Man, where o where does the time go?  It's been a week since I posted!

My big news of the day is that I finally got my blog pages links working, thanks to Helen!  Thanks bunches, my friend!

This weekend was great.  Saturday was my mother's birthday, and she wanted to go to Floyd, VA, to visit a friend, and to see the leaves.  We drove part the way on the Blue Ridge Parkway and it was SO pretty.  ANDDDDDDDDDDD........a trip to Floyd HAS to include a stop at Schoolhouse Fabrics.  It really is an old three story schoolhouse which now houses fabric and notions on all three floors.  Can you say heaven??  I did manage to contain myself (to a degree) but I got a gorgeous 12 pack of Christmas fat quarters, several other pieces of Christmas fabric, and a stack of regular fabric.  The ole sewing machine will be humming away soon :)  I'll post pictures as I get projects done.

Funtown has been pretty good in the last week.  No problems.  YAY! But my favorite nurse, Carol, has been on vacation, so I haven't had anyone to talk crafting with while I sit there hooked up to my machine.  But I think she's been having a great time on her vacation.  I'm glad she did, but hurry up and get back to work, Carol!

Wow......it's 1 A.M. and I have to go to Funtown in the morning.  Guess I better get my butt in the bed!  Good thing I already took care of the orcs and trolls tonight!

Til later,
Morado

Happy Tuesday

Wow, been too long since I posted.  My bad.

Let me fill you in on the weekend.  There's a little town not far from where I live (in fact it's the town I go to for dialysis) and there is a Masonic Home for Children there.  This past weekend they had their Homecoming.  A Shriners parade, a BBQ cookoff, and musical entertainment.  Well, in the South we are very picky about our BBQ.  Especially those of us who grew up with North Carolina BBQ.  Nothing else like it anywhere.  It's da bomb!  As we walked up to the grounds to get a good spot for the parade, the smell of all that bbq and ribs and chicken cooking was enough to make you slap your grandma.  I mean it smelled GOOD.

The parade was fun.  Shriners in their costumes, driving their little vehicles.  I was missing my brother in law. He was a Shriner and he had one of the little mini-rigs.  But I bet he was watching from upstairs :)  All was well until this one car came by with a hillbilly on it, who had a gun. Which he proceeded to fire.  Right in front of me.  Made me jump.  If I didn't have kidney failure I probably would have wet my pants.

It was a bit chilly with the wind blowing, so after the parade we went back to the car to warm up for a bit.  Then it was time to eat!!!  MMMMMM MMMMMM.  It was an all you can eat deal.  WOOHOO!  I had 3 different kinds of bbq, 2 different kinds of ribs, a piece of bbq chicken, and a piece of fried chicken.  Well, not all at one time. I brought some of it home for dinner and it was still yummy then.

THEN, time for the music.  While they were setting up the stage, I wandered over to the table where they were selling CDs.  There was a guy there...white hair, white moustache and beard, wearing sunglasses.  I heard him talking and thought 'wow, he sounds like T. Graham Brown', but the last time I had see him, he's been real heavy and this guy wasn't.  So I went back to our seats and pointed him out to my sister and said 'I think that's T. Graham Brown'.  Well, sure enough, it was.  He was really looking good and he sounded even better.  He hasn't lost a THING with his voice.  I mean he belted those songs out.  I was right on the front 'row' and got some good pictures of him.  He sang for about an hour and a half, and then said he'd sign autographs.  I hustled over to the table and he was so NICE.  Very friendly and personable.  I was like a 15 year old meeting a celebrity for the first time.  I was grinning like a possum.  I got to talk to him for a couple of minutes, got an autograph, AND my picture taken with him.  Awesome!!  But it really was a great time.  So support your local Masons and Shriners.  They do great things :)

So that's been my excitement for the week.  Now I'm looking forward to the weekend.  We're going to Floyd, VA, to Schoolhouse Fabrics.  A 3 story former school now FILLED with fabrics and notions.  OMG.  I don't know if I can contain myself :)

I better go check on the trolls.  I'm sure they're out of control by now.

Til later,
Morado

Laid-back Thursday

Wow, another week almost gone.  Fortunately I'm feeling better, and dialysis has gone great so far this week.  Yay!

Now that I feel better, I've got to finish getting my room back in order.  That means moving the machines back to their living space and trying to organize my crafty and sewing supplies.  Woe unto me.  I am so not an organized person. Never have been, never will be.  Doesn't bother me most of the time but occasionally I get that wild 'I'm gonna get organized!' thing.  Fortunately, I'm usually able to beat it into unconsciousness and go on with my day :)

I've been crocheting.  Still working on the spiderman web blanket and making crocheted snowflakes to put into my Etsy shop, which I hope to open this weekend.  I'm seriously thinking of making some clay snowflakes as well.  I've seen a few that were pretty neat and I think I can improve on the designs a bit.  Conceited, aren't I?!

I'm also thinking of offering my free standing lace embroidered coasters for sale in the shop.  What do you think?

 There are 6 in the set.  Watermelon, cherry, grapes, pineapple, strawberry and orange.  What do you think?

The kittens are growing daily. There's one we have named Fuzz E. Butt.  He's rather fluffy, but with all the rain we've had, he's having terrible hair days.  Hmmmm.  Maybe we should rename him Don King.

Well, I thought the organizing bug would be gone by now, but it's still hanging around, so I guess I should go at least put the embroidery machine back on the table.

And I've got to check on the orcs and trolls.

Til later,
Morado

Ugh

Sorry I haven't posted.  I have been sick since Tuesday about 5 PM. My tummy is very unhappy and that's enough said about that.

Let me tell you about this past weekend.  My sister stayed with me while our mother was in Florida visiting friends. Things went well; we got a lot of stuff done, including rearranging my room.  Lemme tell ya, that was NO picnic.  You see, the kitty pulled down the curtain over the window behind my desk.  BEHIND the desk.  The only way to get to the window was to move the desk.  Did I mention my crafting table was up against my desk?  So, had to move the serger, the sewing machine and the embroidery machine off the table, then all the assorted crap also on the table, not to mention the stuff that was stored beneath the table.  Then had to unload the desk.  So now it looks like a whirlwind has been through.  Twice.   At least.  Ok, we get the desk moved and it's really really wobbly, so I get down in the floor under it and discover that some of the screws to hold it together are missing.  Now to go find a screwdriver and screws.  Found.  Back under the table. Hmmmmmm the electric screwdriver doesn't seem to be screwing the screw in.  Go find a rachet screwdriver. Success!!  Then to get the stepladder behind the desk and get the curtain back up.  YAY.  NOW let's move all this stuff back.  Well, we got the desk moved back and the sewing/crafting table moved back, and got the stuff back in/on the desk (more neatly organized this time, I might add). However, all the machines are still on the other side of the room along with the assorted crap to go on the table.  Fast forward  to Tuesday when we go to the airport to pick up the Mumster and have lunch at Red Robin.  Tuesday evening, said tummy starts acting up. Uh oh.

Now let me tell you about Saturday night.  I go out on the porch to give the kitties their bedtime snack, and they're munching away, and I sat down to watch the baby kittens in their box.  Suddenly I caught movement out of the corner of my eye. I looked and there is a SKUNK coming up on the porch.  I was going OH my God OH my God OH my God!  Who expects a skunk to show up? Especially in such a brazen manner.  You've never seen a fat girl move so fast in your life.  I swear I had spring in my underwear and wings on my feet.  I flew inside.  The skunk meanwhile moseys over to the kitties' bowl and proceed to help himself.  One of the half grown cats takes exception to this and smacks the skunk, who responds by raising his tail and making it really bushy.  He lowered his tail after a few seconds and another cat takes a swipe at him.  POOF, tail up and bushy again.  It was at this point that I just shut the door and went back into my room.

So between skunk fright and tummy troubles, I've done nothing this week.  Sure hope I feel better tomorrow.

I haven't even checked on the orcs and trolls. I bet they're taken over by now.

Til later,
Morado

Start of a new week

Here we are, Monday already.  Today was D Day, of course.  I seem to have slept through a lot of it for some reason.  Ok, I always sleep SOME during treatment but I seemed to sleep though MOST of it today.  Then my BP dropped.  I so hate that.  Regular dialysis just makes me a bit tired but when my BP drops, I feel totally wrung out.  Not a fun feeling.

Tonight was the premier of Dancing With The Stars All Stars.  I don't know yet who I'm going to pull for.  I really like Mark Ballas for the pros but I'm not real crazy about Bristol Palin. I think they could have given Mark a better partner.  And they gave Tristan McManus Pamela Anderson as a partner! WHAT were they thinking.  I'm afraid Tristan will be gone tomorrow night after the first elimination.

I have to give the lowdown about my weekend but it will have to wait until tomorrow when I feel better.  Helen and I are making progress, though, with our business plans.  We have a website and Bob is working on that for us.  We've got several of the graphics made up and I think we're making great progress.

And now, I'm going to fall into my bed with a bag of Cheetos with the remote and drift off to sleep to the sounds of The Golden Girls.

Til later,
Morado

Insert creative title here

Good evening, fellow babies! (Anybody remember Dr. Johnny Fever from WKRP In Cincinnati?)  Today was Funtown day and it went well.  Except apparently my blood pressure dropped while I was asleep. Excitement at Funtown today - we had a fire drill.  Complete with setting off the alarm.  The best part, the alarm scared the crap of the doctor and she jumped about 4 feet straight up.  Actually, the best part of Funtown is chatting with Carol, talking about our crafts and whatever else crosses our minds.  She's dying flour sack towels and they are turning out beautifully.  I'd like to do that, too, but I've got plenty on my plate crafting-wise at the moment.

I'm not feeling real creative tonight but I promised myself I will at least post every other day.  So I'm already behind cause I haven't posted since Sunday.  Sigh.  I can think of all kinds of things I want to say when I'm not at the computer but when I sit in front of it, sometimes my mind is so blank I can hear the wind whistling through my ears.  No, really, it's like Death Valley in my head sometimes.  Kinda scary, actually.

Well, let me tell you about my trip to Michael's.  The day started with having to get up at 6 AM.  Those who know me, know that I am NOT a morning person in any shape, form or fashion.  In fact, left to my own devices, I would likely be going TO bed, not getting up at 6.  Anyway, my sister and I took our mother and a friend of hers to the airport, where they set to FL to visit friends.  Then Chick-Fil-A for chicken minis for breakfast.  Heaven in your mouth.  Little bite sized pieces of fried chicken wrapped in mini yeast rolls.  Way yummy.  We stopped at Goodwill to look for re- and up-cyclable stuff  but alas we left empty handed.  On to Kohl's where we scored some good deals. Yay! Christmas shopping started already!   Finally, Michael's. We went to a different store than we usually go to, so nothing was where I was used to it being.  Add to that the fact that they are starting to stock Christmas stuff.  The aisles were full of boxes and 'stuff' and employees taking down displays, putting up displays, and generally getting in the way of my shopping :)  I could kick myself, though. I specially wanted to get clay crafting tools, and a couple of punches.  What were the two things I DIDN'T get??  You got it.  Man, memory loss sucks.  So.um....what I was talking about? :D  We ended the day with a late lunch at El Dorado where I had an excellent Taco Salad.

So my sister made me a surprise today (Carol, if you're reading this, skip this part :D) She made Impossible Brownie Pie.  It was way yum.  We decided next time she makes it, she'll put nuts in it.  Tomorrow I'm going to make Cincinnati Chili for dinner.  Pasta, chili, cheese, onions and mushrooms.  Can hardly wait!  Probably gonna have to have some garlic bread, too.

Hmmmmmm I wonder how the orcs and trolls are doing without me.  I probably should go check on them. I'm sure one or two needs a good butt-kicking to end my day.

Til later,
Morado

Soggy Sunday

Blissful Sunday.  Well, that's what it's SUPPOSED to be.  Unless you include a trip to Walmart.  When it's raining.  I'm tellin' ya, NASCAR drivers can't get in the pits any faster than people trying to park by the door at Walmart in the rain.  You need an air traffic controller to help you navigate a Walmart parking lot.  And of course, the person who gets the first prime parking space is about 18.  They hop out of the car and skip to the door in between the raindrops so they don't get wet.  Unlike us *ahem* more mature people who have to unfold to get out of the car and don't get up to speed for at least 30 yards.  Then you realize they have parked in a handicapped spot!  You get ready to leave a nasty note on their windshield when you realize there is one of those handicapped plaques dangling from the rearview mirror.  In fact, it's still swinging from the momentum of them blasting into the parking space at the speed of light.  You KNOW it belongs to Granny or Aunt Hortense, not that nauseating 103 pound stick that just went tripping in the store.  They're so much faster than you that as you are going in the store, you see them going through the exit door with a full cart AND a drink from Subway.  I tell ya, it really pisses me off.

Then let's talk about actually SHOPPING in Walmart.  The first thing you hear is the lilting lullaby of a really mad kid who didn't get the whatever's-the-latest toy.  That first soft strain of music is joined by the crashing crescendo of a screaming mother who hasn't slept in 37 months, all building to a symphony that you rename the "Wall of Sound" (if you don't know what the Wall of Sound is, Google Phil Spector and skip over all the stories of his murder trial).  As you tool around the store, you enter the refrigerated section, or as I like to call it, Antarctica.  You need a Nepalese Sherpa's coat to just buy a Red Baron pizza, which you plan to eat in its entirety while wearing your jammies and watching 'You've Got Mail' for the 400th time. (Which sounds like a mighty fine way to spend an evening to me.)

You finish your shopping and head to the car, leaning heavily on the cart handle like you just finished the Boston Marathon.  You plan to carefully place your purchases so as not to mash the bread but it's still raining, so you sling the bags in the car like John Smoltz on the mound in a tied game with 3 on and 2 outs.
Finally, you're home.  Now you have to get all that crap out of the car into the house.  The cats help you by winding around your feet and competing to see who can trip you first and make you fall in a puddle.  

In my mind's eye, I see me in my jammies, with a hot pizza beside me, and Tom Hanks looking cute on the screen.  But first, just let me check Pinterest and Facebook, and I gotta see how the trolls and orcs are doing........I'll get back to ya tomorrow. :)

Til later,
Morado