Weekends Thread - January 2024

Okay, peeps, what are you doing with your weekend? We've entered January so are you embarking on new projects? Or are you still tidying up from December?

We took down the Christmas decorations today which causes me to suffer a little bit from post-holiday doldrums. (I like the pretty lights and family ornaments on the tree.) I like what some folks do now with their outside lights (leaving them up through January) as a means of cheering their neighbors through the darkest months.

Otherwise, I am puttering around the house. We'll do a Zoom cocktail hour this evening with friends (scattered up and down the northeast corridor). The weather here is supposed to be dreary downpours; the weatherman informed us last night that it had been 709 days since our location had experienced any measurable snow accumulations.

What might the rest of you be doing? Crafting, cooking, writing stiff letters of complaint about typos in television news chyrons? (My husband is usually scandalized by those...) Anyone rooting for particular winners in the Golden Globes?

I hurt my Achilles the other night so I’m not running this weekend as I had planned. :(

Our stupid garage door opener (which has been replaced twice now) has decided not to close again. We currently have a message in on the emergency number … and now the spring on it has broken and we can’t open it at all. Which means we are stuck at home until it’s fixed. First world problems, but super annoying!

I do have an order of yarn coming today so I can work on the sleep sack I started during Winter Break. I have a puzzle I’d like to work on. I just bought an X-wing Lego model I will start. And we have football to watch. I also have a backpack full of work to do.

My SIL is coming tomorrow to help remove Christmas from our house. I thought I could manage it on my own, but the back pain I have has put a damper on that.

Had a surprise visit from the grandson and his parents. He wanted to show us the little wooden Home Depot truck he made today. Home Depot has a craft day for kids on Saturdays during the winter. Grandson brought his truck in, then got shy and hid it. Later he brought it out and put a good load of M&Ms in the back of the truck.

I don't have to go anywhere this weekend, but I have a to-do list, and I'm taking care of a few items. Today, I took down the Christmas tree, sorted through the ornaments to weed out some I no longer appreciate, bleached the tree stand and vacuumed up the leftover needles. The tree is out the door and will provide habitat for the small birds until spring, at which point I will chip it up and use it as mulch. I have NOT removed all remnants of the holiday season: the cards I received are still displayed and I'm leaving the outdoor lights until probably the end of January.

I'm also going to shovel the .5 cm of snow we just got, try to repair a floor lamp that won't stay lit, fix the curtain rod in my bedroom, and read some books.

We went into town to meet my wife’s cousin for lunch. We had a lovely time and even managed a visit to a bookshop where I bought three books. Yay me!

Yesterday I took the outdoor lit garland off my front door, and put the two outside (artificial) lit trees in my shed. I did try to walk away with one of the trees after untying it from it moorings, but I'd forgotten to actually unplug it. That was fun. I got next to nothing accomplished today other than finishing a book, and I'm okay with that. My beach walk was short, as the wind was painful. I think I need to invest in heated mittens.

We are getting wind and rain (mixed with other stuff) tonight & tomorrow. No accumulation predicted. I am thankful for that. So I plan to take down my big inside tree tomorrow, but I'm leaving a bunch of the other lights up for a while. As others have said I need the pretty lights to help me cope with the darkness & the cold.

We went to St. Louis to the theater (Mrs. Doubtfire); ate lunch at our favorite Mexican restaurant across the street from the theater.

My plans after church are to read. I have three ebooks in my queue from the library that will be expiring this week.

No real plans this weekend except reading, knitting, and going skiing. I have some dvd's from the library to watch while I knit, and an audiobook in case I get ambitious about cleaning.

I'm enjoying my Sunday morning, not making any particular plans right now. Yesterday afternoon I headed over to a friend's place for a girls' night. It was really nice, and we really should do this more often - my friend's house comes with a sauna in the basement (yay), we had food, cava, and lots of laughs. I came home at 1 a.m :)

Yesterday went to a baby shower for a friend's daughter and then went for a couple glasses of wine with another friend who also went. Haven't been to one of these things for 20 years - since when do men come to them? Crazy. I barely wanted to be there, can't imagine why someone without estrogen would want to. Weird.

Today I'll just hang at the house and maybe make some jewelry.

I'm hunkering down this weekend after a doctor's appointment and a few errands today. We are supposed to get hit with another winter storm and some arctic air. There might be 20 inches more snow on the ground by tomorrow afternoon. And then Sunday temps in the negatives. Just saw the heat in my building at school (we have 5 separate buildings on my campus) is out. I feel for those teachers and kiddos.

It's very cold here - today's high is supposed to be -30C (-22 F) and Saturday/Sunday are forecast to be -27C, and that doesn't count wind chill. For example it's -35C at the moment, and that's equivalent to -45C when wind chill is factored in. I don't mind, because it's also sunny and we've had some snow (finally!), which makes everything very beautiful. There's something delicious about being snug indoors when it's stupid cold outside.

Anyway, it's a weekend for cozying up with blankets, cats, tea, and books. It will warm up next week, so I'm putting off any errands that I can until then. Which means everything except grocery shopping and picking up holds at the library. I'm steeling myself to go do that now.

Spending the day reviewing and revisiting our rotation of dinner time entree options. I don't want to experiment -- just hope to come up with something a tad different from the 28 options used regularly over the course of the past year. Maybe a nice beef stroganoff that can be done in the crockpot. Anyone got such a thing hanging out in their recipe box?

Otherwise reading and writing. Our bad weather is supposed to sweep in overnight (lots of rain) but the dramatic drop in temperatures mentioned by >11 catzteach: and >12 tardis: is expected to hit us on Tuesday. The meteorologists are unclear as to whether we'll get snow with it. The US model says one thing; the European model says another.

Today a friend is picking me up to "help" her hang pictures in her new home. She will be wielding the hammer, I will be the "eye." She knows from our hotel management time together that I am a stickler for pictures being straight on a wall. :D Of course this is her way of including me and having a little visit. She is perfectly capable.

Tomorrow may have some in-laws from AZ visiting.

Sunday my sister will arrive to stay a few days, help me celebrate my birthday and go to my infusion treatment on Wed. For my birthday dinner I requested creamy Mac 'n cheese and roasted asparagus. If the market provides, we might add scallops to the menu. She plans to make a German chocolate cake with coconut-pecan icing for my birthday. Haven't had one since before my mom died. Love my sis.

Also Sunday, a niece will stop by to pick up a box of leprechaun figurines I don't need anymore. We were going to have a visit, but she is getting over a cold, so I will put the box on the porch and we can wave through the window. :(

Happy birthday to you >14 MrsLee:! I am getting birthday brownies on Sunday as my treat!

>14 MrsLee: Enjoy your visit with your friend! I hope all the pictures are hung to both of your satisfaction(s?). Happy Birthday in advance, and the same to you, >15 jillmwo:. Both of my kids are headed here for the weekend to help me celebrate what is a quasi milestone. Yay Medicare eligibility!

And because it's our triplet birthday weekend --> I think we should read this and contemplate which reading tradition we will adopt as a standard element of the birthday celebration: https://www.tor.com/2024/01/11/mark-each-year-in-books-thoughts-on-reading-tradi...

>14 MrsLee:
Have a great birthday. You appear to be having plenty of socialising for the weekend.

>15 jillmwo:
Have a lovely birthday. Enjoy your brownies.

>16 clamairy:
Busy birthday weekend. Enjoy your Medicare-eligibility-day celebrations.

On my last birthday I qualified for free public transport.

>14 MrsLee: Enjoy! and Happy Birthday! And I hope your market delivers scallops, because creamy mac and cheese with scallops and roasted asparagus sounds like comfort food heaven.

>15 jillmwo: Happy birthday to you, too!

Tomorrow morning I bring my wife to a clinic for a CT-scan of her heart. Last scan she had was of her brain and they said they could find nothing. I trust they will find a heart tomorrow.

On Sunday my wife's friend is using us and another friend as guinea pigs while he practices a presentation he is due to present soon. After that we might order in some Thai food. A friend introduced us to a Thai takeaway restaurant that is health conscious and produces food that I can eat without raising my blood-sugar. Happy days!

>13 jillmwo: I have an idea there's one in The Russian Cookbook by Nina Nicolaieff. Would you like me to look and PM it to you if I find anything?

I'm sure your wife is the Tin Man, the Scarecrow and the Lion all in one, Pete! Plus a soupçons of Dorothy, too.

We are having a minor snow storm today through tonight so it has prevented my husband flying home since the pilots err on the side of caution. So it will be just me until tomorrow am when they get him back. Then I might go out and play in the white stuff.

>24 Bookmarque: Predominantly the Lion.

>14 MrsLee: >17 jillmwo: hope you both had/have wonderful birthdays.

>23 hfglen: I welcome any inspirational recipe!!

>14 MrsLee: Have a wonderful birthday!

>15 jillmwo: Happy Birthday to you too! Brownies is a lovely birthday treat!

>16 clamairy: Happy Birthday to you too! I think my birthday is the last of the triplets, being on Wednesday, the day of my infusion. (Not yay)

Thank you everyone for the well wishes!

>17 jillmwo: I am going to read that article now. Did you hear Tor is changing its name later this month? Can't remember what the new name will be.

All the pictures are hung on the walls with good care, and they look very level, but don't stop to stare. I convinced her to lower them each by a third, so's not to bring eyestrain to her little bird.

>17 jillmwo: I like the sweatpants and Skittles option (better yet, cheese).

>20 pgmcc: Thank you! There will be much cheese and whooping it up.

>29 MrsLee: Thank you! Yes, Jill and I are both celebrating on Sunday, and you, that third triplet, must have taken a few more days to arrive. Yikes.

>17 jillmwo: I will have to come back when I have time to read this.

>31 clamairy: I forgot to add you to the Happy Birthdays!

Happy birthdays to MrsLee, jillmwo, and clamairy!

It's very cold here, I think the high was -30°C and forecast for -35 overnight, not including the windchill. Tomorrow is supposed to be colder - close to -40 overnight. I was supposed to be volunteering at the seniors thrift store Saturday - it is only open about once a month, but it has been cancelled due to the cold.

Now I plan to stick around home, except for taking the dog out. We will go for a short ski in the afternoons. Otherwise, I plan to do a lot of reading and knitting, and watch the birds at my feeders.

I just finished the re-working of a knitted present for Mom - a shoulder cosy or poncho. It was originally supposed to be a Christmas present, but I didn't like how it turned out. I unravelled it and restarted with a different plan, and like it much better. The yarn is an ombre that goes from pale grey to pale blue, dark blue, dark grey, and back to pale grey. It is a lovely, soft wool-alpaca mix. Her birthday is early February, so it is now going to be a birthday present. Now I am making a balaclava for myself with the extra yarn. I already made one version of the balaclava and some mitts with some really chunky, colourful yarn (lovely soft pure merino wool). Good timing, as they are perfect for this weather. The one I just started will be a lighter-weight version, for when it warms up.

Yes, I missed giving Clam a happy birthday too. Happy birthday, Clam, and hoping you could spend the day with some good books and som nice cheese. jillmwo and MrsLee too.

Mrs H and I had an exciting Saturday morning: bought a washing machine. (We left our old one in the house in England and have been making do with trips to the local laundromat.) I managed a side trip to the Cystic Fibrosis Bookshop at Nundah, where I bought La Belle Sauvage by Philip Pullman and A Complete Dagg by John Clarke.

More Happy Birthdays and indeed Hippo Birdies to MrsLee, jillmwo and clamairy!

>27 jillmwo: Sent. On maturer reflection, I wonder if a Hungarian gulyas, pörkölt or tokany would fit the original brief in >13 jillmwo: better. József Venesz has many in his Hungarian Cuisine.

Happiest of happy birthdays to the LibraryThing Triplets!! I hope you all have wonderful birthday weekends.

It’s already -1 F (-18 C). And it’s been snowing heavily since we woke up. We are supposed to get 12 inches today. I’ll be finishing a book, working on a puzzle, cleaning my sewing room, and getting in a workout. Oh, and probably watching football. I love watching football in the snow. The players, that is. I have yet to watch a football game in person in the snow.

For those in North America, stay warm and safe.

Happy birthday weekend >27 jillmwo: >30 MrsLee: and >31 clamairy:!

>38 hfglen: Safely received!! Thank you. After a lengthy discussion, my husband has persuaded me that Hungarian goulash would be appropriate as a hearty, hot meal this week. Lots of beef and smoked paprika! (Honestly, I suspect this male individual (an "old codger") no longer has flavor sensors or taste buds. He wants things that will allow him to breathe fire like Smaug!)

I trust you are having a lovely birthday. You will probably be too busy enjoying yourself to appear here very often today. Have a blast!

>41 jillmwo: When I make goulash-oid dishes, the paprika is mild and gives colour and flavour but not heat.

>42 pgmcc: and >43 hfglen: I have indeed heard from both sons (with (eldest) wife and (youngest) fiancee). The four of them are up in Connecticut this weekend -- all four working on wedding related "stuff". Much relieved to hear that all four are now past the COVID thing of Christmas and sounding so much better. (The distaff side had much the worse experience of it.) At any rate, they're all well.

As for birthday, we've had the birthday brownies (which actually hit the spot perfectly) and my husband has told me that when I KNOW what it is I want this year, I can get it at some later date. (He had suggestions, but I was dithering.)

However, one word of caution from the woman who is both another year older and wiser. We woke up this morning to a noise that sounded like something metallic had landed on a cement floor. Spouse investigated and in a befuddled tone told me that "a part of the furnace" had fallen off. At that point, we began to get a whiff of burning oil. Let me tell you nothing gets me moving out of bed more rapidly than concerns about a furnace when there's a cold snap due. We called the emergency repair guy who showed up far more rapidly than we had any right to expect. He fixed the problem in less than 90 minutes, but my cautionary note to all is that one should not put off or cancel the annual maintenance appointment with one's furnace guy. Because, as sure as eggs is eggs, that will be the year that something gets clogged and backfires, causing the exhaust door to fall off of the furnace.

>44 jillmwo:
I am glad you got the furnace fixed so quickly with that bad storm approaching.

Glad to hear your birthday is going well.

>45 pgmcc: The other birthday lesson learned was my spouse realizing in the past sixty minutes that he needs to check and be sure that the appliance (in this case, a crock pot) is properly plugged in order for something to cook. We don't often have days like this as we seem to crowd everything into a single 24-hour period. Thus when we have one, it's generally a doozy. Fortunately, we had a back-up plan in terms of left-overs that could be put into the oven. Still all in the house are alive, fed and warm...

>44 jillmwo: >46 jillmwo: Sounds like a really exciting weekend! Those funny noises in the night can really get you moving, can't they?

Happy birthdays to you all! I like to imagine that you all raised a glass to each other at the same time in your various locations!

I forgot about these weekend threads! Trying to get back in the swing of LT, but slowly, I guess.

I had a birthday, too, this week, but no big plans. I did go to a friend's house yesterday and we had cake. Today, I had off work and I went to the yarn store and picked up some art that I bought from a friend. She's an amazing artist!

Many happy returns to my fellow GD Capricorns!

>49 littlegeek: Happy birthday! I hope there might be a way to manage seconds on the cake?

>49 littlegeek: Happy belated birthday! I hope the cake was awesome.

>49 littlegeek: Happy birthday!

>49 littlegeek: Happy Birthday!

Thanks all!

Happy birthday from me too, even more belatedly!

>49 littlegeek: Happy Birthday. I hope you had a great day.

>49 littlegeek: Happy belated birthday!

Not much this weekend. Mr. Retired has been building pull-out shelves for the kitchen since New Year's Day. They are really making the kitchen more functional. I do my part by giving positive feedback and staying out of his way. Tomorrow we will be attending a trivia fundraiser. Trivia nights are a big fundraiser around here. Trivia season last from about the end of high school football until the beginning of high school baseball. Wish us luck: there is one group ("The Best and the Beautiful", ack; made up of a team of high school teachers); our team ("Family and Friends") consistently come in 2nd or 3rd after them. We are determined to beat them at least once this season! It's personal now, lol. The only prize btw, is bragging rights. This is life in a small town. :)

Ah, another weekend. Rest and Recovery for me.

We are meeting another of my wife's cousins tomorrow for coffee which will probably become lunch. These meetings have been prompted by my comment at my sister-in-law's funeral, that the cousins only seem to get to meet at funerals and that we should organise opportunities to meet rather than wait for sad events.

On Sunday my elder son and his fiancée are joining us for lunch at a local hostelry. This is something to look forward to.

There are no weekend plans at all. I want to take it easy.

It's been a very stressful week, with ca 80% of the stress being in my head. My brain was busy making up scenarios, all of them horrible and unrealistic. It was very silly, of course. We did have stuff to handle, but it was all doable. Now I am just relieved and happy. The reasonable part of me is back too, thankfully.

I bought a Ukrainian cookbook before Christmas, maybe I will try one of the recipes this weekend. Yummy.

>61 Alexandra_book_life: Brains are stupid. Glad things were better than your brain projected.

I have a quiet weekend ahead. We had planned to revive our annual winter party, known as 12th Night, which was last held in 2020 before all the shutdowns. Unfortunately, yesterday I woke up with a sore throat, so I cancelled. Very sad not to see all my friends, but obviously I don't want to give any of them whatever lurgy I have. It's not Covid or flu, but there's other stuff going around.

It's annoying because I don't feel terrible, just bad enough that I shouldn't associate with anyone. Congestion, mild sore throat, mild headache.

I still have to go grocery shopping, but I always do that with a mask anyway, and I will go to the nearest and least busy store.

On Sunday, I'm supposed to go to a board meeting, but I'll see how I feel. If I do go, I will mask.

I'm going on a date. Yeah, five years since the demise of the beloved MrsHouseLibrary and a whole year of grief counseling, it's time to push forward. It's a date to meet face-to-face over breakfast. We'll see how much more time we want to spend together after that. She's definitely not MHL; that was one of my criteria. She'll never be replaced, so find someone that's compatible in other ways. They're both female and teachers, but other than that, this one is closer to my age, different in stature, not a redhead, so definitely unlike Karrell. She claims to be a Snuggler Supreme -- always a positive. This will be a slow process. Whereas when I first met Karrell (online,) we corresponded several tines a day (chatted in a sense.) This one -- retired but back to teaching full time, so our schedules don't quite sync up and for now, at least, cautious. She goes to bed early during the week, and I'm playing at 4 OMNs in the evenings, so our "together time" seems to be limited to weekends only. This may be a crash-and-burn situation. "We'll see," said the Zen master.

Congratulations on putting yourself out there and trying for new connections, WHL! Of course no one can replace K and so it's good that you're not trying. Wishing you the best of luck and a good date.

Best wishes on this new phase of your life, WHL!

>63 WholeHouseLibrary: We'll be rooting for you!! (Or crossing thumbs as that seems as if it would be quieter and perhaps less intrusive.)

>63 WholeHouseLibrary: Best of luck with that. (And with not getting zapped by static electricity!)

Everyone else, please stay safe and warm. I went for a beach walk today and was pretty miserable. Snow in the face both ways somehow... LOL

>63 WholeHouseLibrary: I hope you have a good time on your date.

My weekend is dependent on the weather. We’ve been hit with freezing rain. Wednesday was a no school day due to ice. Today was as well, but I had to go to the district office to participate in bargaining. The roads were worse coming home than going. So if it melts, I’ll go on an afternoon run with a new person and do a couple of errands. If it doesn’t melt, I have a 2,000 piece puzzle I started on Wednesday that I can work on. Also, reading and crocheting.

I now have a wonderful nephew coming to visit tomorrow. :)

>63 WholeHouseLibrary: Best of luck to you! I hope you'll have a wonderful time with your date.

>62 tardis: Brains are stupid. Glad things were better than your brain projected.
Thank you! I am enjoying our quiet weekend. Yesterday evening we watched (re-watched!) "Stardust", which was another great step towards healing my brain.

It was 14 degrees when we awoke this morning and the wind chill brought it down to single digits. There's about five inches of white stuff on the ground outside; the wind keeps picking it up and flinging ice pellets against the window. OTOH, the sun is bright and clear.

By Thursday of this week, we're supposed to see temps of 54. And lots of rain mid week is supposed to wash away our winter precip. Meanwhile, I'm going to go find that novel that's been sitting on the shelf unread for about ten years and see if the wait was worth it.

>72 jillmwo: Which one!??? I suspect there are several (dozens?) that fit that description.

We have less snow than you do, and it's 18°F & windy, so I am similarly trapped in my home. If it weren't windy I'd be out walking on the beach.

>63 WholeHouseLibrary: I hope if nothing else, you have a new friend.

My nephew came for our visit, only he found out this morning he had been exposed to covid and strep throat. So as an act of caution, he called me from his car in front of my house and we talked for 2 hours! Silly, lovely man. He decided to go ahead and drive here because he didn't want me to think he was trying to get out of the visit.

It warmed up to 14 today and it was lovely. I went outside and wandered in the woods for the first time since October! This is a bit of club moss backlit by the low winter sun -

>75 Bookmarque: Perfect winter photo. Simple and clean.

>63 WholeHouseLibrary: Good luck your new adventures. It can be scary starting out again.

Got up at 4:30 am to take the hubs to the airport for his final (we hope) trip to Mexico for dental surgery. The last time he went, they wouldn't do it because his blood pressure was too high, which was fine before and after at home. I blame the heat, which is not a problem this time. He's also armed with some valium so fingers crossed!

Don't want to keep you in suspense ... there won't be a second date. Mutual choice. Still, I'm not disappointed.

>76 MrsLee: Thanks MrsL. It was a nice find and I'm glad I got it since the light lasted all of a minute.

Well one date where both parties agree that there shouldn't be a second is still a good outcome. Baby steps.

Not quite “weekend”, but it started on Sunday: we are in the middle of a road trip, Brisbane-Canberra-Brisbane, to meet our new grandson. We arrived in Canberra late this afternoon and have just got back from dinner at the restaurant where Son Who Cooks is now head chef.

That post is full of such wonderful news:
- Meeting your new grandson
- Dinner at a restaurant
- Your son is head chef

Not to mention the whole idea of a road trip.

That post just oozes good news. I trust you are having a lovely time.

>81 haydninvienna: Oh, how wonderful! I'm very happy for you!

Yesterday I went out for a belated birthday sushi dinner with two of my siblings & their spouses and one of my nieces & her daughter. I had my first saké bomb!

>81 haydninvienna: I feel just as >82 pgmcc: does about your post.

>83 clamairy: You must inform this country bumpkin what is this thing called saké bomb?

A full saké tumbler is dropped into a pint or glass of ale or beer.

>85 clamairy: Thank you. :)

>81 haydninvienna: Wonderful! I am very happy for you :)

>85 clamairy: do you drop the actual little glass in, or do you pour it?

>88 Darth-Heather: You can do either. I dropped it in.

>89 clamairy:
Some people here use the bomb technique, primarily dropping the shot class into the beer, using Jägermeister and Guinness.

>90 pgmcc: That combo might be a bit too much for my palate. I had Boilermakers on St Patty's Day back in my college days. That was Irish whisky dropped into a beer. I have only the vaguest recollection of what those tasted like.

>91 clamairy: "I have only the vaguest recollection of what those tasted like."

Not too surprising, really... ;-)

>82 pgmcc: >83 clamairy: >84 MrsLee: >87 Alexandra_book_life: Thanks for the good wishes. I’ll post a photo or two of grandson Xavier when I get back to Brisbane. But we’ve just had a Thai dinner with Son who Cooks (Philip), his elder brother David (Xavier’s dad), Caitlin (David’s wife/Xavier’s mum) and of course Xavier. Just getting the boys at the same table with Mrs H was noteworthy in itself. Backstory is that the boys never got on with their stepmother. It wouldn’t be wrong to describe Philip and Mrs H as bitter enemies. But Time, the great healer, has worked its magic and now they will at least eat rice together. And Mrs H is decidedly smitten with Xavier. Philip is also totally besotted with being an uncle.

>93 haydninvienna: That sounds like a wonderful occasion in every way. Time, good food, and grandchildren are great healers.

>93 haydninvienna: Babies are a wonderful contribution to world harmony. Congratulations on the new addition to the family.

>93 haydninvienna:
I am delighted with your great, peaceful evening.

We are having a lazy Saturday morning. I still haven't decided if we'll do anything outside the house today ;) The streets are still icy, so I'd rather not go anywhere unless I "have to".

Yesterday the little prince turned 8 (gulp, when did this happen?). This was also the first time we've ever seen him being really happy and proud about having a birthday - he is a neurodiverse little boy, so his ways of learning, growing, and developing are all his own :) It was wonderful to see. I promised him cake and presents after school. When dad picked him up, I got a text "you'd better start baking, this boy is galloping home". It was a good thing I was already wrapping up the home office stuff for the day! I don't think I ever baked this fast, ha ha. The results: the match between mom's chocolate thingee and a new Lego ended 4:1. The new lego was kind of fun, but he ate four pieces of cake (!). This has never happened before... Tomorrow we'll celebrate his birthday again, together with grandma.

Off to meet my friend who runs Swan River Press, the only publisher in Ireland that is dedicated to weird and supernatural fiction. He is keen to track down the whereabouts of Charles Robert Maturin’s last resting place.

The church and cemetery where he was first buried was subjected to redevelopment. All the remains in the cemetery were transferred to, as best we know, a mass grave at another churchyard. The second burial site was recently subjected to another redevelopment project. We only have sketchy information regarding where the occupants were transferred during the redevelopment.

Maturin died in 1824. He was the author of Melmoth The Wander amongst other Gothic works. He was a great uncle by marriage to Oscar Wilde.

Well now that sounds like an adventure, Pete!! Coming from the US, I haven't heard about cemeteries having to be moved very often at all. We have a lot of space and since Europeans didn't invade until late, it's not necessary so I feel for the folks who have to try to do genealogy or something that relies on accurate burial records/sites. I've only ever personally seen one small family graveyard moved because of its proximity to the airport. Strangely, they didn't move the pet sematary (have to spell it that way!) across the road.

I plan to work at the bench on some projects. A pendant and maybe I'll be brave enough to try making a chain for it as well. I've only ever made chunky chains and so trying a more delicate one will be challenging.

>97 Alexandra_book_life: Now that's a nice story about birthdays!

>98 pgmcc: How hard is it to locate this grave site? Is it really, really lost? (serious question)

>99 Bookmarque: I hope you'll show us some pictures of the workbench.

>97 Alexandra_book_life: how exciting for your little one. I work with 8 year olds. They are so much fun!

>98 pgmcc: Are you helping him with this adventure or just hearing about it over coffee?

>99 Bookmarque: We have a controversy brewing in my town because a developer wants to buy and develop our city-center located cemetery. It’s mostly a pioneer cemetery, but there are a few graves that are newer in there. I hope they don’t move it. There is plenty of other places that could be developed.

As for my weekend, The Husband wants to go to lunch to get fish and chips. He’ll eat that. I’ll have a Winter Salad as I have been told to start eating a more veggie and/or Mediterranean diet. I also want to work on a couple of crocheting projects: a Wizard of Oz sleep sack and a temperature blanket. Both are to be gifts.

>101 catzteach: Real estate developers have their place in the world, I'm sure, but so frequently they seem insensitive to the people and communities who don't agree with their value assessment. How can you tell a community that they should move the ultimate resting spots of those who have gone before? There's chutzpah for you.

Where I am now, a set of developers want to bring a new sports center into the center city and there is a huge protest from the Chinese-American community who would ultimately end up being dislodged. From the city's perspective, it's all about bringing in necessary add'l revenue but from the residents perspective, its a lack of respect for those who've come together there as a population.

>97 Alexandra_book_life: May the joy of that birthday last the whole year.

>98 pgmcc: That could either be a very fun outing, or a very frustrating one. Hopefully the good conversations will outweigh the bureaucrat obstacles.

>101 catzteach: Working on a warm knitting/crochet project seems like a good thing to do this cold weekend.

We are going to Home Depot to find a new faucet for the bathroom sink, and I want to find a wide, heavy pot to plant cat grass in. Seems like most products can be easily knocked over by a cat, and I have that kind of cat.

Tomorrow we hope to have the grandson and his parents over to dinner (Mexican take out). They have all been well for a week, so I want to take this opportunity to see them. Hoping Monday to have the grandson here for a few hours to give his mom a break. Last Monday he was well, but an hour after he got here he started to run a fever and feel bad. I got some good snuggles though. He was fine the next day, and I didn't get sick.

We had no success in getting any more information about the last resting place of Charles Robert Maturin.

It was an interesting day. My friend showed me several graves of renowned Gothic writers. We visited Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu's grave, and the grave of AE.

Another grave was that of George Lobo who wrote under the name of Oliver Sherry.

We spent a lot of time looking unsuccessfully for the resting place of Caulfield Irwin. We consulted the cemetery office and were assured we were looking in the correct area but failed to find the grave.

My friend, Brian, is always looking into the history of authors of the weird and supernatural in Ireland. He is building up an encyclopedic wealth of information on the lives of these authors.

It was a very interesting day if not 100% successful.

One thing we did find out from the cemetery records was that while we had a grave reference for Caulfield Irwin, the records indicated that while his wife and other family members are in the plot he is not. Hmmm! Another mystery to track down.

>99 Bookmarque: In some European countries graves are only leased for a number of years. My friend had 18 years on his mother's grave and had to renew it recently to prevent her remains being exhumed and put into a bone repository.

>100 jillmwo: Seriously, yes. We cannot track down records of where the remains were transferred. There are a couple of avenues being followed, but the records are hard to find or even non-existent.

>101 catzteach: We spent about three hours traipsing around Mount Jerome Cemetery looking at graves and looking for graves. There were also stories during the exploration as well as over coffee. Actually, I was drinking Green Tea, with a monkey on my shoulder. (Gold star to the first person to get the reference.)

>103 MrsLee: It was fun.

>104 pgmcc: Your day sounds like some of mine when I worked at the cemetery. The simplest question from someone could lead to a quagmire of complications in locating someone. I always found it very interesting, and sometimes gratifying when we actually solved the puzzle.

No star for me.

We went on a group walk today, sponsored by the River Valley Alliance. The RVA works to preserve, protect and enhance the largest metropolitan river valley park system in the world by connecting the trail system and making it easier for all to access and enjoy. My husband is on their board, and they do outings monthly to explore parts of the system, which is around 100 KM total. Today was from Terwilligar Dog Park to the Fort Edmonton footbridge and back, which took about an hour and a half. It was sunny and just above 0C, so a really nice walk. We stopped for a fish and chips lunch on the way home.

The rest of the weekend is going to be less active. I need to spend a lot of time on the computer, working on the project for my silkscreen class and the signs for the delivery bike that my husband is restoring. My husband is a relatively new convert to the Discworld series, and he's named this bike "Dibbler" so the signs will reference some of Dibbler's wares.

>97 Alexandra_book_life: Happy birthday to your prince! I'm glad he enjoyed his cake so much.

>104 pgmcc: Well, that sounds like a grand day, even if you didn't find Maturin. Will you keep looking?

>104 pgmcc: What a fun day! No gold star for me; I did not get the reference.

>106 tardis: If your husband plans to deliver food, I don't recommend a sign that says, "Rat ona stick." :D

>110 MrsLee: When it's done, I'll post a photo :)

clamairy MrsLee catzteach jillmwo Thank you so much for you kind words and birthday wishes for the little one :)

No idea if this will work. Here's a quick phone video of my workspace with me narrating -

https://www.instagram.com/reel/C194wZ6OSv9

>113 Bookmarque: It worked! Excellent workspace.

So I'm convalescing today. Apparently I can no longer consume canola oil. Yesterday I ate a small amount of smoked fish canned in 'vegetable oil,' according to the front label. Wasn't until after things went bad that I went back and looked at the ingredients list, and saw a canola oil was the only other ingredient besides the fish. I used to cook with this back in the day so I don't know why it's no longer agreeing with me. Google tells me it's a common issue. Maybe I lost my tolerance for it, or perhaps the batch they used was improperly processed. Fun times. I see its use is banned in many countries, and I have been avoiding it for quite a while, but it's never bothered me like this before.

>114 clamairy: Oh, it sounds awful, I am sorry. I hope you'll get better soon.

>114 clamairy:

Get well soon.

>114 clamairy: So sorry about that! Who woulda thunk it? I haven't had canola oil in so long that I forgot why I quit using it, but I don't think I check my sardines or tuna. Of course, I usually get them canned in water.

May you be well soon!

>114 clamairy: That's a new one. I didn't know that canola oil might be one of those problem ingredients. Hopefully, you'll be back on your feet following a day of bed rest.

For those wondering about the "Monkey on my shoulder" allusion, it is from Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu's story, Green Tea. A curate has developed the habit of drinking green tea. Much to his chagrin, his habit has resulted in his being haunted by a spectral monkey.

In terms of the mystery regarding the final resting place of Charles Robert Maturin, I am afraid our investigations, which have extended to consultation with The National Library of Ireland, resulted in confirmation of what we already suspected. There are not definite records of where his remains were transferred. Apparently the church and graveyard where he was interred were levelled to build a new YMCA building. The remains were removed to a crypt in St. Luke's church. The remains were not treated individually but rather unceremoniously lumped together. Some more work on the site years later revealed there were still some bones and headstones remaining at the site, to it appears to have been a pretty shoddy transfer, and it appears no records were made.

Subsequently the remains in St. Luke's were transferred to another graveyard, St. Jerome's, and interred in a group plot. This is the most likely location of Maturin's remains, but the haphazard approach to the transfers means there are at least two other locations where his remains may be lying, either intact of in pieces.

"... there are at least two other locations where his remains may be lying, either intact of in pieces."

Oh my.

>120 clamairy:
That is assuming that part or parts of him were not inadvertently left at one or both of the first two sites. Some might say that is an ironically apropos ending for the author of Melmoth the Wanderer.

>121 pgmcc: Does Melmoth wander after death? (And leave decaying bits in his wake?)

>119 pgmcc: One wonders if there wasn't a bit of absinthe in that green tea.

As to the missing remains, it is the fate of all to eventually become part of the environment again. Only a very few have escaped this cycle through preservation. Perhaps he is best honored by your intent and enjoyment of his stories.