Joining Carole & friends for Three Things on Thursday…

1 — This is the last photo taken with my old phone, a.k.a. Rusty's new phone!

The way it works around here is that when someone wants an upgrade, that usually means me! Rusty had a pretty basic phone and, since he's become more active on social media, mainly wanted a better camera to take photos of artwork.

Anyway, I had a hair appointment yesterday and, nope, I wasn't ready to think about going shorter. Thinned and trimmed and curled! I love a good hair day… especially when the sun is shining!

It's been awful/so rainy around here and, I know you're sick of hearing about it, but the stupid street/sidewalk project in front of the coffee shop is still not finished! It's been dismal, disheartening, depressing… weekday sales are down anywhere from 30-70%… they're trying some new things/promos… chin up & fingers crossed! 

2 — This is one of the first photos taken with my new phone!

Portrait mode, even. I've got some learning to do!! I've been a Samsung girl for about as long as I've had a cell phone… but that ultra wide angle camera, ease of traveling and connecting with certain family members, more functionality in some apps… led me to go with an iPhone for the first time!

Rusty & I will be on our way to Arizona a week from tomorrow! That trip includes a tour to the Grand Canyon, and it sounds like we'll be driving out to Oatman with Rusty's brother & sister-in-law. I wanted a little time to get used to the new phone/camera before the trip. The Grand Canyon seems like the perfect place to use the ultra wide!

3 — Autumn.

We had quite a storm on Monday — sideways rain and wind from the east, then from the south — it was crazy. Lots of leaves fell, as has the temperature since then. It's inevitable, of course, but the temps are definitely on the downhill slide toward winter. Right around the time we hit our first "high in the 30s" day, we'll be heading south…

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Just a quick housekeeping note. The current Make.Do website expires tomorrow and I've decided not to renew. I will keep the domain and… we'll see. Many good things happened in the past year because of that site, and I thank everyone who ordered yarn or totes or Field Guides or 'zines (there are still some listed, including the sold-out "Florida" issue of Nomadic Knits). Truthfully, it turns out that it's just a bit more than I am able or willing to juggle. When it comes right down to it, given the choice of dyeing yarn/updating the website or hanging out with my kids/grandkids… um, there's no contest! I'll continue to dye yarn now & then, and sell goods at the Make.Do space within Kaukauna Coffee & Tea… you can find me there! I'll also offer up some yarn here on occasion before taking it to the shop, if you'd like.

Joining Carole & friends for Three Things on Thursday…

Thing 1: It's Go Time! I mentioned the other day that we published Kate's/the upstairs apartment on Airbnb, and that there had been some interest.

It's been nine days, we've had eight inquiries, and we are so surprised! Of those:

• One canceled booking by a woman whose son attending a nearby university would be recovering from outpatient surgery; upon further review, it turns out a traditional hotel (with long walkable hallways) would be better suited for his post-op needs.
• Two declined bookings: one because the apartment wasn't suitable (she didn't read the listing limitations); the other because of too short notice!
• Two that weren't possible: one because the number of guests suddenly increased and exceeded our capacity; another was a pre-approved request for dates that someone else snagged before it was accepted!
• One pre-approved, awaiting confirmation.

There are two confirmed bookings! The first one is for Monday-Friday — as in this coming Monday! So we are getting all the last-minute things done. And Kate, in the meantime, is also packing for a quick work/art trip to Nebraska… also keeping in mind upcoming longer trips to the UK & Europe! It's all a little crazy.

The other confirmed booking isn't until mid-April, but who knows what will happen between now & then! We truly didn't expect much until summertime, and then… maybe a family reunion, a wedding. None of these bookings or inquiries are for reasons that had even crossed our minds. So. What do we know?? Haha.

Thing 2: It's Almost Drive Time! I need to get an International Driving Permit (IDP) for Spain… a trip that is coming up right quick! (YIKES!!) I've had my application filled out for weeks, and finally had Rusty take some "passport-type photos" the other night, which I sized & printed, so I could bring the whole she-bang with me yesterday. Then I noticed that they required check or money order, and didn't accept cash… I don't know about you, but I haven't carried my checkbook in a very long time. I needed to make a deposit for work and happen to have my HSA account at the same institution, and they let me draw a $20 MO from there. I happily made my way to AAA and she told me that my photos were too big (even though they were processed to passport specs — GAH!!). They could take photos there, and I'd have done it… if they'd accept a credit/debit card from a non-member, or I'd had a check with me, or a MO for $32 instead of $20. GRRR. I resized & reprinted photos last night — and tucked a blank check into my wallet — and will try again today!

Thing 3: It's Yarn Time! I've never knit a Fade (though I have printed out at least a couple of patterns), but that almost looks like it could be one! I've had some fun in the dye studio over the past couple of weeks. I've made it a point to put "DYE" on my calendar on my days off — making it a priority on those days, not just a thing I do when I have time. There are a few last-minute tweaks before a website update later today — shooting for noon CST!

Happy Day!