As it turned out, we got quite a bit more snow that I thought we would, given the meager amount when I went to bed Sunday night. The sun was shining for a while in the morning and it was pristine. Mr. FixIt waited for a while before he went out to blow the snow off the sidewalks. Our snowblower is battery powered and the snow was deep and pretty dense. He had to take it in two sessions to give the battery a chance to recharge.

They've been talking all week about this MASSIVE storm that was supposed to hit us yesterday and today…like, 5-8” of snow. Now, I’m writing this at 9:00 on Sunday night, and so far the sidewalks have just enough snow to make them white. Unless a lot more comes in overnight, we’ll see a whole different scenario that what was predicted.

Another new skill for my knitting toolbox! Toe-up sock with an Afterthought Heel!

Just about anything you want to accomplish will present a learning curve. I’ve been kind of happily cruising along, knitting dishcloths. They’re mindless and I can crank them out fast. They are nice to have around as little gifts for your dinner hosts or a housewarming or an office birthday. There are quite a variety of patterns to try, but I usually end up just knitting on the diagonal and calling it good.

I woke up yesterday morning in my grandma’s bed. I looked out at the trees…their naked fingers reaching for the murky sky. A flash of copper zipped by the window and I scooched over to see if I could find it again. An Eastern Towhee was flitting in and out of the Carolina Spice Bush and the Flowering Quince on the creek bank…its wings rustling the crispy leaves underneath, looking for something tasty. I smiled. 

I’m learning to say “There is a part of me that gets anxious and afraid” instead of “I have anxiety.” It is a way of telling anxiety…”You’re not the boss of me!” I’ve been reading the BEST bible studies lately about anxiety and fear and handing it over…letting it go…and giving it all to God. I started studying “You’re Not the Boss of Me: 7 Keys to Managing Anxiety” and “10 Days Of Defeating Anxiety” and they have really helped. When I knew I was going to have this invasive test a couple of weeks ago, I sequestered myself in the Big Birdhouse out back and studied, prayed, handed over, and visualized going through the entire thing with great peace. And…that’s exactly what God gave me.

I can tell you, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that I can’t think of anyone in this whole world I’d rather go through these trying times with than Mr. FixIt. He is mellow and easy going and it takes a heck of a lot to ruffle his feathers. He’s…steady. I, on the other hand, am not always….ummmmm, even keeled. I try, but it is the Gemini in me that sends me on tangents and I know…if I were him…I’d want to have a break from me once in a while.

I am really, really good at starting projects. I’m a Gemini. I want to know how to do EVERYTHING. And, when I start to learn everything about something, I have to buy ALL the things. The tools, the supplies, the materials, the books…the works. Because, my sweet well-meaning Gemini brain LIES to me every time! It tells me something like this…

If you look around…wherever you live…especially if you’re “of a certain age”, you’re going to scratch your head and think “What the heck happened to common sense???” I don’t know about you, but I shake my head…a LOT! Sometimes I think my eyes are just going to keep on rolling and stay that way. 

One of my pet peeves is when you ask your health care provider how to correct something and he/she comes back with a prescription. Lord knows…I don’t need any more prescriptions. I’m trying to thin out some of them I’m taking as it is. I’ll tell you more about that in a minute but I’m going to tackle a somewhat sensitive subject…one that now seems to have lots of commercials representing “cures”. Let’s talk…irregularity.

It was a beautiful day yesterday. The sky was clear and blue. The sun was shining. And it wasn’t quite as cold as it was on Friday. I knitted. Surprise, surprise! I also cooked a little and cleaned the kitchen. Sometimes I get discouraged with cooking because it’s immediately followed by cleaning…again. But, you can’t live on sandwiches all the time and I had a hankerin’ for biscuits and sausage gravy. That right there is a stick-to-your-ribs (and other miscellaneous body parts) kinda meal. I pulled out my biscuit bowl and cast iron and had a heyday.

We’ve come a long way, baby!

Every evening, I head to the back bedroom between 8:00 and 8:30 to write my posts. This is because…The Big Bang reruns are over for the night, and Mr. FixIt is ready to watch some detective drama. Not my cup of tea. This works for us. I’m always finished writing around 10:30 or 11:00 and I chat with my son-in-law’s mom for forty-five minutes or so to catch up with what’s going on in Colorado. By the time we are wrapping it up for the night, Mr. FixIt heads to bed and we watch some funny video or another for a little while, leaving the day on a note of laughter.