HAPPY Dark-Chocolate-Roses-I-Could-Do-With-A-*HOT*-DATE DAY!!

AS IT *MIGHT* take My Mind OFF of My ACHES right now!! ..oww... My Finger Tips HURT!!

And, "..WHY?..", You ask... Well, *because*, I spent THREE HOURS - mostly in an intermittent fine RAIN - SCRAPING AN INCH THICK LAYER OF FROZEN SLUSH OFF MY DRIVEWAY!!  WHILST, **BAILING** OUT THE INCOMING "TIDE" THREATENING TO FLOOD THE GARAGE!!

I might have been able to knock off an Hour and perhap had a chance to work on MADAME-Q's Side, as well... HOWEVER, the Roadway SEWER GRATE that's about 10-Feet from the Lane is UNDER the METER high GLACIER!! Oh, and the Roadway slopes UP... Our CURB EDGE is making like a DIKE at the Moment!

There was FREEZING RAIN all Night, TEMPS were about 2C. Between the RAIN and MELT WATER, it's a GOOD thing that I've been keeping on top of the Snow Removal, or else, it really would have been a LOT worse!!

I didn't STOP until the TEMPS started to Drop and Snow started coming down... Just BEFORE the
WIND began Gusting quite badly! Now, We have a "FLASH-FREEZING" Thing going on. Later into the Afternoon, when FATHER put out the Weekly Garbage, He did a bit more "Scraping"... It'll probably be an Ice Rink by Tomorrow!

SO!? How was YOUR "VALENTINE'S DAY"...? - I probably ate TOO many of My Dark CHOCOLATE CHIPS... But, at this Point, *ask* Me IF I *care*!!

Seriously. I really could have used getting THE CUTE MAILMAN Today! Better yet, some Strapping COAST GUARD Types to "Rescue" Me from THE CANAL! -- You know...just saying...

THANK YOU, ELVIS! That HAWAII FIVE-0 was on Tonight!! -- Sun. Beach. WARM Surf. EYE-CANDY Guys... Oh-kay... Feeling MUCH better now!!

Anyhoo... I suppose, *this* is the Part where I should "include" all that *HEART* Stuff, huh? However, I sort of did that already a few Weeks
back [SEE 25JAN2011]... And, the only OTHER
"Heart" BLANKETS that I have...


Remember, The LITTLE "SECRET" PROJECT...? [SEE 26SEP2010 - 27SEP2010 - 01OCT2010]



Well, IT's *STILL* a "SECRET"! **BUT** Heart-Shapes are involved! -- HERE's the PATTERN Chart for the "FIRST" BLANKET. -- You'll have to READ the Previous POSTS for the Colour Details and Preview Pics!




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Bored BLOOGY!

DID a load of Laundry - Sweaters that needed to be "freshened" up! Meanwhile, I've been catching up on My OTHER Bloog Reading... And, trying to IGNORE the Dusting-Layer of Snow that showed up earlier.

Also, it's Cloudy, Dampish feeling, and Sunday. There just isn't enough out there yet to justify ANY Time on. Besides, MORE is promised to be coming LATER... FATHER has "plans" on using The CAR Tomorrow, I'll likely HAVE to be up early to SCRAPE a Path for Him! -- Just going to
"Rest up", Today!

Anyway... by the TIME This gets Posted, it'll already be VALENTINE'S DAY...


So, HERE's another TEASER!


"ROSARY" was a Custom Order a few Years back - done in My smaller 4x6 Square Size out of RED, CORAL, BUBBLEGUM, and GUAVA.









BTW, be sure to CHECK OUT the *recent* "Button" on the SIDEBAR for RED PEPPER QUILTS' *new* BLOG-HOP Page!





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To Squall...Or, NOT to Squall - THAT *is* My Weather!

PERSONALLY, I'd prefer to go with "NOT"... But, WHEN do *I* ever get to have a "Say", huh?

Anyway, I started My Day with the expected few Inches of Flurry-Fluff on the Ground. Whilst I'm having Breakfast and taking My sweet Time to read the Newspaper, I'll just let it *work* on its
"MELT"...

NOTE - It is SUNNY out "at THIS Point"!

I proceed to don My Cryo-"Combat" Gear... I'm all cosy, warm, Scarfed, and Sunglassed up, READY
to partake of the Picturesque Winter "Wonderfulness"! -- I open the Door... WHAT THE...??!!

Now, *this* is the Part, where the Happy-Lovely-VIVALDI-Music ENDS, and the Howling-Blizzard-Sound-Effects of one of the *many* Movie Remakes of "THE THING" BEGINS!!

There's a Squally WHITEOUT going on!! -- great... Oh well, it's not the "first" Time... I go out.
Get to the Garage, remove My various needed Shovels - [Yes. I have 3 different ones!] - and, decide to START on the Porch-Side of the House. That Area is protected from the Current Wind Direction...

Ten Minutes later, I'm finishing up the last bit and heading toward the Front, WHEN... what the..?!

NO Snow. No Squally-ness. Blinding BLUE SKIES!!! ...o-kay... AUNTIE ain't in Kansas any more... hmph... I get started on the Driveway. However, I DO notice *another* Squall-Line in the Distance... I speed up with the Scrape & Scoop routine! -- I need to be partly *done* over on MADAME-Q's Side BEFORE the "Dumping" starts.

Wow! That's weird! The Cloud-Line just took a sharp Right Turn a few Miles away!! -- So, NOT going to be POWDERED on! -- YAY! -- I got to FINISH up without any further Meteorological Moments.

Mind You, there's no Guarantee that I won't end up with doing ANOTHER "Round", Tomorrow! After all, I had SUNNINESS!

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I may NEED a 2nd "Opinion"...

EITHER, I'm about to be BLESSED with Great FORTUNES, *OR*, I'm being HEXED...?!

I'm "wondering" here, because My Day has been sprinkled with an assortment of seemingly - on their own - unassuming "Witchy Signs"... They could be "Good", or "Not So Much"... OR, The UNIVERSE is just having a "bit of FUN" and messing with My Head! [For, lack of Nothing else better to do... It happens.]

Let Me know what You think...

• There's this Patch of ICE just off Our DoorStep, that I tried to break-up with an Ice Hoe the other Day... But, just ended up making a bunch of Hash Marks on the surface because it was so hard. I "noticed" Yesterday, that they *look* an awful lot like Norse RUNES! -- Doubtful, that they spell the Word "WELCOME".
• Whilst reaching over to hand Me a heavy Bag at the Door, FATHER *slipped* slightly on the Patch! If I hadn't have caught His Hand and the Bag, He likely would have stumbled...
• A lot of "significant" Numbers kept popping up [11-02-2011] -- NONE of them were My LOTTERY Picks! AGAIN! -- That ONLY happens on the Nights that I *don't* have a Ticket!
• The SUN was OUT!
• I *didn't* have to Shovel!
• TWO Charge Card BILLS came in the MAIL.
• A perfect OAK LEAF was in front of the Garage Door... The *nearest* Oak Tree is a Quarter Mile away!
• And, what no doubt, got Me started on this Line of Thought... About a foot behind The CAR, in THE MALL Parking Lot when We were heading out to leave -- a BROKEN EGG..?
  -- Which, I did manage to back-up over WITHOUT running over it!

O-kay, so, NOT that I'm a "Believer" of this STUFF... I really am a "devout" Atheist. -- But, You know... The UNIVERSE.. FATE... "KARMA is such a *Bitch*"... Toss in the Statistical Numbers... My questionable Luck with Lotteries...? -- And, that NO Shovelling Part...

I'm just hedging My Bets...!!

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*HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MEME*!!

WE RECEIVED several PICS of The PRINCESSES, Today. Amongst them, a Special Valentine one for Me!

Meanwhile... the SUN was out just long enough to keep Me from being too discouraged over the Leftover "Frosty" Flakes! -- It was helpful that I had done MOST of it Yesterday, as it was heavier in the spots where I hadn't. As in, over at MADAME-Q's... Those hardened Snow-packed Tire Tracks really are a PAIN to try to scrape off! Hopefully, the *promised* Future higher Temps will help in loosening them up before they start to *ice*...

So, other than all of THAT "non" excitement... it was pretty much a boring Day... Well, perhaps with the exception of - if SHE was still around - My Maternal Grandmother's 104th Birthday... SHE's the ONE from *where* ALL of the NEEDLECRAFT Skills have been inherited from!

THIS was taken during the 1920's, when SHE was *16* - that's HER on the Right with a Cousin.


The Photo quality is really bad, so You can't SEE the Beadwork Details all that well.


SHE *WON* a Costume Contest for making BOTH of These Outfits!!













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I rather be doing OTHER Things!

I HAD been hoping that *may-be*, Today wouldn't end up as a SHOVEL-DAY... yeah! right...

And, it had started out as being so nice Out, earlier... But, THEN, just as The Elderly PARENTAL-UNITS were leaving to do a bit of Grocery Shopping, it began to get a wee bit Squally... A couple of Hours later, I noticed the Depth of the Recent and ON-Going Accumulation....

"..ah..NUTS! -- SHE just ruined My PERFECT Paw-Prints!.."

Oh well... I'd be DOING it, eventually! And, it'll mean less Snow being tracked into the House...
-- I managed to get the Drive and Front Walkway done, JUST in Time! However, BIG Fluffy Flakes continued to COVER UP My previous endeavours!

Anyhoo... needless to say, a good 2 Hours of Tomorrow's "Schedule" has already been accounted FOR!


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Call the Snow Patrol...A SNOWBANK has Disappeared!!

I KNOW IT WAS THERE, Yesterday...

Here's WHAT I know... It was SHINY BRIGHT out and freakin' FREEZING! Quite un-WINTERLUDE-like. The Mean Temperature was a manageable -15C, however, the rather Biting WIND was making the needed Shovelling a tad challenging with the resulting -26C WINDCHILL!!

All that MELT WATER from the previous Warmer Days this Week were Flash-Freezing in spots...

Anyhoo... AFTER finishing My Side, I ventured over across the Road to MADAME-Q's... Hm. *Something* seems "different"... Why..? -- Is it Me, or is there a whole lot MORE Space going on Here...?

The PLOW-POOP PYRAMID... It's GONE!!!

[INSERT - Dramatic Suspenseful Musical Overture and Frozen Raised Brow of Disbelief]

So, a little FYI "Background"... THAT Side of the Street has a Sidewalk and about 4-Feet or so of Grassed Slope to the Curb-Edge. This Area has been covered in about 3-Feet of Snow. MADAME-Q's Next Door Neighbour has Their Driveway along side Hers - a Row of Tall Cedar Trees separates them
until about a meter to the Sidewalk. On the Curb "Side" was the "Now ABSENT" 4 by 5 Feet, Meter-high PYRAMID of SNOW!

Both Households can now EXIT Their Driveways *much* more Safely!!

The MYSTERIOUS DISAPPEARANCE is still however, *another* Matter... -- WHO DONE IT?!

I later, asked MOTHER - Her Kitchen Window looks over across to the Crime Scene... Apparently, the Benevolent Culprit was the Neighbour 2-Doors down from Us and His SNOW-BLOWER!

Okay..Not to be UNGRATEFUL here... but, WHERE was He LAST WEEK when I had The GREAT WALL OF PLOW-POOP *blocking* MY Driveway, that I had to MINE a Kyber Pass through for the MAILMAN??!!

...I'm just saying...

Meanwhile, Temps are "rumoured" to be going back UP Tomorrow - so, that Flurries can come DOWN... Looks like I'll be working on that NEXT *new* Obelisk to WINTERLUDE...


BTW, DON'T FORGET - BLOG-HOP WEDNESDAY at FOLLOW ME, I'M CANADIAN!

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