and for your immense listening pleasure....the raconteurs!!!!!! featuring jack white. yeah, i kind of like this band!

boo!

wishing you all a bone-chilling halloween!!!

still here

well, sandy left us with very little damage, just a bunch of small branches down and leaves blown all over the porch. i was surprised at this because the wind was crazy! it sounded like a freight train rushing past the house for hours and hours, and the windows were rattling away.  we have two huge maple trees that i always worry about in the wind, one right over the camper, and one over the chicken coop and the house. we've been extremely lucky with those trees. i would hate to lose them!

when i went out this morning, the clouds were beginning to break, and there was actually some sunshine in the afternoon.

this weekend i did some sewing with this sewing machine, a 1964 singer, that i got at a yard sale this summer. when i got it home i couldn't believe the great condition it was in, and it had every single attachment and the manual still in their little box! i had also figured i would have to have it worked on, but i set it up and it worked great! i'm telling you, that machine is a real work horse!! they made them to last back then, no plastic in sight! i finished the little quilt i've been working on, and i'll take pictures of it once there is some sun!

hope everybody made out o.k. in the storm!!

storm's a' brewin'

we visited our friends at their beautiful old house in ossipee last night. delicious fish chowder, crackling fire, old friends, new friends , great conversation and s'mores!

meanwhile, back at home, this is what the sky looked like early this morning...

we've put away all of the lawn furniture and battened down the hatches.the candles are ready. we're in for the day now, watching football, eating chinese food and drinking beer. probably we'll just get a lot of rain, but we will soon see!

keep dry everybody!!

ready for the hurricane!

i am learning new computer-y things every day. today i learned how to post a picture from the internet(i am really a computer dummy....) anyway, i do think this picture is HILARIOUS!

thanks marj!

put a bird on it

this is one of my favorite books, "birds of america", first published in 1917. the writing is very conversational, folksy and charming. today we will examine the BLUE JAY.

"The Blue Jay is the clown and scoffer of birdland. Furthermore, he is one of the handsomest of American birds; also he is one of the wickedest, and therein exemplifies the literal truth of the saying "Fine feathers don't make fine birds."

"In the nesting season he is...little in evidence, not only because he has his own family affairs to attend to, but because he devotes a good deal of his time to his cannibalistic practices, concerning which he is anxious to keep the rest of the feathered world in ignorance. But once his family responsibilities are discharged, and there are no more nests to be robbed, his whole demeanor changes, and he becomes the noisiest and most obstreperous creature in the woods."

what a scamp!

*************
last night i went to boston and saw  HEARTLESS BASTARDS.
what an amazing band-i hope you get a chance to check them out!!

thrifty thursday

i was at the flea market a couple of weeks ago, and there was a man there with a table full of vintage textiles. i was looking at them, and saw this granny square afghan folded neatly in the corner. the last thing i needed  was another crocheted blanket , but this one was quite lovely and beautifully made, and all WOOL, not the dreaded acrylic (although i will admit that i have a new-found respect for acrylic yarn and it's better feel, washability and low-cost-li-ness!) just for the heck of it, i inquired as to the price...$5.00!!!!! five dollars!! so, of course i bought it, and it's perfect!

it kind of makes me sad to think that someone did all of this work, hours and hours, perhaps YEARS, and this beautiful blanket ends up on a table at the flea market for $5.00. well, i appreciate it and will take good care of it, and that means no evil kitty claws! sorry violet! you may pose ever so sweetly for the photos, but then off you go!

in other exciting news, i made these damn cute little slippers the other day. they are really easy and quick to make. you can find the pattern here on etsy: EvasStudio.

happy camper

the afternoon sun beats down on the camper, so it's cozy and warm when i get home from work. it's so nice to sit out there and play solitaire and listen to the radio. pretty soon i'll be loading it up with mouse traps and throwing the tarp over the top for the winter... but spring will be back before you know it!

i should be raking...

i guess i should be doing something about all those leaves out there...

i would much rather stay in here and work on my quilt!

pea soup

went for a foggy, drizzly walk this morning.

this is what i'm working on today.

this is what violet is working on....

a public service announcement!

watch out if you are ever in a card game with this guy.

he looks innocent, but you will lose your shirt!

little skirts

i just finished a few little skirts to deliver to g.williker's in portsmouth, nh.

i hadn't sewed in years and years, then my niece came along and i wanted to make her cute little girl clothes, and a floodgate was opened! i have been sewing ever since, and g. williker's carries my little skirts. they are the greatest local toy store with the nicest (and most patient!) staff, and a wonderful place to shop!

our house is on the small side, and i don't have a designated sewing area, so there are sewing machines stashed in corners and boxes full of supplies under tables and behind chairs...my serger lives in the pantry and i sew in the kitchen. it's a bit inconvenient, but it works! i do dream of having a room where i can just leave everything set up all the time... maybe someday!

you see that little gadget up there? it's called a bodkin, and if you ever need to thread a piece of elastic through a small channel, it will save your life! also, a great word!!

my friend nigella certainly rocks the little skirt look!!!