STR

So, I was sitting quietly one evening last week..knitting and sorta kinda watching a Cold Case show. Mostly listening but obviously I wasn't focusing on it. Because, the narrator spoke of something 'new' called STR. Socks That Rock??!?!?!? I almost got whiplash jerking my head up quick so I could focus on the tv. Then I realized that they were talking about some new DNA test or machine..or something.

I guess that means not everything is about knitting...but in my brain, I try to make it be LOL

Sunday Sock Again

Well, it's not as far along as it was when I frogged but there has been progress. Even a bit more than this...but it was getting dark and I needed the natural light ya know.

The afternoon was spent cutting out fabric for some bags. I really wish I had a taller table. My back was really complaining. Maybe I need to cut faster. I did have some help though when rummaging around through fabric. LOL . Hershey thinks that a good amount of cat hair increases the stability and life of any fiber creation...be it fabric or knitting.

Sunday Sock...not quite yet

Alas, Sunday sock will have to be later, unless you're interested in looking at a half inch. I was already for the heel flap when I discovered that somewhere I'd dumped a stitch. I studied that ribbing forever but couldn't see where it happened...or figure out how to add one without making the ribbing look weird so...frogland.

I think I probably did it when I switched to metal needles. I got two different brands...Susan Bates and Boye. They are a lot faster with this yarn. It tended to be a bit clingy on the bamboo. And I was so excited because I can remember when there was no way I could keep stitches on metal. Err...obviously that might still be a problem LOL

So Sunday morning news shows will be the backdrop for more k2 p2. Off I go. Well maybe a bath first *G*

Saturday Sky and that Weird Lady

It's still hot but the clouds at least give me a break occasionally. So, I'm walking down the sidewalk slowly and looking at the sky through my camera. I hear a noise and realize it's the little boys I'd seen on a scooter earlier. The sound stops. And then I hear a small voice..
"Wait! It's that weird lady." boy #1 says
"She's taking pictures of the sky?!?!?" boy #2 questions.
"Once I saw her taking a picture of her foot on the driveway?"
"Her foot??"
"Yep..she had on one sock and she was taking a picture of it"
"Let's go back the other way"
And then the sound of the scooter returned, only to fade away as they went back down the block.

Math and Yarn Substitution

Neither of which I know much about. Today at work while I was supposed to be doing something else (oops) I found this shawl.

Now, I've never made anything this big but I lovvvve the colors. However, I suck at math so I think I have figured that 245 metres =245 yards sorta kinda? And I don't know much about angora but I was looking in the Knitpicks catalog and found this which has nothing to do with angora but is awfully pretty. In the pattern it calls for 3 balls of different colors..like I guess, deep orange, brown and some sort of reddish bronze? And this yarn looks as if it has all the colors in it. So would you just use 3 balls of the same thing? And would baby alpaca and silk come even close to making something that looked like the angora shawl?

Hell, I don't even know where I would wear a shawl. But it's an interesting puzzle. Now if I just knew what I was talking about LOL

So Far and Spoiled

I thought I'd post a picture of my Harlot sock .. at least the beginning. I LOVE the way this yarn looks and feels. I love the unexpected splashes of colors and that no place does it look the same.
The yarn hasn't spoiled me but my Favorite Color secret pal sure has! He/She is amazing and I get all kinds of eCards and notes! Thank you soooo much!

And hey...it's Friday night in the big town..so back to knitting LOL

How'd She Do That?

The Harlot linked to me!!! I have NO idea how she managed that cause y'all are the only ones that know me...but still..my moment of fame! ROFL This is indeed a mystery. I don't give out bloginess cards. Weird, huh!?!?!

If you read her post for today, you'll get to see a bit of the City. And some of the people that were there. If you look wayyyyyy back you'll see a little blip that has on an orange shirt. It's me! Ha, one of them look like I'm bald but I just have a white streak of hair that sometimes doesn't show up.

And the Susan that she thanks along with Margaret from the yarn store and the knitting guild isn't me. It's one of my favorite knitters at the store. She's really a sweetheart!

The 3 generation pic were people that sat right next to me. I adored them. I'm sorry I didn't get the mama's name cause she was just too fun and cool. And that baby was adorable. The Harlot had to stop signing when it was their turn so she could hold the baby. I'll admit I was wondering if the whole thing was going to be compromised by a screaming baby but she nursed, had a wee nap and then just smiled through the whole thing. Did I say she was adorable. Trixie, I love ya hon!

Since gas prices are so high, I'd planned to do a thousand things while I was over there. Instead, I took Zo to the vets for a manicure and then just hung out here doing little of nothing until mid afternoon. Then off to the City, where, thanks to Cookie, I made a pitstop at Michaels to load up on cotton. Then to Barnes and Noble for a browse and a iced mocha frappucino....gosh I love those. And then to the yarn store where I found this. Isn't it just the 'funnest' sock yarn? I sat down on the couch, took berry mouth off the sticks and casted on a new sock. Once I got the first row done, I headed off for the venue. Found my seat, found the restroom, discovered we could have drinks in this room so found a bottle of icy water (it was a bit warm) and took the Harlot sock out to enjoy the day with me. Uh oh, somewhere along the way I had lost one of the dpns. @$%*#)!!!!! But being the very clever (uh huh) person that I am, I improvised and discovered that the butt end of the crochet needle I use to pick up the dropped stitches works well. Of course you can't knit off it, but when it's time for that, you've got another empty needle. (:::looking at Paris...sorry if this sounds about as confusing as a dog trial). So, I go back to my knitting and we're all laughing about it, when some lady on the other side of the aisle says "Here dear, let me see if I have another needle you can use" and digs in her bag and hooray a needle. Then she was even kinder and explained that being aluminum it would be slippery and my gauge might change a bit. Knitters are way cool!

And then when I got back to the store for the signing, there was my needle lying on the table right where I'd been sitting. So all was very well that ended very well.

She's Grrrrreat!

Oh what a great evening! Steph is even more fun in person, and not at all like hearing a "speaker". More like getting together with a friend and telling stories and jokes and acting silly.

Now, not that I have any experience hearing idolized knitters speak LOL, but I was so happy that her online persona was the same in rl.

During the question time, I asked her a question about steeking. (note: I would have to be drunk to attempt it, I think) and as she started answering my question, she said something like "Wait, wait.." and hustles off to the corner of the room; rummages a bit and returns with her olympic sweater so she could actually show what it was about. OMG that sweater is to die for and I have NO idea how anyone..even the Harlot...could knit it in 16 days. A gorgeous, intricate Norwegian piece of beauty.

As her talk ended, she said something about how we should sing Oklahoma to her and the whole room stood up and sang while she laughed delightedly and scurried around taking pictures.

I'm so glad I had the opportunity to hear and meet her...even tho my coworkers just looked at me strangely when I asked for that day off, so that I could go hear this woman who wrote books about knitting...not really patterns per se, just about knitting. LOL

When we were in line to get books signed, a girl a couple of people in front of her gave her name and then said "But for some reason you call me Cupcake". Steph looked up and squealed as this girl was someone she had eMailed. Then the girl gave her a gift. A big, big thing (I don't know what it would be called) of Lorna's Laces roving. Absolutely the most gorgeous colors. The Harlot was so excited as apparently you can't get it in Canada. Dang, I should have taken her some Kool Aid yarn.

I have all her books, but I took the latest one to get signed. It's the Knitting Rules one, and it has a lot of sorta techy stuff in it. It's also rather bedraggled, as I have had a tendency to put it on the trunk that serves as my coffee table and then put my foot on it to keep it open to what I'm trying to figure out as I knit. I apologized that it wasn't pristine, but she said she loved knowing that the books were actually being read and marked and dog eared.

I have more to say about the day, but I need to answer comments and get ready for work. I'm tired...and I just want to curl up and knit, but I guess having money to pay for yarn would be a good idea too *G*

It's just wrong!

LOL that's one of my favorite kid phrases and it's certainly fitting.

For some obsure reason, blogger has forgotten who I am so when I tried to post a comment, I couldn't remember what I was supposed to type in the box. What's my name? Hell, it's way too early in the morning to figure out that one. Obviously, I finally came up with it and will go back to comment later.

GMail still won't let me make a new addy. I did write to them, but if it's like eMail to Yahoo, if I do get a response it won't say much :-0

Now, the worst thing is that The Girl's new puppy Sadie, is quite ill. I thought she seemed a bit subdued at the birthday party but figured it was due to sensory overload with a lot of loud talking, kids running etc. She was also throwing up a bit, but maybe due to food changes. I've heard they were being fed *cheap stuff* and maybe the transition to Iams was a bit much. She was supposed to be going in for her first routine visit today but it turned into much more. She was dehydrated and the vet questioned her true age. And said she'd been taken from her mom much too early. I really don't know that much about raising dogs as a business, but I've had dogs with pups and I just let the mom wean them. I figured she knew more about it than I did LOL. And she has some parasite thingy that according to the online info you get from your mom's feces before you've built up immunities. Thankfully the vet said she should be fine. Got subQ fluids and antibiotics and all that. I'm so glad. First, just because I love animals. And, of course, second because TG was sooo worried. She's such the little mother. She did well at the vet's and the vet talked TO her instead of around her so that helped. ::::crossing fingers:::: I'm afraid I would have done some serious yelling at the lady that sold her.

And lastly, I'm in Sock Hell. Knitted a bit last night and then looked at the cuff. WTF did I do. The most gnarly looking thing. I tinked way back and decided to go have a cup of milk to settle down and restart. So I'm almost ready to begin again. The phone rings...I answer...Mary, the matriarch cat decides she wants my milk. Knocks over the little plastic cup. A bit of it went on my foot, the rest of it on the yarn! And it was a recorded political message on the phone. Sorry dude, you won't get my vote! Wrapped milky wet yarn on niddy noddy, tied off and washed. Thankfully, I divided the skein so I have the other half to start over with...and now I don't want to LOL. Well, last night I sure didn't. Maybe it will be better today. I thought maybe a change of yarn would help excite me. My stash is nothing to write home about. I have a skein of Easter egg looking kool aid yarn. Pretty but I don't want pastel. I have the lovely Regia silky stuff in beiges and brown and white. Lovely but what I really wanted was bright, loud, in your face and for reasons I'll go into in a bit, I'm kinda chicken to have it on the needles. And the only thing like that is the poor Jazz yarn that rubs off on my hands badly. I'm hoping that after morning chores are done and I've had a bath etc, I'll be ready to settle down once again with Berry Mouth.

For, you see, I don't have to go to work today! Woohoo and that is NOT just wrong. It's one of those use it or lose it days but I have big plans. Hopefully I can get Zoey in for a nail trimming but the real highlight is that the Yarn Harlot is going to be in the City this evening and I am soooo there. At least I hope so! And it would be so appropriate to have a sock meet her. It's been my experience when going to the somewhat LYS, that any knitting in your bag is questioned. You know...what's it going to be? what's the pattern? what's the yarn? Now I've usually had handdyed stuff from my own kitchen which I guess is ok, but I've heard comments about folks bringing in stuff made with yarn from somewhere else. Obviously they are there to sell yarn, and they want projects to be from it. And lovely Regia is from SWAK. Which is probably a major competitor and LYS doesn't carry it so I couldn't even fake it. Oh well.

Now to go see if I can comment on my own blog LOL

Favorite Color Swap

I got my swap pal's name today but I can't eMail her because Google Mail is down. Hope it comes back soon; I sure don't want her to think I'm a slacker.

So we are to fill out these questionnaires. I love to read everyone else's answers but I always feel kind of silly filling one out.

If MY pal is reading this, trust me...I'll love anything that comes in the mail. I do so love surprises.

Favorite Color Swap Questionnaire

1. What are your top three favorite colors?

Can I have groups? I usually gravitate towards autumn colors but lately I'm on this pink/orange/yellow kick.

2. What crafts do you really enjoy?

Knitting, quilting and/or sewing little things...like pillow shams etc. Big things are a bit scary I think.

3. What products do you really covet?

Something that I could use to keep my socks from falling off the needles when they are put up besides those big rubber things.

And, I saw on someone's blog some fabric that had sock monkeys on it and I love it but have absolutely NO idea where it came from. I think it would make a good sock bag *G*

I haven't had the chance to try very many sock yarns so that would be grand.

4. What other activities do you enjoy besides your favorite crafty things?

Reading, watching forensic tv and HGTV and playing with my pets

5. Is there anything you collect?

Right now, rubber duckies. You don't have to dust them...just let them take a bath with you.

6. What is your zodiac sign and/or Chinese zodiac symbol?

Sagitarrius and Monkey

7.What are your favorite…

…scents/smells?

vanilla, apples, pumpkin, lavender

…types of music and/or bands?

classic rock, jazz, and I'm starting to get really interested in classical..not the big booming stuff tho. I like hip hop too. I guess I just like music

…authors?

Susan Wittig Albert, Rita Mae Brown, Jill Churchill's Grace and Favor books, Sharon Fiffer, Sarah Graves, Nora Roberts

…animals?

cats, dogs, sheep

…places to shop?

Knitpicks, Barnes and Noble, Books a Million, Amazon, eQuilter..I love books and yarn and fabric

…season?

most definitely fall...with winter being a close second

…yarn/fabric/paper/other craft supplies?

wool sock yarn(hoping Knitpicks comes out with more superwash), Cascade 220, I don't think I ever met a fabric I didn't like, hand made paper. I haven't been knitting socks that long so I don't know about a lot of the yarns.

…candies or goodies?

Chocolate! But it would be a brown puddle. I also love Laffy taffy or BBBats suckers.

8. Do you have any wish lists?

Yes, on Barnes and Noble and Knitpicks

9. Are you allergic to anything?

Chemicals, but I don't imagine you'll be sending cleaning supplies. *G*

10. Do you have any pets? What are they?

3 cats..Mary who is almost 17 and her younger 'sibs" Hershey and Mercy. And a big poodle mix rescue dog Zoey

11. Please include anything else you would like your secret pal to know about you- anything that would be helpful in finding you little gifts that you will really enjoy.

I really do love all happy surprises..my coworkers would attest to that. They say I am very easy since a new bright pencil makes me way happy. And omg, the new school supplies are out!

Another Saturday Sky

...just 'cause I can! The camera has healed itself. Finally the batteries ran down, and the battery door would open. I was all ready to go to Staples', camera in hand, to see what I needed to do next. But first, I put in fresh batteries; and then, like I've done a bazillion times this week, pushed the ON button. And it worked! First the washer, and now the camera.

The only thing I can figure is that Lee Ann must be feeling a lot better. Hooray for that. Last week Stephanie was posting that all the irritating, confounding things that were happpening to her must be insuring Lee Ann good luck with her surgery. Sounded like a good idea to me, and to a lot of other bloggers. So last week, which was a truly irritating one, was somewhat easier as I would tell myself with every upset, "That's one more bad luck that won't find Lee Ann".

And now all of a sudden, things are much smoother here, and I read that she even went for a walk. So there ya go, knitting karma?

Then the mail arrived, and I had a vacation postcards from Paul and my friend Sam who both were kind enough to share the fun! Thanks muchly!

And remember when I mentioned that the lady that taught me about spinning said that there was a handspinner in my town? Well, I emailed her but never heard back. Dunno what happened there but she called me! Sounds like an amazing woman...she's even raising silk worms! We have tentative plans to get together soon. And she tells me that there is a Yahoo group for fiber folks here. I'll join that for sure. AND, there's even going to be a retreat in the fall...in MY town. So even if something happens to the vehicle, I can still go! I'm so jazzed!

And there is a new member to my extended family. Meet Sadie. She's a 6 wk old West Highland Terrier that now calls The Girl 'Mama'. It's her 12th birthday present..actually her birthday isn't until next month, but there ya go. She's adorable! TG brought her down Friday evening as soon as they got home but the poor little thing mostly just shivered. Not so last night. She gave Zoey a run for the money. It's hysterical watching my big girl try to play with this tiny thing. I'm not even sure she knows what it is. Zoey was still up for playing, but Sadie, like babes the world over, just needed a nap! Too cute!

And it's still much cooler than it has been. Right now it's 64 degrees. I'm loving this!

The luck ran out tho when I worked on Sunday Socks. They got frogged about 9 last night, and restarted. Maybe there will be enough to show later on.

Hooooray!

I'm a happy girl today! Thanks to Laura, it's cooled off a lot! Actually was a tiny bit chilly way early this morning. Well, chilly compared to 112. So I sat in the dark on the porch swing and just felt it. 'Twas grand!

And, if that wasn't enough...my washer is washing! A friend called to say he'd stop by and take a look. He turned it on and watched the tub lazily go along in the spin cycle. Then we tipped it forward so he could look underneath it. It was determined that the belt things were ok...and that it might be the motor :-(. It was quite easy to hold it in it's 45 degree position, but much harder to let it back down and I sort of let go and it went WHAM on the floor. And now it works. I'm sooo happy! Perhaps I'll get all of that fabric that I bought at the action washed and put up before the weekend is over.

But right now I have this sock to work on so it can make it's debut tomorrow. Happy Weekend, y'all!

This picture is brought to you by what my computer calls "Toy Camera" LOL. If you'll look at the bare branch towards the left of the picture, you will see a little black dot. That was a dove. There is no zoom on toy cameras. *G*

Sorry about this...

but I've changed the settings on my comments. Now you will need to type in that weird series of letters before your post is accepted. I'm told this will prevent comment spam. I don't care if you want to post anonymously but please...I'm thinking that 47 posts overnight was a bit much *G* At least they weren't snarky.

I guess I've been lucky, or possibly not widely read, because lately I've heard and read some really strange comments. In one, the blogger had been talking about some place that she was going and the commenter was talking to her like she had just done the stupidest thing in her life. Sort of in the vein of "WTF do you want to go there for??? Me and my friends would never go there, it's just not cool" Actually I felt rather sorry for the commenter. I guess she wasn't taught manners.

On another blog, the blogger actually had a post about some of the vitriolic comments she had received. Basically, I think, implying that she was a horrid person with no sense. On the contrary, she seems to be an incredibly nice, creative and loving person. I just wish I was a member of her family. I guess I just don't understand some people.

That being said, I love to tease and sometimes be a bit snarky but hopefully I always put the smiley face or know that the person I'm talking to is playing also.

And I think I'm quite fortunate that the folks that visit me here have been incredibly warm, funny and always helpful. Y'all are always welcome at my house!

yesssssssssss

The weatherman is promising a cool front and I just can't wait. And I'm sure my electric meter will be happy that it can rest from it's constant whirring. So will my checkbook!

Had a fun evening doing laundry and eating goulash at a friend's house. I was really dreading going to the laundry in this heat. It's never really cool but.. So all the towels and sheets and such are done. Everything else I've been washing out by hand. And the goulash was excellent.

Since the cool front is also maybe gonna bring rain, I went out at 6:15 this morning to mow the 'grass'. The so called real grass is but a memory but the nut grass and weeds are thriving. And if it grew much more it would be really hard to get through.

We are being asked to wear jeans to work today. One of the City tv stations will be spending the day here and the idea is that we'll wear the special tshirts and jeans and spend lunch time downtown smiling and waving to the camera. I'll wear the jeans and tshirt happily but I think I'll pass on sweating on camera. Unless of course the cool front gets here really, really fast. There was supposed to be some big ABC premiere stuff at the park this evening but that was cancelled due to the heat. Allegedly they'll be back for that in the fall. Instead the gathering place is a local pub. Oh good, drunk residents on camera LOL

My camera went kaput the other morning. I turned it off, and the lens part went back inside and it made all the right *wind-up* sort of noise. But it really didn't turn off. The light is still on and it won't do anything. Hopefully I'll get to Staples this weekend and see what I need to do. I haven't had it long and also I bought one of those extended warranty thingys so maybe it won't be a big deal. Awhile back I got some sort of camera...looks more like a large tire gauge..in with an order of books from my mystery book club. I'll have to see how it works and what it does AND get busy on a sock so I'll have something to show on Sunday.

Hey...it's Friday! Yessssss

Just tryin' to stay cool

whew...I'm tired of the heat. But maybe Maude went looking for a cooler venue. I don't miss her at all! It was 110 when I came home from work.

Had planned on restarting the socks but instead I gave Zoey a bath and haircut. She's hot natured anyway and her extra wool was really making her uncomfortable. I'm certainly not going to change professions...I'd starve quickly but she's happy and that's what counts.

The house is fairly cool but it's sure not at what the thermostat is set at. Oh please, don't let the AC fail. And thank goodness for fans!

C'mon fall! Hurry!

Knitting with Maude

I *needed* to knit. My hands really wanted to hold those dpns, and my eyes wanted to see stitches happen. Maude was dragging her feet about leaving, so I decided to help her along with legal drugs and thought that a knitting going-away party would be appropriate. So, out came the "berry mouth" yarn that my Dye-o-Rama made for me. Out came the dpns.

And out came a new pattern that I downloaded from the Knitty issue that had Cosy in it (yes, Cookie I finally got it). I'd make a link but Knitty freezes up my home browser but it's in the same issue as Cosy back in the archives. Called Thuja, and I liked the way they looked. Did I read the pattern first. Nope.

So freshly bathed and dressed in jammies, I get all comfy and actually look at the pattern. Oh, it's for a man's sock...made with heavier yarn. That's ok, I'll just do a bit of modification. I just need a number of stitches that divides by 4...and my normal number of cast on will do that. And I can use my basic come-to-silver pattern for knowing how many stitches for the heel flap etc.

Then I got the giggles. Heh, I've made 3 pair of socks now and I think I can just go changing things at will. We shall see. But at least I can start the ribbing.

I have NEVER ever twisted my stitches when joining. I've made a lot of other goofs but not that. So, of course I did this last night. Not when joining...I waited until the 3rd round. Not once but 3 times! So maybe this wasn't such a good idea for entertainment last night. There's always tonight.

But oh, I have a new sock bag! There was a Bath and Body sale at the hospital...nope they weren't selling wash basins and the deceased. They have these, and book sales every once in awhile and their profits (some company does it and shares the proceeds) goes into a sort of petty cash fund that's used when a patient desperately needs something for which there are no funds. So I got this bag filled up with foot scrub, lotions, butter, brushes yadda yadda but I must admit the first thing I thought of was sock bag. *G*

Hopefully by Sunday, I'll have more than this to show.

no knitting, no nothing

I apologize for not responding to your comments from yesterday. Trust me, I get way excited when I'm notified that they are there. But a headache I've named Maude, spent significant time in my head yesterday and when I got home all I wanted to do was lie down and whine LOL. It's much better today but I slept late so there ya go. I'll get back to you this evening hopefully. Again, I LOVE the comments!

Something Else To Do

I've joined the the Favorite Color Swap and if I can be in the Ann's Sunday Sock ring without an actual button I'll be doing that too. Wow, I'm gonna need one of those electronic thingies like my boss has to keep track of his schedule. That's just sick..I don't even know what it's called. Blackberry? I'm so far behind in the tech loop...like I was ever in it. I hope someday to have an iPod. And then I'll have to also hope for someone to show me how to do it. LOL. but...I did finally get a camera. Slow but steady wins the race???

Bye Bye Weekend :=(

I surely wish I were just moderately wealthy. Just wealthy enough to not go to work, and of course have $$ for needful things like yarn and trips and fabric LOL

A busy day today (but not as busy as Ann) Handwashed a bit of the fabric from yesterday...years of dust down the drain. Got some stuff done around here that was supposed to be done after the auction..but instead I took a nap. Watched the World Cup Softball game on ESPN. Go USA. The games are being held in the City and tickets are very reasonable but it's too hot for this fan. Thank goodness for ESPN. Sewed up a skirt and some jammie bottoms. I suppose someday I'll actually get the jammie top done before summer is over. Did some mending. Tried repeatedly to snag the Cozy pattern but Knitty makes my browser freeze up or something. At any rate I restarted a bazillion times it seemed like..so that project will wait until lunchtime at work. Ordered some Cascade 220 superwash from Jimmy Bean wool. I've never ordered from them before but oddly enough the first couple 3 Google hits had the wool but not the black.

As I was putting the sewing machine back in it's case, I was telling my dog Zoey about all the stuff I could do tomorrow if I didn't have to go to work. But with my luck, if I really didn't have to go to work, it would be because I'd lost my job and was dining on cat food. So, I'll quit whining and go cast on a ball band warsh cloth to maybe go with the new bright kitchen towels I found on sale. One thing about my grocery bill...you'd think I eat a lot more than oatmeal until you read the item descriptions.

Nite y'all!

And there's more..

I got a big box of patterns...none current :-) and most of them size 16 so I thought I could make some for me. But alas, size 16 in these patterns is much smaller than one at the store :-( Wish I knew someone who wanted them. For now, they'll live in another box...and probably be ended up sold at MY estate sale. These I just loved. Maybe I can make a display...or just gaze on them fondly.

And found in the stuff a bunch of booklets and these books. How fun...from 1949 and 1967. I don't remember any man sitting on the floor with a hem marker back then. Of course, I don't think I asked..too busy saying Ommmm and such LOL

Oh and there is still a bunch of literal junk in the trunk. Anyone need a table model hair dryer? How about a warped Candyland game board?

I was really lusting after a bunch of embroidery transfers...old Aunt Martha's and a bunch that were ordered from a newspaper. But the group of old rusty toy trucks that took forever to auction...lots of bidding...and nobody wanted to buy them all so they kept starting over...and the heat that, even with shade trees,was making me sick sent me home.

Total expenditure? $4 and that included a Coke. Fun sorting? priceless.

I got 1, anybody gimme 2?

I went to an auction yesterday...outside. It was an estate auction of a farming family and would have been incredibly fun if it hadn't been so hot. but I had a good time and came home with some treasures. I was lured by the ad in the paper which listed "lots of material" and "sewing notions" and "craft supplies". This lady was definitely a busy one! And she saved everything, I think.

I did score some fabric. Actually 4 tall kitchen bags stuffed full and ready for the laundry after sorting. Some of it is almost coarse like feed sack. And some obviously leftovers from a project as you could see where a sleeve had been cut out. I love this one with the little boy "imagining".
This one is clearly retro .


And here's a sampling

Saturday Sky

I know it's not Saturday anymore, but it is a Saturday sky. I was just too tired to post it on the right day. It was HOT.

Possums and Cookies

Once, many years ago, I was in the hospital following surgery. For some reason, there were traction bars attached to my bed...certainly not needed by me. A very good and funny friend brought me a gift of a softie...an adorable possum with babies that attached with velcro. We hung it from the traction bars and it brought a lot of smiles from nurses and visitors alike. Until one night, in the middle of the night, a nurse came in to check on me. The tv was on although I was asleep and casted a soft glow in the room. All of a sudden I awakened to really loud screaming and realized someone was yelling, "Call Security, there's a big rat in here" as she ran from the room. The other nurses had "neglected" to warn her about my possum and they were all laughing hysterically right outside the door. I thought it was pretty funny too until I realized that had it been a big rat, I would have been left by myself to fend it off LOL

Now, as for the pink spiritual being named Cookie. I've only known one person in rl named Cookie, but I grew up with another Cookie. "Visited" her every day when I read the comics. So here's Cookie, daughter of Dagwood Bumstead.

Dream Interpretors?

So, I had a dream last night. I dreamed that after answering a knock at my door I discovered Ann and Cookie standing on my wobbly porch. Now, I've seen pics of Ann...and she was dressed in her shorts and tshirt like you see on her blog. I haven't seen Cookie, so my mind turned her into a pink sort of spirit-being. I was so excited to get to see them in rl. Then I noted that Ann was carrying something in her arms. Nope, not yarn...nor was it a cat or a small dog. It lifted it's head from where it was tucked under her arm and I met her pet possum !!?!?! I guess I was so astounded by that that my dream just went away. But, it was nice to meet y'all and I'm sure it is the nicest possum ever!

ooops, thunder...outta here!

Done!!

Dreamsicle socks are Done! I won't win any awards for the Kitchener...maybe I should have turned off Texas Swat. But they're done and I've worn them all evening. I now have 3 pair of me-made socks! I spent some time just looking at them all lined up in the drawer. And I've been surprised to realize that the heaviest pair...which I assumed would be winter house socks are actually quite comfortable in the summer. Odd that.

It's HOT here. Coming home tonight the thermometer in my car read 103! And just sucky humid. I woke up this morning at 5 and the weather man was telling that big Tstorms were slowly moving into my area. I could hear thunder but it was still far off so I hopped in the tub then dried my hair, ate breakfast and did the dishes...and then it was only 6 LOL. The thunder was getting a bit louder so I messed around here for awhile and then realized that while it might be pouring just north of me, here it was doing nada. So I went to the store and bought groceries, came home and put them away and had a snack. Changed into work clothes and then it was 7:30 so finally booted up the computer and did a bit of blog reading and eMail. Gosh by the time I got to work I was ready for a nap!

It's been crazy busy at work this week but a treat today. A rep brought lunch...brisket and chicken and trimmings from this great barbeque place. Yum...and then this afternoon one of the local nursing homes brought us (slightly melty) ice cream bars. So although my brain was worn out, my tummy surely was happy!

Not sure what's next as far as knitting. I have some sewing I need to work on so maybe I'll take a bit of a break. It will be odd tho.

For now, I'll go to bed and maybe dream up a project. Nite.

Monday Sky

The girl came down to visit last night and as we chatted about ghosts and mediums and orbs, I totally lost track of what was really going on. Until, that is, she decided she'd better get home before the thunderstorms arrived. Then I noticed the skies. And decided that I needed to go shoot some pics. Not that I would ever cheat and say they were really Saturday *G*. It was so hot and humid and you could smell the energy. The last one is really blurry but the color is right. I was walking down the street trying to find a *window* through trees and houses where I could see it better but the lightning was getting closer and I suddenly realized that I was wandering around the neighborhood in my jammies! Oops! So back to the house where I could listen to the cracks of lightning and the rumble of thunder and feel safe inside. And knitting on the neverending socks continued. Aha...I am finally to the part where I can do the toes! And now I have to think about what comes next. I thought up a mitten idea this morning so maybe Bitchin' Mittens is in my future! Who knows? Certainly not me.

But that's part of the fun of it, in my opinion. We won't talk about all the stuff that got started and frogged *G*

Trend Setter?

I saw a segment on CBS Sunday Morning about blogs today. (It may have been a repeat since some of the other stories I had seen before.) This person who they interviewed said that bloggers and the people who read them were mostly highly educated, liberal people with high incomes. They were "trend setters" Wow! Then I discovered they were talking about political blogs. Oh well.

I spent a good deal of time sorting yarn today. I needed something to put my sock yarn in so it didn't get all lost. I remembered that there were a couple of those plastic drawer things in the basement that I thought were empty so went down to get them. Discovered that one of them wasn't...it was full of 'warshcloth' cotton from an earlier time when I crocheted dishrags. So now I have a lot of that...and the sock yarn is banging around in the other drawer. As slow as I am going on these socks, this should last me for months and months!


Not much knitting got done this afternoon...I got too involved in the soccer game.

What a game that was! I am so impressed with these athletes...they just go so hard for so long!

Did knit a bit this evening...a couple of swatches from some notes I found in the little notebook I keep in my bag. I don't know where they came from but they were pretty fun. And a few more rounds on a sock. One is ready for toes...one lacks a little over an inch. Someday....

Saturday Sky

I'm going to have to find a more exotic view than above my yard. But today I was feeling quite domestic and the day was filled with cleaning and polishing and washing and ironing and furniture moving and lawn mowing and I was too tired to go farther. Everything smells so clean and fresh and tomorrow I don't have to do one dang thing *G*

ZZZZzzzzzzzzz

Came home from dinner with my friends, tired from laughing and talking, tired from the week. As a horse-y friend used to say, I felt like I'd been "rode hard and put away wet". So a quick bath, jammies, and the fan turned on high, and I settled in for some brainless tv viewing. I don't even know what channel it was or what I was watching because soon I was asleep. Since we went out to eat right after work, I figure it was maybe 7 pm. And then I woke up at 1:45...went to the bathroom, drank a glass of milk and ate an incredibly dried out fig bar and back to sleep until 6:45. I guess even Mary slept in! Read a couple of blog posts while I ate my oatmeal and now it's time for work. But gee, I surely feel GOOD today!

Hope you do too!

Made It!

Whew, got through that without too much panic. I told myself stories and clung to the blanket they put over me and then it was over. And I'm sure all your good thoughts helped too. Thanks a lot!

Weirdest thing tho. I was to call and pre-register to save time when I got there. I did that...answered a bazillion questions. Was told to bring my living will. (oh that makes you feel safe LOL) and some $$$ as they would want payment on the spot or would *work with me*. So I rushed to the bank to get some out of savings. Certainly not what they wanted but I thot it might stall them.

When we got there, I told them I had preregisterd and they directed me to *Fast Track* admissions. Hello??? She had NO info, nothing showed I had preregistered so we would have to do it all again. She double checked my address and the info the doc's office had given them. Had me sign the HIPPA thing, and off I went. Took about 5 minutes, including signatures and no mention of $$, my religion or my Living Will. ahahhaha.

Good news! I tried the partially done hat on The Girl and it fits! I guess her head is bigger than it looks! The 2x2 ribbing doesn't work tho. Her features are small and it was somewhat overwhelming in this heavier yarn. And after being told she could have any color she wanted, she chose black. So I have to go get some more of this Cascade 220 superwash. Actually, I'm kinda tired of going places so maybe I'll jsut get it online.

Got home to find a new Knitpicks catalog in the mail! Dang I wish they would make superwash :-) But they surely have some nice stuff and I am dying to try their new needles. I want to make a bathmat with heavy cotton and will need a size I don't have. Hmmm.

Supposed to go out with work friends tonight for supper. In a way I hope they cancel, but I betcha once I get there I'll have a blast.

I can't get my yahoo mail to work right this morning so if you didn't get a response to a comment, that's why. I think I answered everyone in teh comment box

In the meantime, I need to get some clothes on and go play like I know what I'm doing!!

What is...is

I started to title this post Expletive Deleted LOL. When I went to that new doc the other day, he changed on of my meds. Well, deleted one because he didn't feel it was working right and replaced it with another. He did give me some samples to take to make sure I tolerated it. LOL I thought he had given me a month's worth as had happened with other docs..but no, he gave me 6 days worth. I had no problems with it and turned in the Rx on Monday to get it filled. Geez, when I went to pick it up I almost tumped over. $125.90! Do you realize how much yarn that would buy?!?!?! The one he replaced? Baby Aspirin...98 cents for over a month's worth! LOL The only saving thing is that I get my meds where I work and I don't have to pay for them from just one paycheck.

Today I *get* to have another MRI. Now I'm not scared of spiders or mice or things like that but I HATE MRIs. I know it is a foolish thing, it's not really gonna squash me and/or suck all my air out LOL but I get really panicky. Fortunately, I have some Valium that I am to take 30 min before it happens. Hey, maybe I'll dream up a new knitting pattern! Even this dang thing is becoming a problem. I can have it done where I work, but the doc doesn't trust theirs. So somehow I have to convince my insurance that it's necessary to have it done in the City. I asked that he write a letter with a medical reason why, and the letter said something like "Ours is better than yours" If the insurance doesn't buy this, it's another $500 out of my nonexistant yarn budget! Ack!

It could be worse. In this country, if you don't have money or kids your just up a creek without a paddle as far as medical care goes. Even with insurance, the bills I see people get are just incredible.

Rant off...

OK, in the knitting world. I spent part of yesterday working on the girl's hat. I don't think the 2x2 ribbing is going to work. I'm using Cascade 220 superwash that I had in my stash. I can't decide whether I want to use this yarn or something thinner. I have until Christmas to figure this out. I took it with me to the 4th burger/hot dog thing just so she would know I was working on it. I think she told everyone there that "Thats MY hat!" It's nice that the process is making her happy!

Other than that, I watched a bazillion hours of "The First 24" and something called "Beach Cops" or something. Both were rather interesting!

And I ate...a lot! It started raining just when we started to eat, so we didn't go to our friends' home in the country for fireworks but in this water-starved place, watching rain is even better!!

What did y'all do yesterday? Whatcha gonna do today? Me, I have to get ready for work!

Duh

I figured out the ribbing thing. I don't have that many fingers and toes, so once I got home from work I sat down and made 100 marks and named them K K PP..and it all worked out in the end. I'll try to remember this LOL

Now it's off to my friend's house to help her put together veggie trays for tomorrow and heh...I get to use her washer!

laters...

It's Way Too Early..

and I can't think. I woke up hearing Mary meowing in my ear saying "Feed me, I'm about to starve", My head ached (sinus), my nose was running and I had to go to the bathroom. So, I get up, feed the gang, make the coffee and turn on the tv for the news. I listen to the same local station every morning but today there were different people talking. I figured I hadn't changed back to that station last night. Was waiting for my email to load and glanced down at the little time thingy on my tool bar. It was 4:20 ! It's going to be a looooong day, I think.

In musical news, I've found a new love(s). Last night I watched a live Prairie Home Companion on PBS' Great Performances. I usually listen to it on the radio on Saturday evening and this week they had a trio of women that sing incredibly close harmony. OMG they sound like angels. So I was excited to actually get to *see* them. The name of their group is Wailin' Jennys and they're from Canada. Appropriate that I discovered them on Canada Day weekend. I need to find out more about them, that's for sure. Fun too to watch the guy that does all the sound effects.

Now for the "I can't think" part. I think I have figured out that if you have 100 stitches, you can't do a 2x2 rib cause the last and first would be the same. So how many more do you need. 2?I measured the head at 21". I swatched and got 5 st/inch. The Harlot says that it needs to be a bit smaller than the measurement or it won't stay on well. So I rounded to 20". 20 x 5 = 100. And I wanted to do 2x2 ribbing cause that's what I know. Is there one more appropriate? Or what is a ribbing that would work? it's for a hat. Thanks for any ideas.

Now to go feed me..at 5:32. I'm thinking I'll need another snack before I leave for work LOL

Saturday Adventure

Oh what a good time I had! Fairly early in the day I set out with my traveling kit in tow (sock, a bag of animal crackers and a mug of ice water and quarters for the turnpike). First stop was Petsmart (I'll spare you pictures of cat food and litter). Got really stocked up on the cats' canned food on sale and 50 lbs of litter also on sale. Only problem is, I can't get it out of the car. Shall have to lure the nephew down later.

Then to Books a Million where I got some greeting cards, a fun light hearted mystery and this.
Aren't these little lambs adorable? If I had a lamb puppet, I could have discussions about wool with it. It should surely know something. The orange fabric ..well you'll hear about it a bit later.

Then it was off to the real part of the adventure. Remember when my Dye-O-Rama pal sent me her spindle that I didn't know how to use? Well the other night I was browsing through an old Spin-Off and on a page of pics of wheels there was a listing of the dealers and whoaaa...there was one in Oklahoma! I called Thursday to see if they could direct me to a video or something that I could purchase. And the lady said, "Why don't you come out and let me show you?" Well ok! So off I went to Mountain View Weavery. Way out in the country but not far from the interstate. A lovely place which is also her home. No mountains in view, but that was the name of the road. I get my spindle out and she says "Oh a homemade one." She didn't sound excited but once she used it, she commented over and over again how balanced it was. :-). She got things going and then it was my turn. Wow this is fun! See what I did?

The fatter stuff will thin out when I next spin cause it got loose from the hook on the way home..well I think it will. The light stuff at the bottom was what we started with but she said it was a bit too "sticky" for a beginner so we switched to this Corriedale. Gads, I think that's what it is. I forgot to write it down. I got to touch and sniff a bunch of roving including some baby camel. Pricey but ohhh so soft. It reminded me of baby breath. Not the flowers but the way their breath feels on your neck when they go to sleep on your shoulder. And the book has GOOD pictures and clear instructions.

Best of all she told me of a spinner here in my town and gave me her phone number and eMail address and said that a bunch gets together twice a month to spin, talk whatever. It's kind of a long way over there but maybe I can share rides.

Then, since I was already kinda far out, I drove north to Guthrie, a wonderful Victorian town and the home of SWAK. My first time there and gosh I have never seen so much yarn in one place. Folks were really nice and friendly without being pushy. I didn't plan on getting any yarn but this jumped into my arms and held on tightly. More sock yarn. heh. I really do have a very small sock yarn stash so this was needed, right? Please say yes :-)

Then it was time to set off for home. I had had about enough of holiday interstate driving so I cut through the country. At one time I had lived up there so it was kinda nice to drive by places I had lived and see how they were faring. I was a little bit sad to see that much of the farm land was now home to McMansions. Most of them appeared fairly new so there weren't trees or anything to anchor them. I thought they looked a bit like the new kid at school.

One more stop to grab a burger and then home. Oh but wait. I had seen a pattern (sewing) pattern I wanted and Hancocks was having a sale. Heh...so this orange fabric came home and hopefully soon will be another summer skirt. What is it with me and orange this year? Scuse me, I have some sewing, knitting, spinning, reading and napping to do. Hope your day is equally fun!

This was done this morning but my internet connection kept crashing. So, I managed during
one of the times to save the thing minus pics. And now I'm happy to say I've spun a bit; the new skirt is all sewn up; I'm cooking spagetti and then I need to knit a swatch. What a good day! :-)

Blue Skies, smilin' at me...

My Saturday sky is blue. No clouds. Just blue. So I included a bit of a tree and a couple of utility lines so you'd know what it was.

The kids and I are fed. The house is somewhat tidy. I'm bathed, lotioned and dressed and I'm off on an adventure. There is one tiny errand...I need to get cat food on sale at Petsmart. And oh my, Books a Million is in the same parking lot.

Then hopefully it's off on a vehicular ramble. Be back later. Y'all play nice!

Waving Hi to Cookie's Sock