7.17.15

I have been checking out traveling options. I seem to do a lot of flying to Oregon and have a trip to California coming up, as well as a trip to Chicago, and most likely, Florida.

Iconic Airport Carpet

I enjoy flying and don't mind "down time" in airports. Most have art exhibits and all have interesting people to watch. But I thought it might be nice to have transportation once I arrive at a destination. Naturally, I thought about a vehicle I could sleep in, make coffee in, and haul around a few basic necessities such as quilting and knitting projects, and Lily Dog. Wet-bath, optional. I know how to use a facility in a campground, even though it is not my favorite way to attend to personal grooming.

About six months ago, I made the first steps to finding out about the very smallest sized motor homes. I stopped at a local FORD dealer and spoke with two salesmen. They showed me the available used motor homes, which I told them were too big for me. Then they told me the size I was looking for (turns out it was Class B) was no longer being made, so I would not be able to find one, most likely. Not only that, the Truck Camper, which is the smallest option is also not being made but I might find one for sale from an individual, so wouldn't I like to look inside this lovely Class C or this Fifth Wheel? No, I would not.

Unconverted, not very attractive outside, either.

I asked about a Ford Transit van. They had several and they were somewhat reasonably priced, but completely naked inside. I mean, not even insulation and interior panels. I asked about converting one, but they had never heard of it and maybe knew one person who would know anything about that. I got (and then lost) his number and then just dropped the idea.

Imagine my surprise when I found out not only do they still make the size motor homes I am interested in, van conversion is a huge business, (the Ford Transit vans are some of the big success conversions) AND, there are also truck campers out there. Some 2016 models are available for pre-order, and many places have used models.

We have one that might be for sale but we can't tell you
what sized truck it needs unless you pay the ransom
of personal information so we can hound you and
increase your junk mail to mountainous heights.

Unfortunately, on the website which has outlets nation-wide and a live chat option, no one can tell me what size truck I need for the one that is available in Chattanooga unless I give them my email address and phone number. No one can tell me. No one. Amazing.

The research continues. 

7.13.15

Monday Mantra

You are confined only by the walls you build yourself.

7.10.15

Adventures in Car Care

So. My car has been making an interesting roaring sound that has not affected the tachometer readings. It raises its pitch as the speed of the car increases. 

I concluded it was not an engine issue, but suspected muffler or some hunk of sound insulation that the mice may have made off with this winter. 

Turns out it is a wheel bearing, like the one the finger is pointing to in the picture.

By this time next week, I hope my wheel bearings look like these to the left.

7.6.15

MONDAY MANTRA

My "fortune" from a visit to Curry in a Hurry. I intend to follow this as much as I can.

7.1.15

HomeSon is now FartherAwaySon. He has moved to Oregon. I am excited for him. It is a place he loves, and a place I love to visit. An added bonus is that I know many people there and I would NOT have to impose on him to visit. Now, I need to find some people to stay with in Chicago...or get AwaySon-in-Chicago to move to Portland.

6.28.15

One of my favorite blooms from the Rose Test Garden in Portland.

Just an assortment of the more orange toned flowers.

Unbelievable.

Acres of roses. Acres.

6.27.15

Jet lag is kicking my ass.

6.24.15

The hydrangeas are in full bloom around here. The picture in the previous post is not color enhanced at all. Never have I seen such a saturated blue in a natural blossom. I noticed a lot of houses nearby had the deep blue hydrangeas and I suspect it has something to do with the nutrients naturally occurring in the soil of the West Linn area.

I know the ph  can be tinkered with to get hydrangeas to bloom pinker, bluer, or even lavender. Also, there are some plants that naturally tend one direction or another.

Here is another variety. Sort of wispy, but pretty.









And then, these. Lavender!

6.22.15

     Today is a good day to be a good and kind person.

6.18.15

Coffee is a big deal, here in the Portland, Oregon area. A real big deal. People can tell you all about the beans they ground this morning and the contraption they used to make a cup from their favorite plantation's best roast.

I like coffee, too. And I like it JUST HOW I LIKE IT.

It isn't that I have exclusive taste. In fact, my Portland friends think what I like is, well, dreck.

Get your own crappy coffee right here

I buy my beans already ground.
Yup. I might grind them at the store, but I don't want to mess around and grind each cup I want to drink, just before I make it. 

Also, I like my cups of coffee in the morning to be of uniform temperature and consistently so. I like to have a cup, sit on the porch awhile, mess around on the computer, and pour a second or third cup that is every bit the same as the one I just had.

So you can imagine how my brother was perplexed when I searched for a 

He did have other alternatives 

Back row, L to R: Inoxpran espresso, Breville Grindmaster, Nespresso Vertuoline, Pavoni
 Front row, L to R: Ilsa espresso, Bodum French-press (nothing special), Bodum French-press (fancy), single cup drip factory

but nothing would do until I borrowed one from the neighbor that loaned it to me last time. "I think I have one of those," she said, "because the last people that rented the place left it behind." Left it behind?  A great little machine like that?

MR. COFFEE--not available in Oregon

6.17.15

I am in Oregon, again. Portland. I knew I was here when I realized I had seen more dogs and people with pink hair INSIDE THE AIRPORT, than I had the entire time I was in Amsterdam.






I also saw this.

Yes. 

A lady with a stick between her legs with a baby shoe glued on the end of it. 

Dunno why, but why, not?

6.16.15

Mary Englebreit for Quilting Treasures.
Of COURSE I did.

Tea Time Tuesday
Fabric...
Should I or shouldn't I?

It is called TEA TIME.
Of COURSE, I had to buy it. Also, Mary Englebreit.

Yes. Got a half yard of this, too.

6.15.15

MONDAY MANTRA

Look for beauty and carry the recognition of it with you all day.

6.9.15

TEA TIME TUESDAY
I think I showed this pattern, Garden Tea Party by Bear Creek, once before. I have begun collecting fabrics to use to make something vaguely like it. I will use the idea as a jumping off point to do my own thing, somewhat.

I like the teapots but I have a different idea for the tea cups and the flowers. 

Who knew I liked pink? I am surprised.

6.8.15

MONDAY MANTRA
Make a list, complete some tasks, cross things off, be glad for flowers planted the year before.

6.6.15

Sally, I am back. Pineapple pictures to follow this week. 

5.31.15

Not much of a coup. Although no ice cream came home with me, I bought and ate potato chips. 

It was a rough couple of days, but I heard unexpectedly from friends here and there who must have sensed I needed a little virtual hug. 

Those in my acquaintance who have experienced loss up close and personal have told me to expect this. 

Expect what is unexpected. 

Expect that you can bump along, breathing, doing, being, and then WHAM. Sorrow gets right up and kicks you in the center of the back like a Ninja in spiked cleats. You never really see it coming; it takes your breath away. The wounds are so deep you think you may not be able to stand up again, but you can. There are plenty of people around to grab you by the hand and pull you to your feet. Your job is to put one foot in front of the other and stay on the path.

I think I will go for a walk...

5.28.15

        

         Well, mostly.

5.27.15

I have been COUNTING COUP at the grocery store.  Counting coup is is a way the Plains Indians gained prestige. "...prestigious acts included touching an enemy warrior with the hand, bow, or with a coup stick then escaping unharmed..."

Let me explain how I am counting coup.

I try to eat as healthily as the next person, but I have a lot of food weaknesses. If I can resist the one or two crappy food cravings of the day, I can resist them all. At least, for THAT particular trip to the grocery store.

Most of you know what I mean.

Also, if it doesn't go in the cart, it can't go in the car, and if it isn't in the car, it can't be unloaded into the house.

So here is my self-imposed test of strength, will, and determination.

I decided to touch and leave behind whatever might trigger my loss of self-control. I am documenting it with my cell phone.

Here are my first two.

I did not actually touch the cruellers, just the tray. But the aroma when I opened the serving case was heady and beckoning. And I said no, thank you.

5.26.15

TEA TIME TUESDAY
My grocery store has a Starbucks inside it. Some of you may not think that is very unusual, but I live in a place where the opening of a Chik-fil-a was front page news on more than one occasion, and one of the very few NON-buffet restaurants is named Fatz.

Maybe you remember that I do NOT care for Starbucks coffee. 

I don't. 

Unfortunately, I found out I DO like their milkshakes. You know, the stuff they make that doesn't have any of their muddy, ground-sweepings flavored coffee in it. Frappuccinos.

Then I tried a Chai Iced Latte, and I was hooked. The problem is, it disappears too fast. But today, I have Tazo's Chai concentrate, which I am going to try for the first time. We will see. Tea Time is going to be interesting.

5.24.15

Lavender in my garden. 

I will always associate lavender with a particular family member. 

I know Rosemary is for Remembrance, which is my OregonBrother's favorite, but these I planted to remember his wife.

5.15.15

I spent yesterday with a close friend. HMHMC went with me on my first date with my husband. The three of us went for drinks after work. She has a long history of making me feel brave enough. She has a no-nonsense approach to adversity and in the past few years it has REALLY been exercised. I am proud of her and grateful to her. 

Today, I will spend some time knitting on a shawl that starts from the ruffle up. It takes a little over an hour to knit one row. I forgot these things when I chose this project:
1. I hate lace weight yarn
2. I hate long, boring rows of all knitting and/all purling
3. I hate lace weight yarn

I will knit two more rows on it, and then switch to working on some chunky weight FOOT OVENS (a Yarnharlot recipe) and maybe some worsted socks with left over Iris Cascade 220 Superwash.

Don't worry, quilting friends. I finished my danged octopus applique'.  I don't like octopus armpits. I don't like teeny, reverse applique' bubbles. I don't like loose-weave fabric and dull scissors combined for applique'. But I finished it.

5.12.15

Yesterday was a regular day. Visit to the recycling station, exchange of books at the library, stop at the grocery store for more things in packages that will end up at the recycling station.

 Great sandwich for lunch, though. Fresh tomato, avocado, and hard-boiled egg on homemade whole wheat bread. It was delicious. 

 

I was never a fan of tomatoes but I find I am craving them. My Florida-sister-in-law and my Florida-brother have forever spoiled me for fresh avocado.They sent me a huge box of the smooth-skinned kind a while back--grown on their Florida estate.

 I can't wait to be the recipient of fruit from their New York compound.

Sounds grand, doesn't it? My Florida-brother can make anything grow anywhere and when he has spare time and a few inches of black dirt, stand back.

5.9.15

I am still here. 

I am still knitting. 

I am also wandering around in the garden, some. 

Also, applique is stepping up to take my hand.

4.28.15

This is for my Quilty Friend

Love, 

Me

4.27.15

Enjoying knitting socks.

4.26.15

Eating like my young, hippie self.

Of course, I didn't have the money for the good stuff, just the old brown ones with the pebbles in them from the food co-op, back in the day.

4.25.15

On my needles:

Laule's by cabinfour

Laule'a socks. I love the lavender color. These are my first purple socks, I think. Top down is not my usual method, but it is nice to get back to basics again.

 I am calling mine Garter Cowl . The pattern is Montague Street Cowl, by Nina Machlin Dayton Designs

I didn't think I would like garter stitch, but I had the urge to make something for a Knit-Along. I had some Lichen yarn to repurpose, so I looked for a lighter neutral to pair with it. I learned mitred squares and the cleverness of the construction meant only 4 ends to weave in. I bought buttons while on the Rose City Yarn Crawl. Favour Valley Woodworking. I don't know if you can tell, but these are mulberry wood. I must have stood in front of the display for 20 minutes trying to decide. Maybe today I will put those buttons on and call the project finished.