IN Carmel

 puzzle.  You are right.  The puzzle is in control.  There is nothing like trying to fix something that keeps me busy.  I'm elated to find the easiest and hardest solution.  This puzzle is a doozie and keeps me ticking.  It's a bit difficult to do with one eye behind a warm washcloth since it would seem that I've developed a sty.  A warm wet cloth is the first line of treatment.  I'm on it unless I want to go puzzling.   This morning Doug and I made a stop at Wild Birds.  The goal is to keep the Bluebirds happy while visiting the feeder.  Their mealworms are gone and it seems that the store has had a run on mealworms.  We're trying now a mix of mealworms and suet.  And they are loving it.   We filled up on gas while out getting loaded up for the snowstorm that is predicted for Wed.  The cupboards have enough food so I think we're set for whatever comes our way.  And I have a puzzle.  Whil...

 Perhaps of lesser importance or maybe not.  I decide yesterday to start a puzzle.  The Eric R's. showered everyone at Christmas with new puzzles.  I love to do puzzles as do others in the family.  So yesterday the puzzle this one a camping theme, started and there is something very adictive comes out in me.  So...a late posting today.  Maybe even more late postings until that puzzle is finished.  A piece here and a piece there.  It's a tough one but still fun.  Every winter there is at least one puzzle put together.  So that's the reason for a 3:30 posting.  And football games are starting so just lots to do.  Church this morning included altar flowers.  Such a refreshing reminder on a cold snowy morning.  Speaking of snow...more to come this week.   ISo enjoy the winter and enjoy the flowers of spring.  Our altar flowers were given in honor of Ruth Shaw's 91's birthday.  She is one spring ch...

 Don't mess with Mother Nature.  She must have listened to yesterday's rant!  Between 10 and 1 we got a great snow cover.  All the winter brown is now covered with beautiful white.  It's a fairyland.  The only question is, where are the birds?  Thawed the birdbath water, threw out the seed for the ground-eating birds, and removed the snow cover from the mealworms.  The birds must have found a warmer spot for protection than I provided for them.  The Downy's did show up for tasty suet.   News flash.  After posting this the breakfast bell must have rung at 8 am and this was the scene.   They are back.  In fact, the whole tribe of birds is back feasting and drinking.  It's a party again even if it is 1 degree of warmth this morning.  It's a very integrated flock of birds.   There is always a starling or two that really take over the mealworm feeder but for now, are easily scared away with the blu...

 Yes...trying but I think a little more effort needs to be made.  We've had some cold but where is the snow.  iPhone says snowflakes and one can easily miss them if not looking out the window ALL the time.  So a bit more of try would make living a little more interesting.  There is nothing like being snowed in for a few days to create a whole lot of stories. I love the no eggs, milk, and bread at the grocery store story purchased by the no eggs, milk or bread eaters of the world.   The two-room switches are completed.  Now it's on to their closets.  So fortunate to have doors that cover everything for now.  The trouble is that the MIND knows what's behind the (green?) door.  I'm sure that green door comment dates me.   All is ready but at this point I not certain what the ready will be.  Looks like fun work to me whatever it is. Thinking about doing and then proceeding to getting it completed happened this time....

 Yes...Mid afternoon now.  I haven't been sick, I haven't been sleeping, I haven't been sitting.  It was a working PT morning.  Then a stop at Goodwill (I'm looking for a chair for the ME room. and I didn't find anything) and the library to leave a couple stacks of gardening and quilting books.  I'm cleaning out what I don't use. The rest of the day has been a continuation of switching rooms and then putting rooms back together.  I'm getting there but not quite yet.  It's a breath of fresh air that's blowing through the house.  Here's the new ME Room.  The sewing room isn't ready for a picture yet but close.  Tugging and pulling and lifting and stretching.  My body is a bit sore with this kind of PT..  Bummer.  Moving rooms is a great alternative to moving the whole house to some other site.  The sewing room now is a part of the computer room. That room is a bit smaller and it's pretty full.  That's a good ...

 Yup, cold and NO snow to speak of yet.  I think the neighbor girl made a couple of snowmen when we had about two inches of snow that lasted two minutes.  So my little snowmen waiting on the steps remind me of snow fun.  Shoveling around them is no problem.  This is a collection that came from Goodwill.  What a gift!   This winter the house is warm.  Our old furnace wore out long before we replaced it with temperatures outside at 1 degree as they are this morning allowing the house to be around 60 at the most the last few years  This morning the house is a toasty 68 degrees.  It's something about an improved boiler that is such a gift.  Well, not a gift.  We're paying for it!!!   Yesterday's session at PT went well.  Michael's routine was a bit easier.  I've done some googling on balance changes and aging.  They seem to go together...OOPS...not seem...They do go together.  Some important parts...

 It has been, is, or will be Tuesday everywhere.  And it's a cold Tues in central Indiana.  11 degrees cold.  The birds have been taken care of, breakfast is over, crossword completed and Doug is UP!  It's time to start the day.  There is not much on the calendar for the day.  PT Michael will hear about the latest hospital hoopla that occurred unknown to him after our last session.  Should be an interesting conversation.   A brief stop at the library, grocery, and then home for the day should do it!   Since I have no outside flowers blooming, I'll share the latest indoor flowers.  There are a few more flowers poking out of the Ground Hog Cactus, usually knowns as the Christmas Cactus.  Yes.  A bird house is waiting for the summer, this one with a hole big enough perhaps for a woodpecker.  This was planned for a wren but when making the hole, the gourd caught on fire and just became a house for a woodpecker....

 I have a feeling that this morning's Ziggi will make me smile, giggle, laugh all week long.  It's the TRUTH!  Can't deny it.  Can't fake it.  Here it is.  My setting is not Christmas Lights but the GARDEN! Usually not a ladder...Just plain old flat ground!   No ladder is usually involved although that did happen once in the garden!  The bush I was trimming needed a ladder.  It's usually just bending over and instead of stopping the bend...I just keep on bending!!!!.  My thought is "Hear we go again".  It just gives me a great giggle every time I think of Ziggi. I am a faithful calcium pill taker and the ground is pretty forgiving so far!  LOL!!!!  Look for the humor!  It will help your day as well.   I'll be sure to share this with PT Michael tomorrow.  It could be and probably is a vestibular deficiency causing Michael to schedule more balance exercises until I can exhibit some vestibular pr...

 Church today was planned by the woman of the church. That means that only the choir ladies sang the anthems.  We were really good!!!! There were about 20 of us. The Song of Miriam with text by Rabbi Ruth Sohn, speaks of Miriam so unsure of herself but then hearing the song of courage in her heart.  The composer of music fit so aptly together the music of uncertainty and then the musical notes of joy.  Amy S preached as well.  So it was also a great morning to visit since we sang at both services with an hr in between.  I must add though that Noah was the acolyte at the 11 o'clock service.  No girls showed!  This kid is looking older and growing by leaps and bounds.  Fun, fun!  He and brother Andrew had an hour of bell practice after the second service.  We saw a little snow this morning and I think it was one of those excuses people used to stay home and worship online.  Church attendance was slim to almost none with atte...

 But I sang oh, what a beautiful morning...  all the way to Soup Kitchen at church.  Beautiful because I woke up in my own bed, took my own shower, made my own breakfast, fed my own birds visiting with a total of  6 Bluebirds at the feeder and birdbath at the same time. I call that a congregation of frequent fliers as the crossword puzzle said this morning.  Last but not least, the LR heart electrical system was pulsing as intended.   I'm sure you all get the idea.  My body once again is letting me be my own person.  What a blessing and I count myself among the grateful once again.  Yes, grateful for God in the hands of the doctors and nurses.  It's just also plain old-fashioned thankfulness for allowing me to live where medicine can solve problems that are sure to come.   Soup kitchen was a busy place this morning with lots of workers preparing food for our neighborhood guests.  It was a holly jolly time or something...

 The past 24 hours have been something different.  I would choose not to repeat them. Thursday afternoon PT assignments were extremely difficult to complete.  Other times...easy peasy.  Not yesterday.  So I took breaks and tried again.  Hard, Difficult, Challenging are a few descriptive words.  Breathing was a gulping for air experience. . There was never enough of it.  Then about a half hour after getting home around 4:30 I discovered that instead of heartbeats of 80 or so a minute there were 190 heartbeats a minute.  So back to the hospital we went to. My home away from home.  The hardest part of taking that drive was the fact that I needed to admit that something new was a miss.  What a bummer.  When the number of beats was announced, the E R Room filled with many people doing a more than the commendable job of poking, preparing and supporting.  Once more surrounded with angels was the feeling.   In the E R do...

 Yes, another hard water morning for the birds.  13 degrees above zero will do that in any country on the planet..   The hope is that later this morning the water will be happy to support a Bluebird visitor.  Today should be pretty simple.  Maybe I need to rethink that.  Doug and I have a 10 o'clock appointment for his colonoscopy.  I'm only the driver.  You know those appointments come around every 5 years and he goes first and my turn comes February 14th.  Jared Russell's birthday.  Both are events I should not forget.  What a Valentine gift!!!! It's one of those get'er done things and then on with 5 more years.  My last radiation day happened on Eric Russell's birthday.  I've run out of kids so I'm stating that I'm done!   The day will end with another church choir rehearsal.  Doug has been a choir member for over 60 years and I have been with this choir for a mere 54 years.  That's all of our m...

 Nothing new...same old same old as JB would say.  1. 3 13  Card playing continues every night right after supper and I AM WINNING a whole lot of games.   I've offered to tutor Doug.  He's not taking me up on the offer.  2.  Mild weather continues.  I need to talk a walk somewhere. We are a lot warmer than Georgia.  It could be ice and a bit of snow for them today.  Stay safe Georgia.   3.  Birds continue to visit although to my dismay the blackbirds have found the mealworms.  I guess all God's children need food.   4.  The newly named Ground Hog cactus continues to slowly, very slowly show a new bloom.  I'm happy for the few that are coming my way.    5  The early morning sky continues to gift some really beautiful views.  The camera needs to be ready. The picture never lasts long.   6.  Last night after an accidental phone call from the two wild  Michi...

 Morning priorities ruled and for today the blog is an afternoon priority.  Some days are like that even in Australia,  Alexander would say.  The morning included a great PT session again.  Michael is so helpful in understanding the vestibular system that affects Vertigo. I love getting my questions answered.  Once again it was sweating time.  The garden time this summer should be one to enjoy if all the muscle developing stuff happens.  The vestibular eye, ear, and feet training will pay off with better balance.  I   can tell a difference already.  It only should get better. I am going to be ready for fun in the dirt.     My next stop this morning was at the library only just around the corner from the PT facility.  Carmel's main downtown library has been closed for almost two years now with a reopening later this fall after a huge addition in space. The current library is located close to home in an old Marsh G...

 A little of this and a  little of that for the day.  The usual morning starts with coffee and 2 scrambled eggs with a touch of sour cream and horseradish!  Yum, yum.  Then on to the birds.  Their morning starts with a thaw of their water and them yum, yum Bluebird mealworms with sunflower seeds tossed on the ground for Junco's. .  Busy morning and I missed the bluebird visit but they didn't miss the mealworm breakfast.  Twice I filled the cup and then "magically" it disappeared.  The squirrels were sunflower eaters.   I Then there was a quick visit to JoAnn's for a scrap of brown flannel to do a pant repair for my church friend Joe.  He keeps me busy now and then and I'm just happy to help along.  This was a very simple repair.  I hope it works for him.   An interesting phone call this morning with a colonoscopy P A  nurse made me set a date for an exam.  Let me add there are no red flags.  ...

 From my childhood days, I wondered why the adults always took naps Sunday afternoon.  Such a waste of time so I thought.  I guess I'm an adult.  This afternoon the waste of time  and unexpected nap has occurred once again while sitting in the rocker.  I'm always surprised when I wake up.  Hadn't planned on that sleep, it just happens.   Another church morning with great music and a sermon about being included in the family of God.  Football now happening but our dear Colts are sitting this one out.  They gave it their all which just didn't quite last long enough.   It's a beautiful sunny afternoon but still a bit chili out.  Yesterday's check on those once beautiful?  green weeds now are exhibiting an even more beautiful dead color. Woo, woo.  The mealworms left for the morning Bluebird bunch have totally disappeared after checking the feeder on returning home from church.  They were here.  The hi...

 It seems that the weeks are less than 7 days.  Time flies is a very truthful saying..  So the week is over again.  Yesterday was a grocery day with Meijer coupons.  Grocery shopping is an interesting event with everyone pushing those little carts looking for stuff that the grocer seems to think needs moving at least every month to some new shelf.  It's a cat and mouse event. The question surfaces...where is it?    Shopping gets me out with folks.  I always seem to discover something funny that amuses me.  Talking with a stranger happened with a banana conversation yesterday.  Children shopping with their grandmothers continue to amuse me. Yesterday one cart was full of food and a 4-year-old.  I wanted to ask what aisle for that gem. Another little boy found an interesting seat on the bottom cart shelf.  It worked beautifully. He could walk or ride at his own choosing. So  I continue to do my own shopping ra...

 Yesterday, Doug found me in the garden with a hoe.  Yup...obsessive is the word!  I was checking things out and decided that the warm sun had thawed just the very top of the dirt.   That hoe was a huge helper in scraping out weeds that just seem to enjoy cold weather.  They are green and really pretty but will not be allowed in the garden on any occasion, summer or winter.  So I scraped them off their foundations.  I did a garden walk this morning with a coffee cup in hand and soon I will rake them to a place they can not reattach in any way.  I think that's a first for January gardening for me.  Wasn't bad I would add.   More books from the library are stashed beside the rocker.  Some gardens look like Indiana gardens, some look like Arizona gardens.  So different but interesting.  I would say Indiana gardens are still my favorite.   If you need a tease or just because I like to be reminded of the gre...

 There was a promise of a report.  So here it is.  Slow it was.  It's good to have one of those now and then.  It was a book day with plants.  The herb book got me thinking and thinking and then doing it all over again.  What will get moved, what will end up in the garbage?  I'm thinking.  At least for now the plan is in my head not making any muscles sore.     The mixed flock of birds appeared early yesterday morning and then took the party to some other place.  I hope to see them today but they never can be trusted to show up.  Food is waiting and soon the ice will disappear from the birdbath.  The welcome sign is out.   PT is going well but today's session has been canceled.  Not my choice but if Michael is not available for vestibular training I'd rather just skip the session.  He is full of information about that specialty.   So I would imagine today will include another library...

 Maybe I could call it that with a little imagination.  Instead of three hot pots of water to thaw the birdbath, this morning it was only a one-pot morning.  Mealworms have been replenished and all is right with the world so the birds are reporting.  The winter sunrises are such an interesting gift for eyes these days.  Here is this morning's painting. The gift never lasts very long.   Yesterday's work included two hours at church futzing up the sanctuary.  Futzing is a Patty word I heard years ago and now I'm using it.  Futzing describes just tidying up and doing a little futzing.  That included putting away banners and creating two arrangements for the altar area.  No one has spoken for flowers.  We have an alternative option now for a few Sundays.  The arrangements include hydrangea,, bears breeches flowers, pods from okra and false indigo, sedum, some grass plums, and beautyberry branches.    All were once li...

 Yes...the early bird get's the worm.  That's summertime talk about worms.  This morning before 8:30 the bird attendance counted 2 pairs of Bluebirds, a pair of Downey's, a Flicker, House Finches, and a couple of Sparrows.  Lucky for them the birdbath water had been thawed.  The menu included suet with seeds, mealworms, and black sunflower oil seeds.   Lately, the bird and garden books have seen a lot of page-turning.  I've also reviewed last summer's garden pictures on the camera.  They have impressed me more this winter knowing how dank things in the garden now.  It's just plain ugly.  A white snow cover would help.  Here are a few last summer memory pictures from the camera.   And stored in the garden until the right moment come in a few months  another summer of surprise explosions.   Patience my dear.  Waiting is not one of my strong traits

 Sailors take warning.  And in this case maybe it's a warning for more cold weather.  I think central Indiana is landlocked.     This was the sunrise this morning during the short drive to take Eric to work.  What a beautiful gift to start the workweek.  The sculptures are found at Carme's Central Park hovering over the children's water play area.  A side of the road stop made this picture possible.   Yesterday was a bird thinking day.  Lots of books to dream ideas.  And here is the Russell version of a beautiful copper wire oriole feeder I found in one of the books. Since there was no copper wire anywhere I used chicken wire and a little bit of other wire, I think this might work. I'm ready orioles  I sprayed the wire green and maybe it will need a little orange color added.  Grape jelly will fill the glass container.  Orioles were in the yard last summer but I think it was a stopover couple of weeks o...

And as usual, this day will include church.  It's a marker that keeps me centered with focused thinking for the week ahead.  Today, North Chruch celebrates the Baptism of Jesus with visuals and rituals.  Shells, a symbol of baptism fill wreaths and banners. At the window just outside the sanctuary, a font filled with water and shells are placed asking folks to remember their own baptism as they enter for worship.    During the service, Darren will also ask congregants to remember their own baptism and with bowls of water and natural sponges soaked in that water taken from the sanctuary font, fling water across those worshiping.  We will be wet with remembrances of our own commitment made at our baptism,  at our renewal of vows each January as well as for some, a commitment made for them baptized as infants.   I love this ritual and look forward to celebrating it in some manner each year.   A personal celebration of what seems to be ...

It's an animal world living outside my kitchen window.  So today you will see the zoo.  First, meet Frick and Frack.  The sun seems to wake these buddies, fueling their energy.  Back and forth, up and down, chasing each other as only children do.   The afternoon brought a welcome sight as my friends meet at the suet. Now the left side of the feeder would be a better place for Red Belly to pose in the sun but I'll take what I can get.  This little guy is a regular but a real surprise on such a cold day.   This tough little nuthatch can climb right-side up or upside down as he travels over the tree.  The same thing happens while eating. What a cute little guy to watch. He knows where the light is best to show himself off to the camera.   And of course, a trusted regular friend is Mrs. Downey.  I'm sure this is Mrs. because she is not wearing a red hat.  Only the Mr. is so privileged.  And once again...on the right ...

Where does that lead?  Easy answer, soup time.  In the freezer now...Chicken vegetable and chili soup,  In the refrigerator, split pea and ham.  On the stove, a big pot of 12 bean soup and ham gives this Hillsdale kitchen a place of great smells.  Last night the 12 bean bag of beans started soaking, this morning with a 5 am wake up I got busy,   If there are onions and celery somewhere in the kitchen with perhaps a touch of real meat or bullion, some kind of soup is possible.  I'm thinking potato soup next.  Just thinking!  I have one more onion and plenty of celery.   Yesterday, Marcia made a comment about pea soup and since there was plenty already in the refrigerator, I decided to share.  So I did but discovered that it was the Novi Marcia that made the comment.  Woo...delivering soup to Michigan is just not so easy.  Yes, I have two great Marcia friends.  Lucky for me, Carmel Marcia loves split pea ...

In this case, both.  I'm speaking of temperature and soup if you need a bit of help to solve that mystery if it is a mystery?  Yes...chili soup is made and the house is warm so all is right in that respect.  The TV news of the day brings back a time when not all was right. Pray for our countries healing.   Now a yesterday report.  PT happened with Michael and the Eply procedure did prove that those darn little crystals living in my right ear just travel to places causing trouble.  I'd like to give them a permanent time-out. Work continues to glue them in place.  I have a whole lot of gratitude for Michael who will stay with me until problems are gone.  What a gift in due time will again be felt through this next pair of healing hands entering my life.  Homework with the Eply today showed improve but it did bring with it a bit of nausea.  Just another interesting happening on the way to recovery.  A trip to the library.  Wh...