The Argument

So I am sitting in my recliner a couple of nights ago, happily sewing fabric hexagons together, listening to an audio book when I hear a ruckus outside.  Nosy old bat that I am, I went to the window to see what all the fuss was about.  My line of vision includes the sidewalk in front of the bar next door.

I see a big hulk of a man standing there, arms flailing about while trying to make his point and he is bent over some at the waist, which brings him nose to nose with a little bitty woman who is cute as a bug's ear.  The argument was along the lines of, 'Yes, you did,' 'No, I didn't.'

Finally the little lady takes two steps back, puts her hands on her hips and says, 'Homer, you are drunk.'

His arms fall to his sides, he straightens up, hangs his head and says, 'Yes, I am.  Will you take me home, please?'

The last I saw of them, they were quietly walking down the street, hand in hand.

Wouldn't it be nice if all disputes could be reconciled so easily?

Today...

the temperature had dropped 30 degrees.  The air conditioning is shut off.  The windows are open.  There is a light rain falling.

Tomorrow I will drum up some ambition to clean a closet and sort through boxes and tubs of fabric and yarn.

But today is a good day to stay in my jammies, sew little fabric hexagons together on my Grandmother's Flower Garden quilt and watch old movies.

I love retirement.  :)

The Last Hurrah of Summer

It is hot.  The temperature is headed toward the 90's with a heat index of at least 100.  The humidity is in the 80's.  I know this is nothing compared with what our friends in the South live through, but we Yankees just wilt in anything over 80 degrees.

The combination of heat and high humidity has an adverse effect on those of us who have achieved geezer status.  We can become a bit short of breath and arthritic joints complain loudly.

So I shall be spending the weekend as quietly a possible.  I'll be back Monday when a cool front is due to chase away the hot and damp and usher in some fall weather.

Fall - my most favorite time of year.  :)

Stuff

I am not one of those people to whom shopping is a recreational activity.  When I still could get out and about, I would make a list, go to the store and buy what was on that list, get out and go home.  And I am not an impulse buyer.  I generally would look online and compare products and prices before buying anything major.

Now either my kids shop for me or I can order what I want online.  And the same applies.  I check it out before I order it.

Even with careful comparison shopping, somehow I find myself knee deep in stuff.  There are tubs of stuff on the floor of my closet.  There are boxes of stuff on the deep shelf above.  There are clothes on hangars that I haven't worn for maybe 10 years or more.  I have two night stands with drawers and shelves full of stuff.  I have a bookcase full of stuff.  And I have no earthly idea how I managed to accumulate so dratted much stuff.

I have begun the task of sorting and tossing.  Some stuff is in good shape and will go to Goodwill.  Some I will keep - but not that much.  The rest is destined for the dumpster.

It is amazing what I have found so far.  I have no idea why I have a shoebox full of floppy discs.  It has been years since I had a computer that would read them.  I know there is nothing important on them.  Out they go.

I have the dress I wore to my oldest daughter's wedding over 20 years ago.  I couldn't get into that dress even using a shoehorn.  Goodwill can make use of it.

I will keep the photos and the box of picture frames.  The old letters and printed genealogy material will stay, too.  And the tools.  But I think the dumpster might just be overflowing by the time I am finished.

There is just way too much stuff!

Mother Nature...

is a bit cranky.  Last week it was warm enough to turn on the air conditioning.  By Friday this week it looks like I will need it again.

But today at 12:19 pm, the temperature is 56 degrees and it is raining.  I have the heat cranked.

So my green fuzzy blanket and I are spending quality time in my recliner.  There is some hand sewing and some crocheting and some reading to keep me occupied.  And naps.  Don't forget naps.

Mother Nature, please make up your mind.  Is it still summer or has fall arrived.  Inquiring minds want to know.

It has been a quiet day...

here in my little corner of the world.  The biggest excitement here was my grocery order delivery.  And that was pretty dull as I just ordered necessaries and no fun stuff.  I don't know what I was thinking.  I usually order one treat like Little Debbie Nutty Bars or maybe a small bag of butterscotch candies.  Guess I can suffer through with the cookies I made a couple of days ago.  :)

Our cool weather went away and has been replaced with heat.  It is nearly 6 pm and the temp is 91 degrees.  The humidity is up there as well and we have an air quality alert from smoke blowing in from wildfires.  But it looks like a cool down is coming by Sunday.

I'm pretty much having to confine myself to reading just the headlines.  My blood pressure can't handle the details.  For a time it seemed like common sense and goodwill had returned, what with the efforts of citizens helping citizens.  It did my heart good to see all those folks showing up with their boats to rescue those stranded in the flood waters.  Race, diversity and white privilege be damned.  People just helped people.  But now that the storms have passed, it seems we are right back where we were before.

I saw where a bunch of bottom feeders were busy helping themselves to high dollar shoes in the wake of the Florida hurricane.  I was glad to see that a couple dozen of them had been arrested.  Oddly enough, no work boots were stolen.

Black Lives Matter found it necessary to cover the statue of Thomas Jefferson at the University of Virginia in a black shroud.

Berkeley is ramping up to deal with the violence when a (gasp) conservative speaker shows up.  In typical response, the administration is offering counseling to those who can't handle opposing opinions.

And just this afternoon there are reports that the lunatic in North Korea has launched another missile.

I know I need to keep track of what is going on around us.  But for this evening, I believe a glass of lemonade, a cookie or two and a good mystery book are in order.  Perhaps my sanity can be saved after all.

A Chocolate Chip Cookie Kind of Day

The first two cookie sheets full are in the oven.  I haven't done much baking lately and was craving cookies.  I may have to make some gingersnaps, too.  The gingersnaps bring to mind evenings on the porch with family and friends.  Mother always served gingersnaps in the summer with ice cold glasses of homemade lemonade.

I thawed out eight quarts of sliced apples, with another eight or so still in the freezer for another day.  I filled quart jars and used plain water to cover them.  They were in the boiling water bath for 20 minutes.  They will be good to use for desserts like apple crisp.

I found two whole chickens underneath the apple slices.  They look OK - no freezer burn.  I think later this week I will boil them up and can the meat in half-pint jars for use as sandwich meat.  I am low on chicken broth, so I will be able to can that as well.

I also found ten quart bags full of pumpkin and another dozen bags of butternut squash.  I haven't decided what to do with them, but am leaning toward dehydrating.  I have seen where others have dried both pumpkin and squash and then ground them into a powder.  It seems they rehydrate well and can be used anywhere one would use canned squash or pumpkin.

And way underneath the squash and pumpkin are maybe four quarts of shredded zucchini.  One day in a week or so, those will go into a few loaves of zucchini bread.

I think I actually caught a glimpse of the floor of the freezer.  When it is all cleaned out, I will ask Duane to come over and wipe it out.  I am way too short on one end to do it.  Chances are if I tried to clean the bottom of the freezer, I would wind up with my head inside and my legs sticking out the top.   Not a good position for a chubby granny.  :)