The New Year

It's strange...thinking about the "new" year. It doesn't seem any different than 2014. I guess we need a way to mark time and thinking about a new year gives people a time to think about change. I have given up on making resolutions. I never keep them. If I can't get up each day and think that I will make it the best I can, what good is making a resolution based on some arbitrary marker of time?

On New Year's Eve Neal and I drove up to Steve and Penny Kilby's house in Mouth of Wilson, VA for for their annual party. Neal had been once a few years ago but I never have. Steve and Penny came to visit us in Ocracoke this past summer and I have gotten to know them better so I really wanted to go to the party. It was fun, although it would have been more fun if we played music. I keep saying that I want to get back into it and one day I will. (Is that a resolution?) The most fun we had out of the entire evening was listening to Wayne Henderson picking with some young musicians; fiddlers Kitty Amaral and Mary Shumway and a phenomenal 10 year old guitar player named Presley Barker. What talent and dedication to music those young kids have and what a pleasure it was to hear them play!

On New Year's Day we went to Bob and Rachel's house for their annual get together. Their son Ben wasn't there, having flown to Seattle to visit family. I wanted to see if he had changed after a semester away at college (Columbia) and a newly acquired girlfriend! We had a nice time visiting with Tom and Marianne, Steve and Molly, Nancy and Bob's friend Coleman. We left about 4:00 b/c Neal wanted to come home and hunt, Jan. 1 being the last day of deer season.

I thought about taking down the Christmas decorations but I am enjoying the air of coziness they give to the house so I'll save that till next week. I finished the quilt that I made for Kathy Perez's baby Gael. I may embroider his name on it....not sure. I cut out a dress to make for our 2 year old Ocracoke neighbor Camryn. I am enjoying having time to sew! I have fabric for Roman shades for my kitchen and another outfit for Josephine. I remember sewing when Rachel was a baby....she would just play on the floor while I sewed at the kitchen table and I could talk to her while I was working. Happy times.

I guess if I have made any kind of a resolution for the new year it is to waste less. I have been trying to throw out as little food as possible, even if it means eating leftovers far after my interest in them has faded! We spend a lot of money on food and I don't want to waste it. I might as well be throwing money away.

I am also trying to rid myself of some of the things I no longer need. I have a collection of Polish pottery....I love it....but I don't need it and I am going to sell it. I have gotten it all out of the cabinet, sorted it by pattern and measured each piece. I will list it on Ebay and since I gave my postage scale to Sarah, I ordered a new one this morning. My old one wasn't really adequate for my needs so this new one should do nicely. Quite often when I want to get rid of stuff I just give it away but I am going to sell the pottery....now that I am retired I can use the money!

Lots to do and it won't get done as long as I am on the computer. Happy New Year.