WEEKEND AGENDA

Remember this beauty? Her stitching is complete, and has been for quite some time. Now it's time to add the hundreds and thousands and millions and billions of beads and baubles!

I hope that you have a lovely, peaceful, happy, perfect weekend, Dearies! Come tell me all about it!
 

RED BIRD SAMPLER FEE NEE

Red Bird Sampler

With Thy Needle And Thread/Brenda Gervais

29ct Winter Brew

Called for threads with substitution:

Classic Colorworks Ribbon Red subbed for DMC817

 

I truly enjoyed every stitch of this one, but I was happy to finally complete it last night. No idea what she'll be when she grows up, but I am almost imagining a lovely square pillow with red trimmings.

I just got back from the Puff and Fluff...what we used to call the beauty parlor when Stewey was around. My hair seems to have stopped falling out by the handfuls at the moment, so I am tickled that a ponytail might not be too far off.

Costco for gas and Starbucks for a Cold Brew, and I'm back in the saddle looking forward to an afternoon of Bosch and the next shiny object that catches my fancy! Groceries will be here at 3:00, so I have some time to contemplate the paper and, quite possibly, a nice nap on this drizzly Thursday.

What's in your sandbox today, Dearies? Come tell me all about it!

WELL...THAT WAS QUITE AN ADVENTURE!

Rich left for New Jersey to visit his mom on Wednesday of last week. Instead of my usual Spinstercation of sleeping, organizing, watching TeeVee and generally putzing, I decided to get OUT and about and see if I could function as an independent grown adult Spinster person without supervision.

First I got the car all spiffed up:

Then I had a nice long stitchy session at my Starbucks:

Then I did my nails:

Then it was back to Downton:

A drive to Indy, armed with lots of damn good and Classic Rock:

A nice long shop and stock-up at the bookstore:

Breakfast in bed at the hotel (my very favorite thing in the whole wide world):

And a visit to Newfields and The Lume to see the Immersive Van Gogh exhibit:

Now I'm home and ready for a nap! 

My little experiment worked. By unplugging from the world for a few days, I was able to be quiet and look at, read, eat, and dream happy things that rested and refreshed my tiny little brain. I learned that I can do it all, but not all at once, and that if you ask, plenty of help is there to be found.

 (For example, did you know that some museums have scooters for use? I was able to walk myself slowly to the gallery for the exhibit and then plop myself onto the little seat and enjoy the day without having to walk or stand for long periods. When I got tired or shaky (which I do) I was able to just sit and breathe for a bit before heading to the next lovely thing to see).

I'm coming up on eight months post Beanie, and I have finally accepted that I'm where I should be. Not quite running marathons yet, but with adaptation, frequent rests, and a LOT of water...I'm getting a tiny bit better each and every day.

With all that's going on in this world of ours at the moment, unplugging for a minute and shifting my focus saved me. I grieve for so much of the heartache, I pray for smart and brave people to figure things out, and I hope that my family (looking at you, Dearies) are safe and well and feeling peace.

Back to Bosch and the Redbird Sampler! I am so very close to finishing both! Maybe with a little attention this evening, we'll have some happy dancing to look forward to!

Happy Futzingday! What have you been up to? Come tell me all about it!

I'm going to take a few days to unplug from the interwebs, Dearies. I am completely fine...just wanting to get a few things accomplished and get my eyeballs off the ipad screen and onto some good books, stitching, and pretty things. So no worries, please! Just a little electronic diet for Yours Truly!

 

HEY SPINSTER...OCD MUCH?

Well, I managed to stumble through yesterday without too many meltdowns. Each time I felt the tears come, I got myself out of the chair and tried to do something productive.

The results?

(Please don't judge. I have serious issues. Clearly, I do.)

(And I apparently place my Costco orders when I am extremely thirsty.)

(Thirsty in the physical way, and not in the way that causes me to post things on this here blog for attention.)

The other end of the dining room table is my desk (because somebody we know and love has taken over the desk in the cube room studio).

I did have a good reason for all of this craziness. Four bags of non-perishables for the Stamp out Hunger food collection this morning.

So now it's Saturday, and I'm getting my wits about me. First, a bit of breakfast/lunch, and then some Bosch, and then maybe a baseball game and Mass over at Notre Dame, followed by a dip in our newly opened pool!

So, Dearies. That's the report from here in Spinsterville today. I hope that your neck of the world is simply wonderful, and that you'll come tell me all about it!

MAY 13 IS A MEMORABLE DAY FOR YOURS TRULY

(This is an re-post from several years before. Forgive me if you're tired of reading it, Dearies.)

It's the day Stewey was born at Willowswamp Farm in Ligonier, Indiana....he would have been 17 years old today:

And it is also the day Dad died...18 years ago today:
This man was a hero. He was a kind and gentle soul. He lived in "houses with women" all his life.....first Grandma and Aunt Lou (because his own father died so young) and then Mom, me, and Chrissy. He used to joke that even the dog (Charlie) was "fixed". This probably explains why he was the way he was. I don't think I ever heard him raise his voice or say a bad thing about any one or any thing. He was funny and ornery and had twinkly eyes, especially when he was hiding cookies in his shirt pocket. You could talk to him for hours or just sit and watch a football game on a Saturday afternoon, and you'd come away feeling better about yourself and the world you lived in. You could depend on him for anything and knew that no matter how much you had royally screwed up, he was still your dad and he loved you.

He loved chocolate and Snyder's hard pretzels. He always smelled nice and he always combed his hair the same way. He didn't like guilt or mean people and he quietly went about making his little corner of the world a wonderful place. He never bragged or lectured. He never hit or grounded. He talked and explained and made you want to be a better person so that he would be proud of you. He hugged and patted your cheek and always let you know how special you were, even when you felt like the least special person on the planet.

Dad could do math in his head and Chrissy and I called him Rain Man because of his ability to do this. He went to Notre Dame and graduated as an engineer, but spent all of his working life as a management executive for Westinghouse. Chrissy and I never knew how "powerful" or "respected" Dad was until he died and his former collegues wrote to us. We found out that this man we loved wasn't just our hero....he had fans all over the world.

The men that came to the funeral told us that our dad was the smartest guy they ever met and the women told us that they all had secret crushes on him. Turns out that this guy we thought was a "nerd" was actually a very popular fellow and could be the life of the party.

Dad married the love of his life on May 23, 1964 and he held her in his arms the morning she died on November 12, 1987. Dad loved Mom more than anything in this world and he gave life to Father Hesburgh's words: "The greatest thing a man can do for his children is love their mother."

I think that the reason why Chrissy and I remain single is that we decided that we saw what perfect marriage was and we weren't going to settle for anything less.  

2022:

I think I've posted this same post at least four or five times on this day before, but it all still stands so very true, and it says everything I need it to say.

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend and that you'll come tell me all about it! 

A CAUTIONARY TALE

As you know from reading this here blog, I started my week with hands that looked like this:

Here's the important safety tip. When watching the Philadelphia 76ers lose to the Miami Heat, do not decide to file your nails:

I used to frantically eat Rice Krispy treats during the games. But now that I am trying to make better food choices, etc I figured I'd just gently go over the tips of my nails and shape and shorten them just a tad.

Nope.

Right down to their little stumpy shortness.

All is not lost, however. After a good long rub with hand cream and solar oil, I let them have a nice long sleep, and got them all tarted up again:

Much, much better in my humble opinion.

So now that I've had THAT adventure, I'm going to behave myself for the rest of the day, put Bosch on the TeeVee while Rich sits outside in the heat and listens to his radio, and get some serious stitchy time in.

That's it for me today, Dearies! If you are enjoying this little heat wave we're having, please stay cool and hydrated! I learned my lesson when my peeps came a few weekends ago. Heat and I just don't get along, so inside and air-conditioned I shall be!

IN WHICH WE START OUR WEEK

Painted Spring on the fingers:

And a teeny bit of progress on the Red Bird Sampler:

And now I'm off to enjoy the beautiful sunshine!

Happy Monday, Dearies!
 

 

SATURDAY AT THE BALLPARK

 

IT WAS A DAY FOR SLEEPING

 

Oh, my goodness, Dearies! Today is was cold and rained. All. Day. I enjoyed a few extra minutes looking out the window before hauling myself out of the big girl sleigh bed and getting this darn labwork out of the way.

Done.

Now that dinner is finished and the kitchen clean,  I'm going to get back to the Red Bird Sampler!

Baseball downtown South Bend tomorrow, and then a nice quiet day Sunday when Rich goes to LaPorte for the golfing. Bed coffee and lots of reading for me!

IN WHICH WE HAVE A THURSDAY THAT FEELS VERY MUCH LIKE A FRIDAY

The Cottage Care team came today instead of tomorrow, and it has completely bobcomdistulated me! Normally, we use the every other Friday schedule to run errands and to go out for breakfast, and I get my labwork done, so we got it together and headed out early today instead.

(I know it's nuts, but I don't like to be here when CC comes to clean, because it makes me feel so guilty that I'm not doing it myself, and I'm completely paranoid that everything is a mess and not fit for company.)

(Isn't is somehow comforting to know that despite all of these big changes in my life I'm still your lovable goofball?)

Labwork did not exactly go as planned. The phlebotomist blamed me for being dehydrated, but I secretly blamed her for not knowing what the h-e-double-hockey sticks she was doing.

I have to go back tomorrow because company policy says they're only allowed to stick a patient four times before they have to give up.

(I'm going to make sure to double up on my pre-lab water!)

There's a wonderful little restaurant downtown South Bend called The Early Bird Eatery, and we've gone there about four times now. As God is my witness, the food is always perfection, and I even like their damn good! I don't normally order coffee when out because I'm so fussy about it, but theirs is just delicious (even if the darn cups are two small).

I dropped Rich off at CS2 and took myself to the Martin's like a grown woman, and got provisions for our newest meal idea: SALAD BAR. I'm going to do my best to clean, chop, and containerize everything so that several times a week we can have a healthy dinner. We do pretty well, but with the warmer weather coming, I really want to double down and get these darn post transplant pounds OFF once and for all.

(You'll be happy to know that I am within ten pounds of my pre-transplant weight! According to my Bean Team, it's not unheard of for patients to gain a lot more than that, so I am actually pretty happy that my gain was within what Dr Goggins expected.)

But seven months is long enough to be fiddling around. Time to go back to my Operation GO routines.

I am stitching, when not distracted by new coloring markers or a Philadelphia sports team on the TeeVee. Right now, I'm obsessed with the Sixers getting themselves out of trouble in their series with Miami, and the Phillies getting themselves out of trouble in general! 

Here's the latest progress:

I don't know about your neck of the woods, but here in Hoosierville we seem to be trapped under one big heavy permaclound and cold drizzly weather that seems to have started sometime last October. With the exception of the Blue Gold game day, I don't think we've seen the sun for more than four minutes. Today is rain and 45 degrees, and from what I can tell from the forecast, it looks like 110 and sunny starting this weekend.

Go figure.

(Yes, Betty. I exaggerate. Again. As I am wont to do. But high 70's or 80's to me might as well be the vestibule to Hell. Remember, Dear. I'm built for cool comfort...not for hot speed.)

Speaking of comfort, our therapy pool water was a little on the cool side yesterday, so I am pretty sore today. It does feel good to know that I worked my joints and muscles well, but methinks I might need a nice warm soak in the bubble tub tomorrow!

So that's the latest from Spinster World today, Dearies! I'm sorry to be so darn boring, but if you stay tuned long enough I'm sure I'll trip over something fun or dramatic eventually!

What's new with you?

 

MONDAY MONDAY

I got my tippie toes done on Saturday. I was looking for yellow, but the sparkles make them look a little more golden:

Still plugging away on Red Bird Sampler:

Water therapy class this morning, followed by a healthy smoothie full of protein and good things:

Some new markers from the amazons that I've been playing with:

And my new nail wraps for the week.

 So now I'm going to settle in with papers and stitching and bliss out for the rest of the day. Happy Monday, Dearies! I hope your week has started on a swell note! Come tell me all about it!