of:

Unfortunately, my sense of timing between lunch and dinner was rather askew. We didn't finish playing golf until almost 2pm, and our dinner reservation was for 5:30. JB very graciously agreed to raincheck the fancy schmancy dinner and lounged with his new couch blanket for a few hours instead.

Bruce has never really been my thing, but JB lives, eats, breathes, and sleeps him, so this film was a really nice treat. I saw a preview for it the day I went to see Downton, and purchased the tickets that very day. I'm glad that I did, because the special preview tonight included some great bonus footage.

(The film and music were great, by the way, and even I was able to appreciate the Bruce mystique.)

Tomorrow we will return to our regularly scheduled programming, but tonight I'm bushed! I hope your own Saturday was special like JB's was! Come tell me all about it!

SO FAR...SO GOOD

  

NO DOWNTON LOUNGING TODAY

Today is my JB's birthday, so I will forego my Saturday Spinster Abed so that we can begin the festivities. I have planned a full day of surprises for him, culminating in a viewing of a Bruce Springsteen movie. All are super secret, and hopefully all will make his heart sing.

I'll be back with a full report tomorrow! Happy Saturday!

NOT MUCH, BUT AT LEAST IT'S IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION

STARTING WEIGHT: 266
LAST WEEK'S WEIGHT: 249.7

CURRENT WEIGHT: 249.5

WEIGHT LOST THIS WEEK: .2 pounds

FIRST GOAL: 252

GOAL WEIGHT TO GET A NEW KIDNEY: 242

ULTIMATE LIFETIME GOAL: 160

FRIDAY

FOURTEEN AND A HALF!!

Oh, my goodness, Dearies! I am in the Happy Chair with my damn good after a very long and very deep sleep. I had no intention of staying abed that long, but I must have needed the rest.

Yesterday's d-chair time was very out of the norm, but very satisfying. I did not pick up my phone or iPad, and I left the headphones in my bag. I picked up my needle and just let myself be present and stitch and think and listen and gaze outside every now and then. It was somehow very soothing to just let my mind wander and ponder the hours away. Methinks we've discovered a new Wednesday tradition....unplug.

Routines and traditions are truly the stuff from which I'm made, and I've missed having them. Stewey was the best at keeping me in routine -- first his little face wash in the morning, then snoozy time in the sun, then a few games of pumpkin or Doozie ball, then tea and biscuits, then snoozy time in front of the fireplace, then bed. Having set times to do things was reassuring and kept me from going off the rails, and I make no apology for being simple-minded enough that I need that. I seem to have made a good start with my Downton Saturday mornings in bed with a tray and my Sunday Mass at Notre Dame, so I guess I'm thrilled to add an Unplug Wednesday to the mix.

How about you, Dearie? Do you have routines or traditions that make your life wonderful?

Nevermore is coming along. I'm not even sure if I like it, to be honest, but the stitching of it is doing its thing, and I'm sure once it's finished and framed I'll love it on my Fall wall.

That's it for me today. My only agenda is to see Dr. Melfi at 1:00 and then come home and do some laundry and tidying. JB has asked for pork cutlets and broccoli rabe for his dinner, so pork cutlets and broccoli rabe it will be! (I'm not a fan, so I will happily munch my big head salad while we watch something sporty on the TeeVee.)

I hope your Thursday is swell! Do something fun and come tell me all about it!

WEDNESDAY....

Chello!

I'm waiting for my d-chair to be ready, so I thought I would pop in for a quick catch up.

Yesterday I had the lovely privilege of meeting and having the best conversation with Gabriel. Gabe is a fellow PLS (*) alum from Notre Dame, currently in the seminary, and working in a project in which he records conversations with graduates of the program to find out how it has shaped our lives.

We went deep, and I thought about things that had never occurred to me before, but the overriding theme for me was both gratitude mixed with a tremendous amount of humility. Gratitude, because my mom and dad gave me the freedom to pursue any major I wanted no matter how seemingly impractical, and humility because I spent three years watching and listening and admiring some of the most brilliant minds at the university -- both students and professors.

I probably had no business pursuing a Great Books degree, but I sure am glad that I did. It gave me such a sense of belonging and family at a place that threatened to swallow me whole as an awkward kid from Lima who didn't have the confidence to get out of my own way.

Gabe will be a wonderful priest, teacher, mentor, counselor, and IS an amazing inspiration. I pray for him to continue on his journey and to live his dream entirely.

As for me...today is going to be a stitchy day so help me. I haven't stitched since Saturday, I think, and I'm starting to feel that twitchiness in my bones. I'm going to leave the iPad thingie in my bag today and just be present with needle and thread and solve the world's problems in my tiny little brain. It's cold and rainy here in Hoosierville, so methinks I'll kick off my shoes, get undermy blanket, and let Buzzy do his thing.

Happy Wednesday, Dearies! I hope your world is peaceful, calm, stitchy, and healthy today!

(*) PLS is The Program of Liberal Studies and is the Great Books program at Notre Dame. If you look on the Google for Great Books you can learn all about it if you're so inclined.

WHAT THE WHAAAA?

Ten pounds!

Between Friday afternoon and this morning I have somehow managed to gain TEN POUNDS! I just about fell over on the scale, but my nurses and techs are convinced that it's a combination of lady time, too much salt, and the discontinuance of one of my meds.

Well, that may all be well and good, but I am spittin' nails, Dearies! I thought I was being so careful all weekend, but it turns out it was for naught.

Sigh.

Now don't cry for me just yet. They will pull eight of it off with the machine today and I won't look at the scale again until Friday. The only thing I have to do is stay the course. I was 113.5 last Friday. I just need to be less than that this Friday.

(Those are kilos, by the way.)

OK. Time to get the 'phones on and zone out to some Flosstube. I'm not stitching in the d-chair today. Buzzy is being a bit temperamental and I need to behave myself.

So...what's new with you?

SUNDAY SPINSTER BLISS...

I was up early, showered, dressed, and out the door for Mass before I knew what hit me this morning, Dearies! We went to 9:30 services in the Crypt beneath the Basilica, and I think I was half-way through singing the opening hymn before my eyes opened!

Breakfast has been cooked, eaten, and cleaned up...a turkey sausage, pepper, onion, egg beater and cheese frittata with leftover cheddar biscuits. I discovered today that my big skillet is oven proof, which is a total game changer for me, especially since I love to make a big breakfast skillet type thing on Sundays and have it for the week.

Absolutely nothing on the agenda for the day except paper reading, stitching, more cooking, and football on the TeeVee. I might put my shoes and socks on and go for a nice walk because it is just simply beautiful outside. Who knows? Maybe Magoo will join me and we'll head back to campus and walk around the lakes.

Happy Sunday! I hope yours is lovely. Come tell me what you're stitching, reading, cooking, blogging, etc.

THE TRADITION CONTINUES

I enjoyed my Saturday coziness so much last week that I decided to do it again today. I had a great night's sleep with long vivid movie-like dreams. In one I was starting a business and in another I was talking to my dad about something and we were laughing our silly heads off while my mom just shook her head and grinned at us like we were a couple of lunatics.

It's crazy busy here in Hoosierville today with the upcoming Notre Dame vs. USC football game later tonight, so I am going to stay put and enjoy some peace and quiet from the friendly confines of CS2. There will be just a little house spiffing and maybe a load of laundry, but other that making a new big pot of vegetable soup...methinks this will be a quiet day.

So what's new with you, and how are you going to spend your very own Saturday? I hope it's full of fun and that you'll come tell me all about it!

OPERATION GO UPDATE

STARTING WEIGHT: 266
LAST WEEK'S WEIGHT: 252

CURRENT WEIGHT: 249.7

WEIGHT LOST THIS WEEK: 2.3

FIRST GOAL: 252

GOAL WEIGHT TO GET A NEW KIDNEY: 242

ULTIMATE LIFETIME GOAL: 160

FRIDAY!

OK. LET'S NOT DO THIS AGAIN...

I'm home safe and sound, but not without more drama than a PBS Mystery Classic. No details at this time, Dearies, but suffice it to say I don't want to have to repeat these tests again any time soon. (Anybody who has had a chemical stress test will know exactly what I'm talking about.)

As soon as I wash the upchuck off the front of my old lady big top, drink a gallon or two of damn good to get rid  of the caffeine migraine, and have a good cry on the balcony all will be right with the world once again.

I am so very grateful for your encouragement and notes and messages. I carried them (along with Stewey in his little wooden box) along with me today, and I am sure it's the only reason I got through it all.

Unfortunately, I didn't get to meet the "comfort ambassador labradoodle" from the last post, but just knowing he/she was there was very nice indeed. If I ever get to the point when I can adopt another lovie, I am going to do my level best to train them to do that type of work. It looked like it would be very rewarding, and I think I could be good at patting hands of terrified patients and cooing gently.

If nothing else, this entire journey has given me good ideas about what I want to be when I grow up: a writer, a healthcare administrator, a dialysis tech, a nurse, the head of the National Kidney Foundation, a librarian, etc etc etc. it changes every day, but it's nice to think to think about the future in a positive way.

Speaking of....somebody caught me pinning wedding dresses on the Pinterest and got nervous. No changes in that department, Dearies. I remain your loyal spinster with a "gentleman caller"/companion/man friend of my very own. JB and I have a deal. As soon as I get a new kidney, he will take me to the Grotto and ask for my hand on bended knee and I will say no. This way, I can at least say that I was asked, and he can say he tried. 😬

(I do, however, secretly hope to shock him with a yes and then plan the biggest stitching retreat/wedding weekend the world has ever seen. Can you imagine the fun we'd have?!)

OK. Time to recover my wits about me. Thank again for the happy thoughts and prayers. I'm truly convinced that they are really all I need!

THURSDAY AT THE HOSPITAL

STILL GOT IT...

I had to cancel my appointment with Miss Karen for nails tomorrow because I will be in the hospital all day doing cardiac testing for transplant. I was lamenting missing said appointment when I decided to give the old meathooks a good spiff on my own, and it resulted in a full-blown mani/pedi night.

The perfect ending to a perfect day.

Yesterday found me in jams all day doing laundry, futzing about in CS2, watching Downton, and stitching. My only fail was the amount of food I ate, but the gain wasn't too bad and treatment will take care of it today.

JB and I were talking about my good mood and what it might be attributed to, and I came up with this list: gorgeous crisp Fall weather, lots of alone time to do my spinster thing, stitching every day, and cbd oil.

No matter the cause, I really wish I could bottle this feeling of peace and keep it for days when things are less than wonderful. Or, barring that, if I could just figure out how to even out a little and enjoy some moderately good days consistently without going from mountaintop to depths of despair within the space of six and a half minutes. My dear friend Dr. Dan always tried to tell me that the rollercoaster would eventually kill me, but I haven't found the exit yet.

Oh well.

Makes for interesting memories, I guess.

So that's my report for the day. I am in the d-chair doing my thing, with Sir Elton belting the tunes into my ear and Buzzy behaving quite nicely for a change. Off weight today should motivate me to stay the course and have salad tonight, so no complaints whatsoever.

I hope your very own Wednesday is wonderful and that you'll come tell me all about it!

FREE DAY!

My original plan for the day fell apart, so here I sit with a gorgeous Fall day ahead of me and nothing to do but stitch.

Don't you love it when that happens?

I had a little fun poking about in my stash on Saturday and came across this WIP:

I don't remember starting it, to be honest, but it seems like the perfect piece to play with. I noticed that I didn't add the "Dead End" in the block, which makes me think I didn't like it, but for the life of me I can't figure out what to put there.

Here's to hoping that your very own Tuesday is as lovely as it can be. Come tell me all about your corner of the world and what's blowing your skirt (or pant leg) up today!

AND THEN...IN A GRAND STROKE OF IRONY...

That laughter you heard coming from "upstairs" was my mom and the Big Guy having a good belly chuckle over my last post.

I thought it was a tribute to my mother and how incredibly special she made me feel and how she had a way of making me see myself as an invincible princess with a golden crown who could conquer the world by pulling herself up by her proverbial bootstraps and getting on with it with grit and determination.

Nope.

Apparently it refers to being a daughter of God.

If you knew my mom, you would understand why my confusion/stupidity/cluelessness is so very funny.  I sincerely apologize if my miscue offended anybody. I promise you it wasn't intentional...just me being me.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MOM!