When I got to The Courthouse this morning, I saw a surprise waiting on my bench. Georgia had set up an array of consolation prizes for me. I especially love the “big apple.” And Georgia.
We have a great group of friends who convene there at the back of the class every MWF. Too much fun!
How wrong is it that I am going to leave choir rehearsal ten minutes early tonight to get home for the first episode of the new season — on a scale of 1 to 10?
Sometimes plans change, so you catch your breath and move on in a revised direction. As for me, I now have what I like to call a “stolen week,” a week at home with a blank calendar when I had thought I’d be away. What luxury! Started out by taking a long bath while reading The New Yorker, which, is a bit ironic all things considered. (Long article on Jeb Bush. He may be the brightest of those good old Bush boys and he is a shrewd business man; but he has some very eccentric ideas about education.)
Anyway, today I got my taxes in the mail and I have a little time to do some sewing. I never actually make anything anymore, but I never buy a garment and bring it home and leave well enough alone. I have to put my hand to it and add my personal touches. In the years I was raising a family of little girls and keeping house, I made absolutely everything from lawn chair cushions to christening dresses.
My mother taught me to sew on this machine which is now my own prized possession.
It is as fine as when it was new. Entirely made out of metal. Makes a perfect stitch to this day. Mother sewed everything for me on it. Every Christmas, she used to make me a nightgown. She did the same thing for my girls when they were little. Later, when I was in high school, she sewed me a party dress out of purple velveteen. She set the machine up on the kitchen table and, since she wanted the dress to be a surprise, she removed every trace of the garment, including the thread, and hid it away before I came home for lunch. I cherish this machine and often find it more convenient and reliable than this one.
Made by the same company. Lots of plastic. Have to take it into the shop to have the belt replaced, and they charge $70 just to open it up!
Saw this on Facebook recently. It surely made me smile. This is the typical advice that was touted in women’s magazines right after WWII . What incredible standards those women were supposed to live up to! Of course, their husbands did not read The Ladies’ Home Journal, so they did not hold their wives to such ideals, thank goodness.
Guess I’d better freshen my lipstick and prepare myself mentally and get to it. That tee shirt I bought yesterday needs shortening up just a bit.
Why is it that things that seem so manageable in the light of day are so scary in the middle of the night? Why on earth at 3 a.m. would one worry whether one’s Social Security check will hit the bank in time to cover the automatic withdrawal for one’s PBS contribution?
But then, day breaks, you get up and look out and see that morning gilds the sky . . .
. . . and it’s all good. Open the shutters. See the humming bird having his breakfast. Get a cup of coffee. Get back in bed and make a list of things that can readily be dealt with. Work on the crossword a bit.
I am an early riser, but I do love not having to hit the ground running most mornings. Hitting the ground at a more leisurely pace is such a delight. Especially since actual running is not really an option. A nice walk to the library or the post office is a much better plan and is often on the list.
Whenever my girls visit, which is usually one-at-a-time, I learn so many things. Learned a couple of new terms from Elizabeth this week.
1. BASE LAYER
This is what you wear underneath everything else to keep you warm. Bought a really good set at REI, then returned it when Elizabeth introduced me to Icebreaker and I discovered the very same thing at that store for half the money. Oregon is a great place to shop.
I did find the illustration on the Icebreaker shopping bag to be somewhat troubling, though.
2. RESTING BITCH FACE
I take great comfort in learning that this is such a common phenomenon there is actually a name for it. I was lamenting that my resting facial expression used to be pleasant, with up-turned mouth corners. Now that gravity has taken its toll, that is not the case. I have to work really hard at it to maintain a friendly expression. Boo immediately responded, “Oh, yeah. Resting bitch face. Everybody gets that.” I feel so much better.
Looks like one of our county’s leaders has had a little problem with gravity too:
This next is unrelated to anything other than that there seems to be a lot of room left at the bottom of this to post a really, really long list, so here it is:
THINGS FOR WHICH PRESIDENT OBAMA HAS NOT BEEN BLAMED: