Electricity

A big storm blew through here about 2 am Friday morning and left a whole lot of us - myself included- without electricity.  I am still without electricity.  I will likely lose all the food in my refrigerator and possibly in the freezers as well.  Fortunately, I don't have a lot of food in either one!  Luckily, the temperatures dropped with the storm so living without air conditioning hasn't been impossible.  Every time this happens - and it's relatively rare- I decide to buy a generator just to run the freezers.  Okay, and the internet connection!  I also decide to by a gas stove so I can cook!  I'm using my iPhone's personal hot spot to write this but that uses power and I'm using my laptop battery to charge my phone as long as it lasts.  I understand that at this point there are still about 4,000 without power in Independence, Independence Power and Light repairs from the top down.  They start with the stations and sub stations and then down the list by how many are affected by each issue, when I went out to get breakfast this morning there were no power and light trucks in my neighborhood.  I hope it is repaired today.  By the way the storm dropped several inches of rain along with the 80mph winds so I'm sure we moved up the rainiest list-we only needed a bit less than 3 inches to be at number 1!

I've spent most of yesterday lying on the couch with toes above nose reading (Kindle now dead have moved on to real books) as there is significant swelling in my toe if I'm up too much.  The pain from the pin removal is already gone and I expect the swelling to be less by tomorrow evening.  Today I'm going to try to do a bit of hand work, possibly out on the deck (unless it gets too hot) where there is light.  (I may even try the treadle machine but it's really dark in the studio!)

Matching shoes!

I am no longer sporting that lovely black shoe!  Although I'd call it an instrument of torture not a shoe, I guess technically is was a large splint.  Anyway, the pin came out this afternoon (Hallelujah!) and My feet now look like this--

Matching shoes!  The toe is still quite sore and will swell for some time yet but the pin is OUT and I don't go back to see the Doc unless it gets worse.

In a week of good stuff--my new computer glasses (two pair) came in on Monday!  I love them!  They are larger frames than my last pair so the viewing area is larger which makes just everything better.

It is hot, humid and only raining every other day.  We currently rest at 7th in the all time rainiest May/June and sure to move up as more wet stuff is to arrive tonight. This on top of a rainy April.  The weather has caused my oak trees to be infected with a fungus that causes the leaves to fall off!  It won't kill the trees but my yard looks like I need to rake leaves! So Not happening!

Flower boxes

I think I finally got enough flowers in the planter boxes on my deck rail!  In fact, I think I put too many in!  They really look fantastic this year-probably due to all the rain.  Up on the header you see some of the Many Bells, I adore this plant but I like this one even more

These are double Many bells!  Just like little roses.
Don't you love the color of these double petunias?

Double petunias were one of my Mom's favorites and are somewhat hard to find in the nurseries here.  Next year I think I'll try and grow them from seeds.  Many bells as well, if I can find seeds.

The rest of the flower beds are too full of weeds for me to share.  I did pull a few more today--at the rate I'm going I'll finish up about October--from the pepper bed and the driveway.  I sprayed the cracks in front with Roundup (Something I never use, except this year when things are just out of control!)  I don't want to spray much in back as Quinn might eat something and become ill.

I'm off to Columbia tomorrow for a family gathering welcoming Ryan and Co home!  Must do a bit of work before bed tonight!

Finally a bit of work.

I went to the toe doc on Monday.  He re-aligned the pin in my toe and fiddled with the alignment of my toenail-he even admitted it was cosmetic.  It was painful.  I had planned to go look at a travel trailer in Olathe while on that side of the state line but between the re-alignment and all the crutching I just didn't have it in me.  Yesterday, I was back on the sofa with my toe up.  All the re-alignemnt made it very sore again.  Good news is that he may take the pin out on the 25th-I'm really hoping for that!

Today, I managed to do a few things.  Pulled a few (very few) weeds, potted up an avocado I started from a pit, finished off the last bit of laundry and somehow got it upstairs, and finished some burp rags.  I'm going back downstairs in a few minutes to do some more sewing.  I've figured out a way to keep my foot up  both at my machine and in the rocker where I hand sew.  

It hasn't rained today, so far, but it is dark and dismal outside.  We are to be on the edge of the remains of TS Bill so rain is in the forecast but not the really heavy stuff.  I sure will be happy to see some sunshine-also in the forecast but I'll believe it when I see it!

Rain, again

I stayed up WAY, WAY too late last night reading so it's been a slow day.  Tonight I'm not even going to take that D*** Kindle into my bedroom!  Sleeping will be done!

After taking myself out for breakfast-Crackerbarrel-my favorite meal to eat out ! I came home and started some laundry as I'm at the "One more day and I'm naked state."  It isn't easy to drag the hamper down the stairs with a crutch, actually nothing is easy with a crutch.  Then I went out to try and pull some weeds as the gardens are being taken over.  I only managed half of the pepper bed and two steps before the heat and HUMIDITY sent me inside.  I did use my garden wagon to bring up from the shed the tools etc that I need to work out there.  (Crutching though the grass growing on less than even ground that slopes away from the house-exhausting.  I have a new appreciation of folks with handicaps that involve crutches!

And then it rained, sigh.  Again, sigh. Gotta love the weather in Missouri.  The last time I saw it this May/June is the 16th wettest on record but with a forecast of up to 5 inches possible on Wednesday I think we'll be moving up the list!  Seriously, a canoe, kayak, sailboat, rowboat, etc is sounding like a good investment.  The damp causes the mold to grow (I'm allergic) and then the wind kicks up and blows mold spores all around.  We won't talk about how many bugs there are.   It's really a shame to be cooped up in the house in the summer!  I was watching a tv program on decorating outdoor spaces and I thought what's the point I'd never get to use those extra living spaces!  I'm happy if I can sit on my deck next to my patio table (that hasn't been used in two years) and drink my tea of a morning!  I don't want to be outside when I feel like I'm breathing water.  Even Quinn stays in- that pretty much says it all.

Patience or the lack thereof.

I used to be known for my patience.  I seem to have lost it somewhere along the line.  Maybe not all of it as I like slow crafts and gardening but definitely the recover the body patience!  I hope that I never have to be bedridden as I will surely lose my mind-well perhaps I won't have a mind by then either.  As the glories of getting old!

I've ditched all but one crutch and only use it when I go out or over rough ground (like my yard.)  Last night I decided I'd had enough of sitting in that one chair-I was beginning to feel that I was "becoming" the chair! This morning I returned my stitching/movie stuff to the studio,  the laptop to the office and the paperwork to the kitchen table.  I even did some planning-gasp!  See no patience.  One week, I made it one week.

Today, I went to yet another eye doctor since while I was really gimping along I stepped (or crutched) my computer glasses and broke them, sigh.  I really am spoiled by having separate glasses and using my regular ones just doesn't work.  Rather than wait 2 weeks for an appointment and then 2 weeks for glasses I went to a fast appointment place, glasses in two weeks.

On the breaking front, the stove hood in my kitchen has a broken switch.  I took it apart and only one tiny piece is broken and it would be an easy fix if I can find the part (will look on line tomorrow) if not than I may have to buy a new hood, which is just ridiculous.  However, by the time I pay for the service call (it's attached to my house after all) and have them come twice it may be less expensive.  Again ridiculous, it's only 3-4 years old.

Also this week I received these in the mail:

 A gift from Suzie O'Connell, the author,  as I have a cameo appearance in Wild Angel!  I've been beta reading for Suzie for a couple of years and we have fun on Facebook messenger-I nag her! She takes amazing photos of Montana to make me jealous.  The books are really very good and available on Amazon for Kindle and likely various other places in various other forms.  These are going on the shelf with my Nora Roberts hardcovers!

Lastly, Ryan had a checkup in Boston on Friday.  His esophagus did not contract  so he didn't need to be stretched again and the tissue looks soft so strictures are unlikely.  He doesn't go back until the fall-to have his g-tube out!  He's still a rock star!

Stylin' new shoe!

 Don't you just love my new shoe?  I think it goes especially well with my pink croc! I'll be sporting this look for the next 4-6 weeks.  At least I'm down to one crutch and have put away the rolling office chair!  Learning to heel-walk.  Pain is MUCH better but I'm still mostly sitting with the leg propped up.  Boredom hit big time on Monday so I braved the steps to my studio and brought up hand work etc and set up a nest.  I didn't do it beforehand as it didn't work well the last time.


If you can see the tiny green dot on my second toe--that's the pin the doc put in to hold the toe straight while it heals.   I don't think bumping it would be a good thing!