And Just Like That. . .

It been quite eventful around here for the past week or so.

I will just begin by saying, we are fine.

Actually, that's part of what makes some of this so weird.

We've been so blessed.

We were able to go skiing with 2 of three nieces on one side,

and thrilled that "young people" were willing to spend time

with us "ol' folk" :-)

Follow that high with the news that a friend was informed

that he won't make it to his 30th birthday

due to a horrific medical condition they don't even know how to treat.

Then the surgery date for hubby's sister was upped

so she went through an extensive surgery.

We were just trying to find our bearing from this roller coaster ride

when the river up the mountain began to flood.

That was Thursday and Friday.

The river hit the highest point in recorded history.

Luckily, fortunately, and gratefully, our place suffered little damage

 by comparison to many others. 

(So much debris)

The water that usually flows at around 1500 cfs

broke the 13,000 cfs mark though,

I'm not sure how accurate the reading was since so much water

was flowing out and in all directions.

It literally rerouted itself in multiple places.

Our house stayed dry, our shop had a trace of wet 

over part of the concrete slab, and 

our yard along the bank is about 10' narrower.

The fence behind the garden that separated our place 

from the neighbors is in our yard.

We stayed away Saturday thinking there would be 

many trucks and large equipment on the road and didn't want to impede.

They were still trying to evacuate people by helicopter.

We did go up Sunday to check on the place.

(A neighbor's driveway)

There were several rock slides with a path 

that was just wide enough for the pickup to go through.

I lit a fire in the stove out in the shop to help it finish drying,

but only had what wood I had brought inside the previous trip.

The rest was washed away.

Once the rest of the snow melts, 

we will have to go up with a tractor and chainsaw.

There wasn't much we could do so went down to a neighbor's

and helped shovel 5-6" of mud out of their garage.

(Mud)

They were also thankful that there was no worse damage.

I think there was hope of being able to begin work

 on restoring power yesterday.

The transformer was still under water as of Sunday.

There is no cellular service up there and phones are also out.

Luckily, most folks up there are at least accustomed to power outages,

but the road is completely gone in places so there is no access by vehicle.

They did get through (can't remember which day) via 4-wheelers.

We had taken several gallons of drinking water in case

any neighbors were running low.

Sheriff's office had already done that which was good.  

The area where we now live also flooded.

Our house was safe, but looking out at the field

behind the house looked like a lake instead of the river.

Most smaller bridges in both areas are gone.

And then Monday, we were back to work.

It somehow seems wrong to carry on 

as if nothing unusual has happened.

I know floods and fires and other natural disasters happen all the time.

I've never felt immune to such things.

The part that's bugged me though is

how foreign I felt in a place that's so familiar.

It changed so much.

Then I thought perhaps there is no place 

here on earth that we are supposed to feel at home.

Perhaps that feeling is reserved for Heaven alone.

Perhaps that's the reason.

A reminder that this is all temporary.

And so we carry on . . .

but with an awakened sense of being,

a gratitude for the day, the breath, the chance,

because

just like that

it can be gone.

Keep safe and well dear friends.

Preparing a Quilt for Hand Quilting (Video!)

I'm branching out a little.

Sometimes it's just easier to show you

than to write it all out under a still shot.

So this is for "Weedy" who asked about setting up to hand-quilt.

I would love your feedback.

Also, if there is something you have a question about,

feel free to ask.

I might not know the answer,

but can share what I do or offer a resource if I know of any.

There are times when seeing how someone else

does something helps us to figure out what we have going on.

*I called it "stencil fabric" should be "stencil material."
Also, will work on eliminating the sound "uh" from my vocabulary :-)
I actually did my hair and put on make up
knowing I wasn't going to film myself.
I'm a bit camera shy.
If this is a positive way to share information,
I will relax a little "on screen."
Thanks for watching.

Peeling Eggs

How many times have you struggled to peel your hard-boiled eggs?

I think I have tried every tip or trick ever suggested.

I seldom eat them, but Mr. LB loves them-

especially pickled.

I finally got so frustrated that I just thought,

"Forget it.  I'm cooking them like rice."

And guess what?

It worked!

So what I do is:

Place the eggs in the pot single layer.

Cover with water.

Put a lid on the pot. 

(I think this is important and never read or heard before.)

Place on burner, on high for about 7 min.

This is about how long it takes to come to a boil.

Make sure the water has come to a boil.

Then turn down to low for 13 min.

Remove from heat and place in sink

with cold water trickling over the eggs

until eggs are cool-ish (roughly room temp.)

Then peel.

I hope it works as well for you as it has for me.

This has been my process for about the last year.

I wanted to make sure it wasn't just a fluke.

Also, how I make rice~

Rinse rice, then one part rice to two parts water.

Cover and cook on high for 7 min.

then turn down to low for 13 min.

Rice is done and ready to eat.

Update - Poor, Poor Gracie

Of course, as is usually the case,

almost immediately after posting the last post,

Gracie started acting up with me.

She usually has a jubilant enthusiasm for the project

and pep in her needle.
Several of you commented on her,
so am sharing.

(Poor, poor Gracie)

She had been feeling a little punky for a while.

I did try to nurse her, but I'm not a real nurse.

You see at 102 years old, 

one is apt to feel the years at times.

She will be going to the doctor soon.

There is only one doctor in the area

that is qualified to treat geriatric machines like her.

I expect she will be healed completely 

and ready to stitch for another 102 years

by the time she returns home.

*I'll say this quietly as I wouldn't want to upset her.*

She has all her original wiring!

It's a connection issue she's having.

She won't go then rev and stitch 100 mph!

Makes it difficult to stitch an accurate seam.

(Mrs. Kirksey)

But never fear. . . 

those other machines I mentioned in the last post~

Well, Mrs. Kirksey volunteered to help out while Gracie is unwell.

(Yep, all my machines have names.)

Mrs. Kirksey is a 1922 portable Singer.

She is a smaller model and runs like a dream.

She's 4 years younger than Gracie,

but has more miles.

I purchased her from the "real" Mrs. Kirksey's daughter

when she was cleaning out her mom's things.

I thought it only suiting that she be named after

the woman who put so many miles on her

and spent so much time in her company.

(Bad pix, bit I've left the price sticker on her.)

Her decals are well worn,

but she still has such a beautiful face.

I have every faith in her ability to do the job,

and I will enjoy our time together.

She's a tough ol' gal with a certain charm about her.

She's like the great-aunt you can talk to, because

she's always at ease.

She can listen and still continue working

never missing a stitch.

(Love the scrolled face-plate)

Anyways,

I thought you might be interested

in the sewing room happenings :-)

Editing post to add~
If you have an old Singer sewing machine and would like
to know what year it was made,
here is a link where you can look it up by serial number.
Singer