Early errands

It got up to 95 here today, but with unusually low humidity. Not too bad, actually. I had a bunch of stuff to get done before going to the Gallery, and amazingly, everything went smoothly. First I went to the rheumatologist's office for the 2-week lab work to be sure all was okay with the new anti-inflammatory. Guess it was - they called in the 90-day supply prescription.

Then I went by a local quilt shop. I've been saving "special" t-shirts - either from travel or just better "fun" ones to have a quilt made from them. After weeding out my clothes and shirts, I finally got the discards accumulated. I wanted to get them out of the house, so today was the day! I'm really looking forward to having the quilts. The travel one will be full-sized, the fun one will be some smaller. I'll post photos when I get them near the end of July.

Next I stopped by the Community Kitchen to leave off another batch of clothes. And still got to the gallery before opening time. It was a quiet afternoon and evening, though.

A good Monday!

We've had a high of 90 today, but much lower humidity. And John loves it. The temperature now (about 11:30 p.m.) is in the upper 60s. That is pretty special!

Bridge today was great! Last week, John was high and I was second. But for the average scores over the last 13 weeks, out of 17 players, John was second and I was high!!!!! HOORAY!!!! Our leader gives the winner a gift certificate to the restaurant of the winner's choice. We've asked for one to our favorite local Chinese restaurant.

Finishing that shawl unleashed something or other. All of a sudden, I have four works in progress, and a plan to make a baby surprise sweater for one of the swimmer's first grandbaby-to-be. I probably ought to make 2-3 of those, just to have some on hand.

Close-ups

 
 
 

The Shawl!

Here are some of the photos of the shawl.

 
 
 
 

Triple Play

The eczema has really been itchy the last couple of days. Some of my Bosom Buddies made some recommendations about treatment. I made an early trip to the drug store to get some soaps and lotions. Hope springs eternal that I'll find something that will help.

I'd planned to spend the whole day at home (predicted and actual high was 97 today). But then Essie called to tell me that she had finished the shawl. So, of course, I went zipping downtown to meet her and pick up the shawl. It is spectacular! Everything I'd hoped it would be! Sorry, but this is a teaser. We didn't get photos taken today. I promise to do that tomorrow.

The day ended up with a Hitchcock movie - never a bad choice. And Notorious (1946) is not only Hitchcock, but with Cary Grant and Ingrid Bergman. Plus the great supporting cast of Claude Rains and Louis Calhern. This is one of the grand old movies. Be sure to watch it if you get a chance.



 
 

Eczema vs Psoriasis

On the medical front, does anybody have eczema or psoriasis? How do they tell the difference? I've looked at a number of sites on line, without really getting an answer. I've been told by the family doc and her PA that what I have is eczema. Nothing really seems to work for it, and the itching is really starting to drive me crazy (not that I'm not most of the way there). I'm taking benedryl to try to help with the itching, and applying cortisone cream and various other lotions, but nothing really seems to help much. Isn't it nuts how something as ordinary as itching can make you so miserable and be so constant. I know there is a form of arthritis that can be associated with psoriasis. I have to go in to the rheumatologist's office next week for lab work. I'm going to ask his staff if they have any recommendations.

The gallery was open until 7 tonight with an Art Night on Main Street. It was hot, but there were still folks out walking and checking out galleries. We had a number of people stopping by. It was nice to get home, though, and get into "soft clothes" and get my shoes off.

I finally turned off the TV news and the radio. Way too much stuff about Michael Jackson. I read that somebody said that probably the only people who has caused such a commotion by death was Princess Diana and Elvis. Seems like that to me, too.

Lunch & Glass

We went for our Thursday lunch today, to a new location. The food and the service at the last one we tried was pretty mediocre, but I think we've found a place we can stay for a while. Good food, good selection, and reasonable prices.

We went to a talk at the Hunter Museum of American Art this evening. The Hunter and the TN Aquarium have a joint exhibit called Living Jellies, exhibiting various kinds of jellyfish and glass from various glass artists. It's a terrific exhibit, and well worth a stop here to see it. One of the glass artists, Stephen Rolfe Powell, gave a talk and slide show at the museum. He was a good speaker, and his work is fantastic. A definite WOW!

 
 
 

Definitely visible

Not even the Iran election and riots could knock Governor Mark Sanford of South Carolina from the top news spot today. He really does defy description.

What arrogance!

What stupidity!

Why is it that people with "high visibility" (celebrities, politicians, etc.) cannot seem to realize that they are truly VISIBLE!!!!

How could he possibly think he would not be found out? Even as an SC reporter met him at the airport in Atlanta on his way back from Buenos Aires, his office staff was announcing that he had been hiking the Appalachian Trail. And in response to the reporter's questions, he said that he wanted to go somewhere more exciting, that he was alone in BA, that he spent his time driving up and down the waterfront.

AMAZING!

He's resigned as Chairman of the Republican Governors Conference. When is he going to resign as Governor?

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Well, in local news, I don't have my shawl yet, but I do have photos that Essie took while it was being blocked. Thanks, Essie!

 
 
 

The Case of the Missing Governor

Have you heard the story about the Governor of South Carolina, Mark Sanford? He's not been heard from since last Thursday. He has not contacted anybody - his wife, children, lieutenant governor, staff - not anybody!

How bizarre is this!?!

There are lots of stories about this story on Google News.

There are all sorts of stories about the whys and wherefores. But if anybody really knows, he's not talking. I guess we'll find out eventually.

RIP: Kodachrome

Mondays are always busy, and today was no exception. Bridge was fun, though, and we both had some good cards for a change. I gather that I'm in the running for the top average for the last quarter. Our "fearless leader" gives the winner a gift certificate to the restaurant of his/her choice. It's always good for bragging rights, though.

We're still in this heat wave. Our high today was 97, but that dropped quickly to about 80 when a small line of showers came through. We had only a few drops of rain at our house, but the drop in temperature was refreshing. It'll quickly go back up into the 90s - unfortunately.

RIP: Kodachrome film.
Those of us who are semi-serious photographers have always known Kodachrome film (even before the Simon & Garfunkle song) as the epitome of quality. Due to the race to digital photography, Kodak has decided to stop making Kodachrome.

This photo from National Geographic of the Afghan girl is perhaps the most famous image filmed on Kodachrome film. The photographer who took this image has been chosen to use the last roll of Kodachrome film. It'll be great to see the photos he decides to take.

Summer doldrums

I guess the summer doldrums hit early around here. I just couldn't get a blog written last night. I could blame it on the heat - but that probably wouldn't fly.

I wasn't a complete slug this weekend, but didn't miss it by much. I went out for a bit yesterday morning and (gasp!) did some shopping for clothes. I got several things - a new smaller robe for swimming, some white capris, and a couple of tops. It's good to have to do this, I guess, but I still hate doing it. The high on Saturday was 97.

Today was the usual laundry day. The usual three loads of laundry per week had shrunk to two. We just don't wear as many clothes in the summertime, and they're not nearly as bulky. Guess that's supposed to balance out the constantly-running air conditioner. Allan came over for dinner (dirty rice, with chicken livers). He went to the Chattanooga Market today, and brought us some green tomatoes and a few peaches. I'll get the tomatoes done in a day or two, and the peaches will have to ripen for another couple of days. Yum! The high today was 98!

Hot, but not for penguins!

At 11 p.m., it's still in the upper 70s. It was 96 today, and predicted to be 97 tomorrow. Really bad for several more days.

Several pairs of our penguins (at the TN Aquarium) have laid eggs. The first one hatched yesterday, and they've had film of the baby on the news today - just a little ball of grey fluff! Exciting stuff! Click here to see the Aquarium page about the baby. This photo came from google images.

HHH

It's been a scorcher today, and predicted to be even hotter tomorrow. Yuck! Plus we had a session of lightning and thunder about 4 a.m. this morning. We didn't get any rain. I was aware of it, but fortunately, went right back to sleep. And so we get the standard summertime weather forecast: Hot, Hazy, and Humid

This was the Third Thursday, so we kept the Gallery open until 8. It was so hot this evening that we didn't have any pedestrians or folks dropping in. We went to Blue Orleans for dinner, and even there it was only about 1/3 full. I had one of my weird meals of salad and appetizer - but YUM! Their Vieux Carre salad is mixed greens topped with crumbled blue cheese and bacon, with a bacon vinaigrette dressing. And the dressing was warm! made with real bacon grease! Oh, a REAL wilted lettuce salad - how divine! I even mopped up the plate with a piece of bread. And my second course was their fried green tomatoes appetizer. Well, nobody said it ALL had to be healthy. And, as John and Allan kept telling me - all I had was some tomatoes and a salad. Right!

Is it summer yet?

Summer doesn't officially start for four more days (21 June), but you couldn't prove it around here. We had a high of 95 today, with predicted highs on the next few days of 96, 98, and 95. Of course, around here, that means there's humidity to match. I think that means we can say, without fear of contradiction, that it's actually summer!

We are SO ready to go to the beach!

Dentists, doctors, and speakers

I had two doctors' appointments this morning. Got my teeth cleaned at 7:30, followed by a visit to the rheumatologist at 8:30. Everything is okay with both. Of course, all the aches that had been bothering me for the last couple of weeks were gone by today, but Dr. B did change my anti-inflammatory Rx. I'd been on Sulindac for a number of years, and it was time for a change. He started me on Diclofenac sodium this time, and we'll see how that one does. As usual, he prescribed a drug available in generic form.

Not too much going on at the gallery this morning. I gave a program to a small art group tonight. This is not something I usually like to do, but I don't have a problem with "public speaking", so it was okay. They asked me to talk for about 15-20 minutes about my work. I can do that. I thought my problem would be keeping it down to 15-20 minutes. I took some paints, brushes, and a canvas I wanted to rework. I talked about my work and showed some pieces. Then I made a mess and put some paint on that canvas. One lady was perceptive enough to comment, "Obviously, you're all about 'process'." And, of course, that's quite true. I've said that frequently. Anyway, it was a nice group, and they were attentive. I even pretty much stayed in the time allotted.

Yucky cards

Somedays, we wonder why we play bridge. It's supposed to be fun, and to be a challenge. It was definitely a challenge today - more so for John and for me. Both of us had lousy cards. It's really not much fun when you never get cards good enough to even gt in trouble. Oh, well - we keep coming back.

We're going to have almost a full house at the beach this year. We've got some "new blood" coming. It's always exciting to add new people to the mix. It gives folks somebody different to tell all the old lies and stories to. It does keep us going.

Music?

We spent most of the day in "soft clothes". I did get the laundry done - and we even got out of the house for a while.

John had read that a local group of amateur musicians who got together to play baroque string music was giving a free concert this afternoon. The group played concertos by Bach and Vivaldi, plus Handel's Water Music. Afterwards, all I could think of was the old joke about the musicians who played Beethoven, and Beethoven lost. The ensemble played with dedication and obvious love of the music and their craft. But, in all honesty, Bach, Handel, and Vivaldi lost.

One of my Bosom Buddies called tonight. She lives in south Alabama. The line of severe thunderstorms that went through the area had a lot of lightening associated with it. Her computer got fried, and she just wanted to tell me so I could pass the word. I'm glad that storm missed us today.

Sleepy Saturday

I guess I should just skip writing on Saturdays. Most of them I do what I did today - read, knit, and watch the NCIS Marathon on the USA Network.

I do have a new M.C.Beaton to read: Death of a Witch, A Hamish Macbeth Mystery. We do love the Hamish books.

Phone-in-forecast

I had in mind to take a nap this afternoon, but the cleaning crew didn't come until about 1:45 and were here until nearly 4. John got in a killer nap after that, but I didn't. I surely would like to sleep late in the morning.

I got a call Wednesday from a local artist inviting me to be the speaker at the monthly meeting next week of their small art organization. She said they would like me to talk about my work and show some pieces. That's not usually my forte, but I can always talk about my work. So I'll be thinking about that all weekend, and making some notes. At least it only needs to be about 15 minutes long.

John noticed in the weekly entertainment section that there was going to be a free afternoon concert on Sunday by the Chattanooga Baroque Strings ensemble. That should be a good concert - and we'll be there.

It's definitely turning into summer, with the standard summer forecast - hot, hazy, humid, with a chance of afternoon thunderstorms. The "phone-in-forecast". Stay cool!

Poor prose

I'm current reading Rogues' Gallery: The Secret History of the Moguls and Money that Made the Metropolitan Museum by Michael Gross. It's really an interesting book, and I'm learning a lot about the Met and its beginnings. However, it's not the best-written book I've ever come across. And, it's definitely emphasizing the lack of any kind of editing in publishing today.

This convoluted sentence is one of the worst pieces of prose I've read in a long time. In this quote, the pronoun "His" refers to Henry [Harry] Osborne Havemeyer.

"His tastes evolved, moving from volume to quality and from objects to paintings after he married Louisine, who'd led a privileged childhood in Philadelphia and Europe, before her first $100 purchase from the unknown and financially strapped Degas, who, legend has it, was about to quit painting when she came along."

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A county just north of us is under a tornado warning, and there's a wicked weather front moving our way. We're having our Riverbend festival in downtown Chattanooga this week, but it should be just now ending for tonight. The Bonnaroo music festival started tonight - just west of us about half-way between here and Nashville. It's all outside, and they're probably getting hammered with this storm. Oh, dear!