Wednesday's Wonders

Hooking News
Finished a little baby cap last night. As I was translated the scribbled notes I'd made the last time I made one, my brain raced with ideas. So the next several days I'll be playing the baby cap game as I see if those ideas work.

The best part of making the baby cap was working successfully with a G hook. This is the smallest hook I've worked with since my slashed my finger. The last time I tried working with it was a dismal failure, so it was very encouraging to be successful.

The not so fun part? Finding that the inside of the skein of yarn had collapsed and become twisted on itself. Took me almost 2 hours to unravel and ball it. Yeesh.

Do dreams come true?
I'm not a believer in psychic phenomenon in any way, shape or form; but sometimes a dream is so vivid that it makes me wonder. Last night, I saw Mr. Retired and I in our new home. No clutter, no junk, neat and tidy. The kitchen was warm and inviting with soft yellow walls and yellow and orange curtains. Friends would stop by for coffee, we'd go visit them. Mr. Retired was off fishing with a friend. I'm more determined than ever to pack and move.

Crochetville
I'm truly enjoying Crochetville. It's warm and friendly, lots going on, and best of all -- no politics! Now if I can just get them to talk about books and movies I'd be in heaven.

Literary Puzzles
I just finished reading "Fool's Puzzle" by Earlene Fowler. The plot was good, the characters were well developed, and the good guys won in the end. My only dislike was how easy it was for the heroine to fall in love with the hero. Too much like a romance novel for my tastes. All in all, I rate this book an 8 on a scale of 10; and I rate the author the same.

My current book is "A Catered Murder" by Isis Crawford. I adore the two sisters, Libby and Bernie. This quote from Libby about Bernie could easily be a description of me and Mr. Retired ...

As Libby watched her sister's brow furrow, it occurred to her that living with Bernie was like living with a talking encyclopedia, an encyclopedia that followed you around, bombarding you with facts you had no desire to know.

Change Libby to Kimberly and Bernie to Mr. Retired and you have my life in a nut shell. hahahaha

An Epicurean Spiral

Mr. Retired was in charge of meals this past December while my finger was healing. He adapted this recipe from a magazine I had picked up. I made it the other day, following his directions, and it was just as good as when he made it. Enjoy!

Beef and Spirals (adapted from Taste of Home Casseroles, 2004)

1 C uncooked spiral pasta
1 lb ground meat (beef or turkey)
1 med. onion, chopped
1 med. green pepper, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
13-oz spaghetti sauce
6 med. mushrooms, sliced
1/4 C sour cream
1/4 lb. cheddar cheese, grated
4 oz. mozzarella cheese, grated

Cook pasta to al dente stage, drain and set aside. In skillet brown meat, add onions, green pepper, garlic, and mushrooms. Cook until onions are translucent. Add spaghetti sauce and bring to a low boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 20 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 1-1/2 qt. baking dish. Add in half the meat sauce, half the pasta, add half of remaining meat sauce, spread sour cream on top, add cheddar cheese, balance of pasta and balance of sauce. Sprinkle mozzarella cheese over top.

Cover and bake for 30 min. Remove cover and bake an additional 10 min. until bubbly and top is browned.

Serves 4-5. Leftovers (if there are any) reheat well.

Monday's Musings

Crochet news
Last night I managed to get 2/3 done with another square for my ghan. This is wonderful news considering the whole finger laceration incident from last December. I was sure I'd never again be able to crochet without pain. Now there is no pain, I don't need a bandage covering the lacerated area, and I'm picking up speed. I'm very happy. :)

A friend sent me a pic of the Flying Fingers Yarn Bus. What a cool idea! What a cool shop!

The Owl Cam
I checked in on Frida and Diego this morning. I love this picture of the two of them. Deigo is a good provider and brought Frida a nice plump mousey. :) The owl expert says the first egg should hatch around April 8th. Wonder if I'll be doing the 24/7 webcam viewing. :rolling my eyes:

The sun is shining today and I'm out of here to get things done.

Today I spent time reading and relaxing. Then I came here and wound up crossing my eyes trying to get everything to work correctly. It doesn't, but I don't know why it doesn't. It can wait for tomorrow.

I am half-way through typing up the instructions for the edging on my latest ghan design. Oy Vey! I can't understand my own notes! LOL! That will wait for tomorrow as well. At least once typed, all I have to do is follow them when I finished sample #2 (2 squares down and 10 to go!) That is when I'll find myself either totally confused, annoyed at how badly I translated my notes, or happy because I figured it all out. Want to bet which one it will be?



Mr. Retired just called and he is on his way home. YEAH! So I need to head off and get dinner ready. Maybe if I bat my eyelashes at him just right, he'll take me out for a cup of java. I could use one right now.


Sidetracked

Yesterday I got sidetracked. I had intended to spend the entire day doing laundry and sorting through some boxes. But a package arrived. A package filled with something very special. Something that gently called out to me in a soft voice. Something I could not ignore. I hope you can understand that it’s not my fault, honest it's not.

It all began this past Wednesday when Mr. Retired decided he wanted an older computer game. Amazon had it at the best price, but to avoid the shipping cost, we had to spend another few bucks. He said to me, "Oh surely you can find a book or two to make up that difference." Honestly, does the man not think about how he is feeding my addiction? And here I've been so good at not buying any new books. Now I'm off the wagon and it will be hard to climb back on it. But I'm digressing here ... so yesterday our package arrived. I got my little pocketknife and lovingly cut the tape.

Suddenly my hand lunged inside the box and greedily seized two small items. Their surface was slick to the touch, rather like the silk that edges a blanket; and their feel in my hand was comforting and soothing. I yanked them out of the box, sending the rest of its contents scattering onto the floor. I cared not. I had what I wanted. What I craved. New books! :D

I gazed lovingly at my new possessions. I caressed their covers with my free hand. My eyes glazed over as I thought about what adventures lay ahead. Finally, I shook myself out of my "new book stupor" and sat down and looked at the books. There I found "Fool's Puzzle" by Earlene Fowler and "A Catered Murder" by Isis Crawford.

"Fools Puzzle" is a quilting mystery, and "A Catered Murder" is a foodie mystery. I put the foodie book on the shelf, and took the quilting mystery to the front room. On the way I grabbed a cup of coffee. I settled in and read for over an hour. I'm in love with this writer and her stories. I love her characters. I am half way through the book. hehehe I read in bed last night, waking up because the book fell out of my hands and onto the floor. LOL!

This morning I went and searched out the quilt patterns Fowler speaks of in her book. I had more fun! I need to do these patterns. I found her web site (she has free quilt patterns and recipes there!). I now have a new book on my want list—"Benni Harper's Quilt Album".

I'm totally in love, and my craving for a new book is now satiated…for a week or so. I guess I'll get back to Harry Potter tomorrow. In the meantime, I'm off to enjoy a cup of coffee while I help Benni piece together the solution to the mystery. ;)

Kimberly

Of former beaus and sometimes friends

This is a reprint of my March 13, 2005 post from another blog (soon to be abandoned!) Because this entry speaks of several "crooks" in my life's path, I wanted it to be a part of this journal.

Of former beaus
Like many women I know, I have friends, foes and beaus from my past. Usually they remain tucked nicely away in my memory banks, where I can call them up in moments of sweet remembrance; but sometimes they sweep in like ticking time bombs and fill the present with trepidation and panic. Such was the case for me earlier this week when an email from a former beau landed in my mailbox.

Perhaps landed is the wrong term. Crashed more appropriately describes what took place, for I felt as though a bomb had gone off inside my body when I saw his name in the "Who" column. Time froze and for one split second I neither heard, saw, nor felt anything around me—only the blinking of his name as the "new email" alert flashed.

At that moment, images flooded my brain like water from a broken damn. The swirling pictures caused memories to float to the surface of my heart—some of them ripping open old scars and leaving in their wake fresh pain and hurt, and the horrible sensation of shame as though my entire past life had been laid open for all the world to see. Other memories brought warmth and joy, some brought anger.

My pulse raced and my breathing was heavy as I sat and pondered my dilemma. On the one hand I was curious, on the other I was afraid of what I would find. My hand shook as it hovered over the mouse. Do I or don't I open the email? My hand moved to the delete key and paused. Finally I closed my email program and got up and left the computer. I needed time to think. Time to gather myself together. The email would wait. The sender would wait. After all, he had waited 34 years, what would another few minutes or hours matter?

A friend in need
My friend and I were close, but over the years we've lost touch as our lives have taken very different directions. She's remarried, has grandkids and new interests and it's hard for me to relate to all of these things. But when I see her, it's always a treat and it's as though it was just yesterday that we sat at her kitchen table over a cup of coffee. Her warm smile and her generous hug always brighten my day. I saw my friend the day after the email bombshell. We were in the grocery store when she went by, her eyes focused on something down the aisle. She walked by and didn't notice me. I put down the lettuce I was squeezing and walked over, tapped her on the shoulder and was rewarded with a smile and hug. It helped to wipe away the pain from the day before. We chatted about her grandkids and her husband. She has been through some trying times as well, and it was good to just stand there in the midst of all the other shoppers and chat about our joys and sorrows. Soon we were both laughing and smiling, and our burdens were lifted. We parted with the promise that we'd call each other. I know we won't, as does she, but it was nice to visit with her.

True friends indeed?
We sat down at the table, ready to enjoy a nice lunch—just the two of us. It has been a rough week, and my husband and I were both ready to just relax. Suddenly I hear my name being called. I glance around and there at the table kiddy-corner from us sat four ladies that I once called friends. These ladies are from my recent past, a time in my life when I was active in a church. A church that underwent some major leadership changes, and I was caught up in the tide of frustration, nasty politics, greed, and gossip. Eventually, I was swept out to sea and left floundering without a life vest when many (including these four ladies) turned against me. It was difficult to realize that sixteen years (and in some cases 20 years) counted for naught when weighed against the gossip of one man. Fortunately, I was rescued by family and was able to plant my feet firmly on shore once again, where I dried my tears, dusted the sand from my clothes and moved on to explore the riches of life.

At any other time I would have been surprised at the warm reception these ladies issued forth, but after the week I'd experienced, nothing much surprised me. They acted like nothing had taken place, and were gracious and warm as they chatted with my husband and myself. I surprised myself by being just as gracious and warm in return. Maybe I've learned something this week.

We have two choices with every experience in life: We can learn, grow and move forward, or we can let the resentment and anger eat at us until we stagnate and become lonely and bitter. Friends, foes and former beaus all play a part in shaping who we are and what we become. I'm thankful for all who have crossed my path, and for the lessons learned. Life is pretty good, and I'm looking forward to all the new experiences life has to offer me in the years ahead.