Happy February to You...

Have you figured out where January went? I haven't. It just up and disappeared off the calendar. So much for time hanging heavy on our hands. Certainly doesn't around here.

We do have your standard everyday Winter. Windy--naked trees and leafless shrubs wave their arms around (is there a message there?). Sun's out, but makes no difference to highs in the 20s and lows in the nearly single digits (12 degrees last night, felt like 9 degrees). Streets were pretty much cleared by the city trucks, but there are a few nasty icy spots at shady corners of back streets. (No, this isn't a bad neighborhood.)

Already we've had the famous groundhog, who, if he was here in Northeast Indiana, saw his shadow all day long.

And we've used up 1/12 of our allotted months of 2021. Did you use yours wisely? (I won't be reporting anybody, so you can be honest here.)

My January looked like this:

--worked on a no-deadline sofa throw (for myself), which means (the no-deadline part) that it may get finished in time for July 4th. But I press on, doing a couple of steps toward completion each week. The thing is: if I'd finish that one, I could move on to quilts of various sizes for other folks who desperately need them--nursing home/rehab patients, people who've lost their homes through one disaster or another, folks with little or no income at present. Something to think about. And maybe even motivate me to sew more often.

--attended online worship services. With weather uncertain, I prefer not to reserve a spot at a church that holds in-person worship, in case I don't make it. My not showing up means a reserved seat will be empty, when it could've been used by someone else.

--helped with the planning of my 80th birthday bash; you got the details of that last week. All went well, and I got to see many family members, plus friends from college and my church. And I had carrot cake!

--reading . . . made it through six (6) books in January. One was 491 pages. Its sequel is on my February list (only 641 pages, which I think I mis-reported last time). I've tried to lobby for those weighty tomes being counted as 2 books (at least) on the 50-Book Challenge, but so far I've had no luck.

--ate, exercised, rested/slept . . . in  other words, self-care. I also, on a regular basis, do laundry, clean up most of the dishes and cooking utensils after my daughter cooks, and keep the grocery list up to date. My daughter does most of the shopping, since she goes out for work and can stop on her way home.

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Now we're into February. Valentine's Day, Presidents' Day, three birthdays. Plus Chinese New Year, Mardi Gras, and Ash Wednesday. Unknown weather. (We keep a full pantry and freezer, in case we can't get out to shop.) 

One of our great joys is having access to a public library--and we have access to Evergreen Indiana, an inter-library loan program. If the snow and ice keep us from making a personal visit to the library, they'll deliver! We can trawl through the "card catalog" online, make our selections, hit the Place Hold button, and wait for a notice that the selection is in and ready for pickup. 

I haven't yet gone to the extreme of ordering groceries online, but that may be in the future. Since we're not big pizza eaters, we don't get take-out delivered. But it's comforting to know such things are available.

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I'm sure you remember that Groundhog Day is almost exactly six (6) weeks from the first day of Spring. Having a time or event to look forward to is important--not just in winter, but in all the times of lockdown or quarantine or simply socially distancing ourselves from our fellow beings.

So keep in mind that Spring is just barely over six weeks away. Start making plans. Study those garden/seed catalogs. Make a new shirt or order a bathing suit.

And don't forget to read a book!

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Remember, blessings abound! Count yours!