The Week I learn that I'm no Spring Chicken and the Darning Day

After shopping at Farmers Market and packing all the veg's and fruit to the car last Friday. I forgot to tell you, I also went to the nursery and bought two bags of cactus potting soil (42.5 pounds each).
On Saturday I did a couple more skeins and then had several long chats with Becky and Courtney while they skein this yarn at TFC north....

Courtney hard at work!

I began to go into a little funk, longing for Oregon, wishing my Mom was better, wished I felt better, still feeling the effects of antibiotics and the heat. Saturday afternoon Mike insisted I use the potting soil and get out into the garden and get our San Diego cactus and Epiphyllum purchases in pots, the pots that Erica and I bought at auction in June!

A nice little garden

Mike got me weeding, trimming and soon I was happy again, working along side my loving husband, he pulled this "weed" when I noticed it was a basil plant I had him replant this volunteer

This is another volunteer, we're not sure what "it" is but I had Mike resurrect this trellis and get it up and off the path to the house, we think it might be a cucumber?

I trimmed on this, but wanted to show Becky how big it's gotten, look at it's trellis.......

Another view along with the Bogenvia's Becky planted which I trimmed way back, again

Steven's blanket that Mom knitted out of scrapes of our yarn, it was drying in the sun after a much needed wash

The new plant stand with the potted cactus, this will hold yarn at TNNA in January

I began to feel a little odd, dizzy, hot, twingy, the stitches in my sides started to ache as I made dinner.
Sunday I sort of awoke (not really having ever been asleep) to a complete and utter back breakdown. I couldn't move, my hip was so sore that even laying on pillows in the soft bed hurt, hurt so bad that I was crying. I couldn't understand what was going on... and while I laid there, the last few days came to mind, ummm, stressful family situation, heavy lifting of groceries and potting soil, stressful work (lots of beaded yarn excitement) and lots of bathroom excitement due to antibiotics....ummm can you say ouch?
So I laid in bed with lots and lots of pain pills for several days. Each day that passed I wasn't doing beaded yarn, I wasn't doing office work, I wasn't visiting with my Mom, I wasn't happy or pleasant to be around, and I was told by several loved ones that I am no spring chicken. Lesson learned thanks, a bunch, really? thanks.
I did finally feel better on Wednesday and went to see Mom. The Englands were there and it was wonderful to see them but Mom, oh gosh I wish I could be up beat and happy but it's so awful I'll just skip that part.... really just awful in every way.

Wednesday it was Alexandra's Birthday but after a visit with Mom and a still very tender back it was time to come home and rest. Thursday, I joined her for Knit night at a local yarn shop (if you've heard the Funeral Story this is "the yarn shop", if you haven't heard this story ask it's long but good) I had finished more beaded yarn and then took my shower, pointless as the humidity here in LA has been beastly, and had been to Farmers Market again, this time with bags AND a shopping cart, (no spring chick maybe, but not an old dog! I learned) then off to knit with friends... Happy Birthday Alexandra!

I had been requested to repair some of Mike's shirts. Even though he is a Longshoreman, Mike has "style". He loves his Hawaiian shirts, he has lots and lots, but the last few times he has purchased them, the sewing has been bad. He has been asking me to fix them for ages and ages, with each new unravel I get a sad man face pointed in my direction with that "please can you fix my precious?" look. I have found any number of more important projects to occupy my time for many many months.
However I declared Friday "Darning Day"
Here are the shirts

Putting off starting I mulled around the garden for another view of more volunteers, chilli's in the Epiphylums

This is not an accident... it's ant repellent, actually it's chilli powder the best ant repellent you can buy, Steven found where the suckers had been coming from and put this down and vola no ants~ really it works try it!

Another ant fact, in Southern California if you have an ant problem it might be an indication of a larger termite problem, there is a species of termites that has a symbiotic relationship with ants, Thanks Monique for that fact!
Procrastination Project III a shot of the basil struggling for life after being removed from the base of the Aroma Therapy Rose, so far it lives! Every morning it looks good but after a day of heat it looks bad again....

After I feed the bird and sipped my cuppa, I finally started my work, here is the first hem, and I began to feel good, watching the wild birds listening to my Scarlet talk to other birds (waiting to get to her food), watching the cucumber grow right before my eyes,

All while sewing for my husband, feeling virtuious and homey, gazing at the new cactus garden looking every bit as lovely thinking about all the serendipity that came together to make this little garden, going to San Diego, going to the auction in Aurora OR, having Mike bring the pot here to Lakewood, then my back twinged thinking about the trip to the nursery......

Sewing another shirt

Yet another shirt

When who should join me interested in my work? Cyrus jumped on my lap for love, and smelled Mike's shirt and started rubbing and rolling around

then dropped off for a snooze while I fixed the shirt and finished my tea

Done with the shirts it was onto another project and to get out of the now blazing sun, inside for a button repair

And then something I've been putting off for months, Pat reminded me the hem of my skirt had been compromised so it got this large repair! There Pat, job done, thanks for the offer!

Now all this repairing was done, I got started on making beaded yarn, I'm going to Loops! in Tulsa Oklahoma next week and they want the beaded yarn, this weekend's project. So happy is my husband, he has brought be three more shirts with undone hems and split seems......

a lovely picture of my Mom, two years ago when she was visiting me in Oregon. While she was there she watched my niece Erin (her Granddaughter) ride Beth's horse (Erin is horse MAD just like her old Aunty Trish) Gary (Beth's husband) sent this to me (thanks Gary!)


Today Steven and I are going to get the Trunk Show yarn ready and shipped in Loops! and then buy a desk for my room, and I have to pay bills as Becky shipped all the mail down yesterday. If you are in Tulsa next weekend come visit with me! I'm bringing tea from Bonnie and some other treats.....and beaded yarn!
I'm also pleased to say that I'll be going to OFFF! Alexandra and I decided that we both NEEDED to go! So if you are going I'd love to see EWE!