Yep. It finally feels like Spring. Late spring, even, since the temperature was up near 80 today . . . that’s quite a jump considering I was wearing a wool sweater and socks to work just two days ago!

We took advantage, though. Mom, Chappy and I went to the park this morning and walked for about 1.4 miles. I would have kept going, but Mom was getting tired, and Chappy was panting, so we turned back to the car at just about the .7 mile-marker. We did stop for a couple pictures . . . though Chappy was more interested in the stream than in the camera.

Afterward, we stopped at the Whole Foods market and I ran in and picked up some bread, lettuce, tomato, and turkey bacon and when we got home, Mom and I had BLTs. I do love a good BLT sandwich–and so does Mom–so we pick up some turkey bacon every now and again. It doesn’t compare to the “real” stuff, but since Mom can’t eat that anymore, I’m willing to accept a substitute now and again. Chappy’s not picky, either–he was more than happy to eat some. My little boy does love bacon!

This afternoon, all three of us relaxed. I sat and read. Mom watched a movie on TV. Chappy napped.

Ahhh…..

Tags: Chappy, Weather by Deb
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Still not that much to really TALK about . . . knitting, spinning, going to work, reading books . . . all of that usual stuff.

But on the plus side, it finally feels like Spring. Low 70s. Sunny. Blue sky.

How nice was it? Well, Chappy not only got a walk today, he got TWO.

I even brought my camera to take a few pictures of two of the pretty trees in the neighborhood.

The first one? I have no idea what kind of tree this is, but I love that spray of fanning branches reaching upward. It looks lovely when it has leaves, mind you, but I think I like it best when you can see the framework.

The other is a magnolia tree, ready to burst into bloom. There are several magnolia trees in our neighborhood, but this one is right at a corner, so that you practically walk right underneath it . . . making stealing a photograph or three very handy (grin).

And then, look what I got in the mail today! A note and a consolation prize for Chappy’s adorable feet from Laura over at JenLa. Aren’t they cute? One of them was unfortunately broken in transit, but so what? They’re cute anyway, and really, considering Chappy didn’t actually win . . . who cares? Thank you, Laura!

Did you know the Interweave Knits Summer preview is up?

Did you see Indigo Muse’s “Project Hokie Hope” to support the VA Tech’s victim’s families?

I’m even more glad than ever that I cook Chappy’s food myself. I do use a food mix from Sojourner Farms (they make them for dogs and for cats, incidentally), but I trust their ingredients and know exactly what kind of meat and protein and extras my dog is eating. With the news lately, that makes me feel much better.

Please head over and wish Liz a happy birthday tomorrow, huh? She’s even giving out a prize!

And, look what came? My copy of “Teach Yourself Visually: Handspinning.” I’ve only flipped through it so far, but it looks like a fabulous resource–great, clear pictures of everything, lots of details, very thorough. At least, at first glance, you understand, but it doesn’t look like it’s going to be disappointing, you know? It looks great.

Have a good weekend, everyone!

Tags: Friends, General, knitting book review, Sky, Weather by Deb
9 Comments »

Today was too interesting a day.

First, there was the fun commute into work this morning. The center of town was flooded, so I had some tricksy detours to make to get to the office. But that was okay. It’s not badly flooded, though there were a number of roads closed. It just made things interesting.

Then, we were short-handed at work because a number of people either couldn’t get in or had flooded basements they needed to deal with. Which made working today . . . interesting.

Of course, then there was the shooting at Virginia Tech. Oh God. That’s way too much “interest” for any day. I can’t believe it . . . so awful. I’ve never been there myself, but my uncle and my three cousins all went there  . . . decades ago, sure, but still . . . So many people . . . Oh God, oh God, oh God . . . Way too interesting in all too horrific a way.

Then, after supper, just as I was finishing my shower, our house had its own little brown out. Well, we and our next-door neighbors. Some things–like my room, the family room, the refrigerator–had power. While others–like the stove, my parents’ room, the rest of the kitchen–did not. So, for a while, we were all sitting together in the family room, watching television together. The electric company did come, and they mostly fixed things . . . we have most of our power back (and are grateful), but not enough to run our electric range . . . which means that we can’t cook anything for a few days. I think I can make oatmeal in the morning in my cheap little rice cooker, but . . . no tea for a while. Unless I run out tomorrow to buy an electric kettle, which could work . . . But. No cooking? Meals are going to be . . . interesting.

Who knew I’d be longing to hear the pundits talking about Imus and rap music again? The Governor almost killing himself by not wearing his seatbelt? Or the flooding from this massive storm?

Things have been just way too interesting today.

Tags: General, Weather by Deb
12 Comments »

Well, it’s been a wet, wet day here, though less windy and stormy than they had forecast. As in, really no wind at all. But we HAVE gotten about 3 inches of rain. Our backyard is a muddy mess, and Chappy is ever so grateful for his roofed little bathroom.

So, what’s a girl to do on a wet, dreary Sunday like that? Well, my main objective for the day was to do some much-needed cleaning in my room and bathroom . . . Um, well . . . that didn’t happen. Not even a superficial dusting–for which, since that would take all of two and a half minutes, there’s really no excuse.

What I DID do? I spent a lot of time making the house smell yummy . . . I made some pumpernickel bread (thank you King Arthur), baked a “Grandma” cake (our family favorite) and then put a pot roast in the oven for most of the afternoon. The house smells like “Sunday.” Mmmm. (And, no, no pictures–it didn’t seem like a fair thing to do!)

Of course, curling up with a book and a warm puppy is always good on a rainy day, too . . . and I did do some of that. Chappy in particular is still tired from yesterday’s guests . . . you know how exhausting playing host can be . . . especially when it cuts into your napping time. That was worth it, though, because Risa, the twins, Chappy, and I all had a lovely time. Those of us with two legs went to the mall first, had lunch at the food court (thanks, Risa!), did some shopping, played in the meant-for-children play area they’ve put at one end of the mall. Which, I must say, was pretty impressive–a walled-in, well-padded, carpeted-floor, things-to-play-on, safe, clean area for young children to blow off some steam from a busy day of shopping and (hopefully) behaving properly in stores. And, with comfy seating for the adults. That was great, actually. The twins played, and Risa and I knitted.

Afterward, we headed back to my house, where we snacked (Pirate’s Booty–very popular indeed), played . . . mostly with Chappy’s toys . . . watched a movie (Little Mermaid), went for a walk . . . that was great for the first half until Kat decided she was tired and wanted to be carried, which Risa refused to do, so, um, Alex, Chappy and I walked on ahead . . . with Alex holding onto Chappy’s leash . . . talking about sticks and colors and doggy-poop bags (a process about which he was fascinated) and sort of left Risa to deal with the “Stop! Carry me!” That stopped once we were back in sight of the house, though, and since that was the “worst” part of the whole day . . . not too horrible. (Well, for me!)

My parents went out for my Dad’s high school reunion–a dinner cruise around Manhattan that was fully paid for by an anonymous classmate. As in, the whole evening–including an open bar–only cost everyone the cost of getting there. Impressive, huh?? They still don’t know who the benefactor was, although he/she was definitely there (and, I hope, having a really fabulous time). So anyway, since they were out, I invited Risa and the twins to stay for supper . . . especially since the two of them (the little ones, that is) had already expressed an interest in eating something I already had in the house. So, I cooked, and Risa, Alex, and I ate  . . . but Kat completely slept through supper. Risa tried to wake her up, but she was more interested in sleeping than in eating, so . . . I sent the leftovers home in case she wanted them later on.

After they left, Chappy and I watched a movie (Star Wars–haven’t seen that in years) while I worked on my mystery project, which I’m happy to tell you, is coming along nicely. I’ve got some of it blocking right now, but am not done with the actual knitting yet….

Tags: Baking, Friends, General, Weather by Deb
10 Comments »

Well, I wasn’t expecting this today.

We had pouring rain on Thursday, and yesterday, while dry, was cold and cloudy and raw . . . basically, yesterday was February all over again.

And then tomorrow, we’re due to get a monster, killer, Nor’easter . . . though more rain than snow.

Who would have expected the day in between to start out so darn pretty?? It’s down-right “park-able” as we say in this family . . . perfectly nice weather for taking Chappy to the park.

But, since we were expecting something somewhat greyer and colder, more forbidding, Risa and I already made other plans.

Poor Chappy.

Now, for your distraction, take a look at this nifty site. Or click around this one. Or even this clip on YouTube. Because this man does some absolutely amazing woodcarving. I mean, how many people can carve their own (floating) Ferrari? Or furnish an entire house . . . including a basket of knitting . . . out of wood?

Tags: Sky, Weather by Deb
6 Comments »

Hard though it is to believe, Chappy’s had an even better day today than he did yesterday.

This sun is out (kind of, mostly), and he’s had all of us home all day.

And, he got to play in the snow again–with his beloved Flying Squirrel toy–AND didn’t get stuck with a bath afterward because we put his coat on him first.

His coat, incidentally, is an Apache River “dog blanket” and is by far the best winter coat I’ve gotten for any of our dogs. Spandex-lined polar fleece, so it slides on without clinging to his fur, and is still warm. It slides on over his head, and then there’s a “belly band” which goes between the front legs and velcros to the sides for a snug fit. (Or, well, it would be snug fit except that by the time we get to that point, he’s so excited about going outside, he’s spinning in circles, so I just take what I can get.) And, unlike wool, it doesn’t turn into felt when it gets wet and played-in. I love this coat. He only really wears it on bitterly cold days, or for serious playing in the snow, but, well, I’ve never been the least bit tempted to knit him a sweater. There’s no way it could keep him warmer more easily than this!

Really, I could keep posting snowy-Chappy pictures for you . . . I took plenty of them, after all. For a couple of reasons–one, I doubt I’ll have the chance again this winter, and two, he wouldn’t look AT the camera! When I was standing there without my camera, he’d stare right at me, willing me to throw something, anything, for him to chase. But the minute I’d take my mitten off to reach into my pocket for my camera? He’d either look away to where he thought I’d throw it for him (as if!), or stare at my other hand holding the mitten . . . It took a lot of tries before I got one where he was mostly looking AT me.

Luckily, the sky was more than willing to cooperate, so here’s my Saturday Sky picture for you.

Of course, all of this has left me exhausted. I guess I don’t have the snowball-stamina I used to have. Either that, or the additional effort of cleaning off my car wore me out. We ended up with about 6-8 inches of snow with a fine crust on the top. I am so grateful for my Sno Brum. Trying to break through that crust and then sweep the snow off sideways is just too rough on my shoulder, but the snow broom is perfect–it’s a foam rectangle that won’t damage the car, so I could beat at the crust to break it into pieces and then just push everything away. I’ve had this for over ten years now and wouldn’t want to be without it.

I know, I’m sounding like an info-mercial, but I mean it! They’ve even added a telescoping handle which has to be handy if you drive those big SUVs. Oh, and while I’m mentioning nifty things to buy–I saw this very cool diaper bag, which I have no use for, of course, but it doubles as a carrier for a tired child–dispersing their weight across Mom’s shoulders, which has to make life SO much easier.

(And, no, I’m NOT trying to make you spend your hard-earned money, but isn’t it a nice change from yarn p*rn?)

But, well, okay, you talked me into it.

I finished my current hatfull of singles–finally–which means that, as long as I get these plied between now and Thursday, I can bring something else to Liz’s next weekend. And, well, I WILL.

That’ll be good for me, too–I need a break from this anyway. It’s ironic, you know. I really love the fiber, love the yarn, love the feel, the color, the preparation, the results  . . . I’m just tired of the same thing . . . and there’s still more than a pound to go!

One other, random link for you–the folks over at Creating Passionate Users have a slide show about blogging to promote a Microbrand. Now, I can’t say I’m entirely certain what a microbrand is, but still, the tips are good in general, I think. I’m not even remotely in marketing or anything even like it, but this is a blog I enjoy reading–it makes me think about things I wouldn’t otherwise have thought of, and in an informative way.

And now, not only am I tired, but I’m also stiff–not only from the snowballs, and the digging out my car (thank heaven we have someone who plows our driveway for us!) but also sore because when I was climbing over the pile of plowed-up snow to get INTO my car to move it before, I slipped and fell half into the seat, ramming my spine against the door jam . . . I’m definitely going to be sore tomorrow….

Have a good night every one!

Tags: Chappy, Knitting/Spinning, Sky, Weather by Deb
8 Comments »

It might be hard to tell in this picture, but this is one, happy dog.

Finally, for the first time all winter . . . and just squeaking it in before the beginning of Spring . . . Chappy got an honest-to-goodness snow storm. Not rain and sleet mixed with a little snow, like on Valentine’s Day. Not a measly little inch of snow, like a couple weeks ago. But actual snow, inches of it. Knee-deep (at least, to Chappy).

He’s ecstatic. You can’t tell in the photo, of course, but his tail did not stop wagging the entire time we were out there.

Not only that, my office closed at 1:00 today, so he got his Mom home early for the weekend. We sat on our chair in the window. We played in the snow. We were together….

What more could a dog ask for? (Yeah, I know, food. But he got an extra biscuit when I made some tea around 3:30, so that’s covered.)

Naturally, of course, this whole thing has made me miserable. Spending extra time with my dog? You can imagine how that makes me feel. A chance to curl up with my book? Ugh. And, good heavens, time to spin?? How boring….

We won’t go into the unfortunate batch of brownies I made. I don’t know if it’s because of the hot chocolate Mom would make for us
after playing in the snow, but I always want something chocolate on a
snowy day . . . I’m just really disappointed with the way the brownies
came out. I was making a half-batch and mentally re-calculating the ingredient measurements as I went, but forgot to halve the flour . . . so even though I added some milk to thin out the batter . . . it’s more like a kind of dry chocolate cake . . . This is going to take some thought to figure out how to fix. It tastes perfectly fine, but it’s not, well, brownies. So, really, this whole afternoon, as you can imagine, has been dreadful…..

Well, okay, I can’t fool you. I loved every minute, too. Well, maybe not the post-snow-romping bath to wash the ice out of his fur (see the photo to the left), but he needed that anyway to combat that recurring staph infection. And a bath is a small price to pay for all the fun.

But, did you catch how I actually found some time to spin? Not a LOT of time, what with all the other stuff, but still. I made a deal with myself. If I can get this current “batch” of merino/silk done–that means getting this hat of roving spun, and the two bobbins of singles plied together–then I can bring something new and different with me next weekend. It’ll be such a treat to spin something else! Working on anything else will be a treat all by itself. So I really want to get this done.

What? Next weekend? Didn’t I say? Chappy and I are going down to visit Liz and Max next weekend–woohoo! It’ll be so great to see them again–especially Max, who I haven’t seen since July. (Liz said she’d see if Shelley could come for Saturday afternoon, which would be fabulous, but I’m trying not to get my hopes up. She’s been completely swamped at work for months now, so I have no idea what the odds are that she’d be able to come–but it would be nice!)

Anyway, originally Liz had suggested either this weekend or next, and I picked next weekend because it wasn’t St. Patrick’s Day. (Even in the middle of the day, those revelers can be hazards on the road you know, and really, why risk it?) Besides, sometimes my office does something for St. Paddy’s Day, and if so, I didn’t want to miss it . . . as it happens, we didn’t this year . . . unless you count the freebie afternoon, which I’m happy to credit to St. Patrick if it makes everyone happy. But. . . that’s actually the point. I’m SO HAPPY that I chose next weekend! Because, even though I know they’re getting more rain than snow down there in Maryland, I would NOT have wanted to drive 200+ miles today with my carsick-prone dog in the backseat. Not in this weather. He wouldn’t have enjoyed it, either, I mean, not only the drive, with the traffic, but…. he’d finally have snow in his own backyard, and we were leaving? It just wouldn’t have happened, and then I would have felt terrible about cancelling, and . . . isn’t it nice that we picked NEXT weekend?

Our timing today was really good, too. I came home, ate lunch, and then relaxed with Chappy and my book for a little while, but at 2:00, figured it was a good time to go romp in the snow. There’d be plenty of time to play, for Chappy to get his bath afterward, and still have time for me to do other things before dinner. Little did I know that the snow was going to be changing over to sleet at around 3:00 . . . it was just shifting when my snowball-throwing arm got tired and we headed inside, and it’s basically been sleeting nonstop ever since. Playing outside while it’s snowing can be fun. Playing outside in sleet or freezing rain? Not so much!

Really, you know, it’s been quite a nice afternoon.

So, thanks St. Patrick’s Day/Mother Nature for getting me the afternoon off–I certainly tried to make the most of it.

Oh, and wish my sister and niece luck for tomorrow–they’re (hopefully) going prom-dress shopping. (We’re all hoping the weather won’t have interfered with that plan, since she’s in the school’s spring musical, and most of her weekends from here on in are pretty full.)

And, I forgot to tell you yesterday, that our neighbor came home yesterday. Mom brought her over some salad and some homemade muffins that I sent along, and said that she’s really sore from the procedure, but feeling fine–we certainly hope so. Thanks for all your good wishes!

Happy St. Patrick’s Day, everyone! (Not that I’m Irish, but again, I got the afternoon off from work on a Friday, so I’ll credit anyone who might have been responsible. Thanks, again!)

Tags: Chappy, Friends, Knitting/Spinning, Weather by Deb
9 Comments »

What’s wrong with this picture?

I know, it sounds like a trick question, doesn’t it? Well, it might be, but the trick’s on me.

Two lovely little skeins of Elsebeth Lavold’s Silky Wool in color #23, Plum. Isn’t it pretty?

And, you know, little?

Because, imagine my surprise last night when I went into the closet to pull out the next two skeins of yarn for my sweater (you know, the one I’ve been working on since October) and realized they were the last two skeins.

Uh-oh.

Two more skeins? But I’ve still got both arms and half the hood–there’s no way on earth I’m going to make it. Not even if I forego the hood and make 3/4 sleeves (which, really, would look pretty silly on this, I think.)

So, um, let’s think. There’s pretty much no chance at all that the store I bought the yarn in is going to have any left in my dye-lot . . . not ten months later. I thought about calling to ask, but really, it seemed pointless so I didn’t bother. An internet search didn’t help that much, either . . . there doesn’t seem to be much of my color (#23 Plum) available (has it been discontinued?)–though I did find some at Fuzzy Mabel‘s. But, yeah, I really, really don’t expect to match the dye-lot.

But here’s what occured to me. This sweater is a raglan, and I’ve got the back, the fronts, and most of the side panels done in my original dyelot. Obviously, starting the sleeves in this dyelot and changing mid-way to a different one could be awful–that dreaded horizontal demarcation between old and new. But, I asked myself, what if I knitted the entire sleeves in the same color, different dyelot? There would be a minor discrepancy, I’m sure, but what with the raglan seaming, you could think that it’s your eye, not the yarn . .. right? Theoretically?

And certainly, it couldn’t look worse than the two-color version, courtesy of KnitPicks. (I mean, really, this is a stunning sweater pattern, but in two colors? Ugh. But maybe that’s just me. But at least this picture makes it easy to see the separate pieces….) But, heck, if the knitter of this version could do vertical stripes of color, why can’t I do marginally different versions of the same color?

Again, I’ve got the front, back, most of the sides, and the cabled “hood extension” up from the center back over the top of the head done. The plan is that the sleeves will be knit in the new dyelot in their entirety. And then the sides of the hood? Well, we’ll see where I’m at, how the colors match, how much of each yarn I’ve got, etcetera, etcetera when I get there.

Please tell me that this doesn’t sound like it’s going to look horrible. It makes a certain amount of sense, right? Or, you know, be honest and tell me if you do think it will look horrible–I encourage honesty–but be gentle. Because I ordered more yarn from Fuzzy Mabel. Six skeins, which should be more than enough. And if I have extra? I have some of the same yarn in Green and I love purple and green together, so there’s some potential there, anyway.

Either way, though, wish me luck! Now, if only I could somehow be knitting faster…. It sure would be nice to wear this on vacation in May . . . (Please, let this be done in two more months!!) I wouldn’t have believed it possible, but this is taking even longer than my Union Square Market Pullover. It’s almost enough to make a girl want to knit with bulky yarn.

Now, let’s see, in other news…. It was a beautiful day today. Mid-seventies in March is not something that comes around every year! It was so nice, in fact, that we took Chappy out for not one, but two walks today, so now he’s exhausted, but very, very happy.

Our neighbor’s surgery (that I mentioned yesterday) went well. Her husband called us around 2:30 to say she was in recovery, though we haven’t heard anything since, so we’re assuming all went well. Thank you all for your good wishes! I’m sure they helped, and I KNOW she’ll appreciate it when we tell her later on.

Tags: Knitting/Spinning, Weather by Deb
17 Comments »

Our driveway obviously had an interesting night last night. When I went out to get the newspapers this morning, not only were there footprints and tire tracks from yesterday, but three different kinds of animal tracks. Small little cloven hooves from, I’m guessing, a deer . . . though it seems awfully small for deer. A line of cat paws along the edge of the driveway, and little, scurrying squirrel prints . . . or something like a squirrel. Rabbit maybe?

Darn, where’s my girl scout manual when I need it?

Although, actually, I never made it to girl scouts. I was a Brownie drop-out . . . I’ve really never been a joiner, you know?

And, um, no, Knit-alongs don’t count.

1. Do you lend your books to other people? If so, any restrictions? I used to, but as a rule, the only ones I lend books to these days is family members.
2. Do you borrow books from other people? (Friends or family—I’m not talking about the public library) Very, very seldom. If someone really wants to insist, I’ll read a book they lend me, but for the most part, if I’m recommended a book, I’m more likely to just get a copy of my own.
3. And, most importantly—do the books you lend/borrow get returned to their rightful owners?? I ALWAYS return books I borrow, but, well, one of the main reasons I don’t lend books out to people I’m not related to anymore is that I’ve had them not returned far too often. So, no, not any more. Not if I can help it.

Tags: Reading, Weather by Deb
9 Comments »

Our weather today pretty much looked like this. Instead of the 4-8″ of snow they had been forecasting last night, we got about an inch or so, and then sleet, sleet, and more sleet, for pretty much the whole day. This is the view from our kitchen window, a little after lunch–you can just see the bumper of my car . . . I usually park her perpindicular to the garage doors, so she can pretend to herself that she’s going to be able to go inside the garage, but when we have snow storms, I park her parallel to the doors, as close as I can manage, so that the people who plow our driveway can get as much of it cleared as possible. They can’t quite make the curve inward toward the garage doors anyway, so my car is as much out of the way as possible and helps keep that part clear of snow (at least, until I come out and wipe all the snow off).

I have managed to keep myself busy, though. I whirled through the kitchen this morning, making cupcakes (my Grandmother’s recipe–yellow cake, chocolate frosting–the family classic) and scones (my favorite tea scone recipe, with a dash of lime zest and some dried blueberries for some extra flavor). All of which Mom, Dad, and I snacked on this afternoon, when Mom opened her present.

While I was in the kitchen, I also threw together a lasagna for supper. And made a fresh batch of Chappy food. And two chicken sandwiches for Dad and I for lunch….

The sleet and snow finally stopped falling around 3:00, and I went outside at 3:30 to clear off my car, to make getting to work tomorrow easier. When I came back inside, Chappy looked so eager, so excited . . . because, see, on snowy days, finding the car DOES get first outdoor priority, but Chappy pretty much always expects that he’ll get his chance to romp and play immediately afterward–before I’ve taken off my boots and such. (He really is a patient dog–the fact that I’m tired and cold after finding my car is really my own fault, right?) Anyway, I DID take him out for a romp in the backyard . . . see how happily-romped the snow looks? Pity it was such awful snow for snowballs, because really, all he wants is a chance to either chase after or to catch snowballs.

And, really, how can I resist? He looks so darn cute in his red bandana today, and he did give me such a sweet Valentine’s Day card. (My dog is really very in tune with these holiday things, you know.) I was happy to take him out . . .even if I got cold a lot faster than he did. And even if I DID have to pop him into the bathtub to melt all the ice out from between his paw pads. He’s well worth it.

Of course, with all this baking and such, I haven’t had a chance to sit and knit at all today, despite my plans of yesterday. I’m still determined to finish those socks, though. I gave Mom an IOU for a pair of handmade socks in the color of her choice, and she immediately requested another pair in Cherry Tree Hill’s Martha’s Vineyard colorway. (Anyone surprised by that? Anyone at all??) Luckily, I DO have another skein of it. I’d made her a pair of these a couple years ago, which she promptly wore holes into . . . but, really, this is the last time I’m making her socks in the same color! Only this time, I’ll try adding some reinforcing thread…

Now, just a couple other links for you:

Franklin certainly knows what to say to win a knitter’s heart.

And those Liaden books I keep raving about? They’ve bundled five of them into one collection called “Korval’s Legacy” and it’s available here as an e-book, if you’re into that kind of thing.

For that matter, don’t forget about the ongoing, weekly publication of Fledgling . . . kind of a side story to the Korval books. They’re up to chapter four, and they publish a new chapter (well, really, a draft of a chapter) every Monday.

Another new blog for you, though this one is not about knitting. It’s for NASCAR fans, and was just started by a friend of my mother’s (though she’s closer to my age) that she met through a Carly Simon fan club, who does, in fact knit on occasion, and designs cross-stitch patterns . . . among other things. If you’re a NASCAR fan, head over and say hello, would you?

Okay . . . got to go take the foil off the lasagna! Happy V-day, everyone, if you celebrate. If not, I hope you’re enjoying my Mom’s birthday!

Tags: Baking, Family, General, Weather by Deb
17 Comments »

This is what the sky looked like on my drive to work this morning.

I thought about saving this photo for Saturday Sky, but it was too darn pretty to keep to myself. That peachy-golden light right on the horizon . . .  the deep blue of the sky . . . that undertone of color on the clouds near the top . . . So pretty.

This is beautiful not only because, well, it just is beautiful, but also because not one hour later, we were in the middle of a snow squall.

Not that it lasted all that long, but it DID dust the parking lot at work with some snow. You know, which was completely gone about another hour after that.

I was so excited, though, that I ran outside with my camera to try to take a decent “snow” picture for you. But, well, when you have about 1/16″ of the white stuff, it’s kind of tricky.

And–look at the sky reflected in my car window. It looks pretty dramatic, too, huh? But you can see the actual cloud, surrounded by lots of clear sky. Frankly, the fact that that cloud summoned up any snow at all, I think is pretty impressive.

So, today was Dad’s actual birthday. Unfortunately, it was too cold for him to golf (though he’s going golfing tomorrow), but he says he had a good day anyway. He got a bunch of phone calls, some cards in the mail. He even got flowers. These are from the same pair that gave me balloons for my birthday in November. (I asked, if they gave me balloons, and Dad flowers, whatever will they do for Mom’s birthday next month??)

He even got some popcorn–he came into the kitchen when I was finishing my lunch, and started to open the cake box, with the last piece of his birthday cake, but I told him no, because Mom and I had plans for that after supper. He looked so disappointed, and so untempted by any of the other snacking options, I offered to make him popcorn. This is a rare treat because we don’t do microwave popcorn–we (meaning I) only make “real” popcorn–in a pot on the stove, served with real butter on top. His little face just lit right up! So yes–I spent part of my lunch break shaking the pot on the stove. (So worth it.)

Dad also got to spend lots of time with his buddy, Chappy. Not only did Chappy happily keep him company (especially when he was eating that popcorn) but . . . and this is a cute story. I think I’ve mentioned before that Chappy waits for permission before eating food we’ve put down for him–and he WILL wait, but the longer we make him wait the more clenched, desperate, and pathetic he looks. You know the look a little kid gets when he’s trying really hard to sit still, or wait to dive into a pile of presents with his name on it? Well, that’s the look Chappy gets when he’s got food right in front of him.

Well, Dad was running out on an errand and grabbed a cookie on his way out, dropping a piece on the rug for Chappy. He says he told Chappy “Okay,” but either Chappy didn’t hear him, or didn’t believe him, or something. Because my Mom walked into the kitchen a little later . . . we’re not sure of the time lag, a couple seconds? a minute? . . . and Chappy was STILL sitting there, drooling onto the floor, and he looked back over his shoulder . . . “Grandma? Pleeeeeeaaaaaaasssssssseeee???” Of COURSE she immediately told him “Okay,” but . . . oh, my poor little, well-behaved dog! I really wonder how long he would have sat there before he decided we weren’t coming back immediately and it was safe to grab the cookie . . .

Hey, did you know my 2-year blogging anniversary is coming up in a few days? I technically signed up while at the office, so my first entry is REALLY short. Not surprisingly, it had absolutely no comments, either. My second entry had three comments–one from an e-friend (the one who got me hooked on Dorothy Dunnett) and the other two from women I’ve never heard from since . . . I can’t imagine why. I was so fascinating! (grin) I think Nancy is the only commenter from entry #3 who still reads . . .

Anyway, I thought about maybe having some kind of contest/prize or something related to my blogiversary . . . any suggestions? I could just go for a random drawing on comments that day, or I could ask a question like, “Why do you bother coming to read my blog?” (bigger grin). Or . . . what? Thoughts?

(And yes, I know, in journalism, that’s burying the lead . . . raise your hand if you read this far!)

Neighbor update: They still don’t know what’s wrong, but she’s home again as of about 5:00 tonight. She has doctor’s appointments next week and is forbidden to drive until then (because, you know, passing out while driving is a bad thing). Fingers crossed that they figure out what’s wrong SOON. Thank you for all your good wishes! For my mom’s mouth and my dad’s birthday, too. Really, you guys are the best readers….

Tags: Family, General, Sky, Weather by Deb
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This is what the sky looked like this morning when Mom and I went out–still laden with clouds from yesterday’s rain.

Not that we can really complain about the weather. According to my Weather Pixie for tonight, 5:45 pm. 68 degrees Farenheit. That’s 20 degrees Celsius. In January. The middle of Winter.

It’s not that I’m complaining about the weather. It’s really hard to complain about the warm and sunny days we’ve had lately. Any time January is at or around 50 degrees, you enjoy it. It’s like a rule. But . . . I have a closet-full of sweaters that haven’t been worn yet this year. I haven’t needed a scarf more than once or twice all season, much less my down comforter! This is a far cry from last January when our furnace broke during a cold snap.

Of course, the warm weather IS confusing the vegetation around here. I spotted this on our walk . . . lots of buds and already a couple flowers. Our neighbors have daffodils and crocuses already coming up . . . poor things, don’t they know that they’re MONTHS too early? I know virtually nothing about gardening, but isn’t the inevitable cold snap bound to hurt these premature plants?

Still . . . it did turn into a beautiful day. Right up there around 70 degrees, blue sky . . . really, really lovely. My dad golfed, which shouldn’t surprise anyone–but it IS surprising that he walked the course rather than riding a cart like he usually does . . . but then, he was lucky they uncovered the greens at all in January. Mom and I are taking bets on how sore his legs are going to be tomorrow, though.

Speaking of tomorrow, it’s the family-celebration of Dad’s birthday. His actual birthday is Wednesday, but tomorrow, my sister and her family are coming down, and my aunt and cousin are coming up. (Luckily, we can just barely fit nine people around our dining room table.) It’s a big birthday, too, so we want to make sure it’s a good one. (Any guesses on which birthday it will be? No prize, or anything, but I’m curious. There’s a good picture of him on my Christmas Eve post, and in that family picture we took in November.)

Anyway, so today, Mom and I went to the grocery store to buy stuff for dinner, and this afternoon I baked a cake (a double-recipe of our family-famous “Grandma cake,” which can also be seen on that post where we took the family picture). Chappy got a bath, too, so he’ll be all nice and fluffy tomorrow. The table’s set . . . we’re all ready. Or, as much as we can be until tomorrow! I can do some of the food prep in the morning, so that’ll help. It’s a recipe I haven’t tried before, but it sounds good and I’m pretty sure everyone will like it, so . . .

Oh yes, speaking of family photos–look what Mom showed me today. I don’t remember ever seeing this picture before, but I love it. My Dad’s in the center back, and his parents are the two on the right of the picture–I love how my Grandfather is balancing up on the railing. My aunt, uncle, and cousin Don (er, Donnie, according to the notes) are on the left, with my uncle just peeking past my aunt’s head. Her mother is standing in the front center . . . Mom and I are guessing that my aunt’s father was the one taking the picture. We don’t know when this picture was taken, but every one looks like they’re having a marvelous time. My aunt and my grandmother are both wearing corsages, too . . . Mother’s day, maybe? (Although then why isn’t my aunt’s mother not wearing one?)

I mentioned to Mom, though, as we were sorting through some old pictures . . . we really don’t have that many of Dad as a young man, forget about as a child . . . that I’m always fascinated by photos of my Grandfather. He died when I was just 10 months old, so they are the only way I can know him at all. At least I have memories of my other grandparents, but him? He’s like the Mystery Grandparent. Dad rarely talks about him, and he’d been sick (Alzheimer’s, back before they knew what it was) a long time, so my Mom never really got to know him, either, so she doesn’t have any good stories about him. But what Dad does, occasionally mention, I relish. And when I find a photo like this, of him happy and smiling and full of the life I never got to see? It makes me smile, too.

Tags: Family, General, Sky, Weather by Deb
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I’m ending this year right, with a very good mail day.

Because, look what I got! An RAOK braid of really lovely Falkland wool roving in such pretty colors. Yellows and golds primarily, with hints of rose. Beautiful.

Don’t believe me? Look how great it goes with my bedroom. (It does a great imitation of a duck, too, don’t you think? Not just any roving can manage that, you know.)

The bad part? I have no idea who sent this to me! Well, okay, I cut the return address off the box, but the name is blurred. The street address doesn’t match anyone in the Fiber RAOK database. And the paper inside just said “RAOK” with a note to regift it to somebody else if I didn’t like it. (Fat chance–I think it’s gorgeous.) All of which makes it really hard to actually TELL the person “thank you,” so for the moment, this post will just have to do. Because, thank you!

And then, I got these lovely little pieces from Etsy–apparently just in time, because the “shop” says she’s travelling in Asia just now and will be back in January . . . whew! A copper necklace and almost-matching copper earrings. I do love the shine of copper–I love the color of it (which looks so good with my hair and skin tone). I also love its relative inexpensiveness in regards to jewelry. (As opposed to, say, cookware, where it’s anything but!)

Wasn’t it nice of the new roving to help model them for me? I think I might change the chain for the necklace, though. It LOOKS lovely, but it feels . . . heavy. I don’t know if it’s the weight of the pendant, or the length, or the texture, but . . . something keeps making me tweak it, adjust it, as it lays on my neck. It’s a great length, though.

I got to leave the office an hour early today, too–as a New Year’s treat (and since it was practically a ghost town in there anyway), everyone got to leave one hour earlier than usual. Chappy was thrilled to have an extra hour of “Mommy.” Especially since I decided to use it to make a cup of tea, which meant he got a biscuit. (I always figure that if I’m treating myself, why shouldn’t he get something, too?)

Tomorrow, of course, you already know my Mom’s going to see Phantom with my niece. My sister and I decided to take a raincheck because she’s really dragging from her cold. (My suggestion, by the way–there are “colds” and then there are “COLDS,” and you just don’t mess with the latter. She needs her rest.) I’ll have a fun day, anyway, though, since Risa and the twins are coming over for a visit. I even thought of a way we could spend some time in the family room, with the DVD player, just as soon as I block off the hearth-with-breakables. I bet Chappy wouldn’t mind sharing his toys, either…. Good thing we have baby gates, huh?

I still can’t believe it’s the end of the year . . . the weather alone! It was almost 50 degrees again here, today. A far, far cry from Colorado, getting socked with its second blizzard in a week . . . if this is what they’re doing for Christmas and New Year’s, I shudder to think how the city will celebrate Valentine’s Day, or Martin Luther King Day, or . . .

Oh, and speaking of New Year’s, I don’t usually DO New Year’s Resolutions, but I suppose in this case, I can make an exception:

(Seen over at Sharon Lee‘s blog.)

Tags: Knitting/Spinning, Uncategorized, Weather by Deb
9 Comments »

  Well today is my birthday, part two. (Or three. I’ve kind of lost count.) The present from Mom and Dad (and Chappy) finally came today. Woohoo!

Naturally, my able assistant was more than willing to help me unwrap it . . .

  And here’s what was in the box!

Okay, it’s a little hard to see, I grant you. This is the lace kit–a special lace flyer and two extra-wide lace bobbins–a extra plastic bobbin (because four is just a good number to have, you know?), and the wheel skeiner, which I’m very excited to have, but apparently need to find some glue to put it together. Which I’m more than happy to do!

So, yay! Happy birthday to me . . . again!

Now, if only my assistant were a little better at cleaning up . . .

  We’ve got some big, heavy storms headed our way tonight . . . as in, like, they should be here in about an hour. That’s an awful lot of yellow . . .

At least I have hobbies that don’t absolutely require electricity, anyway . . . (grin) With knitting, I can even manage without light, if I have to! Although lack of power does put a damper on the whole blogging thing…. hence the early post tonight, just in case.

Hey, if you get a chance to watch Larry King on CNN tonight, do. He’s doing the second part in a series about “The Secret” which my Dad has been talking about for months. Serious results from serious positive thinking, there . . . I just hope we have the electricity to be able to watch it with! It’s really fascinating. A little “new age”-y, perhaps, and yet . . . fascinating really is the word. And I figure this falls into the “It can’t hurt” category anyway . . .

Okay, dinner’s almost ready (Mom pushed it up to even earlier than usual, just in case. Our stove’s electric, so….), and it’s raining out there and starting to get a little windy . . . I think it’s time to shut down the computer for a while.

1. So, last week we asked you if you kept a list of books that you’re interested in, wanting to read, wanting to buy, etc. This week, we want to know–do you keep a list of the books you’ve READ? Well, you know I do, since I post it every month….
2. If so, how? In a journal? A notebook? On the computer? I jot down the books as I finish them in a paper journal, but then (obviously) enter them onto the computer as well. I’ve been keeping my list since January 1996. (The first book for that yeat that I read? “Beloved” by Toni Morrison.) Interestingly (to me), at the very beginning, I jotted down quick reviews, as well as magazines I was reading . . . but it didn’t take long at all before I was just putting down the date, the Title, the Author, and whether it was a new read or not. It’s just in the last year or so that I’ve been tracking page numbers as well.

Tags: Family, General, Knitting/Spinning, Weather by Deb
21 Comments »

  It’s been a wet, rainy day today . . . but I haven’t been lazy! First, I made an apple-crumb pie. The filling is basic apple, sugar, spices and some dried cranberries. The topping is brown sugar, nuts, oatmeal, and butter. I didn’t measure anything except the sugar I put in the pie filling, and just kept my fingers crossed. I had a piece a couple hours ago, still warm, and it came out delicious. (All other portions will be cold because Dad likes his pie chilled . . .which is fine with me . . . but still, that one piece, warm, with some whipped cream? Mmmmm.)

But then, I got down to serious work. Lining/Fixing my bag.

  I trimmed the long handle, sewed it down, and turned the excess into a strap for closing. Then I started piecing together the lining, thinking it through as I went.

  I had told you about the bag’s structural problems, remember? About how the metal frame at the top was just too heavy for the bag to support? Well, I ordered some craft wire from Mister Art, to give just a little heft to the lining.

  See? As I sewed the pieces of the lining together, I made channels to slide the wire and rods into. Four around the rectangular base, and then four up the four corners of the bag.

  And so, the bag now has a lining (the perfect color, too, don’t you think?) and it has enough support to stand up, which it didn’t before. Really, my favorite part about this style of bag is that it opens wide and stays open–it’s perfect for knitting out of.

  Really, I’m so happy. So what if the sewing isn’t perfect?? (grin) I still did everything I needed to do–and am proud of myself for figuring out how to get the channels in there for the wire, adding in some pockets. And it fits, too! (grin)

Now, the one thing left? I need a button or a snap or something to close the flap over the front. And I was thinking a felted flower, made out of the original blue would look lovely. Now, I just need to find a pattern for one . . . and a snap. Or maybe velcro? Something to hold it closed. But really, that doesn’t seem all that difficult at this point.

  Chappy found the whole process rather boring. But at least his favorite spot is in the dining room–the same room that I was doing the sewing.

  Oh, and not only did my craft wire come JUST at the right time today (right after I’d put the sewing machine and such away, and had about 15 minutes to relax)–but I got my order from Amazon, too. A copy of Knit 2 Together by Tracey Ullman and Meg Clark, and Spin to Knit by Shannon Okey (anyone who could handle that interview with Dolores deserves to have her book bought). Also Animals in Translation: Using the Mysteries of Autism to Decode Animal Behavior by Temple Gradin, which is supposed to be fascinating.

All in all, today may not have been a walk in the park, but it’s been interesting!

Now, I wonder if I can find a good closure for this bag before Rhinebeck . . . because, wouldn’t this make a great purse for that?

Oh, and the other bonus for today? I saw my sister for about half an hour. She stopped by after her dentist visit–THAT made Chappy really happy!

Hey . . . I just checked my Stats and guess how many comments I have right this second? 4,500. Wow! I can’t even think the last time I checked and saw a zero, forget about a “big” number like that… I feel badly . . . maybe I should have held a contest for that number comment, but I didn’t realize it was coming. Would a retro-active prize make any sense? Or should I watch for when i’m approaching 5,000?

Oh, and Mom has a cold . . . I told her she’d better keep her germs to herself–I refuse to be sick for Rhinebeck!

Tags: Baking, General, Knitting/Spinning, Reading, Weather by Deb
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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 by Deb
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I did promise you some knitting pictures, huh?

My sweater’s got one, whole sleeve. It’s got an interesting little bump there, I admit, which look strange when the sweater lies flat. However, when worn (since I did try it on, of course), it makes a nifty little triangle on the arm, with the contrast around the armhole as well as around the bottom of the sleeve . . . I like it.

Okay, so maybe I could have stopped a few stitches earlier for the short rows and avoided that “bump” altogether, but since I like the result when worn . . . serendipity, I call it.

In spinning, I currently have two bobbins full of tiny little singles, waiting to ply. Which, considering my lost plying-mojo, is making me a little nervous (grin). But oh, these singles are just so darn pretty! The color is deep and rich. There’s this lovely sheen because of the silk. And soft. Did I mention they’re incredibly, deliciously soft?

And these are just the singles. Imagine what it’s going to feel like when it’s plied and in a nice, loose skein instead of taut around a bobbin. Sigh . . . Cashmere and silk. What’s not to love?

Thank you for your kind words about my Katrina-anniversary post. If you haven’t seen it, please go back and read the comment Mom’s friend left. And while you’re at it, visit Rachel‘s, who is happily waiting for her new baby now, but who lived through the storm herself last year. Gripping reading, I’m telling you.

Fittingly for the anniversary of a monster storm, it’s been raining here again. All day. Again. The rain did pause yesterday for a few hours–long enough for Chappy to get his first walk since last week–but basically, we’ve had rain for about five days now. Blah.

To make it even better, I also went to the dentist today for a two hour visit and am now the proud owner of two temporary crowns and a tired jaw. And, apparently, I’m the first person ever to knit in the dentist’s chair. Not that I knitted while he was actually working on my mouth, you understand. But during the molding portions when the dentist puts a tray full of goo into your mouth and tells you to close and hold still for a few minutes. Those parts. It was more entertaining than looking at the pictures on the wall. And how many people get to be productive at the dentist’s office? (The actual office, part, not the waiting room.)

My parents actually made it TO the correct movie tonight. I mentioned the rain, right? There was no way Dad could golf today. And after the aborted attempt at the movies on Saturday, they figured they’d try again. They saw “Little Miss Sunshine,” and enjoyed it, even if they didn’t loooove it. Yep. That’s right. While I was sitting in the dentist chair, they were at the movies. I’m not complaining, exactly, but . . .

Okay, I’m going to go do some plying now!

Tags: General, Knitting/Spinning, Weather by Deb
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One year ago today, one of the worst natural disasters in our nation’s history hit New Orleans and the Gulf Coast.

I wrote last year about a friend of my mother’s, who said, “…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.”

Since the storm, she and her husband have relocated further north in Pineville, Louisiana. They’ve got a nice trailer home (not one of those FEMA trailers), but they are struggling. They are near retirement age and are having almost to start over again. They have spent months fighting with pretty much every official agency and insurance claims person you can think of. They have tried going back to salvage what they can from their old house, tried to do what they could to repair it from the “toxic gumbo” that flooded it. In the process, her husband fell and badly broke his leg–and endured the long car ride back to their current home before letting her take him to the hospital, because there just wasn’t anywhere in New Orleans for her to stay if they could find a hospital to take him to.

We heard from her yesterday, and she had this to say:

“Tomorrow is the anniversary of Katrina. We have put the house up for sale “as is.” We are tired and the task of repairing now seems even more impossible than it did in December. Contractors are just not available for people with little houses. The contractors, understandably, want the big jobs. We are supposed to get an electrical contractor on September 14th and we rejoice over that; however, it’s not carved in stone he will do it either. He said he will call us the day before and let us know whether or not he can do it. I sent him 30% of the fee to hopefully goad him to it a little bit. We have put the price as low as we can to pay off the remainder of our mortgage. I hope someone who is greedy to become a slumlord on the West Bank will bite at it. Meanwhile, we go down there every two weeks to mow the pasture that used to be our yard (it grows fast down here) and pick up garbage that people dump in our yard.

We are very hopeful and very thankful. Tomorrow, D and I will do an on-the-knees prayer to thank God for His bountiful goodness through all of it, not just for us, but for all of us. It makes you realize just what a miracle life really is.”

Why am I telling you all this? For a couple of reasons. One, because like the 9/11 anniversary coming up, this is not an event we as a people can afford to forget. No matter what the reasons were–too much bureaucracy, not enough caring, plain incompetance, or just the size and scope of an overwhelming disaster–the human side of this catastrophe was inexcusable. Nothing could have stopped the storm making landfall. Nothing (it appears) could have stopped the levees from breaking (since it’s not like we build them like the Dutch–heaven forbid we should ask for some help). But the fact that so many people of all races–with straightened resources were left for so long with no way out of the disaster area, and that they were then shunted about the country with no rhyme or reason–and more importantly–with no way to get back, or to get in touch with loved ones . . . this is something that needs to be addressed because, whatever the cause, it underlines how we failed our countrymen and -women when they needed us.

  Maybe not you and me personally. Let’s not forget the charity drive headed by Margene and Susan, which raised over $100,000 for hurricane victims. I know I gave more to charity last year than in any other year. But as a society, we let those people down. I just watched a special on NBC hosted by Brian Williams which pointed out that–all the other humanitarian issues aside (like, gosh, all those people dying), we lost a great opportunity to address the race and class and poverty issues in this nation of ours. America prides itself on being free and equal for everyone–and the vast majority of us really do believe in the idealism of that statement. And as individuals, we largely lived up to that last year, I think. But, really, in this instance, the government failed these people so badly.

And then the insurance companies came in and offered pennies to people who had lost everything. It’s like the government stood on the side of the road, directing traffic around a bad car crash while the insurance companies came in, like ambulances, and parked alongside the road saying, “Sorry, we’d love to help, but it’s time for our break.”

Which brings me to my second reason for this. Not only can we not afford to forget this massive failure, we owe it to them and we owe it to ourselves to do something about it. Write letters to our congress-people. Make donations on behalf of the people who are still struggling 12 months later. Knit them something soft and cozy. Or even something as simple as say a little prayer.

Because I want you to note how my Mom’s friend ended that email. Not full of bitter recriminations, or hatred, or despair (though yes, I hear it, too). But in hope. “…We are very hopeful and very thankful. Tomorrow, D and I will
do an on-the-knees prayer to thank God for His bountiful goodness through all of it, not just for us, but for all of us. It makes you realize just what a miracle life really is.”

I don’t know about you, but I feel like I need to live up to that, somehow.

Red Cross. Humane Society. Mercy Corps. Habitat for Humanity. DoSomething.com. Bush-Clinton Katrina Fund. Network for Good. Noah’s Wish. ASPCA. Humane Society.

(Climbing down from my soapbox now. There’ll be some kind of knitting content tomorrow–after my mouth recovers from today’s visit to the dentist. New crowns, ick.)

Tags: General, Weather by Deb
9 Comments »

You want to see my Saturday Sky? Well, here it is, in all its wet glory.

Yes, that IS rain streaking past the window. Because, really, this is as far outside as I’m willing to go just now.

To be fair, it didn’t start to rain until the afternoon, but it was dark and cloudy all morning. But since it started raining here, around 2:00? P.O.U.R.I.N.G.

Luckily, Mom and I had other plans for the day. We left Chappy . . . poor, lonely, pathetic-looking Chappy, who gave us the kind of sad face where you can’t risk looking back over your shoulder as you leave the house or the guilt will be overwhelming . . . anyway, we left him and went to Short Hills Mall, where we haven’t been in months.

I even had the chance to do a good deed. While we were in the Gap (not one of my favorite stores), I found a wad of four or five $20 bills on the floor. My guess is that, since they weren’t in a wallet, they probably belonged to a kid, and that it was probably all of their shopping money. For a split second, I’ll admit, I thought about keeping it, but my better nature prevailed, and I handed it over to one of the employees. Hopefully the owner of the money came back, frantically retracing his or her steps at some point, and was able to reclaim it.

After that, I put my good Karma points to good use–because there were lots of sales. From Ann Taylor, I bought two lovely skirts, four t-shirts, and a beautiful blue silk jacket for just $159.

The shirts and skirts I know I’ll get a lot of wear from. The jacket? Well, maybe not so much. It’s a pretty formal kind of jacket, with elbow-length sleeves and kind of bolero-ish, with a deep, shawl collar. And, to be honest, it’s a bit small.

I normally wear an 8 for tops, sometimes even a 10 for jackets, but since this one doesn’t button or zip, and just basically rests on the shoulders, it fits well enough . . . I mean, at this price, I absolutely could not leave it there. If I wear it once, I’ll have more than made back my investment, don’t you think? (I know you readers will understand. Mom did, too. But Dad? He said, “Yeah, but you could have saved another $10 by not getting it at all.” Men!)

And then, Nordstroms was having a sale, too. I don’t buy much at Nordstroms, but they have a fabulous shoe department, and when there’s a sale? Um . . .

Is it possible to fall in love with shoes? Because if it is, I did for these. I tried on the red first and . . . instant adoration. They’re beautiful. They’re comfortable. They fit. They were sheer perfection and felt great, even with bare feet. And yet, being suede, they’ll carry through to other seasons. And did I mention they were on sale? I couldn’t help myself. I bought two pairs. I love them, absolutely love them!

Now, there’s a thunderstorm going through, and I’ve got Chappy huddled next to me, breathing fast. He definitely doesn’t like thunder any more. (Not that he ever loved it, but it didn’t used to bother him.) He also didn’t want to run up the stairs before. I’m hoping that’s just because he was nervous because of the storm, not because his back was bothering him. But maybe when I’m done here, I’ll go pull out Harry the Heating Pad and see if Chappy wants to use it.

Speaking of thunderstorms? Did you hear about the ones that went through New York City last night? I heard that there were something like 300 lightning strikes? And anyway, LOTS of roads and highways flooded. As in, all three major roads heading north out of the city were closed because of flooding. Can you imagine? On a Friday night, in the summer, at rush hour? I can’t imagine the chaos! And of course, the unfortunate folks in Astoria/Queens have been without electricity for six days now–naturally, for the hottest week of the year. Ugh.

…And now the lights just flickered . . . I’m going to shut the computer down now!

Tags: Sky, Uncategorized, Weather by Deb
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Well, Sandy did ask . . . .

She’s asked for pictures of Saturday Skies to liven up blogland, and well, anything I can do to help!

The thing is, it’s not that pretty a sky today. In fact, it’s downright miserable. Here in northern NJ, it’s been raining pretty much all day. Some breaks, sure, but also plenty of periods of heavy rain. Blah. You can’t really see in the picture, but trust me, it’s raining. See how droopy the trees are? I took this picture from under the roof at our front door (thereby protecting my camera from water damage). It’s not much of a photo, but it IS the sky we’ve got!

I’ve spent almost my entire day doing the ideal rainy day activity–reading. Sure, you’re going to tell me that knitting is perfect, too, and believe me, I know how much it’s got going for it. But the thing is, enjoyable and soothing as knitting can be, it’s still a little bit of work, for your hands if nothing else. Whereas reading is easy–the only effort is turning the pages.

And so far today, I’ve turned a lot of them. I finished the book I was reading, read its sequel, and have since polished off two YA books, including the 2001 Newbery Medal winner, “A Year Down Yonder” by Richard Peck–a slim little book, but oh, I really enjoyed it!

Other than the reading, so far I’ve . . . um . . . well, I ate breakfast. I did write my blog entry describing yesterday’s fun. And I’ve spent a lot of time petting Chappy . . . but, well, yeah. Reading’s about it so far for today!

Hope your Saturday is a little more lively. And . . . I’m so glad Cara found an indoor spot for her Spin-out! If the weather over in Manhattan is anything like here . . . they’ll have needed it!

Oh–and look at this interesting little article on husband-training from the New York Times . . . ah, the beauty of positive-reinforcement! It’s what clicker training is all about.

Tags: Reading, Sky, Weather by Deb
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