The Time Has Truly Come

The Walrus and The Carpenter

by Lewis Carroll

"The time has come," the Walrus said,
"To talk of many things:
Of shoes--and ships--and sealing-wax--
Of cabbages--and kings--
And why the sea is boiling hot--
And whether pigs have wings."

(from Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There, 1872)

Well, here we are. We have arrived at March, 2015. And it occurs to me that the time has come to begin posting about a subject we have been discussing in earnest at Casa 3917 lately. While it is certainly not a new subject, it has moved forward with a bullet, based on the events of the past 4 weeks. I speak, of course, of retirement.

But first...a pause for some snow pictures from the past week. We made it into the 60's today, so our snow days are numbered. And I wouldn't want to forget before moving on.

Ah yes. Moving on. You know, one of my alma maters, the University of Memphis, has a motto: Dreamers, Thinkers, Doers. Well, the time has come to move on to the realm of the Doers.

As the new year began, we were dreaming and thinking in terms of the Retirement Big Picture (did we have a plan in place for some unnamed date in the misty future, were we saving enough, what are our healthcare choices, etc?). Mr. T's recent heart-health scare revealed a glaring gap in The Plan, mainly that we are living in the wrong place...about 5 hours northeast, to be exact. We can have a plan, a budget, comprehensive healthcare coverage...but if we are too far away from Missy M (AKA: our support system), then everything else is at risk.

So, even though we still aren't ready to commit to an exact date, we do know we are talking about next year. And we do know we are talking about a downsizing move, likely to Gwinnett County, Georgia (where Missy M is...and where we lived 1997-2002), which will take several months to prepare for. I will be posting about the process and about our experiences. Since there are still thousands of things to consider and hundreds of decisions to make, I will welcome the opportunity to voice our successes and roadblocks alike.

Sure, we have made 13 "permanent" moves, with a few more into/out of temporary quarters, in the past 39 years, so we know what a pain moving can be. A. Giant. Pain. But we haven't moved ourselves since making a cross-county move in 1999...from Duluth to Dacula, GA...and that nearly did both of us in. One of the issues with that move was that we hadn't done a ruthless purge prior to making it, thinking "oh, it's just across the county." Wrong...on so many levels!

And because we have made mostly corporate moves, we have gotten complacent about all the stuff we have wagged all over the country: if we weren't paying to pack and ship it, we didn't really care whether there were 100 or 1000 boxes.

That changes today. The time has come to take the first tangible steps toward our goal: decluttering. And, how timely indeed! I saw this post that Cousin H liked on Facebook...perfect! Click here to see the decluttering hints I will be following as we prepare to make our move.

While I still have a couple more weeks of wearing this splint on my left wrist/hand, I can commit to "a bag a day." Whether I pack up a bag of clothes or knickknacks for Goodwill, or throw away a bag of old magazines, I am setting a goal of removing a bag of STUFF from our surroundings each day. That should get me going in the right direction...without having to do any heavy lifting.

Yes, the time has truly come to begin preparing for our next big Adsit Adventure. Join us, won't you?

And Then...And Then...Along Came the Rest of the Story

Well hello there. Good to see you again. I'm back, and using the neatest technology for typing: talk-to-text. So why am I using talk-to-text, you ask? Ah well, that's part of the rest of the story. Let's get started…

When last I wrote, Mr. T was headed for a cardiac ablation to correct an arrhythmia. (Please see the previous two posts to catch up with this part of the story.) The short version is it all went extremely well. The longer version? Of course, that's where the rest of the story begins!

We got to Wake Forest Baptist Hospital in Winston-Salem on Monday (2/16) before the 7 o'clock scheduled appointment time and followed the (excellent) directions we had found on the website. Those directions got us to the correct parking deck that serviced the Electrophysiology Lab. Unfortunately, we actually needed to be in Admissions...several floors below and one building over. It's like we were trying to collect (or rather SPEND!) our $200 without passing "Go." STOP! Retrace steps. Start over. Dear Readers, if any of you have ever been to WFBH (or any large, metropolitan University teaching hospital), you will know that "retracing your steps" is much easier said than done. Sigh.

How did this happen? You may remember from my last post, that the cardiac ablation procedure was planned late Friday (2/13) afternoon over the phone, in consultation with the electrophysiologist after he had read Mr. T's ultrasound. As it turned out, Dr. W is the head of the EP department. In other words, he makes the decisions, and he can make a procedure happen in three days rather than in three weeks. What he does not do, is enter information into the WFBH admissions system. And, even if the top doc has decreed you will have a procedure ASAP, you do NOT do anything until the (electronic) paperwork is in order. And it was definitely NOT in order.

Still, I must say, everyone we met at WFBH...everyone...did everything to make Mr. T's stay there the best it could be. The Admissions rep pulled in just the right person to finagle the system into admitting him. And more than one person called the EP Suite to keep them apprised of his progress. He got the ticket for admittance when they strapped the bracelet on his wrist (note the QR codes...more about those in an upcoming post).

When we got back to the place we had started, they wasted no time in getting him prepped for the procedure...but neither did they try to save time by neglecting to tell BOTH of us what to expect when. Then, as they wheeled Mr. T away, one of the nurses said to me "do you know where the Adult Surgery Family Waiting Center is?" When I said I didn't, she smiled and said, "well, let me take you there!" And she did! Two floors down and one building over. [I soon learned that was a theme: if you even appeared to be lost, a hospital employee (doctor, nurse, tech...didn't matter) would come to your rescue, and typically ask if you wanted him or her to take you there.]

I settled in for my long winter's wait, since Dr. B (who was the EP in charge of the procedure) had said he would call me in about 2-3 hours to let me know how things were going. Missy M had agreed to stay behind at home and make sure the pups were fed (it's all about the dogz, right?); then she'd come along to wait with me. I had started a raglan sweater (knit, knit, knit...round and round on circular needles) that seemed perfect for passing the time in the waiting room. Only two problems:

1) We were in the direct path of a winter storm, supposed to dump snow and ice on us starting at 4:00...almost the exact time Mr. T was to be discharged (if all went well with the 4-hour enforced flat-on-his-back recovery spent in the day hospital room); and

2) My left wrist was hurting worse than ever. But, I had an appointment with a WFB orthopedic doc that very afternoon, and Mr. T's doc had encouraged me to keep the appointment. Plus, his nurse told me not to even think about driving across the campus...there was a shuttle bus that would deliver me door-to-door! Well, alrighty then...knit on!

Meanwhile....up in the EP Suite...

Mr. T said he remembers the first part of the morning, when they put at least 16 electrode patches to determine whether he was in flutter (he was) and to begin what they called a TEE. Here's a bit about that:

"In a small number of patients, an ultrasound of the heart is needed to make sure that there is no blood clot present. This is called a transesophageal echocardiogram (TEE)...and involves a probe that goes down your throat to look at your heart. You will be given sedation during this test..."

Well, sort of. He remembers the lidocaine that was used to numb his throat. Then the foul-tasting benzocaine. And he had the impression that he had pulled into pit row in a NASCAR race: there were people all around him, with each one doing some portion of the procedure...all working in harmony. He thought he might hear the whirring of the air-jack at any moment! And then...and then...well, lights out.

Meanwhile, back in the Surgery Waiting Center...

I knitted. And I texted. And I watched the constant weather updates. And I waited. And before I knew it, Dr. B called me to say the procedure was over, and Mr. T was doing well. Hooray and hallelujah! He said his nurse would call me soon and tell me the room number in the Day Hospital, which was where Mr. T had to go for 4-6 hours of observation "flat on his back, no movements." (Right. I was wondering what they were going to use to tie him down.) Within 15 minutes, Nurse Mary called with the number...and detailed directions...but when I asked an employee for confirmation of the correct bank of elevators (I had changed Towers, so I wasn't sure whether I could use the first ones I came upon), she said "let me take you there." Then when I got to the nurses' station on 11, I asked if Mr. T had arrived in his room. "No, but you are welcome to wait in there. Let me take you to it." (Can you tell I'm going to give them the highest score on their follow up survey?)

Missy M arrived to the room just after Mr. T did. And she stayed with him while I caught the shuttle to the orthopedic surgeon's office. I got there way too early, but they took me right away: the weather was changing, and they wanted to make sure everyone was seen before the snow arrived. The doc came in, asked me lots of questions, and examined my left hand/wrist/thumb. He was just like everyone else we have met in this system: open, kind, and easy to talk with. (Not at all like the orthopedic surgeon I had for my back in Florida...but don't get me started...:-)

Turns out I have a tendon-and-nerve combo problem called deQuervain's Tenosynovitis. Dr. W says it's fairly common, but I've never known anyone with it, have you? Here's some more info for you: 

>>>"Definition

By Mayo Clinic Staff

De Quervain's tenosynovitis (dih-kwer-VAINS ten-oh-sine-oh-VIE-tis) is a painful condition affecting the tendons on the thumb side of your wrist. If you have de Quervain's tenosynovitis, it will probably hurt every time you turn your wrist, grasp anything or make a fist. Chronic overuse of your wrist is commonly associated with de Quervain's tenosynovitis. 

When you grip, grasp, clench, pinch or wring anything in your hand, you use two major tendons in your wrist and lower thumb. These tendons normally glide unhampered through the small tunnel that connects them to the base of the thumb. If you repeat a particular motion day after day, it may irritate the sheath around the two tendons, causing thickening that restricts the movement of the tendons."<<<

What causes it? Repetitive motion, like with tennis or golf (don't play), lifting a baby (don't have one...anymore), gardening (uh oh), crocheting (double uh oh), and knitting (triple uh oh). What can you do about it? For starters, NSAIDS are prescribed...but I already take Celebrex for arthritis, so obviously I'm beyond Step 1. Next up, stop doing any/all of the above, which is accomplished by splinting 24/7...for 4-6 weeks (only removing the brace for showering and hand-washing) to limit use and to keep the wrist and thumb in proper alignment. In other words, NO KNITTING. Triple sigh. And lastly, a cortisone shot...in the wrist. If you know me at all, you KNOW how terrified of needles I am. So, when you hear I was practically begging him to give me that shot, you will KNOW where I was on the pain continuum that day. And if the above doesn't work? The last stop is surgery. And the website that Dr. W sent me to showed a video of that surgery, which is probably the best incentive I have at keeping the brace in place. Ahem.

So here's the fashion statement I'm making for the next few weeks. "Lovely" isn't the word...and in doesn't fit inside of a sweatshirt sleeve very well. Still...I want to do everything I can to avoid surgery. [Yes, I admit it. I am a big baby. And no, I wasn't knitting with that ball of yarn. I was wondering if it would make a good squeeze toy. I may have to keep my thumb still, but I need to provide some therapeutic movement for arthritic fingers...which were used to knitting.]

Meanwhile, back on the 11th floor...

Mr. T's observation period was ticking away, with just a small hitch. At the 4-hour mark, the nurse who changed the bandage decided he needed to stay a couple more hours. Of course, that timing coincided perfectly with the arrival of the winter storm we'd been hearing about all day. You knew that was coming didn't you?

No worries. We made it home just fine, following the salt trucks and snow ploughs all the way. Missy M took good care of us until she headed back down I-85. And Mr. T was a good patient, following his doctors' orders for a quiet recovery. 

So far, so good. His heart rate is consistently registering below 100, his blood pressure is staying in the normal limits, and there is no indication of the arrhythmia. I say again...hooray and hallelujah!

And me? Well, I may have to give up knitting for a few weeks; I may have to forego using a keyboard and stick to talk-to-text and single-digit typing on an iPad; and I may have to figure out how to make-do in the garden with just my right hand (using a hand trowel, yes; using a cultivator or hoe, no). But I can tell you I am doing better already.

And that is...as promised...the rest of this story.

Snow and Stuff

Hurrah! Winter Storm Leon came through in style for HPNC. We got measureable snow this week!

It was the first real snow for the Pound Pups, and they romped and played and tussled and chased and...well, you get the picture, right? If not, here's a helpful hint or two:

 

Winston (f) and Abbie (b)
in the Way Back:
First snow!

Abbie (f) and Winston (barely seen!)...
More play, play, play
in the Way Back Gardens

Truthfully? I am thrilled to have the snow and cold weather...especially since I'm usually inside by the fire, where it is warm and toasty. Last year we had such a mild winter that Mother Nature couldn't do what she does best with cold weather: help control the garden pest population. By the time the 2013 Summer months arrived, we were facing a huge and mounting "bad bug" invasion...especially in the form of squash vine borers, Japanese beetles, and Mexican bean beetles. So, throw some more cold at us...I'll throw on another sweater!

This snow day also gave me a cause for pause in an otherwise hectic week. All Master Gardening activities got cancelled on Wednesday and Thursday when the Guilford County Schools were closed for 2 1/2 days, so I found myself with time on my hands...and W-2's in the mailbox. And, you may have trouble believing this, but I took the opportunity to do our taxes. Yes, I did! Now, I still will be doing Missy M's, but our Fed and State returns are filed for this year. And, even though TurboTax said that the IRS wasn't accepting returns until 1/31, I just received both text and email confirmation that the Fed return had been accepted. Today. January 30. I suppose they opened for business a few hours early...kinda like how stores were opening on Thanksgiving before Black Friday. Or something like that.

Ahem.

Here are some more snow pictures for you:

View of shed and back yard
from Morning Room

Way Back Garden gate
got left open

View from Rose Garden Patio

A bit chilly for a chat

 

Looking into Rose Garden

"Dr. Seuss"

 








































Of course, I did as any well-raised Southern girl would do when there is even a whisper of the white stuff in the forecast: I headed to the store for bread and milk, of course! Here's the evidence.

 

 

When I posted that picture (above) on Facebook, I heard from a friend that I "should buy organic milk." (Yep, a Master Gardener friend...:-) I responded with "don't I get credit for switching to Whole Wheat bread and 1% milk?!" (I left out the Sheezsh!) And that brings up a whole 'nother subject...the "Stuff" of the title, I suppose.

My biking to Disneyland (I know, I know...I owe you a post...:-) got me reconnected with an iPhone app that I had used in the past called MyNetDiary. It allows you to easily track your exercise for the day, along with what you have eaten for meals. Keeps up with calories, nutrients, weight, etc. A really cool tool! I think I first learned of it from a Diabetes Education counselor in Missouri, when Momma was diagnosed with diabetes...and I was told I was borderline.

Anyway, the website was a clunky, cumbersome affair...but the app: now that works well, and syncs between my iPhone (there's a free version for the iPhone) and iPad! One of those is usually in my hands, so that makes it easy-peasy. I used it regularly for a while, and then our move from MO to NC intervened, and diet and exercise went hand-in-hand...out the window. Never fear...it's backkk!

At the same time I was reconnecting with my old friend, MyNetDiary (MND), Mr. T was struggling to make some changes that would positively impact his health...read that: lose some weight to get his BMI (recently discussed at his annual physical with Dr. K) down into the normal range. He was also looking for a way to keep up with his physical therapy exercises...other than the Excel spreadsheet he was using. So I introduced him to MND...and we were off and running, together!

Now, I must share some background with you. Most of my regular readers know I have battled my weight and yo-yo dieted since I was about 5 or 6 (no kidding). I have been on every diet imaginable...gained and lost at least 3 whole people in my lifetime, maybe more. One day about 6 or 7 years ago, I just said no. No more diets. Ever again. Never. Never, ever, ever. I had had enough of that.

And, guess what? When I stopped obsessing with my weight, it started dropping. Ever so slowly, mind you. So slowly in fact as to be almost a non-story. But I was reminded of just how much the other day when I was writing in my Journal (yes, I do still keep one, although I write in it infrequently). I have made a note of my weight next to several of the previous entries, and I realized that I was (then) 40 pounds lighter than my highest weight noted.

A second item worth noting is that Mr. T has never been on a diet. Read that sentence again. Never. Never, ever, ever. Oh, he switched from regular Coke to diet many years back and immediately dropped 5 pounds, but that doesn't count. He's occasionally tried to make what sounded like good choices off restaurant menus...but he still has to eat in restaurants for the majority of his meals, and there IS a limit to resistance to Five Guys fries. And he's certainly endured the countless programs I have done...and been a fabulous cheerleader. Yes, he has been on the sidelines of diet and nutrition his whole life.

Not any more.

While I am loathe to classify what we are doing as "dieting" in the sense that we are restricting ourselves (other than to the recommended calories suggested by MND) or following any "program" like Weight Watchers, South Beach, etc., I will say that we are giving our eating habits a long overdue overhaul. And when you KNOW you are going to have to account for what you have eaten that day in your electronic diary, you are ever-so-much-more inclined to make healthy eating choices. You pay attention to where your calories are coming from...what you are lacking (mine has been calcium and fiber)...and what you are overindulging on (we BOTH are challenged by our sodium intake). And you are conscious of poor choices, like my tendency to skip breakfast.

Plus exercise becomes something you want to do instead of "oh, Lordy, I guess I have to exercise today." Because when you exercise, you "earn" more calories to "spend" that day! Yee ha!!

So, there are some changes evident around here. Mr. T has become a consummate label-reader...shocked by seeing just what a portion or serving really is (I got out the measuring cups and spoons along with my ancient WW scale, to help him visualize). It's OK to eat a salad bowl full of cereal for breakfast...just realize that is actually 2 servings and enter the data truthfully.

And remember I said I identified I was having trouble eating the recommended calcium and fiber? Well, no more! We have made the Big Switch to whole wheat this and whole grain that. And to allow me to drink more milk for the calcium, but not bump up the fat count, we agreed to change to 1%. Who knows? Skim milk may be on our horizon! (Missy M is already at that threshold, since that's what I bought when she was growing up and that's what she prefers. We had changed back to 2% over the years...which was still better than the whole milk we both grew up drinking.)

OK. Time to go. Need to get my bike ride in for the day. I'm in Knoxville, by the way, stopped last night at Chilhowee Park, where the Knoxville Zoo is located. Promise: I'll get to work on my catching-up biking post!

I'll close this post with yet another dog picture that should bring a smile to your face. This was taken the night it started to snow, after supper when they take their pre-bedtime naps. They slept through the main part of the storm, getting up to go outside for Last Potty Call and being surprised at what they found. Let it snow...and stuff!

Duche$$, Abbie, and Winston...
Three Dog Night in  HPNC

What To Do When It Snows...at the Beach

My impeccable sense of timing is still intact, you will be happy to hear. But, before I get to that, a little background information.

You may recall my observation (OK, some might call it more of a rant) about "the same thing happens every year" in November. About Mr. T and his use (or lack thereof) of his 5 weeks of vacation time...whereby he arrives at the final month in the Fuso vacation calendar with nearly as many vacation days to "use or lose," as there are working days left in the month? Well, it seems he isn't the only one in his company doing this...and, at their annual meeting in January, they were all "encouraged" to spread those days off more evenly throughout the year. Brilliant idea! Now, why didn't I think of that?

Ahem.

Anyway. In an effort to comply, we mapped out a more "consistent," shall we say, vacation plan for 2013...with our first days-off being a long weekend over the Presidents' Day Holiday. In mid-February. Which is still Winter, last I checked. What were we thinking?

We managed to book our dogsitter, Ms Jan, and counted ourselves lucky that she hadn't planned a trip to her beach house. That should have been our first hint. Then, we headed to Raleigh on Friday...me to a Friday Favorite concert of the NC Symphony and Mr. T to work with his main salesman at the dealership there.

We were pushed for time as we tried to get on the road, but remembered to stop by the pharmacy to get the new prescription my dr had phoned in...second one for this ear infection that has been lingering. I know, I know...yet another homeless germ has found comfort in my compromised immune system. But I wasn't going to miss our first getaway of the year for some ol' bug I was battling, now was I?

And, we knew before we left HPNC that some severe weather was in the forecast for the state: sleet and snow for Friday-Saturday. But we were going to the coast, for goodness sakes! Snow? Bah! I mean, really, how likely would it be to snow at the...

Have I ever told you about the time Missy M and I had to fly from Columbus, OH, to Pensacola, FL, to "rescue" Nana/Momma/Edith? She had made a car-trip with her friend Thelma to Destin for a week at the beach in March of 1993. Th. fell while walking in the sand and wound up in the hospital with a stress fracture in her back. Momma didn't want to drive Th's car (which was too small to accommodate an injured passenger) back to OH by herself, after Th's son drove his van to FL. What else could possibly go wrong, you ask?

Well, on the morning we were leaving Destin, we awoke to snow. In Florida. At the beach. In March. We decided to push on with our plan to drive that little Toyota back to Pickerington, and off we went. Up and over the Back Bay Causeway bridge...which had iced over...in 35 mph winds. I kept saying "if we can just get a little further North, it'll be OK." Right. We nearly mired up to the running board of the car in the single-lane ruts on Interstate 65 in Alabama...making it as far as Montgomery before the State Troopers closed the road. I think we got the last vacant room at the last Holiday Inn in town.

Snow at the beach? You'd think I'd learn...

We did have a fun day in New Bern today...the calm before the storm, so to speak. Never been to the state's Colonial capital before. Spent some time at Bradham's Pharmacy, the Birthplace of Pepsi-Cola...enjoying all the memorabilia and the excellent film on the history of our favorite soft drink. One of my earliest memories is Daddy singing the jingle "Pepsi-Cola hits the spot, 12 full ounces and that's a lot." Only, I remembered it a bit differently from the one in the video: "Pepsi-Cola hits the spot, just a nickel not a lot." Either way...tells the story, right?

We strolled one of the lovely downtown streets of this 300+ year-old city, with its beautiful churches and all sorts of antique stores and cute little shops. Loved looking at all the decorative bears...you know, ones like the horses in Louisville and the cows in Chicago? Since we have been to Bern, Switzerland (for which New Bern was named by Swiss settlers), we "got" the reference to the Bear City, as "bern" is the old German word for bear. We bought fancy cupcakes at a local bakery. Got some doggie treats at a local pet boutique. And then checked out Tryon Palace, restored home of Royal Governor William Tryon and first Capitol building for the state. As the weather conditions were deteriorating, we decided to leave our tour of the house and gardens for our next trip...and get back across the causeway bridge to our hotel in Atlantic Beach (or, Pine Knoll Shores, to be exact) before any precipitation made an appearance...and made the roads as icy as all the signs were warning it could.

Once we were back on the island, known as Bogue Banks, we felt a little easier, so we checked out Fort Macon and picked up some shells on the beach...until hunger and the increasingly cold winds caused us to scuttle to a much-mentioned local eatery, the Channel Marker. Yummy Shrimp Scampi! A good choice, indeed!

We decided to save visiting the NC Aquarium, which is located a couple miles away here in Pine Knoll Shores, until tomorrow. I'm imagining we'll be happy to have an indoor activity, don't you think?

By the time the sun went down, we were back in our room...snug as bugs...and enjoying our dessert (remember those cupcakes we bought in New Bern?). We each fired up our iPads and tapped into an e-reader: Mr. T was using Kindle; I had a book on Nook I'd saved for "vacation." Gotta love technology! And we were as gleeful as little kids when the snow started to fall outside our window.

It's been falling steadily all evening, although none is sticking, so far as we can tell. I tried to take several pictures, but they didn't really come out. What does tell the story, though, is this screen capture I took of the Weather ap, showing the bright colors of the precipitation. Blue is snow, in case you are wondering.

And that big blue dot in the middle of all that swath of blue weather? Well, that's "our current location." At the beach. With the snow.

Cautiously Optimistic

I feel better.  Make that "much better."  "Much, much better," even!  Of course, I'm comparing how I feel today to how I felt a couple-three weeks ago, when I couldn't get out of bed without major meds...and I couldn't function because of the fuzzy-head feeling from said meds.

Since then, I have had excellent results from a nerve block, and I'm pleased-as-punch with our new FIRM mattress set, which was delivered last week.  I now get up and get going with just a couple of Bayer Back and Body capsules these days...slap on a LidoDerm Patch, and I'm good to go!

Mr. T has returned to his regular work/travel schedule, after sticking close to home to be here for me during the worst of it. When he left for the funeral services for his manager (held in New York), Bro T was here from KY to be with me.  I have had such wonderful care!

So, of course, this makes me think I can resume life as usual...no caution flag.  Tote that laundry bag, lift that hound dog! Hop a train and go for a trip!! I'm such an optimist...:)  

No, I'm not all the way back to normal (whatever...or wherever that may be...:), and I find being at the half-way mark a treacherous place to be.  My brain says "now, remember the Dr.'s orders to take it easy," but the siren call of the garden is bypassing my cranium altogether and going directly for my soul. Things to do...places to go...people to see...!

Looking out our back door...around midnight
The deck in snow, 2/19/12

Bird feeders are empty...for the moment
2/19/12

Thank goodness, we had our first winter snowfall last night...a record-breaker for this day, with a little over an inch (see photos, above), thus giving my back another brief reprieve.  At least I won't feel frustrated at having to "take it easy" for the next few days of chilly temps.  I have NO problem staying inside by the fire when the thermometer stalls in the forties, and the snow turns to sloppy, slush. And, when I have fun activities to keep me occupied, such as:

• knitting...I'm making steady progress on my Ana Banana cardigan in Berroco's Weekend Peruvian cotton-blend yarn, having almost finished the back section; 
• reading...I've just downloaded Philippa Gregory's The Lady of the Rivers...the third in the Cousins' War trilogy...to my iPad...; 
• playing Words With Friends online...I've got 20 games going with friends far and near...and just received a message that I couldn't start any new games until I finished one...I'm apparently at the limit!;
• watching the Downton Abbey Season 2 Marathon on PBS; and 
• participating in the Great Backyard Bird Count...which I completed earlier today from my easy chair in the Morning Room, cuppa coffee in hand.  

I also had just enough energy left to make a 7-Up Pound Cake...my first "real" baking since Christmas (recipe below)...and then, while the oven was hot, I switched it over to the Timed Clean setting.  Ahhh....I think I see Normal, there in the distance...just over the horizon...

But, look out:  possible problem ahead:  our Weather Wonk is predicting upper 60's for later this week.  Will I be able to "take it easy" with all that temperate temptation?  Maybe we should padlock the garden shed door, no?

I know I must keep the bit in and the breaks on...at least until after March 5th.  I'm scheduled for an epidural steroid injection (ESI #1...of  3 or 4) that morning.  No, I'm NOT looking forward to the procedure, because it involves three of my least-favorite things:  needles, IV insertion, and pain. But, I'm practically salivating over the prospect of good results! [I had these done in Missouri in 2007-8...and probably wrote more about them then than you wanted to know...:)]

I will also hear Dr. Ford's report of my recent MRI...preferably before they give me an extra large dollop of the stuff in my IV to make me relax and "feel no pain."  If only...

No, none of it sounds like a walk in the park...but, as Missy M says:  "it'll make a walk in the park a much nicer experience."

Amen, my dear daughter.  Amen!

=======================================================

7-Up Pound Cake


Ingredients:
1 cup butter (two sticks, at room temperature)
1/2 cup shortening
3 cups sugar
1 T. lemon juice
1 vanilla extract
5 eggs
3 cups all-purpose flour
7 ounces 7-Up (Do NOT use diet; can use Sierra Mist)


Glaze (optional):
1-1/2 cups confectioner's sugar, more or less
2 tablespoons milk
1 tsp lemon juice
1 tsp vanilla


Directions:
Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Prepare a large Bundt pan (I use a spray like Baker's Joy).


In a large bowl (I use my Cuisinart), beat butter, shortening, and sugar until fluffy and well-mixed. Add eggs, one at a time, and beat again until blended in. Alternately, add in the flour and the 7-Up. Mix until smooth and creamy.


Pour into prepared pan. Bake for 15 minutes at 325 degrees; lower oven temperature to 300, and bake for one hour, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.  If the top starts browning too much, tent lightly with foil for protection.


IMPORTANT: remove cake from oven and let it sit for thirty minutes before turning out. I invert mine directly onto the cake plate as soon as I remove it from the oven, but I do NOT attempt to remove the pan before it has rested for 1/2 hour.


Combine all glaze ingredients and stir until smooth. Add more milk if too thick, more confectioner's sugar if too thin. Pour over cooled cake.


Enjoy!


[This cake brings back such fond memories of my freshman and sophomore year at Mississippi University for Women. My suite-mate...and fellow Rosette...KD's sweet mom would send one of these yummy cakes to her.  And we would devour it!  I later discovered the recipe in the Southern Living recipe book and began making them myself.  It became Missy M's favorite pound cake, and she once wrote a report on making it...and got an A+!  Ah yes, fond memories, indeed...and tasty, too!]

The Snow that Almost Didn't Show

Mr. Cardinal...waiting for the snow to show

We waited.  And we waited.  And we waited.

We had been warned...repeatedly...that snowfall was imminent.  Familiar locations and friends to the south and east of us were reporting inches of the fluffy, white stuff.  We saw pictures of the half-foot of snow that Wrightsville BEACH (!) had received.  Even Charlotte, only about 90 minutes to the south, had snow...causing havoc on the streets and at the airport, I might add.  But, no, no, no...we had no snow.

What went wrong?  We'd done as we were supposed to: gone to the store for bread and milk; put a pot of stew on the stove; and dressed in layers to combat the cold (which we DID get).  Mr. T had filled all the bird feeders to the max, and they had attracted hundreds of our feathered friends.  That told us that the birds agreed with the weather folks:  we were in for snow.

Still, nothing was falling.  Nada.  Zip.  Zilch.

Gotta do something 'cause we all know I hate to wait.  As I had finished my "Just Enough Ruffles" scarf I was knitting for Missy M out of the Ultra Alpaca Blueberry Mix (of which I won't show a photo yet, since I haven't given her the scarf...:), I decided to get another project going right away.  I needed something "mindless" (read that:  nuthin' but knittin') to work on during the Big Game last night, so I started on this interesting pattern by Kirsten Johnstone called Sev[en] Circles I got from Ravelry.com, after reading about this unique scarf on String Theory Yarn Company's Facebook wall.  Missy M had given me some soft hand-dyed 100% merino wool in purples, pinks, and greens by the Plucky Knitter for Christmas, so I wound it using my new yarn winder and swift (thanks bunches, dear Santa...and KnitPicks.com!) and cast on to swatch while the washer and dryer were doing their Monday morning thing.



Platform feeder visitors at mid-afternoon



Then, by mid-afternoon, we began to get a few snow showers.  Here a few, there a few.  By night-fall, we had about an inch on the ground, with more falling.  And, in the night, we got the dreaded "wintry mix," meaning we had a layer of ice on top of the snow when we awoke this morning.  A great day to stay inside.




Apple fritters

 I had made apple fritters on Sunday morning (photo, right); a tasty treat...but one that leaves a nasty reminder...more on that in a second.  I can't make or eat apple fritters without thinking about a special weekend in the late '80's when my parents had retired to Smithville, TN.  We were visiting them, and Mom suggested that she and I take a day-trip up to Rugby, TN...a town on the Cumberland Plateau that was founded by British author, Thomas Hughes.  They were having their annual festival, so it seemed like a perfect idea.

And, it was!  We spent the whole day there, ending our visit late in the afternoon.  Just as we were walking to the car, we passed the booth where they were preparing apple fritters...and OMG they smelled wonderful!  We bought a bag-full, saying we wanted to "take them home for Daddy and Mr. T."  Yeah, right.  I'd be surprised if we made it home with two fritters left in that bag!  But, they were de-licious.  And, it sealed the deal on a fond memory.



Apple fritters...hot outta the pot,
dusted with powdered sugar

 The Apple Barn in Sevierville makes fantastic fritters (which they serve with their own yummy apple butter, of course), and they even sell bags of the mix so you can make them at home.  You add the fresh apple bits...and the pound of powdered sugar sprinkled on the fritters when they come out of the hot oil (photo, left). Love. Them. 

But...and, here's the scoop on the "nasty reminder" thing...

After you make them, your house will smell like a grease factory for 24 hours or more, and you will be left with a pot full of melted Crisco.  Yuck. 

Oh well, I had set the pot of hot fat aside to cool until I was ready to deal with it.  Just before I got rid of the residue today, Mr. T piped up with "Wouldn't that make some good suet for the birds?"  Great idea!  We looked up a recipe in the booklet "For the Birds" (photo, below/right) Missy M had given him for Christmas, and we were in business.

Making homemade suet cakes

I heated the fat back up to liquify it and added 1 cup of peanut butter to melt.  Meanwhile, in a big bowl,  I mixed 1 cup (more or less) each of wild bird seed, black-oil sunflower seeds, oats, and cornmeal; then, I added some raisins, some dried cranberries, and some broken pieces of pecans. 

I poured the hot liquid over the dry ingredients and stirred until well-combined.  Then, I spooned the mixture into the cups of 2 muffin pans (right) and a couple of plastic containers, and put them in the fridge to chill for a few hours.  Voila!  Homemade suet!  And, better still, no waste with the "used" shortening.

The cold and the snow make the birds really hungry...and now I hope we can make them really happy!

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas!

First snow of the season

 Snow! Snow!! Snow!!! Snow!!!! S-n-o-w!!!!! (Sung to the tune from "White Christmas."  You know that one, don't you?  When Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye meet up with the girls, played by Rosemary Clooney and Vera Ellen, in the train's dining car?  On their way to Vermont?  You know the one I mean, right?!)

Yes, it's the first snowfall of the season for us here in HPNC.  And, as always, I'm loving it!

Mr. T and I got up earlier than we usually do on a Saturday morning so we could take the Houndz to the Fluff 'n Fold...our pet phrase for the Grooming Center at PetsMart. Although they are never happy to make this journey, they all really needed to go to the salon; their nails were turning into talons! Duchess' dew-claws looked like the Wicked Witch of the West...and she certainly knows how to use 'em. Ouch.

After herding the Basset Brigade behind the swing-door in the store, we humans headed for Bruegger's Bagels in Friendly Center.  We don't have a bagel place in High Point, so we treat ourselves to Bruegger's whenever we can.  Usually we sit outside, but not today!  Brrrrr.  It was just too cold, so we opted for an inside two-top.

The conversation turned to our Christmas Tree, and I shared an idea with Mr. T.  On Thursday, I had gone shopping  in Winston (I like Hanes Mall there better than Four Seasons in Greensboro, and Thruway Shopping Center is still one of my fav places:  Dewey's Bakery = yum!); as I passed the Sandy Ridge exit off I-40 on my way home, I'd noticed the sign at the Piedmont Triad Farmer's Market, where they were advertising NC-grown sweet potatoes and Christmas Trees.

When we lived here before, we used to enjoy making a whole day out of driving 421 to Boone, having lunch at the Dan'l Boone Inn, shopping at Mast General Store, and then cutting our own tree at one of the many, many Choose 'n Cut Christmas Tree farms in that area.  We had hoped to revive the tradition on the Friday after Thanksgiving when Missy M was home, but the rainy weather interferred with our plans.

Then, we contemplated buying an artificial tree.  We already have a couple small trees that I have used for years to supplement our "real" tree; I usually decorate one of those with all my sheep ornaments, and N/M/E uses another one for all of her Santa ornaments.  But, with sustainability on the brain, we've discussed which is more environmentally-friendly for the "big" tree...live or artificial?

Live and local won!  When we finished our coffee and bagels, we headed out Market to the Market to see what they had.  OMG!  There must have been 10-12 growers from the mountain counties of Watauga (Boone), Ashe (West Jefferson), and Avery (Crossnore).  Fresh cut trees, straight from the NC mountains...and they came to us; we didn't have to drive to them!  Life is so good.

Choosing our NC Tree at the Market

We wandered around the retail area, thoroughly enjoying all the decorations and the wonderful fragrance of the firs.  When we lingered at the Sunnyside Trees stall (a Choose 'n Cut retailer from West Jefferson), we found one that measured out to be about 8 1/2 feet tall, which would fit perfectly under the 9' ceilings in the great room...once we lopped some off the bottom and got it nestled into the tree stand.  First things first:  take our picture!

Just as the tree guy snapped the shot (right), he said :  "Look!  It's snowing!"  Perfect, said I.  Just like a little kid.

By the time we got home with the tree, the flakes were coming down fast and furious.  Big, fat, fluffy flakes.  Wet and ploppy...you know that sound they make?  Plop...plop...plop.  Not a bit hard and pingy, like they are when they have ice inside.  I prefer ploppy myself.

Anyway...



Mr. T with Duchess, Gus, and Elmo in the snow

We headed back out to go pick up the pups, returning about 3:00ish (photo to left).  The more it snowed, the colder it got.  By the time we'd returned, we had an inch of snow in the rain gauge and the temp had dropped to below freezing.  With that, the need for warm, comforting food had risen substantially.  A day like this calls for Brunswick Stew!

I got out N/M/E's recipe (such that it is...:) and started a pot of stew, taking a short cut by using the other half of a Rotisserie chicken I'd gotten at Harris Teeter on Thursday.  Shred the meat...boil the bones for stock.  Chop the veggies...oh, drat:  no onions.  No problem...out to the garden (yes, in the snow...:) and get a couple.  I'm loving this whole Fall garden thing, you know.  It was too late to start baking a loaf of bread like I usually do on stew days, but no worries.  I'd gotten a loaf of freshly-made Sourdough on that little trip to Dewey's Bakery.  It would fit the bill.


Hot apple cider on a cold day



I've blogged about Brunswick Stew before, so I won't repeat the recipe here.  Hopefully, that link will take you to the post I wrote about stew for the crockpot, which is similar to what's cooking on the stove at the moment.  Similar.  Never quite the same.  What can I say?  I learned some of my cooking techniques from my mother...she who never follows a recipe. 

As I was saying...

Mr. T laced up his boots and headed outside again to fill the bird feeders, all of which were being well-visited throughout the afternoon.  Here I was in my nice warm kitchen...and there he was, freezing his tail-feathers off.  Gotta fix that!



While he was working, I heated up some apple cider, added some orange slices, cloves, and cinnamon sticks...and had a tasty hot beverage ready when he finished his chore.  Turned on the fireplace to make the morning room toasty.

Tasty and toasty.  Ahhh. Lovely.

Now,  let's see if we can find that DVD of White Christmas...snow, snow, snow, snow, s-n-o-w...!

Here We Go Again

Can you tell what that is in that picture over there to the left?  Well, since it's Tuesday in HPNC, then it must be SNOW, right?  Right.  All right, already!  Surely this is our last snowstorm of the season.  Surely...

I love snow, don't get me wrong.  Nothing like a Snow Day:  pot of soup/stew on the stove; cup of hot tea with lemon by my side; knitting needles in my hand.  But, not this much...not this many...not this often.  And, after the first two or three, well, I'm ready for Spring.  Southerner to the core, I guess.

On my walk yesterday, I noticed several crocuses (crocii?) pushing up through the pinestraw mulches.  And, our own daffodils that we planted last Fall have several inches of green growth above ground...with a couple of brave flower buds in evidence.  Not blooms yet, mind you...just buds.  I even saw a branch or two of forsythia with flowers.  Soon, I hope the whole neighborhood will be awash in yellow!  But, first we have to get through yet another snow.  Predictions are for accumulations of anywhere between 2 and 4 inches.  I'll let you know.

Meanwhile, here's an update from the Drool Care Center. Duchess is doing pretty well today after her ordeal described in yesterday's post.  She's not happy to be wearing her T-Shirt Sleeve Bustle Bandage Tu-Tu...but it's working like a charm.  You can probably imagine her mood from the photo to the right.  After we doctored her rump-bump and wrestled her tu-tu bandage up and over her tail and tush, she flounced up into my chair as if to say "it's mine this morning, you horrible witch-woman you.  I'll show you.  Hhhhmmmppphhh!  I dare you to try to move me.  Go have your coffee someplace else!"  Ah well.

Plus, I now have a new med in my Doctor kit:  I learned from a message on the Basset board this morning about using Preparation H as a healing ointment.  Who knew?  She'll just love that, I'm sure...

Stay tuned.

Round Two

What a mess outside!  We got another round of snow in the night...which has now turned to a cold rain, with the temps just above the freezing mark:  32.7 degrees on the digital thermometer.  I was going to post a photo of it, but how do you take a picture of "melting?"  Ugh.  Let's see if I can find another one from the previous round of winter weather...there, over on the right:  that was looking out our front door, toward the street.  The magnolia tree was weighted down with powdery snow (which has since melted off...and been replaced...and now been washed off again).   After a day of continuous rain, we will get re-freezing and more snow tonight.

It's definitely a good day to stay inside, with the fireplace going...a pot of stew on the stove...a cup of tea by my chair...and needles clicking in my hands.  I love a snow day...even if it's not as pretty as the last one was.

Here're a few photos of my latest FO, with the finished object shown on the left.  I completed my Argyle Country Silk sweater while I was in Louisville, and then wore it home.  Love it!  Feels so soft and warm...goes great with jeans and a turtleneck.  I changed the Cleckheaton pattern (naturally...:) to a V-neck, as I prefer that style, with deeper ribs on the sleeves and hem; also, I used different colors of yarn, which I think turned out looking better than the pattern-model.  I even received some favorable comments on Ravelry...always a welcome experience.  I don't know if this pattern is technically an argyle, as most argyles have outlines of diamonds of different colors superimposed over the solid diamonds to create a feeling of "dimension" ...but, even if you want to call this my Harlequin Sweater, I won't mind.  I still like the way it feels.  And that it is finished...:)

Of course, getting it finished required weaving in all those color-ends on all of those diamond patterns you see...and *even Equitorial Pygmies know how I feel * about weaving in ends..  An argyle is knit using the intarsia method of changing colors:  you use a different "ball" of yarn for each patch of color, since you would have to carry yarn on the wrong side over more than 5 stitches in the same row (like you can do in Fair Isle knitting), and that won't work.  I rolled six bobbins of yarn for each "set" of diamonds, then working from the bottom toward the top, I could knit blue and white in the same row, then blue and red, then red and green, and finally green and white...before I finally knit with "just white."

I made some photos of the project in the beginning (right)...and one of the reverse side with the green bobbins in action.  As Missy M made note:  I won't be doing any knitting with bobbins again any time soon.  A real pain.  And, woe unto the one who has to frog a mistake...all the wraps at the points of color changes = a great deal of fussing while frogging.  Spoken by one who would know about such things.

I'm still working on the Entwined Shawl for N/M/E with the Water Hyacynth rayon yarn.  I don't like working with this (beautifully colored) stuff, as it splits and sticks to my bamboo needles...but slides completely off my (metal) Addi Turbos.  I've knitted the back to the front; divided for the neck; and finished one side of "fingers" that will create the basketweave "entwine" pattern on the front.  Sigh.

I worked on my Woven Scarf a little more during a recent episode of Top Gear (I am definitely not a gear-head, and I still love that show...:), but have to pay too much attention to the pattern stitches to enjoy knitting while watching TV.  It requires slips and wraps and passing slipped stitches over on the right side; then, purling twice into P2tog stitches on the wrong side.  Double sigh.

Thought I'd take a break from both of these UFO's by starting yet another project:  two socks on two circs.  I'll tell you more about this UFO soon.  Just know...the yarn is from New Zealand, and contains 10% possum-fur (hair?)...!

I've got my yarn ready and swatched for my upcoming Ravelympics2010 entry.  I plan on knitting a sweater with Plymouth's Baby Grande Alpaca in a blue heather colorway.  I think I'm going to use a Vogue Knitting pattern that combines a simple Stockinette stitch for the body of the sweater (which is knit with a bulky-weight yarn for speed) with a lovely Fair Isle collar (which will provide the Wow! factor).  I originally had thought I'd do a vest, but then found this pattern that really spoke to me.  We'll see.  I have to make up mind soon, as I have to cast on my project during the Opening Ceremonies in Vancouver, which will be 9:00 p.m. EST on February 12.  Stay tuned...

Meanwhile, time to mind my knitting.  And, maybe to make some chocolate chip cookies to go along with that cup of tea, hmmmmm?



*Borrowed that phrase from an episode of NCIS.*