Minutia

I absolutely think you are right that early morning in the dark, gloomy thoughts can prevail.   

The sun coming through the windows does make a difference.

Also, I agee, that we are so spoiled.  I have always known that my family in England spend

an inordinate amount of money for gas (petrol), which is why they drive the smallest cars they can find.   But since my first visit to England in 1964, I have been quite aware just how spoiled Americans are.   We have so much, and overall, most people have no idea how well off they are, and have no idea how expensive things are in other countries.   I was always shocked by how little "space" they have in England....small houses, small yards.....after all it is a small country.  Compared to our huge houses, and huge yards, it made quite an impact on me. 

In 2001, I went to Guatemala on a medical mission.   I came home thinking that everyone should have a "3rd world experience", just once.  If you want to know how spoiled and priveleged we really are, I highly recommend it.

I don't drive around much, so higher gas prices won't be too hard on me.  A tank of gas lasts me quite a while.

It's $4.03 in my neighborhood, and will probably get a lot higher.

Insulating my house isn't an option......because it's a post and beam house, there are no spaces in the walls for insulation, which means "studding up" the walls would be the only way to go, and with the price of lumber and insulation, it would not be feasible.  I am too old to reap the rewards of such a venture.

On a happier note, I just got the statement from my fuel company, and I have to admit, I must have read the last one wrong......I did not spend as much as I thought I did, and it wasn't as scary as I had imagined.    I could still find ways to cut back, but maybe not as drastically as I thought.....although again, who knows how much fuel will be this coming winter.

Only time will tell.

I am going to get heavy drapes for two of my doors that are drafty, cheaper I think than putting in new doors.   I am also going to do some research on the option of turning down heat at night, versus leaving the thremostat alone.   I know some say that it doesn't save you any money, but I can't see how that is true.

Today I hauled myself over to Aldi's, a bit out of my comfort zone, as I usually shop 3 miles down the road from my house.  But every time I go, I am glad that I did, and today was no exception.  I have 5 bags here, and honesly some of them are too heavy, but that's how many I took into the store.....and it came to $113.   Usually I leave my grocery store with 3 or 4 bags, and it is always over $100.  Plus their veggies and fruit are mostly nicer.  A whole pineapple for $1.55, and a gorgeous canteloupe, that was huge, for $2.29.   I had a list, and I didn't think that I would find everything on my list in that store, but I did.

Organic tofu........$1.55.  I am shopping their MORE OFTEN.   For sure going forward, as we anticipate higher prices for food that we are paying even now.

I'm not sure if I have already shared these, but they are my new favorite purchase, so here they are anyway.

Amazon......about $15 for 48 of them.

If you have dry eye, and boy do I ever have it....they are the bomb.   I put it on at bedtime...it stays warm for an hour, and when I wake up, usually in the night sometime, I take it off.

My dry eye has improved greatly doing this.

MYEBONG.....that is the brand name of these, but there are several vendors.

I have been doing a little spring cleaning......this front bedroom upstairs got some 

downsizing and cleaning.

It has my stepper machine in the window, and other than that, I use this room to wind skeins on my electric skein winder, and to wind cones on my electric cone winder, and to store thread, obviously.

This is only some of my yarn stash, there is more downstairs.  I have gotten rid of a

lot of it though.

In the hallway right outside this room is where I play with watercolors sometimes.

Play is the operative word, I am not very good.

It has been way too warm in my humble opinion....I know it is somewhat of a relief after the winter we have had, but I hate it when we jump from winter to summer, with no spring in the middle.

I need to ease into it.

I do love my house, but some days I wish it were not on the NYS highway.  There is way too much traffic.  Either I don't hear it at all, or it drives me wild.    So clearly, it is me that's the problem.

Maybe I need a nap.

.     

Case of nerves

Am I the only one getting a little nervous here?  I wonder if it's because I'm on my own these days...........but yesterday the talk on the radio talk show, the "Round Table", was that the projection for gas prices is $5-6/gallon.   OK, I don't drive far, I can probably deal with that, but the price of OIL and of ELECTRICITY  will go up as well.  And those are things that I do have to have.  they predict that we are going to be feeling the pinch, and soon.

So my brain is struggling to figure out how this will work.   

I do have some savings, but not a nest egg that makes me feel untouchable, for sure.

I can't just get in my car and drive to warmer climates, I have dogs, and a cat.  Not to mention that driving long distances at my age is daunting.  After a couple of hours, I remove my stiff body from the car, and imagine that I am a pretzel for the duration.

I can't move in with any of my kids, for the same reason.........either they don't have animals in their house, and don't want any, or they have too many animals already, and more would be pandemonium.  Anyway, it would be unfair to my own.

Someone suggested that I do major work on my house to insulate.  Well, that is difficult.  My house is a post and beam....the studio built in 1790, the main part of the house in 1810.  There are NO studs, and no spaces for insulation.  The walls are wood on wood on wood.....siding, wood wall, lathe and plaster..........so the only way to insulate is to stud up the inside walls.....making all the windows "set in", insulate, put up dry wall, plaster and paint.

You hear the sound of $$$$$, right?  Because I do.  The price of construction materials is out of this world....so to stud up all the outside walls, on the inside of the house, would be quite the pricey venture.

There are also SIPs......which are structural insulation panels, that you put on the outside of your house.......and the windows are "set in", but on the outside of the house instead of the inside.....and again.....astronomical prices.

I could BUY a wood stove.....more $$......would need a special chimney built.....and then I would have to BUY wood, and I would have to haul it in, tend the fire, etc.  I have done all that before, several times in my life, but I sure was a lot younger.

I could sell the house, but buyers would also be thinking that they would have to heat this big old place.  And every time I see a house that I might be interested in, it is gone within the week.......there are a whole group of people looking to buy, perusing the market daily, and jumping on anything good in my price range.

The one thing that might work is to shut off most of the house, turn the heat way, way down there, and live in just the studio, which is the sunniest, warmest, easiest to heat part of the house.  It would be somewhat restrictive, and I would definitely not like it much, but it might be my only option.  Unfortunately.

We are, as a culture, very spoiled, I know.  And that includes me.  

I love my huge, old house, and I love that I can ramble around it all on long winter days.

I have been blessed to have done it all these years, I know.

But maybe not this coming year, eh???

No photos today.  Just me, thinking out loud.

What are you all going to do???   Because we are all in this together.

Gratitude

Towels are done.  I am told that they look a little Christmas-y.  I can't explain why I chose those colors at this time.   I like them anyway.

This is my towel stash so far......88 with about 20 more on the loom.

Who's counting?    I am, of course.

Looking at my heating bill for this winter, I realize that something has to change.

I am considering how I can turn my heat down, and move through the house with the sun.

Weaving in the sunlit studio in the daytime.

And using the gas stove......with the beautiful glass windows on three sides.....

in the living room in the evening.

I think I can get my heat bill down, if I don't try to heat the huge dining room and kitchen 

the same as the rest of the house.   That's my plan anyway.

My friend and neighbor says I should just move into the studio which has it's own source of heat, and gets sunlight all day long.

I could but I really don't want to move my entire kitchen.

I'm trhing to think it through, and not be impulsive.  Goldie is givingi it all some thought as well.

Before I forget........to answer the question about the blinds, they just keep the draft out.  When looking at the window with an infrared light, the change was dramatic.............purple for super cold with the shade up, and orange ....much warmer when the shade was down.  That was my only goal.

And hello KATHY BOYD!!!   I remember you doing your weaving weekend here......seems like a long time ago.

I love hearing from old friends.....bloggers that I have met along the way, and students I have taught to weave.  I wish I had kept a list of all those students, there have been so. many.

I recently found a treasure.....I've been looking for one close enough to buy, for a long time.

 

I just took it over to my neighbor, who inspected the cord, and did a small repair, so it's safe.  It is really old.  It will make ironing my towels a whole lot easier.

Yesterday I had a physical at with my primary GP.   I haven't had one in ages, and I needed to 

have a resource that was up to date, when and if I need one.

He said I was in "pretty good shape".......he didn't say "for your age", even though I heard it 

clearly.   It's OK, I'll take it.  It's a blessing to be on my feet, of pretty sound mind, and still excited about getting up every morning.   It took me a while to get into a new to me rhythm after my husband died, but I'm ok.   I miss him, but I'm ok.  He would be glad for that.

My shoulder is complaining that I'm weaving too much in a day, so today I only wove one towel, and then I proceeded to organize the studio, starting in one corner, and working my way around.  I figure I will do that every day, then move on to the rest of the house.   If I keep busy with it, my whole house and studio will be clean, and I will have woven a towel a day.

Best I can do right now.

Warm days are coming, here and there.  I'm so happy to think that spring is right around the corner.  

Thanks for stopping by.....it makes me smile.