Handmade Memories

That's the thing with handmade items.  They still have the person's mark on them, and when you hold them, you feel less alone.
                                                                                 Aimee Bender, The Color Master: Stories

Week 12: Handmade

Well, March Madness has lost its luster for me this year after Kansas beat Duke on Sunday afternoon.  It was a hard-fought contest (overtime, for those of you who weren't glued to the TV like I was) that Duke could have won, but didn't.  So now I'll cheer for the Loyola Ramblers (who beat my Tennessee Vols) in hopes that they will slay a few more giants on their improbable run.  At least now I won't be wishing I were in San Antonio next Monday night when I'll be in Paducah!

I had fun finding handmade items around my house for this week's Day2Day page, although it did make me realize that most of the things I make these days get eaten.  In lieu of trying to find seven items made by me, I found things made by family members.  I ended up with more than enough examples for a photo a day!  You read last week about Daddy's woodworking, so 'nuff said about it.  I was blessed with very creative grandmothers - they both painted watercolors, did needlework, and sewed.  They were fabulous cooks, and they both grew their own vegetables and canned them.  Grama (mom's mom) was a whiz with flowers - growing them and arranging them with flair, and Gran (daddy's mom) was always making some new craft project.  Gran patiently taught me to embroider and cross-stitch, and she always gave me a pint (or quart) of pickled beets for Christmas because I loved them so. 

I wish I had appreciated Grama's painting talent more when I was young, but I never saw her paint and I didn't even know the watercolors I loved were her own creations until she was quite old.  I do have a paint-by-number oil painting that Kim and I made one summer at Grama's house, and I remember her trying to help us do it perfectly.  We would set up our paints and brushes out on the old picnic table in her yard, and I remember having to use toothpicks for some of the really small bits.  Amazingly enough, the finished product looks pretty good!  I'm blessed to have several of Grama's watercolors, as well as a lampshade she painted, and one of Gran's watercolors.  I'm so glad they signed them!

Gran had planned to cross-stitch a bedspread for each of her eight grandchildren for our high school graduation present; sadly, I got the last one (I'm grandchild #4), as she died the year after I graduated.  But I still have my bedspread, and it's on one of the beds in our house.  Daddy's family had very little money, so Gran was very resourceful and was able to make things pretty without spending money.  One thing I remember is that she would save bottles of all shapes and sizes and fill them with colored water and put them up in a window so the sun would shine through and make them sparkle.  She made butterfly magnets for the refrigerator with leftover packing materials or paper plates.  And every tissue box or roll of toilet paper had some colorful crocheted covering on it!  She would have loved the Scrap Exchange in Durham!

My mom was also a fabulous cook and an incredible gardener.  Thankfully, I learned to cook at her side and that talent has served me well (maybe too well!) through the years.  Gardening, however, is not my thing.  The only thing I've been able to grow successfully is mint, which you may know is virtually impossible to kill.  The cool thing about the mint that I grow is that it can be traced back to (at least) my great-grandmother.  She gave some to my grandmother, who gave some to my mom, who shared some with me.  I have dug up a cupful or potful of mint from every house I've lived in and planted it at the new house.  I have mint in my iced tea every day, and I often think of my female ancestors who shared it with me.  Since one of mom's best talents was her ability to create gorgeous flower arrangements, I don't have many of those to share, since she mostly used live flowers for those.  I do have three scrapbooks full of photos of flower arrangements, ribbons, flower show programs, and newspaper articles documenting her fifty years of garden clubbing that I made at her request!  I wish I had some of that talent, but I don't.

Last week, I shared that I woke up to the sound of sawing and the smell of sawdust every weekend.  One of the memories that Kim (my sister) and I laugh about is the sound and smell of spray paint.  Every year, especially at Christmas time, Mom could be found in the utility room, spray painting dried pods, cones, or stalks for glittery holiday decorations.  The sound of that ball in the spray can and the smell of paint are what our holidays were made of!  One year, we took a family road trip to Colorado, Idaho, and points in between.  Daddy had made a box to put up on the luggage rack of our gigantic Chrysler station wagon so that Kim and I could stretch out in the back back of the car.  (He had made foam mattresses for both the back back and the back seat so we could sleep on the long ride.)  We came home with the whole top luggage carrier full of cones, pods, stalks, and plants of all varieties and the back back full of luggage, so Kim and I had to actually sit up in our seats.  That year, Mom made some humongous number of Christmas wreaths and advent wreaths made out of all that dried stuff.  They were beautiful, but you cannot image the glue, the picks, the shellac, and the MESS, not to mention the time, that that took!

My own foray into creative arts is pretty much limited to cooking, photography and scrapbooking, although I did spend a few years doing counted cross stitch back in the early '80s.  I have a dozen or two Christmas ornaments and a few bigger pieces left, and I recently found the ABC sampler that I started for Kim (my daughter) when she was a baby.  My goal was to finish it before she turned one.  I am on 'M'.   Maybe I can finish it before Morgan turns one....but I'd better get busy and hope that I can see well enough to do it!  Since having a granddaughter who loves to draw and paint and do crafty things, I have converted one of my old scrapbooking file things to a 'creative corner' for the kids.  I have paints, pastels, markers, glitter, glue, crayons, colored pencils, sequins, stickers, washi tape, and all kinds of blingy things, so I'm ready when they are!

What handmade things are in your house, and who made them?  What stories do they tell?  Do yourself (and your loved ones) a favor and take some photos and jot down your memories about them.  Without the story and the history, they just become things destined for the trash or Goodwill.  Bring them to life for the next generation(s)!

Have a wonderful, blessed Holy Week!

Jan

PS  Almost forgot to update my book list.  I'm walking more, so I'm reading more!  Last week I read Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng (great read!) and this week I'm listening to The Lying Game by Ruth Ware.  Next up is The Alice Network by Kate Quinn.

My dad, my hero, my Mr. Fix-it

Dads are most ordinary men turned by love into heroes, adventurers, story-tellers, singers of songs.     
                                                                                                  -- Pam Brown

Week 11: D is for.....

When I saw that the theme for this week's Day2Day project was 'D is for...', my very first thought was 'Daddy'.  I guess that as young children learning the alphabet, that is one of the first associations we're taught to make - especially if there isn't a dog in the house.  Then when I was looking for an appropriate quote for the week, the one I've chosen just leapt out at me.  I love the idea of it - that dads are just regular guys to everyone except for those who love him as only their children can.  What's really great about that is that I don't think it matters how old you get, or even how wise to the ways of the world you become - your dad is still a larger-than-life figure in your mind.  At least, I hope that is true for everyone!  I know it is for me!

While I don't remember Daddy doing much singing or story-telling, he was (and is) certainly my hero, and I think of him as an adventurer.  He was also a guy who could fix most anything!  Well, maybe not car stuff or electrical stuff, but most anything else.  He was a great problem-solver and was used to working on a shoestring budget, so he didn't run off to the hardware store every time he started a project.  As much as he liked to fix things, he liked to build things even more.  In his garage workshop was Daddy's pride and joy - a Shopsmith 'Greenie'.  In case you're not familiar with this incredible wood-working tool, it's a five-in-one tool - a table saw, a lathe, a drill press, a sander, and a borer - and it's also got a router (not a computer gadget!) and a shaper.  With this tool, the knowledge how to use it, and some wood, you can make most anything!

From the time I was about 10 years old, my room was adjacent to the workshop, so every Saturday morning (EARLY!), I woke up to the sound of the Shopsmith - sawing, sanding, shaping - and to the smell of fresh sawdust.  I can't go into the lumber section of any home improvement store without being transported back to my childhood and without shedding a tear or two.  Daddy always wore one of those one-piece work coveralls when he was working around the house - I still have two of them, because I just can't bear to part with them, even though he last wore them 26 years ago.  It's how I picture Daddy, even though he was most often in a suit at work or at church.

I still have a few things that Daddy made for me - a couple of dressers and a bookshelf, at least - but he was great at seeing a need for a specific piece of furniture and making exactly what I needed - even if I didn't know I needed it!  When I was in college, he made me a bookcase that would fit in my small dorm room and that had a special place for my stereo.  I think my daughter still has it.  He made a little corner table for David and Kim when they were little, and then a bookcase designed especially for their books - I still have it.  I have another tall, skinny bookcase that he made for my teenage bedroom, which fit in a narrow spot and was just right. 

When Rex and I moved into our house in Asheville, when Kim was just six weeks old, it was the first time that we'd had a garage.  Daddy knew we would need good storage there, so he went to Lowe's and came home with all he needed to build two full walls of floor-to-ceiling shelves and a full-sized workbench, ostensibly for Rex but really for Daddy and me.  Every time he came to visit us, I knew that I'd better have a LONG Honey-do list for him or else he would find things that needed to be done anyway.  I remember one time when I didn't have enough for him to do, I looked outside to find him single-handedly building a treehouse for David.

I shouldn't have been surprised about the treehouse, since our yard (in the house I grew up in) was the one where all of the neighborhood kids played.  In addition to our treehouse (which had a green fiberglass roof AND a fireman's pole), a bag swing with a three-tiered platform (for jumping off), and a roller coaster (made of wood).  And before that, when we were little, we had a swing set and seesaw that he made.  When I decided to run hurdles when I was in the 7th grade, Daddy made me a set of regulation-sized wooden hurdles that we set up in the front yard.  He set them up so that I had to run slightly uphill, which sure made it easier to win races on flat tracks.

I miss my dad a lot, for many, many reasons, but I really miss having my own personal Mr. Fix-it.  I have some of his tools - his hammer is my favorite one - and I am forever grateful that he taught me how to use them.  I love it that my kids counted on me to do the drilling and the fixing, and I hope I taught them how to make at least a few repairs.  When you grow up with someone who never hired a 'handyman' but you marry someone who is not handy, you learn what a blessing it was to have had a dad who could fix things.

Daddy's handy ways are only part of the story, but this blog is long enough for today.  Sometimes I just start writing without knowing what's going to come out!  So here's to you and your dad, who I hope is your hero, too - have a wonderful week and let me know what some of your special 'D' words are.

Jan

Can't imagine life without...

Technology is a useful servant but a dangerous master.

                                                                 -Christian Lous Lange

Week 10 - Technology

I started the week in North Carolina, ending my visit with Dave and family, having a late lunch with Anne on my way home, spending one night in Georgia and one in Texas before I rolled home on Wednesday.  As always, it was fun to see family and friends in NC and along the way.  I had plenty of time to listen to more books, finishing The Heavens May Fall by Allen Eskens and The Jekyll Revelation by Robert Masello.  I enjoyed them both - the latter one was an interesting take on Robert Louis Stevenson and Jack the Ripper!

It was good to get back home to Rex and Crockett, and we got to spend a wonderful evening with my p2P friend Corene DeHaan and her husband, Terry on Friday.  The DeHaans have been vacationing in Galveston from their native Michigan, and while the weather hasn't been as great as it often is down here, it's sunny and not snowing!  The weekend was spend watching basketball (love this time of year!) and while I didn't like the outcome of most of the games I watched, I'm excited for the Big Dance!  Let's go Duke and Rocky Top!

This week's Day2Day theme got me thinking about all of the many things I'm grateful for due to technology.  Since I was listening to a book set in the mid-19th century, where electric lights were a novelty and traveling by 'coach' meant a horse and carriage, I was mindful of things I typically take for granted.  With fully electric homes that are heated and cooled, full of appliances that make our daily lives easier, we are blessed.  And after listening to The Great Alone, about life in the wild of Alaska, I was reminded to be grateful for indoor plumbing and clean running water.  Nothing like books about different places and times to make you thankful for life in the present.

While looking for quotes about technology, the one that I chose jumped out at me.  While it is so timely today, what with our collective addictions to cell phones and computers, it was written by a Norwegian historian and political scientist who died in 1938.  Definitely a smart man and worthy of the Nobel Prize he received in 1921 for his work on internationalism.  I know that I spend way too much time in front of screens, whether TV, computer, or tablet, but I am especially concerned about the amount of time young people do these days.  I've read some pretty frightening articles about the influence of smart phones on teenagers.  One of my good friends, Melanie Hempe, has developed a website designed to help families manage the effects of media on their children and families.  If this is something that concerns you, I encourage you to check out www.familiesmanagingmedia.com   Even if it's not something you think you are worried about, have a look - it's very enlightening!

The good news is that technology is available to us and there are resources that can help us manage things if the servant becomes the master!  And now I'm getting off the screen and going into the laundry room and then outside to walk and listen to my new book, Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng.  Have a fabulous week, and remember to be thankful for technology - and keep it in its place!

Jan

Chocolate, cookies, cakes, Cokes....and connection

What is it about the letter C?  Curiosity, creativity, collaboration, communication, critical thinking, the 21st century skills!
                                                                                                                 - Stephanie Harvey

Week 9: C is for....

Happy Monday and happy March, y'all!  Can you believe that this time next week, we will have 'sprung forward'?  I've been in North Carolina for a week, and I'm loving all of the gorgeous trees in bloom - the Bradford pear trees are stunningly full of white blossoms (and they don't stink yet!) and each graceful forsythia I see makes me smile - and reminds me how much I miss spring!  On the Texas coast, we have two seasons - summer and not summer.  They aren't kidding about that, by the way!  I'm hoping my drive home will be full of blossoms and sunshine!

As I thought about this past week's 'C is for...' theme, the word that kept coming to me (other than the obvious C words of chocolate, cookies, cakes, and Cokes) was connection.  I loved connecting with other digital scrapbookers last weekend, with my Belmont/Durham/Raleigh/Chapel Hill friends this week, and of course, with my children and grandchildren.  It's a precious gift to have all of those relationships, and I value each of them tremendously!

The past few days have been special in that it was just the boys and me around this house this weekend, as the girls went to a special Fairy Tale Princess event in Virginia.  Gray and I had more quality time than usual, and I loved every minute of it!  He finally has started calling me 'Happy' (my grandmother name) and I just giggle whenever he says it in his little gravely dinosaur voice.  Tonight we had a big surprise when my nephew Kevin called Dave to say he was in town for the night, so we all went out to dinner.  Good timing, Kevin!!  And I was so thankful that Gray had taken a late (and long) nap this afternoon!

I have to admit that I missed having Elliot and her sweet smile around the past few days, and I always enjoy spending time with Markee, but I know Elliot had fun being a princess and being with princesses, and Markee got to visit with her mom, too.  At least I'll get a big E hug before I go, and I'll be back again next month - yay!!

I didn't get to Durham as often as I would have liked, and while there were some good friends I missed seeing this time, I did get to see a lot of people whom I miss a lot!  Thanks for making time for me, y'all!  Gray and I attempted to go to the Duke Lemur Center on Saturday, but the tours were full, so we spent the afternoon at the North Carolina Museum of Life and Science in Durham.  We had so much fun!  We petted farmyard animals, rode the train, looked at butterflies and insects, dug in the sand and filled dump trucks, and climbed in tree houses.  We were outside and on the go for hours!  Gray was a real trouper - no stroller and no complaints from this kid!  He didn't even have lunch or a snack (but we had a fantastic breakfast at Simply Crepes on our standing date with my Raleigh friend Jenny)!

I loved being in town for the big Duke - Carolina game Saturday night, but especially since the pendulum swung in Duke's favor this time.  It was really interesting being in Durham most of the day Saturday, as most everyone was sporting one of three t-shirts or sweatshirts.  Around here, you're either dark blue, light blue, or red.  You can be dark blue and red, or light blue and red, but you can't be both blues!!  Our house is the first - Duke and State fans - so it was a good weekend for us.  And now the ACC tourney starts this week (although it is so odd that it will be in NYC!) and then my favorite weeks of the year will be upon us.  Love me some college basketball!

I hope your week was as fun, friend, and family-filled as mine was - you can color me happy for sure!  Make this a fabulous week, too!

Jan

PS  This week I finished The Ladies Room and The Heavens May Fall (a murder mystery/detective/lawyer book by Allen Eskens)and I've started The Mercer Girls.  Enjoyed both books I finished and the new one seems promising.  Still anxious to hear your book recommendations!