I did it, I did it, I did it!

I love this man.....



My oldest daughter, Lena and I went to see Alice in Wonderland (in Disney Digital 3D, mind you)! I choose this movie, because Of Johnny Depp. I would do (almost) anything for that man.

This is a major development for me. I have not just taken off and done anything like this for years. One problem was my adversion to being in crowds. Add extra noise and a lot of visual movement and I have a reaction of anxiety attacks. Thanks to some sessions with my psychologist and the meds they gave me I was able to finally go out and enjoy a movie.

We did the full movie theater thing. Hot dogs, popcorn, soft pretzels and drinks. The seats were comfortable, the audience polite and quiet...including the forty or so children there! The movie was really good, not great, but of course we all have our own visions of what Alice in Wonderland should be, and that would make the movie different for each and every one of us. The 3D was fantastic. I ducked quite a few times. Jumped a few more. Said WHOA more than usual. It was a great experience. About a half an hour before the end of the movie I found myself wondering when it would end, (not a good sign) but then the storyline picked up again and had me wishing there was a little more time left to the movie.

And then there was Johnny Depp. Like I said before, I love this man. Go see it! We went to a matinee which made it more affordable. I will be doing this again and again and again...

ACK!

It's been a while hasn't it??? Sorry. I was here all the time, I just wasn't present. The past month has been a roller coaster ride of sorts and I have finally gotten myself off the ride...for the most part.

What set me on the roller coaster ride in the first place was a move I HAD to make but was afraid to put into motion. I had to ask my middle daughter to move out. Several people encouraged me to do it. Police, my medical doctor and my psychologist...yes I now have a psychologist, are amongst the encouragers. What I had to do was so hard, but she was not trying to grow up and out of here, she was just partying in her little house in the back and bringing all sort of mankind around. Some of them less than what I would call good citizens. So for my safety and the safety of others who live here, it had to be done.

Of course, taking this step plunged me into a depression, hence the psychologist. She and I have been working together bi-weekly since January actually. I have meds, which is really helping me be level mooded. (is that a real thing?)

I am happy to say that I am happy! For a change. I am feeling as though there is something I can do here at home and out there in the world. I do not have a brain full of chaos. The house is no longer chaotic as well. OD and I will be the only residents for now. We will be able to plan out our schedules of cooking and cleaning and paying bills and buying food and going out and coming in. It will be nice to know what to expect!

This morning I got up and did the usual cup o' java and the computer. I got tired of sitting so went into my craft room and decided on some fabric to make a little cover for my Kindle. The prices for the ones from Amazon are fair, I just don't want to pay those prices. I am making one from materials and things I have around here, so it is kind of "free". I just had to spend some imagination.

I took pictures, and tried to put them on the computer, but the computer and camera apparently had a falling out and aren't speaking. Literally. There is NO communication between the two of them. Awkward! Imagine being the third party in a situation like this...

As soon as I can get the two of them to reconcile I will send along pictures of my creation. I like it. It's really cute.

Hope you are all having a wonderful week!

Crocheted Hats and Shawls

Well, I did get the hats and scarves finished on time...even with a little time left over. BUT...I had to get really sick to do it! I guess those powers that are bigger than me...bigger than all of us, knew I wouldn't be able to get them done on time while working full time and holding down a doctor's appointment a week and a class a week, so scheduled in some time off for me. I came down with some kind of bronchial virus thingy. Doctor told me I could not go to work until my next Monday...which gave me a full seven days with not enough energy to do anything but read and crochet. How very convenient!!!

So here are the two hats and scarves...



This is my daughter "O.D." modeling the hats and scarves. She was kind of excited that I wanted to take pictures of her wearing them to show you all...she's TWENTY NINE tomorrow...sniff, sniff!
The first set was a bugger to crochet. The yarn is beautiful, soft, but "curly". So getting the hook in the right space was, shall we say...challenging? I did it first, somehow knowing that it was going to be a little harder. The pattern itself became a challenge. I had to start over several times. The scarf was made up in my head from the pattern in the hat, so they would match.
The second was a breeze. Still super soft yarn, but not curly this time. The flowers were fun to make. We bought kind of deco patterned antique brass buttons to go in the center of the flowers. I also made up the scarf pattern from the pattern of the hat.
I am excited to find out how much they fetch at auction for my daughter's friend. I am making a hat and scarf set for her, to wear when her chemo treatments start making her hair fall out. I want to keep her warm and give her a little something soft to hang on to when times seem harsh.
In other news...I bought myself a Kindle with some of my income tax return. I L.O.V.E. That thing! I have purchased four books. They cost me $1.00! Two were free, one was $.99 and another was $.01! I have read one and a half of the books so far...thanks to having all that time off. There are a few things I would change on it...if I were smart enough to do something like that. I would suggest to the makers of this great little instrument...make the screen in color and get the voice that reads to me less robotic. I am sure someone in that company is working on those very things anyway. When they come out with it I will upgrade. Now I can rehome all my books (The ones my daughter hasn't already gotten rid of behind my back) I can fit 1500 books on my Kindle...I think that will keep me busy for a few years!
Speaking of Tsunami's.We had a two to three foot tsunami here today. It was bigger in Hawaii from what I hear. We all got to test our emergency systems that were set up after the horrible tsunami a few years back. (I have forgotten where it was) Our systems work well. I am happy about that. Now I just hope we never have to go through a bad tsunami. I also hope no one else has to suffer a devastating enough earthquake to start a bad tsunami ever again. This has been a bad year for quakes already!
Enough of my rambling. Have a great rest of the weekend!

A Nice (much needed) Day Out

So, last week, my oldest daughter asked me if I would crochet a few hats and scarves for a benefit auction. I am never one to turn down an opportunity like that. I love to give, I love to help out, but I am not one to go out and look for something to give or donate. If it falls in my lap I will take it on. (Is that wrong? Or am I being sensible in a weird sort of way?)
I am making two fairly simple hats and matching scarves to be auctioned. Then I will make a third hat and scarf more special. OD has a friend with breast cancer. All the people who know her are doing a benefit dinner and auction. Everyone is donating something to auction off. Since I can make these hats and scarves this will be my contribution. The hat and scarf that I am making special will be for her friend, so that when she has her chemo therapy, she has a nice hat and scarf to keep her warm after her hair starts to go.
OD is buying the yarns that I will use. She got her check so we went to the city (San Francisco) today to her bank. Then she took me out for breakfast at a small restaurant at the beach. I had a Veggie Bagel and coffee, she has a Pesto bagel and coffee. We had a great conversation. I met a friend of hers that she had met at this restaurant a few years ago. He is a local man who hangs out at the restaurant. His speech was slow, but he had a great smile and welcomed me to his home town. OD explained to me later that he had an accident when he was three ears old and had brain damage. He told me a little about his job and a lot about the home he lives in with his parents. It has a mural painted on the outside so that it looks like a jungle. I have often seen the home on my trips down that road. Now I know who lives there.
We had done a little research earlier this morning to see about some yarn shops in the city, so we could go check out the yarns there. We did end up getting the yarn for her friend's hat in the city and I got some Egyptian Cotton thread to experiment with making a grocery bag type project. But we just couldn't find the right colors or sizes of yarns we wanted for the other two sets of hats/scarves. We ended up going to my favorite store...where else? Joanns. We found exactly what we wanted there at a reasonable price. (The yarn we bought in the city was $25 for one set, what we got at Joanns was about half that for two sets!)
We were going to check out the other two stores we found out about in the city, but I started my anxiety crap half way through browsing the first store and we decided not to spend any more time there. On the way back to MY store I relaxed some and being in Joanns is familiar, so I was fine after that.
I did have a fun time. We had some good conversations and I met Peter (who put my life in prospective). I like the city a little, and I haven't been there except for a few minutes in the last 6 - 9 months. It was nice spending a little more time there today. It helped me out, because I am supposed to be planning fun time for myself. I think I could consider this fun time.
The weather cooperated too. Cloudy, but no rain...which now has started. I just heard the dripping outside. At least it waited til we got home and warmed up the house!
I'll post pictures as I get the hats and scarves done.