Snow

It was a cold day today and all I wanted to do was hang out in my warm bedroom, located over the furnace.  Another cold day tomorrow but no snow.

And Sunday's high should be 60 degrees.

Tomorrow, lots to do.  Lots that I just put off today.

States

On my recent Asheville trip, I found a wonderful sweatshirt for 75% off.  The style was right and the price was right!

For today, another state added.  There is a special election in my district to fill a vacated spot.  I'll be surprised if many people show up to vote.  And I was surprised at the language of a promotion left at my door from one of the candidates.  Definitely not my candidate.

Wonder who came up with those voting stickers.  They are handed out like a precious thing and people seem to love to get them.  I know I do.  

I also dropped off a couple of cakes for my church's Community Meal this evening.  I always plan to bake something really special and always default to a cake mix.  Sometimes, like today, with icing from a tub.  That strawberry cake smelled really good, though.

It's Fat Tuesday.  I wish I had ordered a king cake for myself and a few friends, but I didn't.  Lent kind of surprised me this year.

Small Brown Dog Milo

During the recent North Carolina weekend, Sarah and small brown dog Milo.  Milo is a rescue, from Tennessee.  He was meant to be Sarah's dog, and he likes her just fine, but he is always looking for Winnie.

We had good weather coming and going, but today they are expecting snow in the Carolina's and throughout the south.

There was a wonderful exhibit at the North Carolina Arboretum, Environmental Impact II.  There are more than 50 artworks in various media, all thought provoking.  Definitely worth a visit if you're in the area.  I'm counting it as an Artist Date, even though I wasn't by myself.

Physical Therapy yesterday.  Wednesday must be a busy day.  People were working with various challenges, but they were in such good moods.  Lots of chatting and laughter.

Valentine Balloons

Balloons floating in the back of my car yesterday, on their way to the grands' house.  If you're hunting for a small Valentine surprise, Dollar Tree has lots of mylar balloons, already blown up and gracing their ceilings.  Pink and red and white curly ribbons dangling down.

So much rain here = not so much snow, and I am grateful.

I walked into Macy's yesterday, by the perfume department.  The scents were so delightful that I wondered why I didn't do that more often.  I'm sure it's been more than a year since I shopped there, maybe even two, but I wanted a special gift that I just knew would be there.  And it was.

I have physical therapy homework starting this week.  Four exercises, three - five sets a day.  I'm enjoying the repetition, the feeling that my wrist is getting stronger.  It's the little things.  I can floss all my teeth now and can twist the cap off a bottle of Diet Coke.

Mending Mistake

It should have been the most simple jeans mending.  Just the small hole in the lower left corner.  Five minutes, over and done.

But somehow, I made a pleat in the fabric, and in the picking out of the tiny mending stitches, made two more holes.  I guess some days are like that.  When I mended those three holes I made the machine a free arm, which I should have done in the first place.

The first PT therapy yesterday was rescheduled because the therapist had a family emergency.  Monday should be a glorious day, weather-wise, to ride down the hill and up the hill.  Toward the Ohio River and away from it.  I am pondering whether it might be a day to visit the zoo after my appointment, it's very close by.

In the meantime, my wrist aches more than I thought it would, but there is more flexibility every day.  I can twist to put the thread in the last sewing machine thread guide and then pull out the little thread loop from the needle threader.  You sewing people will know what I mean.

Progress every day.

Scrap Quilt Start

It's a start.  Basic as can be but satisfying to me.  Five inch blocks, 2/3 of them "as is" and 1/3 of them pieced, separated by 2 1/2" strips from a white jelly roll.  I'm thinking that eight rows of piecing will be about right for a lap quilt.

I have two friends in long-term residential rehab and this may find a home with one of them.

Another friend just told me that when you take a fabric scrap from a pile, a scrap fairy replaces it with two scraps.  This could be true.

I've started rereading Julia Cameron's The Artist's Way for maybe the third or fourth time.  I am good at Morning Pages, but Artist Dates - I'm going to have to start from scratch again with those.  I'm thinking about how or why I got so far removed from them, when they are so important.

Same, but in a shorter term, with salads.  Yes, I know, I'm way off track here.  For the past few months my mind kept telling me - no salad.  For no reason that I can comprehend.  I finally had a good one tonight, and it was amazing.

Cast Off

The cast is gone from my wrist and arm.  There was a LOT of padding to cut through.

So, this is my new view.  The brace is molded vinyl covering the bottom of my arm, with three velcro strips to hold it in place.  There's a white stocking under it so it doesn't rub on the skin.  I'll pretty much wear it all the time except for showers and therapy until March 6.

But please note, you can see the sleeve of my zippered fleece covering the brace.  I'm always cold, and it feels so good to have both arms covered.  I'd been wearing my fleeces on my right arm and throwing them across my shoulders.  The cast was just too fat to fit a fleece over it.  This feels glorious.  No luck with a glove, though, but I can take off the spongy rectangle if I want to - maybe then.

I ordered two white jelly rolls to use with my scrap blocks, and they should be here tomorrow.  For today, though, after my doctor and therapy visits, I'm tired and will be turning off the sewing machine.