Fenced in, fish, powerhouse soup and mystery wildflowers

Today contractor friend Mike comes to see what's what with the fence. The uprights were put in exactly where the old posts had been, but they're bigger and take up more surface. He'll have to cut the walkway a bit to fit it in again. And cut and move the supports under the deck to secure the walkway, because the gate's a good 18" over from the old gate.  He designed the deck so I expect he'll know how to proceed.

Not that I'm anxious to sit out yet, temps in the fifties and a brisk wind. 

Yesterday I made stock and a powerhouse green soup with macaroni. Broccoli, spinach and scallions. You've seen this before, so no pix. Very welcome on cold spring days.  

And I broke out the salmon, and proved again that good ingredients need very little help from the cook. 

Just salt, pepper, fresh thyme, baked, that's it. With a green salad, very cheering spring lunch. With enough left for today, too.

The jaw pain is easing up a bit, after I've been trying not to clench. Bet dollars to donuts it will be resolved before I see the doctor.  

She gets this patient, unintended pun,  look when I tell her about awful symptoms that have all gone away now! I'm betting she's seeing a lot of anxiety symptoms of all kinds these days. 

Before I leave Twitter to sort itself out, after my morning rounds of storytellers, historians, artists and other cheering people, let me tell you a recent dialogue with an older lady on another website.

She brags about having no smartphone, though she's on the computer daily checking in to interactive websites. On  the subject of Twitter she claimed "I can't tweet, I don't have a smartphone".  

Someone else tried to explain tweeting was exactly like what she was currently doing, only with fewer characters. But she insisted. 

We finally realized she had it confused with texting. Evidently thought the whole site was about texting. Oh. Can't imagine how that could work.  But I wonder how often people form positions based on a faulty grasp of the facts. I expect I do too.

Speaking of which, is this a bed of henbit?

It has different colored leaves from the henbit growing at my door.  But I'm open to suggestions.

Putin has now cut off Russian natural gas supplies to a couple of neighboring countries, further uniting Europe and strengthening support for Ukraine.  I wouldn't say he's much of a tactician. More like a human blunt instrument.

Happy day everyone, at least as happy as you can manage. Some of us are struggling, I know.

Of Twitter and tension and textiles

So the proposed buy-out of Twitter by Musk has caused a flutter in the Twittercote. It's not all done, far from it. 

There's a shareholder vote to come, then due diligence must be followed and the legal entities satisfied before any change of ownership can happen. 

It won't happen yesterday, despite the panic in the Twitter sphere. He already balked at the due diligence required to be on the board, and this will be much more thorough, given that he has to satisfy them of his sources for payment. 

My own account is tiny, but I've developed a nice timeline with people in fields such as botany, medieval history, textiles, writing, art, miniatures, farming, politics and pets. It's an excellent news source from journos before their work gets onto their official outlets.

My avatar is a piece of my gold work, as good as a portrait, really.  I'm hoping that if it changes dramatically, goes feebased, I don't get shut out. It's a good place for me, and mitigates the loneliness of being old and alone. I can sign up for newsletters, but they don't have the back and forth that makes the site friendly.

So there we are. We'll see. 

The tension in the title is in my jaw, pain for a few days, I'm guessing from anxious clenching. I've tried various remedies from cursing to massage to pain pills, nothing works for long. I see my doctor next week anyway so we'll see what she suggests. It's not good for happy moods, definitely.

Meanwhile socks continue

I'm getting down in the yarn supply, so narrow stripes may happen,  to use it up with some design still going. 

And the fence saga is not quite done. The section of deck I had to remove will not fit back into the new space. Also the deck now has to allow for a whole different gate placement. 

This will involve getting Contractor  Mike to recut and redesign the edge of the deck, to put back the vital walkway. 

I already moved some planting that was now right across the gate. The good news is that the gate opens outward, so there's no concern about clearing the deck, which it wouldn't, being set lower than the old gate.

Never a dull moment. Again. 

Happy day everyone!  Later today Textiles and Tea, with a weaver of yardage, I'll see how that grips me and, if it does, let you know tomorrow.

Easter happened, fencing too.

 Lovely Easter celebration.

Table ready for company

Coffee table set up for cheese and bread sticks, later for dessert.

Menu cheeses, havarti and Gouda and bread sticks. Then ham, cheese roasted yellow potatoes, broccoli and carrots, steamed and buttered. Dessert Niagara candy eggs, jelly beans, sugar cookies, pot of tea.

Last night's storm flattened the daffodils, which I picked to make our centerpiece.

Meanwhile outside in a bitter wind the fence workers assembled the fence, gate yet to come. 

One tiny hitch, as you see, the new gate will be set far over from the old one. This means some gardening adjustment to come, moving plants which will be in the path of the new gate. Oh.

I still don't like the boxed in feeling of the new fence, but those workers are truly great.

Working  8-6, never stopping, carrying heavy sections of fence, wielding posthole diggers, all heavy manual labor. Half an hour for lunch, sitting on a stack of my old fence sections, cheerful, such a good crew. Hats off.

While handsome Son was here, we found and labeled the breaker for the range, so if I need to reset, I easily can. 

And the current sock is a cheerful one, too. Buzzy stripes.

Lovely day today.

Happy day everyone!

Easter yet to happen here, catch-up, and Franklin Habit's vlog

Today is about setting the table, organizing food and looking forward to tomorrow's celebration of Easter. A little out of step as usual because of Handsome Son's work schedule, but it will be good.

Meanwhile winter seems to have returned.

I was out walking yesterday in bright sun, but quickly fastened my coat and put up the hood, because of stiff icy winds.  Deceptive from inside the house. But as Mary and Ellen would agree, you need to keep moving in order to be able to keep moving.  Even a couple of days off and my legs feel soooo tired, but strength soon comes back.

Meanwhile s couple of updates: the paper tubes have proved to be too much for my hands to manage. I didn't have newspaper so I used catalog type pages, all I had. I think newspaper is vital, soft enough to manipulate. So next time the local shopper comes, I'll try it again.  The tubes will become beads, possibly for a doorway. Anyway they're away safely, nothing wasted.

The other update is the progress of the garlic scapes

No commentary needed here.

Last night I made a cafe au lait, using a filter made into a coffee bag, like a teabag. 

It worked okay once it started. I wonder if coffee bags exist and if they're ground coffee like this or instant. Coffee doesn't usually affect my sleep but last night was all about reading and tossing. But the moon was brilliant, so that may be another reason. Beautiful moon, bitter cold, clear sky.

And I finished these, sincee my paper crafting us in hiatus

Already into the next, a narrow stripe of black and beigy color, tres raffine, insert your own accent there over the e. As I use up the supplies, there may be more narrow stripes in future, possibly multiple colors.

And if you're not familiar with teacher and knitter also crocheter and sewing expert and spinner Franklin Habit's vlog, yesterday he posted a wonderful one about a stitchery gala he attended recently. He's moved from Chicago to Paris and is getting right into the textile art scene there.

Here's a taste of the Aiguille en Fete 

Anyway he's a lovely guy, very entertaining, very encouraging to people at all levels of expertise or interest, take a look. He's crocheting while he talks, in his Paris apartment. 

Late breaking news. Fence Demolition has started 

Spiders, Louise Bourgeois and Socks

Following on yesterday's musing about sashiko, an art form and a repair method, I've been looking again at Louise Bourgeois, and her relationship with textiles. Here's a kid's book, great learning piece for adults too

She's mostly known for enormous sculptures, such as the spider figures named Maman, but she came to them later in life, after a long period of working in freeform weaving and restoration, literally using the fabric items she owned as her art materials.

She grew up with the family tapestry restoration workshop, her mother the chief restorer, the human equivalent of the spider, joining and creating and repairing woven structures.  

The spider sculptures refer to her mother who died when Louise was still a student, and whose influence on her art was lifelong

It's a recognition that the spider, patient, wise, skilled,  is a great weaver, who will repair a damaged web as well as weave a new one. 

I hate to clear away the spiderwebs currently growing under my plant tables, though it's necessary. And they're back, repaired, in a couple of days. There's so much to learn from the skills and approach of the spider.

Charlotte's Web has a spider as the title character.

And her description as not only a good writer but a true friend? Words to aspire to!

Meanwhile outside,  the fence workers have been scrambling about out there, reminding me very much of those miniature dioramas we were looking at the other day.

While, back in my workshop, the sofa, here's the current state of the Sock.

This is a work of self denial on my part, since I dislike these colors, but a lot of people like them and they're what I was given, so okay. I might even grow to like them, but I wouldn't bet on it. Anyway they'll get my best efforts.

Happy day everyone. Remember Ukraine still needs our help and support.