One Down!

Yesterday I finished one of my projects that's been in the works for months now. This is a moment to celebrate because I actually believed it would never be finished. Some of you might recall that I bought a couch for $25 soon after I moved in here. It had a vinyl cover and looked like a couch that you'd see in a nursing home, doctor's office, or hotel lobby. I made an attempt to cover it and found a light beige suede feeling fabric, but the couch looked blah. I figured I'd put it out on the curb. That's what you do in Portland if you want to give something away. No matter what it is, it's usually gone by the end of the day.

While waiting to find someone to help carry the couch out to the curb I found a piece of red fabric that I thought would make a cool tablecloth. I spread it on the couch to see where I wanted to position the pattern, and really liked how it looked. So that started the dilemma of whether to continue with making a tablecloth or use the fabric for upholstery. If I used it for the couch I'd need more fabric, but I wasn't sure how much, so I measured and went to the store to get more fabric. They had sold out of that pattern. They reordered it, but I'm very impatient so I tried to use a couple other matching fabrics. That didn't work. It took a few weeks, but the red fabric arrived and I bought another yard. Of course that was 2 - 3 inches short, so I saved every scrap and skillfully pieced it together leaving the beige cloth on the back of the couch.

All this began sometime in March or April. Many days I thought I'd just throw the whole thing out. It's just one of those projects that you have to sit down and do and there never seemed like time. I had planned a small dinner at the beginning of October and invited a family with a two year old. In an effort to child-proof the house I was determined to finish the couch and pinned all the fabric in place. SIE had become an expert at removing the straight pins during these months of upholstering so I figured it would be a class one hazzard if a two year old saw them. I tried to get it all sewn in place before the two year old arrived, but it became a choice of a covered couch or a cooked meal. The night of the dinner I was scrambling to cover up the pinned section with throws and blankets. Lest it sound like I am blaming little kids for my inability to complete a project, let me mention the animals in my house who get onto the couch to groom their claws or nap. You probably know that a proper nap can't be taken unless the area is scraped and roughed up before turning around three times and settling in.

At any rate, my couch is now stitched and beautiful and comfy and if I ignore the cost of fabric and time, I can still pretend it only cost $25.

Thanksgiving's Past, Thanksgivings Past

Thanksgiving is past. It's the morning after Thanksgiving Day and very laid back. I'm taking care of kaleidoscope girl's two dogs while they are at the Coast. The 3 dogs are maniacs when they're together. I made the mistake of giving them each a chew bone thinking that would be a nice treat. They spent most of last night defending their bones and taunting each other with them. The family left after dinner and hopefully didn't get too tired driving in the rain. It was pouring here. This was my 5th Thanksgiving in Portland. Really hard to believe that time has spun so fast. Kaleidoscope girl and Hapapapa have an "extended family" of friends that have shared Thanksgiving Dinner together for years. I've joined in since I've been here and it's really nice to see the group together each year. Usually the host family makes the turkey and everyone brings something. Stories are that for the first few years there was no turkey...I'm glad those days have passed!

Thanksgivings Past I was remembering back to past Thanksgivings and there are many that have been really nice, but a couple that cross my mind every year. One was in Chicago. I don't remember a dinner, but I remember a slender nurse on my floor (I was a ward clerk at Billing's Hospital for a season). I probably worked that night and this nurse told stories of her Thanksgiving turkeys and how every year except this one it seemed she was pregnant. She would be in her eighth or nineth month and as big as the turkey itself. Everyone would crack up as she described herself trying to get the turkey in and out of the oven.

Another Thanksgiving that crosses my mind each year is my first one in Over-the-Rhine. I moved there in the spring of 1969 and my official roomate, D.G., had a job split between youth work at Prince of Peace and senior work at the OTR Senior Center which was located on the corner of 13th and Race St. across from Washington Park at the time. I say she was my "official" roomate because there were many people in and out of our apartment that summer. We were the ones who paid the rent. Everyone but me returned to school in the fall, and I was hired by the Senior Center to replace DG. For Thanksgiving, DG decided she wanted to cook dinner for all the little old people who usually came to the center. It would have been closed for the holiday and most all of the people would have been alone.

I had never cooked a turkey or made stuffing or anything like this. DG had taught me how to drive; now she was teaching me how to make the best turkey and stuffing. The turkey was huge. I think we used two or three bags of bread, a pound of butter, and an entire jar of poultry spice making the stuffing. Then it was up every hour through the night to check on it and baste it. The smell of turkey in the morning was wonderful and the dinner was a huge success. And one of the best parts was making the little elderly Italian cook, who was quite a curmudgeon - especially when we helped in the kitchen, sit down and eat without doing a thing! They all loved it.

The Beachys are Back!

Yay! Mr. Beachy, Peaches, and Soon are back from their l-o-n-g trip to China. They arrived last night all grumpy and tired out, but very happy to be home. They visited every relative in the Beachy extended family. Peaches said she didn't get to hold Soon for more than a few minutes the entire trip. Everyone thought she was the perfect baby. How could they not? Mr. Beachy is glad to be back in time to cook Thanksgiving dinner. He tells me everyone cooked for them while they were gone and they never ate so much food in all their lives. But they've been en route for three days and are happy I filled their fridge with their favorite American foods.

Early this morning Mr. Beachy was outside inspecting the yard and scolding, scolding, scolding me in his old familiar way about things I missed caring for in the garden. The weather has been cold and rainy, but that is no excuse. If Soon hadn't started fussing he would have given me an earfull! Peaches was all cheerful this morning, laughing that Soon couldn't let her take a shower without such a fuss. "Want to be with mama all the time! So many people in China; now all alone in big house. New colors, new sounds. Good while gone, now naughty. Baby Soon remember old house and be happy soon."

It's really great to have them back all safe and sound. I confess I was a little worried that they might decide to stay in China. Mr. Beachy knew I'd been thinking that might happen. He scoffed at me and muttered, "No, no. Chinese people all good with gardens. I go where needed most."