Preakness 100

Triple Crown on the line but Mystic Dan just missed. Not too upset as he was beaten by Seize the Grey, a son of Arrogate (how many great horses will we miss because of his far-too-soon death?). Trained impeccably by the super veteran D. Wayne Lukas, who turns 90 this year! Mystik Dan settled for second with Brad Cox trainee Catching Freedom third. NOTE: All 3 of these horses ran on Derby Day just 2 weeks ago - Mystik Dan and Catching Freedom in the Derby and Seize the Grey the Pat Day Mile.) Baffert's lone entry after the scratch of Muth ran next to last. Sloppy track. Undercard highlights were a series of 3rds and 4ths for Matz trainees. Tequilera led much of the Gallorette but faded to 3rd. Next show is 6 days away. I've been refreshing the scented items and slowly working on another throw. Have to stop to make more sachets this week - Lavender and Balsam. Plenty of trivets. Other than that I am set. Slowly plugging away on yardwork. I did some pruning and cleaning of the central bed last week. Still have the back herb bed to go and just waiting on the PJM to finish flowering so I can prune that and the forsythia. And the Summer Sweet. The daffodils are almost finishe blooming so I can cut them back a bit and transplant the ones that need it. And finally spread the last 4 bags of mulch. Whew. I cleaned the fridge this week - thankless job but glad it's done. Still need to do the counters and, at some point, sort through the cabinets. I'm sure there are some expired things and also some donation candidates. Ordered a new bathing suit - hope to use it in the new pool at Bren's and maybe on our trip to Rochester. Not sure what I', going to do for 5 days there but I'll hopefully have some finishing to take with me. Might be time to start on holiday stuff.

Whoa Nellie!!!!!

BIG excitement in the neighborhood this week. Wednesday morning I had just returned from grocery shopping around 9, sat down to have coffee and nosh and noticed a few State Trooper vehicles parked at the end of Sunset Ridge. As time went by, more Staties arrived, some in unmarked vehicles. I texted a friend who has access to the What's Happening in Sidney Facebook page that I resigned from during COVID after getting threatening posts. She relayed that Lyons Rd. was closed to traffic the entire length. Which was confirmed by the lack of traffic past the house. About 11:00 I noticed an officer in tactical gear walking down from his parked vehicle on Lyons west of Sunset. He was soon joined by more unmarked black vehicles and more guys gearing up, at which point all of the blue trooper cars left. Then the Mobile command center arrived along with a large black van and the armored tactical vehicle. At this point I called the town office but wasn't told very much more than I already knew - Lyons Rd. was closed, it was billed at a "fire and rescue operation" and Pike had been requested to cancel their blasting. Friend texted to say the comments on the Sidney Facebook page had been closed (I can only imagine the conspiracies that group was concocting!) Over the course of the next 7 hours, the tactical vehicle was seen moving down Susnset and approaching the second house in, then retreating and returning to the command center. At one point they installed a ram, another time they apparently installed a camera on the roof. Finally, after they had been at the house (out of our line of sight) for about an hour and a half, some of the unmarked cars returned, one exchanged places with the tactical vehicle in the driveway and the squad members could be seen disbursing to their cars and ditching the armor. They left and the blue trooper cars returned, and finally everyone left. The cause of all this was a member of the family that lives in the house who was wanted for several fairly serious crimes in Penobscot County. He broke into the house (maybe just the garage) Weds. morning at which point the family left after he made some threats. He's now in a more serious pool of trouble - and not the first time. I Googled him and he's got quite the history with the law. Which explains why the State Police were at that house 2 weeks ago on Sunday morning, along with the Fire Chief from Sidney, who apparently is the ranking law official because we don't have our own police. The past couple of nights we have been visited by the Northern Lights, although too late for this early to bed girl. The photos have been spectacular! Below is actually from Saratoga Springs.

Derby 150 +

Yesterday's Kentucky Derby was a joy to watch (stadium-style improvements to Churchill Downs aside!) as a) No horses died or were seriously injured and b) One of the "little guy" trainers acheived the Oaks/Derby double. Kenny McPeek and his filly Thorpedo Anna, colt Mystik Dan, jockey Brian Hernandez, Jr. and all the owners triumphed over all the super trainers (well, all except that guy from California!). And good guy Graham Motion won a stake race on the undercard. A good day of racing.

Before the races, I joined several others for a session of Forest Bathing at the Snow Pond trails. Interesting experience, not strenuous, and very calming. I loved the sound of the water psssing through the outlet of the marshy containment, and the bird songs - small up to geese! And seeing a beaver swimming. They had been very busy felling and stripping a fairly large tree - interesting. I have committed to try to get out in my own woods on a regular basis - no need to go anywhere when I have my own woods right outside my back door. Finished with the placemats and just need to add to the website. In the middle of a small run of trivets. Then I'll refresh the scenteds and be ready for Memorial Day. Bring it on. The trial is still going on. Hard to imagine any more witnesses before the main event of Michael Cohen. No idea how it's going but I'm not hanging on every update. Too exhausting. Meanwhile the lies coming from TFG keep piling up, the projections grow increasingly transparent and ridiculous. I suspect some of the campus protesters are really plants, sent in the deflect attention from the trial and, more distressingly, to practice for a possible repeat of January 6 if Biden wins.

Come and Gone!

The storm I referenced last post indeed dropped 10+" of mashed potatoes on us. Noah (Brook's son who has plowed for us the past 2 years) termed it "Freakin' awesome" delivered with extreme sarcasm! It is mostly gone now, due to several 50+ degrees days and some rain. But the mountains made out like bandits and the skiing was superb, so I read. And people were so psyched to be able to ski during the eclipse on Monday. Here it wasn't total but the light was very different from the nightly darkening. Very strange. The traffic in the mountains and from Jackman to Showhegan was incredible apparently. Not much here but we did not venture out. Placemats are all finished - 2 sets of 4 and one of 2. The 2 set was a 4 but 2 of them had defective fabric - noticeable crookedly printed - so they are now on my table. I started another set today but just have the star blocks done. I'm figuring 3 more sets and I'll be ready for the KVAA show in a month. I received two UMC show confirmations this week - very low sign-ups for both Rock Row and Augusta so far. We'll see how it all shakes out in the end. I did not sign up for the Bangor show yet, figuring I'll keep that as a back up and use my Facebook credit for that. Another appeal and another slap down for TFG. And, speaking of criminals - OJ Simpson died yesterday. I can still remember sitting on the couch on Quaker Road watching that infamous highway chase on tv. And all the trial bullshit. He should have rotted in jail. In other depressing news, Arizona just outlawed all abortions. I lay the blame at TFG's feet - the lone accomplishment of his was packing the Supreme Court with the justices who overturned Roe. And now we have to spend time and money and emotion to undo what he has done, if we can. Around the house, we had the boiler cleaned yesterday and it's runninglike a champ now. The guy was supposed to do the carage door trim today but postponed until Monday for better weather. I'll be out doing yard work that day. It might be the year to re-mulch, but not sure. `

More Progress

Throw is all bound, just waiting for inspiration to hit to find the right title for it. Log Cabin Semi-Holiday Batik just doesn't do it justice! It will come but for now it waits. And I'm still awaiting a reply from Alliene on the picturs I sent her of her top. Meantime, I have almost completed 3 sets of placemats but dicovered this morning that the last set will be a set of 2 as one of the fabrics was mis-printed crooked and it's very noticeable. Oh well. That's life. And I just received the Kona Solids to turn the Acadia panel into a throw so I'll start on the design this wekend, between shoveling snow! We had a good 7-8" last weekend which is all gone now but we are under the gun for a bona fide Noreaster with 12+" in the forecast tonight into tomorrow. It will be a call Brook kind of storm. TFG's delay tactics are getting old at this point. And his sketchy bond was posted 3 days early with some questions we all want answered, like "Where did the money come from?" Best theory so far is from a foreign source but, of course, it's difficult to trace that because of how he covers his tracks. But totally appropriate that the bond was issued by a bank that specializes in sub-prime auto loans. The entire thing reeks! Meanwhile, he's still edging closer to violating the new and improved gag order put in plce in the NY trial. And he posted a video over the weekend he said was taken on Long Island of a pick up truck, decked in all the MAGA swag, complete with a tailgate panel depicting Biden hog-tied in the bed. There really is no bottom to him or his followers. I do not see this sort of stuff from the Dems, as they are classier than that. (Just 7 more months of this silliness, unless, of course, something miraculous happens.

Same Players, Different Game!

So the Super Tuesday results are in and in a not surprising turns of events, both Nikki Haley and Dean Phillips dropped out the following day so we are looking at a rematch of 2020. The stakes are even higher this time around as TFG has already threatened complete chaos and his GOP eneablers have already started working on the grand plan - see the roll back of Roe decision. I honestly do not know what I will do if he wins. He can't win. (Please, Judy - If you have any pull up there, don't let us suffer again!) I have finished quilting the top gifted by my cousin - here's the finished product:

As you can see, the backing I chose (it was on sale!) is the correct colors but a nice counterpoint in style to the traditional front. I also have the second throw - the one for sale - all quilted and the binding is sewn to the front ready to be hand-turned. Then I will get busy on the ever=popular placemats. LATE BREAKING NEWS!!! Once again, Trump receives preferential treatment by not having to post the full $400+ million bond - cut down to $150 Million and given an additional 10 days to shake down his friends. When will this end? I'm sick of it. If it were any other person in that position, he would be in jail by now.

Progress!

I spent an hour or more yesterday layering a throw - here is the previous description of the top - "Several years ago David spent a week or so in Wilmington, North Carolina helping the people who purchased the business he worked for here in Maine get up and running. He was looking for other things to do so I set him up with my cousin Alliene, who lives in Wilmington and he spent an afternoon/evening with she and her husband, Ben. David came home with a few presents from Alliene, one of which was a hand-pieced quilt top. She was unable to provide much as to the provenance - perhaps it was pieced by her mother (my Aunt Jane) or her grandmother (her namesake, Alliene Estabrook). We just don't know and sadly have no way to find out now. " - It is now layered and ready to be quilted and the new Pfaff is back from its check up so I'm set to go. Here are a few pictures:

The first one is the backside, showing that this clearly was handpieced. Amazing work. The fabrics appear to be mostly remnants of clothing although the red print was likely purchased just for this quilt as there is an abundance of it. The second photo shows the front and the layout of the blocks - a simple row and column. The third shows just one of several areas where the maker had to piece to make up an element. It is ready for quilting but I have other projects to do first and I need an entire day to quilt something this size. It also may be the largest piece I've ever quilted so there's that. Super Tuesday is tomorrow and includes Maine. And today it is rumored that the Supreme Court will rule on TFG"s eligibility for the primary here and in a couple of other states. I don't hold out much hope for him to be rulled off - the Supremes are a majority of GOP backers and I don't think they want to deal with the animosity a decision against him would create. They are willing to let the people decide at the ballot box. My only quibble with that is that we can safely assume that there are foreign influences at work to attempt to insure TFG is elected. I hope and pray that the American people come through again and say a resounding "NO" to the chaos and grifting. We shall see. (UPDATE: Indeed, the Supremes came back with a unanimous decision to allow him on the ballot, citing some questionable opinion that this should be a Congressional decision, not left up to the states that are running the elections. What was more inmportant than what they said was what they didn't say - that he indeed was an insurectionist. And, hello, Justice Barrett - what was that wisecrack about the other 3 women justices who explained their reservations, which none of the male justices seemed to feel they needed to do.)