I’m having a little gas problem….

It’s almost at the $3/gallon point now–give or take a little from place to place. Our local stations were circling around $2.57 over the weekend, and are right around $2.75/2.83 today. And they’re saying it could go as high as $4 a gallon. Four dollars!

What are we to do with astronomical gas prices like that?

Well, we can try to save gas. Some tips are more reliable than others. It’s just surprising at how effective “gentle” driving can be–not having a lead foot for fast starts and sudden stops.

In fact, we should really get that message out. Somebody should make a bumper sticker/magnet that says “Slow Down! Save Gas $” or something like that . . . It would encourage people to slow down (which, having seen all sorts of crazy driving is something that would only be a good thing), by being a little reminder to our fellow drivers as we travel down the road. And maybe it would make them think twice before they snottily breeze past those of us trying to drive responsibly . . . you know the kinds of drivers I mean. The ones who pass you for going 30 mph in a 25 mph zone, or who wale past you at the first opportunity, giving dirty looks over their shoulders. Don’t they realize they’re being obnoxious as well as wasting that precious, encreasingly-expensive fuel in their gas-guzzlers? (Because, these people are usually driving either a large SUV or a sports car.) We’re really doing them a favor by encouraging them to slow down, and would being responsible really be so terrible?

What can we do in the meantime? Well, Montana’s govenor wants to convert coal to drivable fuel. That’s not as crazy an idea as it would have sounded a couple months ago.

At least Rachel had some good news–their house survived, even if their neighborhood didn’t. My mom’s friend is safe, though we’re not sure exactly where she is, but according to an e-mail her daughter sent, she and her husband are in one piece, with their RV. I feel so terrible for the able people who weren’t smart enough to evacuate in time. (Some people, of course, weren’t able to, and that’s terrible for a whole ‘nother set of reasons.) I understand that with all the boy-cried-wolf, disaster-weather forecasts that turn out to be just, well, storms. Hurricane Fatigue. But . . now they have to go and rescue the people who chose (note I said “chose” not “had no choice”) to stay because they didn’t believe the forecasts. Sad all around.

• Tags: General • Permalink:Indigestion // 4 Comments »

  Here’s a look at my Union Square Market Pullover. (I know, it’s exciting, isn’t it?) I’ve just started the neck flap, and it’s about 12″ long. You can see how the bottom hem is curling up, which worries me a little–I’m really hoping that will be fixed with blocking–but also worrying that it won’t.

The yarn–Rowan 4-ply Cashsoft–is lovely. Incredibly soft as it slides through my fingers, and I love the feel of the knitted fabric. Soft and cushy, though I am just a little worried about the wear-and-tear factor . . . but obviously, that’s not going to be a problem for a while. (I clearly need to actually finish making it before I can possibly wear it down or in or at all.)

And, oh yes, I’m still managing to avoid the necessary recalculations for the top. It’s amazing how good my procrastination skills can be!

Now, my adorable Christmas Tree hat, which you have probably noticed that I rather love. I’m starting another one, and writing down the pattern as I go, this time (more or less). This one–whose colors didn’t photograph terribly well, but I was in a rush–is knitted in the color “Forest,” also in Lorna’s Laces Shepherd Sock. I’d love to try this is a green Koigu KPPPM, but haven’t been able to find the right color online–I think that’s one I’d need to see in person, to pick out.

Annie made an interesting suggestion–knit it in white with little skiiers. And you know, thinking about it, the shape does rather work as well for a mountain as it does for a tree. I’m not a skiier myself (and wouldn’t know how to bead one, heaven knows!), but I DO think little green trees would be pretty cool. Hmm…. And then it would be more “seasonal” than strictly “holiday” and more wearable . . . Gee. Does Lorna’s Laces come in white? It does! And let’s see . . . little heart-shaped beads, upside down, would probably work as “trees.” Yep. This could work!

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Nothing like a picture from space to show the real scale of a big storm. (This picture from space courtesy of this site) As to the situation down on the Gulf–here are some blogs for you. Sciguy. Bobbysan. Interdictor. Kaye. Josh Britton. Gulfsails. Big Jim. Making Light. Eye of the Storm. Live Journal users.For some more “official” coverage: New Orlean’s Times-Picayune. Eyes on Katrina. Metroblogging. The Weather Channel. Round-up sites with lots of good links: here. Here. Here.

And, oh yes, gas has jumped 20-cents since Monday and is hovering around $2.70/gallon right now, depending on the station.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I think I’m going to go make another donation to the Red Cross. Or maybe to the Humane Society. The Mercy Corps looks good, too. . . . If I can afford to buy more yarn for a hat, I can afford another $25 donation.

(Edited to add: I did just go make another donation to the Red Cross, and the good news is that it took several minutes, each page was so slow in loading . . . that means there are lots of other people doing the same thing. Disregarding all the looters in New Orleans, the only good thing about events like this is it usually brings out the humanity in people.)

• Tags: Uncategorized • Permalink:Random Updates // 3 Comments »

So, as I drove to work this morning, though a gentle misty little rain–the kind of weather that’s a little depressing, a little discouraging, I counted my blessings. Not wanting to sound like a revival meeting or anything, let’s recap, shall we?

1. My house is in one piece.
2. The only water in my house is in the plumbing.
3. I actually still have a house.
4. My family is safe.
5. Our personal treasures have not been destroyed by rain, shredded by wind, or pillaged by looters.
6. My dog is safe and dry and fed–and I know where he is.
7. I slept in an actual bed last night.
8. My state has not been declared a Federal Disaster Area.
9. I didn’t need a boat to leave my house this morning.
10. By the time Katrina is in my neighborhood, she will likely be nothing worse than a thunderstorm.

I could keep going, of course, but you get the idea. I cannot believe the devastation down in Mississippi, Louisiana, and Alabama. The images on the news are so frightening, and the worst part is knowing how much worse it must be in person. Cameras cannot adequately capture such devastation. And behind every flooded house, every road-turned-into-a-river is personal catastrophe. Not just everything you own, but also your neighbors, and your neighbor’s neighbers; the people on the next block; the people on the other other side of town. The next town over. The one beyond that. Between the rain, the wind, and the storm surge (and let’s not forget that much of this happened at high tide) . . . I cannot imagine. But I do know that the price of this storm is going to be unbelievable–and I don’t just mean the national pocketbook.

Although, for the record, my infamous neighborhood Getty station is charging 13-cents more per gallon today than it was yesterday.

Now, you’ll remember that yesterday I posted a link to the Red Cross, in case you wanted to help. There’s no question that there are all sorts of things necessary down there today. (And tomorrow. And next week. And next month.) I know that I feel like I want to do something–and I don’t have any loved ones down there . . . but that doesn’t matter. It’s a humanity thing.

I saw a couple segments on the news last night, though, about pets. Most shelters do not allow pets, and so people had to either (1) evacuate early so they could bring their pets with them, (2) leave the pets home alone and hope the house doesn’t flood or fall down, or that they don’t starve before their people get back, or (3) stick it out at home with the pets and hope the house doesn’t flood or fall down… None are exactly good choices (but then, it’s a bad situation all around)–but inevitably, there end up being hundreds, thousands of cats and dogs as well as pigs, cows, sheep . . . you name it, basically, left stranded and unable to fend for themselves–if they haven’t drowned from being left chained in the back yard (shudder). Take a moment to read this list from Noah’s Wish on ways to prepare if this situation ever comes up for you–our animals rely on us to keep them safe. And if you’re anything like me, you would rather risk your own life than desert your dog. (I think you’ve all noticed that I’m, um, rather fond of Chappy.)

Now–all that said, I could segue into chatter about knitting or spinning or the cute thing Chappy did yesterday, but . . . it’s just not appropriate. Not today. Again, my thoughts and prayers are for the thousands, millions of people down on the Gulf who are struggling and grieving today. I’ll chatter tomorrow.

• Tags: General, Weather • Permalink:Oh Dear God // 6 Comments »

I hope Katrina does!

I’m just sending out a prayer and good wishes to the people, animals, and places in and around New Orleans today–being hit by the {now} Category 4 hurricane, Katrina–and which is particularly vulnerable. They’ve officially evacuated the entire city, and thousands of people who couldn’t get out of town are hunkering down at the Superdome, which is supposed to be above the (possible) floodwaters and wind-proof up to 200 m.p.h. It’s a blessing that the force of the storm dropped down from category 5 overnight, but one newscaster said yesterday that that’s the same as the difference between being hit by an 18-wheeler or by a freight train. It’s still going to be bad. I just hope it’s not catastrophic.

One of Mom’s friends lives in New Orleans and sent her an e-mail just before they evacuated yesterday:

“…We are really scared this time. . . . There’s no telling. I know one thing, we will not have a home if it comes ashore at category 4. I’ve tried to carefully pick only the stuff that would hurt me most to lose, the other stuff, well, it’s just going to be a memory. I am positive we will lose at least the roof; the trees will be down; and maybe the walls will go too. When it’s like that, you don’t have anything left and the looters (in spite of the cops’ efforts) will get the rest. I’ve taken: my manuscript; some of my light stuff; pictures of my family; our important papers; the cat; and food and clothing. It took me all day (mostly deciding) on what minimally I could take. I’ll try to get back with everyone when it’s all over one way or the other. Thank you for your prayers. I think this time we are truly in for it.”

(To make matters worse, she’s afraid her husband won’t have a job when they come back–because he called in sick to have time to evacuate. And he’s only got 2 years until retirement. Now that’s an employer to love, huh?)

So, as I said, my thoughts, prayers, good wishes, and hopes are with the people in and near the Big Easy . . . because this isn’t going to be easy, at all.

How you can help:

The Red Cross.

• Tags: Friends, Weather • Permalink:Do You Know What It Means To Miss New Orleans? // 5 Comments »

I promised some knitting content for today; never let it be said that I don’t deliver on my promises.

Cindy stopped by for another knitting lesson–she finished off the top of her very first sock, and cast-on for the second one, and is very proud of herself (as she should be!). She’s heading to Sweden for vacation on Friday and will be bringing Sock2 on the plane with her. I sadly didn’t think to get out the camera to record the event, but I was too distracted watching her and Chappy play together. She’s one of his favorite people and for him, her visits are all about “Pet me! Scratch me! Play with me!”

I did another pattern repeat on my little, handspun scarf. I’m thinking I should have made it wider after all, but I’m worried that I’ll run out of yarn if it’s too wide. I have only a limited amount of the roving, and it’s not all spun yet, and so I don’t have a final tally for yardage . . . but I think that a little wider would be nicer . . . and I am knitting with singles instead of plied yarn, so the yardage is theoretically double what I could otherwise have expected. What do you think? Is 3″ wide going to be wide enough? (The question whether I’ll actually ever wear it, since I’ve never tried the narrow, multi-wrapped scarf thing–is a whole ‘nother issue.)

I also did a few more rows on my Union Square Market Pullover, which is just about to the 11″ length needed before starting the next phase. Which means I can no longer put off the calculations needed to get the short-row shaping for the top finished properly. I’ve avoided it as long as I could, but it seems that now is the time! I should probably take advantage of the fact that it’s a weekend and do it right now, but Sunday afternoons tend to make me lazy, and so I’m stalling. But really, is that so terrible? Well, probably yes (though “terrible” is a strong word). I am, after all, hosting the KAL and while I’m clearly not going to be the first person done, I think it behooves me not to loiter on the journey.

And the last knitting point for today–I’m going to make another Christmas Tree hat and take notes this time on the number of stitches, the shaping, all that, with the intention of writing it out as a pattern. (Maybe I’ll offer it to Knitty?) I love this pattern, but, well, I’m the one who designed it, so of course I do!

Oh, and to answer the question (and which I meant to include in yesterday’s post, but it was late, I was tired, and I forgot)–yes, I did knit at the reception yesterday, though only for a few minutes. The whole reception was very nicely paced, with the different courses for dinner, the presentations, the mandatory bride-groom things like cake-cutting and first-dance, there really wasn’t much time to get bored (phew!). But that last half-hour or so, the music was getting too loud for me, so I went outside to sit in the courtyard to enjoy some peace and quiet, and I figured that, well, yes, I would do a little knitting, just because I could, and it was quite nice, too, thank you very much.

I also thank you all for the compliments–my Peacock very much enjoyed its day out (though, not so much with the shoe heel), but she was a little disappointed that no one gushed or complimented her in any way. The closest was when my nephew–who also came outside at the end of the reception and saw me knitting–looked at my shawl and said, “Well, did you make that?”–very much expecting, it was clear from his tone of voice and the playful look on his face, that I would say no. But when I said yes, he looked shocked! And, I’ll take that as a compliment, because he was so clearly impressed. (And, I mostly wore it tied in front because that took up some of the slack so it didn’t drag so close to the ground. I do wish I were taller!)

One last note–I’m praying for all the folks in Hurricane Katrina’s way (including, but not limited to Mom’s friend Seamond). Yet another hurricane rushing to wallop the gulf coast–they’re evacuating New Orleans, and when’s the last time you heard about them doing that? I just hope that, somehow, the storm won’t be as bad as they fear it will . . . I hope.

• Tags: Friends, General, Knitting/Spinning • Permalink:Sunday Knitting // 6 Comments »

  Don’t we all look like a happy bunch of people? That’s me on the left (you know, in case you didn’t recognize the outfit), my 16-year old niece, my sister, my Dad, my brother-in-law, his parents, and on the bench, my 12-year old nephew, and my Mom.

The wedding today was lovely. First, the weather was practically perfect–just a hair warmer and more humid than the last few days have been, but really lovely and–most importantly–ahead of the rain moving in tonight. The wedding ceremony was beautiful–caring, kind, thoughtful words from the minister who married them, and a couple very nice songs and readings from friends and loved ones.

The reception . . . well, wow. A tremendous amount of really good food for the cocktail hour while waiting for the bride and groom to get through with the endless photographs (more on that later). Really good sit-down meal. Individual Baked Alaskas for dessert, in addition to the wedding cake (also good).

My brother-in-law (as Best Man) gave a very nice, dignified, thoughtful toast and then was more or less upstaged by the bride’s sister giving a very sweet and emotional one. It took her a couple of minutes to compose herself before she could begin, and spent a few minutes afterward being hugged by her sister, both of them rather teary (but in a good way). It was really touching–she talked about growing up with Betty as her big sister and how, when she met Tim, she immediately felt he fit into the family, and knew he was the right one for her sister . . . all very sweet.

Then there was the poem read by one of Betty’s friends–actually one of the five of them who have been close friends since they were little girls, which is something you don’t hear about very often, that an entire group stays that close for so long. Anyway, originally, apparently Betty had tried to set Tim up with one of her friends, until, well, things went in a different direction. But her friend put it all into an amusing poem, and read it to all of us–also very sweet.

And then, they had a montage of old pictures of Tim and Betty growing up–baby pictures, birthday parties, vacations–going back and forth between the two of them as they got older . . . and then suddenly, pictures of the two of them together, and doing things with each other’s family . . . all set to music and nicely created on a friend’s computer. I’ve never seen anything like it at a wedding, but it was such a great idea. I don’t think there was a dry eye in the house at the end!

So the negatives (because nothing is ever completely perfect), though the list is small. Two items in fact.

1. The army of photographers. No one thinks good wedding photographs are more important than I do. I also allow that it is now acceptable for photographers and video-recorders to do their thing during the ceremony. (I’ll even admit that I took a non-flash photo or two myself.) However, they hired a veritable army of photographers for this wedding. I counted at least five people carrying professional equipment busily around the wedding. Which, you know, is fine and all, but during the ceremony, they were right there, on the altar, circling the action to get their shots. They did back off a little during the actual vows, but otherwise, like Mom pointed out, it was like a movie set up there. I thought that was rather intrusive. Is there really any good reason why the videographer had to be up there with the minister, the bride, and the groom? This must be one of the best, most-documented weddings ever. They looked like a very efficient group and I’m sure the photos will be great (and multitudinous), but . . . I kind of would have liked to have been able to get a shot of the bride and groom myself once in a while without having the photographer-brigade in my way. Unless, of course, Tim’s been in the CIA all these years and the photographers were actually bodyguards in disguise?? Hmm. Hadn’t thought of that.

  2. There can, I suppose, be too much perfection. I was so delighted at the match between shawl and shoes that I forgot that match-makers can sometimes do too good a job. The shoes and shawl liked each other so much, they couldn’t stay away from each other. I counted at least 7 times that my heel got caught in my shawl. Not just momentarily tangled, but actually all the way through one of the double-YO eyelets in the shawl. Because, remember, my shawl came out so large and therefore hangs so long on my 5′3″ self, and then the heel on the shoe was so narrow, it easily went through the holes . . . thank heaven the yarn didn’t tear! (That KnitPicks Baby Alpaca/Silk Shimmer yarn–it’s laceweight, but tough!) I’m going to try to block the shawl again so that it’s a little smaller (though I don’t know if that will work), but mostly, I’m just glad that everything worked okay. The shoes looked fabulous, but did make me feel a little limited for safely moving around–between the shawl-tangling and the fact that those narrow but high heels were somewhat treacherous on the floors. See, nothing is actually perfect!

  To end the day–the wedding favors were bamboo shoots for luck for everyone. There was also a donation made in Tim and Betty’s name to Save the Children through the I Do Foundation, a (and I quote) “nonprofit organization that helps couples bring a charitable focus to their weddings.” Isn’t that a nice touch?

And to top off the day, Julie sent me an origami crane which, since it arrived on Tim and Betty’s wedding day and also signifies luck, I’m choosing to consider a good sign. I might even be tempted enough to send it to them instead of keeping myself, just because . . . or, no . . . well, I’ll decide that later. But wasn’t that nice of her??

I just love a good, happy day, don’t you?

And now, since it was a tiring, good, happy day . . . I’m going to bed. I’ve been up (well, on the computer) later than I’d planned since our modem went out again, though it came back after about 10 minutes. I promise there will be some knitting content tomorrow. Really!

• Tags: Family • Permalink:Perfection // 18 Comments »

Normally, this isn’t something I worry about. As long as my nails aren’t snagging on my sweaters and they’re not painful, the aesthetics of perfectly-groomed nails are not one of my primary concerns. I never wear nail polish (well, maybe once every couple of years). I keep them a moderate length–long enough to be functional for things like itches or peeling off stickers, but short enough that they don’t get in the way.

But last night, I broke my left thumbnail, far enough to just miss drawing blood, but enough to be painful. It wasn’t a clean break, either, but jagged, all the way across the nail. By the time I’d sworn genteely under my breath (“Darn!”–because, of course, a lady doesn’t actually swear) and trimmed and filed what was left of my nail, well, there wasn’t much left of my nail, and a little too much showing of the nail bed itself.

Why am I bothering you with this mundane little story, you ask? People break nails all the time, you’re thinking, and I even just said that I don’t usually care that much. But there are two reasons this is worth mentioning. One–this made for two nights in a row I couldn’t knit. I mean, yes, I could have, but the nail was just a little too tender and in shock last night to want to do much. I figured I’d give it the night off and just read instead. And then the band-aid over the top to protect things prevented me from spinning last night. (It’s really amazing at all the things you use the pad of your thumb for that you don’t appreciate until it’s swathed in latex.) So, no fiber activities last night.

Second, though, is that, well, band-aids just don’t go with my outfit for the wedding tomorrow. I’ve got everything coordinated!

  There’s the Peacock shawl,

  The dress (resting up for its first day out of the closet).

  The oh-so-perfect shoes.

  The purse.

  And the dainty, discreet, color-coordinated knitting for the purse. . . . I’m sorry. A band-aid just doesn’t go. How elegant can I possibly look with a bandage around my thumb? Or, if I take the band-aid off (my preference, because I hate wearing them), the mutilated thumb-nail which will not only look terrible but also, then, be extra tender.

See? You plan and prepare, shop and knit like mad, and then things like this happen! All I can say is, at least I’m just a guest (grin). I hope Betty’s manicure is perfect for tomorrow . . . The weather, too (which is looking good–not as perfect as the last couple days were, but nice and not too hot).

Now all I have to do is figure out my answer to the “How do you know the bride the groom?” question.

• “Mike, Tim’s brother, is married to Patty, my sister.” (The really confusing one)
• “Tim is my sister’s brother-in-law.” (The less confusing one)
• “My sister is married to Tim’s brother.” (The one I’ll probably use)
• “I don’t. I’m from the wedding next door.” (The one I’ll use if anyone comes over to complain about my knitting at the reception)

I hope you all have a great weekend.

• Tags: Family, General • Permalink:Darn! I Broke a Nail! // 7 Comments »

Four years ago today, we brought this little fellow home. Seven weeks old, cute as a button, and look–helping with the drive, and everything.

(That’s Mom readying her camera in the background. We couldn’t help ourselves, he was so darn photogenic.)

He came from Western Pennsylvania (Kittanning, to be exact), which is about a 6 hour drive from here, West on Rt 80 for about 5 hours, past the Highest Point East of the Mississippi, and then about an hour down Rt 28.

We drove out the night before, after I agonized and fidgeted my way through 3/4 of a day at work. I couldn’t sit and concentrate on anything. I was reduced to writing a poem about “Waiting,” instead of actually working because the anticipation was all I could think about anyway–how to pass the time until it was time. I’m not a huge poetry fan, and am usually only forced toward trying to write it when my emotions are so close to the surface, they don’t have anywhere else to go.

The morning of the 25th, we met up with another soon-to-be-puppy-mom and her daughter, at the same hotel, waiting to pick up their puppy (to be named Joe, short for Cuppa-Joe). We headed over to the breeder’s confident that we’d be in and out fairly quickly, since we’d come out two weeks earlier to pick out our chosen puppy, marked with a red marker inside his ear.

My Chappy, though, had other plans. Nobody was going to be Chappy but him! When we got there, the puppy pile woke up, cute, bright-eyed, eager . . . except for one, who had been on the bottom of the pile and wanted nothing to do with any of us. Yep. The one with the red ear. Personally, I think that Chappy told this poor dog horror stories about us, so that he’d be able to move in and convince us to take him home instead. Because, let me tell you, he worked very hard to make his case. Of the seven puppies there, the girl was spoken for, Lynne and her daughter picked their puppy out in about 35 seconds, Red Ear hid in the corner, two weren’t all that interested (polite enough, but “no, you’re not the family we want”). That left Chappy and Mr. Personality. We called him that because that puppy threw every trick in the puppy book at us–he rolled on his back, he licked our faces, he chewed on our shoelaces, he climbed on our legs. He really worked it, if you know what I mean. Chappy was just as determined, but he paced himself, took his time, knowing Mr. P. was going to wear out eventually.

All this cuteness was taking a toll on me, though–I was a wreck trying to pick THE puppy, and having two trying so hard to convince me made it really hard! I was already emotionally fraught, since this was only 3 months after losing my dear Katy and there was a part of me that wasn’t ready to let her go yet. Those adorable little brown faces, wagging tails . . . how could I possibly be expected to make a decision?? I apparently looked so upset that Mom–my mother–the one I had had to practically beg in order to get Katy in 1999–Mom actually said, “What if we took both?” (This should pretty much tell you where my stress level was. I’m usually a pretty collected person, and so whenever I do fall apart, it has a pretty strong affect on my Mommy–because, you know, I’ll always be her little girl. For her to offer to bring home two puppies? I must have looked about ready to break down altogether!)

Bringing two home really wasn’t an option. By now, we’d been there over an hour and it was pretty clear that Mom had made her choice. She claims that she kept it to herself so as not to influence me, but . . . really . . . even in my distraught state, I wasn’t blind. I could see which one she kept picking up. And, ultimately, eventually Mr. Personality wore himself out and fell asleep, and Chappy confidently moved in to close the deal.

He was so exhausted after all that intense cuteness, he slept almost the entire six-hour drive home. In my lap, needless to say.

I must say, I’ve never had a second thought.

Happy Anniversary, Chappy. Thanks for being so convincing. Not to mention persistant. And patient. And, well, you. Nobody else could have been my Chappy but . . . you!

• Tags: Chappy, Family • Permalink:L’Anniversaire // 16 Comments »

I just read this post which mentioned Bubble Tea, something I had never heard of. But–and it’s funny how things coincide–just yesterday, Dawn was telling me a story about how, her brother went to the doctor’s office with his wife and new twins, and the doctor recommended adding rice cereal to the formula. Except, her brother the brand-new-father had never heard of the baby-cereal and asked, “You mean the puffed rice, or . . . ?” Which immediately made me picture a bottle of formula with little bits of puffed rice bobbing along on the top (would be really hard to drink, don’t you think?) But follow up that conversation with a beverage with tapioca pearls the very next morning . . .

And then, I just finished reading a book about the “American Gothic” painting. You know the one, the man, the woman, the pitchfork. I finished it last night, after reading it on and off over the last two weeks. Then, this morning, I’m flipping through the newspaper, and there it is, at the top of the “Today” section of the Newark Star-Ledger, an article on the painting.

Then, there are Chappy’s favorite neighbors, who we haven’t seen since April. Yesterday, we bumped into them just as we were taking Chappy out for a walk–and then invited them into the house to see our revamped bathrooms and kitchen, since they’re working on their bathrooms as well. Nice visit. In fact, they were walking downtown to the library to return a copy of David McCullough’s 1776, which Mr. M. hadn’t finished yet, so I offered to lend him my copy. Then today–just before we passed their house on our walk, Mrs. M. drove by on her way home from work, and invited US in to see the bathroom that they’d just done. Months with barely a glimpse and then, two nice, long visits, two days in a row? Another coincidence.

Further, the book I just finished reading, “Bellwether” by Connie Willis, which is all about fads and chaos theory, coincidence, and how one thing can lead to another without anyone realizing it. It’s a delicious read, really. One of those multi-layered, interweaving kinds of stories that follows a scientist who’s trying to track the origins of fads, another scientist who’s studying chaos theory, an incompetant office assistant, and, oh yes, a flock of sheep. Let’s not forget the highly amusing flock of sheep. This is a fun little book, by a very gifted author. She usually writes sci-fi kinds of books, but with unique twists, but this one isn’t actually sci-fi-ish at all. It’s just . . . fun. I most like her books where her quirky sense of humor comes through, and trust me, this is one of them.

  Okay, let me digress here into a fashion question. I was tempted by these very cute sandals, on sale at Anthropologie.com. I was swayed by the curled-up toes, the beads on the strap, their general uniqueness. Who wouldn’t think these were adorable? And, they were on S.A.L.E.

The problem, though, is that, as a rule, I don’t wear flip-flop/thong kinds of sandals at all. They give me blisters. Which makes them kind of painful to wear.

So my question is . . . why would I buy them? Well, they’re cute. But more  importantly–does anyone have any tips on HOW to wear them so that I won’t be limping around? Because I’d really like to be able to keep them, but it’s not exactly sensible to keep them if I can’t wear them . . .

You know which shoes I’d really like to have, though? These. They look absolutely great and comfortable. Pretty. Wearable. But . . . $138 is kind of a lot for a pair of shoes, don’t you think? I can’t help it, though. I covet them. I wonder what the odds are of Anthropologie having my size when/if they ever go on sale?

Now, as to knitting and spinning, there’s nothing actually new to show you tonight. Basically, just shoes and chaos theory.

• Tags: General, Reading • Permalink:Shoes and Chaos Theory // 5 Comments »

(sniffle) My best friend is gone, back to California again. I drove her to the airport myself this afternoon, successfully navigating myself into and out of Newark Liberty Airport (always fun). I didn’t think to pull out my camera for a picture as she walked away, but I can see her walking into the terminal with her big, red suitcase. Sigh. I miss her already.

Which is interesting in and of itself, really. We haven’t lived in the same state since around college, and I only see her one or two times a year, and yet whenever she’s home, we immediately click as if we’d seen each other only a few days before. And as soon as she’s left and is no longer within easy driving distance, I miss her as if she’d only just moved away. Is this silly? Maybe. I hope she has a safe trip home.

She went home with a bonus, though. She was showing me her new camera (Nikon Coolpix 4300, I think), and said that she needed to get a case for it. Ding Ding Ding! A bell went off in my head. My extra camera sock! You’ll remember, I had made one for my camera, but it was too large for my cute little Canon Elph, and so I whipped up a second one that was a much better fit. I hadn’t done anything with the first one, though, and it was still sitting in my closet, so . . . I ran upstairs to get it and gave it to Dawn. Now we have matching camera socks. (Although, she’s going to have to run the drawstring herself–even though she’s not a knitter, I am quite sure she can handle it.) Wasn’t that both thrifty and generous of me? And isn’t it great when you can combine the two? And kind of nice to think that we have matching camera socks, too.

I’ve had a nice day, though. I left work early so as to bring Dawn to the airport, but there was bonus time there for lunch, and so I picked her and her luggage up at her parents’ house and then came back here for both of us to get something to eat. (Grilled cheese-turkey-tomato sandwiches. Yum.) It took just over an hour for the round-trip drive to the airport, on a lovely day–blue sky, not too hot, Paul McCartney on the car stereo. I got home half an hour earlier than I would have from work. Extra time with Chappy!

I worked on my Union Square Market Pullover tonight for the first time in a week. (I’ve been concentrating on my Christmas Tree hat.) The body is about 9″ long, and I’ve got about 2″ more before starting the front flap shaping. Which means I’ve got two inches before I have to pull out my calculator and figure out what, exactly, I need to do about the row gauge, short row shaping problem I’m going to have when I get a little closer to the shoulders and need to make sure the front and back end up the same length, with the right number of stitches for the shoulders, and of course, the right size. Some tricky knitterly math, there!

But speaking of the USMP, the knit-along has its first completed sweater–well, all except for the buttons at the shoulder seam. Didn’t Saartje do a great job?

• Tags: Family, Friends, General • Permalink:Jetting // 2 Comments »

Well, there were some good guesses–and entertaining ones, too–but nobody guessed exactly what my secret, green, beaded project was. Not quite. Though the people who guessed hats were close.

Because it IS a hat, but a very special, limited-engagement kind of hat.

It’s a Christmas Tree hat. But you’ll have to wait to see pictures. I’m thinking about submitting the pattern to Knitty, so….

I knitted a star for the top tonight (thanks to Nicky Epstein’s “Knitting over the Edge” which apparently came just in time), and my cute little seasonal hat is done. I can’t tell you how happy I am with the way it came out! Branches with bead-ornaments.

Thanks, also to another knitting Deb for her tutorial on knitting with beads by slipping each bead onto the stitches as you need them, without having to string them onto the yarn before you ever begin. That’s sheer brilliance! (And, how lucky was I to have teeny tiny crochet hooks from my grandmother, who used to crochet lace edgings for handkerchiefs?)

I won’t show you the actual hat, but here’s a picture of the original inspiration–a polar fleece hat I saw on the TV show Roswell several years ago–not a great show, but I loved this hat. At first I thought it was knitted, but on closer examination of the few screen shots I could find–it’s polar fleece. But I liked it–it was just playful enough without being ridiculous. Anyway, I like mine better.

May I just say I love the pivoting LCD screen on my new camera? I can point it at myself and have an idea what the picture’s going to look like before I snap the shot–much less guess work!

Now, as to the wedding. I count it as 5 “no”, 3 “maybe” and 8 “yes.” And even if I miscounted one or two, I think ultimately it comes out to what I thought in the first place–it doesn’t hurt to bring it along and see how things go. I might have a wonderful time and never consider the knitting; I might be bored silly but think it too inappropriate and leave it in my purse; I might be relaxed enough to simply knit while chatting at the table. Who knows? I’m not a rude person and wouldn’t deliberately do anything to offend anyone there. And, it’s not like I’m planning on bringing a book. You can knit and be sociable, but reading is just rude (grin). And besides–the project I’ll bring is a lacy little scarf in my handspun singles that actually coordinate with my dress, shawl, purse, and shoes. Talk about subtle!

May I just add that, this is one of the first times ever that I can think of that I’m looking forward to a chance to get dressed up not because of the actual dress, but because of the accessories?? I can’t wait to wear my Peacock shawl, with its wonderfully matching shoes, and that sweet new purse . . . the blue dress underneath is almost an afterthought. (Almost because again, I don’t plan on being rude, and showing up without one . . . well . . . let’s just say it’s not the kind of impression I want to make.) Anyway, I can’t wait.

As to my gas tank door–apparently the hinge is actually broken, which means the folks at the Getty station did, in fact break my door. It didn’t just come off. It’s broken. (The idiots!) And yet, they say it’s not their fault? Hmmmm! Frank over at D&M repairs ordered me a new hinge, which should be in tomorrow–only a $16 part, but sheesh. It’s the principle of the thing!

Now, as if all this wasn’t fascinating enough, I have two sites to give you for your viewing pleasure.

Check out this site, of Julian Beever, who does the most amazing 3-D chalk pictures on sidewalks. Really incredible.

Finally, for your amusement: Virtual Bubblewrap. Who wouldn’t love the joy of popping those bubbles online? And the pages of tips, instructions, and bubble wrap etiquette are pretty funny.

• Tags: General, Knitting/Spinning • Permalink:The Answer Is . . . // 8 Comments »

I mentioned a “secret” project I was working on. Something in Lorna’s Laces Shepherd Sock yarn, in the color “Pine.” Something that had beads. Something I was designing myself and didn’t want to say too much about because I was afraid I’d jinx it, or that it wouldn’t come out the way I wanted it to. (Because, of course, I’d hate to disappoint any of you who might have gotten curious.)

Well, I’m still not actually going to tell you what it is. I’ve got one more tiny, final thing to figure out and then it will be done and I can show you a finished picture. In the meantime, though, here’s a photo to whet your appetites. One skein of sock yarn. Beads scattered across the surface. Some shaping for texture, and that’s a hint of ribbing at the bottom. Any guesses? (No prize or anything, but, I am curious if anyone can guess what it is.) I’m really quite proud of it. It’s come out pretty much exactly the way I hoped it would. Now I’m thinking about doing another one and actually writing it down this time, so that I’ll have an actual pattern for it, I like it so much.

I sent my e-mail in yesterday to sign up for SP6. I had so much fun with SP5, I decided to keep going. I’m enjoying my bi-monthly KRSecretPal exchange, too, but the frustrating thing about that is that the pal I’m spoiling never updates her blog–I think the last time was June–and so I never get any feedback, I have no idea what she’s doing these days, what she’s working on, if she’s on a lace-kick, or socks, or whatever. So while I’m enjoying coming up with packages to send her (and she did e-mail a thank you for the last one), I really don’t know how well I’m doing, spoiling her, because I don’t know what kind of things she’s enjoying knitting now. I just know what she said she liked back in March when this started. I might feel differently about having this stretched out for so long if I was getting feed-back, but, well, tastes and passions can change over 10 months and I would hate for her to be disappointed in my last packages because they’re geared toward answers she made months ago, about things she might not be so interested in, anymore.

Anyway–here’s an etiquette question for all of you. The wedding where I’ll finally be able to wear my Peacock shawl is next week, and I was thinking of putting some tiny little knitting project in my cute matching purse (because, well, to fit it would have to be a tiny knitting project, which also makes it discreet). My mother feels that the prospect of my amusing myself with some dainty little knitting toward the end of the reception when I’m usually bored would be terribly rude. I think it would be fine–I’m not planning on knitting at the church (which would be rude); I’m not planning on knitting at the beginning of the reception when, yeah, there are things going on, people to talk to, things to do and watch. But I don’t like to dance, loud music gives me a headache, and except for my sister’s family of four and her in-laws, I’m not going to know anybody there to talk to. I don’t think it would be such a breach of etiquette to have something tucked away in my bag in case things get boring toward the end. Something small and simple I could work on in my lap. Nothing big or obvious, or anything that would require my pulling out a pattern. Not something I wouldn’t be able to work on while carrying on a polite conversation. Just something to keep my hands busy at the point in the day when I’m ready to tear my hair out. I mean, my fingers are going to end up fidgeting with something, why not let them be constructive? (And, I bet my niece and nephew get to bring something for when they get bored . . . does it really matter that they’re 20+ years younger than I am?) What do you folks think?? I could use some ammunition the next time this subject comes up. (And Mom reads my blog, so don’t let me down!)

• Tags: General, Knitting/Spinning • Permalink:Knitting Secrets and Questions // 19 Comments »

So–this was fun–I stopped at a gas station to top off my gas tank yesterday. The attendant opened the fuel-filler door, filled the tank, and when he went to close the door . . . it came off the car. He tried to reattach it, but was in too much of a rush (the place was hopping), and couldn’t. Meanwhile, I was blocking other cars, so I offered to move my car to the other side of the station. Which may have been a mistake because, while kinder to my fellow drivers, it immediately gave the gas station employees a chance to ignore me. Eventually, another person came over and tried fixing it . . . nope. He handed me the door and disappeared inside the “convenience store,” and left me standing there, alone, with my gas tank door in my hand. Hmmm.

About 10 minutes later, the owner comes out, tries for a couple of minutes to replace it . . . and ultimately says, “Sorry. It’s not broken; it must have been like this when you got here.” Excuse me? I seem to recall it was fully attached to the car when we arrived. Nor did it fall off into the attendant’s hand when he opened it (because, yeah, maybe then it wouldn’t have been his fault). It didn’t actually remove itself from the car until he tried to slam it close. I asked, “So, if I have to take this back to the dealer, I’m going to have to pay for this?” “Oh,” he said, “They shouldn’t charge you for it. (Hah, Dealerships charge for everything!) But since it’s not actually broken, it’s not our fault. It must have been like that when you got here. We close hundreds of gas tank lids like that a day.” And he turned to go back inside, leaving me, again, standing there with a piece of my car in my hand.

Now, I’ll grant you that it doesn’t look like anything is actually broken–the door appears to attach via two wires–one which is solid and doesn’t move–the pivot–and one which is coiled at end and can be taken off, and presumably adds the spring-like tension. It looks like the pieces I need are all there, and that the hard plastic/rubber-like slits the wire slots into on the car are intact–so it looks like everything just needs to be snapped back into place, but there’s obviously a trick to it, because we haven’t been able to manage it. Nor do we want to risk breaking anything. I’m going to ask my Dad to bring it over to his friend Frank’s tomorrow–Frank has a repair shop and is one of my dad’s best friends (not to mention having one of the most reliable, trustworthy car-repair shops around–I highly recommend them), and will not only be more than willing to give it a try (and will have whatever tools may or may not be necessary), but is also right up the street. As opposed to the Volvo dealer, which is about 20 minutes up a busy highway (making it longer than 20 minutes with the traffic) and would require my taking at least several hours off work. If Frank can fix it, great, but if he can’t and we need to take it to the dealer–well, at least we’ll know that it has to be the dealer.

But, really, I hate things like this, because I am just awful about confrontations and putting my foot down. I can be as stubborn, but have been raised to “be nice, be sweet, don’t make waves, be dignified, don’t make a scene.” Unlike, say, my friend Cindy who is excellent about making good, constructive complaints and getting not only justice, but all sorts of freebies and upgrades as well. (Like the time she complained about an appalling room in a 5-star hotel and got upgraded (“We don’t have anything else, so…”) to a multi-room suite, like the kind movie stars get. Cindy, let me tell you, is the person you want around when you run into situations like this. She would not have left that gas station with the fuel-filler door sitting on the back seat. And, good friend that she is, she offered to call Getty for me on Monday to see what she can get for me. (I mean, really, you’d think they would have at least offered to pay for the half a tank of gas I got before the fellow broke my car!)

Meanwhile, my Volvo is in the garage, just on the off-chance we have any fuel thieves lurking around our neighborhood. (Hey, with these prices, you never know.)

Which reminds me. Look at this great editorial cartoon I saw at the Time.com “Cartoons of the Week” page. Called, “Evolution.”

• Tags: General • Permalink:Gas Vent // 2 Comments »

  My room will be cooler now; I have a ceiling fan. I grant you, it doesn’t seem like it should be necessary since we have central air conditioning, but, well, it is, and I’m happy about it. It’s by Hunter, and oh my, it’s so quiet!

I didn’t have a chance to do any knitting tonight. My mother’s computer contracted a virus yesterday. I’m proud of myself for getting it back to health. I can use computers, you see, but don’t know anything about operating systems, but I’m the closest thing our family’s got to a computer expert. (I know, scary, isn’t it?) Ultimately, I ended up starting it in Safe Mode and restoring it to the settings of an earlier date. And then immediately downloaded the free McAfee Virus Protection provided by AOL so hopefully this won’t happen again.

So, anyway, by the time I had restored Mom’s computer to health, it was too late to start knitting for the night–especially since I was this close to finishing my book and so decided that took precedence. You know, just this once.

I shipped off three packages today. One, to Jessica, of the Gotland wool that I sadly mostly ruined. Maybe there’s a chance that she can salvage some of it and get some nice wool out of it for herself. (Hey, she might have been joking when she said I could ship it to her, but why wouldn’t I take advantage of her offer? So . . . keep your eyes out, Jessica!) And then, I sent out my Jul/Aug package out to my KRSecretPal and my final SecretPal5 package, where I get to reveal myself. It’s really very exciting. I hope she’s been happy with her gifts. And do you know, it only just occurred to me, that this means I’ll soon be finding out who my SP5 is? You’d think I would have pieced that together before now. (grin)

Does anyone think I’m crazy for thinking about signing up for SP6? I’ve been having so much fun . . .

Not a particularly exciting post, I’ll admit. I’ll leave you with this . . . I just got prints of months’ worth of pictures, and when I was showing them to my Dad–a man who swears he has no imagination whatsoever–he looked at this picture of Chappy, waiting for his birthday cake in July, and saw . . . a monkey. What, you don’t see it? Well, I don’t think my dog looks particularly simian, either, but . . .

  If you look at it just right, the nostrils could look like eyes, and the lips a little mouth surrounded by white monkey whiskers. . .

  And Dad says he has no imagination? Hmm . . . I still say that Chappy doesn’t look like a monkey, though!

• Tags: Chappy, Family, General, Knitting/Spinning • Permalink:Secret Monkeys // 3 Comments »

  Ah, siblings. My little Canon’s big brother (sister?) arrived today. Here’s a picture of the two of them, getting to know each other. (I have to admit I felt a little silly walking around with THREE digital cameras to be able to get this shot, but what can you do?)

As you can see, the new S2 is a bigger camera, but it’s not as huge as it looks–the Elph is really tiny. (Think, deck of cards) The S2 offers options for changing the shutter speed and aperture, and “manual” focus, so I can play at photography as if I knew what I was doing. A couple things I really like? The LCD screen on the back can pivot, so I can see myself for a self-portrait, or hold it over my head in a crowd. And–really nice–the cable that connects this camera to the computer is the same as the one which connects my Elph. I love that! I can attach either camera without switching cables. And, oh, the Macro feature is amazingly good. I prowled around my room with it, and some of the results are below.

Now, tomorrow’s Friday, and we have an electrician coming tomorrow, to install the new bathroom lights and my ceiling fan. This is great news, but I’m going to have to get up a little early, because he’ll be at the house between 7:30 and 8:00. Normally, I leave for work at 7:45, but I may put it off just a little tomorrow, in case there are any last-minute questions about my bedroom before I leave. But I really should be ready before they get here, so . . . 15 minutes early. I’m looking forward to the fan–my room is the worst in the house for insulation. It’s always too warm in the summer and too cold in the winter. I can deal with the cold easily enough, but there are nights when I hear Chappy panting in his crate and, darn it, that’s just not right!

          

• Tags: General • Permalink:Siblings // 6 Comments »

  Well, this is what my office parking lot looked like when I left this afternoon. Can’t quite see it? That’s three fire engines down there. (And, back over my right shoulder, where you can’t see it, is an ambulance, just in case.) You’ll note, though, that there are no crowds of worried or soot-smudged people. We didn’t have a fire, but there was apparently a “funky” smell in the back, and they figured it was better to call the fire department than not.

I don’t know what, if anything, the resolution was, but I’m sure I’ll hear tomorrow. I must say, though, there’s a whole different feeling to seeing fire engines and ambulances outside your office when you’re not worried about life and limb. One of the fellows in my department is a volunteer fireman, and wandered down just as I left, out of professional interest, and said that that man engines is standard procedure. I just hope that nobody in town had a real fire this afternoon!

I got my issue of Whole Dog Journal today, a magazine I highly recommend by the way. It focuses on “Natural Dog Care and Training,” and is the only dog magazine that I still subscribe to, and which I read in its entirety. I mention it today because there’s an article on common food ingredients that can be toxic for dogs–things like chocolate and onions (which I knew), but also grapes, macadamia nuts, and the low-calorie sweetener Xylitol (which sounds very scary from a dog’s point of view and was, in fact, the first one mentioned in the article–keep it away from your dogs!). You can get the whole article here (for a small fee, if you’re not a subscriber).

  Now, for a public service announcement, go visit Emma, who’s dealing with some extra financial agony trying to get an electric wheelchair and other absurdly expensive but oh-so-necessary “toys” for her son, Oliver. There’s a link for a donation via PayPal if you’re feeling so inclined. Also, Kerrie is hosting two wonderful auctions at Ebay UK for luscious yarn, with the proceeds going toward Oliver’s needs. (The button was designed by Jean–isn’t it adorable, and doesn’t it just make you want to give money?)

  And, just to get a fibery note in here somewhere, here’s a shot of my current spinning–a deep, wine-colored Corriedale wool–the one I hope to ply with the orange (assuming that they look as good as I hope they will together). You know, lest you think I’ve been slacking off on the Spinning front.

Incidentally, may I just say that the gas prices are getting completely ridiculous? On my drive through the center of town today on my way back to work after lunch, I passed four gas stations, selling Regular unleaded at: $2.51, $2.55, $2.59, and $2.69. (And, my brain still doesn’t want to believe these numbers–it started typing them as ONE dollar plus change, instead of the TWO dollar plus change actual price.) This is up 20 cents in just a little over a week. I can’t decide if I should top off my gas tank out of self-defense of what tomorrow’s prices might be, or hold off and hope they’ll have somehow dropped by the time my tank empties out. I am grateful, grateful, I tell you, of my short commute and my relatively fuel-efficient Volvo. How are people with gas-guzzling SUVs and hour-long commutes possibly managing? I keep flashing back to the 70s when you could only fill your tank on odd or even days depending on your license plate, and long lines at the gas stations. (If it comes to that, I wonder, how will they factor in people with Vanity plates?) I was just a kid, mind you, and didn’t pay much attention at the time, but . . . sheesh. I really wonder how far off from that we might be now?

• Tags: General, Knitting/Spinning • Permalink:Fire! (Oops. Never Mind.) // 5 Comments »

I played hooky from work today. Well, technically, it was a pre-declared Vacation Day, it’s not like I called in sick or anything–which is actually something I’ve never done, with the exception, once, of the day my sister’s modular house was delivered sixteen years ago, and I took the day off from work to look after my at-the-time baby niece. I’m sure that I could, of course, have told my boss and taken a personal day, but I’d only been working there for a couple months and I couldn’t risk his saying “No,” so . . . I called in sick. The one and only time I’ve ever done it. (For that matter, I’ve only used one sick day in the 14 1/2 years I’ve worked at my current job–which I hopefully didn’t just jinx.)

Anyway, the relevant point is that I didn’t go to work today. Instead, I spent the day with my best friend, visiting home from California. I drove up to her brother’s house this morning to [quietly] pick her up, and then we took a long, meandering drive over Schooley’s Mountain, through Washington Township, and out to Historic Chester for lunch at a tea room. The ride was lovely, despite the sprinkles of rain. The back roads of New Jersey–despite my state’s undeservedly dismal reputation–are really so pretty. Hilly and green, lots of trees. Farms. Horses. Historic buildings made of stone and brick. Lots of antique stores (if you’re into that kind of thing). The tea room was filled with the cutesy, Victorian-inspired things you’d expect–along with price tags on almost every knick knack in sight, which we both thought seemed just a little tacky. The food was good, though, and the dessert selection very impressive, indeed.

After lunch, we retraced our route back to her brother’s house, and met these two little gentleman. Four weeks old yesterday. That’s Aidan on the left (he’s the younger one), and Alex on the right. Very cute, though they didn’t have much to say. I think they were trying out the strong, silent-type stereotype. Or maybe they were just shy, because their Mom assured me that they’re not always this quiet. Except for Alex’s justifiable complaint about his diaper, neither of them woke up for more than a couple seconds at a time while I was there. The two boys have very distinct little faces, and were easy even for me to tell apart. (I know this because in the two individual photos I took of them, I could tell right away which was which, despite having forgotten whose picture I took first.) Anyway, they’re very cute, and very sweet, and their Mom seems quite happy with them (grin).

I’ve been working on that Pine green, beaded project, which seems to be coming out pretty much the way I want it to. Quite a relief! I’m feeling my way through the design as I go, and am enjoying it, but am wondering if I maybe should be keeping notes, in case I want to try to recreate this pattern later. Oh well! The important thing is that I’m enjoying myself, right?

Incidentally, I’m enjoying my new, little camera and, guess what? My second one? The one that was back-ordered until September?? Yep. It’s on its way this very minute. Should be here tomorrow, I think.

Now, I’m completely beat tonight. All that driving, and laughing, and eating . . . plus, we got Chappy out for a walk tonight. That’s two days in a row, and we’re frankly a little in shock at the surprise. Chappy’s tired, too, from all the confusion–was it a week day? A weekend? Too hard to figure out! So, we’re both going to sleep now . . . see y’all tomorrow.

• Tags: Family, Friends, General, Knitting/Spinning • Permalink:Playing Hooky // 5 Comments »

So, last night, our modem was actually working, and I was uploading pictures to my favorite online printing service at about 9:20 when . . . naturally . . . the power went out. Obviously, it’s a plot to keep me from spending time on the computer. Now, we’ve just had our electric lines and transformers completely replaced to prevent this sort of thing happening, but we had a wild thunderstorm going overhead last night, so I don’t think it’s really fair to blame this on the electric company. Chappy, of course, jumped up, barking from his sleep to make sure that everything was okay (if dark). Mom had just come upstairs because she was sure the power was going to go out and didn’t want to be left downstairs all alone. Mom and Dad ended up going to bed early. Well, I did too, actually, but I read by candlelight until about quarter to eleven.

I finished Dorothy Dunnett’s Lymond series yesterday–spent practically the whole day on the couch, reading. (Mom kept asking if I was mad at her because I wasn’t chatting. Um, no, Mom, it’s a good book, and very emotional. I’m kind of involved, here!) Excellent, amazing book (sniffle).

The current book is Jasper Fforde’s “The Big Over Easy”–a spin-off from his Thursday Next books, involving “Nursery Crime”–Detective Jack Spratt and his assistant Mary Mary are called in to solve the death (or is it murder?) of Humpty Dumpty, who’s fallen off his favorite wall after a drunken evening at a charity gala . . . Yes, I know, it sounds like a children’s book but in fact, it’s not. It’s just another entry from the wacky mind of the man who brought us re-actualized dodos and mammoths, the LiteraTec literary detectives, and of course, Jurisfiction, the policing arm of the world of fiction.

As to knitting–I have been knitting. The problem is that since I’ve frogged that copper Zephyr stole, and my Union Square Market Pullover, while moving along, hasn’t noticeably changed since the last photo–not to mention that I’ve barely touched the socks in weeks–there really isn’t anything to show you. You’ll just have to believe me when I tell you that I am, in fact, still knitting every night. I did cast on for something new last night, but it’s an experimental design of my own, and I don’t even want to tell you what it is because (1) I might jinx it and (2) if it works out, I want the surprise factor when I show you the finished product. All I’ll say is that it’s being made out of Lorna’s Laces Shepherd Sock yarn, in the “Pine” colorway, and involves beads–a first for me. Anything else, you’ll just have to wait until I have something I satisfied with that I can show you!

Oh well. I guess I’ll just have to wait to get prints for my photo album . . . it’s not like I’ve been neglectful, or anything. The last pictures I have in there are from Christmas. I mean, that’s only 8 months ago, right? What’s one more day? I do like this service, though–there are a number of online photo places where you can upload pictures and get high-quality prints. (Yes, there are personal printers, too, but I’ve tried them and the consumables of photo paper and toner just get too expensive and the quality’s never quite as good as I want it to be.) Anyway, what I like about Shutterfly is that they have prepay plans where you can pay in advance to get bulk-rate pricing, but you can take as long as you need to use up all the prepaid prints. I like that! It takes a couple days to get the prints in the mail, but since it ends up costing me less than going into town and having them printed there . . . no complaints.

• Tags: General, Knitting/Spinning, Reading • Permalink:Powerless // 1 Comment »

I can’t believe it. The modem is out yet again. If I’d known, I would have
brought my computer with me to the coffeeshop I just came back from. My friend
Dawn is home in NJ and we went out for dessert, and I could have written a
post from there . . . oh well!

I’m actually writing this remotely, and plan on signing on via the
ooooold-fashioned dial-up just long enough to get it through, but I’m frustrated. This
means I can’t read any blogs again tonight. I guess I should just be
grateful that it’s the weekend and that a lot of people take the weekend off from
blogging, so I’m not missing out on as much as I could have been. (See? Trying
to look on the bright side, that’s me!) And I can take this remaining time
before bed to do some knitting or some spinning–that I would otherwise have
missed out on since, well, I was out at the coffeeshop with Dawn!

Mom got safely home from Martha’s Vineyard yesterday, and brought me a lovely “Cinderella Gift” for looking after the house–two Warhol flower prints for my bathroom. (Not real Warhols, of course, if that weren’t obvious!) We saw them in May, but couldn’t get them because there wasn’t room in the car to bring them back. (I love my Volvo but it’s not really great on trunk space, and Chappy pretty much takes up the back seat, so, what can you do?) I’m really happy with them, they look great . . . although I think I really do need to do something about the old wallpaper, but while I’m willing to paint, wallpaper is out of the question.

It’s been really hot today–record-breaking, in fact. I think I heard the
other day that this has been the third hottest summer ever, over all? True or
not, it wouldn’t surprise me. I can’t wait until Fall. I want to wear sweaters,
and long pants again. My handmade socks. The shawls languishing in the
drawer. I adore autumn and love the clothes–they’re the perfect weight, warm and
cozy without being heavy and bulky. I like there being just a little nip in
the air, to help appreciate a light sweater or jacket thrown over my
shoulders. There’s just something really appealing about gray flannel trousers and
wool jackets. Riding boots. And autumn colors? Don’t get me started! I am so
ready for Fall.

• Tags: Family, General • Permalink:Not Again… // 4 Comments »

The modem has been down yet again tonight, for hours, and it just came back up, so I feel like I need to type very, very quickly to get this up!

  Lizzy B. asked to see a picture of my orange singles.

How’s this, Liz?

Okay, I was lying on the floor, taking a picture of Chappy (of course–he’s my favorite model), and thought it made an interesting angle for the requisite spinning picture. Though really, the orange is more . . . orange than this. (I know, I said I’d hoped I wouldn’t have to apologize for colors with this new camera, but considering the lighting and the angle, it’s a cool picture anyway.

Chappy, of course, thought so, too, and was very impressed.

Now, I told Liz that I was thinking about spinning some very pretty red Corriedale that I have–the same amount as I had for this orange–and then plying them together, instead of doing all-orange, all-red. Heaven knows they’d be lovely together, in a very autumnal way! As soon as I start spinning the red (probably tomorrow), I’ll get a chance to see how the singles look next to each other–because, of course, roving and singles are not always the same color.

  I took my new toy to the office today, and showed it around to a bunch of people–many of whom were as impressed with my little camera sock as with the camera itself. (Okay, not quite, but it got quite a few comments, too!) Anyway–here’s my desk. Yes, it is obsessively neat. (What, like there’s something wrong with that?) Two monitors for my computer–including a 21″–an ergonomic, wireless keyboard and a trackball I provided myself, one of Peter Simon’s Martha’s Vineyard calendars on the wall. And, oh yes, my “window.” It opens out into the hallway, don’t ask me why. Not that I really mind–I can see what’s going on out there, and I get to at least see some natural light, even if there aren’t any real windows in my actual office. I’m right by the door, too, which is great for my natural nosiness (grin). The downside to that? A lot of people coming to the office think I’m a receptionist. There’s nothing wrong with being a receptionist, not at all, but that’s not what I do, and I often have to stop my real work to help direct people, sign for deliveries, and stuff like that. No big deal, really, but I suppose that’s what I get for sitting by the door. (At least it’s better than when one of my co-workers used to sit at a desk actually out in the hallway and really looked like a receptionist, although in fact, she was in Personnel. Go figure.)

I got some sort of bug bite/sting at the office today, though. I was standing, talking to a coworker, felt something on my arm, brushed it off and . . . ouch! A sting on my hand! No idea what kind of bug it was–we both tried to get a good look at it, but all I can really say for sure is that it was about 3/4″ long, black (or near-black), and could fly. But what, exactly? No idea. My hand hurt for a while, though, with more heat than itch. I got an ice cube from the office kitchen, which helped, and took an allergy pill when I got home (just in case), but really . . . what could I do? I’m just glad it’s feeling better.

Here’s another picture of Chappy for you–also an accidental shot–he came running toward me just as I snapped the shutter. It’s cute though, huh?

In knitting news, I decided I wasn’t happy with the way my Copper Zephyr Stole was coming out, so I frogged it, the whole thing, and will pick out a different lace pattern to try tomorrow. I’m starting to think that this yarn doesn’t want to be anything. Every thing I’ve tried, it’s turned it’s silky little nose up at. Silly yarn. If it wasn’t this picky, it would have been turned into something beautiful ages ago. But no, it keeps being a snob, and if it’s not careful, may end up back in the closet!

  I decided I wasn’t entirely happy with the drawstring on my little camera sock–the pattern calls for just using a double strand of yarn–so I pulled out the new Lucet I bought a month or so ago but hadn’t used, and made myself a little cord instead. It was, er, challenging threading it through the ribbing at the top of the bag, but I’m much happier with it. And the bag? It’s still just a trifle too wide for the camera, but a decent fit. I forgot to mention that I made it from the bottom up–it gave me the perfect excuse to try the “Turkish Cast-On” that Meg Swansen described in the current Vogue Knitting. Very nifty little cast-on, that! And, boy, do I need to get some more Koigu one of these days. That is one nice yarn!

  Mom comes home tomorrow–hurray! I’ve missed her; and Chappy has really missed her (since she’s the one who’s home most during the day on weekdays). This cartoon (which Dad trimmed from the paper yesterday) pretty much says everything you need to know about Chappy’s opinion of this week. He has NOT wanted me to leave for the office each day! As the week’s gone on, he’s gotten clingier and clingier. Poor little boy! I don’t think he’s going to let me leave the house all weekend.

I’ve already got tomorrow’s dinner made–a lasagne. It’s the standard family make-ahead meal. We all enjoy it (just, you know, the basic recipe from the back of the Ronzoni box), and it’s better if you make it ahead of time, anyway. So–I’ve got it assembled and in the fridge, and tomorrow, all I have to do is pop it in the oven. That way, Mom won’t have to cook on her first night back (as if I would let her!), but she won’t have to feel guilty about my cooking after being at work all day. It’s just perfect for everyone. Can’t wait to see her!

(Sorry about the lack of links–I’m feeling a little too rushed to find them for you! Okay, gotta publish this while there’s still time!)

• Tags: Family, General, Knitting/Spinning • Permalink:Gotta Type Fast! // 1 Comment »

  “Oh, no. Not a new camera.”

“Yes, honey, isn’t it wonderful?”

“Mom, I can’t see anything but the spots in front of my eyes.”

“That’s okay, honey, they’ll go away. Just look at me now and smile for the camera.”

“But . . . ”

“Come on, you know you’re adorable. And look, you’re actually photographing as brown. People will be so amazed! I’m sure they all thought you were almost black instead of chocolate-covered.”

“Well . . . okay . . . but just one more!”

“Beautiful!”

(Don’t you think?)

(Actually, this was the very first picture I took, right out of the box. Not bad, huh?)

The one problem? The cute little camera sock I made yesterday is about a third too big all the way around, poor thing. I’m going to have to redo it! Gosh, that’s just dreadful, isn’t it?

• Tags: Chappy, Family, General • Permalink:My eyes! My eyes! // 11 Comments »

I couldn’t post last night because our modem was out again. All night. From the time I got home from work, until the time I went to bed. Need I mention how frustrating that is? It’s a mystery why it’s happening. It’s a cable modem, and we’ve had the cable company to the house at least three times in the last two weeks. We’ve gotten a new modem, new cable, a signal amplifier. Yet still, at least once a day, the signal for the computer disappears–we’ve still got the television signal, which basically comes through the same cable–but no modem. Argh!

Luckily, I have low-tech amusements, as well. I got almost an hour of spinning done–I’m almost done with that pretty, orange roving–and I finished reading “Pawn in Frankincense” (sniffle, very emotional). I also finished knitting my camera sock for my new Elph which hopefully will be arriving today. (I mean, it’s supposed to be delivered today, but if the package requires a signature, we may run into a snag.) I wonder if this means I’m spending too much time on the computer?

I’d show you pictures of these things, but . . . well . . . I’m at the office and my camera’s not, so . . .

I was so relieved the Discovery landed safely yesterday. Phew! I love the space program and so much depended on that ship landing safely. You know, I hadn’t realized, but the Discovery was the first shuttle to fly after the Challenger exploded in 1986, as well as the first since losing Columbia two years ago. Obviously, a good-omened ship.

Yesterday also would have been my uncle’s birthday. He passed away in April, you’ll remember, from lung cancer, and has been so much on my mind this week. Peter Jennings had been diagnosed right around the same time as my uncle died from lung cancer, and of course, he passed away on Sunday. Dana Reeve announced that she has it as well, yesterday, and so lung cancer has been very much in the news the last couple of days. And then, Uncle Richard’s birthday . . . no wonder I’ve been thinking about him so much this week.

Mom, sister, etc are all having a great time on MV without me, but she made a point of telling me yesterday that they picked up some biscuits for Chappy–he’ll like that! Me, I have to go to the grocery store after work tonight, and I’m feeling guilty about all the alone-time Chappy’s dealing with this week. Nothing I can do about it, but the poor boy is lonely! And I’m busy doing chores and things when I get home, and he hasn’t even gotten out for a walk. Guilt is the name of the game.

And, oh yes, my oldest and dearest friend came home to NJ yesterday, though I’m not sure when I’ll get to see her. She lives in California these days, but her parents are still right around the corner from us, so when she’s “home,” we can usually manage a couple quick visits, but this time, she’s planning on spending at least some of her visit staying with her brother, sister-in-law, and two new baby nephews, about 45 minutes away, so . . . I’m sure I’ll see her at least once, but when and for how long? No idea!

• Tags: Family, General • Permalink:Out of Touch // 3 Comments »

  Look what I got today.

That’s a copy of Nicky Epstein’s new book, “Knitting Over the Edge” which I pre-ordered in May.

Three skeins of Lorna’s Laces Shepherd Sock yarn–I bought three because I have a specific project in mind, but couldn’t tell online which would be the best of the three colors. So, one skein will go toward my project, and the other two will combine to make a pair of socks–no waste.

And a handful of needles–some Bryspun circulars, and some Inox gray circulars from Angelika’s, to aid my ongoing quest to find the right needle for my Zephyr stole, since it really doesn’t seem to like the Addi Turbos very much.

Tonight’s knitting plan, though, is to make the camera sock for my new Elph, which should be here on Wednesday. The S2 is backordered until September, which I knew when I ordered it, but this is fine–it will give me a chance to learn all the functions of each camera without getting the confused. I’m glad the tiny one will be here first, though, since it will fit in the cute little purse I’m carrying to the wedding at the end of the month! And as to this double camera purchase–I’m equally excited about both of them, and I’m not having second thoughts about my decision. A good sign, I think. I’m not denying the essential insanity of it, but at least I’m happy about it (grin).

  Not only that, a friend of mine sent me these.

I’ve mentioned Dorothy Dunnett a couple times–without question the best historical fiction author I have ever read. I’ve read both her “Niccolo” and “Lymond” series three times. (Well, technically, I’m 2/3 through my third reading of Lymond.) She’s amazing. Complex, subtle, crafty, tricky, elaborate, and can tell a death scene right up there with the best of them, and is a master at the emotional torture of her characters (grin). Great books.

And, did I mention they’re complicated and elaborate? Well, this is what my friend Carolyn sent me. (She, incidentally, is the person who got me hooked on these books two summers ago.) A family tree linking the characters between one series and the other, and a translation guide by Nancy Wright, to interpret all of Francis Crawford’s flowering quotes in multi-languages into English for those of us who don’t speak Scottish, Latin, Spanish, French, Arabian, Turkish, Russian . . .

I highly recommend the books. They’re challenging, but oh, so fun, and despite the slow beginnings, with enormous emotional payoffs at the end. I mean, really, I only discovered these massive books–14 in all between the two series, at over 7,500 pages–two years ago, and I’m on my third reading. Even for a fast reader like myself, that’s quite a commitment. She’s that good.

• Tags: General, Knitting/Spinning, Reading • Permalink:New Stuff! // 5 Comments »

  I’m really pretty proud of myself–I’ve got a vacation picture for you from my mother’s trip to Martha’s Vineyard. www.mvol.com has a series of webcams, and she called me this morning to tell me to look . . . and there she was! Right on Circuit Avenue. What? You can’t see her?

  That little cluster of pixels in front of the white-and-blue building is Mom. (I know, she’ll probably be upset that I’m putting a picture of her on my blog, but really, I think it’s a pretty good likeness, though she’s not this grainy in person.)

• Tags: Family, Martha's Vineyard • Permalink:Webcams // 4 Comments »

What other explanation could there be? An illness, a bug I caught that caused me to act in a fashion unlike my usual, hard-headed, rational way. (cough)

I was looking at this cute, small little Elph camera, then was distracted by the professional glory of this Rebel SLR camera, went to meet both of them in person yesterday, and was introduced to this S2 camera–somewhere in between the two in terms of power, versatility, size, and price.. All three are on sale at amazon.com for the next two weeks (until the 22nd, I believe), and the prices are great. In fact, the Elph and the S2 together are cheaper than the Rebel would have been.

Can you perhaps see where the craziness comes in here? (sneeze)

Think, “twofer.”

Yes. I am insane. I bought both.

You’re going to say, why would I need two cameras? And well, I don’t, exactly, but the Elph is adorable and incredibly portable. I could keep it in my purse all the time for spur-of-the-moment shots. (And I’ll have a reason to make a cute little camera sock like Risa’s, which is even cuter in person.) And then, the other one, I can keep at home, most days, but which has all the versatility and settings and things to play with that my gadget-fidgeting heart could ask for. All for less than I would have spent if I’d gone for the Rebel, which was really way too much camera for me. I mean, it’s insane, sure, but it could have been worse. I even used three of my amazon.com certificates from using their Visa card, to lessen the blow. (sniffle)

Now–in your attempt to bring reason to a crazed person–you’re going to say, think of all the fiber you could have bought with that extra money!

  Yes, well, about that.

Some people have been waxing poetical about the joys of wool-combing lately. . . . Actually, let me interject here that I entirely understand how much fun the process can [theoretically] be and how rewarding, taking stinky, smelly wool and bringing it to a state of clean, fluffy loveliness. I really do. But I think that this process is not for me.

I pulled out my wool combs and my somewhat felted wool today and actually got two combs-full worth of sliver. (I’d call it roving, but that involves twist, and for the life of me, I couldn’t figure out how you add twist to something that long and fragile while rolling it into a ball. I’m sure it’s possible, it’s just a fault of mine for not being able to conceive of it.) I even spun it on my drop spindle–as you can see here. I’m actually surprised at the amount of singles I got from such a small amount of wool. And the bundle of fluffiness on the combs was impressive–reminded me of what my hair used to look like when I’d brush the curls out.

(And, in fact, you have, right there, a perfect example of why people with curly hair should not brush out their curls–you go from self-contained locks to wild and crazy individual hairs with triple the volume. And also, yes, I know, the picture I got from my current camera is just fine. Just . . .shush. There aren’t any colors there for it to mess up, and come on, it’s not a BAD camera!)

However. (You knew there was going to be one, right?) I don’t think this process is for me. Granted, my uncombed wool is a lumpy mess through my inexperienced handling. Nobody feels worse about this than I, and I’d like to send my apologies to the Gotland sheep that grew this wool. No doubt it would be a more enjoyable process if I hadn’t managed to mat so much of it together. And I probably should have kept the mesh bags o’wool off the floor so that Chappy wouldn’t have rolled on them every time he got into the guest room. And experience with the combs, the diz, and trying to twist it into roving would only help. All this, I know.

But . . . let me put it this way. I love to cook, and I love to cook from scratch. I like fresh ingredients, I like knowing exactly what’s going into my food and rarely use anything more processed than cans of chicken broth or tomato paste. I love baking from scratch. I don’t, however, mill my own flour, grow my own vegetables, or slaughter [shudder] my own meat. I trust professionals to do it right, and provide me with the best ingredients I need. And if it costs a little more that way, well, people have to make a living right?

I think I will not be taking any fiber-processing jobs away from anyone. I’m not saying I’ll never try this again, and I admit it was pretty satisfying turning that matted wool into the singles on that spindle. But–honestly–I didn’t enjoy spinning it as much as I do the commercial roving I’m used to. Nor are my singles as smooth as they usually are. (I didn’t like the spindle very much, either–way too much effort to spin.) Again, I’m sure that more experience in preparing the fiber would help that, but . . . I’d rather put my efforts into something else.

You know, like learning how to use my new cameras. (Achoo! . . . there goes that shutterbug again!)

Now . . . what do I do with the other 1.8 lbs or so of matted Gotland in the next room??

• Tags: General, Knitting/Spinning • Permalink:Shutterbugs are Contagious // 6 Comments »

Chappy and I had a surprise today.

Risa called to ask what we were doing, and . . . we ended up spending the afternoon with her and the twins, Katherine and Alexander.

We finally got to visit Nonna’s Yarn Cafe together. (And agreed that it’s nice, but there’s just a little too much novelty yarn and not enough sock yarn–but we figure it’s a work in progress!) We also had some coffee and cake, for a late celebration of Risa’s birthday. They even got to go on the neat elevator ride to get up from street level! It’s key-operated, but the owner of the yarn shop has one, and it made it so much easier to get the twins and their stroller up to the shop.

  Afterward, we came back to the house (where Chappy had apparently been singing the Howl Serenade to his grandpa, he was so upset I’d gone out on a Saturday afternoon without him), and all went into the backyard to play. Chappy freaked Alex out just a little by his barking when they first arrived, though, so it took a little time for the twins to warm to him this time. (Hey, you stand eye-level to a barking dog and see how brave you feel–it doesn’t matter that the dog is just being very verbal about saying hello and is wagging his tail a mile a minute, it’s still intimidating.) After a while, though, they were chasing Chappy around the deck, trying to corner him, which he handled with great patience–until he finally came to me and Risa for help. (“Make them stop!”)

He and I also entertained with the “Fetch Show.” Chappy’s got an interesting method of chasing things in the yard: When I’m about to throw a toy, any toy, he just starts running in the direction he thinks I’m going to throw it. Once running, however, if the toy doesn’t bounce or fly within his field of sight (or a foot or two in either direction), he won’t be able to find it, and will stand there and wait for me to find it for him. No amount of pointing will help. Therefore, when I throw the toy for him, I’ll fake it, to make him take off in the right direction (often looking in the sky for the toy), wait until he turns to say, “Mom, I can’t find it” and then, while he’s looking at me, I’ll throw it. (Trust me, it’s the only way.) Risa got quite a kick out of watching him tearing across the yard after . . . nothing. Time after time. But that’s okay, I got quite a kick watching her two monkeys playing together. Very entertaining kids, she’s got!

Mom left for Martha’s Vineyard this morning–early, before I was up. And–for the “small world” files–bumped into the receptionist from her physical therapy place, who was on her way up to Wood’s Hole for a week. Where did they bump into each other? At a rest stop on the Connecticut Turnpike, just as Mom was walking out and Janice was walking in. What are the odds? I hope she has a great time.

Oh, and I stopped at Best Buy to look at cameras today, and have decided that–wonderful though the Digital Rebel XT SLR camera is, it’s way more camera than I need. Especially when this one is several hundred dollars cheaper. (I could buy another spinning wheel for the difference . . . or even, this camera PLUS the Elph from the other day for the same as the Rebel.) More practical, and cheaper . . . not a bad deal!

• Tags: Chappy, Friends, General, Knitting/Spinning • Permalink:Happy Saturday // 3 Comments »

I’m very happy with the way my teal singles came out, and will start spinning the rest of the wool tonight. I detached the yarn from the towel bar at lunchtime and rolled it into a cute little ball. (However did I manage without my ballwinder and swift? Really, I have no idea.) I didn’t do any spinning last night–by the time 10:00 rolled around, I was too tired. I did a few rows on my sweater and on my lace stole, but it wasn’t exactly a booming night for knitting. It was just easier to curl up with my book.

A couple interesting things. First, I just saw some Adagio Teas offered on Amazon.com–like their IngenuiTea set. Nifty, huh? They’ve got such great tea–it’s nice to see it getting a broader audience. Check them out!

And–I don’t know if this really works, but–I got a forwarded e-mail yesterday that claims that, if you lock your keys in your car and have a spare at home with one of those automatic key fobs, you can call home on your cell phone (assuming someone’s there, of course) and then, holding your phone a foot away from the lock, have them hit the “Unlock” button into the phone. That the signal will work through the phone. There’s a note at the bottom of the e-mail saying they’d tested it and it worked, but I haven’t tried it, myself, so can’t actually vouch for it. Still–it seems simple enough and easy enough that–if it comes up, you might want to give it a try. At worst, it just means the person at home makes a phone call before climbing into the car to rescue you; at best, it saves them a trip and you get in the car to where your keys are with a minimum of fuss. Worth a shot, and by all means, if you try it and it works, let me know! Edited to Add: A friend of mine just tried this and says it works! Almost makes me want to run out into the driveway with my cellphone to try it out….

As to the camera. Am I crazy? Because now I’m looking at this:

The price is pretty amazing, since it’s also on sale for the next couple of weeks, though it’s still expensive. It’s really a matter, I think, of whether I want to be tempted to have something with lots of nifty buttons and settings to play and would take fantastic pictures of yarn and WIPs but which would be impractical for shots of Chappy playing . . . not to mention too large to easily carry around. A camera that size is a committment, not something you just toss in your purse “just in case.” But of course, if it DID take the fabulous yarn photos, I’d mostly just use it here at home, and for the point-and-shoot needs, I’d still have my quite-decent Nikon.

Temptation is a tricky thing! I mean, for heavens’ sake, this is more than my spinning wheel! Do you know how much wool, how many books I could buy for this?? Maybe tomorrow–since I’ll be on my own anyway–I’ll head over to Circuit City to take an in-person look at the cameras. I can’t imagine they’d beat the price from Amazon and I’ll feel guilty about just using them for a hands-on look without intention to buy, but . . .

Do you know what occurred to me today? What a happy coincidence–Rhinebeck is just a few weeks before my birthday. Think of all the shopping I could do for myself! Usually when I go to craft shows or whatever, they’re not anywhere near my birthday or Christmas and therefore completely unable to have purchases justified with those handy excuses. What luck! Maybe I’ll make myself a list . . . there’s that Golding spindle, and . . .

• Tags: General • Permalink:Friday Miscellaneous // 5 Comments »

  I did something today I haven’t done in years.

Really. Years.

I wore my hair in a ponytail.

I’d forgotten how very bouncy that feels!

I have a couple “rules” about ponytails–the hair has to be a sufficient length that the tail falls past the nape of the neck. If it’s too short, the hair doesn’t move, and I’ve always thought part of the appeal of ponytails is that special swing. Another rule is that bangs–if you have bangs–have to look “right,” and when I have them, I usually wear them long and swept to one side . . . and then they usually look pretty silly with the rest of the hair pulled back. Now, what used to be bangs are about jaw length, and can reach the back of my head (and the curl helps it all stay together back there, too.)

So, there have been reasons that I haven’t done this style in years. My hair’s been shorter in the last year or two than it has been since the early 1980s, thereby not passing the “length test.” Then too, ponytails can be damaging to the hair–if you wear them to often, they can cause breakage at the elastic–and of course they’re terrible for curls, pulling and flattening them out.

It’s silly, no doubt, to get excited about wearing such a basic, easy hair style–one worn by little girls, teenagers . . . people of all ages, really–but it was fun. I spent most of the day turning my head with just that little bit extra flourish to feel the hair brushing against my neck, and walked with some extra bounce in my step. It looked surprisingly nice, too, and even though I secured it with one of those snag-free elastics, I was able to wear a pretty, silver slide over it, to make it look even nicer.

What can I say? It’s silly, but it felt good!

  Speaking of bouncy, spirally, twisty stuff . . . Here, we have a picture of my pretty teal-shaded singles from the roving that Lizzy B sent me last May. I’ve been spinning them onto my Kundert spindle–it seemed appropriate because she was waxing rhapsodic about spindling at the time I started spinning this, so I figured I should use my drop spindle instead of my wheel.

I wasn’t sure how much I’d be able to fit on the spindle, but think I wound it off at just the right time–it was getting just too heavy and the yarn kept breaking; nor was it spinning for as long. In fact, after I wound this off onto the niddy-noddy, I just started a fresh piece of wool on the spindle, so I’d have something I could pick up later on, and I couldn’t believe how long it spun and spun on one twist. The weight was clearly slowing it down!

  A closer picture, and remarkably accurate for color, all things considered, but there should be just a hint more green in there–it’s a little more teal than blue.

I soaked the singles in the sink with a tiny bit of shampoo and more conditioner while I took my shower . . . What’s that you ask? Conditioner? Yes, that’s what I said . . . Um, what? Why? Well, I’m kind of in the middle of telling . . . oh, okay. I conditioner-wash my own hair about every other day instead of using shampoo, and you’d be surprised at how clean it can make your hair. It doesn’t need to be as thoroughly rinsed as shampoo, either, and so a year or so ago, I started using it whenever I washed my handknit sweaters. It’s not like they get that dirty being worn around the office or the house, so a good soak in conditioner-laden water pretty much takes care of it–and then doesn’t require as many rinses as soap or shampoo would. I figure, hair and wool are pretty similar, and if this works on one . . .

So, anyway, yes, I put the tiniest bit of shampoo into the water, and then a good dose of V05’s Kiwi Lime clarifying conditioner (great for washing with and cheap, to boot) and let the singles soak. They are now hanging–with a weight–off the rack in the bathroom. I lost count as I was winding them around the niddy-noddy (and anyway, forget what size that is, anyway) so I can’t tell you the yardage. It’s less than half the wool, though, and pretty fine. Definitely enough for some kind of lacy scarf–just like Lizzy suggested! I’m thinking that I’ll try knitting it as singles instead of plying it. I’ve never tried that, and am curious as to how “energized” it will look.

I mention a lot about how unsatisfied I am at the color quality of my pictures–yarns almost never photograph the way they should, and I’m getting frustrated. I’ve got a good digital camera, a Nikon Coolpix 3100, and it’s only a couple years old (three, maybe?), but . . . I think I was happier back when I used my old Canon Elph–the original model. It was a great little camera, but I “upgraded” to the Nikon for something lighter (that Canon was small, but heavy at 6.7 oz/190 g.) and that had a better zoom and some more features. The Nikon, don’t get me wrong, takes some lovely pictures. It’s just that it doesn’t seem to be quite at good at indoor pictures at night–which is when I take most of my pictures for you folks. I’ve heard good things about the Canon SD400 which has some very nice bells and whistles, but is also supposed to be better at the whole color-thing. (Risa bought one not too long ago and has said good things about it.)

Not only that, Amazon.com is having a sale on this camera for the next couple of weeks. It’s a sign, don’t you think??

• Tags: General, Hair, Knitting/Spinning • Permalink:Bouncy // 10 Comments »

  I know that you’ve all been dying to see an update for my Union Square Market Pullover. So, here it is–a little blurry, but, as you see, clear signs of progress. I’ve got about 6″ done. The hem insists on curling upward, which I hope will be cured when the sweater is blocked. The sweater is red, with a hint of brown. (It’s called “redwood” for a reason.) I’ve probably knitted enough, now, that I could probably get an accurate count of rows-per-inch and then calculate what I need to do for the short-row shaping for the top . . . but, I’m scared! That’s so much math to do . . . I’m not afraid of math, but that much re-design is kind of intimidating. (grin)

  Here’s a look at my will-be lace shawl, in copper colored Zephyr. I’ve only knitted about 8 rows so far, so right now, it looks more like a ruffle than anything else, but a stole has to start somewhere, right? I’m not loving using Addi Turbos with this yarn, though. I tried my Crystal Palace bamboo needles, but the join caused too many problems (Now I remember the reason I stopped using them.) And, that’s it. I don’t have any others to try! My Denise needles don’t have a size 4, and there doesn’t seem to be any other options. I mean, there are, of course, other needles out there, but not nearby. Any suggestions, any one?

  And, finally, a look at my languishing pair of socks–that get about three rows knitted a week, not much more. They deserve better, of course, but there it is. Aren’t the colors great? The yarn was from my KR Secret Pal a couple months ago. It’s a pity, of course, that the photo is a bit blurry, and the color is perhaps a little too bright to be accurate, but still!

Elsewhere, my mother’s leaving on vacation on Saturday, which she needs badly. (Long story–new medical insurance company nightmares.) She’s stressed. But, Saturday morning, she’s leaving for Martha’s Vineyard–without me (sniffle). She does this every year. She heads up to the island, and then a day or so later, my sister, brother-in-law, niece, and nephew join her. They always have a wonderful time, while Dad, Chappy and I stay home. Dad, of course, stays so he can golf. Chappy, because they don’t allow dogs at the hotel during the Summer season, and anyway, he has to stay with me. So I get to stay home, cook, look after the house, look after the boys, and try not to think about all the Vineyard fun going on without me. Mom–being the wonderful person she is–usually brings me home a token gift of some kind, which we call my “Cinderella Gift,” although, no, it’s never been glass slippers!

Okay–it’s after 10:00 and Alton Brown’s “Good Eats” is on–I’m going to go spin while I watch. ‘Night,all!

• Tags: Knitting/Spinning • Permalink:Knitting Content // 4 Comments »

Wow, there certainly was a lot of interest generated yesterday about my reading habits So, here, I’ll set the record straight: Yes, I do read fast. Yes, I do read a lot. It’s an addiction. (How many bloggers do you know who keep a running tally of the books in their library right there at the top of their main page?) Fiction always goes fastest–especially new fiction. Re-reads take longer, and non-fiction longest of all (some, almost endless!)

My normal workday reading schedule goes something like this:

• 6:45 – 7:45–Get up, get dressed, make and eat breakfast–read, usually history, for about 15 minutes–feed Chappy, leave for work.
• 8:00 – 12:30–Work (no reading)
• 12:30 – 1:30–Home for lunch, about 30 minutes of reading, unless the weather’s nice enough to squeeze in a walk with Chappy.
• 1:30 – 4:00–Work (no reading)
• 4:15 – 5:00–Check the mail, play with Chappy, make supper (some nights), read when I can. Walk with Chappy when the weather is good.
• 5:30 – 6:30–Check e-mail, read blogs–various computer things
• 6:30 – 7:00–Shower.
• 7:00 – 8:00–Make a cup of tea, and sit with Chappy and read until Mom comes down to watch TV at 8:00
• 8:00 – 9:00–Knit while watching TV
• 9:00 – 9:30–Read while watching TV
• 9:30 – 11:00–Check the computer again, do some spinning
• 11:00 – 11:45–Brush my teeth, climb into bed and read–usually a chapter from each book next to my bed.

Weekends are obviously different–errands on Saturday, house-cleaning on Sundays, but the squeezing in every bit of reading as possible is pretty much standard. I always have a book nearby when I’m home, carry one around the house with me to dip into whenever the opportunity presents itself. I have no trouble getting “into” a book, whether it be for three sentences or 300 pages–I can basically read indefinitely until I’m forced to stop. Don’t forget that I don’t have kids–and Chappy’s very happy to sit next to me on the couch while I read. He just likes to be nearby and I don’t think he objects knowing I’m going to be sitting still for a while, where he knows where he can find me. (Although, he is, of course, always agreeable to a walk or a romp in the backyard–and any time I want to go in the kitchen and do food stuff is fine by him.)

So, in other words, reading is basically an obsession. I don’t find time to read because I want to, I make time because, really, I have no other choice. I could almost as soon stop breathing as stop reading. As much as I love knitting, if it came to a choice between the two . . . well, reading would win, hands down. It’s my first love. I’ve been reading since I was three, so it is by far my oldest hobby. I can’t go to sleep without reading first, and if I finish the book I’m reading, I have to go get another one before I can fall asleep. Think of it as a security blanket.

And, as to re-reads? Like I was just saying to Angela (another fan of re-reading books) I have some that I couldn’t begin to guess how many times I’ve read them. Lord of the Rings, for example, a huge favorite in high school–upward of at least 3 dozen reads, probably closer to 4 dozen. I lost count around 28, right around the time I headed off to college. Pride and Prejudice–my copy’s falling apart, it’s been read so often. I figure the first time you read a book, it’s all exciting and new and you can’t wait to find out how the story turns out, rather like a vacation to a new locale–my first reads are usually the fastest. If it went well, the second reading, almost as fresh as new, but you’ve got major guideposts to help plot your way through, while still discovering all sorts of things the author snuck in, like foreshadowing which you couldn’t appreciate without knowing WHAT they were foreshadowing. Travel the road often enough, and it becomes a familiar neighborhood, and then finally, like visiting with an old friend. You know exactly what to expect, how they’ll sound, the kind of mood they’ll be in, and you’ll reminisce about old times and just be perfectly comfortable with each other. It’s as valuable in a good read as it is in a good friendship. I’m always glad to find somebody else who understands the beauty of re-reading.

And now, if you’ll excuse me, Lymond is calling me.

• Tags: Reading • Permalink:Reading Habits // 5 Comments »

  Here’s my gift from my KRSecret Pal. Note how nicely everything is color-coordinated, even the notecard–not to mention coordinating nicely with my new, blue bathroom which is good, because this is [almost] all bathroom stuff. In “Peppamint” scent, there’s an exfoliating bar of soap and bath salts, a little pumice/scrubbing brush, and a gel eye mask, as well as a tin of green tea. Isn’t that lovely? (I am, of course, assuming that she’s trying to spoil me, not implying that I don’t bathe regularly, which I assure you, I do.) (And, I’m teasing, too, in case that’s not obvious–that typing tone of voice thing, you know.) I like the peppermint scent, too.,

Pal, I have a question, though–under the paper band with the eye mask is a . . . something or other. White, kind of foamy cloth, in a long rectangle . . . what is that? (grin) It was attached to the eye mask, but there’s nothing on the label or anywhere I can see that says what it actually is and I don’t have a clue.

What other exciting things do I have to tell you? I’ve started my next lace project for Summer of Lace–this time, a rectangular stole. I’m knitting it in copper-colored Zephyr yarn, in a lace pattern I picked out of Barbara Walker’s first collection. When it’s a bit longer and looks like more than just a copper ruffle on a needle, I’ll post pictures for you.

I’ve got about 3″ or so of my Union Square Market Pullover done, as well. I grant you that it doesn’t sound like a lot, but considering where I was last week at this time . . . no complaints!

In fact, I’m at that awkward stage where all my current knitting projects–all three of them–are all pretty much right at the beginning. Bad planning on my part, since it’s always nicer to have things at the beginning, middle, and end stages so as to make one feel one’s making progress, as well as to make good blog-fodder. (Which, said aloud the other evening, made my mother comment that it sounds like an insult . . . “That’s just blogfodder!” in much the same tone you might say “That’s hogwash!” if, you know, you lived on a farm in the 1930s.)

Spinning-wise, though, I’m halfway through my orange roving and surprisingly fit half of it onto one bobbin. (Yes, that really surprised me.) It also surprised me that I got that much done in just over a week. The cop of pretty teal singles on my spindle is starting to get larger–there’s still room to spin, but it’s getting close, I think, to when I’m going to need to wind it off and start fresh with an empty bobbin.

All in all, this makes me think that Rhinebeck might be coming at just about the right time for me. If I keep spinning at this rate, I’ll run out of fiber stashed in my closet right around October and, gosh, will just have to buy more! Cassie has been extolling the wonders of raw fleece, but I don’t know . . . I don’t think I have a good enough handle on combing yet (read that as “still none at all”) and anyway, am reluctant to bring stinky fleeces into the house. I have no way of knowing whether the wool I got last winter was clean or filthy in relation to most fleeces, but washing it was not something I particularly enjoyed. I mean, how could I know?? Maybe if I can buy already-washed fleece? I think Chappy was the only one in the family who adored the smell of that wool (grin).

• Tags: General, Knitting/Spinning • Permalink:Bathing Beauty // 4 Comments »

Here’s what I read in July; 29 books this month.

 

1. ALTA by Mercedes Lackey (434 p)
2. SANCTUARY by Mercedes Lackey (306 p)—Numbers 2 & 3 in this unique little fantasy trilogy. Imagine dragonriders in an Egypt at war . . . I frankly liked the first two better than the last, but think this was pretty enjoyable.
3. HARRY POTTER AND THE GOBLET OF FIRE by JK Rowling (734 p)
4. HARRY POTTER AND THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX  by JK Rowling (870 p)
5. HARRY POTTER AND THE HALF-BLOOD PRINCE by JK Rowling (652 p)—the three most recent of this series which I don’t think really requires much explanation. I enjoyed the most recent and am already anxious for book #7 to see how it all comes out.
6. BLUE CASTLE by LM Montgomery (218 p). Light, fluffy little book by the author of “Anne of Green Gables.” Valancy has felt stifled her entire life, and when she’s diagnosed with a fatal heart ailment, decides to do what she wants for a change, to the shock and horror of her staid, stick-in-the-mud family. Sweet confection, not much substance.

7. MEMORY-KEEPER’S DAUGHTER by Kim Edwards (401 p). An interesting book. In the midst of a snowstorm, delivered by their father, two twins are born—but when the daughter is born with Down’s Syndrome, the father decides to send her to a home and tell his wife that she died. The nurse, however, decides to raise the baby as her own daughter. Fascinating idea, and a story which I liked quite a bit but didn’t love. Definitely good.
8. MINDFUL KNITTING by Tara Jon Manning (125 p). Basically, a knitter’s book of meditation techniques, and how to relax with your knitting.
9. CRYSTAL SOLDIER by Sharon Lee and Steve Miller (321 p). A precursor to their “Liaden” series—a series of “space opera” sci-fi, about the best I’ve read. Thoroughly enjoyable series, though this isn’t my favorite—this world is too different than the one I’m used to, but I am looking forward to the second one coming out, so I’ll know the rest of Jela and Cantra’s story.

10. GIANT’S HOUSE by Elizabeth McCracken (290 p). Disappointing. I’d heard such great things about this book, I wanted to love it, and instead I was bored, bored, bored. I don’t even remember the characters’ names (that’s how much of an impression they made). Told from the point of view of the small-town librarian, this tells the story of a young man suffering from elephantosis—he keeps growing and growing  . . . and little by little, despite the age difference, she falls in love with him, and he with her because she’s the only person who accepts him for who he is, not just a tall body. Blah blah blah. Hugely disappointed.
11. FOLK SHAWLS by Cheryl Oberle (141 p). Basically a book of knitting patterns for shawls, ones that come from all over the world, and with a history to go with each one, each style.
12. SHOOT THE MOON by Billie Letts (333 p). Nowhere near as good as her two previous books, this read more like something by John Grisham. Mark shows up in a small, souther town, having just learned that he was adopted and hoping to find his birth-mother . . . completely unaware that she had been murdered on the night he disappeared from town, however many years ago. It turns into a mystery of his trying to figure out who killed his mother, and proving he is who he says he is, and all in all, pretty predictable for a far-fetched kind of story. Not awful, but her others are better.
13. VANISH WITH THE ROSE by Barbara Michaels (414 p). After that last one, I was in the mood for a fluffy kind of mystery, and so pulled this old Barbara Michaels from the closet—Diana is trying to track down her brother, not heard from in over a year—by impersonating an expert in old roses for the couple who own the estate where he was last heard from.
14. TEMPEST TOST by Robertson Davies (242 p)
15. LEAVEN OF MALICE by Robertson Davies (220 p) Wanting something a little more interesting than “fluff,” I took these two books of my favorite Davies trilogy off the shelf. Witty, unique, challenging without being hard, fun, erudite . . . I find I have to be in just the right kind of mood for his books, but that when I am, they’re great.
16. PILOT’S CHOICE by Sharon Lee and Steve Miller (296 p)
17. SCOUT’S PROGRESS by Sharon Lee and Steve Miller (309 p) My two favorite Liaden books, because, apparently, reading that one earlier in the month was just enough to whet my appetite.
18. TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD by Harper Lee (281 p). My niece was reading this for school and I decided to keep her company because it’s been a few years since I read this. Still amazing. It’s all good. I wish she’d written more, but then, how would she have topped this?
19. GREEN JOURNEY by Jon Hassler (292 p)
20. DEAR JAMES by Jon Hassler (422 p). Two of his “Staggerford” books. They are wonderful, but I’ve never been able to bring myself to re-read the original (frankly, the author is lucky I gave him another chance after that ending), but they’re nice books, remind me a bit of Jan Karon’s Mitford series in feel. Good author.
21. FIRST BOOK OF MODERN LACE KNITTING by Marianne Kinzel (90 p). Exactly what it sounds like. Lace knitting.
22. GROW HAIR FAST by Riquette Hofstein (174 p). Well, sometimes you want your hair to grow faster . . .
23. CRYSTAL SINGER by Anne McCaffrey (311 p)
24. KILLASHANDRA by Anne McCaffrey (275 p)
25. CRYSTAL LINE by Anne McCaffrey (294 p). Not my favorite series of hers, but I haven’t read it in over a decade, so . . . a sci-fi series. Killashandra is a failed music student who signs up to be a “crystal singer” on the planet of Ballybran—a dangerous job. In the second book (my favorite of the series—where she acts most human), she meets Lars Dahl, and then the third takes place decades later when her memory is faulty at best . . .

26. SABRIEL by Garth Nix (491 p)
27. LIRAEL by Garth Nix (702 p)
28. ABHORSEN by Garth Nix (518 p). Recommended by a friend, a fantasy trilogy that I thought was a decent story, but not really my cup of tea—a little too dark for me—but they kept my interest and I did read all of them, so they certainly weren’t all bad! I liked Lirael and her Disreputable Dog best of all the characters, which probably isn’t surprising, considering what a dog lover I am (grin)
29. HAND WOOL COMBING AND SPINNING by Peter Teal (175 p). A very technical, painstaking look at taking raw wool fleece and combing it into something spinnable, and then spinning a true, worsted yarn with it. Meticulously detailed.

• Tags: Monthly Reading List, Reading • Permalink:Reading List from July // 7 Comments »

So, there I was, sitting at my desk on a Monday morning, helping one co-worker recover from his post-vacation-overload while dealing with another co-worker’s vacation-absense, and generally feeling very Monday-ish when, guess what was delivered to my desk?

A box from my KR Secret Pal!

How refreshing to get something other than, you know, work.

I’ll post pictures later, when I get home, but what a nice way to start the week! Thanks, Pal!

• Tags: Uncategorized • Permalink:Monday Surprise // Add Comment »