I'm still up to my ears with all the paperwork and now I have a big packet (looks like a book!), of tax information I have to fill out for the accountant. So I will try to get caught up in my other paperwork over the weekend and tackle the taxes next week. Thank goodness Jim has all that information in one huge, accordion style folder.

Last week I had to go down to the dark, low, cold basement (maybe my future pottery studio), to find nail cutters for my do Bodhi's nails that were out of hand, and while there I unpacked one box of bisqued pots. That was it! Hopefully it will be more comfortable down there in the spring. The ceiling is very low, but high enough for me to stand up, so it may be doable. There's water coming in through a spigot but no way to drain it out unless I want to invest in an expensive system that basically draws the water upward!

Since any pottery efforts at my age and with health challenges that seem to be coming at a fast pace, one after another the past year, or two, I suspect if I can get back to it, I'll only be making pots for the family, and I'm fine with that.

When I get this paperwork and taxes out of the way I'll be looking to sell my big cone 10 Skutt which has been fired less than a dozen times, mostly bisquing pots for my soda kiln; and my large electric slab roller or at least finding someone who wants to trade for a less wide one. Even though I've had it for years, it was only used about an hour for slabs, since I quickly found out that I didn't enjoy doing slab work, but it made a great work table for other things.

My largest and best ware cart is too tall for the basement studio so that will have to go as well.

The garage is still stacked with some antique furniture and boxes, so a garage sale is planned for spring or early summer unless I can find a local antique dealer who will be happy to buy those pieces.

Well, time for my liquid protein breakfast. My latest health challenge, diverticulitis is acting up a bit after eating normally yesterday. Guess I should have skipped the sake with the Chinese take out!

Free printable shrinkage rulers link

Here's a link for downloading and printing your own shrinkage rulers. They have several for various clay shrinkage rates.

free printable shrinkage rulers

I've been so busy dealing with paperwork after my husbands passing and I'm still not done. Either I'm up to my ears with paper work or on the phone with Social Security, AFTRA union pension office, etc. etc. I figure that by spring I should be done with this and be on some kind of a regular routine in my new life.

The kitchen remodel is done and most things are put away; but I still have boxes from the old house that I have to deal with and that's not counting all the studio stuff. Our weather has been too wet and cold for me to get into the unheated basement to do more unpacking of my pottery stuff; but there's plenty in the house to keep me busy.

It took me all day yesterday to figure out what Jim was doing with the checkbook; but late last night I finally finished it after going back a couple of years to achieve a balanced checkbook.

We had some big winds coming through last night and at 7am as I took the garbage cans out for pick up, I saw that my lovely grape arbor way lying in the driveway. Hopefully the gardeners who are coming tomorrow will be able to set it back up. I can't see if it's down because it's rotted at the base or just the winds combined with the heavy top of the grape vine and the trumpet vine which occupies the same space, was just too much for that wind.

I cleared the driveway of all the fallen evergreen branches and made three piles which hopefully, the gardeners will take away. It's always something!

At some point today I need to get on line with apple again - this time with a higher level of tech support since I can't access some things because every one of my electronics things (iPad, iPhone, Ipod touch), won't let me change my email address without typing in the old address and password, but since that old account has been closed for almost seven months, the old email and password are not accepted. The only place I've been able to change it is on iTunes. AARGH

This is what I've been doing the past couple of months - putting out little fires like this. I'd like to buy a new iPhone but don't want to risk spending that money and finding I have the same problem!

Between it all I did find time to make one batch of soap this month, and I did get all my seeds ordered for spring, took and passed my Oregon drivers written test on the first try, got my few Xmas decorations put away, and found out that I'm strong enough to set the rat traps in the barn and deal with the success of my efforts.

So that's what I've been up to in the 2 months since Jim passed away. Family and friends have upped their calls and visits to ease my loneliness. Life goes on. I don't know where I'm going, but I'll be taking it one day and one step at a time.