every quilter....

should have a pair of patchwork socks don't you think? no, these aren't home made. i got them in Amish country, Bird-in-Hand, at a t-shirt shop while on vacation. they are soooo comfy, colorful and splashy! i love my hand-knit socks but I love these too. they look super with my touristy t-shirt I got there as well. ***** if you're "into" baltimore album quilts, peek at these on amy's blog. simply gorgeous, but i know i don't have the expertise or time to make one. i might do some squares, though, for fun.

back to quilting

doesn't look like much at the moment, but this is going to be a winter-themed tote bag for a swap. i didn't have to buy any fabric for this at all, shopped entirely from stash which is a VERY good thing! this was from a commercial pattern as i have NO design talent whatsoever. machine sewing is much easier for me right now than hand quilting, though i have done a bit of that this week for short periods of time. yesterday i spent doing some odd sewing including this piece, plus trying to get organized as to what to do next. i tend to work on several projects, meaning 3-4, at a time and with limited space that is not really practical. today i'll make a list so i can put away anything not currently needed and keep the small room from getting cluttered.....clutter drives me nuts! ***** have put the job situation at the back of my mind for now. have resigned to not getting my unemployment, which is very wrong, but it's something i cannot change. just waiting for november so i can close out my retirement account and have some cash for living expenses. until then, only moths in my wallet but the immediate bills are paid, so it's tolerable. ***** plenty of good sleep last night under my comfy quilts, which makes a HUGE difference in how i handle these situations. the glass is definitely half full today for that reason.

bureaucratic limbo

according to the unemployment office, they are waiting for information from anthem. now if anthem provides that info as quickly as they pay claims, it could be spring before they ever respond. hardly anything has gone right since i moved to this despicable pine tree wasteland. life here has been just pure crap from day one. and since the other two maine employers that back-stabbed me lied to avoid unemployment, my guess is anthem will do the same. isn't anyone honest anymore? i simply cannot figure out why these potato heads continue to screw me over when i am simply trying to work.

if it's tuesday....

that means "dancing with the stars" was on last night. I am in no way a reality TV show devotee, but after taking ballroom lessons myself, I am more than enamored with dancing. I don't currently dance as hippos rarely do, but when I did it was pure heaven. The absolute most fun I have ever had in my life. ***** I did manage to quilt a tad last night also. Having my arm better is sooo great but will be entirely at ease when it's 100%. ***** No jobs have materialized yet, but I didn't expect one so soon. I am trying not to think about how my life got so convoluted over a piece of damn property or some busybody, but it did. I am overwhelmingly sad about a big chunk of my life being downright awful. I am going to do everything I can to make it right and get to enjoy the rest of my life if at all possible. **** A fairly new tenant is a UPS worker. He spent the summer lying around the yard in his chair baring as much flesh as possible. He was bragging about his salary at UPS, so I'm not sure if he is trying to recruit me or make me jealous. Either way it isn't working. **** Went to my checkbook the other day and found 3 checks missing. They could have been taken at work as my manager never followed through with a desk lock. Nobody really comes into the apartment except family, at least when we are here. Another nuisance that is going to cost me money to rectify.

End of Summer (Squash)

there has been no killing frost yet here in southern maine, but it still might be difficult to find any more native summer squash. tonight for supper we cooked the last 2 we had. tomorrow it's a salad with our last cuke and tomatoes. our regular vegetable stand has closed for the season, as have the farmers' markets, so not sure where we could find more at this time of year. as usual, i didn't get enough fresh vegetables to my liking. we spent easily $30 every two weeks just at the farm stand for 2 people, and we didn't eat gluttonous portions of them, but we did eat them every day, usually 2-3 different veggies. i will miss them all. ***** waiting on my unemployment claim which, if follows suit of other back-stabbing maine employers, will be a trifecta and get denied even though i am entitled as i was the other 2 times. i am simply stunned as to why i've run into these horrible people on a regular basis. they have all treated me like i am some kind of freak or undesirable for trying to sustain suitable work here in this pine tree wasteland. i never claimed to be the rolls royce of medical secretaries, but i've seen plenty others who aren't either and they manage to work on a regular basis. what freaking gives here?

Previous UFO Finish

this is the UFO i finished before vacation and before the arm problem. it's a simple patriotic tablerunner. i saw the pattern in an old quilting book (circa 1980) and thought it might be a cute finished project. not sure what it's final destination is, but for the time being it's residing on the shelf with the other finished items. ***** a happy monday since the sun is shining, it's fall here in maine and i am reasonably healthy. i did some hand sewing for about an hour yesterday, but the arm is aching a bit this morning, partly due to the sewing and partly to sleep position, so i'll give it a rest and some gentle stretching before trying to sew any more. i am hoping to be back working very soon for many reasons, not the least of which is financial. in about 2 weeks i'm going to have to wipe out my retirement account 401k for living expenses. then i'll HAVE to go back to work, won't i?

a serene sunday

it's been a beautiful fall day here in coastal maine, cool but sunny. didn't really do anything at all today of consequence but i did manage to do a bit of hand sewing. after about an hour my shoulder started to ache a bit so i put it aside, but it's progress nonetheless. i've a UFO that is nearly done and i just might be able to finish it this week, which would be great. in addition to the shoulder, my fingers hurt also due to the wrist/forearm injury. when i flex/extend my fingers like in typing or sewing, i can feel it up to my elbow and then up to the shoulder. everything is connected together is why. even the company doc said the finger and back of hand soreness and swelling in the forearm was due to the wrist injury, though he didn't have the guts to actually tell the company that or write it down, no doubt because anthem was paying him. he's a first class wimp, what about his "do no harm" oath?

a beautiful day

in this neighborhood, early fall, coolish, sunny, breezy, just nice. i also got a little dose of validation as well regarding my most recent former employer from the AARP website. it seems the city attorney for Los Angeles is suing Wellpoint/Anthem for outright lies to its enrollees. the city attorney even went so far to say that Wellpoint would say or do just about anything to keep from having to pay claims or insure those who might actually get sick. i could have told him that. so, i'm guessing i won't be seeing any unemployment benefits from them. thank goodness my arm is actually getting better, not yet 100% but soon i think. chalk it up to another unscrupulous maine employer, the 3rd i've had in the 9 years i've lived here. i honestly feel like someone is trying to keep me from working, like wouldn't you? i hate maine, i really do.

a nor'easter

wild wind and rain for most of today, glad it wasn't winter or we'd be snowed in now. it will really have a negative effect on the foliage, which is at peak. hand/wrist/elbow/shoulder a bit better today. i see a smidgen of improvement every day, no thanks to Anthem. i still can't sleep through the night, so i'm hoping that will change soon. this is grocery shopping weekend and went out to pick up a few immediate need items this afternoon. got some fresh fish for dinner. living on the ocean as we do, we eat fish and shellfish often. i can't remember the last time i had frozen fish, probably at mcdonald's. i picked up about a pound of steamer clams also. the lobster tank was full and somebody was trying to climb out over the top. he wanted to come home with me and i would have been quite happy to bring him, but being out of work have to watch the pennies. lobster isn't too expensive right now but it's still out of the normal menu item. i see these tv chefs cook lobster in all these exotic ways. in my opinion, they just ruin it. steamed with butter is best, though i like mine cold with hot melted butter....yum! losing track of actual day of week since i'm not working. i can't even sew right now either. job hunting is akin to a root canal for me, but can't be helped and i certainly don't miss the insurance snake pit for one nanosecond. sorry, no quilty news to post at all, maybe soon.

short night

thanks to the nazis at anthem, i woke up at 3 am due to shoulder discomfort. i can pretty well keep it quiet during the day when i'm active, but lying down all night is still problematic. since the moist heat seems to keep the pain away, i might have to relocate to florida for complete healing. i do know of a mobile home that is for sale, probably cheap, if i were considering buying it but other than visiting family, i am not keen on florida at all. i am still puzzled as to why my life went to complete hell just because i sold my home back in 1993. i am still hopeful i can find employment again as a medical secretary, a job i always enjoyed and for which i have tons of experience. my life may have gotten derailed yet again by unknown idiots, but i haven't given up....not by a long shot. i still have plenty of time to get back on track. now that i'm away from claim status hell, i actually started walking again yesterday. please, god, make the shoulder 100% better right now so i can sleep all night again.