Here and There

I haven't been very good about posting AND I haven't been very good about reading all your posts either.  I will try and do better--next week.

I should be done with John's genealogy tomorrow.  I found a newspaper clipping(s), that he told me about his Uncle who was killed in a fall at the paper company up in Munising, MI.  He is going to be surprised and happy because he told me that every time he gets up in that area, he goes to the Library and looks at reels and reels of microfiche, but never could find anything.  I also found out something about his great grandfather that is not very nice.

John told me that his grandma and her other siblings had been adopted.  Not true.  Yes, they were adopted, but not INTO the family, but taken away and adopted by other family members.  I found a newspaper account of the fact that his Great Grandfather deserted his wife and children.  Then his wife died and when he came back to Michigan, there was a warrant for his arrest.  Before the police could get him, he abused two of his daughters--John's grandma being one of them.  "They" took the children away and his grandma, at age 15, had to go and live in an Industrial School for Girls, until age 18. 

Her younger sibs were adopted by her mother's parents and aunts.  When the Great Grandpa got out of jail in Detroit, he went back to Calgary, Canada where he was born many years before.

I hope this isn't upsetting to John.  The sins of the grandparents do not reflect on him!!!

So strange and something I do not understand--as an only child for so long and now my only sib is my sister----Wednesday night, I handed him a paper and pen and asked him to write down his sisters and brothers and the years they were born, or if he didn't know that, how old they are now.

He could not remember all of them!!!!!  His parents had 13 children in 23 years.  Three of them died as babies--he remembered about that, but he had a hard time getting the names in birth order.

I can't imagine living with that many siblings!  How would you ever get any time with your Mother?  With an alcoholic father, absent a lot of the time and his mother having to work....................it makes me sad for this little, old guy.

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I had a strange and weird situation yesterday and today.

I am starting a new pattern test for Chris.  It is a vest, an unusual vest.  She got the yarn for it when she was here in September.

It is Knitting yarn #2 weight--very fine yarn.  What we have is a variegated Mohair yarn, but Chris wanted me to test crochet it in a solid color.

Yesterday, I went into Brighton to JoAnn's to find it. We had purchased the original yarn there.  I couldn't find any with that weight, so I asked a saleslady, who I have dealt with before and who is ALWAYS very snotty!

"We don't have any.  NO ONE uses that weight yarn anymore!"  and she walked away from me like I was some sort of idiot.  I looked around some more and DID find that weight by the same maker as the variegated yarn and in the right color.  I grabbed 6 skeins of the color.  It is expensive.  $44.46 for 6 skeins!!

I e-mailed Chris a picture and she responded back that she wanted me to do the test, not on this Mohair type of yarn, but just a regular acrylic, because while testing, if I had to rip it back, the Mohair is a pain.

I had to go back into Brighton today to get a couple of inkjet refills to print out John's book, so I stopped at Michael's to see if they had the yarn.  I took the JoAnn's yarn with me, thinking that if I could buy the non-mohair at Michael's. I'd take back the yarn to JoAnn's (the stores are next to each other).  

I looked and looked--up and down the yarn section aisles--two times.  Than I found a saleslady working in that section and asked her.  She replied,  "We don't carry that weight yarn anymore.  No one seems to use it," in a much nicer manner than the lady at JoAnn's.  Then, just to be sure, she got on her walkie-talkie and asked someone else if they still had some back in the storage room.

Nope.

Why I find this strange?  I have several skeins of #2 weight yarn in my stash.  In pink, blue and white.  I use it for the special baby afghan I make for people.

So, when I got home, I jumped on-line and....Mary Maxim's and Herrschners do not carry it either.  The only place I could find it was on the site of the brand of the yarn we got AND, it doesn't come in anything except Mohair.  

I just hope I don't run out of the yarn before the test vest is done or I am in deep doo-doo!

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I guess I am getting too old to keep up, nowadays.  It seems there is always some favorite something I want and it is no longer manufactured!

I plan on finishing up my bedroom spring clean tomorrow (she said with good intentions.)

My Life--Right Now At Least

Wednesday:
Cleaning the bedroom:
https://youtu.be/c7rsEa0cOhw

Thursday:
Doing a genealogy for John.
You know what happens when I get into a genealogy.
All other chores fade into the background and out of my mind.

Intentions

I have good intentions.  Unfortunately, that's all I have!

I have the list of what I need to do in each room, for the spring cleaning and sprucing up.
It continues to be below normal cold around here, with snow bands coming through every few hours.
I can't seem to get motivated to take down my winter drapes, wash windows and air out rooms when it is 30 degrees!!
So what have I done today?  Although I intended to start on the bedroom this morning?  I have done nothing!

I went grocery shopping yesterday, got home and hauled in the groceries and set them on the living room couch and floor, just inside the door, sat down to rest a bit and..............................all but the refrigerated stuff was still sitting in the bags, on the couch and floor today at noon!

I am in the dumpster, because of this stupid weather!!!!!!!

It Was A Day

It was a beautiful funeral for Mother Angelica.  I watched the entire Mass.  It may be a strange thing to day, but watching her TV show, every Tuesday and Saturday nights, has helped me grow in my own Protestant faith walk.

I gotta tell ya though, -----Catholics must be blessed with large bladders because just the Mass itself lasted for two hours.

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Have you ever been just sitting idly and casually without thinking, reach up and just ran your hand from your chin down over your neck?  I did that, while sitting in my chair and felt a hair--growing out of my neck.  I went searching for it with my thumb and index finger, found it, pulled it away from my neck.  That thing had to be nearly 3 inches long!!!!!

I wonder how many people have seen that disgraceful thing sticking out of my neck and why didn't anyone tell me?  I tried to yank it out, which didn't work, so I went into the shower room, got my razor and shaved that thing off.  It was as white and as bristly as could be.

Yes--the wonderfulness of growing old.  We women no longer have to shave our legs or under our arms. Which leaves us more time to tend to our mustaches, chin whiskers and neck bristles!!!!!

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6:00--Dar came over with the usual rant about the kids living with her.  She wants them gone and yet, when they came, she told her son she'd give him a year to get back on his feet.

8:00--Dar was still talking when John called to ask if he and Maziey could stop in.  He had just returned from his week up north and was taking Maizey for her evening walk.

9:00--John and Maizey left.  I fed the cats and at 9:30, finally was able to make myself some supper!

March Is A Cruel Month

You know that old adage, "If March comes in like a Lion, it will go out like a Lamb."  Well, over the years I really bought into that.  We had a really cold, bad March 1st, but I just turned my back on it, because I knew, I could look forward to the last day of March.

Today.

This has been the scene through my windows all day long!

This has just destroyed my Pollyanna view of the world!!! That adage is not true!  A lot of adages are untrue.  

"Money can't buy happiness"
         Ever been so poor you didn't have enough money to              buy even a gallon of milk for your child?

"Early to bed, early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise."
         Early risers tend to be more proactive, but burn out                quicker.  Night Owls are smarter in the long run.

"Flattery will get you nowhere."
     Wanna bet?
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I am so glad this last day of March is almost over.  These months with 31 days in them are a real strain on my budget.  I think Social Security should give us an extra $20.00 on the months with 31 days in them.  My Social Security is usually all gone by the 15th of each month, so the rest of the month, I am just whistling in the wind.  Digging in the coin jar or searching coat pockets for enough to get a gallon of milk.  HAH!
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I finished up the last of the Mile A Minute blankets for Chris.  This one is an afghan throw.  Perfect for a gentleman I think.  <or really any man, gentle or not.>

 Now we are working on a knitted shawl with butterfly's.  Well, stitches that make it look like butterfly's are scattered along the bottom part.  Next we start a project I have been waiting on for quite a few months.  A far-out, crocheted, campy sort of vest, and a knitted baby sweater.  

You know, you can find any of Chris' patterns on http://www.ravelry.com/designers/crissycraft---chris-williamson-designs
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My gray, rainy, windy, cold day has been spent inside.  Mostly in my chair, watching TV, cross stitching and letting the animals entertain me.

GOOD RIDDANCE TO MARCH!!

Of course, as it sometimes does, at the end of a dreary day, the sun broke through the clouds for a beautiful sunset.

Mourning, Rituals & Other Things I Don't Understand

On and off during Tuesday and today, I watched EWTN and all the priests and people talking about how Mother Angelica changed, not only lives, but the Catholic Church.  She started that whole TV network, that now reaches all around the world.  Bedridden for the last 15 years from a stroke and in continual, fierce pain.  

Her birth name was Rita Rizzo, and like her name implies, she was a feisty, Italian girl and nun!  She was so humorous in her Bible studies, I guess I liked that about her.  She had suffered abuse while a young girl--her father, an alcoholic left the family early on.

What I didn't know until today, her mother later joined the same Franciscan Order and lived in the same convent/monastery.  So SHE was her mother's, Mother Superior.

I watched as her casket was brought back to the place she built.  I do believe she is the most influential woman in the whole Catholic Church.

There were Rosaries (about every two hours) said for Mother Angelica.  I barely made it through one.  Then we had an hour long "Stations of the Cross", which was nice.  Mass and Communion services each day.  

Lots of things I don't understand about the Catholic rituals.

Why do they repeat the same words/prayer, over and over when they do the Rosary?  That started to get on my nerves.  Doesn't the Blessed Mother, God and Jesus hear them the first time?

Why do they have incense they wave around?

What's the deal with the Holy Water sprinkler?

And why do they have to keep praying for her soul?

My Bible says, "Absent from the body, present with the Lord,"--like instantaneously.

If there ever was a person that Bible verse would pertain to, it certainly is Mother Mary Angelica!!!

People have already claimed healing's by praying to Mother Angelica.  I do think she will eventually be canonized and made a Saint.

BUT

Now, wait a minute.  If they are praying for her soul, that must mean they don't think she is in Heaven as yet.  Probably in Purgatory?  Then how would they think she could send a healing?

Maybe there are so many services taking place constantly so that God will notice someone important has died?  Doesn't He already know that?  

I don't understand much so, I guess I will have to ask my Karen.   She knows all that stuff about the rituals and such.

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Which just reminded me of something.  Years ago--about 25 years, Pam and Jennifer decided to join the Catholic faith.  They both had already been baptized when they were babies, so they didn't have to go through that again, but they took the Catechism classes and there was an evening service at the Church for them to make their commitment to the Church and take their first communion.

It was at a local Church and of course, even though I lived 50 miles away, I attended.  After wards, the Priest came down the aisle.  He was sprinkling Holy Water back and forth on each pew.  I was sitting on the outside seat and when he got to me, he sprinkled the row in front, the row across from me and the row behind me and skipped right over me.

How did he know I was a heathen?  Because I hadn't gone up to take Communion with everyone else?  Anyway, I was a bit miffed that he didn't include me in the blessing or whatever that Holy Water is for!  and I felt bad about the people sitting in my pew row that missed out, just because of me!!  I'm still embarrassed about it.

I know that Catholics can be quite exclusionary. I realize that I can't take Communion at their altar because I might defile the Host, which seems not right to me.  I got upset about that once ( a long time ago) and told Karen, "In our church, as you well know, the minister states, 'This is the Lord's table. Open to all.'  Do you think that if I knocked on the door of the Upper Room and Jesus came to the door, He'd not let me in for supper because I'm not a Jew?"

Anyway, (or so I've heard), they tend to think their way is the only way and only Catholics get to Heaven.

That's why when you get to Heaven, you have to tiptoe past the Catholic room, so they don't realize you made it.  When you get to the Methodist or Baptist room, you can once again break out in loud hymn singing, shouting AMEN and PRAISE THE LORD!!  (old joke).

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Sunday, I made another mistake.  I wished my grand daughter's fiance' Mike a Blessed Passover, because I thought that Passover is the same time as our Easter.  (Some years it is).  Well, come to find out THIS YEAR, Passover occurs on April 23rd. Passover is when Moses finally got the Jews out of Egypt--thus the reason "The Ten Commandments" movie is on TV every year at Easter time.

Our whole Easter thing is based on the Pagan thingie that has to do with the Moons cycle.  (Easter would be held on the first Sunday after the first full moon occurring on or after the vernal equinox.)

So back then, Jesus DID have Passover with his disciples on what we called Maundy Thursday.  But this year, the Easter/Passover thingie didn't line up together.

Instead, the Jewish people were celebrating Purim, which is from the book of Esther.

Oh Lord!  Save me!  

Not only do I need a Catechism class, but I need a Bat Mitzvah and if Maddie ever brings home some man named Abdul Mohammad, I am just done!!
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Next time I am in the company of Karen's family, and the Jewish fiance', and asked to say Grace, I will start my prayer with, "Hear oh Israel, the Lord our God is one Lord, now Bless us oh Lord and these our gifts, which we are about to receive from thy bounty and (my old stand-by grace),  Bless this food to our use and us to thy service.  Amen."  

If nothing else, I am Ecumenical!!

HGTV, Memories and Where Is Spring!!!

Something I have noticed.  People that leave comments on blogs, usually leave a comment about the last paragraph(s) the blogger wrote.  The blogger can write an impassioned post for half the page.  If they end with a short note about a robbery at their favorite store, the robbery will be what most commenter's write about.  I know that I tend to do it too.  I am pondering why that is?  It's a memory thing I guess.  We read the whole post, but only really remember the last part.  LOL
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This past weekend, I watched many episodes on HGTV, about Tiny Houses.  Cute little places that come on wheels and you park them in a Tiny House park or on land you own.  In other words, trailers.  But, we can't call them that.  Oh no--that would take away the appeal to modern people and cost 1/4 the price!  LOL

When I first got married, we lived in a Tiny House, but that wasn't what it was called.  Back then, it was called what is really was--a trailer.  160 square feet.  

A year later, I moved to my brand new, just built home, only 1080 sq. feet, but enough room for three bedrooms, bath, kitchen, dining and living room.  

Ten years later, we moved to my Grandma's house.  Two story, full basement, over 2,000 sq. feet, not counting the basement. Now, that was living!!

Then I moved to Saginaw and the house had a full finished basement.  1,400 sq. feet, not counting the basement.  Three bedrooms, bath and a half, living room, kitchen and family room.  I lived there 12 years.  Corner lot, nice little house.

Then I moved here 13 years ago.  Not a Tiny House, although it came on wheels, in two pieces.  960 sq. feet.  A Wee House and just the perfect size for me!!

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Monday was my little sister's 64th birthday!  I never, ever thought I'd still be alive when she was this age.  She has been sick again with that nasty flu bug that has been going around.  She has had it twice in two months time!!!  Yes--she did have her flu shot.  I still think a lot of the congestion is caused by the smoke that their fireplace expels every time the door is opened and by the dust from the dry wall.  

They are finally finishing up their last project in the house.  New master bedroom en' suite--I think that's what they call it on HGTV.  Not so much their bedroom, that is in what used to be the parlor, but redoing the bedroom next to it, into a bath and huge closet/dressing room.

What did I get my little sister for her birthday?  Well, I got her a coloring book and a case holding 72 colored pencils, of course.

My Dad's mother, Grandma Helene, Susan and Me.
Mother's Day, 1953

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Monday was also the 4th anniversary of my best friends passing.   SHE was my only "sister" until I was 13 when my real sister was born.

I have told the story before.

I had no neighbor children to play with way out in the country, so on the first day of Kindergarten, I was pressed with my back into a corner, tears sliding down, looking out at the chaos and scared of all the children and the noise.  I just wanted to go home and play with my Mommy.

She, on the other hand, was missing her older brother and sisters, who were upstairs in the same school house.  The teacher would not let her go up there and be with them.  She came over to me, tears sliding down her cheeks, so cute in her two braids, put out her hand and said, "Will you play wif me?"

I grabbed her hand and we hung onto each other for the next 68 years.  Double dating in high school, standing up in each others wedding, living only 4 miles apart, we raised our children together and went on many family vacations together.

Hers is the only funeral I have ever cried at...and I didn't just cry, on the way out of the church, when I passed her casket, I broke down and had to be helped out of that area.  I felt awful being like that in front of her children, but I found out later, just how well she knew me.

Three days before she died she told her kids, "You keep an eye on Aunt Judy.  This is going to be hard on her."  Yeah--it was and it still is.

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John left early Tuesday morning for the 8 hour trip to our Upper Peninsula to visit his siblings.  I have to admit, I am going to miss the Little Nipper and Maizey.  They stop in every day now.

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Can you believe?  The DST change still has me flummoxed!  I am not ready to wake up when the clock radio comes on and I am not ready to go to bed when the cuckoo clock chirps out eleven times.  

Dagnabbit!!

I am starting to get the "let's take down the winter drapes and put up the spring sheers!"  "let's get out there and clean up the gardens."  "Let's paint the front porch."  The Farmer's Almanac said we were going to have an early, warm spring.  The TV weather man didn't get that notice.  

It was nice and sunny a warm today and warmer tomorrow, but---low 20's at night by this weekend.

Mother Nature is a nasty old, cranky woman!!!!