2022 Happy To Be Here

Birka memories have been all over my Facebook feed lately. This SCA event is the big one that, prior to Covid, we held at the end of every January. This event is where Keziah and I were invested and Baron and Baroness three years ago. Keziah would have attended her first Birka event as a three-month-old. This is an event that is near and dear to my heart. We made the decision early last fall to cancel the event. I am so very happy that we made the choice early on partially because it would have been canceled last minute anyway. However, the amount of preparation stress I did not endure because we made this choice early is immeasurable. Other things I am happy for today: Our dog Aesop is home from being boarded over the weekend. Other than the cats, everyone is glad he is home. Not the best Aesop picture, but the only one today. While walking Aesop in the backyard this afternoon I found some tracks that I think are a mouse. The imprint in the snow is pretty much the entire a

Keziah and I had a two hour SCA Zoom meeting this morning.  The best thing about this was working on a puzzle while we listened.  The puzzle has been sitting up on the shelf calling to me for days so I was very happy to bring it down and put more of it together today.  Other happy things for today:  During the meeting it was mentioned that I want someone to replace me as a regional exchequer.  I'm looking forward to not having that position anymore.   The cats have been having a great weekend.  Aesop, our dog, spent the weekend boarding at the same place he goes for daycare.  This was a trial run to see how he does.  Nanni and Winston have been having a great time while the dog is away.   Nanni is watching Winston. Winston is chasing imaginary things on the couch. For day 28 of the A&S challenge I did more of the latch hook.  Tomorrow I am hoping to get to the studio. ☮ Currently reading: Pocketful of Miracles: Prayer, Meditations, and Affirmations to Nurture Your Spirit Every

 There was a storm today, a nor'easter, so everyone stayed home.  The wind has been blowing pretty hard so I have no idea how much snow we actually got. My guess is around six inches.  Zed and I shoveled the walkways only once so far, just before dark.  Tomorrow someone is coming to plow the driveway and we will shovel the walkways again.  I am very happy and grateful that I won't have to shovel the driveway.   Other happy things for today: We organized things around the house today.  The Christmas stuff has been mostly down but is now packed up and ready to go into the attic, hopefully tomorrow.  With the organization we were able to push the dining room table against the windows on one side which makes it much easier for me to pace around the house to get my steps.   I took some pictures throughout the day out the same window of the storm.  Here are a few. 10:44 AM 4:23 PM 5:03 PM 10:03 PM I made a delicious corn chowder for dinner tonight.  I couldn't remember the recip

 Friday is Minecraft Day.  Today we did things a little differently.  TF and I were nearing the end of the quest and Gideon decided to join us.  The entire quest was not working properly so parts of it went easier than they should have been.  My character still died multiple times.  The one monster that kept killing me was called a wither.  Gideon is the one who finally killed it.  Yay, Gideon!  We also played for most of the day.  Other happy things from today: Keziah and I took the RV and filled the propane.  Now there can be heat in there again. I bit the bullet and got the Covid booster show today.  So far the only side-effect is soreness on the arm where the vaccine was administered. After the vaccination I took a walk on a new-to-me trail.  Part of the trail follows power lines and part goes into the adjacent woods.  I hope to be able to explore the area more when I have more time. For day 26 of the A&S challenge I worked on the latch hook again.  I'm feeling a bit of de

 According to my memories on Facebook today is the third anniversary of Keziah and I stepping into the positions of Baron and Baroness of Stonemarche.  Some of our first year we filled with going to SCA events, helping to rewrite baronial policies and trying to be involved with our group.  Then Covid hit the world and I feel that, like many others, we hunkered down and only popped up when we had to.   Things will never be the same.  It has been, and continues to be, an honor to be in this position.  That said, I am looking forward to warmer weather when we can go outside and people can be together in whatever ways we can find, safely. Another happy thing for today is that I made it to day 25 of the A&S challenge.  I completed another row on my latch hook.  This challenge has been good to me so far.  It has helped me believe that I might actually be able to complete some projects. ☮ Currently reading:  Faith Hacker , by James ‘Jim’ Wilcox. And Pocketful of Miracles: Prayer, Meditati

 It is the day I managed to dub Weaving Wednesday as part of the 100 day challenge.  I pulled out the loom I have been working on and was reminded that I broke a warp thread last week.  My attempt at fixing this problem managed to completely mess up the tension to a point that I didn't want to deal with today.  It was still Weaving Wednesday so I pulled out another loom.  This one I couldn't find the pattern for so I made a new one.  It took me quite a while to find where I was on the weaving itself.  Eventually I was able to get one of the repeating patterns complete.   Yay!  I also wrote notes so that I should be able to work on this again without as much trouble.  Other happy things for today: Work was good.  I was across from someone that gave me lots of pointers on using the radios and what the people up the chain want.  Someone else did an audit on me and we ended up talking about different things I could be learning and steps to take.  Then he sent emails to help me mak

 By default today I was the person with the radio at work.  By radio I mean a walkie talkie type radio that the supervisors,trainers, safety folk, and one person from each line gets to have.  I feel like I had it because the other person across from me didn't want it.  It didn't matter, there were no known complaints so I guess I did okay.  Unfortunately, every single time I used it I wondered if they were ever cleaned between users.  I should have asked.  In order to ask I would have had to radio someone though...  I'm happy and grateful for the increased responsibility for the day though.  Other things I am happy for today: There are plants in the cellar and I have been avoiding them.  This was a mistake, mostly because whatever is eating the bait in the mouse traps but not getting caught ate the tops off one or two and dug in some of them too.  That said, it meant that I took the time to care for them.  I repotted, added soil, watered, and did some reorganizing.  Two of

 As I sit, alone, in the studio I am again filled with gratitude and happiness at having this space to use.  I say alone, but there are others, friends and probably people I have yet to meet, in the building as well.  Today Keziah stayed home though.  I have worked on the braiding for what will someday be a braided rug and I have spent some time meditating.  The chair that I tend to use I keep moving slightly to chase the sun.  All seems right in my little corner of the room.  Other, or more detail of,  happy things for today: Before going shopping today and picking up a pair of earbuds, I searched my room more for the ones I lost and found them.  Yay!  Listening to music at the studio with them is polite.  Dancing around the studio to music only I can hear is fun. The yoga mat was placed in a sun beam before I practiced meditating.   With my back on the yoga mat I looked up to the ceiling to see that someone had drawn some smiling faces. Ceiling grafiti I dyed the ends of my hair pur

 While TF and I were on the phone going over our weekly accountability the subject of labyrinths came up.  She had learned of a few near where she lives in Texas and is planning to visit one this week.  So I did a search for some near me.  It turns out there are labyrinths all over the place.  Looking for one?  Try this website .  Now I want to build one on the property somewhere.  Somehow, I doubt I will get to it, but it would be a neat thing to have.  Other happy things from today: I took Aesop, our dog, on a walk today.  We went to a conservation area in town.  There was one other set of human prints along part of the trail since the snow early last week.  We followed what might have been coyote tracks for a while though.  Tracks can be really hard to read in the snow.  There was some scat and that is part of what makes me think of a coyote. Very little detail, just a blob in the snow. Aesop has a much shorter stride and paw print than the animal that made the tracks. There is a s

After spending most of the day at the studio the bag I've been making is not yet complete.  It is SO close though!  It is getting put aside until I can find a few things for finishing touches.  Getting it mostly done took way longer than the fifteen minutes so day 20 of the A&S challenge is done. Other happy things from today: While I hand stitched the bag and Keziah made some garb, Gideon worked on Minecraft Legos.  It was great to see him work on them. At home, I binge watched some Gilmore Girls .  I'm really enjoying the series and watching the characters seem to grow. Sunset! ☮ Currently reading:  Pocketful of Miracles: Prayer, Meditations, and Affirmations to Nurture Your Spirit Every Day of the Year , Joan Borysenko. And  Tracking & The Art of Seeing: How to Read Animal Tracks and Sign , by Paul Rezendes. Thank you for being part of my happy things. Stay safe.

 When Keziah first talked about getting a studio to do her art I was happy for her, but felt that we had the space at the house if only we could utilize it better.  Now that we have the studio and so much time has passed without us making space in the house I am so excited about being able to use it.  I feel like the studio will be putting a smile on my face for a while.  Other happy things for today: My friend, Amy, and I met at the mall today to walk.  We haven't spent any time together since Thanksgiving.  It was so nice to see her and catch up on the last two months.   It is Minecraft Friday.  TF and I played for a little while, until I got too tired.  We are reaching the end of the quest that was prepared for us.  Next week we may need to start earlier to give ourselves more awake time to take care of the monsters. Day 19 of the A&S challenge and I was able to work on rug braiding.  One of the strips of wool needed to be stitched up with the sewing machine better before b

Even having napped, I am still tired and just want to sleep.  This shouldn't surprise me, I have slept about three hours in the last 24.  For me on a Thursday, that is an improvement.  Other happy things today include: Before my nap I took Aesop, our dog, out for a quick walk around the yard.  Aesop enjoyed sniffing at the deer tracks in the snow.  I enjoyed the glow on the trees from the sun as it edged toward the horizon. When we first got Aesop there was concern that he wouldn't get along with Gideon.  They seem to be fine now as they snuggle together on the comfy sack. Day 18 of the A&S challenge I worked on the latch hook some more.  As stated previously, I was tired today and this was the easiest thing I could put my hands on.  Tomorrow I will hopefully pick up what I need to work on the bag I've been doing. ☮ Currently reading: Faith Hacker , by James ‘Jim’ Wilcox. And Pocketful of Miracles: Prayer, Meditations, and Affirmations to Nurture Your Spirit Every Day

 In this house, my room is the one of extremes, at least it seems that way to me.  It seems that it is either cold or hot.   Walking in this afternoon it seemed on fire.  That is when I noticed the orange glow of the sun setting through my window blinds.  As usual, real life is better than the pictures I took. Other happy things from today: They were looking at people to volunteer to leave work so I did.  I only worked a few hours.  I went to sleep late yesterday and didn't sleep well so leaving seemed better than falling asleep on my feet.  It made for a nice day where my feet didn't hurt too much. There were errands that I got done today instead of waiting for Friday.  That means I will have time to do other things on Friday. One of the errands was to shop for Gideon's birthday.  I have amazed myself by getting some things for him more than two weeks before his birthday.   The things still need to be put together in a way to make the complete package.  I'm very excit

 It was a working day so I am going to try to keep this short.  The other day I downloaded the videos from the wildlife camera out back.  I had the chance to watch them today and have uploaded four of them to my YouTube channel.  They will be released today, January 18, 2022 at 8:00 PM.  That said, here are my happy things for today: There were a bunch of videos because I hadn't backed them up recently.  The first one I chose has a lovely eight point  buck .  Today I learned that some parts of the country count all the points on the antlers and some count the points on only one side.   The second video has at least one  doe .  I think it is a pair of does. One night a  fox  came through and visited. The last one that I chose to publish on YouTube has some anxiety.  Some deer are being chased by what seems to be a  coyote .  Only a chase on the video, no capture.  Exciting! Day 16 of the A&S challenge I make a fast and dirty prototype pocket on a pair of jeans.  The objective i

 There was a snow storm this morning.  I had an appointment that I couldn't cancel and Zed was gracious enough to drive me to.  We got up early, shoveled, took our time, and made it to the appointment on time.  The drive home was fine for us too.  Zed is a very good driver.  Actually, it makes me nervous to drive with him when the weather is good, but I am comforted when he is driving in the snow.  I don't claim to be rational.  Getting back into the driveway was harder than getting out.  My hands were full with breakfast things when I got home so we didn't shovel right away upon return.  About 20 minutes later I went out and started to shovel again.  At that point the rain had started.  It was so very heavy compared to the early morning shoveling.  I did the walkway and left the rest to the plow person and Zed to finish up.  The happy thing here is that we were careful and had no incidents in this morning's storm.   Some pictures from the passenger side. Other happy t