the tree,,,,

My friend and neighbor moved last weekend. It is so sad that she is gone. She is not even a mile away, but we have lived across the hall from each other for 8 years. I miss her so much. She has a new position at work that takes allot of her time, so for the last 6 months or so, we have not seen each other as much - but we were always there for each other. Evening card games, word games or a good competitive game of backgammon was always a good time. We planted flowers and herbs together every spring. She had house plants that she took out each spring and they stayed out until fall. When the came back into the house it was a cozy "earthy" wonderful place to be. Her prized possession - a gorgeous ficus tree was not able to go with her. Yesterday she gave it to me. It had to have grown a foot out and up this summer and we moved it into my place. I have photos of this beautiful tree. Even if she is not across the hall anymore - I still have her spirit here with me. This is an old apartment building from the 1920's and the ceilings are pretty high. It is about 10"-12" from the ceiling. I also have a photo of my little Nellie. She is a puppy mill rescue and is 6 years old. In March it will be 2 years since I adopted her. She has really come a long way - too cute for words.

Lastly - I am taking a Barbara Schoenoff class later this month. I will be making her Finn pattern. It is an elf-like person with beaded joints - a new technique for me to learn. I am working oh his cape. It is a patchwork of all the fabrics I am using for his other clothes. I think it is going to be really neat when it is done. I couldn't find the perfect fabric for the cape - so I mixed them all together - looks warm and cozy too. I will have him posted around month end - he is ALLOT of work so far - and we have not even gone to class yet!