Sunday, April 26, 2015

making order out of chaos

even when you are really excited about a move, it is a lot of hard work

no matter what "stuff" you bring with you there are going to be surprises

and organization can be a key thing
these two pieces of organization happen this week --

in the garage there were brooms and mops and dust pans leaning against the wall next to the freezer (which I'm happy to report survived the move and is already in use here at the new house) -- tripping over all those things was making me a little nuts

in this case, since these hang out in the garage, I opted for the free organizing method -- the DH nailed a long 1x2 to the studs on the wall then I could put up as many other nails as I wanted to hang all those cleaning tools

in the kitchen pantry, however, I needed something a bit more than a piece of 1x2 -- picked up a wire rack system like the one my daughter has in her pantry and made a lot more usable space in there


this move came with some expected expenses

these three items for example --

we had expected to replace our mattress and step up into something that is more comfortable for our aging bodies

and we knew from the day we first looked at it that the refrigerator that was in the house would need to be replaced

the new grill is our reward to ourselves for having spent a year without one because we were not willing to buy one and leave it at the old house after the old one stopped working and could not be repaired (no small hardship since we usually grill all year round!)



and then there were those unexpected things 

one of the things that we moved was the recliner that I had been using for about 20 years

turns out we could have just left it behind as the first night it came out of the moving POD one of the supports for the back broke

the new chair, while it is not what I really would like to have, is quite serviceable and goes well with the other chair in the room, so I'm okay with it
and the little adventure of the dishwasher

there was a dishwasher here, which when the home inspector did is work before we bought the house made note that it was not attached to the counter top so when it was opened it fell forward out of the cabinet

of course we insisted that the previous owner take care of that -- which they did -- sort of

after the first long weekend of unpacking and washing dishing is that dishwasher, my daughter observed that it didn't do a really good job, it was noisy, and if you pulled the top rack out too far it came right off the rail and put you in danger of dropping an entire rack of glasses 

I made some noises about having to make do with it for now, etc., etc., and she said to me "Mom, you DESERVE to have nice things"

uh -- well, she has a point

so we ordered the new dishwasher, and when the installer came, he discovered that the "legs" under that old one were nothing more than some little pieces of raw lumber, and just as he started to work on disconnecting it, it started spewing water all over the kitchen!

I think we avoided a lot of hassle by being proactive on this one!

the work in the house continues, there is still much to do, but I'm going to take some time today to work on some art -- I'm feeling a little "out of sorts" and I know the best cure is to make some art!

Sunday, April 12, 2015

stepping out of the comfort zone

we've been hanging out in an extended stay motel for over a week now while we wait to sign the paperwork on our new house

almost every day we've driven by the house -- there is a big tree in the front yard that is starting to leaf out, and I'm trying to figure out what kind of tree it is

I've made the phone calls to set up the utilities and the subscription to the local paper will begin the day we are moving in

yesterday we went to the local farmer's market and were pleased to find that it is indeed LOCAL farmers and craftsmen with their products -- great produce, local meat -- and discovered that the fellow that sharpens knives and scissors lives right in my new neighborhood -- I'll be talking with him soon as I have several pair of scissors that need to be sharpened!

when I signed up for the newspaper, we were given a free paper, and as I usually do, I went right to the arts section checking out what is happening in the arts locally

and let me tell you, there is quite a bit

a few years ago -- back when I was actively doing art shows all over the country -- I did one of the Art Walk shows in this town -- I was pleased to see that they are still doing those shows

on impulse I applied for the May show yesterday -- after all, I have lots of jewelry inventory available as that is what is in my Etsy store, and all of that is with me, so I know right where it is -- we'll see how that all works out -- will a local address make any difference?  who knows!

meantime, I've been working on my piece for the Hoffman Challenge -- I have another dome to attach there on the left hand side and I still have to do the little "balls" at the top of each dome and embroider the crosses on top -- but it is getting very close to done

I had set myself a goal to have this piece ready to be quilted by the time we are into the new house -- it looks like I'm going to make that!

things are moving right along