Friday, January 22, 2016

I've Got 12 minutes......

12 minutes till I have to leave to pick up daughter for a doctor's appointment.  She's been down with a horrible cold....head, chest, sinuses for a week now.  Missed all week of work.  Today is Friday....time to get to the doctor.  Because tomorrow is the weekend.  And we all know what that means.....if any medical problem is going to get worse....it most DEFINITELY will be worse on the weekend.  We're talking Urgent Care or ER.   Ugh.

So, had trouble with the car last weekend.  No power steering.  BH is saying it's probably from the cold.  -25 overnight for like 4 nights in a row.  That's actual temp, not wind chill.   Yeah, but we've had nights...and days....like that every winter.  Why is this different?!

By Sunday, it was no better...and the temps were warming up a bit.  So he suggested we call the garage and take it in.   Well.....got the call yesterday....yeah....there's NO power steering belt.  It's gone.  Just gone.
Well....alrighty then.  That kind of explains it.

So...we picked up the car today....but had to walk a bit over a mile into town.....because the van wouldn't start.  Again.  If it gets below 0, it will not, it refuses, to start.  Ah....but it was 14 degrees overnight....ABOVE  0.  And it's 16 degrees now.   We walked into town to pick up the car.  To pick up daughter.  To take her to the doc.  She's sick.  And the weekend is upon us.  And we all know what that means.

Time to go.

Have a nice day.

Monday, January 18, 2016

Is It Cold Enough For Ya........



Another ridiculous question asked all too frequently at this time of year in the Northwoods.  Pppfffftttt.   Makes you want to smack someone in the face....if only you could move your frozen arm into a 45 degree angle and forward with force.

Anywho.....yes, after a very, extremely mild beginning to winter, we are where we always find ourselves in January and February.   It has been -25 degrees overnight for the past few nights...reaching 0 during the day.  We've been lucky, though....no strong winds added to the mix.....just yet.  Then we're looking at 30 - 40 below.  Yeah, you've heard all the horror stories on the Nightly News.

This is the first week since Christmas that I can actually, aimlessly, putz around the house wondering what to do, what to do.  So....I'm trying to spin and knit.  Finished a hat and scarf that was sent to Limbo before the holidays.  And then had the brainstorm to try a pair of colorwork socks.  Which are almost finished.






Now I have to plan the next project.  I'm spinning some random fiber picked up at a yarn store some months ago.  And I have to get started on spinning the yarn for a wedding shawl I want to knit for our granddaughter.  The wedding date hasn't been set yet, thank goodness. 

Speaking of which....she returned from Kuwait a week before Christmas, had to spend a few days in Texas for out-processing, and got to MN just a few days before the holidays.  She and fiancé came up on New Year's Day and stayed overnight.  We had a great Christmas/NYD celebration.

And then 1 week later, they had found an apartment and were moving in that weekend.   We had all their things stored here while she was overseas and they had been staying with his parents a few months before she left.  

So we offered to load up all their belongings and bring them to the new place.  Otherwise, they would've wasted a day traveling back and forth, loading and unloading.  It's a 2 hour trip one way.   And after the great, uncommon temperate weather we'd been having....wouldn't you know it....yes, weather report says below temps that weekend with winds, double digits below 0.  Of course.  Why not.  I told her we would unload the van, take the tour of the apartment, and leave for home.  We did.  It was 14 degrees in her town when we left;  at 3:30pm when we got home, 2 hours away.....it was -3.  Minus 3.  Yeah.  We made the right decision.

But we got the job done and they were very thankful and appreciative.  We were very happy to be able to do this for them.  I also loaded up 3 grocery bags of food and the picnic cooler too.  Just so they wouldn't have to worry about running to the store first thing to stock up.  Cereal, pancake mix, syrup, coffee, tea, hot cocoa, crackers, salsa/nacho cheese, homemade bread and hard rolls, ketchup, mustard, mayo, sugar, salt and pepper.   Lunchmeat, cheeses, bacon, eggs, milk, butter, hamburg, and a big bucket of homemade chicken and rice soup.   Food.....that's how I roll.

Yesterday I started a group on FB....."For the Love of Irish.....Aran Knitting".   Got 27 members already and some great discussions and comments.  This is going to be fun!!  I love Aran knitting and couldn't find a group.  I do belong to 10 different fiber, spinning, knitting groups but nothing this specific.  Although, it's not intended to be strict.   So if you're looking for something different....check it out.  The more, the merrier.


I should really be doing some house cleaning (spits on the floor), but I'm just too busy....and it's waaaayyyy too cold outside, which means BH is in the house with me 23 1/2 hours a day (someone's gotta bring in the wood and empty the compost bucket.....and it ain't me, babe!)  You know or can imagine what it's like to have a man....a retired man.....in the house with you...23 1/2 hours a day !  Yeah.  It'll make your head spin!  And I'm still recovering from all the holiday/post holiday hoopla.  Ehhhh....maybe a little dusting and run the vacuum today.  Yesterday it was cleaning the bathroom and straightening up the house.  Tomorrow it'll be laundry; Wednesday, grocery shopping.  You have to build up the stamina slowly. It's the only way.