Making Space. Making a Mess.

Yes, another highly anticipated progress photo and report.

You are welcome. 

I spent yesterday afternoon emptying and reorganizing closet space. I moved my newly assembled shoe rack from the main closet to the adjacent space. Many shoes are slated for donation. I was a shoe nut in my time. Now I'm whittled down to these. I'll never wear the riding boots again but I will keep them as a fond memory.

In my usual conversation with myself I pondered on how slow I work. I was thinking it was aging and my still limited physical ability, and yes, that does play a role. Thinking a little deeper I saw, thought, I have always been slow and methodical in my work. I'm simply a bit slower now. That somehow buoyed my spirits.

Now, I start working on the disaster I created in the rest of the room through my small endeavor. You wouldn't think such a mess could be made from a closet reorganization, but I am a champ.

Grey and Wet

Good Morning!

Another day of rain, it looks like. We have had several days in a row of rain. Yesterday it poured from the sky. It's trying to compensate for the two years of drought. 

I've been puttering around the house. Even undisciplined puttering is getting some things done. I assembled a shoe rack I bought over a year ago yesterday. When I got it and opened the box, I abruptly closed it. So many pieces. Yesterday was the day to get it done. I won't say how long it took me to finish (hours) but it's done. Now onto some closet clearing. 

I've been thinking about and doing a little online searching for some type of groups I could get involved with. Between Covid isolation and three years of very limited mobility, well, I have become a recluse. I need some type of engagement. There is a problem: where I live. There isn't much available. I tried this about a dozen years ago and it fell flat. With the drastic polarization in the country it becomes even more difficult. I live in a very Trump Republican county. There really isn't anyway to avoid Trump talk at the moment. I suppose I could expand my search to online groups outside of this area, but I really would prefer in-person. In the mean time, I guess I'll putter.

A Good Day

I must start with the conviction. I fervently hope the jurors names are never, ever leaked. That said, it was a day when we saw justice served.

I picked most of the flowers that were on the ground in one garden. Pretty flowers everywhere. The season is too short. I need to get to the nursery to buy my few vegetable plants and herbs. I plan to sow flower seeds this afternoon. We had rain last night, it's wet out there. Jim did come over yesterday to mow the lawn. What an improvement. Mark got another flower bed weeded. He has a follow-up appointment this afternoon, so no weeding today.

Yesterday we saw a glimmer of hope for our country.

Blooming Season

We are in bloom.

We have a power line that comes onto the property and the electrical box is on it. Not the prettiest of pretty, but morning glories grow up along baling twine I hang on the box. I planted a morning glory about a dozen years ago and it has never failed to re-seed itself year-after-year.

The ferns are in fern heaven from all the rain. There are quite a few hostas in the fern forest I will need to move to a new home.

I brought this iris with me from our home in Saint Paul. They were there when we bought the house, so the generations carry on.

I split peonies maybe six years ago, transplanting the spits here. I also moved some iris to this bed. I will be needing to split again in the Fall.

In the first years we lived here I planted several different shrubs in this place. Everything I planted died, so I went into the tree line and dug up honeysuckle. Now, I knew they grow large, but I frankly didn't expect them to live. They did. Until the past few years I only needed to trim them in spring and autumn. I trimmed them back in April level to the bottom of the windows. No good deed goes unpunished.

I will be picking peonies today. The rain beat them down.

The Russian sage is sprouting like crazy, as per usual.

The mosquito invasion is messing with our plans. We will need to cover every inch of bare skin and endure it. Bill said we should hire his brother to mow the lawn. He has a large, I think the are called zero turn, mower. We will see what his brother says. Bill often volunteers someone else before consulting with them. He fixed one of the problems on the mower, but there is something else wrong that he hasn't yet been able to  diagnose. He did mention that maybe his brother would sell his old mower to us. Which tells me he isn't sure the mower is fixable.

I did do some sorting of my clothes and so far have one bag to donate. Yesterday I went through and organized jewelry. Yes, you read that right. My mother was a jewelry addict. My father was a bit of a bon vivant, where clothing was concerned. There is a very large collection of cufflinks and tie pins. I brought it home and left it sit. I went through it yesterday. My son can deal with what to do with it when I've departed this earth. I will confess that I have a fair share of my own, from the days I actually had a job outside of a barn and I went out and also often had parties at my home. Talk about a 180 (thanks, Boud) turn in life! Maybe I will wear it around the house. I have pearls I could clutch.

It's Soaking Wet

Mr. McCool spent a rainy evening on my hassock. He usually spends the night in the house.

We've had a lot of rain. A lot. As you can see with the afghan, it's also been cool. Not McCool, but chilly. And let's not forget the mosquitos. It's mosquito heaven. Did you know the mosquito is the Minnesota state bird? People mistakingly think it's the loon, but it is the mosquito.

I'm doing laundry today instead of yesterday. I decided to treat Monday as a holiday. I "plan" to sort through my closet and drawers to eliminate what I don't have use for. The clothing that is too large for me is going into sealed plastic bags for storage. I'm realistic enough to know I may need them again in the future. Not being a  fatalist but simply practical. If my son finds them still packed away after I go toes up, yippee for me.

After bringing up weight gain/loss....I made a brisket yesterday that was, no brag, fantastic. So tender. Today will be a brisket sandwich with horseradish sauce and fried onions on the lunch menu. One half of a ciabatta roll for me. 

Not Title Worthy

 

For Lori and anyone else who is interested.

Clafoutis

I was unable to mow, as the mower wouldn't start. Neighbor Bill will look at it when he has time. Until then, welcome to the jungle. The iris are in full bloom and the peonies are about to pop. I took a quick photo this morning. Anyone want to paint a shed and fence?

So, yesterday I spent in the house pouting because I couldn't mow, instead of going out to do something else. But, I did that very well. 

Mow, Mow, Mow the Lawn....

The rain stopped late morning and then the wind kicked up yesterday afternoon. It's sunny and mild today. I will be mowing and Mark will be weeding. It will be nice to see the bearded iris without looking through a weed forest.

Yesterday was a do-nothing day for me. That used to be every day and now it's about every other. I did make the bread I'd mixed the day before. It's one half white whole wheat and one half bread flour, with two tbs of vital wheat gluten. The crumb isn't as open but still not dense. I know I need the whole grains but I sure love those white flour loaves.

I made the potatoes Pixie posted for dinner last night. They were a hit. Anything including bacon is a hit with me. I used to watch a Canadian cook on the Food Network who had studied in France. She once said, wryly, the French consider bacon a vegetable. I'm onboard with that!! I did take a brisket out of the freezer, let's hope it has time to thaw, although I have a backup plan of grilled pork chops. It would be the first use of the grill this season.

That's the story today. Enjoy your story, whatever it is.

Just...You Know. Stuff.

It's been raining all night and into this morning. Mark was going to weed gardens and I was going to mow. That isn't going to happen. I made bread dough yesterday for baking today and it's a right proper day for that. 

Mark just now brought me another cup of coffee. He wants me properly caffeinated and pleasant. Such a good guy. He wants to put the equines out but I say leave them in. They are all old, the landscape here is rolling and the soil is greasy black clay. We just had a mare on stall rest for over a week because she pulled something in her hindquarter. 800-1000 pound invalids are a whole different story. He'll leave them in and then moan about it all day. We both know the drill.

Monday is Memorial Day in the US. It will be quiet for us. I plan to cook a brisket. I have two in the freezer, I guess I should use one. Perhaps I'll even make a clafoutis. No promises, I don't want to get carried away with myself.

Have a GREYT Friday everyone.

 

Musing on Aging

 

I wrote last month about a man I was close to in the '70s here who died, unknown to me, five years ago. Being the Nosey Parker I am, I looked him up online and found the mortuary obit. I am so surprised that I did not recognize him at all. I thought I had the wrong person, but reading through it, I did not. Then I thought, we could have run into one another face first on the street and neither would recognize the other.

It is amazing how we change. Not everyone. Mark is recognizable as his younger self. I am not. This man definitely was not. I saw a photo of his brother who was a friend and co-worker and he was even more changed. It felt weird.

Maybe about 1983

 

I just posted this last week. Current     

              

   

The only sort of current I could find of Mark. Late 2000-teens. Looks the same now except different glasses.     

Mark changed, obviously. He is still recognizable as himself, though. I, on-the-other-hand, really am not. Which is why I shouldn't be surprised I did not recognize the man from my long ago past. He was a handsome Sicilian-American, tall and lean. He lost his looks and his lean, but who am I to talk. Mark has lost the rest of his hair and some of his lean, but he is still my dear, kind nerdy man.

I guess I am shallow, as I focused more on the change in this person than I did on the fact that he is dead and his family will never see the further change that would have come. Perhaps because I no longer knew him, I reacted differently. I knew the man in his twenties, this one, a stranger. I needed time to mourn the loss of youth, the swift passage of time.

Rain

Another rainy day. My lawn needs mowing again.

This is better than drought.

I'd asked Mark to pick up some shrimp when he went into town. He bought cooked, so after heating it was a bit dry, but still good. Anything with asparagus is going to be good. Except if there are mushrooms. That's a BIG nope.

I'm thinking of making a rhubarb clafoutis. Our rhubarb is ready to be picked and I believe I might like that. I rarely bake for two reasons. I do not crave sweet things and I shouldn't eat sweets. Once in awhile I do bake something and this time it will either be a clafoutis or a galette. This year I must remember to pick wild black raspberries. My tree line is loaded with them. I also need to get the elderflowers picked in time to make cordial. I'm always too late. I like a little cordial mixed with sparkling water and that stuff is expensive to buy. Since going on Wellbutrin my wine days are over. Not my whine days, though.

So, that's my story. Until the next time.