May Mini-Village

Posted on 2025-05-04 by Holly

Finished it up today – (1252 stitches) of a total of 3266 give or take.

This is the first of four on the new piece of fabric…

and back to more of the bird cage for this year’s LolaCrow Sal…

 

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Zwei Schnecken

Posted on 2025-05-01 by Holly

and for the rest of you – today’s bad pun – snail mail.

Bundled up and let it grow,,,,,

the fabric is more of the Zweigart vintage smoky white in 18 count. The floss in the green one is what came with the envelope, the blue snail I just pulled the listed DMC from my stash.

My plan is obviously three across and probably four down. The simple border is Sulky 4108.

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and the schedule resumes

Posted on 2025-04-29 by Holly

This morning I felt almost normal. Woke at a reasonable time,  managed to do a bit of stitching. Ran errands which included coffee and Costco, making it back home before noon.

Three loads of laundry over the day. Attending UCSF Medicine Grand Rounds by Zoom. A few more computer games and a trip through the garage. The last netted me a jacket that I wanted to pass along and some books – same.

But that wasn’t the “fun part.” I knew that I had brought my Samsung tablet back from Cannon Beach. I know that I slid it into its’ sleeve and placed it in the computer backpack. I remember emptying that very same backpack yesterday. Which means that tablet, whose sole function in existence is to provide access to Pattern Keeper has to be somewhere in the house.

Three hours later, I still didn’t have a clue. This is serious – all my progress on projects is on that device. Not quite the same brain function as my phone or laptop, but dedicated to just the one program.  I started looking on Amazon for how much I would be out if I needed a replacement tablet. Might actually be less than what I had spent last year, since I have no need for the latest and greatest.

One last run through the room – no dice. Ok – it might be replacement time. So I spend 15 minutes sorting through options: size, RAM, memory. Before I order, I decide to finish clearing my desk, then the pile of project bags under the window. While I am at it, I decide to put the project bags from this weekend in the bin. I pull them from the pile on the right, just under the desk overhang. And there sits the black case containing the tablet.

Ok, I think I need either some fresh air or a nap….

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was this a monday?

Posted on 2025-04-28 by Holly

As I sit down to dash off this short note, I have little to no memory of most of the day. I was totally and completely exhausted this morning when the alarm went off. I am sure that I got up, made a latte run and came back home.

The rest of the day is a bit of a blur. Tired doesn’t even begin to describe the day. I must have eaten something, certainly I had coffee. Then there was the trying to unpack everything from the weekend and putting things away in safe places.

Unfortunately, I don’t remember where those safe places are…. Let us just say that simple computer games were about all I could manage

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Not the fastest route

Posted on 2025-04-27 by Holly

Kind of like “not the sharpest crayon in the box.”  The route I picked home wasn’t the technically fastest route from Cannon Beach back to Berkeley, but it certainly way scenic and occasionally quite challenging.  Let me start with a couple of simple facts. 1) since a previous service update (our VW is a 2016) with software “improvements” neither George nor I can use our phones to display maps/routing/GPS on the screen.  This leaves us with the options of occasionally glancing down at a phone screen or attempting to navigate simply by listening. 2) the signage along some of the Oregon roads wasn’t always completely clear or helpful. 3) there was no way that I wanted to get anywhere near Portland and deal with that level of unplanned heavy traffic and general auto chaos. For those of you outside the US – there are no highway restricts on large trucks (lorry) driving on Sundays.

Anyway – the upshot is that we left Cannon Beach end of the morning and headed south on HWY 101, aka the California Pacific Coast Highway. In many locations to be any further west would imply that you fell off the cliff into the Pacific Ocean which would not be good for either you or your vehicle. In most cases it is a long way down.

Anyway – shortly after heading south from Cannon Beach we lost phone connection so there went the GPS. End result is that we stayed on 101 till Tillamook whose name to fame has to do with an extremely large creamery. So think dairy products and ice cream (aka frozen desserts…) If you happen to be in that area – the visitor center is open 7 days a week.

We didn’t stop but continued a bit further south (Hugo) then picked up 22 to 18 to I5 at Salem and started moving south at a much more rapid speed. We made three fuel stops, one of which was a complete bust. George was going to pump gas which I hit the restroom first. But, as I was headed in the main door this woman came out and called to her husband that the restrooms were “broken” and the doors were locked. Since we hadn’t started pumping gas, we headed over to the other gas station. Fuel, food, wonderfully clean restrooms.

Our second actual refueling stop didn’t occur until we were well within California. My choices was to get home on a completely empty take and deal with it in the morning or just go ahead while I still had a bit of daylight. Common sense hit, we stopped and I still had plenty of gas in the car when we got home. Round trip over 1400 miles.

The car is unpacked, the dirty clothes dropped into the laundry hamper. Heading off to sleep in my own bed….

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Soup of the evening

Posted on 2025-04-26 by Holly

supper break saw George coming upstairs to the meeting/conference/ballroom to invite me across the street for supper. There is an “Irish” pub. Looking at their menu – there were equal offers of fancy drinks, wines, whiskey, and beer. Says tourist pub to me. But anyway. The soup, served with fresh, in house baked bread was excellent. Then I went back to the stitching room.

With the insanity of the “Smalls exchange” aside,  the day was lovely with about the expected noise level. I made a few rounds to see everyone else’s projects. I didn’t pick up anything from the freebie table plus everything I brought found a new home. After stitching another peacock on my InkCircles project I decided to pull out the May mini-village and get that underway.

Tomorrow we finish early (about 1100) and will hit the round back toward California. The one thing I will do is avoid Portland on the drive home….

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And on to Canon Beach

Posted on 2025-04-25 by Holly

Which should have been extremely simple but I managed to make it quite a bit more complicated. In fairness – I had help. Not in getting out of Longview, I can follow directions, at least as far as managing to make a latte and petrol stop. (and no, I didn’t manage to snag one of the new Washington thermoses from Starbucks. It isn’t a great loss).

We crossed the Columbia on the Lewis and Clark Bridge. There are no photos as I don’t take pictures while driving….Then, coming off the bridge I just followed the signs toward Hwy 30. Astoria (on the Oregon side of the river) is clearly on the sign. Meanwhile my GPS is nagging me to follow the route. Riiiggghht. Ignoring him. I just kept on driving. Doug had warned me that this was a two lane highway. No problems, I grew up with two lane highways. I well understand that some people putter along and others take the narrow road, hill, valleys, and winding curves as a speeding challenge. There weren’t any slow moving heavy trucks or farm vehicles but I was glad to be able to move into the right lane on a couple of uphill stretches just to get rid of the speeding idiot on my bumper.

The fun actually began in Astoria. We stopped at the Safeway. I was leaving as George decided to come in and he passed me the keys. I headed back out to the car and started hunting for the box of cookies that I knew was in the back seat.. This truck roars up besides me. I quickly jumped back, shut the door and slid around the side of the car. Truck stops, then backs up across the lane and into a parking space. I turn around. Car is locked. In my haste to get out of the way, I had dropped the keys on the back seat. The stupid door locks automatically engaged. Note, normally I automatically put the keys in my pocket. Not thins time.

I do not care for the “new improved security” that most of the car manufactures seem to think we need. We do have AAA. George managed to reach them. About 30 minutes later, this dude in a small white van drove up, looked at the car. Then he pulled out a couple of small inflatable balloon things and a long wire gadget. The balloon things slid in along the top and back side of the front passenger window and moved the window just far enough for him to slid in the long wire hook. A short bit of fishing for the door handle and – there we were, open door. I grabbed the keys hit the unlock button to release everything and we were on our way.

At this point, I wasn’t up for the Maritime Museum. Instead we headed out of town and took Hwy 101 South to Canon Beach. The hotel wasn’t that hard to find. Even better, our room was one of those ready early. All of this was good because this was still Friday and I was glad to let George finish his conference call in the quiet of the room. Not in the car on Blue Tooth over the car speaker system.

Why Canon Beach? AcornsAndThreads, a lovely cross stitch store in Portland has a couple of retreats a year. Mostly in Portland and featuring workshops, guest designers. Since the start of the pandemic, first they moved to Zoom, and except for this one, have maintained a hybrid option (in person & zoom). Since this particular one is fewer people and is just a get together in a nice place, no Zoom.  This is the same store than has been holding 1-2 x a month Tuesday night Zoom chats.

Anyway – there looks to be about participants. I found a relatively quiet table off to the side and had a few hours of chatting and stitching…

 

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Longview

Posted on 2025-04-24 by Holly

And staying with friends. What I had been quietly thinking of as a restful day after all that driving yesterday turned into a bit more exercise than I had planned.

Kris normally goes jogging in the morning. Out of kindness to me, we walked the 3.6 miles around the local lovely lake rather than jog/run the distance. Yes, it was essentially flat.

The lake is lovely. The geese left us alone.

 

The turtles were out sunning themselves and there were other joggers but mostly walkers and a few fishermen.

I would have been ready for a nap but instead we headed out along with the guys to the Timberline Lodge at Mt Hood.  The lodge was built in the 1930s as a WPA project and it amazing in terms of wood and iron work as well as the art from the time that still graces the lodge. It is still an operational lodge catering to skiers, snowboarders, and obviously various meetings/convention groups (the current group of EMS personnel were just checking in). One of the lifts was running and there were more than a few skiers and snowboarders obviously taking advantage of the beautiful weather and the abundance of snow pack.

after lunch we headed out old HWY 30 to see waterfalls.

First there was Horsetail Falls –

 Then there was hiking up to the observation area on Muktnomah Falls

followed by along the ridge (.6miles each way) to Wahkeena Falls and back.

I figure I was doing well by the time we got back to the car with only one small blister…

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45th Parallel

Posted on 2025-04-23 by Holly

As we were driving north on I5 part way up Oregon, George saw the sign. It said that we were crossing the 45th Parallel which put us halfway between the Equator and the Arctic North Pole.

Huh! Never thought about it before. I have been north of the arctic circle and south of the antarctic circle. But ½ way between? Somehow I was thinking we were a whole lot further north at home than we actually are.

Anyway – it was a long drive. After a 0530 stop at Peet’s for coffee to keep me awake we headed to the freeway and I pointed the car north. After picking up the I5, it was pretty much a straight shot all the way to Longview, WA. Close to 700 miles all told. Two full tanks of gas. Mountains, trucks, and Portland traffic. That last part was the least fun portion of the whole trip.

It is only 2030, but I am tired and headed to bed. 

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Bird Cage?

Posted on 2025-04-21 by Holly

The Frame for the new LolaCrow SAL is looking more and more like a bird cage. Similar to the three previous SALs of hers that I have stitched, the frame has a lot of black and has about 6k worth of stitches.

I found some fabric that I liked out of my stash which means that I have no clue where it came from, only that it is probably hand dyed and looks to be 16ct. The overall size of this piece is 181w x 226 h.

I started this yesterday and managed another 1350 stitches today 2483/6222 which puts me at almost 40% complete. I just love pattern keeper. Not the stats part, but the sorting of symbols by color and being able to mark off as I go.  21 colors all told here.

my phone is downstairs, so I will grab and post a picture later… – actually as it turns out – I spent time playing hunt the phone. Even “Find my..” couldn’t locate it. Why? Duh, battery ran down … anyway –

 

 

 

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Ooops

Posted on 2025-04-20 by Holly

There I was, happily stitching along for the second day on the May mini-village. The first tree was done, the first house and almost done with the second.

Then I took a close look at the roof of the first house. Huh? Thought I did that last month. Then the carrots on the roof of the second house. And the penny finally dropped.  For what ever reason, I had managed to scan the April pattern again, labeling it May. Uploaded it into Pattern Keeper and just stitched away.  About 1400 stitches worth.

ARGH!

I know have the correct pattern scanned and have made a few choices. I am not going to frog this mess. Instead, I am going to stitch three panels of four villages each, rather than two panels of six. I have a lot of ordinary 16-18 ct fabric on hand. Headed to the serger and finished off the edges.

But I just didn’t have the heart to start the village. Instead, I pulled out fabric and started on the frame for this year’s LolaCrow SAL. Birds…. should be fun

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all that is needed

Posted on 2025-04-19 by Holly

is to finish the rest of this section (Secret Grove SAL) and that bar of chocolate. The first went fine, the second, I am sad to report, was pretty dry and crumbly. I think it need to be used for cooking, not eating…

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Voyaging

Posted on 2025-04-18 by Holly

Found the 935, finished #2 on the travel series.

went to bed early. Just happy to be home..

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Home

Posted on 2025-04-17 by Holly

Did I leave the house today? Hummm

Actually, yes, I walked out, down the stairs, around the back to Noah’s place and picked up an Amazon package before returning to my den. Obviously, I am not going and doing much of anything today. I am still wiped but slept better last night than the last few days.

There was laundry. There was the youngest coming over for a few hours and joining us for supper.

I managed to put in the last 33 stitches of 498 on Secret Grove and the 120 on Part #2 of Travel before hooping the “banner” to start May mini-village. Then hung it all in favor of playing a few computer games and heading early to bed.

George headed off to the end of women’s basketball season get together. Since I hadn’t planned on being home, I didn’t have a ticket. Thought about going along for about 10 seconds, then decided that noise and games weren’t in my wheelhouse tonight.

Hoping to have more energy tomorrow!

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Leaving in San Francisco

Posted on 2025-04-16 by Holly

 

Having made the decision that it would be much more sensible to get off the ship today rather than return later today after doing all the document signing at home, sailing up to Seattle (two sea days missed) and having to get myself home), it was easy enough to walk off this morning.

one of the things that I did do was go to the dining room for breakfast. There was shakskuka –

 

From there it was the few blocks to the Embarcadero, catch the Red Line to Richmond, get picked up by George and finally haul things upstairs to home. I managed to get completely unpacked, things stored away and laundry taken downstairs.

The nice notary lady showed up pretty much on time and we got through all the required documents and signatures to deal with the house in Scottsdale. That will clear in time for us to close on the place in TN early next week.

I am exhausted. Haven’t been sleeping well the last few nights and am going to bed early. Plus, I now have access to my PC and favorite Match-3 games…

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Last sea day this trip

Posted on 2025-04-15 by Holly

As it turns out, making the decision to get off in San Francisco rather than continue on to Seattle was incredibly easy. Walked down to Guest Services and informed them that I would be departing the ship. Why? Family matters. No problem.

Done! That means that I will miss essentially two sea days plus the second day in SF. No biggie. And probably better that I avoid the trip to NeedlePoint Inc. It is not like I need anymore floss. Even their lovely silks.

Our morning group has decreased by about three and there are another three-four of us getting off tomorrow. We have established an email group – will see how long that lasts.

Meanwhile – what I have managed on these two cruises

1) Finished April’s Mini-village

2) Secret Grove Part 8

3) Starbarks

4) 51% of Fishy goings on

5) 50% of Fowl Mood

6) Parts 1 & 2 of Jeannette Douglas’s 6 Part Travel Series (except for the last 120 stitches of 935 since I was out of thread.

7) Started FineFrog’s Court of Crows – decided I didn’t like it at all and will take out the 200+ stitches and repurpose the fabric for something else. It is ok, but not exciting enough to put the time in…

8) I didn’t touch either of the two Tempting Tangles Tile series, since I prefer just doing those all at once when I get home.

I am packed. Managed to find something to eat in the Garden Cafe. Perhaps I should not be so irritated with all the “gluten free” people as it gives me a greater variety of food during Passover.

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San Pedro

Posted on 2025-04-14 by Holly

The official documents call it Los Angeles or the Port of Los Angeles. But it is really San Pedro. At one point it was a separate city, but like most areas in the LA Basin, it was swallowed up years ago. We were due to dock at 0800 but were in early. I think I heard that about 1000 of the passengers are disembarking today. Plus. As the first US Stop – we have to clear immigration. I wandered down and out about 1000. Unlike Miami which operates year around, the immigration official with whom I spoke said that the port doesn’t operate full time. There are days without ships etc. This was in response to my comment that Miami had installed the new integrated software machines so that it was much faster to process large number of people.

Rather than hang out in the holding pen (sorry, but that is what it feels like) I walked out of the port area and into San Pedro. My maps app had warned that there was a gradual uphill. Considering the elevation change from Shattuck Ave to our house, I hardly noticed the mild grad. The sidewalks were in decent condition and there were walk lights on all intersections that had lights. Otherwise, stop signs with marked pedestrian crossings.

I wandered into the closet Starbucks, had an iced coffee since I had traveled along at a good clip. They also had an “LA” thermos in the newer style. All in all it was a decent morning. I am about to head back up to the lounge for some relaxing stitching time. Tomorrow is another sea day, then Wednesday we arrive in San Francisco.

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the group grows smaller

Posted on 2025-04-13 by Holly

13 April 2025 – drawing down

Today will mark the last day for several of those in the fiber get together group. Tomorrow will be Los Angeles. From what we have been informed, it will be the usual first entry into the US port of call. That means that “la di da, everybody” will have to get off the ship and go through immigration. We are scheduled to arrive at 0800 and don’t depart till 2200. Looking at the schedule, there is what passes for entertainment scheduled through about 1100 in the morning. I am taking that information and not planning on bailing off at any particularly early time. After all, we literally will have all day.

So back to today. There is coffee in the lounge early. There is congee available in the Indian section of the Garden Cafe for breakfast. There is plenty of fresh melons. I don’t have matzoh, but since I had some last night, I figure I have done my good dead for this Passover. To quote Debbie (the New York one) “what’s the difference between Matzoh and cardboard?

Cardboard doesn’t leave crumbs. “

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DIY Seder

Posted on 2025-04-12 by Holly

Today could also be labeled at Cabo St Luca. It is a tender port. I was trying to think if I had ever been on a ship that docked here but I don’t think so. I looked back then pulled up some photos from 2015 – my one and only Princess Cruise trip that I took with Carmen out of SF. Why? The whale photos. Showed them to the members of the fiber group who, like me, aren’t bothering with the tenders.

Instead it was a day of relaxing, reading a bit, listening to an old favorite audiobook, stitching, and fighting off a migraine. The last was mostly my fault since I had forgotten about the time zone change back to Pacific Daylight time. End result is that I am more than a bit sleep deprived.

As I found out, there seemed to be more than 30 Israelis on the ship. One woman seemed to be in charge an had made arrangements early with the ship in order to be able to hold a seder. I hadn’t twigged to the notice in the daily program about sign up since I almost never bother to read the daily program. But there we were, in a back area of Taste at 2000. Three long tables of at least 16, several round tables holding six, three more tables of four each. The room was crowded to say the least.

There was a special menu which included gefillette (sp) fish, chopped liver, matzoh ball soup, a chopped veggie salad plus roasted chicken. I had been standing in line with a couple from Virginia waiting to get in. We heard “Seder” from the front of the line. The hostess figured out she could clear her line by asking everyone who was there for the Seder to follow her. Turns out it was most of the line. I joined the two behind me; we joined three already sitting at one of the round back tables. There was also a guy from Calgary and a couple ex-New York now in Florida.

It was actually fairly well organized- someone had brought those paper napkins with the seder elements printed on them. The kitchen furnished the seder plate elements and a couple of people ran around distributing them. There was even a printed 30 minute Haggadah provided. By unspoken agreement, we elected the New York woman to lead. She grew up Orthodox (better Hebrew than the rest of us). Besides, she was a retired teacher and more than happy to run things.

The Israelis did their own thing at several tables complete with a hard bound Haggadah. When someone at my table asked why we didn’t do the whole service together, I told them about my experience in Budapest back in 1998 where it was even more of a DIY. Food had been furnished along with the seder plates, but (and we hadn’t been warned) it was a bring your own Haggadah. Of course, considering that it is extremely hard to run a service in more than two languages, I completely understood the why…

I left right after desert and coffee was served. It was late from my perspective, hiked back up to Deck 12 and went right to bed.

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Puerto Vallarta

Posted on 2025-04-11 by Holly

We sailed in early with a 0700 gangway time. I can understand this from a ship planning point of view. And perhaps for the convince of several of the more distant tours. But otherwise? Seriously? Nothing is open at 0700 in the morning.

We were at the far left pier as you face the shore. In fact, the port area looked completely different than the last time I was here. I am thinking it is both because of renovations and it also might be my lack of attention to what the larger ships were doing. No longer did we have to wade through temporary local booths, the shopping area was relatively new, shiny, and full of the usual tourist stuff plus a duty free shop that resembled every airport duty free shop. You had to walk through it to get back to the ship, thus encouraging sales.

But anyway. I didn’t get off till about 1100. My sole goal in doing so was to stop at Starbucks in the Galleria Note – Mexico, like Canada, is currently part of my AT&T coverage area. But according to to the Starbucks app, all the locations with in a few kms of the ship were closed. Right, I didn’t believe that for a moment so went out for a look-see. Out of the port, make a left, walk on the sidewalk along the main highway till I arrived at the pedestrian crossing and the Galleria. Went inside, enjoying the lovely air-conditioning to find everything open. Up the escalator on the left to the obvious open and busy Starbucks. Looked in the case. Well, what do you know? Not only did they have the “Mexico” thermos I wanted but also mugs from across the country. Apparently either there isn’t a restriction or no one cares to enforce the “local souvenir only” that seems to apply in the EU. US, and Canada. So should any one want a souvenir mug from anywhere in Mexico, please let me know and I can pick one up for you when I make the reverse trip in Oct-Nov.

Souvenir purchased. I wandered the mall – mostly high end good directed toward the tourist trade. Then stopped next door at Walmart to by some hair scrunchies and went back to the ship and my relaxation.

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