Sunday, September 23 - Massachusetts

Good afternoon intrepid followers! Yes it has been way too long, and yes it is my fault. I keep saying it will not be so long between posts but unfortunately this Summer it has been. Summer has flown by. This post will be a bit long!

Reasons (not excuses, but skew it as you wish; I make no judgement!). Despite regularly getting vacinated against it I caught pneumonia and was out of commision for awhile. This Summer beat a lot of records for heat and humidity... brutal. I stayed pretty much ensconced inside for much of the duration.

My part-time job was originally to be a few hours a day, a few (no more than 3) days a week. It morphed into much more. Too much more. I am not happy because it has burned me out. SO not what I signed on for. I will finish the season as I did commit to it.

There is no time for "me" and fit in the things I want/need to do. I have had to reschedule appointments etc. to accommodate this "part-time" job. I am supposed to be, want to be, retired. Not working for someone who keeps changing the Rules. Sorry - nope, not sorry - been there, done that. I worked for over 40 years for high level people in the Corporate world. My education and experience bear that out. I am not looking to revisit it, even at a much lower level.

Yeah, that was a whine.

Needless to say, this Summer was a bit of a wash. Several good things happened, however, that made me very happy :) I had a cookout over Labor Day and invited my awesome brother. We cooked steaks on the grill, had potato salad, and strawberry "shortcake" for dessert. I was so full! Here are some pix. It was a delightful - and delicious - day all around!

Steaks on grill!

Strawberry shortcake!

My niece's bridal shower was last weekend (more about that in another post). For the guest favors, my sister and I split duties. One of mine was hand-painting glasses for the shower favors.

And I spent quite a bit of time this summer painting glasses. About 26 total. My niece's theme is roses, and her colors are white and green. I bought 2 boxes of wine glasses, half short and half tall. Never having painted on glass before it was a very quick education for me!

I drew a template...Then painted. The green part took about 20 minutes per glass. Dry a few hours (well overnight, as I was painting in batches). Then paint the roses -about 10-13 minutes each. The humidity took its toll as well as far as drying time went. Let glasses dry at least 24 hours, then bake at 325 for an hour. Cure for another 24 hours, then wash.

My template

Glass before

It was fun, and I am glad I had the opportunity to contribute to my niece's shower!

I will write a separate post about my niece's shower, as it is worthy of its own. It was so elegant and wonderful!




Stay tuned, my friends. The week after next is my annual trip to Martha's Vineyard with my Brother! Ferry reservations are made, as are the room reservations. I cannot wait! Our trip this year will be a bit shorter. Hotel prices went up considerably this year, and the car ferry was completely booked the day we wanted to return. We shall still have a wonderful time, however. I have no doubt!

Thinking of you, Sis!

Wednesday, August 15 - Massachusetts

Tribute

It is with sadness that I post today. A very beloved Aunt passed away last week. Our family has always been close, as you know. Aunt Louise was my Dad's sister - the eldest of my grandparents' 5 children. She was so full of life, and devoted to family and her faith. It seemed to me she always enjoyed, relished, and looked forward to any and all family gatherings.

I have so many fond memories of Aunt Louise that began in childhood... The family get-togethers - annual reunions, summer vacations, Thanksgivings, etc. spent together. Funny, but true, story: my Dad and Uncle Dinny (my Aunt's husband) loved camping. I cannot even begin to count the number of years we spent camping. Setting up huge tents, lugging camp stoves, coolers and all the gear that camping entails packed into the cars and boats both our families brought. Oh, and 8 kids between the two families (4 each). Makes my hair stand on end!

Come to find out, Aunt Louise disliked camping every bit as much as my Mom did. I find that amusing :) That dislike of camping gene got passed to me as I despise camping. My idea of roughing it is Motel 6. I have to hand it to her (and my Mom) though - a trooper through it all.

Aunt Louise had the most wonderful laugh! It makes me smile just to think of it; I can hear her now, laughing over something small or large. She always took such delight in life.

Unfortunately I was unable to make the trip out to New York for her funeral last Saturday, much as I wanted to be there. I was ill with a stomach flu that kept me in bed most of the week.

Aunt Louise will be dearly missed. She was always kind and gentle, and loved family most. She was never too busy to listen or lend an ear. Her faith was unwavering.

She was quite an admirable lady. And the sky is a little brighter for her star shining so brightly up there now.

Wednesday, August 1 - Massachusetts

Wow... I knew I was overdue for a post, but wow - over a month!! Apologies followers and friends. July rather flew by. It really did.

Not many pix tonight as I have not ventured outside a lot, mostly due to the excrutiatingly hot and humid weather the past month. Inside with the air conditioning is much better (although not so much on the utility bill!).

Part of the slack in posting is because I am now working part-time from home. It was, and still is, a bit of a learning curve as the type of business I work for is not exactly in my wheelhouse. I am doing Admin work, which is right up my alley though. Over 40 years' experience with that! Mine, however, was with engineering (think Digital Equipment Corp., GCA, Intel, etc.). This is different and taking a bit of time to acclimate.

It is working pretty well now though, and I figure one is never too old to learn :) I have my color-coded file folder thing going on and all that down pat. So it's all good.

I also lost a little over a week last month as I was quite ill. As in totally out and down for the count. Unable to even drive myself to the doctor, my most awesome brother had to cart me around that day.

Fully recuperated now and back in the game.

No real trips planned this summer, as explained earlier. I wanted to work on my home this year, and it is coming together. Slowly, but it is! Interior painting is almost done :) That has taken much longer than I anticipated.

My bathroom is also undergoing a minor renovation along with the paint. I have 2 bathrooms here, which is odd to me considering I am only one person. Two bedrooms, which I need. The larger one in the back (my sleeping space) for me as is the bathroom (also larger of the two) adjoining it. There is a smaller bedroom in the front, with an attached full bath (also smaller). I set up the front bedroom as an office/studio space, mostly studio. Makes sense to me - even though I am one person I have always required two bedrooms (the studio space).

Having a second bathroom baffles me a bit. I really do not need it. Therefore it holds overflow products and a spare kitty box. It is a cozy bathroom should it ever become more useful however.

So the minor renovation - I was obsessed for months about the fact that my original commode was obviously designed for people with very short legs. Found the one I wanted, got it, and installed. So happy!! The over-the-commode maple color cabinet that was there will go in the front bathroom (so there is a use for that!), and I have a wall-mount white one which will suit my new decor better. Something like this.

Pictures when it is done!

Meantime, life goes on here. I am hoping to get in a weekend Sister visit before the Summer is gone (she did say we would...). Also planning my Brother's and my annual Columbus Day weekend trip to Martha's Vineyard. Ferries and hotels must be booked ASAP as they fill up quickly.

While I was not looking Boris #1 (the big spider) packed up and left. No note. Boris #2 (the one with fangs) has also disappeared (I think he moved outside). Boris #3 hangs out in the corners. The tiny one has grown up quickly; I call him Boris #1 now. Here is a (blurry) recent pic of him.

Stay tuned, my friends. I promise it will NOT be so long between posts the next time!