Jenyfer Matthews

I don’t have deer or foxes in my yard as my father and step-mother do or fluffy llamas either. What I do have are squirrels. Lots and lots of squirrels.

My landlord’s son advised us not to put our jack-o-lanterns out too soon in October because the squirrels in the neighborhood were known to attack them. I believe it – the squirrels in this area are some of the biggest, fattest squirrels I’ve ever seen. I totally believe that they would attack a pumpkin. I’ll bet they go down the street tipping over garbage cans on trash night too.

I wouldn’t be surprised if a gang of them ambushed a kid on the way home from the corner store for his or her junk food. Surely they can’t get so plump just eating acorns??

I’ve never seen a raccoon here but if they are around I’ll bet 1) the squirrels give them a run for their money and 2) the raccoons must be giants!

We have gray squirrels, red squirrels, and even a few black squirrels. But I looked out of my kitchen window yesterday and saw a squirrel like no other I’ve ever seen. Of course I had to get a picture.

Check out that red tail!

He was quite shy and it took me a while of standing very quietly to get his picture. Do you think the other squirrels tease him? Do squirrels have litters? I wonder if he has any brothers or sisters who have the same coloring or if he was the oddball? I haven’t seen any others with this coloring and I’m sure I would have noticed!

Mother Nature really does have a sense of humor.

A year ago today I was putting my children on the bus to school in Cairo. It was a national holiday, Police Day, so most other people had the day off. Even taking that into account, the streets were exceptionally quiet and the bus driver and monitor quite jumpy. They obviously knew more about the situation than I did.

A year ago today, my life began to change course tremendously. If anyone had told me that the scheduled protest that occurred that day and continued into the weekend would topple the president of Egypt and that a year later I’d be living in Michigan waging war on mice (rats!), I’d have thought they were nuts. And yet, here I am.

A friend asked me the other day if it felt like longer than a year, or shorter. It feels like both. It is all so vivid in my mind that it might have happened last week. Yet, this last year was so filled with anxiety and stress and genuine grief over what was happening and how things were changing that how could it not feel longer? It was exhausting and sad. I never dreamed that when we left on that evacuation flight, the children and I wouldn’t be going back – that the walk I took on my last morning in our neighborhood would be the last time I’d see it.

The last views of my street:

Barricades still up so the self-appointed checkpoint groups could see who wanted access to the street.

The intersection I crossed nearly every day with the children on our way to tennis lessons, as quiet as I’ve ever seen it.

An Army commando on guard, a half barrel across the street for a fire at night.

Knowing what we know now about how the army has behaved in Egypt, his presence on the street conveys a different feeling.

A different friend of mine, this one half Egyptian, recently told me that though I’d lived in Egypt, I didn’t really know it because I didn’t get out much. She said it in passing, in a casual way not meant to offend, but I have to say the comment stung. I never claimed to be an expert on the place and no, I didn’t leave our immediate neighborhood much on a day to day basis. I’ll bet I could say the same to her about where she now lives in Maryland. However, when I was working my way through the archives of this blog to back up my more interesting posts, there are many, many posts about the various places I visited. When I read through them now, I see someone who was interested in the country and curious about the culture (though I might not have always interpreted things correctly). I think that should count for something.

When my husband was offered his job in Egypt, I wasn’t pleased to go. In the end, I didn’t want to leave. Egypt is the kind of place that gets under your skin.

So, though I am now busy making a life for our family in Michigan, I’m still watching the events in Egypt with interest – and missing the life we had there and the people to whom I never had the opportunity to say a proper goodbye.

My creativity to date has run in quilts, writing, and some dabbling in pottery. My father’s creativity has pretty consistently come out in woodwork. One of the items I had in my time capsule storage room was a carving he had done, inspired by M. C. Escher. He gave me this wall hanging on my 21st birthday and though I packed it away carefully, I was very afraid that it would have warped all those long years in a not-climate-controlled storage room!

It’s as lovely today as it was when I packed it, and hardly dusty at all since I wrapped it in a towel, sandwiched it between two boards, and put it in a box!

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Believe it or not, he carved this from ONE piece of wood. See for yourself:

He even made me matching magnets.

He does sell some of his work, but he couldn’t sell these because they aren’t his design. He does have some of his own lovely designs, like this one. Once I am all settled in, I would love to start an Etsy site for my quilts and some of his smaller pieces. Just look how lovely his more recent work is:

Right now I wish that I could apprentice under him to learn more about wood and refinishing because I acquired a couple of projects this week.

We need a couple of dressers for the children’s rooms and I’ve been keeping a lookout at garage sales. It’s amazing how many ugly and badly constructed dressers are out there – and how much people want for them! We got lucky today though. Just look what I found for $20/each. They need some love but they have good bones.

This one currently has a pretty bad paint job but is well made. I can see it painted pale green, perhaps with ceramic knobs. Someone painted the insides of the drawers too, unfortunately, in alternating royal blue and brown no less! It means a bit more work for me to paint over that to make them all white, but I think it will be worth it.

The second one has one loose board and one missing board on the back. Otherwise, I want to strip the odd paint off the top (why??) and see what is under the not-so-attractive mocha colored paint. If the wood it is okay, I might just strip the whole thing and then stain/varnish it. If the top is a mess, I’ll leave the bottom as is and repaint the top a bit nicer. Either way, what a find for $20!

I’d love for them to come out beautifully but at the price we got them I won’t even feel too bad if I mess them up

(What am I saying – of course I will!)

This weekend is the city-wide garage sale. I’m all a-tingle just thinking about it! Though I’m not even sure why the city bothers to have a “day” because it seems like every day is garage sale day here…

There were many things I forgot packing away in our storage unit way back when, but there were some things I could not forget – several special quilts.

I didn’t have many quilts back in 1999 – I was self taught from books and had only made two baby quilts for my then baby nieces and two bigger quilts, only one of which I kept. When we were packing things away, I put all of the special quilts in my cedar “hope” chest – and very much hoped that they would be okay when we returned!

The storage unit we rented was in North Carolina and was NOT climate controlled. Over the years I worried about humidity, heat, pests, hurricanes, mildew, etc. The worst I have had to contend with yet has been dust and intense cedar scent from the hope chest and all the cedar blocks I packed away with all the linens!

This is the first big quilt I ever made, made in 1998 according to the satin stitched signature on the back (guess who had more time and patience then??), now on my daughter’s bed.

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I quite clearly remember piecing this quilt seated in front of my hope chest, where my Kenmore sewing machine was parked, and then spending hours hand quilting it while watching a BBC production of Sense and Sensibility over and over again.

Check out how I finished the edge. Guess I hadn’t figured out how to do bindings yet! Again – much more patience and time!!!

Guess what one of my first projects will be when my fabric arrives??

There were also a couple of old family quilts that my parents gave me. This yellow quilt is from my father’s side:

It has no signature or date to tell me when it was made, but it was given to me when I was about 20 years old. I am almost positive that other than the embroidery it is machine quilted, which you don’t see much in older quilts.

I don’t recall the embroidery being in such sad shape when I put it away, but my memory isn’t what it used to be either.

It is so pretty I am *half* tempted to try and repair it… Wonder if that would be a worthwhile thing to do?? The rest of the quilt is in pretty good shape, though I am not sure I’d want to put it into everyday use.

This next quilt is from my mother’s side. It’s a bit unusual I think because it is a common pattern, Grandmother’s Flower Garden, appliqued to the top instead of pieced. Also, it is knotted instead of tied.

I remember trying to use this quilt on my bed when I was single and in grad school. Not only was it really, really heavy (thick cotton or wool batting?) but while I was away in class my cat would sit on the bed and untie the knots with her teeth. I decided it was better to put it away!

The quilt was rather threadbare in places and delicate when I put it away and still is. I don’t know exactly what to do with it. I’d kind of like to display it, but I wonder if it is even strong enough to be hung on a wall?

Check out how that edge is finished – maybe a binding is less critical than I thought!

I never did get back to the blog on Friday because I was having way too much fun opening boxes and remembering all the wonderful things that we put in our storage unit way back in June of 1999.

When the movers called to tell me when they were scheduled to arrive, first thing Friday morning, I was a bit miffed because their timing meant that I was going to have to skip my usual Friday garage sale cruise. It ended up not mattering though because not only was it a cold and drippy day, not the best garage sale weather, but I pretty much had my dream garage sale delivered to my door!

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Here they come! So exciting

The friend who supervised the movers while they were loading the truck told me that other than dust, things looked to be in good shape. She was right – about both things. It’s a big job ahead of us to clean everything before putting it away, but what fun to look at each and every item!

Many many times over the years people suggested to us that we were insane to continue paying $$$ to keep that storage unit. I wavered a few times but held firm: yes, it was true that there were things packed away that we would not want / need again but a lot of the stuff was worth keeping. We can probably afford to recycle the assorted glass condiment jars that we once kept spices in, but just look at those brown Ovaltine jars on the shelf. Those are practically antiques by now, LOL.

I love these chairs, from my husband’s grandparents (there is a fourth chair, not yet unloaded as of this picture) These are much better than the plastic lawn furniture we were making-do with. Add the oak kitchen table that I refinished myself and we have a very nice solid wood set for “free”.

This lamp belonged to my grandparents and it is my favorite floor lamp ever. Can’t wait to polish the crystal on the post.

This chair was one of the “casualties” – it did not age well. The upholstery is at least 3 shades darker than it was originally and the stuffing no longer gives. It needs to be totally redone. However, it wasn’t in such hot shape when we put it into storage so it isn’t a huge surprise to me. Given the expense and general poor quality of “new” furniture, I do think this chair is worth re-doing. My husband and I bought this chair for $15 at a garage sale in about 1997 because it had good bones. That much is still true. I’m thinking of having it reupholstered in leather. What do you think? More expensive initially but it would certainly last a long time!

Even my linens survived – they all smell of cedar from the wood blocks I put in everything but that is better than the alternative. Pictures of quilts coming Wednesday…

I thought I was mostly okay with not being at all involved in the process of packing up my things in Cairo. I mean, really – how hard is it? The movers – a company I have used before and been happy with – come in and pack up too quickly for me to keep up anyway then send it on. Not much I could have done had I been there, and yet I found myself really stressed out yesterday and today too.

In order to attempt to combat the anxiety, I decided to get away from the endless cleaning and go outside for a while. Might as well take advantage of the beautiful weather while I can, right?

A fellow soccer mom mentioned the local farmer’s market to me at the game on Saturday so I decided to stop by this morning and see what they had

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It’s a gorgeous place just to walk around and look.

Can you tell what is in season? I bought a new-to-me variety called Honey Crisp – very crunchy and tart. My children are going to love them.

I know where to go to get my autumn / Halloween decorations. Notice the bridge in the background. (more on that in a moment)

So beautiful, I wish I could buy all of these!

The Farmer’s Market is located downtown, just next to the Midland “tridge”, so called because it is a three legged bridge. Or is that tri-branched?

A pedestrian bridge, it connects three different park areas where two rivers meet and fork, the Chippewa and the Tittabawassee. Kind of neat looking, isn’t it?

I am definitely going to have to come back on the weekend so the children can run back and forth and also in other seasons. It’s a very scenic and restful area.

Now I’m going to head outside to my yard. Digging in the dirt is more productive and therapeutic than worrying…

I decided to retrace my route back to Ohio via the Upper Peninsula of Michigan – only this time I would stop to look around a little bit. My father recommended we see the Pictured Rocks National Park and since he is not a man to make idle suggestions I figured the scenery must be freaking amazing and worth the stop.

The day we drove from Minnesota to Munising, MI was not pretty. Rain, rain, and more rain. I was really afraid that our stay would be limited to the hotel pool but the sky was (relatively) clear Wednesday morning so we set off to see what we could see.

There was more to see in the local area that I would have thought, given how small the town is. I decided that I wanted to do the Pictured Rock boat tour in the afternoon because that particular tour time included the Spray Falls. That left the morning open to do the glass bottom boat Shipwreck tour.

Confession: I love boats. I probably would have paid someone just to take me out on a boat ride. Adding shipwrecks into the mix just made it all that much sweeter and scored me major Mom-points with my little man.

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The children and I choose to sit up the upper deck – sun and scenery, duh!

I took this picture from the upper deck of the boat. So, I was probably at least 12 feet above the water level and according to the tour guide the shipwreck was 5 feet below the bottom of the boat. How clear is that water???It looks close enough to touch!

A much clearer view from the glass bottom. It’s amazing how much is left after 140 years submerged.

A historic lighthouse in Grand Island, in the Munising harbor. Was it a beautiful day or what?

I would love to do one of the kayak tours of these rocks – so beautiful! Maybe next time

All in all we visited the sites of three shipwrecks, all in shallow water. Between the scenery above and below the water it was a thoroughly enjoyable tour.

The children and I made a quick trip back to the hotel for lunch and to change into swim suits: the tour guide had pointed out a pretty sand beach nearby that I decided we should visit. Kids are a bit like dogs: they behave best and are happiest when they’ve had ample playtime / exercise!

Is that a pretty beach or what? I am so used to rock beaches on Lake Superior I was a bit disoriented by the sand and the pretty colors in the water from the shallower depths. It looked more like the Caribbean so I kept expecting salt spray!

In hindsight, I probably should have flipped my tours. The glass bottomed boat never leaves the protected waters of the harbor so it runs rain or shine – not so for the Pictured Rock tour boat. When we arrived at the ticket desk for the Pictured Rock tour, we were told that they would only do a 1/2 tour because of wind and waves – at 1/2 price. We wouldn’t see most of the rock formations or the Spray Falls but since we were leaving the next day, it was a 1/2 tour or nothing. We went for it.

The way the sky looked by the time we boarded the boat, I thought we might have a Gilligan’s Island scenario on our hands. I could see why they cut the tour short when we left the shelter of the harbor – with nearly 6 foot waves, it was more of a thrill ride than a tour. The children were howling with delight as waves slammed into the boat and spray hit us. We were some of the only people who stayed on the top deck the entire ride (in spite of rain).

This, Miner’s Castle, is the only formation we saw. I could hardly even get a picture with the boat tossing the way it was. The crew were busy handing out barf bags. What a change in weather from the morning!

After arriving safely back at dock, we tidied up before dinner, and then spent the rest of the evening at the hotel pool. The children swam while I warmed up in the sauna. It was cold on the boat!

When we left yesterday morning, the sky was dense with dark, gray clouds and the waitress at breakfast warned us away from the beaches because of wind and riptides. I guess we can consider ourselves lucky to have had such a nice day – and gee, I guess we’ll have to go back sometime and try that Pictured Rock tour again!

Summer is definitely on the wane here in northern Minnesota. It was 47F when I woke up this morning… brrrr! Time for me to head a bit further south – back to Ohio (at least for now). I am glad to say that in spite of iffy weather forecasts, we were able to have one last wonderful weekend before I leave tomorrow.

I take my children to the Alpine Slide at Lutsen Mountain once every summer – I am so lucky I have children to use as an excuse because I might look a bit odd spending the day out there zooming down the mountain on my own! It is such a fun thing to do. It had rained on Thursday night and was looking pretty cloudy and gray Friday morning but we lucked out because it was clear in Lutsen. The only thing we had a little trouble with was wind – they shut the ski lift down a few times because of it. It didn’t slow us down for long though. I always mean to count how many times we end up sliding and I always forget to do it when I’m caught up in the fun. We were there for a little more than four hours = LOTS OF SLIDES.

Saturday morning we headed out to an inland lake to play in the water. It was another beautiful day, though it was a bit chilly when clouds would pass by. I finally tried out the paddle board my step-mother bought this summer. I was doing pretty well standing and balancing on it until I tried to be cute and do some yoga poses on it. I’m lucky that she got pictures of the poses and not of the splash I made as I slipped off and fell in the lake!

Sunday’s weather was looking iffy again but we decided to go back to the lake anyway. Why not? It was cool enough when the clouds blew past that I wasn’t inspired to swim however – I stuck to my kayak and wore a fleece pullover!

The clouds rolled in thicker and thicker throughout the day, but we never felt even one raindrop.

What a beautiful end to a wonderful summer.

For anyone keeping track, I’ve gained at least five pounds this summer and the children have NOT finished the math workbooks I purchased for them to do for practice. So much for self-improvement. Oh well… there’s always tomorrow!

The summer has zoomed by… where does time go? We’re here in Minnesota for just a few more days before make our return trip to Ohio and then… well, the “then what” portion of my life is still up in the air.

So, instead of worrying about things I can’t control, I am distracting myself with fun stuff.

This week we stopped at a place I have passed countless times on my way up and down the North Shore: Kadunce River. Now that I’ve been, I can’t imagine why I waited so long to investigate.

There is a nice trail along the river that eventually connects up to the Lake Superior Hiking Trail system. We didn’t go that far, but you can believe that I’ll be back.

The children were more interested in playing in Lake Superior where the Kadunce River empties into it – it was a windy day and the waves were impressive.

I know it looks more like the Atlantic Ocean here, but you’ll have to take my word for it – this is actually Lake Superior. A man who arrived as we were leaving, wearing his wet suit and carrying a surf board! I can only imagine how frigid it must have been on such a windy day, but that didn’t deter my children one little bit. I had goosebumps just sitting on the shore watching them!

Have a great weekend – I intend to…

One thing I have really, really missed since we left Egypt so abruptly in February are my twice weekly yoga classes. I did eventually buy myself a yoga mat but I am just not disciplined enough to use it as frequently as I should when left to my own devices. I not only had a wonderful yoga teacher in Egypt, but she actually used to send me text messages demanding to know where I was if I ever missed class. As a consequence, I rarely did.

So when the urge to do a little yoga struck the other day, I decided I didn’t actually need a mat. Apparently a large rock will do in a pinch.

Good to know I can still do the stretches, though I doubt I could make it through a proper class anymore!

I don’t look too bad here but don’t let it fool you: I was doing pretty well on the whole gain-weight-in-the-summer issue until this week. It was the raspberries that did me in. I’m going to have to do a lot of rock yoga to peel off the pounds that have crept on…