Wednesday, March 30, 2022

3 seasons in one.

 That seems to be the theme of March! Wake up in the winter, go to lunch during fall, and then drive in summer! Keeps things interesting.  I'm hoping that next week stays relatively mild so that I can work in my garden a bit. I'd like to get my onions planted.  My garden-goal this summer is to plant 6 tomato plants, 3 pepper plants, 3 broccoli, 1 zucchini, add to my strawberry plants, and then onions. That list as already grown since I first decided to downsize it a little bit for this year! Oh and pumpkins! I want lots and lots of pumpkins. My plan is to have lots of pumpkins and then a few weeks before Halloween, sneak out in the dead of night and put pumpkins on fence posts, stone walls, and other places. The chances of that actually happening is slim to none because a. once I'm in bed, I'm in bed, and b. I'm afraid of getting shot while sneaking around with my pumpkins. 

I told my colleagues about my retirement - my last day is exactly 6 months from today.  I'm really excited to be able to join the local quilt guild and to participate in some of the charity sewing groups they have. I'm excited to be able to participate in the monthly sewing days for the local Quilts of Valor program. I'm excited to be able to get the 10+ quilt tops from my aunt quilted and returned to my cousins and may actually go to Fairbanks AK to deliver my oldest cousin's quilt. And have a sip of the beer he brews - just a sip though. Alcohol, as it turns out, is very bad for my body even in small quantities. I wonder if he will remember me? I don't think I've seen him for close to 40 years. 

The more I talk/think about my retirement, the more it feels like the right thing to do. I know I could work for several more years where I am right now but it doesn't feel right. I think that I have outlived my effectiveness in that role.  I just feel as if I am being led in a different direction and I am SO excited to find out where that is!  

So looking at the weather forecast, although we are currently in the midst of a wintry mix, it looks as if it will be spring this afternoon with warm-ish temps and a little bit of sun. I'll make Casper very happy and take him for a romp down to the creek. And while I'm there, I'll look to see what good things are sprouting!


 

Friday, March 25, 2022

Spring.


I find it unbelievable that this will be the last spring that I will have to walk through campus on my way to work. Future spring walks through campus will be completely voluntary and I'm excited for that.  It's funny.  I thought that I would feel sad about retiring so early but I can honestly say that I have not experienced that. Last week I gave my official notice and it felt so right. I am so looking forward to my next career/life that utilizes my more artistic side. How I ended up doing the work I currently do, was totally happenstance.  I worked in banking of all things. That's where I started immediately after high school. I didn't really like the work but I was amazed that I could do it. I actually spent 13 years in banking, beginning as a clerk recording treasury rates and ending as secondary marketing underwriter. Around this time, a quilting frame fell from where it was propped and landed on my head. After that, my abilities changed a bit. I no longer had a head for anything mathematical and I switched to human services since that was a field that always had openings. I worked as a clerk/typist for the county base services/mental health and the department of welfare. Around this time, I may some changes and some rash decisions which led me to abandon where I was living and begin a new life with my 2 kids in a different part of the state. I wanted to go to college - I was the only one in the family who hadn't. I pressured myself into believing that I needed to attend the same university that the rest of my family had attended so off we went. In college, I had a wonderful professor who encouraged me to pursue a graduate degree in counseling. She taught a few of my 'chemical dependency' courses and said she thought I would excel in this kind of work. Since I really had no idea of what I wanted to do, I went ahead and applied and was accepted into the rehabilitation counseling program. Since then, I've worked in the counseling field - for a bit as a vocational rehabilitation counselor where I discovered that I really liked working with students transitioning from high school to college - and then on to advising in several capacities.

But it has all changed or maybe it is just me who has changed.   Does it matter? I think it will matter again one day. 

But the campus is beautiful and strolling through on a beautiful spring morning is a wonderful way to begin the day.



 

Monday, March 14, 2022

A mess.


This is a wall-hanging I just finished. I think it looks messy in this photograph - probably because it is so little.  The pattern is Bonnie Hunter's Rhododendron Trail - her mystery quilt from 2021. It was a challenge for me because not only did I make half the blocks, I made the blocks half-sized. For mathematically-challenged me, recalculating the block sizes accurately required me to focus fully on the task. Being able to focus for any length of time on anything is unheard of.  This photo doesn't really do justice - the wall-hanging isn't really that messy looking! There are a million little pieces and because it is a 'scrappy' quilt, lots and lots of different fabric.  Scrappy quilts are a Godsend for people like me who have been collecting fabric for a very, very, long time! 

So what isn't a mess?  These little beauties!  Glimmer and Tipper! I love them so much and look forward to spending lots of time with them when I retire later this year.  

 

Busy summer

So much for keeping up with this blog! Seems like there is always something to do and for that, I am very grateful! We finally have rain - i...