My Halloween Concert is This Weekend!

I've been busy practicing and practicing. I'm almost ready for our annual Halloween Music Concert at church. I started it last year, performing several "dark" piano and organ pieces for Halloween. I also invited a guest organist, Dr. Richard Peak, to perform Bach's "Toccata and Fugue in D Minor". It was lots of fun, and very successful. So, this year I'm doing it again.

I'll be starting off the concert with several fun pieces like themes from "The Munsters" and "The Addams Family" and "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone". Then, we'll be dancing to "The Monster Mash". We also have a skit prepared with "Dracula" and our church's pastor having a conversation about blood.

After that, we'll be taking an offering. Half of the offering will go to Hurricane Katrina and Rita relief funds. The other half will be used by the church in our building fund. Our church is over 50 years old, and is in great need of repair.

After the offering is taken, we will continue the concert with more serious works, interspersed with true stories of Christian martyrs. It's amazing the suffering these martyrs had to endure for their faith. We take our faith for granted these days, not realizing how difficult it was in the foundation of our church. This musical tribute is our way of recognizing them for All Saints Day.

I'm looking forward to the concert. My fingers are ready!

If you want to come, the concert will be taking place at Memorial United Methodist Church in Charlotte, NC. The address is 4012 Central Avenue.

Why are Disasters "blamed" on the Government?

I tell you....I am so sick of hearing everyone cast blame on the establishment for the effects of disasters. I mean, it's called a "disaster" for a reason. If it was easy to fix, it would be called a "little problem".

Take Hurricane Katrina, for instance. I feel sorry for the plight of the people that endured that tragedy. I even gave money to The United Way to support the rebuilding of that area. But, it just amazed me to see everyone blaming the government for the way things turned out. Don't get me wrong.....I'm not downplaying the extent of the disaster. As I said before, it's called "disaster" for a reason. Utter turmoil and confusion go hand in hand with events such as these.

But why in the world did we expect it to all be fixed the very next day? This was a disaster unlike anything we had ever experienced before. No one knew how bad it would be. No one could have known. I would go so far as to say that if we HAD known, we STILL wouldn't have been able to handle it.

The crux of the problem was the fact that many of those people chose to stay instead of evacuating. They usually stick it out through these hurricanes, so they expected to do the same this time. But, when things went wrong, they started blaming everyone else! The disaster would not have been as bad if they had left before the storm. That's the real problem. People should not live under sea level in the path of hurricanes. It's just not smart.

Another thing....our society has gotten to the point that we expect everything to be fixed immediately if things go wrong. We watch movies and see tragedy corrected in a well-planned manner by the heroes of the story. We see soldiers and government officials and muscular civilians being "super heroes" in the face of disaster. Everything turns out perfectly in the movies.

Our society has developed a mindset that our real world functions the same way. Well, it doesn't. We are all human, including the government officials and soldiers and muscular civilians. I wouldn't expect any one of you to handle Hurricane Katrina any better than it was handled. Get real. There is no such thing as a real Rambo. Sure, there are brave men and women who overcome tremendous obstacles and live to tell the tale. But even if you combined all of them, they wouldn't have been able to fix Hurricane Katrina either. They would have all been crying like babies and wading through the waters too.

More Excitement in Sandy's Craft Room

I know, craft work doesn't sound exciting to you, but it is to me! If you've read other entries in my blog, you'll know that I spent quite a bit of time getting this craft room ready. After sorting crafts, choosing furniture, painting the walls (yech!), and setting it up, I am more than deserving to enjoy my craft room as much as I like.

A few nights ago, I made my little door decoration of a sheep saying, "Don't BAAAAAther me" from a t-shirt I got on eBay. The t-shirt is a size medium, and I am a few sizes bigger than that, so I can't imagine that I would ever be able to wear it. So, I cut out the design on the front, cut a similar sized piece from the back, but quilt batting between the layers, and sewed them together. Next, I added sequins and beads on the stars to make them twinkle. Then, I added a pretty lace border on the sides. Now, it is hanging on my craft room door, warning intruders to stay away. It sure is nice to have a sanctuary from the chaos.

Speaking of chaos, I think my craft room is beginning to fall into that category as well. lol

A-crafting I will go....A-crafting I will go.....Heigh Ho the Dairy Oh......A-crafting I will go!

A Wonderful Day at the Southeastern Animal Fiber Fair!

Yesterday was such a wonderful day. I went to my very first fiber fair. The Southeastern Animal Fiber Fair is taking place in the mountains of North Carolina right now. I attended the opening day and they are continuing the fair today and tomorrow. I wanted to go every day, but my schedule would not allow it. I had to play the organ for a wedding today, and I also have to play for church tomorrow, so that keeps me home this weekend.

But, yesterday was free, so off I went to the mountains. The weather was absolutely perfect as I drove my little 4 cylinder car up and down the hills. It's a good thing I wasn't in a hurry, because my engine was struggling just to make it up those hills! I stayed in the right lane, along with all the slow moving trucks. I know one thing, if you want to see how good your car's engine is, just take it on a trip to the mountains! Some cars were just whizzing by....lucky ducks!

Since I was driving in unfamiliar territory, I ended up getting lost. So I stopped a couple times asking for directions. One wrong turn ended up giving me the most beautiful view of the hills I've ever seen. I was on Happy Springs Road - lovely!! As I was driving along, viewing the gorgeous scenery, I said out loud, "When I retire, I want to live right here!" Cabins, grazing animals, beautiful mountains, green grass, perfect skies, nice cool breezes. It really was a little bit of heaven.

Eventually, I arrived at my destination. The Western North Carolina Agricultural Center. Finally! I wasn't sure which building to go to first, so I pulled out the map I had printed from the website www.saffsite.com and perused the layout. I decided to go on into the main building. I was afraid to look at the animals first, because they might set off my allergies, which would make for a very long day. So, into the yarn and fiber displays I went.

As soon as I walked in the door, I was greeted with loads of handspun yarn. If I wasn't careful, I would spend every dime I had without taking another step. I decided to walk all around the entire arena before I bought anything. I wanted to see my options first!

I turned right at the top of the circular arena and looked at each display. Many of the vendors were just getting started setting up their wares, since I was there early on the first day. It turned out to be a blessing, because I was catching the sales before anyone else had even seen them. At one display, a lady was selling sock yarn for $2.00 a skein! I spent 10 dollars, and had 5 skeins of beautiful sock yarn as a reward. That stuff usually sells for about 8 dollars a skein! I was pleased.

I came upon one lady who had angora rabbits in cages. I was so taken with those rabbits, having never seen one up close before. They are so much bigger than I thought they would be! They looked like JUMBO rabbits to me.

I asked the lady if they like to be touched, and she said, "Go ahead, touch 'em all you want." So, I carefully put my hand forward and stroked the back of one rabbit. So soft! Like butter!! It took me a few minutes to take my hand away, because I was enraptured with the feel of it. If I wasn't careful, I would be walking out the door with a newly purchased angora rabbit! She told me all about the rabbits, how she takes care of them and how she shears their fur a few times each year.

As you know, I'm a new spinner, trying to master using my Ashford Traditional Spinning Wheel. I noticed that she had a spinning wheel set up in her area, so I mentioned that I am trying to learn to spin, and I've never seen anyone do it in person before. She said, "Oh, let me show you!" She was so sweet. She sat right down and started spinning. I asked her some questions, and she gave me lots of good information. I'm feeling much better about my spinning education now.

Next, she showed me some angora blended yarn. Unbelievably soft. I thought that I would never buy any other type of yarn again. No wonder angora sweaters are so expensive. It felt like baby skin.

Next, she showed me the alpaca yarn. She said that she raises alpaca also. The alpaca was just as soft as the angora! She showed me the difference in the feel of a hat made with wool, and a hat made with alpaca. Amazing. I decided that I had to forego my earlier plan and purchase some alpaca fur from this lady. Besides, she had been so helpful to me already!

I bought 4 ounces of dark brown alpaca, and 3 large bags of hand-dyed cotton roving. (It was soft too!) Altogether, I spent 20 dollars at her display. So far, I had spent 30 dollars in one hour. I decided to just look for a while, to keep my dollars in my pocket. I needed to make sure that I had enough money to eat and buy gas for my trip home!

After looking at all the other displays, I glanced at my watch and noticed that it was already 12 noon. My knitting class would start at 1:00, so I chose to break for lunch. Unfortunately, they had no food vendors, so I drove down the road and bought a chicken salad sandwich at Arby's. Those sandwiches are so good. I also treated myself to a cherry turnover and a small Mountain Dew. It made for a nice lunch.

When I came back to the arena, it was almost time for my class to start. I found the class, and chose a seat near the back. The instructor asked what kind of projects we were knitting on our own, I waited for the others to talk, then admitted that I was making socks. She said, "Why are you in this class? You don't need to know anything I'm teaching today." I said that I've never taken a knitting class before, so I just wanted some reassurance that I was doing things properly. She agreed to let me stay, and then we started her project.

It was a cute little amulet bag that looks like an owl. It was fun to make. I did learn a few things, so it wasn't a waste of money. When the class was over, I asked her to show me a few other kinds of stitches I needed to understand better. She was very helpful. I was amazed to hear that she has been knitting for 50 years! I don't think I'll make it that far, unless I live to be 90.

When I left that class, I walked over to the animal buildings. I had saved this for last, because I was afraid that my allergies would act up. This way, I could leave and drive with my windows open to clear out my lungs.

The animals were so sweet. I saw the llamas first. They seemed so kind and gentle. I took some photos of them, and they didn't even flinch. One of them was standing close to his owner, and the man wrapped his arm around the llama's neck and gave him a hug. It was so darling.

Next, I walked over to the alpaca display. They were just as gentle, with the most beautiful doe eyes. I was in love. I imagined myself living in a little cabin with an angora rabbit to snuggle, and an alpaca to play with. Dreamy.

I learned a lot about yarn, spinning, fiber, roving, animals, and knitting. It was a very productive day. I would only change one thing about it all. I wish I could have stayed for all three days. Next year, I'm getting a substitute organist so I can get away for the whole event.

Here's my little teapot!

In order to avoid burning down my house, I have had to purchase a new tea kettle.

My very first teapot was beautiful, shiny, and copper. It was a gift from a sweet lady at my first wedding. The teapot was beautiful, and sat on our counter for about 2 years. Then, I had my first child, Joshua. He was a sweet quiet baby, but a little taxing sometimes (I later found out that he was autistic). So, one day when I was feeling a bit tired, I decided to try out my beautiful teapot and make a nice cup of hot tea. It was enjoyable, and helped me to relax.

Thereafter, I often would set the kettle boiling and make tea to help me make it through the day. Especially after my second was born (Noah). He was quite different from Josh in every aspect. Loud, silly, and fun-loving. He's still the same today. : )

One evening, I put the teapot on the stove, then went upstairs to change diapers, brush teeth, wash faces, read bedtime stories, etc. I completely forgot about the teapot, and discovered its charred remains the next morning. I was devastated, because it was such a beautiful pot - and I didn't have the money to replace it.

Over the years, I have bought other teapots and ruined them all. Bummer. I guess their whistle wasn't insistent enough for my hearing. So, I quit buying teapots, and just boiled water on the stove in a small saucepan. Big mistake. Now I have sent several small saucepans to an early grave.

After burning my last tiny metal saucepan (which was a nice pot from a set I received as a gift from my mother), I resolved to find a teapot with a good strong whistle that I could afford.

I chose Target as my target for a new teapot. Slowly and carefully, I perused the small aisles of kitchen appliances until I spotted the cheap teapots on the bottom shelf. I wasn't willing to pay more than 20 dollars for a pot I might end up burning. Luckily for me, Copco manufactured a small teapot (1.5 quart capacity) , and the best part was the price - 10 dollars! Well, I snatched up that puppy, and headed for the register.

Here is a photo that looks quite similar to it:

Cute, huh? I was pleased. I read the instruction leaflet in the box, just for fun. I was surprised to read that you should never turn the burner to high. You should only use a low or medium setting.

Well, I tried that out, and 10 minutes later, the water was not boiling....no whistle or anything. So, I decided to forego the instructions and turn that bad boy up. Success! It was boiling and whistling like a steam train in about a minute. I walked down the hall to see if I could hear it from all reaches of the house. Being satisfied with the quality of whistle tone, I went back to make myself a cup of tea. It was excellent.

So now, I think I have finally found my perfect teapot. Unbelievable after so many years of burning metal.

Christmas Knitting

Since I have a craft room now, I MUST make myself do plenty of crafts for Christmas. My church usually has a craft bazaar, so I'm trying to make some things for that. See that huge box full of Christmas yarn? I have no excuse - I must be knitting. : )

I've made LOTS of scarves now, so at least I've gotten one thing accomplished. Hopefully, they'll all sell at the Christmas bazaar. I usually charge 15 to 20 dollars for each scarf. It was fun to make them the color I want, instead of trying to match a color request from a customer.
They'll say something like, "I want Vanilla, with Gold Flecks." So, I'll try several different combinations until I get it to look like what they asked for. It's a real pain sometimes, like when I had someone ask for a scarf with "purple, red, and yellow for my daughter". It took FOREVER to make a good combination with THOSE colors! Gladly, my customer was thrilled with the results, so I guess I got it right.

I've also been making some embroidered Christmas cards. I'm not sure if I want to sell those. I might decide to use them myself!

What Do You Call This Decade Anyway?

OK, I know what to call the past few decades. The 60's, the 70's, the 80's, the 90's. But what is THIS decade - The OO's? Oohs? Aughties? Zips? Ohs? Zeros?

I am so confused.

When VH1 looks back on the music of this decade, what will the title be? "I love the ooh's"?

Is there a way for us to see what they called it in the 1900's? Is there anything in old newspapers that refers to the decade from 1900 to 1910?

And while we're on the subject, what will we call NEXT decade? The Ten's? Teens?

Now, I'm more confused than I was before.

Getting Ready for Choir Retreat

Today is a busy day. In fact this whole week has been crazy. Tuesday, I taught piano lessons as usual. Wednesday, I had to cancel lessons because I was playing piano for a men's quartet that was performing in Charlotte. Last night (Thursday) I had a piano lesson and two choir rehearsals. I also had to practice my music for Sunday's service.

And now....back to today. Our church choir is going on a retreat tonight, and since I'm the accompanist, I'll be going as well. (They can't very well practice without me!) We'll be looking at music for Christmas as well as preparing for upcoming performances in the fall. Since the piano at the retreat center is in bad shape, I'll be taking my keyboard. I'll have to take an amp from the church as well, because I'm not sure if my keyboard will have enough volume to fill up the rehearsal room. So, that's two huge items for travel. With my luggage and knitting bag, I'll be lucky if I fit in my car to drive it! (My car is pretty small.)

In addition to getting ready for the retreat, I have some things to take care of at home as well. Getting the house in order will be my first priority. Then, I'll be paying some bills, taking some things to our storage unit, and stopping by the music store to pick up some sheet music.

I made the mistake of listing the wrong title in the bulletin for this Sunday, so I have to go and purchase the title I listed! I put "Simple Gifts" as the prelude, but it's actually "Ash Grove". I'm always getting those two tunes mixed up in my silly head. The bad part is I don't even HAVE a rendition of "Simple Gifts"! So, after I find a piano or organ version of that tune, I'll be ready to go to church.

We'll only be staying at the retreat center for one night, so I shouldn't miss Marvin too bad. But, it will be difficult to sleep without him. I don't know who my roomie will be, but I hope they can put up with my knitting late at night.

Poor Marvin is working late tonight anyway....it's month-end. He works for Chick-Fil-A as a manager, and he always has tons of work to do at the end of each month. Inventory, reports, etc. So, he'll be getting home late. He is planning on getting his kids this weekend, but I'm not sure if he'll get them tonight or tomorrow. So, that means, I have to do extra work at home to get the house ready for all those sleepers, just in case they come tonight.

I hope he waits until tomorrow to get them. That way, I can be here to help everyone get settled in a place to sleep. I'd hate to see what would happen tonight if I am not here. They'll probably destroy everything in the house looking for blankets and pillows. I have them stacked in a room of the house, but for some reason they can't see them. Strange.

I am looking forward to the choir retreat, though. It should be nice and relaxing. After we practice tonight, we'll stay up and play games and spend time together. Tomorrow, we'll have breakfast, practice some more, have lunch, practice again, then we'll be performing for a Catholic church service in the evening. I've never been to a full Catholic service before, so it should be interesting. I've been to a Catholic funeral, and I've even been the organist for a Catholic wedding. Now, the circle will be complete. : )

Monday is looking better and better. That will be a WONDERFUL day of relaxing. I REFUSE to do anything that day!

I REFUSE TO FELT!

I must be a knitting purist or something, but I have no desire to FELT any of my knitting. I mean, you have to knit a HUGE item, and then it shrinks down to a little tiny thing that doesn't even show any of your stitches. I mean, you can't PROVE you did any of it! And, why would I want to make something that looks like the felt sheets I can buy at a craft store? I just don't get it.

Anyway, enough of my blabbering. I'm still learning new things as I knit each night. I started knitting about 2 years ago, and so far I've accomplished scarves, hats, dishcloths, baby booties, bookmarks, headbands, a baby sweater, and socks. (I'm most proud of the socks - those were so COOL to make!) Here's a photo of my first pair of socks, and another shot that shows my feet snuggling inside of them.















Now, my dream is to learn to make cables and do fair isle designs. I will learn to do those things - it is a definite goal.

God Bless My Craft Room

A couple weeks ago, I finished my "God Bless My Home" crewel project. I just didn't have time to post it, because I was so busy painting and setting up my craft room. Can you believe I finished it? It only took about 20 years. lol

It's nice to have that finished, because it's been hanging over my head forever. I was just always setting it aside, because I was so busy working full-time and being a single mother. Now that I'm doing music full-time instead, I've got lots more time to put into it. Also, my health condition has kept me from getting out of the house as much as I used to. Since I'm home, may as well put myself to good use in my craft room!

I've been busy making Christmas crafts now, getting ready for our church's Christmas Craft Bazaar. My mom is going to come also, so it should be a good way for us to spend some time together. Maybe she'll actually be nice to me, and not criticize me for my weight, my house, my kids, or whatever else comes to her mind. I tell you.....that woman.

My first Christmas craft was a felt stocking with a reindeer on it. Last night, I made a Christmas Bell, and started making a Christmas Hat. I've got a folder full of ideas of things to make for that bazaar. After the bazaar is over, I've got to get to work on Christmas gifts! I guess I'll be making scarves, hats and dishcloths again. They are quick and fun gifts to make.

Rainy Day Tea Party for One!

Today is a rainy day. "Rainy Days and Mondays Always Get Me Down", as Karen Carpenter used to sing. : (

But, I'm making the most of it today. Mondays are my day off each week, and I try to relax as much as possible. Today, I truly accomplished it, having slept until 1:30. It was a nice sleep - you know how it is when the weather is bad outside, and you're tucked under the covers. Blissful.

After taking my thyroid medicine, and signing on to eBay, I put on a kettle for tea. Then, I stepped outside to check the mail. Behold, new teabags! I had won a couple sample pack auctions on eBay, and they had arrived! Yippee!

So, needless to say, I decided to try the new teas. I made one cup of each. Osmanthus Exotica Tea and Yamamotoyama Ginger - both from the Stash Tea Company. They were excellent. The Exotica tea is a black tea with a very fresh taste, almost like Taiwan green tea. The Ginger tea is a hot and spicy green tea. Very nice way to start the day.

I took the photo on my computer desk in our bedroom. The first photo I took would not show the color of the teas, so I put one of my new craft room drapes underneath them. Now, you can easily see the black and green tea colors. By the way, the drapes are beautiful hanging in my craft room. I won 3 sets, and I only have 2 windows. So, I am going to use the leftover drape fabric to make seat cushions for my rocking chair and computer seat. It should be nice.

Remembering My Younger Years

I've been thinking about my life a lot lately. I've spent a good portion of my life at the piano or organ, performing all kinds of music. My first paying job was as the pianist at Wilson Grove Baptist Church. I was 15 years old, and was so excited about making $50 a week playing music! It was a great experience for me. The music minister, Bill Mills, was a wonderful man who took me under his wing and taught me so much. I truly respected him and admired his family. His wife, Peg was so sweet. She and Bill would have me over to visit anytime I wanted. I considered them to be my second family. The organist at the church was named Karen Price. She was a jewel. She and I did organ-piano duets for every service - We even did a concert once!

Now, it's 26 years later, and I've worked for many churches as pianist or organist or choir director. My experiences have been as varied as the churches. I've performed for over 200 weddings, played organ for televised services, and sung solos for a crowd of over 4000 people. It's been fun.

Craft Room is Officially Being Used!

I've done a lot over the past few days, getting everything moved in and organized in my new craft room. It is so nice to finally have a place for all of my craft stuff to be kept and used. I'm in heaven. I bought a new pair of reading glasses to help in seeing my close needlework, and also purchased a magnifying glass that clips to my table for really close work.

All of my yarn is stored and organized. Some of my old yarn is ready to leave the house via eBay or Goodwill. Christmas crafts are ready to be worked on, so I started making a felt stocking a couple nights ago. It's almost finished now. I hope to finish 9 felt stockings, along with some other items that I can sell at our church's Christmas Craft Show in the fall.

Sewing fabric and patterns are in boxes, embroidery and needlepoint kits are sorted and ready to go. Fiber is ready to spin, and the spinning wheel is sitting on top of the shelving, ready to come down and whirl. Knitting projects are in separate baskets, ready to be grabbed and worked on. Craft Books are arranged and in good shape. I can sit in my rocking chair and look around at all the projects, deciding which one to make next. It's fantastic!

It sure is nice to have a craft room now. (I can't stop saying that.) I'm so proud of all the work I've done. Sure, it would be nice to have a new sewing machine or serger, but my old stuff is just fine. And it would be nice to have a new floor, but I can live with this old carpet a few more years. I'm still as happy as a frog with his own pond.

Marvin teases me about it now, saying, "Are you gonna go hide in your craft room again?" or "What did you accomplish in the craft world today?"

I can't wait to tease him when I finish getting his hobby room set up. (My next project after Christmas....tee hee!)

Sewing Table and Yarn Storage 

Bookcases and TV in Craft Room 

Wow! My Craft Room is Almost Finished!

After one week of concentrated effort, I am beginning to see my craft room come together. Yes! All the paint fumes have affected me in a bad way. Now I have a very bad cold, or a sinus infection. I'm constantly sneezing and blowing my nose, my eyes are always tearing, and the roof of my mouth is itching. I also have a sore throat. Bummer.

But, one good thing is MY CRAFT ROOM IS ALMOST DONE! I'm ecstatic. I feel like a little girl on Christmas morning. I spent most of yesterday moving furniture into place. Marvin decided to make the new room his abode for the afternoon and watched a football game in MY Craft Room. (lol) I didn't mind really - it was nice to have him in there with me. He kept saying, "You did a great job in here. It's hard to believe that just a week ago, it looked completely different. You should put this makeover on HGTV." He's so sweet. I really love him. The photos above are from yesterday's progress.

Today, after church, I came home and collapsed in bed until 4:00. My respiratory ailment took me down for a while. After my nap and dinner with Marvin, we finished moving in the rest of the craft room furniture and I started searching all over the house for all my craft stuff. Magazines, books, bags of yarn, knitting projects, embroidery projects, sewing projects, sewing patterns, fabric, embroidery floss, needlework stands and hoops, spinning wheel, fiber for spinning, and various other craft items all began to pile up in the middle of the room. At the end of the night, Marvin looked in the room and said, "Where are you gonna put all this stuff?" (I think he was disappointed to see a mess in there already.) I said, "Don't worry. I have a plan in my head. I just have to get my hands and arms and legs to make it happen."

I haven't taken pictures of the chaos in there right now. I don't want to remember it. :P I'll take another picture when it's all done! Oh! By the way, I won the auction for the pretty floral swags on eBay. Yippee! I think I'll make shades to go under them myself - that can be my first new project in the craft room.

Painting is Done! Yee Ha!

Incredible! After 5 days of intensive labor (most of the time, except for teaching days), my paint job for the craft room is COMPLETE. I can't believe it.

There is only one small painting task left - touching up the ceiling with flat white paint. I'll have to look for that in the closet in the blue room. UGH! That is the room which is PACKED with junk right now. Luckily, the closet is near the entry door.

Also, I think I might want to buy some new covers for the light switches and power outlets. The silver chrome covers just don't look "crafty" enough for my taste. Hey - time for a trip to Lowe's and Home Depot! I always go to both of them to compare the prices and selection. That way, I know I'm getting the best choice. I need to buy new doorknobs anyway - the old ones were beat up, so I just kept them on while I painted. Now they have cream paint all over them. lol.

This has been an exhausting week for me. I got so hot and sweaty working in that room. I had closed the air conditioning duct and opened the windows to keep it well-ventilated. (Even then, my allergies acted up. But, I am beginning to understand now that my allergies will ALWAYS act up, regardless of the precautions I take.) Every time I had to go anywhere, I had to take another shower. I think I had more showers in this one week than I did so far this year! I'm due for another one right now. Whew! : P

The peach and pink look good together, and the cream trim looks nice with it. Once the curtains have been purchased and hung, the room should be a dream. I wanted to vacuum tonight, but the vacuum cleaner is on the blink. Will ONE MORE THING break in my house - PLEASE?! Maybe I can borrow my Mom's. She'll jump at the chance to get my house clean. lol

After the vacuuming is done, I'll be able to move the furniture out from the center of the room, then get everything set up the way I want. Hopefully, the room will be ready for full-force crafting by tomorrow! I think I'm gonna cry......tears of JOY!

Yesterday was PIANO Day!

I never posted anything yesterday, because I was so busy. After waking up and looking at the craft room (I couldn't paint the night before because I didn't want to be sneezing all day), I took my thyroid medicine, made a cup of Tazo Chai Spice tea, and tried to relax a little.

A lady at church had asked me to perform special music for the senior citizens luncheon at church this day. I decided that I would not be singing for the event, because I'm not in top condition with all these paint fumes in the house. So, I perused my piano music and made some selections that would work well. I chose the following pieces:

About Strange Lands and People
(from “Scenes from Childhood”)............... Robert Schumann

Ashokan Farewell
(from the movie “Civil War”)............... Jay Ungar

New Orleans Blues
and Bourbon Street Saturday Night
............... William Gillock

Waltz Opus 64, Number 2............... Frederic Chopin

Waltz in A Flat............... Johannes Brahms

The Lord’s Prayer............... Albert Hay Malotte

I decided to have the concert in the church's sanctuary so I could do the pieces justice on the grand piano. Good thing, too. The piano in the room where the seniors were meeting was in bad shape!

The concert went very well. They applauded after each piece, and offered their praise and thanks when it was over. I enjoyed performing those pieces - it was a perfect break from all that painting at home - good for my soul.

After the concert, I had to go back home. Marvin needs clean clothes, and I don't see anyone else here that can do our laundry.....so, back to our humble abode I drove. When I got home, I had to search our room for his dirty clothes - MARVIN! I hate it when he doesn't put all his dirty clothes in the pile where they belong. Socks were under the bed and under his chair in our room. Shirts and pants were in strange places. Eventually, all the clothes were in the laundry room where they belong, sorted and ready to wash. I threw in the darks, and went to the computer to crash from all that chaos.

What a contrast: Performing classical piano for an appreciative audience, then scrounging around under the bed at home to gather dirty laundry. :P I need a maid!

When the darks were finished, I put them in a laundry basket, then put the whites in to wash. Our dryer is dead right now, so we have to take them to the laundromat or hang them on the line until the dryer is repaired. Since I'm having a busy day, I decide to have Marvin take them to the laundromat tonight when he gets home. I write him a note and put a stack of quarters with it. I can call him to tell him about his evening "appointment" when I drive back to church.

Since the darks are washed, and the whites are in the washer, I decide to take a short nap before I have to leave. I have a piano lesson at 4:00, practice with a men's quartet at 6:00, and choir practice from 7:00 until 8:30. It's gonna be a long night.....I definitely need a nap.

The sleep is short, but sweet, and I wake up feeling a little better. I throw on the outfit I wore for the concert, and drive to church, remembering to call Marvin on the way. He's not mad about having to go to the laundromat, because he knows our crazy situation right now. He also knows how tired I am this week with all the painting and the concert and teaching and church music stuff. Whew!

My piano student does a good job - he always practices well. When he leaves, I go to the sanctuary and look over my selections for the organ for Sunday:

Prelude: "Aria for Organ" - Dennis R. Johnson
Offertory: "Deep River" - Robert W. Thygerson
Postlude: "God of Grace & Glory" - Anna Laura Page

I practiced them this past Sunday, so I decide to let it go until the service this week. Taking a look at my bench beside the organ, I resolve to straighten things up a bit. There is still music there from this past week. But I am so tired! And the sanctuary is so hot, because they don't keep it air conditioned during the week. So, I grab the music I need for the men's quartet and take it over to the cooler choir room. I call one of the men and tell him that we will be practicing in the room beside the choir room because the sanctuary is unbearable. He agrees.

I go over to the choir room, and sit down for a rest at the choir director's desk.

I make some calls:
To the organ technician - "Please come by soon and work on the Great manual. Several of the notes are not sounding at all." I tell him that during a hymn last Sunday, the congregation had trouble singing because some of my notes would not sound. I gave him an example like this: "A Mighty ------tress Is --- ----" He agrees to come next week to correct the "oxidation problem".

To my eye doctor - "Are my reading glasses ready yet?". They ask for my name - three times. They say they can't find my order. Perfect. They will check on it and get back to me. They take down my number.

To Marvin - "Hey Honey! How was your day? I love you...smooch...smooch" : )

To the owner of the music studio where I teach on Tuesdays - we go over the fall schedule.

When I'm finished making calls, I go to the piano in the choir room and practice some choral anthems. They are interesting. It's nice to have a director who chooses pieces that are challenging to me. I get so bored with simple anthems.

Soon, the choir director walks in the door, and we chat a little while as he sets up handbell tables. Then one of the men from the quartet arrives. Some of the handbell choir members are arriving, so I leave the piano and go to the room where the quartet will be practicing. I have my knitting bag with me, so I knit a few rows of a baby hat. (The Lion Brand Microspun Preemie Hat) When the quartet arrives, we practice until 7, then I have to go back to the choir room.

Choir rehearsal goes well, and now I can finally go home again! Yippee! A busy day of music, music, music!

Think Pink

ACHOO! Bless Me! Once again, I'm sneezing up a storm from the paint fumes. I knocked out the pink painting last night, and it went pretty fast! I was in bed by 1:30 - I must be getting good at this painting thing.

The photo above of the pink paint doesn't really show the actual color. I took it while the room was still dark this morning at 6 a.m. (The overhead light must have a lot of yellow in it!) The other photos show the disaster in the rest of the house. The picture of the "packed" room is where I've had to store all the stuff from the craft room while painting. The overflow and painting supplies are in the second room - our living room, which ain't really "livable" right now. You can see my spinning wheel there by the door!

It will make a HUGE difference when the craft room is ready for furniture and all those crafts. Our entire house will be transformed. I'm ready for the transformation!

Today, after the pink paint completely dries, I'll be painting the windows, doors, and trim. I don't like to paint doors, but they were painted already, so I have to change the color now. I'm using a nice creamy white called "Cookies and Cream". It should look great when it's done. Maybe I'll take a photo with a better camera for the end result. (I should be able to find it when all that stuff is put away. lol)

Choosing Curtains for my Craft Room

Since I'm taking a break from painting today, I decided to look for some curtains on eBay for my craft room. The peach and pink paint already lends itself to femininity, so I'm going to go romantic all the way. I want to have frilly flowered curtains.

Right away, I found a couple auctions that I wanted to win. I bid on one of them, but I've already been outbid. http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=4404168905&ssPageName=STRK:MEBI:IT Those curtains are so pretty, and the colors are perfect for the craft room. (Second picture at the top of the blog) Too bad I got bid out - maybe I'll decide to pay more than I originally planned. The other set I like is here: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=4405519441&ssPageName=STRK:MEBI:IT (First picture at top of blog). I'm still winning that auction, so time will tell which curtains will be mine.

Depending on which set of curtains I win, I'll need to get sheers or shades to go under them. I really like shades, but they are such a pain to install. Maybe I can get my step-dad to do it for me.

It's nice to have a day to relax today. I started off the day (when I woke up at NOON!) by taking my thyroid medicine, and making a nice cup of hot tea (Tazo Chai). Now, I'm on my second cup, and am thoroughly relaxed. My breakfast was a very unhealthy piece of red velvet cake. (I made it a couple days ago to use as emergency snack food during my painting extravaganza.) It was yummy.

I have a couple hours left now before I teach piano and voice lessons at 4:30, so I think I'll play Sims 2 on the computer. That would be nice. Hey - I know! I can make a house on the Sims and use one room as a model for my craft room! Cool! Maybe I'll put a screenshot here to show you what I make. Fun, fun!