Well, we’re all tired here! So tired, I don’t even have a photo for you.

First, we had Tiffany here for the weekend (as I told you yesterday). She’s not, of course, as much work as when she was, say, four, but golly, trying to be entertaining all the time is tough, you know? (And yes, Tiffany, I’m joking.)

Seriously, it was fun having her here this weekend. I made pancakes for breakfast this morning, helped her move onto the next stage of the sweater she’s knitting, and even showed her a little drop-spindling. (Her request, I swear.) She got the hang of it really quickly!

I also put together a pot of homemade tomato sauce and some meatballs because we had company for dinner tonight. Something that happens so very rarely, it’s almost unheard of. (Family dinners don’t count, of course.) Two of my parents oldest friends came for supper, and Mom decided on spaghetti and meatballs as being perfect because of the group’s dietary requirements. I kind of took the sauce part out of her hands (because–sorry–but my homemade sauce is better), but I figure that just gave her more time to visit with her friends, right?

Chappy is beyond exhausted. Remember how I said that he was so tired from visiting my sister’s house last week that I don’t think he even remembered Monday happening at all? Because he slept so soundly through it? My guess is that that’s going to happen again tomorrow. He’s TIRED!

And, well, so am I–even if not as tired. But, tired enough, so … g’night!

Tags: Family, Friends by --Deb
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Well, two weeks later, and wowzer, this shawl is just flying, huh? (grin)

There is actually some progress, though. In the last two nights, I’ve been able to get TWO rows knitted, rather than just one. I’m only on row 16, but still, that does mean that I should make slightly faster progress, right?

We’ve had my niece visiting this weekend. She came yesterday after she got off from work, and today, she, Mom, and Dad all went into the city to walk around a little, and see Grand Central Station (just because). They all got tired sooner than expected, though, and were home at about 2:30–while my cake was still in the oven, but before I had a chance to sort through some of the books in my library, like I was going to. Oh well! It was nice having the house to myself (and Chappy) for a while.

It’s also possible that I bought some new sneakers today. A pair of classic, black, low-rise Chuck Taylors. I blame this purchase on Wendy because she pointed out that they make CLEAR ones (available here), that are perfect for showing off handmade socks. I didn’t feel like spending $60, but it got me thinking that I really could use some new sneakers–and that footwear options during the summer, since I hate wearing sandals and finding shoes that are cool for hot days is well nigh impossible. So, I went to DSW this morning and, well, these kind of followed me home.

Oh, and the clear ones? Rumor has it that they glow in the dark. And, imagine my surprise at the store when I saw sequined Chuck Taylors. I had no idea. Lots of colors, yes, that I knew, but sequins? Glitter? It’s like a whole, new world…

Speaking of which, did you know that there are LOTS of different options for ways of lacing your shoes? I swear, I had no idea there were so many. For that matter, how about 17 possible options for tying your shoes? Including one you can do one-handed, and this very cool one that is about the fastest thing I’ve ever seen. (Well, you know, as regards shoe laces.)

This is strange–we had a 1-second power outage this morning. Literally, one or two seconds, and then it was back. But it knocked out clocks and things that can usually hold out for a brief outage without needing to be reset. But, whatever. The odd thing is that my television, which is a TV/VCR combo (1) doesn’t have the little light next to the power button any more and (2) the VCR keeps making noises like it’s trying to play the tape in there … even though the power is off. Weird! (And, of course, the time on my DVD recorder is an hour off, like it always is, and has been for years now.) At least the television still works, though, right?

Now, if only I could figure out why my Flickr plug-in keeps crashing Firefox every time I try to add a picture…

How is it possible that May is just about over already??

Tags: General by --Deb
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As a spinner, I particularly liked how well plied this was (grin).

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How did it get to be Wednesday already?

This is the one, big problem with having Monday off as part of a national holiday. As nice as the long weekend is (and it is), it always throws me off for the rest of the week. And, to make it worse, by the time we reach Friday, it never feels like we had a long weekend at all. This is the main reason why I prefer to take Fridays off from work, rather than Mondays. Then, it feels like I’m just having a normal week and then, boom. Surprise! I can start the weekend a day early!

But, seriously, I’m not complaining about having had an extra day off this week. That would be silly! I’m just explaining why I’m having trouble wrapping my head around the fact that, despite the fact that my head firmly believes it is, it is not in fact Tuesday.

I’m not actually sure that Chappy even noticed that it was a long weekend. He was so exhausted on Monday from all that partying on Sunday, he slept. And splept. And splept. And slept. Then he woke up, ate some supper, and slept some more. I think the whole day just went by in a blur for him.

This was unusual because it wasn’t exactly a high-energy kind of day. We drove to my sister’s and then basically sat in the living room, smiling fondly at Caitlyn, ate some food, and then drove home. No walks. No romps in the yard. No extreme heat. Just … no napping. The fact that that visit wore Chappy out so much was surprising! Tired the next day, sure. We all were. But that level of exhaustion? Unusual. Though on Tuesday (or the day that claimed to be Tuesday, otherwise known as yesterday), he was his normal self.

Otherwise? Yes, I DID start a swatch for a new project, but I’ve got two things holding me back from diving in.

One, (this is a shocker, I know), I can’t get gauge. I found yarn in my stash that, if anything, claims to have a smaller gauge than the pattern, but, well, this is me. The yarn claims I can get 22 stitches over 4″ on size 6 needles. The pattern calls for 20 stitches. I’m getting 18. On size 4 needles. I’m wondering if there would be a noticeable difference between the wooden size 4s I swatched on (which have the faintest amount of friction) and an Addi Turbo size 3, which are smaller, but slick. I’d try an Addi Lace needle, but don’t have them in size 3.

The other reason? Except for having socks in my purse, I’m a fairly monogamous knitter. Right now, I’ve got the lace shawl (that looks like a ruffle), that’s taking me forever to get started. (I’ve been working on it for a week and a half and just finished row 10 last night.) I’ve also got Chappy’s little blanket, made with leftover yarn from my afghan–this is handy because it’s a no-thinking project and nicely fills in my hour of knitting time when I’ve finished that one row of lace I’m getting done per night.

If I throw a third project into the mix, I’m afraid I’ll end up ignoring one or both of these other projects. I really shouldn’t start a new one until I’m at least halfway done with the lace. Or maybe a third. But, you know, a big chunk of “completion” should be done before I risk distracting myself.

So, what’s the problem? You’re wondering why, with all these road blocks, would I even be considering starting something new.

Well, that’s because I saw this sweater in the bookstore last week. The Gray Cardigan from the new Mother-Daughter Knits by Sally Melville and her daughter Caddy Melville Ledbetter (review here). I flipped through this at the bookstore last weekend just because I wanted an idea of what was in the book … and I liked it so much, I ended up buying it. (Well, going home and buying it from Amazon, because that was cheaper.)

When the book arrived and I took a really good look at it? That’s when I started browsing yarn websites, looking for yarn, because I really, really wanted to make this sweater!

Then I realized that I had some Jo Sharp DK Wool in my stash in this great gray that’s got just a hint of blue to it. (The color’s called “Ink.”) Yardage-wise, I should have just enough, assuming I can get the correct gauge. Which means that my bizarrely relaxed knitting style is the only thing standing in the way of my starting this gorgeous cardigan.

Well, that, and the fact that I don’t want to get distracted from working on my lace…

Which reminds me, I don’t think I ever told you what pattern that was, did I? Maplewing by Anne Hanson. Such a pretty pattern! I admit that I rather miss the plain, “purl-back” rows–this is the first lace shawl I’ve ever done that didn’t have those, and I think that’s part of what’s slowing me down–all concentration, all the time gets tiring.

Tags: General by --Deb
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Would you believe this little girl is 20 years old today? Yep, that’s my niece when she was teeny tiny.

She’s much bigger now–seen here with her little cousin Kaitlyn.

And with Chappy.

My birthday-boy nephew was there, of course, too.

Can I just say how much I LOVE watching the interaction between my niece and nephew and their cousin? It’s really not that long ago that they were that size themselves, you know? Or, well, it seems that way to me!

Naturally, there was birthday cake.

Chappy had a nice time, but really, I think he missed his nap time. He’s done practically nothing BUT sleep since we got home.

Oh. And it’s possible that I may have knitted a swatch tonight…

Tags: Family by --Deb
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I promised you a picture of my (cough) shawl (cough).

I DID tell you that it didn’t look like much. But, seriously, that’s 6 nights worth of knitting right there. I’m getting through one–yes, ONE–row a night. Which means it should take me about 40 nights to get through the hem.

Um, yeah. This could take a while!

So, what exciting plans do YOU have this weekend?

I can help you pass the time, if you like … here are some fun links.

Did you see this great graduation commencement speech by Ellen Degeneres? It’s 9 minutes long and well worth the watch.

A look at the Fall 2009 television schedule. How surprising. There’s still nothing on that I really want to watch. Big Bang Theory. The Mentalist. Grey’s Anatomy, I suppose. House, I guess … but, honestly, nothing I’m excited about until March, when Chuck comes back!

These poor dogs … that’s a torturous way to give a dog a bath!

Want to send somebody a Twitter birthday cake?

Is this not the cutest camera bag ever? (For a DSLR, anyway.)

Some of the reasons I truly love Martha’s Vineyard.

Did YOU know that actor and Tony winner John Glover can knit?

And, because you know I can’t give you all these links without including at least ONE about Chuck, here’s an interesting article about WHY it got renewed.

Tags: General by --Deb
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I just realized that it’s been over a week since I showed any Chappy pictures–that’s shameful, really. (Especially since those were even just a cameo appearance in my Katy-tribute.)

The problem, really, is that we haven’t been doing that many interesting things together–just the usual, hanging out kinds of things. A walk around the block each day (which is usually followed by a lot of sneezing because the allergens seem unusually bad this year). But otherwise, he naps or plays with a toy while I sit at the computer or knit or read or whatever it is I’m doing. We’re together, but not doing anything particularly exciting.

Of course, it doesn’t help that he does most of his napping with his face pointed away from me. You know, so I can’t sneak in any extra pictures that way.

He’s happy now, though, because his family is home where they belong. My niece graduated from community college tonight and that’s where the proud grandparents were (as they should have been). I didn’t go, but we’ll be seeing everyone on Sunday for the annual birthday celebration, and I’ll pass on my congratulations in person then. In the meantime, though, congratulations, Tiffany!

She’ll be heading off to Montclair State in the fall for her Junior year, and will be rooming with a friend she made in her art classes. (A girl who, coincidentally, is the granddaughter of my 6th grade teacher. What are the odds?)

Oh, and I have been working on my new shawl, but wow, it’s going slowly! First, it started with over 500 stitches, so the rows are huge, and second, it takes a little time to get the “flow” going, to get the pattern established. The first few rows of lace always feel like they’re going on blind faith. But, because this shawl is worked from the bottom up, it’s taking a loooong time to get those first rows done. As in, it’s taking me about 40 minutes to knit one row. Which means I’m getting one row done a night. I cast on for this on Saturday, and am still only on row 5. Yeah. This is going to take a while (grin).

I’ll take a picture for you sometime soon, I promise. Even if it DOES just look like a green ruffle at this point.

Tags: Family, General, Martha's Vineyard, Reading by --Deb
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Two big things about today.

One, it’s my nephew’s birthday–seen here in his debut, in his sister’s lap.

Sixteen years ago today.

(Of course, he’s bigger now.) Happy birthday, Tyler!

You would think that would make me feel old.

But, you know what’s making me feel even older?

The fact that twenty years ago today I graduated from college.

How is it possible that it’s two, full decades since I’ve been out of school?  A score of years! Almost half my lifetime.

You’ll note that, even then, I was carrying a camera with me. (But also note the straight hair. That’s when I used to own a hair dryer.)

To celebrate, I wore my school ring today. I had wanted something that would look different than your standard ring, and this is the one I settled on. It says “DREW” “BA 89.” The funny part? I ordered it my freshman year, so I could have the pleasure of wearing it while I was actually IN college. I went to the desk to order it, and the woman started filling out the paperwork. “Graduation date?” And she started to write in 1986. I corrected her and said it should be 1989, and she said, “Optimistic, aren’t you?

Yep. That’s me!

Tags: General by --Deb
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So, one of the things I did this weekend was clean my closets. I didn’t necessarily get rid of a lot of stuff, mind you, but everything is neat. For the first time in months, all the sweaters in my closet are folded. I pulled things out, tried them on, sorted through shoes and old purses.

And then I tackled my knitting and spinning supplies. All the spinning gear is on the left side of this closet, and mostly neat, except that the roving was getting kind of rowdy, so I sorted and admired all of that and got it back under control. Ditto with all the yarn in the right side of the closet.

But the real problem?

(Well, I know, we should all have these kinds of problems.) I’m seriously running out of space for knitting books. I’ve got one bookcase filled with them. Overflowing, really. And look at the piles of books I’ve had perched on top for the last several months! That’s a lot of books.

Seriously. I’m not complaining in the least, and the fact that a good number of these new books are review copies I was graciously given for Knitting Scholar is a source of endless joy and wonder so far as I’m concerned. It just makes for a challenging book-storage situation. If only I didn’t have such a hard, hard time giving books away!

Although, really, I sense a contest of some kind coming up…

I finished the first half of my “Thinking of Autumn” roving last night. And I must have been thinking of it way too hard because it was cold this morning! 43 degrees when I went downstairs, and it felt colder, despite the sunny skies. (Well, sunny once the sun came up.) Then, it went up into the 70s this afternoon.

These are the kinds of days that are really hard to dress for. The very necessary wool sweater and socks this morning were rather warm by this afternoon–though I wore a short-sleeved shirt under the sweater, which allowed me to take it off at work. (Definitely a plus.)

Now, you already know that I’m thrilled that my favorite show is coming back–the bad news is that it won’t be back on until MARCH, after the Olympics, and that it will be right back in the challenging time-slot it’s in right now. Which means that all of you who are devoted to Dancing with the Stars, House, The Big Bang Theory, or Gossip Girl (or whatever else ends up in that time slot in 10  months) are probably still going to make the same viewing decisions then that you’re making now, which isn’t going to help Chuck’s ratings. Which stinks, because this show really deserves more eyes watching it!

Interesting tidbits from NBC today, though–that it was the fans that really saved this show, but also that they’re “partnering” with Subway going forward because Subway was so thrilled by the fans’ response to their in-show advertising. I mean, hey, if it brings the show back, I don’t care if they have Sarah working at a Subway, and am grateful to the advertisers for making sure the show comes back at all. But there’s a tiny part of me that misses the simpler time when basic things like tv shows and sports stadiums didn’t need corporate sponsors’ names plastered on them to make ends meet.

That said, thank you, Subway! And some links for any of you who may be marginally as Chuck-obsessed as I am: A great post at Zachary-Levi.net about what this successful campaign could mean for fan support of other shows in the future. (And, seriously, I give huge amounts of credit to the Chuck fans for being so darn creative in their drive to save this show–buying Subway sandwiches, donating to the American Heart Association–truly creative. Love that.) The NY Times about how Subway’s sponsorship is saving the show. Another one from Hitfix, with this line that I love, “Chuck has done yeoman’s work in a brutal Monday 8 p.m. timeslot opposite hits including “Dancing with the Stars,” “House” and CBS’ “Big Bang Theory” and “How I Met Your Mother.” And, last but not least, Alan Sepinwall’s post-renewal interview with Chris Fedak (one of the minds behind Chuck), and his talk with Ben Silverman.

What’s that? You thought I said I wasn’t going to talk about Chuck any more? Well, I didn’t say I was going to stop obsessing on Chuck TODAY. But you’ll be relieved to know that my obsession levels are dropping. I didn’t watch a single episode yesterday, and there were whole hours today when I didn’t think of the show at all! Knowing that it’s coming back … however far off that distant day may be … takes a lot of the pressure off (grin).

Tags: General by --Deb
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There she is, graciously accepting all the compliments, basking in the sun, and chatting with my last knitting project.

Really, this lace IS awfully pretty.

Remember last month, when I posted about the SaveChuck! centerpiece Mom made for dinner, the night we all had $5 Footlongs from Subway?

Well, we’ve kept it as sort of a talisman, and as of this morning, Chuck has a smile on his face, because (thank God), the show has been renewed for at least 13 episodes next season. Whew!

I’m sure all of you are as relieved as I am, if only because now I’ll stop talking about it so much. The question now is when it will actually be ON–rumor has it Friday at 8:00, but we’ll find out tomorrow.

Some celebratory Chuck links: Alan Sepinwall. Televisionary. Maureen Ryan.  Give Me My Remote. TVBTN. TV Guide. Michael Ausiello. Zap2It. (Isn’t it nice that all these television professionals are as happy about this as I am?)

I should probably warn you that, when we get closer to the new season starting, I’ll probably start pestering you to watch again. I might even go so far as to have a CONTEST to give away some free yarn or books to people who watch the season premiere … because, an hour’s worth of great entertainment PLUS the possibility of yarny goodness. Who wouldn’t be interested in that??

Now, my eyes are tired and have been complaining pretty much all day, and I still have things I need to do on the computer, so I’m going to go take my shower, do a little knitting, and get my eyes away from computer screens for a couple hours so that I can hopefully get that stuff done later on before bed. Wish me luck. Tired eyes just make all the rest of me feel tired, too (grin).

Tags: General by --Deb
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Yep, my Fountain Pen Shawl is done. Isn’t it pretty?

This is Susan‘s pattern from the IK Spring 2009 issue.

I made it with the MVFF Cormo that came from my Spring 2008 share, that Jessica dyed for me in MVFF colors, and that I spun myself.

Tags: Finished Knitting, Knitting/Spinning by --Deb
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Bonus points if you remember where the post title comes from.

Oh, and for scale?

This is a tablecloth my grandmother (Mom’s Mom) crocheted years and years ago–well before I was born. It still amazes me. I can crochet, and I would be able to do something like this out of yarn, but crocheting in tiny lace-sized stitches with tiny lace crochet hooks is something I’ve never had the patience for. I find it too hard to see where I need to insert the crochet hook. (Knitting lace is so much easier.)

But, kudos to Grandma for doing this! We even have two of them, even if they are sadly stained after all these years–not white any more!

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Tags: Eye-Candy Friday by --Deb
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I HAVE been doing things other than thinking about Katy.

Like, you know, spinning. This is about 2 oz of the “Thinking of Fall” roving I showed you the other day. I’m using my Woolee Winder because 3 of my 4 regular Majacraft bobbins already have singles on them. (One of these days I really need to get at least two more of those plastic bobbins.)

I’ve been extending my music collection, too. And yes, I started with music from Chuck. (Can you possibly be surprised?) What other show would POSSIBLY have got me listening to music as varied as from The Cure, Twisted Sister, Bon Iver, Brittney Spears, Huey Lewis, Band of Horses, Cake, Chromeo, The Thermals, New Pornographers, and Duran Duran? (I keep TELLING you they have a great, varied soundtrack. Here’s the list for Season 1, and Season 2.) It’s embarrassing, really, how few of the bands I’ve actually heard of.r

But the one I’m loving right now? The Puppini Sisters. Have you heard of them? Their first cd is mostly traditional kinds of 1940s music–fantastic tight harmony, catchy rhythm, what you’d expect. Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy, Sisters, Jeepers Creepers. Songs like that … but they also do a version of “I Will Survive” which is almost as catchy as “Walk Like an Egyptian” from their second CD. I’ve been a huge fan of the Andrews Sisters since, well, forever, and this trio reminds me of them, if they were singing right now. Love.

Also, I actually opened up the Word doc for my half-finished novel. The one that I’ve been stuck on for years. As in, the last time I saved the document was January 2007, and it had been languishing for a while at that point, too. (Poor thing.) But, you know, reading through what I’ve got … about 50,000 words … I LIKE it. I still love-love-love the idea, and I’m happy with what I’ve got. Should I really let lack of knowledge about adoption regulations in 1912 prevent me from finishing this as it deserves to be finished?

No, I don’t think so, either!

Tags: General by --Deb
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Not only did I talk and think about Katy a lot yesterday, I spent a little time with her, too.

When our two miniature dachshunds died, years and years ago, we had them cremated and buried in the yard, with pink dogwood trees to mark the spots. (Pink because they were both girls, of course.) But when Katy died, I didn’t know if I might be moving out, or staying, or what, and wanted to be sure that I could keep her with me.

(Does this seem morbid to you? It’s not like I weep over her ashes every day, but it does kind of make me feel good knowing where they are. I can’t remember the last time I visited my grandparents at the cemetary, either, but it’s good to know that I could.)

So, she’s spent the last 8 years in the crate she arrived in (when I had her flown up from North Carolina as a puppy). Yesterday, I pulled it out of the closet for the first time in about 6 years and let her sit in the sun for a bit.

It’s really rather cozy, though, in her crate. Not only are her ashes in there, but she’s got her collar, her leash, her favorite toys. You know, to keep her from getting bored (and because I couldn’t bear to get rid of them).

There’s actually more than one collar–I’ve got the one she came with in there–bright pink and so relatively tiny that it just barely fits over Chappy’s nose.

There’s also this.

We had one of these picture frames for Jilly. It’s got room for a photo on one side, and a clay pawprint on the other. We got one for Jilly for her last Christmas, did her pawprints in January, and lost her in February 1999. (Just in the nick of time, in other words.) And her picture is lovingly displayed in our family room.

For Katy, though, I had bought another pawprint kit for her, but hadn’t gotten around to doing it yet. First I’d waited for her paws to grow up to full-size. Also, of course, I thought I had plenty of time. I never dreamed I’d lose her at 20-months old.

And while I was mourning her loss at the vet’s office, that was one of the things I mentioned.

Do you want to know how wonderful my vet was?

He told me that, if I could get him that kit quickly enough, he would see what he could do. And look what he did! Not only did he get two pawprints for me, but he imprinted her name into the clay, as well as a couple flowers. Is that not an above-and-beyond kind of thing to do, or what?

The irony is that he was the one vet of the group that Katy had never particularly liked–she used to grumble under her breath at him, but be sweet as pie to all the others. I don’t care what she thought, he definitely gets Good Vet Points in my book.

The sad part, though, is that I can’t bring myself to display this pawprint. I’m incredibly grateful to have it, but it’s kind of a sad memento. So I let Katy keep it for me, in her crate.

For the record, Chappy was definitely interested in this stuff yesterday. He sniffed at her picture, licked her bone (and seemed to think it smelled much more interesting than the one HE has). Perked his ears up when I accidentally squeaked her toy. And generally acted very respectful the whole time. He even, according to Mom, spent some time sitting next to the closet door where we keep Katy’s crate–an unusual spot for him, but maybe he wanted to spend some time with his sister.

That doesn’t mean he didn’t get bored, though. After all, it’s the dog that’s HERE that needs the tummy rubs, right?

He’s got a point!

Tags: Katy, Jilly, Muppy by --Deb
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May 12th is always a sober day for me, because it’s the anniversary of the day I lost Katy.

(Go back and read that old post if you don’t know the story. I’ll wait.)

Now, I know. If I hadn’t lost her 8 years ago today, I wouldn’t have had Chappy, and that’s unthinkable. And not just to me. Susan said on Ravelry last night that Harry was looking at her pictures and said, “Deb looks naked without Chappy.” A world without Chappy in it would be a darker place.

But–that’s true of Katy, too. There is no scenario that would have had both her and Chappy in my life at the same time. We’ve always been a one-dog household, and if I hadn’t lost her, I would never have even looked at the litter of puppies that Chappy came from. He would have gone to some other owner and we never would have known what we were missing.

Even if some bizarre miracle had occurred and I’d ended up with both of them, well, chances are Katy would have bossed him around. She was a protective dog and while we’d worked hard on her little possessive/temper issues (which had improved so much in her last few months they weren’t problems any more), still … I’m sure as a big sister, they would have flared up from time to time. (Because, aren’t little brothers supposed to be pests?) She wouldn’t have minded sharing her toys, but she would not have liked sharing her Mom. You know. Me.

You know that I would never give up Chappy. You know that I can’t even imagine my life without him.

But still.

Today, I miss Katy.

It’s interesting to think of all the things I do now that would be new to her. Blogging, for example. I didn’t even discover blogs to read until she’d been gone for three years, forget about writing my own.

She never saw me do real knitting, either. I’d pretty much put a hold on all my chewable, craft-type activities when she came into the house. I haven’t embroidered anything in over a decade, and have only worked on one (unfinished) quilt. I had started to think about knitting again, though, and had a trial knitting bag sitting in the family room for a while–a ball of yarn, a pair of needles, and a few rows of garter stitch–just to see what she would do.

And, spinning? I don’t know what she would have thought of spinning! Or of sheep and goats, though she would probably have been pretty calm about them, as long as they weren’t interested in her food. She saw me sit in front of the computer a lot–though I mostly wrote fiction, then. She saw me take lots of pictures, though not as many as I take now that I have blogs to feed. She helped me bake and cook, just like Chappy does, and kept me company while I read. She always greeted me at the door, and liked nothing better to nap with her chin or paw touching my leg. (Unlike Chappy who really prefers to sleep NOT touching anyone else.)

She was the first dog we ever took on vacation–to Martha’s Vineyard, of course–and she absolutely adored riding in the car. She never got carsick, although she had an unfortunate habit of swallowing things that weren’t digestible. She was also the reason I got my first camcorder, and my first digital camera. And why I still have clickers scattered around the house. I’m a huge fan of clicker-training, and can’t begin to tell you how grateful I am that I discovered a training method that meant I spent all of the 18 months I had her focusing on all the nice, beautiful, cute, GOOD things she did, rather than looking for and punishing the mistakes. I can count on one hand the number of times I actually got angry with her.

My life is certainly different without her. I’ve created an entire online identity around her little brother, and who knows what I would have been doing now if her tennis ball hadn’t bounced off that tree eight years ago. I can’t believe she would have been 10 years old this year. I can’t believe she’s been gone for eight of them. The world itself has changed so drastically. It was happier, easier back before 9/11, and the most difficult thing I had to worry about was teaching Katy not to growl at her grandparents on Monday mornings. Then, I lost her, 9/11 happened, the economy pretty much disappeared … and I got Chappy–my sunny, breezy, happy, easy little boy.

Nothing has been the same since I lost her.

But then, she changed  my life by coming into it in the first place. It would be a sadder, emptier place if she had never arrived at all.

Tags: Family, Katy, Jilly, Muppy by --Deb
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Isn’t it pretty? My sister brought my Mom a basket of geraniums for Mother’s Day.

Just what the kitchen table needed!

I finished spinning all of my MVFF-color roving into singles last night. Obviously I mis-judged when I portioned this out because there’s no way I’m going to fit all of those singles onto one, normal-sized bobbin, so I’m going to have to ply them with my plying bobbin.

Which is fine except that that means plying on my Little Gem and not on my Lendrum like I did with the rest of this, because for whatever reason, the plying head on my Lendrum gets really, really, really tiring to treadle. It’s kind of shame, since about the only thing I use my Lendrum FOR these days is for plying, but, there you go. Of course, I’ll need to change the brake band knob on the Gem because the normal, wooden one is too big for the plying head, but that’s okay!

In the meantime, I’m taking a short break from MVFF fiber to spin this–4 ounces of Jessica/Zarzuela’s fiber that I bought last Fall. I figured it was the best way to send her good, healing vibes on her surgery today.

I haven’t gotten much spun yet, but I started!

(And, really, this IS kind of similar to the roving I was adoring/admiring at the Shearing on Saturday. That had a little more orange than red, and less green, but still–similar. And, interestingly, this roving is called “Thinking of Fall,” and that one was called “Think Spring!”)

Oh, and the MVFF got its first lamb of the year today–making the Lambcam a true lamb-cam! Meet Alabama, a half-Cormo, half-Southdown, BIG baby! (Odd breeding combination? Maybe, but his Mom and Dad had their own ideas.)

How can you resist that face?

Tags: General by --Deb
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The Martha’s Vineyard/Hudson Valley Fiber Farm Spring Shearing Day.

Wow. (And, as always, click to see bigger pictures.)

Yes, there was shearing today.

The sheep waiting to be sheared today hung out in the trailer to keep them dry (and unfed) while they waited their turns.

The audience was absolutely entranced. (And, I think, being quietly grateful that that’s not the way they need to get their own hair cut.)

There were lots of people and a ton of food.

I mean, look at all those cars … and that was just looking in one direction! One thing’s for sure–Susan and Patrick definitely know how to throw a party.

There were also a lot of dirty kids … and I don’t just mean the four-legged ones (grin).

Let’s not forget the yarny-goodness in the store. You know, The Store, otherwise known as the porch?

We definitely got lucky with the weather, considering the thunderstorms that went through last night. And considering how wet it was this morning–and how much it looked like it really did plan on raining today.

I just have to thank Susan, Patrick and Erin for inviting us all. Their farm is just gorgeous, too–trees, water, flowers, scenic spots to sit or admire. They even brought in a Sax ensemble from the local high school (thanks, Harry!) to entertain us all–and they were darn good, too!

Of course, since it ended up NOT raining, I’m kind of feeling badly now about not bringing Chappy along … though, of course, there technically weren’t any dogs allowed. He was NOT happy when we left the house without him this morning! Mom and I got to hang out with Jessica, though, and it was really good to see her–go wish her luck for her surgery on Monday, huh?

Oh, yeah, I gave Susan the rest of her birthday surprise, too.

And, um, it’s possible that a pound and a half of Rambouillet followed me home. (Don’t know how that happened!)

Tags: General by --Deb
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Some random links for you, just to keep you entertained.

Did you know that Disney has “Star Wars Weekends?” Well, take a look at these fantastic posters they use behind the scenes to gear up the staff. They’re adorable and clever!

Did you see Franklin’s knitting-themed limericks today?

Go check out these fabulous portraits of the MV Fiber Farm–such great photos!

Do you have a dog who’s afraid of thunder? Some tips from Patricia McConnell, one of my very favorite “dog people.”

As a writer and a word-lover, I LOVE this … you can sponsor your very own word. How cool is that?

Here’s an interesting juxtaposition … a comparison between Pres. Obama and Spock. (Yes, the Vulcan.) Eerily accurate, really.

Love these–a series of video clips all in the key of B-flat, to be played together or separately, in any combination. Fun!

Have you not yet taken my advice and tried watching CHUCK? Well, you’re in luck–all of season one is available at the WB.com. (Although,

Not only that, for today, you can watch all 10 of the available episodes on hulu.com commercial-free, courtesy of McDonalds.

Now, tomorrow? Mom and I are going up to the MVFF/HVFF Shearing Festival which, because of the weather, may turn out to be a NON-Shearing festival, but hey, we’re planning on having fun anyway!

Tags: General by --Deb
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Tags: Eye-Candy Friday by --Deb
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