New Jeans

I went to the store today with my long grocery list for the next bout of Investment Cooking (I'll start tomorrow, I think) and while I was there I picked out a couple pairs of jeans.  Naturally you can't try things on in the store these days so I had to bring them home to try on.  The one-size-smaller jeans fit okay but the two-sizes-smaller jeans fit just right.  I'll be returning the first pair and keeping the second.  It felt very good how easy the two-sizes-smaller jeans were to button and zip.  Maybe I'll pick up a pair the next size down when I return the too big ones.

The Downy Woodpecker came to the suet pellets today.  He landed on the side of the feeder facing the house so I got to take a decent picture of him so you can see the red strip on the back of his head.

I went out this afternoon with my trusty leaf blower and cleared the front yard again, or tried to.  It was windy today so leaves from the neighbor's tree came visiting.  The wind made it interesting to try to blow the leaves into piles because it was blowing from the wrong direction.  Or maybe I was trying to blow the leaves in the wrong direction.  Anyway, I got them moved and hope that the leaf guys come one more time to collect them.

I had to cast on something to knit at tomorrow night's Bay Lakes Knitting Guild social knit zoom so I dug around and pulled out the yarn to make toe socks for people wearing casts.  It's one of the patterns I can knit and still talk without screwing up too badly, and the charity we knit them for has a constant need for them.

09 November--Barbara Malcolm, The Seaview. 

             On my way back from town I was so pleased with the way the morning had gone, having found some goat's milk Gouda and made a friend, that I didn't pay attention going around the rotary outside of The Valley, went the wrong way, and ended up in the wrong lane, face to face with a Mack truck.  For a split second I froze as the truck's grille filled my windshield like a chrome-toothed grin, but I jerked the wheel aside just in time to keep from ending my Caribbean adventure before it even began.  I pulled into the next gravel lot I came to, turned the car off, and sat there shaking, trying to get my breathing back to normal.   

            The Mack truck pulled in behind me, the driver got out, and came over to my window, blotting out the sun.  I was sure he was going to curse me for being stupid but he leaned down and said, "Mrs. Rose, are you all right?"

            "I-I'm all right."  I squinted up at him.  "Do I know you?"

            He shook his head and thrust his hand out.  "I am Silas' brother-in-law, James.  Silas tells us all about his adventures helping you at the Seaview."  We shook hands.  "I am happy to meet you, Mrs. Rose."

            "It's nice to meet you too, James.  I'm sorry to have been going the wrong way.  I keep hoping to remember which lane I should be in.  I do all right, except at the rotaries."

            He patted my shoulder.  "You are doing fine.  I watch for off-islanders on the rotaries.  Haven't crushed one yet."  He turned and walked back to his truck.

            I called after him.  "I'm glad we met and thanks for not crushing me."

            He waved and drove off.  I followed him out of the parking lot, making sure to be in the correct lane.

Today's toss was two pair of jeans and a couple bras, all too big to wear anymore.  I'm running out of easy things to toss.  I think it's time to haul one of the Christmas ornament boxes I haven't opened in ten or fifteen years out and toss it without opening it.  If I haven't opened it in all those years, why open it now?  I'm thinking about it.

--Barbara