Monday, Monday

 Today was a great day. I think I finally caught up with traveling and entertaining exhaustion, and I was ready to rock and roll. 

I spent the morning juggling things in my sewing room. By the way, did you know that I can juggle? When I was in my 30's a young man taught a juggling class at the rec center, I think he may have been 14! I had always thought juggling would be fun, so I took the class. I refused to pay for juggling balls, so I filled some of my kids' baby socks with rice and used rubber bands to close the ends. I folded the 'cuff' over the ball and ta-daaaa - I had juggling balls. I finally got so I could do it. I had my mishaps. I clearly recall practicing in the kitchen and having a ball (sock) plop into a cooking pot on the stove! I entertained my 5th graders by juggling eggs. Juggling them was not problem. I didn't drop any. But, when you stop juggling, two objects end up in one hand.... and catching an egg with one already in your hand is a certain disaster! I finally bought a set of "joggling balls". These each weigh one pound and the idea is that you work your upper body by juggling, while you work your lower and get cardio by jogging. Hah! I can barely do either one of the activities by itself, let alone trying to do both!

I worked on piecing one of the larger squares of the Bonnie Hunter

"Lupine & Laughter" mystery quilt.

I ironed more pieces of the mystery quilt.

I put pieces for the State Challenge quilt in a project box.

I've been experimenting with colors and patterns,

and I'm very excited about what I will be putting together. 

I need to collect a bit of fabric before I can really dig into this project. 

But...it's a secret! I can't tell anyone my state, 

or what my plans are.

The Citrus Crackers group has a mystery quilt project that is just beginning.

I collected the required fabric for that project

and found an empty project box to house it.

I still need to cut the fabric into strips before March.....

that shouldn't be a problem!

I played Mahjong in the afternoon and came out ahead, 

winning a whole $1.10 over the $3.00 that I began with!

You can tell that we play for high stakes! 

And, upon my return, I finished piecing the last sections of 

Bonnie's quilt, and will begin assembling it next!

I have two puppies by my feet that are trying to use their telepathic cues to get me to feed them. They are so very good about this. They rarely bark at me. (That doesn't mean that they don't bark!) They don't demand to be fed at exactly "this" hour or minute. They just wait patiently, staring at me with those deep, dark eyes! 

My Daily Reflection:

• What are you proud of?

• I'm most proud of completing the large blocks of the mystery quilt, and I look forward to getting them sewn together. 

• What did you enjoy?

• Walking the fence perimeter, checking for escape avenues for the dogs. It was sunny and so much warmer than the past few weeks.

Silly Things

Perhaps these ladies have watched too much of the Olympics!

I did have a chance to try curling when I was around 10. We took a vacation to the Hotel Chantecler north of Montreal. It was a grand resort with skiing in the winter and golf and a lakeside beach in the summer. 

Found on the Internet

There was an elevator from the hotel down to the curling club floor. We went a few times to try the sport. 

According the Internet, this resort was demolished in 2020. 

Home Again

 My time in California came to an end before I knew it, and there I was, sitting at the airport waiting to board the plane. (and writing this post to help keep me awake!) On my last few trips I have flown the "red eye". The plane generally leaves around 11 PM and arrives in Tampa around 7. Some people look at me like I am crazy for doing this....and, perhaps I am! But, I find that I am tired when I fly during the day, and I've wasted the whole day. If I fly at night, I'm tired during the day, but I don't feel like I've wasted a day. Another plus...the plane ride seems to be that much faster as I try my best to sleep most of the way. 

A friend who has traveled extensively recommended that other folks who anticipate long plane trips buy a "Trtl" travel pillow. I bought one and I'm a believer. I don't have to carry around a bulky neck-roll type pillow which still allows my head to flop forward. The Trtl is made of a plastic frame covered in fleece. The fleece wraps around your neck and attaches to the base of the brace with velcro.

And look what happens when you put the Trtl on: you are suddenly 40 years younger, 20 pounds lighter and beautiful! Hahaha!

The pillow worked its magic and I slept fairly well. Before I knew it, an announcement came on saying we would be landing in Tampa in 25 minutes. 

As the plane approached Tampa I spotted the sun rise. It was beautiful, despite the dirty window!

I was tickled by the plane's path upon our approach. Seriously?! 

It looked like we circled and zig-zagged all of the way up the bay! 

I took a quick jaunt through the Tampa terminal, 

passing the iconic flamingo art installation.

Last week I saw that the artist had returned to touch up 

the flamingo's toenails! 

So, despite my having slept "fairly well",

I'm thinking my eyes are telling a different story!

Time to head home and get a nap!

New Pieces

 Uh oh.... I found another quilt shop in Berkeley. It's actually been in this location for 13 years, having moved from another Berkeley area. I have just never found it before.

I wasn't looking for a quilt shop....honest, I wasn't. I simply accompanied the grand kids to their fiddle lessons, which happen to be conducted upstairs. I've driven by the area many times, but I never ducked into the parking lot, which extends a bit back from the road so the buildings aren't really visible. But there it was, "New Pieces Quilt Shop". 

I had to go in to see what New Pieces there were to see. I wasn't going to buy anything. Really, I wasn't. 

But, somehow I found myself at the cash register with these three fabrics. The first is for the background of the new mystery quilt I am starting. The middle piece would make a darling tote bag, and the bottom piece might be used in my State challenge quilt - you do see why I had to buy the fabrics, even when I had no intention of doing so! Don't you?

Yes, I am thankful that I am not Susan! 

Happy Valentine's Day!

 

Fighting the Funk

Do you sometimes feel like you are stuck in the doldrums? For many years I struggled in February. By that time I had had enough of winter. I had no energy, and I was basically unhappy with everything. Years ago I decided that I must suffer from SAD; Seasonal Affective Disorder. Once I realized that this might be the case, I made an effort to get outside more often. I bought a car with a sunroof so that I could experience more light on my way to and from work. (Later is was a convertible and the hours logged with the top down exceeded those with the top up - even in winter!) I walked to lunch when I was at work. I'd stay outside when I got home and play with the kids or the dogs. It did seem to work. My attitude was a bit better. 

From the Internet 

Currently I get a daily email called, "Start TODAY" that recaps segments of the TODAY Show. Sometimes I find interesting links. Thursday's message had a teaser link stating,  "two questions to ask yourself daily to feel joy  and feel more content.

The therapist (Niro Feliciano) in this synopsis of a recent TODAY show suggested that when people feel the way I often felt, they try to imagine the joy they will experience when they attain a goal in the future. Perhaps one of those ideas/goals you thought about at the first of the year! She described our lives as if we are living between the goal posts. I loved the imagery of that! But, she said that focusing on the big goals might not bring joy as that accomplishment may still be far off. 

What Niro suggested instead is to practice gratitude and be in the moment. She suggested a daily reflection where you celebrate your successes, no matter how small, and that will give you feelings of gratitude and contentment. To do this, the therapist recommended two questions to ask yourself daily:

• What are you proud of?
• What did you enjoy?

She explained that these can be very small moments of your day. For me, I might list making my bed as something I was proud of. I always feel better when the bedroom appears orderly, but a lot of mornings, I feel too rushed or too lazy to take the time (all about 2 minutes?!) And something I might have enjoyed is reading some posts of my blog friends. Niro suggests writing your answers to the two questions in a journal, or in an app....I just answered them in this blog post! It was suggested that you reflect on these questions daily. Hmmmm, maybe I'll add that at the end of my posts! There's an idea!

So, what about you? How are you feeling today? What are you proud of? What did you enjoy? Surely, there is something in each day that is the answer for you!

Wonders on my Walk

 It is less than half a mile from my condo to the kids' house. I have to cross two fairly busy streets (Alcatraz Ave and Telegraph Ave), but believe it or not, California drivers are really tuned in to giving pedestrians the right of way. Besides the two streets, the rest of the route I follow is in nice residential neighborhoods, with many pretty houses and lovely plantings. 

It's easy to get distracted on the way....

No matter what time of year I come,

there is always something blooming

that brings a smile to my face

and brightens my day.

A Little Bit of Everything Sort of Day

After walking my grandchildren to school I came back to the little condo and set up my sewing space.

I brought some pieces with me from Lupines & Laughter, a mystery quilt by Bonnie Hunter. 

I made a little bit of headway.

My younger son came by and we went out to local hamburger restaurant for lunch. 

I had a sloppy chicken breast 'burger' that was wonderful.

I accompanied my younger grandchild and the other grandmother on a walk among the redwoods.

There is a large park with trails among the giant trees within 15 minutes of my older son's home.

It's a delightful space with trails going in many directions, even in a light rain

that sometimes made it through the canopy of trees.

We rushed back to their house. The other grandmother made a welcome 

mug of hot chocolate and we were on our way into Oakland

to take my granddaughter to 'bandaloop'.

This is an amazing space where dance happens on the wall, and not the floor. 

It looks like a lot of fun, but I can see it would require a lot of core strength. 

There are several touring groups that practice at this facility.

The dance troupe often 'dances' on the sides of buildings. 

I was in awe of the instructors and how well they worked with the groups of children.

There were about 10 kids in the group, ages 6-12.

At the close of the class I chatted with the instructor, thanking them, and 

enquiring as to whether they have classes for old ladies...'yes'

and, for old ladies who are in lousy shape....'yes'!

Maybe if we decide to spend some time in California this summer I'll try it out!