Thursday, March 21, 2019

Yippee Shed Is Approved By Borough

Hi Dear Folk,

Spring is in the air, but not today, raining and cold.  I'm making the most of the tail end of winter to sit by the fire which I felt was needed and to drink tea and eat muffins, these are oatmeal, honey and date.



My newest book from the library, "Orient Express."  Some lovely illustrations of all the different carriages and advertising, visually interesting.

I've just finished reading "Tony's Wife" by Adriana Trigiani.  It was a good read, not deep but a nice style of writing.  She must be doing something right, she's a prolific screen writer, playwright and author, I think she never stops.  I watched Big Stone Gap on You Tube which is a good film.  She wrote the book and then had the movie produced.  Tony's Wife was our read for the library book club read.  I went last Saturday, I haven't joined in for quite a few years.


Our read for next month is "Seeds, The Triumph of Seeds:  How Grains, Nuts, Kernels, Pulses, and Pips Conquered The Plant Kingdom and Shaped Human History."  Rather a long title.  It's also the Longwood Garden read and a bonus was the library book club coordinator gave out free passes for Longwood Gardens.  I have a pass for four people, which we will use and enjoy.


I'm using my Flam Railway bag to tote my library books in.



I started off the week with a message on my phone Invalid Sim Card, what!  Of course until the problem was resolved I could not phone or text.  I contacted Tracfone and in about thirty minutes had it sorted.  They gave me a very long access code and two other codes, the phone shutdown and then rebooted and I was up and running again.

I spoke with a friend and he said it happened to him and he landed up getting a new phone, I think his other one was old.  But needless to say I was a happy camper and give Tracfone 100% for customer service.  I don't use my phone a lot, it costs me about $12.00 a month which I think is good value.

Happy news I received my shed building permit and met with the builder to go over plans and fine tune exactly what I want.  I might scale down the porch size, I wanted 9 ft X 9 ft but he said maybe scale it back to 6 ft x 9 ft, which I think I will.  What do you think of a loft shelf for storage and possibly a sleeping place, could come in handy?

Just want to get out in the garden, although I have made good use of a couple of nice days and did some garden clean up.  The big thing now is to clean up the area where the shed is to be built, which unfortunately means moving all those breeze blocks that I laid last year, oh well!.  Lots of big pots to move and patio pavers, also two forsythia bushes to cut down, don't know if I can somehow dig some root up and replant them, I'm going to give it a go.

The builder says he can start the beginning of April.  I do wish the sun would come out and things would dry up a bit.

Almost finished with Medicare sign up, but have not done my taxes, I just want them off my plate.  I think I dealt with so much paperwork and emails for years, that I have a total aversion to it now.


My glass collection, I do like the cranberry and rose glass, plus my Langham Glass Factory vase, the colored one below.  Living happy memories of when I visited the glass works in Norfolk with my sister, we did have fun.  I washed all this glass and now we have a nice sparkle, if only it would stay that way.



These Japanese flowers have been crocheted in to several scarfs, unpicked and put into something else, but this is the last go around with them, no more faffing about.  I still have to finish the edging and think I will need another ball of red yarn to do so.


Well that's my catch up on a rainy day.  Lunch with a friend tomorrow and Tea and Art, Van Gogh,  on Saturday at a friend's house, happy events.  I'm going to take a Mexican Salad.

Take care, have a great week.

Christine

Saturday, March 9, 2019

I'm Shoveling Snow?

Hi Dear Folk,

I did finish my patchwork and crochet curtains and I'm pleased with them.  I gave them a nice starch and an iron, which the crochet at the bottom especially needed because it was curving in, but after a good iron and starch it straightened out.



I think this fabric must have came from an old tablecloth.



Hanging in my hallway.


I used the pattern from this old seventies crochet book.


Two men in the house and I'm out shoveling the sidewalk.  Of course The Boy was at work and Mr. B. hurt his back shoveling the previous snowstorm, so who does that leave but the woman in the household stepping up to the plate as we so often do.  And of course who is in the house taking photos.  Yes you can guess.



The garden is nada on the flower front because of all this snow and cold weather, so I have been filling this void with some bought flowers and plants.  Tulips which when first put in water drank up almost the entire vase, they were so thirsty.



A miniature rose bush for a little peep into what summer will bring.


This little arrangement is still going.

I cleared up a counter top in my kitchen, where we kept papers and pens and things.  Now that's cleaned off I have another work counter which was needed.  I moved all the papers into the vestibule area by the back door, because we still need to keep these things for easy access in the kitchen.  It looks so much less cluttered.


I cleaned the top of my fridge and all the kitchen cabinets.  What a lot of up and down, I was exhausted.


The square tin with Nelson's column on the front was a yard sale find up in Canada.  As soon as I saw it I knew I would add it to my collection, mum had this tin, which originally of course had sorted biscuits in, but then was used for cakes and other goodies.  Each side has a different London scene on.


I was able to add my picnic basket up here, got rid of some things and just generally sort things out.


I love these little palm creations, that were given to me by a basket vendor in Maui.


A hummingbird and a fish.



I've kept some things up here, but later on I think they will go out in a yard sale.



I have plans for these three picture frames.  I liked these teacup card prints, but they have been up here for years and faded out, so time for a change.


I bought this little recipe book in England, more for the pictures than the recipes, although they are nice.  I'm going to cut three out and frame them.  These two pictures for sure and one more.



Christine

The Man Who Watched Trains Go By 1952

The Man Who Watched Trains Go By 1952 Movie

Hi Dear Folk,

You may enjoy this movie if you feel like watching on old movie this weekend.  It's a 1952 film in colour.  "The Man Who Watched Trains Go By."  Based on the book by Georges Simenon, maybe better known for his character Jules Maigret in the Inspector Maigret series, who I do like.

the man who watched trains go by you tube

It's set in Holland and Paris so I was instantly drawn to watch it, just love looking at the scenery.

I think you will enjoy it.

Christine


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