Workouts are a great way to start the day!

Thanks for the comments about retirement and being busy. I do NOT want to pick up anything else. There will be no committees or volunteer hours; the retirement time will be for ME! To do what I want for ME! So selfish, but that's OK. I'm the only one I can count on in a crisis, so I deserve the time! 

Oh my gosh—I swear Brooke got up this morning with mean thoughts in her head. Let's see how much we can torture the clients today! She was brutal! But the good news is that I can do it! I wouldn't have been able to do some of this stuff a couple of months ago, and it will only get better from here. 

Since I was awake very early this morning, I feel a nap will be in my future - out in the gazebo, where I can hear the birds, the waterfall, and perhaps the rain! But it sure feels good to exercise those muscles, sweat a little bit, and then sit in the chair with the compression legs and nap! It's a great way to start the day. 

I had the most fantastic day yesterday! I had an assignment that was niggling my brain, and after a candid discussion with the person in charge, we changed it up and now it's going to be fun! I even had a chance to write up the outline yesterday. It's incredible what sharing a concern can do for mental health. Keep it all in, try to force the issue; it isn't fun. But now, I can finish this assignment and have fun at the same time. 

Then I got to work on prepping one of the classes for the weekend. Oh boy --- it's a doozy. Some of these pattern writers just don't get it. They don't test their patterns or care about testing their patterns, and as a result, when you're teaching, I feel obligated to find the errors. I can't just say - well, you'll make it fit. But the good news is that I have discovered all the errors (I hope), and hopefully, the quilt will sew together like a dream. 

I need to go back and write the corrections in the book. I am behind, and there's no way I'll be able to catch up, so that will go on the back burner until July. 

Oh dear—I sort of lied about the Cherrywood Challenge. Out of the ten different themes, I've attempted SIX, not five, as I mentioned. I forgot I also made one for the Graffiti theme, but it wasn't accepted. 

I also purchased the kit for Monarch but didn't get anywhere with it. It's still intact. 

The Monarch kit

Like many things these days, Cherrywood fabric is becoming quite pricey. The Monarch kit in 2023 was $65 (I'm assuming that was CDN), and it was a bundle of eight fat quarters. When I purchased the Abyss kit this year, it was significantly more. It contained six half-yard pieces and six additional small pieces in bright colors called droplets.  

The price of the Abyss kit

There is also the entry fee of $43 CDN, but I like doing challenges, so I don't mind paying the price. I think challenges are a great way for people to grow. I think we need to push ourselves every day—not in a hard or super challenging way, but just try something different. 

For instance, this morning at the gym, Brooke had me hold hand grips and suspend myself in mid-air. Seriously? I can't do that! Well, the first round of three tries was pathetic. I got comfortable with it the second time and did 15 seconds for each of the three tires. I will NOT be hanging over a cliff or the side of a building like the daredevils do, but it's enough to help open up my back/chest and gain some hand strength. 

I don't know what this was all about. Sharing? Or just an accident. That is Murphy's ball parked on Lexi's doorstep! 

MOM - Lexi took my ball!

And I found this on my front step. It doesn't look good as there are no trees around. 

Oh dear - let's hope the outcome was good

I have decided to finish the Prince Cherrywood challenge. I will make that my new UFO, and I thought of some embellishments I could put on it. I went to my beading drawer to find something I remember buying a while back. OK - I'm lying - there are FOUR drawers jammed with stuff. 

One drawer of embellishments

I think they could use a good sorting. Lots of cool stuff in there, and I'm not ready to get rid of any of it. That's what I want to spend more time on. Making cool art pieces or whatever comes from my brain, but there is NO time for that. I should put a picture of those fabulous embellishments on my computer so when someone asks me to do something, I can guilt-free say NO, I have other more important things to do! 

Before I go, I have a question for you. It only came to my attention as I listened to a trivia question on the radio. What symbol is in the Starbucks logo? 

There's a picture of the logo on the store. I had never paid attention to it, and when they said the answer, I was surprised! I never knew that! 

What's on the logo?

Well, a lot more happened at my house yesterday, but thanks to Brooke, there's no time to tell you. Today is all about prepping for another class tomorrow. We had another software class last night. I'm far from an expert, but I'm starting to feel more comfortable with all the tools. OK - that's a blatant lie. I'm learning enough to be dangerous! 

On that happy note, I'm out of here!

Have a super day!!!

Ciao!!!