The Last installment in the Cataract Procedure!

     Since I had to keep my post-op cataract appointment today in Cooperstown no matter how cold it was, Jeff warmed up the Forester and we loaded up the dogs and off we went around 9:45am!  First we stopped at the bank to get some $$ and then we stopped at Stewarts's to exchange some of it for some gas.  The front passenger door still wouldn't open so I was in the back seat with the Fanny while Zoey sat up front with Jeff.  The ride to Cooperstown was beautiful...sunshine, blue skies, bare roads.  We made good time and I was checking in at the registration desk at Bassett at 10:45am.  My name was called shortly after 11am (my appointment time) and I followed one of the techs down the hall.  After a stop at one station for the first test, I ended up in an exam room at the other end of the clinic.  Another tech came in and I had my near and far sight tested, eye pressure taken and drops administered to dilate my eyes.  I was told the doctor would see me next.  After the tech left the room I checked my cellphone for the time and saw that it was 11:41am.  Not bad.  Jeff came in a little while later...he had stayed with the dogs in the car for a little while to keep the engine running.  Then he had gone up to the cafeteria for coffee and decided to check in on me before he went back to the car.  When he left, I looked my cellphone again for the time, it was now 12:16pm.  (Where did that half hour go??)  After a few more minutes Dr. Lemanski finished her exam in the next room and made her way into my exam room.  She checked the results of my tests in the online chart and was pleased with my near and far sight and eye pressure.  She thought my eyes were over dilated so she administered some drops to help them start to contract.  (It's now 5:07pm and my pupils are still dilated! There is less than 1/8" of brown iris showing around the pupil!  Wonder how long it will take to get back to normal?)  She said I was probably experiencing a 'halo' of light (ah, that's what that was!) due to the over dilation but it would lessen and slowly fade. She examined the back of my eyes and declared them 'healed'.  Then she wrote an Rx for reading glasses for me that I will get filled in Herkimer next week.  I want them in transition lens so I can read and knit outside without having to have a pair of sunglasses.  (The new glasses will be similar to bifocals but the top of the lens will be plain glass.) It will be interesting to see if Fran Baggetta, the optician, can save the frames I'm using now since Zoey chewed the ear piece off one side.  I hope so.  Anyway, we'll see next week when I check with him.
   When I got out to the car,  I found that Jeff had managed to get the passenger door open and I got to sit up front with Zoey between us.  I had promised him lunch at the restaurant of his choice so when we got back to Mohawk he turned into Mona's (the Purple House on Main St).  He really wanted a covered roast beef sandwich but she was all out so he had to settle for fish fry.  I got a shrimp basket w/ff.  Mona makes her own cocktail sauce and it is so-o-o good (and hot)!  We both were well satisfied with our meal.  After lunch I wanted to go to the Ilion library (they had a pile of books for me) and to the Melrose Market in Frankfort to get some Italian sausage but Jeff was getting tired so after a stop at the library we headed for home.  Since we got here, he and the dogs have been napping.  Maybe tomorrow we can do some grocery shopping. Maybe tomorrow the temperature will be warmer, too.

Merry Christmas? Bah Humbug!

   It was Christmas morning and I was nice and comfortable in bed with the dogs curled up beside me but Jeff was standing over me saying you better get up.  Why? I asked sleepily.  The furnace stopped and the house is going to get cold. Bah humbug!
  I sighed, life in the little house in the little woods, got up and headed to the shower.  The bathroom filled warm steam and the hot water felt wonderful.  Zoey was soon crying at the bathroom door (her usual routine) but I ignored her and toweled off and dried my hair.  Gathering up wet towels, I headed to the laundry room to exchange them for clean underwear, jeans, a long-sleeved t-shirt and a flannel shirt.  Wool socks finished my holiday ensemble. 
  I passed Jeff on my way to the kitchen.  He was carrying wood to the stove and I was heading to the coffeepot.  (Oh, I guess he couldn't start a fire and put on a pot of coffee!)  We soon had both going but that didn't lighten either of our moods.  We decided to rely on the woodstove and the oven to keep the house reasonably warm today and call for help tomorrow.  (The cost of the emergency call to the heating company will still be kick to the stomach but it will be less tomorrow than today and why ruin someone else's Christmas?)  Jeff just made a quick trip to Stewart's to get a couple of bundles of hard wood but decided to get them at Fast Trac instead.  (Stewart's wanted $8/bundle.  He got 3/$12 at Fast Trac). He stopped for coffee at the N Main St Greek Diner on the way home and the owner gave him a pie as a Christmas present!  I think I'll go there this week and buy a cheesecake for New Year's dinner!!
      It will be cold tonight but we'll survive and hopefully, so will our water pipes since Jeff says the cellar is now warmer than the bedrooms!

Twas the Night Before Christmas

    Here's my honey clusters.  I thought the recipe made more than this but maybe I cut them smaller in the past.  Anyway, it's all done and sitting in the refrigerator  so the honey will harden.  My cookie tray looks pretty good even if I cheated and  bought the pizzellas.  The tray is sitting oven (cold) so the puppy can't get to it!  Here's the goodie box for my 

 All I have left to do for dessert is to make the chocolate pie and decorate it with Cool Whip and maraschino cherries.  Dinner will be easy, too.  A pork loin on the rotisserie, with gravy, green beans and scalloped potatoes.  I think I'll make baking powder biscuits, too, they always go well with gravy.  Jeff's sister has decided to heed the weather forecast and stay home.  We're suppose to get 3-6" of snow tonight and again tomorrow so I don't blame her.  I checked the forecast and it looks better for New Year's Day so I invited Sherry to dinner then.  I'll ask Ed tomorrow if he's free and probably do an Italian dinner for a change. (Ravioli, meatballs, sausage, and antipasto with maybe cheesecake for dessert.)  It will also give me another week to get their Christmas presents knit.

cousin to take home with him.  It doesn't really have a lot of cookies but he lives alone so it should be enough for 1 person.

The Day Before the Day Before Christmas

   I spent the morning baking cookies for my Christmas dinner dessert tray. When my mom was alive and family and friends (18-20 of them!) came to our house for Christmas Eve dinner Mom would always have a tray of Italian Christmas cookies and a plate of honey clusters for dessert.  My ladies would all bring their special cookies and what a tray we would end up with! As time went on and the numbers went down we made fewer cookies each year until in the years just before she died we 'cheated' and just made 1 recipe, split it into thirds and added extra ingredients to end up with 3 different cookies. That's what I did this morning. I used an egg cookie recipe from an old 'church lady' cookbook and by adding chopped nuts and maraschino cherries to one third of the batter and chopped nuts and cocoa to another third I ended up with 3 different looking cookies. 

(I'll frost them later and arrange them on a Christmas plate.) I bought a package of pizella a couple of days ago but it disappeared overnight (explaining why I waited until today to bake)! I got another package yesterday but I hid it and will put them out at the last minute! Eventho I use Stevia instead of sugar I don't think Jeff should eat these cookies to his heart's content for a day or two. (He is Type II.) There will be only 4 of us for dinner on Christmas Day so there should be enough cookies to go around. (I'll make up a package of cookies for my cousin to take home, too.) And I promised Jeff a chocolate pie for dessert, too, but I'll use sugar-free pudding for that.  Tonight or tomorrow I'll make honey clusters.  I love them!  It was always a job cutting and frying the dough but now I don't mind.  I did just 1 recipe last year and made one cluster for us and a small one for my cousin Ed.  Think I'll do that again.  Jeff's pretty good about staying away from it...the honey really drives up his blood sugar!

  I've been a little upset because my sock yarn order got lost in the mail somewhere.  I've been tracking it online and it's been stuck in Stow, Ohio for 3 days!  Finally yesterday it started to move and now the USPS Tracking site says it's been delivered!  Jeff went to town a little while ago and picked up the mail on his way out.  Can't wait until he comes home with my sock yarn!  I wonder if I can get 1 sock done by Christmas?  I'm not even going to start Jeff's socks.  I'll do them the week between Christmas and New Years.  We'll see how fast I can knit!

We Didn't Go To Cooperstown Today Afterall

    I've been listening to the weather forecast for the last couple of days and finally decided to heed the warnings and postpone today's trip to the eye clinic in Cooperstown.  Seems I was not alone! The girl on the phone said it looked like Dr. Lemanski would have a very light day today as I changed my 1pm today appointment to 11am next Friday. (Let's hope the weather is better then!!) It was snowing lightly when I called but it was suppose to get heavier and then change to sleet and then back to snow as the day progressed. Good ol'wintry mix!! Just love the weather in the Great Northeast!

   Although I had cancelled drive to Cooperstown today due to the weather conditions, Jeff thought it was safe enough to go to Hannaford's and get the few things we needed and stop at Rite Aide to refill his Rx's. He took it easy driving to town because the road conditions were not very good (so glad we weren't driving up Vickerman Hill!) and even stopped for gas at Stewart's in Herkimer. That's when the trip went sour...the car wouldn't start after getting gas. I called the AllState Motor Club number on my membership card and was told they would send someone to jump the car 'as soon as possible'. Jeff decided he had better move the car away from the gas pumps and while he was pushing it, a guy who had been shoveling out his driveway across the street came over and offered to help move the car. Together they pushed it away from the pumps, and when the guy asked what was wrong and Jeff told him, the guy...a perfect stranger to us...offered to jump start the car. He went and got his car...another Subaru...and the Forester was soon running again. (Jeff offered to pay him but he refused. There are still good people in the world/Herkimer.) We drove the car around Herkimer to the tobacco store on Main St (left it running while he went in), and then back to the auto parts store on the corner of State and Bellinger Sts, again leaving it running while he went inside. Jeff's decided we need a new battery and he wanted to price one ($159, installed). The current battery has a label on it that says 'Manufactured by Subaru USA' meaning it's the original battery...and the car is a 2009!! I guess it is time for a new battery.
   I'm just disappointed that this year Santa chose to bring me a new refrigerator and a new car battery. I can think of a lot of other things for that much money that I would prefer to getting for Christmas.  I don't know if the choice of presents means I've been naughty or nice.

Email Christmas Cards

     I've always wanted to send email Christmas cards but never had the nerve till now.  Tuesday after I sat here and wrote out my Christmas card list and looked at my check book, I went to bluemountaincards.com (Blue Mountain Cards) and joined for $4.99/month.  Then I went thru the choices they have for email Christmas cards and picked out the ones I liked and sent them to the email addresses I have for family and friends.  Everyone did not get the same card...something I was afraid would happened.  I found several very nice cards with touching poems that fit the bill for family and friends that no longer live close enough for a holiday visit, a couple of others for the pet-lovers among us and a lovely sentimental card with religious overtones for another.  My favorite card was the one I 'created' or personalized to send to Jeff's friend, Doug, who arranged for us to get Zoey.  (It's an animated photo of a dachshund wearing a 'Santa' hat and a red scarf standing in front of a dog house in a snowy yard.  In a girl's voice the dachshund says ' my cousin, Zoey the beagle, asked me to wish you a Merry Christmas and to thank you for sending her to Mary T and Jeff's house.'  It goes on to say that while Zoey has Jeff wrapped around her paw and I'm not totally in her corner yet but leaning that way!  It's a really cute card that both Jeff and I laughed about...especially when the dachshund said Zoey was ruling the roost!)  It was so easy to send the 18 cards...with personalized messages...and the price couldn't be beat. (I sent 1 card to an old friend who isn't an emailer and that cost me $4.97 at Wal-Mart for the card and .49 at the Post Office for the stamp!)  There were even spaces to check if I wanted to be notified when the 'card' was 'delivered' and 'opened'.  And I didn't have to stand in line at the Post Office to buy stamps!  I was actually a little proud of myself for doing it this way.  But now I'm having 2nd thoughts...while all 18 cards have been delivered only 4 cards have been 'opened' so far.  I'm disappointed...but I don't know with whom/what!  My attempt to keep the holiday spirit going without spending a ton of money or people who don't check their email.  Oh, well, maybe next year I'll just skip the whole process.





Found that several email address I have are out-of-date!  I've  checked addresses and recent those cards!!  As of 12/24/17, 10 of the 18 have been picked up.  I really must have screwed up the addresses!!

The New Refrigerator

     We waited (not too) patiently for our new Amana refrigerator to be delivered this morning.  Robinson's in Mohawk had left a message on our machine yesterday saying they would call before they came up so that means we'll be home till they do. We have blue sky, frigid temps and snow on the ground today. Wish Santa had come up with something a little more glamorous than a refrigerator for this year's big present. I had a guy in the shop yesterday buy his wife a $225 Amethyst necklace for Christmas. He said it was only the 2nd time he bought her something that expensive in the 42 years they've been together.  (The 1st was her engagement ring.) I asked if she'd question his motives...had he done something he had to atone for?  He said he'd just say she was worth it.  Some people have all the luck, huh? Well, at least I can knit while I wait for my refrigerator!!

   The new Amana was just delivered! And it's not noon yet!!! Now to get rid of all the junk Jeff moved in front of the sink...he wanted to renovate the kitchen...move cupboards...I said NO!! The kitchen is a mess and all we did was get a new refrigerator! He moved the small dresser we were using as the base for our small refrigerator and Berkey water filter and just left it.  I eventually moved it to the porch (whether he likes it or not!).

   Well, the new refrigerator looks good in the kitchen (at first it's only had milk, Sunny D, butter, eggs and a steak that was thawing). The Berkey water filter, needing a new home, was moved to the dining bar and one of the bar chairs got moved across the room but the kitchen looks pretty good. Don't know how long that will last...but right now, it's fine!
After a quick trip to Hannaford's the refrig began filling up fast!  Jeff talked to the butcher there and learned of the weekly special ($1.85/lb for top round) and suddenly...!  And he's got to go to the Melrose in Frankfort for sausage yet!! Oh, and there's a pork loin in there for Christmas dinner, too.
   We went to the Greek diner on N. Main St for a late lunch and had some of his great chicken soup with our burgers and fries (and onion rings for Jeff)......and got to share a free piece of cheesecake for dessert! All for less than $20 (and we even brought home a little brown bag with four cups of rice pudding!) After that stop at the grocery store  the dogs and I were dropped off at home and Jeff took the car to Jiffy Lube where $45 dollars later he had had the oil and filter changed, the chassis lubed, air filter changed, and all the other liquid levels checked/filled. I had misread the sign...thought it was $31 for everything but Jeff felt the extra $11 for the air filter was worth it.  (The rest was sales tax.) The Forester is now ready for winter!


The shop donated a percentage of our Nov. sales  (total $269.98) to the local Food Pantry this year and it was matched by the Scriven Foundation making it a very nice donation indeed.

edited Sun., 12/17/17

New Hats

     Here are some of the new hats that are now sitting in my stock bag waiting for their trip to the shop on Thursday.  The top one has a group of snowmen around the hat with some snowflakes falling between them,  the middle one is a Christmas rose and the bottom three are snowflake patterns.  All are hand knit in Red Heart acrylic on US7's and are machine wash and dryable.  They will fit a child 6mos to 1 yr.  Next Saturday(Dec. 16th) some of them will be with the shop's display at the Chamber of Commerce's 1st-ever Holiday Artisan Festival at historic Templeton Hall on Pioneer Street and then again they will be part of the shop's display at the vendor's show at Bassett Clinic next Tuesday Dec. 19th.   Of course, if they sell before then.... (I can only hope.)

Time for a New Refrigerator

   Well, today we went shopping for a new refrigerator...not something I like doing so close to Christmas but we have been leaving food on the porch for about a week now and it was going to be get another can of Freon($30) to put in the refrigerator we have or buy a new one.  We've already  added Freon twice.  Jeff had been to Robinson's in Mohawk looking for the parts he needed to put Freon in the first time and was impressed with the small store.  Mom had bought many appliances there over the years and had always been pleased with the appliances and the service.  I was satisfied going to Lowe's but Jeff wanted to check out Robinson's first so we went there today. 
   We were shown several top label refrigerators...Amana, Frigidaire and others...and the prices were competitive with what I had seen online with Lowe's.  Then Jeff told the guy (Kim ?) that we wanted a smaller unit and he showed us a couple and we picked this Amana.  The price was right ($499), delivery would be free, and the unit was guaranteed for a year.  We picked the one we liked and it will be delivered on Wednesday.
   Then we stopped at the Herkimer Library and I printed off the distribution form for my deferred compensation fund, filled out and faxed it in requesting a payment.  That was the easy part.   It hurt a little to spend that much money on a kitchen appliance but I had set up the DCF for just that...car repairs, septic tank draining and kitchen appliances.  It would have been much more fun to spend that much money on some yarn or jewelry!!

Christmas on Main St, Cooperstown, NY

      One of our shop members, Bonnie Enjem, took some night shots of the storefront and I've been downloading them to Facebook every day...sort of a Christmas commercial!

    You can get an idea of what's inside but it looks a little cluttered.  Oh, well,  fine handcrafts from the heart of New York show up anyway!  A portion of all sales from Nov. 13 to Dec. 13 will go to the local Food Pantry.
   Another way to see what's inside the shop is to keep an eye open for our commercial on WKTV during their Christmas on Main St segments.  Programs featuring our commercial airing during the week are:

·         NewsChannel 2 a Sunrise (6-7am)

·         NBC Today Show (7-9am)

·         Wheel/Jeopardy (7-8pm)

Those programs airing on weekends are:

·         NBC Saturday Today Show (7-9am)

·         NBC Sunday Today (8-9am)

·         Newschannel 2 Sunday AM (9-10am)

And during normal daytime on-air programing Dec.2 thru 12th.
   Of course, the best way to see what's available at Cooper Country Crafts is to stop in and browse for yourself.  The shop will be open daily, 10am-5pm thru Dec. 24th

Maggie & Me

   My college friend, Maggie Schanz and her daughter, Kristina, paid me a surprise visit in the shop Saturday. (Really made my day!)  We've been promising our other college friend, Tim, that we'd send him a current photo of 'his favorite 2 college babes' for quite a while but both of us have managed to avoid it until now.  Kristina offered to be the photographer and snapped a couple of shots of Maggie and me...and I retaliated by taking this one of Maggie and her!  I sent them to Tim in South Florida when I got home and he was thrilled to get them.  (Why, I don't understand!)  Anyways, always the gentleman, Tim maintains we haven't aged one bit and look just the same.  (Wonder what he's been drinking, huh?)   I've managed to avoid posting up-to-date photos of myself until now but this blows that.  Gee, I managed to send him the photos but I can't seem to post that photo of Maggie and me.  Got to keep working at it.  

Well, I finally figured out how to download it....

Cataract Procedure #2...Done at Last!

     My 2nd Cataract Procedure-the left eye was completed on Nov. 17th at Little Falls Hospital with Dr. Lemanski and her staff.  
   I was called the day before by the Scheduling Office and told to be there by 12:45pm and not to eat or drink anything after midnight.  When we got to the waiting room at LFH it was practically standing room only!  I was the 3rd procedure scheduled for the afternoon and one of the morning procedures was still waiting to be done!!  So I waited...for about an hour in the waiting room then Jeff announced he was hungry and when I was taken in he would go down to the Bistro (as it's called) and have lunch.  After all my vitals were taken and recorded Jeff came back and we sat together for awhile, then he decided to go get another cup of coffee...really I think he wanted a cigarette...and I waited some more. 
   Around 2:30 I asked if they were going to draw blood and run an INR on me and was told it wasn't necessary.  At 3:30 the OR nurse came in and asked if an INR had been run yet and when she got a blank look from the staff the team from the lab was called and blood was drawn. (Why can't doctors, nurses and all medical staff just listen to the patient?  It would save so much time...and trouble for the patient!!) 
   The anesthesiologist came in and explained what was going to happen to me...it was going to be different from the 1st procedure.  And I waited some more.  About  4pm the staff started timing the procedures ahead of me (average time 30 mins in the OR/actual procedure 22mins) but there was still 1 guy ahead of me!  Got to remember the OR had to be cleaned between each procedure adding to the wait time,too.  Finally, around 5pm I was wheeled into the OR.  My head was taped down, my left eye taped open, the O2 hose was put in my nose and the drape put over my head.  I complained that I couldn't breath and someone lifted up one side of the drape.  (I heard the anesthesiologist say I had 'a touch of claustrophobia' but I think the O2 hose wasn't in my nose properly.)
   I got a little surge of 'happy gas' and then the procedure was about over.  Not very interesting this time around.  Dr. Lemanski did not pack my eye, just covered it with the plastic shield and taped it down.  I was rolled back to my room to wait some more.  My vitals signs were taken a couple more times and then I was disconnected and told I could get dressed and go home...with the usual list of 'do's and don't' and baggie of eye drops.  I would see the doctor the next morning at 10:20 in Cooperstown.  It was about 6:15pm.
   Once we were in the car and on the way home Jeff asked if I was hungry (I hadn't eaten since 8:30pm the night before...was that a necessary question??) and if I'd like to go to the Greek's for supper?  All I could think about was their chicken & rice soup!!  When we walked into the place the owner walked over to greet us, took one look at the plastic shield taped to my face, turned to Jeff and demanded to know what he had done to me!
   The next day we went to the Clinic in Cooperstown and Dr. Lemanski looked at my eye.  Actually, she looked at both eyes.  She was very pleased with the rate the right eye was healing and decided to remove the single stitch she had put in it then instead of having me come back in a week.  I just have to continue with the drops and see her for the final exam...both eyes...on Dec. 22.  At that time she'll probably give me a Rx for reading glasses.  
   I have started to drive at night...no glasses but the headlights from oncoming cars bother me...and driving during the day is no problem except I can't see the speedometer w/o my glasses!  I'm still looking for a pair of sunglasses I like.  Oh, and I need glasses to shop...can't read labels at all w/o them!  Still I recommend if you're told you have cataracts, get them removed.  It's worth the hassle.  (Oh, and I ended up with a small 'black eye' with the left eye!)

Thanksgiving

   Thanksgiving is over...and a nice day it was!  The weather was sunny and brisk but dry and Ed and Sherry both joined us. 
   Sherry brought a bag of dog toys for Fanny and Zoey and a big bag of Rachel Ray grain-less dog food that no longer agrees with her Cocker-Schnauzer mix, Sunny. (I mixed it with the girls' regular dog food and they inhaled it!)  She brought them a large fleece blanket that her dogs love cuddling in but Fanny wasn't interested at all and Zoey lost interest quickly (she preferred chewing a hole in my old comforter and pulling out the batting! Fanny had already done one corner when she was a pup so Zoey thought it was only fair she do another but she didn't stay in a corner!)  One of the toys was a red and green fuzzy tennis ball with rope handles thru it.  Zoey managed to pull part of the red fuzzy fabric off the ball but she at least she didn't 'kill' the ball.  Sherry also brought them rawhide 'cigars' that I saved until this morning.  Fanny destroyed half of hers quickly but Zoey just carried hers' around with for awhile.
   We don't have a traditional Thanksgiving dinner because Jeff doesn't like turkey.  Usually we have roast pork but once in awhile we do a nice London Broil or steaks.  Yesterday we put some steaks on the Ronco Rotisserie, served them with fried carrots and baked butternut squash, baked potatoes and gravy.  I even made baking powder biscuits!  Dessert was an apple pie...that I made in the morning...and a blueberry pie that Ed brought.  I felt generous so I
shared the vanilla ice cream and 'the best chocolate fudge sauce in Michigan' that I had left from my cataract procedure recovery menu.  Warm apple pie with vanilla ice cream and warm hot fudge sauce!!! Excellent dessert if I say so myself.  I sent Ed home with a couple of pieces of his blueberry pie and a couple of pieces of my apple pie and filled my pie dish with the same.  This morning there was a lone piece of blueberry pie left in the pie dish!  I was surprised the apple pie disappeared so quickly since it was my first attempt at one but it turned out pretty good.  Have to do it again.  (When we had first gotten our camp in Speculator my dad was there more than mom and me because of our craft show schedule.  Every time we did make it up there he always raved about the apple pie one of our new neighbors' had made.  Her pie crust was the best he had ever eaten.  And if you knew my dad, you know he was an expert on apple pie.  Well, finally my mom asked the woman what her secret was for the great pie crust because it was a great crust.  Paula just laughed and walked to her refrigerator, took out and handed my mom a box of Pillsbury All-ready Pie Crust.  That became my mom's secret recipe for pie crust, too, and now it's mine.  p.s.  no one told Dad!)
   Today I have to work on part of the hat/scarf order that is suppose to be finished by tomorrow.  I can do it if I actually sit and knit so I better go and get busy.

"Back in the Saddle Again"

     My new HP computer arrived today...1 day early...and I don't know who was more pleased me or Jeff!  Sharing a computer is not really difficult but it's not the easiest thing to do, either. We both like to start off the day by checking our emails, and then I like to check out Facebook.  I really missed that 2nd cup of coffee spent reading what's new online.  Most of the time I could have just gone into Jeff room and turned on his PC because he was probably still asleep but I wasn't having much luck getting his password to work for me.  (In fact, today was the 1st time it actually opened his computer for me!) Then after lunch I like to spend some time playing roaming around online killing time...but that was what he was doing.   Same thing right before...and after...supper!  And if there wasn't anything interesting (to either one of us) on TV at night there was a race to see who got to his PC first.  I tried not to overstay my time online on his machine but sometimes I knew he just couldn't wait until I signed off so he could go back to reading his book or watching a video.  Yes, I don't know who's happier my machine got here but I'm just glad it did!  Now I've just got to get it to download pictures from my camera!!
   

Baby, it's cold outside!

       I worked in the shop Wednesday and by the time I got home it was dark and I was in a 'state'  Not only was it the first time I drove any distance (to town doesn't count) since my 1st cataract procedure but half the trip home was after sundown,  with headlights flashing in my face in fairly heavy traffic.  I pulled into the driveway, walked thru some 'doggie do' and tracked some into the house.  Supper was suppose to be the rotisserie chicken I had just picked up at Walmart but no one seemed interested. I had also gotten a pizza at Walmart but again, no interest.  I just cleaned off my shoes, heated a piece of pizza in the micro and curled up in bed with a book...and the dogs.
      Thursday we went to town, first to Lowe's to get a new T, cap and connecting pipe for the woodstove's chimney and then to Rite Aid to leave a Rx for Jeff.  He spent quite awhile putting the stove pipe back together before the wooden brace that supports the pipe broke halting the day's activity.  It was plenty cold enough working outdoor yesterday but not to be able to finish the job did not make anyone happy. (My mouth, on autopilot, said you should have done in last month when it was warmer....that did not get a pleasant reply.)  Jeff decided to go back to town and pick up his Rx's and put air in the tires on the Outback.  He finally figured out why the parking lights were on all the time and managed to turn them off but in the meantime, the Outback had developed 2 flat tires.  He put air into them with the small air condenser he has for that but wanted to top them off at an 'air station'.  I was going to go with him but as we were cleaning the passenger seat off so I could get in Jeff saw a package and a pile of mail on the patio table next to the car.  Sometimes our mail delivery person is extra nice and brings the mail to the house instead of putting it in the box.  Neither one of us had heard them stop today and we didn't know if the mail had been brought today or yesterday!  So, instead of going to town again, I took the box and the mail and went back inside.  The dogs greeted me as if I had been gone for days...instead of 5 minutes and helped me unwrap the box.

    The big squishy box was from my Yarn Pal, Angela in Michigan, and had so many wonderful surprises in it!  The yarn was delightful!!  Knitting needles and other supplies!  A booklet on crochet (I can but don't), a loom for pot holders (different from what I used as a kid)...even a bag of treats for the dogs!  Fanny helped check things out while Zoey was just interested in the tissue paper (like any baby!) A bag

of buttons caught my eye...boy, will they come in handy on sweaters, and a heavy winter hat that feels so soft!  Oh, and can't forget that bottle of homemade strawberry jam and 'the best chocolate fudge sauce in Michigan'!   Remember that for my 1st cataract procedure my old friend, Tim, recommended ice cream to help me recover?  Well, he also recommended hot fudge sauce and I just never got any.  I'll be ready for the 2nd procedure next week with this jar!!  Oh, there's a plaid tin 'M' that's a tree ornament but I think it will just be hung on my wall! It was a great Yarn Pal package!
    Every year the shop participates in the "Adorn a Door" contest in Cooperstown by decorating a wreath with objects handmade by our members.  The wreaths are 'voted'  on by the public...really a silent auction...and the lucky winners go home with some pretty interesting wreaths to adorn their doors.  This year I saw these

mini Stockings and decided to make one for the wreath and a few extras for sale in the shop.  Being semi-handicapped at the moment made them a little more difficult than they should be (they're done in 2 ply acrylic on US3's) and they took longer than I had expected.  I hope to do a couple more this weekend and leave them off at the shop next Friday after my post-op appointment.  Unfortunately, I can't price them at what they're worth so they're going for $3.99.  They've been gathering fav comments...hope they sell!
    I  hope Jeff finishes the stove pipe today.  I want a fire in the woodstove.  I'm cold and since we had snow on the ground this morning...not much, just a dusting...it's time for the woodstove to be in use!!
    
    
 

Our New Windows

   We had Pace Windows and Doors here yesterday and had the four bedroom windows replaced and the dry rot around them removed. 

The frames and sills outside had to be rebuilt...especially in this 1st photo.  Rain water always runs off the porch and house roofs and covers this window,  and ice usually builds up around and over the electrical

box.  Jeff's going to put a 'rain dam' on the roof above that window in an effort to divert the water.  (Hope that works!) Then all the frames and sashes were clad in aluminum.  Look pretty good, don't they?  It

took the guy from 10am until 8:30pm to do all four windows...and at the end he was working in the dark and rain!  He

asked if he could keep working rather than come back today. He lives in the Finger Lake region, 

a 3 1/2 hr. drive, and when it got dark and he still had to finish 1 window he was willing to stay until it was finished!  The windows look much better and seem to be a tighter fit!  The curtains were not moving with the wind last night!  And since we had to move some furniture out of the bedrooms and take the curtains off the windows it turned into a good opportunity to do fall cleaning!  The curtains are nice and clean and the rooms look good...for awhile!  This morning I even cleaned dresser drawers. (Jeff did that last night!)  At least 2 rooms got done this year!  Oh, and the kitchen got done when I had the hee bee gee bees before the Cataract Procedure #1-the Right Eye.  Maybe I'm not such a bad housekeeper, after all.  I just need a good reason (or excuse) to do it!

Our house is not dirty white or lt gray, it's faded blue.  Not bad for a nearly 70 yr old house!

Happy Halloween

    Tonight is the 2nd night in a row that that awful four letter word appeared in the weather forecast.  And when we were out running errand this afternoon it felt like it was possible that it would happen.  I guess that means our long summer is finally over.  Those days of 70's and 80's that we enjoyed a couple of weeks ago are just fond memories now.  It lasted longer than anyone could have hoped for.  In fact, September and October had some of the better days of summer.  July and August were pretty unsettled to be called the 'Good Ol'Summer Time'.  But do you remember wearing your snowsuit under your Halloween costume?  The TV weatherman was advising the kids to wear jackets tonight.
    Tomorrow guys from Pace Windows and Doors will be here to replace the windows in our bedrooms and repair the dry rot around the window frames.  That means we have to move the furniture from my room into the parlor.  Jeff's room is large enough...or he has less furniture than I do...so it can be shifted from side to side as the windows are worked on.  It won't work that way in my room so we'll be moving some of it into the parlor tonight.  I'll take down and wash the curtains in the morning and they'll be ready to put back up when the windows are installed.
    Scheduling at Bassett's Eye Clinic called yesterday and everything is set for Cataract Procedure 2-the Left eye to be done on Thurs., Nov. 16 at Little Falls Hospital by Dr. Lemanski and her team.  Shannon from Scheduling isn't sure if I'll have to have another Pre-op physical or not.  It's too close for her to call (32 days between the 1st pre-op physical and when the 2nd one would be done) so I have to wait for someone else to make that decision. If I have to have it done in Cooperstown I'm going to ask that it be done on the day I'm working in the shop on Nov.8th (Judy has offered to come in and stay in the shop while I go over to the clinic).  If it's going to be done in Little Falls, it will be easy to get to so I won't complain.  I think I'll stop at the hairdresser's next week when I'm in Ilion going to the library and have my hair trimmed and my eyebrows waxed...I won't be hiding behind glass frames anymore.  And I want to buy a pair of regular sunglasses...haven't done that since high school...to use until my reading glasses are ready...they'll be Rx with transition lens.
   When we were out this afternoon, we stopped for a late lunch/early supper at the new Greek coffee shop on N Main St in Herkimer, next to the Van Kirk Apts.  The burgers and fries were so good...and so big!!!  I saved some of my burger to share with the dogs just so I could finish my rice pudding!  It's almost like having Irene back making her rice pudding but not quite!
   
  

Cataract Procedure #1...A Success!

        The alarm clock went off at 5:25am Thursday morning starting of one of the weirdest experiences I've ever had.  We were on our way to Little Falls Hospital by 6:20.  I had forgot how dark it was that early!!  There was lots of traffic and the houses along Rte 5 actually had lights on inside!  We were upstairs and checked in by 6:35am and I was in a hospital gown (open in the back!) and in a bed with an IV in my right hand by 7am.  Signed a bunch of release forms and had blood drawn for an INR (clotting factor...always done when you take Warfarin. I scored a little low at 2.1. because of the Caesar salad I had the day before!)   Doctors started coming in at 7:30 to explain things and the IV was moved from my right hand to my left wrist because the vein in my hand was too narrow/scared (a souvenir of chemo) and wouldn't draw the IV. Nurses kept coming in and putting drops in my right eye.  Someone drew a swiggle next to my right eye and someone else offered me a heated blanket. I was asked my name/birthdate and why I was there each time someone came into the room. Around 8am we were rolling down the hall to the OR where more blankets and pillows were placed around me, an O2 hose was put in my nose and a disposable shower cap put over my hair.  My head was taped to the table and my right eyelids taped open.  A paper drape was placed over my face and taped around my eye. A few more drops and finally a shot in the eye...boy, did I feel that!  OUCH!  Two small incisions and the tip of the laser was in inserted.  The lens was broken up and then vacuumed out. (I could 'see' it happening but not really.) A bath of DSS (distilled saline solution) and then the new lens was inserted and moved around into place.  I could see peripherally around it!  Another wave of DSS and a little pressure on the eye as the doctor secured the incisions. Heard Dr. Lemanski say 'I just want to polish this one a little more' and then another DSS wave and it was over.  My eye was taped shut, covered with a gauze pad and a plastic shield was taped over it.  The drape was pulled off my face and jokes were made about 'free waxings'.  Then it was back down the hall to my room.  One nurse adjusted the bed so I could sit up and another asked if I'd like some OJ.  About 9:30 they ushered Jeff back into the room...I had been in the OR just long enough for him to go down to the cafeteria and have breakfast and go outside for a cigarette.  My vitals were stable (Bp 118/68!).  The IV was pulled and the heart monitor disconnected.  Around 10am a nurse handed me the bag with my clothes and said I could get dressed.  Jeff went to move the car and when I was ready a wheelchair was there to take me downstairs.  We were home by 10:35am.  Cataract Procedure #1/the Right Eye was done. 
   I tried to spend the rest of the day doing 'normal' things but found it difficult one-eyed.  I watched some TV and played cards on line but it wasn't fun and I found it very tiring.  I followed my friend, Tim's advise and treated myself to a bowl of butter pecan ice cream whenever I started to get depressed or nervous.  Jeff cooked supper (pork ribs and rice...very good) and cleaned up after the dogs.  I tried to watch TV again and managed to watch some 'M*A*S*H' repeats but gave up and went to bed around 8pm.
  The next day, Friday 10/27, I was up before the alarm went off.   We were on the road to Cooperstown by 8am.  A stop for gas and to let some deer cross Rte. 28 and we were at the clinic by 9am. (My appointment was for 9:20am)  Jeff had to lead me into the building and the elevator because I was having a hard time one-eyed.  No depth perception and lousy balance!  We joked with some of the staff in the elevator before checking in at the Registration Desk then it was back down to the Eye Clinic.  After a few minutes wait I was moved to an exam room and the shield and bandage was finally removed. YEA!!!  The  pressure in the eye was checked and the eye was cleaned.  Then Dr. Lemanski checked the eye and everything looked ok so while I waited to see her again Jeff went back to the car to let the dogs out.  I was moved to another exam room and saw the doctor again.  She put in my 1st set of drops for the day, explained the rest, and agreed on the date for the next procedure.  I grabbed a pair of their disposable sunglasses on the way out and managed to make it to the car on my own.
  We took the dogs home and went to Mona's in Mohawk for lunch.   We had found a message from Walmart Pharmacy on our phone when we dropped off the dogs that the Rx Dr. Lemanski had ordered that morning was ready so we stopped there and picked up the Prednisone drops and some paper tape so I could continue to use the eye shield at night.  Jeff got me a eye patch(a la a pirate) so I can rest either eye during the day.  It's uncomfortable to wear but I'm trying to get use to it.  I told him the patch reminded me of a 1950's bra...a very pointed cup!
   I'm glad Cataract Procedure #1 is over and was successful, and I'm looking forward to Cataract Procedure #2...the left eye scheduled for Nov. 16th, same place, same cast.  I'm sure I'll have the hee-bee gee-bees again in the days leading up to it.  (It did give me an opportunity to clean the kitchen cabinets.) It was the weirdest experience of my live to look up and see the bottom of the telescopic instrument the doctor was using...3 lighted circles...and see what was happening in my eye.  There really wasn't any pain to speak of!  I was surprised at the number of old friends and relatives who offered their experiences and good wishes.  And when Cataract Procedure #2-the Lt Eye is completed I get to do something I haven't done since high school...buy a pair of regular sunglasses!   

Whatever Happened To....?

   When Maggie and I were visiting at the shop last week she told me that an old boyfriend of hers (Chris Moyer) that I knew had just died at his 50th high school reunion.   That lead to several minutes of remembering other old friends our age(Danny, Debbie, Jay) who have died in recent years and then a couple of rounds of  'I wonder  whatever happened to....?' but neither of us were very good at filling in  many of the blanks.  After supper that night I searched Facebook and Google for some of them but only found one.   I didn't recognize the picture that came up so I PM-ed Tim and asked him if he recognized it.  He did and he suggested sending the guy a 'Friend Request'.  I hemmed and hawed and finally suggest he do it...and he did but he hasn't heard from the guy yet.  It's gotten me thinking.  Our 50th class reunion will be in 3 years and will it be worth attending?
   We did not attend the HCCC campus on the hill in Herkimer.  Our campus was in Ilion:  one floor of the Remington Factory,  a couple of diners on Main St and Central Ave and the State St Bowling Alley(back in those years 18 was the legal age to drink!)  Most of the students commuted either by car or bus every day or rented apartments in Ilion.  (Maggie and Debbie had one on John St.)  We met every morning in the 'lounge' where there were rows of small lockers, went to classes along a single hallway where the professors also had their offices, visited the diners (Panaritis's was on Central Ave) for coffee and lunch, fed bread to the turtles in the fire levee or ditch on the north side of the building from our 2nd floor classroom windows.  The rumble of the forklifts on the floor above us helped many students (me included) decide to get that 4-yr degree and not follow our parents into a factory job!
    Many friendships were made in those 2 years...and a few marriages.   There were always 20-25 kids at parties we gave and attended during that time and the years immediately afterwards.  But where are they now?  I use to see a few of my old classmates around town but now as we've reached retirement age it's fewer and fewer.  And what about the ones who were from Utica?  Or who went out of the area or out of the state to finish their education? (I renewed my friendship with Tim by asking him on Facebook if I had gone to college with him.   He asked if I had forgotten him...it had only been 45 years!)  I really don't look forward to going to the reunion to find out that most of my classmates are dead.  So in the next 3 years I'm going to try and locate as many of my old friends from HCCC as I can.   If you know of anyone who went to The Factory  during 1968-70 please let me know where they are living.  I may actually lose my mind completely and volunteer to help organize the reunion.
Found another one who's died: Frank Handzel, Utica, 8/28/2015.

Oh, What A Day!

    Today the dogs had appointments for mani-pedi's at Olivia's Happy Tails on the corner of Park Ave and Main St. in Herkimer. (That's the old Daffy Discount for those of you as old as I am.)  As usual Fanny didn't want to go into the salon but she settled down and even allowed the groomer to check between the pads on her feet where she's been gnawing.  Seems she's got a bit of an allergy so I'll give her half a Benadryl tonight at bedtime to see if that helps. Zoey wasn't too happy to be there either, but it was over quickly and they were happy to be on their way home with new kerchiefs.

   We stopped at Fat Cat's on the way home because I had seen their menu on Facebook and told Jeff about their prices.  We each had cheeseburgers (his with everything), shared a large order of French fries and each had a soda and the total was $16 and change.  The burgers were 1/3-lbers and too much for me so the dogs got a couple of bites of mine and the large order of FF was too much for us so they got some of them, too.  When Jeff reached for his wallet he came up empty!  Wrong pants!!  But the girl behind the counter gave us our food and told him just to bring in the $$ soon.  (He came home, got his fishing bait and went back to town.)
  My house looks like a cyclone hit it.  Yesterday the refrigerator lost coolant again so this morning Jeff refilled it.  He found a couple of the screws and joints has loosen up...BUT Jeff wants to be sure the refridg is going to work so he didn't turn it back to face front, replace the Berkey water filter or put other things back before he went back to town...just grabbed his fishing bait and left.  I should be use to living like this but I'm not.
  Pace Windows and Doors called today.  We're going to have the bedroom windows replaced by them and have been waiting (not very patiently) for the windows to be built and the financing to go thru.  Everything is ready and they will be here on Monday Nov. 6 between 9 & 10am.  They want at least 3' of clear space on both sides of each window (no curtains/furniture, etc) so I'll have to find somewhere to move the chest on chest, hutch, TV, upholstered chair, table lamp and end table that's on one wall in my room.  The other wall just has a large hassock.  Jeff's room has a desk and I don't know what else that will have to be moved.  Oh, and him out of bed that early in the morning!! But it will be nice to have the dry rot that's overtaken the window frames taken care of and it is a good excuse to wash the curtains.
   I had a nice surprise when I was working in the shop in Cooperstown yesterday.  My friend, Maggie, stopped in on her way home from her job at the Farmer's Museum to check the schedule and find out when I'd be working next.  We had just screened a new member so Maggie and I got to sit outside and talk while Judy found room for the new guy's stuff.  It's so nice to have a friend that you can just sit and talk with and pick up where you left off no matter how long ago that was.  
   Well, my 1st cataract procedure is next Thursday and I have an order for a size 2 hoodie that I should finish before then so I better get to it!  I've got my hat display well stocked for now but if things sell well I guess I'll learn to knit with one eye closed!

And Still More Hats!

   My hat rack was pretty empty when I got to the shop last Saturday.  Luckily,  I knew that in advance

and had been busy for several day knitting hats
and I got it filled up pretty quickly.  I didn't get to make any baseball hats so that's what I did 

today.  I'll take them to the shop when I
work again on Wednesday.  I was surprised that the Autumn Leaves hats were
still there.  This coming weekend is suppose to be warm and sunny so maybe
someone will be in and
see them.  This purple lace edged hat got lots of
compliments but both it and it's twin, a pink
hat, were still there when I left.  The only hat that sold on Saturday was this gray rolled brim cap with the pink rose.  It went quickly!  That was the last of that skein of lt gray but I've started a heather gray hat with a raspberry rose that I should finish in time to take down Wednesday.  Photo to follow.

Another Trip to the Wellness Clinic

   We paid another visit to Tractor Supply for one of it's Wellness Clinics  today. Zoey got her rabies shot and Fanny got tested for heartworms. Jeff bought Zoey a head harness to keep her from lunging when on the leash (she hates it, no, make that HATES it!).  She's tried to rollover and rub it off, but of course it doesn't.  She is learning how to walk properly on leash with it very quickly and we're both impressed.  In fact, we're thinking of getting one for Fanny.  She's terrible on leash maybe this will help with her, too!

Zoey has a 'Big Girl' tag on her collar now.

   We met a chocolate lab who's a month younger than Zoey and twice as big. Zoey wasn't too happy about that!  Fanny wasn't impressed with the

young puppy at all.   I ended up putting Zoey in the shopping cart and that really spooked her! The floor was moving!! She couldn't understand that at all! But that calmed her down considerably.   We went to Burger King for lunch afterwards and the girls shared a 10-pc chicken nuggets because they were good and well behaved. (The choc lab peed on the floor and her 'mom' was so

embarrassed.) The human 'moms' I talked to who's pups were about the same age as Zoey agreed that housebreaking is not easy.  It really is a 'hit or miss' situation!  

  

Hats, Hats and More Hats

 

These are the 2 new baby hats I put in the shop last week when I worked.  I think there was too much sunlight coming thru the window behind me because they're Red Heart Cornmeal...not beige. Oh, well.  The autumn leaves didn't turn out too bad.  I used some leftover sock yarn for them.  The one on the left is a wool blend and the other is a bamboo blend.  Both are machine wash and dryable so they'll do ok on the acrylic cornmeal.  I also left a another

Pumpkin hat, a Baseball hat and 2 Flower hats.  Judy called last night to say one of the Flowers and my last Penguin hat sold yesterday.  Today is CooperFest...Cooperstown's version of Octoberfest...held on Main St, and hopefully we'll reap some of the profits.  I had an almost full rack of hats including 3 pumpkins and 2 apple in the shop in anticipation. I want to put a few more hats and the sweaters that are started in the shop next week.  Then I'll probably have to take a couple of weeks off after I have my cataract surgery on 10/26.