But first, let's backtrack... It's been yet another "where'd the weekend go?" kind of weekend. And Monday was a doozy...
Friends...
My mom and dad have (well, dad HAD since he's deceased) friends who've been in their lives - gosh, at least since they were married, if not since high school. And now these friends are moving. To California. With their daughter. Who has given up her dream house (the one she designed) to do this.
The husband of this pair is an artist. I mean, a really, really, REALLY great ARTIST. They're both in frail health: hers is more physical, where his is somewhat mental (due to injuries). The move to CA will of course bring better climate, but they've only lived in this county - ever - their entire lives; you can imagine the uprooting taking place.
Doug is an artist, as I've said. And as most of you probably know, when you move house, you move "by the pound." And his artwork weighs a ton. I mean, thankfully, he's not a sculptor! But his paintings and drawings are pretty big - at least in my opinion. Though my assistant, also a significant artist, says they're "average size." Guess it's an artist thing.
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| The Wild Bunch |
Should have done better with the flash, but you get the idea. That's in my office, awaiting its spot in the house.
I have "temporary custody" of 4 other pieces, but that's not the point of this section, really.
First off, yes, this is an acrylic painting. Second, yes, most of his stuff is as good as - if not better than - this.
Third: It would have wiped out their savings to move this stuff to CA and store it till they got a gallery to give them space.
So, after I brought this artwork home to Hubby and got "a look" for buying the horses (no, I didn't discuss it, and yes, I apologized), he said something surprising.
I told him that Joan and Doug were in some turmoil about what to do with, essentially, a gallery-worth of art. He said, "Well, why can't we pack it up, store it at your mom's and then when they get settled, we'll drive it out there."
Some days, I remember why I married him... They were thrilled. Their daughter was amazed we'd do this, but I told her I would feel really bad if we didn't try to help out.
So on Monday, we took both trucks and loaded 'em up. Then we huffed it all back to my mom's house, trucked it to the basement and just set it there.
Then on Tuesday, I got the camera out and we took pictures. Of everything. Hubby is going to make an inventory sheet and send it to them. Once they get settled, they can figure out when they want it. Though my mom seems to think it'll be sooner rather than later. It looks like, with my schedule, I'll be staying home from the imminent road trip. She and Hubby will be going out. Kid #2 and I will stay home. Depending on what's going on, I may take a week's vacation to be home with the dogs. We'll have to see about that.
We think there are about 80-90 pieces. Most of them are framed. They weigh a ton. I'm still sore...
Health...
So aside from sore, I've been reading more about the Atkins eating plan and I think I'm going for it, starting on Monday. Only because I have to shop and I won't have time till then.
Frankly, in the meantime, I was quite indulgent. And I'm feeling it. It won't be a problem for me, because I truly don't eat a lot of junk (well, except for this past week).
I printed out their sample "induction" meal plan and it's honestly not the "steak with butter" stuff it used to be. In truth, it's a LOT more veggies than I thought it would be. It's a ton more strict in terms of "no bread, no pasta, no wheat" for the first 2 weeks, but I can't say that'll bother me much.
What I actually did was put that Induction week on a piece of paper, but moved things around a bit. I don't mind food boredom. I really don't. I'll eat the same thing for breakfast - always. Anyway, I figure I can keep to this plan for the first week, continue looking at the book, and the second week (you have to do Induction for a minimum of 2 weeks), I will be in the groove and able to work with the recipes, etc.
But here's the kicker. I never have ever gotten rid of the "fat clothes" so I always had clothes I could wear, no matter what my size.
I think a big step in my kick to get myself "finally fit" is to empty the closet. Of all that stuff that is not the size I want to be. There are 2 suits I have that are worth the money to re-size, and I'll take care of that.
But I have a lot of stuff that I could be wearing. But I can't right now. And it's not all about the clothes. It's about feeling better, cleaning my system and keeping myself healthy. The Atkins plan in this revised format is a lot cleaner than it used to be.
So the start date is Monday, May 5. That'll give me time to get the kitchen stocked. And I think this will be where I need to be right now.
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| Pottery Yarn Bowl |
This is the bowl that Joan gave me. It's hand-thrown pottery from a friend of hers, and she says that she used to put fruit salad in there in the summer. All I could think of was "yarn bowl!!" So the Pink Socks are in there. And lovely, I might add.
And I'm still working on the second one; give me a break - it's been busy!
The next thing will probably be cracking along on the February Lady Sweater for the home project and the Teal Sock for the take-along project. But we'll see. Definitely (go ahead - laugh) I don't want to start anything else now.
Except that socks don't count. They're "stash-busters" and "calorie-free" as far as I'm concerned. And I can always use more socks.
Post-Racial...
Ummmmm. No. I wasn't going to go here because I don't think they need more publicity, but let's just say, without naming names, that certain NBA owners and certain mooching anti-American ranchers - well, those folks need to just shut up.
And go away.
We are not post-racial. And we won't be till some folks either "up and die" (quoting Sidney Poitier in "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner") or until there's a monumental sea-change in our attitudes. Which is not likely to happen when you have such a sharp rise in the number of hate groups in this country. Since about 2000, hate groups rose by 54% - check it out here. You know this, really, don't you? Without me telling you, you've seen the rise of ultra-conservatives and their "dog-whistle" stories. You've seen it in the hysteria of "Obamacare" -- which was fine by the way, when it was ROMNEYCARE. It's all in the pigment, folks.
Then there's Georgia's "guns all over" law. Check out the gunslinger at a local Little League game. Compensating much, buddy?? If that link doesn't work, go here. Daily Kos has a great question. Have we become so afraid of the NRA that we won't even attempt to question someone's common sense? You frightened little kids, dude.
Not cool. Stupid, actually.
Until we can all sit down together and not have a freak-out - well, till then, we're a long way from being "post-racial" and anyone who says we now are? They're rather more than delusional.
They - the haters - can get away with a lot more now. And that should scare you.
If it doesn't, please have someone check your pulse.
Random Picture...
Brings to mind the Judy Collins song about clouds. Or love. Or both. Anyway, I like looking at a beautiful sky with fluffy clouds.
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| Clouds |
Today, we're looking at the rest of the week being rainy, the farmers being delayed in getting the crops in the ground, and having the yoga studio full of "creaky" students who don't do well when wet!
But on this day, outside my office, this is what the sky looked like.
And it was beautiful.
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