I asked my electrician buddy the following question: "If, while the oven is preheating, you walk past and peer in the window and you see something that looks like a welding arc on the heating element in said oven, is that a pretty good indication the element is toast?"
He chuckled and assured me it was.
I don't remember what it was that I was going to put in the oven, but I'm sure it ended up in the microwave. I believe that appliances today only have about a 10 year working life, but I don't believe the stove is that old. I have yet to replace it, if it's not working, then I have an excuse not to bake.
Next was the ice maker. It has churned out ice all through this past winter. Now that it's time for cold icy drinks, it decides to shoot craps. Back to the good ole plastic ice trays. At least they are reliable, even though they do work much better filled and in the freezer than sitting empty on the counter.....which is where they are now.
We were told last summer that the central air conditioner unit was on its last leg, but it made it through the summer. I'm not turning it on until I'm about in melt mode, besides it's only May and there are a few cool days in the forecast.
All good things must come to an end, but is it necessary that they all come to an end at the same time? Hope I'm not next on the list!
Today I'm off on another road trip. "It's only a couple of hours.", he said. He lied, it's more like three....one way. Oh well, if I'm on the road the rest of the working appliances in the house can have a break. No pun intended.
Friday, May 9, 2014
Thursday, May 8, 2014
Yard Art
Last weekend I made a tree. It's not a real tree and it will take a year or two before it looks like a tree, but I can still say I made a tree.
I had seen one of these homemade trees in a friend's yard. She had planted four trumpet vines and trained them to grow around and up a post. Her husband made a "box" for the top of the post out of rebar and she laced the vine in and out of the box and then let it grow however it wanted. The end result looked just like a flowering tree.
Unfortunately, a strong wind that blew through here a couple of weeks ago up ended her tree. Not to be out done by wind nor weather, they planted a new post and this time chose a honeysuckle to be their future tree.
Their misfortune worked out for me. I had tried twice to start my own trumpet vine from seed.....to no avail. Since they were changing out the entire plant, I received a large root stock with vines already emerging. I couldn't have been happier.
I had just the spot and set a treated 4x4 in the ground. Since it wasn't as tall as I would have liked, I attached a couple of 2x4's to two sides of the post. Perfect.
Since it will take a while before the trumpet vine actually looks like a tree, I decided the top of my tree support needed something. I had just the thing, a weather vane!
The weather vane was a Mother's Day gift I received several years ago. It came with a weighted base and I kept it inside for a long time, nestled in with some house plants. A couple of years ago I moved it outdoors to the patio. I liked it there but the base was not heavy enough to keep a strong wind from blowing the whole thing over and after a time, the weather vane's flag was getting pretty beat up. That's what I liked about this weather vane in the first place, it looks like it belongs on top of a castle turret.
It may not be on top of a castle, but it's yard art and it works for me. As the vine grows, it will someday provide shade for the hostas that are planted around it. In my yard, I hosta have hostas.
I had seen one of these homemade trees in a friend's yard. She had planted four trumpet vines and trained them to grow around and up a post. Her husband made a "box" for the top of the post out of rebar and she laced the vine in and out of the box and then let it grow however it wanted. The end result looked just like a flowering tree.
Unfortunately, a strong wind that blew through here a couple of weeks ago up ended her tree. Not to be out done by wind nor weather, they planted a new post and this time chose a honeysuckle to be their future tree.
Their misfortune worked out for me. I had tried twice to start my own trumpet vine from seed.....to no avail. Since they were changing out the entire plant, I received a large root stock with vines already emerging. I couldn't have been happier.
I had just the spot and set a treated 4x4 in the ground. Since it wasn't as tall as I would have liked, I attached a couple of 2x4's to two sides of the post. Perfect.
Since it will take a while before the trumpet vine actually looks like a tree, I decided the top of my tree support needed something. I had just the thing, a weather vane!
The weather vane was a Mother's Day gift I received several years ago. It came with a weighted base and I kept it inside for a long time, nestled in with some house plants. A couple of years ago I moved it outdoors to the patio. I liked it there but the base was not heavy enough to keep a strong wind from blowing the whole thing over and after a time, the weather vane's flag was getting pretty beat up. That's what I liked about this weather vane in the first place, it looks like it belongs on top of a castle turret.
It may not be on top of a castle, but it's yard art and it works for me. As the vine grows, it will someday provide shade for the hostas that are planted around it. In my yard, I hosta have hostas.
Wednesday, May 7, 2014
New Beginnings
In the background I can hear Ms. Sassafrass playing cards with her Papa. He never plays cards.....ever. She has him wrapped around her little finger. Her blonde locks, blue eyes and a perfect sprinkling of freckles across her nose melts his heart.
She is making up the rules of the game as they go along. If she can get rid of her cards first, she is happy. Papa accuses her of cheating from time to time but she just grins and continues to play to her advantage.
Our morning routine has been turned topsy turvy this week and my schedule is all out of whack. I guess when Papa is home, I feel the need to make sure he isn't bored out of his skull. I have to stop that, he's fine. He has actually been Mr. Fix-it to things that have been shoved to the back burner, a broken hinge, a crooked board, a squeaky door.
It's odd though, him being home. It will be even odder when he starts helping me in the studio. We've worked together for years, but this will be a little different. In the past, we had separate jobs to do so we were not always in each other's hair. The next couple of weeks ought to be interesting as we work out the kinks in being "together" full time.
Speaking of hair, I hear Papa tell Sassafrass that he has found a long blonde hair in the cards. "Is this mine or is this yours?", he asks her. Papa has shaved his head for years.
She inspects the hair, looks him in the eye and tells him, "You don't have any hair." Mystery solved.
Change can sometime be difficult, but when one door closes, another one opens to a new opportunity. At least this one isn't squeaking.
Something new is on the horizon, I'm looking forward to seeing just what it is.
She is making up the rules of the game as they go along. If she can get rid of her cards first, she is happy. Papa accuses her of cheating from time to time but she just grins and continues to play to her advantage.
Our morning routine has been turned topsy turvy this week and my schedule is all out of whack. I guess when Papa is home, I feel the need to make sure he isn't bored out of his skull. I have to stop that, he's fine. He has actually been Mr. Fix-it to things that have been shoved to the back burner, a broken hinge, a crooked board, a squeaky door.
It's odd though, him being home. It will be even odder when he starts helping me in the studio. We've worked together for years, but this will be a little different. In the past, we had separate jobs to do so we were not always in each other's hair. The next couple of weeks ought to be interesting as we work out the kinks in being "together" full time.
Speaking of hair, I hear Papa tell Sassafrass that he has found a long blonde hair in the cards. "Is this mine or is this yours?", he asks her. Papa has shaved his head for years.
She inspects the hair, looks him in the eye and tells him, "You don't have any hair." Mystery solved.
Change can sometime be difficult, but when one door closes, another one opens to a new opportunity. At least this one isn't squeaking.
Something new is on the horizon, I'm looking forward to seeing just what it is.
Tuesday, May 6, 2014
Sweet Dreams
"You may say I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one...."
Imagine, John Lennon 1971
The night temperatures have been in the upper 40's, lower 50's. I'm sleeping with the window open. Luckily, the wind has been coming out of the east, I don't have to smell the wood smoke from the western neighbors.
Mother always said nothing good came out of the east. I beg to differ with her on this, it's been glorious. The cool night breeze feels like cold satin on my skin. Since I do not have the ability to fall asleep as soon as my head hits the pillow, like my husband, I can lie in this breeze and reflect. I can think about what has happened during the day or mull over the goings on of the last several days. Or I can dream.
I can picture myself being in a completely different setting. Maybe the breeze is blowing through an open window in a tree house set high in the rain forest. I can imagine all the sounds that the forest creatures of the night might make. Maybe I'm sleeping in a sprawling beach house, far away from any other inhabitants. I can hear the ocean gently lapping the shore. Maybe I'm in a old castle in some distant land, high in a tower, listening for the last battalion of soldiers to return from battle.
When I do this, crazy as it may sound, it helps to lift the burdens of my soul. It allows me to escape and be anything or person I wish to be. It lets my brain release all of its crazy ideas and play them out to either my advantage or disadvantage. It helps to form the characters for my story, my book, that tugs so strongly at my heart. It lets me know I'm on the right path, regardless of the obstacles I may face along the way.
I used to do this as a kid except most of it was done during the day. I could daydream for hours on end. I'm sure this must have driven my folks crazy. I think I heard the phrase, "pay attention!" a lot.
I believe we choose the path we walk on this earth before we ever get here. Sometimes I wonder and even ask out loud "Why the hell did I choose this!?", but I know in the long run, it's just part of my journey.
If you have a dreamer amongst you, don't be too hard on them. You never know, you may be raising the next president, or best selling author or a quantum physicist who will unlock the mysteries of the universe.
Monday, May 5, 2014
Fraudulently Frazzled
The weather this past weekend was fabulous. I spent most all of two days outdoors. I should have stayed in. I should have worked all weekend. Today I'm overwhelmed.
I had to go back and read some of my own sage advice. Easy to dish it out, not always so easy to apply it. "Let go and let God" someone said. Such silky words to fall from our lips, but oh so hard to do.
I thought this morning I might explode from the pressure I was feeling. Last Friday, I felt I was all caught up with my time schedule. Today I felt like I was in a landslide and going down hill fast. How could I have gotten so far behind? Then I looked at the calendar. It's May 5, 2014. I thought it was the 12th. Somewhere I had lost an entire week and was near panic mode.
I'm not sure what brought this sudden rush of paranoia into my brain, but it seems it was all self induced. Why do we do that? Why do we let ourselves get so worked up over things that aren't really so? I don't know the answer to that. Maybe it's the negative thought waves trying to convince us that they are right and everyone else is wrong. They can be so deceiving. That's the nature of their game. If you aren't happy, content, they're throwing a party at your expense. Negative thought waves like us to stay at their low frequency.
After I realized I hadn't actually lost seven days of my life by some mysterious force, Ms. Sassafrass and I went out side for a break. She played, I cut weeds out of the garden.
"Why are you cutting out the dandelions?" She asked.
I explained to her that they were really weeds.
To her, that made no sense at all. They were flowers as far as her almost 4 year old self was concerned. She told me, "We love dandelions, we have a yard full of them."
As I cut the next one out I remembered a time when I would gather as many dandelions as I could carry and deliver them to my mother or any other adult I would come in contact with. They were beautiful yellow flowers that needed to be shared.
Maybe God speaks through small children. I believe that children have a much closer and better understanding of just how God works because they haven't been away from him as long as we have. They still have a memory of where they came from.
I couldn't see the forest for the trees or the flowers for the weeds. I will still cut them out of the garden, but I will take the time to reflect on how the universe does not work on my time line. For that I am deeply thankful.
I had to go back and read some of my own sage advice. Easy to dish it out, not always so easy to apply it. "Let go and let God" someone said. Such silky words to fall from our lips, but oh so hard to do.
I thought this morning I might explode from the pressure I was feeling. Last Friday, I felt I was all caught up with my time schedule. Today I felt like I was in a landslide and going down hill fast. How could I have gotten so far behind? Then I looked at the calendar. It's May 5, 2014. I thought it was the 12th. Somewhere I had lost an entire week and was near panic mode.
I'm not sure what brought this sudden rush of paranoia into my brain, but it seems it was all self induced. Why do we do that? Why do we let ourselves get so worked up over things that aren't really so? I don't know the answer to that. Maybe it's the negative thought waves trying to convince us that they are right and everyone else is wrong. They can be so deceiving. That's the nature of their game. If you aren't happy, content, they're throwing a party at your expense. Negative thought waves like us to stay at their low frequency.
After I realized I hadn't actually lost seven days of my life by some mysterious force, Ms. Sassafrass and I went out side for a break. She played, I cut weeds out of the garden.
"Why are you cutting out the dandelions?" She asked.
I explained to her that they were really weeds.
To her, that made no sense at all. They were flowers as far as her almost 4 year old self was concerned. She told me, "We love dandelions, we have a yard full of them."
As I cut the next one out I remembered a time when I would gather as many dandelions as I could carry and deliver them to my mother or any other adult I would come in contact with. They were beautiful yellow flowers that needed to be shared.
Maybe God speaks through small children. I believe that children have a much closer and better understanding of just how God works because they haven't been away from him as long as we have. They still have a memory of where they came from.
I couldn't see the forest for the trees or the flowers for the weeds. I will still cut them out of the garden, but I will take the time to reflect on how the universe does not work on my time line. For that I am deeply thankful.
Friday, May 2, 2014
Week's End
It's been a glorious week, a restful week. I've been sleeping like the dead, it's wonderful.
Today is the sixth day of not having to deliver papers. Of not having to rise at 4:30 in the morning. Of not having to dodge sprouting peony bushes in the dark. I shall never take sleep for granted again.
The paper did find a replacement, but as yet, we don't know who they are. They have done a pretty good job, at least until today. There is no paper this morning. Maybe they overslept, maybe they are still fine tuning the route, trying to figure out the shortest distance between point A and point B. Maybe they had to fill up the tank on their truck, that will be a shocker. I've had to take two short trips this past week and I still have gas in the tank. The last time I filled it up, while still delivering papers, it cost me $29.00, I made $28. I may not be good at math, but even I can figure that's a no brainer.
I read an article the other day about the powers that be picking on the people with the e-cigs, the electronic cigarettes, or vapors. The powers don't want people to use these in public because of the stigma associated with smoking. They feel that when young people see this activity, it will make them want to try it. In the article a woman said that tobacco should be a thing of the past, like a rotary telephone. I'd wager there is still a rotary phone or two, in working order, in this country, but this woman obviously knows better. I know smoking is not a healthy activity, neither is playing in the traffic. But, I believe the human race has been smoking, drinking or eating some sort of substance for a euphoric sensation for as long as the human race has been around. If the health police would spend more time working on the good things, like a child's self esteem, and pointing out all their wonderful qualities, there would be a lot less kids who would need to turn to a substance. This would also be a much cheaper route than dragging frivolous banter through the muckiness of the court systems.
The bleach bottle planter design has a flaw. They are still up, but I have noticed they need more support between the handle of the bottle and the bottle itself. I think I have an idea that will work and it should be an interesting endeavor since all three bottles, per post, will release simultaneously when the zip ties are cut. Perhaps my husband will be overjoyed to help......then again, perhaps not.
I've about given up on the strawberry plants, I think they must have been duds. I will plant something else in the hanging bottle tower planter, like leaf lettuce. If the strawberries do decide to grow, I'll have a nice ready made fruit salad at my disposal.
Have a wonderful weekend. Read something, plant something and be sure to give a kind word or smile to a deserving child and especially to the undeserving one.
Today is the sixth day of not having to deliver papers. Of not having to rise at 4:30 in the morning. Of not having to dodge sprouting peony bushes in the dark. I shall never take sleep for granted again.
The paper did find a replacement, but as yet, we don't know who they are. They have done a pretty good job, at least until today. There is no paper this morning. Maybe they overslept, maybe they are still fine tuning the route, trying to figure out the shortest distance between point A and point B. Maybe they had to fill up the tank on their truck, that will be a shocker. I've had to take two short trips this past week and I still have gas in the tank. The last time I filled it up, while still delivering papers, it cost me $29.00, I made $28. I may not be good at math, but even I can figure that's a no brainer.
I read an article the other day about the powers that be picking on the people with the e-cigs, the electronic cigarettes, or vapors. The powers don't want people to use these in public because of the stigma associated with smoking. They feel that when young people see this activity, it will make them want to try it. In the article a woman said that tobacco should be a thing of the past, like a rotary telephone. I'd wager there is still a rotary phone or two, in working order, in this country, but this woman obviously knows better. I know smoking is not a healthy activity, neither is playing in the traffic. But, I believe the human race has been smoking, drinking or eating some sort of substance for a euphoric sensation for as long as the human race has been around. If the health police would spend more time working on the good things, like a child's self esteem, and pointing out all their wonderful qualities, there would be a lot less kids who would need to turn to a substance. This would also be a much cheaper route than dragging frivolous banter through the muckiness of the court systems.
The bleach bottle planter design has a flaw. They are still up, but I have noticed they need more support between the handle of the bottle and the bottle itself. I think I have an idea that will work and it should be an interesting endeavor since all three bottles, per post, will release simultaneously when the zip ties are cut. Perhaps my husband will be overjoyed to help......then again, perhaps not.
I've about given up on the strawberry plants, I think they must have been duds. I will plant something else in the hanging bottle tower planter, like leaf lettuce. If the strawberries do decide to grow, I'll have a nice ready made fruit salad at my disposal.
Have a wonderful weekend. Read something, plant something and be sure to give a kind word or smile to a deserving child and especially to the undeserving one.
Thursday, May 1, 2014
A Day In My Odd Life
The aroma of hair color is wafting down over my face this morning. It seems like I just colored my hair the other day. I did.
Since I used to be a hairdresser many moons ago, I usually do it myself. This not only saves me a few bucks but also keeps me from having to sit still for a certain amount of time. That was the only thing I didn't like about having a fleet of school buses. I could drive all day and I loved the kids, but sitting still, waiting on an activity to end, drove me crazy.
The last time I colored my hair I obviously had a bit more developer, that's the stuff that helps put the color into the hair, than actual color. I ended up with a much lighter shade of brown than I like and it didn't take long for the color to slough off the grey.
I tried to go "natural" a couple of years ago. Thinking it would be best to bleach as much color out as possible first, I ended up with hair the color of finely polished brass. Being a brunette all my life, that choice soon fell into the category of other not so wise choices I have made over the years. My proof reader told me I looked like Maude on the Golden Girls. She was right.
I was hoping that my grey hair would be like Mother's, nice and silver. It wasn't. So back to black I went. Doing this myself may result in a missed place or two behind my ears, but I can't see back there, so I'm fine with that.
My Silver Cat Studio, Inc. business of turning real flowers into lasting keepsakes has absolutely exploded in the last couple of weeks. It's been a blessing and a dream come true. Orders have been coming in almost daily and just this week I've received two from the state of Virginia. Updating my website is one of the things on my to-do list and it isn't done yet, but if you want to check it out, here's the link: www.silvercatstudioinc.com
Learning some new techy things is still on the to-do list also and I'm working on that. In fact, looking at the tool bar on top of my page, I have discovered a little icon that looks like the board used when film makers are shooting a movie. They hold it in front of the camera, snap the top down and yell "Action!" I also discovered that when I hold my mouse pointer over this icon it says "insert video". Really, it's that simple? Well, how about that! I shall give it a try.
I've blogged before about a crazy thing I do when it comes to birthdays. I make up words to songs and video myself singing, then post it for the lucky recipient. Last Friday was my husband's birthday, he was not immune to my array of talents. One person suggested I should do this as a business. Hmmm......just what I need, something else to do, I could call it Lucky Duck Birthday Ditties.
I knew it was too good to be true. The 'insert video' isn't quite as simple as I thought. I've tried three times and got nothing. Oh well, I'll keep trying to figure that out.
Today is my proof reader's birthday, she is not immune to my talents either. May your day be filled with laughter.
Since I used to be a hairdresser many moons ago, I usually do it myself. This not only saves me a few bucks but also keeps me from having to sit still for a certain amount of time. That was the only thing I didn't like about having a fleet of school buses. I could drive all day and I loved the kids, but sitting still, waiting on an activity to end, drove me crazy.
The last time I colored my hair I obviously had a bit more developer, that's the stuff that helps put the color into the hair, than actual color. I ended up with a much lighter shade of brown than I like and it didn't take long for the color to slough off the grey.
I tried to go "natural" a couple of years ago. Thinking it would be best to bleach as much color out as possible first, I ended up with hair the color of finely polished brass. Being a brunette all my life, that choice soon fell into the category of other not so wise choices I have made over the years. My proof reader told me I looked like Maude on the Golden Girls. She was right.
I was hoping that my grey hair would be like Mother's, nice and silver. It wasn't. So back to black I went. Doing this myself may result in a missed place or two behind my ears, but I can't see back there, so I'm fine with that.
My Silver Cat Studio, Inc. business of turning real flowers into lasting keepsakes has absolutely exploded in the last couple of weeks. It's been a blessing and a dream come true. Orders have been coming in almost daily and just this week I've received two from the state of Virginia. Updating my website is one of the things on my to-do list and it isn't done yet, but if you want to check it out, here's the link: www.silvercatstudioinc.com
Learning some new techy things is still on the to-do list also and I'm working on that. In fact, looking at the tool bar on top of my page, I have discovered a little icon that looks like the board used when film makers are shooting a movie. They hold it in front of the camera, snap the top down and yell "Action!" I also discovered that when I hold my mouse pointer over this icon it says "insert video". Really, it's that simple? Well, how about that! I shall give it a try.
I've blogged before about a crazy thing I do when it comes to birthdays. I make up words to songs and video myself singing, then post it for the lucky recipient. Last Friday was my husband's birthday, he was not immune to my array of talents. One person suggested I should do this as a business. Hmmm......just what I need, something else to do, I could call it Lucky Duck Birthday Ditties.
I knew it was too good to be true. The 'insert video' isn't quite as simple as I thought. I've tried three times and got nothing. Oh well, I'll keep trying to figure that out.
Today is my proof reader's birthday, she is not immune to my talents either. May your day be filled with laughter.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)