Random thoughts

The problem with blogging for nearly three years, is that I do the same things every year. This is probably the third time I have posted pictures of our Christmas cactus in bloom. I am amazed that something green and kind of odd looking can turn into this most magnificent, glorious thing of beauty. Mother Nature, you rock!

(Please observe Mr. Cat, as usual right in the middle of the project at hand.)
Larry and I went to a nature themed quilt show the Metro Park in Rocky River was hosting. I took lots of photos, but have been hesitant to share them due to an article I read in a quilting magazine. I guess the rules of quilting etiquette state that one does not post photos of other peoples' work without their permission, and this includes someone's design that another person has made. Including my own work, using another's pattern. AAK! It kind of spoils the fun of blogging.

Many of the quilts I've posted photos of have been my own designs, but I sometimes do use a pattern, and give credit where it is due. According to the article, that is not enough. You must also get permission from the designer. Well, phooey, that just makes it too hard.

As I'm typing, a remark my nephew has made, comes to mind. TLDR. It stands for "too long, didn't read" which I can picture this post becoming. LOL!

I'm sure you are being bombarded with advertising, as I am, in your email and your letter box. "Last chance to save!" they proclaim, just as though they're not going to send you another message the next day. When you see the photos of more and more stuff, much of which will end up in a landfill within a few years, it's sobering.

Of course we want to give our loved ones gifts, but not something that will just become part of the overcrowded landfills. Ideally, gifts become cherished posessions, but if they even end up at Goodwill or the used book store I won't feel too badly. At least someone else gets the chance to enjoy them. But that orange Christmas tree made in China and bought by some misguided buyer for an American store is truly not going to be cherished for long by anyone. What were they thinking?

Tomorrow we will celebrate my mom's 88th birthday. The chocolate cake just came out of the oven, and is cooling so I can frost it. When I was growing up she liked lemon cake and orange cake and sponge cake. Now she likes chocolate cake, just like I do!

AWOL

I have found that I can get a lot more done if I stay away from the computer! One of the doctors I work for is retiring and moving to sunny Florida. I made this wall hanging for him.

I have been having a great time knitting more snowmen. I was going to give him some to take along, because Florida is well known for its lack of snow. One of the gals at the library knitting group I attend (who doesn't let politeness get in the way of truth) said, "He won't take those with him."

Oh. Of course I wasn't going to give him all the snowmen. I am keeping some, and have plans for the others. I know when someone is relocating it is hard enough to decide what to take without having unwanted snowmen thrust upon them. So what do you think? Shall I give him some snowmen?

Many thanks to David for sharing his computer with me. The "D" won't work on ours, and when your name is ladydi you need the "D".

Do you do this?

Do you take perfectly good recipes and change them so much that you barely recognize them? And then your family says how much they like it but you can't remember what you did? That happens to me all the time. I was going to make pumpkin muffins, but the whole pouring the batter into separate cups, and then washing the muffin pan with cooked on batter on the edges, seemed like way too much work. Especially for something we are just going to eat. So I made pumpkin bread. I am going to try really hard to remember what I did, and share it with you. This pumpkin bread is the best!

Pumpkin Bread

3/4 cup cooking oil
3 eggs
1 cup water
1 (15 oz) can pumpkin (or of course you can cook your own)

2 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup sugar
2 1/2 cups flour
1 cup oatmeal
chopped walnuts (I have no idea how much - maybe 3/4 cup)
raisins (whatever was left in the box - maybe 1/2 cup)

Blend dry ingredients with wire whisk. Blend moist ingredients with a spoon, then stir into blended dry ingredients. Bake at 350 degrees F in a 13 x 9 inch baking pan for an undetermined amount of time (about 40 minutes) until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.

Try not to burn your tongue on the raisins by eating it straight out of the oven.

Though I am not complaining, I must say that I have had a very strange week. I feel as though all I did was go to work, come home, and go back again. Which is exactly what I did. Someone is out sick but we are not allowed to work (or at least get paid for) overtime. I worked a split shift where I went to work in the morning, came home, went back in the evening, came home, went back in the morning, came home, went back in the evening, etc. Of course afternoons off are very nice, but you can't truly relax knowing you just have to get back out there and do it all again. I never slept well, coming home after 10 pm, and being back on the job at 7:30 am. I hope next week will be more normal. I made soup and pumpkin bread yesterday between shifts.