an itty bitty road trip

Posted on May 11, 2017 by is there any more pie?

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When your friends from Montana show up in Massachusetts (a son was getting married–happy day!), you absolutely must get in the car and join them in their touristy endeavors.

It’s a law.

So Banjo Man and I packed up the car and headed to the Cape on Monday morning.  Two hours later we were at the family of the groom’s rental house in Hyannis.

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View from the dining area.

See that blue sky?  That’s a rare sight here in New England these days.  We are still waiting for spring.

“The Kathies”, as they are affectionately known to one and all, love to party.

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Nine of us went to Spanky’s, a seafood restaurant next to the dock where the ferries come and go.

I skipped the drinks and went right to the menu.

 

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My giant lobster roll. 

Since we’re talking about food, I’ll show you the lobster-stuffed avocado from Tuesday’s lunch at the Lobster Pot in Provincetown.

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The Kathies always know the best places, even when they are 3000 miles away from their remote mountain homes.

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More pics of Provincetown tomorrow.  Can  you believe it had changed a lot in the last 47 years, when Banjo Man and I spent a day here to celebrate our engagement?

(He remembered I wore a blue dress.  I didn’t.)

Late Tuesday afternoon, stuffed with seafood and clutching bags of pastry from the Portuguese bakery, we made our way back to Rhode Island.  My face hurt from smiling so much.

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Heading home over the Newport bridge.

 

 

 

Posted in food, friends, rhode island, road trip | 2 Comments

finished!

Posted on May 6, 2017 by is there any more pie?

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My part of the basement workroom is encased in plastic and labelled.

Hallelujah!

Selling fabric on Ebay has turned into a profitable little temporary business.

Did I tell you I’m saving for a new sewing machine?  All of the Ebay money goes into that fund, so when my present much-loved machine finally takes its last gasp I will be ready to go to the sewing machine store and get the new Janome 9400.

I have two more pairs of drapes to list this morning and then that part of this huge project is done.  I hope to spend the rest of May shipping out packages of vintage drapes and fabric to new owners.

Banjo Man is now cleaning out his part of the workroom.  I woke up at 5 AM to the sound of raccoons trying to get into the garbage cans outside the bedroom window, but it was actually Banjo Man digging through shelves in the basement.  He’d been up since 4 AM readying the car for a trip to the dump.

He’s so excited.

He has even thrown away twenty-year old tubes of caulk.

Let’s say “Hallelujah” again, shall we?

The best thing about today is not going to the dump, but the tossing out of the old “shop vac”, which doesn’t vacuum and makes a horrendous high-pitched squealing noise while not doing anything but blowing air around.

So today we’re buying a new one.  Well, not “we”, because I’m staying home today while Banjo Man goes to the dump, the grocery stores and Walmart.

It’s raining.  And the fog is incredibly thick.

But the basement?  A work of art!

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Posted in rhode island, secondhand stuff | 3 Comments

a little patio time

Posted on May 5, 2017 by is there any more pie?

Despite the chilly temperatures, Banjo Man has insisted upon ending the work day with a little wine…

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…and a big rock fountain.

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We wear sweatshirts and pretend it’s summer.

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I hope wherever you are the sun is out and the breezes are warm!

And there is wine.

Posted in family, rhode island | 2 Comments

my ebay life continues

Posted on May 3, 2017 by is there any more pie?

I don’t know how many days I’ve been doing this.  In the midst of the cleaning and unpacking and bin-hauling, I’ve lost track.

Yesterday I went to the Post Office and mailed off my SIX SALES.  How exciting!

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The money is nice, but the best part?  It’s out of my house!!!

This morning I unpacked three bins of fabric that I had marked “KEEP” two years ago.  But today I ruthlessly sorted through it and decided to sell about 70% of it.  Banjo Man is beside himself with joy.

Want to see some of the things I’ve listed on Ebay?

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A Davy Crockett curtain panel.

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Pink poodles and vintage cars!

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Southern plantation 1950’s era barkcloth.

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Farm barkcloth–this sold immediately.

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Still had its tag–priced 27 cents a yard.

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Satin lingerie holder.

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Three of these nubby barkcloth panels sold right away.

And for today?  Well, this bin awaits measuring, pricing and photographing.

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As do these:

And lots of tropical barkcloth drape panels!!

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I am so hoping I finish listing everything today.

Posted in just for fun, rhode island, secondhand stuff, shopping | 2 Comments

fortitude

Posted on May 2, 2017 by is there any more pie?

Amazon has a new series.

fortitude

Set in a fictional Arctic island settlement, “Fortitude” is a sci-fi thriller with an interesting set of characters, a defrosting mammoth that may or may not contain deadly toxins that turn nice people into murders and lots of people cheating on each other in snow-covered huts.

It’s pretty wild stuff.

I’m not into horror flicks at all.  I don’t like scary stuff.  But this is so darn good and the characters are so wonderful and intriguing.

I started watching it while Banjo Man was away.  I finished episode 10 of Season 1 (with two hours to go to the end) when I had to go out at 1 AM to pick up Banjo Man from the airport.

It was a rainy and foggy and creepy night.  And after 5 hours of Fortitude (I was icing my hip and taking Tylenol and sorting photographs on the couch–after a long weekend of ladders and cleaning, it was so good to sit down!) I will admit that I really didn’t want to venture out into the fog at 1 AM.

By myself.

Yes, FORTITUDE is that creepy.  I even check the interior of the car to make sure there were no toxin-filled psychomaniacs lurking in the dark.

And then I locked the doors.  Really fast.

For 10 hours of FORTITUDE I was so glad Banjo Man wasn’t with me, because he gets scared very, very easily.  And then he swears.  And he doesn’t like it when people don’t wear hats and gloves and zip up their coats when the temperature is -30 .

But…he was dying to see the show, even though I warned him about the creepy parts.

You know what?  He’s hooked!  He’s finished Episode 6 now and he loves it.

Go figure.

The acting is great and the setting is gorgeous.  They filmed it in Iceland, using similar settings as Game of Thrones (and the same local crew).  The scenery is stunning.

Click here to read more about it:

Have you seen this???   Let me know what you think!

Posted in family, television | Leave a comment

a two-cart couple

Posted on April 30, 2017 by is there any more pie?

It took over forty years, but Banjo Man and I finally realized that the secret to a successful and stress-free trip to the grocery store was for each of us to have our own shopping cart and go our separate ways until we meet up at the cash register.

The “separate ways” part can get tricky when we’re in a big store like Walmart and Banjo Man has left his cell phone at home.  Sometimes he forgets when and where we are supposed to meet and I end up spending more time next to the barbecued chicken display than I care to.

Here’s what happened Friday at Walmart.

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HIS.

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HERS.

Together it looked like the cart of a vegetarian with OCD.

Posted in family, just for fun, rhode island, shopping | Leave a comment

i’ve had better ideas

Posted on April 29, 2017 by is there any more pie?

 

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1/3 of what is to be sold (hopefully).

 

On this Saturday afternoon I am questioning my judgement.  My sanity.  My organizational skills.  And my Ebay prices.

Oh, dear.

I’ve been at this “cleaning the basement” thing for over a week now.  There have been good days and bad days.  I have sorted through many, many bins of fabric and curtains and drapes and bedspreads and have photographed each piece at least four different ways.  I have measured fabric and have folded drape panels and have written descriptions on note cards before packing each item into a zip-lock bag.  I have weighed everything, one thing at a time, on my brand new postal scale.

Now I’m at the “listing” stage, which is not exactly zooming along.

 

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Would anyone like peach curtains?

Here are the 10 things that are now on Ebay.  Please pray that someone buys this stuff, okay?

 

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I know someone wants that pink poodle valance with the pompoms!!!

If I ever buy another piece of vintage fabric again, I want you to take me by the hand and lead me to the asylum.  I promise to go willingly.

My daughter caught the Ebay spirit and brought her wedding gown to me to sell this morning.  What a great idea!  It’s always a shame to think of wedding gowns stuffed into boxes when they could be used again–and again–by thrifty brides.

 

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Love those daisies!

 

Banjo Man was very impressed with my progress in clearing off the basement shelves.  Unfortunately the living room and dining area look like a fabric bomb exploded.  There are shipping bags and boxes stacked everywhere.  By tomorrow night I hope everything will be back down in the basement, bins tucked neatly under the folding table I’ll use as my shipping center when hordes of eager fabric-buyers fight to purchase my collection.

Wish me luck.

 

 

 

 

 

Posted in personal female whining, rhode island, secondhand stuff | 4 Comments

thursdays with mom

Posted on April 28, 2017 by is there any more pie?

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Every Thursday my now-91-year old mother and I hit the road and hit the stores.  It is “her” day to decide where she wants to go and what she wants to shop for.  Sometimes it’s shoes, or slacks, or groceries doughnuts, cookies and coffee cakes.  Yesterday we bought an alarm clock.  Sometimes we head north to the big mall or the hairdresser.  Or north to Kohl’s.  Or south to Walmart.

Let me tell you how much I love the “handicapped” parking spaces.

Yesterday we stayed in town and had a leisurely hour and a half in Marshalls.  She bought two nightgowns, a robe, new slippers, three pairs of pants and a pair of shoes.

I don’t usually buy anything, but yesterday I went crazy and bought three summer tops and a nine-pack of socks.

 

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This woman is a shopper of Olympic quality.

Lunch is either at those trendy gourmet hotspots, Walt’s Roast Beef or Subway.  Now that she is feeling better (I will admit things were a bit grim last November) she can wolf down a 6″ meatball sandwich in ten minutes flat and, cane in hand, is ready to move on to the next thing on her Thursday list.

If and when I’m 91, I hope someone takes me to a fabric store once in a while. 

 

 

 

 

 

Posted in family, rhode island, shopping | 2 Comments

no sew expo? no problem!

Posted on April 26, 2017 by is there any more pie?

If it’s April, it’s Sew Expo in Worcester, Mass.  But not this year.  The annual sewing event, with demos and fashion shows and vendors and quilts, did not come to Worcester this year.

All good things must come to an end, I guess.

But we were not deterred.  By “we” I mean Harley Chick, her Aunt Pat and me.  There was no way we were going to give up on an annual tradition, our April jaunt to see new developments in the sewing world and check out the new fabrics and patterns.

Yesterday–despite the rain–Harley Chick drove us to Grafton, Mass where we picked up Pat and headed for Franklin Mills, a huge fabric store in an old mill building next to the train tracks.

Harley Chick bought a dress pattern for her granddaughter.  I bought material for a table runner for the lake house.  Pat eyed several patterns for bags, but managed to resist.  I also bought unbleached denim to make into a pastry cloth.

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I see this as a table runner.  Do you?

 

And I also picked up a couple of other little pieces I couldn’t resist.

We ate lunch at the Grafton Grill, which was a fabulous new place owned and run by Pat’s neighbors.

april shop hop 2017

 

april shop hop dessert 2017

Peanut butter pie with whipped cream and chocolate chips.

Let’s do it again in October, ladies! 

 

 

Posted in friends, just for fun, quilting, rhode island, shopping | 1 Comment

pie porn

Posted on April 24, 2017 by is there any more pie?

To

This is a gorgeous book about pie.

art of pie

I sadly returned it to the library yesterday, but not before copying some of the recipes for pie crust and fruit pies.

And I bought lard.

As soon as the basement is cleaned, I am going to make a strawberry pie.

The author, Kate McDermott, writes about pie as if she is a dear friend in your kitchen, one who is going to explain “pie” as simply and kindly as your grandmother would.

One Thanksgiving many years ago, I attempted to teach my three daughters how to make pie crust and pumpkin pies.

They tolerated the hands-on instruction, but they did look at me as if I was crazy.  As in, why would I ever want to go to this much trouble when I could buy one at the store?

I’ve never found a store-bought pie to be as good as a homemade pie, except for one time in Austin, when I bought a giant peach pie at Central Market.  I still remember the magnificent crust.

There will be lots of pie at the lake this summer. 

I am ready.  And inspired!

To see this book on Amazon, click here:

Posted in books & music, food | 2 Comments