Post Op

 

Partial corneal transplant on Monday went well, and I have the expected bag of drops.  The surgery took about an hour and there was an hour wait afterward for a final check to be sure the new cornea was attached.  And then I went home.

Tuesday morning's appointment found the cornea attached but the pressure a little high.  So, another drop.

Wednesday I could be up and about, no longer needing to stay flat on my back except for 5 minutes up each hour.

Today, Thursday, the new drop has done its job and the pressure is back down, cornea is still attached.  Next visit is in a week

I can now use my laptop in a seated position, just no bending over or lifting over 5 pounds.

Vision is blurry, not back to where it was, but that's to be expected with the gas bubble that holds the cornea in place and with the dilating drop.  There has never been any pain except for a few minutes immediately after the surgery.

And so, we continue on.

Welcome

 Like the rest of you gardeners, I've planted and watered and  fertilized and sometimes weeded.  Admired the blooms and vegetables that have arrived and worried over those that haven't.

But what caught my attention this morning was a a delightful  fragrance from a bush near the hose that I'd completely ignored.  It  was planted long ago in a space wrong for it.  It grew to be  partially shaded by a larger plant and was too close to the house, where the afternoon sun heated the bricks.  It never saw a drop of the blue liquid fertilizer and didn't even get mulched.

And there it was blooming and happy and bug-free and smelling wonderful.  Ignored by me and certainly by the critters.

There may be a life lesson here, but today I don't know what it is.  

Welcome, pretty yellow roses.  It's your time to shine.

Milo Would Be So Proud

 

Milo was a little brown grand dog who lived in North Carolina and who loved cherry tomatoes.

His favorite tomatoes probably started out on a hybrid plant that then reseeded year after year.  And year after year he loved those tomatoes, which grew by his porch steps.

Milo is gone now, but Sarah brought me a seedling from this year's plants - actually she brought more than one.  And Milo would be so proud, they are flourishing despite deer and dry weather.

Those are ornamental grasses growing behind this tub of tomatoes - I didn't want you to think that I don't mow my yard.

Well, actually, I don't, but I have the nicest neighbor.

Found Bird

 

Some time in the spring I set out this little pottery bird in the garden, then went on with life and forgot where I'd put it.  I've been casually looking for it on and off, and this morning there it was.

Kind of hidden by the nasturtiums but basically beside the sidewalk.  Of course.

No blooms yet on the nasturtiums, but I planted them late.

The morning glory are vining well but so far, no blooms.  I should have paid attention to the seed packet - it says blooms come in late summer and fall.  So, something to look forward to.

The In Between

 

We knotted two comforters at church yesterday and today.  Usually we can knot two in a few hours, but July is busy for many people, and it took four of us a morning and part of this afternoon.

We all agree - we enjoy the zen-ness of the knotting, the repetitive motion, the easy conversation.  Sometimes wondering where the comforters will go, who made the comforter tops, how much backing fabric and how much batting we've set aside. 

This afternoon a younger member came in to practice the piano.  Someone who helped last night with with the neighborhood community meal gathered up towels in the kitchen.  Last night's summer meal was turkey and cheese sandwiches with lettuce and fresh tomatoes, chocolate chip bars with ice cream.  Except for the ice cream, visitors took meals home for another meal today.

In the back yard local children have planted flowers and vegetables and will gather tomorrow morning for an hour of play and popsicles, with conversation for the parents. 

Sunday mornings are good, but so is the in-between.

Sunday Afternoon

Even though my granddaughter goes to a local university, it's a treat to see her because she is busy.  As it should be.

Yesterday was one of those treat days, and here we are.

And here is her mom.

Fact:  neither of my daughters or my granddaughter looks like me.

For those of you who are wondering, the stacked appetizer is truffle chips and the other is carrots with lemon humus and pita.  If you're ever in Cincinnati, you'd like Krueger's Tavern in Over the Rhine.

All Star Memory

 

Some of you may have seen this before, maybe even every year, but I just can't pass up sharing the memory.

It was the All Star break, ten years ago, when the game was in Cincinnati.  The week started with ESPN semis parked behind the stadium, next to the river.

The grands and I went to the All Star Parade on game day and we had the best time.  It was a party.

The bridge in this picture was closed to vehicle traffic during the parade and the grands enjoyed walking on the grid.  Locals call this "the singing bridge" because of the musical noise made when cars drive over.

On our way back, the wind picked up and a mist of water from the river came up through the grids.  Once we were in Kentucky the rain and wind started in earnest, and we ducked into a check cashing store for shelter.

That night we went back across the river once again, with their mom, and we watched the game on the giant tv at the city square.  Aaron - he kept working his loose tooth during the game and eventually worked it out.  An older man in a nearby lawn chair enjoyed watching the progress of the tooth loosening.

And that was our day - thanks for revisiting it again with me.

Blockheads 8

 

Moda Blockheads 8 was exactly what I was hoping for, a small block with a simple design.

The only thing was, of course, since it was simple I wasn't paying attention and forgot to piece those little white triangles.  There was some ripping involved.  I could have just finished without them, but I really liked those little triangles.

I started out the project using a layer cake, 42 pieces of fabric measuring 10" x 10".  I quickly realized that wouldn't be enough for the whole project, so I've been dipping into my stash of Christmas fabric remnants.

It fun to revisit those older pieces.  A few I recognize but most I don't, it's been so long since I've seen them.  What surprises me is how many pieces I'd buy all over again.

Ceramic Whimsey

 

One more example of ceramic whimsey.  I'd always thought this was a bird house, but upon closer examination it looks like the addition on the side is a fish.

The back shows an additional bit of humor by the artist:

and now I'm all the more sure it was meant to go in an aquarium.  Maybe

I'm still calling it a bird house, and it's on my back porch.

Another Large Block

 

This morning I worked hard to finish this Moda Blockheads block before another comes out tomorrow.  It's a large 18" block once again.

It's amazing to see other quilters' blocks on the facebook site.  We all start with the same pattern but somehow end up with very different variations.  I'm realizing that my versions tend to end up looking pretty traditional even though they are different from the original posted pictures.

Once again I ended up cutting as I pieced to end up with the design I wanted. I was remembering that I learned long ago that men are better than women at spatial reasoning and of course I wanted to look that up to see if things have changed.

AI tells me that "on average, men tend to perform better than women on certain spatial reasoning tasks, particularly those revolving mental rotation and spatial navigation.  However, this is a generalization, and there is a significant overlap between individuals of both genders."

I remember in second grade taking some kind of standardized test measuring just this kind of thing and feeling hopelessly stupid and lost.  I can remember exactly where I was sitting in the classroom, remember the feeling of that realization that I was, in fact, dumb.  

Looking back now, I'm not sure that this was an appropriate test for second graders.  And I like to think that after many years of quilting and mentally and physically rotating lots of little pieces of fabric that my score has surely improved.

Toad House

 

Another piece of Darvin Luginbuhl garden pottery, and one of my favorites.  As far as I know, no toad has ever taken up residence in the toad house, and that's fine with me.  My uncle told me he used a rubber toad for the mold.

Leaving the toad house thoughts behind - a man from the eye surgery center called this morning to go over my medical history and medications prior to my upcoming corneal surgery, to take place in two weeks.  This isn't a new thing, it's a repair from the glaucoma surgeries last summer.

I'm dreading having the surgery, but hopeful that this will be the end of  the saga.  It will be a partial transplant, out-patient.  For corneal transplants a match isn't necessary, and in this country there are plenty of donated corneas.

So, thanks to someone who made this possible for me.

Luginbuhl Planter

 

This planter was a gift from my uncle Darvin Luginbuhl, made in his home pottery studio.  (With an apology to my cousin Gregg if he was the potter of this piece.  Their work was sometimes, but not always, similar.) 

Both were professors at Bluffton University.  Darvin's first studio there was on the third floor, and he carried many bags of clay up the stairs.  There is now a lovely light-filled building with a pottery studio and art  classrooms.

Both gifted me a few pieces, and one of my regrets is that I didn't buy a few more.

Yesterday I strung wire through the three loops and planted a sweet potato vine, with hopes that the vine will soon cascade down.

I'm beginning to appreciate a touch of whimsey in the garden.  Soon I'll show you a toad house, one of my favorite pieces.

Tomato Cage and a Question

 

I just liked the way this tomato cage looked from a different angle.

The tomatoes are recovering from the deer chomping, and so far the deer repellent is working.

Goodness, it's hot again.  I've been wondering why I get so little done, and I think it's because it's hot inside as well as outside.  I really, really need to make the call to replace the air conditioner.

Yesterday I was musing about overthinking, and I've gone way too far with this.  I don't know how old my air conditioner is, but it's more than twenty years old and probably more than thirty. It just can't keep up.

The thing is:  should I replace the air conditioner or put in a heat pump, using my gas furnace as cold weather back-up?  The furnace is four years old, high efficiency.  The heat pump costs about $1000 more than a replacement air conditioner.

If anyone has words of wisdom, I'd love to hear them.  I realize that with a heat pump I won't get that warm air feeling from the vents in cold weather, and that isn't an issue.

Pink and Green

 

Pink and green is my favorite color combination, so no surprise that this was on my cutting table early this morning.  Now, after two hours before the heat drove me downstairs, all the pieces are cut and on the design wall.

I took a picture of the design wall before I headed downstairs.  It's always surprising what an hour or more away, or a photo, points out errors in triangle rotation or color placement.  Both are even better.  Then fix and repeat.

I'm reminded of the different types of people:  those who push to get the project finished right away.  And those whose tendency is to overthink the project.  (That latter would be me.)

And why it's important to have both types on your team.  Those who might miss out on important information by acting too quickly, and those who need a nudge to move thinking into action.

I just looked at my photo and saw two blocks that need to be transposed.  That makes me smile.

White Coneflowers

I have lots of pink coneflowers, a  and this is their year.  The white ones, though, are new.  I didn't plant them, they just appeared.

A couple of years ago a neighbor asked me in the spring for a start of my red coneflowers.  Which I never had, but now I've been wishing for some.  She must have seen them in someone else's garden.

From my reading tonight, this quote from George Bernard Shaw: 

 "You see things and you say, 'Why?'  

But I dream things that never were  

And I say, 'Why not?'?

Isn't that really what art is?  Imagining things that never were and guiding them into being?

And isn't that what some goals are?  Dreaming of changes we'd like to make, and dividing the dreams into steps to make them come true?

Big Block This Time

 This week's Moda Blockheads block is a big one, 18".  You'll find it at the top left.

The previous blocks are just laid around it, most likely the configuration will change, and perhaps the big block will end up in the middle.

It was the nicest July 4 weekend, poolside lunch with family on the actual 4th, and just relaxing the rest of the time.  I still have a few groceries to put away from Friday, I've been that lazy.

Watering has taken up some of the time, we've had a stretch once again to temps in the 90's and no rain.  There's a possibility of thunderstorms at the end of the afternoon today.

I've staked my tomato plants and scattered Liquid Fence - one day too late.  Several of the tomato plants got chomped.  It will be ok, they are hearty plants, and I'll be more diligent going forward.

There is one tiny squash starting - you know how I love summer squash.

Happy July 4

 

Happy July 4, everyone.  May happiness find you today.

July 4 baseball trivia   only one team in Major League baseball has not been swept in a series so far this year, and that team is the Cincinnati Reds.

Days of the Garden

 

A card from a friend, and there is glitter and there are sparkles.

A few days ago we had the summer solstice, bringing us to the down side of daylight in our days.  And now that we're into July, the year is half over.

This is not about gloom and doom, just marveling at how quickly the days are passing.  The wonder of smmer has just begun.

This evening I was watering a friend's plants.  She has a lovely polinator garden in her front yard.  And a wonderful vegetable garden in big containers on her upstairs balcony.  The deer can only dream of her goodies, way out of their reach.

Last summer my garden soothed me during the hard days of eye surgery complications.  I would go out in the evenings and water in the days's coolness and go out in the morning and marvel.

This summer I'm counting down to another eye surgery at the end of this month, and I believe all will be well.  I'm watering in the evenings once again, except for Monday, when we had the most amazing rain.  And each morning I'm marveling once again at the growth that happened during the night.

My dream of morning glories on the back porch railings is beginning - the plants are vining.  Those squash I love will surely have blossoms any day now.  For all their late start, the tomatoes look amazing.  I planted basil in a container today.

I always am a little slow getting started in the spring, and I'm always so happy when the plants are growing.  While I'm hanging back a little, the perenniels appear and I remember what I love about growing things.