Life is about having FUN!

I don't know if any of you read the comments, but I have a super supporter named Elle! She's been through this journey with her Mother, where she had to clean out that house in one day! It sounds like Elle took charge of her life many years ago, and what she possesses today is pretty much what she needs—although she seems to find things from time to time that they no longer need, and they're gone. 

So, I have a love/hate relationship with her! I want to be like her, and I KNOW I'll get there. But she keeps reminding me of things I'm ignoring! Picture frames—I was in denial about picture frames, but she mentioned them yesterday, and YES—I have picture frames to cope with. Thanks, Elle. I appreciate your comments. Knowing I can CONQUER this stuff, you are proof of that! Thank you! 

As Peter Walsh would say - "It's All Too Much." That's the title of the book he wrote in 2006. He calls himself a clutter organizer. I have a "few" organizer/decluttering books in my library, and I'll browse through them and the magazines. Then they will be gone. The issue is that now that the floodgates have opened and I've realized that these are just things I no longer need or want to keep, I don't have as much time as I would like to deal with them. 

That's because there's too much stuff to deal with, as I have my work to keep up with, and so on. So I'm going to do what I can! What I get done is more than what wasn't done the day before. Imagine how much time I would have had if I had never let it get this way? A tidy house takes seconds to clean, and doing each small task when needed is better than having boxes and boxes to deal with now. It's never too early or too late to start this process! Remember - you can not have regrets - just move forward and enjoy the process! 

I've had several audiobooks on hold, and of course, TWO arrive on the same day. One is a novel, and the other is a book on productivity. I decided to download both. Oh my --- the book is called Feel Good Productivity by Ali Abdaal, a physician turned writer. I'm happy to report that I'm already doing many of the things recommended in his book. Make things FUN, or give yourself a reward. I'm learning to take that approach to decluttering, and I'm hooked. 

Teach others. I've done that for over 20 years, and that's how I became so "smart" about quilting. I often agreed to teach something that I had ZERO knowledge of. But I learned quickly (thanks, Dad!), and thankfully, I'm a good communicator, so I can communicate that knowledge to others. Teaching is also a motivator for me to learn. And I love Ali's comment that we don't need to be the guru of the subject; we just need to be one step ahead of the students! Been there, doing that! All the time! And I'm open to learning from the students! It's how we all grow! Do I have the right way? For me, but not necessarily for others. 

I'm only a quarter of the way through the book; what else can there be? I might pick up a couple of tips - we'll see. But one thing I'm noticing about my productivity these days is that I suck at multitasking. We just don't want to admit it! Oh - I get that I can put a quilt on the long arm and then do something in the five minutes while I wait for it to stitch the row. Is that multitasking? Then I'm super good at it. 

I'm not good at attempting to do EVERYTHING at once because it's not working for me! And guess what? What I do is NOT rocket science. Ali also mentioned that if we are stressing over what we do, then it's not fun, and we need to evaluate what we are doing. I hear people madly sewing Christmas presents, baking, or whatever else they "like" to do because the Christmas season is approaching. 

If what you are doing is stressful, and you are NOT enjoying it, then STOP doing what you're doing! Do you need to bake hundreds of cookies each year? Or make a new quilt for every family member every year? Did you ask those family members if they want another quilt? 

I will make handmade gifts on request as I will do for my future son-in-law (T-shirt quilt). But otherwise, my daughter said they do not need more quilts. OK --- I'll find something else to give them. 

I'm not productive (sewing) when we have Monday sewing or virtual sewing time, so I've stopped sewing during those times and have started doing tidy-up jobs or repairs! Yes, I'm bound and determined to prove Messie Condo wrong. I'm wearing my mended socks and gloves and am very happy that I mended them. 

Yesterday, I took apart dog harnesses to recover the metal hardware. All four were damaged in some way and had been replaced YEARS AGO! I'm pretty sure you can guess whose harnesses these were. 

Woron out dog harness

Chewed harness

So I started with the seam ripper - wow, those stitches are tight! —and later, I used the scissors. 

Worn out strapping

I recovered quite a bit of hardware. This is from one or two harnesses. 

Recovered hardware

And all the strapping went into the garbage. 

The strapping is gone

Yes, accomplishing this took a while, but I LOVE these menial tasks. It was a slow and methodical process with ZERO stress, and tossing these in the garbage would have given me zero satisfaction in dealing with them. But taking them apart was a soothing and relaxing way to visit with my friends on Zoom. Guess what? I'm attacking those boxes of junk in the office while I get to visit with my friends. WIN-WIN. The sewing can wait for another time. 

Why are we in such a rush to get everything done? Slow and steady is my motto; perhaps I don't get as much done, but I do it right, or it won't get done. If you would have felt more comfortable tossing everything, that's your choice. 

I already have a project in mind for one of the buckles, but now I need to check my stash for something else. You'll see it later. This project has been sitting on the table in the office, waiting for a solution. 

Using rescued bits makes me happy, and I guess that's my pioneer spirit. 

I quickly found three harnesses but needed to find the fourth. It was in those junk boxes at the end of my desk! I finally found the fourth. 

Then I needed to find these swivel hooks, and I found those in a box in the cupboard. So all is good. It means that even with my shuffling, I have a pretty idea where things are - I may just have to dig a bit. The number of places things can be hiding is few! 

I have another errand for the shoemaker, and I needed these hooks to fix dog leashes—yes, Murphy's leashes. Notice that none of the issues are with Lexi—it's always Murphy. 

New swivel hooks

This broke from all her pulling, so I have new ones to replace the old ones. But I'm letting the shoemaker sew the leather back together. 

The broken swivel hook

I was going to cut the hardware off this beautiful leather shoulder strap from a briefcase I no longer own. The group convinced me to keep the strap and use it on a crossbody bag, so it's up for grabs if anyone wants it. Otherwise, it's with all my bag hardware. I should have put it with the briefcase when I gave that away. 

A leather bag strap

As part of my Monday repairs, I added a hanger to this lively artwork and hung it on the wall in Studio B. I believe I bought it over ten years ago in Newfoundland. And yes, it got shuffled in the office forever! Why? Now that I have the sawtooth hangers, it's easy to do these things. Now, I enjoy the picture whenever I turn the lights on or off, as it hangs just above the light switches. 

A "new" piece of artwork to enjoy

I walked to the doctor's office to discuss that bone density medication. Oh god—it pays to be precise. I told her I could not remember to take the once-a-week pill and asked if there was another solution. She said she could give me once a month, but would that be any better? I assured her I could take my pill when the dogs get their monthly meds. She quickly sent off the prescription to the pharmacy. 

Then she asked if I was having memory issues. WAIT A MINUTE! I meant to say that I'm not good at taking the pill at least 30 minutes BEFORE eating. OH -- she says - that's a whole different story! So, she canceled the first prescription and gave me another once-a-week pill that I could take with food. DUH!!! See how easy miscommunication can screw things up. And the memory question was a wake-up call. BE CLEAR!

That was totally my fault for not saying the EXACT reason why I was struggling to take that medication. All should be good. I can leave it on my desk and take the pill when I have breakfast on Sunday morning. Everybody is happy. 

Some people mentioned injections, and she said those are for more severe cases of bone density loss. I am nowhere near needing strong meds for that. So let's hope I've got everything in order and get a new test in six months. 

It was such a glorious day. I was outside in my sweatshirt, and there was no need for a jacket. I had to walk past this series of three new buildings constructed simultaneously. Oh my—look at that double or triple-height room at the front of this building. 

That's one huge sun-filled room

You can't see from this picture, but I swear there is a basketball net at either end. Why would they waste a fantastic space with a basketball court? I can imagine visibility issues with the ball? Well, I'm not sure - I guess I'll have to wait to see. 

Basketball nets at either end?

One of the other things Ali mentions in his book is pretending you have the confidence to do anything even if you don't. Oh my—I live by that almost every day. I'm a very shy and quiet person when I'm at home. Well, OK—if DH isn't home, I have a few wild chatting sessions with the dogs. However, I struggle to make new friends easily and have other confidence issues. 

But when I want - I can put on my confidence cloak, and I'm INVINCIBLE!!! How the heck do you think public speaking is so easy for me? My confidence cloak - without it, I would never venture on stage. And that fear of failure just doesn't exist in my vocabulary. If I "fail," it becomes a learning experience. It's a great book with lots of exciting concepts. 

My confidence was shattered the other day when we tried to solve one of the EXIT GAmes puzzles. It was a couple of days ago, and I had been running around and was exhausted. DH had found one of the numbers, but NEITHER of us pursued where to find the other two. Not actively, so we ended up looking at all three clues. DUH!!! It was such an easy solvable puzzle, and he had found the trick; we were just lazy. I was mad at ourselves for giving in. I won't go there - it was just maddening for me. So we didn't play the game for several days. Besides, he was out at dinner numerous evenings last week. 

So, two nights ago, we got back into the puzzle again. Oh my—we solved two glorious puzzles. But we could not have done it independently. Nope—DH has an idea, then I get an idea, and then back and forth it goes. 

Last night involved removing some of the puzzle pieces and using them to solve the clue. Good grief -- it was loads of fun, and YES - we got the correct answer. It took two tries, but we figured it out.

The EXIT game

I got more writing done and did a wee bit of decluttering. I have a few things to confess, but I've run out of time this morning. DH is sick, and if he gives that to me, I'm going to be mad! 

Have a super day!!!

Ciao!!!

Memories of Salt Spring Island

I arrived on the West Coast just in time for the first fall storm. Thankfully, it was just some wind and rain, but nothing too serious. I debated bringing a jacket but settled on a vest, and while the temperature is a bit on the cool side, I'm good! Is anyone ever ready for winter? No power outages here, but I guess it's a common occurrence - at least on the island. 

We had a great day visiting - just so many memories to relive and so many topics to discuss -- well, we could go on visiting forever. But we had a few errands to do in Ganges, so after lunch, we headed out. 

If you remember my wind sculpture in the backyard, it was in Ganges that I was first introduced to them, as this gallery (Steffich Fine Art) is the sole distributor in Canada. 

Steffich Fine Art

Unfortunately, they were closed on Monday, but I might get a chance to pop in to say HI later today. They have some of the sculptures in the garden areas in front of the gallery, and every time I saw them years ago, I coveted one, and now there's one in my yard. Those flowers have grown up quite a bit and are blocking a good view of them, but they are fascinating. 

The sculptures at the gallery

Then, we popped into the gallery next door to check out the artwork. OH MY --- there were some very cool pieces of art. Beautiful eagles made with cutlery -- the artist's name is Carl Sean McMahon. His work is not cheap, and I can only imagine how heavy they are, but stunning!!!!

We also spotted another artist that I love - Richelle Osborne. I didn't take pictures of the art. I feel bad taking pictures of other people's art, but I guess I could have asked permission! So I'll direct you to their website. 

And then I found something that I adore! This artist is Manuel Castro, and I did take a picture of his art (after asking permission), but I didn't load the image. But I would buy that for my backyard. The only problem is finding a place where Miss Murphy (the bull in the china shop) wouldn't run through it and break it!!!! The pieces I want are not on the website but in his Etsy shop. Here's the link to his Etsy Shop. 

We popped into the library to check out the Libby app for my aunt. So, when we got home, I downloaded it for her so she could check it out. Libby is a great way to access e-books and audiobooks without buying them. Yes -- that is the cheap way to go, but let's face it --- the number of trees that were felled to support our book fetishes is probably huge!!!! 

I've left her with some "lessons," and now she's on her own to figure it out. We chatted about Hoopla, but let's do one thing at a time! She's lucky because she has access to 68 libraries in the BC Library Consortium. Before we left, we checked the actual shelves for craft/quilting books, and I spotted one I wanted to check out before buying. 

We borrowed the book, and I'm almost done with it. Yes -- it's a great book, but NO -- I don't need to buy it. So, my curiosity was satisfied without incurring a cost. I know you are curious, so the artist's name is Emily Taylor -- and the book is Collage Quilter. I could see that as a class?????

We checked out a few other things in town, but driving around brings back many memories. DH, M, and I used to spend our annual family vacations on this island when M was small. We would wander around for hours, checking out the outdoor market, signing M up for classes at the small craft shop/toy shop, Geocaching, and lunching at the restaurant under the tree! 

Every time we come here, we always say we would love to live here, and well, that was over 20 years ago, and we still don't live here! I think this is my first time coming this late in the year. 

Look at how low the clouds were yesterday!!!!

Low clouds on SSI

On the way back from Ganges, the rain had stopped, and the clouds were starting to lift. 

Clouds are starting to lift

So we popped down to Bourgoyne Bay, where there is a little park. Oh, we should not have done that as there was an Adventure Lab (part of Geocaching), and I had to do some! 

The trail along the bay

I was only going to do the first three of the five caches since they were relatively close to the car, but how could I leave this Adventure Lab unfinished? I walked very fast to get the last two. They were related to these wood sculptures along the path. 

A stop along the Adventure Lab

The views of the bay along the way were stunning, and the trail through the woods was amazing. It is a beautiful area, and I wish I had more time to explore it! I checked this morning, and there are TONS of geocaches on this island. While we did get some over the years, my little smiley faces (a logged geocache) are sparse!!!!

Bourgoyne Bay

Back to the house and more visiting for the remainder of the afternoon! I must say that I'm sleeping like a log here. Not only is it pitch black, but there is ZERO noise. Nothing! And with all the running around, I'm catching up on sleep! 

All is good. Let's hope the weather is taking a slight turn for the better.

Have a super day!

Ciao!!!!

TICKED

 Another day -- another city! 

I did a reasonable amount of walking in the morning and only a third of what I did the day before. I'm good with that. But I went downtown Saskatoon and did some exploring; thanks again to the Adventure Labs and Geocaching. I know there are other ways to find these pieces of art, but having a destination really motivates me to get out and find them, and it makes me walk. 

There are all kinds of artwork to be found in the city and probably ANY city, and it's really fun to get out and explore. I find it's best to have a destination, and then by walking, you discover many little things along the way. 

I spotted this little box, which I originally thought was a Free Libary. Nope -- it was a spot for lost things in the neighborhood. What a cool idea, and wouldn't it be nice if you lost something, that there would be a place where you could go to potentially find it. And if others knew about your box, etc. 

A finders/keepers box

The only thing is you do not want it to become an eyesore. I thought it was a great idea because I often see an odd mitt, a boot, or something that I think someone would want to find. Maybe people don't care any longer - they just buy a new one. We need to start a new trend where it's OK to wear odd mitts -- they are many people who would kill to have a warm pair of mittens in the winter, and who cares if they don't match. But that's the pioneer spirit in me. 

Being where I am, there is a lot of art by or about Indigenous people. Shoot -- I didn't bring in any of that artwork. But there are these gorgeous grates around the trees. They were all different, and a lot of artwork on them is geared toward the Indigenous people, but this one was not. AHA -- I found a website, so you can check out more of them. 

Artwork on the grates

And this is NOT a neighborhood I would have chosen to walk in, but I found some very interesting artwork and murals along the way. This is close to the river, which is teeming with artwork. 

A mural on a building

So if you are poopooing the Adventure Labs and the Geocaching, that's OK. I have learned and discovered so many things in many places - whether I was in a new city or in the country and it's especially fun when you visit a new place because it usually takes you out of the main tourist traps! 

What's my tally after yesterday? I'm at 950 points. I need FIVE more finds, and I'll have reached my goal!! There are no adventure labs in the Battlefords, where I am now, but there are geocaches, and I might just go out and get some later today. Hmm - one a day for the next five days, and I'd be done. 

I also spotted this, and how the goose got there, I have no idea. This is the underside of one of the many bridges that cross the river connecting Saskatoon. He was way high up in the underside, and I thought they needed a bit of a landing strip. No landing strip for this guy! There are loads of pigeons up there, but the first time I've spotted a goose in a tight spot. 

Goose in a tight spot

I had put two hours of parking on the meter while I walked about. I made it back to the car and was 6 minutes over, which was pretty good. No tickets. Phew -- lucked out again. 

I had a couple of places that I wanted to check out, and a quilt store was on the way to the bookstore. I wasn't going to stop, but then I thought, why not? So I did, and I had a good look around and I spotted neat patterns, fabric, and other goodies, and I left it all in the store. I walked out without buying so much as a spool of thread. YES -- I am cured of the GUILT purchases. 

I do not need anything, I do not want anything, and to be honest, the thought of buying a new pattern almost made me ill. When would I have the time to make it when I have so much already. I almost bought a cute small kit that was on sale, but I didn't because I knew it would sit on the shelf and not get used. I did consider buying some neutral (whites mostly), and then I thought, I have to carry that home on the plane, and I can buy that back home, so I bought nothing. I bet that doesn't happen to them often! 

But very sad when you see a sign on the door that all bags and backpacks must be left at the cash. Theft is such a sad state of affairs. 

The next stop was Robinson McNally, which is my favorite bookstore of all time. Their magazine section (like all magazine sections everywhere) is a shadow of its former self. I didn't pick up any, as I can get them back home. Before, I always bought one or two. 

I checked out the quilt books, and purchased one, and saw several others that might make good classes, but again, I do not have room in my luggage. It's been a very cheap trip as far as buying anything goes. 

And I found myself on Quebec Street, which is the home of these guys. I stop by every time because the artwork is gorgeous. This is the company where the artwork sits. 

Metal recycling place

And there's the transformer guys! Hard to believe they were made of scrap metal!! I tell you, these Saskatchewan people love metal artwork!!!

The Transformers from scrap metal

There is a huge dinosaur also at this site and a massive globe of the world. All extremely well done. Kudos to the artists!

I picked up my brother from the airport and headed off to the Battlefords. Upon arriving at my other brother's house, we were surprised to see one of their dogs running around the unfenced part of their yard. Wait a minute -- this is NOT their dog, but you would swear they were the same -- the coloring was identical, but the dog had one blue and one brown eye. 

The dog was very friendly, and my brother and SIL appeared at this moment and told us not to touch the dog as it was covered with TICKS. Oh yes -- when I say covered, I mean there were multiple ticks on the poor thing. No collar, and it was likely dumped. The dog was gorgeous and friendly. 

He was easy to catch, and we put a leash around his neck and started to remove some ticks while we waited for the city to come to pick him up. OK -- so I've only seen one tick on my Little Sammy many years ago, but it was TINY. Look at the size of some of these. They were MASSIVE. 

One of the massive ticks from the dog

I think the dog was part Husky and had a very thick undercoat, and some of the ticks had not had a chance to burrow into the skin yet. We must have removed a dozen while we were waiting, and there were more. My SIL was very clever and did NOT warn them the dog had ticks, but revealed that fact to the person who came. Oops!

But what a shame to abandon a beautiful dog like that. I hope he finds a new forever home. 

So we sat around and chatted for the remainder of the afternoon, which was good as it's rare that the three of us are together! 

And now I'm off -- somewhere along the line, I'm the ONLY one in the family that is an early riser, but that's good so I can get the blog written and not be disturbed by anyone!

Don't forget there is a virtual retreat tonight starting at 6 PM. I'll stop in at some point to say hi!

Saturday, May 27 - starting at 6 PM. 

Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89254233911?pwd=VGQrTnFybW1HMWpleHA4M2Q2NGVwZz09 Meeting ID: 892 5423 3911 Passcode: 982797

Sunday, May 28 - starting at NOON

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86119598156?pwd=ZDFxcElxS0NmeTRjczdSR2FXd3N2Zz09

Meeting ID: 861 1959 8156
Passcode: 053861

Have a super day!!

Ciao!!