i almost see the light

reflected off the surface of my porcelain workbench!

i got it mostly done yesterday
i am most likely going to finish it today
i do have errands/bills fast in the morning
but then i can relax and just clean that corner

it's a long time coming huh?

ok i have some big news that i will tell you all by the weekend (either saturday or sunday)
but not until it happens ok?
meanwhile
back at the farm so to speak

phoebe let lilli in the upper day pen, without trying to kill her
so maybe the worst of the moult is over
they are all still trying to kill momma, and i hope by winter that's over too
but if not i have the three spaces in the pens

one pullet is driving me nuts, she gets out then later goes back into her pen
i keep telling her 'we're going to eat you first'
it doesn't seem to bother her
annoying little chicken that she is

the weather she is a turning........ btw mary from peter, paul and mary died
so the times are turning as well

this year for many of us was strange and tested our meddle
and
teaching many many grasshoppers to be ants (remember the fable?)

i know that i need to put even more away, as i am low on whole grain
and right now ironically due to a BAD canning season......sugar!

maybe it's a very good thing to assess and reorder your life and living space
it is also in my opinion to live with the rhythm of the seasons
spring, summer, fall you labor and winter you sleep and rest
i think we're healthier for it as we were designed for millenium to live that way
i also think hard physical work is a good thing
why pay a gym when you can get the same and more benefits from growing your own food
stacking your own wood
and being more directly responsible for your life and yourself

anyway
off the soap box today
i have some small short 'in town' errands today
and i have inventory to take
and then
the porcelain corner needs to be finished

oh one more thing.........
who all is going to be a rhinebeck?
drop me an E ok?

vi

it's 2am...........

again i am not sleeping


winter is closing in on us fast, and i am no where near done
our wood was delivered monday and i didn't tarp it
bernie's been getting home really late again from work and keeps forgetting to get the tarps out

this year i swear we are on another planet
i think we are going to get an early and very snowy winter
all the leaves are down off the sumacs already, and the big maples are almost bare as well

i am so worried about those pens getting done
and the studio being finished
not to mention all the rest that has to be done
and getting it all done in time
normally by now the wood is in and stacked, the woodstove cleaned
chimney cleaned
kindling barrels full
and the studio is cleared and ready

i am going to have to spend every waking minute getting the rest of the preps done
(yeah like 2am and here i am worried)
i know i am forgetting something big too

bernie hasn't winterized the vehicles yet either, or the snowthrower
and i can't find my snow shovel
(HUH? how the hell do you miss a show shovel?)

and as rhinebeck weekend is our cutoff
and THAT is about a month away.......... oh man

anyway, i got about two feet of the porcelain workbench done yesterday
today i need to do a bit more but i am going to try and find the tarps if i can reach them
and do my wood

oh man i still need to inventory the canning shelves
i realize part of us being behind has been the extreme rainy summer
and even when i was able to order wood, the rain kept the deliveries from happening
anyway
i am sitting here with this swirl of 'things that need to be done right now'.... running around in my head
and it's pushed out any thought at the moment of sleep

porcelain workbenches may not be so hard after all

i got partly through it
ok so it's a 4 foot and 6 foot bench in an L shape
and i got about two feet of one end done

the problem is i don't know where to put some stuff
and i found out the sink is leaking in the kitchen

oops

but i am making some headway
and i have a better idea of what is there yet
i have to do some porcelain fires i see
and i have a few sculptures that i forgot i had
i used to sculpt a LOT
so always had new dolls coming along
i found my stainless steel squirrel mixer
and some mold tools and older mold boards
so i am making progress
i had forgotten what an upset stomach the dust always gave me
(nope can't find my mask)

but progress is being made
and right now i am taking a break to be followed by dishes...oye
and then back to the bench

liver and onions for supper tonight..... (the onions i canned last summer)

bernie read me the riot act

he's really upset about the studio and the amount of time that i've been out

yeah he's right
i have been out too much

and i have to get back on a now excellerated schedule

i have the porcelain work bench to do
i can do a little bit during the day but i imagine friday i will be really doing it
if i can get it cleared out by saturday, he'll pull it down before he goes out to the duck pens and wood stacking
and then next week i will move the shelves over and also stack the winter wood
i did get the night crates done last night
and got a lot of the rust stains (not all) out of the toilet
and i have squash to can as pickles
i got his toaster cleaned too (since i rarely eat bread let alone toast, i don't pay attention to it)

i did also get a bit of sleep last night, as i took an aspirin and a tylanol pm
for occational use that tylanol stuff works but i can't take it more then once or twice a month

it's getting chilly here
and all the leaves are off the sumacs
the maples are getting there
i have more plants to pot up to come in
the rosemarys need to be repotted as well

oh man it's overwhelming right now

i also know that this weekend we have to get to sam's for some stock up stuff
and i have to get kelp and such for the cat food i am going to be canning soon
(i wish i had a good grinder for the chicken etc)

apparently i have my fall/winter/spring projects all mapped out for me
and i have yet to finish the duck drawings ( although with phoebe molting and homicidal...........)

anyone got some ompfh they can lend me????

i didn't sleep

i rarely sleep the night before i have to go out
so now that i have to go out almost every day this week i am not sleeping

and i am not a happy camper
i am actually getting really annoyed


the wood was delivered, and i missed jason!
i had to call him and the poor man had to come back to get paid

then i went to bring the ducks in, and locked myself out of the basement
so here it is getting dark
i can't get them put away
and i didn't realize it until i had everyone out and running around
i sat out there until dark

the ducks had a good time, bathing
worm hunting
i was scared shitless worried that the fox or raccoon was going to get one of them

i am a bit concerned that my studio won't be done by the time the woodstove goes on
i am also a bit concerned that the pens won't be done in time to acclimate the ducks right

if they aren't acclimated properly, they won't be going out in it
and i will again be at risk all winter
now so far i've been luck
most of the falls i've taken i've not been knocked out or disoriented

now the two falls i took i HAVE been disoriented bernie was here
if i fall and that happens, even with a cell or a cordless, i am still not going to use the phone
so the upper pens finished are a must

the wood stacked so it isn't wet and we don't get creasote build up and a fire is a must
the chimney cleaned and the door gasket on the stove replaced is a must


and all this must be done before rhinebeck weekend

i am getting more and more annoyed

nothing is getting done

at least of the stuff i have to do

i am never going to be done with this studio

and i am not going to be getting the halloween stuff out on etsy

i am just so far behind

bernie is got a good start on the pens

they are now three pens 18 feet long total as they are connected to save wire

the second load of winter wood is going to be delivered today

i need to be home for it

as i need to pay the guy

i am not sure if we are going to get another load or not

the wood prices are the same as last year, however LAST year i was told the increase was due to gas over 5.00 a gallon

that isn't a problem with this year

so i am thinking i need to find another wood guy

plus this one is hard to get ahold of, and doesn't come when you tell him, just when he's got time

the first load was delivered when we were out

he called from the driveway to tell us he was here

unfortunately we weren't home and he drove over the very wet saturated lawn, and over our well

so i am not a happy camper

the studio remuddle is not helping me much

i thought i would be much further along by now

i have less then a month now to get it done

we had that cold snap and i've been warned

why no, i didn't sleep well last night, how did you know?

anyway i am going to take myself and my bad mood to the kitchen for coffee

ttyl

vi

poached eggies, hat knitting

yup sunday morning

it's sunny at least so i can do the laundry and hang it out

today we will continue to work on the pens (i hope as bernie doesn't like to do anything on sundays)
i have to transplant the stuff that's coming in ( soon it looks like)
tomorrow wood is being delivered

next weekend we have to do the chimney for the wood stove and replace the window gasket in the stove door

fall is fast this year, and early...........i can only imagine what winter will be like

i need some stewing chickens, 6 should do it. i could go to the auction and get 6 birds and let mark do them for me, now that he's got the plucker but i am most likely going to get to the poultry farm

and in between all this, i have to bake snickerdoodles, make stuffed peppers, zuke pickles, and continue with the studio

i could seriously use a clone or two at this point
and FRIDAY i need to get 80 pounds of chicken breast and can part of that
i hope it's on sale at the provisioner cause if it ain't.............. we are NOT getting it

maybe i need three or four of me?

meanwhile, right this second i am knitting a hat
it's in malabrigio that susan sent me
i think i have just enough left after the first hat to do the second.........
if so one will be mine and one bernie's

oh and to remind everyone............ rhinebeck is a month away ( giver take a few days)
just thought i would remind you all as a public service announcement
(like you all need reminding............ everyone is counting down)

WHY is it always raining when we need to do pens?

torrential pouring never ending rain

soaking the wood for the pens
the ground
us
???

doing ducks and pens today is so going to be interesting

and they need to be done

TODAY

meanwhile i am still stuck with the studio remuddle
ok so partly i haven't been home and you all know how i need to sneak up on that stuff
and partly cause i haven't been feeling great
and last night i dreamt about stewing chickens

that i couldn't get one unless i bought a bushel of green beans at 2.49 a pound!

ok

it's really bad when a fustrated canner is dreaming of produce huh?

i have some zukes to make into pickles though maybe tomorrow

let's see what else

i joined a budgie forum
i really want a few parakeets
i was looking at cages, and found a nice one that is huge and about 200.
but it's got wheels and a 'cat resistant' peaked roof
i could however build it myself
(NOT bernie build it for me, as we all know how long i would wait for that, but it's small wood so i could do it with a jig saw myself)

we'll see
i like the wheels

can you all tell i miss having house birds
the new pullets just aren't cutting it and i miss my marguerite and my little cleo
phoebe is still homicidal but i have hopes that after the molt she'll return to being sweet
lilli is still sweet and loves mom but will run right past me for a worm

momma ironically likes me cause she's got no one else poor thing
any 'duck' in a storm i suppose
falstaff is falstaff and that is all we need say about HIM

oye

the new cousins are a trip
they are very smart and very funny
and it feels like family

see you can get ANYTHING on the internet
even family!

hmmmmm i still haven't done my stuffed peppers


bernie was late last night as he had a road call
it's always the worst weather for them too
cold or raining or snowing or blistering hot

he got home, showered, ate and went to bed
i had done the chickens (which he normally likes to do as they relax him)

i didn't eat though with him as it was too late and while normally that doesn't stop me
i wasn't feeling too good so wasn't hungry

the leaves here are dropping and turning FAST FAST
and early
all the sumac's are dropped already
the big 300 year old sugar maple is all turned and partly down
winter is rushing in
i think it's going to be a hard one this year

cold and snowy and long

i hope we have enough wood

home for a bit today

as you all know i have discovered cousins
and lately been up there a lot
their car broke down so while awaiting it's time to be repaired
i been helping out a bit
(actually it's fun cause they laugh a lot too)
i will tell you that i am a bit tired
i am so not used to going out that much
or to being around 'the general public'
in stores and such

so today i have to clean the kitchen
finish the cookie icing
put the ducks out including the homicidal duck phoebe
do something about the laundry i dried, folded, and forgot outside
(being chased by a bee)
i still have my peppers to make yet

and then the studio
and the duck pen

oye
and i crash about 4pm and am totally worthless after
oh and my wood guy is coming today too
oye again

i need two of me

but i had a lot of fun with my cousins and i saw yet another pretty parakeet that i can't have cause right now there is no room for the cage
(or we aren't quite sure where to put the cage)

oh man

phoebe and the molt

she really is in the midst of it

she also is getting homicidal, i had to seperate her even from lilli last night
she was sitting on lilli's head and pecking lilli's neck
she is in the main basement right now
this is really getting out of hand
i need four pens now
i have to keep them all seperate!

i am hoping this clears up by cold weather cause if not we are going to be in a muddle


i am going to town today, with my cousin
they don't have their car running yet
it's the timing chain and they like everyone else are having a rough time finding extra cash

she needs to get some bloodwork done

so i won't be around much until later

now in studio news.........i am again at a stand still
if i can only get the one workbench cleared i would be ok
but i don't know what to do with the bisque, greenware, softfire, sculptures, tools etc that live on there
i have run out of drawer unit thingies
( maybe if i use the old ones for that? but they are really not the most efficient solution )

i really could use a seperate building
any relatives in construction?

anyway since i am still hitting a wall with that, i suppose that i won't be getting a parakeet anytime soon
or my fish tank put up again
or any real work done for a while

although who really wants to draw homicidal ducks?
( she really is getting that bad, and this is PHOEBE who likes everyone............)

oye

suggestions anyone

?

ahem........ i thought this was only for SPRING

can you see the squirrels?

porch light

i can almost see the light

on the front of the house

we got a porch light 6 years ago...........
it's been sitting in the box

today is the day it's going on the front of the house
AMAZING huh?

actually that's lightening fast in bernie time
(which is sorta like daylight savings time only much MUCH MUCH slower)

i told him
'good, when you get that done i want one between the two front windows'

hahahaha
i will be in the nurseing home before that happens

oye

meanwhile in parakeet planning.......we are at a stand still
how many freeken months i been looking at keets?
(they are called budgies now in slang......... for budgerigars)

wait cause right after i get them
i will most likely also be looking at finches and canaries as well

i love my birds you know

in duckie daily life.........
phoebe is still pissy
lilli is loving her mom
momma is in the a frame trying to grow feathers back from the one damn day bernie put her in with falstaff and he mated her constantly
and phoebe is in with falstaff who is the only one so far she is intimidated by

although since i had her by the neck yesterday after she was after momma......she is not too fond of me right now either
i miss cleo
even though SHE used to beat the crap out of falstaff who was what? 6 times her size?

oh man duck hormones are nothing to take lightly

in studio news
i am at a stand still
oye
I NEED some help
or at least some OMPH

(that is a technical term that means 'get up and goes' or some energy)

anyway
i am going to get off now
before i get annoyed and say screw it all
i'm going to buy a bird

demon duckies from HELL

and other stories of pms

phoebe is in a mood
a really really BAD MOOD
she tried to attack momma
i broke it up and had phoebe by the NECK
while bernie put momma in the a frame
when we do the pens
momma is going in with falstaff i think
and phoebe is going by herself....... lilli will get some eggies to raise as her 'family' but they will be momma's eggs

my little lillibug is her old sweet mommy loving self
she is following me around and nibbling at my shoes
i pick her up and carry her sweet little white feathery body around

i love that duck

now today is an almost perfect day
i am to make cookies and stuff peppers
i am however going to take my fat assets out on the deck
and knit i think
or
go down by lilli and bernie
we'll watch him stack wood and admire his ripply muscles..............

and eat icecream
me and lillibug

and leave the other ducks to their own thoughts
meanwhile phoebe is in with falstaff.........who is the only one that can stand her right now

oye
duckdom is a trial

ok this is me

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=400061141469

however the lady got it wrong
i make my own sculptures and my own molds
i do everything inhouse

by hand MY hands
and from scratch

and she just devalued my market

i did email her through ebay
and the purchaser so they know where i am at
oye

anyway
that's one of my dolls

and now with NO wheels either

where's my horse???

bernie's van broke down
so guess who's van he's got now


oh man

1:21 am and look where i am

i can't sleep
this one's bad
bad enough for me to be downstairs
i don't have time for this no sleep thing
tomorrow i have a ton of stuff today
or should i say later today

colleen my tx sister in law called
thank goodness
i miss her so much
she may come back in october
i hope so

that's not why i can't sleep

i also cleaned the kitchen today ( ok so yesterday i suppose)
not all of it
but i got the stove under control at least
that's what i get for not canning all summer
a filthy stove

i always clean the stove twice a day while canning
and this year i didn't

i finished spray painting yet another arco box
i have i think two left to do
one huge one and one really old metal one
then a paper thingie
then the rest of the plastic stacking drawers

the progress is extremely slow
bernie is getting concerned
frankly i am also
i thought we'd get some more heavy bulky stuff moved while he was home on vacation but that didn't happen

i did however get the laundry all done and DRIED....... which is usually a saturday thing but i got it done early

how do people do it?
how do they keep their places so spotless and organized
i think i am genetically defective in that way
but my ducks are normally very very clean
as are the chickens and the cats
oye

maybe i should have lived in a barn.........?
i certainly prefer being in barns to any place else on earth

anyway
here i am again
up late and downstairs

oye

my cousin and the tired amish horse

i went out with my cousin's wife yesterday again
she took me to lunch and we also went to a bird store

i had her laughing a lot
(and later when i dropped in at their house i had him laughing too)

during the time out
i kept telling her that basically i aspire to be amish
or
that i am almost amish
(and folks who read this blog know what i am talking about)

i kept saying
'gimme my horse, i already got the hat'

we decided that the horse was in the back of the van
AND
that he was tired and sleeping it off back there

maybe you had to be there
but it got her laughing
ALOT
hahahaha

i explained about 'fat assets' which cracked her up too
i swear i love seeing people laugh

anyway we had fun, but as you all know....... i am not used to such an exciting life

ok today
i have the studio to do and outside pens
and the last of the laundry i did yesterday to hang (and a load to take in)
then there is the kitchen

i saw my chicken breasts on sale for 1.69 a pound for a case
i need to can chicken desperately
i would like 80 pounds in jars before winter and at least 40 pounds breaded and stashed in the freezer
so i may go friday to get chicken

depending
but that means canning all weekend

no pens ( although i have to go to get my kitchen aide saturday)

i need two of me this week, and some extra money to be in three places at once and to pay for some of this no?

oye

til next time

vi

was gone yesterday

and will be part of today
but after that i can't go anywhere until the studio is done
it's currently 46 blessed and wonderful degrees out

i can actually work outside without too much sweating
so i want to muck day pens
and finish the molds in the studio

i am taking my cousin's wife to town for her doctor as their car is broken and waiting for their son to come fix it
her and i went out yesterday to walmart, (her favorite store, and she knows everyone there)

i started a hat from the malabrigio that susan sent me
(last night)
i think i may have to rip it back and cast on a few more
(not that i counted how many i cast on or anything............. oye)

i am doing k2p2 and random color changes
without any reguards to rows or anything
when the little balls run out i switch to the opposite color and keep going
the colors are amazing
the yarn is very soft, it's a single and feels slightly felted in a good soft way
i don't know how it would wear as a glove or mitten or such
but i think it will be ok as a hat

i have to block the sisik scarf as soon as i am home to do it

and after this hat i think i better do a scarf for my sister in law colleen
and then start that lace for me in the pink from spirit trail

i did get four of the 5 scented geraniums potted up
i need to get a pot for the begonias
the colus
the other scented geranium and the two flowering maples
as well as the old rosemary that absolutely MUST be moved on

and the berries STILL haven't been planted out in the back
oye

ok i have to drink the coffee now
and get dressed and see if i can't get something done in the studio

the weather appears to have turned!

yesterday was remarkably cooler
a bit nippy even when i took the ducks out
today i was cool even over night
no more hot flashes and night sweats?

could it be?

i potted up some scented geraniums and will be potting up some flowering maples, begonias and a few coleus as well as the older rosemarys to take in for fall
and i am thinking that planting a bit more chard would be nice as well as some fall/winter lettuces

i finished the blue tweed sisik scarf..........now i have to figure some other car/waiting room knitting
i don't know if i want to make a silk cowl or some hats or what next
but i need to get a project started this afternoon

i may need some warm stuff for the winter
and i have yet to replace that one needle for socks
no i can't knit on four needles
i have to have the fifth one or i don't enjoy it and can't maneuver it right

i most likely will cast on a hat out of the malabrigio that susan sent me ( thank you again susan)
and i will make it just plain ribbing and stripped!
i've never knit with the malabrigio, i have some friends who just adore it so i am about to see what all the fuss is about

and purples and orangy yellows........... they ARE my colors so here goes

ok i am i think going to town today
so i will report back either later or most likely tomorrow

and all the duck ponds are clean
crates are clean
ducks are clean but pmsing
and they missed me so very much while bernie took care of them for 5 days

i missed them too
lilli demanded i hold her and cuddle her
and i happily obliged