It's a New Year - Let's Make It a Good One

Happy New Year to all of my friends, relatives and readers. It's the 3rd on January, and after a couple of days off, I'm starting the new year out with a bang. Today is a Friday, so I have the "day off", but I have a 7:45 am appointment for a more thorough mammogram at a breast cancer specialty clinic. We'll see. I have "dense" breasts (not a surprise, I've been told that for decades) and they simply can't see clearly enough to determine if I have a potential problem or not. So, I leave my usual clinic behind and see a specialist this morning instead. 

What a way to start the new year. Still, there are many 
worse ways to start it. I always have issues with my 
mammograms - "dense breast tissue" causes problems 
with visibility. So, we'll see what we see. 

Tomorrow, after work, we head over to my youngest nephew's house for the family holiday get-together. It's only for three hours, and we're only able to catch the final hour or so, but we work at the shop on Saturdays, so we do what we can. I have only been to Joe's house once before, so I'll be relying on Google Maps to get me there - LOL. 

I'll be relying on Google Maps to get me to the clinic 
today and to my nephew's house tomorrow. I've been 
both places once before, but it's been quite a while. 

Then, next week on Friday, I get to go over the the clinic on the western edge of nowhere (not really that far, but it seems like it), and get the first of my every-six-months injections to slow down my bone density losses. Have I mentioned that it really sucks to get older? I'm far from old - I'm active, involved, I'm still in my right mind ... at least most of the time - LOL, and I have all of you to vent to. But time is catching up with me. That hunky dude in the black hooded outfit with a scythe will eventually ask me out on a date that I won't be able to turn down. I hope he's a great dancer, it's one major fail of DH. 

I think I'll postpone that dance with Death 
for a while longer. I'm sure he won't mind. 
He knows he'll win in the end, and everything 
on this Earth (and possibly everything in this 
universe) passes through his hands. That's quite 
the job for a single dude! I'm impressed! 

However, my plans don't include dancing with Death anytime soon. I'm going to try everything I can reasonably do to forestall that eventual meeting. I can't push it off forever, none of us can; and quality of life is just as important as length of life. If I can't feed myself, if my brain has taken a semi-permanent vacation, if I can't READ (that would be horrid beyond thought), then I probably want to climb onto the wheel once again and see what mischief I can get into the next go 'round. But I'm not there yet. No cute guys in black garb around me. I suppose that's all for the best. I don't need an early introduction. Have an excellent Friday, I'll be back tomorrow. In the meanwhile, start your New Year out on a good foot and be kind today. Slava Ukraini. 

It's the Final Day of 2024 - Thoughts and Calendars

Today is the final day of 2024 and I'm heading to the swimming pool in a half-hour or so. It's the end of the year on most calendars we come into contact with, but there are other calendars out there used today that will not reflect this date. That's fine, although it can be a bit confusing sometimes. 

It's the last day of the current year on the calendar 
that we use most frequently here in the USA. 
Do you use a different calendar? Tell us about it. 

I remember when I was quite young, a relative from Israel sent me a calendar for the New Year, and it was a complete revelation to me because it didn't resemble my "normal" calendar at all. It was all in Hebrew, for one thing, but the months and dates were different, and the year was totally different. I thought it odd and rather unusual, as well as rather worthless to my young self. I liked it as an oddity, but never really had any use for it. 

I was quite mystified by the calendar my Jewish 
relatives had sent. I didn't understand it at all, 
and finally gave up and returned to my standard 
calendars with months I recognized and dates 
I could read. 

Calendars frame our lives. We're born on specific dates, and celebrate those dates annually as we progress in age. We track things on calendars - appointments, goals, life-changing events, etc. We sometimes look back at old calendars to see if we have progressed in one or another thing. I keep the photo pages that I love, because the calendars that I purchase annually have some outstanding photography. 

I choose my calendars because of their 
images. I have five calendars that I 
use daily, and one at the shop. All of them 
have wonderful photographs that I adore. 

So we're at the end of the calendars for 2024, and almost ready to begin the calendars for 2025. Will things really change that much? It's unlikely. You'll still head to your job within the week, you'll still deal with cooking and grocery shopping, you'll still dry a child's tears or exchange hugs with a good friend. In other words, life will continue. The only thing that will change is the date that we write on entries like this one, or on notes or physical checks to pay bills. But, you have an opportunity, today, to look back over the past year and say, "Yes. I liked this part of my year", or "No, I don't think I want to repeat that experience again." In other words, we can change our future based on the experiences of the past. 

When you look back at the past year, look at all of it - the 
good and the bad. You'll find that the good is much more 
than the bad, and the bad existed only to show you how much 
you had that was good in your life. Be kind to yourself. You've 
made it through another year and are beginning a new one. 
The possibilities are limitless. 

Today, I urge you to look at the past year - the good and bad, the happy and the sad. Don't worry about resolutions, just make a general pledge to be kind. Somehow, that's really all that's needed to make your way in this world. Kindness can move mountains. Have a safe, excellent New Year's Eve. I'm not sure if I'll post tomorrow (I probably will), but I wish the very BEST 2025 for every one of my readers. Slava Ukraini. 

 

Happy New Year to All - Thoughts and Donations

Happy New Year to all of my friends across this wide world. We've now entered another calendar year, but the troubles and strife of the previous year has followed us as well. My prayer for this year is peace and love for all - two-footed, four-footed, finned and winged. My charitable donations for the year followed that theme, with several wildlife organizations, the Humane Society, and a generous monthly donation to St Jude Children's Hospital, public television and public radio. I'm doing more monthly donations this year since the monthly donation I already make to Trevor Project have been working out quite well. It is my personal belief that to have funds means an obligation to share those funds, and this is how I choose to do so. 

I chose St Jude Children's Research Hospital for a monthly 
donation based on one thing they did over 2020. They 
were single-handedly responsible for the evacuation of 
hundreds of desperately ill children and their parent(s) from 
Ukraine. They arranged for a full hospital train to pick 
them up and bring them out of Ukraine, where they were 
sorted out, assigned to various medical centers (including 
St Jude's in the USA) and treated for their various illnesses. 
They paid for it all, and saved hundreds of children as a 
result of this action. I think they deserve a bit of my money 
for such an amazing feat of wartime moxy. 

Tomorrow (actually later today since it's after midnight) we're heading over to my youngest niece's house for a family Christmas/New Years get-together. We haven't had one of these since pre-Covid, so it'll be pleasant to see everyone again. I wish all of my readers a safe and happy New Year and thank all of you for having been there for me when I needed you over this past year. We all need a friend to lean on every now and again, and you play that role in my life. Slava Ukraini and Happy New Year. 

Hello 2022 - It's Time to Think of Goals For This Year and My Future

Hello Beautiful People - Happy New Year. I had a lovely three days off, checked the computer every now and again, but really just kicked back, watched a lot of football, read a lot of novels, played a lot of games on my phone, and cooked a large piece of meat for New Year's Day dinner. All in all, it was a lovely holiday - still filled with a bit of back and forth between DH and me, but I'm quite used to those choppy waters. 

Isn't this a lovely photo? It's by Michael Frizzel and 
entitled "Choppy Waters". I suspect this is what a lot 
of my life over this coming year will look like. The key 
will be getting through the choppy waters into the 
calm that lies past them. 

Today I'm back to my normal schedule - out to the pool, then home for breakfast, and then on to the shop for a "normal" day of work. But today also starts a new year - the last year of the shop. I can't wait to close the doors for the final time, but I know there will be a lot of arguments and tension in my future and I don't handle stress now as well as I used to. 

I cooked a two-bone standing rib roast for dinner on 
New Year's Day and it turned out perfect. I think I'm 
quite happy with my new oven. I'll be eating my portion 
for a week. I think DH is almost completely finished 
with his half. 

So I'm happy, but a little bit worried at the same time. We're gong to have a lot of stuff left over after we shut our doors, and I'm gong to have to figure out a way to store it and to sell it - online more than likely, auction if I possibly can because it would make things quite a bit easier. We'll have artwork, storytellers, pottery, kachinas, pottery and Navajo weavings, all of which really need new homes, most of which probably won't sell when we're closing the store down. All of these categories sold well until about 2012, when beads became our major sales item and Indian-made goods fell back. I love the artwork, but it's going to be a true PITA to get rid of. 

We watched the Winter Classic Hockey game on TV, 
grateful that we weren't in the stands for this one. The 
temperature was VILE - negative 5.7 degrees F at 
face-off. The teams wore their Old Style jerseys for 
the game, which were quite nice, but the Wild were 
missing three key players due to illness, and we didn't 
play well. Congratulations, St Louis. It was a great 
game to watch from the warm room in my house. LOL

But, I don't have to do it today or tomorrow, I have to do it over the next six months. That at least gives me a little bit of time to work things through, step by step. We also have a lot of Native American jewelry, which isn't an easy sell, but far from impossible. There's always a market for turquoise and silver jewelry. And we have a lot of original and limited edition print artwork, much harder to sell but it's got to find new homes. DH warned me we're going to fight a lot over this year, but if I can just make it to the end of the year, I'm hoping 2023 will be exceptional, and that I can actually take a vacation or two. Something I've dreamed about for years and years. 

I want to go to see the pyramids and temples of Egypt. I'd 
like to do that before I can't walk well, and can't enjoy 
the happiness of a lifetime's dream fulfilled. I'm hopeful 
that I can arrange this for 2023. It's a goal. I've also got a 
family reunion in NYC in 2023, so I'd like to make a 
nice long trip of it and see some friends I have on the 
East Coast at the same time. Again, we'll see what 
happens, but it's a good goal. 

So there are my New Year's goals. What are yours? I'm still planning to eat properly, exercise six days a week (I was lazy and didn't exercise over the New Year's weekend, but I'm back at the pool today), and I'll try to keep my stress minimal , although that will be difficult to do. I've been working towards these goals for a long time, so I'm just continuing the journey. What are your goals? What are you anticipating to get joy from over the coming year? Share with me, and have an excellent Monday as we start January. I'll be back tomorrow. 

Happy New Year of the Metal Ox!

Happy New Year to all! Today is the first day of the Year of the Ox and we leave the Year of the Rat behind us. Here's a lovely story of how the Ox became one of the animals in the Chinese Zodiac and how he helps humanity thrive. I'm hoping this link works, because it was an adorable short animation. 

Today is the first day of the Year of the Metal Ox. I'm 
giving you two different links, one (above) to a delightful
animation about the Ox and the Jade Emperor and how
the ox became such a helper to the farmers. The other
link (below) will take you to an easy-to-read Chinese
horoscope for the Year of the Metal Ox. Let's hope
this year will be a good one. 

While researching the Year of the Ox, I also found out that it's not only the Ox, but it's also a year of Metal, thus making this the Year of the Metal Ox. Who knew? In Feng Shui, it is a 6 Reigning Star Yin Metal year of the Ox. Whew! That's a lot to say, but I'll make it easier and give you another link to follow which will explain all of that with a full Feng Shui  and Lo Shu forecast for the year ahead (and actually, some very interesting reading that's not too in-depth to wrap your head around). 

The Year of the Ox can mean prosperity, but also is a 
warning to watch your savings carefully. The Lo Shu 
numbers have some cautionary aspects, so be warned. 

Basically, it seems quite upbeat, that we'll turn a corner this year. But it also moderates the optimism with the understanding that we'll still be vaccinating, still be wearing masks, and that we're still finding our footing in this brave new world. That seems reasonable to me, and I found  it interesting, so hopefully you will too. If you continue down past the 6 Reigning Star section, it will go through several other numbers of the Lo Shu Square for 2021 Year of the Ox, and it makes for a thorough and fascinating look at the year ahead in this one interpretation. 

OK, this is just too cute. You can actually get a Lego 
for the Year of the Ox. It's a limited edition and only 
available for a limited time, but dang! So cute! 

Of course, as humans, we're really lousy at telling the future. But anything giving a positive spin for this next year, I'm totally in favor of. We all need some positives in our lives right about now, as people stress over Covid and whether or not they can or will get vaccinated. I'm all in favor of positive strokes and attitudes. So on that note, have an excellent day. Be kind, stay safe and wear your mask. I'll be back tomorrow, and HAPPY NEW YEAR!  

It's 2021 - What Am I Reading Today?

I'm being lazy today. Instead of doing my 1-1/2 - 2 miles on the treadmill, I'm taking today off and I'll return to a "normal" schedule on Monday. It's a 'holiday gift' to myself (although, realistically, the treadmill workout would be a better gift to myself). I was busy with so many things over the past year, so even though I read a lot, my numbers were probably a bit down from prior years. Still, I managed to read 156 novels and 20 instructional books over the past year. Of these, only four books were marked down as total duds, so the average was pretty good. 

One of my favorite books of the year was 
also one of the earlier books - published 
in January 2020. TJ Klune's "The House in 
the Cerulean Sea" is a masterpiece. Beautifully 
conceived, wonderfully framed. It's made 
a lot of Top Books of 2020 lists and it 
deserves the accolades. Give yourself a 
treat and read it. 

The non-fiction books slowed me down. John Bolton and Mary Trump's books about our soon-to-be-leaving President were slow reads, but essential and interesting. All things considered, although some of the books I read weren't five-star, I regret few of them, and if they were awful, I usually gave up early and went on to something more interesting. 

Neither of these two books was an easy read, but I pushed 
through them because I wanted to understand who this 
President really was before I voted. I had no doubt I would 
vote against him, but I wanted to try to understand him and 
his governmental policies better. It was a total train wreck, 
and I'm glad I read both of these. I think I still have one more 
book down the pile of the pending 106. 

My problem now is that I have a bunch of books that have moved over to my 20221 TBR list and that is far more than usual. Counting them up, I have 106 books that have moved over from 2020 to 2021. You would think that with all that enforced time off I'd have read more, but apparently not. I'll have to get moving on reading this year. I have a lot of books to catch up on. 

I fully admit that Gay Romance novels may not be everyone's 
cup of tea or choice of reading material, and they aren't 
everything I read, but when I do read romance, Rhys Ford, 
Amy Lane and Andrew Grey are go-to authors for me. 

I think I've received all of my holiday cards from family and friends now. I'll try to spotlight a few of these and make sure I thank each and every one of you who were kind enough to send a physical card for my mantle. It makes my heart happy when I walk into the living room and see them hanging in their colorful array. 

On that note, I'm out of here. Have a wonderful Saturday and I'll be back on Monday. 

Best Laid Plans - Happy New Year

Well, the best intentions sometimes don't happen. I went down to my computer early this morning to wish all of you a Happy New Year, but discovered my internet connection was down. After being patient and trying to restart it, I had to give up and get over to the shop to do our year-end reports and deposit. When I returned home I still had no internet, so I took the bull by the horns and contacted Comcast. After almost an hour of staying on hold or listening to various this and that, I finally reached the correct department for my type of account (I have a business account here at home because I do a lot of business work on my computer). They said a technician would be able to be at my home within two hours. 

I had intended to wish all of you a Happy New 
Year early this morning. It didn't happen. 

It took slightly more than two hours, but my tech finally appeared at my door. After about a half hour, we had the system back up and running, but it turned out to be a modem glitch which may be caused by the age of my modem. I'll have to look into getting a new one if this happens again, but at least I'm back up and running again.  

I hope next year treats all of us kindly. It was a very 
difficult 2020 and I'll be happy to see the end of it. 

I wanted to say, this New Years Eve, how very grateful I have been for my friends, in-person and on-line, over this very stressful year. I'll be happy to wave good-bye to 2020, and I hope that 2021 fulfills the hope that it holds. I cherish each and every one of my friends and I'm so very happy to have shared this past year with you. I'll be changing my calendars over tomorrow and I'm taking the day off, but I'll be back on-line on Saturday to wish all of you an official "Happy New Year". As always, be kind, stay safe, and please wear your mask. 

Safe and Happy New Year's Eve

Calendars are a construct - many societies over time have had calendars in a myriad of forms and designs. The Western world that most of us live in have embraced a particular calendar that declares tonight a bridge night - a passage from one year to another. 

Happy New Year to all of you! I look forward to sharing
another year with you in 2020. 

As we ready ourselves to cross that bridge to the other side and begin wandering the virgin ground of the next year, I hope for happiness, peace, love and joy for each of you. I can do nothing about governments, I can do nothing about municipal standards or rules, but I can attempt to spread a small bit of happiness among my friends and acquaintances. That's what I'm doing today.

Happy New Year! 

I have Wednesday and Thursday off work, so probably won't be posting again until Friday morning. That gives all of you the opportunity to stake out the path we'll travel over the next year; I'll follow your stakes as you blaze the trail. 

I value each of you, and I look forward to sharing another year with you through the pages of my blog and your own postings. Be safe, be warm and be happy. *Hugs* to all! 

Holiday Overload - It Was A Unicorn Event

So, did you survive your holiday season? DH and I had a few rocky bits, but it turned out all right and here we are, entering a new year. I ended up two calendars short, so ordered two last night to fill in those spots on my walls. Except for that, things actually seemed to go smoothly. We survived the family get-together and I had fun listening to my nephew and nephew-in-law discussing hockey. It's something the three of us have in common. We actually stayed until 4:30 pm, 30 minutes later than DH had said he wanted to stay. The food was great, and the kids spent their time running upstairs and down, non-stop. Ugh! Still, it was fun to see everyone. 

One of my niece Mary's three girls holding her unicorn
headband for me. Many of the girls got one of these
in a small stocking stuffer that included bath bombs and
twist-on/off lanterns. The lanterns were actually pretty nice. 

DH made cookies and lemon bars for the get-together and they were very well received. My meatballs were also a hit, so all was good. Unicorns seemed to be the popular gift. The younger girls all got fluffy white unicorn headbands, and one niece got the full effect - snowy hoodie with attached front paws and accompanying after-snow fluffy slipper/boots, all with built-in LED lights. Quite the experience. 

This is one of my niece Annie's kids. She
apparently really loves unicorns. The hood has
"hoofs" at the end for her hands and also came
with slipper/boots. She's holding one of those
lanterns I mentioned, although it isn't turned on. 

Still, the kids seemed delighted, there were no major meltdowns, the house was quite lovely with a nice back yard for their Great Dane and smaller mixed dog to run around in and have a wonderful time playing. It was fabulous to see everyone again for a few hours, and I actually did enjoy myself and got lots of hugs. 

A side view of the unicorn shows the profile -
horn and ears, as well as a better look at
the front paws. It's really quite cute, and those
LED lights were fun! 

All in all, I'm happy with the holiday season, and even happier that it's over. I'm starting work again on cleanup for the craft room - a serious effort needs to be made ASAP - and I'll continue cleaning up and eliminating things from the backroom at the shop and my workbench. All of these things need to come together as a whole at some point, and there's only so much room in my home. 

So I hope all of you had a tremendous holiday season. I'm not happy with the scale, and suspect that is shared by many of you, but I'm back in the pool today and that's the next step to getting the holiday weight off. With a bit of work and watching what I eat, I'll be back to where I want within a few short weeks. Have a great Wednesday and I'll be back tomorrow. 

Last Meme of 2018 or First Meme of 2019

 Taken from Samtyr. And here we go...

1. First thing you wash in the shower? Body first, then hair then hands and feet. 

2. What color is your favorite hoodie? Broncos blue (sensible since they are Broncos hoodies). 

3. Do you plan outfits? Oh yes, they have to be functional for the day.

4. How are you feeling right now? Exhausted. 

5. What's the closest thing to you that's red? There's an envelope to a Christmas card that a friend gave me in my pile. 

6. Tell me about the last dream you remember having. I dreamed poetry last night, usually it's more about architecture, construction and colorways. 

7. Did you meet anybody new today? I met my youngest nephew's girlfriend and her daughter. Really sweet - both of them. 

8. What are you craving right now? Sleep - remember ... exhausted in Number 4. 

9. What comes to mind when you think of cabbage? Red cabbage - love it and get it so rarely. 

10. Have you ever counted to 1,000? No - I'm lucky if I can keep my train of thought long enough to make it to 100 without focusing on something else ... "Squirrel." 

11. Do you bite into your ice cream or just lick it? Both. 

12. Do you like your hair? Not right now, no. 

13. Do you like yourself? Usually, although I think I could have done more with my life. 

14. Would you go out to eat with George W. Bush? W? Sure. He might have been a Republican, but he was an interesting man. His son, now ... absolutely NOT! 

15. What are you listening to right now? Top 30 Hard Rock songs of 2018 according to Octane on Sirius. 

16. Are your parents strict? They were fairly strict when they were still living. 

17. Would you go sky diving? In a flash! I'd love to do this. 

18. Do you like cottage cheese? Yes - good stuff! 

19. Have you ever met a celebrity? Yeah, depending on your definition of "celebrity". 

20. Do you rent movies often? Rarely. 

21. Is there anything sparkly in the room you're in? Oh yeah - I'm a Magpie in disguise. 

22. Have you made a prank phone call? When I was a teenager - I think it's a bit harder now with caller id and spam prevention programs. 

23. Ever been on a train? I love trains and when I can get from A to B on a train, I usually will opt for that. 

24. Brown or white eggs? It's an egg - I'm nondiscriminatory. 

25. Do you use chap stick? Not that brand, no. 

26. Can you use chop sticks? Oh yeah, although I don't use them as well as I used to. I used chop sticks exclusively for more than five years while in college, I got pretty good at them. 

27. Are you too forgiving? Not necessarily forgiving, but quite a bit too trusting. 

28. Ever been in love? Absolutely, and I still am. It's the roller coaster road of life. 

29. Last time you cried? Probably within the last day or two - I was reading something sad and books will always get me crying. 

30. What was the last question you asked? I had a get-together with my family this evening - the whole thing was a question and answer expedition. So happy that's only once a year. I love them all, but it can be quite overwhelming. 

31. Favorite time of the year? Spring, spring, spring!!! 

32. Do you have any tattoos? Only two - I really want more. 

33. Are you sarcastic? I certainly can be in the right circumstances. 

34. Ever walked into a wall? Yes, I can be as silly as the next person who doesn't pay attention to where they're walking. 

35. Favorite color? Green. 

36. Have you ever slapped someone? Yes, although I'd prefer to punch them. I try to not do physical violence in general, though. 

37. Is your hair curly? Extremely fine with just enough curl to make humid days relative hell. 

38. Do looks matter? Oh yes - there's no doubt that they play a part, even though it might be subconscious. 

39. Do you like your life right now? It's OK. It could be better, but it's getting there. 

40. Do you sleep with the TV on? Oh goodness no. I really am not fond of TV. 

41. Can you handle the truth? I try to. 

42. Do you have good vision? I'm old - my vision is betraying me and since I make my living doing things that depend on vision, that's creating some serious issues. 

Do you feel like playing along? Copy and post your own answers. 

Happy New Year. 

A New Year's Wish For You

A short note for my friends and readers this New Year's Eve. 

For those who sorrow - comfort.
For those who hunger - fulfillment.
For those who question - answers. 
For those who love - joy. 

For all of you who have enriched my life over this past year - peace and thanks. 

Love to all. I look forward to a 2019 shared with you. 

A Quick Year-end Wrap-up

Although people in the Frozen Northlands may not like rain, it appears that even though the temperatures drop, if the rain stops, they'll come out. Our incredibly poor sales day on Thursday was made up by a nicely busy Friday. If Saturday can follow along, I can end the year relatively content. I got several of my charitable donations made last night, and will try to get the rest finished tonight or tomorrow. The year is wrapping up. 

I really love my daily swim. It's not always easy to get up and
get over to the gym, but I can't imagine not doing it after
more than three years in the pool every day. It's routine, now. 

Comparing date to date from 2017 to 2018, I'm actually up four pounds (although that's totally holiday weight and will be off within two weeks). In 2017 I was at the gym 279 times, but I beat that this year with 287 times in the pool. I'm pretty happy about that. It just doesn't seem like a good day unless I've started it in the pool, so I guess my daily swim is totally under my skin. 

I'm looking forward to brunch on Sunday. We haven't had a
brunch together in years and it's always been something
we've enjoyed. 

DH and I will be going to brunch on Sunday - we've been wanting to try the one near our house for quite a while, and decided to make it happen. It would be really nice to have that as an option if we end up liking it. We used to do brunch a few times a year, but then most of the restaurants we went to either closed or changed to a different style of menu. There's something nice about a brunch every now and again. 

Thanks to each of you. I may not write directly
to you, but you're always in my thoughts. 

So as I wrap this up, I want to thank all of my readers because you mean a lot to me. I write my daily blog as a way of getting my thoughts in order and waking my brain for the upcoming day. I try to avoid political tirades - I think we get too much of that through Facebook and other social media. I rarely know what I'll write about in advance, I just sit at the keyboard and let my thoughts flow to my fingers. That you care enough to read and, occasionally, comment is amazing and humbling. Thank you! 

Have a safe and wonderful New Year. I look forward
to filling your in-box every morning in 2019. Thanks
for being there for me. 

Have a wonderful Saturday and a Happy New Year. I'll be back to posting on Wednesday, January 2nd. (Of course, that's providing I survive the family get-together on the afternoon of the 31st - LOL. I'll be cooking my Asian-inspired meatballs tomorrow so everything is ready to go.) So cheers and hugs to all, I'll return in 2019! 

Happy New Year - A Solstice Card Update & 2nd Call For Cards

I hope everyone had a wonderful Samhain and wish everyone a steller New Year on the Wheel. We didn't have Trick-or-Treat kids coming to our door, even though the lights were on, but I had warned DH to only purchase one bag of candy so we're not too overloaded this year. Of course, his one bag actually equated to two, but since he's the candy monster, I'll live with it. 

He bought Reese's for me - I love their Peanut Butter Cups.
It wasn't quite this assortment, because it also had Kit Kats
in it for him, and the Reese's were individual standard
sized peanut butter cups. Yummy! 

I had a great "day off" though, and the most exciting thing about it was that I started the next step with my Solstice cards and started painting them. This year's card will feature two hand-painted images of those amazing and so fun House Mouse characters, (although I've decided that adding a separate ornament is beyond my time frame). They're turning out SO cute! I'm working with a new product for me - Tom Holtz' Distress Inks. These are funky, blend beautifully, and I'm really enjoying working with them. 

I've had Tim Holtz Distress Ink colors for a couple of years now,
and this is the year to play with them. I'm loving how my
House Mouse images are turning out once they are painted. 

I'll be solidifying with my address list within the next week or so, so I'm putting out my SECOND CALL FOR CARDS. If you would like one of my hand-made cards for your holiday, I'd be delighted to send one your direction, but they are finite and my family and close friends HAVE to come first on the list. I always send them around the world to friends, though, so don't be afraid to message me with your address and card request. I may be messaging some of you individually too, just to make sure we're still OK re addresses, etc. 

The other thing that will be used on this year's
card are my Stabilo pens. These are my go-to pens,
I've used them for years and adore them. 

So, as I wrap this up and get ready to leave for my morning swim, please message me. I'd love to hear from you. I may not be as vocal on the Boards as I used to be, but I'm still there, in the corners, lurking and rarely commenting. Hugs to all, have a great Thursday, and I'll return tomorrow. 

Bring It On - A New Year Begins

Hello and Happy New Year to all of my on-line friends, relatives and readers. It's a cold one here in the Frozen Northlands, but we finally broke the "Dangerous Wind Chill" cycle yesterday, after more than four days in the sub-zero icebox. Looking at my phone this morning, it's a joy to see six degrees ABOVE zero instead of seeing that minus sign in front of the number. I'm sure there is still some breeze, so it'll still be plenty cold, but I won't turn into a frozen statue of ice while waiting for the pool to open this morning. 

This stunning ice sculpture won first prize in Japan in 2010. Here in the
Twin Cities, we have an ice sculpture competition during our Winter
Carnival celebrations each year. The past few years have been warm,
this year will probably be quite frosty. 

I just came off a three-day holiday, the second in two weeks. I have to admit, last week's holiday was more successful than this week's turned out to be. On Sunday, we all gathered at my niece's house for a holiday pot-luck get together. I tried a new recipe for sweet and sour meatballs and it was a total hit. The house was a zoo, with DH's sister being the elder statesperson, and DH and I runners up. It always feels rather strange to be an elder. I still feel like a young person, but know I don't qualify. 

I'm not sure about this definition, the "relaxing"
part of it seems deceptive. Maybe DH and I will
get there eventually, but I'm not holding my
breath. 

Seven of the eight kids of my sister-in-law showed up, their spouses and kids accompanying them. Let me see if I can make a basic count: Michael +2, Catie, +3, David +3, Joe +1, Mary +4, Annie +4, John +2, and the three elders. That's 29 people in a small house, watching the TV, catching up on whatever news is worth discussing of family business and events, and watching the kids tear into their holiday gifts. Wait - holiday gifts a week after Christmas? Yes. The nieces decided years ago that their actual holidays would be much more restful if they designated one day after Christmas to a get-together and a gift exchange for the younger kids. It does help to both lessen the noise level and also to minimize fights and tears among the kids. 

Exchanging gifts for the kids at a different time than
the adults is much easier on the ears and body.
It makes for a house full of people, but we all had a
really good time and I don't think we wrecked
Mary's house too badly. 

After we returned home we watched two episodes of "Midsomer Murders" and tumbled into sleep. Coughing awakened me the next day. Apparently DH had either caught a cold, or one had been lurking in the background ready to pounce. Well, it unsheathed its' claws and did a number on him. Monday and Tuesday were spent with him mostly in bed, lots of hot tea and soup, and laundry. I figured I might as well get laundry taken care of since I was working for the rest of the week and wouldn't have the time. And it wasn't as if DH and I were actually going to do anything since he was sick. 

Poor hubby is NOT feeling well. But he has to work
on Wednesday and Thursday. If he's still sick on
Friday, he can spend the day in bed and then
try to recover some more over the weekend. 

So here I am, starting my new year out both good and bad. I'm pretty much caught up on laundry that desperately needed doing, I'm a few pounds higher than I want to be (too much salt, too much water retention), but I'll be at the pool in a little over an hour from now. DH is sick - and he has to work for the next two days, so that's not great. But ... 

One of my favorite calendars each year is my "Witches'
Calendar". I adore her artwork - scratchboard with
color added - exceptionally beautifully rendered. 

We made it through the new year, the new calendars are hung and being admired every time I look at them, and we're ready to start the new year. Bring It On!