I seem to remember thinking as a kid that these little raised trails in the ground were fun to follow, smushing the grass back into place as I went. (Yes, it just may be possible that I was a weird kid. For a certain amount of time, I had a weekly dusting ritual, and I thought it was fun to clear the holes in our salt shaker with a toothpick. . . For better or worse, "clean freak" behaviors subsided with age. Come visit my house now, if you don't believe me. Then again, no. Please don't come visiting without prior notice. The clutter has nearly reached catastrophic level, and it'll probably take a couple of days just to get it decent again.)
As an adult, I find the tunneling simply irritating. Smushing grass and soil back down somehow doesn't hold the same fascination as it once did, and I'm preoccupied by thoughts of turf damage. Ha. "Turf". That almost makes it sound like I'm one of those poor sod-obsessed souls who trim the lawn one blade at a time with specialty shears. Trust me, I'm not. I probably ought to care more about the lawn than I do, in fact, but even I feel the good old burn of groundskeeper's ire when I see that crazy network of ridges pop up across the yard.
~~~ ~~~ ~~~
In other news--
The patio-ing continues apace! Maybe it's technically already taken too long for "apace" to apply. It's picking up steam, anyway.
Weekend before last, we set the posts (as you may recall). This weekend, Donald filled in the gaps around the posts, getting the pavers in there all nice and snug. He also cut the decorative (curvy) edge of the whatever-you-call-'em boards that will eventually support the shade cloth. Now I need to get started painting those boards and the lumber that we'll use to build a little railing around parts of the patio. It's starting to look like something, now. (Something other than a pile of supplies just outside our fence, that is.) I'm looking forward to getting it "done" enough that I can decorate in it and around it. (Silly me. As if there's not plenty enough to decorate inside the house!) I'm not looking forward quite so much to getting up on the ladder to paint, but it'll have to be done, as there are high-up spots needing another coat.
~~~ ~~~ ~~~
Today, I talked about polymer clay (and showed some samples. . . and guided a little bead-making) at a local home-maker's club that my paternal grandmother is a member of. I saw a couple of family members I haven't seen in a while-- as well as the lady who was secretary when I was in elementary school-- so that was nice. :o)
~~~ ~~~ ~~~
I came home this afternoon to find that a magazine had been delivered for me. Months ago, someone from this new magazine contacted me via my polymer clay button shop (on Etsy), wondering if I would be interested in sending them some of my buttons for possible inclusion in this new publication (Stitch, a "quilting arts" magazine). Of course I was interested-- but so much time had passed without feedback that I thought they might have decided against including my buttons. But here it is-- a photo of some of my little buttons in a magazine right next to a handful of other button-makers' works! Very exciting! (Maybe it's time I started paying more attention to my Etsy shops, again. . . I've been feeling guilty about neglecting them, anyway, but even more so now!)
~~~ ~~~ ~~~
I'm still not used to this time change (and the still shortening days). Already the very last vestiges of twilight are fading away, and it's only 5:15! Enough blogging for now, I guess. Hope your week's off to a pleasant start!
