Time traveler

I've had a bad case of jet lag.

Traveling back in time takes a toll.

It was exhausting...all those times

I had to repeat myself

when someone said, "Huh?"

And all the listening I had to do

when it was me saying, "Huh?"

Most people had changed quite a bit in 50 years.

But a few had changed hardly at all.

Many classmates were unable to attend.

Others, sadly, had passed on.

There were lots of stories,

and a few tales of our teachers:

the typing teacher who was

like a drill sergeant and

the tall, willowy French teacher who was

the subject of boys' fantasies.

There were a few pot bellies

and a scattering of bald heads.

Gray hair had replaced blonde and brunette.

There was even a wrinkle or two.

We'd spread out all over the country

and followed different paths in life.

But there was one thing we still had in common:

we hadn't forgotten how to party.

At 10:30 we shut the place down...  

What's a mother to do?

Have you ever purchased a sweet, luscious nectarine from your local farmers' market, and after having eaten half of it you noticed a little worm dancing around the pit?  Just wondering...

I have a question about figs too.  Do fig trees produce fruit randomly?  Like for instance, would there be one big juicy fig ready to pick while all the other figs on the tree are tiny and barely making themselves known?

Dear ol' dad planted a fig tree just outside of the back door many years ago.  He was a big fan of figs.  In fact, I loved taking him fresh figs in the nursing home.....until one day he told me he had had quite enough.

When we arrived at the Calcondo last summer, and this summer too, there was one big yummy-looking purple fig just asking to be picked.  All the others were weeks from ripening.  Is this normal fig behavior, or is it possible dear ol' dad is popping in to say hey?

And isn't it interesting how the universe puts something in your path when it thinks you need a new challenge?

Today, while I was eating lunch, I looked out the sliding glass door and noticed this rose bush--that hadn't been there this morning.  Just yesterday afternoon I was out in this dirt flower bed pulling weeds and picking up debris, and the universe must have noticed and figured I was ready for a new job: adoptive mother of a rose bush.

The thing is, I have no idea how to take care of a rose bush.  Can I feed it every once in a while and water it when I'm in town?  That's not very good parenting.  They send parents to jail for behavior like that.  Maybe I'll check and see if Dr. Spock wrote a book....

Ball game

Mr. Gadget and I like to watch baseball on TV, but games are slow-moving and I usually need something to keep my hands busy so lately I've been making felted balls.  They are very easy to do.  The fiber forms itself into a ball shape almost by magic.  Some needle-felters put their ball collections in a bowl and display them on a coffee table.  I'll put mine on the Christmas tree.

So my hair is a little long and unruly, but I'm hoping to tame it enough to see me through the reunion. If I get it cut now it will be too short--as it always is right after a cut, in spite of my instructions to my hairdresser to leave it a little longer.  I'm sure some of my classmates will be getting their hair colored, their manis and pedis, their botox injections and their wrinkle-release treatments.  I won't be doing any of that.  I'm planning to go as "just me."

The bathroom project is on the home stretch.

The guys put the tile down today.  Tomorrow they'll grout and prime the walls.  It won't be long now.  I'm looking forward to accessorizing the room with some bright towels and a colorful bathmat, and a needle-felted toothbrush holder...

Cutting and pasting

A while back I volunteered to make the nametags for my 50th high school reunion which is coming up this Saturday.

"I'm not very technically inclined," I told the organizers, "but if you're ok with me cutting and pasting the old-fashioned way I'd be happy to make them."

They said they were, and both admitted they weren't very technically inclined either.  Many of us in our generation are doing our best to catch up with this techno-stuff, but the further along we get, the further along it gets.

The reunion will be a casual affair, hosted by a classmate in her home.  She told us not to dress up.  So today I went shopping to look for something new to wear.  No sense planning too far ahead I always say.  I tried on a few things, but came home empty-handed.  None of the stores had what I was looking for....which is a nice tasteful outfit with the ability to make me look 20 pounds lighter.  What's wrong with these stores that they can't be more in touch with what their customers want?

I came home feeling pretty glum and decided to go outside and relocate my painted turtle.  Remember him?

He's been living outside near the front fence.  But in recent months the plants have grown around him and he looked like he was hiding.

I was able to coax him out and redirect him to a more open area.

Sadly, I discovered he was missing a foot and tail. I looked all around and they were nowhere to be found. I hope one of my neighbors didn't decide to make turtle soup.

Dishing it out

I started a crocheted dishcloth during the Calcondo knitting group yesterday.  I'm cleansing my palate between courses of needle felting.  

The knitting group out here in the west is very similar to the one in the east.  About half a dozen women attend each week.  We meet on Fridays here and Thursdays there.  Some ladies knit and some crochet.  We share patterns and stitching advice.  We have show-and-tell time.  The only difference between the groups is the noise level.  Here, it's mostly quiet with occasional talking; there, everyone talks at once.  I don't know why this is.  It might be because west-coast people have a reputation for being more laid-back, whereas east- coast folks are known for being a bit more pushy, I mean assertive.  It's possible the weather is to blame. Here, there is nothing but sunshine and cool ocean breezes.  There, it's lots of snow followed almost immediately by heat and humidity...which is more than enough to give a person an attitude. 

So yesterday morning Mr. Gadget and I went to Home Depot to pick out some floor tiles and paint for our bathroom rehab.  Two large fans are now hard at work and on Monday a crew will be here to start the reconstruction.  This is all lots of fun. We have a toilet sitting on our front patio covered with a form-fitting blue tarp. 

Needless to say, we haven't invited anyone over.  I doubt we could pass it off as a design feature. Although the planter idea has been suggested.  As you know, I love a little whimsy, but that might be pushing it. I've thought about making a crown (paper-mache, clay, or needle felted....I haven't decided...) to sit on top of it....just in case some royalty passes by.

A wannabee

Fun on four wheels

Today, as I was pulling in to the grocery store parking lot, I noticed something....and was immediately transported back to my southern California single days of carefree living and beach-bar hopping.

I had one of these--a VW Karmann Ghia.  Mine was bright red.  I drove it for 12 years, up until Mr. Gadget and I got married, moved to Texas, and had Tech Guy.  It didn't have air conditioning, and for that reason alone it wasn't the right car for Texas.  Also, it wasn't exactly car-seat friendly.  So I reluctantly sold it--to dear ol' dad's cousin, who drove from his home in California to Texas with a trailer hitch and towed it back to where it still resides--about 2 miles from the Calcondo in his garage. It could use a little TLC. The shine is long gone and its engine has expired.  It makes me sad just thinking about it.

I've never had a close relationship with a car since then. They've come and gone like bad dates. But I had a special feeling for my KG.  I treated it well--with regular oil changes and frequent washings--and I always parked it in the garage. It never let me down. Best of all, it was easy to operate.  No fancy GPS system, no Bluetooth hook-ups, no keyless entry, no sirens going off like now when I accidently hit the little red button on the remote.  There was no remote.  A key got me in, a key started the engine, and the radio--the only option--had an on-off knob that also controlled the volume.

All of this harking back is making me tear-up.  Maybe I'll call dear-ol'-dad's cousin and see if his garage has visiting hours.

Mother Nature crochets

Who knew Mother Nature could crochet? 

I guess I can't blame her for stealing my idea, since everyone knows most of her handiwork was done millions and millions of years ago....way before my time.  I'm quite impressed with her variety of stitches and intricate designing abilities.

I found this sample of craftiness this morning when Mr. Gadget and I went for a walk on the beach.  We sat down on a bench for a short rest and noticed a row of big boulders right in front of us.  Fortunately I had my camera ...just in case I might see something interesting that I could blog about....you know, now that I'm not picky about my subject matter.

So the men came today to dismantle the bathroom, but they didn't bring sledge hammers, much to my surprise.  They got the job done with box cutters and crow bars.

If there is a bright side to this unfortunate incident it's that we will soon have a new floor and paint job in that room.  And since it's the bathroom I use, I think it's only right that I should be the one to make the decisions.  I'm considering lime green linoleum and walls in bright fuschia.  I'm pretty sure that color combo will deter any of those types who might be prone to leaving the toilet seat up.

Bring on the sledge hammers

It's amazing, really, how much a blogger can blog about when that blogger is not too picky about the subject matter.  Now that the birthday festivities are over, Mr. Gadget and I are back to business as usual....which, at the moment, is all about waiting for a demolition crew to arrive to tear out some bathroom walls.

While we were hanging out at the Concondo over the last few months, water was dripping above the Calcondo ceiling...the result of a worn toilet seal in the unit upstairs.  It's not clear how much water dripped, but it is clear that there is wetness up there and it must be uncovered and dried out....before that horrid four-letter word mold sets in.  Having two condos that allow for optimum weather management is not always delightful.

So one of the projects I had in mind when I went shopping at the discount fabric store yesterday was a new tablecloth.  I planned to look for something that was: 1) a very good price, 2) wide enough to cover the table without having to do lots of cutting and seaming, and 3) a pleasant design in a somewhat subdued color scheme.  I scored on all three.

This afternoon I got out my sewing machine, reviewed the operating instructions, and stitched a hem all around the piece of fabric.

From store shelf to dining room table in just under 24 hours is my new personal best.  But I'm terribly worried about my membership in the United Sisterhood of Procrastinators. It might be in serious jeopardy.

Stop the train!

I could see it coming.  I could hear the low roar.  I did everything I could to stop it, but nothing worked.  Another darned birthday chugged into town.

Mr. Gadget was ever-so-thoughtful.  In addition to buying me dinner, and a slice of lemon meringue pie, he offered to chauffeur me here--one of my favorite haunts.

I selected some fabric.  See the red one with the horses?  I put it down for a couple of minutes and some mean lady, I mean another shopper, started fingering it.  She seemed quite enamored. So I gave her my best New York elbow and grabbed it back quickly.  I think I've got what it takes to ride the NYC subways during rush hour. Big City Girl would be proud.

So I was checking out, and there were two women working behind the counter.  One was wearing a birthday tiara.  "Is it your birthday?" I asked.....duh... 

"Yes," she said, "and it's hers too," she added, nodding to the woman working beside her. 

"Well, guess what!" I exclaimed.  "It's mine too!"  And they both started cackling....well, we all started cackling....at this funny little coincidence.  The one wearing the tiara was also wearing Mardi Gras beads, and she came around the counter and put one of her necklaces around my neck.  I asked if there might be some cake, and they said there was...in their break room in the back.  But an invitation was not forthcoming, and that was really ok because I had already been well birthdayed-up with the lemon pie and some chocolate-by-mail.

"How old are you?" one of the birthday women asked me...in a whisper with her hand hiding her mouth from the others.  When I told her.... also in a whisper and also hiding my mouth....she expressed surprise. 

"You don't look it!" she said.  I thanked her for the compliment and told her it was the best birthday present I had gotten all day. Well, except for the pie.

I havent felt like blogging; maybe I'll blog about felting

Mr. Gadget and I have been busy....trying to get the bathroom ceiling stitched back together after it ripped apart while we were gone.  It's a long story, and a very colorful one.....since the cause of this unfortunate situation was a plumbing overflow upstairs.

So, let's move on to something more pleasant.  Felting.  I've been making Santa ornaments. They still need beards and some embellishments.

I've also been making flower pins.

This morning Mr. Gadget and I took a walk to the farmers market where I had plans to buy a crepe for breakfast.  There are all sorts of interesting foods for sale there. But, alas, the crepe lady--who has always been a standard fixture--wasn't there.  So I had a cream-filled malasada covered with cinnamon sugar.  A malasada is a Portuguese donut.  If only needle-felting burned more calories....

Who needs worry beads...

....when you've got worry pumpkins? It's amazing how soothing it is to poke little bits of fiber in to a bigger piece of fiber.  And when you have children, there's plenty of worrying that needs doing, so it's good to have some fiber at the ready.

Big City Girl has been suffering for a few months with various pains in her head.  She's seen several doctors--her primary doc, an allergist, an ENT, and a couple of dentists.  Certain conditions were ruled out, and the best guess seemed to be TMJ--a jaw issue that results when things are out of alignment.  A mouth guard was prescribed and that seemed to help.  We all thought the problem was finally solved.  It was not.  A visit to an endodontist last Wednesday confirmed that a root canal was in order.  An appointment was made for next Friday. She couldn't have it sooner she said because she had big weekend plans.

On Saturday she flew out here to SoCal.....not to see us but to meet up with her boyfriend, who was already here, to attend a wedding.  She had barely stepped out of the airplane when the throbbing pain started again.  So her boyfriend's mother got her an appointment at the emergency dental clinic--where she knew people and apparently had some influence--and BCG had the root canal done in short order. It was almost like a special welcome to California celebratory thing...  She's doing much better and she had a fun time at the wedding. And, as I type, she's already in the air on her way back to the big city.

Thank goodness I had my worry pumpkins.

A summer Santa

Mr. Gadget and I are almost settled in here at the Calcondo.  Our flight was on time and uneventful.....precisely what I like about a flight.  Unfortunately, we were greeted at the condo with a plumbing problem.  It's happened before. Living on the ground floor has its advantages, but sometimes having someone living upstairs is no fun, especially when certain things overflow and gravity plays a role.  Repairs are in order. 

But, really, the plumbing issues don't seem so annoying now that I'm out of the heat and humidity.  I just closed the window next to my computer because I felt a chill.  Sometimes we leave wonderful weather behind on the east coast and hardly notice a difference, but not this time.

Before I left the Concondo I was working on a needle-felted Santa.  I'm hopelessly addicted to this process.  I'm sure it'll run its course....like most other new hobbies I take on.  I brought quite a stash of fiber with me this trip.  It's practically weightless, and it fills in the nooks and crannies of my suitcase quite nicely.  I'll be starting on some new stuff once I get the moving-in chores done.

Mr. Gadget and I each have a very different approach to those.  He tries to get everything done in 5 minutes, and I like to take them at my leisure.....with maybe a knitting or felting project thrown in between.  But I always feel a little ashamed that I'm dragging my feet when I see the spirited approach he takes.  I really need to practice being more confident about my procrastinating.  I need to stand up proudly for all procrastinators and be a fine example to them everywhere.  I'm planning to do that right after I make a cup of coffee and put my feet up for a few minutes.

A blooming mess

 

It seems like wherever I go I make a mess.  It's the same in the kitchen--where I reluctantly cook.  And the endless end tables where I have my piles of interest. When I'm done with whatever I've been working on, I always wait a couple of days to see if anyone will stop by and clean up after me.  No one ever does.  Life is so unfair sometimes.

I've been making more needle-felted flowers.

I'm thinking of adding some beads.

For anyone who's fond of beading, here's a wonderful book I discovered recently.

Thom Atkins is the author and beader and he's a real master of the art.  There's lots of inspiration, and instruction too, for anyone with an inclination.
I would love to do more beading, but at the moment I'm mired in this blooming mess.  

So Mr. Gadget and I are getting ready for our summer trek out west. We've done this trip often enough now that we have the preparations down to a science.  I arrange the mail forwarding and he reserves the rental car for the trip to the airport.  He hauls the suitcases up from the basement and I clean out the fridge.  No matter how fastidious I am about that last job, my eyes always seem to slide right over something that ends up growing mold while we're gone.  Sometimes I'm lucky enough to discover it before Mr. Gadget goes looking for a beer.  If not, I just tell him, "Oh, that.  I'm saving it for a craft project." 

The mermaid train

Mr. Gadget and I had a very nice trip to NYC on Saturday, and we returned home together on the 3:48.  Several flamboyantly-clad young women caught our eye on the ride into the city.  This is not unusual.  It's more usual than unusual.  NYC is a place where just about anything goes.

After we arrived Big City Girl told us that Saturday was the day of.......

.........and then it all made sense.  This is an annual event that takes place at Coney Island.  Here are a couple of frisky parade-goers who I can safely show you without earning my blog an "R" rating. Most of the others were wearing tassels.

We met BCG and her boyfriend at our usual lunch spot.  It's our go-to place because it has good omelets, reasonable prices and a little bit of character--always a bonus in my book. 

After lunch we walked to this place, where I bought some stamens for my felted flowers. But the stamens were quite pricey and one set has little green fuzzy things that shed onto the felt.  Not a good choice, but of course I didn't know that at the time. 

Then we strolled over to Bryant Park, next to the NY public library....you know, the place with the lions.  We found a little table in the shade and talked until it was time to catch the 3:48.  We tried not to ask BCG too many questions....like, do you have any marriage plans....because we know that if we want to see her again soon we should steer away from questions like that.  Instead, we asked about things that didn't interest us in the least, like 1) Is your air conditioner working well? 2) Are you doing much cooking?  and, 3) Your hair looks great...did you just get a haircut?

The real reason for our trip was so that we could give her the eyeball test.  She doesn't realize this, but these trips to the city give us an opportunity to look her over to make sure she looks happy, is eating regularly, and has no obvious bruises.  It's also a chance to discern whether she has any new tattoos or piercings.....well, at least any she has decided to show the world.

As is usually the case, she passed with flying colors.

 

 

 

 

Rising and shining

Good morning all!  Oh, wait a minute....It's 2:30 in the afternoon.  I just took a little snooze on the deck.  Being retired is hard work, and when Friday comes along I'm pooped.  While I was out there....well, part of the time anyway...I was reading.  Have you read Wild by Cheryl Strayed?  It's the story of her trek on the Pacific Crest Trail from Mohave, California to the Oregon/Washington border.  I love reading about people and their exploits, so I'm finding it very entertaining.  But not so engrossing, apparently, that I would avoid a nap in the sunshine. 

So while I'm sitting here drinking my second cup of wake-up coffee, I'll tell you what I've been up do.  First of all, the creativity day was a success.  I had hoped for more lookers, but we had a decent turnout, and everyone who stopped by seemed quite impressed with our work.

 

 I've been doing more needle-felting.

This is stickman with a felted pumpkin head.  I might shorten his stem, and give him more teeth.  Then I guess some clothes are in order.

This is a witch-in-progress.  The yellow area is just the core wool that I will use as a base on which to felt a pale green head and face.  I'm learning this technique through trial and error, and by watching youtube videos and reading felting websites.  There's really no end of things you can learn how to do that way.

So, tomorrow Mr. Gadget and I will be taking the train down to Grand Central to have lunch with Big City Girl.  Mr. G is not a big fan of the train, and I'm not fond of taking the car.  This time I won, and I hope Mr. Gadget won't moan and complain and spoil a pleasant ride. It has been known to happen.  If it does happen, I have a good plan in place for the return trip.  He'll be on the 3:48 and I'll be on the 4:23.

Father's Day felting

I've gotten a little carried away with needle felting.

It's addictive.  There's just something about stick-stick-sticking that little barbed needle into the fiber that carries me away someplace where there is no dusting, vacuuming, grocery shopping, or toilet scrubbing.

The Santa on top is just the right size for an ornament.  The other one is slightly bigger and will stand.  Both need a little bling, but I've got plenty of time to figure that out.

Mr. Gadget is having a nice Father's Day.  We went for a walk in the park this morning, then had lunch out on the deck.  While he was at the gym this afternoon a delivery came from Big City Girl.  It's one of those edible arrangements with fruit and chocolate.  I've decided he can have the fruit.  I'll have the chocolate.  After all, I made him an apple pie.  Sounds like an equitable arrangement to me.

Gettin' our creativity on

Mr. Gadget and I are getting our stuff together

for the long-awaited, much-anticipated

creativity day tomorrow.

My stuff is on the coffee table.

His stuff is in the basement.

See that neat wine rack?

He had to evict his wine bottles.



Here they are.

Awaiting its return...

like patient little soldiers.

 

It will be interesting to see how my experiment goes.

"Are you nervous?" asked Mr. Gadget.

"A little," I said. "You know I'm really sticking my neck out.

Maybe I'd rather just sit home and knit."

 

There will be food.

There will be a bright colorful banner.

There will be fair weather...

the weatherman promised.

How bad can it be?

 

I'll be back soon with a review

of my directing debut.

As they say, "Break a leg!"

Better that than

"Break a hip!"

 

Fuzzy feathered friends

 

I haven't been in a writing mood lately.

Sometimes it just flies out the window.



It's usually not gone for long.

Kinda like a homing pigeon.

Meanwhile, I've been needle felting.

It's fun and really not very difficult.

All you need are the right tools:

A foam block, a felting needle, and some wool roving.

My friend, other Marcia, gifted me

with a huge bag 'o roving

that she had in her stash.

This was for making felted flowers,

but I got a little side-tracked.

So I'll most likely be here making birds

until that writing mood comes home to roost.

 



 

Poser

It's been a slow weekend around here, and the gray, rainy weather hasn't helped.  I haven't felt like doing anything except sitting and knitting, and making unsuccessful attempts to find a quiet space where I couldn't hear Mr. Gadget ranting on the phone to various tech service people.  He carried on for most of the day, even, in fact, forgetting to eat lunch.....which is something I would never do.  But more on the subject of his rant later.

I did finish the banner for Celebrating our Creativity day. It needs something more but I'm not sure what.  I'll cogitate.

 

This morning I baked a lemon meringue pie to take to a BBQ later today. 

I haven't baked one since 1970 or so--one that, sadly, ended up having a plastic-marble filling.  I didn't understand the rules of cornstarch.  I love LMP.  In fact, if I could subsist on it and exclude every other food from my diet I would gladly do it. But then I'd have to pay big bucks to a tentmaker. A few minutes ago I peeked in the fridge and I fear the meringue may be pulling away from the crust...but that's just a small detail....not nearly as bad as trying to chew and digest little plastic marbles.

So now more about Mr. Gadget's rant.  Last week we bought new phones.

The nice clerk did a good job of stifling a laugh when he saw our old ones.  The new one is the most sophisticated phone on the market today.....well, at least for the next 5 minutes....and it's not at all what we need.  But Mr. Gadget is usually true to his name.  We haven't decided whether we'll keep them, or exchange them for a simpler model.  In the meantime, I'd like to sit in Starbucks at the mall, with a nice cuppa latte, and touch and swish and pinch my new phone.  I wanna look cool.  I wanna look gray-haired cool.  I wonder if it will levitate?