Randomly Ridiculous

Not much blog-worthy to report so you must suffer through a little random blather.   Another week come and gone.  I did go spend a few hours Saturday night with and old friend.  (She's not old, but we've been friends since grade 1).  I brought a cheese ball (sooooo good)

And she had a bottle of wine.  Nice combo huh!   Now I am not a wine officianado but I do like red, and who doesn't like chocolate?  This wine was supposed to have a hint of chocolate.  It wasn't over-powering but did have a faint chocolatey finish.  It was a nice, rich red.  It gets my thumbs up

We got caught up and solved all the problems of the world.  HA!

I took full advantage of that glorious extra hour of sleep Saturday. Wouldn't it be nice to get that extra hour every weekend?  I cleaned out my closet in a ruthless fit and took 2 full garbage bags to the goodwill shop. 

Now for the topper to wrap up the ridiculous portion of this post.  It's ridiculous and cheesy!  Sunday night at about 9:30 I was a little peckish so I grabbed a box of crackers and the 2nd cheese ball I'd ordered.  Sun-dried tomato and Parmesan ...... Yummm.  Well, I got carried away and ate about half of it.  I went to bed and had the weirdest dream EVER.  

I had tea with the Queen.  Yes, the Queen of England

Oh yes, dear Old Liz and I chatted away like girlfriends for hours.  It was so real and so vivid.  What the heck is that about??

So I think I need to be a bit more careful about my nighttime snacks. 

(If your still reading this, Thank You).  :)

Wet, Wild, Whoops, Wow

How's that for a post title?  I just woke up from a nap so that's the best I could come up with in a post-groggy state. By the end of the week I'm wiped out.  And just before bed last night I noticed Mom wasn't quite right.  At first I thought it was just Halloween hangover but no, she was burning up with a fever.  I gave her something and luckily by this morning she was cool.  

A wet and wild wind and rain storm arrived this morning also.  I am fairly confident that by morning there will be no leaves left on any tree.

The storm knocked out power to over half the town.  Watching traffic is amazing during a power outage.  People manage to competently navigate through 4-way stops all the time, every day.  But knock out the traffic lights at an intersection and nobody knows what the heck to do.  Jiminy Crickets people.....it's still a 4-way stop!!  It was like chaos out there.  

That covers the wet and wild - Now for the Whoops!  I still can't believe I did this.  Talk about Foot-in-Mouth

I stopped into a corner store this morning and saw one of the clerks and then I said it........"Oh, you lightened up your hair" .........she got a funny look on her face and said - "No I didn't. I just haven't colored it lately".   Oh Dear Lord......I wished the floor would open up and swallow me.  Now, how exactly do you recover from something like that?  Should I have said "well, grey becomes you?".   This has happened to me before  when I was a week or so behind on my color so I know how awkward it is.  I think I'm going to have to go to a new store for a few weeks (until she forgets)

I saved the best for last.  The Wow.......

The phone bill arrived today.  I don't want to talk about it!  :(

Halloween Grinch

I know its terrible but I have become a Halloween Grinch.  I have really come to dislike this evening.  I always loved seeing all the little ones dressed up and trick or treating ----before.   Before Mom got sick. 

Now it's a very stressful evening.   Mom will not have a good night.  The constant banging on the door, the strange looking people - not good.  She gets confused and agitated.  The dog is no better.  Particularly since she is scared of children who run at her too quickly. She knows she's tiny and takes serious evasive measures.   She will probably need a small piece of an Ativan before it's over.  Mom will need the same.  Poor Mom can't deal with the costumes.  Her expression and demeanor goes to fear. I hate it 

Auntie on the other hand LOVES Halloween and prefers to ignore the effects on the rest of us. Mom, Millie and I are sitting in the den trying to stay calm and away from the door.   Auntie is manning the door. 

I predict a very large martini later this evening when all the little beggars have gone home.  (Don't I sound mean?)

Someday I will enjoy this holiday again 

********UPDATE********

It's over.  We survived and nobody required sedation!   All all the candy left is mine....Mwa ha ha ha

And so endeth the streak

I was on a roll.  I had resisted for longer than ever before.  I had the willpower of a champion.  I even somewhat smugly giggled at those of you had had fallen before me (Julie, heehee).  

And then this afternoon, as I moved something to get a bag of wool, I heard something.......

Eat me Kim, eat me Kim.   It was a bag of Halloween candies - Whoppers to be exact.  And so endeth the streak and broke down and opened up some of the treats

Oh well, this is as far as it went.  The rest of the goodies live to be eaten another day.  Hopefully by someone other than me :) 

This morning 2 of the 3 of us were feeling better.  Poor Auntie is still hobbling around.  Home support workers will be back tomorrow so all is good. 

I almost gave up on my big dreams to hook a fabulous mixed background.  It's not turning out fabulous but it still early and I am using this small piece as a learning tool.  Too soon for a picture to post.  I took one and it looks hideous but it's only one small corner.  I think it might look better after a few more hours.  

Thanks for the tips on the honey.  It did put it in hot water and at least for now it has re-liquified.  Not sure how long it will last.

Ok, that's enough.  Time to frustrate myself with hooking techniques.  

Trust your instincts

Seems like staying home last night and drinking hot tea was wise.  I woke up this morning with a sore throat.  And Mom has been congested and sneezing all day.   So it was more tea and honey being served throughout the day.  

Now I have a question for you. (Because you're all so smart).  Do you see my honey squirt bottle above?  Is the way of preventing the honey from hardening?  What's the point of a honey squirt bottle if it won't squirt?  I end up taking the top off and dipping the handle of the spoon in and then stirring the tea.   If I buy "liquid" honey, I want it to be liquid!   Any suggestions??

Since we were all a bit under the weather I thought we should eat more than we usually do on Saturday which is usually just a snack grab kind of day.  I'm never sure if it's "feed a cold, starve a fever" or the other way around.  But I was hungry so I made a shepherds pie. And for the first time ever I made hamburger gravy.  Don't laugh!  I've just never made it before.   I made a full size one and had enough left over to make an individual size one.

I even went a little Martha Stewart-ish and added a layer of sweet potatoes under the layer of plain mashed potatoes.  Fancy shmancy right?  :)

Then I cut some wool for my rug.  You know, that I was too lazy to do last night.   Such pretty colors I think and far outside my usual color choices 

Another experiment I hope doesn't amount to be a waste of perfectly good wool.  I have yet to master the art of a random mixed background in hooking but for some reason I keep wanting to try.  Isn't that the definition of stupid - doing the same thing over and over again, thinking it will be different?  Or maybe it's just stubborn, dogged determination?    Anyway, here goes again!

Happy hour

This week Happy Hour took on a different twist.  By the end of the week all I wanted to do was come  home and curl up with a cup of hot tea.  Friends and martini's can do without me today.  

The weather is cooling nicely.  The boots are all out and ready for duty.  This weekend, hopefully the cozy sweaters will be called into service.  Many of you have inquired about Millie.  She is doing fine although still quirky.  She is drinking water but not yet on her own.  But will drink happily out of my palm.  Baby steps! 

Before anyone thinks I'm enabling the problem, let me set this straight.  This house is often chaos.  Between my full time job, household duties, Mom's care and now Auntie with a severe bout of sciatic back issues - I am doing whatever I have to do to keep things moving.  Sometimes you have to sacrifice common sense and just get it done.  So if I can get her to drink out of my hand in 2 minutes, I'm doing it.

Are you picking up on the fact that by the end of the week I am exhausted?  I thought some rug hooking might be relaxing tonight.  I hooked about 15 minutes and needed to cut a little more wool.  Instead I just put it all away.  Sad, right?  

I decided to just drink another cup of tea with my baby fur ball at my side. 

Crows and farm girls

Some times at the adult day care program they make the cutest little crafts.  Today this is what Mom made

Isn't he cute!  Nice and simple little crow.   It must be hard for them to come up with ideas that patients with varying degrees of incapacitation can manage.  Mom was pretty proud of this guy when I picked her up today.  

I picked up my vegetable box today from the CSA farm program.  I looked at this and suddenly realized I would not be a very good farm girl.  

I had absolutely no idea that this is how Brussels sprouts are grown.  I'll admit it - I felt a little foolish.  I was kind of fascinated.  I don't know how I thought they grew but I never would have guessed they popped out of this stalk.   It sort of looked like a green lupin.  Larger ones on the bottom and smaller and darker towards the top.   

Did you know this??  (Please protect my dignity and pretend you thought they came all separated in a big bin at the grocery store)

Really, this should illustrate how little it takes to amuse me some days.  And how fascinating my day was that THIS is all I have to blog about :)

Weekend Wrap-Up

There's a fair amount of random coming up.  Not much happened this weekend to warrant a separate post.  Millie is doing better but is far from "cured".  She has lots of quirky antics she employs to get a drink.  She still needs some help.  I threw some treats in her water and roared at her antics to try and get them out without actually drinking from the dish.  Crazy dog!

I had a headache Friday.  Not too bad but it did progress.  By Saturday morning it was bordering on migraine status. I had a few errands I wanted to run.   My first stop at Deanne's studio (in case I felt like hooking later).  I did get some pretty rose colored wool but I should have stayed home.  I was beginning the queasy stage of migraine.   But it was the end of the Fibre Arts Festival plus Deanne had just launched her new book venture.

The illustrations are her rugs!  I peeked at a few pages but decided I better not stick around.  Can you imagine this ......"Nice book Deanne" and then throw up on one!   I will grab one this week when I can truly appreciate it.  

I had one other necessary stop at my friend Stephanie's shop.  She was displaying some of my rugs and one just sold on etsy so I wanted to get it ready to be shipped.  I walked in and the combo of the smells of strong fresh brewed coffee and the normally lovely collection of fancy soaps just flipped my migraine queasy stomach.  Her husband looked at me and said "are you ok?"  I wasn't !  I said No but I need the Santa crow rug......quick!!   He grabbed it, threw it at me and I just made it home.   Bed for the rest of the day and this morning I felt fine.  

Today I found a piece of burlap I had drawn on and discarded.  I drew another design over it.  Now it just looks like a mess a 2 year old would draw on a wall.  Hopefully by the time I'm ready to start hooking I'll be able to sort through the lines.  Then I decided we needed a comfort food kind of supper.  I made my brown sugar meatloaf and mashed potatoes.  I was feeling good and then a friend posted on Facebook that she was making lobster bisque.  That kind of took the Oomph out of my nice meal!  Lol   But it was good, even if it wasn't 5 star restaurant fare. 

I guess that's all that barely qualifies as blog fodder.  Have a great week ahead :)

SHE DRANK

I don't know how or why but my baby finally drank some at supper time.  I came home from work and she was freaking out.  Climbing and clinging to me like the world was ending.  Auntie said she had to hold her all day.  She wouldn't settle down or even sit down all day.   I looked around the house and poor auntie had different water dishes filled and placed all around the house.  She was worried too. 

I grabbed the nearest water bowl and dipped my fingers in the water and she was ravenously licking it off.  After 3 or 4 tries I gave her some cupped in my palm and she took some sips.  She wouldn't do that before.  I felt encouraged and she was starting to act a little less skittish. 

I refilled the plastic bowl right to the top and sat it down beside her on the sofa.  After a minute she creeped forward and after a very tentative sip she took another and another.   Hallelujah !

Here she is resting after her little belly was full of water.  

At last she has settled down.  Did I mention she woke me up at 1:30am, 3am and 4am?  

Ok Momma, enough pictures.  Leave me alone now.  Buzz off :)

I called the Vet's office first thing this morning.  I was put on hold 4 times and eventually was told someone would call me back.   Seven hours later.........they called back.  Ironically about 10 minutes after she drank.  I was not impressed.  The only info provided was possibly she got a shock from her metal dish.   

Anyway, fingers are crossed that she will drink again later.  But for now I'm just happy she drank at all.  

Thank you for all your concern.  These furry little babies crawl into our hearts and it's awful when you don't know how to help them.   

Crazy times

Millie is having some kind of doggie psychotic episode. It's gone from mildly annoying to flat out serious.  She won't drink water.  I have tried every trick.  At this point she will only lick water off my fingers if I dip them in water.  At only 4 pounds it won't take long for her to dehydrate. 

This is how far I have stooped.  

I went to the pharmacy tonight and asked for syringes.  Naturally, he wanted to know what I needed them for.  I didn't think I looked like a druggie who was going home to shoot up!  I kind of grinned and said I don't want to tell you because you'll think I'm nuts.  Well, that just peaked his interest.  Finally I begrudgingly admitted I needed to give water to a sick 4 pound dog.   Yes, he laughed at me and handed me a handful of syringes. 

This is a good depiction of Millie's reaction to my attempt to trick her with a needle full of water

She was not impressed and obviously smarter than I had anticipated.  She was having no part of it.  

I will have to get her to a vet tomorrow.  She hates the vet.  Yes, she knows the word.  I fact she even knows the street.  If we even drive down that street she starts to shake until we drive past the building.  

Ok, final confession. I even tried to threaten her.  We sat by the water dish and told her we were going to the vet.  You know, the place where they put thermometers up your butt and jab you with sharp pointy needles and make you scream like a banchee.  BUT you can avoid all that if you just take a drink.......

Shockingly, it didn't work.   So it appears we will be recreating this scene with a much smaller version of patient.  

More fun at the funny farm!