Thursday, February 25, 2016

Hangin' On

 You still here??


 Hey folks!  Those few of you still dropping by.  I'm still hangin' in and working on stuff.  Thought I'd at least put up a few photos of things around here.  We've been pretty busy with lots of stuff and making progress on many things.  As soon as the weather gets better and I can get some decent photos I'll show ya'll some of that.

 We've ha a lot of rain since Christmas.  In fact, we had one of the worst rain storms I've seen here on Christmas Day.  Finally got over all that and had another bad storm come through last night.  Nothing was messed up thankfully.  Just soppy wet everywhere.

I've been making some progress on my allergies also and I'll describe that in detail later, in case anyone is interested.  Unfortunately, even though I've made some progress on that, the pain in my hips and butt has not gotten better and, in fact, has spread to my right hip!  That has been truly aggravating and it's made driving or riding in a vehicle a real test of nerves and endurance.  Anything over about 30 minutes and I'm about at my limit.

I finally finished a pottery order that I've been working on for a couple of months now.  Well, I still have to glaze fire it but that should go okay.  I may do a little pottery now and again but for the most part I think I'm done with that.  I think getting away from all that is one of the reasons I've been feeling better.  I told ya'll I was thinking about doing some slip cast stuff but I think I'm just burnt out on all pottery and want to get away from it.  It does not excite me anymore and that's a bad thing in art.
I recently did a little metal sculpture for an auction though and the piece was a big hit AND I really enjoyed doing it.  I think that'll be my next direction as for as art.  I'll show ya'll some photos of that too.

I've been trying hard to keep up my exercising and have added some strength training for my legs and hips in an effort to try to stabilize my hips and SI joint.  I've read that weakness in those areas can lead to your SI joint being too loose and moving too much, which can cause the pain of the bones grinding on each other.  I'm about ready to try anything at this point but it kinda makes sense to me.  And, when I did a few of the exercises designed to strengthen those areas...I'm embarrassed to say, I could barely do 5 or 6 reps because those muscles were so weak.  So, there may be something to that.

We are really trying to get a jump on spring this year and have started lots of seedlings.   I'm really, really anxious for warm weather, I'll tell you.  I've been so thankful that this winter has been very mild for us but would not be surprised if we still get a snow storm next month.  That is not unheard of in the south.

On a sad note, a hawk got little WingNut a few weeks ago.  Well, she wasn't so little anymore but she was a sweet little hen, unlike her sister who is a bit of a turd.  It was a rainy day and we were not outside much when it happened, so no free-ranging anymore on rainy days.  I've always been fearful of letting them out on rainy days for that very reason but they squawk so to go out.  Well, no more.  I just hate that it took loosing one to convince me not to do that.  They have a big run, two actually, that they can go between on days they need to stay in.  The hawks have been really bad this year too.  I think all the young 'uns that the older, resident hawk couple has raised over the years have come into their own and are still in the area.  The other day we had about 5 or 6 circling the girls at one time!  Even with us out there yelling at them.  They are brazen.  The girls finally got so nervous they voluntarily ran back into their covered runs.  One hawk got so low over the yard that Chigger took off after it after it, jumping up and snapping at it!  I think that convinced it to go elsewhere.  Chigger is a good girl and fierce protector of Callie Cat too.

So, I'll try to be back soon.  We are supposed to get some real pretty weather in the next few days so I should be able to get some decent photos.

7 comments:

Ed said...

We have several craft fairs every year in our area and I enjoy walking through them to see the art. By far what captivates my attention though are those who turn rusty scraps of metal into sculptures. I've even flirted with getting a smallish MIG welder someday and doing some myself among other projects that I would use it for but haven't. I just have to many irons in the fire already.

ErinFromIowa said...

I was just thinking about you guys yesterday! Ups and downs , but you are still kicking around. I do want to hear about the allergy stuff., when you get around to it. Good go on the metal sculpture. Yes, you do need to feel motivated and inspired when creating. Love the photos and captions. The seedlings look good and I can't wait for your garden to get fired up. So good to hear from my harbinger of spring!

JO said...

Yep still around. Good to see your post this evening. Great pictures. Haven't done much here since the injuries.

Lots of Hawks here too. One was eying Fred and I was standing about 8 ft. from him. I don't think he could have picked up Fred but I'm sure he could have hurt him really bad.

Can't wait to see what you have made.

Hermit's Baby Sis said...

Of course we want to hear about your ups and downs, Annie, especially the triumphs!
And great shots - love Chigger and Callie's, and the black and white of the fungus (I guess) really is interesting. I used to love doing black & white or sepia photos - really changes things, doesn't it?
Glad to hear from you again, and yes, we're still here . . .

Caddie said...

So enjoyed this post, Annie. Pictures are very nice. Love the lichen and mushroom one - the colors! Good to know you are feeling better.
Carolyn

Anonymous said...

Loved the pics, especially Chigger and Callie, so sweet. We've had a mild winter in Texas too and everyone's allergies are going nuts.
We've had a family of Hawks stalking our chickens too, it's been so bad that the chickens aren't allowed out of their run unless we're working outside.
Those little Cooper Hawks are relentless. I walked outside the other day and there was a cooper sitting on top of our covered run staring longingly into the run. All the chickens were inside the chicken house, squeezed into a corner! That hawk didn't even fly off until I was practically on top of it!
I hope you feel better soon, Annie. Chronic pain is no joke, and it's so frustrating when you try one thing after another and run back and forth to docs but still get no relief. I've been there. I've lost all respect for most docs since all they want to do is throw meds at you or shoot you full of steroids. Exorcise and PT sessions has helped me with shoulder, hip and back pain. I'm 60 yrs old, worked manual labor my entire life and continue to work hard on our small farm, some days my shoulders hurt so bad I can't reach back to unfasten my bra. I had to stop splitting firewood last year. I can't fire a shotgun, other small things like that. It's frustrating. Thankfully, my husband is around to pick up the slack. Old age sucks. Ha!

Anonymous said...

some personal issues ( chronic pain/prescription side effects) made me quit blogging for awhile but I'm back and glad you are still here. Look forward to reading through the posts I missed and getting caught up.