Birdhouse

I've mentioned working on a felted birdhouse and now I can show you since it arrived at it's destination today. I made it for Cat for her birthday. She was my color swap person...the one that I got to send goodies to, and I learned that she likes birds. So, when I saw this fun FiberTrends pattern, I thought I had a good excuse to make it. Besides that, she's nice and would say thanks and far enough away that if she tossed it I would never know! :-) And I'm incredibly proud that it got there in time since this was the yarn that took sooooo long to get here. It's kinda big, about ummm maybe 10-11 inches tall. One of these days I'm going to experiment on making a smaller one. It's a good thing that I eat a lot of oatmeal, or I would have been hard up to find something to let it dry on. After I took the pic on the left I realized that I needed to do a bit of tugging and straightening LOL. The roof 'form' was a funnel with major aluminum foil sculpting happening to make it gently rounded. I thought it was pretty obvious that it was a felted birdhouse, but then I'd been living with it for awhile. So, just in case she didn't realize that, I wired that little bird on the perch (which was a lovely stick from my yard...dried in advance. Heh, this thing was in the planning for a lot longer than it was under construction.

I started another sock last night but there's only 3 rows so you can barely see the yarn. I'll save that for posting when it's farther along.

Tonight's all about prewashing fabric and knitting dishrags. Housewarming gifts and summer clothes and some other odds and ends. I really need to be a sewing fool this weekend. They say we will be rainy all weekend. I hope so...we need the rain and once it gets here, my back will quit responding to the yo-yo-ing barometer. It hates it when it falls.

So what are YOU doing? Want to come to my house to iron fabric? I thought not. :-)

It's a Monday for Sure!

I guess the thrill of completing the socks and a couple of other things just sapped my energy because by yesterday evening I was sooooo tired. Just sort of out of sorts both in body and mind so I decided that an early bedtime might be just the ticket.

A friend had given me a cd that was purported to be a relaxation thing done by some Dr. from India, and I thought it might be a good time to listen to it. So I get all comfy with Hershey lying on my arm doing kitty pies on my neck as usual and the cd starts. I'm trying to not giggle every time he says Relaaaaaaaaaaaaaaax. But Hershey must have really been listening because he was almost immediately asleep! Usually he does kitty pies for awhile, dozes off, and then turns over with his back to me. (good grief...sounds like I'm talking about a husband!) Last night though, he barely started his pre-sleep routine before he was off to dreamland and I followed quickly.

So morning arrives and I woke up a bit before the alarm goes off. I was really pleased, it's ever so much nicer that way. I let Zoey out and stumble into the kitchen to feed the cats and pour that first mug of coffee. For Christmas, I was given one of those that can be timed to start so that coffee is waiting for me when I get up. However...there was NO coffee. And no water visible in the little window. I thought sure I'd set it up last night. Oh, but then I discovered that indeed I had set it up. It did start. Only problem was that I'd neglected to set the carafe under the brewing port!!! OMG a pot of coffee goes a really long way when it's all over the cabinet!!! It's all sort of cleaned up now...I have coffee. And I'll bleach things maybe this evening.

Please don't let this be a Monday Omen! But as Dave says, it's almost the weekend!

Sunday FOs

May I present my new socks?
Specs:
Yarn: Cabin Cove Kalidescope
Needles: US1 dpns
Pattern: Monkey designed by Cookie A and featured in Knitty.

Really, really fun to knit. The foot part fits really well and I love the fact that they didn't have a pointy toe. I shall have to do this more often. And even the kitchenering went fairly well although I think I still need more practice. The top felt a bit loose but they were still pretty damp when I put them on. They're back on the cookie rack drying in front of the open storm door.

Now what to do next. I'm thinking I want to do something with a sort of monochromatic yarn. Not a solid, but a pale something or other that isn't all one color. Like shades of blue but none too dark. And not stripey. Of course, I have nothing like that in my meager stash so I'll have to get out of that mood LOL.

Saturday Sky 03172007

And it's a blooming one! My neighbor's Bradford pear is really showing off this weekend. Too bad that I couldn't get a good shot without a power line running through it. But the blossoms against the bright blue sky are simply spectacular. In the close up one you may notice that it looks as if I have a prison tattoo on my hand. Nope, it was a reminder that I wrote yesterday..unfortunately written with a brand new Sharpie. I'm sure eventually it will all be washed off. :=0
The reminder was so that I wouldn't forget that Zoey the wonder dog had an appointment to see the vet for her yearly checkup. Since it wasn't until 10:30, sometime I decided that that would give me time to run to the west side of the City to Hobby Lobby and Petsmart, which is practically next door. And then, in bed last night I decided that I would just take Zo with me. She loves going on errands and doesn't get to do it often enough. I didn't SAY anything about it to her. I got up as usual, drank coffee, watched the news yadda yadda. But that dog was on my heels all morning. Wagging her tail, running for the leash etc. Too weird!

So, off we went. I was going to make one more try to get metal US1 dpns that were close to the same size as my Crystal Palace ones. Weird that I have 2 other sets and they are both two different sizes and significicantly larger than the CPs. These Susan Bates that I got today at least fit into the needle sizer about the same! I was at Hobby Lobby about a week and a half ago and their knitting stuff and needle felting stuff was 40% off. Imagine my surprise when I discovered today that it still was! So since I'd saved money on the needles I didn't worry about getting another package of nf needles and one of those brush looking things to use instead of the foam rubber that I've used before. Oh and some styrofoam eggs for an experiment.

Then off to Petsmart. Early...hardly any customers which thrilled Zo as that meant she got ALL of the attention as well as extra free cookies. We stocked up on Dentabones and she got a new collar and a lot of petting and then off to the vet.

I've been really good about not giving her any table food; cut down on her dog food; and I just knew that she'd either lost weight or maintained. But nope, she gained 2 lbs! :-( As soon as this bag of food is gone we'll try some more serious weight loss food. Happily though, he said her heart sounded quite a bit better than it did in November. Yay!!! We had to wait awhile as he was busy with this eensy teensy puppy whose mom had abandoned it. It was one of a litter of 5 and the only survivor. A friend of the momma's owner had taken it upon himself to try and save it and so far it seems to be doing rather well. But soooo tiny. It gets 2 cc of formula stuff every 2 hours and he sets the alarm clock so he'll be sure and not sleep through the night feedings. I was impressed. I sure hope it makes it without any problems. It was funny to see this big cowboy sort of guy with this teensy puppy wrapped in about 1/4 of a receiving blanket and tucked inside his shirt!

Now it's time to get some housework done so I can have some good knitting time. Both Monkey socks are ready for their toes!!!!

Mysterious Wednesday

Here's what it looked like yesterday as I wandered around in the park by my office. Spooky, eh? I entertained myself as I worked by making up little stories about what might be found if you stepped into the fog at the back of the picture. There were some interesting alternate realities rumbling around in my head along with the necessary Medicare stuff.

And today, it looks basically the same. It didn't last all day yesterday, and by afternoon it was warm and sunny. Hopefully that will happen today also.

But, if not, that's OK too. Because I have the DAY OFF! Yay, I love middle of the week leisure days. It's another lose it or lose it day. And, if I'm figuring right, I could do this every other week forever! I get concerned though because sometimes others are off, and if I couldn't take a day I would lose the vacation time.

Mysterious? Well, yes it is...sort of. Because I have no idea what all I will do today. So far, I've had a soaky bath and then put on clean pjs LOL. I've cut out some fabric that hopefully will turn into something later on. I've eaten my oatmeal and even some biscuits (I got up at 5 so it was time for a morning snack. I've read a bit and knitted a bit and now I'm typing a bit. Next up is a bit more fabric cutting. Or a nap. Or felted birdhouse construction. Who knows? Who cares?

Laters...

Important News!

I am so excited about this, you would think it was all my doing. Y'all go see! The marvelous Kirsten over at Through The Loops has her first pattern published in Knitty! I can't remember how I first found her blog, but it was a lucky day for sure. I've been amazed at the socks and hats and wonderful shawls she's made. I've so enjoyed the photos that she so magically seems to come up with (it helps that her kids are gorgeous and mostly willing models). She's so encouraging to me and I just hope that someday I can knit as well as her. And all that's well and fine but guess what!?! You don't have to be a size 2 with tight abs to wear this. And there's more than one size in the pattern. Y'all go see! Is this cool or what??????

There may be other good things in this issue but I haven't seen the rest of it yet. It will have to wait for lunchtime at work. My computer can go to specific articles there through links, or to the main page, but it can't wander around without freezing up. So I have something to anticipate on Monday.

In the meantime, I have printed out 3 copies of this pattern. One to mark on when and if I get brave. One to keep clean in case a cat leaves a hairball on the first one. And one to save so when she's rich and famous, I can say...I have her first knitty pattern :-)

Another Quiz

Your Dominant Thinking Style: Experimenting

You're all about looking at the facts, and you could always use more of them. You see life as your lab - and you're always trying out new things, people, and ideas. The master of mix and match, you're always coming up with unique combinations. You are good at getting a group to reach consensus.

What's Your Thinking Style?

I saw this over at Sara's and of course, I had to try it while I wait for the washer to fill with hot water. Felting ahead. :::crossing fingers::::

Was Saturday Sky

Well, not really. Actually I went to the park to take sky pics and ended up taking water pics which my computer would not let me post. The computer day was mostly called "disconnected". Probably a good thing as that meant I had no reason to sit in the desk chair, and I had a lot to do.

So the day was about scrubbing the utility room on my hands and knees (including moving the washer so I could scrub under that). General house stuff. Picking up a huge bag of trash from the alley. And no I don't like my neighbors any better this week. :-O Finally got all the propane heaters etc reboxed and back in their basement space. Laundry is done. Just one of those kind of days. At the end of it I was tired and grubby and felt marvelous at all that had been accomplished. And even the alley cleaning wasn't too bad since it was gloriously sunny and warm.

Only thing on the list for today is a bit of plant watering; clock setting; and being lazy. I can do this! What's on your list??

Oh...and the water pictures. Here ya go.

Hi, my name is Susan

and here I am! Slightly blurry...it's hard to hold the camera still while the timer clicks...but perhaps that is a good thing. And the color is a bit off. I really don't think my hair looks sort of green. I'll blame that on the bright light in the bathroom at work. I'd given up on ever getting a pic here at home so when I came in from a dr's run and made a stop with my bag still on my shoulder I got this idea. I did have to 'fess up though as someone heard me giggling in there and did sort of wonder what I'd been doing.

Last night, a bit of knitting was done on the second heel flap. More would have been done except I discovered a black/white Sherlock Holmes fest on cable and quickly became entranced. I love those old movies!

This evening, if all goes well, I plan on a trip to the City to pick up needles and cat food and maybe a stop at Michael's and Hobby Lobby too! Good times!

Collectibles!

and we all probably have them. Or, perhaps we sent some of them to Devorah for her knitters :-)
I saw this in the M******Stew*** magazine in line at the store and bought it so I could share this with you.

Yarn in the Mailbox

Yay it got here! Did I take pics. Yep. Did they work. Nope. If you really want to see, here's what I got:

Lamb's Pride Bulky in 76 Misty Blue and 8 Oak.

Crystal Palace Kid Merino in Ultra Blues and if you click on the scarf block in the corner, you'll see the Cat's Paw pattern that I got for free...and what I was really after. But this Kid Merino is really something. I think it will be like knitting smoke! Sooooo very light.

So...happy that at last that it all arrived, I gobbled down a bit of supper, fed the kids, and got in comfy clothes. I've read through the pattern using the bulky yarn so many times I think I already have it memorized. And yes, I have US 13 circs. Ready to go. Uh..maybe not. I needed 16" circs. Mine are longer and just don't work! Arghhh! I truly thought this time I had everything under control. So today I will call the LYS and see if they have some and if so, will they hold them for me until tomorrow evening when they're open late. I really don't want to order some from Yarnmarket and have them zip them to me fast. Or wait for Knitpicks. I want them NOW. It would be really cool if work was really slow this afternoon and I could leave early. Ha! Fat chance!

Now completely befuddled, I thought I'd start the heel flap on the other Monkey sock. But the phone rang. And rang. And rang. It seems that last night was talk to The Girl evening. She had a lot to chat about but couldn't seem to take care of all of it at once. Fun though with lots of giggling and story telling. And in between, I watered plants, wrote notes, and watched my forsythia bloom. I brought in some little twigs and stuck them in water and I swear, I'd be out of the kitchen for what seemed like just a few minutes and would return to find another one open.

It's time for that. It's been amazingly warm with highs in the high 60s in the afternoon. Glorious weather. Too pretty to be inside the office so I've made more runs over to the hospital than are really needed. So far, nobody has caught on that I'm just enjoying being outdoors.

I plan on having a fun day..hope you do too!

Gussets and Wishing

Yay...one of the Monkeys now has a gusset and I managed to even keep the pattern going down the top of the foot. I think that the vibrant colors in this yarn sort of obscure the pattern (the original at Knitty was made in a light greenish color) but I don't care. I just love the look of the colors! And sometimes I amaze myself. Something will go a bit off, and I can figure out what happened..and more importantly, Shazamm! correct it.

More would have been done but Mary, the old kitty, wasn't feeling her best and was in need of serious cuddling. So she snuggled and I sang her silly songs about IKEA. A catalog arrived in the mail yesterday (still no yarn). OMG, it's probably a good thing that the nearest IKEA is in Texas. I really get off on storage and organization and there is an abundance of options in their catalog. It's just huge! In my mind I designed a whole new living room and turned the second bedroom into a crafting haven, but with optional sleeping. I've often visited their website but it's much easier to imagine when you have a two facing pages with options. In this older house I am blessed with great kitchen storage, and a pantry. But closet space just is barely there. So pages and pages of bookshelves and drawers and tables and and and were just too much fun.

I guess it all firmly locked in my mind because I dreamed of furniture shopping, and I was wearing the Monkey socks *G*. And I apparently was having a great time dreaming because I turned off the alarm; convinced Mary to go back to sleep for a bit and slept until 5:30.

Yay and Boo!

Yayyyyy, we're going to State! The girls really played well. I was disappointed that the one that I actually know hurt her ankle rather badly Friday night and didn't get to play. She (and apprently the coaches/trainer/whatever) say it's a bad sprain, but if so it's the ugliest sprain I've ever seen. She's a senior so I know her disappointment was much greater than mine.

The school where the game was played was just spectacular. Edmond is known to be a town of $$$ and the school certainly expresses that. Now remember, we're in the gym part. And just inside the doors is a HUGE atrium filled with plants. I could have stood there all day. Down just a little bit were aquariums built into the walls! However, hotdogs and nachos seem to be the same all over.

Afterwards, and after taking what we thought would be a quicker route back to the City (not) we went to Incredible Pizza. I'm not sure if this is a chain...I rather imagine it is. But it's just HUGE. You pay one price to eat and whoa...there is a lot of food. Everything from the logical pizza to baked potatoes and cinnamon rolls. All very good, and what amazes me is that it's all kept so clean. There were a bazillion people eating and yet you never saw a dirty table. Swoop, down would come the young people working and shazamm all was clean and ready to go for the next folks needing a spot to eat. They have a movie room, a gym room, a family room, a cartoon room and maybe more. Those are the only ones I've ever been in. And then in the back is this HUGE area for games, miniature golf, bowling (both regulation and little kids) go karts, and tons of video games and shuffleboard type games and they don't seem to be that expensive to play. And a good time was had by all.

Only disappointment to my day is that there was no package of yarn on my porch when I got home. I ordered some yarn for a specific project as well as some extra stuff on the 15th of Feb. It was shipped shortly after that, minus a pattern that was back ordered. The pattern arrived on Tuesday! But still no sign of the yarn. I called and was told that the pattern was shipped first class, but the package was shipped regular mail. And that if it didn't arrive by this Tuesday to call them back and they would reship. So maybe I can get it by April????? I really and truly need it NOW. The yarn doesn't seem to be available locally or I'd just order more. Dunno. Maybe I'm just spoiled by the service I've received from other vendors. I like their catalog, I like their selections but maybe this will be my last order. :-(

A bit of knitting this morning, I think, and then perhaps some yard cleanup this afternoon. I have some incredibly messy neighbors and their trash seems to have been making it's way to my house. I think stuffing trash in a bag or trimming things will be a good energy outlet and I'll be so glad to come in and sit down and knit this evening, I won't even care that my yarn hasn't arrived.

Hope your Sunday treats you well~

Playing with Color

My Knitpicks order finally arrived. In it were sock needles (that I haven't used yet), replacement needles for the one that peeled off, some Wool of the Andes in blues and greens (which I forgot to take a pic of) that is destined to be an intarsia experiment in the future. But what I've played with most is the Telidescope. I walk around looking like I'm playing I Spy. And I discovered that the lens part of my camera will fit nicely into the eye piece.


So here you have...my calico cat Mercy









And here you have green yarn, brown box and a packing slip.





And last, but not least, you have a great pic of my rubber ducky bath towel.

Monkey continues. Both legs are now done and it's time to start the heels. But first, I'm leaving the house. Errands, and then I'm going to go watch basketball today. Our girls are playing in the district playoffs and I'm going with The Girl and her other sisters and various and sundry adults. Should be fun!

What are you going to do today?

Clever Business Practice??

A couple of weird things happened recently. Yesterday I had reason to call and speak with someone regarding a credit card account. The lady on the other end of the phone asked for my zipcode, which I gave. After just a moment of convo about the matter at hand she said something like "Ohhhh you live in __ ____! Do you go downtown on Burger Day? I used to go to that every year before I moved. And then went on to mention other places she liked to frequent in this area.
Now this would be really funny except that a few months ago I had reason to call them and that time it was a guy who also was from this area. By the time I finished talking to him, I thought we were best friends and totally changed my mind about what I was going to do. What are the odds that both of them are from this area? Maybe I'm just cynical, but I'm thinking they googled my town.

Then just moments ago, I was emailing my responses to my last posts and an ad came up on the side of my Yahoo page to entice me into setting up my own domain. For a knitting store?? Another coincidence? Or are they realizing that most of the mail that comes to this addy has to do with knitting or fiber? :::shrug:::

I am happy to report that Monkey #2 is now through the 3rd repeat. A couple of stalls while I picked up a stitch but on the whole all went well. I read somewhere that the reason for all the difficulties lately are because Mercury is in retrograde. Any one know how long this lasts???