Tag Archives: mia

Much Better Saturday Morning

Tom slept until 8:30, unlike last Saturday. We actually got up before he did. mia_mcdavid is out having morning tea with a friend now. Afterwards she will go to a work party for the staff of colgaffneyis. I am watching Tom until our aide for today comes, assuming there is one. Tom has watched some of his videos, and is now playing a video game. So on the surface the situation is very similar, but the extra sleep makes all the difference.

I had the day off, thanks to the 9 hours I worked on Sunday. It was quiet and relaxing, except for about 10 scary minutes when James was choking on a pill. This was only possible Tom was in school, and we had an aide to cope with him after school.

Did some housework and shopping with mia_mcdavid, then we went to the lunch buffet at the local Indian restaurant. The last is becoming a tradition on days when we are both free and we have coverage for Tom (Actually, the last phrase is redundant). After getting home we both napped. Later we went to the St. Paul Farmers Market to pick up our turkey (ordered long before) and a few other things.

While doing a yard chore for mia_mcdavid I remembered to bring my shaving horse indoors. I know of woodworkers who use their shaving horses outdoors all year long. None of them live in Minnesota.

In the late afternoon I did a little work in the shop. I am making a targe (17th century Scottish Highlander’s shield) as a gift for James.He will be able to use it when we are at events of colgaffneyis. I was able to saw and file the plywood blank to a reasonable approximation of a circle, then glued a leather cover to what will be the inside. Later I will glue some heavier leather to the outside, then add the nails there, and finally the grips.

Sleeping in shifts

Tom got up at 5:30 AM today. He does this from time to time (especially on weekends!) mia_mcdavid tried to get him back to sleep, but it did not work. Since he cannot be left alone, one of us has to be up with him. Hence Mia stayed up. I got up around 7:30, and so Mia went back to bed, and I am monitoring Tom. It is my turn.

He is currently watching his favorite scenes from Toy Story for the umpteenth time, alternating that with knocking on our (locked) bedroom door. He much prefers Mommy to Daddy. Too bad. He is stuck with me.

We have a computer upstairs, so I am able to write this entry while on duty. It is a P-166–utterly obsolete, but adequate for e-mail and most LJ tasks.

Respite winding down

The weekend is coming to an end. About an hour from now I will drive to Camp Eden Wood and pick up Thomas. I have not done nearly as much as I wanted to do, but I have done a few things I could not possibly do while taking care of him. Not the least of these is getting plenty of sleep.

And a couple hours after Tom gets home mia_mcdavid will return as well. I suppose she is somewhere around Madison now. I am really looking forward to that.

Weekend apart

mia_mcdavid is going to the Chicago suburbs for Windycon. Back when we lived in Chicagoland we went to every Windycon from 1978 (Mia’s first con!) through 1997, but we have not been back since we moved to Minnesota. And this time it is just Mia. The logistics for both of us going are far more complicated and less secure than for just one. Also, there are thing I want to do here, such as resting.

The weather is really nice today, which is another reason to stay behind. I got in a bike ride this afternoon, but the real payoff is for Tom. This is a respite weekend for us–he will be away. We had two options for this, and he going to the one that has more outdoors activities, and that he likes better. However, this was only possible because I will be able to take him there and pick him up on Sunday.

Mia and planes

Replaced the iron (blade) on my #7 (22″ long) plane with a new one from Hock Tools, one of the best aftermarket sources for plane irons. The blade was a gift from mia_mcdavid, from some time back, but with the pressures of our summer schedule I had not found the time to hone and install it. Also added a Hock chip breaker.

My best plane, a Bedrock Jack, is also a gift from mia_mcdavid. Tonight I replaced its iron and chipbreaker by the Hock equivalents, so it should be even better now :-)>