It's Going To Be a Busy Week - Ren Fest Update

Happy Monday. Counting down until Sharon arrives, I have two Wednesdays and one Friday to finish cleaning the house and getting her room set up. That's plenty of time, if nothing unexpected turns up. Of course, the vacuum dying didn't help, but hopefully that will be fixed this week and I can get back to using it on my carpeting. If not ... well, acts of Spirit and all that ... LOL. 

One of the things that allows human beings to be as 
flexible as we are through problems of all types, is 
our ability to adapt to adversity and change our course 
to meet new circumstances. We need to be nimble on 
our feet these days. 

We had a lovely day at Ren yesterday. DH's hips have really been bothering him, so we didn't walk around a lot (even completely skipped one part of the Festival grounds. The temps were perfect, but we've back in the heat for the next few days now. Parking at the Fest was changed this year. They dramatically increased the number of Park-and-Ride busses, and they charge for parking. Because I was notified in advance, I was able to purchase my parking tickets for $10/day. If someone drives into the gate and wants to park, though, it's $30! That's a serious chunk of change! 

First weekend is always a slow one, but this year's seemed 
unusually slow. I suspect the parking requirements kept 
some people away, but a lot of people don't go to Ren Fest 
until after the State Fair has closed down. 

The parking attendants were extremely efficient, and got us parked quite quickly. I was impressed by how well it was operating, but I was surprised, when we left, at how few cars were in the lot we parked in. Where, during the latter weeks of Fest that lot will be filled to capacity, it was maybe 1/4 filled, and the Quarry, which had always been popular and filled quickly, was reserved for the park-and-ride busses to drop off and pick up. It's a new experiment, but it actually worked quite well (so far) and yes, it's rather like buying a Season Ticket for my car, but parking has always been a PITA and the traffic has been a serious issue. Hopefully this new system will help somewhat. 

Parking on Festival grounds used to be several massive lots 
holding about 12,000 cars. That's been dropped down to 
about 7000 cars in only two lots, and they've added six 
park-and-ride lots in areas surrounding the Festival grounds. 
From all reports, it's made a substantial impact on the 
traffic conditions and has improved the traffic flow 
dramatically. I'm calling the new parking system, despite 
the extra expense, a win/win. 

The other major change that they made to Fest is no overnight parking and no camping. That means that out-of-town vendors have to actually park in a campground elsewhere and drive to and fro, or they are skipping the Fest completely. Although we have an extensive location, we're not one of the major Ren Fests of the nation, so I suspect there are definitely vendors who opted out of the Minnesota show because of the extra expense of paying for a hotel room or a camping spot for an RV. The after-hours parties that used to occur are also ended with this new stricter policy. The grounds are closed at 7:00 pm, no exceptions. 

Whatever happens in life, there is only one direction 
in which we can move - onward. Just like these 
determined ducklings, we'll manage to overcome the 
obstacles, one way or another. 

DH and I came home, had drinks on the patio, and relaxed for the remainder of our Sunday. I think we both needed it. The next few weeks will be busy ones. I still have to purchase Ren Faire tickets for Chickie and Sharon for the Labor Day weekend, but that's easy to do - in fact, I just did it. Done and dusted! Onward with my day. Have an excellent Monday and I'll be back tomorrow. 

The Minnesota State Fair Day 1 - The Adventures of Sharon and I

Our first day at the Fair was a bit disorganized. We had gone for our traditional first night's dinner at Red Lobster and although I had my clothes ready to go, I wasn't thinking clearly when we left the next morning. I parked the car at the bus stop and then realized I had left our tickets at home. So, back into the car and a quick return home to grab the tickets. Of course, Sharon didn't mention anything about our Blue Ribbon Fair Discounts Books (which I had already purchased) until we were back at the bus again. I told her we'd just buy new ones at the Fair (only $5 each and well worth the cost). So we were off, finally! 

The State Fair comprises three major aspects - things to 
eat and drink, things to look at, and things to listen to 
or watch. Sharon and I knew we only had a day and 
a half of wandering before DH would join us on Saturday 
night and both DH and Chickie would join us on Sunday. 
We packed as much as we could into our day-and-a-half 
of wandering for the two of us. 

Here's what turned out to be my favorite food of the 
Fair. A NautiCal bowl - different fruit whips frozen, 
and topped with granola, honey, coconut and fresh 
fruit. Amazing! I ended up buying four of them over 
the three days, and have already looked up to find 
out local locations where I can go to get more. It's 
a fairly new franchise, but looks like it's expanding 
very quickly. Extremely tasty and highly recommended. 

It was supposedly going to rain, so I had my umbrella in my backpack. Apparently umbrellas are caught by metal detectors. Who knew? LOL Without the umbrella I passed through the electronics easily, and regained my umbrella on the other side. We were finally at the Fair once again and the sounds of happy people and odors of multitudes of food choices were ours for the taking. Heaven! 

I loved this skull quilt and it certainly deserved 
the blue ribbon it won. It was beautifully 
conceived and very well made. A treat! 
(It was behind glass, thus the reflections.) 

I thought this cross-stitch item at the MN State 
Fair was creative and thoughtful. Certainly 
well conceived. 

One of our first stops (after coffee and breakfast for Sharon) was wandering the International Bazaar (there wasn't anything I felt was necessary to purchase). Then we wandered through Agriculture, and on to Creative Activities. 

Apparently the four ladies travel through the State Fair with 
their "Kitty Shirt" and when they find interesting people, 
they ask if they can photo them wearing it. They asked a 
gentleman sitting at a nearby table, and he was game, 
then they asked me. Why not? "Sure," I said, "I'll wear 
the shirt if you promise to not hate me because I don't 
support your candidate." Assurances were given, so I 
put on the shirt and they texted me the photos. I liked this 
one the best. The lady wearing the political button is on 
the far left, then there's another of the ladies in blue, 
then me wearing the Kitty Shirt, and finally the final 
member of their group. Apparently the Kitty Shirt photos 
have been going on for several years. They shared stories 
and prior photos with us after I returned the shirt. 

After Creative Activities we felt the desire to sit for a while, so made our way to Giggles, one of our favorite eating places. Finding two seats at one of their outdoor tables, we were across from four ladies in matching blue shirts, one of whom was wearing a political button featuring the Republican candidate for our Governor's race upcoming in November's election. I support the Democratic candidate, mostly over their abortion platforms, but I wasn't wearing any pins (yet). Still, when they asked if they could take my photo wearing their "Kitty Shirt", I said "sure". 

My Maple Bacon ale and smoked Salmon wrap - absolutely 
wonderful and just right. Giggles never fails us and they're 
one of the more popular places to sit for a while at the State 
Fair. 

 Of course, one of the major things at the State Fair is food. Giggles has lovely food and a huge assortment of beverages - iced tea for Sharon and a brew of some sort for me. I tried their Maple Bacon dark ale and it was magnificent. I had a smoked Salmon wrap, Sharon had her usual Walleye cakes. They were both delicious. 

Lindy's is a steakhouse with two locations - Seeley Lake, 
Montana and Arden Hills, Minnesota. Over the years, Sharon 
and I have usually gone to Outback Steakhouse for our first 
night dinner, but last year's experience was awful. Sharon's 
steak was good, but mine was horrid. I was determined to 
have great steak, so Lindey's was my choice. What you see 
on the plate is HALF of our portions. The right side was 
Sharon's second piece, the left was mine. Yeah - a LOT of 
meat. Perfect for a second (or third) meal. Along with their 
signature garlic bread pieces, hashed brown potatoes and 
an order of button mushrooms, we were absolutely set. 
I froze Sharon's leftover steak and she brought it back to 
Denver with her on Tuesday morning. I ate my own 
leftovers on Tuesday night. Totally excellent and we'll be 
doing that again. 

We wandered through the "Survival" exhibition and learned a few things, went to The Hanger for a flight of beer and a "snack", and finally called it a day. We had reservations for 7:15 pm at Lindy'a Steak House - a treat for sure! 

So, that's a quick (and very much toe in deeper waters) look at our first day at the Minnesota State Fair. Tomorrow I'll deal with Day #2, because there's always something to see or do at the State Fair, and we found a lot of it. The total mileage we walked on day one was more than six miles. We'd be adding another six onto that for a total of more than 12 miles on Saturday, but that's for tomorrow's post. Have an excellent day and Slava Ukraini. 

July Has Ended and August Begins - A Very Busy Month Indeed

DH and I had a totally awesome final day of July, sitting out on the patio on a perfect summer day. It was a bit too hot for DH, but I was absolutely comfortable - probably the most comfortable I'd been on a Sunday so far this summer. We had lots of hummingbirds visiting the feeder, and we had this little guy who somehow hopped onto the patio table and then proceeded to climb the umbrella pole to the very top. When we attempted to dislodge him, he jumped onto one of the umbrella struts and shimmied to the very end of the fabric, finally jumping back to the table and then to the base of the stone wall. I was VERY impressed. If a human attempted a jump of that bodily proportion of height, we'd be squashed flat. The toad, however, seemed perfectly fine. 

We have these small toads in our garden and our 
yard. They're no more than two inches long, and 
they're chubby. We've always thought they're 
rather sweet, and they're quite remarkable. 
Here's our adventurous toad after his long 
climb and rather amazing jump down. 

It's August, and Sharon arrives in a month. That gives me eight cleaning days, so I'm shifting into high gear again. It's not that difficult to clean - I actually keep a fairly clean house. But how many of you dust the tops of your corners and vacuum every room all the time? Yeah. I thought so - LOL. So I need to do a thorough clean and I'll be starting on Wednesday. I also have several appointments this month at the clinic - a wellness visit with my Doctor, and a mammogram. Both fairly minimal, but important. 

The toad somehow made it up to the tabletop of our patio 
table and then started climbing up the pole of the 
umbrella. He climbed all the way up to the top, when 
he was stopped because there was no way to get 
any higher. I'm not sure what he wanted to 
accomplish, but we were worried for it and wanted 
it to be safe. 

I got my Absentee Ballot in the mail on Saturday. I'll fill it out at the shop tomorrow and have Chickie witness it for me, then drop it off at the local Library on Wednesday because that's one of the better drop-off locations for me to get to. I'm really not in the mood to stand in line on Tuesday the 9th to vote, I'd much rather vote early and have it out of the way. 

Upon realizing he couldn't go up, he jumped down 
to one of the struts for the umbrella and worked his 
way all the way to the end of the strut. When we 
tried to rescue him from his predicament, he would 
have none of it, choosing instead to hop back 
down to the table (quite a distance for a little guy 
like this) and then, from the table to the ground, 
as seen in the first photo. He appeared to be fine, 
and hopefully found himself a good meal because 
he had expended quite a bit of effort with our 
umbrella. 

Today at the shop I'll organize the first two batches of crystals I want to photograph in grid order so that I can take photos efficiently after Sharon has returned home. This will be time-consuming, but it's very do-able, and it's something I can easily do at the shop without having to use up my limited "day off" hours. I'll do a quick e-pay of a couple of bills this morning too, to limit things in my "to-do" list and maximize things in my "done" list - LOL. Little baby steps of accomplishment can go a long way to making me feel good. 

Happy Lughnasadh to all. This is the start 
of the harvest festival. We're not sacrificing 
the King today, but we are offering first 
fruits and thanking the Earth for her bounty. 

On that note, have an excellent Lughnasadh (Lammas) - offer your first fruits and celebrate the first day of the Harvest season. I'll be back tomorrow, at least that's the plan. The stories for this round of LJ Idol are due tomorrow night, and voting will probably commence on Wednesday. I'll be sure to give you a heads-up and link for voting, and hope that my "Unconventional" story will merit your votes. Slava Ukraini. 

Batteries, Errands and Fabric - A Very "Domestic" Day Off

It's my "day off", and as usual, my agenda is more than full.  I have to add getting a replacement battery for my home's alarm system to the list. The power outage of last week pretty well snuffed my current battery. I would have totally forgotten about it if the battery supply store hadn't emailed me with their monthly "We're here and ready to help with your needs," email. Sometimes advertising can actually work - LOL. 

My local Batteries + Bulbs is convenient, and since I have a
business account with them, very affordable. They send me
monthly emails reminding me of the services they offer. I'm
going to go there today to replace the battery backup on
my home's security alarm system - a victim of our
power outage last week. 

High on my agenda, after the usual shopping and laundry, is beginning the clean out of my sewing cabinet. I was rather appalled last week, when I had to bring my sewing machine in for repair. I knew I was fabric heavy and space light, but now much (or little) of each I actually had was a bit eye opening. I think I have to start doing some serious sewing once again. I have too much fabric and probably won't need to buy anything else except interfacing or seam binding until I'm much older. The thought of "old and grey" passed through my head, dismissed with a chuckle. No grey for me - bald is beautiful. I probably can't avoid the "old" portion, however, 

I love this quote by Ava Gardner. I think we could all aspire
to live our Golden Years like this. 

So, today I'll bring over some boxes and start boxing my sewing, weaving and spinning books. I'll need to find a different place for those, because I want the shelving for fabric only. Then I'll start moving through the fabric stash. I have some amazing fabrics that I've purchased through the years. I think it's time to remind myself of what I own. 

I need to get a much better idea of what fabrics I own. I still can't
get into my other sewing cabinet, but the fabric in that one is
pretty well organized. The main cabinet, however, is a disaster! 

I hope to be able to relax a little bit too. At worst, I'll at least relax for my weekly chat with Aearwen. That's something I always look forward to. I think it's been at least three years, probably longer, since Aearwen and I started our Wednesday afternoon catch-up chats. It's always fun, never scripted, and often unexpected - the twists and turns that a good conversation can take. We don't see eye-to-eye on all things, and that's perfectly OK. We're respectful of our differences and we celebrate our commonality. 

On that note, I'm out of here. Have a totally fabulous Wednesday and I'll be back tomorrow. 

Storms Finally Came - Unpredictably

Sunday turned out to be a day of extremes. It started out sunny but the forecast was for serious rain to hit us approximately 4:30 pm and last for up to 90 minutes. Just as well we forgot to take the steaks from the freezer - no grilling if it's raining like mad. 

The skies opened above us, four hours earlier than
predicted. We didn't get everything done that we
wanted to, but we were able to check how some of
the new drainage was working out. 

The weather was unpredictable, however, and that 4:30 was pushed back to 2:30 and then, actually happened, quite unexpectedly, at 12:30. That last half-hour that DH said he needed for the woodshed didn't happen. Fortunately we weren't doing the roof. He was working on the drainage, adding height and compacted soil to push any rain away from the foundation, to either side. He had just started his last wheelbarrow of fill when the skies opened up. 

We had at least two separate waves of rain come through
overnight too, and a third dousing while I was exercising
on my barre this morning at 4:00 am. After more than a
week of no rain, Mother Nature made up for her drought. 

I pulled everything from the patio table and stood under the eaves, nice and dry, while he made sure everything got wrapped up and the edging was put away again. I went indoors, grabbed the umbrella, and came back outside to check the waterflow down our new drainage system. Although the pipe was working very well, we will have to raise the front of the gathering pool. The water was cresting over the end rocks and moving across the soil toward the creek bank. Still, the new drainage probably took care of 80% of the water, so it just needs improvement, it's going to work just fine. DH checked the other two areas where he was working on drainage and made mental notes about what else needed attention. We've been wanting a hard rain for a couple of weeks, just to see what needed tweeking. 

After the afternoon shower, I was wet, but DH was soaked. It was
as if he had been standing in the bathroom shower wearing his
shirt and shorts. At least everything can dry off - LOL. 

Of course, by the time 4:30 pm came around and we would have been setting up the grill for steaks, the skies were beautifully clear and the breeze was light. Sometimes we just can't win with the weather apps. We ordered Chinese take-out instead, and it was quite lovely. 

Here's hoping all your storms are minimal and your days are sunny and mild. Have a wonderful Monday and I'll be back tomorrow. 

Heading Out - I'll Be Back on Monday

Schedule today ... wake up, handle orders and blog, go to gym! Yes, I'm heading to the gym because I'm going to be sitting in a car for HOURS as I ... return from gym and switch out gym bag for suitcases and other stuff for the road, leave, get the computers up at the shop, hit the road. Under ideal conditions, I'll grab breakfast in Black River Falls, Wisconsin, then head onward to Milwaukee. I requested an early check-in of 2:00 pm, we'll see if that actually happens or not. 

I think it's a lot easier to make new friends when we're kids. We
just walk up to a new kid and ask them if they want to play with
you. It's a bit harder when you're adults. Things seem to get in the way. 

Yeah - I'm excited to see old friends and make new ones. More than that, however, I can hardly wait to play with metal and fire once again. It's been too long. The past two years I really focused on wireworking and some very fancy stuff. A lot of fun, but not soldering and creating volume from something originally flat and unyielding. Having the chance to pack my tools once more? Heaven! 

I get too busy to blog while I'm at the show. My bus leaves for the
Tech Center at 7:30 am and I'm often at events until after 9:00 pm.
It's actually a pretty exhausting schedule, but a lot of fun. 

I'll drive back home on Sunday. I'm pretty much on "radio silence" when I'm at B&B, so I doubt you'll hear much from me. I'll catch everyone up with the finale of Project Runway after I get back to the Cities and catch up with the backlog of emails and notifications. 

Be good (but not TOO good), and have a great week! I'll be back on Monday morning. 

Wednesday - Busy But Good

Today is a very busy morning, followed by a more "sedate" afternoon. Somewhat, at least. That's the goal. I start out by going to the "other" gym because I have a 7:15 am appointment to get my car looked at and I would rather drive to the far ends of the city at 4:30 am than at 6:30 am. Construction - the bane of easy access to anywhere in my metro area - is in full bloom. I'm trying to avoid it. 

Winter is over and Road Construction season is in full bloom.
Orange and black are NOT my favorite colors. 

After the car gets done, I can start my day - grocery shopping and lots of laundry loads. I suspect I'll be drying my final load around dinnertime tonight. It's a crazy day. Still, it could be much worse. The weather will be wonderful and we'll have one of the warmer days of our Spring weather. 

I've been using Spotify for less than a year now, but
I really like it. I can access it at my gym, but it's
easier for me to just use the app on my phone. 

I'll have my earbuds and phone with me, so I can plug into Spotify while I exercise and afterward at the car place. There's nothing quite as boring as a car place when you're waiting for work to be completed, so I can read and listen to music while I wait. 

I have a small Uninterruptible Power Supply from APC on
my computer, and a larger one on DH's computer since his
is on the side of the room where more electronics are located. 

I must have had a power surge last night because my UPS was beeping a continuous beep when I got down to the computer room this morning. I shut it down and then restarted, and it seems to be fine now. I'm crossing my fingers that it remains that way. It's always annoying when it goes off, although it's doing exactly what it's supposed to. 

Happy Wednesday to all of you, and have a great day! 

So have an excellent Wednesday. I'll finally be able to talk with Aearwen late this afternoon after two weeks of messed-up schedules. I can hardly wait to catch up with what's been happening with her. Enjoy your day and I'll be back tomorrow. 

I've Been Sick - I'm Determined That's Over & Done With Already!

I haven't been to the gym since Wednesday. Yes, you read that right. I'm not on vacation, I'm still in the same place, same house, and within a couple of miles of the same gym, but the last time I was there was on Tuesday. Now, someone who doesn't know me well might think "OK, so what?" Those who do know me, though, and the fact that I'm at the gym six days each and every week no matter what, know that something was seriously wrong. It's been a week of it, and I'm quite ready to start anew on Monday. 

I'm ready to stop feeling crappy and rejoin the human race
once more. I don't make a good patient. Staying in bed is
a luxury I simply don't have. 

Wednesday and Friday I was awakened at 2:00 am with intestinal flu and grabbed more sleep because I didn't have any. Each day I dressed in my gym clothes, and each day I took them off and switched to my work clothes because I just couldn't dream of exercise when just moving was an effort. The toilet was my best friend and I was NOT happy. 

Minion's battery was dead. The tech got it started, but said I'd probably
have the same problem when I wanted to leave work that night. Since
the battery was five years old, I decided to just replace it with a new
one. I think it was a good decision. 

On Thursday, I actually felt OK, got dressed and put my gym bag into the car, and the car didn't start. The battery was dead. I waited until DH was awake two hours later, but he wasn't entirely amenable to giving me a jump and told me to "Call AAA. It's what you pay them for." So I did call AAA, who came out, jumped me, did a battery check and my battery (which was five years old - so at the end of it's lifespan) was truly dead - at least two dead cells. I had them put in a brand new battery, and I made it to the shop with five minutes to spare. Chickie and I opened in record time despite falling snow and icy roads. I was impressed. 

Sometimes we all need a weekend to recover, or to recover
from a weekend. I need a weekend to recover, but I'll only
get one day. That's OK, I'll live with it. Next week it's
back to normal routine - at least that's the goal. 

Today I'm feeling OK, but it's been such an exhausting few days, and I'm still on the edge with this intestinal thing, so I decided giving my body the weekend to recover would be wise. In the meanwhile, DH has now come down with the intestinal crap. He's a terrible sick person - think five-year-old in a bad mood. Oh well, I won't have to listen to him complain because I'll be at work. 

It's getting bad when dry toast with jam is looking like
a real luxury meal to me. I'll be happy when I can
eat my oatmeal again. 

I haven't eaten much over the past few days, so that combined with the runs have equated to an eight-pound weight loss over the past four days. Not the way I recommend losing weight, but that's at least one positive aspect to being sick. I think one more day of minimal food might do it. I'm hoping so, at least. I'd like this to be over with - it's really boring to not feel well. 

Have a great weekend and stay healthy! I'll be back on Monday, and it's back to the gym for me next week - I'm determined! 

I'm A Wreck, But I Persevere - LOL

I am here to assure you that zombies are real - from personal experience. I'm fitting into the zombie category after being up WAY late (for me) due to the movie last night and the fact that the alarm on my phone still awakened me at 3:15 am. *sigh* No rest for the wicked ... nope. 

My alarm clock went off WAY too early this morning. 

The movie ("Ralph Wrecks the Internet") was really delightful, had us laughing out loud quite often, and carried a bit of a preachy message of allowing your friends to be themselves, and that true friendship will survive change. It's a Disney film, and the parts I adored the most were when all of the Disney princesses were gathered together interacting. The sayings on each girl's new shirt were totally awesome, and the way they worked together to save Ralph, in typical Disney Princess magic fashion, was awesome. Strong female characters abounded in this movie, and that really made it for me. 

I totally loved the Disney princesses in Wreck It Ralph 2. Do you recognize
all of them? They have sass and attitude and are brave and think on the run.
Great role models for a change! 

Of course, the movie meant that I didn't get home until 9:45 pm, at which time I needed to get the trash collected for today's trash truck and make sure my first load of laundry was ready to start as soon as I got home from the pool today. I didn't get to bed until 10:15 pm, and it was at least another quarter hour before I finally was asleep. Hmmm .... that's 4-3/4 hours of sleep last night. ZOMBIE explained! 

I was totally lost in a maze of construction and one-way streets. What a
mess! Thank goodness the one man was able to figure a way for me to
get my car out, and I got a free car wash in addition - LOL. 

Yesterday I mailed all of my international holiday cards and a good part of my domestic ones, with the last of the bunch getting mailed today. I went to the airport post office because they opened at 7:00 am. I wanted to purchase my international stamps and get those cards going quickly. BUT ... I took a wrong turn, got into a construction area by mistake, traveled over a couple of tire piercing barriers (the correct way, so my tires are fine), and finally found myself completely stuck near the final check-out point for returned rental cars. After casting my idiocy upon the whims of the guys moving the cars slowly through the process (more of a parking lot than actual movement), one buy reversed the car at the front of the car wash line, motioned me through the car wash, and I was finally out of the First Circle of Hell and on my way to the correct roadway. Bonus - I got a free car wash. But it also ate up a half-hour of time. 

Watch your mail boxes, the cards are on
their way to you. *Hugs* to all! 

The adventures of my life - LOL. No grass growing under my feet (of course, it's December in the Frozen Northlands, so no grass at all). I get my hair cut shorter today, so no phone convo with Aearwen (already suffering withdrawal - but we're back on schedule for next week). I hope all of you have a wonderful Wednesday, and that you don't get lost on your way to your goals today. I'll return tomorrow.