As promised . . .

A picture of the new porch light. Honestly, it's about as exciting as it gets here in the woodsey mountains of NC.

But first the story:

After taking down the new brown light, the back of which was too long to fit properly on my siding, I put up the new black light. . . . Only to find out that it would not fit snugly against the siding.

Due to the inclement weather that batters this side of the house come winter, a flush fit is absolutely necessary.

So I layed out an old car mat and traced the shape of the back piece.

Cut it out leaving a nice 1/2-inch "seam allowance" . . .

Trimmed the inside, but left extra on the bottom where the section of the lamp back hung below the extended siding.

Hooked up the new light and wallah . . . it looks like part of the lamp. It will also prevent water from getting in.

All of this excitement was too much for Dolly who spent the day working on her tan.

We're getting some lovely weather here lately. Cool in the mornings and warm in the afternoons with plenty of colorful leaves to brighten our day.

Until then, keep stitchin' . . .

Out with the old . . .

Up with the new!

This is my original front porch light. As you can see it's small and shall we say worn out.

I am not an electrician, nor do I play one on TV, but some jobs I can do myself.

The first rule to remember, and trust me on this one, is turn off the main breaker in the fuse box. Always. Some folks just tape the light switch down in the off position, but why take chances.

Once upon a time, I worked for a power company and while there, typed safety manuals. These were the books they used in teaching classes. This was a BIG company. They took electricity seriously. And so do I.

After unscrewing the white wire nuts and untwisting the 3 wires (copper, white, black), I removed the horizontal bars that held the original light.

Keeping the original screws that held the back (slanted) bar, I replaced the old with the new 2 bar section. On the outermost bar is a small green screw and the letters GND (ground). The copper (ground wire) must go around this tiny screw and be firmly tightened in.

Next connect the new black to original black wire, the original white with the new white wire, and original copper to the new copper wire. Do this by twisting the bare ends of wire around the original bare ends of wire, maybe 1/2 inch of wire shows at the ends.

Firmly fasten the wire nuts at the end of the copper (ground) wires, the end of the white wires, and the end of the black wires so no bare wire shows.

Align the new light fixture with the protruding bolts and screw in.

Unfortunately, this fixture did not work well with my siding, so I had to go back to Lowe's and get a different style.

A couple things that help when working alone:

1) Wear a nail apron or an apron with pockets to hold all of the pieces that are coming off and going back up.

2) Spread an old white sheet under the bench your standing on to catch any small screws that may fall through the porch boards.

3) Carry a large heavy duty magnet to locate said screws when you forget to put a sheet down.

Later on I'll show you the new light fixture and the process it took to get it right!

Until then, keep stitchin' . . .

These exquisite hand-woven beaded bracelets . . .

were made by Jim Gentry. Aren't they wonderful!

(Sorry, but I don't have an e-mail connection for him.)

Katrina Miller hand sculpts copper yard ornaments with fine detailing. Always whimsical and fun!

The signature blue and white pottery is made at Birdfoot Ridge Studio by Lee and Doug.

They are located in Weaverville, NC. However, through the magic of the internet, you can reach them at: birdfootridge@frontier.com

Here's Dolly holding her blue toy from her Aunt Carol over at Brown Quilts. Carol's mom is in the hospital right now with anemia and pneumonia. Perhaps you might want to stop by Brown Quilts and leave her a get well message.

Until then, keep stitchin' . . .

I truly must protest!

You see . . . my lovely, small town library has cancelled the option to get audio books on-line!

To borrow the phrase from one of Jane Austen's most memorable characters, Lady Catherine, "I am most displeased!"

After all, what better way to share a greater variety than exists on it's shelves. Not to mention save gas, save the environment, save the earth!

Also I realize several local libraries have had their hours cut, which affects their employee's income, and this too is a sad state of affairs.

To quote John Adams, "You will never be alone with a poet in your pocket." Our second president often carried a book with him on his long journey to and from Philadelphia.

And where did I learn of this quote, well from an audio book written by David McCullough!

I tell ya, I'd consider camping out in the park tonight in support of the Wall Street protestors, but it closes at 10 and I don't have a good book to keep me company.

Until then, keep stitchin' . . .

Today I was invited to a low country boil. . .

. . . and since I've never tasted a boiled country, low or otherwise, I really wanted to go.

Perhaps they serve it with grits (which I don't like), or gravy (which I do).

However, since I've worked 13 days in a row, with several of them lasting 12-hours,. . . I decided that window sanding and sealing were in order.

I managed to work on 6. Some got first coat, some got second. There are 15 windows in all, but the problem is, this clear coat from Sherwin-Williams takes hours and hours to dry.

So Dolly spent the day giving me her sad face, as I had promised her a walk in the park. To compensate, she got plenty of chicken pieces and liver over her chow tonight. And of course a vow that we'll hit the park first thing tomorrow. . .

. . . and I must keep this promise since I'm out of chicken liver!

Until then, keep stitchin' . . .