Progress, My Attacking Loon & A Book

I finally got my Dremel back from DH yesterday. He "borrowed" it from me several years ago and took it to the shop for repairs, etc. He doesn't take great care of his tools, and he has a Dremel of his own, but no ... mine was nicely packaged with all of the various bits and wrenches, and it was convenient for him to just reach into the drawer where I kept it and grab it. So, I haven't had my Dremel for quite a while, several years, and I haven't been pleased about it. 

My Dremel is older than this, and not everything pictured 
here came with mine, but it's as close as I could find. 
I love the hard-shell case. Everything is in one place and 
that's what I needed when I was taking it with me to 
various jewelry workshops. 

Yesterday he came up from cleaning the basement and deposited a mess on my desk. My Dremel, and the various tools, drill bits and other assorted things. Apparently I could take it back now. Whoot! I carefully got everything back in order, wrapped the cording around properly, and viola! Everything fits beautifully and it is now back at my craft desk where it belongs. 

I love my Minnesota We Stand United Sweatshirt. It's 
super attractive, light enough weight that I can wear it 
for several seasons, and it's our attacking Loon - the 
symbol of our resistance to Trump and his immigration 
policies. It's perfect! 

I'm wearing my Minnesota Loon - We Stand United sweatshirt to the shop today. It's a beautiful hoodie, and I'm very pleased with it. Chickie has a t-shirt that proclaims her solidarity with Minnesota, but I think my hoodie is much prettier. It's lightweight, so no problems wearing it through the day, and I can always layer if we have serious cold (which isn't the case right now). I'm pleased with the purchase, and I'm quite sure DH will grumble about it. But there's no text, just a wonderful, beautiful Minnesota loon, wings spread - a quiet statement of resistance. 

When I first spoke to Travis, several years ago, he sent me 
a copy of his book to read. (I certainly didn't just purchase it - 
it sells for MUCH more $ than I could spend at that time, or 
even now). I've poured over it several times, and it's coming to 
work with me again today because I want to check out some 
timelines and prep details. 

So, it's Saturday. Maybe I'll be lucky and able to take tomorrow off from work. I'm bringing Travis' book along with me to the shop today so that I can read ahead and get a better idea of whether we're on track for our closing schedule. The dates are coming up quickly, and there's still a BUNCH of things we have to get done before the licence is obtained, the banner and signs go up, and we're ready to go into the final stages of closing out the store. It's nerve wracking. It's so much easier to just turn in your notice or, in some cases, simply declare "I Quit" and walk out the door. It's much harder when you actually own the business. Have a wonderful weekend and I'll be back on Monday morning. Slava Ukraini. 

Checking In - Friends Would Worry *hugs*

Just a very quick check-in. I'm running really late today - no special reason, just am. So, I'm checking in because I have friends who would worry if I didn't post on a regular day, and I don't want to cause anyone to worry on my behalf. Have an excellent weekend, one and all, and I'll be back on Monday - hopefully back on schedule and on timing. *hugs* and Slava Ukraini. 

Death and Taxes - Predictably, I Forgot One Piece of Paper

DH did point out to me yesterday that May 31st isn't a hard deadline, that, if needed, our closing can move into the first part of June. That's going to impact the plans that Chickie has been making, so I texted her last night that she might end up having to work those first two weeks of June. I suspect she wasn't very happy about that - she's already been planning a trip out West with some family members and I might have just stomped on those plans, requiring some shifting. I know I wouldn't be happy to get a text like that, so I suspect she'll be quite crabby today. Nothing to be done about it, though. DH is correct. The close date isn't set in concrete, it's moveable depending on what remains to be sold. 

I suspect Chickie is not happy with me right now. 
She's been busy planning this trip out West for 
a couple of weeks now, and I completely forgot 
that we might still be open into June. My bad, but 
I'm going to need her help to get things locked down 
and closed. 

We met with out accountant last night for our personal taxes. I had everything together, except for a single 1099 which I forgot to print out. I've quickly done that and will have DH drop it off on his way in to the shop today. Then we'll be set. I asked my accountant if he knew any good attorneys he could recommend to help me with this whole identity issue I'm having, and he recommended a firm he does business with. He said they have about 25 lawyers on staff, so hopefully someone there will be able to assist me. I'll give them a phone call today. 

Our accountant is great, and very close to where we live 
so he's also very convenient. I usually forget at least one 
piece of paper, and this was no exception. I'll have 
DH drop the papers off on his way in to the shop today. 

Except for the usual - death and taxes (LOL) - everything seems to be moving along - a bit slowly, but steadily. I got everything done that I needed to yesterday, and even had a bit of time to relax - something rare on my Wednesdays. I got my next batch of fruit baked, and did six boneless pork chops for my upcoming dinners. Yummy! I still have a bit of leftovers that need to be eaten first, but I'm set up. I also had 10 audio book credits that needed to be used by the end of the month, so I bought the next ten in the next series I'll be listening to. It takes a LOT longer to listen to a book than to read it, so I'm probably set for the next year now. 

I've been listening to audio books while exercising for more 
than 25 years now. I can't imagine being in the pool without 
my books to listen to. I sometimes listen on the treadmill 
too, but often will stick to rock music on that equipment. 

So I'm heading out to the pool for my final swim of the week. I hope you have an excellent Thursday and I'll be back tomorrow. May life be kind to you today. Slava Ukraini. 

Bouncing Around My Thoughts - Can You Keep Up? LOL

I hope all of you had a good St Patrick's Day yesterday. Mine was completely uneventful, but that's just fine. I have enough things going on in my life and really didn't need to add St Patrick's Day celebrations to the mix. And it was darned cold out - so people celebrating doing the various parades were most definitely bundled up if they were at all using their brains. (Sometimes I wonder if the brain simply goes on vacation sometimes when I see people in very cold temps without appropriate winter clothing on.) 

It was COLD yesterday, so I have no idea how attendance 
at our St Patrick's Day celebrations was, but usually the 
party goes on, no matter what. We're from the Frozen 
Northlands after all! LOL

Today will be a very busy cooking day. I'm out of almost everything I had made for my dinners, so I need to figure out what I'll make, and I also need to make a batch of baked fruit for my breakfasts. It'll be a day in the kitchen separated by loads of laundry and a bit of grocery shopping, ending with a meeting with our accountant for our personal income tax returns. I think I have everything together for Paul, but if not, I'll drop the rest by on Friday morning on my way to the shop. 

I need to make my next batch of baked fruit today. It's 
what I eat for breakfast, and I'm down to a single 
portion. It's not hard to make, but it does take some time 
to get all of the fruit prepped and onto the baking sheets. 

Meanwhile, DH keeps complaining about how Chickie and I aren't pulling our weight at the store, and we keep ignoring him. If we actually paid attention to him, we'd be totally in a bad funk of a mood, but we've learned how to just let his words blow by us. It's self-defense in our lives. 

Over the years, Chickie and I have mastered the art 
of letting DH's words just blow by us. If we actually 
paid attention to him, we'd be horribly hurt by his 
words at times because he has no filter and puts 
his stresses on us. Not fair, so we ignore him instead. 

I also have to remember to contact the customer service department of my vitamin supplements company. They resumed shipping, and I was on a "Do not ship until I contact you" order. I wasn't allowed to take any of my supplements for more than six months while going through cancer treatment, so I'm way behind. But I'm getting new shipments now, so I need to remind them to NOT send me anything until I contact them again! GRRRR I love my supplements, BUT I'm over-supplied! 

Stonehenge Supplements just changed their 
packaging recently to look more streamlined. 
I'm not a fan. I liked their old look with the 
Stonehenge monument on the label. Nonetheless, 
these two work well together and I really do 
notice a negative impact when I don't take them 
(as required while I was undergoing my surgery and 
recovery from cancer last year). 

Have a great Wednesday and I'll be back tomorrow - hopefully for a less busy and stressful day. Be kind and Slava Ukraini. 

Happy St Patrick's Day!

Happy St Patrick's Day to one and all. I celebrated the day when I was a child, but nominally. On the sidelines. Sometimes Mom would make a corned beef, but only because it was on sale, not because of any special holiday. Then I married into an Irish/German Catholic household and things changed - radically. My in-laws celebrated and were involved in St Patrick's Day in numerous ways. They didn't march in the parade, at least not when they were getting older. But they were involved in a lot of the different events, etc. 

This is a prior year's St Patrick's Day Parade in downtown 
St Paul. I forget how many miles they walk, party and 
celebrate, but it's quite a few, making their way from downtown 
towards Minneapolis. 

I enjoy the holiday - it's always fun to have a good time, and when we have good weather, it's even better. Up here in the Frozen Northlands, it's been everything from really warm Spring days to days with heavy snow in the years I've been living up here. You never know what St Patrick's Day will bring, but the parade will go on. I recall seeing the signs for parking and alternative ways to get to the clinic last year when I was doing Radiation Therapy at this time of the year. Ov course, at the hours that I had my appointments, there certainly was no parade - LOL. 

I totally realize that Corned Beef & Cabbage is NOT a 
traditional Irish meal. But it is the meal most associated 
with St Patrick's Day in my part of the Universe. I'm not 
making it this year, no real time to cook. But, we might do 
it on Sunday. Just because it's pretty tasty. 

But yes, this nominal German Jew ended up marrying into an American Irish/German Catholic family - it caused a lot of people to go a bit ballistic on both sides of the family. But here we are ... lots of storms behind us, and probably a few in our future, but still together after more than 45 years. 

Tomorrow night we have an appointment with our tax 
accountant for our personal income tax returns. That 
usually goes pretty easily - we have our financial information 
in pretty good condition and I think I've remembered to 
print out everything necessary. But, I can always drop paperwork 
off to their office later in the week if I've missed something. 

Tomorrow we have an after-hours appointment with our accountant for our personal income tax return preparation. I think I've finally finished printing out all of the possible paperwork he might need, and if I am missing anything, one of us can drop it by his office later in the week. I don't think we'll have any surprises pending, but one can never know for sure until the numbers have been crunched. 

So, if you're celebrating St Patrick's Day with a toast of 
green beer, lift one for all of us who can't celebrate today. 

So, enjoy your Green Beer and celebrations today. St Paul will be celebrating alongside you, and the parade will go on, as always. It's going to be cold, but I don't think we'll be getting any snow, so that's at least one positive thing. Hopefully everyone marching will dress warmly. I'll be back tomorrow. Slava Ukraini. 

Dreams and Snow - One is Inescapable, the Other Is Unachievable

Once again I'm dreaming of a new set of cookware. Every year the set of titanium cookware I've been dreaming about goes on MAJOR sale, but it's still VERY expensive, and I simply don't have the extra cash to buy it. As usual, I've chosen the set that I want, and as usual, I'll dream about it for a few days and then shelve the dream again for another year. I know it's healthier to use titanium for my cookware than my the old stainless steel with Teflon coating (micro-plastics are NOT healthy, and Teflon coatings are micro-plastics in your food). But, to get the full set I want in titanium would be close to $1000 and I just don't have the money right now. But a girl in the kitchen can dream, right? 

When we get a solid snowfall, it's a PITA to get our very long 
driveway shoveled. I'm just grateful that the storm hit over 
Saturday night because I had the tine to deal with shoveling on 
Sunday without trying to get everything done in 30 minutes to 
get to the gym on time. 

My next door neighbor was a total sweetheart yesterday, he snow blowed the bottom third of my driveway for me before he headed to church. He texted me that he snow blew the street part of my driveway so we wouldn't get stuck if we were coming or going. I texted him back, thanking him VERY much for the kindness since it still took me over an hour to get the driveway shoveled. 

It's a lot faster and a lot easier to snow blow the snow away 
than to shovel it. However, our snowblower is quite large 
and intimidating, and just getting it out of the garage is a 
task. I just looked at it carefully and decided I would skip 
it and shovel instead. A lot more work and a lot harder on 
my body, but the shovel is very understandable. 

Shoveled? You might be thinking what about the huge snow blower that we have in the garage? Well, although DH has taught me how to start it several times, I'm totally intimidated by that machine, I can't even get it out of the corner of the garage to start it up. No ... it's me and my little green shovel tackling the driveway, and we had 6" minimum of snow all the way down. A LOT of snow to move. It took me more than an hour to get it cleared, and I was thankful every step of it that Chris had been kind and taking the time to help me out. 

I strained the upper part of my thigh 
while shoveling yesterday and it hurts! 
It's better today than it was yesterday, but 
it's still complaining. *sigh* I sometimes 
really hate getting old. LOL

But, with all of the shoveling, I strained my thigh muscles in my right leg and they're hurting right now. I still have to shovel out the front of the shop. Hopefully Kevin, a local Native guy who show blows for my next door neighbor (and always makes it just that little bit more to get a coming and going pass for me at no charge) was doing his thing yesterday. If so, I'll only have to cut in a walkway from my door to the street so that customers can access the sidewalk without having to walk in the street. I hope I'm up to doing that. I'm hurting today from yesterday's exertions. 

So, on that note, I'm wrapping this up, drinking a nice cup of tea, having breakfast, and heading out to the shop. I don't want to try and shovel rushed - I'm not really able to be "Speedy Gonzalez" today. Have an excellent Monday and I'll be back tomorrow. Slava Ukraini. 

Life in the Frozen Northlands - Live With it or Move

We're under a Winter Storm Warning for the next 48 hours. *sigh* We could potentially get up to 14 inches of snow with wind gusts of 39 mph and 1/4 mile minimum visibility. The storm is really hitting to the South and West of the Cities, but we're not escaping this one, and I'm really NOT in the mood for a winter storm. Especially when I know we'll be heading back to the shop tomorrow because we're still getting things ready for our closeout sale which starts all too soon. It's all a bit of a mess. 

We're under a Winter Storm Watch from mid-afternoon today 
until early Monday morning. But, we'll still need to get to the 
shop tomorrow - there's too much that still needs to be done 
to skip a day of working. 

Of course DH is double-thinking every decision we've made regarding the shop. That only makes things harder for Chickie and me while we're trying to make sure as many of our ducks are in a row as possible. I totally re-arranged a portion of our Northern wall yesterday to allow for a bit more artwork to be displayed, and new signage to be placed. 

We're not backing out of using Travis' company to help us 
liquidate the business, so complaining about minor details 
really is a waste of time. We don't have to like 100% of 
every action, but we need to do them anyway. 

Speaking of signage - DH is also complaining about our business liquidator. "When will the signs arrive", is a good question. "Did you read the postcard?" is another one (yes, I read it several times and I rather liked it - with a few specific changes that they are instituting before the print run). In the main, his comments are too few and too late, but annoying nonetheless. The contracts have been signed and we are committed to this action. We'll deal with any fallout after the fact on this one. 

So I'm wrapping this up, eating breakfast, and heading to the shop before the snow starts falling. Winter in the Frozen Northlands ... you either live with it or you move. Be safe and I'll be back on Monday. Slava Ukraini.