 sj |
||
|
||
De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability)
|
|
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: Stilly River Sage Date: 11 Aug 10 - 01:04 AM Kat, don't you just love it when one of those ideas comes along and works so well! I have a kind of hybrid workspace now that involves several lower levels and keeps me from filling the entire wall in front of the window. It happened in much the way you describe - an evolution that results in an epiphany. Rags, a coat of a good primer on top of the oil paint would let your latex work on top of that. Three coats instead of two, but don't toss it all out! Here at my house someone painted over a high-gloss paint on some ornamental dowels (on top of a half-wall my contractor called a "pony wall") with a latex. The latex peeled off quite easily. I either have to peel the rest off or do something about it. I may paint it all over with a primer then put on a semi or flat latex paint. In more adventurous news, I was headed up to visit my daughter this evening when I had a pretty impressive blowout on my rear driver-side tire. I was charging up the fast lane on the freeway this afternoon when I heard it, thought it sounded like a flat, but it didn't FEEL like a flat, until I started to brake. As it happened I was abreast an exit, so I kind of muscled my way across three lanes (having a pickup does have some advantages) and headed down the ramp to park on the side of the frontage road. I could have changed this tire myself, but it was very hot out and I pay AAA $75 a year for this kind of thing. A very nice fellow arrived about 45 minutes later and tomorrow I'll go declutter my wallet and buy new tires. I did the math - these have just over 32,000 miles. I'm getting ready to make a trip. I could rent a new car and drive my son to school in that relative safety or I could put new tires on the truck and drive my son to school safely. Might as well do the thing that will benefit me longer. When I got home tonight I took a hammer out and knocked the top slats off of that cedar box that used to hold the bear rug. A couple of slats had always been loose (taped in place with duct tape during moves), and a couple others were still nailed in place. It's a beautiful rustic box and has some nice supports inside. I stopped with taking the top off - maybe I can use this in a decorative manner in the house. This is such a strong dark red wood, it's too pretty to become kindling. :) I know, this is how we become pack rats. SRS |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: katlaughing Date: 10 Aug 10 - 10:56 PM Phew, that sounds like a lot, anyway, rags. Shame about the wood, paint, etc. I have been studying my desk space out here in the dining room ever since moving out here. It has gone through several stages and lots of clutter. Slowly, I was making some headway in how to arrange the dual cassette dubbing machine, scanner, printer, harddrive, laptop, monitor, keyboard and track ball. I have the latter four things on the library table with a cup of pens, a woven tray of polished and raw stones, some semi-precious, and a few other small things, plus a "baby blankie" for the Siamese, Kipling, who likes to toast himself under the floor lamp which I can direct every which way. The harddrive and printer are to the right on an old wooden typing stand with drop down leaves. I have it slotted in, lengthwise, between the wall and the l.table. The scanner sat on top of the dubbing machine to the left of the monitor and, because we had to pull out the drawer (of the table) to make a shelf for my keyboard for it to fit me, ergonomically, they were both quite a stretch for me to reach. I knew it wasn't going to work that way for long. Tonight, I had an epiphany.:-) Rog helped me move the scanner and dubber over to the typing stand, flush up against the side of the hd and handy as all get out to my right hand where the lighting is good, both from the window and lamp. There is more room with stuff better arranged on the table now and the cat loves it! (So do I!) That's solved...now for some sleep. Last night was sleepless.;-0 (big yawn) kat |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: ragdall Date: 10 Aug 10 - 06:33 PM Alice, Thanks for the information. I tried to buy the primer yesterday that goes with the paint I bought, but they don't seem to stock any of that so it looks as if I'm hooped? I can't even cut up the wood and burn it now that it's covered with oil-based paint. Oh well. It was a nice idea and thankfully the children don't know that I was working on this so they won't be disappointed. I still haven't checked off anything on today's to do list. I noticed that somebody spilled something in the fridge so did some fridge drawer washing. Saw the two cucumbers I bought a few days ago. Peeled, sliced and salted those to be used in a cucumber salad after they've set. Stepped out on the deck to get the compost pail for the cucumber peelings and noticed the damaged vinyl pool I scrounged from grandchildren to line my leaking concrete "bird pool". Measured the concrete pool and the children's pool to make sure it would be large enough for the job. Cut around the top of the bottom ring of the pool, swept debris out of the concrete pool, fitted the vinyl liner in the concrete pool and secured it with large rocks along the edges. Filled the pool with water and also filled two other "bird baths". I think I may be able to get to two thrift stores I didn't visit yesterday, before they close. I have 30 minutes. rags |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: Alice Date: 10 Aug 10 - 12:52 PM rags, to clarify what I wrote.... The oil based paint should be very dry and will have to have a primer painted over it to prep it for the water based paint. here's a link A. |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: Alice Date: 10 Aug 10 - 12:41 PM rags, if I read your last post correctly, you plan to put a water base latex over the oil base coat on the ladder. Sorry to say, but you can't paint water base paint (acrylic, latex), over an oil base paint. You can paint oil base over water base, but not water base over oil base. The water base will not adhere and will eventually peel off. Hope this project works out for you. You've put a lot of time into it! A. |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: Stilly River Sage Date: 10 Aug 10 - 12:36 PM The bear arrived quickly, I had a call this morning already. The price he offered is nominal, but at the same time, I'm not going to try to sell it anywhere else so just having it out of the house is nice. I didn't want to be the one to cut apart the thing, and even then, I'd still be trying to sell bear parts. It's just difficult with the online auction world coming out of the state of California where they have stricter rules than anyplace else. Have some unexpected running around to do today. My glasses are ready, that's good. Preparing for the trip involves quite a mix of stuff. Before I leave I need to wash the truck, get a couple of bottles of oil, put some extra water in, get out the cooler, etc. SRS |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: katlaughing Date: 10 Aug 10 - 10:39 AM That's a lot to get done, rags. Good going! Last night: qi gong 30 minutes |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: ragdall Date: 10 Aug 10 - 03:00 AM Alice, I love the painting! The blue shirt was a perfect background. I have a camera like that one. It used to belong to my grandperson. Andrea, congratulations on getting the gate, window frame and touch ups painted. Liz, Well done on the shredding! You're an inspiration, nudging me to do the same. I think I will outdo you on oldest paper as I know I've kept everything since early in 1982 when my ex left. I need to wrap my head around the concept that nobody is going to ask for an accounting now of how I spent child support payments in 1982. They won't, will they? I can account for every cent, you know? Kat, Well done, getting the chimes restrung. The orchard drive sounds wonderful! One benefit of having a grandchild in tow is being able to do these things with them and relive the excitement through new eyes. When we were babysitting a toddler grandson on a regular basis, my husband would take him to the airport and tell someone at the helicopter base or the water bomber base that his grandson would like to see the inside of the 'copter or plane. Of course Grandpa would have to go in with him. I don't think he fooled anyone about who really wanted to sit inside a plane, but they appreciated his enthusiasm and love of flying machines so they were happy to let him do it. SRS, Great show of persistence getting the bear boxed, notarized and on the go. I hope that it will find an appreciative buyer there and you will not have to deal with it again. Congratulations on keeping your son on track with the computer assembly and on getting so much done or give away the empty boxes in which paper is shipped. These are easily cut down to whatever depth is required and the lid will still fit. I wonder if something such as those might work for your "discrete sets of papers"? SRS and Kat, Thank you both for your kind comments about my photos. The Fair begins Wednesday. For my small efforts setting up photos on Sunday I was given a free one day pass. I won't have to wait until there is reduced price admission on Seniors' Day to find out if the Awards Fairy has left anything there for me. After seeing all of the other entries I'm not very hopeful. I spent today researching paint options for the next coat on the ladders. I hope the gloss latex I bought will be able to adhere well to the paint I used in the first coat or the ladders may join unclutter at the city dump. It certainly uncluttered my wallet. I also went to two thrift stores looking for more sheets to use for duvet covers. I found two matching twin sheets that feel very thick and durable. When I bought them I planned to sew them together, but realize now that would be a waste. If I can find suitable backing for each of them, I will have matching covers for the two bunks! I'm hoping that the weather will change for the better tomorrow and that I'll feel up to painting the frame and mowing at least the front lawn. Maybe I can go look for two more sheets and sew a couple of duvet covers too? If I can get all that done by the end of the week, I'll be doing well. Grandchildren will be staying here Friday night, it would be good to have everything finished by then. rags |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: Stilly River Sage Date: 10 Aug 10 - 12:39 AM Picked up a few computer odds and ends. A mouse for the kiddo (got mine back) and some cables. Never seem to have enough data cables these days. More laundry done, it'll go in the dryer before I head for bed. It would be nice to have the house in decent shape before I leave so it's a pleasant place to walk into when I get back. At a bare minimum, to have the kitchen clean. :-) SRS |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: Alice Date: 09 Aug 10 - 10:21 PM I just uploaded the image of today's "painting in a day". It is the 8th painting in a row. This is not getting any easier! LOL old camera I had a visit today from an old friend who lives in Colorado now. She and her husband would like to move back to Bozeman. It was good to see them again. I don't have many long time friends who still live here. I considered decluttering a bit in the garage today, but we had rain and hail (small sized) and lightning and wind storms today. A good day to stay in the house. Speaking of trees... (ha!) I need to prune a Nanking cherry that is about 20 years old. I've pruned it some over the years, but it really needs to be shaped up before next year. Alice |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: katlaughing Date: 09 Aug 10 - 09:34 PM Ah, of course...lots of apples in Washington.:-) Meant to mention to anyone who wears glasses, in the past year, I've bought two pair from Zenni Optical, both of them were $8 plus nominal shipping, so I've spent about $25 for both. They are good quality, single vision. They do bifocals, too, and they have prices which go up, but they've all been quite reasonable from what I've seen. I like to support locally, but at the prices they get, I just can't justify the expense. Anyway, FWIW. |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: Stilly River Sage Date: 09 Aug 10 - 09:16 PM You can tell the role of semiotics in language with the last few posts here. The idea that if one person says "tree" that the listener person visualizes "tree" it will be two different trees. You said orchard, so my Washington state roots visualized to "apples." :) I got home from work in time to stash the notarized letter into the box with the bear rug (at school the notary public said this was her first document about a bear skin rug!) and after fooling with the UPS software for too long I did get the box lugged out to my truck and over to the nearest UPS store. Unfortunately, a sign said "sorry to close early, but we have no A/C. Back at 8am tomorrow." As I was heading back home I passed a gas station with the brown UPS truck parked in the driveway, so I stopped and explained about the box and he said he could take it. Yes! That bear is finally out the door! After fussing and squabbling and an answering email from the computer tech guys at his university, my son is setting up Ubuntu for now as his new computer OS. He has questions about partitions and adding Windows, and I can answer a few, some of them based upon answers I got earlier today on a thread I started. Mudcat is such a great networking place! Anyway, he has the machine up and the BIOS say everything seems to be operating and I just plugged in the last port on my modem router to go to the data plug near his computer in the living room. We have a few things to pick up so as soon as some software finishes downloading we'll run over and get a few cables. It's coming along. It would be nice if my broken glasses are repaired by tomorrow, when I have some time to go pick them up. So much coming and going as we prepare to take this trip out West. SRS |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: katlaughing Date: 09 Aug 10 - 06:41 PM Good for you, Andrea! SRS, peaches...we will be surrounded by peaches, peaches and more peaches with maybe a vineyard or two nearby. Apples come in later, but the better ones are from higher country than this hot, dry valley.:-) My family used to drive up to the town where my mom and dad were born and grew up, where mom's dad had a small apple orchard which helped feed everyone during the Depression, to get the best apples. I will take pix!:-) Two small things, today: I had two Chinese windchimes, not very expensive, but really lovely sounding, which have needed restringing for a long while. Today, I got out the fishing twine, crimp beads, and crimp pliers and got them both redone. Feels good and motivates me to get the old office dug out so I can make some jewellery, again. It's been awhile. |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: mouldy Date: 09 Aug 10 - 04:42 PM Well the gate got painted, and so did the downstairs loo window frame, and a few other touch-ups. The table tops are partially visible, but I only had yesterday afternoon to work, and ended up at the garden centre getting a new basket liner and a couple of plants for the basket on the front of the house. I suddenly realised that dead plants don't make for kerb appeal! I've had Freya till this evening, so today's not been a day of progress, but I am in all day tomorrow and will crack on. I hope to go and visit agents Thurs or Friday. There's such a lot of "stuff" to box up and put somewhere. Andrea |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: Liz the Squeak Date: 09 Aug 10 - 11:47 AM 6 bags of shredded paper waiting for the bin men.... that's two shelves freed up but I've got to the stage where the only space I have to put anything down is the space I just made, so it's turned into one of those sliding box puzzles... and I just realised I put a load of stuff down and cannot find my cell phone! Anyone want a load of empty cardboard magazine files? LTS (oh, and the oldest piece of paper shredded was:- a bank statement from 1992)! |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: Stilly River Sage Date: 09 Aug 10 - 11:16 AM Sounds like fun in that orchard! Can you pick apples while you're there? Take the camera! My son constructed his new computer last night, and it awaits only an operating system. I'll check with his university to see what his options are. I think until the scholarship is in place he might not be able to retrieve the free software from the campus (a perk for currently enrolled students). Next week, most likely. Anyway, I cleared 3/4 of the dining room table for him to put the computer on when he wanted to go to bed, and I see he retrieved an older Dell monitor from the cupboard, also a keyboard (one of my various attempts at finding a good board for a touch typist), and a mouse (from my laptop desk). Bits and pieces to see if it works, and we'll replace my spare parts with his newer bits. Also needs a good power supply/surge protector. It's nice to see he finally got to it. Looks like shipping costs for the bear box are comparable between UPS and USPS. The UPS store is further away, but this box is too big for a drop box. I think UPS might handle the package a little more carefully than the USPS folks. I'll be sure I can get my letter notarized first, then I'll pay the shipping and deliver the box. SRS |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: katlaughing Date: 09 Aug 10 - 10:12 AM I agree with SRS, rags. Don't sell you and your photos short.:-) Yep, it's a long ways up from AZ to here. What about Albuquerque? Artbrooks and wife, Jen, are there. Your prep work and trip sound exciting! As a sort of end of summer special thing, we are going to take Morgan to one of the old orchards here, next weekend, for an hour's ride through the orchards in a large horse-drawn wagon. I think it holds about 15 and has a canopy, so it should be okay even if it starts to get hot, esp. as they only do it at 9a and 10a before the high heat. |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: Stilly River Sage Date: 09 Aug 10 - 12:12 AM We cross posted. Rags, your photo is beautiful and will stand on its own merits just fine! |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: Stilly River Sage Date: 09 Aug 10 - 12:10 AM I thought about making a pie for dessert tonight, but just as well I didn't. My son is in building his computer (on his bed) and comes up for air every now and then. You need to be there for a meal to appreciate a labor-intensive dessert. He has some more research to do, but he has the basics of the hardware under way. Meals will happen whenever, I guess. It's still so hot here, I just break out in a sweat when I think about it. I don't keep the house cool - it's about 78 - 80. Every room in the house except the bathrooms and the kitchen have ceiling fans and we make a lot of use of them. Yup. Just counted. When I moved in the living room and each bedroom had fans. Only one I kept was the living room fan, which I modified because it was installed on the top beam 13' up and we couldn't do anything but turn it on and off at the switch. I put in a down rod so it is suspended in the middle of the room about 9' up and we can reach the chains or use a step-stool to reach the reverse switch. I put in nice Hunter fans in the 3 original bedrooms, then when we finished remodeling I put Hunter fans in the front room (like a living room, but smaller), my office (or 4th bedroom), and the sun room. This was a very good investment. The bear rug is neatly packed in an 18" x 18" x 24" box and will be shipped tomorrow. Goodbye and good luck, Mr Bear! I can use the space it was taking up, and we'll see what the dealer offers for it. If the offer isn't sufficient, he'll ship it back and I'll put it in an auction in the fall. I also put together four bankers boxes (on sale this week at Office Depot) for the playbills. I've filled three of the boxes and have enough to fill a fourth, but what I really need is some smaller boxes because there are four or five discrete sets of papers in the remaining stacks. All are interesting, but less charismatic. This will clear the table so my son can put his new computer and parts on it and sleep on his bed overnight. Assuming he goes to bed. Last time his bed was too cluttered he slept in his sister's room, but that bed has all of the bins with school stuff on them. He finally went shopping today, not only for computer stuff, but for clothes, so I'll be washing and packing and getting my boy ready to meet the world in Arizona. This heat can lead to a lot of laundry and a lot of showers. At least the washer is one of the Energy Star ones that is programmable. I can set it to wash in the wee hours when there isn't so much power being consumed. Now that I have a "smart meter" on the house, that can make a difference. On the subject of economy, I was thinking that if I'm out in AZ one of these days maybe a trip to see other 'catters would be good, since they're close by. But it turns out (according to Google maps) that the drive from Tucson to Kat's town is only 2 hours less than the drive from Fort Worth. Amazing. Time for a shower then hit the hay. SRS |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: ragdall Date: 08 Aug 10 - 11:47 PM Loaded three rubbish bins of yard waste into my car and took it to the community compost skip at the transfer station, then delivered my photos to the fairgrounds for the contest and stayed to help photo club members process entries and fasten them to the display boards. I think there are about 300 entries. The function of my photos there will be to make the others look better. rags |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: maire-aine Date: 08 Aug 10 - 09:26 PM Returned some styrofoam bowls & lids to the store, since they hadn't been opened, and the project I bought them for never materialized. Made blueberry waffles & froze enough for several more breakfasts. Went to the farmers market this afternoon. Maryanne |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: Alice Date: 08 Aug 10 - 08:09 PM Painting done, photographed, uploaded to blog: Click A. |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: Liz the Squeak Date: 08 Aug 10 - 06:35 PM Another bag of shreddings... slow day, been dozing a lot of it. LTS |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: Stilly River Sage Date: 08 Aug 10 - 01:21 PM I trimmed out some tomato plants that never produced and trimmed back plants that had some fruit this spring. I'll be putting in new plants this week and may pull the rest of these out. I also spread the last of the dry molasses for fertilizer through the bed and watered it in. I'd kept it too long in the heat out there and it smelled like something other than molasses. But now that bag is out and hopefully the plants will get past struggling in the heat. I spotted some unusual grass stems coming out of the bottom of several of the hollow tubes of my patio wind chimes. I pulled one apart and pushed out the bugs to see what they were. Not sure, but I left the rest there and will research this a little. No wonder I haven't been hearing them as much - when they're stuffed full of dry grass and dry mud they don't have much of a tone. Those were morning tasks outside, and now it's too hot for any more of that. I will probably mow this evening near sunset. So now come the boxes. The bear in one, and the playbills in the others, separated by venue. The fridge continues to look better. I'll re-arrange what is left in there this afternoon after a late lunch. SRS |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: ragdall Date: 08 Aug 10 - 08:06 AM I decluttered my flowerbeds of the Maltese Cross stems that were finished blooming. In an effort to conserve fuel, I'm hoping to take the two rubbish bins of stems to the community compost tomorrow when I go to the Fair Grounds to drop off my photos for the contest. Adding a second coat of paint to the gift for the children dropped down on my list today when my son phoned to say the family will be away from home for the next week. They'll be driving to the next province to spend time with one of his brothers and his family. Also, I'm waiting for the weather to get warmer and drier again as apparently paint doesn't dry well when it's humid. I just made a 4:30 am trip downstairs to check laundry in the clothes dryer and had to declutter the landing of a large ugly spider. I have a very strong dislike for those. I took it for a long walk. I hope it won't come back. (Shudders) I removed two just like it two days ago. I don't know if this was one of them returning or number 3? rags |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: Liz the Squeak Date: 08 Aug 10 - 02:39 AM 2 bags of papers shredded and recycled... 1 bag of general trash so far, but I had to go out to sing at a wedding. Today is a slow start, but have already discovered boxes of fabric that can be consolidated and a pile of stuff that can go in the loft with the others of its kind (box files of magazines) thus freeing up a whole shelf! The accountability didn't do too well last night, but weddings are like that... Trouble is, with Manitas away, I'm sleeping more, so losing decluttering time.... swings and roundabouts. LTS |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: Stilly River Sage Date: 08 Aug 10 - 12:15 AM I'd love to see Alice do a painting of Morgan. Any chance you two can get your heads together on that? If we had a mascot for this series of threads, that child would be it! I ran Alice's links on my Twitter account, and since I also have a Wordpress account, I added you as a link in my blogroll. My visitors can usually be counted on one hand, so this won't cause a huge blip, but every little bit helps, as they say. (I think my favorite so far is the girl in front of the big old car with the dog underneath and behind her). This evening at sunset I went out and pulled weeds out of about half of that new bed at the front curb. I'm going to get up early tomorrow to finish that and lay out the soaker hose. I'll put mulch over the hose so it isn't conspicuous to anyone walking or driving by right there. And I'll see if I can't get something planted in there now. It's late for the fall season, but I should still be able to get something to grow to maturity. The kitchen is looking better, I sliced and froze a bowl full of peppers. I did a load of laundry this afternoon, and while I was out I stopped at the library and picked up some recorded books and some CDs of music to put in my mp3 player. I've been researching file size and quality this week. I found that when I first used Windows Media player with my old mp3 player I let it save them as WAV files, which are huge compared to mp3. Many of these are still in a "library" file on an external hard disk. I've figured out how to convert some of them to mp3, using a program in my Nero suite, but it may simply be easier to re-rip the disks into the smaller format. I'm doing this in preparation for the trip. Our weather is supposed to stay hot, and spike at 105 late next week. It makes me wonder if even neighbors with the best of intentions can keep my veggies alive. I'll do a really heavy watering the night before we leave, and that will do for several days, but they'll still have to add some water before I get home. Night, all! SRS |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: Alice Date: 07 Aug 10 - 11:59 PM I miss those days of having a "little buddy". Kids grow up too fast. A. |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: katlaughing Date: 07 Aug 10 - 11:40 PM I love the sisters one, esp., Alice. Reminds me of big sister showing me how to work one of those pumps when I was about 8 or 9. You are amassing an impressive portfolio there. If I could clone Morgan, I would send him for a visit round, but I have to brag a bit and say "He's mine, ALL mine!" (That's a little thing I used to do with him, hug him tight and say that, esp. when he was a toddler. Not too long ago he surprised me by saying "Do that, again, Mama, that 'all mine'." I haven't had him on the weekends lately since we've been going to swim classes and he's been staying over all day, but his dad was off last week, so today when he called to ask to come over, I said yes. He and Rog have been missing each other, besides. Anyway, we picked him up on the way home from the grocery store and he did a real job of carrying in bags for us. He got all of them, but two which Rog brought in first thing. Then he ate up about half of them, it seemed like! I forgot how much growing boys/kids can eat and he just keeps getting taller.:-) Did my 30 minute qi gong flow after my shower again, tonight. I have finally done it consistently enough to actually *feel* it in my legs, shoulders, etc. I am really excited about the legs because of problems with them and my feet over the past year. MUCH better now. Love the prairie photos, too! |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: Alice Date: 07 Aug 10 - 09:48 PM Here is the painting done today: Click I need to learn not to bite off more than I can chew with this daily project. A. |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: Alice Date: 07 Aug 10 - 08:00 PM Yup, skunky dogs can really throw a wrench into plans. The skunks usually start coming through our neighborhood this time of year, digging grubs and robbing gardens. Most summers I'd be able to smell them at dusk and be sure to get my dog inside. When I was 9 months pregnant with Ryan and waiting to go into labor anytime, my dog was skunked at 11 o'clock at night. I only had my elderly neighbors across the street to call on for help. What a mess! A. |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: Stilly River Sage Date: 07 Aug 10 - 07:55 PM My glasses were purchased in June last year, but they're going to replace the frames for me. Probably means I'll end up with these frames again this year because they'll be so new. I'm not in love with how they look, but they're comfortable. Did a lot of running and had to backtrack a little. Went through a couple of bottles of water (refilled along the way). Got a box to ship the bear skin rug in, got boxes to hold the playbills. Let's hope this evening I can finish some of that work without another Saturday night dog/skunk interlude. I also have been stocking up on things for my son's dorm room. We have quite a bit that will be useful, because his sister lived in a dorm one year. They have stores in Tucson, of course, but it's nice to know we have most of what is needed when we leave here. And I think for someone heading to live away from home for the first time, it will be more comfortable to have some of his own old stuff with him. SRS |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: Stilly River Sage Date: 07 Aug 10 - 02:10 PM Alice, if you can look at the programming of that camera, find the white balance section and set it for the type of light in the room. When in doubt and taking a close shot, set it for flash and stay within about 10 feet of your subject. Off to the optometrist. Don't know if I'll have to reschedule my regular checkup or what. I should get a good pair of sunglasses with bifocals. I have a pair without and they're a nuisance, I have to take them off any time I want to look at something close. Kind of defeats the reason for having sunglasses. SRS |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: Alice Date: 07 Aug 10 - 12:38 PM It was about midnight last night when I took the photo, yellow indoor light, so this morning I took it outside for natural light to get more accurate color. I just updated the blog photo so you can see the original painting colors. update of photo Accountability! Geez, this painting a day project really is a lesson in accountability! When I got started late yesterday, I could not go to bed until I had that painting finished. With lots of detail, it was slow going. I may have to take a day off here and there but I still want to keep this up with small canvases that can be finished in a day. It's a challenge. Alice |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: Stilly River Sage Date: 07 Aug 10 - 12:00 PM I love that portrait, Alice! And it sounds like the right price for that cable. I made progress in the fridge last night, but I still have a big bowl of peppers from the garden to slice and freeze. That'll clear up one shelf. There's just too much stuff in there and I end up throwing out things I'd have eaten if I'd remembered they were there. Gotta fix that bad habit! My kitchen is looking pretty good. All of the dishes are washed, the sinks scrubbed, the big central counter is cleared off again. Yesterday I picked up the correct vinyl gloves for working around the kitchen, trying to keep the dermatitis at a minimum. I've had a bit of a flareup this week, and though I haven't kept the food diary for a few weeks I've kept an eye on my diet. The only thing I did diffrently last week was use some soy milk, so I'll lay off of that for a while and see if it might be an allergy culprit. We had a heavy rain last night so though it is super hot and muggy, I'll do a little yard work just because this makes the soil so much easier to work in. But I think today is going to be one of those life-in-a-sauna kinds of days. The AC will get the workout that really tests it today with the extra humidity in the air. So far no puddle on the hall bathroom floor. I'll make the usual rounds today, drop off recycling, but I'll also run by the public library and see about checking out some recorded books for the trip. SRS |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: Catherine Jayne Date: 07 Aug 10 - 11:22 AM Loved Buckfast Abbey! We went there when we went down for Fairy Penny's wedding last year. Glad the tour went well Liz. Spinning class last night, legs bums and tums class and body pump class this morning, spinning class again tomorrow morning. I feel great hopefully the scales will show it too! |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: Liz the Squeak Date: 07 Aug 10 - 06:06 AM Bleargh. Am in the middle of decluttering (finally!) the computer room with an ulterior motive that might not happen.... but am being without ruth, and throwing away an awful lot of things that might otherwise have just stayed here gathering more crud. Tour to Cornwall and Devon was a triumph as far as the singing was concerned - Buckfast Abbey has the most marvellous accoustic and I milked it for all I could! Truro Cathedral was a close second with our largest audience... Exeter Chapter house was cosy and pleasant, but we would have had a bigger audience had we been in the main body of the cathedral. Lanlivery parish church was a hoot - such a fantastic group of people and access to the finest Cornish Pasty I have eaten for many a long year. Managed a Devon cream tea and a Cornish cream tea. Devon won on the grounds that they were more generous with their cream and the jam was thick and fruity, not the nasty, thin, over-sweet stuff. I am happy to be taken back to Cornwall for a re-match. Consequently, the accountability is minus several million points. I am seriously going to have to do something about it but my dear daughter has just presented me with some unsolicited toast... :D LTS |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: ragdall Date: 07 Aug 10 - 05:32 AM Alice, the painting is adorable! The sisters will be thrilled. rags |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: Alice Date: 07 Aug 10 - 02:45 AM The cable was one cent, the shipping was $2. I'm glad it's all working now. Here is the painting I did on Friday. It's after midnight now, but I got started late in the day - now the photo of the painting is uploaded to the blog. Sisters, oil, 4"x6" Alice |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: ragdall Date: 07 Aug 10 - 02:18 AM Maryanne, Beautiful photos of the prairie! It must have been a lovely outing. SRS, Good luck with finding the same frames again. It's amazing how many things you accomplish in one day. Makes me dizzy reading it. Great to see that you've solved the the air conditioner leak problem. You did a good job. Andrea, Were you able to get the driveway gate painted? Kat, Morgan sounds like a wonderful helper. Would you care to send him over here for a while? ;) Alice, I'm glad that you were able to find a way to use the camera. The CDs I got with my old Canon cameras all seem to have photo editing software, not drivers for the camera. Maybe they don't mention the drivers but they are on there?
|
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: Stilly River Sage Date: 07 Aug 10 - 12:09 AM Alice, I think the bit that went unspoken (unwritten) when you talked about getting the cable on Amazon is that with a camera that old, it's hardly worth spending more than a couple of dollars on a cable. The card reader is pretty universal and will work with lots of cards from then and now and into the future. The cable will likely only work with that camera. Maryanne, you have some gorgeous flowers on that prairie. I had a nice swath of prairie near here up until a few years ago when they plowed it under and planted houses on it. Kat, I'll have to stay inspired. I'll also ask my boss about doing a formal audit before he leaves. But I need to do this for his audit also. I've been decluttering the fridge tonight. I have a lot of produce that got too old and is in the compost. I had a 1/2 jug of buttermilk that was 3 months past the shelf date. I have used it this old in the past, but it probably isn't the smartest thing to do, so I thinned it with some water and poured it into the very top center of the compost (hoping to get it down into the pile enough that the dogs leave it alone). Just about anything can go into the compost if I can get the dogs to ignore it! There is a lovely casserole of bread pudding cooling (made with Splenda for fewer calories). I also had about a pint of syrup left from canning peaches (it was water and sugar and fruit fresh) that all of the peaches that were canned were simmered in it for a few minutes before they were packed in the jars then processed. I haven't canned any more peaches, so I did what my canning guru suggested and simmered it down to about 1/3 of the volume and will use it like a syrup over bowls of bread pudding. Peach melba, of sorts. My regular pair of glasses just snapped in two at the bridge (I had taken them off to gently wipe off rain drops on the front of my shirt - nothing vigorous). I'll be visiting the ophthalmologist tomorrow to get the frames replaced. Thing is, I'm almost due for my eye exam anyway. I'll have to see how is the best way to get these frames replaced. They guarantee their glasses for the year after you get them, so they should be replaced. But I'm not in love with this frame, so I'll see what I can work out. We had a sudden and substantial rain storm come over the house tonight. I suppose that will dictate some work in the yard tomorrow, but also in the house. With the higher humidity I went to see if that A/C drain is working. So far no puddle in the bathroom. SRS |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: Alice Date: 06 Aug 10 - 07:07 PM Nice prairie views, Maryanne. You have a lot of things in bloom there right now! A. |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: maire-aine Date: 06 Aug 10 - 07:01 PM Took some time away from chores to go strolling thru the Ontario prairie. Photos on FB if you're interested. Ojibway Prairie pix Maryanne |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: Alice Date: 06 Aug 10 - 05:42 PM Today finished up a painting commission and now that I have this digital camera working, was able to send a photo to the buyer today. I also have a commission for one of the little 6"x4" to create today, so on with the brushes and canvas! My compost is "cooked", so the next garden organizing is to move all of it to a flower bed that I cleared out earlier this summer. Maybe I'll get to it this weekend. Onward! Alice PS, SRS, what is your son's major going to be? |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: katlaughing Date: 06 Aug 10 - 05:20 PM Eiseley, at 12,000 steps per day you can't help but get fit! That's fantastic! I did my qi gong last night; after my shower seems to work out to an okay time...I feel refreshed and motivated and there's still an hoour or two before bedtime, so I get more relaxed. Had Morgan over for a bit today. We picked up stuff and put it away, plus he helped me scrub the bathroom, esp. the tub. Got himself almost as wet as the tub as I directed the shower spray to places he'd scrubbed. He had great fun and my bathroom is nice and cleaner.:-) SRS, you are good at keeping records and noting everything. I am sure you will do a great job of documenting your work hours. My siblings all had financial aid in the way of scholarships, etc., but they all also worked part time jobs to help with expenses. Will your son be able to pick up a bit of spending money that way? Just a thought.:-) Andrea, you are so courageous. I hope you do go out of town when the inquest comes up next. I was surprised there is still stuff going on with that after this time has passed. Good luck with the agents and don't be hard on yourself, okay? Big Transitions = Be Nice to Self time!:-) kat |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: Alice Date: 06 Aug 10 - 02:17 PM Yes, I said I had both a usb cord and a card thumb drive for it that I bought from amazon.com. |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: Stilly River Sage Date: 06 Aug 10 - 12:50 PM You should be able to use whatever the Mac equivalent is of Windows Explorer and move the files without the Canon software. That software is rarely necessary to make the camera work, it's there for people who don't have other photo processing software, and most computers come with something. You could also use Picasa, a free Google program that will do what you tell it regarding any images it finds on your camera. Don't fool with the cord if you can plug the stick or card into a cheap card reader. I bought one that works just fine for $7 at Fry's, it is an external card that plugs in by a USB cable. SRS |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: Alice Date: 06 Aug 10 - 12:20 PM Eureka! I just found instructions on an obscure page of one of the manuals on how to download from the camera to my Mac without the Canon software. Can't download videos or large batches without the software that Canon wrote specifically for this camera, but at least I can download one still photo at a time. A. |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: Alice Date: 06 Aug 10 - 12:09 PM I already have found a memory stick that is for this card and a USB cord for the camera (on Amazon.com) but ... the software to download photos from the camera is only made by Canon and it is so old, 2003, so they only sell updates of that software now. Without the software, no other image program recognizes the camera. A. |
|
Subject: RE: De-Clutter: Aug 2010 (w/ accountability) From: Stilly River Sage Date: 06 Aug 10 - 10:30 AM Good luck, Andrea. Alice, I agree with raggs, your best bet may be to take the memory card out (SD is very common, in a couple of different sizes, but there are also some called "memory stick" from Sony, and Olympus has it's on XD cards. You should see sometime printed on the card, which typically will be released if you push it in a little. It should pop out far enough to grip and pull out.) I never got on the ball on Bobert's camera. Oy. Different thread, though. So much to do to get ready to send my son to school, and he's moving so slowly. It's all going to be expensive, I'm sure. SRS |
| Share Thread: |