You Know I Wasn't Off Doing Fun Things...

... instead of blogging yesterday because I'm still stuck on the couch with my broken ankle on a pillow.  I just didn't.  There.  No excuses, just the bald truth.  I didn't feel like it so I didn't.  So there.  (ooh, I felt all firm and self-actualized there for a minute)

Part of yesterday's problem was I decided once again to stretch out the time between pain pills faster than I should have and it was an overcast, drizzly day, so achy pain crept into my day until by late afternoon I was a frowning, cranky mess.  (poor Durwood)  I came to my senses, took an extra pill, went to bed early with another pill, dreamed of having a blood clot in my left calf most of the night, and feel much better today.  Whew.

I threw together a surprisingly good supper last night.  Durwood needed a nap (he's still the champion napper especially with all of the extra things he's doing to take care of both of us now that I'm laid up) so I said I'd get the supper going.  I found this appealing 3-ingredient recipe on Allrecipes.com and knew it was our kind of food--and we had everything on hand.  Slice a big onion into rings (I cut it in half, stem to root, instead) and put them on the bottom of a big crockpot, put a whole chicken (breast side down) on top of the onions (we had a whole cut-up chicken that turned out to be a good substitute), then pour 20 oz. of jarred salsa over it (ours was mango salsa--it worked) and cook on High for 5 hours.  Yum.  Durwood sauteed some zucchini and boiled a couple baby red potatoes each.  It was yummy and so easy that I could make it even with only one good leg.  I was feeling sorry for myself putting myself in pain for the day so I ended my meal with a piece of the salted caramel kringle that TW & ARA gave us last weekend.  We're minding how we eat it and making it last, although Durwood did confess that he's been eating pieces for breakfast every now and again.  Breakfast!  What an idea.

In the afternoon I bore down and finished the last Sudoku Berry square. Hooray!  Now I don't have to make anything else in that pukey color.  (except if LC decides she wants something made that color, then I will suck it up and knit with it.)  I was afraid I'd run out of yarn before I got to the bind-off so I found myself knitting faster and faster so I'd get done before the yarn ran out.  Not logical, but it worked.  I've got a walnut-sized ball of the stuff left.  (there's more downstairs for LC's imaginary something)

After supper I knitted on the May Seamen's Cowl.  I was excited to see if my stripes experiment would work and I'm happy to say, "yes, it works."  A couple more rows of the red and then it's back to the gray; I like it.

I have been ordering used pop-up books from Amazon Marketplace since the Storytime Librarian showed us 600 Black Spots last winter.  I knew that ordering used books, especially pop-up books would be a chancy proposition and it was, so I spent Saturday afternoon with some cardstock, markers, and packing tape unkinking folded pieces, reattaching torn places, and in the case of this red page, cobbling together a complete new pull.  It isn't perfect and the repair of the torn edges of the slit is far from invisible but now the page works.  I am enamored of these books by David A. Carter and plan to slowly acquire all of his books.  Pop-up books may be my new fascination--and I can say they're for the grandkids, now, can't I?  Very smart, I am.  Plus by buying them through "Amazon Smile" every purchase benefits my chosen charity, which is The Clearing Folk School in Ellison Bay, WI where I go for a writing workshop/retreat every year and have gone at least once a year for the past 15 years.  It's a win-win.

April 25--Tom Till, Karnak Temple, Egypt.

A dozen sandstone rams,
one headless,
guard the temple approach.
Hear echoes of the chants of long-ago priests,
hints of fragrant incense perfumes the air,
antiquity envelops you.
You become still
inside
as your steps slow
to better drink in the connection
to all those who trod these stones
before the birth of Christ.
~~~~~

Nothing exciting to do today except cut up a fresh pineapple and pour in a bag of frozen blueberries and one of frozen strawberries ($1 on sale, yippee!) so I'll have fruit to eat again.  I hate being without fresh fruit.  I feel deprived when we're out.  Off to sharpen a knife.
--Barbara