Happy Fathers Day

 HAPPY FATHER'S DAY to all the dads out there.  This is my dad at Cow Camp many MANY moons ago, so now you know why I am the way I am.  I was born and raised on a cattle ranch, sometimes a difficult life, but a good one to grow up in.

Another sunny day has passed and things aren't much better.  Absolutely everything reminds me of Cooper.  I can't seem to get my head together, as evidenced by opening the back door at 4:02 am and having the alarm go off.  I feel like someone turned my brain off.

Kitters tries to help all day long by checking on me constantly.  It's probably more for all the petting she's been getting.

I was ready to hit the road earlier than normal, only because I wanted to recreate the delicious brownies I had at the RV Park a couple weeks ago.  I thought the cocoa powder with a "best by" date of April 2020 was probably not going to provide the results I was looking for.  I was also looking for some of those mini versions of toothpaste for the rig.  The smaller the better when it comes to bathroom stuff.

Since I've used up all the Kleenex in the house, I hit up Dollar Tree to see what I could find.  There's nothing like standing in the middle of the aisle trying to figure out if these four boxes are cheaper per kleenex than the other brand.  Especially since Dollar Tree has become FIVE Dollar Tree.

One aisle over, I got moved out of the way twice, trying to figure out the same for the toilet paper.  That's what happens when you are such a conservative accountant and your brain is in slow motion.

I also picked up two little packets of kitty treats for $5.00.  I just KNEW Kitters would enjoy them.  I was WRONG!  I broke them into little pieces and placed them on the counter where she was already parked.  She smelled them ... and so did I because I think they were tuna.  Did she eat it with gusto?  Nope ... not even one teeny tiny piece went into her mouth.  She refused even the hand fed ones.  So much for that $5.00.

I really didn't want to try quilting, but I had to try something to keep from blubbering all day.  I measured to be sure the backing was on the machine correctly.  It quilted the first row, but it does not sound nor work like it used to.  

Then it started making noises I KNEW were bad.  They changed the programming so it goes slow and fast instead of just a steady stitch.  That makes the bobbin rattle and sound like it's going to break.  The tension is completely off, but I had no luck adjusting it ..... and then THIS happened.  It was wadding up the bottom thread, while looking just fine on top.

Another look produced a big sigh.  They just don't seem to be able to make it work correctly.  I grabbed my seam ripper and one by one, took out an entire row of stitches.  I'm guessing maybe 2,000?  It was a lesson in frustration.  I adjusted the tension again and went little by little.  Halfway through I paused the machine, and when it started back up, it skipped an inch of stitches.  Big sigh ..... about ten more inches of stitches had to be taken out.

There was one slight distraction when I heard the slapping of paws on the wall.  Oh that's not good ... not good at all.  As I looked around the corner, the lizard went running into the bathroom.  Luckily they stop motionless, thinking they can't be seen, so I could grab him.  Another one out the front door to the lawn.

By now I'm down to the bottom of the quilt when I realize ...... da da daaaaaaaaa ..... I'm short six inches of backing.  In spite of measuring the quilt AND the backing, I got it on the machine wrong.  That's what I mean about not being able to think about anything but Cooper.  I just can't seem to get it together.

I took it off the longarm, cut another piece of fabric to sew on the bottom, put it BACK on the longarm and was finally able to get the last row finished.  What a frustrating way to spend the day.

And it didn't get better.  Cyndae called me with a computer problem.  She got a new MacBook Pro and could not get her printer to work.  She called HP, only to somehow get a scammer who told her she had to BUY the drivers for the printer to work.  I'm glad she called, because that's not true.  HP offers all those drivers for FREE.  

We worked on it for over an hour, but it's hard to do that when I can't see the screen and tell her what to click.  She finally decided it was easier to buy a new $115.00 printer, since hers is over 5 years old.  It was a lesson in frustration for sure.

The rest of the night was spent doing this.  Kitters will sit there all day long if you just brush her, which is what I do, but now she looks pretty scraggly since all her winter coat is gone.

Not the best of days for sure.  I'm having to force myself to do things and making mistakes all along the way.  Of course Sundays are the worst.  I usually have a long list of stuff to do, but my list is empty and the depression is the worst.  Maybe making those brownies will help.