Snow

I woke up to a few inches of new snow this morning.  And it was windy but the wind was out of the northeast so it didn't blow the snow back into my face when I went out to run the snowblower.  I've learned to leave my glasses in the house when I snowblow because I usually end up with a face full, but not today, thank heavens.

 

Once I had the driveway cleared off, I spent the rest of the day watching TV and knitting some on the sock.  I didn't have anything else to do today so I just goofed off and knitted.

 

 

31 January--Barbara Malcolm, The Seaview.  

Iggy was already sitting on the deck outside Tamarind Water sports when I got there.  I sat down next to him and he scooted close to put his arm around me and pulled me to him for a kiss.  “Oh, I have missed you this week.  It is not fair that your daughter is staying with you.   Can we not go to my place, spend the night there to give Marie a bit of privacy?” 

I looked into his dark eyes glittering in the moonlight.  “And leave her unprotected to fall prey to Julius’ charms while I’m away?  Not on your life.” 

He leaned down to kiss my neck and work his way down my collarbone.

“Oh," I said, "I have missed you too."

Our hands and mouths got busy getting reacquainted with each other.  It had been a long time since I had made out like this. 

Both of Iggy’s hands were under my tee shirt, his mouth and mine glued together, I was sitting facing him on his lap trying to find a more satisfying position when he lifted his head and said, “I think we should have a swim to cool off.” 

“I didn’t bring a swimming suit,” I said without thinking. 

“We do not need them.” 

I looked over my shoulder toward the Seaview.  “But Silas is sitting on the porch…” 

Iggy shook his head.  “I just heard him go inside and lock the door.  No one is around anymore.”  He pulled my shirt over my head and off my arms.  “Come on, let’s swim.” 

He unhooked my bra while I unbuttoned his shirt the rest of the way.  We both stood and shucked off our shorts and, holding hands, walked into the blood-warm water that felt like a silken caress as we submerged.  We swam out beyond the anchored fishing boats and watched the blue green phosphorescence trail from our fingers.  He found a place where the bottom rose just enough for him to stand on the sand with his head and neck out of the water.  He pulled me to him and I wrapped my legs around his middle.  I felt his firm manhood arch and touch my bottom, so I snaked my hand between us to guide him into me. 

The warm water and the surge of the sea rocked us together soothing away our cares and setting up a rhythm that made me feel like the whole planet was making love with us.  I started to shiver because a lot more of me was out in the cooling breeze.  Iggy lifted me off him and we swam in to shore where we fell into the gentle surf and rejoined with the waves lapping over us. 

 

Today's toss was a fanny pack that I'd made ages ago.  Not going to be using that anytime soon.

The writing prompt today was "you're walking on a field when you're suddenly small; what do you do?"  Well, that was interesting.  I had fun imagining giant insects and thick grass stems, and a slobbery dog that could talk.

Do you realize that today is the last day of January already?  How can weeks and months fly by when the days seem to drag?

--Barbara

All I Did Was Knit

That was my day today, a knitting day.  In the morning after yog-ing, dressing, and tossing, I finished January Cast Sock #4.  The remaining yarn looked like it might be enough for another one so I weighed the cast sock, 17 grams, and then weighed the yarn, 17 grams.  Hmm.  Maybe if I fudge the rounds a bit I can eke out another one.

I was happy and surprised to see one Junco under the feeder.  I went out afterwards and dumped a bit of cracked corn birdseed out of the feeder to see if I can't attract a few more birdies.  Tonight I see that I've attracted a bunny rabbit.

I spent most of the day knitting on the Happy Campfire Sock.  I got through the leg, knitted the heel flap, turned the heel, and decreased the gusset stitches.  Now I have seven inches of foot to knit before it's time for the toe decreases.

30 January--Barbara Malcolm, The Seaview. 

Work went so much faster I could not believe it.  By the end of the day on Wednesday all of the painting, inside and outside, was completed.  I had been banished to my sewing machine to complete embellishing the sheets and towels because on Thursday morning the men started carrying in the beds and dressers for the guest rooms. 

I had to take a walk when they were doing that because I cringed every time something hit a wall and made a ding in the new paint.

Iggy caught up to me, putting his arm around my shoulders as I walked.  I leaned my head on his shoulder. 

“I’ve been missing you,” I said. 

He squeezed me to him.  “Me, too.”  He leaned down to nuzzle my cheek and to plant little kisses around my ear. 

“Mm, that feels great.” 

He pulled me behind an overturned boat on the sand and sat down, tugging me onto his lap.  “Is there any chance you can have a date with me tonight?” 

I thought it was funny to think that two adults way into middle-age were frustrated because their kids were around keeping them apart.  “Maybe I can sneak out after supper.  They came down here, spending their vacation time, to help me get the Seaview up and running.  I can’t just run off, can I?”   I leaned in and kissed him with a lot of promise but I could see that was not the answer he was hoping for.  “They’ll be going home soon.”

His hand crept up under my shirt and stroked the underside of my breast which had slid out of the bottom of my sports bra.  “Kissing is not all I miss.” 

A shiver ran through me and I ground my bottom into his lap.  “I’ll meet you on Tamarind’s front porch around eleven-thirty, okay?” 

He pulled my head down and kissed me, darting his tongue into my open mouth.  “It will have to be okay.”  He helped me up and stood up himself not letting go of my hand. 

We brushed off the sand that had clung to our sweaty skin and started back to work a little more as the sun sank lower toward the horizon.

I felt like a teenage actress in a bad B movie all evening, waiting until the kids went to bed before sneaking out to meet my boyfriend.  I had been working the kids hard enough all week that Will and Elizabeth excused themselves shortly after supper and Marie got into bed to read before ten. 

I changed out of my supper clothes and into a clean pair of shorts and a tee shirt.  I was putting my feet in my sandals when Marie looked up from her book.  “Where are you off to, Mom?” she asked. 

I looked at the clock; it was just past eleven.  “Oh, I need to take a walk.  I’ve spent the last two days hunched over that sewing machine and I need exercise.” 

My daughter looked at me as if she wanted to question my story but then she just said “oh, of course” and looked back down at the page. 

I went out and almost had the door shut behind me when I heard her say, “Tell Iggy not to keep you out too late.” 

Busted but grinning I walked down past Johnno’s which was dark already and out onto the beach.  The moon was up making a silver path on the water that looked wide enough to walk on and dark figures sitting on the sand told me that Iggy and I were not the only people to have the idea to meet on the beach.  I walked down past the Seaview and glanced up to see Silas sitting on the porch in one of the rockers.  He raised his hand but didn’t speak.  I smiled and nodded and walked on.  The little houses in the neighborhood at the end of the bay were all dark under the streetlamp and Old Reynaldo’s goats were quiet in their fenced pen. 

Today's tosses were three of the flannel dresses I made last winter.  They're just too big and I can't take them in.  They should keep someone else warm.

The writing prompt today asked about an inspirational teacher and I realized that I really didn't have one.  Oh, I had lots of teachers I liked but I couldn't choose one that had a big impact on my life.  Pity.

--Barbara

A Dangling Squirrel

Now that the peanut wreath is empty and the cob corn is gone, the squirrels are back to squabbling over the suet pellets.  One with a scrawny tail likes the suet cakes best but this one has dibs on the suet pellets.  When another squirrel comes along this one swings up on top of the crook, twitches its tail, and makes a threatening grunt until the interloper runs off.

The Cardinal came back to the feeder this morning while the sun was shining.  The House Finches tolerated sharing the feeder, probably because the Cardinal is bigger than both of them put together.

It was a glorious sunny day today so I took a drive up the highway a few miles.  I didn't stop anywhere I just went north until I found a nice off-and-on set of ramps and came back.  I probably went about 15 miles, just because.  Then I got to meet DS at St. Norbert's College, where he dropped off DIL1's car, to give him a ride home so I got to take another drive and with a passenger.  It was great to spend a few minutes visiting with him.  Masked, of course.

I added a couple inches onto the sock leg this afternoon...

... and got to the decreases on the cast sock at Friday Night Knitting.  I'll probably finish it tomorrow.

 

 

 

29 January--Barbara Malcolm, The Seaview.

At the end of the day I was very pleased with an idea of mine.  When the paint stripes came to a doorway, one of the colors would wrap around the door frame and become the color of the wainscoting of that room.  The place that color had occupied on the way up would become a white space in the spectrum as the colors continued on.  We also decided that one of the bathrooms would have the trim painted the “bathroom” color of sea green with white walls and the other would have sea green walls with white trim.  That way all of the towels would go with both bathrooms, although I also planned to sew a strip of each of the bedroom colors on two sets of towels so that guests would be able to identify theirs in case they got left behind. 

Finally I heard ‘Nando Gomez’ voice out back and went out to greet him.  He was just as pressed and polished as he had been on the first day we met and just as officious and purse-lipped too. 

I had, foolishly it turned out, hoped that he would unbend when it came to the second cargo container since I hadn’t tried to put one over on him the first time, but I swear he redoubled his efforts with this load. 

“I am not about to relax my vigilance, Mrs. Rose,” he said when I hinted that things would go  faster if he just glanced into boxes and assumed that what was on the list was in the box.  He waggled a finger at me.  “That is what you would like, is it?  That only tells me that you have something to hide.” 

The fire in his eyes made me wish I could jerk my tongue off its roller.  Why couldn’t I have kept my mouth shut?  Now it would take twice as long to empty this container as it had the last one.  I was walking back into the hotel when I had an idea. 

“Marie,” I called. 

“I’m up here,” she answered.  I climbed the stairs and found her out on the gallery porch rearranging the order of the shutters so that the colors were the way she liked. 

“Marie, honey, I need a favor.” 

She turned to face me.  “What?” 

I linked my arm in hers and drew her indoors.  “Would you please go down to the cargo container and see if you can’t charm Mr. Hernando Gomez, Iggy calls him ‘Nando by the way, into working a little faster so that we can get the furnishings out a bit quicker?  I asked him and now he thinks that I am trying to smuggle in something or avoid paying the duty.” 

“Are you?” she said. 

“No, I’m not.  I’m just anxious to get it all unloaded and into place while I have three extra pairs of hands I don’t have to pay.”  I drew my arm out of hers and pushed her toward the kitchen.  “Go turn on your charm, honey, please?” 

She smoothed her hair and tucked her pencil behind her ear; she grabbed up her Smartphone and tapped the screen. 

“What are you doing?” I asked. 

“I am guessing your Mr. Gomez is a geek, or a geek wannabe, so I’m calling up an app for organizing things, kind of a spreadsheet.  It’ll dazzle him much more than tousled hair and cleavage…” she unbuttoned one more shirt button, “but a little more cleavage could not hurt.” 

Leaving her to her task, I went upstairs with my broom and started cleaning up the sawdust and the big pieces of construction trash.  I wanted to have it all ready so that when Mr. Gomez cleared things there would be places to put them.  It made sense to me.  I had finished sweeping out the back bedrooms and moved into the front ones when it hit me that meant that I could move in.

Today's toss was Durwood's collection of swizzle sticks.  Some are from hotels, some are from now-defunct airlines.  I don't drink anymore so I have no need of them.

The prompt today said to put a pin in a map and write a short horror story set there.  I got the setting all written and didn't really get to the horror but then I'm not much for horror stories.

--Barbara