My card box

I looked back a couple years and did not see a picture of my card box posted. I can't remember what year I did this, so it might be a repeat.



We keep empty bins in the attic. I am talking about plastic storage bins with lids. Our life with bins changes. Sometimes bins are still good, but are no longer needed or have been replaced. I KEEP those outdated bins, because they almost always come in handy again.



My cards were stored in a bin, in no particular order up until a few years ago. Just piled in a bin. If you needed a card, you had to dig. Envelopes had gotten separated from their matching card. A mess.

One day I decided the "no order" part was really bugging me, probably after I bought a card only to discover later that I had one for the same occasion.



I would not say I use cards a lot. But I do use them on occasion.

I might have bought a storage bin to reorganize the cards, but I think I actually found the perfect one in the attic.

I also already had the hanging file folders.

I remember sitting upstairs, watching TV one night, sorting cards, finding matching envelopes, and making my box.

You can tell we are Catholic from this box. Of the seven sacraments, I have file folders for four.

Seven sacraments: Baptism, Confirmation, Eucharist, Penance, Anointing of the Sick, Matrimony, and Holy Orders.

Interesting fact - Last Rites has been replaced as Anointing of the Sick. I do have sympathy cards, but I didn't count that as part of my four.




Every card in the box is with its matching envelope. The envelope file has extra envelopes.



Everyone in my house now uses this file box. It lives in the cupboards in our computer room. Extremely handy.




If I buy a cards, in advance, for a specific person/event, I use a bulldog clip to attach it to the right page on my big calendar that hangs on the refrigerator. Right now there are two birthday cards there, for upcoming months.




I also bulldog clip tickets to calendar pages. We go to a lot of events. A lot of tickets come through this house. If anyone needs them, that is where they always are.

I am Christmas shopping, birthday shopping, graduation (2015) gift shopping, BIG TIME, actively working to get it all done, and because I am doing it now, things are in stock, prices are good, and it is, very, very fun.

Back to school, college/dorm stuff is on sale now. A lot of the people on my list are in that age range.

I have a friend who will have one in college next year, I have been taking screen shots of good sale items that (next fall) freshman will need and sending them to her. She is ordering now, while things are on sale. She will be very glad next summer.


I bought a total of three vacuum cleaners. Identical, on clearance/sale. Earlier I bought one for middle for her dorm room. It picks up hair off her rugs. Really well. That is hard to find in a small vacuum. So, I knew it was good (for $ and size). Second one is a high school graduation gift for next spring/summer. The third is for oldest for either his (January) birthday or Christmas. Oldest was borrowing a friend's vacuum until she moved out of state. He does not have another vacuum connection. He will be glad to get it. 

I also bought a solid gray, back support/leany pillow for middle's boy this fall. We were all looking but could not find one that was firm enough. So I bought the firmest one I could find, opened the bottom seam, stuffed a whole bag of stuffing in, resewed the opening. Husband helped, it required multiple hands. Works well for him. I bought a second one, in the black dots below, for a girl graduating from high school next spring.

Middle's boy has his birthday this next week. I thought of something very good for him that they can do as a couple. I had both of them mark a specific day on their calendar. The information is in his birthday card, envelope sealed tightly. He has the card. They are both sort of dying of curiosity. Having the date marked on their calendars and the sealed envelope adds to the fun. I did a (really) good job with this.




Nephew graduated from high school this spring. He is going to auto body school rather than college. He is sharing apartment with three other boys. My brother is condensing his own household in preparation for moving in with his new wife. Translation - nephew does not need good, new stuff. So, I have not been able to think of good gift (his sister got laptop case from us for graduation and all her dorm stuff for her birthday/Christmas). We try not to send $. Nephew leaves in a couple weeks to start school. I (finally) sent 9 card games. My middle and oldest have card games (their own sets, that stay with them). They LOVE having their own. They love to play. Nephew loves cards too. I think this will be very good. Maybe the four roommate boys can play cards and stay out of trouble . . .

Of those shown below - Monopoly is our favorite,
Fluxx is beloved by middle and her boy,
We all love Uno, Phase 10, Skip Bo.
I have heard good things about Pit and Rook.
Dutch Blitz and Ratuki looked good, but I don't actually know.

Oldest and youngest have January birthdays. I birthday shop for them at the same time I Christmas shop.

I thought of an idea for youngest. It is a collection type thing. I have been looking for them and ordering them. This is a good idea too. Very youngest. Very clever.


I have been actively, seriously shopping. Christmas, birthdays and graduation. I will be totally done and wrapped by Thanksgiving. 


I have been doing most of this on line. I pay as little shipping as possible (almost always free, I have had to pay a little for youngest stuff because it is coming from odd places).

There is NO stress. I have been enjoying this hugely. My husband has enjoyed it too.

Skunk recipe

I am copying the whole thing over, so I am putting it in comments.

No, we did not get skunked. I just happened to see this recipe and wanted to save it.

Handyman was at my house last week (yes, there are pictures) - 16 days and counting

Added later:
living room window seat included in this post.
oldest's window seat in this post.
window seat from youngest's current room further below in this current/today/same post.

I took this picture to show you the last two window seats. I am not showing middle's side of the room as it has her name all over the place. So, this is half of middle's current bedroom. This half first belonged to the youngest when she was little and then to ME (our girl from the middle east who was with us a year). Now this half of the room is used when middle has friends home with her or sometimes when youngest has friends here on a school night and they need a real bed. When I say half of middle's room, there is another half, identical to this one, with different decorations, behind the half wall you see with the desk/wall/shelves. There is a wall/desk/shelf on that side. So where you see the wall jut out in this room, middle's desk is in that space on the other side. Where the desk is on this side, the wall is on middle's side. Middle has a window seat identical to this one. So, yes, there are two in this great big room.

Here is a closer shot of the headboard

Just so you weren't wondering, this is the headboard from middle's side of the room. 

TODAY'S ORIGINAL POST -

I had a small list of handyman things that needed done last spring.

I tried to get on the schedule of one handyman all spring and he never had time.

I tried a second handyman all summer. Never got him to return calls.

Last week I found a third man. Not only did he return my calls, he also scheduled a time and then came and did the work.

This is youngest's room in June. The heavy curtains were on a suspension rod.

Opening the curtains on the suspension rod meant sometimes the whole thing fell on her head.

This is an installed rod with pull backs.
She likes to have her windows open and now that is easily done.

Handyman also hung hooks in youngest's closet. This is a small walk-in closet (not attached to her room) built into a nook across from youngest's room. That door actually leads to the attic.

That door is the closet door. Two sets of hooks, end to end, were hung also.

This mirror came in the truck from my husband's mother's house. LOVE the mirror. The mirror was leaning against the wall, in this same spot, for months, waiting to be hung. I thought I would love it (there). After I looked at it (hung) for two days, I hated it in this spot. Proportions are wrong. (This mirror is 28" x 44". It is very heavy. Handyman screwed it directly into stud. He was able to use the same holes used through frame in past.) This mirror is better suited hung above a piece of furniture (to anchor it).

If you are trying to picture this spot in my house, it is the stair landing.
This picture is taken at the top of the stairs looking at landing. You can see the mirror (left side of picture). To give you an idea of the scale: ledge is 13 1/2" x 85". Landing is 85" x 50". Flag picture (that is a framed quilt top behind glass, yes, I made it) is 50" tall by 53" wide.

This is standing at bottom of stairs, looking at landing. The kitchen is to the right of this picture, the laundry room and studio to left. The open doorway in the right background of the picture is the living room. You will find more house pictures here.

This is not my house. This is a screen shot from JC Penney's online catalog. This mirror is 31" x 65". Original price was $160. It was on sale for 79.99. I had a 20% coupon. Shipping was free. I paid $68.47. It is coming by truck. It will probably be here the week of my surgery. If it doesn't work (but I think it will be perfect) I simply have my husband return it. I had two additional jobs which required prep work. The handyman can switch mirrors when he returns (after my surgery, before holidays).

Contemporary, dressier jeans, looking for suggestions - 33 days

I had a fabulous pair of Geoffrey Beene women's jeans somewhere in my weight loss process. I think it was long ago, like part way through the first 60 lbs. so those jeans are long gone.

I saw a woman in a very similar style yesterday.

Middle and I have learned, when you see something really great - go ask. They will not mind.

Total side note: they will not mind, but middle will not tell. She likes to have original things. Usually she can honestly say that she does not know (because I bought it). But even if she knows, she will not tell.

So I asked the woman with the jeans yesterday and she said Talbots.

I do not have anything on the calendar today/Friday.

So I am making the drive and checking out a Talbots.

Hopefully they are well stocked on sizes/styles.

On line information said they have tummy control panels, which REALLY helps with my excess tummy skin and also provides lower back support.

If you have any other suggestions of dressier jeans companies to check, please leave a note.

my books - Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet (2009) by Jamie Ford

Wiki writes

"Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet is historical fiction. It is a bestselling novel (2009) by Jamie Ford about the love and friendship between Henry Lee, a Chinese boy, and Keiko Okabe, a Japanese girl, during the Japanese internment in World War II."

and

"The Kirkus Review hailed the novel as "A timely debut that not only reminds readers of a shameful episode in American history, but cautions us to examine the present and take heed we don’t repeat those injustices."  Kevin Clouther of Booklist mentions that "Although Ford does not have anything especially novel to say about a familiar subject (the interplay between race and family), he writes earnestly and cares for his characters, who consistently defy stereotype." "

This was a book assigned by one of my book groups. I did finish it. However I did not finish it in time to attend the group meeting. I did not want the ending spoiled (for me) by the discussion in the group, so I chose not to go.

As I was talking about this book (as I listened) with my husband, he said - it is a Romeo and Juliet.

It does not end the same as Romeo and Juliet (double deaths), but that theme is accurate.

The twist of Chinese and Japanese, in the USA, was interesting all the way through the book. The majority of the story was from the Chinese point of view, not the Japanese. Although the impact on the Japanese society in the USA was clearly demonstrated.

That cultural component made it a very different internment camp story. I would guess. I can't say for sure because I have not read any other internment camp stories.

The time line jumps between WWII days and also the 1980's. But it does not jump annoyingly. The passages are clearly understood.

I did like this book. I think the title is really great.

Long, vertical darts altering my "under grown" clothes to fit me again - these are alterations done in 2010, but I am still wearing these clothes, hence today's post.

NOTE -

If you are doing these alterations yourself - BASTE, BASTE, BASTE. Practice on a shirt from GoodWill or one from your closet you will not be sad to pitch. Notice she did not cut away any of the excess fabric (blouses).  If you are doing these alterations with a new to you alteration person, I would start with your least favorite item. You can also request the shirt be basted (thread or pin) and then go in for a fitting. The other suggestion I have is to wait quite a while (hitting maintenance) before having any alterations done. First to see where your body settles. And second to see if you REALLY want the piece of clothing long term. Because only true loves should be altered (if you are paying someone to do them).  As I was looking through my alteration notes, most of my alterations happened in summer/fall of 2010 after I hit my final weight in November of 2009. I waited a bit to be sure of what I wanted. 

There is very little ego involved with the pictures I post.

If you look carefully, in pictures,  you will find dust, you will find clutter.

I have posted pictures with bed head.

I have posted pictures in my underwear.

Last week I posted pictures in my pj's.

In early May, I had the idea for this post, after I had spent a very long, hot, humid day running errands.

If I had gotten the idea with a freshly pressed blouse, first thing in the morning, still in air conditioning, you would not now be subjected to the wrinkles in this first set of pictures.

Two problems with that theory -
1) the blouse was not ironed when I started.
2) if I don't take the pictures when I think of it, idea is lost, post never happens.

These are both size medium blouses I had before I lost my last 20 lbs.

I did not save every item of clothing when I got down to my current size, but I did save favorites which were alterable. Not every single thing was. I purged a lot.

I have a middle eastern alteration lady who we all adore. If something comes up and I have the opportunity to give her business, honestly, I do.


The other thing I guess it would help to understand is I carried my excess weight in my belly. My last 20 lbs all came out of the area between the bottom of my arm pits and the top of my hip bones.

I CANNOT stand things that hang down from my breasts (maternity look to me). I need things fitted through my waist, because now it actually indents.

What Sharla and I both discovered is if things are too big on us - they TENT in the back which makes it look terrible in the front. We learned this as I worked with my alteration lady (2010) after my last 20 lbs (2009). Alteration lady makes the corrections in the back (not very noticeable) which then make all the difference in the world in how things are in the front.

Sharla is a long time blogger friend of mine with a private blog - sorry no link.

And one more thing - I wear a size 6 on bottom. I have very broad shoulders. I still have a bust (32D). I am solid. As I buy new clothes now, I am always buying for the biggest part of me (shoulders, bust). So that is why some undergrown, larger sizes have been alter-able for me. I think that all that might combine to make a big difference in altering clothes (for me, being worth it) vs just starting over with a smaller size. (If I had tiny shoulders, bust, would not have altered any of those clothes shown in this post).



I love this first blouse. I love the fact the buttons are in sets of 3. I love the detail on the lower hem. I love the color. So, yes, I paid (gladly) to have this one altered.

This (wrinkly) picture shows the front of the blouse as it was originally sold and as it still remains. No alterations on the front.

Notice the detail at the hem? I love that.

Here is the part that I hope you can see. The top stitched seam on the right is the seam sewing the sleeve to the top. The top stitched seam on the left is part of the original structure of the blouse (there is a seam just like that in the front too). The seam between those two seams, the seam that is not top stitched, is a long, vertical dart the alteration lady added to ease the fullness out of the top when I lost my last 20lbs. This dart runs from the shoulder seam of the blouse to the hem. 

Here is the same (wrinkly) shirt, now inside-out, with my nasal spray pointing to the long vertical dart which was added. Notice the dart starts at nearly nothing by the shoulder seam, is widest at my waist, and then also takes in part of the hem. If you click on this picture, it will enlarge so you can see more easily.

Now the nasal spray is pointing to the identical dart on the other side.

I love this blouse too. Love 3/4 sleeves. It is a nice heavy weight fabric. I like the color. I love the vertical stripes.

No alterations were made to the front of this shirt. Yes, there are vertical darts, under the bust. They are original to the shirt.

Two long darts, were added to the back of this shirt. Because of the stripes, you can see the seam lines, one on each side of the back.

Again, an inside-out view of the blouse. The tips of the two nasal sprays are touching the dart seam lines. So, yes, in the middle of the vertical dart, there is a larger amount of fabric being darted, the dart goes to nearly nothing at the top and bottom of the blouse.  If you click on the pictures, you might be able to see more clearly.

I did not move the nasal spray for this picture. It is showing the exact same position on the blouse. Luckily the thread does not match exactly, and you can see the seam line in this close up, fairly clearly.

I think I had three jackets altered. I think Sharla has one of them now. I later found that same jacket on ebay and ordered a smaller size.

The other two are pictured below.

This first, chocolate brown one is a very thick fabric. I had to talk the alteration lady into altering it as it was a size 14. She argued with me. What won is the fact that if she took it in, center back, the shoulders still fit. And it was good quality fabric. (I had probably bought it somewhere on my way down the scale and it had escaped all closet purges because I loved it. Still do.)

No alterations were done to the front of the jacket. 

The seam you see down the center is an alteration. The next seam over, each side of center, was original to the jacket. Yes, I am planning on wearing this jacket for the rest of my life. . .

My nasal sprays are showing a very large seam which was taken down the center back of the jacket. Because the fabric is so thick, alteration lady did cut away the excess and finished the raw seam. This center back seam starts at almost nothing under the tag. On this one, alteration lady opened the hem, added the center seam, re closed the hem. I actually took this jacket back in, to her, when writing this post, to clarify which seams were hers, and which were original to the jacket. I questioned if she had added the side seams, just off center too, but she had not. Center only, is her work.

As you can tell, the pattern is so busy you will not see any of the darts on the outside of this jacket. I still included pictures, because you can see how well it fits. The black is a shirt I am wearing under the jacket.

On the inside, the stitching is very clear. Again, all alterations were on the back side of the jacket.

The nasal sprays show a seam/dart down the center back of the jacket. There is top stitching on this center seam/dart.

I put the nose of each bottle under the excess fabric, so you can see how much was folded over when this very long, vertical seam/dart was made.

Closer view of the width of the seam/dart. You can see how the seam/dart includes the hem.

In addition to the dart down the center back, I think, two small darts were made on each side at the waist. It is possible these were original to the jacket, these were altered a long time ago, hard to remember. But I think, as I look, they were added by my lady. There are a total of four of these darts, two on each side of center.

If you go back up to the pictures of me wearing the jacket, you can see it fits me very well. I wear it buttoned. It fits great in shoulders and bust and waist. Without the alterations, it would not be flattering, I would have purged it.

My books - The Scarlet Letter (1850) Nathaniel Hawthorne

Wiki writes:

The Scarlet Letter is an 1850 romantic work of fiction in a historical setting, written by Nathaniel Hawthorne. It is considered to be his magnum opus. Set in 17th-century Puritan Boston, Massachusetts during the years 1642 to 1649, it tells the story of Hester Prynne, who conceives a daughter through an adulterous affair and struggles to create a new life of repentance and dignity. Throughout the book, Hawthorne explores themes of legalism, sin, and guilt.

If you like Context sections, you will enjoy the SparkNotes section on Nathaniel Hawthorne. It is very unusual and interesting. It does not give away the plot of the book.



Oldest had read this book, years ago, but did not remember it.

Middle had read it and remembered liking it.



At what I thought was about half way through The Scarlet Letter, I called middle to ask if I needed to be prepared for Tess of the d’Urbervilles part two (tragedy through and through). And middle said no - it is not another Tess.

As it turns out, I was actually at the end of the book. (It was a quick read at about 9 hours.) Middle was right. It is not a tragedy; but it has a firm message.

That is the thing with listening to downloaded audible books, I just start them, and don't actually have any sense of how long they are or where I am in the book. I am truly in the moment, all the way through each book.

Some books, like The Grapes of Wrath, I have a moment of - seriously, there isn't any more? THAT'S IT? - when the reader suddenly announces THE END. 

I enjoyed The Scarlet Letter very much.

I have no idea how I had never read it before now. I think it is a standard read in many high schools. That is where middle and oldest both read it. I think youngest will read it next year.

In audible form, I had no trouble understanding the language.

Most of the people in my reading groups, now firmly believe that it is easier for me (listening) and that I get a lot more out of the books in audible format. There are only a couple other people who listen. Frequently, at meetings, the bound book readers will ask how the audible book came across to me. Most of the time when they are talking about getting into the flow of the language (old books, translations, etc) I have to take a step back to even understand WHY they had troubles adjusting/settling in to the books. 

I truly love having a book read to me. I am quite attached to some of the prolific, audible readers.

My kids did not like to go to story hour at the libraries as they wanted me to read. I read a lot to all three kids over the years. I can understand why they have that attachment.

The only time my kids listen to an audio books (now) is if we are on the road (like when oldest is driving by himself or youngest who gets car sickness from reading). Or middle sometimes listens if she is having trouble with the writing style. I think Great Expectations might have been her first Dickens book. And while that is probably his easiest book, the style was new to her. I think she listened and followed along in the book for school homework.  I think youngest starts Great Expectations next week.