Hazardous Fun

Saturday Tom and I went to an antique show at the Puyallup Fair Grounds. This is a very big show, over 400 vendors, and on Saturday morning it can be very crowded. We arrived about 11:00, after the first rush, but with the hall full of lookers. About five minutes into it, still trying to gear ourselves into dealing with lots of people, I was run over by a motorized wheel chair. I was trying to get into a booth the entry of which was being blocked by a very large man who was standing there looking but not allowing anyone else in. I hate that. Don't block the entrance! I was just about to say "Excuse me" (we are so very polite we ask to be excused when it's really someone else's fault, don't we), when I was broadsided. As I quickly tried to assess first what happened, and second, was I alright, I looked down to see a big, fat wheel on my foot and the frame rammed against my ankle, and my bad ankle at that. Well, I couldn't move and the elderly lady was apologizing all over the place, so I had to ask "Could you back up?" I don't think she realized I was still under the wheel. Flustered, it took her a bit to back off my foot. I didn't seem to be too bad off, but before I could walk and try it out, I had to reassure the lady that it was alright. She shouldn't worry. After all, she was in a wheel chair and I am able to walk, I hope. Then I limped off. Tom got to my side and asked if I was OK. I replied, as I blinked back tears, that I would be. And I was. I gimped around for a bit, and then recovered enough that I was able to spend most of the next four hours on my feet, with a short time out for lunch. Remarkably, by the time we left a little after three, I was tired and stiff, but not really in pain. Hurray! The other hazard, besides to my physical well being, is, of course, to my pocket book. We weren't really looking for anything, so we just had fun looking. However there were a few items that called to me that I did not resist. The first was this heavy porcelain baby's plate. I love these things and I'm always attracted to them. I have resisted collecting them because they are usually over $100. But I found this charming little English plate, circa 1940, that was only $25, and it made me buy it.

You can click on the photo to read the verse. These plates were made to sit on the back of a wood stove and absorb heat so they would warm the baby food and keep it warm while the baby was being fed.

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We have Tom's mother's child plate which would be from 1910, and I bought a little probably 50's era plate a year or so ago. They needed company. Now I'm afraid I may be starting another collection!

A collection I do have is McCoy pottery, mostly in matte white. I have been collecting for about ten years and have pretty much stopped because I'm running out of places to display them. But I found this little jardiniere in the leaves and berries pattern, circa 1935. I love this old, almost clunky stuff from that era, with it's heavy thick clay and factory imperfections all covered in heavy matte glaze. It was a good price, so I bought it. Last Christmas I was wishing I had some little glass bowls to use with my china for serving cranberries, or a scoop of sherbet for dessert. I found this Heisey Glass berry bowl set for the reasonable price of $29. It was in good condition and a pattern I liked. So I bought it too.

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I have already looked on line for more little dishes to add to it. I didn't find what I wanted yet, but I did find this same set, minus one little bowl, for a starting price of $39.95 So I guess I did OK.

I don't really feel bad about spending money when the price is reasonable and it's something I like. No, I don't really need any of this stuff. But I figure my spending money may mean someone else can stay in business a bit longer. So, Hey, it's for the good of the country! Right?

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Oh, and one really cool thing happened there. I met a vendor who was from my home town, Molalla, Oregon. I heard him mention Molalla to someone else so I asked him about it and then said I was from there too. In talking a bit we discovered that he knew my dad. He was just a boy then but he remembered that my dad had worked for his dad as a logger for the Olson Brothers Logging Company. Small world!

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We had fun and although Tom found lots of stuff he would like to own, none of his finds were in the inexpensive range, so he abstained.

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Then we headed for a Starbucks to refresh.

Greet the Day

It's amazing:

How much more you can appreciate a sunrise after a good night's sleep.

How for a brief time the rising sun can set the sky afire, and then so quickly fade to gray.

How easily one could miss such a show.

I was up at seven this morning, not my usual hour, but feeling good after a real night's sleep. Instead of getting going on the day, I planted myself in front of my computer, to catch up on blogs. I have a window that looks out through the trees toward the southeast.

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I suddenly caught a glimpse of glowing red. I hurried downstairs, grabbed my camera, and was out on the front porch. But with so many trees and houses in the way, I had to walk farther. I grabbed heavy slippers and found myself standing at the end of our long driveway, in my robe, out in the street, in the cold gray dawn, taking pictures of a fiery eastern sky.

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By the time I got back to the house, it was gone.

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The saying goes " Red sky in the morning, sailors take warning", and I do know it is going to rain later. That's OK. I have indoor activities planned.

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But I greeted the day in a spectacular way!

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And I even picked up the newspaper while I was about it.

How To Respond?

I'm still upset about yesterday's court ruling. Money corrupts. Power corrupts. More power in the hands of those with more money results in more corruption. But the court has spoken. What can be done? I'm upset with the Democrats in power in Washington. The health care issue is so disappointing. The Dems have let the Re-pubs define all of the issues. It's not really health care reform, it's insurance reform. Tea Baggers, whose brilliance is shown by their sign saying "Keep the government out of my Medicare" are controlling the debate. Where is the rebuttal? Where is the common sense? The Dems are now in a tizzy because they lost the Massachusetts Senate seat. Scott Brown won't support health reform because his state already has it. When asked about the rest of the country, he responded that each state could do the same. The fact is Massachusetts has a system similar to what the White House and Congress were trying to pass. Brown voted for it. A column by Froma Harrop stated some of my feelings. Politically, the Massachusetts program could serve as a national model. Pass universal coverage now, fix it later. Even though their reforms are superior, Democrats in Washington could have done better still by not trying to please everyone. But despite their control of the White House and Congress, Democrats seemed capable only of reacting to critics, cringing with fear under even the most ludicrous attacks. If you don't have the courage of your convictions, it doesn't matter whether your party has 59 or 60 or 65 seats in the Senate. Under President Bush, Republicans got whatever they wanted with 50 senators. Now we'll see piecing out of the health reform bill. But what to start with that isn't somehow linked to the rest - regulations on insurance companies are linked to the cost of coverage, for example. And will those in power find the will to reform the banking industry? Will they put back the regulations that have been eroded since the Reagan administration? But most of all, will the American people ever realize that what took 30 years to break might take some time and money to fix? Obama has had one year. The Re-pubs have seen to it that he now owns the problems while standing firmly in the way of any solutions. The people are hollering that he hasn't fixed anything yet, and are suddenly concerned about the deficit, a deficit that didn't seem to bother them under Reagan or Bush. The democrats in Washington need to find their voice. They need to become audacious in countering the clatter of the ludicrous. They need to shout out the outrageous truth! Many people shrug all of this off, saying all politics is corrupt. It's true that there are people in elected office who are in it for themselves, but not all. Some are truly good. Some are truly smart. We elected a man for president who is both good and smart. Such a man should not be allowed to fail. How to respond? It's natural to feel jaded, to want to duck and cover for a while. But this stuff is important to us and to our children and grandchildren, to our nation and to the world. How to respond? I can only stay informed, and use my small voice whenever or wherever I am able.

Exxon Is Now A Person

The Supreme Court has spoken. In a 5-4 decision, the court has established that corporations and unions have the same free speech rights as a person under the first amendment of the constitution. They are now free to use their considerable wealth to openly influence elections. Remember all that clatter about "activist judges legislating from the bench"? Well, that's exactly what they did. The supreme court threw out a 63 year old law designed to restrain the influence of big business and unions on elections. The court overturned two of its own decisions as well, and threatens similar limits by 24 states. The basis for the ruling was that not allowing this "speech" to corporations was a form of censorship. "The censorship we now confront is vast in its reach," said Justice Kennedy. Justice Stevens, in dissenting, said,"The court's ruling threatens to undermine the integrity of elected institutions around the nation". "It's the Super Bowl of bad decisions," said the president of Common Cause. Ads will now be allowed to run right up to the moment of an election and allow them to call for the election or defeat of a candidate as well as an issue. The loudest voices will be those with the most money. And you thought it was bad now?

Sunny in Seattle

We've been having the most extreme weather here the last few days. It's dry! Even when it's not dry, it's warm! Yesterday it got up to 60 degrees! Sometimes it's even sunny! Like today! I finally took down the holiday greens and the wreath by the front door. They are replaced by a pot of little daffodils. No snow on these snowdrops. After my walk yesterday I took some time for "recliner therapy" while I worked the newspaper crossword puzzle. They're always easy early in the week, and it's satisfying to be able to finish one in under an hour. Then after lunch, I tackled that sewing learning curve. I'm working on a wall hanging using a printed panel I bought about two years ago. Remember, I'm digging out unfinished projects. Anyway, the next step called for free motion quilting, or outline quilting, which I've never done before. I've previously limited my quilting to straight line. So I layered up a sample - top fabric, batting, backing - attached my walking foot to the sewing machine, and practiced. After about an hour, I got tired of that and decided I was ready to try the real project. I spent the next two hours quilting my wall hanging. I outlined the herons and did contour stitching on the background.

I'll show you the whole thing when I get it finished. I already know how to make bias edging and attach it. That will be next.

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By the time I finished, it was dinner time and I was tired. Tom took me out to dinner.

We did not watch our usual MSNBC programming and only a part of the national news. We did watch the Chuck episode we missed Monday, on the computer, no less, since I forgot to record it. We did watch the previous nights Daily Show with Jon Stewart, which we record every night. And we were going to watch The Good Wife, which we like, but it was a repeat, so I went to bed with the latest copy of Time magazine and read until my eyes wouldn't stay open.

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It took me a while to fall asleep, and I did wake up frequently during the night, but I actually went back to sleep each time.

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I feel better today. In about an hour some teacher friends will be joining us for a field trip lunch downtown via Link light rail.

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It's a beautiful day!

Sleepless in Seattle

I am plagued by insomnia, so I am not at my best. I am plagued by conditions in Haiti, which seems to me to be misery at it's worst.

I am discouraged by politics, which seem stalled in nothingness.

I am stalled in my sewing projects until I learn new tricks. I'll need time to re-establish my sleep patterns. Haiti will have to endure unspeakable hardship while it takes too much time for aid to come and restoration to follow. I may need to watch less coverage. I can only hope in time the political maneuverings will bring about positive change. And I need to give myself time to learn, practice, and find joy again in creating. Meanwhile, my physical health requires me to push through discomfort and keep moving. Here time is not my friend. It's not raining, so I'm going for a walk. Maybe when I get back I won't be so "me" centered.

The Old Iron Kettle

Remember that one about the pot calling the kettle black?

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Well, this is one old kettle who's proud of her color.

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Vonda at littleeggfarm asked me for my beef stew recipe. That put me into a stew. Recipe? What recipe? I don't know if I have ever followed a recipe for things I cook in this kettle.

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And that's the secret of the stews and pot roasts and short ribs and whatever has been brought forth from this pot - the pot itself.

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This old cast iron pot belonged to Tom's grandmother, which means it could easily be 100 years old. It is well seasoned. And there's nothing like an old, well seasoned, blackened cast iron pot for slow cooking beef.

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As to the stew, I start by thoroughly browning the lean, well trimmed stew meat with a bit of vegetable oil. After it is well browned and all water is evaporated, I add chopped onion and celery and brown a bit more. Then I start dumping.

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This time I added some plum tomatoes I had in the freezer. Did you know you can just rinse off whole fresh tomatoes, put them in a zip lock bag, and stick them in the freezer. When you want to use them in soups or stews or sauces, just remove what you need, run them under hot water to slip the skins off, and cut them in chunks. Into the pot they go.

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Then I added water to cover, salt, pepper, chopped basil I also had in the freezer and some dried marjoram. Put the lid on and it all goes into a 325-350 oven, where you forget about it for two hours. Then in the third hour add the vegetables. Cut up carrots and potatoes take about 45 minutes in a 350 oven. I add parsnips and turnips and maybe cabbage for the last 30 minutes.

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Sometimes instead of tomatoes, I add red wine and mushrooms after browning. This changes the flavor somewhat, for what I call beef burgundy stew.

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I'm sure most of you don't have Grandma's old black kettle. so use a heavy dutch oven, but be sure to brown the meat well before stewing. That's the other secret.

Domestic Goddess

While getting my beef stew started and into the oven, I was watching Martha Stewart. Her program today was about blogging! I guess we all know how to do that!

Now the stew is stewing and filling the house with mouthwatering aromas, and the promise of a hearty dinner on this dark, rainy day.

Before that, I finally finished a pillow project I started a long time ago.

I found this wonderful fabric at a shop in Freeland on Whidbey Island and had to use it for something. I did some preliminary cutting, and then ran out of time. The garden called, the grand kids were coming - something like that. I don't remember for sure.

The bad news is the shop closed last summer. I loved going there.

The good news is with all these machines I have now, I had just the impetus and the tools to finish the job.

January is the perfect time to dig out all of those unfinished or avoided projects, and complete them. I'll have to see what I can find next. I'm sure there're more.

Progress?

Progress is often defined as two steps forward, one step back. While that makes for slow progress, it still results in a net gain, so I guess that's a good thing. I thought I broke my seger today. I was working on my first project, when I guess I jammed something and broke a needle. I unthreaded everything, took out the needles, and the rethreaded the four threads and struggled to replace the two needles. Finally I was ready to try it our and assess the damage. It wouldn't sew. Great. I broke it already! So I stopped for lunch, and then packed it up and took it to the sewing shop. Linda, who I have worked with recently, checked it all out, started it up, and it was fine!!! What a relief. I think I forgot to throw an unlock switch when I rethreaded it. So much to learn. So I brought it back home and finished my first project - a cover for this very machine. I had a piece of upholstery fabric, so I engineered a pattern and sewed it up with the serger, slick as a whistle - except for the the interruption for the near disaster. But I'll get better at all of this. It just takes time and practice, and a panic induced call for help now and then. Oh, and I got the results from the ankle xray today. Sure enough, arthritis. And as if the proof wasn't enough, my ankle has been screaming at me since I got back from my walk this morning. Staying healthy is hard work. Two steps forward, one step back.

Time Flies.....

...when you're just doing stuff. I'm not sure where these last two days have gone. I don't seem to have much to show for them. Rain has returned. Real rain. Rain that is endless. Rain that floods. And yet I haven't paid much attention to it. I even got out for a 45 minute walk today during a break in the deluge. Yesterday I saw yet another new doctor for my regularly scheduled physical exam. We belong to Group Health Co-op, which is both a health insurer and health care provider. I consider us very fortunate to be a part of this not-for-profit system directed by a board of members. It is rare in this country, maybe one of only two like it in the nation. We have assigned docs, but can see anyone if ours is not available, which means you can usually get prompt care if you really need it. But in my slot at our local clinic, the doc rotation has been frequent, so once again I have a new primary care physician. Because we were getting acquainted, I scheduled a double slot, claiming chronic conditions. I had to wait much longer than usual, but finally got to meet Dr. Wilkerson. She is a petite young woman whom I liked very much. And when I told her I had scheduled a double slot and then came prepared with lists, she was impressed with me too. "You are a very good patient", she said. So we hit it off. As far as I know I am healthy, just sort of falling apart. I had an x-ray taken of my right ankle, since it hurts often and is the only part I don't have a recent picture of. I suspect it will show arthritis. I have been doing my physical therapy exercises regularly, even though I hate it. Oh, I got points from the doc on that one too. Today I picked up my sewing machine, newly serviced and ready for projects. I am in the process of setting up both the sewing machine and the serger, using a new station in the guest bedroom. While I was at the shop I signed up for more classes. I think it's time to see what I can learn from others. I'm not much of a joiner, and have to push myself to get out there and participate in opportunities provided by others. It comes from my being a control freak. But I usually like it when I do. So we'll see. I received some bad news today. I got a short note from one of the cousins I met in Sweden. It was Yvonne, who's house we met at when we were there. She lost her husband to lung cancer in October. The cancer was due to work related causes - exposure to harmful chemicals. He was not an old man. What a loss to that family. I don't know what kind of hazardous work standards they have in Sweden, but it could have been exposure of 20 years ago finally taking it's toll. At least there was full medical coverage . Sweden does get that right. Will we?

Urban Trekking ; Lake Washington Ship Canal and Fremont

I love days like today! The weather was dry and balmy for January - 55 degrees! We went urban trekking. It's so freeing to just leave everything behind and go enjoy new surroundings. And I love being a tourist in my own city. Today we headed for the quiet side of the ship canal, the south bank, and walked the trail to our destination, Fremont.

There were large rafts of these scaups on the canal.

Across the Fremont Bridge, and into "The Center of the Universe", as Fremontians like to call their village within a city.

We were headed for the always fun Fremont street market, a year-round Sunday happening.

I loved the colors at this "antique" vendor.

The Raw Corn street musicians were entertaining.

At this stall you can buy regular chocolate or hemp inspired flavors.

I studied these old valentines a long time, but finally resisted.

I did not resist these charming little vases made from old silverware. I now own one.

And I couldn't pass up this $10 glass bobble, especially since it matched my shirt.

This treasure might only be meaningful to folks who have grown up in Seattle or the region. Tom is holding a homemade toy hydroplane, a Miss Budweiser, made in 1967, according to the inscription on the back. It belonged to a Thomas Eugene Baker, and it definitely has been pulled behind a bicycle, as these toys usually were.

We had lunch OUTSIDE at the PCC deli.

I joined those "Waiting For the Interurban", in a famous local art work.

Tom posed with his treasure at a photo op.

And I posed with a famous Seattle TV star, JP Patches, and his side kick, Gertrude.

We walked down to Lake Union under the Aurora bridge.

House boats and sail boats line the edge of the lake.

As we walked back to the bridge, it was opening to allow a sail boat to pass under.

And then we headed back down the trail to the car.

I love the red berries on this cotoneaster.

A merganser was enjoying a canal swim.

Kayaks and sail and motor craft were out for a day on the water.

After some rest up time at home we had dinner out with the guys, Jake and friends Tad and Russ.

Now we'll settle in for the evening. Chuck is back!

What a perfect day!

News Flash!

I just discovered the Google Translator! I can copy and paste text from Inga-Britt's blog into the text window and it gives me a full translation!!! http://translate.google.com Technology is grand!

Bits and Pieces

This morning I had a class on using my new serger. It was very good, a one-on-one, hands on tutorial on threading the machine, and the different set ups for the various applications. I made samples, and with each I was thinking of how I would use it. My instructor, Jeanne, was very good and we related well.

I'm ready to make some more samples and practice on my own. When I get my sewing machine back from being serviced, I'll be in business. It will be fun to see which machine I can use for each sewing task.

I feel confident!

After lunch I took a walk, since we are enjoying another day without rain. I never really got into the rhythm today and by the time I got back home, I needed to recover in my recliner before doing my back exercises. So I got my mini-lap top and read blogs and emails and Facebook. I also watched the football playoff game between the Jets and the Bengals. While I don't really have a favorite, Dianne of Forks Off The Moment does, so I root for her beloved Jets. And they won! - We are planning to go out to a movie tonight. We love historical movies, especially English, and we'll see The Young Victoria.

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I'm also waiting on photos to come in from Jill. Yesterday was Isaac's 7th birthday! Already!

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This birthday had a Lego theme, and Jill made a Lego cake. Here is Isaac with his cake eating his special birthday pancakes Friday morning. Jill must have had to get going early to start the birthday pageant so early.

Isaac is nuts about Legos. When we did a skype call in the evening he could hardly talk. He showed us his new Legos, but we could tell his head was full of visions of building, not talking. He had his first "friends" party after school. Irene was not happy because all the kids wanted to do "boy stuff" and not play with her. Jill was glad when they all went home.

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The pageant continued today when the local grandma and grandpa and cousins went bowling together, before coming back to the house for a party. I think some of the cousins were staying over night, so I may have to wait awhile for my pics.

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Jill will need a rest day tomorrow!