My copy of the book of Curtis Wiklund’s drawings came recently. I’ve looked through it twice already. Whenever you doubt the power of love, just open this book to any page and your faith will be renewed. Curtis and Jordin Wiklund share a love that makes me cry. That love jumps off the page at you from his drawings and titles.
Also, you’ll love his website, where he lists the fact that he and his wife do wedding photography. There is a section of sketches from this book, but also new ones you’ll love.
Today it’s a balmy 38 degrees F. with a high of 51 this afternoon, so that isn’t bad. When I looked at the forecast for the rest of the week, though, I got more serious. The forecast is for snow Thursday and a HIGH of 16 Friday, so whatever we get – rain/sleet/ice/snow/flying hairballs – will stay for awhile. Since we live on top of a ridge line up a steep driveway, we try to plan ahead and modify our plans if it looks like we’re in for bad weather.
I’ve contacted the Lunch Bunch group to see if they are willing to have Lunch Bunch and our gift exchange on Wednesday, instead of Friday. That way we can all stay home safely watching the weather and not having to get out in it. So far, I have one “whatever everyone wants to do,” and I’m waiting to hear from the others.
I have my December massage Wednesday afternoon, so it MAY be Lunch Bunch, a trip to Walmart and the other local grocery for supplies, and then my massage. However, the Lunch Bunch plans go, I’ll plan to stock up for the bad weather.
I really enjoyed yesterday. I reached out to two long-time friends, asking if I could come over for a bit. Nora got right back to me, saying, “YES!” so I jumped into the truck.
Our schedules just don’t mesh, so we hadn’t seen each other in a LONG time. It doesn’t diminish the love in any way – life is just more complicated these days. (She works full time and I’m with my husband full time.)
I was surprised to learn that she is now working from home full time. I don’t know the logistics of it, but I’m delighted that she doesn’t have to spend all that money for gas, or worry about getting to and from Ft. Smith if the roads are bad. She is also having a roof for her patio constructed so that she can enjoy having outside in the mornings. This is a real quality of life issue for her. She’s tried various other more temporary roofs, but with our gusty Arkansas winds, they have blown down or completely blown away. Now she’ll have something that will last. :0) She apparently liked the tote bag I painted for her and complimented the card I painted. Since she is a pastel artist, I’m really happy that she is pleased with my efforts.
We ate lunch and then I heard from another friend, Carla. She said she was out and about, and wanted to come to our place around 4pm. I went scurrying around, making sure she had a comfortable place to sit, a clear place to put down a drink, the bathroom was clean, etc. (That’s what I get for being a slob.)
She brought what is called a “Kaleidoscope Rose.” Isn’t it stunning? I’ve never seen one before. I THINK that this is done very carefully with dyes on each petal to create this. However it happens. I think it’s gorgeous. She also brought chocolates that I am trying my best to stay away from. :0)
She liked her personalized tote, too, laughing at one of the quotes about car racing. (She and her son have a stock car.)
So it was a beautiful day, catching up with two ladies who mean the world to me, getting hugs, bringing up my spirits. What a lucky lady I am!
I received a notification that one of my posts was marked with ‘WARNING’ on Twitter recently. I was really surprised, since this is the first time I’ve ever had that happen. The only tweets I post are of Featured Items in my Etsy shop and then the posts I write here.
The notice said,
“We put a warning message on these Tweets because they might have sensitive content — like nudity, sexual content, violence, gore, or hateful symbols.
We know we don’t always get it right. So if you think we flagged your Tweet by mistake, you can appeal the warning by clicking on each Tweet. Keep in mind, this doesn’t guarantee it’ll be removed.”
I’m still laughing. I’ve clicked on the tweet, appealed the warning, and will wait to see what happens.
The reason for the warning was the title of my post – “Wet Wednesday.” I explained that the title was referring to the weather that day in Arkansas……
Curtis Wiklund and his wife are professional photographers. He sketches as a hobby, and challenged himself to do a sketch a day for a year while his wife did a photo challenge. He decided to do sketches of himself and his wife doing everyday things. The result is beyond beautiful.
It’s 29 degrees F. right now and sunny. Mother Nature caused too much wind yesterday for me to brave even a few minutes outside. I felt like I was freezing for the few minutes it took to put sacks in the truck and take the cart back, much less stand outside trying to lop weed trees. I’ll look at things today, hoping I can get something done.
Two young guys came to the house yesterday, instead of our regular guy, to check over our geothermal heat and air system before hard winter hits. My husband showed them around. Our filters are in the attic and in the basement. My husband told me after they left that one of the guys had come to him and told him that he broke the wallboard piece that fits in the attic entrance upstairs. My husband, being the handy man that he is, went out to the shop and cut a piece of plywood to fit in the space. This is probably much better than the wallboard that has been there for years.
IndiaMART
The MyFitnessPal app told me that I ‘likely wasn’t eating enough’ when I input my meals and snacks for the day about a week ago now. I decided to add something in the morning to be breakfast and a snack later in the day to get closer to the number of calories they said was a healthy amount in order for me to try to lose the lard. As of this morning, I’ve lose 3.6 pounds since the change. Who knew? So, I will be very happy if this trend continues. I’m on DAY 155 on my yoga practice, but still am only able to hold the plank pose for a count of 30 three times. Maybe I can add a fourth time next week.
As far as I know, we don’t have any projects for the day – unless I can cut down some weed trees this afternoon. I’ve texted my friends, Carla and Nora, to see if I can visit for a bit today. Hopefully, they’ll have some time.
He sketches as a hobby, and challenged himself to do a sketch a day for a year while his wife did a photo challenge. He decided to do sketches of himself and his wife doing everyday things. The result is beautiful.
This book was delivered yesterday and I love it. It appeals to me the same way the Winnie the Pooh series does – simple, wonderful, heartfelt drawings and deep, meaningful words that resonate long after you’ve read them.
Here’s an example –
This book can be appreciated by young and old. It’s a book to be shared and treasured, read again and again. You can buy it here
With the two of these, I SHOULD be able to clear many of the weed trees that have grown up along the civilized edge of our back yard, before the land drops off. I was planning to buy a reciprocating saw just for my gardening, but my husband insists I use his. We do have another blade to put on it after I finish, and we’ll probably need to, since I’ll be cutting down trees with some sap inside, even though I clean it as well as possible each time I use it. I’ve moved it from the shop to the garage so that if Mother Nature is feeling cooperative I can make some progress out there this afternoon.
My computer says it’s 32, but my thermometer in the window upstairs said it was 25 when I was dressing awhile ago. BRRRRR! The high is supposed to be 45 this afternoon, so there is hope to get outside later.
I thought I would yesterday, but my plans got snafued by my husband taking on a couple of big projects. We created a fulcrum to pry up the center of some big shelves in the basement so I could move a 2×4 into place as an added support. Scary, but we did it with three tries. (This was after I was using a can of dried beans to try to pound the 2×4 in place and bashed one of my fingers. I have a black place on my fingernail and a really sore finger today. :0( )
The second project that took up much of the afternoon was that our truck has been making a noise as we put on the brake, like something was dragging. We’ve checked and checked, but haven’t been able to see anything. We backed the truck into the shop and took both back tires off. We checked, but couldn’t see anything. My husband said we could have a stone in between the wheel and the brake disc that might make a sound like that, but we didn’t find anything. We laboriously got the tires back on and drove the truck back to the garage. It DIDN’T make the noise, so maybe something fell out when we took the tires off. No more noise! (The air compressor wasn’t working the way it should, even after my husband put a new hose on it, so that may be one of his next projects.)
Today we’ll get our mail, meet our friends for Lunch Bunch, get an oil change, then hit Walmart and another grocery store on the way back home. Exciting stuff, huh!
My scales didn’t smirk as much this morning. I’ve lost a couple of pounds this week. Since MyFitnessPal.com concluded that I ‘wasn’t eating enough,’ I’m now eating a hard boiled egg as breakfast each morning and am eating 1 oz of cashews as a snack during the day. That brings my calorie count up to where they think it’s healthy and will help me lose the lard. I’m hopeful, since the scales have started to maybe take my efforts more seriously.
QuotesGram
Today is DAY 154 on my efforts to make daily yoga stretching a habit. I’m holding the plank pose now for a count of 30 three times during my practice, so a bit of progress there.
My husband and I are trying to prop up some shelves we built in the basement over 35 years ago. The base of one of the supports has failed, making the whole set of shelves sag.
My first idea was to move some of the heavier stuff off the shelves while we work on them, but my husband nixed that idea. Now we have a pry bar, a length of 2×4 and some stuff to use as a fulcrum. The idea (I THINK) is to pry the set of shelves up high enough to put the 2×4 in place and then let them down again.
Again, my first reaction is to think of all the things that could go wrong in this endeavor, teeing off my husband. I DID convince him to sit, rest, and have a cup of coffee before we tackle the project again. I pointed out that the heat and air man is coming to check our system tomorrow and that he could help us, but that wounded my husband’s pride. He says, “We can do it.”
______________________
About half an hour has passed since I wrote the above. The project is finished. We managed to use the pry bar and a big pipe to work as the fulcrum, prying up the middle of the shelves high enough, in three moves, for me to move the 2×4 in place to shoulder the load of the shelves. Things are sturdy now and we are both still alive and each in one piece.
I think I’ve told you that my husband and I are basically together 24/7 these days. The fact that he was working quietly, trying to do all this by himself, shows you why I try to watch him quietly, jumping up when I see something that bothers me. I asked him what he was doing earlier. “Measuring wood” was his answer. That alerted me. Happily enough, we got the shelves supported with nothing falling on us. He is resting in his chair now, breathing heavily. I got him a cold drink and encouraged him to rest at least until lunch….
I’m making tweaks on what I’m eating each day in order to get closer to the number of calories MyFitnessPal.com says I should be eating. Yesterday it decided that I likely wasn’t eating enough! I would LIKE to lose a couple of pounds a week until further notice to meet my goal. I’m trying to pay attention to what this app is saying, get as close as I can to their suggestions, and see what happens.
I THOUGHT I had been paying attention and reading labels, but one thing got by me – deli baked beans. We’ve been enjoying a very small ramekin of beans with our lunches. It turns out that one serving is 28 grams of sugar! ARRRRRGH! I don’t even care how much a ‘serving’ is – it’s too much. So that is gone.
It said I shouldn’t be skipping breakfast, so this morning, after waiting an hour after taking my thyroid med, I ate a hard boiled egg.
We’ll watch our sugar again more carefully, but basically, the rest of what we’ve been eating at lunch is fine, and I’ll try to watch the fat and sugar more carefully on the frozen dinners we’ve been eating.
An article suggested I eat more nuts and seeds, so I’ll have a few cashews or almonds as a snack during the day sometime.
The app is happy with what I have listed to eat today. Hopefully, the scales will react in a few days, smirking at me a bit less.
Okay. I decided to list everything I was eating on MyFitnessPal.com and list the water I drink, my exercises, etc. to see how my current habits look. I basically eat the same lunch each day, but vary my dinner. I expected for it to tell me in no uncertain terms that I needed to cut back.
To my surprise, the result, when I listed everything for today, including the cottage cheese I ate after yoga, was that ‘it looks like you’re likely not eating enough.”
If that’s true, why am I sometimes gaining weight, and certainly not losing much?
I’ll try adding another veggie for dinner tonight to get closer to what they think I should be eating. I’ll do more research tomorrow.
He sketches as a hobby, and challenged himself to do a sketch a day for a year while his wife did a photo challenge. He decided to do sketches of himself and his wife doing everyday things. The result is beautiful.
Good morning! It’s a grim, gray, rainy day here, but not actually raining at the moment. I’m grateful that possible severe weather didn’t get us yesterday. We just had a hard rain. We’re still under the gun until the cold front comes through and things get settled, but I’m keeping all appendages crossed that everyone comes through this unsettled period safely.
Today will be a quiet day, I hope. We don’t have any reason to go to town. We may drive down later and get the mail, but I think that’s it.
It’s a good day to relax, read, listen to music, nap (I was up reading from about 12:15 ’til 2:30 this morning), and maybe get some productive stuff done, too, like scrub the kitchen or downstairs bathrooms. :0)
We Know Memes – Do You
DAY 152 on daily yoga practice. Yesterday I held the plank pose for a count of 35 three times.
creativeartworksblog 