Long Time No Write in Still Listening to Spirit

I have begun coming here to visit OD friends. Slowly, tentatively I poke around peeking here and there. Now it is time to write, something, anything.

I have been doing piecework for Madame. She purchased kitchen towel sets that are Alaskan themed. Each has one towel. With said towel is a pot holder or an oven mitt. Two of the 5 different designs have a towel, mitt and pot holder. She bought these for Mz Dorn to do a year or two ago but nothing got done.

Madame wanted a crocheted top on the towel for hanging on a nob or handle in the kitchen. Once I found the proper way to attach crochet to towel, I was off and crocheting., Madame and I went to the Senior Center which is open in the daytime for seniors to gather to get yarn. They have a whole wall of cubbies filled with yarn.

We visited with Grandma Ginny, who was the person who volunteered to be there that way for a bit. This building is also Little Dippers Day Care in the summer, run by the city some way or other and then used for Senior get together place in winter. It was a beautiful sunshiney day and all the windows admitted brilliant light that instantly lifts spirits upon entering.

I have completed 30 and am starting on the last 35 today, sewing a blanket stitch across the top of a towel folded in half. This blanket stitch is then used to crochet the first single crochet row onto the towel, Very simple, Single crochet across, chain 2, double crochet across, chain 2, then...* single crochet in 1st stitch, double crochet decrease across the rest of the row chain 2* Repeat * to * for next rows until you have only 4 (or 5, I always seem to end up with 5 for some reason) stitches. Then double crochet 3 or 4 rows to make the tab to bend over the nob or handle. Sew button on either tab or towel and the double crochet will fit over the button to hold the towel.,

I have been watching the Winter Olympics, especially after 10pm because Hub isn't interested. I get much done on the piecework during these 3 or 4 hours. Madame will pay me $2.50 per towel, plenty enough for someone whose time is worth not much and I am pleased that I will have over $150 coming to me at the most critical financial time the end of this month.

Daughter Traci and her business partner are watching the slow and agonizing death of their dream business. They haven't sold a casket since November, her credit cards are maxed carrying business expenses, they are 3 months behind in rent at the mall and are being pushed to pay up or get out.

This is so sad. She has talked to her mentors who are sympathetic, but haven't much to offer in the way of advice. One mentor who has put over $150,000 into his own store in Arizona is about to call it quits and close those doors.

This is SUCH a good idea and I know in the next few years custom caskets will become more well known and very popular. Just not now. I have had a couple of texts from Traci telling me she is not prepared to talk about it. She knows she will break down crying and she says she just can't allow herself to do this yet.

Hub's brother-in-law, Ray is home under hospice end of life care. His sister, Si, and he live in 2 travel trailers on Si's daughter's land in Nampa. They moved from Washington State to be nearer the 3 grandsons, daughter and husband. Ray had some sort of cancer he was treated for and was supposedly in remission.

However, the chemo has been found to have damaged his bladder and perhaps cancer there now. He is 80 years old. They have been doing everything they can with visits to doctors to find a way to fight this too. However, the doctors told them two days ago he is too weak for surgery to remove bladder and possible part of colon, it would neither cure him nor give him a better quality of life.

This has been very shocking to Si who is an extremely positive and light filled being. Ray has told her that he is afraid of dying. I would love to go there to help, but know I would be no help at all. This family of Ray, Si, daughter and son-in-law and 3 boys under teen years yet are very close and the unbalance of a visitor might not be good for any of them.

Si has helped her daughter home school the boys. Ray has given them all sorts of adventures sharing his knowledge of the outdoors, engineering, old fashioned fun like building treehouse, clubhouse, taking them camping and kite flying. All of them including the boys are in their family acoustic band and they were entertaining together at least once a week at various venues as well as having other acoustic musicians visit to jam and such.

Anyway, back to me...I met with Heath and Jamie, my new employers, the other day at their house. We were going to have a short meeting, but we are getting acquainted and comfortable with each other and talk went wild afield from the work situation.

Heath laid out what he expects of me and told me that he would pay me $700 salary each week and we talked about salary meaning sometimes I worked more than 40 hours a week and most times less. I thought "Wait, he offered me $15 an hour and I took it in October, a $2.50 hour loss to get out of the retail of my other job."

Then I wondered whether or not to mention this previous agreement. I did. I said "Heath in October we agreed on $15 an hour." Heath didn't remember. But he said that what he wanted me to do was worth $17.50 especially with the responsibility of being the 3rd person in charge of things. I poked him and laughed and said "Well, I told you in October the $15 was okay because I was confident he would be so impressed with me he would soon give me a raise." Chuckle time over that one.

I won't be doing prebooks and reservations and that is great. I will first and foremost be selling tours daily with Heath--much like I have done with Greg all these years., Jamie does the books and I will take up what keyboarding and such that I can do to assist her. I will also keep track of tours we sell for others and sales other make for us as I am involved in those every day.

All in all I am less stressed when I think about my new job than I have been.

Okay, that's enough for now. The sunshine has been with us for 7 days and Copy and I appreciate its warmth through the south windows and door,. I move Copy and her chair around in the sunlight until it leaves around 3pm.

Temps have been brutally low with strong winds and so on. Tonight we are to reach 30 below with wind chill. It's 1am and I hear no wind at all, so maybe we are getting a wee break in the wind., We are definitely in the deep freeze, but the sunshine goes a long way toward making that bearable.

Blessed be!