Three years gone: 11/15/1952 – 12/19/2017
Three years gone, and yes, I miss him. I also am finding my way forward alone. I have fond memories and deep gratitude And now Oscar cares for me – what a good dog!
Year: 2020
Return of the Necks
The winter after Ken died two of my favorite yarn shops were selling out; one was closing and the other was focusing on weaving supplies. I returned to an old easy thing – “necks.” In the cold winter it’s nice to have a scarf that doesn’t have flapping ends. They were thick and soft Merino yarn. I made some and then was asked to make some shorter for friends whose glasses had steamed up. Here …
Greetings of the Season
Last year I skipped a tree. There were two dogs, multiple dog beds, and I was alone. This year I asked Loyal to cut a tree. My request was that he find one that is competing or shading the garden or otherwise needs to go. That’s what we have always done Two years ago I made an origami star; although it has a slight hole I can use it again. The angel is pressed paper. …
A Milestone
These are about the last of Ken’s clothes. There were a lot as Ken kept buying things on sale as three different local clothing stores closed. Only a couple blazers and a suit remain. As I headed into winter there were jackets and coats friends could wear. Seeing these things made me cry until very recently. I may still see them on friends. When I see farmers wearing Ken’s clothes it just feels right.
Fall Task: Rendering Lard
When the weather gets cold and I am running the cook stove, I also render lard. It used to be from our pigs; now I get it from my friend Josh, and keep some and return some rendered lard to Josh. Last year Loyal rigged up this handy cutter. And both then and this year he chopped the lard for me The cook stove is ideal as it is a large, low heat surface. So …
Making Masks as We are in it for the Long Haul
Covid has come close to home. First Loyal’s partner had a housemate test positive. Then two younger friends were quarantined as a school fellow tested positive. So Loyal and I had a frank discussion. When he enters my personal space after being with other people he and I wear masks. Since I asked him to wear a mask it seemed right for me to make masks. I used up some cotton quilt fabric I had …
Please Vote
I have voted every time I could. Once I took two days off school while I was in college, and traveled 800 miles round trip to vote. I consider voting the minimum act of civic responsibility. This year, during Covid 19, I have requested mail in ballots. Please develop a plan whether mail in, mail in ballot dropped at a site, or in person voting. Whether you agree with my decisions on candidates or not, …
Space Opens, Space Fills – Temporarily
This pile of red oak was here before I arrived. It was cut on this property, and Ken helped mill and plane it; he worked at a local mill in exchange for getting wood sawed and planed so he could build. This pile was intended for the flooring on part of the main level. The other flooring is tiles he made. A divorced friend asked about it once. Ken explained that someday it would be …
Update on The Packages Story
So, a while back I received a package via FedEx that should have gone to 235 EAST not me at 235 WEST. Then Loyal texted from out of town had I received the package he had ordered for me that he had tracked and was reported as delivered. No. Later that day I got a call that a woman in a second floor apartment on Pine Street south of Turtle Lake had my package. She …
Moving More Things to New Homes
Ken did yoga. I don’t. I hate yoga. I do the following: tai chi, lap swimming, classical stretch essentrics. I don’t need Ken’s yoga gear like his mat, nor the cover I sewed for him. I don’t need the small flax seed filled eye pillows and velveteen cases I sewed for Ken There was a small woven mat or bureau scarf and a bolster. I called around, and a friend who does do yoga said …
