12 Oakdale

76 and amazed how well I feel. Still fraying around the edges, but my core is holding. So where am I, where am I going? Not waxing philosophically.  Too much to do, both short term (pumpkin pies to bake today plus I want to work in the yard, and I’d really like to paint, but that’s not possible with grandchildren around, which I wouldn’t trade for a second) and long term (although we are slowing down, I still want to spend a month or more in Europe, especially France and Italy. And Spain. And England, plus we really should drive around our Southwest.) As ever, I am shedding stuff but not as far along as I’d like. More and more, things mean less and less to me. For example, Windermere Garden Club is fundraising by collecting broken gold and silver jewelry to be traded in for cash. I am going to donate single earrings whose mate is irretrievably lost. I’d hoped to have them made into something. Now I know what it is: a donation. The pictures and other nostalgia still loom, and the sc...

Each year, an anonymous donor gives Bloom and Grow Garden Society* entry tickets and a table for 10 to the Habitat for Humanity’s Rock the House fundraising auction. Any members who want to go put their name in a basket for 2 seats. This year I finally got lucky. Maybe. I assumed this was an uptown affair. Nope, under a big tent in a field. *So Winter Garden to be a society, not a club. One other factor in the plot is that each table competes in a table decoration contest. Our group decided on a bee theme, since the club promotes pollinator power. To make a long story probably too long, Ellen designed a huge centerpiece, making an old fashioned bee skep from a basket turned upside down atop an orange crate with lanterns and lights around it. Little bees were scattered on the table, and ribbon was strategically swooped throughout. Gold chargers topped by black and white checkered plates added glamour. We had painted sunflowers on chair-back covers, and best of all, dressed up like bees....

 Welcome, 2025 Another year to pare down our belongings, either by not buying something or by moving things along. In another post, I’ll list our 1/week cleaning of drawers, shelves, or box. In: 01/03: 2 copper mule mugs. (Also 1 mini vase & 2 tea candle holders used as vases for hospice flowers, a Windermere Garden Club project.) All from Central Hope Thrift Shop. $6.66  01/06: Watercolor brush: #2 round, kolinsky sable, from Amazon. $29.82 01/07: SD card reader for trail camera, from Amazon. $10.64 01/08: Watercolor brushes: flat, mop, rigger, & filbert, from Amazon. $46.51 02/23: 3 shelves to display my paintings, from Wayfair. $44.72 03/ 03/25: 2 tshirts for HGB from RSMAS grad student sale. $42.80 + $14.88 UPS shipping 03/29: Grab bars for the shower and next to toilets, anti-slip mat for rug, plus shower mat returned, from Amazon and installed by Patten and Ryan. $99.88 05/24: Hose for pool, to replace old one Bath mat Stihl 3” chainsaw Pole for Stihl chainsaw...

 Yes, I’m in good shape, for my age, as the doctors always have to add. However, 10 pounds less makes my pants fit better. Back on the eat less, exercise more plan. January 6th: 170.0#  I’ve begun my arm exercises again and am trying a NYT’s stretching program for lower backs. Mine is fine, and I plan to keep it that way. January 13th: 172.0# Sigh, definitely not the right direction. At least I’ve started walking daily and added my shoulder exercises back to my routines. February 3rd: 172.5# Double sigh, but no surprise. I have reestablished my morning exercises, varying from shoulders to stretching to some more core. We moved the stationary bike to the lanai. I ride every few days. February 24th: 172# Up and down, wavering around 172. We have walked every day this past week, except Wednesday, when it rained all day. March 10th: 177# Ouch. I knew our low-impact birding trip definitely would impact my weight. Too much enjoying eating casado (beans, rice, protein, plantains, a...

I had opted to stay in Williamstown because I wanted us to see Ground/work 2025, a site-specific set of 6 large sculptures, each made by a different artist using a craft from her or his culture. Woodworking, fabric dying, sculpture, basket weaving, mosaic tile, and ceramics. Marvelous, but I hadn’t considered that not all places are flat like Florida. As we trudged uphill, Grant struggled to catch his breath. However, with a rest at a picnic table, he was able to get to the top of the exhibit layout. Downhill is our friend. On to the New Haven, CT airport to turn in the truck and be picked up by Deb and Rob. Note on the truck which we should have inspected better before driving away: there were no dents on the outside, Grant had checked. However, once I began driving, I realized my boot heel stuck to the flood when I wanted to move from gas to brakes. As soon as I found a pull off, we stopped. No floor mat, and perhaps glue or sticky tape where one h...

Absolutely exhausted after driving 6 hours in light drizzle to medium rain, the last 2 in pitch dark on twisty, narrow back lanes. At least I think they were. Who could see in the dark? However, we arrived safely to the Williams Inn in Williamstown, MA in time for a bowl of tomato soup, beef ribs, mashed potatoes with mushrooms in a red wine sauce. My nerves were somewhat restored. Plus a glass of the bottle wine that was waiting in our room helped. We had flown into Buffalo 3 days before, then Lyfted to Niagara, NY to an Anchor Bar. Lunch was 2 house IPAs and 20 medium wings. We watched UM snatch defeat from SMU in overtime. A walk across the Rainbow Bridge, brief visit in Canadian Customs, and we popped out at the Fallsview Hotel on the Canadian side of Niagara Falls. I had requested a room on the riverside, which we sorta got: 21st floor, SW corner, semi facing the falls. No matter, we were here. We ditched our suitcases and strolled along the river.  We were overwhelmed, as I a...

I’ve concentrated on finishing 3 projects: mittens, charities, and bougainvilleas. First up, the mittens I’d started some time ago with yarn from Mountain Meadow Wool Mill. One was almost done, then set aside.  Not as abandoned as some projects I’ve started, since I bought the yarn after our 2021 trip to Yellowstone. I had planned to finish them before our next trip to cold weather, which turns out to be this Saturday.  Not a difficult project, lovely to the touch wool. Just needed time with needles in my hands. Not too much at once since I haven’t knitted in a while and I didn’t want to aggravate my wrists or shoulders. Fifteen minutes at a time over the past couple of weeks: done. However they are too large for me, so Grant gets a new pair of wool mittens. I will wear my fingerless gloves inside a pair of polyester ones. Should I consider buying more yarn for the next cold weather event? Not until I’ve finished the socks I will make with the yarn I bought last year in Nee Ze...