Cross Stitch Redux

I post photos last month (March 7th) of some of my cross stitch projects from many years ago, like 20 years ago.  The reason I did was because I wanted to join a Facebook channel for cross stitchers.  There are several (quite a few, actually) that are closed groups.  That means you must be passed by one of the admins for that channel before you can read/write posts there.  The admins want to see examples of one's work, and to make sure that you are faithful, honest and kind.  Sort of.  They actually look at your facebook page, and not your blog, but I wasn't sure and so I posted the photos here as well as there.  I have found other cross stitch things that I still have, but they are "smalls".  Anyway, I was successful in joining the 4 channels I was interested in, and so I too will end up spending waaay too much time on facebook.  Some of the channels are for buy/sell deals, which I am enjoying very much, although I have resisted buying anything.  Mostly.

We did have one last snow last week, but it wasn't much more than a skiff on the lawn.  That hardly counts.  Now surely we are through with winter.  Update: Yesterday (may 6th) we had hail!  Does this mean snow in July!?!

I keep hearing gunfire outside, it is rare for 10 am on a weekday.  This is the country, so rifle fire is fairly constant, even out of hunting season, for target practice.  Rifle fire/hunting is restricted to certain hours, and cannot be within a certain distance from a dwelling.  The ammo for these rifles is pretty expensive too, maybe a dollar apiece.  Anyway, you have to know where the shots are being fired, and then let the sheriff know, to get any kind of enforcement.  If it isn't being fired by one of the sheriff's buddies.

Our old Newfy dog is in her final days.  She hasn't been the same since we had to put her sister down when she got an aggressive cancer.  She has found a new place to hide when we let her out of the barn, behind and underneath a huge holly bush.  I am afraid she will go back in there and then die, I'm not sure how we could get her out of there, dead or alive even if she refuses to come out.  This is the part of pet ownership that I hate.  Is she suffering?  Ill?  Just withdrawn?  Damn.

We have a new addition to the outdoor cats.  There is one that has been an occasional visitor to the garage to sample dinnertime, we called him Stripey.  He was plump and sleek, and we assumed he belonged to one of our neighbors and was just snacking here.  But through out the winter he got progressively thinner and not so sleek, and we concluded that his regular family had moved away and left him.  So now he gets his own plate and as long as he doesn't hassle the old cats he is welcome to stay.  He has picked up some weight and looks sleek again.  I could just throttle his owners.

This has been a downer of a post, we need some humor: