life — Page 210

Dreams, Lists, and Noise

September 17, 2014 at 8:35 am by Claudia

I don’t often remember my dreams, but I did remember a scrap of one yesterday. What it was about, I’m not sure. I don’t remember any details except for the fact that I was a younger version of my current self and my mom was there. The dream wasn’t about my mom, specifically. But she was there hanging out and talking with me, much as we interacted in my teens and early twenties.

That’s all I remember. But it was lovely. I woke up with a strong sense of my mother and a sadness and happiness for days gone by…I miss her.

I probably dream of her more than I know. Many years after my brother died – he’s been gone for 23 years now – I had a vivid dream in which he and I were dancing together. The dance, as I remember, was a waltz. It was joyous and happy. I woke up with a smile on my face. That dream was so powerful that I knew he’d been with me, as sure as I knew my name. I take comfort in that dream even now.

Ah, well.

from the rear rose

Thank goodness for a second round of blooms on my rose bushes. Every year, long after I’ve given up on them, they sneak back in for an encore presentation. Very welcome, indeed.

I ran a few errands yesterday, made more lists, and in a spurt of energy, mowed the entire front lawn. It’s big, my friends. I should have stopped much earlier than I did, but I kept at it, knowing my back would be shouting in protest at the end of the day. It did.

On the other hand, that’s one of the things on my list for today that I don’t have to do. I like that.

And in the same vein of planned obsolescence as the breakdown of the washing machine, the television is now acting up. We’ve been babying it for quite a while now – the sound has a background of crackles and pops. We would turn on the television, then immediately turn down the volume for about 10 minutes, then slowly increase the volume and all would be okay. No longer. Crackles, snaps, and pops are there no matter what I do. And a new wrinkle: the sound cuts out here and there.

I remember asking the cable guy about it and he asked me how long we’d had the TV. I said about 8 years. Yep, he said, that’s about as long as you can expect it to last. Then things start happening.

Planned obsolescence.

It isn’t so bad if I’m watching something with a lot of music and sound effects, but anything quiet, i.e., The Roosevelts, is not at all fun. I end up turning it off.

After we get back: dealing with the washing machine and a new television.

Shiny new pencils for my work in Hartford:

for the trip pencils

I bought a box of Blackwings. The 602. Our local used bookstore is so cool. I told the owner I loved these pencils and he nodded. They are the best, he said.

Yep.

Rays of Light

September 14, 2014 at 9:00 am by Claudia

It rained all day yesterday; a quiet, steady rain that we very much needed. The rivers are low here. Our cottage is just a short walk away from two rivers and I’ve been shocked lately at how low the water level is.

The gardens are loving it. I’m hoping that it rains every few days while I’m gone so my gardens can thrive in between visits home.

This is what it looked like outside this morning:

rays of light

Sunlight peeking through the trees.

This photo rather reminds me of one I took last year in the summer of 2013. While I was out of town working in Hartford, (sound familiar?) I used it to illustrate a Leonard Cohen lyric. That photo had such pretty bokeh! You can see that particular post here.

But I digress. I say all that only because I seem to be captivated by rays of light coming through the trees. Today’s photo was taken while it was still a bit foggy out, with drops of rain still hanging from all the plants. It’s all rather magical and you have to run outside and try to capture it before the light changes. That kind of light always seems to transport me to another world; a world of beauty and spirit and possibilities.

But, brrrr! It was nippy outside this morning. Autumn is definitely in the air. Along with my non-flannel pajamas, I’m wearing my shawl and a pair of socks. However, I refuse to turn the heat on this early. I simply can’t.

candy stripes & mg

Back to yesterday. Scout and I tucked ourselves in for the day. I finished Act Four of Hamlet and I sent off our tax deductions. I was quite pleased with myself. Then I read and read and read some more: Deborah Crombie’s newest, To Dwell in Darkness. How lovely it is to read a new book by a favorite author, but what a double edged sword it is. I become happily immersed in the writing and the plot, while at the same time, I try to stretch the experience out as long as possible. However, it can’t be too long, because I have other books to read and review.

A quality problem, that’s for sure.

sunlit zinnia

Today: Act Five and then I’ll be done with my Hamlet prep. I’m also doing a load or two of laundry over at my neighbor’s while they are away for the afternoon. Bless them. I will take advantage of the opportunity to play with their adorable cats.

It’s time to start making lists of all the things I have to take with me as I prepare to leave for Hartford. And lists of all the things I have to do before I leave. Then the inevitable worry: what the heck will I blog about? This is my sixth go-round in Hartford, which is a nice city, yes, but not very lively. I feel like I’ve completely plumbed the depths of that experience.

Ah well.

Happy Sunday.

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Rinsing, Wringing and Bailing

September 13, 2014 at 9:01 am by Claudia

Do you remember my words in yesterday’s post? I was going to ‘lay low’ for the day.

The gods heard that and laughed out loud.

I was working on Hamlet and stopped to throw some sheets in the washer. After some time, I went to the bathroom (where our stacked one-piece washer and dryer lives in a closet) to throw them in the dryer. But the load wasn’t done. The cycle had stopped midway through the wash. Thinking it might just be a problem with the permanent press cycle, I moved the dial to Normal. Nothing. I tried Rinse. Nothing. I tried Spin. I tried Gentle. I tried everything. For a moment or two, Normal worked. Then it stopped.

The only thing the washer would do was fill with water, which I certainly didn’t need as it was already full of water. Soapy water.

The damn thing was broken.

So this is how I spent my morning and much of the afternoon: pulling out wet sheets (which, of course, spilled water onto the floor) and then holding them under the bathtub faucet as I rinsed them out by hand. Then I wrung them out and dried them. One by one. There were wet sheets in the bathtub. There were wet sheets in the bathroom sink. There were wet sheets in the washer.

And then, joy of joys, I methodically bailed out the washer – scoop by scoop.

Guess how long that took?

There is still some water in the bottom of the washer that I just can’t get out of there, so I’m trusting it will eventually evaporate.

The bathroom was a mess. I ended up washing the floor. The rugs dried outside on the Funky Patio chairs.

In this time of planned obsolescence, I wonder if nine years is the most we can expect from a washer? (The dryer still works.)

Since I’m leaving town in about five days, I am going to hold off on calling in someone to look at it. We’ll deal with that when we get back. Why do I have this sinking feeling the whole darn thing is going to have to be replaced?

And that’s a whole other kettle of fish. Getting that washer and dryer in there involved taking off the door to the bathroom, taking off the door to the closet, and removing the molding.

Crap.

Let’s change the subject and look at a neat picture of Scout.

scoutie & orb

I was shooting into the sun and this orb appeared on the image. Reminds me of Glinda, the Good Witch, in The Wizard of Oz.

And to further take my mind off the washer, how about some pretty morning glories?

morning gs & rusty wire

morning gs & leaves

Sigh. That helps.

Act Three? Check. Today I work on Act Four.

By the way, I’ve been hit with a ton of spam in the last 24 hours that looks like a legitimate comment, but isn’t. It will take a bit of time for my spam plug-in to identify and filter this stuff, so I am temporarily moderating comments. I check in all the time, however, so your comment will be approved rather quickly.

Don’t people have anything better to do than this? Really? They can’t do something more constructive with their time?

Happy Saturday.

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Dreams, Lists, and Noise

Rays of Light

Rinsing, Wringing and Bailing

Lambs Like to Party

A Note

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