Unexpected Visitors

A good Monday morning to you, my friends! There isn't much to tell you this morning. Yesterday was one of those days when I was busy all day, but it's hard to remember what I did. There was some housework in the morning. And then I made good on my threat to bake some zucchini bread. I've been munching on a piece as I'm writing. Sorry. If you want some, you'll have to stop by.

Oh yes, and as long as I was in the kitchen, I started something in my Dutch oven for last night's dinner. We tried for the second time some Chile-Braised Short Ribs. We still had short ribs from the beef share we split with Erik and Mae, and I'd found some on the bargain meats counter at the grocery store. It's one of those dishes that's not particularly photogenic, and so I swiped this image off the internet.

I've linked to the recipe back there, but I'll warn you about some notes I wrote to myself the first time I made it. It isn't difficult to make, but it does take the better part of an afternoon in the oven. There are a lot of steps involved, from toasting the chiles to making the "sauce." It's worth the effort for the flavor. Regarding my notes...toward the end, I only had about the required 4 cups of liquid when I strained out the solids, and so I just brought it to a boil and added the final ingredients before calling it finished. Also, we thought it was too salty the first time I made it, and so I reduced the salt to 2-1/2 teaspoons. With that change, we found the salt just about right. It was a good rib-sticking (🤣) dinner on a chilly day. 

As for sewing, I stitched the day's inchy. This one was chain stitch, satin stitch, stem stitch, and double lazy-daisy.

And then, I went to work on the Whimsical Garden quilt. Of course, my trusty cat helped me with this.

I'm not sure how I could get anything done in the sewing room without my cats. With his ample-bodied assistance, I was able to get the fusing done for Block #5

It still requires borders, and then I'll get the fusing done for Block #6 before top-stitching them both.

I was only about halfway through with the fusing when some new neighbors showed up on our doorstep. There are four homes on the driveway we share with our neighbors. Two of those homes went on the market for sale in the past year. The signs were up for quite some time, and then they disappeared along with our neighbors. We weren't sure if their homes had sold...or did they just move out...or did they just go missing? As with so many things, no one consuled us.

Then, a few days ago we received some mis-delivered mail for one of our neighbors...the name didn't match the house number, and so we were really wondering what happened to everyone. Interestingly, we never saw any moving vans, but it seems everyone has moved out and new people have moved in. I don't know how we missed the transition. I can only think it happened while we were traveling last month. In any case, the neighbors in the house nearest us paid an unannounced visit to introduce themselves. I'm feeling badly we didn't beat them to the punch, but with so much mystery, I guess we can be forgiven our lapse. And all of that to say my sewing day was interrupted, and so I didn't get much done. The new neighbors seem nice though.

So today I'll get to work on Block #6. Also, the fourth Tiny House has been released, and so I'll work on that if there's time. I'm also thinking about my next art quilt for the "Maps" prompt. I think I know what I'll be doing, but I'm mulling it over a little bit.

Thanks to all who expressed concern about my foot yesterday. I took some Aleve at breakfast time, and by lunch time, it was vastly improved. It still hurt, but I could walk without limping. By day's end, it felt completely back to normal. So weird. No idea what caused it. I guess these mystery ailments can be counted among the many joys of getting older that no one ever tells you about. I'll tell you, though, I try never to complain about getting older. The alternative is far worse.