A Getting-Things-Done Day

I have those quite often, don't I?  This morning I got a call that my sewing machine was ready to be picked up and when I asked how late they were open the lady admonished me not to dilly-dally because the weather was supposed to get crappy in the afternoon.  So I dressed, made a grocery list because I found some WW recipes I want to make right away, and headed out.  I ransomed my sewing machine and the lady cautioned me to sew on it as soon as I got home to make sure it's sewing correctly.  Imagine that, I HAD to sew.  Aw.

Oh, first thing after doing my yoga and having breakfast I went downstairs and brought up today's box to throw away.  It was more darkroom stuff that went directly into a garbage bag because one of the tanks still had that rotten-egg developer smell.  Ugh.  Not keeping that.



I sewed the sleeves and side seams of the owl flannel dress.  I plan to bind the neckline, hem the sleeves and bottom, and attach the pockets tomorrow.  Then I'll start on another one of the flannel dresses in the pile.  I'm sewing the ones needing white thread first and then the ones needing black thread so I don't have to change thread back and forth.  It's cold and damp, I need flannel dresses.





When DS was here yesterday I had him lift down a box with Mom's dolls in it because LC asked for an American Girl doll for Christmas and, while she's getting one of her mama's AG dolls for at home, I thought she could have Great-Grandma Maralee's AG doll at Meemaw's house.  There's a plastic box of dresses that Mom made too.  I found those first (the box is see-through) but wasn't sure that the doll I retrieved from the box yesterday was an AG doll.  I looked them up online, it wasn't.  So I went on a doll hunt.  Hauled down yesterday's box, went through it again, no AG doll.  Pulled down two more boxes, went through them, no AG doll.  I was frowning at the shelves trying to decide if any of the other (bajillion) boxes had dolls in them and was just about ready to call DD and my sisters-in-law to see if any of them had claimed the doll after Mom died but then I spied one more cardboard box that I didn't remember what was in it and it wasn't labeled.  It was more dolls, and there on the very bottom of the box was Mom's AG doll.  Whew.  I pulled her out, opened the box of dresses, and put her into one of the Halloween dresses.  I started crying and couldn't figure out why, then I realized that the doll and the clothes smell like Mom.  (pause for more tears)  She would be so happy to make clothes for LC's dolls.  I wish she had lived long enough to see LC and OJ.  I wish it every day.  Just like I wanted to show my grandmothers my babies, I want to show Mom my grandbabies.

Enough of that.  Look at the wonderfulness that I made for myself for supper tonight (and tomorrow night).  It's sesame-lime marinated swordfish with roasted asparagus.  All the food on that plate adds up to a whopping 1 WW Freestyle point.    Tomorrow I'm making Three Bean Chili in the slow cooker that's ZERO points per 1 1/2 cup serving.  Then I'm making Moroccan Chickpea stuffed acorn squash (1 point per squash half), acorn squash with baked eggs with roasted peppers and dill (0 points per squash half), and farro with sauteed leeks and apple stuffed into acorn squash halves (5 points per squash half).  I bought 5 acorn squash today, I had to, every recipe sounds better than the next one and I can have meat on the side of them all except the farro stuffed ones and if it's white meat chicken or turkey I can have that with meat too.  Why do I cheat on this "diet"?  This isn't a diet, it's the way I want to eat for the rest of my life.  I feel so much better when I eat this way I don't understand why I slide into eating crap for days on end.  Laziness, that's my guess.

I've been procrastinating getting a flu shot for the last couple months.  The doc offered me one when I was in for my annual "lube, oil & filter" checkup but I said I'd wait until I got home from The Clearing because I usually feel a bit crummy for a few days after I get the shot.  Then I kept finding excuses until this morning I thought I'd just get it done since I would be in the store where my pharmacy is and could get a shot for free.  So I did.  My arm hurts.  I was religious about getting the flu shot before Durwood died because the flu would have killed him.  I was very careful to stay away from him and wash my hands obsessively when I had a cold and when LC or OJ had colds he wouldn't hold them or play with them for fear of catching their colds.  A few times I watched them at their house they were that sick.  So it didn't seem as vital that I get the shot but since I haven't had the flu in years I decided that I don't want to get it so I got the shot.

1 December--Jewish School, Illuminated Manuscript page from the Mishneh Torah.  He carried the scroll like a beloved child, close to his chest and touching his cheek.  His thin shoes scuffed in the quiet and his coat whispered over the tall weeds that sprouted from the cracks in the broken concrete.  The night was clear and in the distance a pair of owls hooted to each other.  He felt the heat stored in the pavement during the day rise up to warm him.  As he grew older it was harder to stay warm and the damp chilled his bones.  His fingers holding the scroll were bent from years of hard work but he was glad to carry this burden.  He was old and had less to risk by being out like this.  What could they do to him that life had not already done?

The sewing machine store lady was off in her weather predictions.  When I came up from sewing (and washing sheets) in the basement it was raining, freezing-ish rain, but raining.  It didn't start snowing until after 7 o'clock and then the flakes were as big as marshmallows.  (It's a marshmallow world... you're welcome for the ear-worm)  I'm glad I'm not going to the Packer game tomorrow.  It's still snowing and blowing like gangbusters so you know it'll be colder than a well-digger's ass in the Klondike in that stadium tomorrow.  Oh, and the reason owls hooted in that little prompt writing paragraph is last night as I sat here finishing the blog post I kept hearing a faint hooting, went into the living room, and eased open the front door.  A pair of owls not too far away were hooting to each other.  Man, I wish they were closer so I could see them.  One of these days...
--Barbara