Starting Monday Fresh

 I knew I was going to have to contend with my sewing machine at some point so I puttered around doing other odds and ends first trying to put it off.  Cleaned out some nooks and corners and junk boxes and sewing basket and sewing drawer, etc.  Found a few things I forgot I had and it always feels good to put away the various safety pins, stick pins, nails, rubber bands, paper clips, buttons, pencils, and all those little things that end up where they don't belong.

I wrote my weekly 'Story Worth' story to get that out of the way. Picked the topic: Have you ever won anything?  I may cut and paste it on this blog just so it's more interesting than my usual posts.  Anyhow, I finally sat down with my machine. Got my screwdrivers, canned air, and vacuum cleaner out. I knew I had a package of sewing machine attachments that you can hook to your big vacuum to get into the tiny areas but even though I searched and searched and searched I never did find those handy little pieces. I did find the hose so I used that and got the lint out as best I could.

I took the time to take off various plates so I could get inside better but I still didn't get into the  guts of the thing where I knew there was probably a ton of lint. I'd done this before so I knew where I hadn't gone yet but I kind of chickened out as I'm never positive I can get it all back together again. I used a q-tip where I couldn't get and kept bringing up more lint so I know there's more hiding.

One good thing -- no two -- I figured out how to use these small needle threader thingies I've had onhand. I knew how to use them with hand sewing needles but I never could figure out how to use them on sewing machines -- until today.  And the only reason I did was because I could not get my needle threaded and I was getting more and more discouraged. (the automatic needle threader quit working last year). Now that I've got that accomplished, I feel more relaxed about changing thread color when I'm sewing.  I also discovered a setting I could push that moved my needle to a different position and then the machine would start sewing and stop to do a back stitch too.  So many projects require you backstitch when you start and end a line so it will hold better. I always did it with the back button but it was tiresome and I saw on youtube videos how some machines were automatically offering that function.

I cleaned out my sewing drawer and even soaked all my sewing machine needles in alcohol.  Not sure if it did any good or not but I was hoping it would help take any glue residue off that was still on them.  I finally finished up and then it was time for lunch. I air fried a hot dog and will now do that everytime I want one as it was just like having one cooked over a fire.  Tasty.  Cooked the last of the few frozen french fries I had in the freezer too.

Got a neat email from Mary telling me her latest neighborhood stories. Lots of kids for Jake and the neighbors are super friendly. A few even brought dishes over and they're all dog people so Poppy has more freedom. She's so happy.  Mary wrote:

This AM, I finally talked Jake into riding his bike while I walked Poppy on my two mile route by his school. He liked it.  Poppy LOVES it because I let her run off leash in this HUGE field (as long as no people or dogs are near). Pure happiness. And I get to walk without stopping every 10 seconds. 

She sent me this photo of Poppy sunning hmself in the driveway. I'd say she's adapting well.

Here's my weekly story:

Have you ever won anything?

     I’ve won a few things in my life and naturally, I was always surprised and delighted. I've always been a gambler at heart. I loved playing bingo for decades and can even remember playing as a child when the carnival came to town or the county fair had a game going.  When the Washington state lotto first started in 1982, I bought a ticket without hesitation. And that was 39 years ago. I’m still buying the damn things!

When I was maybe 12 or 13, I entered a Kool-Aid jingle writing contest and won a small transistor radio.  I was into rock and roll by then so this particular item was treasured.  The Uptown Theater in my hometown used to give bicycles away at Saturday matinees. The place was packed with anxious kids hoping their ticket would win. I could hardly believe it when my number came up and I won an English bike. When dad came to pick us up, we were standing outside. When I saw his car coming, I ran back in to get my bike. He saw me run inside and thought I was playing games and came storming in to give me hell. He grinned when he saw the bike and realized he needed to go back and get the pickup as it wouldn’t fit in our car.  It was a boy’s bike and I naturally would have preferred one easier to get on but still, it was free and I loved it.  Loved it, that is, until one day when I threw my leg over the bar to take off and managed to dislocate my knee. I fell in the street screaming bloody murder. Thankfully, it was a half block from my house and my dad saw me laying in the street.  He yelled at my brother to “tell Joyce to get up off that road!”  When I didn’t, he came running and had to carry me to the car for a trip to the hospital. Oh, how that dislocation hurt.  I was crying and carrying on something awful.  Never was a brave soul when it came to pain. I ended up with a cast being put on and had to use crutches for a while. 

Our hometown paper, the Port Townsend Leader, ran a weekly contest for a period of time where they hid clues throughout the paper that you had to discover and send in your entry of who you thought the hometown personality was.  Readers won $7.50 for getting the clues but didn’t always win the bigger pot unless they found ALL the clues.  I won the $7.50 once or twice and got my name in the paper.  My friend, Linda Pedersen, and I once subscribed to a magazine called ‘Contests’ and it was full of various sweepstakes you could enter.  Neither of us ever won but postage was cheaper in those days and we never gave up hope as we faithfully sent off several envelopes each week.

The biggest Keno win I ever hit was $1500.  I remember that night in Reno because I had just enough money left to either go gambling or go see Merle Haggard in person. I adored Merle (still do) but I really needed money so off I went to the keno bar.  I was by myself and after winning (they paid in cash) I had to walk back to our hotel room alone. It was close to midnight and I was sure everybody I passed knew I had money to steal.

The local hardware store had a contest once and I won a clock radio. Had it for several years too. One year I had Regis Philbin and Kathie Lee Gifford call me to ask a trivia question and I won 50 musical CDs.  I didn’t have a CD player at the time and asked if I could get cassette tapes instead.  Most were children’s music so I wasn’t all that excited and gave the majority of them away.  I was hoping for a recliner.

Our local credit union had a customer drawing event one year where they gave away multiple prizes but you had to be there. I won a real nice set of luggage.  Once I won a huge gift basket at the county fair with some terrific gift certificates and prizes inside. I gave most of them away. Another time I won a nice quilt at the county fair. That convinced me to always enter all drawings at whatever event I was attending.

I don’t go to bingo much anymore or to Nevada to gamble but I still like to hit a casino at least every few weeks.  Haven’t won anything much yet and I probably never will but I’m not giving up. Same with those lottery tickets I buy faithfully week after week. Sooner or later, surely I’m going to hit the jackpot.