Monday, May 25, 2015

The Interminable Rain

Yes, it is still raining.  We have had so much now that the ground is saturated.  It just runs off into the ravine-down the hill it goes. 

Yesterday was my birthday.  My grandmother always told me that I was born in a thunderstorm.  I love storms-it excites me; it energizes me; I get jazzed.  I am somehow not excited about the weatherman staying on the t.v. all the time, giving minute by minute reports.  I have a wonderful APP on my IPad that my brother recommended to me.  I look at the location of the storm cell, I calculate how long it will take to arrive, and I calculate how long it will take to go through.  That is all I need to know.

My poor flowers look ragged, forlorn, and soggy.  A good day or two of sunshine would perk them up tremendously.

I am sick to death of discussing my health issues, and I am not thinking about it any more.  What I can do is walk.  I can get into some kind of regular walking, exercise mode and just do it.  Today I tried a section of the new Razorback Greenway.  The first part was really lovely.  It is a wide expanse of concrete that runs along the edge of a creek.  If you listen to the sound of the rushing water and the bird sounds, you can almost tune out the sounds of urban life. Especially the sound of traffic on a nearby roadway. 

Since CJE gave me a FitBit, I can now calculate the distance I am walking, the time, of course, and mainly to monitor my heart rate.  I try to keep my heart rate at 135 when I am climbing a little hill, and I push to walk faster.  Somewhere inside this slug is the old body that used to ride bicycles every day and row three times a week.  This is the same physical shell that used to be a master rower and race in regattas.  I figure within three months I should be doing much better. 

I have repairmen coming on Thursday to do some simple repairs that are necessary for maintenance of the homestead.  I do have one major repair job, but I will ask for an estimate and save up for that.  I was thinking today I might ask how much it would cost to put two ceiling fans in the kitchen and one in the guest bedroom.  I would also like to replace the outside lights, but it isn't a necessary thing.  Just a "maybe" job.

I listened to a Joe Gray cozy mystery on audio book yesterday and today.  I finished up my small skein of purple BFL and got it wound onto the skein winder.  I haven't blocked it yet, because it surely won't dry with all the wet and humid air.  I love that I can download a book from the library and listen while I get something done.  All for free!  Free is good!

My birthday was uneventful, but it was heartwarming to have so many people think of me.  I have a lot of gratitude for the messages I get.  I even got a card from CF, and she and I just don't do that.  We have known each other 25 years, and we never give birthday or Christmas stuff.  We give each other things all year whenever we think of it.  When I called her to ask, she said she was looking for a card for her daughter, and found this one that made her think of me.  Funny. 

I think I am going to go to bed and read for a while.  There isn't a thing on t.v., and I am not going to go through Facebook again.  I don't want to get on Pinterest and get lost.

Check your toes and make sure there are no webs there.  At least we will get a good crop of mosquitoes out of this.

Friday, May 22, 2015

Well-It Is Soon To Be Another Birthday!

Isn't it funny?  Years ago I would celebrate my birthday month.  Now it is just another day.  I have gotten cards in the mail from friends.  And my friend CJE gave me a FitBit to track my Heart Rate.  She is concerned with my health issues.  So now I can track my activity level from slug to pushing it.  I monitored my sleep last night.  As I already know that I never sleep well or completely through a night, the graph showed I was up or roused 28 times last night.  I am not sure I need to know this.

I tried taking Patty on a walk today, but she balked all along the route.  She did not want the harness on.  When I first got her, I only put the harness on to indicate we were going for a walk.  She did not want that thing on, but I prevailed and snugged it up.  We would be walking along quite well, and suddenly she would stop.  She wouldn't budge.  Finally what I had to do was click and snap the lead a couple flicks, and say "Let's go."  And she would for a while.  She kept looking around like she was trying to figure out where we were.  I was too busy trying to dodge the goose and duck poop.

CJE came over yesterday and gave me the new toy.  She also made me a pattern for a simple tank top that she created.  I am thinking I could sew a few summer tops out of some cute fabric and have some nice tops.  Unfortunately we are in a cool snap.  Right now I have on a sweatshirt and socks.  I cannot remember when was the last time I was still wearing cool weather clothes in late May.

I went to the doctor this a.m. and now I am stable and seem to be accepting the meds without complications.  I don't have to go back for three months, unless, of course, I have some weird symptoms.  What a relief.

I did come straight home and got the riding mower out to mow the majority of the yard.  It was wet down close to the ground, so the mower wasn't happy.  I haven't done any weedeating or trip mowing with the push mower.  It started to rain and I was glad to not do anything for a while.

I am going to get some minor chores done for house maintenance next week.  Unfortunately I did find my floor is soft in the back bathroom.  Sigh!  I did not want to do any major repairs this year.  I told the company I need an estimate, so I can plan when to have the work done.

Noodles caught a mid-size rabbit the other evening.  It seems I have a large population of rabbits this year.  They are always in the yard, and I have walked right past them without them running off.  I only hope that he doesn't get some disease from eating them.  He did get something when we lived out near Devil's Den.  A tick fever the vet said probably came from rabbits.  It is better than Bobcat Fever.  That kills domestic cats within 24 hours.

My flowers are starting to grow well in the little bed I made out back.  Noodles keeps the catnip trimmed, so it is really getting thick.  Hopefully he will allow it to flower.  The butterflies and bees really like catnip flowers.  The coreopsis is blooming.  The milkweed flowers are reddish, but they haven't opened fully.

I have been spinning the purple yarn, but now I am wanting to spin up the green that I just dyed.  With the electric spinner I am spinning some white merino.  I am thinking that I might just dye the skein when I finish that.  I got a coupon from Paradise Fibers for my birthday, so I think I will order some more white fiber.  I haven't set up an indigo pot, but surely it will be getting warm soon.

So Jeopardy is coming on.  Time to try to outwit the smart folks there.  Sometimes I yell at them, and it frustrating why they can't get it.  The pleasures of living alone. Ha!

Have a safe holiday weekend.  Surely we will soon have sunshine and warmth.  

Friday, May 15, 2015

It's Still Raining!

 Today I picked a few stems and leaves from my tansy out back.  It has flourished this year due to the excessive rain we have had.  It hasn't begun to set flowers, so this is perfect timing.

I am really, really pleased with the pretty soft green I got.  I used copper sulfate as my mordant.  The wool is Polworth.  There is 8 oz drying and waiting to become yarn.

Yes, it appears that we are in for a very wet May.  This is extremely unusual, since May is the first month to get hot.  Not the oppressive heat of June and July and August, but a blessing from the cold.  Now we have had some cooler mornings and a lot of wet.

Patty has been sick twice this week.  We got very little sleep two nights in a row.  I finally tried a low-dose aspirin, and she slept.  Who knows?  It's a shame dogs can't give us a hint.

I am desperately trying to keep up with the mowing.  It is difficult.  If the ground and grass is too wet, it can clog up the mower. 

My bachelor buttons did not do so well this year.  They are scraggly and not really blossoming into a beautiful carpet of flowers.  This may be my last year to promote them.  My hollyhocks did not return as well, either.  There is only one plant where there were three last year.  I don't know why it is so hard for me to grow them.

My weigeilias did exceptionally well.  They were covered in flowers all over.  The two are thick bushes grown together now.  I trimmed the pink azalea this morning, getting it ready for next year's blooms.

My friend CJE is finally getting her new doors and she now has new flooring in her bathroom and in the kitchen.  The pictures look good.

My friend BBR is not coming in November.  It is too expensive for her to come from Vermont.  We exchanged emails this morning, catching up on news.

I don't have a lot going on.  Just wanted to post the pictures of my afternoon's work.

Saturday, May 2, 2015

Day 2 May

It has seemed such a long time to finally get to May.  Normally by February I am tired of winter, and I am anxious to get on with warmer weather.  This year February was bitterly and unseasonably cold.  It seemed forever until March came.  Then we had normal weather until April.  April was cold some, warm some, and really, really, really wet.  It was always cloudy, gloomy, chilly, and bone-aching. 

Now, finally we are having a delightful weather pattern.  Sitting on my screened porch is wonderful. I listen to all the neighborhood sounds.  The birds are twittering, chattering, and chirping.  It is a good day all around.

I went to a special opening of an exhibit at the Shiloh Museum here in Springdale.  I met up with friends there, and we had a late dinner together.  Then I was sick.  I don't know if it was the lateness of the dinner or the dinner itself.  I woke up yesterday with diarrhea and Patty was sick, too.  So the two old ladies just stayed close to home.  It wasn't an awful day.

Today is an awesome day for both of us.  It is warm, it is sunny, and it is peaceful here on the little porch.

I watched a fantastic video yesterday on Netflix- The Monk with a Camera.  It is a mindful journey of a privileged young man who decides to become a Tibetan monk. 

Today I got notice from Netflix that they have Longmire's next season.  Finally..... I can find out what happens to the handsome deputy that is an asshole and got shot.

Today is not a Netflix day.  It is a peaceful day to sit on the porch, lounge around, and just chill.

I think in all the chaos of the world right now, I want to just have peace and balance in my life where I am right now.  I can only project goodness out if I have goodness coming in. 

I am on medicine three of the b.p. medicines.  I am not having any horrible reactions-except my pulse sky rockets when I stand up.  I went for a treadmill stress test Thursday, and I was over the goal pulse rate when I stood up.  I was able to make three minutes on the treadmill climbing a hill, and I was wiped out.  I was unable to breathe and my heart was pounding.

So we will see where we go from here.

I am not going to chat long.  I want to go back to my porch and just chillin'.