Chocolate

 

The cutest little grandson from next door just knocked on my door.  He was selling chocolate bars for a school fund raiser.  I have a soft spot for cute little boys with glasses.

Tax information has been delivered, the quilt kit I cut out for my nursing home friend has been delivered.  Now I really have to get moving on making that worship banner for Lent.  

Yes, I know, I need it for Sunday.  I guess I'll just start and trust that  it will come to me as I go.  I do have some ideas, nothing definite.  I've looked at pictures but they just weren't what I wanted.

I'm enjoying the March weather, the windy days, the changes in temperature from one day to the next, the rain showers and snow flurries.  Right now, March is my favorite month.

King Cake

 A tiny baby, beads, and a chocolate coin.  And all that delicious king cake.  With cinnamon dough and lovely crunchy sugar.

That just says it all.

It was the nicest day, temperature in the 60's before heading downward again.  A few months ago as I sat in my chair hurting I imagined going for my favorite walk, heading down the hill and walking on a street a couple of blocks away.  And today I walked it.  No cane.  

I admired a bigger hill that could have been a different way back but this wasn't the day.  Soon though.  I'll end up this day with 6000 steps.  So grateful.

Sort of New Wall Hanging

 My daughter visited over the weekend and said that the Christmas star wall hanging had to go.  She browsed through the rolled-up wall hangings under my bed and came up with this one.  I really didn't remember making it, it must have been out of the rotation for a long time.

It's very scrappy, and I always like scrappy.

I'm in a mood to tidy up, not a big spring cleaning, just putting things in their places, or maybe getting rid of them entirely.  My mental health always gets a boost when there is less "stuff" here and there.  

Ever since Christmas there had been a good-sized gift box waiting to go to its recipients.  On Saturday I made a trip to the post office and sent it on its way and picked up a pack of "Garden Delights" forever stamps.  Package gone, wall hanging replaced, I think that's the last of Christmas.

Yesterday I went to church for the first time since some time in November.  Took a loaf of banana bread to a friend.  And had a recent personal record of 4000 steps on my fitbit.  

Tonight, especially after my round of exercises this morning, I'm really feeling the increased movement.  I'm remembering that recovery isn't always a straight upward diagonal - it had been a little while since that reminder.

Little Bird

 

A friend sent me a card with this little bird attached.  I cut it off and taped it in my planner.  One of my year's goals is to put art or words in my planner.  I'd skipped a couple of years doing that and I miss it.

Tomorrow is March - how can we not be excited.  It's been a breezy afternoon, to be followed by a cool down, which I hope means that March is coming in like a lion.

Progress - I no longer use a cane in the house, and today I navigated my front steps without it.  I brought in all the grocery bags and took out trash and recyling.  Small stuff but it's big stuff to me.

The report is that my grandson is coughing less and the cough isn't quite the whoop it was.  Running still wears him out, but it sounds like he's better than a week ago.

I've had to cut way back on reading news - I try to stay informed the best i can without reading several articles that go into detail  .  Perhaps that's their plan, so I won't take too long a break.

Light

 

Tonight it will be just a little darker in my house since the window candles have been stored away.  

On January 1  sunrise was at 7:57 am and sunset was 5:26 pm.  Today sunrise was 7:14 am and sunset will be 6:26 pm.  It  feels like time to put away the candles that brought a little extra light into the darker days.  

Just because it amuses me, I like to look back and find that it's 66 days past the winter solstice.  Sixty-six days prior to the solstice it was October 16.  If my math is right.

Looking forward, Daylight Savings Time starts on March 9.

Enough of that.  You may be looking at the Christmas quilt in the background and thinking that it should be swapped out.  You would be right.

The Work Remains

 The work will remain the work.  To love your neighbor.  To be generous with a stranger.  To protect  the water, the air, the soil.  To heal old wounds.  To not make new ones.  The work remains the work.  In fact it has all become, suddenly, even more important.

Clergy Coaching Network

 Finally, yesterday, I made the pizza I'd been planning, and putting off making, for days.  Mushrooms, black olives, tomatoes.  I had plans for green olives too, but I couldn't open the jar.

After a long, cold and snowy week, I'm looking forward to getting out this afternoon for a grocery order pick-up.  It's been hard lately trying to figure out what sounded good, and healthy, to cook.  This order has things for a stir fry, a fruit salad, and an Impossible meat  noodle casserole.  And a few things for my college granddaughter.

Burpee seeds has a buy one get one seed special today, so I'll be putting in an order.  I want something pretty, something that can be planted early, and that basil that promises to go into late summer.  Certainly that yellow squash that grows on a bush, that was awesome last year.  And maybe a small watermelon, new this year, also on a bush instead of a vine.

I've been dreaming lately of spring walks up the hills in my neighborhood.  At this point, a dream is what it is, but I plan to be ready.  Just in the past week I've been able to cut way back on the pain meds, and that's an indicator that I'm healing well.

Snow on Trees

 

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This isn't yesterday's snow, but a lovely snow last week.  Lots of snow clinging to the trees, then melting later in the day.  It's going to take a long time for yesterday's snow to melt, we're in for a cold week.

Friday I drove to PT, on what turned out to be my last day.  I've graduated and have the sticker to prove it.

On the way home I went to the quilt shop and got a pattern and fabric that may work out well for a worship banner, plus a couple of those little white mystery scrap bags that I love.  I always end up enjoying the small fabric pieces and finding a good use for them.  Someone else's scraps are always better.

I dropped off a Valentine package for my friend in the nursing home.  They are still on lockdown because of flu and Covid, and the days confined to the rooms are long.

Saturday I went to TJ Maxx with my daughter to get some moisturizer.  First time in a store since November.

And yesterday I'd planned to make my return to church, but it was snowing once again so it wasn't the day.

Piecing Again

 

Encouraged by yesterday's two loads of laundry and several trips upstairs, I went up into my sewing room and worked on piecing the rest of this table runner.  Time went by as it should, and tomorrow I'll go back and quilt it.

It had been a long time since I'd turned on that machine, but it nicely told me what to do, as it does.  

My nursing home friend emailed me this morning that she and the other residents are on lockdown.  No one is telling them just why, but I'm guessing it's the flu.  My heart hurts for those older people, confined to their rooms, meals brought to them.

She was looking forward to a Valentine party this week - there are three days - maybe the lockdown will be lifted in time.

It's snowing this morning, but not very seriously, folks south of here are getting more.  Ours will be gone by tomorrow.

Miscellaneous Sunday Food

 My lovely neighbor just dropped by and brought this plate of Super Bowl food.  She's having company.  It's veggie pizza and snack mix and bread with dip and two cookies.

It was a cooking day for me - strictly miscellaneous unrelated things that I've put off making.  Banana bread - I'm always hopeful that I'll eat bananas but there are always some left over.  Honey mustard salad dressing for the romaine lettuce that's been in my refrigerator.

Cornbread dressing from the cornbread I made earlier in the week.  And Chex mix, lots of Chex mix, because it is Super Bowl Sunday after all.

For the first time in weeks I visited my friend in a nursing home.  I took her two new bananas from my grocery order yesterday.  I'd been wanting to bring her bananas since she mentioned - we email every morning - that they hadn't had bananas in weeks.

She said they had black beans at lunch today and would be having chicken chili for dinner, more beans.  I feel pretty spoiled to be able to choose the food I want.

I'd meant to make pizza tonight but I'm finished with cooking for today.  My fitbit has 2500 steps, not much for you but a recent record for me.

Best Kind of Morning

 This has just been the best morning.

I went to PT and was able to do the sit to stand exercises on a bench that raised and lowered.  Starting next week I'll be going just once a week for two weeks, and if things are still good, I'll be discharged at the end of the second week

My car is coming home this afternoon with a new battery, under warranty, and a replacement fuse.  I so appreciate my dealer.

The news tells us that starting Sunday the bridge between Ohio and Kentucky that has been out of service for three months will reopen a month ahead of schedule.  It has caused headaches for so many commuters and others.  Seriously, who decides to just catch a playground on fire and in the process warping the bridge steel beams above it?  By the way, not homeless people, not immigrants, not people of color. 

They've been indicted by a grand jury on three counts of aggravated arson and one count of arson.  Maximum sentence would be 38 1/2 years.

Asheville Print

 My Asheville family gifted me this print for Christmas.    Creating community.  Together we heal.  Together we rise.  (That's a salt lamp in the lower left corner.)

The clean up goes on, especially in the smaller communities.  My family said that Fema was picking up brush and debris in their neighborhood outside Hendersonville earlier this week.

In my news, my car is ready to be picked up.  I am excited about being more independent.  My first stop will be to the library.  I've appreciated my Kindle more than I can say, but I just want to pick out a real book.

The grandkids are both sick, but recovering.  The doctor said no school or football for Aaron until Monday.  Football practice is early, before school starts, and usually he would have one or two early basketball games on the weekend.  So now, some sleep.

This week I've been taking small walks outside and that's been very appreciated.  

Tow Truck

 

My car was loaded on the tow truck and it's on the way to the dealership.  My appointment is tomorrow so hopefully I'll hear something then.  The tow truck driver's guess is something electrical.  Kudos to Subaru Roadside Assistance for making it easy to schedule the appointment and keeping me informed.

It's been one gorgeous February day.  I sat on the back porch and listened to the birds and looked around and it was so nice.  On my list of goals:  to watch the 6:00 pm sunset.  I want to take advantage of this pretty day.

I've taken most of my sewing things upstairs and that means I'll be creating again soon.  

Not tomorrow morning though - PT again.   

  

Tree Is Gone

 

Christmas is over, the tree is packed away.  My house will be quite dark tonight.  Those three empty ornament boxes - I found all three ornaments when I took off the lights.

And along with the tree, the walker and that toilet chair that makes the seat higher went to the basement too.  That makes me very happy.

PT yesterday was going so well - until there was a new challenge in getting up from the chair without using my arms.  I so could not do that, not even close.  I hope that isn't a graduation requirement.

For those of you who like to keep track of these things, we gained 45 minutes of daylight during January.  Where I am, mostly in the evening.

Thinking of where I am - I despair about the state legislature, the US senators, and my US representative.  But I love my governor.  

Puzzle

 

The puzzle was harder than it looks.  I only do 300 piece jigsaw puzzles since I have no patience beyond that.  Of course there is one piece missing - I know it's on my colorful rug, somewhere - my daughter will spot it in a few seconds.

On Sunday I realized that my car's battery was dead.  It's been cold and I haven't been driving it.  On Monday the AAA guy came and jumped it.  He told me that the battery probably needed to be replaced.  I told him that the car only had 10,000 miles and the battery should be ok.  I ran the car for 45 minutes, part of the time driving and the rest looking at the manual and familiarizing myself with things.

Yesterday I got in the car to make the trip to PT - I was preety happy about driving myself - and the battery was dead.  Today my neighbor tried to jump it without success.  And so, tomorrow I'll call AAA once again.  The dealer told me that the battery is under warranty but that I need to bring the car to the dealership so they can check it out.

But, on to other things.  Sunday night's football game was disappointing.  I really wanted the Bills to win - or more like it, I really wanted the Chiefs to NOT win.

I'm doing pretty well with walking - I use the cane about half the time and half the time I'm ok without it.  I haven't been using the walker at all.  Pain is lessening and I'm sleeping better.  

I can navigate the outside steps easily and can go up the stairs.  So far, no sewing - It's hard to get my creativity back and I'm trying to be patient.  It will come.

Good News Today

 

The winter puffy throw.  This one stays on my bed for now.

Another day, another PT session.  And such good news.  I can walk around the house, cane free, and take the cane when I go out to the store or other places.

And just like that, my world will be opening up.  Tomorrow, maybe, I'll call AAA and get my battery charged and air put in the tires.  Next PT, next week, I plan to drive myself.

Tomorrow or the next day, I'll make the trek upstairs to my studio and spend a little time, just being there.

Tonight I'm celebrating with a Door Dash order from my favorite neighborhood restaurant.  A salad with salmon and cheese bread sticks.  I wish you could celebrate with me.

The Next Day

 This gifted puffy fall throw has been just the thing for these cold days.  I was gifted another for the holidays - it's on my bed - maybe you'll see it tomorrow.  I hope it won't be -1 degrees when I wake up tomorrow  

I couldn't not read the comments on news articles about the Bishop's plea to the president.  Lots of support.  Some saying she should apologize.  A few comments about how women shouldn't be in the pulpit.  A few that women should be subservient to men. Some mentioned that what she said wasn't biblical, that she should read her Bible before preaching.  

It was interesting reading.  And I did way too much thinking and puzzling and I'm glad that my garden flag reminds me to love my neighbor, no exceptions  My heart felt so hopeful yesterday, so discouraged today.  

And then there was Bernie, no mittens for him this inauguration, telling us that 'the wealthiest three people in America now have more wealth than the bottom half of our society."  And that all three sat behind the president at the inauguration.  

Today

 It's been a strange day.  I've been having trouble sleeping and overslept this morning.  PT was at 11:00 and it seems to take me  longer than it should to get ready.

The good PT news is that I'm cleared to use a cane instead of the walker.  That's a pretty big step.  It will mean that I can navigate the steps out to the car by myself and drive away.   When the snow around the car melts.  And when I get the battery charged.  Neither of which will be happening in the next few cold days. 

The oft-balance day took a turn up when I heard the small female Episcopal bishop's plea to the president.  It touched my heart.  I wish I was that articulate and compassionate and brave.

Words for Tomorrow

 

From Clergy Coaching Network

Words for tomorrow.

I think I've been in denial that tomorrow is coming.

Still Here

 

The snow is still here.  Maybe not as much, but it's still around.  When I got up this morning the temperature was three degrees, tonight's low is 16.  In a few days the highs will be 39, maybe rain on Saturday, so that should help.  And then Sunday's low will be 7, followed by 2, 5, and 4 as the week goes on.

Yesterday's PT included thirty step-ups on the bottom step - and  today is a sore day.  I've done a few simple stretching exercises but mostly took a lot of reading breaks.  Ate leftovers.  It's ok, tomorrow will be better.

As I did those steps I got a little glimpse of the top of the stairs - and I know that soon I'll be up there.  I hope my sewing machine still knows my name.  (Really, it does.) 

There is a church committee meeting tonight starting at 8:00, kind of late for me.  The chair is really good at holding meetings to an hour, which I appeciate.  I hope I don't act like a sleepy old person.

Do Over

 For the past few days I've been without internet.  My router needed to be restarted, which happens from time to time.  The router is in my basement, and the basement isn't accessible to me right now.  Yesterday it was unplugged and then plugged back in and all is right with my internet world once again.

The Chex Mix picture above is from my redo.  At Christmas I thought I could surely make Chex Mix and stir in from a chair.  That wasn't a good idea.  There was Chex Mix spilling in the oven and Chex Mix on the floor and someone else had to take over.

Now, though, I can make Chex Mix, and there is no chair.  And it was delightful.

Yesterday was my eye doctor visit, which went much better than I'd hoped.  Return in three months and in the meantime see a corneal specialist to see whether to monitor or consider a corneal transplant.  The operated eye was stable and pressure was good.

And so - I was able to navigate the steps down and up fairly easily.  And for the first time in a month I left the house and rode in a car, just like real people do.  

Thanks to my son-in-law for taking me to the appointment and for  restarting the router.

Icicles

 

Icicles hanging from my roof.  One of those repairs I need to deal with.  I wish I knew a good handy person.  I have a list.

More snow is falling, but it should be much less than last weekend.  The salt trucks are running through the neighborhood.

There was PT again today.  I tried going up and down the bottom step ten times.  Or maybe 20, I can't remember.  I was sore afterward but it went ok.  And then later I tried walking across the room.  It wasn't pretty but I could do it.

I asked the therapist whether the soreness comes from the muscles or the broken bone.  His guess is the bone.

I'm realizing the value of preventive exercise.  All that walking last summer is helping me now.  I've been reading about pre-surgery PT, strengthening muscles prior to replacement hip or knee surgery.  Not that I need a replacement - I just read stuff.

No Tracks

 

I admired the snow in the back yard this morning and noticed that it looked pristine.  No rabbit tracks, no squirrel tracks, no deer tracks, no cat tracks, no people tracks, nothing.  It was 18 degrees and I hope that everything and everyone was holed up somewhere.

(That big building across the way, it's a hospital.)

it was a good PT session this afternoon.  I walked about five steps without my walker and climbed a couple of stairs.  Did the required exercises.  And then ate a protein bar instead of lunch and took a nap, worn out.

There was Zoom at Noon today.  During the early pandemic days four of us church friends started meeting for a hour Wednesdays at noon.  Four years later, we still Zoom on Wednesdays at noon. 

No mail delivery today, which isn't unusual for me.  And no mail delivery tomorrow in honor of Jimmy Carter.  I appreciate that.

Quiet Neighorhood

It's amazing how quiet the neighborhood is after the snowstorm.  Much of the usual traffic has stayed home.  My daughter went back to work, pleased that her shoveling allowed her to drive away.  She's back at home tonight.  A noisy snowblower came and cleared my neighbor's driveway.  A bobcat with a snow blade cleared the edges of the street.  The mailman came.  And that was the outdoor excitement for the day.

I did sew a bit more, and it went a little better than yesterday.  I did all the marking for the half square triangles before I sat down.  And I put a silicone potholder under the foot pedal so it wouldn't scoot away.  

There was Impossible meatloaf, Lima beans, and fruit for dinner.  The 12 ounce packages of Impossible meat makes a small meat loaf that tastes about like the real thing.  Cooking and washing the dishes takes much longer than my usual, but I'm satisfied to be able to do it.

My daughter and I watched a couple of episodes of Virgin River on Sunday night - she'd never seen it.  That inspired me to re-read the book, which is free on Kindle Unlimited.  It's as good the second time as it was the first time.

No Snow Picture

 

I'm sure everyone is so tired of seeing pictures of snow in back yards, so you won't see one here today.

Instead we'll admire this new little cast iron skillet, just the right size for a grilled sandwich or an over-easy egg.  It came preseasoned, so I just seasoned it a couple of times before using it, and that worked out fine.

The Chiefs lost yesterday so the Bengals are out of the play offs.  Now I can just sit back and enjoy the games without fretting.  Word on the street is that the Chiefs didn't want to play the Bengals in the playoffs so they didn't play their starters, but I think they were just resting their starters for the games to come.

My local daughter is channeling her sister by using the blower to clear the steps and sidewalks.  I love my girls.

And So We Wait

 

And so we wait in Cincinnati.

It wasn't a pretty Bengals win last night in Pittsburgh, it never is, but a win is a win, and the Bengals' slim playoff hopes are still alive.  For the Bengals to be in the playoffs, the Jets need to beat the Dolphins and the Chiefs need a win over the Broncos.  (Joanne, will you be watching?  4:25)

It was a dismal start but the Bengals had a winning season, their fourth in a row, by winning their last five games.

And we wait for the snow.  Predictions are all over the place.  There will be precipitation, it 's just a matter of whether it will be ice or snow or both.  And if it's snow, whether there will be a lot.

My grandson's Christmas break is scheduled to end tomorrow and I'm sure he is hoping for snow.  My church cancelled services for this morning.

Last night I was able to put a baking sheet of breaded shrimp into the oven and take it out.  It sounds like nothing, but it's something I couldn't do a week ago.

Blessed Among Women

 A Christmas card from a church friend had a piece of green paper enclosed.  It was a reflection of Elizabeth's telling pregnant Mary that she was blessed among women.  

All of us women need this reminder, no matter what we tell ourselves or what others may tell us, or have told us

And so I am telling my women readers today, "You are blessed among women." 

Tuesday's PT led to a very sore Wednesday.  Thursday the therapist took out the squats we had added, and today the day-after is better.  I can move ahead with the exercises.

And today was the first normal-feeling day in a long time.  I could cook a simple meal, which I enjoy, and wash the dishes later.  I could focus enough to work on a jig saw puzzle.  In a few minutes,  I'll turn on the sewing machine, enjoy its computerized sound, and sew a few simple blocks together.

I'm so happy to be able to read in bed again at the end of the day.  It's one of my pleasures.  During the really painful times there was nothing left of me at bedtime to be able to concentrate on the words.  I'm not reading anything "heavy," just enjoying those mindless Christmas novels.

If the books' plots seem to run together, that's ok, I don't mind, I just skim along.

The Work of Christmas

 

The Work of Christmas

When the star in the sky is gone,

When the song of the angels is stilled,

When the kings and princes are home,

When the shepherds are back with their flocks,

The work of Christmas begins.

            To find the lost,

        To heal the broken,

        To feed the hungry,

        To release the prisoner,

        To rebuild the nations,

        To bring peace among the people,

        To make music in the heart.

                                                       by Howard Thurman     

The star above was a Christmas gift.  It arrived folded, made of stiff paper, and is lighted.  It will remain in the window for a long time,  reminding me of the poem, which stays relevant year after year.

            

Not Yet

 

Social media has been full of posts describing friends' taking down their Christmas trees, packing away decorations, starting fresh for the new year.

Not me, not yet.  I'm still enjoying the tree, loving the lights and ornaments.  There will come a time in a couple of weeks when I'll take off the ornaments and pack them in their little boxes but still leave the lighted tree in place until more toward the end of January.  

I don't need the space, no one is telling me it's time to pack it away, I'm happy for now.

The news from New Orleans is hard to hear.  All those people, enjoying themselves, never thinking that in a moment they would be dead or hurting.  They weren't carrying guns, probably, or looking for a fight, just out celebrating a happy night of the year.  Enjoying their friends, enjoying the city.