Sunday: 32°f/0°C, hazy. It was still very windy yesterday (Saturday), and very dry conditions mean fire danger.
We wanted firepit time this weekend, but with the dry windy conditions we have had, a fire is out of the question. So we have compromised with nice fires in the fireplace and movie evenings.
We've been watching some old films. Judgment at Nuremberg, with Burt Lancaster was startling with its parallels to what we see going on in the US right now. And Khartoum with Charlton Heston was another that spoke to the danger of megalomania, a man convinced that only he could solve a country's woes. After those two on Thursday and Friday, we watched Eragon Saturday night, a fantasy based on a New York Times best-selling book written by a 15 year old boy; it was light relief! Not a great movie, but fun. Last night I watched one that I will watch again tonight with Larry. More about it in another post.
Saturday I planted a short row of potatoes, and put in some carrots, spinach, and chard. I wanted to plant kale, but apparently I am out of seeds. I also mulched the leeks which are coming along splendidly despite not being mulched for the winter and deer nibbling off their tops.
A nice surprise arrived Saturday. Quinn, who has been a reader of this blog practically from its beginning in 2007, had offered to send me some Candy Roaster squash seeds. I have never grown them so was excited to try them this year. The seeds came in a large box, which puzzled me. When I opened the box, this beautiful handmade quilt was inside!
Q
Copyright Susanna Holstein. All rights reserved. No Republication or Redistribution Allowed without attribution to Susanna Holstein.
The seeds were in there too, and a sweet goat magnet. The quilt is now in place at the foot of my bed, a sweet daily reminder of a good friend.
Sunday we were off on errands--a stop at Mineral for gas and at Aldi's for a few groceries, then over to the tiny town of Beverly, Ohio, for an auction pickup. We came home via two-lane roads, a nice drive through farm country and along the Ohio River, that actually takes the same length of time as going by the interstate.
Today I am puttering, unpacking the auction things, cleaning up in the kitchen sorting laundry before I get to work on waxing the little dresser I painted last week. This is two-tone, just a slight difference in the shade of the drawers and the frame.
And taxes. I must buckle down and get them done, but boy can I procrastinate! Today I am determined to work on them for at least an hour, which should have all the data entered into the spreadsheet. I. Hate. This. Stuff. But do it I must.
I hope your Monday is going better than mine, but if not, feel free to join my pity party! And smile. It's easier and more fun than frowning, right?
Always travel the backroads if feasible.
ReplyDeleteAnd I a fellow procrastinator when it comes to taxes, and just about anything.
wow That handmade quilt looks beauuuuuuuuuuuuuutiful! Good job with that dresser, Sue.
ReplyDelete...thanks to my Sweetie, our taxes are done and we will pick thme up at the accountant Thursday. We are getting a refund.
ReplyDeleteJudgment at Nuremberg is so powerful. A wonderful film -- a tough one, but so well done. Topical now, too. What a lovely and thoughtful gift -- and that quilt is a beauty!
ReplyDeleteThe winds have been blowing here like crazy as well! What a great gift from your fellow blogger, karma perhaps?
ReplyDeleteI like the paint job on the chest of drawers. And I certainly like that quilt. How lovely of your friend to send it (along with the seeds).
ReplyDeleteWhat a lovely surprise to open the box and discover a beautiful quilt.... handmade too. Yes, travelling the quiet roads through the farmland is 100 times better than the dirty ol' interstate. And I'm procrastinating my taxes too.
ReplyDeleteYou said that dreadful word - taxes. My job is to get all the paperwork in order. Misery.
ReplyDeletethat dresser is really handsome.
What a wonderful surprise with the quilt!
ReplyDeleteI think it´s strange that in Germany I never saw a quilt. Shopping on Sunday? Shops are open only on special Sundays here.
Owwwww.... taxes.... I still have time... I think till October.
To your question about former GDR: I don´t know the movie, but I have heard many a story from friends who grew up there.
Stasi indeed was a huge issue, even in kindergarten. The young kids were asked how the clock in the TV-news looks like, so they found out if the parents secretly watched West-TV.
Ingo´s Dad, when visiting relatives innocently asked for beer. The cousin was away for hours to get a couple of bottles from various places (Schnaps was no problem), I heard many, many stories.
when I was a kid I set off a helium balloon with my address and hobbies attached, a school project and really it was found by an elderly, child-less couple. I got high-quality Photo-books - in exchange they asked for a certain coffee-brand they could use as West-"money".
But, all in all people were happy, neighbors helped each other, threw parties.
Still today we have "GDR-products", there are typical GDR-recipes due to lack of ingredients their cooking was different from ours... But... I am glad I grew up in the West in freedom!
What a wonderful surprise! We got a taxes done early this year, for once. It's a good feeling.
ReplyDeleteWhat a lovely fireplace you have. So cozy.
ReplyDeleteI've been anxious to get out in my herb garden, but we're nowhere near time for that up here in NEO. I've awakened to frost for several mornings.
You did a great job on that dresser. What will the hardware be?
Never done our taxes though Dan threatens that I should do them next year. I doubt he'll let me for fear of me messing them up.
ReplyDeleteThank you again for the blue plate. It catches my eye as I make my tea in the morning.
One of the joys of having so little income is that it only takes about an hour of answering questions from an on-line tax prep company to file ours and owe nothing to the feds and getting a small refund from the state.
ReplyDeleteI don't know if I have the attention span for even one movie these days, but I'm making a note about Khartoum just in case. And I'm so glad the quilt is finally where it belongs! Now if those candy roaster seeds just do well for you... I bet you'll find them easier to process than most winter squashes.
ReplyDeleteI like your fireplace! We just finished up our taxes. Blah! Never fun, but must be done. What a lovely surprise with the quilt. It's a beauty.
ReplyDelete