HazCam!

 We have a hazcam!  

I knew we were supposed to get one, and now we do!  It went live just in time for Saturday's severe weather.  I tried to embed it, but apparently that's not an option.  I even checked to see if there was a live feed on YouTube, but I couldn't find it.  I don't know if they're going to put one up or not, but for now, it's not on there.  If you want to view it, you can click the link below. 

Click Here:  HazCam

It's going to come in mighty handy during severe weather season.  

Thank you to North Mississippi Storm Chasers and Spotters for getting it installed, and to the radio station for sponsoring it.  Wouldn't it be a hoot if Ryan Hall tapped into it during the live stream this weekend? 

Except that I'll be at work Saturday, and wouldn't be able to see it anyway...

OK, I know this is short, but last night was another one of those tossing and turning and not sleeping nights, so I'm a bit tuckered.  I'm going to go practice my piano, then go to bed and hope for the best.

Goodnight. 

Does Anyone Still Knit?

Does anyone out there still knit?  

Seriously, do you?  Most of you in my FB friends list came from a knitting site, except for family and schoolmates, of course.  That's how we all met, but I hardly ever see any of you posting your knitting projects any more, except for one or two of you. So, really?  Do you still knit or am I in this by myself? 

On that note, here is hat progress.  

This is the yarn I bought at the thing up in Oxford.  It's from Holly Dyeworks and the colorway is Folk School Engagement.    

I wish I had more time and energy to knit -- and to do all the other things I need to get done, as well.  My friend told me my system is overtaxed, and that's why I don't have any energy.  The problem is, I don't know how to get my system untaxed.  I try to eat right and motivate myself to exercise, but nothing seems to work.  I just stay exhausted all the time.  I do know that quitting my job would definitely help, but I can't seem to find anyone who will pay my bills so I can do that. 

Oh, and by the way, it's been just over a week since I figured out my vitamins may be affecting my morning glucose readings, and I'm happy to report that since then, said readings are much more normal -- usually right around 100.  

In other news, the big weather event is supposed to happen Saturday, but we're also expecting storms tomorrow, with the possibility of hail, so this afternoon I took the precaution of bringing the plants back inside, along with my chair and table. 

 I've got to find a better place to put my chair -- outside, I mean.  It was nice to sit out in the sun when it was a bit cooler, but now it's getting too warm for that.  Of course, I can't wait until later in the evening, because of those later sunsets you all go ga ga over.  When you get up at 3:30 in the blessed Ay Em, you don't get to stay up late enough to enjoy them. 

Speaking of, it's about time for me to head for bed, and I still haven't practiced my piano, so I'd better get to that.  

Laters. 

The End

It looks like our days of getting off at 1:00 have come to an end.  Boo!  I was enjoying getting off early.  On the other hand, overtime.  

Another downside is, these last couple of days have been absolutely gorgeous and I'm stuck inside a hot, muggy, filthy plant instead of outside in it.  Yesterday, I had to run into town to pay a bill and the lady in line in front of me said, "It's such a beautiful day after what came though last night!"

"Oooo, yes!" I agreed.  "That was something.  I was already asleep and like to have come out the bed!"

We were talking about the thunderstorms that rolled through late Sunday night, and let me tell you, that thunder was loud!  It kind of reminded me of when that building on the square exploded last year.  They still haven't gotten that all cleaned up, by the way.

But yeah, I didn't last long, but it was pretty noisy while it was passing over. Someone even posted photos in one of the local weather watcher groups of graupel that fell at her house.   It always amazes me how skies that were so full of death and destruction can be so stunningly beautiful the next day. 

They were so beautiful, when I got home, I went and sat outside instead of writing you a blog post.  That's why you didn't get one.  All I was going to do was complain about daylight saving time and show you my new DVD. 

The Chosen season 4 special edition set, to go with the first three.  This is one series I'm definitely going to have in hard copy.  

And as for Daylight Saving Time, I'm not a fan.  Every year there is talk about making it permanent, but most people these days are too young to remember that we did that once before, back in the 70s.  Everyone thought it was the greatest thing -- those 9:00 PM sunsets.  More time for the rich and retired to sit on the beach and sip Margaritas and all.  

But then, Fall came.  The days shortened -- as they always do.  I guess they don't teach the seasons in schools any more...  Eventually, the sun was setting at 5:30 anyway, and even worse, in some parts of the Lower 48, wasn't rising until 10:00.  I mean, I guess that's OK if you're a Tik Tok influencer and sleep until noon anyway, but people having to put their kids out on the side of the road to wait for the school bus in the pitch darkness weren't so keen on it.  Once people realized what they'd done to themselves, they raised such a hue and cry that they changed it back.  

Don't get me wrong.  I'll all for doing away with changing the time twice a year, but leave it on standard time.  

Today was just as gorgeous, but I didn't sit in the chair.  Instead, I grabbed my bucket of daffodil bulbs and put a few more into the ground.  I've still got a bunch to go, but I'm making progress.  By the way, the purple deadnettle is in full bloom, and there are bees everywhere. 

That's why I never mow until the deadnettle dies back.  It's as important to the bees as clover is -- if not more.  And hopefully, I won't have any trespassing neighbors mow it all down this year. 

So, a few more beautiful days and we have more severe weather on the horizon for this coming weekend.  Welcome to springtime in the south...

And finally, we had a bit of a tragedy here in my little town.  One of the local businesses, Hankin's Lumber Company, burned to the ground early this morning.  It took them several hours to put the fire out, and I'm hearing it's a total loss.  They employed a lot of people in this community, including my across-the-street neighbor.  

Now, I need to go practice my piano a bit before going to bed.  I don't know what set the cat off last night, but she was restless and yowling all night long.  Needless to say, neither one of us slept well.

I'm hoping tonight will be a better night.  

Headache!

Yep, I finally got the annual headache of doing my taxes out of the way.  I had to do things a bit differently this year, though. 

You know that commercial where the H&R Block guy is walking around saying "Free, free, free" the entire ad?  Yeah, that ad is a lie.  I've used H&R Block for the last several years, and truthfully, I don't really mind paying a small fee, even though I file the 1040A and take the standard deduction.  

Single, no dependents, no investments or anything complicated.  It's the best option. Still, I've never been able to figure out how to file for free. This year, when I went to file, I found they had significantly jacked up their prices.  It was going to cost me over $100 to file federal and state!  And that was with the discount for filing early. 

Um, nope.  I went back to Turbo Tax and really did file for free.  The good news is, Turbo Tax seems to have simplified the process from what I remember it to be, and got the whole thing done in under half an hour-- and that included the time I spent trying to find my log in information. 

And then, there was my app I use to get my pay statements and tax info.  For some reason -- even though I had just logged in two days ago-- it decided I didn't have an account any more.  It took some doing to get all of that straightened out, then it wouldn't let me use face ID.  Well, it would, but I had to enter my password every time to authorize it.  What's even the point, then? 

Be that as it may, I finally got that headache out of the way, and now I need to fix my 401(k).  But what's wrong with it?  Well, nothing really.  I'd moved my money out of the stock market in early 2021, then in 2023 when we had all of those shutdowns at work, I'd lowered the amount I contribute quite a bit.  I had been contributing 30%, and just couldn't afford that not getting all of those overtime hours.  

A while back, when the hours at work picked back up, I increased my contribution amounts, and now I need to get my investments diversified once again.  I think I might just bite the bullet and pay someone from the company to handle my money for me, because I sure don't know what I'm doing. 

On the other hand, I'm hearing hints of a recession, so I may hold off on that until I see what's going on.    

Once I'd gotten my taxes done, I watched the livestream of my church's service, which I've gotten back to doing.  I've been watching the Cowboy Church of Orange County, but they don't livestream, and it just isn't the same.  I'm still going to watch the sermon videos, though, because I really enjoy Pastor Harland's messages. 

Then, since it's rained off and on all day, I settled in with some knitting and the 2004 version of The Alamo.  

It's more historically accurate than the 1960 version, but doesn't have John Wayne in it, so it's a tossup. 

And finally, I'm going to post a link to YouTube to a video I took a couple of days ago.  I'd embed it here, but for some reason, FB doesn't like my videos and will mark that post as spam and take it down.  So, if you want to watch it, click the link below.

Spring Concert

It Wasn't Even Thor's Day

Yesterday at work, I was just a working away when the very first order I got -- well, the second after I finished the order that was already on my stand -- had the tap fitting in the wrong place on the headers.  

I took them over to show Group Leader Shark, and she uttered a word I can't post here on the blog and maintain my PG rating, then told me to set that order aside and get another one because we were going to have to wait until the guys up in the front office got in and decided whether they could still be used or we would have to scrap them and have the whole order re-done.  The tap fittings were only about an inch out of place, but that could be enough that they wouldn't fit inside the cabinet. 

So, I did just that.  I set that order aside, got the next one and started working on it.  Shortly afterwards, I heard a commotion to my right and Group Leader Shark was over there talking the brazer who works on that stand.  Seems some headers she and another brazer had done an order and the headers wouldn't fit onto the coils.  

They went back to the line to check them, and some of them fit, but some of them didn't.  They had to bring them back up to brazing and pound them down into the jigs.  As I was walking by, on the way to get some more ice in my cup, I said to GLS, "I want to go back to bed and start this day over."  

"I don't want to start this day over!" she replied.

"Right!"  I agreed.  "Let's just skip to tomorrow." 

Only today wasn't much better.  

Before I'd even gotten started, I noticed something odd.  I walked around to the desk and told Group Leader Shark, "I've got a problem."  Then I explained what I'd seen -- the guy on second shift was putting my brazer number on his headers.  She said that they had told them to.  We all use our station number as our brazer number, and I had told Cuz a year ago that this would be a problem, because how are they supposed to know if it's my header or the person on second shift. 

GLS said that they can look the order up in the computer, and I said, "Are they really going to do that, though?  I doubt it, just like they don't read those papers Uncle Supervisor makes us fill out."  

Then I though of another problem.  "What if we're doing the same order?  Even if they look it up in the computer, it'll have both of our clock numbers on it, so how do we know which header is day shift 7 and which is second shift 7?"  

That is what had happened to bring up the whole question.  I had started the order before we left yesterday, and the guy on second shift finished it up.  So, if there is a problem with the header, they're not going to know if it's my fault or his. GLS said I'd have to ask Cuz, who is finally back from his broken leg.  He's still limping a bit, so he must have really done a number on himself.  

As soon as he got there, I explained to him what was going on, and after a bit of discussion, I suggested that second shift put a 2 on their headers before the station number.  So, the brazer on station 1 second shift would have the number 21, and the one on station 7 would put 27 on his.  Cuz liked that idea, and even wrote it down, so maybe that's one problem that would be solved. 

All righty, then, back to work I went and the next order I got had one of the adapter tubes bent wrong.  

All this mayhem, and it wasn't even Thor's Day.  

But once I got those tubes re-done, the rest of the day passed pretty smoothly except for the fact that I had the theme from JAG stuck in my head all day.  

At long last, the day finally ended and I came home to more daffodils opening up.  

On a whim, after filling the bird feeder and scattering some corn for the squirrels and other corn eating creatures, I grabbed my bucket of daffodil bulbs and planted a few more. 

I still have this many left to plant.  

They are wanting to grow, so I need to get them into the ground pretty soon, but I don't know where I'm going to put them.  I'll probably just stick them near the others until I get my fences replaced and my yard fixed up.  Then I'll move them to a permanent home.  

I also need to finish digging up all these day lilies, 

and a whole passel of spider lilies.  If I ever get ahold of a landscaper, I may have him do that while he's here.  That way, he can fill in the spots when he builds up my low spots in the yard.  Oh, and I'm going to get him to dig up that old rose that I've been trying to kill for years, too. 

Look at this!  My bluebonnets are germinating!

I hope they can keep them alive, and if I do, I think I'm going to settle them into pots and see if they do better there.  

Look what else is blooming -- my Whatever Cactus. 

It's funny, I'm here posting flowers and stuff, and my friend Marcy has snow photos up on her blog.  She told me she was a bit envious of me being able to sit outside in my chair when she's still covered in snow.   And I'm a bit envious of her greenhouse, so I guess we're even. 

And finally, a bit of humor to finish off this post.  It's funny because it's true.  

Remember

 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.

Mystery Solved, Maybe

They posted it today.  The weekend work schedule.

Yep, unless they cancel it at the last minute, we will be working Saturday, and when they posted, oh you should have heard the hooting and hollering and weeping and wailing from the people acting like they'd never worked there before. 

And I was like, "Y'all stop acting like you've never worked here before!"

Truth is, even in the best of times, we're usually working six days a week as soon as we get back in January, so this has been a nice little break.  As much as I've been enjoying my weekends, I'll be glad of some overtime.  I'd like to pay for this work I need done on my house without having to dip into my 401(k), at least as much as possible, and I sure don't want to re-finance.   Not if I can help it. 

In better news, I think I may have solved a mystery with my blood sugar.  I'd been frustrated here lately, because I'd been trying to eat so well, but when I'd check my fasting glucose in the mornings, it was always high.  Not dangerously high, but higher than I'd like for it to be. 

Well, Sunday morning when I checked it, I fully expected it to be high because of the two marshmallows I'd eaten Saturday.  Much to my surprise, it was only 96.   So, all day Sunday, I tried to be careful, and I woke up Monday expecting my glucose to be pretty low.   But it wasn't.  

I couldn't understand why...then it hit me.  It was my vitamins!  For some reason, I'd started taking them right after I got up -- about 15 minutes before I checked my blood sugar.   I ran in and checked the ingredients, and sure enough, of the ones I take (calcium, a multivitamin, and CoQ-10), the very first ingredient in all three was some form of sugar.  Not a lot, but just enough to skew the results. 

Since then, I've been making sure not to take my vitamins until after I'd checked my fasting glucose, and it's been below 100 these last two mornings.   Let's just hope that trend continues. 

And finally, even though I just started a book, I've set it aside to read the fourth book in the Whimbrel House series, which I'd forgotten I'd preordered.  

I've really enjoyed this series, and I might have to check out some more of this author's work, especially if this last book is as good as the first three were. 

I'll be sure and let you know.

Drama Galore

First, a bit of good news.  The worst of the severe weather missed us, but we did get a bit of wind and some rain.  OK, a lot of rain, and this thing is not happy about it. 

She keeps asking to go outside, then when I open the door, she yells at me, as if I had something to do with all that water falling from the sky.  She finally settled in her bed and is sulking, but at least she's quiet.  

In other news, I finished reading 48 Liberal Lies About American History.  It was OK, but could have been so much better.  Now, I'm reading In The Heart Of The Sea, by Nathaniel Philbrick.  I only just started, but I'm enjoying it so far. 

Yesterday, when I got home, I took the precaution of moving the fire pit and chairs into the shed.  I'm not sure it was necessary, but better safe than sorry.  I'm telling you, if I'd know beforehand how much I'd enjoy sitting out in those Adirondack chairs, I'd have bought some years ago.  I can see myself spending a lot of time in my yard, once I finally get it fixed up.  If I can get someone to come out and do some landscaping for me, that is.  

But that's not going to happen today.  Maybe tomorrow.

OK, OK, I know I've been teasing you about work drama for a while now, and it's about time I clue you in to at least some of what's going on.  

Last week, some guy on second shift cut his arm, so they took him up to first aid and got him bandaged up.  No big deal, right?  Wrong.  After work, he decided to go to the emergency room and get stitches --which made it a recordable incident, which ruined their perfect safety record, which made them mad. 

So, in typical toxic environment fashion, instead of dealing with the problem, they took it out on the rest of us.  You know what I mean -- yelling, and screaming, and threatening those of us who didn't get cut.  That type of thing.   Now, we asked Uncle Supervisor specifically whether we had to wear our PPE to go to the bathroom or to the breakroom at lunch, and he said no we did not. 

However, there is this one particular supervisor...the guy wants to be a boss so bad.  In fact, when I had first started working there, someone pointed him out to me -- he drove a forklift back then -- and said, "That guy wants to be a boss so bad."  

Well, now he is a boss, and by golly, he's going to make sure everyone knows he's the boss.  So, he's telling his people that he's going to write them up if he ever catches them without complete PPE, even walking to the bathroom or break area.  

BUT, a couple of the ladies over in tubing told me that they had talked to the HR director, and she said we did not have to wear gloves and arm guards to the bathroom, break areas, or walking up and down the main aisle at the beginning/end of shift.  I said she needs to get with all of these supervisors and get them all on the same page, because one guy can't just make up his own rules like that. 

I had planned on talking about some more stuff, but I've been yawning my head off all day, and I just don't have it in me. 

Maybe I'll sleep better tonight, and tell you the rest tomorrow.  

Hint:  It's about my Stalker. 

OK, that's it for me.  Laters. 

Hats And Independence

Sundays can be a difficult day for me, because I was raised that Sunday is the Lord's Day and we don't work on the Lord's Day.  So I try to rest, as he commanded us to do, but I can't relax when there is so much I need to be doing.  Like, I've got so many phone calls to make -- which is difficult enough for an introvert such as myself, and I don't feel right disturbing other people on the weekends, since I don't like being disturbed on the weekends myself. 

What calls do I need to make?  

I need to call a contractor.

I need to call a landscaper.

I need to call a surveyor.

I need to call a tree guy.

I need to call a chimney sweep.

I need to call an eye doctor.

I usually end up just calling the whole thing off.   Then it eats at me that I still need to get all of this stuff done, and sometimes I wish I had someone to take care of me, but then I remember that every single man I've ever had a relationship with has tried to change who I am and it just isn't worth it. 

Therein lies the rub.  Contractors, plumbers, etc...they all treat single women like we're too dumb to realize when we're getting ripped off, so they do it with impunity.  At least the ones around here do.  That's one of the things I need to get done.  The guy I hired a few years ago to paint my house was supposed to replace all the rotten wood he found, but he didn't.  He just smeared a layer of wood putty over those boards, then painted that.  

It bought me a little time, but now it's getting to the point where I can't put it off any more, so I need to call a contractor to fix that.  Only I don't trust anyone any more.   Then there is the fact that so many of them have made me feel like I'm bothering or inconveniencing them by trying to hire them.  And there is the one who got mad and quit when I told him I wasn't allowed to have a phone at work, so I wouldn't be able to answer when he called, but if he left a message I'd get back to him as soon as I could...

Plus the whole introvert/phone call conundrum.  And the fact that I just can't seem to get my act together.  I need a personal organizer, but I can't even get my act together enough to ask if there are any in the area who could help me out. 

So I procrastinate...and knit.  Look!  I finished a hat!

This is only the second charity hat I've finished this year.  I need to get on the ball, or I won't even have enough to be worth mailing off in the fall.  The reason for that is all of these Sockhead hats I've been working on.  

I've been switching back and forth between these two, and am slowly making progress on both.  

And finally, today is Texas Independence Day, so happy day my fellow Texans!

To honor the day, I went and found this candle my older brother's family gave me for Christmas back in 2019.  

 I'd only lit it once, because I wanted to save it.  Because Texas.  But, it doesn't do anybody any good sitting back in a cabinet, so it's happily burning in my living room even as I type this. 

Now, if you'll excuse me, I found a video on YouTube about the Easter Outbreak of 2020.  That's the one that knocked my power out for 4 days.  Imma head on over there and watch it. 

By the way, we're expecting severe weather on Tuesday.  

Welcome to springtime in the South.  

Spring!

As my Old Dad would say, "spring is busting out all over."  Which was actually from a song, I think.  Hang on, let me research...

Yep, it was originally June Is Busting Out All Over, from the musical Carousel.  

Be that as it may, spring is busting out all over, fitting that today is the first day of Meteorological Spring.  Yesterday, on the way home from work, I saw someone plowing up the corn fields on the back side of Riverdale Road, and all the newborn calves in the pastures.  The jonquils are all over the place, and look at this:  

I've got daffodils in my yard!  It's been so warm, I put all of my plants back outside for some fresh air.  I'll have to bring them back in this evening, because we'll be flirting with frost tonight, but I think I might leave Marty Mac out in his little cage. 

Venus Fly Traps can handle a frost or two, so he's out for good unless we are expecting a hard freeze -- which I don't expect this late in the year.  But you never know.  

That being said, it was a bit chilly when I got up this morning, but after sunrise, it warmed up and became one of those Robert Spaulding's Wife days.  I took full advantage of it and put a little fire into the fire pit, then sat outside and started a letter on my new stationery. 

Not to my Australian pen pal.  No, this one is for a friend who's been having a rough time of it lately.  I thought a letter might brighten her day.  I hope...

I had to move my chair to the other side of the pit, because the wind was blowing the smoke right into my face.  In fact, the wind picked up so much I let the fire die down because I was worried about it blowing sparks or something -- even before the EMA sent out the notice that open burning is discouraged.  

Not before I'd roasted a weenie and made myself a hot dog, but with a slice of bread instead of a hot dog bun.  Because I didn't have any hot dog buns, and didn't want to go buy any.  I kind of prefer them on regular bread anyway.  I definitely prefer hamburgers on regular bread.  

Then I roasted a marshmallow.  I had planned on buying some of those sugar free, high dollar marshmallows, but they were out of them.  They had the burnt caramel flavor, but I didn't want those, so I settled for the stuffed ones and a lot of jogging in place afterwards. 

By the way, those stuffed marshmallows don't work as well as they say because the chocolate doesn't melt.  I supposed if you like yours blackened it would, but I don't.  I like my marshmallows a nice, toasty brown.  

After the fire died down, I moved to the other chair so I could watch the birds at the feeder. 

It's times like this I really wish I still had a SLR with a zoom lens, because there are a bunch of birds in that photo, but they're really hard to see.  Today's tally was cardinal, Towhee, sparrow, Junco, collared dove, and brown headed cowbird. 

Alas, it wasn't long before the wind became so strong it wasn't comfortable to stay outside, so I came in and watched some TV -- in the midst of my normal Saturday chores, that is.  I know I'd said I was going to paint the fence, but I felt the wind was just too strong to be using a paint sprayer, and I wasn't up to doing it with a brush, so it didn't get done.  

By the way, I started watching that new House Of David series on Prime.  Eh, it's OK and I'm enjoying watching it, but it's a bit too melodramatic to my taste.  Especially the background music.  You'd think you were at a funeral the whole time.  

Also by the way, the downside of leaving your French doors open on a windy day is that you get a house full of leaves. 

Pretty much the only other thing I got accomplished today was to finally get my bluebonnet seeds started, which involved dragging that old sewing machine out and setting it up.  

I've got to find a better option than that... on the other hand, I don't really expect the snakes to live much longer given how ancient they are.  Let's put it this way, in human years, Elon Musk would be cutting off their social security checks. 

Once they go to that great herpetarium in the sky, I can set my little seed starter up in a corner of that room.  Anyway, I got one pack of bluebonnet seeds started and a few of the Bachelor's Button seeds I saved from last year. 

Speaking of, I bumped into Supervisor Greenjeans yesterday and asked him what he does with all the stuff he plants.  He said he sells some and cans some...I asked him if he sells in the Farmer's Market on the square, and he said, "There's a Farmer's Market?"  

He didn't even know there's a Farmer's Market here.  He does now.  

While we're on the subject of work, there's been lots of drama going on out at the plant.  Some of it I can't talk about, but some of it I can.  Not in this post, though.  It's already long enough. 

And finally, if you didn't see Thursday's post, you might want to go back and read it.  For some reason, neither FB nor Threads published a thumbnail, so it just looked like a link.  I hope this one acts right. 

I guess we'll see. 

Just A L'il

"I'm only painting a little bit," I said.

"I don't need to drag out the paint sprayer for this," I said.

"I'll just use a brush, since it's such a small amount," I said.

Why oh why did I listen to myself?  I'm feeling it today, I'm telling ya.  I'm definitely going to dig out the paint sprayer to do the rest, but first I'll have to buy a longer extension cord.  I've got a 50', but it won't be long enough to get that back corner, so I'll get a 100' cord when I go shopping Friday.  That ought to reach.  

They let us go home at 1:00 again today, and as I was clocking out, I told my coworker, "I could get used to this.  Working 5:00 to 1:00-- we get an full 8 hour shift, then we get off early enough to still feel like we have a day."  I actually feel like I have time to do stuff this way.  Except that I didn't. 

Not today.  

I sat out in my chair for a little bit, then came inside and put the other one together.  Chair, I mean. 

Now I'm all ready for a weenie roast.  I might even splurge on some of those really expensive sugar free marshmallows and roast one.  I've been hitting the sugar a bit too hard lately, so I need to cut back for a while -- or exercise a lot more, one.  Today was one of the brazers' birthday, and another coworker brought cupcakes.  She offered me one, and I said, "I really should say no, but I do want one."  They were small cupcakes...

Sharp eyed readers may notice I moved the firepit and chairs over a bit.  I got worried having it right under that big oak tree, because it's got a lot of dead limbs and I'd hate for one to drop on my new stuff and ruin it.  Eventually, I want to put my little patio -- along with the firepit and two chairs -- back in that corner in the right side of the photo, but I'm going to need to get someone to bring some fill dirt, because it's pretty low right there.  It gets super spongy every time it rains. 

Or maybe I'll just leave it where it sets, and build my patio there.  Either way, I'm probably going to pay someone to level the ground and put the stones in.  I'm getting too old to be manhandling all this stuff.  

By the way, I bumped into Supervisor Greenjeans today, and he told me he'd put in 318 tomato plants.  My first thought was, what does he do with all of those tomatoes?  But I didn't say anything...but, "Dude!  Bring me some 'maters!"  

I think I've mentioned before that I was thinking about trying some tomatoes myself this year, now that I don't have a dog to pee all over the plants. Or if we keep getting Saturdays off, maybe I can go to the Farmer's Market on the square -- but that's not as fun as growing them yourself.  

So, SG has planted tomatoes and potatoes so far, and my friend Marcy has already started some 400 seeds...and I'm just sitting here thinking I ought to do something...but haven't yet.  I haven't even planted those bluebonnet seeds I found in the freezer.  

Maybe I'll get to that this weekend, too...

And finally, I got up bright and early this morning and was walking down the hall to the kitchen when I saw something that in the dim light and without my glasses looked suspiciously like a dog poop.  How can that be, when I no longer have a dog?

I turned on the light, bent way over, and saw it was a dead vole.  The Incarnation of Evil brought another vole into the house.  You'd think as many as she's killed, they'd be nearly gone, but no.  There are still tunnels all over my back yard. 

The Incarnation of Evil and I are now having a long talk about her job performance.  

I Had Planned

I had planned on coming home this afternoon and doing exactly what I did yesterday-- sit in my Adirondack chair in front of my fire pit.  I didn't think I'd light a fire, though, just sit there enjoying the outside.  It was a gorgeous day for it, too.  Sunny and warm, but not too hot.  

I'd planned on contacting a contractor about the rotten wood I need replaced.  I'd thought maybe I'd put together that other chair.  I'd even thought I might write a letter on my new stationery, but when I got home, all of that changed. 

It was so nice and warm, on impulse, I grabbed my can of stain and a paintbrush and finished staining the front part of my fence.  

It looks so much better, if I do say so myself.  If the weather holds, this weekend I might find my paint sprayer and get the rest of it done.  If I can remember where I put the sprayer, that is.  

In other news, I'm still getting house plans showing up in my FB feed, and this one is pretty cool.  

 I love that huge wrap-around porch.  

I guess that's about all I have for today.  Maybe tomorrow something interesting will happen.  More interesting than painting my fence, I mean. 

Don't envy me my exciting life. 

I Don't Know

There I was at work, just a working away.  I finished my order and went to the computer to confirm my work.  I was standing there, patiently waiting my turn, when one of the people in front of me stepped to the side and said, "You go ahead, Becky.  I don't want to be holding you up."  

"Oh, you're all right,"  I replied.  "I'm here until.......................................................................................... .............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................I don't even know how to answer that.  We come in at 4:00 and stay until they say we can go, and we never know when that's going to be." 

Not only that, we don't really know from day to day what time we are supposed to go in in the mornings, either.  It's been 4:00, and tomorrow we're coming in at 5:00.  The day after, it might be 4:00 again.  We never know...

I just wish they'd pick a time and stick with it.  This constant flip flopping back and forth is exhausting. 

So, anyway, it was 1:00 when they let us off today and I finally was able to light a little fire in my fire pit. 

Then I sat down in my Adirondack chair and did pretty much nothing for about two hours.  

I read a bit in my book, did my French lessons, played some games on my Kindle -- which amazingly enough gets signal in the back yard -- and just relaxed in the sunshine.  I even heated up my leftover stroganoff and ate by the fire.  

Then I came inside and ripped my charity hat out and started completely over -- using the Chinese Waitress this time.  I didn't like the way the other one was looking. 

Now, I'm going to go get something to eat before bed.  Oh, and I need to remember to re-set my alarm .... again...

Laters.

Hats Galore

First of all, I'm sure you will all be pleased to know I got the hat transferred from the broken needle to one of my spares, and I'm back to knitting away at it. 

I'm going back and forth between that one and this one, and am making good progress on both. 

As if that weren't enough, while I was FFITS yesterday, after Amy had left I was eating my hamburger and chatting with someone I'd met there.  In the course of the conversation, I mentioned that I pretty much only knit hats any more. She said she doesn't wear hats enough to justify knitting them, so I told her I found a charity to donate mine to.  

She gestured to my hat -- the one pictured above -- and said, "You knit hats for charity out of high end yarn?"

"Oh, no!"  I replied.  "That one is for someone in my family.  It's going to be a Christmas gift.  I make charity hats out of Red Heart or Lion Brand, or something."  

I was remembering that conversation this afternoon, and realized I'd only knit one hat so far this year for the Seaman's Church Institute, so naturally, I cast one on real quick.  

I did go back to my knit-on cast on, instead of doing the Chinese Waitress.  It's so much easier, and for charity...well, I got lazy.  I'll do better next time.  

In other news, I don't recall if I told you that I'd finished the Song Of Albion trilogy or not, but I did.  Then I started reading the Ship Of Brides, and also this one:  48 Liberal Lies About American History.  

It's pretty interesting, but the title is a bit misleading.  A lot of them are liberal lies, but a good many are also far right conspiracy theories -- which he debunks as well.  I kind of wish he were a bit more detailed with some of them, but they're all well researched and annotated.  

That's about all I have for today.  I'd planned on building a little fire in my fire pit and sitting out in my Adirondack chair reading for a good bit of the day, but it has also rained for a good bit of the day, off and on.  Instead, I sat inside and read, then finished my letter to my one and only pen pal, then watched TV and knit a bit. 

Not a bad way to spend a Sunday.  

Fiber Fun

Last month, when I went to the fiber festival in Oxford, I forgot to bring Suzette.  She has not let me live that down, so I made doubly sure to bring her with me today. 

And where were we going this chilly February morning?  To Vicksburg, to Fiber Fun In The 'Sip!  

We had a bit of a rough start, though.  To begin with, when I was programming the route into my GPS, it wouldn't let me get onto the Natchez Trace at Ridgeland.  Well, at least I couldn't figure out how to get it to do that.  What I had to do was to end the route when I got to Ridgeland, then start a new route, choosing the Trace from Ridgeland to Clinton.  

That way, I could avoid Jackson.  I'll avoid Jackson any way I can.

So, finally I made it to Vicksburg -- and truth be told, I knew how to get there.  I still like using my GPS so I'll know how much longer the trip is going to be.  But anyway, I finally made it there and the first thing I noticed is that she did not have enough tables and chairs set up in the Sit 'n Stitch area.

I saw one empty table, but there were a couple of coats draped over some of the chairs, so I walked around the vendor area a bit.  When I got back to the table, there was still no one there, so I sat down anyway.  Without thinking, I set my project bag in the chair next to me, and the entire chair collapsed, dumping my bag and spilling all of the water from my cup -- which for some reason I'd put into my bag.  

Everything in my bag was soaked, along with the chair and a good bit of the floor.  I got some paper towels from the bathroom and cleaned it up as best I could, then pulled out my hat to begin knitting while waiting to see if any of the gang would show up. 

That's when I discovered that my brand spanking new needle had snapped in half. 

It was at this point, I wanted to throw in the towel and just go home, but I didn't.   The only thing I can figure is that when the bag fell, my cup landed on the needle and broke it.   Luckily, I had packed two projects, so I just pulled the other one out.  

After a few moments, I got up and took another turn about the room, and when I got back, someone else was sitting in the chair I'd recently vacated.  I sat down in the chair next to her and said, "Do you mind if I crash your party?"  She said no, we introduced ourselves-- her name is Elaine --, and were soon joined by her friend Jo and I had some people to talk to until Amy got there.  

We knew Christi wasn't coming, because for some strange reason, she'd rather spend the day at her grandkids' birthday party than with us.  What's up with that?  I mean, really!  

I wasn't sure if Leann was planning on coming, though.  When I saw her in Oxford, she'd said she wanted to, but I guess she wasn't able to make it.  I sure hope she didn't drive all the way down from Memphis only to arrive after we'd left!  

So, after visiting a moment, Amy and I got up and visited the vendor booths, and she bought a couple of things, but I didn't buy anything.  I think it's because I'd just bought a bunch of yarn in Oxford, plus  putting all that yarn into the boxes yesterday made me realize how much I already had.  I just couldn't bring myself to spend any more money.   In the end, I only came home with the shopping bag they hand out at the door, 

and two mini sheep one booth was giving away for free. 

They had a 3-D printer going, and it was pretty nifty to watch.  When we got back to the table, Elaine and Jo were gone, and two more people were sitting at the table, so we joined them.  All too soon, Amy said she had to leave and run some errands, and I left soon after she did.  

Just about the time we left, Other Amy and Christi's friends Jane and Kate -- whom I'd met in Oxford -- arrived, so we said hi and bye and just like that, it was over for another year.   To be honest, I haven't missed a single one since they started doing FFITS back in 2018, but this might be my last time going.  

Every year, there are fewer and fewer vendors, and the classes...well, it seems like there are fewer of them as well.  And I'm not sure going in February will work out for me.  I'd much rather have it in September.  I don't know...I mean, it's not like I have a lot of festivals to compare it with, since Vicksburg and Oxford are the only ones I've ever been to.  I know she works hard at getting it all organized, but it just feels like something is missing. 

In other news, Houston, we have a problem.  Yes, Brennan did just give me a huge pack of stationery for Christmas, but when this came back in stock, I couldn't pass it up. 

I even bought a matching wax stamp. 

So, what's the problem?  What am I going to do with all that stationery?  All the pen pals I used to have have quit writing, except one from Australia.  I need more pen pals!  

And finally, I moved my fire pit back out of the shed, and put my Adirondack chair and table out there by it.  

 Maybe tomorrow, I'll light me a fire, sit out there and write a letter to my Australian pen pal.