It’s A Start

Today is one of those days, I just don't know where to start, so I'm just going to jump right in there.  

As you all know, I've been getting this herb garden going so I'll have something to do when I'm retired.   Since I don't really cook, I'm thinking I might start selling stuff at the Farmer's Market.  This isn't news to anyone who has been reading my blog for any length of time.  

If I'm going to sell the stuff, I figured I'd need some fancy jars to put it into.  I've been looking at some on Amazon, and finally broke down and bought a set.  That is what arrived on my doorstep today.  They're really nice.  Heavyweight glass, square shape, with fancy wood -look lids.  

And they've got sprinkle lids inside.  They also come with pre-printed labels, and the little green thing is a collapsable funnel. 

The other thing I ordered was some desiccant packs.  

I won't put those into the bottles to sell, but I'll put on into each jar just to make sure there's no errant moisture that would cause the herbs to mold.  Eh, it's a start. 

In other news, I've been meaning to clean out my shed for ages now, but I haven't.  I walk in, look around, get overwhelmed, then walk right back out. Today, I decided I'd do just one thing, and that one thing was to move this blue shelf from the shed to the back near my potting bench. 

I got it cleaned off and moved, and now I need to get the stuff that was on it organized and put back on to it.  It was all gardening stuff anyway.  I've still got a long way to go before that shed is clean, but it's a start.  

Speaking of starts, look at this!  All four of my cells have a tomato seedling germinating.   

I put them straight out into the sun as soon as I got home from work, and will bring it back inside before I go to bed.  I think that putting them outside as soon as the break ground, they'll be hardened from the get go.  It worked with the zinnias, so I'm hoping it'll work with tomatoes.  

Also, I'm finally getting some bachelor's button blooms!  

And finally, I managed to get a picture of another toad.  

 I bought that little pond to put into my toad garden when I finally get it going.   It's not very deep, plus it has a ramp so even tiny frogs should have no problem getting out. 

I guess that's about all I have for today.  Oh, I should probably mention that I started my Alfred's All-In-One Piano level 3 book yesterday.  I've only just started learning the first song, so there's really not much to report. 

When I do have something to report, I'll be sure to let you know. 

A Day Of Rest

Remember how yesterday I was saying I need to get used to slowing down and taking it easy?  Yep, that didn't happen today, even though it is the day of rest.  I guess when you've spent so many years with Sunday being the only day to get things done around the house, you have a hard time just resting.  

All that to say, I was up bright and early this morning out in the garden harvesting some herbs to dry.  Lemon balm, French Tarragon, Greek Oregano, and peppermint are what I got done today, even though my Greek Oregano didn't really need it.   It had all these little springs growing from the bottom, and one big, long one so I cut the long one mostly to give it a better shape.  

Yes, I broke down and put some diatomaceous earth on a few of my plants, as well.  Mostly the marigolds.  I've got one that's about down to bare twigs.  I haven't seen any signs of ladybugs for a while, and I tried to keep the earth contained, so maybe it won't hurt too many of my beneficial insects.  

On a similar note, I managed to catch a photo of a toad while I was out mowing yesterday evening.  

They're everywhere, but that's the first time I've been able to take a picture of one.  This morning, I had to rescue one from the old deer trough -- you know, the one that was leaking then suddenly stopped leaking as soon as I bought a replacement.  I don't know how it got in there, but I turned the whole thing upside down so it wouldn't happen again.   I'm thinking, if they can get inside that, surely they can get into my raised beds and eat the slugs that are there.  

The last thing I did before I started resting was to empty this old compost bag out.  

Truth is, I wasn't really that pleased with how it worked.  The black plastic was supposed to raise the temperature inside so the stuff would break down faster, but there really wasn't any way for the compost to dry out.  You don't want it completely dry, but you also don't want a soggy, muddy mess, either.  That's what I had in the bottom.  It was so heavy, I couldn't even pick up the bag to move it.  I ended up reaching into it with my hands and pulling the stuff out manually. 

Even so, I did get some pretty nice compost out of it. 

I set it over next to my other compost pile, but I really want to get one of those three bin systems going.  

For you composting muggles out there, that's a system where you have three bins...hence the name.  You put fresh stuff in one, the second has partially broken down compost, and the third is ready to use.  That way, you always have compost for your garden. 

In piano news, I finished my Faber level 1 book this morning.  Truthfully, I just kind of skimmed the last unit, but it was pretty easy stuff to learn.  I'm not going to get his level 2 book, though.  There are some things he did that I just didn't like.  I'll give you an example, way back at the beginning of the book, when you had only learned five notes, he's telling you to transpose some songs into a different key.  If you only know five notes, and not even an entire scale or what a key is, you don't need to worry about transposing.  Even Mr. Let's Play Piano Methods called him out on that one.  So, I'm going to put that book into the Little Free Library next time I go into town and let someone else enjoy it.  

And finally, this popped up in one of the veteran's groups I'm in, and I sure would love to know the story behind this sign...

 Oh, one more thing.  I fried up some bacon in that cast iron skillet and it did just fine.  

And now I have some bacon.  I wonder how a grilled bacon and cheddar sandwich would taste...

Only one way to find out!  

Laters.

Doldlrums

I have a case of the doldrums here lately.   

There is absolutely nothing happening in my life at the moment.  I get up, go to work, come home and go to bed.  Rinse and repeat, ad infinitum.  The only thing that is different is what time we have to be there in the morning. 

I've even finished all of the available episodes of The Great British Sewing Bee, and am going through a bit of a withdrawal.  That was such a fun show.  By the way, if you're watching it, make sure you find the Christmas specials.   For some reason,  Roku Channel skips those and you have to go to each season manually to watch them.  At least it did on my Fire Stick. 

Now I'm watching The Repair Shop on Roku Channel, and re-watching Time Team on Prime.  And that's the most exciting thing I have to tell you...unless you want to hear that I've discovered I'm not crazy after all. 

The way that happened is as follows.  I've mentioned before that I needed to put in some of my ETO -- earned time off-- because I was about to max out my hours.  I did that Monday morning, and a few moments later, I was chatting with Demi-god.  I mentioned to him that I'd put in those hours because I was about to max out, and he said he didn't even know you could do that.  

Sometime later that day, I was talking to another sub-brazer and the subject came up.  She said she didn't know you could max your ETO hours, either.  At this point, I was beginning to wonder if I was having a Mandela effect or something, because I was sure the HR person had told us that in a meeting.  

The next morning, it was still worrying me, so I asked two more coworkers if they remembered HR saying that we could max those hours. Neither of them did, and at this point I was really beginning to wonder if I was losing my mind.  Then one of my coworkers asked, "Did you check the handbook?" 

Well, there's a duh moment if ever there was one.  She said, "So And So has her handbook on her stand," so I went to ask So And So if I could borrow it.  She handed it to me, I opened to the correct page and found the section on ETO.  Skimming down the page, I exclaimed, "HA!"  Reading the appropriate sentence out loud, "'Accruals are capped at 24 hours!' I'm not crazy!"  

Some of you may disagree, but I have the proof.   And apparently I'm the only one in the plant who lets her ETO accumulate that high.  

Other than that, there is absolutely nothing happening -- not even in the garden.  We're in that awkward pre-teen stage where everything is still growing, but nothing is producing yet.  I will say that threatening my basil seems to have worked, as they look a bit more perked up now. 

Even so, I took the three smallest and weakest looking plants, moved them to smaller pots, and placed them in my raised bed with my Bachelor's Buttons. 

They will get good morning sun here, but will be shaded from the harsh afternoon light by the fence.  We'll see. 

In piano news, I have been practicing.  I'm zipping through my Faber book pretty quickly, but it is level 1 stuff.  I don't think I'm going to go on with this course beyond this book.  In fact, I think once I'm done, I'm going to put it into the Little Free Library on the square so someone else can enjoy it. 

Speaking of, the Farmer's Market opens this Saturday!  I'm going to get up and go, but I don't expect there to be much produce this early in the season.  They said they've got some new vendors this year, too, and a petting zoo.  I might even go walk the trails at Lee Tartt, too.  

I'd thought about going up to Batesville to their Walmart and Lowe's, but I don't know if that's going to happen.  I say that every Saturday, but haven't made it yet.  

I'll let you know how it goes. 

Gloomy Saturday Sky

Back in the day when blogging was a much bigger thing, one of the blogs I followed -- I can't even remember which one -- started a thing called Saturday Sky.  She said, "We all live under the same sky," and thought it would be fun for everyone in her blog circle to photograph and post what the sky looked like where we lived.  

As the blogosphere shrank, things like that fell out of favor, and eventually I stopped doing it.  Until today.  This is what my sky looked like all day long. 

We are expecting storms, but no severe weather -- at least not down here.  My friends who live in Michigan and Wisconsin are getting hit pretty hard, but we haven't had much at all this year.  I'm seriously considering de-safefying my safe room.  

Even with the looming sky, I was able to get the last of my plants safely tucked into their beds before the rain started. 

I measured where I want to put my tomato plants, and set them there, though I didn't plant them yet.  They're still too small.  Just to be on the safe side, I covered each one with a Walmart sack.  They're saying we could get some heavy rain, and I didn't want my little seedlings to get pounded into mush.  

Once I'd set those into place, I managed to fit six basil plants in this bed, and put a marigold at the foot of where those tomatoes will eventually go once they're big enough.   I had a few basil plants left over, so I fit them into the raised bed where I'd put the others. 

Two of the smaller ones seem to have died, so I pulled them out and replaced them with these bigger ones.  I ought to have plenty of basil, but I don't know what I'm going to do with it.  I have plenty of pesto from last year still in the freezer.  I keep forgetting that I have it, which I shouldn't do because it's delicious.  

Back to the garden, I had planned on putting a pineapple sage in the other half of this bed, but now that will have to wait until next year, because I had three more cayenne peppers that needed a home.  Two of them went here. 

and the other one went here -- where my second lemon balm was meant to go.  That will also have to wait until next year. 

Oh well, it's all part of the learning process.  Maybe by next year, I'll be more organized.  Maybe next year, I'll start my own pepper seeds, too.  Anyway, everything is now planted and my little garden is done for this year. 

I'd debated on whether to give everything a good watering before I came inside, because we are supposed to get some rain this evening.  In the end, I did water because I figured with my luck, the rain would go all around me and we wouldn't get but a trace.   It's still early as I type this, but so far we haven't gotten anything but sprinkles. 

While I was out there, I noticed that sure enough, the little peppers that looked almost dead yesterday have perked right up after a night without the harsh southern sun.  

The seed packet said 6+ hours of full sun, but the way they droop in the afternoons makes me wonder.  I'm hoping that once they grow a bit more and develop a stronger root structure, they'll be better able to handle it.  

It looks like my French Tarragon is ready for its first harvest.  

I might cut some in the morning and hang it to dry.    

You know what's sad?  I'd cut and hung some herbs last year, but got so depressed after what that land scammer did, they're still hanging.  Maybe when I'm done here, I'll take them down and put them into some ziplock bags.  That way, my hangers will be ready for this year's herbs.  

OK, moving right along.  I finished piddling in the garden, then came inside and between bits of housework, I knit on my newest sailor hat while watching The Great Pottery Throwdown Christmas special on Roku Channel. 

And in piano news, I decided to go ahead and pick the Faber course back up, even though I'm still learning the last three pieces in the Alfred's course. 

I'd thought I would go back to the beginning and start over, but when I pulled the book back out, I realized I was more than halfway through.  So, I scrapped that idea pretty quickly.  I've also decided I'm not going to watch Mr. Let's Play Piano Methods videos for this book any more.  I've noticed that for the most part, all he does is change the fingering, because he doesn't like the fingering the books use.  The really funny...or sad...part is that his fingering is usually more complicated than what the book uses.  

The Faber book has QR codes you can scan and it'll take you to a video of Mr. Faber playing the piece, so you can at least know what it's supposed to sound like, so I'll just go with that.  

And finally, I'd intended to post an Eye Candy Friday yesterday, but I completely forgot so I'm posting it today.  Here you go:

Now, if you'll excuse me, I just found Lark Rise To Candleford on Roku Channel, and I need to watch it.  

Laters. 

Short Post Today

Because I'm really tired and want to go to bed early.  But I did want to tell you that I finished watching the playlist of instructional videos by Mr. Let's Play Piano Methods for my Alfred's All-In-One level 2 book.  I still have to learn to play the songs, but once I'm done with those, I'm done with the book.  Woo hoo!

I think I might go back and go through my Faber's level 1 book before starting Alfred's level 3, but after that, who knows?    

In other news, Demi-God met me this morning and said, "My daddy is mad as ****!"  I thought, but didn't say out loud, "Your daddy is always mad as ****."   Out loud, I just chuckled and asked, "What's he mad about this time?"

As it happens, he'd gone turkey hunting and had killed a big old tom turkey.  He had the fan all laid out drying so he could get it mounted, and his daughter-in-law's cats decided to turn his fan into a cat toy.  Not Demi-God's wife, but one of his other sons'."  

I couldn't help but laugh and say, "That's cats for you!"  

It reminded me of a time when my cousin was cutting up a deer, turned his back for one moment, and Rylea swiped a big chunk of the meat.  Boy, he was furious.  But she was just doing what dogs do.  I told him next time to let me know and I'll keep her shut up until he was done.  That was a long time ago...

In other news, I bought this little weather radio, flashlight, power bank, SOS signal, reading light gadget back in 2019.  

It's been really handy to have around, especially during the recent ice storm after my Harvey lantern's batteries ran down and I didn't have enough of the right size to replace them.  You could almost say it saved my sanity.  

Well, I was poking around on Amazon, and discovered they had a newer, updated model.  I wasn't going to get it at first, because I already had one and didn't really need another one.  But the thing kept haunting me, and eventually I gave in and bought it -- reasoning that I could give it to Cody for Christmas.  

It arrived today, and let's just say, Cody's going to have to get something else for Christmas, because I'm keeping this puppy.  As you can see, it's slightly larger than the old one, and the SOS button is in a much more accessible location. 

The radio sounds so much better, the flashlight has three different brightness levels, and it's got battery percentage indicator lights on the front. 

And look at this!  Built in charger cables for you phone or tablet.  

No more having to keep up with a separate cable!  That is handy if you want to take it camping or hiking or whatever.  Other than that, it's pretty much the same as the old one -- which I will keep.  We've been through too much together for me to cast it aside like a piece of trash.   I'll probably keep one in my bug out bag, and one in my tornado safe space.  

And finally, I'd planned on pinching my zinnias today, but after doing some research, I decided to wait.  Most sites and videos say to pinch them when they're between 8 and 10 inches tall, and mine aren't quite that big yet.  I'll give them another week or so, then maybe I can pinch them.  

But look at this.  It appears my garlic is about ready to harvest. 

In the next day or two, I'll pull one up and see.  If it's ready, I'll have a garlic harvest this week!  Of course, I'll have to cure it before it's ready to eat, but still....I've grown my own garlic!  

If I keep growing so much food, I'm going to have to start cooking eventually.  

But not today.  Today, I'm going to bed.  

Good night. 

No Resolutions

I don't make new year's resolutions.  I haven't in a long time.  I do, however, set goals for the year.  

Just not this year.  This year, it's more like a hope for the year.  And one of my hopes for this year is to somehow rekindle the  passion I once had for my piano.   Oh, I still practice every day, even if it's just for a few moments, but right now it feels like I'm just going through the motions.  

I want the passion back that I had when I first decided to take up piano again, when I couldn't wait to get home from work to practice.  I want the passion I had in 5th grade when my teacher had to call me out because I was mentally practicing my music on my school desk.  

I want the passion I see in Jon Schmidt's face when he plays, 

or when Professor Knight plays during my classical music course. 

 

Or the pure joy when I see these two guys playing.

Now, don't misunderstand.  I'm not talking about talent, or skill level.  I know I'll never have the ability to play to their levels.  I'm talking about the pure joy, the love of making music.  That's what I seem to have lost.  I didn't even enjoy playing my Christmas music this time around, and if you know me at all, you know I love my Christmas music.  

If I'm being completely honest, this last year has been rough on me.  I don't know what it is, but I haven't really had the passion for anything for quite some time.  It was one of those years that all I did was to make it through.  And that's OK, but I just want more. 

So, one thing I'm changing is where my piano is.

And before you get all pedantic on my, yes, I know it's technically an electronic keyboard, and a relatively cheap one at that.  I'd love to have a real piano, but where would I put it in this house where I'm already bursting at the seams?  

Anyway, I usually turn it facing the wall like that when I put up my Christmas tree, because it's the only way everything will fit in my tiny living room.  Last year, I left it like that all year to save space in my living room.  I don't know why, but having like that made me not want to practice.  Sometimes, all I would do is run quickly through a song right before I went to bed.  So today, I turned it back around, facing the middle of the room.  

I'm hoping that will inspire me to practice more -- maybe I can multi task while watching TV.  Not the best way to practice, but hey, it's better than not practicing at all. 

One thing I did not do was to make a resolution to not buy new yarn, so I definitely bought new yarn. 

This is more of the Red Heart Bitty Stripes in the Rainbow colorway.  I'm loving this yarn, I'm telling you.  You will also be pleased -- and impressed -- to know that I finally, at long last, seamed up one of my baby surprise jackets that I knit way back in...April?  May?  Whenever it was....

It still needs buttons, but that can wait.  

Yarn:  Red Heart Super Saver Bitty Stripes

Colorway:  Rainbow

Pattern:  Baby Surprise Jacket, by Elizabeth Zimmerman

Needles:  I don't actually remember, it's been so long.  

I have one more to seam up, which I'll try to get to later on today or tomorrow. 

While I was in the store buying yarn -- and a few other essentials -- I took advantage of the clearance sales and picked up few more things.  This cookie dough was marked down from $5 to $1.88, so I got two.  

I've already baked them up, vacuum sealed them, and put them into the deep freeze for next year.   I also thought I'd bake up some more fruit cakes and put them into the deep freeze, but I checked the expiration date on my candied fruit-- 2028.  

 

"Oh!"  I said. "I'll make them next November, when it's fruitcake weather!"  I put them into the back of the pantry, and now I'll have to put a reminder into my phone or I'll forget they're there.  

I hadn't planned on buying any more Christmas cards since I still have so many already, but when I saw these Norman Rockwell designs, I simply couldn't resist.

Nor could I resist when I saw this little Lincoln Logs ornament.  

I immediately thought of my younger brother Scott, and how our grandpa would buy him Lincoln Logs and our mother hated it.  She didn't want us to have things like that...Lincoln Logs, Legos, Play-Doh, Lite-Brite.  I'd have killed for a Lite-Brite, but Mother wouldn't allow it.  

"You'd just lose all the pegs," she'd say.  Or make a mess, or whatever. 

Scott was probably too young to remember the absolute fury on her face when he opened those Lincoln Logs, but there really wasn't anything she could do about it.   One year, my cousin gave him a Kentucky Long Rifle cap gun, which mysteriously disappeared.  Until I found it one day hidden in the back of their closet and gave it back to him.  

Good thing she never found out that was me, or she'd have beaten me black and blue and bloody.  

And finally, this unseasonable warm weather has the trees all confused.  Just look at this: my Dollar General tree is blooming already!

 Each one of these seed pods can grown up to 30 Dollar Generals!  Be on the lookout for new sprouts near you.  

Piano

I know it's not quite the end of the year, but I wanted to talk about one of my goals for the year, which was to finish my Alfred's level 2 course book.  As you can see, I got close, but didn't quite get there. 

I got pretty close, but the songs at this level are more difficult and take longer to learn.  But that's just part of it.  I think this funk I've been in all year has affected my playing -- as in, there were too many days that I just didn't feel like practicing, so I'd just go over the songs once and call it a day.  Maybe things will pick up next year, but for now, I'm setting that aside and just playing Christmas music for the time being. 

I think I need to play for fun for a while, so that's what I'm going to do, play Christmas music and hymns and such.  

I keep saying I'm going to record a Christmas concert for you.  It's been such a long time since I have posted any music, but there seems to be some strange disconnect between my hands and hitting the record button on my phone.  Heh, one of the online piano tutors I follow made a video of this very topic.  It's a short, and I couldn't figure out how to embed it, so you'll have to go here to watch it:  Jazer Lee.  

I had to laugh when I watched it, because it is so me.  While you're there, watch some of his other shorts. I mean, he absolutely nails it!  I feel seen.  

Not much else to talk about today, because all I did was watch cheezy Christmas movies, Chosen roundtables and aftershows (you have to watch those in the free app, but you can watch the show on Prime), and knit.  

I finished this hat. 

Yarn: Red Heart Supersaver

Colorway: Neon Stripe

Pattern: Basic Beanie

Needles:   US 8

And I cast on a new one.  

Yarn:  Hobby Lobby I Love This  Yarn

Colorway:  Sunset

Pattern: Basic Beanie

Needles:  US 8

And finally, I forgot to tell you.  When I was at Walmart yesterday, I dug through the pallet of garden soil and found a couple of bags that weren't too terribly busted open, so I bought them.  It's supposed to be pretty dry this week, so maybe I can get out and work in my garden spot some.  Since I don't plan on tilling the dirt up any more, it ought to settle in pretty good, and I won't have to worry about it getting all mucky.  I still need to shave off some spots and fill in others, but the major overhauling is done.  

I'm tempted to cash in my Ibotta savings and get three more of the  8' x 2' beds.  Or maybe just two for now, and put them into the opposite corner.  That ought to be enough for me to see where I want to put my 4' x 4' beds.  I feel like once I at least get the beds in place, the serious planning can begin -- even if I have to wait until spring to get started with the serious planting.  Heh, get it?  

OK, never mind...  

By the way, that dadgum cat of mine has decided those beds are her new litter pans.  Once I get my herbs planted and mulched, she ought to stay out of them, especially since I got that plastic stuff to put down.  Eh, I'll show you when I do it. 

Speaking of Ibotta, they're really screwing us up this Thanksgiving.  Ever since I've been using the app, they've been giving out free Thanksgiving dinners.  I'm sure they'll still have some free stuff, but to get the turkey, I have to get someone else to sign up and redeem an offer using my referral code:  lypnolp.  If I don't get someone to start using the app, I don't get the turkey.  

Bummer.  I just don't feel like I should have to depend on someone else doing something for me to be able to redeem an offer.  But for what it's worth, Ibotta is really the only rebate app that's worth the trouble.  Every other app I'm using, I've earned $100 or less -- mostly less -- in the last 6 years since I started.  In Ibotta, I've earned nearly $1500.  Yep, you read that right.  One thousand five hundred dollars. 

If you want to give it a go, please use my referral code.  If not, I won't fault you for it. 

And finally -- for real this time-- if you're reading this, please leave me a comment, either here or on whatever social media you find this link on.  Sometimes I really do feel like I'm just talking to myself.  It would be nice to know you're listening.  Or reading, rather. 

Whatever...

It Has Begun

What has begun?  Why, my annual Fall three day weekends, of course!  

I don't usually start until after Labor Day, but I had a couple of extra PTO/ETO days, so I'm starting early this year.  I mean, not extra days.  I still haven 25 PTO and 3 ETO days.  I just meant I had some I didn't yet use, and my company has a use them or lose them policy, so I had to put them in sometime.  

I chose this time.  Hey, it's as good a time as any.  

As usual, I have a long list of things I'm wanting to get done during these days off, but most of them involve me making phone calls, and we all know how much I love doing that, so we'll just have to see how that goes.  I will be sure to keep you in the loop on everything. 

All that aside, the nicest thing about these days off is not having to get up and rush to get somewhere.  Like work, for instance.  I can sit and savor my morning cup of coffee in the peace and quiet.  I don't even turn on the TV or radio.  I just sit and enjoy the quiet.  

This morning, it was even cool enough for me to open my French doors and let some fresh air into the house.  It didn't last long, though, as it warmed up pretty quickly once the sun came up, but before it got too hot, I was able to get this entire side of my fence painted. 

And I know I keep saying paint, but it's actually a waterproofing stain.  

It's just easier to say paint. 

I finally broke out that paint sprayer I'd bought just for this purpose, and after a bit of time getting to know each other, we came to a truce and really got to rolling.  It went sooo much faster than using a paintbrush -- though I did use a brush to smooth out some of the glumpier spots.  It's going to take two coats, but I think the second coat will go much faster and use much less of the stain as the first coat did.  I'm telling you, that wood was thirsty!  The paint was soaking in almost as fast as I could apply it.  

I got that first side done, then took a little break.  It was already hot in the sun, but in the shade it was still cool enough to go sit in one of my chairs by the fire pit -- though not cool enough for a fire -- and this thing came and kept me company.  

She likes laying by the chair while I'm sitting in it.  I don't know why.  In the house, she always wants to sit on my lap.  

Oh, and I finally found her brush, so maybe I can brush her more regularly and cut down on some of the hairballs, because yes, I came home yesterday and she'd gakked one up right in the middle of my bed...again.  Sigh, I'm glad I dug out the old spare comforter that was Jesse's bed and put it on top of my good bedding.  It's much easier to wash, and until we get this thing figured out, I suspect I'll be doing a lot more of that. 

It was an absolutely beautiful morning, just right for being outside, and if that tree in the neighbor's yard hadn't blown over a couple of months ago, I might have stayed out there for a lot longer.  Without that tree, my back yard gets much less shade.    

As it was, I came back into the air conditioning for a while, and after a quick bite of lunch, it was time to get back at it.  Painting the fence,  I mean, and I got this much done before I ran out of paint. 

But by that time, I was too sweaty and frizzy headed to want to get dressed and go into town to get more, so I'll get up and go in the morning.  I might even run by the farmer's market on the way.  Or I might not.  I might want to get to the store and get back home before the first football game comes on.

Because, yes, college football starts tomorrow!  There are only a few games, and none of my teams are playing, but I'll probably still watch.  Better enjoy that stuff before it's gone because NIL is ruining college football.  

I said what I said. 

By the way, they're still predicting False Fall next week, and I'm so looking forward to it.  I know it's only for a few days, but I'll take whatever I can get!

In other news, I've started watching Mr. Let's Play Piano Methods' videos again, because I was feeling kind of lost.  I'm still working my way through Alfred's All-In-One Level 2, and as you can expect, the songs are getting a bit more advanced.  Really, the things Mr. Methods does the most is to suggest different fingering, but he also points out tricky spots and explains a bit of theory -- though at this point there isn't much that hasn't already been covered.  

Still, I'm hoping that watching his videos will light the spark again, and I'll feel more motivated to practice. 

Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to get off of here and watch Leann's newest flosstube.  I usually watch YouTube on my computer, because I don't have to deal with ad breaks every five seconds. 

Laters. 

All Good

I'm sure you will all be pleased to know we made it through the weather yesterday just fine.  It got wild further south, but that weird little geographical thing around here that keeps us from getting snow also shelters us from the worst of the weather -- and by worst, I mean tornadoes.  The most severe bits of the storms always seem to split and go around us.  

And for the record, we do occasionally get snow, but mostly it's sleet and ice here. 

Anyway, preliminary estimates show that there have been 43 tornadoes so far, and that storm moved through Georgia and The Carolinas today, so expect that number to increase.   That one tornado that went through Southeast Texas was on the ground for right around 100 miles, and was given a preliminary F-3 rating.  It was kind of weird watching the storm chasers on Ryan Hall's feed and knowing exactly where he was -- down there by all them refineries in the Port Arthur area, like you're heading towards Sea Rim State Park.    I kept watching to see if he would drive over the Rainbow Bridge, but they cut off his feed once the 'nader had passed into Louisiana.  

BTW, I heard from my brother who lives in that area, and they're good there. 

So, while I was watching Ryan, Reed, Brandon, and the rest, I went ahead and cast on that yarn that the moths had gotten to, just to see how it would look when I knit it up.  I've got about 3" of the brim knit, and despite the fact that there are six joins in this segment, they aren't that obvious, so I'm going to keep on going. 

I know, right?  When I caked it up, I ended up with five small balls of yarn, so I knew there would be joins, but as I was knitting, I found several more spots where the moths had cut through one or two of the plies in the yarn, so I cut them out and made a join at those places.  Hopefully, there won't be too many more of those.  But if there are, I'll just join and keep going.   However, I don't think I can give this hat as a gift with all those cuts in the yarn.  I may just have to keep it for myself. 

In other news, I started back to doing my piano lessons this morning.  I'd been playing my Christmas music just for fun these last few weeks, but now I'm back to the grindstone.  All the teachers I watch on YouTube say it's good to take a break from time to time to avoid burnout, and after doing so, I feel much refreshed.  

One of the goals I'd set for 2024 was to finish my Alfred's Level 2 course, but I didn't quite make it.  I got about 2/3 of the way, and maybe I would have finished if I hadn't started the Faber Adult Piano course.  But I'm back on track now, plus doing my Hanons, scales, and sight reading exercises.  It'll be a bit tougher when I have to go back to work Thursday, but I'll do my best to make it a priority.  

The only other thing I did today was to get the green onion and bell pepper I'd bought for the gumbo cut up and put into the freezer, since Cody used what I'd cut up and frozen last year.  This time, I won't be storing them for an entire year.  I want to try to eat more egg omelets and use them in those.  Yes, I am allergic to eggs, but not deathly allergic.  Also, I've found that if I eat eggs as part of a full meal instead of by themselves, it really cuts down on the allergic reaction.  

I still need to cut up and freeze the celery, which I can put into my chicken salad.  I also kept a couple of jars of pickled banana peppers for that purpose, though I gave most of them to Cody and Brennan. 

That's about it for today.  I'd thought about trying to go walking this morning before the ball game started at noon, but didn't make it.  Instead, I watched the last of my cheesy Hallmark movies, a couple of episodes of Gilmore Girls, and an episode of JAG.  I need to get back to watching Heartland and The X Files, too.  

Right now, I'm watching a Lucy Worsley documentary on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, so I'll leave it at that. 

Laters.