Monday, October 31, 2011

Re-New


'Member that glove start I showed you yesterday that I was so proud of? I tried it on and it was too small, so I dug out the original needles the pattern calls for, ripped out all my work, and started over. I decided to knit the cuff and palm as the pattern directs and then switch to smaller needles for the fingers. So far, so good. In fact, as the picture shows, it thinks I'm #1. Me too.


Today's the end of Blogtoberfest. I can't say I'll miss the need to post every day. I do think I did rather well considering the nasty surprise I had 9 days ago, don't you? I will still post to my writing blog daily since I'm starting NaNoWriMo tomorrow and intend to write at least 50,000 words in the next 30 days. That's not much, only 1,667 per day, and they don't even have to be all different. You can reuse them all you want. What a deal!

Sunday, October 30, 2011

New!

New knitting! I dug out a skein of Patons Wool in Mercury and one of Bernat Alpaca in Stone and this pattern that I made too big last year. I'm using smaller needles and am hoping that it makes gloves that fit me, especially in the fingers. I think I might have been smart to make the cuff with the bigger needles and use the smaller ones for the fingers. We'll see.








I found a new knitting book in the Clearance shelves at Barnes & Noble this afternoon. I paid even less than the sticker price with my discount card. Tee hee.








And instead of making a paper list of things I don't want to forget to take along on my retreat on Thursday I'm making a list on my iPod Touch. Very advanced techie of me, don't you think? (You do if you're older than me, if you're younger you just rolled your eyes.)

Saturday, October 29, 2011

A Girl Can Never Have Too Much

jewelry. That's right, Aunt B, I found more. Mom's jewelry box was in the garage (the garage?!?) and it had 2 watches and a bunch of jewelry, including an "M" heart necklace I bought for her for Mother's Dad when I was about seven, in it. I remember because Grandma was helping me and told me that "M" stood for Maralee, I told her no, that was for Mom. Silly Grandma. Durwood and I rejoiced in sitting own at the table, just the two of us, and eating real food like veggies (that skillet's full of all the veggies left from the deli trays) and then we shared an orange. Ah, it was good to get back to eating the way we like too. He said he misses cooking and I miss having good, healthy food. And fruit. I love fruit (I usually have at least 3 and up to 5 servings a day) and have hardly eaten any all week. What does scurvy feel like? I'm having yogurt for dessert tonight too, with 3 Fig Thins cookies on the side. And tomorrow I'm meeting Cookie and Skully at The Attic Cafe & Books to knit in the afternoon. I'm hoping to not step foot in Mom's apartment all day. I need a break.

Friday, October 28, 2011

I'd Better Post

because I forgot yesterday. I have to say that my mind is a blur these days so I'm giving myself a bit of a break. Here's some other people's knitting pictures I took at Friday Night Knitting a while back. I promise that I'll have some of my own knitting, new knitting one of these days. Soon.

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

This is the Way We Sort Mom's Jewelry


O.M.G. My mother, may she rest in peace, had more damned jewelry than you could shake a stick at, and most of it wasn't worth the powder to blow it to H-E-double toothpicks. Aunt B did find Mom's diamond earrings though so that mystery was solved. I screwed them suckers into my ears so fast my earlobes got pinched.

Tuesday, October 25, 2011

No Sunshine Today


Rain, sleet, rain, rain, hail, rain, rain-- with a bit of thunder thrown in for spice. I knit one row on Aunt B's Potato Chip Scarf last night. Anybody made one? I added 30 sts and am adding an extra knit row between increase rows, and thinking of adding at least one more repeat, and I'm still using way less yarn than the pattern says. Plus it looks too skinny. Tips?

Monday, October 24, 2011

At Least the Sun's Shining Today

Well, right now anyway. I have a crapload of things to accomplish today, phone calls to make, errands to run, and I'd really rather pull the covers over my head and hide. Or maybe take Porter to the dog park all day to see what dogs come out to play. I'd take treats. For both of us. I really haven't been knitting so I don't have any knitting to show you, but I can find a
few U.P. pictures to dazzle you with.

Sunday, October 23, 2011

Coping

I am employing several coping mechanisms today. One is blogging,

another is cleaning, because DD and Mom's sister are coming, and you know there'll be random people here this week.






Possibly the most ill-advised is a pint of Ben & Jerry's New York Super Fudge Chunk ice cream for lunch. I've been frustratedly trying to reduce the shadow I cast and not had a lot of luck. Grief eating is not going to help but once Tuesday's over I'm back on the wagon. Really. This is my last pint of bad-girl food for a long time. Cross my heart.










DS and I took Porter to the dog park on Friday. She met and played with a Newfoundland named Morgan. Morgan is as big as a Smart Car. No. Lie. Good thing she's friendly.









In knitting news, at Friday Night Knitting I frogged and restarted Aunt B's scarf. I added 30 stitches and an extra knit row between increase rows--and I may add another repeat to make it wider, but
it's fast knitting and going well.

Saturday, October 22, 2011

Bye, Mom



I love you lots. I always did.
Barbara Sue

Friday, October 21, 2011

Inspired by Mooncalf




I read her blog daily and I am in awe of her productivity and output, both in knitting and other crafts. I have followed her lead making fabric baskets






and pocket monsters,









but today she blogged about getting a new pattern book. Well, I got a new bo
ok too. It isn't a pattern book, it's a book of essays but the subject is knitting. You can see it has already moved into its rightful place--on the vanity next to the "throne." Where else would you put a new and treasured volume?

Thursday, October 20, 2011

I Am The Sweetest


Durwood says so, I believe him, and I've got the flowers to prove it. See? They were waiting for me when I got home from work last Saturday. It was Sweetest Day, one of those Hallmark holidays, and he gave me a card and the flowers. I think they look perfect in this ugly pitcher I bought years ago at T.J. Maxx. I remember what DD said when I picked it up. "Mom!" she said, as only a 15-year old can. "You're not going to buy that hideous thing, are you?" That clinched it; I had to have it and it has amused and pleased me ever since.















This is the pumpkin cheesecake that DS & DIL1 brought for Sunday supper. It had an absolutely fantabulous graham cracker crust and it was totally delicious.












When Durwood and I ran away from home the other day we went to Appleton and strolled through World Market. I love that place. It's like a vacation without a passport. Everything's a tiny bit exotic and the store smells like foreign places. I bought this sarong to use as a scarf. It was 50% off and I loved the muted colors. I wore it yesterday and felt very swell.

Wednesday, October 19, 2011

False Start & Restart


Last Friday I cast on 90 stitches and got started on Aunt B's Potato Chip Scarf while I was visiting Mom. I worked on it at Friday Night Knitting, but it was going fast and going nowhere. What you see is all but the last row of knit front and back and the bind-off. It's not long enough and I don't think it's wide enough. I'm going to frog it and start over. Some of the ones I saw on Ravelry added stitches and rows; I think that's what I'll do.



I frogged my last attempt to make a Special Olympics scarf and put it aside. The other night I pulled it out and started again with bigger needles. Great big needles. US13s. I do love it when it goes fast.








Oh, you should have had supper with us tonight. We had leftover Peking Chiken so Durwood cut it off the bone, heated it up, put it in whole wh
eat tortillas with hoisin sauce, cucumber spears, and chopped green onions with steamed broccoli on the side. You would have wanted some but we ate it all.

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Posting In The Dark

I mean to do this in the morning, or at least in the daylight, but my days get away from me more than I care to admit. I hear that the road to Hell is paved with good intentions, so I plan to have a very smooth path to perdition one of these days.


I used yarn as decor on Sunday...











but it couldn't compare to the allure of the appetizer platters Durwood and I fixed for our family supper.






His Italian Wedding Soup was delicious and my Creamy Mushroom
Barley Soup was nearly gone. (his recipe makes a lot more than mine does)

Monday, October 17, 2011

Arrgh!



I neglected to blog yesterday. I was busy cleaning my house, making dip and soup and filling birdfeeders. I have pictures but they're in the camera at home. I need, I need... I don't know what I need but I really need something to center me again.

Saturday, October 15, 2011

Blowing



It's a really windy day and I wish I was out in it instead of here in the store (earning money which I will appreciate come payday on Monday). I would like the wind to blow the leaves in my yard away up the hill into someone else's yard or even across Fisk St. into the park where they'll just turn into mulch. I wouldn't mind leaving the leaves in our yard to turn to mulch but Durwood (and the neighbors) wouldn't like it at all. Actually I'd like to dig up most of the grass and plant rocks so that I don't have to mow the slopes in our yard but that idea isn't flying either. I am thwarted at every turn.

Friday, October 14, 2011

Yarn Stuff!

Finally I have some actual yarn-y content. I appreciate your continued patience with my lunacy.

Last night was the Bay Lakes Knitting Guild meeting and we learned 3 new increases: knit in front and back (of the same stitch), make 1 (right or left leaning), and row below (right or left leaning). Terri had giant US35 needles and super bulky pink yarn to demo them and we all managed to get our yarn and needles to obey with a minimum of swearing but there were a lot of tongue tips sticking out at times. It was great to see new faces and old ones too. It's getting to be a very congenial group and I'm learning a lot of helpful things. Besides, you can't know too many knitters.



I'm working on my MeWarmer (scroll down). See? I've turned the first corner, now I knit straight for a few rows for the underarm, then I'll turn another corner to make the back up to the neck. Basically I'm making a big "U" shape, I'll make another, and then stitch them together to make an open front vest I can snuggle into when winter winds blow.





And it turns out I haven't invented a bizarre hybrid row on my Sea Foam scarf. It was just all scrunched together.




Tonight I'm casting on a Potato Chip scarf at Friday Night Knitting for my Aunt B who wants something I knit to swan around in during the "harsh" North Carolina winters. She'll look fab in it.

Thursday, October 13, 2011

Oh, Doody

I forgot to take pictures of my knitting progress last night when I got home, so you're just going to have to be satisfied with, uh, a selection of Lake Superior photos from last week. Perhaps I will remember to photo the yarn stuff tonight after Knitting Guild, post then, and be caught up for the month.

Here's the lovely Durwood at the head of a stairs over the dunes. See how relaxed he looks?




This stairs led from a scenic overlook down to the lake shore. I was pleased to be able to climb back up with a minimum of huffing and puffing.


I love this view of Lake Superior and the fall sky. They both went on forever.


Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Well, Hell

Sorry I missed posting yesterday but Mom decided to have a burst appendix so I spent the day in the ER and various hospital waiting rooms. I didn't even have time to change out of my sweaty walking clothes before I had to run to see what was up with Mom. Thank God the darned thing didn't rupture on her ride home (with DS driving) from her 65th high school class reunion on Monday. I was totally planning a relaxing afternoon in the autumn sunshine. I even thought about carrying my most portable sewing machine out onto the patio and sewing up the skirt I cut out in the lovely weather. But taking care of Mom took precedence, of course. I knitted on the Sea Foam scarf in the ER and the MeWarmer while she was in surgery but haven't taken pictures of either yet. Just trust me, progress was made and I think I may have invented a bizarre hybrid of the seafoam stitch but I was too cross-eyed to really tell. Here's a picture of Mom's knitting project from last winter so you won't grump that there's no yarn-y content. I know how you get.

Monday, October 10, 2011

No Nearly Midnight Posting for Me Today

Nope, today I'm Johnny-on-the-spot.

The only knitting I have to show you is the first piece of the MeWarmer I'm creating as I frog (ribbit! rippit!) the hideous Campsie Wrap I made last winter. I got smart and frogged the end a-ways, started the new project and now I'm unknitting and knitting at the same time. Clever me! On
the left we have the wrap (ugh) and on the right is the MeWarmer (yay). Much better.

Sunday, October 9, 2011

Whoa, Nellie



I almost missed posting today, good thing I remembered. I mowed the lawn and brushed by the milkweeds I keep for the monarch butterflies and a bunch of the seed pods burst open and a cloud of them followed me around the backyard for a lap. They're so pretty.

The tree in the front yard is trying keep some leaves in every color. So
me, the red/yellow/orange ones are falling and the green ones are still sticking, the plain yellow ones are falling too, trying to bury my car when I park it on the street.


You should see the chrysanthymums blooming against the front of the house. I could sit and look at the deep red and bronze ones all day.


We opened the house up this morning and look at what is just hanging there outside the window of the second bedroom. It's big and just beautiful. It is outside so there's no need to be creeped out, DD. I know you're cringing just looking at it.