Energy Level is up......a bit......

So the last few days I have been drooping so to speak....the heat has driven me to retreat and hibernate somewhat. However, I went to bed relatively early last night and was up at 6:30 this morning.....when it's definitely cooler!!
My energy level is up so I think a few projects should be at least attempted......and one of these is to "clean slate" my workroom.

I have been in a quandry the last little while, with no incentive to continue on with the artistic path I have been following over the past year or so......working with polymer clay......or even my Nutfolkery for that matter. I'm not sure why that is....I'm finding my mind is somewhat fragmented at this point...so I'm thinking that I am going to clear the workroom, pack away everything and then sit in the bare clean room and muse on "what's next".

Several things come to mind and one is to go back to sewing and possibly trying to design or at least enhance a present design to meet my criteria for what I want to wear. I have a myriad of different materials of my own and also inherited from my mom. Some are very old and dated....but they appeal to me in some way....I keep thinking that I could design something that would incorporate the retro material into it. I mean some of the textures and patterns are quite unique in their own way. I have some patterns that can be added to and changed to some degree and I've always thought that if I have an outfit, top or something that really fits well, looks good, then I should wear it into the ground and then take it apart for a pattern. I've never done that...but that might be something that I could add to the mix...so to speak.

I also think I would like to draw and paint a little more....I'm really not very good at it. I have these great visions of things I see in my mind or perhaps dream about....not quite sure which...and I would love to get them down on paper. Oh to have a digital camera to take the pictures that roam in my head....well....maybe not ALL of them :-)

I'm sure there are other artistic and creative options out there and they may eventually include polymer clay and my Nutfolkery people.....but I need to start again.....from the basics and see where the journey takes me.

Slainte!!

A little less US and a little more ME!!

Ok, so I'm running into this problem.....what do I blog about???
I sit here and my mind runs through a myriad of subjects.....none of which seem appropriate for this blog. ...probably because my life is not very interesting at the moment.....in fact it's kinda boring!! However, that's nobody's fault but my own I guess. I have to make my own entertainment. I have been cogitating on an upcoming situation though.....

This weekend, DH is heading down to Victoria to pick up belongings that can't be transported to Boston by our "travelling offspring" and so will be stored at our home in Kamloops. This is a huge deal for me because since we have been here, I have not been alone for any length of time. I also am planning to travel to Sun Peaks on Saturday BY MYSELF to hear the KSO et al play.

Now I emphasize the whole BY MYSELF thing, because since I arrived in Kamloops with DH I have been fighting depression....not so much from the move, but from a lot of stuff and baggage that preceded it over a number of years. I have made much progress with the help of a wonderful counsellor, but there are things that I still have to push myself to do and venturing out on my own is one of them. I did do the drive from Kamloops to Hope to pick up the "travelling offspring" with no problem last summer, but that was a route that I knew well.....plus having the complete recording of La Boheme playing was wonderful .

When I think back to living in Langley , I remember that going out in the car during the day was stressful for me, unless it was to go pick up the kids from school or similar....anything else had to be planned to last detail and thought about etc....unless of course, DH was doing the driving. So a lot of my days were spent at home. I'm finding that to be the case now and I just KNOW that it's not healthy....so.....pushing myself to get up and out there is a big priority for me. This weekend will be a challenge to see if I find some excuse to NOT go to Sun Peaks.

It's funny though...the stress is all in the anticipation....once I'm out there on the road, I love it. I love to drive, I love the freedom. A few years ago, I would come up to Kamloops to play in the orchestra and I would drive the whole way on my own and just revel in it. I need to get that feeling back....a lot of the "not driving" was local stuff...and I still have problems with that....trying to figure out how to get places.

I'm actually quite capable....I think it's all about confidence in my abilities to cope with any situation. I mean.....one of the reasons I got a Volvo when I bought a new car in 2001 was so that I would have a safe reliable car for ME to drive around in......and it has proved to be so for the most part...the trouble is...it's not ME driving around in it....it's US.....which is not a bad thing, just a little less US and a little more ME would be a better thing.

Slainte!!

Summer Evenings....

I have discovered summer evenings in Kamloops.
The last few late afternoons and evenings I have taken advantage of my nice wooden lounger (with cushions) out in the back yard and reclined and taken in the spectacular view of the sky. I know it doesn't sound that exciting...but watching "the clouds roll by" is an experience not to be missed in Kamloops. There is always (well almost always) a wind that grows in the evening up here and sometimes it's quite a heavy wind and other times it's a cooling breeze.....but whatever it's speed the cloud formations that it produces are phenomenal. They range from delicate brush strokes to big daubs of white clouds being chased across the sky by the ever present thunderclouds. There are streaks with wispy ends, blurred transparent mists that glow orange as the sun begins to set, and then there's the big globs of white fluff that gradually distintegrate into various and sundry shapes as they fly by. I sit enthralled until the night descends and only vague shadows are seen in the sky.
Usually Chauncey is curled up between my ankles oblivious to the granduer above.
It provides a wonderful peace with which to end the outdoor portion of the day.

Slainte!

Just rambling.....

When I come downstairs to blog, I usually have something to say. Today, I have nothing....well nothing that I want the world to hear about....yet.
Actually, that's not entirely true. I do have lots to say, but when it comes time to say it...."it" disappears and my creative mind is empty.....such is the case today.
However, I'm going to ramble for a bit and hopefully some sort of pattern will emerge, other than "I'm wittering!!"

So...my heart is heavy right now....but that's a story for another day and another blog...suffice to say that as a mother I feel helpless .....it's about letting your children make their own decisions and live with them..advise when requested......and be there to pick up the pieces when they fall. So this weekend will tell......or not.

Thankfully the temperature in Kamloops has decided to come back down to more normal figures....I believe today's high will be about 29, which is far more manageable than 39.....although in a previous blog I said that the day was supposed to be 39...whereas in actual fact it only got up to about 30 or slightly less......thanks to thunderstorms and rain.
My two (count 'em...2) hummers are happy with me since I changed their feeders. In the heat, the hummer food tends to go off quickly....(read ferment) so I've decided to make less and refill more often, so I don't run into that problem.....otherwise I could have some loopy hummingbirds crashing around the patio!!

I have been reading a lot lately....a lot about Irish history...and I am enjoying it immensely and finding out that I knew very little about my ancestral home and it's struggles. I am just about 2/3 of the way through Trinity by Leon Uris.....the book which has been the biggest eye-opener to me. More will come as I delve further I'm sure. After this one is finished, I have a few smaller books to get through and then I'm going to go back to Ireland.....so to speak. I'm sure I have a least five books that have to be started and finished....plus about 6 or more books on Winston Churchill that I'm ploughing through. They are scattered around the house and depending on my mood, I pick up whatever appeals to me at the time, although Trinity is only a limited time loan from the library so I'm concentrating on that for now. Since we retired, I have rediscovered books. I found that my reading was scarce before now, because I never allowed myself to sit down for periods of time to lose myself in a book. I kept telling myself I had better things to do. Luckily I got past that attitude last summer, so now I have no problems getting absorbed into a book. I do seem to have an attention span problem though. I can't seem to read more than 15 minutes or so at a time without having to put the book down and do something else or just sit and cogitate for about 10 minutes. Who knew that my mind would become SO active in my later years......and now for something completely different......

These pictures are of our two children and our son-in-law. Theyare shown in the situation they do best.....laughter, camaraderie and good times.
We have been blessed with our children and too the delightful young man our daughter married, who has added much love, joy and a new appreciation of puns and unique humour to our family! Our family dynamic has changed recently with the arrival of a grandson, with our son becoming a devoted and loving father.
There have been some bumps in the proverbial road this past year, and it has become apparent to me that our family is strong, loving, and supportive and will continue to be like that in years to come. I love my family so much, because they are THERE...whether it be by phone, email, letter or in person.....it's all about family....as it should be!

Slainte!!

it's a hot day in Kamloops...

So the weather report this morning said that it was supposed to go up to 39 deg. celsius today. We do not have central air conditioning, however, we do have a fairly well insulated house and 2 large fans and a tiny one (for the computer).

The one thing about Kamloops in the heat is that unless you're a sucker for punishment or a total sun-loving persona, you have to stay indoors or be driving in an air conditioned car, or visiting an air conditioned store or similar. To stay out of doors in the sun at any other time but early morning and evening, in my opinion, is bordering on INSANE....and almost unbearable. We had to take our car (our beautiful air conditioned car) into the shop yesterday where it will be languishing for nearly a week, so we're told. We have another vehicle....a TRUCK....a NON-AIR CONDITIONED TRUCK....that has the shocks of a wagon (at least for me!!). So we have to use that, which doesn't really distress my DH that much due to the fact that it's his vehicle, however, when we were driving it yesterday, I had the window open and my elbow resting on the windowsill as we were sailing along the Overlander Bridge. It felt like there was a hair dryer blowing on my elbow...on high heat!!

I have tried sitting out in shady areas and it's just too oppressive....so I now try to do a little weeding and watering first thing before the sun hits the back yard full force...and then go have a shower, put on as little as decently possible and head downstairs to do whatever. Chauncey now knows the best thing is to hang out with Mom as it's cooler for him.
We have a cool fan in the bedroom (cool being the operative word here)....it's reversible....you switch it to take out the hot air in the day and then change it to bring in the cool air at night. Works a treat!! In fact, next to the basement, our bedroom is one of the coolest places in the house. Regular fans are good, but they just move hot air around and although it feels good to some extent, after a while, one needs the coolness.

So..to add to the mix of all this heat, there is a forest fire burning merrily just south of Kamloops. Last night the sky was orange with the smoke....today is a bit cloudy, not sure if that's from the fire or just regular overcast. I'm thinking that staying in my little hidey hole in the basement and keeping cool is much the best policy at this point. DH is watching the World Cup game and I'm listening to Jacqueline Dupre play Haydn and Boccherini...so my day will be fine.....

Slainte!!