HIGH BUTTON SHOE
January 2, 2006
I always think of the first few days of the new year as a new beginning. Of course, new beginnings can be accomplished at any time, but January 1 always seems to be a likely time to make the best efforts. You, who have received mailings from me for any amount of time, know that discipline is not one of my better virtues. Were I to draw a line down a paper and have my good points on one side and my not so good on the other side of the line, discipline or rather the lack of would surely top the negative side of the paper. Along with a lengthy list of other things I don't seem to be able to grasp. So needless to say, I don't make resolutions at the beginning of the new year. Indeed, I rarely make resolutions any time. Oh sure, sometimes short term ones, I might have some hope of succeeding at, but rarely ones that would last more than a week or so. No sense in frustrating myself with goals I know I will never work at! Those goals only serve to give me a headache and make an additional wrinkle in my face. Which, had I actually made resolutions years ago and kept them about using moisturizer, I probably would not have had wrinkles!
Last year, while not a resolution, I did intend to try to become more organized. With that thought in mind, I focused on doing 'one' chore daily that would not be considered a normal daily chore. Like clean out one drawer, organize one cupboard or some such activities that apparently I am not fond of doing and don't do. That would be evident by the rats nests appearance of most of my cupboards. I succeeded in this endeavor until about May or June. After that I am outdoors most of the time and rarely give the house, let alone cupboards much of a thought. That does however, catch up to me. So while I did make some good headway last year, I quit too early and need to add this regiment back into my schedule. Those of you who know me personally know that the word 'schedule' and Clotilda aren't used often in the same sentence. That would go on that right side of the paper under the negatives heading.Having said all that, I am making ONE resolution in my nonresolution status that could save me lots of lectures from the other part of this household, who is routinely identified as "the organized". If you have read these letters, as I mentioned, you would know "the organized" and me live together quite compatibly, but probably only because he just plain gave up on some things. It has come to my attention, however, that this year, I , to save the inevitable lecture, which does, by the way, usually fall on deaf ears, will have to be one step ahead of him and I fully intend to clean the refrigerator ONCE a week. At the least hint of something going bad, I will whisk that possible disease cure on its way, off to the garbage can! 7 year old Mattie, in a school experiment found that lettuce left on the counter for a month does not rot. MINE, in the crisper goes bad in less than one week! So this is my one thing I must try to work on this year.Just to see how long it would take for me to kill it, I suppose, I brought in my rosemary bush from the deck before winters cold. Unable to determine if it is dormant or dead, the 'green' isn't so much green now as brown and it is fragile. I talk to it each day and make vague promises to it, but I think perhaps I might have kill'd it off.Maxine tells me that she always loves these letters because knowing me, she reads between the sentences and knows full well what I am NOT saying, along with what you are reading. There is a lot of truth to that. While I tell you I am NOT technical, cannot read manuals, don't understand anything that has to be 'programmed (what doesn't now??!) and the 'organized' describes me as having the mentality of an earth worm.... Maxine knows all this is true, while the rest of you may just think I am over wording it. Nope. It's true. While I have caused myself serious brain matter dysfunction in learning the digital camera and various computer skills, I ran smack dab into a brick wall this past week. Figuratively, of course. Determined to learn this, but now realizing I am NOT mentally capable.. I had decided in lieu of the shop reopening this year, I would instead join the ranks of artists who sell on eBay. un-huh. I should have thought of that, myself. I bought myself a template. NOW, I realize many, many of you sell on eBay. I was doing pretty good working on this. My stomach was lurching, rather than hyperventaling I was barely breathing shallow breaths, had sweaty palms and felt like I should go dig out that pill I stuck away that the doctor gave me for airplane flights and MRIs. To say I was not doing so good is an understatement! I have learned, in spite of my own reservations, how to copy and paste. I copied. But my pasting must be out in cyberspace somewhere because it certainly is NOT stuck to anywhere I intended it to 'stick'. So after my diarrhea calms down, I will try it again. Don't look for me in the next week or so on eBay! Between the oxygen mask and the diarrhea, I will be otherwise occupied.I am working, with what brain cells I have left, on new material. In this next month, I hope to have lots of new things up on our website for you to see. We have a lot more new cards ( Maxine DID hear all about that fiasco)! Don't you HATE it when some old ( I MEAN OLD) lady barely tall enough to see it, got the ONLY photo machine you know how to work at Wal-Mart, and she stands there drooling and talking to herself, yet she is able to work the machine. I, on the other hand, NOT as old, but still drooling, and talking to myself, could NOT figure out how to use the machine I was forced to use, because she had mine!!! Long story! It took me 4 days and 4 trips to Cadillac, but I finally got it done. However, as I was forced to use another machine, I did learn some new stuff. Doesn't everything have a silver lining, or what?I plan to be working on rabbits, including the ones Ron says looks like road kill ( hummmmmnnn)and carrots, eggs, Easter trees, strawberries, and we will have that special dried grass (NOT to be confused with anything illegal!!) that looks so great in our bowls and baskets.But in the meantime, ranting raven, while having some initial difficulties, was out this morning. We can be found at http://www.rantingraven.com/Exhibit95.php . The old tin type you see in the one photograph with the shoe pincushion is my grandma Hattie. This would have been done in about 1883. I am taking some new pictures of my house too. Beulah has the Christmas ones up of our house. I have taken all the Christmas down and am enjoying a little sparseness for a few weeks, but I know I will fill it all up again. Check out the website when you get a chance. For all you football widows, come join me at the website and see what we have new!The shop, while being a very successful endeavor for many years, and being THE place to go, AND being my total passion, as I so much love primitives, has been on a steady decline for the past few years. With the closing of so many shops in 2004 that I personally knew, and another 4 that closed locally in the past couple weeks, I have made the decision to close the shop. It is closed to regular hours, no events, no sales, and I won't be doing shows. The face of shopping has changed. Once again, we had very few of the regulars we used to be blessed to have shop with us. The shop will remain as it is, as I have no other place to put the stock, and as it is the family homestead, we will not sell or rent it. It will just be...... People are invited to come by, with a phone call first, otherwise it will not be open. I have watched with such sadness the demise of something I loved so much and worked so hard on, and have likened it to a death, but the corpse just stayed there, never being buried. I always thought I could breath life back into it. I can't. So, I am finally burying it. A month ago, I had occasion to write to some people who really matter to me, a sampler that I stitch, that says, "don't cry because it's over, smile because it was". I am smiling, ...because it was. Things change, and we must change also. (NOT what I do best however!!!) That goes on that right side of the line of that paper. Now that the decision is made and I have done my 'burial', I can finally smile again. Well, at least, until I try this drated eBay upload thing again.....Thanks for asking to be a part of our farm!I especially invite you to come join my on my front porch, for some coffee, to watch my wild turkeys, to watch my herbs grow, and we can smile about what 'was'.....in fond regard, Clotilda