Me, Myself and Memories

Updates from December, 2024 Toggle Comment Threads | Keyboard Shortcuts

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  Noreen 3:39 pm on December 6, 2024 Permalink  

  Return of Fall 

  I am going to enjoy some warmer temperature as it may be short lived.

  I had a busy day on the first floor.  Laundry running gave me a chance to get frozen tenderloins out.  Yup.  Chicken Rueben, hot meal coming up for supper.  I like to dice/cube the chicken before it is completely thawed as it cuts so much easier into the pieces I like.  The next time I shop, I need to look for Poultry seasoning that is in a shaker container.  The container I have is loose powder.  All I can do is put some on my palm and swipe it over the chicken with my other hand.  Too much in one place is not a good thing.  The spices in it are worth the addition.

  I finished four small pieces of stitching.  It was time to get them into the basement on the padded Quilter’s Square and Block pad that the kids found for me in Goodwill a time back.  They average 4″ x 4″.  I will pull out interfacing to put on the back and then some patterned backing fabric.  I have either the poly fill or the crushed walnut shells to fill the pillows with.

  Today I ordered a new brush attachment (about as big a round as my closed fist) for the basement Filter Queen.  The brush was the go-to attachment.  Now that the vacuum has had a good cleaning, I will be more apt to use it down here in the studio.

  Dennis’ job jar, in total, was the back entry floor.  I don’t require shoes to come off when anyone comes into our home.  Of course there is bound to have stuff come in.  I don’t appreciate cigarette ashes mixed with what Mother Nature can drag in.  Nope, sitting on the steps of the back entry with his foot holding open the screen door to let in the cold and blow ashes in to have a cigarette before bed, using a soup can as an ash tray . . . no more you ole cowboy.  He comes in from the patio porch at eight at night.  You could set your watch by it.  If he made for almost two months without a cigarette during the hip surgery time, he can make it from 8 pm to 8am without choking off.  Yes, I know how to stand my ground, because I am reasonable.

  My hope everyone within my reading proximity, gets that last little bit of outside work done while we have no snow or ice to contend with.

  With that I will take my leave.  ♥

   
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  Noreen 12:43 pm on December 4, 2024 Permalink  

  The Dance 

  All things not tied down are doing the dance of the mighty wind today.  It was hard to believe that the actual temps were in the thirties this morning.  The air temps were in the single digits.  Winter will have its way one way or another.

  Dennis had one errand and that was at Lewis Drug to pick up my 90-day supply of my blood pressure med.  Zero $ co-pay.  Sweet.  I know many that are our age who have high drug costs.  Dennis and I are each at about the same amount of out of pocket thus far for 2024 . . . $180.00.  Very sweet indeed.  I cannot count the $299.00 of his Eloquest month’s supply while at the nursing home.  That was extenuating circumstances.

  I turned on the lights in the studio this morning.  I believe I have done as much to the front and cover of the wooden trunk as I will.  The two ends need some extra TLC in the areas of the heavy leather handles.  I could not believe they were still on the trunk.  They do show wear and tear.  Dennis said when the final finish was done on the trunk he would gently and carefully work Neets-Fit-Oil in the handles. 

  On the on-set. I had no idea what to do with the surface of the exterior.  When I realized that some of the original oil-cloth was loose, some tight, there was no way to paint over that.  In the end getting to the original wood would need to show.  I had thought of putting new paper on it, no way with all the metal grommets to fit around.  With so many different woods used on the ends and back, staining wouldn’t do as each wood would take on a different color.

  I have looked on different YouTube videos.  The best bet is painting it after the wood has been sealed.  I have a steady hand to go around all that needs it.  I am not going to do a lot with the metal bands.  I will make sure they have been cleaned as well as the sander has allowed.  The shine that the grommets show as well as the brass that shows on the front and cover as well as the brass from the plate that had the lock in it from running the sander over them, is all its going to be.  My objective for the outside was to have it cleaned and preserved as best I could.  The only out-lay of my resources was the $39.00 sander.  Right now, I couldn’t even share with you what the inside is like.  I really don’t know, nor have I decided if I will do anything after I give it a good look.  Time will tell.  One step at a time.

  We have had times today of the internet being disrupted.  I decided to get my photos uploaded and do the post while I have online access.

  In between time in the studio, I am putting decals on the small wooden blocks Dad had cut for me and varnished them.  Why?  Because I can.  TeeHee chuckling.  They had been in Grandma Schafer’s wooden round box.  They may well go back there.  

  Tuna and pea pasta out of the freezer in on board for supper.

  With that I will take my leave.  ♥

   
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  Noreen 3:51 pm on December 2, 2024 Permalink  

  Monday December 2nd 

  2024 is fleeting by with December right in our faces.  If I wanted anything done by the end of this year, I have very few days left to accomplish it. 

  The agenda for the day was Dennis’ PT appointment.  The tight muscles below the new hip need to be worked.  When Dennis came home, he commented on the strength in Dan’s hands.  

  I know Dennis is recovering in good stead when he called his friend Dwayne for a road trip.  Those two haven’t been together since the end of September.  I encouraged it as my agenda was laundry and cleaning the bathroom.

  I did work in a bout of sanding on the old wooden trunk.  The lid to the trunk was tackled today.  I only do until the arms tell me . . . enough.  The front of the trunk has yet to have any sanding done to it.  Many metal grommets to work around as well as the metal attached buckles that had held leather straps to keep the trunk closed.  If only tales could be told.  Perfection is in the eyes of the beholder . . . mine.  I know perfection is not to be had with this project.  Allowing this cleaned up wooden trunk to shelter someone’s passion of items is all that I anticipate.

  The school bus drops a group of kids off at 3:30 each day across the street.  We did get an inch of snow overnight.  Enough snow for the kids to try and manage throwing snow at each other.  The snow is so dry, but I am sure, still feeling the wet of it as it gets shoved down the necks of the winter jackets.  Yup, kids are the same as in my younger days.

  The road-trip boys made their rounds.  First stop was Miller-Sellner in Sleepy Eye.  Each fall they get the latest of the Heston belt buckles from a rodeo that Heston sponsors.  Dennis’s collection started with the first in 1974.  His second belt buckle case has room for only one more buckle, the 2025 one.  A new case will need to be commandeered.  Dennis grandson, AJ, made the second case for grandpa.  I hope he kept the schematics.  The trip wound its way to New Ulm and then all points northwest towards home.  Dennis mentioned having fish sticks at the Cassey’s in Sleepy Eye.

  We are having a tube of Pillsbury Grand baked biscuits with Dinty Moore Stew over them.

  There are light and fluffy snowflakes in the air.  Too bad there is no sun to shine through them.

  With that I will take my leave.  ♥

   
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  Noreen 3:36 pm on December 1, 2024 Permalink  

  A Cold Morning 

  A cold morning to test anyone’s worth.

  I had no worth to test only to ride this cold spell out.  We did have furies over the evening.  With the wind the drive was soon down to bare concrete.

  I spent the earliest of the morning enjoying good rich coffee in my bedroom porch.  After the second cup, I decided to spend some time in the studio.  I am getting the hang of the sander.  Being a wise person, I worked with it for a half hour.  I cleaned it up and out and perhaps tomorrow a bit more of the old wood trunk will sanded.

  This afternoon, I watched YouTubes on old trunks that were re-purposed.  I am on the right track getting the surface ready to be sealed.  I took the time to check where more sanding pads could be ordered.  The sander has an attachment that allows for the width of a finger to be put on to take in very minute areas to be sanded.  As those additional pads were not in any of the replacements to order, I will not use those until the very end of this step of cleanup, saving them for where they really will be needed.

  Megan and I texted back and for forth this morning.  She had flown to Eden Prairie for Thanksgiving to be able to renew her driver’s license.  She was back home by last night.  The boarding was just a tad bit slower as her renewal for her license was now just a piece of paper.  Megan made it just fine.  Megan will be 21 tomorrow on my mom’s birthday.  Sweet.

  We are having Tilapia fillets pan fried with a side of boiled potatoes and green beans for supper. 

  Dennis has PT in the morning.

  With that I will take my leave.  ♥

   
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  Noreen 3:17 pm on November 30, 2024 Permalink  

  Hello! 

  I stand firm in thinking the cold is a fair trade-off of the snow that is hitting in so many unusual places.  I can always dress warmer and within reason raise the thermostat.

  I was wrong yesterday when I commented that my sander had not arrived.  When Dennis went out for his last cigarette of the day it was on the bench outside.  I unboxed the goodies and that is where it stayed.

  My goal for this morning was to go to the grocer’s.  Before that could happen AJ from Mankato was here to visit grandpa and his pickup was in the drive.  I knew I could shop any time.

  Last Saturday the heat bulb burned out in the bathroom.  AJ and grandpa went up to Fleet Farm, purchased a box that had two bulbs in it and AJ didn’t even need to stand on tip-toes to use one of them for the replacement.  The second is in the bunk-house closet.

  Dennis had asked me to engrave a small plate with Jeff’s name on it.  The one I had done pleased Dennis and AJ affixed that to a spot on the saddle that Jeff had won in the all-around rodeo in 1983.

  Next in order for AJ, Dennis asked him to take his propane burner and burn the dead from under the back Hackberry tree and also under the huge Maple tree off of the east patio.  Even with the rain we had had, surprisingly much was burned.  Not all of it under the lilac was torched, but enough that satisfied grandpa.

  Then . . . it was off for me having Dennis to chauffer me to the grocer’s.  A bit of that and a bit of this made for a good haul.  The large can of the Campbell’s Bean and Ham soup hits the spot every once in a while.  Three cans went into the cart.  A container of Cookies and Cream ice cream topped off the check-out.  Dennis has one York Peppermint candy bar each night after supper.  That is his grocery item to get into the refrigerator.

  Alas, I took my sander and hit the studio.  Reading the instructions backwards and forwards, I attached a sanding pad to the Velcro base, lining up the airholes so the dust could go into the attached collector bin.  I stayed with it for only a short time, sanding off some of the back of the trunk and some of one end.  Hmm.  The old Filter Queen’s nozzle fits almost perfectly to the opening of the collector bin.  Enough for the first time.  With all of the metal grommets and metal straps . . . not to worry.  Some elbow grease with sandpaper in hand will be needed.  This short bout really took many hand strokes off.

  Hot pork sandwiches for supper.  Always a good thing to have something in the freezer to pull out. 

  With that I will take my leave.  ♥

   
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  Noreen 4:09 pm on November 29, 2024 Permalink  

  Smug 

  Dennis and I thought we were so smug having everything buttoned up and taken care of.  Not!  Our snow scoops were still in the potting shed.  Dennis came in from doing that task with a grim look on his face.  We have had just enough rain that the base of the wooden door was froze in and down.

  I countered with me getting bundled up and the two of us would work together.  I had spied the ice chipper in the car garage all summer and fall.  I took the ice chipper and Dennis made sure he had his phone in his pocket and the two of us took off down Stauffer to the potting shed door.  Phones are a necessary evil in case one of us had a mishap.  Both of us on our handy dandy canes.

  It didn’t take all that much of sliding the ice chipper under the wood door where there was no ice,  inching toward the iced area and before we knew it . . . mission completion.  I got the door closed as tight as possible with the concrete block.  If a wee creature finds its way into the potting shed for shelter from the cold and snow, bless the little ones.

  The ice scrapper is back in the garage and all three of the snow scoops are by the back door.  God willing . . . they won’t be needed.

  The wind has blown itself out, all is calm.  I am not about to check on the temperature right now.  If I don’t know it . . . it won’t bother me so much.  But I will say, even bundled up for our escapade, my fingers did feel the cold.

  We are having a breakfast type of supper.  Steaming hot scrambled eyes, sausage and hot buttered toast.  There is some blackberry jam just waiting to be spread.

  This black Friday is going down as not very much retail therapy as my little sander did not get delivered as had been mentioned.  Perhaps tomorrow.  

  With that I will take my leave.  ♥

   
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  Noreen 4:06 pm on November 23, 2024 Permalink  

  Saturday the 23rd 

  Damp weather out.  I checked and there is no rain coming for our area.

  Our tree dump is still open as evident of all the trailers and pickups heading north with their goodies.

  Dennis reported that when he took his little red pickup for a jaunt around town today, he had to do a drive into and around our acre.  I need to stop calling it the blue barn acre.  I think it would be better calling it our park acre.  We did an amazing amount of work this year to get it looking quite spiffy.  Dennis even gave Kevin the tour of the park when they were here several weeks ago to help Dennis get the outside items buttoned up.  If all goes well with us, 2025 will see a few more trees taken down so the driveway off of the Hammond highway is a bit easier.  Our tree-man, Ryan, said to give him a shout when we need him.

  My buttoning up was getting the old black office chair in from the front deck.  The chair had served me well this last season as breakfast coffee in the mornings was enjoyable out on the deck.

  I have put in my time in the studio working on the old trunk.  Under the paper that I am taking off is the rough wood that I can easily see the etchings of a saw.  The cover of the trunk shows better lumber.  The metal bands holding the trunk have done a darn good job.

  Our supper is going to be frozen waffles and frozen breakfast sausages.  

  The freshly-laundered flannel sheets guarantee good sleeping conditions for this night.

  I am saving some hand stitching for this evening that I will work on under the magnified light.

  With that I will take my leave.  ♥

   
• 

  Noreen 3:05 pm on November 22, 2024 Permalink  

  Friday with Sunshine 

  All is quiet as the winds have gone somewhere else.

  This morning it would not have been out of the picture to see my phone as it could have been whirling in the toilet.  Being the adult as in being an advocate for all things medical for Dennis H. Curry . . . sucks.   

  It was eleven this morning before I could start my day.  No, I had nothing urgent going on but that is besides my point.

  The time in the studio had to switch to the FM option of my little battery powered radio.  KNUJ had a football game on.  It was some kind of play-off.

  The old trunk I am working on is really satisfying.  As I am not using any power tools, there is no mess that I can’t vacuum up.  Good grief.  The studio vacuum is the old Filter Queen.  It still works great.  Every component of it is extremely heavy.  Even lifting the length of hose to table top use makes me thankful to the small shop vacuum that we keep on the main floor.  I don’t think that vacuum even has a name.

  Initially I thought I could use Mod-Podge to seal the areas where the fabric was stuck on and then decide what to do next.  It has become easier to take off the oil-cloth of the cover of the trunk when I realized the remainder of the trunk was paper that was glued on.  In reading a YouTube, I found out that those old trunks used glue somehow from horse cadavers.  I didn’t go beyond that tidbit.

  This project is peanuts compared to what mom, Lena, had tackled over the years, even thinking of my grandmother Laura.  I was still in school when the family went to Laura’s for a visit.  Laura was refinishing a dining room table in the summer kitchen, using the edge of a butcher knife.  No solutions or chemicals.  Grandpa Christ’s job was to keep the butcher knife sharp.  In thinking, I know shellac was used frequently.  Over time the shellac would blister. 

  We are having a dish that I pulled from the freezer for supper.  It is a pasta, tuna and pea dish using Alfredo sauce.  

  With that I will take my leave.  ♥

   
• 

  Noreen 3:57 pm on November 12, 2024 Permalink  

  Whew! 

  The wind is horrific enough to make one’s garters snap.

  I have returned from New Ulm’s Chuck Spaeth’s garage.

  Tires have been rotated with a complete total vehicle check over.  During the last month the message center on the left side of the dash had a “Low Tire Pressure” blinking light that would show for a few seconds and then would show “Oil Change necessary.”  Whatever was going on has now been taken care of.  I also have a new $188.00 battery.  The one taken out of the car was functioning at 45%.  Dennis needed a new battery in his little red pickup in September.  We are good to go.  Both of our vehicles had new tires in the last months of 2023.  Neither of our vehicles have been on the road much this year.  That’s beside the point.  Both vehicles are road ready . . . security.

  I was thrilled that the waiting room of Spaeth’s had two hard chairs.  The remaining chairs are as soft as Marshmallows and digging out of them to get back on your feet is not a pretty sight. 

  Tomorrow at 1:30 I will see my cardiologist in Mankato.  He will allow me to know what the Echocardiogram that I had two weeks ago has shown.  I am going to nab Dennis along to get him out of town.  I do plan on picking up some groceries.  The pantry in the basement is looking quite bare.  It’s a good thing to use it down to the bare bones, rather than some items waving as they have been in storage too long.

  We are having Chow Mien for supper.  It’s quick and tasty.  Lena used to take the bagged Chow Mien noodles, break them up, using her super powers to melt chocolate to pour over the noodles and with a tablespoon drop mounds of them on wax paper for crunchy cookies. 

  With that I will take my leave.  ♥

   
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  Noreen 2:46 pm on November 10, 2024 Permalink  

  Squirrels 

  With no snow cover the squirrels are tucking away goodies to last them through the spring of 2025.

  The sun popped out for about five minutes.  Heavy air is abound.

  First things first this morning . . . even before my first cup of coffee.

  The crock pot is doing its thing for our supper.  The fare will be a pork roast, carrots and onions.  This time of year onions are questionable.  The very center can be bad.  I cut three planks of onions, with the centers missing and laid them on top of the roast.  I will follow with boiled potatoes.  The potatoes that will be left over make great American fries for another meal.

  With my stitch projects, I thought I had hit a brick wall.  The project called Believe was stitched on a skimpy piece of blue fabric.  So much so, I glued it right into the hoop.  Out came Kersten’s stash of goodies from Dueber’s.  I really liked the lace trim with pearls sewn onto the edge.  With many, many pins, I glued the lace trim to the outside rim of the hoop.  When I went down to the studio this morning and took out all the pins, the lace cupped around the hoop.  Try hard as I could to stretch the outer edge of the lace . . . nothing.  Up on a nail hanging from the floor joist of the studio, I spied with my little eyes, a red embroidery hoop.  It is the same type I use all the time, only my favorite is much smaller and easier to hang on to.  It took a few tries to get the finished stitched pieced in the center of the hoop before I used the most tension possible to zap it on top of the project.  When the tension is released it snaps itself and the project into the ring.

  The stitched item called “Faith” ended up being an odd size.  I dug around in the cistern closet and found a frame I would need to make work.  In my fabric stashes I found the perfect blue to sew around the stitched item.  Of course it didn’t look straight.  Again to Kersten’s stash.  Gluing down the narrow trim with seed pearls in it allowed me to fudge and make it look better.  Hey!  If it were perfect it would have a label included that had a foreign country named on it. 

  Life is good here on Stauffer Avenue.  I decided the studio would be open again for business on Monday . . . or maybe not.

  Dennis starts PT tomorrow at 11:15 with Dan Kern.  I am excited for Dennis.  His left leg had gone through three angioplasties working to open up blood supply.  His leg being weak prior to the hip breaking needs this PT big time.

  The crock pot is telling me to get some potatoes ready for the saucepan on top of the kitchen range.

  With that I will take my leave.  ♥