What have I been doing for the past 2-1/2 months?

My blog has been rather quiet.... really quiet actually. I was away for 7 weeks in Idaho teaching at the University of Idaho and doing some other things. I returned to Portland to discover that although my vegetables had not grown much, the weeds REALLY had grown. So for the past two weeks, I have been alternating weeding/gardening with housecleaning.

To sum up, here is a list (with visuals) of what I've been up to:

1. New nightshirt for the spouse
This was one of my first projects of the summer.




2. My students made the front page of the local paper with their designs for the local roller derby team.
Here is a link to the article:
Daily News Roller Derby Article on the UI's Facebook Page



3. Did some yard work, garden rototilling and landscaping for the parents.
My sister and I put in a new flower bed for Mom and Dad's anniversary, as well as doing some plant moving and tree trimming. I am still sore from this.

4. Went to Las Vegas for 5 days with the spouse for our Lucky 13 Anniversary.
We were lucky and had beautiful weather and good shopping, but the slot machines were NOT aligned with this luck. Here are some beautifully inspiring pics from the casinos and shops:









My new super, favorite brand:AllSaints Spitalsfield






5. Acquired my great-grandmother's Davis New Vertical Feed Sewing Machine
It has been sitting dormant for 20 plus years... but Dad put a few drops of oil on it and the treadle worked, and it sewed! This is a needle-fed machine (no feed dogs). It has all the attachments, now I need to locate a manual (the mice ate the one with the machine) and spend some time practicing. As it does not require electricity, my sister pointed out that I can sew outside!






6. And I got a motorcycle for my birthday



Now I need to pass the written test, get my permit, ride for a bit, and pass that on-bike test and get my endorsement.