January 30th....

It's been a few days, but we've been so busy down here...this is always a hectic time as we are getting ready for the journey to Nashville, getting our paperwork together, making sure we have all the necessary items, computers, paper, labels, etc., and then on top of that we have our one big sale of the year, Superbowl Sale, and of course this year we have 3 groups on retreat, and we're having the Peacock Chair finishing class taking place....I'm exhausted just listing everything. In prep for Nashville I always take my Caravan in to have the tires checked, etc. I have to tell you, this is one job I wish I had a big brawny man do....I have taken the van in for the last year, and each time I do I tell them the back hatch remote isn't working properly. Last year they said it was the remote, so I purchased a new remote only to find it still didn't work all the time. But the next time I took it in they said, "well it works when we try it." Don't you just love that! "Oh, then pardon me, if it worked the one time you tried it I must be a friggin idiot and just didn't push the button properly." I've had the car since 2002, I think I know how to work the remote, O.K. Well, now it doesn't work at all....not even once since I last had it serviced...so now I want him to tell me it works when he pushes the button and do it with me standing there...jackass. Anyway, with the route 50 bridge out of service this is annoying anyway because I have to go all the way around which takes about 25-30 minutes. While many of you commute for an hour so this seems minor...my commute is 2 minutes...this is a major pain in my neck. But minor next to others problems...so I'll try to contain my aggravation. I'm stitching every minute possible anymore because I dearly love my two projects right now. I did one of the panels of the "Maiden of the Sea"...only to find that I had counted incorrectly and the panel is actually a couple of stitches short....but did I let that stop me, hell no! Usually I never do borders without working part of the design along with it to make sure I haven't counted incorrectly, and I have to say I counted each panel going down very carefully, and thought I had counted the top as as....but obviously I didn't. But I figure it's not going to make that much difference as I can move the design on it over a couple of stitches so I moved forward. I've changed many of the colors as I wanted more than blue on it (which is the predominate color)...that and we didn't have all the colors in yet and I wanted to start the design since I was done with the border. Anyway, adding more colors is a treat and I hope I do it proud, but the major thing is that I love it and the enjoyment I get out of stitching it is unmatched. I cannot wait to get home, sit down and stitch. And the second piece, ABC Sampler from Drawn Thread, well, I've finished the second panel and tonight move on to the 3rd, GHI. This is so gorgeous as well, who would have thought an ABC piece would give me such pleasure. And then Debbie L. e-mailed me the next installment for the Hawk Run series (I think that's what it was) and it's nautical, so you know I have to do that....oh, my I'm getting a bigger head ache thinking about all I have to do. Today I was suppose to have off, but since I had to go out to take the car over, I decided to come into work anyway....on my days off I want to do just what I want, not take cars to be serviced, or go pick up mail...it's got to me all about me or what's the point? Yesterday I spent most of the day in Salisbury getting all the supplies for the Peacock Chair finishing class. I have to report people....easy returns has to go to Target. I picked up a questionable CD for CJ for Christmas (yes I'm still dealing with Christmas and the tree...still on it's side sitting in the living room...but the tree bag is laying on top...too bad the damn tree won't fit in it...I've got to figure something out, I'm just too tired mentally to deal with it). Anyway, returned the CD with no problem (of course I do keep all my receipts so that was probably helpful)..but it was a no pain return...I recommend Target in Salisbury for your shopping pleasure. Then I went to Michaels to purchase a bead...a bead....$76 later I left that store. Why is it I can't walk into a craft store and walk out with exactly what I went in to purchase? What is wrong with me. Same thing is true of a grocery store. I walk in for bread and come out with a cart load. I have a disorder I'm sure...I need a diagnosis. (Sort of like my shirt fetish at Walmart) I don't know if I mentioned about the shirt at Walmart...if I did excuse me...and stop reading. Anyway, everytime I go into Walmart I go look at the t-shirts and pants just to see if they have any I like in my size. Once I found I could shop for clothes at Walmart, well, life just doesn't get any better for me. Well, I've purchased enough that I'm now boxing them up...(in my defense I began boxing up the summer weight stuff however over Christmas I needed to get the folded clothes off my freezer so I boxed up 2 boxes of winter stuff). At that time I told myself it was ridiculous and I had to stop purchasing t-shirts and pants (that's all I buy for everyday)....then I went into Walmart again and purchased another pair of pants (which were new and I really like the way they are made.) So I told Sara about them but then also told her about the problem I have with purchasing new pants and shirts and swore I wasn't going to purchase another thing, except those pants in other colors. So I go back into Walmart, they don't have the pants so I purchased 2 new t-shirts. Even as I was walking out I thought, "What the hell am I doing"...thankfully with the bridge closed Walmart is too far away for me to visit weekly, but who knows what they will have in a month...new colors, new weights...oh, mercy....I don't know if I have the strength to leave them at Walmart. Got to do it though, just got to do it. Anyway, that's another store I can't just walk in pick up what I need and walk out. I envy those who can. Speaking of the bridge I might have to apologize to all the men out there. On the news last night they said that the bridge repair was on schedule and the men had been working in the really cold, rainy, weather to get it completed on time. Could this be true...could the men really get this done when they said they would? I had my doubts, but now I'm wondering if I could be really, really wrong. While I'm not saying I was wrong, I'm open for the possibility, however, the month is far from up so we'll just have to wait and see. But for those traveling in, allow for the extra time to use the Route 90 bridge. Traveling down to our end is really easy this time of year, and without the bridge traffic is really light so come on down. Called the Bank today to get a change of signature card going for the new church officiers (and get my name off the card)...and got voice mail. Really, all I want is a signature card change and now I have to sit and wait for someone to call me back? Couldn't anyone just about, take that message and give it to the correct person. What are they, in the union...and can only do one thing without getting into union trouble? My ex (the jackass) use to work union jobs in Connecticut and he'd come home and say, "we got nothing done today because the guy that was suppose to dig the ditch didn't show up so we sat around and waited for someone to show but they couldn't find anyone else. So every man, on the job, sat around and waited...why didn't one of them dig the damn ditch...well if you are on a union job just the guy hired to dig ditches can dig a ditch...my ex. was heavy equipment so he could only drive the heavy equipment. Does this make sense to anyone. All the men on the job got paid, but no one did anything because the ditch had to be dug first. Are you kidding me? So exactly when did Common Sense leave the area? Although I could explain my tree with this reasoning. I can say, "I run a union house, and I have to have the guy that moves trees get this tree out of my living room and he hasn't come yet." Yea, I think I'll try that for a month and then next month I'll come up with something different...maybe I should just take it outside and plant it and let neighbors say whatever.