Birdies, Part 2

The hummingbirds are back in full force. All of them. Our friend Smokey stopped by to get eggs yesterday. He and I were sitting on the porch, visiting, when one of the females flew over to the feeder. An hour or two later, when the husband got home, he and I were sitting out there and both males showed up. The hummers were busy zooming back and forth through the porch and I commented that I really should be careful what I wish for. I can’t wear pink or red shirts when I work in the garden because to them, I look too much like a flower.

I also watched a couple of woodpeckers for a few minutes on my way out to water seedlings. A female has been hanging out near the path to the greenhouse, but yesterday there were two. They had positioned themselves on either side of a tree and looked—and sounded—like they were having a conversation back and forth.

I miss the birds during the winter.

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The National Needlework Association—TNNA—announced this week that it is suspending operations as of today. That news came as rather a shock to me, but I’ve been out of the loop for a number of years now. The organization has had declining membership and poor attendance at its trade shows in recent years, and I think the coronavirus situation amplified those problems. I attended several TNNA shows when they were in Columbus, Ohio, because it was easy to coordinate them with visits to my mother in Cleveland. I have fond memories of seeing and visiting with fellow knitting designers there. (Hi Kate and Joy!)

I do wonder what will be left standing when all of this is over.

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I have an appointment scheduled with my naturopath next week. I see him twice a year, and the week before my appointment, I always go in for a blood test so he can make sure my thyroid levels are appropriate. When I got to the office yesterday, I found the door locked with a sign that instructed patients to call the office number. I did that. A nurse came out, took my temperature, asked me a series of questions, and then said I could come in. Everyone had masks on. (I was wearing mine, too.) They checked me in, took several tubes of blood, and sent me on my way. My visit with the doctor will be via telephone, which is fine. He has been my doctor for almost 15 years now and these visits are mostly to make sure everything is stable. I am down to a small dose of thyroid hormone 2-3 times a week.

Because I was already out and about, I went to Costco, after driving through the parking lot to see how busy they were (not very). Most people were wearing masks there, too. I did a quick resupply of everything we’ve gone through in the past two months and was in and out in less than 30 minutes.

And I stopped at the nearby quilt store to pick up some border fabric for the neutrals quilt—I don’t have enough of any one fabric in the stash—and more Aurifil thread. They also had a sign on the door requesting that customers wear masks. A large pump bottle of hand sanitizer was on the counter for customers to use. I really don’t want these stores to go out of business, so I am trying to do my part to keep them open.

I bought another byAnnie travel bag pattern:

I am dreaming of the day when I can take a road trip again.