Ollie's in Warsaw

 We stopped by our new Ollie's store in Warsaw yesterday. It seems brighter and roomier than the one in Fort Wayne. I really like that they have 99-cent greeting cards with a pretty good assortment. I do not remember ever seeing cards in the Fort Wayne store. 

I bought an adult coloring book for $2.99. I picked out this one because the cover illustration showed flowers with gradations of hue. I want to try my new colored pencils in that way. Besides flowers, it has butterflies and birds. When I had a limited number of pencils, making choices was pretty easy. I suspect having 180 pencils will slow things down but be more interesting.

We also bought a jigsaw puzzle for $4.99. Not a large assortment available. Ollie's is an overstock merchandise store so the goods for sale change fairly frequently. The puzzle is titled Paris Impressions. I would have preferred fewer pieces, but the puzzles with less pieces were mostly geared toward juveniles. We do not want to add lots of puzzles to the shelves we thinned out last summer. At this price, we can enjoy a new puzzle every few months and donate it to the retirement community. 

It is predicted to get to 75 degrees this afternoon. A front with rain and wind will come through early tomorrow. Then on Sunday a high of 39 degrees. Definitely March weather in northern Indiana. I now have 9 daffodil sprouts; my neighbor's daffodils are about 6 inches high. Mine obviously are not going to be early bloomers. The bulbs were planted last fall; I have no idea what to expect in terms of timing. At least there are signs that spring is on its way.

Nostalgia and Melancholy

 Last night I decided to sort through my greeting card memory box. I wanted to make room for future cards, though I don't keep as many as I used to. 

I have some cards one of my aunts sent me when I was probably 6 or 7 years old and then decades of birthday, anniversary, and Valentine cards mostly from my husband.

It started out pleasantly enough, but about midway through I felt weepy. Where did all of the years go? Things and people did not always turn out the way I expected in some cases. Seeing all of those anniversary and Valentine cards from my husband reminded me how faithfully he has loved me through the years. I should have showed him more appreciation at the times when I received them.

There were some cards with notes from my twin sister that reminded me of our first separation when she went to Seattle for college. Also, some notes of encouragement when I first moved to Indiana and was homesick. Some cards from my mom and dad who are now gone. 

I found a card I decided to put in a frame to display during this spring. I have it sitting on the table in my sunroom. 

It was a nostalgic journey through my past.