Ooh, wasn’t the sky pretty this morning! I stopped the car at an intersection just to take these pictures–to the amusement of a man walking his dog–and no, there weren’t any other cars in sight. Do you see the little piece of rainbow in there? Right in the middle? So, so pretty!

And then, when I was leaving work, I saw these… Am I the only one who sees the southwest of Great Britain? Cornwall down at the bottom, and Wales coming off the side?

Um, only me, huh? Well, that’s okay–it’s still pretty!

So, thank you for your kind words for Knitting Scholar. The tricky part, at this point? (You know, other than going through my 150 or so books to write reviews for them?) The tricky part is getting my hands on the books that I DON’T OWN. I might be able to find some at the library, but you know as well as I do that their knitting section isn’t usually as, um, current as one would like. And it’s not like I can hang out at a yarn shop with my camera, taking pictures of their books! I honestly think this is going to be the hardest part (grin).

Today’s review, by the way? Knit So Fine by Lisa R. Myers, Laura Grutzeck, and Carol Sulcoski

The self-professed aim for this book, as stated by the authors: “Skinny yarns get a really bad rap. Knitters have somehow gotten the idea that they’re slow, fussy, or old-fashioned. We’re here to prove otherwise. Thin yarns offer a world of possibilities; in fact, they can do anything a thick yarn can do and more–and often, they do it better.” Well! As a fan of not-chunky yarns myself, this is definitely an objective I can get behind!

• Tags: Sky, knitting book review • Permalink:Looking Up // 5 Comments »

Just a little Saturday Sky for you. It’s really been such a pretty week.

We went to the park this morning and Chappy saw some deer–including one fawn who bounded across our path, about 4 feet in front of us. (Chappy wanted to know why it wasn’t on a leash.) I did try to get a photo, but by the time I had my camera out of my purse, it and its 3 friends were too far away in the woods.

Otherwise, I’ve done stuff on the computer today, went to town to get my haircut, and then made the mistake of getting a fresh mozzarella, tomato, basil sandwich for supper. I only ate half, and it tasted just fine, but the cheese was a poor decision–especially coming so quickly after leaving the hair salon with all its chemicals and scents–and so I’ve been having some asthma issues tonight. Not as bad as the other night when I colored my hair, but … the sandwich was a mistake. I’ll let Dad eat the second half for lunch tomorrow.

It did taste good, though!

• Tags: General, Sky • Permalink:Oh, Deer // 3 Comments »

Okay, first, how’s this for a beautiful sky this morning on the way to work?

Second, does anybody else use the Levenger “Circa” system for note-taking? I don’t want to sound like a commercial, or anything, but I just wanted to mention how much fun I’m having with them lately. I started with their “Simply Irresistable” kit, which it is because while it costs $40, it comes with a $40 gift card–which basically means that it pays for itself.

So, really, it makes it tempting to try. I’m now the proud owner of a full-size notebook I probably won’t use that often, a medium notebook which I will, and a couple compact ones that will fit in my purse (I hope). Not to mention a couple “PDAs” which use 3×5″ cards instead of paper. I love that ultra-organized feeling of being able to move pages from book to book, and being able to mix-and-match all sorts of page types, sizes, dividers, and all that. I got a great deal on my compact notebooks, too, because I actually bought the 2008 Agendas, which are going for a steal right now (since 2008 is more than half over). I tore out half the pages and am still left with diary pages I can use for the next six months AND I’ve got the cover and the rings that would have cost me double that just for the cover and rings. So now I feel thrifty AND well organized.

Hmm. Well, maybe not THAT thrifty. My new computer came yesterday. It is, you’ll remember, a HP Pavilion DV6871US and I’m typing on it right now. There are bunches of things to get used to, not least of which is the new operating system, the dreaded Windows Vista–which, so far, seems to be okay, but it’s still NEW and comes with a built-in adjustment period. And I’m not crazy about the keyboard, whose keys have a “deeper” touch than most laptop keyboards. It’s making my fingers tired, because I have to press each key further than I’m used to, but I’ll adapt, I guess. Although I really LIKE a nice, crisp feel to a keyboard, so I’m kind of disappointed about that. It has a built-in incline, though, which I think is kind of sweet. The computer seems quite nice, the 15.4″ screen is nice and bright, and we’re getting along pretty well, even if the touchpad gets kind of warm (and I really hate it when that happens). It even has a webcam, although I can’t imagine when I’d ever use THAT! (grin) But, still, I’ve been spending a lot of time since it came yesterday installing things, copying things, moving things, figuring out things…

…And not just on my new computer, but also on my old one which now belongs to Mom–which was the whole point of my getting a new computer now anyway.  She, in turn, is having a hard time adjusting to HER new computer because not only is it different, but it also doesn’t run AOL software. Mom loves using the AOL software, but that computer has always hated it. I told her that Firefox is wonderful and figured out how to copy all her Favorite Places/Bookmarks over, but she’s still not happy about the change. Getting-to-be resigned, perhaps, because she doesn’t have a choice, but rather overwhelmed.

Chappy’s just glad that HE doesn’t have a computer. (And, so am I. He’s the only one in the family that doesn’t ask me computer questions.) He does, however, want to remind everyone that his birthday party invitation is still open. Come join us! All you have to do is leave a comment–well, a story–in the comments on that blog post. (Because, no, we’re not expecting any of you to trek to the house.) We’d love to have you!

So, now, I’d really like to get away from computer screens for a while–all day at work plus a ridiculous amount of my non-work time the last two days has been in front of one (or more) computers at a time. The nice thing? My office is closed tomorrow and Friday for Fourth of July–a holiday for which we always get 4-day weekends, unless the fourth is on a Wednesday. So I can rest my weary eyes by letting them sleep late tomorrow–something I’m very much looking forward to!

• Tags: General, Sky • Permalink:Filing // 4 Comments »

Okay, I love Kyle Chandler as much as the next girl, but this is a little overkill, don’t you think? I pre-ordered Season One of Early Edition and it came today. Three copies of it! Which is two more than I really need. I’ve contacted Amazon to see if it’s possible to return them without having to pay the postage back, but still–I’m excited to see it. I loved this show when it was on the air–about a man who gets tomorrow’s newspaper today and runs around trying to prevent catastrophes before they happen. What’s not to love? And, did I mention it has Kyle Chandler, aka the coach from Friday Night Lights? (Does anybody else remember him from the short-lived Homefront?)

We’ve had wacky weather today–on again/off again clouds and sun, which made for some very interesting clouds. I took this on my way home at lunch. In fact, I pulled over into a school parking lot and got out of the car in the rain to take the picture, just because it was so cool–the blue sky and sunshine, the wisps of dark cloud. Just … nifty.

And then, I stopped on the way home after work to take these, because I’ve never seen cloud formations quite like them. Heaps of vertical clouds (not to mention one very mushroom-ish cloud, but since the news hasn’t mentioned anything catastrophic in NY this afternoon, I’m pretty sure this is just Mother Nature playing tricks.)

Of course, to take those pictures, I had to stop right in front of the farm stand up the road, at which point the big, “Fresh Strawberries” sign that’s been calling me all week dragged me into the store.

So, yes, I bought some strawberries. And some blueberries, while I was at it. And a couple peaches, too. (Hey, I LIKE fruit.)

They are now cleaned and sliced in a bowl in the refrigerator. (It would have been rude to use their parking lot and not buy something, right?)

Oh, and about my keyboard? I’m pretty much stuck with what’s ON the laptop because I don’t have a desk to work at–just a bedtray. I sit on the floor while I’m using it and slide it out of the way when I’m not, but there is nowhere to put an extra keyboard. Even if I wanted to prop it in my lap, where would I keep it when I wasn’t using it?

There were a lot of tributes to George Carlin yesterday, and I spent really too much time browsing among his sketches on YouTube last night. I admit that I prefer the ones with little-to-no bad language, but the man was brilliant at observation. And so, instead of sending you to yet another video of him being hilarious (which he was), I’m sending you, instead, to Psychology Today to read his last in-depth interview. I found the link at Copyblogger (a great blog about writing, by the way), and the interview is amazing because the man was so darn smart. High-school dropout or not, he had a flair for words and expressing himself in such a way as to make you think about thinks you hadn’t noticed. (His routine on “stuff” is one of my favorites. So, okay, I lied–ONE link to a hilarious video.)

One last link, just because I find it interesting–I don’t have kids (except Chappy), but this look at the way parenting has changed since I was a kid was fascinating. Of course, since I don’t have kids, it’s easy for me to say!

Oh, and the knitting? Yawwwwwwn….

• Tags: General, Sky • Permalink:Can You Have Too Much? // 10 Comments »

I got stopped in traffic on my way home today. Kind of unusual, really, since most of my drive is along quiet little back roads. But while I was sitting there, I realized that, duh, look out the window! Because I was stopped right on the bridge that goes over Indian Lake. I’ve shown you a picture of this lake before, mind you, but not from this angle. Look at that view, huh? Even to the hawk (?) coasting above the water.

The most amazing part? Look at the sky. It’s actually blue, not that hazy, imitation blue it’s been for the last four days. I took this picture at lunch–it’s the first time in weeks, or even months, that I saw interesting-enough clouds worth taking their picture. This one is kind of cool, I think, because even though I rolled down the car window, it almost looks like I took it through a smeary window because that one cloud is almost transparent.

Hey, did you know the new Knitty is up?

Speaking of Knitty, I do have something on my knitting needles right now, but I’m pretty much thinking of it as a stop-gap kind of project. The Everlasting Bagstopper string bag from last year’s Knitty. I pulled out some Hempathy (Ravelry link) from my stash and figured it was worth a try. It’s something, anyway, and certainly better than a totally empty knitting bag.

Oh, and you’ll be glad to hear that Chappy got a walk today. Yes, we’re all relieved (grin). He said it was almost worth having to suffer through those huge thunderstorms last night.

• Tags: General, Knitting/Spinning, Sky • Permalink:Indian Lake Revisited // 5 Comments »

How great a picture is this, huh? When I took Chappy out for his, um, personal needs yesterday morning, the sun was just up, and our inn was so close to the water, I couldn’t resist walking up the street to take a look. I just caught this shot, of him sniffing into the sea breeze, ears flying in the wind. Love it!

I like this one, too.

Anyway, yes, yesterday was our last morning on the island. We got up, had breakfast, and then went over to Espresso Love so Mom could get some blueberry scones for her stash. Then, we drove to Oak Bluffs so Chappy could get some biscuits from Good Dog Goods, and then we went to Vineyard Haven to stop at the Chamber of Commerce to see Susan one last time before we left. We walked around town for a bit, but were at the Steamship Authority by 12:00 and then hung out until our 1:15 ferry, grabbing a quick snack for lunch at the Black Dog. (I had a multi-grain roll with butter and a ginger cookie, Mom had a corn muffin and an oatmeal raisin cookie.)

The drive home was pretty uneventful. We stopped in Mystic for about 20 minutes, as is our custom–it’s a nice spot for stretching our legs, and it’s dog-friendly. (In fact, their store of cat and dog-inspired stuff is one of the few places I regularly find things for Boykin Spaniels.) Other than that, we stopped at a McDonalds on I-95 for a quick supper and to feed the car, slowed down for a bit due to an accident at the far, western end of CT, but were home about 7:20. JUST before the sun completely went down, and I was very grateful that I’d brought my Chappy baseball cap with me, because the sun was so low and in my eyes for the last hour or two that sunglasses just would not have been enough.

Today has been pretty low-key. Slept until 8:00 in my own bed, gave Chappy a much-needed bath. Took my car to a car-wash for an also much-needed bath. Stopped at a grocery store. Stopped at the mechanic for a new lightbulb for my brake light. Put away my laundry. Took Chappy for a walk. Made spaghetti and meatballs for supper. (Okay, I did the meatballs and sauce, Mom cooked the spaghetti.)

If you haven’t noticed, I updated the posts from the last few days so that they now include pictures! So, if you’re interested, please go back and take a look. There’s the post from the day we travelled up to MV, the post ALL about the MV Fiber Festival, and then the post from Sunday when Mom and I got to meet the itty-bitty baby kids. Additionally, there are lots and lots of pictures over on Flickr–here’s my page of pictures, but there’s also a Flickr group for festival pictures. Not only that, I got to add Susan to my “Bloggers I’ve Met” list–something she was almost as excited about as I was!

Also, about the MV Fiber Festival, not only was there the article in the Wall Street Journal, but there was a follow-up on their blog. AND a really lovely article in the Vineyard Gazette. Not to mention a 15-minute video that Patrick’s son Harry put together. For bunches of reasons, Susan is very, very excited and happy. She’s added a bunch of stuff to her Etsy page, too.

Now, you’re probably wondering what I came home with, right?

Really, I restrained myself VERY well.

As a shareholder, I was gifted a tote bag, a t-shirt, and a pin, but then I bought an extra bag, anyway. They’re light and sturdy and meant to be used for things like groceries, so I figured–what with today being Earth Day, and all–I’d get an extra.

I bought a set of the postcards, too, which may have been unnecessarily frivolous, but Susan takes such nice pictures and those little sheepy/goaty faces are just too cute.

And, of course, some yarn. The two skeins of worsted-weight yarn on the right (in colors Parsley and Saffron) are for me, though I’m not sure what I’ll do with them yet. They’re both great colors, though, so how could I resist? The two skeins of Chili sock yarn are still, technically, Susan’s, but I get to knit it up anyway, since I told her I would make her a pair of socks. I mean, you all know how, um, speedy I am about knitting socks, but hey, it’s practically summer out there … there’s no rush!

And, that’s it! I’m proudly sporting my MV Fiber Farm pin on my purse. I’m thinking about turning it into a refrigerator magnet, instead of risking losing it on my purse. And then, I am trying to think of the perfect project for that yarn. Would you believe that–other than socks–I didn’t do any knitting all weekend? I never touched my cardigan (except for showing it to Susan), and my spinning wheel never made it out of the bag. I had totally planned to spend some of Sunday afternoon sitting on that porch with my spinning wheel but it really was too cold. The only other stuff I bought this weekend was basically food. Biscuits from Chappy’s favorite bakery and some coffee beans from my favorite cafe. Oh, and a Black Dog frisbee that Chappy got very enthusiastic about in the Black Dog store the other day. And, well, doesn’t a kid deserve a toy on vacation once in a while?

• Tags: Chappy, Knitting/Spinning, Martha's Vineyard, Sky • Permalink:MV Leftovers // 6 Comments »

It’s not exactly the best photo in terms of composition, since the only one you can see clearly is Risa, but see what Chappy and I did today? That’s Risa, Alex, and Kat all on our couch … and waaaaay in the background, in the far corner, is Chappy.

That would make you think that he was trying to avoid the four-year-old-inspired chaos, but in fact, he was thrilled to take part. His tail barely stopped wagging the whole time, except for when fatigue set in and he took a nap. The one who was wary was Alex, who didn’t want much to do with Chappy at all. He sort of petted him a couple times, but mostly, he was happier when his Mom was between him and Chappy. I thought he’d gotten over that, but I guess not.

The new surprise was that Katherine wanted to sit with ME. That’s definitely never happened before. Not only did she share my chair with me for a while (taking Chappy’s spot), I actually got hugs and kisses. AND got to help her on with her coat! Wow. That’s huge. We all entertained my parents, too–Dad even came down and watched the end of Stuart Little with us because he was so enjoying the sounds of laughter coming from the family room. (We’ll just gloss over the part where Kat fell on a walk and needed to come back to the house for band-aids. Or when Alex’s feelings got hurt because she wanted to play with me instead of him at the end of the visit, so that he sat on the driveway and sulked. And we’ll hope it wasn’t my banana bread that disagreed with Risa. But, um, really, why dwell on the bad parts?)

Now that he’s had a chance to sit down and relax, Chappy is exhausted. (For some reason, spending the day with two four-year-olds has that affect.) I don’t think there’s any question but that he’s going to sleep well tonight.

(Oh, and this is the dirty look he gave me for taking that picture. “Mom! I’m trying to SLEEP!”)

I finished my blue merino singles last night. And still, got to tell you, I love, love, love this color. Though, honestly, it photographs differently every time (grin). Also, yes, one bobbin was evenly-wound by my woolee winder, and one was wound by me manually moving the yarn guide on my my wheel’s flyer. So, I’m a little obsessive, what’s wrong with that?

I have a Saturday Sky picture for you, too, though technically I took it yesterday morning on my drive to work. Actually, the sky on Thursday on my way to work was pretty stunning, too, but I had a police officer right behind me and felt kind of funny pulling over just to take a picture, so I sort of skipped that one.

Oh, and Kat’s new earrings are adorable–little, sparkly pink flowers. And now, I need to clean kisses off the television. The twins got all involved in the scene where Prince Phillip woke up Sleeping Beauty….

• Tags: Friends, General, Knitting/Spinning, Sky • Permalink:Silly Saturday // 5 Comments »

Okay, blue sky with just a couple inches of new, fresh snow. So, gotta go!

The tricky part, of course, will be explaining to Chappy why I’m leaving without taking him into the backyard to romp, first…. Oh well!

• Tags: Sky, Weather • Permalink:Blue Sky // 2 Comments »

It was pretty and sunny for most of the day, today, but as I drove home, you could see the clouds coming in. I pulled over into the local elementary school’s parking lot to take the picture–you can still see the mound of snow left from plowing the parking lot last week.

Anyway, the weather forecast right now is:

Tonight: Periods of snow. Low around 24. South wind between 8 and 10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%. Total nighttime snow accumulation of 3 to 7 inches possible.

Um, I don’t want to complain, or anything, but, see, Jessica has been trying to have a housewarming/spinning party for a couple of weeks now. It was cancelled two weeks ago because HWJF had the flu and she didn’t want to risk passing it on to the rest of us–which was much appreciated. I think, though, that the problem was that she kept referring to March 1st as her “Snow Date,” and Mother Nature took her seriously. Just, er hopefully not TOO seriously. I’ve got that pretty blue roving on the wheel, and everything . . . and you know how Jessica loves blue!

This photo, by the way, is one I took this on our walk last weekend, when the snow was fresh, just minutes after our ice-covered little maple tree. These are our neighbor’s stairs, but there was something very nifty about the play of shadow…. Couldn’t help myself!

Fellow spinners, did you see Abby’s post about spinning sock yarn?

Okay, got to go finish my book list for the month. Happy Leap Day, everyone!

• Tags: Friends, General, Knitting/Spinning, Sky, Weather • Permalink:Whether Weather // 5 Comments »

Beautiful, sunny, blue sky, with sparkly trees to boot.

Homemade coffee cake for tomorrow’s breakfast.

Homemade Grandma Cake just because we needed something to celebrate.

A sad, battered tree. (Stupid Woodpeckers.)

…Which is the right-half of this “V”. And, luckily, is the half that leans away from the house.

A well-romped backyard. (The “double” tree at the very left edge of the picture is the one being attacked.)

Chappy, examining his yard, and deciding whether it still looks rompable. (Because, you understand, once it gets crusty on top, it’s not nearly so pleasant to the paw!)

A chipmunk, venturing out into the snow.

A manuscript, ready to go out into the cold, cruel world. (Send it good luck vibes, please!)

The taxes I didn’t get around to doing because I was too busy baking things in the kitchen.

And, an FO for Mom! She’s been working on this counted cross-stitch since April 2006.

• Tags: Baking, Family, General, Sky • Permalink:Serene Sunday // 12 Comments »

Because, who can complain about some beautiful Sky for some Eye Candy? I just love the way the clouds look textured–as if they were spackled onto the blue. You can almost see the strokes …

Brought to you by:

• Tags: Eye-Candy Friday, Sky • Permalink:Spackle // 11 Comments »

Finally, some Saturday Sky. It’s been a while! I took these on the way to work on Friday morning. It’s really hard to see, but you can just make out the morning sparkle on the trees as the sun hits them. We had some snow and freezing rain last night, and before it melted off the trees, it was just enough to make them shine.

• Tags: General, Sky • Permalink:Finally, Sky // 3 Comments »

I’ve been working on distracting myself today.

I did some filing. Cleaned the kitchen. Shipped a package. Balanced my checkbook. Took Chappy for a walk.

I even cleaned silver.

Why? Because my Dad is at the hospital with a kidney stone. He and Mom left around 9:00 this morning. (It’s 2:30 now.) Of course, they had to detour to get there, since there’s a parade through the center of town today. But they’ve been there all day. Rumor has it that, since the cat-scan showed a small kidney stone, they’ll be sending him home, but they need to hear it from the actual doctor, and apparently there was some other emergency, so . . . they’re still waiting.

And my poor mother left the house without even a magazine. Or breakfast.

The silver-cleaning, though? My new favorite use of basic chemistry. Basically, you take hot water (boiling, really), add salt and baking soda, and then pour it into a pan lined with aluminum foil. Through some kind of chemical reaction, this removes the sulfur from the silver-sulfide (aka tarnish), leaving the silver, well, silver again. (Click on that link above for the science behind it.) We don’t have a ton of silver, mind you, but, this is something I’ve wanted to try for a while, and this seemed like a good time to do it. It worked better on some pieces than others–and there were a couple that would benefit from some old-fashioned silver polish–but look at this? This is a little silver-plated creamer that I picked up at a garage sale. It’s been sitting, getting darker and darker, for years. I had to do it in two stages because it was too tall to stay underwater in the baking pan I was doing this in . . . You can clearly see the water line–tarnish/no tarnish.

One thing I thought was interesting? As the silver got cleaner, the foil in the pan got more tarnished looking. Which makes sense, really, if you’re chemically pulling the sulfer from the silver to the aluminum, but . . . This was a fun (and distracting) little science experiment! Here, if you’re interested are some other tips. (Like, for example, that Washing Soda apparently works even better than regular baking soda . . . I should have read that sooner!)

Oh, and here’s some Saturday Sky for you. It’s a beautiful day out there–which makes this trip to the hospital for Dad that much more painful. It was really a perfect late-November day for golfing . . .

Okay . . . gotta go find something else to do . . . Hmmm . . . I haven’t written out my Christmas cards yet . . .

Edited to Add: Mom and Dad got back from the hospital at about 3:30. Dad’s feeling fine–well, tired, but no longer in pain–and they’ve both had something to eat and things are more or less back to normal. Phew!

• Tags: Family, General, Sky • Permalink:Distractions // 25 Comments »

A sunset like this is just one other thing to be thankful for.

I hope everyone has a safe journey, if you’re travelling, and a good day tomorrow–whether you’re celebrating Thanksgiving or not. It doesn’t matter if you’re eating turkey, but it shouldn’t require a national holiday for you to take a moment to be thankful for the good things in your life.

Be well, be blessed, be joyful.
Happy Thanksgiving.

• Tags: Sky • Permalink:Thankful. // 7 Comments »

  Despite a foggy start to the morning, it turned out to be a beautiful day today. Here’s my Saturday Sky picture for you–the same view I’ve shown you the last four weeks or so, now. Not too many leaves left up there!

Mom and I went out to the bookstore this morning–I haven’t been able to find any books I want to read, lately. I’ve tried all sorts of different kinds of books–different genres, simple ones, complicated ones, new ones, old favorites . . . and yet, nothing has really been “clicking.” So we started our morning at the bookstore . . . but, no luck. I couldn’t find anything there I wanted, either. This is unusual for me, but not completely unheard of. I usually leave bookstores with an armful of books or nothing at all. Unfortunately, today was a “nothing” day at the bookstore.

  Afterward, though, we went to Starbucks, where I had a really-very-tasty pumpkin spice doughnut and, at last, my first Peppermint Mocha of the year. I told you about that the other day, remember?

  Here. Take a closer look. Yummmmm…..

  After Starbucks, we walked over to Ann Taylor Loft, where I did remarkably well. I don’t usually buy this many things at once, mind you, but not only were all of these except the jacket on sale, they were having a sale on the sale items. And I’ve been wanting some decent autumn skirts to wear. I wore a lot of skirts this summer, but all my cooler-weather skirts seem to be straight, pencil skirts, and not nearly as much fun to wear. And when you find $80 skirts on sale for $20-25, well . . . is there really any choice? (grin) They’ll all go great with the boots in my closet, too….

But, here’s where we get into the reason for my post title . . .

When I got home with my stuff an took them all out of the bag . . . I couldn’t find the little sweater/shell/tank top I’d bought to go under the jacket. Now, when I paid, I had asked to keep the hangers, and the sales girl had put the sweater–which didn’t have a hanger–on the counter, while she hung all the other items to put in one of those full-length hanger-bags. Well, when I got home, I didn’t see the sweater. I figured she’d missed that while hanging the other things and I’d missed it because when she mentioned that sale items were an additional 30% off, I ran back to get one of the skirts I’d originally decided against. So, I drove back to the store (luckily it’s really close), and told the story, showed my receipt, and left with a sweater.

  But, um, take a closer look at that jacket . . . It’s really hard to tell, especially since the colors are so close, but . . . er . . . well . . . she put the sweater on the hanger UNDER the jacket. (Believe it or not, they’re both actually green . . . not that you’d know that from the picture!) I didn’t even see it until around 4:00 when I was cutting off the tags and thought, “Gee, I thought that jacket was more than that . . . hey . . . wait a minute!” and then there was this swooping, embarrassed feeling in the pit of my stomach….

  So now I have two. One which I paid for, and one which I inadvertantly, well, stole. Oops! I think I’ll be heading over to Ann Taylor Loft again tomorrow . . .

Uh-oh. My “D” key is sticking again. If there are any missing in this post, I apologize for the lack of proof-reading skills . . . it’s really very frustrating!

And, I don’t think my dinner agreed with me . . . I hope that ricotta cheese wasn’t bad . . . I thought confession was supposed to make you feel better . . . !

• Tags: General, Sky • Permalink:Shoplifting for Dummies // 20 Comments »

It’s official–the November Calendar challenge/meme is now officially a contest. I still haven’t had a chance to go through my stash to figure out the prize, but yes, there will be one. And can I just say how much I’m enjoying this?? Cheryl certainly has a good picture this month. And the Knitter’s calendar has cropped up four times so far, too, which isn’t the least bit surprising, really…. This is FUN!

  Chappy looked like this when Mom and I left the house this morning. I don’t think he was particularly happy about our going out without him. (I mean, he’s not smiling at all, and he’s practically got his arms folded. Not a happy camper!) We explained that Starbucks doesn’t allow dogs, but . . . he wasn’t happy about it.

  I stopped at my favorite spot to take a Saturday Sky picture for you. And then, yes, Mom and I went to Starbucks and sat and talked, well, mostly about me. Well, what Mom was doing 40 years ago (on bedrest, but that her Dad took her to a doctor’s appointment “this” morning where the doctor told her that if the baby was born before December, it would only have about an 80% chance to live . . . which means that two days from now, when she went into labor, she was frantic–for more reasons than one!)

  After all that reminiscing, we felt it was only right that we go visit Susan. I told you about her last year, but for those of you who weren’t around, she was my identical twin, but she didn’t stick around for very long. This is the cemetary where she’s buried, but we don’t know exactly where–she doesn’t have a gravestone (my Dad had other things on his mind at the time, understandably!), and her plot number doesn’t appear on any of the gravestone maps . . . I tell myself that she probably wants it that way. Anyway, I know she’s over along that wall somewhere . . .

  I had a real surprise when we got home though . . . flowers! I literally cannot remember the last time someone sent me flowers. These are from my aunt, which is an even greater surprise. They are really lovely.

  I even took another Sky picture with them . . .

  Which reminded me . . . I’d done a picture from our front yard two weeks in a row . . . what would THAT picture look like today?

  I also baked a cake. And worked my way through my huge pile of magazines. (It was all of two magazines as of yesterday morning, but it exploded to six in the last 24 hours.)

Still no sign of my Gem . . . maybe Monday!

• Tags: Baking, Family, General, Sky • Permalink:Definitely a Contest // 15 Comments »

What a difference a week makes!

Last week, the view from our front yard looked like this. This week? Well, not only have a lot of leaves finished changing, but with the storm that’s been blowing through since last night, a lot of them are now on the ground.

I have to say, though, that I’m totally in love with the way colors look when the sky is dark gray and yet the sun is shining. In fact, Liz and I were discussing that in the car last weekend and both agree on this point. The colors just have this extra-saturated, vibrant feel to them against the gray . . . or it’s something about the way the light filters past the clouds.

I don’t actually know. I just know that it’s a situation that always makes me sit up and take notice. And smile. It always makes me smile, too. When I was in high school, it would always put me in a good mood, fleeting though the concurrence of events would be, I’d always lift up my head and look around with pleasure, appreciating how different all the familiar things looked. Gray really just sets off so many colors, and throw in some bright sun . . . beautiful.

So, I was sitting in the dining room window with Chappy (our favorite spot, you’ll remember) pretty much all day, while we watched the wind blow and the rain pour. There was a brief, twenty minutes or so of sun around lunch, but then . . . more rain. But then, I glanced up from my second book of the day and . . . had to run outside with my camera to get these shots.

This picture I had taken about ten minutes earlier, out of my bedroom window. Through the screen, nonetheless, which adds a kind of interesting, pixelated-blur effect. The light back there was pretty interesting, too, even though–naturally–it’s not possible to photograph the gusts of wind that were tossing the trees around.

It’s been an interesting weather day. And the wind part is not over yet, and is supposed to continue through tomorrow. I love windy days. Not dangerously windy, like hurricanes or blizzards. And if it’s particularly cold, I’d just as soon be inside and away from that knife-edge that wind turns into on bitter days. But a brisk, windy day? The air is alive. Playful or purposeful. Flirting with leaves, playing with hair, tossing Chappy’s ears back. Maybe it’s just the extra ions–one of the reasons sea and mountain air are considered so healthy is because the air is in constant motion–but whatever the cause, I love windy days. You know, just so long as a tree doesn’t fall on my house or something! (Knock wood.)

But . . . yeah . . . interesting weather. Can I just tell you how glad I am that this wet, windy, changeable combination has been this weekend rather than last weekend?? That would have been one, wet blogger meet-up!

Now, other than the weather–always a fascinating topic (grin)–it’s been a fairly uneventful day. Dad is still fighting off a cold. Mom’s stomach was bothering her all day. Chappy’s been napping. Which left me to do what I almost always do on a lazy, weather-bound kind of day. I baked (cupcakes from a mix–shocking but true). And I read. I’m on my third book of the day.

I had every intention of sitting and knitting this afternoon. And spinning. I was definitely going to spin. But . . . that book thing. You know the scene in the second Harry Potter movie where he opens Tom Riddle’s diary and gets sucked inside? (It happens in the book, too, of course, but the movie had such a great visual of that, I’m referencing that instead.) Well, that’s what books do to me ALL the time. I fall into them and can’t get out.

Although, I DID do some spinning for a little while this afternoon. I put a movie into my DVD player and closed the door . . . mostly because, to hear it over the spinning wheel, I need to crank the volume up, and I didn’t want to disturb Dad if he was napping . . . but then Chappy wasn’t happy. He wanted to be downstairs. Or in the hallway. Or somewhere else. He ended up stretched out right in front of the door, trying to will himself through to the other side, and after half an hour or so, I gave up. And went back to my reading!

• Tags: General, Sky • Permalink:What a Difference // 10 Comments »

  Voyeur. A peek into the trunk of my car when Liz and I got back from Rhinebeck Saturday night. (Hey, some of this is hers, you know!)

A closer look? Well, of course! At my stuff, any way. From some great Vendors.

  First stop? As soon as we were in the fairgrounds? At 9:50 in the morning–ten minutes before retail officially opened? We hurried right over to The Fold for some Socks That Rock. I got the Autumn and the Harlotty colorways. Beautiful, and we got in just before the line became immense.

Value. I also bought a bump of fiber in the Carbon colorway which was vastly overpriced. 9.25 ounces for more than what I paid for 11 ounces of already spun STR yarn? Insane. I don’t know what I was thinking, except that I hadn’t noticed the price until she already had my sales slip written up and I didn’t bother to say “Stop” like I should have. Don’t get me wrong, I think it’s gorgeous but . . . that’s ridiculous. If anything, shouldn’t the finished yarn cost more? This purchase is my one regret of the day because, lovely though it is, it simply was not economically worth it. At all. Too late now! Buyer’s remorse, what can I say.

  For example? This lovely, beautiful, autumnal roving? 3/4 of a pound of each of the two colors, for one and a half pounds in total? Same price, within $2, from Spinner’s Hill. And, really, it’s gorgeous. (The colors in person are so much more alive than you see in the photo.) The plan is to spin them separately as singles and then to ply them together.

  Then there are these two, lovely, 50/50 blends of alpaca and merino from the Sheep Shed. This is the same place I got the merino/silk roving I bought myself for my birthday last year. They have beautiful stuff. I bought 8 oz of each of these colors–one a light gray, one a gray-taupe–and the plan is to ply them together, too.

  And, you may see a theme here . . . two more skeins of roving from the Sheep Shed. The multi-colored one is merino, the burgandy/magenta one is corriedale. I bought 8 ounces of each and . . . yes, plan on spinning them separately and then plying them together.

(Oh, and the cost for these two pounds of beautiful fiber? Only $4 more than I paid for the 9.25 oz of STR fiber. I really can’t tell you how much that’s bugging me . . . )

After all this shopping . . . and I won’t even go into how much fleece Liz bought as an act of kindness for her LYS . . . and stops to visit with some of her friends, including the charming Myrtle and Roy from Black Pines Sheep, who have beautiful, rare sheep like Teeswater and Wensleydale. (Liz raves about their fleeces, and judging by the samples of fiber they had, um, yeah. I can see why.) . . .

Anyway, after all the shopping and one short break when we had some apple crisp and saw some kangaroos . . .

And after six and a half hours on our aching feet . . .

And after meeting approximately 7,397 bloggers . . .

And after picking up a little something for an absent friend . . .

After all of this, we piled into the car and headed for home.

We had a gorgeous View crossing the Kingston-Rhinecliff Bridge. (See? Sandy? I even got a Saturday Sky picture for you!) And the sunset on the drive home was gorgeous. Really, the weather the entire day could NOT have been better.

We got home around 7:30 and were both exhausted (though Liz still managed to spin and ply until 11:30 . . . I conked out around 10:15).

Chappy did help revive her, though. They sure do love playing together! In fact, it gets quite Vigorous.

But, of course, this means that my Vacation is now over. I’ve had a great time, though. Not only did I get to spend almost every day with Chappy (and Mom, one of my very best friends), but we got to the park not once, but twice. Went to Liberty State Park and saw (from a distance) the Statue of Liberty). Went antiquing (well, sort of). Finished my bag. Got some goodies in the mail. And, of course, that little outing yesterday.

Boy, it’s going to be hard to go to work tomorrow . . . and I have to go to the dentist, too. It is going to be SUCH a Monday. (grin)

*I came, I saw, I bought.

• Tags: ABC-Along, Friends, Knitting/Spinning, Sky • Permalink:Veni Vidi Visa* // 21 Comments »

I’m writing this Friday afternoon, waiting for Liz to get here. It’s been raining ALL day, but just in the last hour, a cold front went through, the temperature dropped, the wind picked up (a lot) . . . and look what happened. Blue sky up there.I’m post-dating this, to publish on Saturday so those of you not going to Rhinebeck (you’re feeling like a minority at this point, aren’t you?) will have something pretty to look at. Have a great day!

• Tags: Sky • Permalink:Blue Sky // 3 Comments »

First–a Sky picture for you on this Saturday, even though the picture itself was taken several days ago on my way to work. It looked so pretty, though, with the misty valleys and the sun trying to shine through . . . definitely worth stopping the car for.

This morning’s sky, on the other hand, was an unremitting gray. We opted not to take Chappy for a walk in the park, figuring that it was just too cold and blah to make it a pleasant experience. Instead, we three went to my favorite farm to buy some apples (macouns and honeycrisps, my absolute favorites)–along with a couple homestyle donuts and one of their own frozen apple pies, which I popped into the oven as soon as I got home. We also went to the pet store, where I not only bought some stuff for Chappy, but also some aquarium tubing to slide into my tote bag’s facing before I felt it, to prevent those from closing up. I bought the cheap stuff–20 feet of silicon tubing for $1.99–because, well, it’s not like I’m depending on it to keep my (nonexistent) fish alive and healthy, right?

Oh, and we SORT of went to the park. We stopped there primarily to eat our donuts and drink some coffee. We DID take a short stroll along the length of the parking lot (because otherwise it really would have been a cruel tease to the pup, don’t you think), but basically stayed in the car. You can see how very blah the sky was.

Of course, right NOW the sun is out. (Naturally!)

• Tags: Family, General, Sky • Permalink:Saturday // 2 Comments »

Okay, so technically, I took this picture a couple days ago on my way to work, but darn it . . . it’s so darn pretty! And today IS the day for showing Sky!

• Tags: Sky • Permalink:Ah….. // 3 Comments »

I’ve seen this around the blog world lately–Ten Knitterly Things You May Not Know about Me. (Okay, so I may have told you some of this before, but, well….)

1. Technically, I’ve been knitting since I was about, what, 6? None of my family knits (although I’ve taught my niece), but our next-door neighbor did, and she taught me how to knit. Not cast-on. Not purl. Not increase or decrease. Just knit. Obviously, I didn’t actually make much with this except a bunch of rectangular things. (She DID show me how to cast-off, and eventually, I figured out casting-on.) All in all, not an auspicious beginning.
2. When I spent a semester in London in college, in 1987, I was impressed by how much wool there was to buy–even in the department stores like Selfridges–and all for a reasonable price, too. (Or, so far as I can tell.) I was tempted to buy some, but thought it would be a waste of money, since I wouldn’t know what to do with it. But I swore to myself (a la Scarlett O’Hara) that I wouldn’t let that happen again. When I got home in December, I went to the bookstore and found a copy of of Maggie Righetti’s Knitting in Plain English, which I found absolutely wonderful. Not only did she explain things clearly and in an entertaining fashion, but she introduced two concepts which made all the difference. Continental knitting, which was so much easier than the English method I’d been “taught” (kind of) when I was little. Not to mention that you could carry two colors in separate hands for fair isle knitting, which made it well worth the while. And, second, circular knitting. You could do that? Amazing. I was hooked without even doing anything yet.
3. The first sweater I made (and I’m pretty sure I’ve told you this), was a Lopi Icelandic sweater. Circular. Multi-colored. Big enough needles that the whole thing went quickly enough to be encouraging to a beginner. In fact, the entire thing took me 10 days from beginning to end–a record I’ve only beaten once. (If you’re going to break a record, the Olympics is the right time, right?)
4. Thanks to encouraging, mind-broadening authors like Maggie Righetti and Elizabeth Zimmerman back when I’m learning, I’m pretty much willing to try anything, knitting-wise. What is there to be afraid of? It’s just yarn, right . . .
5. Just about everything I’ve learned about knitting has been from books, magazines, or the internet. Not counting the neighbor who got me started (but had no follow-through), I’ve never had a lesson.
6. I have a copy of the original edition of the big Vogue Knitting reference book, which I read through with needles in my hand, trying out different techniques as I went. I didn’t test every lace or cable pattern, but I did try my hand at each new technique as I read about it. So, even before I ever made a cabled sweater, I had at least tried and understood the concept of cables. I’ve got to tell you–it really takes the fear out of trying new things.
7. I love coming up with unexpected color combinations, and rarely ever use the colors called for in a pattern–experimenting in front of a wall of yarn, trying out different yarns with their comrades to see what works and what doesn’t is more than half the fun.
8. For that matter, I rarely use the yarn called for in a pattern, either . . . although I do that more often than I ever use the colors. Again, I like to experiment.
9. My favorite thing to knit? Sweaters. I love making something that I can wear, and I love how the different sections require different expertise–it’s fun and interesting, and not boring.
10. But then, there’s nothing quite like blocking lace, either . . . and a shawl is often easier to toss on than a sweater is . . .

Feel free to join in, if you want to (and haven’t yet). It’s always fun to talk about knitting, right?

Oh–and I can’t take any pictures of knitting tonight since my camera’s batteries are charging, but I DID take this picture this morning. I’d gone out to get the paper, and glanced up just in time to see this pretty cloud, reflecting the pink glory of dawn. Of course, I didn’t have my camera with me to take the picture, but I ran back inside and got it just so I could take the picture. Just for you. Of course, the cloud had moved a bit while I was in the house, but still . . . pretty, huh? I can only imagine how pretty it would have been if I’d gotten up just a little earlier . . .

• Tags: Knitting/Spinning, Sky • Permalink:Ten Knitterly Things // 8 Comments »

Here’s some pretty sky to brighten your day.

I’ll admit, however, that it’s not technically a Saturday Sky, since I took the picture on Friday on my way home at lunch.

But . . . well . . . how could I resist such a pretty picture?

And besides, the forecast for Saturday is cloudy with rain late in the day (and on Sunday)–I figured I was better off getting a good and interesting sky picture while I could.

Note the fresh corn growing, too, and the wooden fence teetering up the hill. This whole section used to be a farm, but they turned part of it into soccer fields (with a gravel parking lot, which is where I was). There’s still a working farm, though, and they import other fresh fruits and vegetables to their farm stand which is JUST over the rise and just out of sight. You’d never guess that just past those trees off to the right there’s a 4-lane highway, huh?

Added: And it’s a good thing I did, too . . . this is what our sky looks like this morning. Gray and wet. It’s raining, earlier than we’d hoped, which means the walk in the park isn’t going to happen. (Although, if Chappy’s problems are seated in allergies, that might not be a bad thing, really, even if disappointing.) Blah.

At least I have a pretty, blue-sky picture to look at, though!

• Tags: General, Sky • Permalink:(Almost) Saturday Sky // 1 Comment »

This is as close to the sky as I’m going to get today. It’s been raining steadily all day and shows no signs of letting up. It’s gray. It’s damp. It’s blah. The only bright spot is that I don’t have to go out in it and that Chappy and I are together.

And, oh yes, it gave me a reason to put on a pair of my handknit wool socks for the first time in months.

Still, I’ve been productive. I’ve got the desserts for tomorrow finished and boiled the potatoes for salad. I cleaned my bathroom and dusted my bedroom. I did some filing. I even found time to finish my book (”Sense and Sensibility”)–which means that so far I’ve finished two books this month . . . already! (grin–I don’t expect that to keep up.)

Now–I’m going to go, make some tea, and sit with Chappy and my new, current book. Maybe pull my knitting out of the bag . . . or not. Maybe get some spinning done . . . but except for making some supper later, I don’t plan on doing any more WORK today.

It’s just too darn gray . . .

• Tags: General, Sky, Weather • Permalink:Rainy Saturday Sky // 3 Comments »

Here’s what our Saturday Sky looked like this morning. It didn’t actually start to rain until around 5:30 tonight, but still. . . kind of gray, huh? And rather humid, though thankfully not a hot day.

Still, Mom, Chappy and I went out this morning. She’s home from Martha’s Vineyard and needed to pick up her vacation pictures. (We’re nothing if not prompt in this family.) So, the three of us headed into town, picked up the pictures, and then hung out at Starbucks for a while. A nice little outing for all of us.

And, see what mom brought us back? A “Chappy” sticker. I don’t want to put it on my car . . . I mean, I would, but I don’t like putting stickers ON the car. The window is okay, but the bumper? I’d rather not. But still, I love it. So for the moment, it’s balancing on my bedroom mirror.

And here’s a look at my spinning wheel. I’m taking a little break from the merino/silk blend I’ve been spinning since November. This is the “Great Balls of Fire” roving that Kathy, my YarnAboard2 pal sent me. Except for that Targhee at Liz’s house last month, this is the first time I’ve spun pure wool in months. I’d forgotten how fluffy it can be. This roving is a treat. Thanks again, Kathy!
Oh, speaking of the Yarn Aboard exchange–my spinning pal, Leah, got her box the other day. It sounds like she liked it!

And, I’ve got one more day to get my last entry in for the Amazing Lace. I’d better get a move on!

• Tags: General, Knitting/Spinning, Martha's Vineyard, Sky • Permalink:Sticky // 3 Comments »