Ten on Tuesday

The Ten on Tuesday topic for today is "Ten Thresholds You Cross Everyday." This could be a very thoughtful post, like the one posted on Zeneedle. But I think I'll go the more pragmatic route, and just detail my day's (sorry!) route.

1.  The first threshold of the day is the one from the bedroom into the bathroom. It's one I cross several times in the process of starting my day, and frequently involves tripping over the cat as the cat also attempts to cross the same threshold to start its day. (The litterbox is in my bathroom.)

2. The threshold from the living room onto my porch. I have several plants out on the porch, and they need a lot of water to survive the Florida heat. So watering is a daily event for the catnip, flower basket, and aloe plants. (The Christmas cactus is out there, too, but actually likes the sun and doesn't need as much water.)

3.  The threshold of the front door. A given.

4.  The threshold into the Rosser room, which is the main entrance of the church where I work. This involves juggling my bags, the mail (which I get from the mailbox on my way in), and the alarm.

5.  The threshold into the sanctuary. I'm still juggling all my bags, mail, and keys, plus the padlock and chain. Unfortunately we've had to start padlocking the sanctuary at night. The church leases space to other groups, and we had some damage done in the sanctuary from unsupervised children. It seems like such a shame to lock up the church this way, but it was easier to just prevent any further problems. I cross this threshold several times throughout the course of my day since my office is off the sanctuary and the fellowship hall, kitchen, restrooms, and supply closet are all on the other side of the Rosser room.

6.  The threshold into the Fellowship Hall is another one that I cross several times a day. The kitchen and restrooms are actually in the Fellowship Hall.

And since I've already mentioned these, but I also manage to cross the thresholds of the (7) Volunteer Office, (8) kitchen, and (9) restroom in the course of my day.

10.  After work, I almost always end up crossing the threshold of a Starbucks. Either to meet friends for knitting, or just to grab a coffee and sit to read for a little while before going home. I try to also cross the thresholds at the gym at some point during the day.

Doing these chores is not a privilege

When my children were little, I was able to convince them that doing chores was a privileged. I rewarded good behavior by letting them help me clean the house. It was a pretty great racket while it lasted.

Unfortunately, I've always been aware that doing chores is not a treat. There are some things I really don't mind doing. For instance, I love to mow the lawn -- although keep in mind I say that as a long-time apartment dweller. And I like to sweep, and wash the dishes, and vacuum. But there are some chores that are, well, a chore to do. Today's "Ten on Tuesday" is a list of the ten chores I hate to do.

1. My most-hated chore has to be cleaning the bathtub. It's uncomfortable to bend over to get to it, but there isn't any room to kneel and do it in my tiny little apartment bathroom. On the other hand, it's the most satisfying chore to finish, because I love a gleaming white tub!
2. I don't like to dust. I don't hate it, but I'm easily distracted from doing it. And moving all the little collectibles and the various knitting supplies that find their way to the various shelves and tables provide plenty of distractions.
3. I don't like to do the laundry. Which isn't really true. I don't like taking my laundry to the laundry. When I had my own washer and dryer, it was my favorite chore. And if I go to an actual laundry mat, that's not so bad. It's no longer my favorite chore, but I don't mind. It gives me an excuse to indulge in a large soda, and I get to sit and read and/or knit while the clothes are in the machines. Most of the time, there are really fascinating people to watch at the laundry mat. It's having to go back and forth to the laundry room at the apartment complex that I hate. First, there's no change machine which means I have to go to a store, or late at night to McDonald's, and beg for quarters. The room has windows on two sides, so everyone passing and can see in as I fold my clothes. (I accept that it's not logical to hold this against the laundry room. I'm aware that people can see me folding my clothes at a laundry mat. But those people are busy folding their own clothes and don't have time to watch me fold mine. It's thinking that my neighbors might be watching me folding my impulsively purchased sexy nighty or the old ragged sweatshirt I wear when I have the flu that freaks me out.) And since it's so close to the apartment, I don't even get an excuse to sit and read/knit. (Although I still usually end up with the large soda, a result of the above-mentioned begging for quarters.)
4. I don't like changing the sheets on the bed. I like clean sheets, so they get changed every week without fail. But I don't enjoy doing it.
5. Another chore I could do without is cleaning out the cat's litter box. I don't think any explanation is necessary on this one.
6. Surprisingly, I don't like filing. I'm an organizational freak. I admit it. Every single piece of paper that crosses my desk (either at home or at work) has a place, and any paper not in its place makes me anxious and somewhat crazy. And yet I really hate to file. It makes no sense, but there it is.
7. I won't clean the cobwebs in the corners of the room. As far as I'm concerned this is a job for whoever comes to visit me, whether they are a relative, friend, a random salesman, or even a Jehovah's Witness. I am completely phobic about spiders. Cobwebs are made by spiders. Therefore, there is no way I can get even within a broom's length of the offending cobwebs. Hence, anyone who comes by is obligated - at least in my eyes - to save me from the spiders that are trying to take over my home.
8. Cleaning the oven is another chore that I avoid as long as possible. Which makes no sense, since I have a self-cleaning oven. But I always put it off as long as possible. When I do finally clean it, I feel so wonderfully happy that I have to wonder why I put it off for so long.
9. I don't like washing the patio furniture. Cleaning the patio is like cleaning the car -- as soon as you finish, it starts raining and all your work is wasted.
10. Which brings me to the tenth and final chore I don't like: washing my car. Thank goodness I have a son who will take care of it for me, whenever I ask. (I love you, PJ!)

Ten on Tuesday

Today's Ten on Tuesday topic is Favorite Kitchen Gadgets. I love kitchen gadgets, so it was difficult for me to limit it to just my current ten favorites.

1.  Rice Cooker

I recently treated myself to a rice cooker after talking for years about wanting one. My son used to eat a lot of rice, and I thought it would be nice to have a rice cooker so that he could make rice whenever he wanted. It's somewhat amusing that I waited to get one until long after he had moved out on his own. But now that I've gone gluten-free, I find myself eating a lot of rice. The cooker makes it perfectly practically every time, with very little effort from me. And if I get distracted, which I often am, the rice stays warm and yummy until I'm ready for it. Just a quick tip -- add some fresh lemon juice and a little cilantro to the water when you cook the rice. Delicious!

2.  Magic Bullet

I bought the magic bullet years ago, when it first came out. It is still sitting on my counter and it gets used almost every day. It's great for making my morning smoothies (a frozen banana, a chopped up piece of fresh fruit, and some almond milk), and I couldn't make my fresh pesto without it. I even use it to quickly froth up warmed almond milk to add to my coffee for a dairy-free cappuccino.

3.  Hand mixer

Would you believe that I made it 48+ years without an electric hand mixer? What in the world was I thinking?  Seriously, all those years filled with all those cookies, cakes, and pies that were all mixed by hand. Believe me, if you don't have one get an electric mixer right this minute. It is a necessity.

4.  Measuring Cups and Spoons

I shouldn't even need to explain these. Except to say that if you are trying to become half the woman you are, you need at least one (if not two) sets of measuring cups and spoons and you need to use them for everything.

5.  Kitchen scale

I used to think this was just for weighing yarn... silly me.

6.  Frother

This is a much quicker way to froth up the almond milk for cappuccinos. I have a tendency to forget it at work, so I may need to get a second one for the house.

7.  Keurig (this is actually at work)

The best coffee maker for someone who (a) lives alone and/or (2) loves a variety of flavored coffee and teas. I can have what I want, when I want it. And really, it isn't any more expensive than a regular coffee maker when you factor in the amount of stale, cold coffee I used to throw away.

8.  Re-freezable ice

I use this for keeping my lunch cold in my lunchbox, keeping my water cold on my bike rides, and even for preventing bug bites from itching. I have several of the small re-freezable blocks.

9.  Parchment paper

Parchment paper isn't really a gadget, but I love it. It's even better than aluminum foil for keeping my pans and trays clean when I'm baking.

10. Mason Jars

Again, this isn't really a gadget. But I use my mason jars for everything: storing dried beans, freezing cooked beans, making salads up for the week, storing homemade dressing, measuring out rice into portions, the list is endless. 

Ten Things I Want to Do This Summer

1.   I want to spend a lot more time outside, heat permitting! We had such a good time knitting in the park for WWKIP on the 15th, and I would like to go back to the park to just sit and knit and enjoy the outdoors.

2.  My aunt is down visiting, and it's the perfect excuse to do some "tourist" activities. I want to visit Bok Tower. We usually go in December so that we can also get in to the see the mansion decorated for the holidays. But just spending time in the garden would be wonderful.

3.  I also want to make a trip over to Sarasota. We could visit a couple of yarn shops, window shop in St. Armand's Circle, maybe even fish off the pier where I used to take the kids when they were little. Maybe I could borrow Josh for a few hours, now that we're back in touch.

4.  I want to bike more often. And take walks. In fact, I really want to get into the habit of doing either a hour-long bike ride or walk at least three days a week.

5.  I want to go to the beach. I haven't spent the day on the beach in a really long time, which doesn't make sense considering I live in Florida. Actually, I'm going to adjust this, and say that I want to spend a day at each of the local beaches: Jupiter Inlet, Riveria Beach, Boynton Beach, and Bathtub Reef near mom's house.

6.  Another activity I never do anymore, even though I have year-round access, is to go to the pool. So this summer, I want to get into the habit of going to the pool instead of sitting inside my tiny apartment.

7.  I want to garden this summer. My patio has been neglected lately, so I need to clean it up and get some plants. I want basil again, and mint, and some flowers.

8.  I want to warp (and then finish!) a rug for my kitchen and matching placemats for the table. Summer in Florida is hot, so even though I want to spend more time inside I know that I have to plan activities that take advantage of air conditioning!

9.  I want to barbeque. I like cooking on the grill, and even though I don't eat meat anymore I could still do some wonderful grilled veggies! (Hmmm, there is a grill at the pool...)

10.  I want to get my office cleaned out and organized. My boss takes a long vacation during the summer, and this would be a great time to finally get the job done.

Practising Gratitude

This week's Ten on Tuesday topic is "10 Times You Felt Grateful Last Week." This is a really good topic for today, since I really need to stop and take a look at the good things that are going on. I've been focusing too much on the negative aspects of my life the past couple of days, which is never a good thing. And there is so much to be grateful for!

1.  I had to mail out 91 packets at work, and unfortunately we don't have a postage meter. So it meant a trip to the post office for stamps. The packets ended up needing $1.52 in postage, which meant I had to put a combination of 5 stamps on each envelope. As I was standing at the counter working on this, a woman in line commented that I looked like I had a lot of work to do. To my surprise, she then asked if she could help. So she put stamps on envelops until it was her turn to be waited on by the postal workers. Then, to my even greater surprise, she came back to help finish the job. Her explanation was that she would have felt bad leaving me to do it all by myself. I had never met the woman; she didn't attend the church I work for; and she had no reason to help me. But I am very grateful that she took the time to help a stranger.

2.  I'm grateful to have the opportunity to go out to dinner with my daughter and enjoy her wonderful company.

3.  I'm grateful that my oldest has found a good job, which she started on Friday. I'm also grateful that her boyfriend got the teaching position in a great private school. I can stop worrying about the two of them.

4.  It sounds silly, but I'm grateful to have discovered that Pollo Tropical offers a vegeterian version of their TropiChop. It is so hard to stay on my diet, even though I know how much better it makes me feel, because I have to plan all my meals ahead and cook everything at home. Knowing that I can go to the drive-thru if I don't want to cook makes the situation so much easier.

5.  I'm grateful every time I go to a knit night (which includes the Saturday morning group). The friendships that I have found in the groups mean so very much to me, and I love all of the fiberistas. Without them, I'd probably just hole up in my apartment and become that really weird old lady that the neighbors gossip about.

6.  I'm grateful for all the volunteers who come in regularly to help me at work. They're more than friends; they're my second family.

7.  I'm grateful for my Nook, and for the daughter that talked me into getting it last year. I love that I always have something to read, even when I can't settle down and have trouble figuring out what I want to read. With over 400 books at my fingertips, there's always something to read. The Nook was a lifesaver this weekend, when I ended up on the couch miserable with a sinus headache and a fibro flair-up. And I'm grateful for the public library, which lets me download books onto the Nook when I discover that none of the 400+ books I already own interest me at that moment. Most of all, I'm grateful that the Nook prevents anyone from seeing what I'm reading, which ended up being a series of slutty romances with no redeeming quality to them.

8.  I'm grateful that Josh and his family tracked me down, and that I'll get to see them again next weekend. I haven't seen Josh is almost 9 years. He was such a cute little boy. I always considered him one of my kids, and I think about him often. He's 18 now, and I'm looking forward to seeing him all grown up.

9.  I'm grateful for Missy Gray, and the way she always knows when I need to cuddle a bit.

10.  I'm grateful that my son friended me on facebook. Even though he doesn't live very far away, I don't see him nearly enough. Our schedules are just too different, and neither one of us are big on chatting on the phone. Now I'll be able to touch base with him a little easier.

Ten on Tuesday - Planned bike rides

The official Ten on Tuesday topic today is "Your Favorite Ice Cream Toppings." Considering that I can't have ice cream anymore, having given up dairy in favor of feeling healthy, I thought I would do a different Ten on Tuesday topic.

Although it's raining and I won't be able to go biking today -- and I wasn't able to go biking yesterday because of the rain -- here's my list of 10 Planned Bike Rides.

1.  Riverbend Park, Jupiter. I love this park!

2.  Coolsa Park, Boynton Beach.  This park has only a 1 mile trail, and isn't nearly as beautiful as Riverbend. However, it's much closer to home so I can take my bike there after work for a quick ride instead of having to wait to have a full day to spend at Riverbend.

3.  Okeeheelee Park, West Palm Beach. This park is a nice compromise between the first two parks, both in size and location. If I get good at biking, I might even give the mountain bike tracks a try.

4.  Starbucks on Gateway Blvd. This would be a nice, quick ride just down the street to meet the girls for knitting on Saturday morning.

5.  Barnes and Noble, Congress Ave. A little further than Starbucks, and without the added incentive of fiber friends, but it would be a nice ride.

6.  FroYo, Congress Ave. Taking a bike ride to get frozen yogurt probably means I can't count the ride as exercise. Plus I'm not eating dairy anymore. Of course, there is a Smoothie shop in the plaza so I could go there instead. Then it's still exercise PLUS a treat!

7.  Midway Road, Port St. Lucie. This is a wonderful landscaped road near my mom's house with wide sidewalks that just begs for leisurely bike rides.

8.  Singer Island. There are two parks on either end of the causeway between the ocean and the inlet. I will probably wait for the off-season (I'm not ready to share a road with all the tourists), but I would love to start at one park and make my way down to the other end of the island to explore the second park.

9.  Dyer Park, West Palm Beach. This is not my favorite park, but it has the advantage of having a (slight) hill. When I get a little bit better at riding, it would be nice to give this a go. Plus it would give me an excuse to use my 3 speeds.

10.  Myakka State Park, Arcadia. When the children were little, we used to camp in Myakka quite a bit. It was great hiking the trails, so I imagine it would be even better exploring with the bicycle.

Ten on Tuesday: 10 Reasons Why I Knit

Ten Reasons Why I Knit (in no particular order):

1. I knit to keep from being bored and/or impatient - in lines, waiting for other people, in meetings, even in traffic (when I'm at a full stand-still on the interstate, not when we're actually moving).

2.  I like the squishy, soft, yummy feel of yarn. Well, of most yarns. Other yarns I like because of the color, or the difference in how they look as skeins versus how they look knit up.

3.  It's fun to see people's reactions when I knit socks -- so many people are amazed at my kninja skills using multiple needles. Although I'm always honest enough to admit that it isn't as difficult as it looks.

4.  I like hand-knit socks. And since no one else is going to knit them for me, I knit them for myself. And for my daughters and my mother who also like hand-knit socks.

5.  Knitting gives me an excuse to go out and socialize. If I didn't knit, I'd probably become a lonely cat-lady with no friends and no life outside of my apartment. (Okay, I'd still have bells. And work. And mahjong. And volunteer work. But knitting is my social activity; the others things I do are for more specific reasons.)

6.  Knitting is relatively inexpensive. I could spend $20 and go out for one evening for dinner and movie. Or I can spend that same $20 to buy yarn that I'll spend at least weeks knitting into socks. That's a comparison of $5/enjoyment hour for a night out against $1/enjoyment hour of knitting.

7.  Whatever my mood is, knitting fits. If I want to be creative, there's delicate lace shawls to knit. If I want fast and easy, there's baby bibs and wash cloths to knit. If I want bright and colorful, there's self-patterning sock yarn. There's always something I can put on the needles no matter what my mood is.

8.  Knitting keeps my fingers from hurting. It doesn't make sense, but it's true. The more I knit, the less my arthritis bothers me.

9.  Knitting gives me the excuse to be lazy. I can go to the park and just sit and knit, and even though I'm just relaxing I'm also accomplishing something.

10. Knitting is non-fattening. I also like to bake cupcakes and cookies, which is fattening.