IN Carmel

 It's been a blustery day as Winny would say.  Woo...I would say it's been hurricane weather for the birds.  I saw one Harry around 5 pm and that's been about it. The report was 65 mile per hour wind during the day.  I believe it.  And since the trees did not have leaves, they were spared.  The pine trees really looked like huge swings at the top.  And the morning started with the usual.  I made a big attempt to work on the rug.  Getting the braid just right is not easy.  So for a whole morning of work, I think I got about three feet completed meaning half way around the rug at the most.  It's the little engine that could but it's barely chugging at this point.  As brother=in=law Rick often says.  If it's worth doing, it's worth doing it right.                                The braid is long enough to get to the right-hand end b...

 My body is still telling me where my legs are. Yikes.  They could be getting old.  You think?   I made the two phone calls I had in mind this morning.  Both were successful.  I have a new Kohl's card activated.  I use it once a year for sock gifts at Xmas. I have an appointment for a pessary insert.  Phone stuff done!  My i phone calendar has been updated making sure all the appointments are listed.  The calendar is filling for the month of March. But the day is ready for me. After all the inside morning stuff was done, I grabbed the clippers and went outside.  Could that be good for those old legs.  Maybe if I didn't stay on them very long. I'm still feeling many kinks. I am a bit surprised at all the stuff that is lying around.  I thought I did a better cleaning job last fall but there is stuff to do now.  Maybe I just got tired. Maybe things just blew in.           ...

 Up and At 'em.   Meaning...don't forget it's a work morning at church.  So, when all the morning stuff at home was finished, I was on my way to church again with Lent on my mind.   Heidi had to change her time of arrival to a later time, and I was off a little earlier than expected so the morning work at church promised to be a loaner for a while which suited me just fine.  There was time to think while working and I needed to think.  I went through the same process when I was teaching.   The chapel was changed to worship in the round with the altar table placed in the middle of the space.  So, chairs had to be placed and then the fun began with thinking purple.  The altar was covered with a purple cloth and then a fishing net was placed on top.  Texture and interest were the goal.  The net is made of real jute so there is a distinctive what I think is a salt-water smell.  I love that.  Banners have been hu...

 Another morning with all but one usual.  And that one came in the afternoon.  I don't think we have ever had a morning paper delivered at 2 pm.  I would say better late than never.  The paper man is sick and the wife of the paper man made the delivery.  Good for her!                                                                                  The second crocus. I spent the morning knitting again starting with a new color of yarn.  There is always part of the process when it is easy to lose a stitch, and I did so there was some frogging and then some more knitting.  Frogging is another term for rib it, rib it, rib it. Get it? At some point Doug reported that the Sandhill Cranes were heading north again ...

Red sails in the morning, Sailors take warning.   The warning sign was miss thinking about a wonderful day with a gorgeous sunrise, but it turned into anything but wonderful. And after yesterday's blog entry, what was hoped to be a good week had a dismal beginning.  Jared called to tell us that Sunday evening Wyatt, their beautiful red poodle stopped eating and by three in the morning of Monday as Jared was driving to Lancing to the Vet at Michigan State, Wyatt died.  Wyatt was one wonderful dog in every sense of the word.  Smart, friendly, protective with absolute understanding about so many things.  Today and the days ahead will be days of mourning eventually becoming times of reflections about all the good that Wyatt brought to us.  His camping chair is now sitting in our living room reminding us of that goodness he gifted us.  After hearing about this event, I took a walk outside to clear my head and heart and found the first of many crocus bl...

 The first day of the week and that meant being ready!  We were off to church again at 10 with a 30 minute time before the service to hear the choir rehearsing among other things.   During the month of February, we have heard many negro spirituals wonderfully sung.  Today's gift to us and sung to God was I Got a Key arranged by Alice Parker.  Mark, our choir director sang the verses while the choir sang the refrain.  Refrain: I got a key to the kingdom, oh Lord, I have it now, and the world can't do me no harm.                 Now if you know you're livin; right, servin' God both nigh' and day,                                                                 then when you go down on your knees, God'll hear ev'ry word ...

 And the same old drill happened.  You have read it often so I'm assuming you have it memorized, and I'll skip it today.                                           Cleome comes in lavender white, pink and then a real deep purple.                                                                                       They self-seed and are such an easy flower to grow.                                                          ...

 So what did I do today.  Somethings somehow slip out of my mind soon after they happens.  Bummer.   But...I remember I got up.  Same old same old with breakfast, bird watching, paper fetching and coffee drinking.  Same old same old for sure.   I decided to do some phone stuff.  I'm way past my yearly eye exam and was going to take that even farther but then my eyes started to spill over with tears.  I googled some and information said that can be a cancer side effect for some folks.  So that got me thinking that I'd better see what's going on.  And that appointment will come in the middle of March.   I received a phone call from Kaylee, the pharmacist at I U Simon Cancer Center.  She was checking to see if I was getting my medicine and my answer was yes, I think the supplier has found me.  I was wondering for a while. Knowing they care gives me comfort.  I think I'm plugged into the supplier with ...

 A great night of sleep and a decent wake up.  Six AM and time for myself.  Breakfast as usual.  A little knitting as usual and a whole lot of bird work filling all the feeders, thawing the water and watching the whole bird family coming for their first meal of the day.  They have many meals, and I would suppose that is one of the things that fights off the cold for them.  It was a bundled up outside time clearing the patio first of another small snow fall and then a walk to the street for the paper.                           I wonder if we'll see Monarchs this year.  My guess now is there will be very few.  Here is a list of morning visitors: finch, red-bellied woodpecker, flicker, robin, hairy woodpecker, downy woodpecker, chickadee, bluebirds, along with starlings and junco. A picture from a stash of pictures.  Not a today picture but still a good one.  Th...

 Another 6 am wake up.  That's all right giving me time to see what is happening with me and the inside and outside world.  It was a yogurt breakfast with blue berries and walnuts ending with coffee.  The birds were taken care of next, and the newspaper came in when it was really light outside.  I'm not messing with the problem of not finding the paper without good light.   I took up the knitting with about 4 inches till the end of the scarf and finished it between naps.  I just couldn't keep my eyes open this morning, so I didn't fight the urge.  So, the second wake up came around 10 when I got the urge to melt wax. It was time to empty the boxes from Georgia.     But being a little unorganized it didn't go so well.  I didn't think through as to what to put the melted wax in which resulted in one candle needing to be dug out of what I thought would be a good mold.  The sides were not straight enough for the candle to...

 Brrrrrr in Michigan.  -6.  Warm in Carmel +6.  Well, it wasn't very warm in Carmel when it took a sweatshirt along with a wool sweater underneath a coat to keep me warm when getting the paper off the driveway.  Brrr in Carmel.  Just not so many r's in Brrr as in Michigan.   As usual all the usual happened.  The B B flock was back again around 8 and I thawed the bird bath.  They are patient waiters for that to happen. They are the biggest drinkers.  I should take a lesson. I knitted again while watching the news and then got all the things together that needed attention at the bank and post office.  I thought about thistle gathering.  Maybe Doug can push me along.  It's got to happen soon if it happens.  I might wait till it's 20 degrees out or until the snow melts.                                    ...