Not Quite Nothing

OK, I was going to get on here and blog about how I'd spent another whole Friday doing absolutely nothing, but I realized that wasn't quite true.  I didn't do a little something, just not what I'd wanted to do, which was to make a couple of phone calls. 

I have figured out that this is a three fold problem  One, I don't like to make phone calls anyway being an introvert.  Two, I don't like people at my house.  It feels like they're violating my sanctuary.  I won't call it my safe space, because when I hear that phrase I think tornado shelter.  And three, I don't trust myself to make good decisions when it comes to hiring people, based on my past history.  

So, now I've identified the problem.  Maybe I can work on overcoming it.   Add to that the fact that nothing I need done is super urgent, and I'm a terrible procrastinator anyway.  For example, one of the things on my list is to get in touch with someone about buying firewood.  That's not super urgent, because I still have about half a face cord left from the last time I bought some -- and that's not even counting the tree I had cut down earlier this year.  Add to that, I probably won't even burn what I have a whole lot because I bought that space heater at my neighbor's garage sale a few weeks ago...

But I guess you don't really want to hear about my to-do list, do you?  I'm sure you're asking, then what did you do today?  Well, they're predicting the chance of scattered showers this evening, so I got out the old roto-tiller and went over the garden spot a few times. 

It's looking better, but there are still a few high spots I need to level out.  I want to see how much it compacts after a good rain or two.   I'll probably go over it again a few times, just for the heck of it.  I've said it before, and I'll say it again, there's something very theraputic about tilling the soil.  

Before I came in, I got a bucket full of dirt and put it into this low spot where I'd had some plumbing work done.  You know, that the landscammer was supposed to fill in, but didn't. 

I'll probably have to add a bit more once this settles, but I'll have plenty of dirt, that's for sure. 

Oh, and by the way, remember when I put all that ant stuff down last weekend?  Yeah, I walked out this morning and found four new hills in my front yard. 

 That white powder is a different kind of ant poison.  But anyway, I'll have to try again in the spring, and maybe eventually I'll get rid of the little demon spawns.  Maybe I'll set my spreader to a higher number, even though I had it on what the bag said to.  

After that, I came inside, took a shower and watched a few Robert Redford movies -- The Horse Whisperer and Jeremiah Johnson to start with, both on Tubi.  I found my VHS of The Sting, but remembered I'd unplugged my VCR because I didn't have enough outlets in my power strip.  If I can find an extension cord long enough, I'll plug it in just long enough to watch my movie. 

In work news, Inspector Gadget really stepped in it yesterday.  I was so mad when I got home, I couldn't even post.  Really, it's no so much anger as pure frustration.  That place sets you up to fail, then wants to yell at you for doing exactly that.

See, yesterday was one of those days when most of us stood around all day waiting for work to come out of tubing.  The orders were trickling down the line one at a time, and we brazers couldn't do anything but take turns getting them, while everyone else had to stand there and wait. 

This went on all day long, and finally it was almost the end of the shift.  Suddenly, Inspector Gadget shows up and starts getting orders together and telling us to come set up on them.  Everybody got mad at this, and it isn't so much that he was passing out orders, it was where was he five hours ago?  Why wasn't he worried about us being out of work at 10:00?  At 11:00?   Why did he wait until fifteen minutes until time to go to suddenly become concerned?  

These are the kind of things that drive your employees nuts and result in higher turnover rates.  My question is, and I think I've asked this before on the blog, if they didn't want him in the front office, what on earth makes them think we want him on the shop floor?  

Alls I know is, they're going to have to do something, before he completely destroys what little morale we have out there. 

Rough Day

Following a largely sleepless night last night, today was a rough day all around.  It seems like all the parts I got were bad -- not bad enough to get re-cut, but just bad enough to make my job a struggle.  All day long.  I told my coworker, "I'm not going to be able to move my hands tomorrow!" after I saw her over at her stand shaking her own hands.  

Beats the heck out of me.  Group Leader Shark stands up every day in our morning meeting and says to do our first piece inspections, but apparently the ones who do adapter tubes don't seem to think she's talking to them.  Especially that one... as soon as we see that one clock number on the parts ticket, we know right away those parts are going to be wrong. 

As much as we complain, they won't do anything about it.  Well, nothing but blame the brazers for being too slow.  On the other hand, if they employees won't take pride in doing a good job, there really isn't that much anyone can do about it.  It's not like GLS can stand over each of them all day.  Not that she would, anyway.

Even so, I think next time I get some parts that are as far off as the ones I had today, I'm going to take them to Inspector Gadget and say, "YOU go explain to [Forrestina Gumpette] what a 90° bend is!"

As if that weren't enough, my nose picked today to ooze.  All day long.  Man, I got so tired of it, I told my coworker I was going to come home and cut my nose off, so if you see me walking around tomorrow with no nose, you'll know why. 

On a similar note, I spent the entire day trying to psych myself up to call another tree company, but before the work day even ended, I felt my resolve weakening, and you guessed it.  I didn't make the call.  I don't understand why this is so difficult.  I mean, I'm an introvert and we hate the telephone anyway, but it still shouldn't be this hard to pick up the phone and call someone.  

Oh, and in fairness, I went to the 811 website to request a scan, but it said not to do it more than 10 days ahead of time, so I just left it for now.  Because I still have to call the surveyor, then decide if I'm going to use the same fencing company, and I'll probably have to hire someone to grind the stumps in the fence line -- and that brings us back to making phone calls and one of those will have to be to a tree service.  

Sigh...

To lighten things up a bit, here is a pretty picture I lifted from the interwebs.  I'd give due credit if I knew who took it.  

And finally, today is September 17, and we all know what that means.  At least, my readers do!  It's Constitution Day.  In honor of that, here is a classic Schoolhouse Rock.  

By the way, to this day, I cannot recite the Preamble without singing it.  And in the spirit of it being Constitution Day, I signed up for PragerU's course on understanding the Constitution, so I'm going to get off of here, take a quick shower, then do lesson 1. 

Laters. 

Rain!

Rain!  We got rain!  Lovely rain!  Between last night and today's showers, we got 1.75" of the stuff, and I can hear my grass sighing with relief.  Even better, I was able to collect almost a gallon for Marty Mac, so that's one less gallon of distilled water I'll have to buy.  I just hope it settles whatever it is that has my allergies all stirred up.

Then I came home to a new season of Halloween Baking Championship on the TV.  So, all of the phone calls I'd planned to make but knew I wouldn't didn't get made.  Plus, the rain gave me an excuse not to get out and work in the yard, so there I sat.  Watching my cooking show and ... doing nothing. 

That reminds me, I watch a lot of British TV and British content creators on YouTube, and they're always talking about beans on toast.  Apparently, that's some sort of British staple, and it put me in mind to try it.  I don't have the Heinz beans you're supposed to use, and am not going to pay to have a can of beans imported from England, so I got out some Van Camps Pork n Beans.  

And they've been sitting on my cabinet for nearly a week, now.  

I'd have to dig out my toaster oven to make the toast, or else make pan fried toast.  That kind of made me want to buy a new air fryer, but the oven type, not the basket type I currently have.  I feel like I could use it for so much more, including things I have to use the big oven for now. But as I said, I really need to cut back on my spending since we're not getting as much overtime right now, so I reckon I'll just dig the old toaster oven out and use it. 

I wish I had more cabinet space so I could leave it out all the time, but my kitchen isn't laid out very well.  If I'm ever able to get it remodeled, that's definitely something I'm going to take into consideration. 

In other news, I suppose by now you've all heard of the death of Robert Redford.  I swan every girl in my junior high had a crush on him back in the day.  I wanted to come home and watch The Sting, but couldn't find it streaming anywhere.  I may find it when I have more time to look.  Or I may have to dig out my old VHS and play it in my VCR, provided the VCR still works.  I haven't used it in ages.  

If it doesn't, I have The Horse Whisperer on DVD.  I thought I had Out Of Africa, too, but if I do, it's on VHS and I'll have to dig through the old tapes to find it.   

Anyway, since I couldn't find any of the movies I wanted to watch available to stream, I got my old Alfred's level one piano book and played The Entertainer.  I was a bit rusty, but I made it through.  That was always a fun song to play.  

In knitting news, I've decided to finish this hat before I cast on anything new, so here is a progress photo. 

 Oh, and I meant a sock yarn hat.  My charity hats will definitely be happening. 

Mood

Current mood:  

I am so tired of being hot!  I'm ready for some cooler weather already.  Alas, we're looking at temps in the 90s all this week, so I'll have a while to wait.   

Well, according to my little experiment yesterday, two of you are real. Everyone else is a bot.  He he...Seriously, I'd love to get a little conversation going on, just like in the olden days. 

When dinosaurs roamed the earth.  And there was no social media, but we were actually social.  

Ok, moving right along...

This is probably going to be short, because I didn't sleep well at all last night, and it's my own dagone fault, as Ryan Hall would say.  I knew I shouldn't, but I ate something way too close to bed time, and had awful heartburn all night.  Even after two doses of Pepto, oooh, I was miserable.  

And just when it started settling down some, I started coughing.  So, I got up and got a drink of water...and that set it all off again.  I think I'm the only person in the world who gets heartburn from drinking water.  Go figure. 

From now on, I'll stick with either cereal or popcorn as a bedtime snack.  

Despite my sleepiness, work must go on, and up I was at 3:30 and off to work I went.  Where the day passed without incident.  Then I came home to a very nice postcard from the Seaman's Church Institute, 

thanking me for the hats I'd sent them. 

 I hope to have more for them next year.  

And you know what?  I just realized something just now this very second.  I'll bet if I put on a mask before I go out to sift dirt, that will solve a lot of my problems.  As dry and dusty as it's been lately, no telling how much of that stuff I'm breathing in or swallowing.  That may explain the sore throats and stomachaches.  

I've got plenty of masks, so there's no excuse there.  Back during COVID, the plant was handing them out like...Florida was handing out interceptions Saturday.  

Ooooh, was that uncalled for?  

By the way, Texas and Dallas also won, but to be honest, the only team that looked like it had its act together was Navy.  I mean, they got off to a rough start, but pulled it together and looked good for the rest of the game.  

Well, this has been kind of a rough day, so I'm going to go get myself something to eat.  Cereal or popcorn.  Nothing heartburn inducing.  

Laters. 

Well, Hello There

First up, the good news.  I woke up this morning feeling quite a bit better, though I'm still not 100%.  My throat isn't sore, nor is my head swollen, but I still feel a bit tired and listless.  I hope I'm back to myself by morning, because I have to go back to work tomorrow.  

Ick.  

The first thing I did this morning when I got up is to go out and ...well, the first thing was to make myself a cup of coffee, but that goes without saying.  But as I was saying, the first thing I did was to get my little spreader thingy out and spread the fire ant stuff on my yard, front and back.  

When I went to go get my garden hose to water the stuff in, look what I found: 

All of the frog ponds I put out, and he chooses to sit in the cat's outside water bowl.  Sigh...Whatever floats his boat, I guess.  

I want my yard to be a sanctuary for all kinds of animals -- except fire ants.  Those little demons can go straight back to the hell from whence they came.  

In other news, I finished the latest charity hat.  

I did not, however, cast on with the yarn I dug out of the closet Friday.  I will, someday.  I just can't bear to break up those beautifully twisted mini -skeins.  Plus, I've still got two sock yarn hats OTN right now, and kind of think I ought to finish one of those before I cast on something new.

I know, I know, what kind of knitter am I?  

A backslidden one, I guess.  Do other denominations use that term, or is it a Baptist thing?  I don't really know...

Speaking of, what with all that's been going on lately, I think it might be time to bring back my Sunday Hymns.  They've never been very popular, but still, I want to share them.  This time, I'll be including newer contemporary Christian music, not just the old hymns.  

This song, in its original form came out a month after my daddy died.  I was driving down the road when I first heard it on the radio, bawling my eyes out.  It seemed appropriate I share it again. 

And finally, if you're a real person reading this, please leave me a comment, either here or on Facebook, X, or wherever you're reading it from, even if it's just "Hi" or "I'm here."  I've been getting a lot of hits lately, and I'm pretty sure most of them are coming from bots.  

I just want to see how many real people are out there. 

I Lied

A few days ago on her latest flosstube, my friend Marcy was showing off her new interchangeable needle set.  You can click her name to go to her YouTube channel, or her blog is Amnicon Studios in my right side bar over there ------>.

I was admiring them, and she sent me the link to their Amazon listing.  I added them to my shopping cart, but said I wasn't going to buy them right away, because I was trying to slow down on my spending.  

I lied. 

Ok, I didn't really lie, because I really didn't intend to buy them right away, but when they put one of the piano books I'd had in my wish list on sale, 

I kind of accidentally on purpose neglected to move the needle set to the "Save For Later" section.  Oops.  He he he. 

They arrived this morning, and it's a really nice set.  

It's got all the needles, a gauge and needle sizer, stitch markers, plus four cables of different sizes, along with cable caps, so you can switch the needle tips if you want to start a different project before you finish what you're working on.  

Not that that ever happens....at all....

And it comes in this nifty little compact case.  Fire remote included for scale. 

One of the things I really like about them is that the sizes are marked on the needles in large print -- a must for those of us with old eyes.  I haven't tried them out yet, but I might just cast on another hat here this afternoon.  You know, with that yarn set I dug out of the closet yesterday.  

Perfect for an afternoon of watching football.  

In other news, I got up and went to the Downtown Jubilee this morning, but I didn't stay long.  I'm not sure if it's allergies or a head cold, but I'm definitely not feeling 100%.  I came home and took some Claritin, and I'm already breathing easier, but my head still feels like it's about to explode.  The pollen count is so high today, I'm thisclose to going and finding one of my old COVID masks and putting it on.  

But I digress...as I said, I went to the Downtown Jubilee and though they had a lot of nice things on display, I only bought this one candle for Brennan. 

I also bought me a new hat.  

I wasn't going to, but the guy said that all the profits were going back into the disabled veteran community, well, how could I not support my fellow veterans? 

As I was leaving, I said to myself, "Self, since you're already dressed, in town, and almost out of milk, might as well get the shopping done."  And that's just what I did.  

Yeah, I went into the store with six items on my list, and ended up spending $150.  Funny how that works. So much for slowing down spending, huh?  

What exactly did I buy?  Well, I splurged on a few things, like I got some of that fancy broccoli cheddar soup from the deli section, and some fire ant treatment for the yard, and oh yeah, a new pumpkin decoration for my front porch. 

I used to decorate my front porch for Fall, but for some reason, I quit doing it.  I don't know why.  Just lost the mojo, I guess.  The other thing I bought was a new floral pick for my arrangements, because some of the old ones are starting to look a little bedraggled. 

That's about all I have for you today.  I'm going to spend the rest of the day sitting in front of the TV and knitting.   

Laters. 

Whelming Flood Week

I can say without a doubt that this has definitely been one of those whelming flood weeks.  I had plans for the day, but when I got up, I said to myself, "Is it ok if I just sit and do nothing?"  

Sometimes you need a day to just sit and do nothing.

Alas, I did not sit and do nothing, because I'd already made an appointment to take The Incarnation of Evil to the vet for her shots and checkup.  She behaved much better than I expected her to, though I did warn the vet to be cautious.  Anyway, the cat got a clean bill of health, and the vet said her vomiting was most likely due to hairballs, since she couldn't find anything else wrong. 

We got home before 9:00 AM, and I wanted to piddle in the yard a bit, but it was already getting hot.  Instead, I sat in the shade and sifted some more of my dirt. There is something about a garden that is soothing to the soul.  At least until it gets too hot.  

Yep, we're back up into the mid to upper 90s again this week.  I thought maybe I'd get up early in the morning and run the roto-tiller a bit, but then I remembered that our town's annual Downtown Jubilee is tomorrow.  I always try to go to that one, then make it back home in time for the ball games.  

Speaking of dirt, I put my bird bath into the space I made for it and that's when I found out it wasn't my land that wasn't level at all.  It was the bird bath itself.  No big deal.  I just put a little more dirt on one side and checked the bowl until it was finally level.  Ish...

I still haven't seen any birds using it, though.  Oh well, maybe they're using it when I'm not looking.  We're still in drought conditions after all.  And while I'm thinking about it, I've seen hornets using my little bee pond, so at least something is getting some use out of it.  

On a brighter note, when I was getting the cat's carrier out of the closet this morning, I found this yarn set I'd bought years ago at Fiber Fun In The 'Sip.  

I'd bought it to make a hat with, but never got around to it.  She dyed these colors specifically to blend together, and I fell in love with the hat she'd had on display.  I think once I free up some needles -- read: finish one of the sock yarn hats I've already started-- I'll cast this one on next. 

In the meantime, the latest hat for the SCI is coming right along.  

This yarn is much nicer to work with, and I'll probably use it again going forward.  Red Heart has improved so much over the years, most of the newer stuff is a joy.  If you haven't used it in a while, give it a try.  You might just be surprised. 

On a less bright note, Charlie hadn't been gone a day when the scams started...

There are a whole lot more, but you get the idea...These people are just as vile as the ones who are celebrating his death.  Whether it's greed or pure hatred, this is truly evil.  

For what it's worth, I have been pleasantly surprised by how well known Charlie was.  I know I loved watching his videos on YouTube, and the way he'd debate anyone about literally anything.  I just re-watched one in which he was debating a young person on who was the GOAT of basketball -- Michael Jordan or LeBron James.  Even about basketball, Charlie knew his stuff, and of course he was right.  Jordan is the undisputed GOAT of that sport. 

As I said, I was surprised at the support from pages I certainly didn't expect it from, but it was this one, created by a Lord Of The Rings fanpage I follow that finally broke me. 

And finally, this is what I'd meant to post on September 10, before I heard the horrible news.  

Tuesday morning, I caught back up with my coworker and finished the conversation I'd started before we got distracted by football.  I told him I had some scrap metal and asked him if he wanted it.

"Yeah, I want it!"  he replied, so Wednesday after work, he ran by the house and picked it all up.  Now, he's got some scrap metal to sell, and I've gotten rid of a lot of junk.  It's a win-win.  

Even better, I can finally knock one thing off of my to-do list.  

And here is what that to-do list looks like now:

As I said earlier, I didn't get anything accomplished today, and I won't for the rest of today anyway.  I think I'm going to work on one of these hats I've got OTN right now.  

Tomorrow will be a better day.  I'm sure of it. Even if it isn't...

Teach It To Your Children

Tell it to your children, and let your children tell it to their children, and their children to the next generation.  -- Joel 1 : 3

So that we may never forget.

Charlie

What impressed me the most about Charlie Kirk was the way he always had an answer, no matter what the question.  It didn't matter whether you agreed with him or not, his knowledge, wisdom, and respect for anyone who came to him to debate was something I could only dream of.  He  brought civility back to politics.  

May we all follow his example.   

 Regular blogging will resume....sometime.  I just don't have it in me today. 

Tell it to your children, and let your children tell it to their children, and their children to the next generation.  -- Joel 1 : 3

So that we may never forget.

Yarn Chicken

I had a serious game of yarn chicken going on with this hat, but I won in the end with nearly 12" of yarn left over.  

 I still have to weave in all the ends, but I like how it turned out.  Now comes the hard part:  deciding which yarn to cast on with next.  I think I'll do the old close my eyes and grab something and see what we come up with.

In other news, I tracked down my coworker and yes, he does still collect scrap metal.  However, we got distracted talking about Micah Parsons, and the Bills, and another coworker joined the conversation and we talked about Mississippi State upsetting Arizona State, and in all that, we never set up a time for him to come get it.  

I'll try to get up with him tomorrow and see when he wants to do that.  

In the meantime, I haven't heard back from either the tree guy or the plumber.  At this point, I really am beginning to think it's me.   I don't understand.  My money spends just as well as a man's, and I can't fathom what I might say that's turning them off.  Heck, I didn't even talk to the tree guy, just to his wife.  But in all fairness, she did say next week, not Monday specifically, so maybe he'll get up with me sometime this week. 

I don't know about the plumber.  I guess I'm just going to have to go to plumber school and take care of it myself, because I have had the most terrible luck finding one who will actually show up and do the job.  Oh, well.  Maybe I don't really need that one sink after all.  

And maybe the tree limbs won't fall out onto my head while I'm sitting at my fire pit.  

And maybe unicorns will show up farting rainbows and fairy dust and I'll win the lottery and sell this dump and move back to Texas.  

I give up.  I'm going to bed. 

For The Haters

This is for all you haters out there.  

For everyone saying Fall doesn't start until September 22nd.  For all of you saying to put the pumpkin spice down and the decorations back into the closet.  

Nature says you're wrong, Karen!  I've got spider lilies blooming.  It's Fall!  

Not only that, it was a brisk 58° when I got up this morning -- just right for a hot cup of coffee and a blanket on my lap as I sat in my chair savoring the morning, knowing I had another full day of football to look forward to.  

I thought briefly about putting a little fire in the fire pit and sitting outside for a while, but didn't.  The storm that came through yesterday morning blew the cover off and all the wood that was still inside was soaking wet.  I didn't figure it would light, and didn't want to struggle with it, so I'll give it a few more days to dry out.  

I also thought about getting my fake fireplace heater out, but it wasn't really cold enough for that and it didn't occur to me until just now that I could turn the fire lights on without turning the heat on.  Oh well...the air conditioner is running now and I don't think I could handle that dichotomy. 

That's almost as unsettling as seeing Micah Parsons in a Green Bay uniform.  But let's not talk about that.  Let's talk about something much more pleasant.  

Knitting!  

The latest hat is coming along nicely, but I think I'm going to have to make the orange stripe a bit wider than I'd originally intended. 

I'm not sure I'll have enough of the green -- yes, that is green, not gray despite what your monitor might tell you-- to finish if I don't.  Heh, I might have to make a tiny bit of orange at the very top.  We'll see how it goes. 

By the way, I lied to you yesterday when I showed you that photo and said it's all the worsted weight I have left.  I forgot I had all of this in a project bag.  

 I can get quite a few more hats done before I need to buy more.  

Good thing football season has started.  I'll have plenty of time to sit and knit.  Which is what I'm going to go do right now.  

Laters.  

Sucess

I'm very sure you will all be so pleased to know the yard has been successfully mowed.  I was totally exhausted and drenched in sweat by the time I was done, but this will probably be the last time the back yard gets mowed for the year.  I'll keep the front and side yards mowed, at least until the grass stops growing, but the back...well, it might get mowed once more, but likely the heavy work is done.  

Here we have the Incarnation of Evil inspecting my handiwork.  And disapproving.  Because she's a cat.  Being a cat. 

All righty, then...

The next step will be to find someone who can knock the high spots down and fill in the ruts left by the landscammer.  But as I've said many a time, I can't multi task, so I'll have to wait to see if the plumber and tree guy show up before I do anything else.  

It's a good thing I got it done yesterday, because look what I woke up to this morning. 

Yes, that is the promised cold front, and let me tell you, that wind was stout.  Not quite as stout as a spring storm, but enough that I brought the flag in, and had to pick up the plants on my back porch, which had been tumped over.  

We got a little bit of rain out if it, but not enough to relieve drought conditions.  I collected what I could for Marty Mac, but bought another bottle of distilled water anyway, since I'm pretty much out of rain water, at least until rainy season starts.  I bought a five gallon bucket a few weeks ago, so I'll be able to collect much more this year.  But that's neither here nor there...  

So, finished mowing, drenched with sweat, blah blah blah...I came inside and took a nice hot shower, then settled down and finished knitting the first hat for next year's SCI shipment. 

As soon as I finished, I started looking for some more yarn to cast on with, and I found this little ball of orange.  I thought it went with the green very well, so I'm going to make a striped hat.  

It'll be mostly the green, but with a wide stripe of orange in the middle.  Those colors aren't completely true, by the way, at least they aren't on my monitor.  

Would you believe this is all of the worsted weight yarn I have left? 

OK, that's not completely true.  I have some mystery yarn in the closet, but I don't want to use it for these hats, because they get washed and dried in regular washers on the ships.  I don't know exactly how it works, not on a civilian vessel, but the hats have to stand up to normal laundering.  I'd hate to knit a hat out of mystery yarn, then it get ruined in the wash.  

And those pink and yellow yarns probably won't get used for hats, either.  They do have women working on ships, but the SCI says not to use pastels, because the hats tend to get dirty, and pastels might stain.  Maybe I can make striped hats with them.  Mostly a dark color, but with thin stripe of pink or yellow...I'll figure something out. 

As I was digging all of this yarn out, I found a project bag...with a project in it that I couldn't remember what it was. 

I pulled it out, looked inside, and lo and behold it's the missing Garden Party shawl that I've been looking for for literally years!  

I can finally finish it!  I's been a long time since I've knit lace, and I kind of miss it, though not while watching football.  I need something much more mindless for that.  

And finally, a little humor for your Saturday afternoon.  

Now if you'll excuse me, I've got a hat to cast on.

Laters.