Steel Magnolias # 20

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  • GOOD MORNING MAGNOLIAS

    It is currently 72ºs and only 8:30 am. The high expected is 100ºs but it usually creeps up higher than that before the day is over. I have the glass chosen now for my police station with jail building and the pattern cut out and the building cut from glass and today I plan on grinding the edges smooth. I used some glass that is nearly impossible to cut and it was a chore to get the pieces I needed out of it. It was only for the flat roof and the steps and not the whole building though. Right now I am just waking up from a fitful nights sleep. For some reason or other I awoke in the middle of the night and couldn’t get back to sleep for an hour or so. I felt like getting up but it was still dark and Will and the animals were all still asleep. I can’t remember the last time that happened and don’t want it to happen again soon. Will has gone to the nursery to get some more stuff for his pathway and such he has been working on. It is really coming along and looking great. He can only work on it in the cool of the morning since it gets so hot during the day. Not much else happening around here this day except after while we are going to the farmers market to see if there is anything there we can use. I will get to see my friend that makes those wonderful soaps.

    I hope all is well with you Magnolias ~ type at y’all later ~
  • Good Morning, Flowers! I've been up and at 'em since 6 . . . too early for a Saturday! Bob wanted to leave for the tractor ride site early because he is "in charge" of any one who shows up without pre-registering. He will also lead the parade because his tractor can go faster and sets the pace. He won't be home until around supper time, so it will be a long day. Bob has a friend riding on another one of his tractors; he was so excited to go, just like a kid in a candy store. It's promising to be another hot, humid day; this is July in Iowa!

    Maggie -- You do keep busy with your glass creations; that is good and you can't eat when your hands are busy. I hate the nights where I wake up and can't get back to sleep. I am thankful I don't have to get up and go to work the next morning! Have fun at the farmers market. I should have gone this morning but started watching a movie and the time slipped away. I rarely watch movies but I didn't have anything else I had to do.

    The contractor is here working on the deck. Bob put some critter food out under a tree but they were still coming to the deck area. Have a super Saturday and enjoy!
  • Good afternoon gals. The only side effect I am having with the meds this time is it causing, for lack of better words, hot flashes then chills. I was cold last night most of the night, but under the covers I was wet with sweat. This is irritating, but a lot better than having diahrrea everyday, which I am not having at all this time. I am actually doing very well with the lower dosage all the way around. No problems of any kind except these occasional hot flashes or chills.

    I am fixing stuffed bell peppers for myself tonight and stuffed pasta shells for Jack with a yeast roll. I blanch my peppers for around 4 minutes so they don't have to stay a long time in the oven and the house won't heat up.

    I got the laundry caught up again and took a tshirt wrapped broom to the baseboards and crown molding. Brother I hate all the cob webby stuff, but it can be hard for me to get down. Jack helped me clean stuff I couldn't reach. Thank goodness for a tall husband.

    I have the foot half done on his first sock so it is coming along. I will be glad when the knitting I have to do will all be done and I can sort of enjoy it more at my leisure on the cruise and such.

    Jean: So are you guys not able to use your boat this year with the lake being down or are you talking about right where you live not where the cabin is? We are supposed to have rain now several days, but we get very little and certainly not enough to do any good. The neighbors who flooded our bathroom have moved out. Not going to miss them, but who knows who will move in. With them taking the oxygen on up to the summit, I imagine it was scary for her. One of the things alltitude sickness does is expand the brain and it can kill you pretty easily I guess. She is fine now and they headed for home today. It is going to take them 32 hours!

    Maggie: It is quiet here today. We are watching the Cubs game at the moment. I have to get out in the kitchen and put away dishes out of the dishwasher as I have the whole top full and no place to put anymore so just ran a short cycle. Everybody is just hanging out. Fortune is sleeping in my chair since I am not in it, but is gonna have to move in a few minutes. Hope your glasswork is coming along nicely.

    Everyone have a great Saturday! Back to chores!!! Faye
  • Simply Sunny Hot Sunday
    GOOD AFTERNOON MAGNOLIAS

    OH it is currently 102ºs here in the ♥-Land and fixing to get even hotter. Litterly no one we know had any success with their gardens and it looks like that tree that just got planted didn’t make it so it will have to be replaced. It got enough water so that wasn’t the cause of its demise. Those neat water bags that you hook around trees sure are the ticket. Our little willow is loving have that water as needed. The nursery guarantees their trees and will give us another when we take this one back. It is just a chore to have to dig this one up again since it now has all those neat rocks around the base. That is a chore for the cool of the early morning.

    Nothing much happening here this day except church services for this is, after all, Sunday, the first day of the week on which we are told to assemble. We had a few visitors that were traveling through on visits to relatives. It is always nice to visit with them and learn where they are from.

    I may do some glass work this afternoon for I have a building that needs now to have its edges ground smooth.

    DONNA FAYE I had never heard that about altitude sickness that it can expand your brain and kill you. Good thing they got your daughter down that mountin quickly. I am so glad she got down safe and can tell about it when she has grand kids.

    JEAN At the farmers market I did get a couple bars of soap and a little crate to put them in and a slatted wooden soap dish for a present. I'll get it off in the mail tomorrow. What produce we saw there was over priced. They are charging much more than what we can get at Dillons or Wal*Mart. These folks must have green houses that protected their gardens. But to charge double does not make their produce any better than the store offers.

    I hope all is well with you Magnolias ~ type at y’all later ~
  • Good morning girls. Back to hot and very humid now. I turned the AC off for about 3 hours but had to turn it back on again as it got too hot.

    I have my morning chores done so am going to work, work, work on Jack's sock today I think. I should be able to finish it today. I didn't do much on it yesterday because I had the muscle between my left thumb and index finger freeze in a spasm every time I would try and knit. It would lock my finger straight out and boy was it painful so I just quit for the day and evening. I read instead and that was enjoyable of course.

    Looks like we will have a lot to do this weekend with it being commissary weekend, dog shots and other errands all crammed together. I am doing bits of spring cleaning here and there before Jay and Jackson get here in 2 weeks, but I will leave a good cleaning until the weeke before they get here. Jack has his catherization on Friday the 3rd at the hospital and Jay plans to leave Indiana that morning so I hope I can juggle everything that day.

    Maggie: I didn't know that either. I just thought it caused dizziness, nausea, shortness of breath that sort of thing, but I guess it expands your skull or your brain or something. Scary for sure. I find it disappointing that some home produce farms try to gouge people and people pay thinking they are getting much better food. It can be true that local is best, but to overcharge is pretty shameful in my book. Glad you are coming along with your village.

    Well, I am going to get something to eat and then get to work. Have a great start to your week! Faye
  • Good morning, ladies! Another 100 degree day with thunderstorms.

    Have been having time to quilt and that makes me happy. Today is kitchen, downstairs bathrooms.

    Faye, you have a lot going on! You are always so organized I know you'll get it done with time to spare.

    Jean, your cable company didn't just drop Viacom. Viacom is trying to increase prices 30% to the cable/satelite companies. The contract is due at the end of this month. In retaliation, those companies have dropped Viacom from their schedules until a more reasonable contract can be worked out. I have DirectTV and they have this as a message on the normal Viacom channels.

    Maggie, food purchased from local growers is actually more nutritious than that sold in grocery stores because the food in grocery stores has been stored and shipped. I'm with you, though, not worth double the price.

    Have a wonderful Monday!
  • Good Afternoon, Flowers! It's another hot humid day in my neighborhood. I wish someone could do a rain dance! Church went fast this morning because there wasn't much to count and I had done part of my report last week. The gift shop was easy because there wasn't much there either. I went to a P.E.O. meeting this afternoon and filled in for the treasurer which I've never done before. I had to take roll call and report the number of members present, visitors present; then I gave the treasurer's report which was done for me. Our group is growing and there aren't very many homes that can accommodate 23+ comfortably. Todays meeting was in a beautiful "fancy" home on the lake. The hostess is big into flowers and landscaping so it is gorgeous outside as well as inside.

    Our former neighbor's funeral will be Wed. morning, at our church. The secretary was looking for his picture and I said he probably had only been in the church twice in the last 50 years. Once for his dad's funeral and again for his brother's service a year ago. "Meow!"

    "Gma" -- I'm glad the lower dose of meds is working but know the hot flashes and chills can't be fun either. Our boat is at the cabin since it's a much larger lake to play on. That lake is also much deeper so even though it is lower it's not as noticeable as here. I get those finger spasms if I grip a spoon too tightly when stirring heavy mixtures. Hurts! Good luck in getting Jack's sock finished.

    Maggie -- We went to Sioux City yesterday afternoon and the crops are pretty stressed over there. Bob commented he didn't know if a good rain could save some of them. The bean rows have opened up again so the dirt is getting direct sun which isn't good. I have to say, in other years, our Farmers Market prices were pretty close to the local grocery stores.

    Susan -- Thanks for the Viacom info. Everyone wants more money for less service. I've threatened to go with a dish but costwise that would cost us more since we bundle the internet, phone, and cable now. On the other hand, the cable service seems to be getting worse as time goes on.

    I need to change clothes and do some housework of some sort. Enjoy the rest of your day!
  • Good Morning, Flowers! It is promising to be another hot humid day in the 90s. Actually, it wasn't too bad when I went out to feed my critters this morning, but it's shaded in the morning. Today is all mine to do with as I please; I need to make a grocery run after I make a list. I'm hungry for some kind of oven dish but it's too hot to run the oven.

    Today is Jason and Amanda's 13th anniversary. I wonder where the years have gone? It seems like yesterday, but I know it wasn't this hot. I wore a long sleeved dress and was comfortable. Global warming?

    I need to get dressed and get my day going. I'll brave the store this morning before it gets too hot. Enjoy the rest of your day and have a terrific Tuesday!
  • Afternoon girls! It is so miserably sticky here. I lived in New Mexico and could stand that heat, but you can't breathe when the humidity is so high. I opened the door at 3 AM to let out Fortune and it just hit you in the face. If the moisture would fall to the ground, our farmers would be in a much better place for sure.

    I am on the toe of the sock so should finish it today, I hope then start the other one and get it finished.

    Susan: We have Direct tv too and of course don't have any of the Viacom channels. They will fight it out or lose and there is nothing we can do about it. It is still better than cable around here and I would never have Dish. I don't have any gripes about Direct tv. I am looking forward to seeing my boys next month. It is just a short weekend trip but we will have fun. We are going to take Jackson and Thomas to Incredible Pizza and I think Jackson will have a blast. I will just take my knitting and my Kindle and Jack and Jay can have fun with the boys.

    Jean: Kelly and Tom's 15th anniversary was the 12th. It was super hot here that weekend if I remember right and not a pleasant trip. We lived in Indiana at the time and things didn't go well down here, but you have to just go past that. Wow, it's unusual you don't have something that you have to do. Enjoy your down time.

    My weight is down about 6 lbs since I was at the hospital and I hope to get a few more off before vacation. I have another gyn appt the 25th and supposed to see the reg doctor in August, but I have so much stuff going on and it isn't some emergency just blood tests that I am going to wait until I get back from vacation then schedule my mammogram and a dr appt.

    Everyone have a nice Tuesday. Back to knitting for me. Faye
  • Titilating Hot Tuesday
    GOOD AFTERNOON MAGNOLIAS

    It is another hot day in the 100’s and I am glad to be home at last. We drove over to a neighboring town to pick up a rifle at their museum for Will to clean for them. It was nice in the Jeep but hot outside for sure. I received 3 blouses I had ordered and they are bigger than I thought but they are the size I had been wearing so I will have some nice new loose ones for sure. I was just so used to ordering that bigger size and I don’t want to return them for I got them all on a good sale price. I don’t wear my clothes tight anyway so these nice loose ones will be nice and cool this summer. I don’t want to cook much this evening so we will be having Sloppy Joe’s which are a cinch to make.

    We picked all the apples off the tree so now we need to get them sliced and dried. I couldn’t locate my apple corer ~ only the spiral cut & corer thingie and the one that cores and cuts them in wedges so I ordered one that will just take the core out and it will be here in about 4 days. I have this handy little paper-back book called Home Food Dehydrating by Jan and Shirley Bills that tells about methods of dehydrating fruits and veggies the economical “do-it yourself” way for preserving, storing and cooking fruits and veggies. It has great charts for weights and times of drying. My Oster food dehydrator also came with good instructions so I am set and ready to dry some apples.

    DONNA FAYE on that 6 pounds gone! You go girlfriend and will be more pounds down before your cruise. I don't like your kind of heat either. The dry kind is so much more bearable. Our humidity has been staying down around 30 and bearable. Too high makes me sweat and two low makes my skin itch.

    JEAN Sounds like you are a lady of leaisure. Isn't it nice for a change not to have to do so many things in a day.

    SUSAN I think these growers have large even huge properties and aren't just the little back yard growers. They are serious about their crops and supply some to the local markets. It's the small backyard growers that got wiped out here this year in the heat. In fact we got wiped out last year and things go in 7 year cycles so we may have 5 more years of this heat that wipes out the gardens.

    I hope all is well with you Magnolias ~ type at y’all later ~
  • Good evening, ladies! What can I say, hot and humid. Hopefully a cold front will be coming in over the weeknd.

    Tomorrow I have a beaded scissor case class and then my library bee in the evening.

    Faye, congratulations on the 6 pounds gone. You're doing great, especially with all the medical issues you have had.

    Jean, I'm here with rivers, lakes, Chesaeake Bay and Atlantic Ocean and its too hot to go out, at least for me. The tourists are out in full force despite the heat and humidity.

    Maggie, I saw in the paper today the FDA is estimating only 31% of the antcipated corn crop will be harvested this year. Here on the peninsula the farmers aren't expecting much but just across the James River the corn is doing very, very well. Cotton and soy beans are thriving.

    Have a great evening!
  • "Gma" -- On 6#s that are gone forever! Our contractor was here tonight and he is a Cubs fan. I thought of you! I cleaned out a couple drawers and my purse today. I'm good at stuffiing lists and receipts willy-nilly in my purse; it has too many pockets! I also spent time talking to a bank rep about buying bonds online. Since we don't bank online I doubt we will be buying any more. The bonds are stored in cyberspace "somewhere" and I sure don't like that plan. I'm not comfortable with putting social security numbers online either.

    Maggie -- Enjoy your new blouses! I don't like tight clothes either. I wouldn't make a very good teenager today!

    Susan -- It sounds like a repeat of 1937 (?) when there was a drought. Sadly, there is nothing anyone can do to fix it. I just hope we don't have to ration water. Have fun at the beaded class and library.

    Keep cool, Flowers!
  • Happy Humpday
    GOOD MORNING MAGNOLIAS

    Wednesday, the Hump-day of the week, is already here! This week is whizzing by and it is coasting downhill now to the weekend. It is 71º’s this morning and will climb to 107º before the day is over. Will is going out this afternoon to do a show and tell presentation on some of the Civil War guns, that the museum has, to a group in town. I will be doing glass work inside where the air conditioner keeps me cool. Something has come up each day so far that has taken me out of my shop and the cut out pieces to my police station/jail are still sitting on my work table waiting to have the edges ground smooth. The court house is sitting on my dresser in the bedroom waiting there until we get some more shelving put up under the existing ones for my houses. My village is ever growing and will continue to do so throughout this year.

    I am looking forward to the time when I can get all my materials all rounded up to make some high falutin’ dolls. We still haven’t gone to the “city” to check out what I can get at Michaels where I bought the little Christmas lights for the roof edges of my little houses. I need some more of those plus items to fashion my dolls. I am going to re-arrange this desk of mine to where I can use it as a work station for the doll making. My computer doesn’t sit on the desk so it will work out fine for a sewing station/desk. It is higher than a normal desk for it is what they call a “writing desk.” It has a nice surface of 4 foot by 28 inches. There are items on it currently that can be placed elsewhere. It is across the room from my glass working table so that is good.

    I love having this room that I can do as I please with and it is just “my stuff.” Will has a room of his own down the hall that he can do the same plus his shop in the full basement & on the patio where he can work outside in the good weather. So you see it works out good for us. I stay out of his stuff and he stays out of mine and we are happy campers. That doesn’t mean that I don’t go into his office nor he into mine though.

    SUSAN Oh how the cotton and soy beans love hot weather. Other crops aren't so enamored with it though like the eating fruits veggies. We did pick a couple of large mesh bags of apples off our tree just waiting to be pealed, sliced and dried. There are several neat ways to dry apples for healthy snacks ~ like sprinkling them with sugar free Jello or dipping them in lemon juice and topping them with coconut ground to powder in a blender. Sprinkled lightly with cinnamon mixed with Splenda is also a good one. And of course just dipping them in a mixture of lemon juice and water so they don't turn brown to use in dishes later. Even though our veggies didn't do well the apple tree loved the weather and at least I have those to work with this year. We didn't get a good crop last year for the bugs got to them so we sprayed for the bugs and fed the tree and it produced. It just needed some TLC to get rid of those mean ole bugs that just love apples. I might even make some apple sauce.

    JEAN I don't bank on line nor do I give out my SS number out willy nilley. I have heard too many horror stories about banking on line to make it comfortable for me to do it. Hackers are smart folks but do dumb things. Nope, I won't bank on line and that's my opinion and I'm sticking to it. I know a person that can hack into anything on line and they use him to make their programs better. If he can hack into it ~ it needs to be made better so he can't hack into it. But eventually he will hack into the better program. He doesn't bank on line either. And the beat goes on. I don't carry a purse but just use a nice tote bag when I need to take something with me where ever I go. If I ever do need to take a purse I have a wonderful leather one or two to use.

    I hope all is well with you Magnolias ~ type at y’all later ~
  • Good afternoon all. Sticky as usual. Jack is headed home and said work was miserable today. He is running by the grocery store on the way home then will run my dil's birthday package to the post office and drop it off. Her birthday is Saturday and I sent it priority so it should get to her either Friday or Saturday. I made her a pair of socks and sent her a bath and body works gift card.

    I have been following more of an exchange diet than WW. For one reason, it makes me not eat sweets and for another I keep a sharp eye on my blood sugar because all three siblings and my mother are/were diabetic and so I basically follow the diabetic diet, which doesn't do any harm and keeps me from eating junk food and keeps my blood sugar level just in case. I haven't ever had what they consider high blood sugar except at my first surgery and then they were loading me with that liquid supplement stuff which is notorious for spiking the blood sugar because the dumb doctor substituting for my own refused to take out my ng tube. Even then, the highest it ever went was 132 and they were giving me insulin to keep it lower.

    Started the other sock today so hopefully can get it done by next week. My hand is still bothering me off and on, but for the most part, I can still knit. Then it will be finishing up the wrap and I will be done with cruise stuff.

    Susan: Hope you enjoyed both your bead class and bee class. I have seen a lot of beaded knitting work lately and I actually have a knitting bead work pattern book. I have not looked at it in awhile. Maybe I will scope it out and make something for someone for a birthday or something. Cotton kicks the butt out of the soil though. Jack says it is probably the crop that is the hardest on the soil. Our cotton is going gangbusters around here.

    Jean: You contractor is a smart man! We did so bad the first part of the season but have really come around the last half. We did get our behinds handed to us last night though losing to the Marlins 9-5. Can't win 'em all. I bank online constantly, but I also keep a sharp eye on my accounts and the credit union really has a great security program in place. I don't think I would buy bonds online either though and certainly not give out my ss number. We are taking all kinds of precautions when we go on the cruise, one of which is to call the bank and tell them we are going out of the country, where we are going, how long and such. I bought this little leather bag that I can wear under my shirt and it will hope cc's, passport and such and no one knows as it lays flat.

    Maggie: I have two pairs of sandals coming tomorrow and hope they fit. If not, I can take them back to the store locally and get a refund, but they are cute, were on clearance and are the style I like to wear in the summer. Jack has his own office, but I have all my knitting stuff in drawers and such. When we start the remodel, I am getting a section of the big pantry we are doing where it will have cubes to put yarn in and I can label it so I always know what weight it is and such. I look forward to that.

    Well girls, Jack should be home in just a bit. You all have a good afternoon and rest of the week. Faye
  • Good Afternoon, Flowers! It's SSDD weatherwise in my corner of the world. We went to the funeral this morning and stayed for lunch so we could visit with the son a bit. I've been on the phone since getting home - haven't even changed clothes.

    Maggie -- It's so nice that you and Will each have space to call your own. What kind of dolls are you going to make? I will need to make room for Bob when he officially retires. My main challenge will be to find space for his toy tractor hutch. Eventually, there will be no more checks but I hope it's not in my lifetime. I just can't be comfortable with banking online yet.

    "Gma" -- I always call the credit card company and tell them when we are going to Maui. After a day or two, they call back to verify the information. They are on the ball, and I'm glad. We've never had any trouble but Bob carries his billfold in a front pocket and I make sure the zipper on my purse is next to my body. I use a short handle purse rather than my shoulder bag.

    Guess I will go change clothes and go get the mail. Enjoy the rest of your day!