Thursday, July 12, 2018

Meanwhile............... Summer in the Yard and More




Thank you to everyone for your responses to my last post. No matter your thoughts on the issue. I do apologize for having put "moderation" on there for awhile, I do try not to do so. But I have a couple regular readers and helpful commenters who drop by regularly and I do not want to eliminate their anonymous responses which are often on point. However, I have one or two people who instead of responding with intelligent counterpoint respond with viciousness. If one of those two people is reading now, know that in order for your post to be seen here, you need to be "yourself". I'll happily post your vitriol, the day you accept responsibility for such.  Meanwhile I'll be working back to posting at will this week.

In other news, my summer of the local is going along very well. My "women of a certain age" gals have been meeting for lunch, with a different makeup each time, which I love (we are about fifty members plus now and I find the large group an advantage. So far the largest get together has been ten or so, which is a good number and mix).I am enjoying the fact that this is a group of people from all perspectives and with different lifestyles (married, single, widowed, grand kids, no grand kids, liberal, conservative, outside types and non outside types). It makes a good mix and I am not one to become only involved with people "like me".

 Next week we plan to go to a very large jewelry store near by, make jewelry for a couple hours and hit happy hour, and go to the local lavender and blue grass festival at the Botanic Gardens. Later in the summer we have  wine tasting. And I'm still trying to take a day to do free thinks locally like the Irish fest, outdoor museums, and free art walks in various art districts. We do plan an August break to take a Wyoming road trip ending up at Devil's tower!

For those following the World cup, let me just interject here that absolutely nothing, nothing has been as I thought, except for France. My poor little bracket did have France playing Portugal or Germany, but other than that everything has been off the charts. Which has actually made for wonderful viewing. And to my English friends, yea, I thought you would win yesterday too.

Some of you may be surprised to find out that I've been stepping outside my night owl zone. Partially because my sister begins watering the whole yard at six thirty or seven and the faucet is right outside my window, and partially because I enjoy the early morning cool before the ninety degree to one hundred degree days. The end result is that me, the night owl has been nodding her head at .....wait for it....eleven in the evening!

I continue to enjoy the yard especially in the early morning and late evening, reading, playing with the dogs and occasionally knitting outside. On the creative side, I've moved back to my naturally bright nature with my next quilt, and finished a Christmas project-a really wide table runner to use on the table shown! I can't decide if the quilt will be a donation to one of the homeless moving into our little house village program or if I will make it big enough for my bed. My walls are yellow, after all!  I've also been experimenting, as my son is not home to grill and it's just too hot for the oven. The end result? Yes, you can make country ribs in the slow cooker, as well as sausage and peppers, fajitas, and barbecued chicken thighs that are actually crispy. So I have plenty of fodder for my "frugal slow cooker" and "cooking for two posts" coming up. Unfortunately, my sewing space is a double edged sword. The huge tree outside my window cools the house-but makes taking natural light photos in that space difficult.





I've been trying to decide if I want to revert to sewing and selling, so I'll be conducting an experiment. Rather than doing custom sewing, I've spent a couple days each week in the cool air conditioning sewing Christmas and team themed items. Starting in the fall I'm simply going to share them on Facebook business page, on my blog, and in various Next door type groups. Everything I'm making is something I will be happy to keep, give as a gift or donate, so it's a way to check out if it brings me joy (and money). By the way, my tentative name is "Frivolous Necessities by Barbara". What do you think?

And finally. One of the reasons for this semi summer break was to see if this blog should be continued. Would I stay away and have no interest in blogging and not want to continue? Would I blog in a different form? While I've enjoyed not blogging and having a summer to do some major summer things here at home, I have in fact realized that I do want to continue blogging. I hope that's a good thing for my readers. In fact, I think I've decided that as I return to blogging I will do so more often. Three days a week minimum is my goal, and I had thought about five days, although the latter almost has a "diary" feel to it. Why? Because while I tend to have an opinion on wayyyyy too many things, this blog is first and foremost about my life, and how I live it.......as an adventurous retiree who lives on a fixed income. So while I will surely have long posts on opinionated topics, this blog will go back to something closer to what it was when I began. Which means posting more often. About widowhood, single retirement, creativity, travel and a host of other things-within my personal frame. And I hope that works for everyone.

Meanwhile, pictures. Because while the grass is hot and dry (so dry that all personal fireworks were banned this year), and barely has to be mowed every other week, the plants are thriving. Especially in the morning and mainly because of all the watering done, sometimes twice a day. but never by me. And as you see we continue to reclaim the land, oasis by oasis, from the ever present rocks left behind by the last owner.






22 comments:

  1. You may want to avoid the Sturgis BIKE WEEK clusterf**k on your trip to Devil's Tower. (This year runs from Aug. 3rd to 12th.) Usually there is a mass ride to Devil's Tower on the Wednesday of the event so Aug. 8th.
    Ask me how I know this.....lolz

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    1. Good to know. I think we are leaving on the 11th.

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  2. Enjoyed your update and your women's group sounds lovely!

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  3. I enjoy your blog because it is not a "retirement" blog-- it is a "how I live life" blog! And that is interesting.I am kinda past all the usual "retirement" topics,as I am now a 4 year veteran,LOL!! I am living life to the fullest and love hearing about people's personal travels, cooking,recipes,crafts, and hobbies.Thanks for continuing to share!!

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    1. Thanks for stopping by. Starting in August I really want to just write about my life, you know. I mean, it's obvious when I write about how I dont miss doing this on weekends that I AM retired, but I dont want to begin every discussion with, now that I'm retired I..........or This is what Retired People do. Cause retired people hardly ever do the same thing,

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  4. Your yard is very beautiful and peaceful looking. Love all your photos.

    I just wanted to say that I moderate all my comments but also allow anonymous posters...you can do both. For a while I was getting plagued with a ton of spam then I added the 'prove you're human' test and no more spam.

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    1. Okay, thanks Jean, I will have to check that. I just don't want to leave out Shiela and a few others who are regular visitors here!

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  5. you garden looks so lovely. love those pots of brightly coloured flowers!

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    1. Thank you, I can lay claim to none of it, I just happen to live with the plant whisperer, lol.

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  6. Your garden and plants are gorgeous! Colorado summers can be brutal, but boy do things grow there.

    Your "women of a certain age" group sounds like a perfect addition to your life. It's inspired me to search and find something similar whenever we eventually settle down.

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    1. Settle down? Not for awhile I expect. Yes, we will see what develos and in the long run I cannot go out to lunch every single week, but I am loving what is happening so far!

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  7. I enjoy your 'life' blog and especially your political blogs. I know it's risky but you say what I want to say and in a much better way!!! I love reading about other peoples lives, the nuances and such. We are all connected in some way ( on a cellular level) so it's my way of being a voyeur into other peoples lives especially since mine is mostly boring stuff!

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  8. I enjoy your blog a lot, and am glad you're continuing it. I'm not yet retired, but it's in sight, and I plan to embrace your style of retirement. Leisure, travel, sewing/crafting, reading, swimming, being with others, time alone....whatever I feel like doing! Frugality is ever present, but that's nothing new :) You have a fan!!

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    1. Thank yo so much, I hope to be back more fully next wek and then start a full schedule in the fall.

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  9. I am glad you are continuing your blog especially about retirement, frugality and lifestyle. Personally, I prefer not to hear the political opinions (although you certainly have that right) as I hear way more of the anger from both sides than what I want to hear. I turn to lifestyle blogs to get away from the negativity that is so rampant in our country/world today.

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    1. Thank you for stopping by, and Im glad you like the articles. While I try not to make too many political arguments too often, I feel strongly that silence is complicity especiallly when it comes to things that are happening now in our country. so honestly, it will be mainly the one, but it will definitely be the other. Because I think political action is positive, probably. lol.

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  10. Glad to read you are continuing to blog, I would miss you.

    Your yard looks marvelous! Kudo's to the green thumb in the family.

    I haven't been blogging as much as I have (still have) family visiting and, well bonding and enjoying each other's company has been my main focus.

    Ignore the vitriol and continue posting as usual.

    God bless.

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  11. If you "just write about your life", aren't you writing a retirement blog ... everything is personal, and often the more personal, the more we can identify. Anyway, keep on keeping on, as they say!

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  12. Will continue to enjoy visiting here — reading of your views and activities. I’ve had to slow down a bit as I’ve aged, but refocus on other areas of life. I do miss being able to do as much outdoors as I once enjoyed. Keep blogging!

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  13. Love your blog. Please continue speaking out this is a scary time in American history. It was a sad day watching Trump undermining our Democracy with a thug like Putin. If our generation does not continue to discuss, protest, write our congressmen etc shame on us. Enjoy reading your various articles. You inspire me to keep involved in an active retirement.

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  14. I love the beautiful garden pictures.

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  15. Hi Barbara! I am almost 100% sure that I left a comment on this post a week or so ago and now I don't see it. have you been getting notices that some of your comments are being deleted? Just wanted to say "Hi" and to encourage you to keep blogging. We read because it is YOU, not necessarily because it is about a certain topic. ~Kathy

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Thanks for stopping by! I love to hear from others, and I also love to hear all points of view.. Just leave the profanity and insults at home, OK? Thanks!!