Green Chili. Forgive the mess in my kitchen. Things get out of hand quickly when I can.

I rarely work with an itinerary. I usually have a vague idea of what I’d like to accomplish the following day, but I’m always really flexible in case something comes up that needs my attention more than what I intended. That’s what happened yesterday. 

I got up early and finished piecing the last row of blocks, then I laid them all out on the floor and played mix and match till I got the look I was going for. I noticed a couple of the blocs are much smaller than the others and I could have sewn the seamed a little wider than a quarter inch. I’ll have to give them a closer look and either rip them apart and resew them, or start from scratch. It’s a good thing I have extra ten inch squares to work with.

By the time I got them all arranged, it was 2:00 and I had other things that needed doing. I wanted to can the green chili that I made on Sunday so it will last on the shelf all winter. I had a lot of the pork roast left over so I put another slow cooker full of green chili on to simmer while I loaded up the canner with what was already made. As soon as that canner was running, I started on the pinto beans I bought a couple of weeks ago. 

I’ve been watching canning videos and there are women who can their dry beans so they’re ready at a moment’s notice for a winter meal. I made up twenty pints of beans and put them in my big canner. As I’m writing this, I’m sitting at the bar in the kitchen, babysitting the canner to make sure it gets to the proper pressure and stays there for a full seventy-five minutes. Before long, I will fill another canner with the second batch of green chili. I may be at this for a while.

I chatted with Daughter #2 and her wife yesterday morning while I was sitting at the sewing machine. She is a tattoo aficionado. When she saw my face, she was alarmed. “Mama! What’s going on with your face?!” I explained I was doing what she asked me to do…treat the dangerous skin cells. I also told her it felt like battery acid on my face. She suggested I put Aquaphor ointment on the inflamed skin to soothe it. I put some on and it felt better almost immediately. I will never go outdoors again without slathering on sunscreen.

I recently received a jury summons but the trial is scheduled for Monday. I already had something planned and paid for so I asked if I could be excused. I hadn’t heard back so I called yesterday. Turns out, I have been excused so one less thing on my plate. I have been summoned for jury duty many times over the years. A few times I actually went in and either was dismissed after questioning, or a last minute plea deal was accepted. I’ve served on a jury once. I believe in fulfilling my civic duties. But I’ve never been called since Mr. Virgo died. I don’t know how I would do with medical subjects or graphic photos. My PTSD kicks in just thinking of serving. I mean, I will if I have to. In our county, we can request to be excused for any jury duty once we hit seventy years of age. My memory isn’t what it used to be, and I have trouble hearing and following along sometimes. I certainly would hate to affect a trial negatively because of that. I have nine more months before my next birthday. We’ll see what happens.

I’m not sure I’m going to push myself to get this quilt top finished this week. I want to be sure I do my best work and rushing won’t achieve the results I am looking for. This is a relatively new behavior for me. There was a time when I would push my way through something till I’m pulling my hair out. I don’t want to do that anymore. If I don’t enjoy an activity, I’m not interested. I think I’ll set it aside and pick it up next week. In the meantime, we’re chasing down an electrical problem in Louisa the Lincoln, the lawn at the farm needs mowing again, and the pump needs to be primed. Perhaps today will be the day for these chores.

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““Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?”

Matthew 6:25 ESV