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It’s day #1 of a long needed vacation from work and days two through eight will be spent at home but thankfully so. Now on to the exciting tale of my first day. Most of you know of the every other week treks I make to North Carolina to check on and do for my stepfather. It’s about a six hour round trip drive (not counting the times when he has doctors appointments which are at least 45 minutes away from his home). In any event, I left this morning at the crack o’ dawn so I could get to the other side of Atlanta before the rush hour really began. As I drove into the driveway and saw that the shade on the door was still down and the door locked, I began to worry a tad. He’s usually always up before 9am. Luckily the sliding glass door was partially open (there is a cat door in the sliding screen door for Miss Kitty who is a whole other story) so I was able to get in. I quietly tiptoed to his bedroom door watching the sheets to be sure he was still breathing (thank you God!)…he is 87 after all. While he slept I gathered up the bills, bank statement, and checkbook and had them almost done when he awoke. On to the pillbox and refills while he drank his coffee. Oh wait – I promised exciting didn’t I?
Frank’s little house is very compact – a tiny kitchen/dining/living room, two small bedrooms, and a bathroom. One of the bedrooms is used for storage – it used to be where my mother kept all of her yarns and threads – she was a weaver. In any event, while I was at the kitchen table I kept getting this faint whiff of something not too pleasant. When I went into the spare room there was a horrible over-whelming smell and I thought Miss Kitty had either deposited a gift or brought in a gift (which she does on an almost daily basis). Ole Frank said “Oh yes, I’ve been smelling that but didn’t see anything.”
OK, hold your breath (I certainly was by that time or at least breathing through my mouth) here comes the exciting part. On the wall shelves where extra canned goods, etc. were stored….well…..have you ever smelled or seen a bag of potatoes that was mostly juice? I thought I was going to pass out from the smell! Finally got that sucker into a big garbage bag – not very gracefully either…then had to scrub the wall and floor where they had dripped, clean off cans where they had run, WASH bottles of BOOST that had been dripped upon.
Oh no, we aren’t to the exciting part yet….really! These shelves are the rubber coated wire type and Frank had put a very thin piece of some type of wood over the top one – I guess so things wouldn’t fall through. Well I knew that lovely potato juice would have soaked it through and it needed to go. So off that shelf came everything (along with a bag of flour that, shall we say, was beginning to look like it was inside out. Not sure what was happening with that but it went in the garbage bag with the potatoes) and I lifted up that thin piece of wood – are you ready? Really ready? For the exciting part?
Can you say maggots? Ewwwwwwwwww ewwwwwwwww ewwwwwwwwwww! I’m telling you I nearly died, very vocally, as I ran through that tiny house to get that thing out of the house and onto the garbage pile. And then I had to clean the ones that were on the wire shelf off – ewwwwwwwwww ewwwwwwwww ewwwwwwwwwww. I don't DO maggots - I don't even want to LOOK AT maggots! Anything not in a can is banned from that room!
Now tell me – could I have had a more perfect vacation day? Bwahahahahahahahahaha!
Lucky #4 - Georgina - has won Flat Betty. And I've emailed you Georgina. Congratulations!
Y'all remember the Flat Betty tales don't you?
Flat Betty & the Snowball
Flat Betty & Pressley
Flat Betty & the Fourth of July Parade
Flat Betty Plays Bingo
Welllllll - so many of you had asked for more tales that I'm working on another one. This one will be my giveaway #4 and the only hint I'm giving you is....Autumn. You'll receive Flat Betty as well as a teeny storybook with her story.
One comment per person please. I'll draw a winner on Saturday, September 3rd (yup, I know it isn't still August then but what can I say - I must have started a week late on the giveaways LOL). Good luck!
Gee I'm feeling kinda lonesome! I guess that six months of non-blogging during my big work project took it's toll LOL Well it was a 50/50 draw and Debby, you are the winner of the pillow. I'll be emailing you for your snail mail addy. Congratulations!
Oh dear, my camera or my printer download program - one of them, isn't working right. Instead of pictures I'm getting something else (DCPs?) and can't download a picture. So I'm using the one from when we had the "braiding around rug hooking" class here with Kris McDermett and I made the pillow. Not a great picture of the pillow (or me on the left LOL) but enough that you can at least see the pillow.
The pillow is hooked with hand-dyed wool in yellows, blues, and greens. And yes it is as bright as it looks LOL. Around the edge is a braid of hand-dyed wool in blues and greens. And then around the outside edge of the braid there are tied lengths of a wonderful Italian wool roving yarn in various shades of blue. This was the most wonderful yarn to use for many things and I bought many color combinations of it. Unfortunately it isn't made anymore so I hoard it to use for very special things.
What you won't see in the picture is that the very center of the pillow is loaded with all types and sizes and colors of beads. So that will have to be the surprise when the winner receives it LOL
Leave a comment (one per person please) and I'll draw for a winner on Saturday, August 27th. Good luck!
Sorry gang - I spent all day yesterday shopping with my granddaughter for goodies for her sorority house room - it was so much fun to be able to spend a day and a half with her! So I never once thought about drawing for the giveaway last night. But today that wonderful generator has, for the second week in a row, chosen #3 so I'll be emailing you today for your mailing address. Congratulations!
A little bit of this and a little bit of that - bits of things that feed my soul went into this altered art piece. For the background, a piece of wet-felted wool in a rusty red color. Then a little texture with linen thread stitch stripes. All manner of goodies then had to be sewn on - a vintage picture of women friends who look like they were having a really good time; a quilted cotton cloth tag (an extra I had from a class) topped with a wool flower and two very old hook-and-eyes; a piece of Dupioni silk outlined with wool roving and topped with a teeny wood bird and a very interesting metal thingamaboby - not a key but must have turned or opened something or other LOL; then a different color Dupioni silk that had been felted right into the wool, outlined with tiny rusty bells and topped with a cloth patch that says Oh Happy Day!, and a glass pendant. And of course some wood beads hanging from the bottom to give it more interest. All of this wired to a crape myrtle stick with copper wire. It's about 12" X 12".
Taaaaaaaaadaaaaaaaaaaaaa - the random number generator has come up with #3 Are you curious about me? so I'll be emailing you for your snail mail addy. Congratulations!
And hey, I haven't seen pictures of my followers for days - and now that I think about it haven't seen them on any blogs I've read either - is something going on with blogger that I don't know about???
Now that my work life six month project from you know where has slowed down, and my brain has VERY slowly returned so that I may actually have more than one brain cell left - I'm back to reading blogs and hopefully blogging myself. So let's get this party started with the first of four giveaways during August.
This is a little altered art goodie that says "I Can't Wait To See What Will Happen Next". Now I did have this little goodie hanging on the outside of my cubicle at work...but based on the last project have decided it's time to take it down and part with it. Why tempt fate, right? I still can't wait to see what will happen next - in my personal life and at home - but work is another matter LOLOLOL This is made from wood, paper, wire, buttons, and a little mushroom bird.
I will draw from the comments (one per person please) on Saturday evening, August 13th. Good luck!
