hi!

Just saying howdy.

Life has been Crazy. Just checking in. Using a small tablet, so cannot see what is being typed. Please excuse errors.

Testing to see if this still works.

Since Facebook has become so popular, blogging seems to have gone by the wayside. Am posting to see if anyone even looks here. Don't have many photos on this computer, so I just grabbed this one.

My grandmother holding her great-great grandson (my grandson) about 1997. There aren't many of these pictures.

Maybe it is time to start blogging, again?

Sue/Packrat/Cindy

Slacker

Some people are able to write about everyday life and even make routine chores sound interesting.  Sadly, I'm not one of those people...

This post is full of woe, so have a tissue, or skip it all together.  (Not all has been sad, though. Will do a happy blog another day.)

This past year has been bad. We've "lost" three pets, one loved refrigerator, and one despised washing machine.  The worst was three of our local young people getting killed.

Carmen's  (my daughter) cat, that was in our care, suddenly got sick and died. (Cat was notorious for eating things she shouldn't, so our veterinarian thinks she might have poisoned herself.) This cat had the sweetest little meow, and she was so loveable and cuddly and never scratched.

Our gentle butterball (hound and border collie mix) hurt his back and could no longer get around. At 150 pounds, there was no way we could handle him. Also, he was in pain. Poor old baby.  (He never barked and had the softest, silkiest coat. I loved to rub his long ears.)

Right after Carmen left for Russia in January, the washing machine caught fire. (The motor seized up.) Thank God I was home, because I had to use the fire extinguisher on it.   Luckily, no damage was done to the house.  I really disliked that washer, so other than the expense of getting a new one, its demise was a good thing.

Then, in May I had pneumonia.  Threw me for a loop. Thank God, Carmen was home visiting so that she could help. Poor "kid".  I still don't have tons of energy, but overall I feel better than I have in months.

While I was recuperating, our beloved Old Dog (rotty/lab) failed very fast, and one morning she just couldn't get up.  At at 15 years old, I guess this was to be expected. My heart is still broken...  Even tho technically Old Dog was Carmen's, Old Dog was my baby and my shadow.

THEN, right after Old Dog passed away, our old refrigerator quit. Everything in the freezer and some things from the fridge section had to be tossed. This is really silly, but I felt like another family member left. J & I bought that fridge when our first child was a baby. (Yes, we did have a newer refrigerator, too, so most everything that was left from the old fridge fit in the newer one.)

The last thing and the very worst, three of our local teens were killed in a horrible fiery wreck.  My heart aches for their families.  (This is a small community where most everyone knows and/or is related to each other.)  J was one of fire department people help on this wreck.  He is still shaken and very upset. 

So sorry this is so morbid.

Right now, I really need to go to the office to input those pesky invoices so I know how much State sales tax is owed. Whoop-dee-doo.

Happy blog with pretty pictures will be coming.

Daughter is off on another adventure.  If you are interested:  http://canusing2.blogspot.com/


Hope this finds everyone well and happy.
Hugs,
Sue

Another sewing machine...

Who knew that hitting the enter key in the title window would automatically publish the post?

SEW, I bought another sewing machine, a Singer Stylist 457, made in Great Britain. (Sorry, no camera.)

I saw it on the shelf at Goodwill and grabbed it before it even had a chance to say "buy me". LOL 

The tag is marked "as is".  It is missing the pressure foot attachment and the two thread spool pins, but the machine runs very quietly. The head, cords, and foot pedal are in excellent condition. It is very clean on the inside, too, so I wonder if anyone ever used this machine.

How many sewing machines does this make?  I don't know for sure. Just off the top of my head, I counted twelve here at the house. (Yes, if someone "borrowed" one, I would know.) My friend has one of my machines. Then there are several in our (computer repair) shop that may or may not need work.

Wednesday, I had a ball in "town" (Lewiston/Clarkston where we do our "major" shopping). I spent as much time as I wanted wandering through St. Vincent de Paul, Goodwill, Ross, TJMaxx, Safeway, Macy's, Maurices, Shopko. I might have even forgotten a couple of places. We even lingered over lunch at El Sombrero. (J had a chalupa; I had the fiesta salad. YUM)

The list was long, and J had two jobs to do. So I dumped dropped off J and went and did my thing. We met for lunch and got completely soaked dashing from the restaurant to the car. Then I dropped him again, and went and played/spent more money. Picked up J, and he dropped me at our pathetic little mall while he went across the river to Costco.

St. Vincent de Paul was kind of a bust. I did buy a few vintage-ish sewing patterns and cookbooks.  Nothing spectacular.

Goodwill, however, yielded:

1.  The sewing machine, of course  
2.  A (1960's?) 20" unmarked "bride" doll with her original earrings and dress. She must have been in a display case, because her hair is in good condition and the dress is white with only has one small stain on the side.  
   
3. Fabric, yards of fabic!  It comes bundled in plastic bags so you can only see what is on the outside, but it like opening a treasure chest. This haul brought in quilting, percale, upholstery and drapery samples, pre-printed pillow top panels, fake fur, lace (like for a sheer curtain panel), polyester garbardine (yuck), a piece that I'm sure is slubbed silk (beautiful pink),chiffon, a couple of pieces I can't identify, rayon, and even a couple of unfinished Christmas projects.  Oh, and two yards of gorgeous flocked? embossed? Christmas/holiday fabric. It is black with wine and teal flowers and leaves that look like jewels outlined in gold. It is elegant rather than gaudy. It would make a beautiful jacket or vest.
4. Mugs to match some dishes, legal size printer paper, misc. junk.

The stop at the mall was successful.  Found several tops for Carmen and me, all for less than $10 a piece. Whoot!

Last but definitely not least, J bought me this: 

A rolling sewing machine tote!

(Picture from JoAnn)

I think I'll keep J!

Disclosure: I am not endorsing any of the stores or restaurants mentioned in this blog.  I have NOT been compensated in any way for mentioning them.

Snowdrops and a quilt

Snowdrops blooming, pushing up through the mulch.

March 8, 2013

This is the earliest I ever remember flowers blooming here!

***

No, I didn't :) make this quilt top. See below...

Update:  A great (or not so great) thrift store find???  Paid $3.00 for the quilt top plus a full extra yard of the navy dot fabric (and a stack of scraps), 3/4 yard of the mustard (plus scraps), 1/3 yard of navy floral,  and a stack of off-white squares and triangles. The colors aren't anything I would have picked out to make a quilt, but actually seeing the combination, I like them - especially for the price! (Run-on sentence?)

Hope there is enough of the navy dot for the binding. I didn't think to measure the quilt before*...

Anyway, none of the points match.  Some seams are 3/4 inch wide and some are as narrow as an eighth of an inch - all in the same seam. Some places one edge of fabric isn't caught in the seam at all. None of the seams are pressed the correct direction, and most are twisted or bunched at the intersections. The big squares are all different sizes. 

*Sooo, I'm in the process of ripping the whole thing apart.  I know. I'm crazy. LOL 

Don't hold your breath for the finished product...

GAH!

EDITED: Never mind.  Would take hours to explain. Sigh.

On a lighter note - Happy Thursday!