Labradorable

Creeping Towards Sanity

I know my grasp of reality is tenuous at best on a fairly regular basis, but lately I think the connection has been more faulty than usual.  I blame the rain.  We're having another rainy day.  I've lost track of them now, though I am very much aware that today is Saturday and it's time for Saturday Sky.  See how grey it is at midday?

I did eventually realize (perhaps after being reminded by somebody) that my last post was posted on a Tuesday but was written as if it were posted on Wednesday.  I had no sooner adjusted to the correct day of the week when I had a phone conversation on Wednesday afternoon with someone who closed the call with, "See you tomorrow!"  I had plans to see her on Friday, so she really threw me and I had a moment of complete and total confusion before I finally, timidly, said, "Isn't today Wednesday?", fully expecting that I was date challenged once more.  Fortunately, she was the one who was confused, so I am in good company and feeling a bit more connected with reality.

You'd think I'd be spending more time knitting because of the rain, and it's been somewhat true.  I've sort of lost enthusiasm for the Celtic Braid Socks.  I'm also now feeling the pain as I see lots of Summer of Socks 2008 participants having finished one or more socks in the one week since summer began. 

Here's where the sock stands today, about halfway done.  I am not knitting on gauge for this sock.  My gauge is off.  That said, I'm not 100% sure of the correct gauge for the sock, as the pattern merely states 28 stitches to 4 inches. . . horizontally, vertically, or both is not specified.  The author of this pattern must be a very, very loose knitter, because she used size 0 needles to get a sock to fit a US 10 1/2 women's shoe size.  I am usually a midrange knitter who usually gets gauge on the recommended needle size, and I have a size 8 1/2 foot, so I am knitting with size 0 needles.  I have been knitting away and the sock does fit on my foot, but when I got to the heel placement for the afterthought heel, the sock was at least an inch too short.  The afterthought heel instructions in the pattern didn't make a lot of sense, and it was after 10:00 at night (and beer had been consumed), so I put the sock into timeout and worked on another UFO for the rest of the night.

Today I got some very, very helpful afterthought heel advice from Karen, so I figured out how I'm going to make the heel work.  I also decided to try the sock on DD.  It's a pretty good fit, just a little too long for her, so this sock is now for her.  It does fit on my foot, and I could have knit more length in the foot before I started the heel, but I was also concerned about how the sock was going to work with my high arches and didn't want to go crazy tweaking the pattern.  I thought about frogging the sock and trying again with size 2 needles, but it looked so good on DD and she was so thrilled about me knitting socks for her that I decided to keep on keeping on and gift it to her.  I feel a little bit crazy about knitting such labor intensive socks for an almost seven year old, but this way I can salvage what I've already knit and look at it as a learning experience. 

I've also been cooking during our rainy weather, but not too much -- let's not get the impression that I like cooking or am good at it.  I ran out during a break in the rain the other day and cut some rhubarb and made sUsAn's Rhubarb Crunch.  It is *so* good.  I highly recommend it.  My kids won't eat it and DH only likes rhubarb a little bit, so there's plenty for me.

I decided not to bake Loco a cake.  We went to the dog bakery to get him a birthday cake, but the owner wasn't there and she's the only one who can decorate cakes.   So, we got him a pupcake for his birthday, as well as an apple pie, cheese cake, and quite a few other delicious treats.  We came home and sang Happy Birthday to Loco.  I think he found it incredibly frustrating to have us all standing around him, crowding him, serenading him off-key with a song he didn't understand.  Dogs, labs especially, aren't really enamored of anything that delays eating, especially anything as pointless (to them) as singing.  Loco stood and looked at us all as though he couldn't believe we were wasting so much time when what he really wanted was to immediately commence the eating of a treat.  I'm glad we didn't put a candle on it as we had planned, because he made several attempts to liberate the pupcake.  This is the only photo I got of him with it -- it was impossible to get it anywhere near him without him attempting to snatch the pupcake out of my hand. 

Once he got the pupcake, he took it into the family room, because it's better to eat something messy on the carpeting versus on a surface that the cleaners (that would be DH and me) can more easily tidy up.  Like most other kids his age, Loco ate the frosting first and then ate the cake.

The second photo shows Loco actually taking the pupcake from me.  Never fear, my fingers were not harmed and there will be no disruption to my knitting.  There should be plenty of knitting going on this evening, but I don't think I will make the knit one sock in one week goal.  I started the Celtic Braid Sock last Saturday evening, but evening is rapidly approaching and I have 70+ rows to knit.  I'm going to get moving on it, but don't expect miracles.

Before I close, I wanted to mention a swap that I've signed up for, my first swap in a long time.  You have to be a Dogs on Thursday person.  DoT will be celebrating its one year anniversary next month.  I can't believe it's only been one year.  I've met so many wonderful bloggers through DoT.  As for the swap, I couldn't resist after seeing the photo of Elise with her ears flapping in the wind -- so cute!
 

First Day of Summer 2008

There's 104 days of summer vacation and school comes along just to end it.

So the annual problem for our generation is finding a good way to spend it.

Okay, I'm a little beyond going back to school in the fall, but I've got the same enthusiasm for Summer 2008 that's in this song, which is Today's Going to Be a Great Day by Bowling for Soup, aka the Phineas and Ferb opening song.

Summer of Socks started today and I was not one of those knitters who got up early just to cast on some socks.  I did get up and print out the sock pattern I'm going to use first and I will be casting on later today.  But, first, some unfinished sock business.  The Dahlia socks are done.  They have been done for a while actually, but I needed to wait for a nice day to photograph them.

And here they are, out in the sun today.  Plus, I shaved my legs just for you, dear readers. I know how much some of you appreciate that!

The wonky sock is on the left in the photo, but it is pretty hard to tell that the pattern on its leg is off a tad.  I wish you could see how beautiful the pattern is (when not wonky), but for some reason it just doesn't show that well in photos, even in broad daylight.

For those of you who haven't been following along with my trials with these socks, they are the Dahlia socks from the 2007 Sundara Petals Collection.  The pattern is Dahlia and the yarn is Dahlia.  Both were limited edition, available to sock club members only, so if you like them, you are either going to have to persuade Sundara to reissue them or find a Petals Collection member who is willing to sell or trade.  There's a Sundara group on Ravelry where you might meet with some luck. 

I really love Sundara sock yarn, though I'm not as obsessed as some other people out there.  If I get enough socks knit in Summer of Socks 2008, you'll be seeing more Sundara yarn, for sure.

I think that the pattern shows up a bit better in this photo, and I cleverly hid the wonky leg part by crossing my feet.  Unfortunately, it's really, really hot today, so the socks went on for the photos and came right off again.  I will have to pack them away for the fall.

When I went looking through my sock yarn stash today to plan out my Summer of Socks 2008 knitting, I was really surprised by how many skeins of yarn I have that are in the red/pink/burgundy range.  The last two pairs of socks that I've knit have been in that range, plus I finished the Titania's Revenge socks, which also fell into that color range.  I'm mystified by this, as I am really not into red.  I look washed out in red and own almost no clothing that is red, but I am apparently much more open minded about my feet.  That said, I'm not knitting red socks for a while.  Summer of Socks 2008 is going to start out with some neutral colored socks, and I might throw in some green/blue socks, too.  Notice how I'm being very optimistic about knitting many pairs of socks this summer.

I have also perused my sock needle inventory and found that I am going to need more sock needles.  I've been looking online for needles, but haven't found anything too exciting.  I like knitting socks on dpns, and I like sets of needles with five needles.  I do love Brittanys, though I tend to break the smaller sizes too easily.  Does anyone have any recommendations on dpns that they love for sock knitting?  What about needles you've been really unhappy with for sock knitting? I'd love to hear your opinions!

I've got my Saturday Sky photo up today, too.  I'm feeling so organized today -- I am starting Summer of Socks, I've got the sky photo up, and I have the new code for the Knitting Blogs ring up on my sidebar.  For those of you who don't know, the Knitting Blogs ring is coming off of Ring Surf due to lots of issues.  If you haven't received an e-mail giving you info on how to switch over to the new ring (It's really easy, I did it today before consuming any caffeine.  It took mere minutes and went right the first time.), then you should e-mail the ring moms Nancy and Risa at knittingring@gmail.com.  I've got a to-do list as long as my arm (and I have abnormally long arms), but at least I've gotten something done today.

I went to see the Sex and the City movie this week and I was so happy to be back in the company of the ladies.  Yeah, they did kind of wrap some stuff up a little too neatly, moviestyle, but, all in all, it was 2.5+ hours of my life that were well spent.  We went to a matinee and grabbed an early lunch first.  When we told the waitress that we needed to be out of the restaurant in time for the movie, she told us that the night that the movie premiered, the whole restaurant was full of women drinking cosmopolitans.  I've yet to drink a cosmo, but I know I will some day...maybe in January 2009.  In the meantime, here's a SATC blogthing:

You Are Most Like Samantha!

For you, dating is the ultimate sport You're into guys with power, looks, or a lot of money. You rather have a great two weeks than a great forever. But even you fall victim to love from time to time. :-) Romantic prediction: You'll find love in the next few months... But you'll be the last one to realize it.

Which Sex and the City Vixen Are You?

 

Are you surprised?  I was.  Somehow, I just don't see Samantha getting all excited about Summer of Socks 2008, but stranger things have happened.

 

Hope today kicks of a great summer for those of you in the northern hemisphere, and winter for you knitters in the southern!

The Trouble with Tbls*

Let's start with Saturday Sky and build up to the knitting today.  It was almost 30 degrees warmer today than it was yesterday -- it was in the 90's.  No rain fell.  Here's the sky at 7:00 Saturday evening:

It truly felt like a summer day today.  I took DD shopping to buy, among other things, cleaning supplies.  The cashier at the store said, "I certainly hope you're not planning on cleaning today.  It's too nice out to do that."  Well, I had every intention of cleaning at some point today, but it didn't end up happening.  I knit instead, and we went to the pool.  The water was only 70 degrees, which was COLD, but it was so hot sitting outside, even in the shade that I finally braved the water and found it refreshing.  The kids, of course, were in the pool until they turned blue.  We'll be swimming again tomorrow, too.  Here are a couple of today's swim photos, the first swim of the year for the kids.

I don't think DS will be wearing that cardi I just finished for him any time in the near future.  I know he desperately needs a haircut.  It will be addressed next week. 

I was sitting on the side of the pool, watching the kids, when I noticed what I thought was a little pile of crushed ice on the pool deck next to me.  My mind immediately went to frozen margaritas and I began scanning the pool area to see if I could discern who my new best friends at the pool were going to be, provided they were interested in sharing.  Alas, it was not to be.  The pile was not crushed ice.  It had a silicone like texture.  It was the innards of the Pull Up that DS was wearing.  He's getting too big to wear swim diapers and he should be potty trained, so he wore a Pull Up into the pool today.  Big mistake.  I immediately yanked him out and commenced cleanup operations.  He was devastated about the whole thing.  I share this story not to humiliate my son, but to tell you that Pull Ups explode when wet.

I told DS that he would not be able to swim this summer if he wasn't potty trained, and he happily spent the rest of the afternoon out of the pool.  He also told me that he was not going to go swimming tomorrow.  Stubborn little boy!  I am at my wit's end with potty training this one.

His sister was a joy today.  She swam, made new friends, and saw old friends.  She is the water baby in this family.  She's also a wise guy, splashing me while I was trying to ease myself into the cold water.  The new anti-sun regime worked well today, too.  Between the rash guards, hats, sitting in the shade when out of the water, and the copious amounts of sunscreen, neither child (especially fair skinned DD) got too much sun.  I also managed to stay pale, while I enjoyed sock knitting in the shade.

And, now, the trouble with tbls.  As you know, I've been knitting my Dahlia socks for a little over a week now.  This pattern is chock full of knitting through the backs of the loops.  I know some knitters just hate that and will avoid any pattern once they see the dreaded tbl in it.  I don't mind.  However, this pattern is not on my good list right now.  Part of this is my fault, and part of it is the pattern.  Let's look at Exhibit One.

The completed sock is on the left.  It is a bit larger than the one on the right because I have tried it on and stretched it out.  You will notice that pattern on the one on the left is a bit wonky.  That's because there is an error in the pattern.  I did read on Ravelry that there is an error in the pattern.  I found an error in the pattern and fixed it.  Then I knit on, using the written directions in the pattern, as revised.  It turns out there are TWO errors in the pattern.  Hence, the leg on the first sock is wonky.  Now, other knitters have done the right thing and respected Sundara's intellectual property and have not posted the exact issue or correction to the pattern.  However, Sundara never issued a correction to the Petals Collection members who received the pattern, either.

You will notice, though, that the foot of the first sock (on right) matches the leg of the second sock.  (I am knitting the second sock with the correct pattern.)  This is due to my own knitting peculiarities.  I knit the top of the first sock from the error-laden written pattern.  I knit the foot of the first sock from the error-free charted pattern.  Why did I do it that way?  Well, because the written pattern came first in the directions and the charted pattern was right above the directions for the heel flap, that's why.  I don't have a preference for written versus charted patterns, so I used them both.  And, no, I didn't notice a difference in the patterns.  I just thought that the foot went swimmingly because I was finally used to the pattern.  So, that's the trouble I've had with tbls.  Nothing to do with the actual knitting tbl, but with the convergence of many things -- erroneous pattern, no correction to pattern issued, I missed one error when fixing the other, I never noticed the difference between the written and charted patterns, etc -- that resulted in a wonky sock.  I am leaving it that way.  It will serve as a reminder to me to be more vigilant.  Besides, who exactly is going to notice the difference between the legs of my socks?

*Yes, the Star Trek reference is intentional.  And, yes, I do know that Joseph Pevney, who directed The Trouble with Tribbles died last week.

Fiber and Yoga

TypePad's been eating this post in its previous incarnations, but, without further ado, here's what was intended to be the Saturday Sky photo, now being posted (hopefully) on Sunday.  I took the photo on Tuesday when we were at Hampton.  It's Boar's Head.

I did have the camera with me on Saturday, but didn't take any photos outdoors.  We took the kids to the Boott Mills, per DD's request.  She loves it there.  DS had never been before, and most of the exhibits were a bit beyond him, but there was one thing that got him very excited.  He got a little shy when I wanted to take a photo of him with it, but slipped into the frame with his sister at the last minute.

When DS first laid eyes on the swift in this photo, he went running over to it, yelling, "Mummy, you have one of these at home!"  I give him a lot of credit for recognizing that... maybe he'll end up knitting, too.  The kids are wearing the aprons that children get to wear at the museum, and there are activities for them to do there at various locations.  We felt seeds in raw cotton, carried a full cotton picker's bag, played with roving, carded cotton, wove, and threaded a play loom.  You can see DD's time card sticking out of one of the pockets in her apron.  DD again asked for a loom, and when a knitting/fiber catalog serendipitously arrived in the mail that afternoon, she found full size looms in it that she perused with great interest.  The fiber bug has bitten her.

We bit into some delicious Mexican food at our favorite place, the Mambo Grill.  I could eat there every day of the week, but DH draws the line at once per week, and we've been going less frequently than that now that the kids have discovered the children's menus at big chain restaurants.  Out of the blue, in the middle of lunch, DS did the following:

He's a yogini!  You can't see it, but his legs are crossed.  And he's got his hands in the guyan mudra.  I have no idea where he learned to do this, because I've never done yoga in front of him.  I usually wait to practice yoga at night when he's in bed, because his presence is not conducive to yoga practice.  The things this child does to surprise me!  Perhaps he will join me doing yoga with the new Wii Fit that arrived the other day.  I haven't had a chance to use it yet, but I'm out of Netflix DVD's and new books, so I guess I'm going to have to exercise a bit.  I could knit.  I could post about knitting, too, as this is mostly a knitting blog, but today is a nonknitting post.  I'd be interested in whether anyone else out there has the Wii Fit and what they think of it.  I will post about it once I give it a go.

Finally, in more nonknitting content, I went to the library the other day to peruse the Jane Austen books.  That meme I did last week vexed me because I couldn't remember which of her books I had actually read versus those which I'd seen on film, so I didn't give myself credit for having read any of her books.  And that shall remain that way because my town library doesn't have any Jane Austen books on the shelves.  The horror!

I finished One Hundred Years of Solitude and I'm looking for some new book recommendations for the summer.  Any suggestions?

Conwy II's Are Done!

Here's my Saturday Sky.  I couldn't be bothered to post it on Saturday. . . the rainy, grey days made me quite lazy indeed.  I did knit, and you'll notice that I've read a lot of books and watched a lot of movies in the past week or so.  I've been stuck inside when I wanted to be outside.  On the upside, I did get to wear more of my handknit wool socks than I thought I'd be wearing at this time of year.

Here's the same view, as it has looked since Monday.  It's been gloriously sunny and I've enjoyed being outside every day.  It's supposed to rain again tomorrow, but these three days of sunshine have been heavenly.  I've even set up a new knitting corner outside on the back porch.  Every day, I bring the plants outside and sit and knit for a little while, usually joined by Loco. 

Sometimes, I have other company in my knitting corner:

And what's that sitting on the chair on the right?  It's Conwy II, all finished!  Here are some closer views:

I'm very pleased with the way they turned out.  I wear my other pair all the time, and I expect I will get a lot of wear out of these, too.  I will probably wear them more often, as, unlike the other pair, these are semisolid and don't have any unsightly pooling.  I'm still not thrilled with the quality of the Lorna's Laces yarn I used in these.  That first skein that was really tangled up in the skein was an annoyance.  I'm not sure if it was the same skein, but the skein that I used for the second sock had quite a few places where one of the plies was loose and I had to work to keep those loose bits knit and tucked into the fabric.  I still have more Lorna's Laces in my stash and I will happily knit with it, but I'm not sure about whether I will be buying any more. 

I will still be buying yarn, though.  In fact, I got lucky again with the latest Sundara offerings and scored the three skeins that I wanted.  They are, from left to right, Huckleberry Smoothie, South Seas, and Black Over Wild Berries.  I've been all about the sock yarn lately, most likely due to the fact that I have been chomping at the bit for spring to arrive and stay, and the warmer weather usually means more sock knitting.  Plus, I haven't fallen in love with any of the spring patterns I've seen in the latest knitting magazines and web offerings.  Certainly, if there's something lovely that I've missed, tell me.  Otherwise, expect a true summer of socks over here. . . maybe with a smattering of other things.  I still have a stash, you know, and it's not completely full of sock yarn.

I did notice something a bit unusual when I went to put my latest purchases in the stash.  My last two sock yarn purchases have been. . .eerily similar.  Although you definitely won't find a lot of bright, warm, or earth toned colors in my stash, there is a bit of variety.  And here I am, with my recent purchases showing a departure from my usual yarn acquiring habits. . . will my knitting habits change, too?  In some ways, I hope so.  I have too many long neglected UFO's, and it is my goal to finish some of them this month.  I might have to start a new project just to have something to use as a reward for finishing up some of these UFO's, but I'm off to a good start.  Why, I might even have another FO to show in the very near future!  With the coming rain, there will probably also be more books read and DVD's watched, too.  It's all good here, hope it is where you are, too.

One Week Later

It's springtime -- this sky photo was taken at 7:15 pm, and it was still light out.  Little by little, it seems that winter is leaving us.  Of course, I'd just spent an hour sitting on a metal bench in an ice rink while DD had her skating lesson, so it seemed positively balmy when we got outside. 

I was surprised, because usually I freeze at the rink no matter how bundled up I am, but this week I was comfortable enough to knit while she skated.  Usually my dad takes DD to skating class and she doesn't want anyone else to come, but he's away this week so I took her.  And I must confess that I brought some knitting with me in an attempt to identify a knitter whose child also takes skating lessons at the same time.  A few weeks ago, this knitter admired the sweater (Williamsro child) that DD was wearing in class and sought out my father to find out who knit it because she just started knitting and really liked it.  Alas, my openly knitting for an hour did not draw out any new knitting friends.  It didn't even elicit any comments from anyone.  Perhaps I will have better luck at my next attempt to encounter knitters in public.

My knitting in public was Conwy II.  I am actually about halfway done with the foot, so this photo is a bit out of date.  However, when I picked up the stitches for the gusset, I surprised myself.  I usually end up picking up a few more stitches than most patterns require, and that doesn't really bother me.  I'd rather pick up more stitches and have the sock look nice than pick up the lesser amount specified in a pattern, which will result in holes/gaps in the gusset.  I picked up way more gusset stitches than I usually do, though, on this sock.  I think I picked up 14 extra stitches -- look at the number of stitches on both of the bottom needles in this photo.  (I did write down the exact number somewhere so I can make the other sock to match.)  I'm hoping things will all work out, but I'm a little surprised.  So, of course, I have a question.  What happens when you pick up gusset stitches?  Do you ever pick up a lot more than the pattern specifies?  Any potential drawbacks to doing this?  Any disaster stories I need to hear?

These aren't new socks, but I wore them the other day with my Keen mary janes and I was so pleased that I took a photo.  These are my first socks ever, Broadripple.  I still love them, but Cascade Fixation doesn't have any wool so I find these socks aren't that warm in the winter.  They're perfect for this change of seasons that we're having now, and the bright colors hit the spot, too.

It's been a strange week, with some really crappy days and some lovely springlike days.  I've had ups and downs, too, dealing with the Beast's death.  I really appreciate all of the kind comments and e-mails that people have sent.  I haven't yet responded to everyone, but I will.  Sometimes it's just difficult to think about him too much right now, but I wanted to let everyone know that it really has touched me to have heard from you all.

I've been knitting a little this week, and one day I decided to tackle the Tea Rose Halter Top (scroll down) from the Spring 2007 Interweave Knits.  You might recall, I knit the entire thing in one day, way back in the spring of 2007, but I didn't crochet the straps because I needed to buy the right size crochet hook.  I did buy one, and promptly lost it.  I finally bought another one and did the straps a few weeks ago.

Here we are, with the straps attached the way that they are in the version in the magazine.  I know the t-shirt I'm wearing underneath isn't optimal for wearing under the halter, but it still just doesn't look right.  This is another one of those things that looks fine on the model in the pattern photo but doesn't look fine on me because I have a completely different body type.  When, when, when will I ever learn?

Well, I decided not to totally trash this.  I remember it looking okay when I tried it on sans straps after I first finished knitting it, so I tucked the straps in and played with it a little until I figured that it was just a matter of the placement of the straps.  I detached one, which wasn't a whole lot of fun because I had already woven in the ends and had apparently done a better job than I usually do.

Here it is with the straps placed differently, though I haven't yet finished attaching them so this technically isn't a finished object yet.  I think this looks much, much better than it did before.  After I did this, I popped over to Ravelry and checked out the other versions of this that other knitters have made, and I definitely think that this version looks better on me.  The straps placed close together look better on women who are, um, smaller.  If the weather holds, I will attach the straps permanently and take this top out for a spin.  It will be interesting to see what sort of reaction it gets.  Not that it's going to happen, but if I ever make this again for myself, I think I might do one or two more repeats of the lace pattern below the ribbing.  The length is fine as it is, but I think a tiny bit longer would make it more versatile. 

I'll get a better photo once this is really done.  I suppose I'll have to ask DH to take the photo.  I don't think he's ever seen this project.  It will be interesting to see what he thinks of it.  I don't think he will like it, but he might just surprise me.

Sunny Sky and Short Sock Question

Can a grrl get some credit for finally posting a Saturday Sky photo on Saturday?  It was gray and crappy out this morning, but I was rewarded for waiting until this afternoon to snap my sky photo.

Here's my latest (and probably last for a while) stash enhancement.  From the left, that is Sundara sock yarn in Raspberry Parfait, followed by two skeins of Socks that Rock, in Spinel and Jasper.  You can't really see the beauty of the Sundara yarn in the group photo, so here's a solo shot that captures it better:

Much nicer, yes?  Strangely, the Spinel and the Jasper yarn are pretty close to their true color in the group photo, though the Raspberry Parfait looks totally different.

The Raspberry Parfait is a limited color, so I had to scoop it up as soon as I saw it.  I'm not sure why, but I've got some sort of thing for pink socks, or at least pink sock yarn.  Maybe it's a bit of Cookie's influence.

The Jasper I *had* to buy once it finally showed up on the Blue Moon Fiber Arts web site because I need a whole honking skein of it so that I have enough to finish knitting the toes of my Titania's Revenge socks.  As you may recall, those socks were put on hold after I ran out of this yarn and couldn't find any more of it anywhere.  Those poor socks have sat in time out since September.  They also became an UGH! on Ravelry due to their unfinished state.  And I know that this skein of Jasper is unlikely to be a perfect match, but it will be good enough once I have shoes on, as I ran out of yarn at the beginning of the plain stockinette part of the toe.  I seem to have no luck when it comes to Socks that Rock.  I love the yarn, but it is the only sock yarn that I have ever run short on when knitting socks.  In any case, once I wind this yarn, this should be a quick fixit and then I'll have a short skein of STR lightweight Jasper -- any suggestions on a pattern I could use that doesn't require too much yardage?

I think I'm going to break out the blue nail polish tonight, too, and give myself a pedicure.  I forgot how much I like that color (OPI Russian Navy).  I had the pedicure in the photo done professionally.  It was the day before my grandmother died.  Funny how you link insignificant events in with major ones, but I know everyone does it.

In a rare (though not significant) event, I cooked something new this week.  I made bola de verde, which is something I had in Ecuador and loved.  It's basically mashed (cooked) green plantains stuffed with queso blanco.  I am definitely making these again.  They are suggested as an excellent breakfast food, but I find that the peeling of plantains is so tedious that these are best saved as a lunchtime meal for me.  I could not wake up and commence with the peeling of plantains right away.  I have a love/hate relationship with plantains.  I love to eat them, not fond of cooking them.  Maybe that's changing with this recipe.

There has been knitting, but nothing exciting.  I'll definitely be getting some good knitting time in this weekend, so maybe there will be something new in my next post.  Enjoy the rest of the weekend!

Spring Fever

It's springtime and I want to be out and about and feeling the warm sun on my skin.  We've had some teaser days that make me feel like spring is right around the corner.  Take Thursday:

I love the mixture of things in this photo.  Hell, it's almost the living embodiment of that bridal rhyme. . . something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue.  As I was walking through the Boston Common toward Park Street, I was struck by the juxtaposition of such different things.  There's the old church, the new construction, and the blue sky.  I'm not sure how borrowed could be conveyed in a photo.

And, for the record, when I got married, I achieved old, borrowed, and blue all in one item.  I wore a blue garter that had been given to my parents as a wedding gift when they got married.  I'm not sure it would ultimately be considered borrowed, though, as my parents never got it back.  That's because I never got it back.  One of DH's cousins ended up with the garter and he decided to keep it.

But getting back to Boston, I also visited a new (to me) knitting shop last week.  I was at the top of Newbury Street when I noticed a tiny little shop tucked in behind the Taj (formerly the original Ritz Carlton) at 11 Newbury, Mary Jo Cole Knitting and Needlepoint.  It's a tiny little shop, mostly full of needlepoint items, but they do have what seems to be a lot of Reynolds yarn and some expensive cashmere and luxury yarns.  I only needed stitch holders, and that's all I bought.  But I have to say that the lady who waited on me was so, so very nice.  I would definitely go back for the customer service alone.

What was I doing on Newbury Street?  Getting myself another Brazilian, my second ever.  I have to tell you, I was under the mistaken impression that the second time I got one of those babies would hurt less than the first time, but I was wrong.  So add that one to the List of Things You Tell  Yourself (or That Other Grrls Tell You) That Are Just Not True.  What else is on the list?

1.  If he said he'd call you, he will.

2.  Those brain cells you lose while you're pregnant (causing severe memory and cognitive issues) will come back after you've had the baby.

3.  If you want to land that job/get that man, call human resources/him a lot.

4.  The photos of your vacation/baby are much more interesting than the photos of other people's vacations/babies.

5.  Go ahead, order everything in your meal on the side in a restaurant.  The kitchen staff won't mind one bit.  They won't mess with your food, either.

6.  Leggings can be worn as pants and look good.  Hell, you can even tuck your shirt into them.

7.  Blue eyeshadow looks good on everyone.

Does anyone have any other suggestions for this list?  Go ahead, give me some truisms, make me laugh!

So, I was in the throes of spring fever, newly waxed, wearing fishnets and a minidress, and working it as I strolled around Boston.  The things you miss out on when you actually have to go to work during the day!  I got to feeling a little bit naughty, but I didn't do anything rash or radical.  If there's one thing that the rollercoaster of unemployment has taught me over the past few weeks, it is not to be too impulsive when it comes to life-changing or permanent experiences.  Thus, there were no new tattoos or piercings acquired.  I did check out my more scandalous side:

What Classic Pin-Up Are You?

You're Bettie Page!
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What classic Pin-up girl are you?

The Vixen
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I'm going to fess up that both of those are true. . . sometimes.  There are other times when I am happily under wraps, both literally and figuratively.

Why, sometimes I even knit!  This is the first sleeve of DS's cardi.  This project has been a very quick knit.  I finished both front pieces (except button bands, which come later in the pattern), but I haven't posted photos of them.  If you think the sleeve is dull, the cardi fronts would put you in a coma.  I have to admit, though, that as dull as the knitting on this project is, I do think it's going to look quite nice when it's done.  This photo was taken in natural light, so these colors are pretty accurate.  I think they look quite nice together.  DS likes this, too, so I'm hoping that he is going to be willing to wear the finished sweater. 

And DD showed off a new knitting affinity while watching me knit this.  Although she's not yet interested in learning to knit, she somehow figured out that she had a sweater knit of Mission Falls 1824 Cotton, and she found it and put in on and sat next to me while I knit.  The sweater still fits, though the sleeves are starting to get a bit short, though she hasn't worn it in a long time.  Color me impressed that she made the connection.  I'll make a knitter out of her yet.

Here's what you get for Saturday Sky.  I know, it's not sky.  I posted Thursday sky because it was so much nicer.  Friday we had a snowstorm.  Though it's sunny out today, I was more in the mood to look down today instead of up at the sky.  This is the back porch, with dogprints.  I'm losing my enthusiasm for snow, and the photos other bloggers have been posting of all manner of spring blooms has intensified my desire for spring to get here RIGHT NOW.  But, hey, I can still wear Gerbera and the other handknit socks, scarves, and sweaters I have.  I think I've retired hats and mittens for now, but you never know with New England weather.  The other plus is that even when spring comes, it takes a while to warm up here, so I can go on knitting wool projects until June at least before it becomes unpleasant to sit around with a big pile of wool in my lap.

What's been keeping me happy during the prolonged winter?  Tazo Awake tea is my new morning pleasure.  I go through phases when I drink lots and lots of Awake, then I run out and get too lazy to find more, which gives me a chance to rediscover another favorite tea or find a new favorite.  I have to admit, when I bought this box of Awake this week, I was hoping that I'd be using it to make iced tea.  Wishful thinking!

My favorite since the fall has been Kashi TLC Pumpkin Spice Flax granola bars.  I sort of thought I'd get sick of them because I eat them so much or because I tend to think of pumpkin as a fall flavor, but I'm still in love.  Now that I've made it through my Easter candy (dark chocolate rabbit, black jellybeans, one box of stale Peeps), I'm back on the healthy eating kick.  I just need it to get warmer and stop snowing so I can get outside and get some real exercise. 

Have a wonderful weekend!

I'm a Delicate Flower

I think I missed last week.  DH was on vacation, but I worked.  Every night I came home to find him debating where to get takeout for dinner.  If nothing else, it at least made me feel better to know that I can manage to get dinner on the table after a long day of work.  And I manage the kids all by myself, too, but I had to help DH all week.  I didn't get online at all at home last week.  I never had the chance.  I did manage to get some knitting done, though. 

I finished that scarf that I'd been knitting.  It's the Jo Sharp Misty Garden scarf from Scarf Style.  It's knit in Rowan Kid Soft, which is a discontinued yarn.  I'd hoped to get a modeled photo of the scarf, but I ran out of models and the dogs just weren't cooperating. 

I was going to do a self portrait with the scarf, but I spent two days this week locked in a hotel conference room with all the movers and shakers at work and, not surprisingly, a bunch of us weren't feeling so hot by the end of the week.  That turned into a full blown bad cold by the weekend, so I'm in no condition for photos.  (Though I did take a shower today, which is a huge improvement over yesterday.  You know you're really sick when basic things like showering go out the window.  In my defense, I must say that I did keep up with the tooth brushing.  It's not all bad.)

Just so you won't feel deprived, here's a photo of me that I took two Saturdays  ago.  I'm wearing my breast cancer shirt.  I wore it to the salon and everyone really enjoyed it, so I thought you all might like it, too.  Yeah, you can click to make it bigger, ha ha!  And you can click over to Save 2nd Base and get your own shirt.  It's a small charity run by the family of a woman who died after getting breast cancer.

It wasn't such a bad weekend to spend inside.  Saturday was a bad day due to the effects of a hurricane that was offshore.  I spent most of the day sleeping.  Today was a better day, and I got my Saturday Sky photo with some sunshine, enough sunshine to cause wierd solar effects in the photo.  I still didn't go outside, other than to take this photo.  I've been inside knitting and sleeping.  I actually got my Ravelry invite earlier this week but haven't had time to go on there and set myself up.  Once I get that done, I will definitely post the info here.

This delicate flower is getting tired, so I'm going to head off for a rest.  Just in case you were wondering what kind of flower I am, here you go:

I am a Snapdragon What Flower Are You?

The delicate flower will be back later this week with some current knitting to show.

Topsy Turvy Week

This is the one week each year that DH and I switch lives.  He goes to training Monday through Friday and leaves the house every day at 6:00 am (my usual departure time), and I get the kids off and then go in to work late.  Theoretically, we should be swapping almost everything, and I really looked forward to this week as an opportunity to do more knitting because, although I'm not getting home from work until 7:30ish, he's home to do all the things I usually do in the evening.  Things haven't worked out this way.  Even though DH gets home 2.5 hours before the time I normally arrive home (and thus has more time to get things done), he's slacking off.  He has bought the kids takeout every night this week, and he takes a nap as soon as I get home.  I think he ought to grow a set of ovaries and stay up from 5:00 am to 11:00 pm five days a week like I do without taking those sissy naps, slacking off on chores, and completely avoiding cooking.

That said, I did finish that scarf and I've started a new project, so it hasn't been a total loss on the knitting front.  I don't have any photos of knitting, though.  Here's what I did photograph since my last post:

Saturday Sky.  I actually took this on Sunday and totally forgot about it.  This is the Bunker Hill Monument in Charlestown, set against a lovely blue sky.  If nothing else, we had nice weather on Sunday for spending four hours in the car driving back and forth to the animal hospital.  Honestly, if there had been a yarn shop between the hospital and my house that I knew was open on Sundays, I would definitely have stopped on that last trip home. 

And the cause of the second trip to the hospital:

See how skinny his head and neck are normally?  This is him Wednesday.  He looks and feels just fine now.  He wasn't too interested in sitting still for the camera, so this was the best shot I got.  It may not be the cutest dog photo ever, but you can compare it to his photos in my last post and really see how the swelling went down.

On Monday, I took the day off because there was no one to watch DS.  We made a day of it.  We started at the farm for breakfast.  We got some cider doughuts, of course.  On Monday at 9:00, there was no wait to get them at the bakery.

Yum!  We then went to Chuck E. Cheese to play games, ran some errands, and went out to lunch before coming home so that I could take DD to her dance class.  I was wiped when we arrived home after 5:00, but I stayed awake so DH could nap.  And they say women are the fairer sex!  I have to admit, I get some satisfaction out of knowing that I have a more rigorous schedule than DH does, but at the same time, I'd trade that feeling for a good nap.  Or unlimited knitting time. . .a girl can fantasize!

Moving along to my own agricultural adventures, here's the latest view of the poinsettia in my office.  I have started boxing it at night to fool it into growing some red bracts by late December.  I'm still not sure that will happen, but get a load of what has been happening since I started boxing it -- look at all of the tiny little pale green bracts that are growing now.  I might just be on to something here.  I tend to doubt that the farm is going to call me and ask me for advice on poinsettia cultivation, but I've kept this thing alive for ten months now and I'm quite proud.  I'd like to repot it, but that is often the kiss of death for my plants, so it's going to have to make due with its original pot until after the holidays are over and it's safe to make that kind of change.

I'm taking Friday off, but we have to take the Beast to the hospital for another blood test.  Hopefully, I'll get a photo of my finished scarf during the day and have some progress on my new project to show you in my next post.  On Friday night, I will be watching Women's Murder Club while knitting.  I missed the first episode, but I watched it last Friday night and enjoyed it, so that's one more hour of knitting time I've added to my week.