Have We Got Things to Talk About

You will not be surprised in the slightest that I'm brimming with things to discuss, beginning with this intriguing feature from the New York Times. What invention of the last 150 years do you think matters the most? Please weigh in!!

I was in total agreement with the person who scoffed at anyone saying the smart phone was the winner because when you think about it, it is merely a collection of things we've had before. Maps, telephone service obviously, calculator, notepad, even messaging is kind of like a new- fangled version of the telegraph. Furthermore while it has spawned some jobs, it has killed way more. Although it is not true for the rest of the country, Florida has benefited greatly from the wide spread availability, not to mention, affordability of AIR CONDITIONING!! It may not matter the most, but it sure is great. Just ask anyone who grew up here without it!  Our population growth during the last thirty years has largely been due to this marvel of engineering. Thank God for our inventors.

Finishing the photo challenge over on fb, my final photo was of the sunrise at Lake Conway yesterday morning. I was up early---what can I say?

From there I rode to see the eagles, however, I found the eaglet, (wonder where the other one is?), on the pine tree across the lake from the nest. Too dim to get a good shot, so on to see what my owlets were up to. Good choice Gail. Arriving, I saw one in the magnolia tree, and one in the birdbath...score! What happened next was fun to watch..

Yup, just perching on the shingles...

Those big brown eyes staring are just too much!

Over the weekend we were lucky enough to use David's tickets to see an Orlando City game which proved to be entertaining in loads of ways. I seriously can't help myself when I photograph things that either interest or amuse me. Does this remind you of a character from a book or movie? It did me, however, the name eludes me.

It is both a sporting and a cultural event for long time Orlandoans like us. For one thing, they have up and changed the name of the stadium which kind of bugs me because it is such a silly name.

Then too, there were only about three people sitting in our vicinity, aside from ourselves, of course, that spoke English. That said, excitement in any language is easily discernible--the crowd went crazy when the Lions scored the winning goal.

Sunday, following church, the "kids" met us at Dubsdread for a birthday lunch for Mr. Bruce. Surprisingly, both outings we enjoyed pleasant weather, much to our relief.

While it is true that I have gained weight in the last year, I didn't think it was enough to put me into a size 12 sewing pattern, but indeed that is the case. As such, I threw away some old ones, that no doubt, will never be used again.

You do remember that I said sewing patterns bear no relation to ready to wear clothes, don't you? Talking to Nancy about this, she asked had I taken my measurements to find the right fit? No, I was guessing before. Now I'm not!

It is also true that the very first garment I made in Home Ec, all those years ago, was an A-line skirt out of blue kettlecloth, a fabric I've not seen in years. So, what better way to break in my new machine than repeating that same garment? This white skirt is made from denim with a little spandex for comfort. The top you will remember from my last post.

I am all dressed and ready for the monthly Days for Girls get together. There were eighteen women in attendance, all working like busy bees. Sharleen, pictured below, is our fearless leader who organizes everything. As well, she brings all of the materials, spending the better part of a week getting ready.

I took quite a number of photos yesterday to show you what it is like. Kim, to the right of Sharleen is not a sewist, however, her work is invaluable to the effort. I got a chance to visit with her yesterday, learning she was a baker at Disney for thirty years before retiring. Bev, pictured below taught 3rd and 5th grade at Pershing for years and years. She worked on cutting which you will understand momentarily. The quilt tops on the wall are unreal..

The one on the right has pinned fabric in the middle of it, marring the look just a smidge but in person it is fantastic. Sharleen explained to me it is a pattern called Bargello, something I am going to research when I finish this! Susan, below, is working on the pads, or what will become the pads once they are cut apart by Bev. I did the same.

Once they are cut into thirds, they are serged, which is what Judy is working on below.

By way of explanation, a serged seam is what you find in ready to wear clothes. Look at this stack of pads!!

And we are back to Kim who is both tying the ends of those pads and using fray check for insurance. As you can see there are so many steps, and I'm not even including all of them. Each girl receives eight pads, pictured above, which are folded in thirds to use with the liners. It is definitely a labor of love for everyone, but no one more so than Sharleen. You've always heard the saying, "if you want something done, ask a busy person" and that rings true for her because not only does she spend so much time on this project, she sews for other charities!! What an inspiration.

All in all it was such a good day, beginning with the sunrise, and ending with the sunset over Lake Jennie Jewel where someone on the street has been so kind as to place a bench for the purpose of watching sunsets.

If you think the owl photos look cute today, wait until I show you what I saw this morning!!

Tune in again,

Gail

Owl Watching

Once I learned the owlets were nearby, once again I have become obsessed with watching them. First, though, I've had to find them, and that has proved very elusive. I did discover that they have pretty much moved back to familiar territory, two yards I know well, belonging to Nell, and Victor. Saturday morning I did see them, however, the light was so dim, my photos were useless.

Folks in the neighborhood know my fascination as well, and people are always talking to me about the owls, and in some cases, texting me when they are visible. My friend Lisa did just that yesterday, and because I was heading out on some errands anyway, I stopped there first. Except it was not one of the owlets that she spotted. While we were chatting, I did see this; my first Monarch of spring.

Of course it took me about fifteen shots to get this good one!! Earlier that day, because I could not find the owls, I rode over to check on the eaglet--not a bad problem to have, right? I took this photograph to give you a little perspective on their location.

Way the heck up in the fork of that pine tree. At first I did not see the eagle because she/he had moved up a branch, and while looking through my viewfinder, I discovered why...the eaglet is getting big!!

Not nearly as cute as the owl, however, I'm not complaining! I count myself very, very lucky to be able to watch nature in the wild, or as wild as neighborhoods can be. :)

Riding home I spotted some ibis fly up into a mostly bare tree, doing their best to hang on for dear life in the wind. Eventually two of them had had enough, soaring high in our gorgeous blue sky.

Ibis are definitely unusual looking birds, but they are a delight to watch flying with those black tipped wings.

On another day that the owls evaded my search, I rode by a house on Delaney where a woman lives who is a wizard with orchids. Her husband used to sit outside by the garage with a table full of orchids to sell to customers in the passing cars, however, I've not seen him in quite some time leading me to believe that he may have passed away. I've been to a few orchid gardens, and of course, Tom Ritter's Orchids, formerly our most famous grower in the area, however, I've never seen an orchid quite like this one which proved very difficult to photograph. That said, I thought you might enjoy seeing it, nonetheless.

Each pot had multiple strands of these lovely blooms.

The things you see when you get out and about....

Okay, so about my doctor's appointment which ran 2 1/2 hours, btw. Dr. Spector and his entire staff, from the receptionist to the audiologist, were wonderful. The front counter had this super cool art project displayed.

Isn't that fun?

First step was having the built up wax removed from my ears with the right one being the worst! He poked some tool in there, and although it felt funny, it did not hurt. Next, he sprayed my nose with a mixture of Afrin and Lidocaine in preparation for putting a probe up and in there!! While that was doing it's thing, I spent time with the audiologist who performed the hearing test, with results I could have predicted....my left ear is way below my right on the chart. Once the results of that were in, Dr. Spector put the scope into my nose and looked at my ear. What was he looking for, you ask? A mass, which he did not find, thank goodness!! What next? The tincture of time. He quizzed me about how long this had been going on, and I told him it began with the flu in February, and because I am lucky enough to have this blog to remind me, I know it has been nearly two months.  According to him, most of the time the fluid which is muffling sound will dissipate over time; after three months they recommend drainage. Let's hope it does not come to that!! I was more than happy to fill this out with all positives, and coming from a curmudgeon like myself, that is saying a lot!

This morning Bruce wanted to be at the job site early, like 6 AM early, so I ended up getting up as well. Still super dark, so I waited for first light, and the rain to stop, before riding over to....you know where. First light was nothing to write home about, HOWEVER, for the first time in days and days, I spotted all four of the owls. Oh my goodness! There were birdbath photos...

Bird feeding photos as well. Most of them were horrible, due to the low lighting conditions, but this one at least serves the purpose of showing you the way they are fed. In this case, a mouse! I wish one of the parents would come get the two that are in our yard eating beneath my bird feeder!

Before the week is out, this tree will undoubtedly be filled with leaves, making them all the harder to find. If you can believe it, and I expect you can, on my way to pick up our taxes (OUCH!), I stopped once again. For those of you unfamiliar, it is only a few streets from my home, so not really out of the way. Anyway, the sun was finally beginning to shine, if only a little. Look who I saw way up there. Do you see how the wind was fluffing up the chest feathers??? So cute!

Try as I might, well really when my neck finally gave out from looking, I could not spot owlet #2.

For perspective on their location, they are in the highest branches in the twisted oak trees.

Can you spot my bicycle on the sidewalk? Victor's house is on the right.... now you know.

For nearly a week I've been meaning to include this in a post because I think you will enjoy it. In this blog post from January, I showed a quilt I'd made with a pinwheel block. Recently I came across a you tube video on how to make them, using a far easier method, that worked like a charm. Wondering who is this woman doing the videos? I mentioned her to Matt during our big Facetime chat,  and he said that the name of the company sounded familiar to him. Perhaps he'd read about them, or so he thought. Well, I guess he did....the Missouri Star Quilt Company is all over the news and rightly so (sew), because they have such an inspiring story even if you are not interested in quilting. Here's something about them from NPR explaining how they have revitalized a small, as in 1,800 residents, town. I absolutely love that kind of story!

As I do the story of Jordan Speith, who as I type, holds the first day lead in the Masters. I must go watch, hoping no one will catch up with him!!

Owl obsessed,

Gail

I'm Softening the Butter Right Now

I'm not sure what you will be most interested in today, so let me just start with the topic the title refers to. Yesterday morning, while talking on the phone to Nancy about how fantastic "Bloodline" is, Angela called through. I told Nancy, "let me get this, no telling what's going on." And so I clicked over to Angela who sounded downright cheerful while asking me for a favor. "What do you do really well Gail?" she asked. Because I know that she has a somewhat elevated opinion of my photography, I felt sure she wanted me to run over with the camera. Much to my surprise, she said Matt was requesting cookies again! In yet another example of how he keeps defying predictions, he can nibble a bit, and wanted some chocolate chip cookies. "I'm softening the butter as we speak." And so I made some cookies.

Later in the afternoon, following a much needed visit to Monica, I brought the cookies, as well as the photo of the owl holding the tree that Bruce printed earlier for that purpose. I was hoping to bring a smile to Matt's face with that little cutie, and it worked! If you can imagine, I forgot my camera altogether, however, Angela recorded the moment on her phone.

He looks pretty darn good for a dying man doesn't he? We spent about an hour visiting in their gazebo; Matt likes the heat, and I don't mind it a bit either, especially with an overhead fan! He remains cheerful in spite of all that he is going through. He cannot eat very much, most of his nutrition comes through the feeding tube, but the fact that he can eat at all is a great improvement. He just keeps hanging on, which is what I wrote on the photo. :)

So, while I was making cookies, and getting my hair cut, the guys were outside working. I was glad to keep busy because this kind of environment makes me a wee bit crazy.

Told you it was weird!

First they painted the trim using a cool little machine.

Actually that is the house color the tube is running into which looks a heck of a lot lighter in the pail than on the house. Here's your last look at what used to be, and still is in the photo, a sunny yellow house.

Now, it looks more like this following a massive rainstorm this morning.

So, that is the side view, and here's the front of the house:

Along with a view of the back:

As you can see, there is work yet to be completed, however, today was not that day as it rained like a son of a gun around 10 AM. The window sills, the screws on the shutters, the trim around the doors--that sort of thing is what remains to be done. It was suggested to me that I might spring for a better doorbell and I did just that as well as new house numbers.

Because I was not looking to change the light fixtures, I tried to find a match at Lowes with no success. Amazon Prime to the rescue! Herbert snuck these on in between showers, and will do the touch up tomorrow, or so we hope! You might have noticed that I painted the little sun thing on the front porch yellow because it did not look good the way it was against the new color. Nor does the one in the back, however, I'm not sure I'm sold on the yellow so I'm going to ponder that for a few days.

What do we think of the color? Love it, although a few of my older neighbors, including Corrine, were not so sure. Except, this morning, just before the biggest storm, Corrine called out to me to tell me that now she thinks it looks swell. It's good to have neighborhood harmony isn't it?

I'm sure you can guess where I went first on my bike ride today. Yup. Just about to leave because I could find not one of the owls, lo and behold, there were the two babies. And, at one point they both were on the same limb, HOWEVER, that picture turned out terrible. But, you knew already that I only post the good ones, didn't you?

I'm not sure I can tell them apart just yet, however, I think one of them may be a little darker than the other. When one of the began walking a bit on the limb, I knew something was coming.

Well, I sure did not expect this!

There was some thunder rumblings beginning so that was that for my owl visit. On my way home, I stopped for a moment to talk to Cheryle, whose Angel Trumpet tree rivals the one I showed in my last post.

I cannot remember a time when the trees were so loaded with blooms. Magnificent!!

Because I returned home too late to fix supper last evening we went out for a bite to eat. Nothing memorable but on the way home, driving by Lake Jennie Jewel I noticed the setting sun. Brucer, I'm coming right back down to the lake. When I see beauty, I'm going to enjoy every moment of it. Not a particularly memorable sunset, but I do love a tiny crescent moon.

And, really, who could complain about more babies?

Hopefully, tomorrows sunny forecast holds up and Herbert will get his money and we'll have a completely different home. Talk about a dramatic change, huh? If you have any suggestions for improvement, I am all ears.

Time to spruce up for this evenings event--a fundraiser for Parkinson's Disease. I hope for Tanya's sake, it is a resounding success.

yours truly,

Gail