Wednesday, September 5, 2018

A Surprise Gift on Tuesday

Daughter texted me this morning and said she was running a temperature, so she called in sick, today.  Then, she called me and we spoke for a bit and I told her to take a Motrin for her fever.  She said she did and napped on and off, all day.

I spent a relatively quiet morning.  I emptied the dishwasher and put away the rest of the washed dishes that were drying in the dish drainer, overnight.  I called to make the doctor's appointment to have my eyes checked, finally, and then, texted cousin N to see if she's available to accompany me so she could drive me home, afterwards, since I'll have my eyes dilated for the check up.  Before cousin responded to my text, her mother called and, in the course of the conversation, mentioned that they were expecting a visit from a relative from Sri Lanka on the day before my appointment, so I figured cousin might be too busy to accompany me. Therefore, I also called the temple to ask if one of the monks could drive me if cousin N was not available, and they said yes.  But then, cousin N called and insisted that she will take me and aunt called, too, and said cousin will take me!

After that was all sorted, I spent a quiet afternoon, sewing.  Apparently, September is National Sewing Month!  I had no idea!  I sewed five more mile-a-minute squares for the quilt top.  I now have 35 squares sewn.  I think that will be enough.  Tomorrow, I will spread them on the bed and see.

In the evening, I went to the knitting group at the library.  One of the ladies there, who was doing needlepoint, asked me to thread her needle for her and I did.  Then, she gave me a piece of fabric with a design stamped on it and some yarn, saying it was for me!

Knitting Group Gift
 
It's been awhile since I did crewel embroidery.  She wanted to give me a needle, too, but I assured her that I had needles.  She said (through another lady who translated for us) that she will bring me brown and yellow yarn for the basket, next week! 

I had wanted to bake a cake to take to the knitting group, but it was too hot to turn on the oven, today.  Instead, someone brought cookies:

Chocolate Covered Wafer

After I came home, I cooked a mackerel curry (canned mackerel) with onions and tomatoes in it, and cooked the okra I bought during my last grocery shopping trip in August; I had them for dinner, with leftover rice:

Dinner: Rice, mackerel curry, sauteed okra

I had some grapes for dessert, and the chocolate wafer from the knitting group.

After dinner, I video chatted with daughter; she napped for a bit while we were video chatting!  She didn't want me to sign off, but said that seeing me and hearing me type (I was typing an email to a friend) and my TV broadcasting the evening news in the background made her feel that she was at home with me, resting on the other sofa.  So, I stayed on while she napped and said goodnight to her only after 11:00 p.m.  I told her to stay home from work, tomorrow, too, but she said she'll see how she feels in the morning.

Today, I am grateful for:
- I have a ride to and from the eye appointment
- Daughter has paid sick leave
- The gift from one of the ladies at the knitting group
- Being able to video chat with daughter
- Family and friends being there for me

I didn't accomplish a lot of the things on my to do list, today!

Tuesday's To Do List:
- Call for eye doctor's appointment - DONE
- Call for dental appointment
- Do the laundry
- Dust
- Vacuum
- Pay the natural gas bill
- Empty the dishwasher/put away dishes - DONE
- Do some filing
- Start on my closet
- Attend the knitting group - DONE

Wednesday's To Do List:
- All the undone items from Tuesday's to do list!
- Visit neighbor T

How was your Tuesday?  What are your plans for Wednesday?

14 comments:

  1. I do hope your daughter feels better soon. Being unwell when you're on your own is horrible but it's lovely to hear that the sounds of home via Skype were comforting for her.

    That's a lovely gift from the lady at the sewing group. They seem to be very welcoming even with the language problems. Will we get a photo of the finished embroidery?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Eileen; daughter said she's feeling a little better, but she decided to take another day off from work. I think that's good because she can rest a bit more.

      The knitting/crocheting/sewing group seem to be quite friendly and welcoming. I think, there is still that initial awkwardness of them apparently knowing each other quite well and me not being able to join in the general conversation unless someone translates, and with me being not only a total stranger, but also from another ethnic group. I am a bit of a novelty to them! :D

      Yes, I will post a picture of the embroidery when it's done.

      Delete
  2. I hope your daughter is better today. That's very sweet that she wanted to hear you in the background. That was probably the best medicine she could have had.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Live and Learn; yes, she's feeling a little better, today. Had she been home, she would have spent the evening with her head in my lap! :)

      Delete
  3. Awww. Your daughter must have been feeling really sick. I think it is so sweet that you let her nap while you stayed with her. She wanted her mother next to her.

    Well, good for you to set up the appointment and get your transportation all set up. I don't blame you for not getting other items crossed off your list. Some things take much longer to achieve than we allow for them.

    I thought it was so very sweet for one of the ladies in the knitting group to gift you the sewing project (not that you need any more projects), but it was her way of extending friendship. It sounds as though you are becoming more comfortable with that group, even though communication must be tough at times.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, she wants her mummy when she is sick! She'd have cuddled next to me if she had been at home.

      I was feeling lazy, yesterday! I'll catch up on the housework today. :)

      Wasn't it very sweet of that lady? Ha, ha, you are right, I don't need another project, but, yes, it was her way of extending friendship. I am feeling a little more comfortable with the group and, I realize that they are also probably a little uncomfortable with me being a non-Spanish speaker. I am not very outgoing to begin with and I generally don't initiate conversations, so, it's not easy. But I am making an effort. :)

      Delete
  4. I do hope your daughter is feeling better soon, and I think it's lovely how you were on video chat while she napped. She obviously found it very comforting. X

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Jules; she says she's feeling a little better, today, although she took the day off work. I was touched that she wanted me to stay on video chat so she could imagine herself at home. She has learned to become an independent young woman, but she still wants her mummy when she's sick. :)

      Delete
  5. Hi Bless,
    I think handwork can be a bridge across cultures and sometimes doesn’t need language. I always travel with a crotchet or knitting project. Several years ago I was in Beijing on my way to the Temple to Heaven. There’s a park next to it and various groups, especially, retired folks, hang out there during the day and engage in activities with friends and people with like interests. The first group I encountered was a group of women knitting. I pulled out my crochet project and joined them. Pretty soon they were gathered around and we had quite a “conversation” mostly through pantomime. When we continued on our way we found the crochet group. My American technique was quite the thing!!! I do hope you’ll continue with the group. It sounds so interesting. Hope your daughter feels better.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You are right, Chris. Handwork really can bridge the language gap. :) Your experience on your visit to China is a good example. :) I'll probably continue going to the knitting group, at least twice a month and see how it goes.

      Delete
  6. Wow I loved this chatty post! I'm glad you got to sew and knit. You actually finished a lot even if it wasn't on your list.
    Hope to talk to you again soon.
    Laura of Harvest Lane Cottage

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Laura. I really appreciate you taking the time to visit and leave a comment. Hope you continue to feel well.

      Delete
  7. I do hope your daughter soon gets over this ailment, which is not fun! That is so neat that you just left the video on so that she could hear you while resting and feel more close to you that way.

    We are just having the second power outage in 2 days. There was quite a storm this evening so we were not surprised, but DH commented that he should have gassed up the generator as soon as the previous outage was over. However, we probably have enough to see us through, as the information is that we should have power returned around 11 pm. We shall see!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Bushlady; she said she felt better after resting and napping all day, today.

      Oh, I hope the power is restored when they said it will. Yes, hope DH is able to gas up the generator as soon as possible, so it's ready for the next time!

      Delete

Thank you for visiting my blog and commenting. Your comments are much appreciated. Please comment in English. Thank you.