Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Guess What I've Got?





Yup. Size 13 double pointed needles. I can't help myself. I know I SAID I wouldn't start anything new until my other projects were done, but I have the attention span of a mosquito and this is going to go SO fast. It'll be half done tomorrow. You'll see. (Needles...meet yarn. Just hang on; you'll be intimately acquainted shortly.)
This is the Round or Pinwheel Baby Blanket by Genia Planck. The yarn is a super bulky/roving by Bashful Bags & Fibers. I met her today, btw. Marched right into Black Sheep http://www.blacksheepknitting.com/bsk/ and said, "Are you Bashful Bags & Fibers? I bought some of your yarn over the weekend and then googled you." But now I'm in big trouble. This yarn is sick, their selection is vast, and she is bringing in a new shipment on Thursday. My mother and I are headed to Tahoe on Monday to visit my sister. (Hi Mom - thanks for reading.) She'll be coming down on Sunday to stay over, and will get to see the stash in all its glory now that I've moved it to its own room. Probably best to not bring anymore yarn in the house between now and then.
Speaking of yarn, Angela at http://www.knitluck.com/ just told me that if I have time while I'm in Tahoe, I should head over to Jimmy Bean's wool in Reno. Well, lucky for me, I'm flying in to Reno. Looks like I'll be dragging P&H to Jimmy Bean's.
So D is on her way over to watch the game and knit. Lets see if I can get half of this thing done tonight... Bye for now!

Monday, August 30, 2010

Wrap Update and a Yarn I've Never Tried Before...

It's Monday evening. I had a pretty relaxing weekend, but still managed to squeeze in a visit to my three favorite yarn stores. This time of year everyone is selling off the summer stuff and bringing in the fall stuff so there are sales all around. I was VERY well behaved and only brought home a couple things. I'll get back to that in a minute.

I didn't mention that I got a new orchid last week. This is only one of the stems with blooms on it, but I'm still taking pictures with my phone and it's the best I could do. I parked the three snoozing orchids out in the dining room with the other boring plants. If they ever decide to bloom again, they can come back in the kitchen where the action is.


I saw a sample of the Pinwheel Baby Blanket by Genia Planck over the weekend. Anyone who knows me knows that under most circumstances, a brick would have to fall on my head for me to care about a baby blanket, BUT the sample was really nice, and I thought this thing would look cool draped over the chair I always sit in (until the cats get their paws on it). The sample was in a wool that I was not familiar with. The company is Bashful Bags and Fibers


http://freshpurls.blogspot.com/2009/07/portrait-in-yarn-hand-dyer.html and she dyes in Needham, which is where I work. What a coincidence. Anyway, the yarn is really light and fluffy - it's like roving with a very fine thread wound around it. According to my scale, they are about 75 grams and are approx 109 yards. I only bought two. I wanted to start the project last night, but (and you won't believe this) I didn't have the right needles. Can you believe THAT? I didn't have size 13 double pointed. Until I get some, I won't be starting this project.
That leads me to my Stay Put Wrap, pictured here on the left. I didn't reach my goal of 10" over the weekend, but I'm getting there.
I didn't knit even one stitch today and now I'm going to bed. Thanks for stopping by...



Saturday, August 28, 2010

Stay-Put Wrap, Holiday Orders and Pedroia's Broken Foot

God Morgon! (Yeah - that means good morning.) Pandora is providing the soundtrack to this morning's entry... station based on Astaire's Putting on the Ritz...currently Cole Porter's Anything Goes. I think I might have to change to a station based on the Headbanger's Ball. I haven't had any caffeine yet and this is going to put me back to sleep.

I'm sticking to my guns - not starting anything new until I get my current projects off the needles. Last week I had six projects going and I've since completed one (Xenocryst), which leaves me with five. My Stay-Put Wrap by Mags Kandis has been sitting quietly on the back burner for a couple weeks while I started a couple new things, but I've put it back in the rotation, and worked on it a bit last night.


Last night I created what will be the beginning of a sleeve. I really like this. The neverending seed stitch gets a little old, but I LOVE this cable and the finished wrap is totally me. This is the only thing I'm going to work on today and tomorrow and my goal is to get 10-12" inches done.


So the holidays are approaching, and that is always a tough time for me. Between knitting gifts, knitting items for other people to give as gifts and (some years - not anymore) knitting things for crafts shows I get way overextended. Last year I was like a crazed lunatic trying to get everything done, so I promised myself it would not happen again. Last week, someone saw a felted bag that I often carry and inquired about me making one for her. I immediately blurted out that she couldn't have it in time for Christmas (2010), but I could get it to her for next Christmas (2011). It's August. Knee jerk reaction much? Sheesh - talk about gun shy. Later that day, I was like, "Ummm, Hols? It's August, you're not working on anything that can't wait, and the bag will take three weeks MAX." So I went back, tried to make it look like I hadn't lost my mind for a minute, and explained that I could take the order.

And finally, I'd like to comment on Dustin Pedroia's broken foot. If there is one thing I know about, it is broken bones in the foot. (I've inserted a photo here for your convenience.) I've had bone surgery on both of my feet. I had an osteotomy (= to cut bone) with shortening of my first metatarsal left (bone #8 on the map) and I've had a bone graft to repair a spiral fracture of my fifth metatarsal right (bone #12 on the map). **NEWS FLASH** They take a long time to heal, and you can't put weight on them. When I broke my foot in 2008, I was totally non weight bearing for FIVE MONTHS before they decided that it wasn't going to heal and we did the bone graft. His navicular bone is broken (bone #3 on the map), which is up closer to the ankle, but I've read that these are also notorious for not healing. What is wrong with the Red Sox medical staff? They didn't make him rest long enough, it didn't heal, he played on it, and now he needs surgery. Is someone going to make him use his crutches NOW?
I need to scram. I have tons of Saturday stuff planned. Have a good day. :)

Thursday, August 26, 2010

I'm Lucky to Have my Head...

This will be a quick one, and I'm not going to talk about knitting at all. I'm at the Pru(dential Center) all day today for meetings, so I need to pick out a suit and track down some appropriate shoes - neither flip flops nor Uggs are appropriate - and get a move on.

I'm going to tell a story today...

Once upon a time, there was a performance analyst who made her living analyzing healthcare quality data. She sat in a cubicle all day, looking at her computer and processing enough data to make the average person keel over cross-eyed. Over time, she accumulated enough books and conference binders to require an additional bookshelf in her cubicle; so she requested and was granted one. The handyman who visits her worksite every month or so installed it, and she proudly put her binders, books and kleenex on her new shelf. She was very happy with the improvements to her cubicle, and for the six or eight weeks that the extra shelf hung in her cube, she was the envy of all her colleagues.
On a day that seemed like so many others before it, she arrived at work, turned on her computer, went to the kitchen where she made a cup of coffee, exchanged morning pleasantries with colleagues, and then sat down to work. While responding to an email from her Senior Director's Executive Assistant - with absolutely no warning - her beloved shelf came crashing down. Never one to mince words when the word "fuck" is the most appropriate choice, she screamed "jesus fucking christ" while books, papers, binders, coffee, kleenex, and a shelf that has to weigh about 20 lbs barely missed landing on her. Actually, she WAS hit by flying coffee.
Witnesses said that it sounded like the roof was falling in. Co-workers ran from one aisle over in each direction to assist with the clean up. The analyst was so shaken up that she had to sit down. Someone removed the shelf and took it back to the building's facility coordinator, someone grabbed paper towel and started cleaning up the coffee, while someone else dried off the textbooks and binders. Once everything (except her elevated heart rate) was back to normal, she had a decision to make: Did she want the shelf reinstalled? She made her way over to the cubicle of the facility coordinator, and there was the shelf. Now, sitting alone on its side, it didn't seem like it knew the analyst at all, and showed absolutely no remorse for trying to kill her 45 minutes earlier. It was a hard choice to make, but the analyst knew what she had to do. She had to make a clean break, so she told the facility coordinator that she was going to go it alone without the extra shelf.
Even though the analyst now has a bunch of crap on her desk that she'll need to find a home for, it seems that she'll live happily ever after - since she's still in possession of her head. The end.

Tuesday, August 24, 2010

Complaints, Recommendations and Janis...

Actually, I'm going to do the recommendation first. Zappos rocks the house. Have you ever bought anything from them? They are customer service fanatics - seriously. I ordered my new Uggs on Saturday afternoon. They immediately sent me an order confirmation, which is to be expected. A couple hours later, I get another email which says, "Yay, Holly! We love you! You don't have to do anything - we're going to overnight your Uggs and it's not going to cost you anything extra! Yippee!" (Yes, I'm paraphrasing.) At about 3AM, while I was asleep, they sent me another email which said, "Great news! We've already shipped your new Uggs!" How do like that? They work around the clock. So Monday when I got home from work, there they were, waiting for me on the front porch. I opened them up and they were exactly what I was expecting; packed by a guy named Ralph. Thanks Ralph. I need to spray them and then they'll need to sit for 24 hours before I venture outside with them. It's been raining for 48 hours straight, so they won't make their premier until the weather improves to cool but clear. (And speaking of never-ending rain, my sump pump is working like a champ.)
Now sadly, I have to move into the complaint portion of the post. A good friend of mine caught the new issue of Vogue Knitting a few days before me, and wrote a great entry about it. http://purlsandotherlilgems.blogspot.com/2010/08/sorry-vogue-but-thats-wedgie.html
I was starting to think my subscription ran out, but I received my issue today in the mail. Oh my god. I haven't been this disappointed since the LAST issue of Vogue Knitting arrived in the mail. I'm not sure who their target market is at this point, but I AM sure it's not me. First we have the "London Calling" collection, which can best be described as heinous, and sadly, stole the name of a great album by a great band. Next: Force of Nature collection, which is a robust collection of ugly sweaters in ugly colors. Finally, Home on the Prairie collection which is six sweaters based on (wait - let me guess) Native American blanket designs from the 1860's? Is that it? Are you serious? Shh - Do you hear that? It's the sound of Twist Collective kicking the crap out of Vogue Knitting. http://twistcollective.com/2010/fall/magazinepage_01.php 'Nough said.

So I'm back to working on my Janis Joplin Jacket. I've got 13" of the back done, but these photos were taken at about 10 1/2".
Thanks to D for taking these pics and the pics of my Xenocryst hat, which I posted yesterday. It might still be a little warm for working on Janis b/c the wool is pretty heavy and hot. It knits up fast though, so that's good. I love this coat (check out the newly completed brown one on Ravelry) but I'm not loving the yarn so much. Not sure Debbie Bliss Donegal Tweed Chunky will be doing a repeat performance at Chateau Hols.
At least one of my smoke detectors is chirping and it's driving me crazy. There are four of them up here on the second floor and I can't tell which one it is. I can't even tell if it's upstairs or down in the first floor foyer. I'm not so great with knowing where sound is coming from. Actually, I think maybe a couple of them are wired together and are both chirping. It's like water torture. On that happy note, I'm off to figure this out. Thanks for stopping by...

Monday, August 23, 2010

In Record Time...

Even with my splint on...



Done, and











Done.

Saturday, August 21, 2010

Veggies, Xenocryst, Free Boston Parking and Uggs...

I had been really overwhelmed there for a while. I've been spending some quiet time at home this week trying to reel it in, and I'm feeling a) more organized, and b) better. When I spend a lot of time running around it gums up the works at home; laundry doesn't get done, bills get paid twice, I don't get enough sleep and I start to lose things (no, not my mind). I was planning to get these for the fall:
http://www.zappos.com/product/7630814/color/37761 I had a $100 gift card to Zappos, and they were there the last time I checked online - which was about three weeks ago. I know not everyone would wear that color - Ugg Ultramarine - but it is one of my favorites and I have tons of stuff that would match them perfectly. So I went online to get them today, and they only have size 6. Shit. I'm not size 6. Back to the drawing board. I ran through the similar styles but there's no Ultramarine. So, this is as close as I can get:
http://www.zappos.com/product/7555745/color/195487 Instead of the Classic Short, I had to go with the Bailey Button, but it appears to be the same height (I won't wear them rolled down). And, even though the Ugg Deep Cobalt isn't exactly the shade I wanted, it seems pretty close I guess. Zappos - free shipping. Gotta like that.

How about those eggs? Over half a billion (that's billion with a B) have been recalled thus far. What a disaster. I wonder what my neighbors would think if I got a couple hens. Hmm. I like being able to grow my own veggies, so maybe raising my own protein is the next logical step. My garden has been a big success this year - after duking it out with the slugs last year, anything would be an improvement - and I'm thinking I may go bigger next year. Here are the primary components of last nights dinner: swiss chard and cherry tomatoes. Fresh, pretty, and free of salmonella - wouldn't it be great if all our food was safe?

It is starting to get cool at night, so fall is not far off. It's kind of chilly now, and it looks like it's either raining or might rain. I need to run to the bank. I use only small banks, so it's not quite as convenient as having a superbank on every corner. One of my banks is Harvard Employees Credit Union, and it is a complete pain if I have to do any banking. On my way down from Rowley this morning, I was trying to think of the easiest way to get to Harvard Square, and then I remembered that the ATM at the Mass General main campus would be way more convenient. I didn't want to park in the garage, so I had to think about where I could park for free...thinking...thinking...got it. Whole Foods on Charles Street. All I would have to do is buy something at WF, get my parking ticket stamped, and it wouldn't cost me anything. That's what I did.

I parked the car and headed down the block to MGH. If you look at the left half of the photo, you can see the Building for the Third Century, which is under construction. http://www2.massgeneral.org/b3c/
Boston is the only city with two US News Honor Roll Hospitals: Mass General and Brigham and Womens. I don't mention work too much, but I'm very proud to work for Partners Healthcare - both of these hospitals are ours. Anyway, I made my way to the ATM, pulled out the cash I have to move to the other bank, and made my way back to Whole Foods. This is where my money saving plan falls apart. http://www.artisanalcheese.com/prodinfo.asp?number=10404 My favorite cheese is Piave, and the only place I know that sells it is WF. So I go in for a piece of cheese, and get sidetracked by the produce, the fancy chocolate and finally, the beignets. (For a review of my last experience with beignets, check out my eating tour of Chicago
http://hollypots.blogspot.com/2010/03/i-made-it-home-from-chicago.html) I would've been far better off to just park at the hospital, but I've got some lovely fruit and cheese to snack on. Mmm...$9 cherries.
I don't know what happened to my font. My font-control button disappeared, so I can't fix it. Y'all are just going to have to put up with Arial instead of Trebuchet for another paragraph, and we'll be back to normal next time. (Trebuchet is my second-favorite word, which is why I picked that font, by the way. It means catapult.)

So my hat is mostly done. I'm about to start the crown shaping. I had it on my head earlier, but I couldn't get a decent picture of it. Maybe D will take a shot of me tomorrow. We're going to IKEA in the morning. She needs a part for her closet, and I need some knackebrod and lingonberry jam. http://www.squidoo.com/knackebrod And speaking of Swedish, God Kvall. (Have a good one.)

Friday, August 20, 2010

Xenocryst update


I've done a couple inches on my hat, but my hand/wrist is bothering me again, so I think I need to rest it for a little longer. This is a really cool cable; I'm glad I switched to a lighter color so that it can be seen.
I'm running out the door to go to the doctor this morning. I need to find some light clothes to wear, b/c even though he's not my PCP, I'll have to get on the scale. Isn't it funny how we do that? Bye for now!

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Cast on Xenocryst (again)...six things going...

It's every other Wednesday again, but I won't bore you with an explanation of "every other Wednesday" every other Wednesday. Instead of complaining about all the stuff I have to do around here and never getting around to any of it, I did something when I got home from work today. I guess I was inspired by the clean house. The first thing I did was hang (on the wall) a decorative piece comprised of four smallers pieces. This required a tape measure, a level, a pencil and what was left of my brain after working on 17 trend graphs for 2300 data points since last Friday. It was a struggle but I managed; the piece actually looks cool if I do say so myself.
I didn't want to lose momentum, so I frogged the scarf and hat from my last post. Psyched!
My hand and wrist have rested for four days; I thought I could do something light tonight so I decided to cast on the re-do of my Xenocryst hat. I decided to go with Cascade 220 in light blue for the new hat, and I wound it last night. The pattern calls for size 6 needles, but I've already determined I'm using something bigger. I had to look all over for the right ones; I was looking for 9s, but I found 8s and those should be fine.
So this starts with the decorative AND stretchy Estonian double cast on. I turned on the You Tube tutorial, but I didn't really need it.
Here's the hat four rows in. I can't really see the cable yet, but I should be able to have something to show in a day or two.
Right before I started writing this post, I added the hat to my project list on Ravelry. I did a quick count and realized that I have six projects on the needles right now: this hat, the Janis Jacket, my seed stitch/cable wrap, a cable & lace sweater for a friend of mine (who asked how it's coming so I need to move that to the front of the line), the Jubilee scarf, and the Cinquefoil hat. Yikes. I'm going to California in a couple weeks, so I'll get some of this stuff finished on the trip. I'm not casting on anything else until at least three of these projects are done. Seriously. I'm not casting on anything else until at least three of these projects are done...

Monday, August 16, 2010

To Frog or Not to Frog...That is the Question.

How long do you wait before ripping something out? A week? Six months? Two years? Ten years?
While trying to finish up the 2010 Stash Organization Project, I'm taking a hard look at some of my old UFOs. Here's a good one: I love this scarf - it's a reversible cable, so it looks the same on both sides. The yarn is Louisa Harding Kashmir Aran, which is a merino, microfiber, cashmere blend. I saw the scarf as a display up at Seed Stitch in Salem and got the pattern with yarn purchase. I started it right away and promptly lost the pattern...TWO YEARS AGO. Think I can frog it? I'm thinking probably.
Now here's another blast from the past. I made Flora by Margaux Pena for my sister in brown and multi Manos Silk Blend. Pretty right? (Oh - that's Lake Tahoe in the background. I'm going there for a visit in three weeks. Hey H - What's up?) I liked it so much that I bought at least six hanks of the Manos thinking I was going to bang out Flora's for everyone I knew and give them as holiday gifts.
Check out the purple and lavender one I was working on...LAST YEAR. I took it with me to Seattle (not my trip to Seattle two weeks ago, my trip to Seattle last July) and haven't touched it - except to photograph it - since I returned home. Think I'll miss it if I rip it out ? Neither do I.
So as I mentioned yesterday, I went to the SOWA open market in the South End with my former room mate, G. http://www.southendopenmarket.com/
The weather was awesome and there were tons of vendors - from produce to baked goods, to clothing I believe was manufactured at a correctional facility, to artists and all kinds of other stuff. Check out my new ring.
The band is a cool shape, and really comfortable. It is gorgeous - the picture doesn't do it justice (oh - and BTW, I'm completely over using my Blackberry as my primary camera).

http://www.lilianabead.com/ I've attached the link to the artist's site, but I'm warning you - I was just in there and I'm gonna be in big trouble if I go in there again. Check out this ring:
http://www.lilianabead.com/rings.html Those are little bubbles of sterling suspended in the glass. Beautiful.

One last thing and I'll wrap up. One of my orchids that has been asleep for two or three years has sprouted a new leaf. If this thing actually blooms, I will write about it every single day ...forever.

Sunday, August 15, 2010

Janis, Gardening, Prokofiev and Repetitive Stress Injuries...

Sunday: I had a crazy day yesterday, and I have a full day on the docket today as well. It's 8AM and I've already been out watering and playing in the garden. I have to get out of here by 9:15, so I'm going to make this quick. I'm headed in to town to go to the SOWA open market w/ my old room mate, G. http://www.southendopenmarket.com/ The weather is really nice, so it's a good day to be poking around outside. I always run into problems when I see artisans selling their wares, so maybe I'll just take my Charlie Card (the card a Bostonian uses to get on and off the subway - not valid for any other purchases). Yeah, right.
Munchie is being incredibly annoying right now. She's jumped up on the desk about 10 times and won't leave me alone. After I get my new camera, I'll put up a movie of her talking. There is a quick video of Munch posted on Oct 18, '09 if you'd like to hear what she's like.



I was up pretty early, so I went out to water the garden and to see if there was anything that needed to be pulled or picked. From left, we have a couple radishes, some carrots, a couple beets I pulled too early and today's cherry tomatoes. Not bad. This will be the basis of my dinner tonight.



Have you ever really liked a piece of music but had no idea what it was or where you heard it? Then, it's on the radio and you HOPE that they say what it is so you can buy it off iTunes? That happened to me on Thursday. The piece Sergei Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet Suite no 2, Op 64b: The Knight's Dance (aka Montagues and Capulets). I keep listening to it over and over. Awesome.

So I've been working on my Janis Joplin Jacket pretty much every spare minute, and so of course my carpal tunnel is acting up. I put on my brace last night and will wear it all day today and tomorrow if necessary. That should rest my hand and wrist enough to get back to it soon. In the meantime, here is what it looks like. I'm about 11" in.


I need to hop in the shower and be on my way. In the last 24 hours, I've had a hits to my blog from Turkey and Australia. I'm thrilled! Thanks for stopping by...

Friday, August 13, 2010

What do I have to do to see meteors around here?

News flash: Meteor showers tonight. If you're the kind of person that appreciates that kind of thing, go outside after midnight - but the best viewing is 3ish - and look up at the sky. Tonight, after Boston Medical ended at 11PM, I watched the news. Listening to the weatherman talk about the meteors made me think that maybe I should go out and try to find some. The last time I went out looking for meteors was either 6 1/2 or 7 1/2 years ago when I lived in Malden. That shower occurred in the dead of winter, but I'd never seen one before, so I thought I'd make the effort. I set my alarm for either 3 or 4 in the morning, put on my coat and boots then went outside to stand in my driveway and hope for the best. I saw them flashing across the sky as soon as I got out there, and since I'd never seen a meteor shower before, I thought it was pretty cool. So how long do you stand there looking up at the sky if it's the middle of the night in the dead of winter and you're freezing your ass off? 100 meteors, that's how long. I decided that I would count them until I saw 100, and then go inside and return to the comfort of my bed. I think it took about half an hour give or take.
That brings me back to tonight. I'd had enough caffeine late in the day to not be asleep when the news ended at 11:30. I live less than a mile from the ocean, so I thought it would be nice and dark over there - which would lend itself to meteor viewing. So off I went. Drove over to the beach and realized that there are street lights like every 50 feet. When I looked at the sky, I could see the light bouncing off the low cloud cover. Hmm. Maybe Deer Island? I headed across town (my entire town is one square mile - not a booming metropolis) and although it was darker over there, there were still no stars to be seen. I was starting to think that I wasn't going to be able to see any meteors tonight. Plus, I was starving. I'm not usually out driving around town at midnight. I'm usually not up at midnight period. Turns out that I'm hungry at midnight when I eat dinner at 5:15. Thankfully I don't have any crap in the house. I gave up all hope of viewing the meteors flashing across the sky, and came home to a healthy bowl of chocolate caramel granola cereal. Even with the nectarine it came in under 200 calories, with 15 grams of protein. I hate to eat so late, but what can you do?
One last thing and I'm off to bed. This morning I was eating my breakfast out on the deck while checking out my birds. There were only two of them - an adult and a teenager - and they were sitting within about 4 feet of each other, so I bet one was the mom. Anyway, there was some rustling way out at the very edge of one of the branches. I thought it was another Heron settling in, but as I looked closer it was a couple squirrels. A smaller squirrel was chasing a larger squirrel toward the center part of the tree. The larger squirrel was running like such a spaz that he ran right off the tree. He literally fell at LEAST 30 feet and hit the ground with a THUD. I was stunned...and so was he. So I said to him, "How'd that feel?" He didn't move at all except to twitch his tail for about 45 seconds. Then he shook it off and bounded across my yard to a different tree, where he disappeared. How do you like that? Squirrels bounce when dropped from a height of 30 feet. Don't try that at home.
My Janis jacket is at 7 inches right now. I'll try to put up a picture once I knit a couple more inches.
I have to get up in five and a half hours and it's a long one tomorrow. G'night.

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

Quick post tonight...

I think I'm losing it. Totally. I had dinner with friends this evening, and didn't get home until nearly 9PM. I brought the mail in and began the mail opening ritual by selecting the letter from my insurance company. Open it up and there is a check for $62. Odd. The stub said the reason for the check was dwelling fire premium overpayment. Really? Okay, if you say so. Thanks for the check. I then move on to the bill from nationalgrid. Nationalgrid = gas company. Seems I overpaid them as well, because I've got a credit balance of $134.51. Wow. It's days like these that I wish there was more mail to open. But seriously - am I in such a fog that I'm just sending payments out willy-nilly? I've been thinking that I need a part time assistant or organizer or something; I am spread way too thin. This is just whacky - even for me. I've always been meticulous about my finances, so this is troubling. But I don't want to spend too much time thinking about it, so I'll move on to my Janis update. When you look at the terrible color, keep in mind that I'm still taking pictures with my phone and imagine that it's a good shot. I'm on the back and have about 4" done. It is 9:30 now, and my goal is to get to 5" so the I can do another decrease row before I go to bed.
My last update relates to the scraped knees I acquired while on vacation. Tomorrow it will be two weeks since I fell on them, and they're still not healed. Knees like a six-year-old. That's me.
Later.

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

New Project Alert!

Well I've certainly been talking about it long enough, and I've had the yarn for a while. Can anyone guess? I've been waiting for the weather to cool down, and although August doesn't really qualify as cool, I DID see a tree today with red leaves among the green. That's good enough for me. Time for a sweater, right? No, not even. Time for a coat! Yes, I cast on the Janis Joplin Jacket by Jill Stover. The body of the coat is Debbie Bliss Donegal Luxury Tweed Chunky, and the collar might be Garden Party Homespun (anyone know for sure?) in Winter Solstice colorway. I think it might be a little early for me to comment on the BD Donegal Tweed. I've seen a couple of these coats completed and I love them. I think the yarn is great in the finished garments, but I'm not loving it as I knit with it. On the other hand, bulky yarn on size 10 needles does lend itself to immediate gratification. As you can see, I've chosen to go with lavender/purple for a change. If I cast on one more blue or turquoise project, I think even I won't be able to stand me anymore. Check out the darker ball that is going to be the collar - how awesome is THAT?? I've done at least another inch since I took this pic last night. Thankfully I had it with me this morning. I had to go for bloodwork, and I showed up half an hour before the lab opened. And, in my haste to get over to Brookline for 7:30, I left my Blackberry on my bedside table. What a pain - in this day and age to be unable to communicate for an entire day... can you imagine? Anyway, you'll be pleased to know that they were able to take three tubes without incident and unnecessary bloodshed.

It is just about dusk, and I just saw a few of my Herons fly off for the evening. Yesterday morning I was sitting here at my computer when they returned for the day. I have a flock (?) of Black Crowned Night Herons living in my biggest tree. This is the fourth summer I've been in my house, and they've been here every year. Saturday evening B was here when a few of them took off. They hang out in my tree during the day, and then they head over to the marsh to hunt at night. It's a huge tree, and I really have to look hard to find them. http://10000birds.com/nightherons.htm I found this link - hopefully it'll work. One day last year I counted 10 adults and a teenager. This morning I saw a teenager fly in for the day as I was getting in my car to go to work. They are really huge birds, and they make a BIG mess. I'll just leave it at that.

Not too much else. I need to pay some bills and do some chores. Sorry about the lack of pictures. I need to get my ass in gear and get a new camera. No pictures = no fun. Bye for now.

Sunday, August 8, 2010

I finally finished my Everyone's Doing It Shrug...

...and I'll get to it in a minute. Happy Sunday! It is 9:30 AM, and I want to try cover a bunch of stuff as quickly as possible. That way I won't be chained to my desk all morning, and y'all won't fall asleep reading my blatherings. Today got off to a rocky start, so I'll begin by talking about yesterday. (Although this entry would've been WAY funnier if I began writing it a couple hours ago when I was really cranky...the cutting sarcasm was in overdrive.)
So yesterday. I'm back to the overscheduling again; even though it was Saturday, I was out of the house before 7:00. First I went from Winthrop to Rowley by way of Marblehead. Then I went from Rowley back to Winthrop by way of Beverly Farms. (If you looked at a map you would think was either totally lost or had absolutely no sense of direction. Neither of these are true.) On the way home, I wanted to stop in to see my friend Tink (aka Jill Stover) at Yarns in the Farms http://www.yarnsinthefarms.com/ I was only there a short time because I was rushing home to go on an adventure w/ my friend B. We were headed down to Dorchester because I needed 3 matching Cascade 220s in a light color and Stitch House has all the Cascade on sale this month at 40% off. http://stitchhousedorchester.com/ That means that I was in two out of three of my favorite yarn stores yesterday, which in itself makes it a pretty good day. (I want to mention that the "Best Of" issue of North Shore Magazine named Yarns in the Farms Editor's Choice for best yarn store on the North Shore while I was in Seattle. Big congrats to Tink and Wink!)
B and I then went to La Siesta for dinner. http://www.lasiestarestaurante.com/ The food is always awesome, and last night they had these two mariachi guys walking from table to table serenading the patrons. Sheesh. What a day. Since we were being serenaded and all, we opted to stay for (shared) flan and cappaccino. Probably a mistake, as I practically needed to lay on the floor when I got home. Go big or go home - there's nothing like a glutton.

We came back to my house and B cast on the Swallowtail Shawl and I finished my Everyone's Doing it Shrug. Here's a pic, but it was taken w/ my BlackBerry so it's not great.  Check out Ravelry for a pic that shows the truer colors.  I should mention that I'm not a total mutant - I'm bringing my left shoulder across so that both the back and sleeve can be seen at the same time.  I really like how it turned out, so I'm planning to wear it over a black knit jumper this afternoon when I hit tea at the Taj.  http://www.tajhotels.com/Luxury/TAJ%20Boston,BOSTON/default.htm  Check out the tea menu if you're so inclined. My friend J and I go about three times a year - once for each of our birthdays and then once in the summer just because.   
I was going to bitch about all the police officers standing around doing nothing at the construction of the new Chelsea bridge this morning (nine of them), and about my miserable trip to Market Basket (getting there at 7:45AM is too late as the masses have already arrived) but I'm over it and it wouldn't be as funny now.  I was also going to talk about my Black Crowned Night Herons (some of you may remember them from last year) but I'm out of time and I want to post decent pictures (no camera remember?); so that will have to wait.  I'm going to squeeze in some chores before heading in to town.  Thanks for stopping by.

Wednesday, August 4, 2010

Mmmmm...Alpaca!

Today is every-other Wednesday. It's my favorite day of the every-other week. When I arrived home from work today, my house was clean. I've not raved about A. since March (when I had the norovirus and she offered to take me to the doctor) but she's awesome. If anyone in the area is looking for a cleaning lady, I'm more than happy to recommend her. We have an ongoing thing where she puts my stuff away (deliberately hides it perhaps?) and I drive myself crazy trying to find it. Tonight it was the strainer. I've been throwing veggies (including beets and carrots from my garden) in with the peperoncini to cheat-pickle it. After just a couple days the veggies are tart and spicy but still crunchy. Anyway, I needed the strainer to get the veggies out of the peperoncini brine, and had to check every hiding place in the kitchen...but you'll be pleased to know it all worked out okay.



I have one left over picture from my vacation that I wanted to post. Here is me (in Seattle) with my boyfriend V. visiting a...that's right...a local yarn store. This one is called So Much Yarn http://www.somuchyarn.com/ and it is right down the block from Pike Place Market.
I wanted my friend S. to pick out some yarn so that I can make her a thank you gift and she picked out some Cascade Eco Alpaca in a taupe-y chocolate brown. I know what I'm going to make, but I don't want to spoil the surprise, so I'm going to keep my lip zipped...or at least try.
The other yarn store I visited was Bad Woman Yarn http://www.badwomanyarn.com/ in Wallingford Center. I was looking for Washington State wool at both stores, but it turns out that I was asking the impossible. I would have to go to an actual farm to get local wool, and I really didn't have the time or inclination for that. Next time perhaps.



Before I left for vacation, I promised photos of the work I did while away. Since most of my time was spent on i-cord to make a rug for my little friend, I really didn't get too much of my own knitting done. Here's the progress on my wrap...not much. The seed stitch is kind of boring, but I'm diggin' the cable. Typical. Cable girl.

Alright, time for dinner. Thanks for stopping by.

Monday, August 2, 2010

Back from Vacation!

I have a lot to get to this evening, so I'm just going to dive right in. As per usual, my blatherings will come early in the post with plenty of visual aids. I'll finish up with the knitting close to the end.
I've spent the last week in the pacific northwest - specifically Seattle - with a four day vacation within a vacation in Union, Washington. There's not a whole lot going on in Union, Washington, but a very important person has a home right next door to where we were staying...but I'll get to that. One of my dearest friends, S lives in Seattle with her husband, J and son, V. S and I have been friends for about 20 years. She is one of VERY few people who knew me when I was married. In the summer of 1992, S was looking for a room mate, and I realized that I'd rather live with her than my husband, so I left my marriage. That's no joke.
When she picked me up, we headed to Pike Place Market which is a huge Seattle landmark. http://www.pikeplacemarket.org/ We had lunch at http://www.maximilienrestaurant.com/ which is a lovely french bistro w/ a great view. S had the most spectacular ham and cheese sandwich that I've even seen or tasted in my life. Technically, it was the Croque Madame without the eggs. Trust me - it's almost worth going to Seattle to get the sandwich.

After lunch, we poked around the market for a while. I know she's going to kill me for posting this photo, but I think it's beautiful. Hi S!

The next day we left for http://www.alderbrookresort.com/ which is an hour on the ferry and then an hour drive. It is incredibly beautiful there, and there's not a whole lot to do - which is perfect for me. I'm not one of those hike-up-the-side-of-a-mountain-for-kicks kind of people. I have a bad foot and a vestibular (middle ear/balance) issue that causes me to fall down all the time...but I'll get to that. Let's just say that I'd rather sit in a chaise and read or knit.

We rented a two bedroom cottage and this was basically our view for four days. We were on the Hood Canal looking at the Olympic Mountain Range across the way. Pretty, isn't it? Turns out that the philantropist founder of Microsoft has a summer place right next door. Seriously - right next door. Yes, I have a couple photos of the house but I'm not going to post them here. J said that the Nordstroms have a place up there also.

The first morning we were there we scurried off to yoga/pilates at 8:30, only to see 80's style aerobics when we got over there. We decided to sit near the fire and regroup. Here is the very instant I decided there was no possible way I was going to aerobics.

Obviously this is a photo of a hydrangea. They were all over the place, and the colors were unbelievable. Aren't these pictures great? I'm glad I took so many because I no longer have a camera...but I'll get to that too.



The second day we were there, J joined us, and this is my buddy V while we were waiting for his daddy to get there. Clearly, he's a cutie-patootie.


So this is "glamping" dinner. A lovely salad of mixed greens and chicken salad which S made supplemented by caprese salad and asparagus a la room service. (Yes, glamping is glamour camping.)


So the next day after not doing a whole lot, we decided to rent a pedal boat and go cruise around. S had taken V out the day before while I was at the spa, and I thought a little exercise might be a good thing after lunch. This is V running down the pier in search of our pedal boat.
Here he is with the pedal boat guy - picking out what they thought was a good one. I should mention that the photo of the vendor, V and the pedal boat was the last photo ever taken with my camera. You're thinking that the camera fell in the water, aren't you? No, because then how would I have the photos? Guess again. Anybody who talks to me even fairly often knows that I fall down all the time. Generally I fall down the stairs at home, but since I was on vacation, I thought I'd make a complete fool of myself by tripping over a gap in the dock and hitting the non-skid deck on all fours. Not only did I put the worst scape on my knees in 40 years, I also landed on my camera. S said she thought I was going to jump right back up until she saw my knees; I left plenty of DNA (in the form of skin) on the deck in case they decide to clone me.
About the time I climbed into the pedal boat I realized the camera was destroyed. That probably made me madder than anything, but the pedling experience in itself wasn't anything to write home about. J and V sat in the back facing out while S and I (with the banged up and bleeding knees) worked the pedals. Unfortunately there was more weight in the back than in the front, so the paddles weren't in the water...and our passengers were sitting in water nearly up to their waists. After about 20 minutes of a lot of pedaling without much reward, we headed back into the dock. If I could take back a half an hour, that's probably the one I would pick. We actually paid money to do that.
Now I try to be a glass-half-full kind of gal, so here's the upside: Munchie knocked my camera off my desk a couple days before I left for Seattle and broke it. The part that held the batteries and memory stick thing wouldn't stay closed, so I had to use half a roll of duct tape to make the camera even functional. I didn't have time to buy a new camera before I left, so it was the broken one that I fell on. Can you imagine if I had replaced it and then broke it four days later? There would NEVER have been another photo on this blog.
And finally...since this IS a knitting blog (for the most part) I will now present the knitting project I worked on from the day we got up to Alderwood 'till Saturday when I left to come home. I cut it close, but was able to finish. V has a Clover Wonder Knitter, which is a plastic four-peg knitting nancy. Using red solid and multi colored cotton yarns held together, I knit probably forty feet of i-cord and then turned it into a lovely rug which is a little larger than an average chair pad. It took what seemed like forever to sew the thing up, but V loved it! He's going to put it in his room and wipe his feet on it. Awesome.
The last thing I want to talk about is how pleased I am that people are actually following this blog. I thought the same four people were reading it each week, but it turns out that there are actually five! Ha! Just kidding. There are REALLY more than five people. Who knew?? Blogger knew, that's who! They just started publishing analytics, so I can see how many people read me and the countries in which they live. Welcome! Stop by anytime and I'll try not to bore you to death. Bye for now!