Busy Weekend

The choir sang the Sunday services with Missa Giai. Fun, fun. It was well received. Great to hear whale sounds with what seemed to be emerging out of the stone walls of the church. Wolves were singing everywhere and the birds were at their best. This all was on top of the choir singing. It really fit very well together. This was first performed at St. John the Divine in the early '80's. Big earth festival after church and of course I did that as well. Bushed in Carmel is what I'm saying although when I got home I tilled up some of the garden and this morning planted herb seeds. It's a beautiful morning.

Just back from another PT session. This time ultra sound. The neck is feeling better but I'm thinking that I've got to keep thinking about PT or it will go back to it's old bad ways.

This afternoon I'm meeting some church friends and we are going to walk through our Central Park woodland garden together. That place has been a work in progress and Greenspace along with a few other people have reclaimed that space from what was a wild out of control woods area. It's beautiful and I'm proud to show it off to friends.

Tues.

No one told me where time goes. Guess no one knows.

Today will be a heap of fun. This afternoon I'm going to Butler to work with pharmacy students from 2 to 5 pm. These are 5th yr students ready to go out to work in pharmacys next year. I have COPD (pretend) and am hard of hearing or I might pretend to be blind ( vasoline on glasses )or close to it. The students need to teach me correct inhaler techniques. I can give them grief any way I please. They have to deal with me in a positive manner. I've done this before and it's fun. Some students catch on to the disability and some just fly right by. The session will be video taped for the professors. It's something really different to do. Another teaching experience.

Still knitting. I'm up to my 60th stocking hat. Crazy isn't it. It's probably really around 75 if I count the first batch. I hung 6 easily made banners yesterday in the sanctuary for our Sunday of Missa Gaia. Today I want to work on two 4 by 4 pieces that will be hung in the front choir loft. One is a 45 inch blue round piece representing the famous picture of earth taken from space. I've got to do a little painting on the fabric but will do that at church since it is so big. I'm also lettering another 4x4 piece with the earth is the Lords from Psalms.
I think the sanctuary decorations are completed when these two pieces are finished.

This morning at church I'm meeting with a man who replates brass. That should cost a mint but we're hoping for a deal if we do all of what needs to be done.

At 5 today there is an UMOJA meeting at church. My friend is setting me up to do some sort of function, maybe a dinner when Joseph visits from Kisumu Kenya early in Sept. I'm working with a dinomo from Second Presb. It's the sr. preachers wife. She is a go getter to say the least. Should be fun. Since I'm going to Kenya with friend Ellen, I need to keep her "happy". Well, that's my excuse for not saying no to her. This should be a one time deal so I might be up to it.

Saturday I declared war on ants in the kitchen. I have a very clean kitchen now with oiled cabinet doors and get rid of ant powder everywhere and IT'S WORKING! Wow. Get's me excited. It's a big deal. Now you all are caught up for a few days.

Help

Can someone tell me where time flys to. I can't believe that it's 5 days later. Busy as usual. Neck evaluation was wed with the PT lady and I flunked. I think this is going to be my old age companion. I'm on for another 4 weeks and gardening just is just as difficult as last Summer. Now that's a big bummer. My neck muscles are so tight and out of wack on the left side. I need a lighter head. Where can I find one.

The weather is beautiful. So many things are just jumping out of the ground in the flower beds. I moved a few things today filling holes. Most of what came up last year is up again with just a few exceptions.

Choir is getting ready to preform Missa Gaia. It's avery contempory piece and was first performed at St. John the Divine in N Y City in the early 80's. It's all about thanksgiving for the earth. Whale, wolves, loons sounds and it's fun to listen to and sing. I made 6 banners for the church illustrating animals, flowers etc. I thought the music was junk when I first heard it but it really grows on one. You can type Missa Gaia in your search engine and you will learn more.

Doug had MAJOR oral surgery yesterday morning. He is now 5 more teeth less. Poor guy. Born with soft teeth that just haven't served him well. Tick Tacks in his mouth didn't help any. He is doing well and loves his narcotics.

Monday eve

Good Friday entry was a bit short. Some how I got intrupted and stopped writing. Easter was just a super day. Great music, great preaching and the church had about 300 for the first service and it was stuffed to the rafters for the second service. I would say at least 900. Chairs in the aisles as well and people sitting in the narthex. It was a festive morning. Decorations were just super with good help arriving Sat. morning for putting up Easter banners and flower arrangements that were hung on the sides of the sanctuary. We worked as fast as possible starting at 9 and were finished everywhere by 12:00. I baked 4 coffee cakes for Hospitality Hr. and our donations from Panera were more than usual. So...folks ate and visited all over the church and we had plenty for all. I called it the feeding of the 5000. A few church folks brought in pastries they had made so all was well. I usually am almost unable to crawl after such a busy morning but that didn't happen yesterday. But...I didn't sing in the choir. I had a bit of sense about that. We did play handbells for both services and that was my contribution to worship. We ate at Stake and Shake on the way home and I knitted another hat in the afternoon. Wow...the sewing room is all put away. It was the biggest mess with decorator fabric everywhere repairing banners and making a set of new ones. My big banner sewing projects are all completed. Yahoo! I just finished placemats for Jacob and Adam. Jacob had one and Adam didn't so now they are getting two placemates just alike. I'm wondering if that will help out with Adam. Poor guy. I made a placemat for Jacob when Adam was still in the highchair but that's not the case now. I'll get them in the mail tomorrow morning. I'm loving these long evenings when it's still daylight. Today I took back to church washed and ironed tablecloths we used yesterday, another set of banners that needed fixing that we will use this summer. It was such a gray, wet and rainy cold day just perfect for cleaning the visual arts closet at church. I'm feeling good about what was accomplished today.

Good Friday...or bad Friday

The week has been busy and most everything that I can think of is ready for Easter. What a good feeling. That's Easter at church...come to think of it. Easter at home doesn't exist. That's usually a sleepy afternoon.

Today I bought all the altar flowers for Sunday and hung the black cloth on the cross at the corner of 38th and Meridian.

Tomorrow the troups come and hang Easter decorations all over the church. It's lots of flowers, some silk and some real.

Tuesday Morning

We just went through an awesome weekend starting Thursday evening. Noah Paul Oliver arrived that evening joining the Eric and Kat and Andrew family as well as the bigger extended Russell family. He is doing well at 7 lb 7 oz. The Michigan kids arrived Friday evening in time for supper. So...the weekend was a double blast. We headed right to the hospital Friday evening to see Noah and his family. The little boys had such fun playing together in the hospital room. Sat. JB etc. and LR, PDAR were off to an afternoon at the zoo after planting flowers in the morning. Sunday morning Palm Sunday church with a parade and live donkey. Dinner with the 4 grandsons and parents around the dining room table. Couldn't get any better. Michigan Kids left around 3. Indy Kids left around 2. Awesome weekend for sure. Yesterday I went to church and put away Palm Sunday Stuff...banners, fake donkey etc. and did a bit of cleaning in our V. Arts closet. This morning it's getting North Notes ready for mailing, tomorrow is front desk time, Thursday is soup kitchen and church in the evening, Friday is church in the evening, Sat. is putting up Easter stuff and Sunday is Easter. Hospitality time will be in the Parlor, courtyard and Community Rm. We've had a huge swell of people. Palm Sun looked like the Easter bunch. In fact...all of Lent has seen the sanctuary full. Monday is sit all day after I do PT in the morning at 8:30. There is no grass growing under my feet at this point. I'm lovin it if I can keep up and I think I am.

Still getting care for my tight neck problem. It's better but I've got to keep on it. Muscles just are a mess.