Sophie's Story

           This week C and I had our yearly optometrist appointments. There are several things I need to take with me to this appointment. I need my glasses case, my contact case, contact solution and my wallet. I have a large purse that I use to carry all these things.          We went to the appointment and got our new eyeglass and contact lens prescriptions. After the appointment, I took my wallet and eyeglass case out of my purse and put them in the glove box inside the car. We had other errands to run and I didn't want to carry the purse with me. I wouldn't need my wallet or glasses and felt they would be safer locked in the glove box as opposed to being in the purse which would be in the trunk.          We had some lunch and then ran our errands. When we got home, we took the things we bought out of the car into the house. I grabbed my wallet and glasses along with a few other items. I went to the trun...

           When my parents moved into the senior apartment complex where they live, there were many activities that they could participate in. There were get togethers, Happy Hour once a week, religious type programs, a chorus and diamond art class.           For those of you who don't know, diamond art is like painting by numbers except you use small resin beads called drills. The canvas is preprinted with symbols or numbers and is sticky so the drills adhere to the canvas. It's a good way to relax and do something creative without having to actually be creative. The finished project turns out somewhat shimmery and depending on the design can also look dimensional.          Mom was doing "bead class" as she called it, when I discovered that I had a diamond art kit given to me by a tech I used to work with. It was a large design maybe 24 by 18 inches. It was a picture of a grey cat with a blue butterfly...

           Several years ago someone told me about edible landscaping. This is where edible plants are used instead of decorative plants in landscaping. An example would be planting berry bushes or fruit trees. As much as I'd like to do this, I'm not sure I'm good enough with plants to be able to make this work. I do believe in growing at least a few things we can eat so I'm trying things in out garden.           One of my most successful trials of food plants have been carrots.  Last year we had open space in our garden where the lemon balm plants used to be. My Dad suggested growing carrots. Dad has been a fairly successful gardener in the past so I did what he said. I bought some carrots seeds and planted them.          I read information on growing carrots and learned that once the seeds are planted it's important to water them daily. Every day I watered the seeds until the ground was moist. On...

           Now that we are back home and have re-established our routine with the cats, Barnaby has discovered a new "toy". The word is in quotation marks because it isn't really something to play with. However, one thing I have discovered in my many years of living with cats is that everything is one of two categories: food or toys.          I discovered this new interest a day or two after we got home. I was in the bathroom washing my hands when Barnaby jumped on the counter. He watched the water coming out of the faucet with great interest. I turned the water down to a thin trickle to see what he would do. He continued to watch it for a little bit and then started to bat at the stream with his paw. I let him do this for a few minutes and then turned the faucet off.          I started turning on the water for him anytime I was in the bathroom. Pretty soon it became obvious that this was a mistake. Now he e...

           Three years ago we "ate" dinner at a restaurant in Door County that we like a lot. It is on the fancy side and has an English manor theme. I use the word ate in quotations because looking back at the column I wrote at the time, all we had were bread and salad. We were there for an hour and a half and never got our entrees even though tables around us had and the place wasn't overly busy. It was the worst experience I had ever had at a restaurant. We decided we were not going back there again.               After three years of driving past it, we decided it might be time to try it again since another restaurant we do like had no open reservation times. We made the reservation and it was confirmed. As before we chose and early time, right after the restaurant opened for dinner hoping that it would be less busy.          I was a little nervous when we drove up to the restaurant a few ...

           We are back in Door County as usual for us at this time of year. We've made this trip over 20 times and have been staying in the same place and same room for the last three years. I don't mind this. If I know that the room and the bed are somewhat familiar, it's easier for me to go to sleep.          I wanted to do some different things. Maybe take the ferry to Washington Island and bike around it. See the big lavender farm that is there even if there isn't anything growing this time of year. We could go to the Cana Island Lighthouse. We haven't seen it in over a decade. Eat at a new place, do something, anything different than we've done the last 21 years.          Much to my frustration, C prefers to do what we have done every year. For some reason, he doesn't feel adventurous when we come here. I can understand this somewhat. It's comforting to know that the restaurant has something you like on...