Stash Buster # 1...

Janette, if you're reading this, could you look away for a little bit? I haven't decided what I'm going to do with this particular project yet, whether I'll send it to you now or later. I'm sure I'll have it figured out by the end of this post.

...

Alright. Well, first off, it's Hank day, so here's the obligatory puppy pic:



Such a handsome devil.

Last night was the first night of puppy school! Lexa and Jewel and Hank and I all piled in the Jeep together and after a brief stop at the wrong location, we got ourselves straightened out and managed to eek out a few basic exercises. Hank finally got to meet Jewel, who is just as sweet and cute as can be, and I realized upon meeting her that I need to get Hank around more dogs more often, just to be reminded of how huge he is. I was expecting Jewel to be at least comparable in size from the pictures on Lexa's blog, but she's just wee.

My brute on the other hand, with the exception of a large Collie that was there as an example dog, owned by the trainer, will shortly out weigh every other dog in the class, and maybe already does. He's not taller than all of them yet, but it certainly won't be long. You wouldn't know it to watch him though. I keep forgetting that despite his size, Hank is still very much a puppy, and he likes to stay pretty close to 'mom'. The training exercises only last about five minutes or so, and then the class gets to play with one another. Hank hung around the outside of the group, wanting very much to play and join in, but just wasn't too terribly sure. Another girl puppy was having a grande old time, wanting to play with Hank, but I guess she was just a little too aggressive with her sniffing. Hank's ears went straight back, tucked his tail between his legs and ran up against the wall.

Since he wasn't too sure about joining the group, he went and had a drink of water. And he drank. And he drank. And he drank. You would've thought I'd never given this dog water in his life. But this is what he does. We've been over to friends houses, and he drinks their dog bowls dry. I don't get it, but it's his quirk. As odd as this may sound, he almost takes after me. When I was younger, I was very much a wallflower. I'd be off in the corner, trying to look very engrossed in something else. Is it possible to pass on one's neurosis to another species?

Anyhow, the whole thing was a hoot. We got to do sit, down and recall, which really wasn't a problem for Hank. The trainer held his collar while I walked across the room, like 20 paces mind you and Hank freaked the frack out. He was positively despondent over the prospect that I might be leaving without him. You're supposed to call the name once and the command once, as in "Hank! Come!". I think I got out the 'H' sound and he was already upon me. It's nice to know I'm loved.

Towards the end of the class, Hank was starting to come around. He and Jewel were starting to really get into the puppy wrestling and as he is such a big lumbering lovable lug, he took one swipe at her head with his paw and totally had her pinned. She's feisty though. I have no worries. Anyhow, Thursdays from now on should be a lot of fun and I just love that Hank gets to socialize with other dogs. And is completely pooped when we get home. Oh, and PS: I let it slip the other day that Hank is a knitting term...the constable was not amused. Tee hee!

Now, onto the knitting content. Here is my first stash busting FO (finished object);



Pinwheel Baby Sweater by Shelley Mackie from Elann.com. Knit with 5 mm needles using all Patons Classic Wool. I call this one my Cherry Chocolate Pinwheel, cuz it reminds me of, well, cherry chocolates.

I had a tonne of Classic Wool left over from the tams and the slippers I knit and even though I bought different colours for different projects (the variegated for a tam, the rust and brown for the hubs felted clogs), they all went together really nicely. I'd had my eye on this project for a while, and tried it a few years back with double pointed needles, which just didn't work. This time I did the magic loop method, and this project just flew off the needles. To give you an idea, I started it last Sunday, Feb. 17/08. I worked on it all day, realized I'd made a bunch of mistakes, decided I'd be okay with that and just make an afghan, changed my mind, ripped it all out and started again Sunday night.

As is usually the case, I didn't read far enough ahead in the pattern to realize that you do the I-cord as your casting off, so I cast off and then did the I-cord. I wanted to this twisty thing with two different colours, so knit two lengths of I-cord, started sewing, realized I didn't have enough, ripped that all out and just attatched the one colour of I-cord, which I could've knit in as I went anyway, even after casting off. The hubs is always chastising me for taking short cuts, since it nearly always creates more work that it avoids. It still hasn't sunk in. I'm getting better with regards to sewing patterns though. I nearly always follow the directions as written now, since ripping seams is my very least favourite thing to do. But I digress...



I can't tell you how much I love this little sweater. I think it just may be my favourite thing I've knit so far. It's simple, easy and fast to knit, interesting construction and I love the colour combo's I picked. And it says in the pattern that it's supposed to fit from infant to toddler, around 4 yrs. We shall see. Mine looks a little small to fit a four year old, but then again, I have little to no reference for children's sizing. That being said, I doubt I'll wait to send it to Little Miss K, as I'd like it to get as much wear as possible. It needs a good blocking before it goes though, and I still have a little bit of brown left, so I plan to knit some more I-cords and attach them to either side of the front for a little tie. I'm kind of into knitting I-cord. It's kinda fun.

This stash busting thing is going pretty well so far. I've figured out what I want to do with that pink and white Shetland Chunky, thanks to the suggestion of a few faithful readers. I think it may become a little Lopi sweater, we shall see. And whilst knitting this Pinwheel, I thought up at least two more projects for yarn I have in my stash. Progress reports on those to come as they happen. I feel as though I am yarn abundant at the moment, which is quite nice. Should help keep the yarn purchases at a minimum for the next little while.

And as I've rambled on long enough, we'll end here for now. Have a lovely weekend y'all!

Until later...

I Feel Safe...

*sigh*

I need my own car. That way I will not only be able to get myself from A to B like a big girl, all by myself, without having to orchestrate who goes where at what time and can I maybe get a ride, please? but this will also ensure that I will have my house key on me at all times. Logic would dictate that if I were to have my own car, I would have my own car keys, ergo, also said house key.

Why do I bring this up you ask. Here's the series of events. On Wednesdays, I have Knit Nite. The constable has hockey. Never the schedules shall meet. I could conceivably walk to and from Knit Nite, but, well, it's dark out. And I have to carry a big knitting bag. We've changed locations since first starting our little meetings, and it is considerably closer but still...nah. Thankfully, knitters are a kind bunch, and I've been able to get a couple of rides that last two weeks (thanks again Donna!)

My first venture to Knit Nite, I walked home and realized I had forgotten my keys. So I broke into the house. Which was really easy. Tonight, Knit Nite again, got a ride home, forgot my keys. Broke into the house. This time however, I have a vicious gaurd dog. Who was locked up in his crate since we were both gone. And got so scared at the prospect of someone breaking into the house, that he peed himself in his crate.

*sigh*

Don't tell Hank I told you this story. He's still a little embarassed about it.

A Bit of an Experiment...

This is my 200th post! I'm going to try something here in a minute, but first, I want this...



...I want it badly, and I want it now. Why isn't there an Ikea on the east coast?
Here are a few things that have recently conspired together to make me disgruntled about not still living in Ontario.

--They have a new holiday in February, on Monday, called Family Day. A number of provinces now have this new holiday. Guess which province isn't one of them.

--We have relatives that live in Burlington, ON, just where an Ikea happens to be and all of the furniture that I want you can't buy online. Frack! While we're on the subject, why is it you can order a chair online but not a $12 Roman blind????

Anyhow, Ontario is getting hammered with another storm today, and it's sunny here, so for now, I'll be content to be where I am.

Now onto this.



I've been visiting my stash lately. I've got lots of stuff that I bought that I really didn't have much of an idea of what to do with it. Some of it were thrift store rescues. When you find a whole bag of yarn for like three dollars, you're almost morally obligated to give it a good home.

I've been inspired by others who have committed to knit their stashes. Here's my take on it. For every new project that I work on, I have to come up with a project for my stash yarn. I'd be okay with raffling it off, but really, I don't have much of anything that anyone wants! Before I felt comfortable enough with my abilities as a knitter to go out and buy beautiful yarns, I practiced a lot on cheap acrylics. Which is what most of my stash is.

So...here's where you come in. What I have pictured here are seven balls of Zellers brand (yes, it's that old) Shetland Chunky. No idea of yardage, it didn't say on any of the ball bands, but I would imagine that at 50 grams (it did say that much), the yardage would be the same as another Shetland Chunky in 50 gram balls. Anyway...

I would welcome any and all suggestions from you fine folks as to what you would do with it, what you would like to see done with it, patterns you think would be suitable or appropriate. Preferably, if I were to take someone up on their suggestion, the pattern would be available online somewhere for free or for reasonably cheap download, if I don't already have it in my collections (and if you're on Ravelry, you can check out my library there, in terms of my books anyway...I'm Marti there as well).

In addition, if you think that this yarn is something you yourself would like to have, by all means, leave a comment and I'd be more than happy to send it to you!

So we'll see how this little experiment goes. Every so often, I'll pull out something else from the stash and we'll do this all over again, if it works out. Very curious to see what you suggest!

Until later...

PS: Check this out! I had checked every Braincase gallery that he'd posted, and never saw my booties until today, when I decided to Google myself! This was waaay back in October. Too cool!

Don't Come Over...

Whoo boy, am I every cranky this morning. Day four of waking up with a headache, low grade temp, nausea and just a general feeling of overall malaise. And it's still winter to boot. Frack! I haven't had a cup of coffee since last Tuesday and it's really getting to me, so despite all the advice to the contrary, a pot is brewing as we type. I will suffer the consequences as they arise, but at least I will be properly caffeinated when I do.

So I guess Hank day has been unofficially moved to Saturday, as I haven't got around to posting on Fridays of late. Ah well. Anyhow, here's a photo.



Why is a dog who isn't supposed to be on the furniture, lounging on the couch, looking ever so smug? Because in our weakened states, neither the constable nor myself have the energy to constantly be fighting him off. Which is what you have to do. Constantly...fight. Frack! So as long as he's quiet, content and not bugging the living daylights out of us as we lie in pathetic heaps, he has free range at the moment. I realized last night though, as he was curled up next to me on said sofa, that he finally wormed his way into the last bastion of sanctuary that I had here in, what I affectionately (no, not really) term the Postage Stamp. That's about the amount of space that we're living in. While Hank would still bring his gooey, slobbery, disgusting dog toys to my lap while I was sitting on the couch, he could never entirely engulf my being. Now he can. As soon as I have my strength back, I have to put things back the way they were. He's not going to like it, I can tell.

Hank is four months old now. He's starting to look like a big boy, isn't he? He's getting some big boy teeth and sadly, he's losing his fuzzy puppy fur. It's being replaced by this lovely, shiny and wavey adult coat. And as you can see from the photo, his one ear has popped up...again. His face looks very grown up in that photo, although in real life, he still looks pretty young.

He starts puppy school next Thursday and not a moment too soon. We've been very fortunate so far that he's stuck pretty close by us, so we've taken him out into our yard for his business trips sans leash. The other day though, he ran out onto the road in front of the house after another dog, the first time he's done that. And he's been really bad about coming inside when he's called. Also, he's getting pretty defensive when other dogs are around, especially if he's on his leash, with either my husband or myself, which is a little worrisome. I've heard that if they feel the need to protect you, they don't respect that you're in charge. I'd hate to think that at four months, he considers himself the alpha dog. So a little training might go a long way. I hope. I'm probably not being as consistent as I should be or am not teaching him the right things. Hank is definitely the kind of dog that needs stuff to do, and the more you teach him, the better off he is. He goes positively apeshit when he's bored. His favourite game is hide and seek. Hubs and I took him to a little nature walk/trail near here one day when the snow was still fairly deep and fresh, and there's a little clearing with lots of trees where we let him off the leash and played hide and seek with him. He loved it! You can't hold him long enough for the other person to hide, he gets so excited. He runs full tilt from one to the other. It's pretty cute.

Hank has a bedtime now too. We used to just put him in his crate whenever we went to bed, and if one stayed up later than the other, then whomever came to bed last would tuck in the dog. Then we started noticing that Hank, while sleeping late in the evening, would wake up and get very antsy. He'd go from one spot to the next, flop down, get back up, wander around, come to us, look at us, go somewhere else, flop down and continue to do this for a little while. Then we noticed that the later he stayed up, the more times he seemed to want to go outside, without any results. So I started putting him in his crate around eleven o'clock. And a couple of nights, right around that time, he'd wake up from his napping place near the door, come and look at me, almost as if to say, 'Ma, is it time for bed yet?'.

So the other night, around eleven, I called Hank over and told him it was time for bed. He happily obliged. I noticed that Rosco, his big stuffed dog buddy who sleeps in his crate with him, was on the other side of the room (sometimes Rosco comes out to play too.) So I said to Hank, "Go get Rosco!" and he wandered over to where Rosco lay, grabbed him by the snout and dragged him into bed. It was the cutest damned thing I ever did see. Last night, again around eleven, the hubs and I were lying on our respective couches watching Sports Center (guess who had control of the remote) and Hank was doing his little antsy circuit. It looked like he was headed for the futon, near where his crate is located. I said to him, "Is it time for bed Hank?" and he did an immediate detour and went right in his crate. By the time I got over there, he was all settled in, ready for his bedtime neck scratch (wherein I remove his collar and give him a little scratch). It's a nice way to end the day, with a little cuddling and petting and telling him he's a wonderful boy. Especially when that day has been filled with chewing on the zippers on my clothes and goobering on my furniture and knocking over everything on the coffee table and chewing on the pillows on the couch and well, you get the idea. Cuz really, at the end of the day, he is a wonderful dog.

"Cuz I'm hot blooded, check it and see...

...I've got a fever of a hundred and three..."

Actually, it was more like 101.0. So I got the hubby's flu, just as he was starting to feel somewhat human again, so he was able to attend to my sickly self. I'm still weak and tired today, with still a bit of an elevated temp, but I seem to be on the mend. Hank's patience has been stretched to it's limit, so hopefully the constable will be able to take him to the beach later. He was a very patient boy though.

I ended up missing Knit Nite on Wed. which was a drag, for a few reasons. One, I really enjoy going. Two, I missed out on hearing all about Heddy's trip. Three, I finished my Forever/Mystery Sweater Tuesday night and had planned on wearing it, perhaps getting one of my Knit Nite ladies to take a pic. For now, this will have to do...



Behold, my Tubey.
Knit with Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Aran, colours black, brown, and red. The bottom of the sweater may look a little wonky, and that's because I switched to stocking stitch instead of ribbing, since while the sweater may be a tube, I am not. I added some hip shaping in that area as well and it fits me like a glove. I tried several attempts to take a picture of myself, but it just didn't work out. If I do say so myself though, it's a dern cute sweater. Trust me on this one.

Anyhow, although this sweater felt like it took forever, it really didn't and was a nice, easy knit that yeilded fantastic results that I'm very happy with. I wanted to use this yarn for something that I knew I would wear a lot and I can already tell that this is going to be one of my favourites. It's quite snug, as when I went to pick up the stitches around the arms/shrug, I ended up with 140 rather than the 160 called for in the pattern. Anyhow, in reading about this pattern on Ravelry, many people mentioned that this yarn stretches quite a bit and that the shrug/arms part ended up bunching up if made in the incorrect size. So I made what is probably a small, even though that isn't what I would normally wear in ready made clothing. And it's exactly the fit I was going for. It's soft and warm and lovely. I want to make another!

I didn't end up using all of the Debbie Bliss that I bought, but most of the black is gone. I already have a project planned for the rest of the red, of which I still have seven balls. If you can tell from the photo, I threw in a little brown as well. I had that in my stash, five balls, and still have three left over. So this sweater would be a great stash-busting project.

Anyhow, that's all there is to share today. The dog is positively freaking out and I need a nap.

Until later...

Quarantine...

While I may still be well enough to blog, my poor hubby is totally down for the count. Around dinner time Sunday, he off handedly said 'my stomach is a little upset. I think I'm getting the flu.' A half hour later, full blown plague. He's been sleeping on the couch ever since, and I feel terrible for the poor guy. He never gets sick, and certainly never gets this sick. So I'm on chicken soup and juice duty. And trying to explain to the dog that while he's still in the room, the constable is in no mood to play. Haven't been successful yet.

Anyhow, I seem to be on an extended knitting break. I've been spinning a bit, but just not at all motivated to pick up the sticks and string. I've been experiencing some real achiness in my arms, wrists and shoulders, and while I usually soldier through it until it goes away (or I become impervious to the pain, one or the other) it's really been bothering me lately. It's a strange new sensation and one that's a little worrisome. In any case, I think that is also contributing to my lack of enthusiasm with regards to the knitting.

So during my sabbatical, I have managed to do a little sewing, which has been a nice change of pace frankly. I've been able to stretch some crafty muscles that have been in little use of late.



My sister in law needed a couple of new sleep sacks for Little Miss K, as she has this really annoying habit of growing up too fast. We had made one last fall, an 18 mo. size which at the time, was just huge. Litte Miss was only 6 mos. at the time, and was swimming in it. Now, the one we made is the only one she can wear. So I broke out the pattern again, got a couple of meters of cute fabric, and a way I went. This one with the little cloud animals on it is an 18 mos. size (click to enlarge, see if you can find a sheep!)...



...and this one is a size 2, which hopefully will get Little Miss the rest of way to a big girl bed. I'm not sure how that all works really, when one graduates from the crib. I do wish that these sleep sack things had been all the rage when I was wee. They look really comfy! The outside of these ones are cotton, lined with flannel. And that's it! Easy-peezy, lemon squeezy. The zippers are a bit of a pain to sew in, but I'm getting much better at it. The pattern called for bias tape around the neck and arms holes, which I did in the first one, but elimated for these two. Too fiddly. This looks better anyway. And I added the flap on the front, as the pattern only called for one on the inside, behind the zipper, and Litte Miss has just discovered the fun of zippers. So an extra flap, with a snap.

I think I'd like to pick a new project or two to sew. Some of the blogs I've been reading, knit blogs mind you, have caught the quilting bug lately. I have scads of remnants from sewing clothes and quilts, and I'd like to do a little destashing in that department as well. I went through my yarn tote (yes, I only have one...stop snickering) and came up with some ideas to destash there. I think I'd like to do the same for the fabric. The craft rooms seems to be a pretty decent set up for sewing, so we shall see what ensues in the coming months. But before I embark on any more crafts, the house really should be my first priority. It's been largely ignored since the fall. We're slowly but surely getting back to it though.

Anyhow, I need to run some errands quickly, as I think the time for my own quanantine may be nigh.

Until later...

I Need My Own Laptop...

The video, which wasn't working earlier, should work now. I had privacy setting enabled and didn't realize it wouldn't work. Duh.



Another grainy video about the dog. We missed Friday cuz the constable insisted on taking the laptop with him on a training day, which means that it sat in it's backpack while he was in a seminar for eight hours and I was left home all twitchy and unsettled. Anyhow, Hank has had this trick down for a little while now, but you can really only go so far on still shots of the dog sleeping, so I thought I would show off what he can do. What would have been more amusing of course would've been all of the attempts leading up to him being able to catch it. On a walk one day, I tried this with little pine cones (back when he was a little smaller) and he'd basically just watch them bonk him on his forehead. Now that was entertainment.

So I went skating yesterday, for the first time in...well, a long time. Highschool I think, but it may have been even earlier than that. Like middle school. A friend from up the road was taking her little girl to the family skating afternoon and invited me along. I hesitated at first. I had a brief glimpse of what it must be like to be frail and elderly and facing the prospect of going outside when it's icy. I was deathly afraid of falling. But I think the potential of a bruised ego was more upsetting than a bruised anything else.

Anyhow, I went. I dug my rusty, dirty skates out of the garage, gave them a quick once over with the Magic Eraser and I was off. I had two objectives; don't fall and if at all possible, avoid making a huge ass of myself. And I succeeded on both fronts. It took a few minutes to get my legs to relax and to remember exactly the right co-ordination of motions that produce something resembling skating. Before long, I was buzzing around. And it was a lot of fun! I think I've talked the constable into coming with me to the free adult skate later this week. I've been wanting to get him to teach me a thing or two on skates, since he's the hockey player in the fam. We shall see.

Not much to talk about or show off in the knitting department. I just haven't felt much like it lately, and a good portion of my evenings lately have ended with me asleep in front of the television without the needles in my hand. It might be the dog days of winter. Or just the dog. He has this really endearing and yet unbelievably annoying habit of bringing all of his toys to my lap and setting them there, and then sitting and staring at them. I'll throw it, he'll bring it back, do the same thing all over again. And is usually the case with dog toys, they're slobbery, gooey, covered in god knows what and just generally give me the heebie jeebies. I don't want them, I don't want to touch them and I can't seem to impart this on the dog. Bringing a ball or the like is one thing, but the chewies are something altogether different. I've been trying to explain to him that those are for him to play with on his own. I don't feel the need to share in that experience. And I certainly don't want that crap on my knitting! He doesn't share my views and opinions on this subject. To Hank, knitting and spinning is only improved by his persistent and relentless input.

Anyhow, I am almost done the Forever Sweater so hopefully I'll have something interesting to post next time. For now, I'm going to admire Heddy's trip photos and pretend I'm there. *sigh* I hope she brings pics to Knit Nite!

Until later...

New Faves...

I love my birthday. I get to hear from all the people I love, I have a legitimate excuse for a whole pile of me time (the rest of the year, I just find other, flimsier reasons to justify it...like it's Tuesday), and of course, I get a few new things.

All the gifts I received were just lovely and thoughtful, and I thought I would share a few that are now my new faves.



Carrie over at Carrie's Workbasket sent me this little gem via Jennie the Potter and I am just over the moon about it! I found the link to the website a while ago through either Knitty.com or Interweave Knits, I don't remember which, but in any case, I knew instantly they were a must have. I then promptly forgot about them. Well, forgot is perhaps too strong a word. I put them on the back burner. After Christmas, I thought about ordering a few with my Christmas fundage. And then one arrived yesterday



It's my new favourite mug. And whilst outside with the dog this morning (ankle deep in snow...AGAIN! ARG!) I decided that I need another one, the one with the spindle on it. Go check it out...I'll wait here. I've got a nice, hot cup of coffee. Maybe I'll knit a row or two...



The endless sweater.

Are you back? Good. Here's another new thing...



My new knitting bag. It's huge! I love it! I picked it up at the SuperStore of all places. It's part of that Joe line that they have there, which is just awesome stuff, especially if you have kids (or, ya know, buy stuff for kids...guilty). Anyhow, this gigantic canvas bag...$16.00. That still leaves me plenty of coin to spend at Have a Yarn in Mahone Bay, along with the gift certificate I got from my hubby! What a guy, eh?! Doesn't look like I'll be able to make it there until May however, since it refuses to STOP SNOWING!! DOUBLE ARG!

Anyway...I told the dog that if I were to stay home today because of the roads, I would take him out in the snow, as the last couple of days have been rough for the poor boy. Not a lot of running time outside. He's in desperate need of physical activity. So I'd better hop to. Those pleading puppy eyes are just too much to resist.

Until later...

Knitting Purgatory...

I heard a bird the other day. And not a nasty-ass crow, but a real sing-songy, spring must be right around the corner, honest to goodness little tweety bird. Or it might just have been Hank doing his high pitched whine, wanting to go outside. Either way, I prefer to believe it was a bird, and that the weather is getting nicer and spring is coming and that this long, dull, grey, desolate, windy, icy, rainy, cold, dark winter is coming to it's natural conclusion. So there.



This made me feel pretty springy the other day actually. A lovely bouquet from the constable for my birthday. It smells pretty springy too. I really should indulge in fresh flowers more often. They really brighten my day. Every time I pass by them, I just get a little boost. Must be the colour. I can't wait for the dafodils to be in bloom. They are my favourite I think. They used to grow wild where I lived when I was a kid and I just couldn't wait for them to bloom each spring. Then of course, I would pick them all. But anyway...

I'm working on a couple of projects at the moment, and that's really what they are starting to feel like...work. There's the mystery sweater for myself, which just feels like it's taking forever. It probably isn't, it's just that I had set a goal of being able to wear it on my birthday and since that didn't happen, I feel like it's taking a lot longer than it should. Then there is this monster project I've been working on since last spring and I just...want...to...be...done...with...it. It's coming, but slowly, since I'll pretty much knit anything else to avoid it. No pictures of either. I want them both to be surprises, even though by the time I am done with either of them, I will have built up quite an immunity to the reveal effect.

So instead, I'm going to post a recipe. I had taken a picture of this a few weeks ago and meant to post it then, but never got around to it. This is one of my favourite meals, and it's super quick, and as knit bloggers are known to post a recipe from time to time, I thought I'd follow suit.


Everything From a Can Chili

1 tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic, chopped or minced
1/2 onion, chopped or pureed* (explanation to follow)
1 lb lean or extra lean ground beef
1 can dark red kidney beans
1 can pork n' beans with maple syrup (Heinz)
1 can crushed tomatoes
1 can mushrooms, either sliced or pieces and stems
1 packet Clubhouse Chili seasoning (or the Hot n' Spicey Chili seasoning, up to you)

*I use a mini chopper and a blender in this recipe

Heat oil in your pot over med. heat, cook onions and garlic until softened. I puree my onions because while I love them, the constable hates the texture. He doesn't mind the flavour, so I put them in my mini chopper with a smidgen of water and make a nice, potent pulp out of it. If any little bit of crunch remains, he will refuse to eat it. In any case, do what you like with your onions!

Add ground beef, breaking up large chunks as it cooks. Add a little bit of salt and pepper to taste. Cook fully and drain fat if you so choose.

Here's where the blender comes in. I think this all came about because my brother wouldn't eat kidney beans (this is my mom's recipe). I throw the kidney beans and the pork n' beans in the blender and blend, making a rather not-so-nice looking...paste. Add to beef in pot and stir to combine.

Add tomatoes and mushrooms to pot and stir, add packet of chili seasoning to pot and stir. Let simmer, stirring occasionally, on med. low heat, so it doesn't stick to the bottom of the pot!

Blending the beans might seem a bit strange, but it does make the chili nice and stick-to-your-ribs thick, which is great for cold winter nights. This recipe can be thrown together in a bit of a hurry too, which is great for nights where you need to be somewhere (ie. Knit Nite!)




Add some garlic bread with cheese and a Ceasar salad, and you've got yourself a meal! For two people, this recipe makes like, six servings, I swear. We usually never end up eating the full pot. I should really just freeze some of it. Anyway...

That's all I could muster for today. I'm off to work on some baby things for now. My sister in law needed some updated items for wee miss K, as she's growing like an adorable little weed! There are a couple of other people needing baby things at the moment too. They don't know that they need them, but I as a crafter feel that these things are essential. Because I get to craft them, that's why. Baby things make it feel more like spring too.

Until later...

A Thousand Words...

The Year of Living Thirty-ishly...

Summer, 1979, age approx. 18 mos. Oh how I wish I still had that colour of hair

It starts today.

So what's the recipe for a good 30th birthday? Well, here's a start;

Take 1 day off of work: check
Sleep in until 9 am: check
Wake up and allow dog to relieve himself out of doors: check
Make coffee and in process, spill yesterdays filter of coffee grounds on floor: check
Realize you used up all of the paper towels and fast food napkins cleaning up dog piss on the carpet last night: check
Lock up dog and go into as yet unfinished house to retrieve more paper towels: check
While there, hunt down old photo albums for blog purposes: check
Flip through said albums and realize that an astonishing number of the relatives in those photos are now dead: check

That's as far as I've gotten. I also got a nice phone call from my ma, and we both marvelled at the fact that I'm 30. In a good way.

30 on the 30th...that makes this my champagne birthday, or my golden year, whichever you want to call it. I've been thinking a lot about that number, ever since the end of the holidays, which has always meant to me that my birthday is just around the corner. I've been rolling the number around in my mind, 30...thirty...thir--tee.

The number itself does not bother me. I like being 'grown up', a term I am using very loosely. As I've said many times to many people, I'd much rather be turning 30 than 18 again. There isn't enough money in the world to make me want to go back there. And while I've spent a great deal of time contemplating what this whole milestone means, and what I would potentially write about it, whether it be a mere subtle acknowledgement or a long navel-gazing diatribe, I've managed to condense it down to the following:

--I really like who I am now and care less and less every year what other people think. If I want to go to the grocery store wearing my tattered jogging pants, I will. Don't care.

--Pretty much all of my dreams up to this point have come true. I'm married to the best guy I've ever known who makes me laugh every day and seems to get more handsome with each passing year. We own our very own home, (it's not done, but we do own it!), something I never would have thought possible this early, and we have absolutely everything we need. Really, we want for nothing. I live near the water and the beaches, like I did when I was a kid, and longed for when I was away from it.

--I'm probably in the best health I've been since I was a pre-teen, in that I'm no longer actively seeking to self destruct. All those years of smoking, ya know. Kinda zaps the energy out of the 20's.

So all around, 30 is looking and feeling pretty good. I'm excited about what comes next. Now that I've checked off some of those dreams, it's time to dream up some new ones. Even if it takes another 30 years to call them into being, that's okay. I'd like to do everything, frankly! If only just to try.

For now, I'm dreaming of the day when Hank stops having little accidents in the house. Or other peoples houses. When does this stop exactly?

Until later...

Progress...

This is for Heddy, as I don't want to be held accountable for upsetting her vacay. I'm working on a sweater for myself, and I have this much done. I'm using up as much of that Debbie Bliss impulse purchase that I picked up during our little outting to Have a Yarn. I'd also like to point out that this is a picture of my right arm, and as I am right handed, this was a rather awkward and difficult picture for me to take. I would've asked the constable to take a pic for me, but he always gets more of me in the photo than I would like, so I just resort to taking my own pics. I like to think of them as more 'arty'. Anyhow, there is a brief glimpse of my WIP. Off to keep knitting.

Meh...

Such is the title for a post where you're not sure what to talk about.

I've been knitting in fits and starts, on a couple of projects, both of which I don't really want to talk about cuz the big reveals at the end are what I am going for. So I'll show you this instead...


Wishing I had given the sink a good scrub before photographing. Please ignore.

I spun up the rest of the dyed pencil roving that came in my little spinning kit that I got at spinning class. Here it is having a little bath before I set the twist. Doesn't it look rather yummy? I'm always quite amazed at my ability to get so excited about yarn. It's string for crying out loud, and yet after I squished out all the water and hung it up to dry, I kept coming back to it over and over just to look at it hanging there, drying. I'd run my fingers over it and just marvel at my handiwork. I spun this was what I kept thinking. Is there any non-knitter out there that gets this weird about something that you enjoy? Please tell me about it...it might help me feel less concerned about my own state of affairs.

I don't know if this picture does it justice, but I got significantly better at being consistent with the spinning. The last little skein that I did was very skinny and pretty even throughout. I didn't get a picture of them hanging up this time...I was too busy fondling.



I joined four of my wee skeins together and wound it, and then left my first little skein of dyed roving by itself. It will join the undyed stuff that I spun as a pet skein, a reminder of my first spinning endeavours. The ball on the left I'd like to knit into something, but I'm not sure just what yet. I really have no idea of how much yardage I have there. Some of it I wound on my wool winder, which is 2 yds. and a bit and some I wound on the niddy-noddy's at the spinning workshop. To be honest, I don't really care, but I see how this piece of information becomes vitally important when you want to spin with the intention of knitting.

I have another kit just like the one I just worked with, only this time it's deep blues and purples. I bought it some time ago at Have a Yarn, and attempted to teach myself to spin, which only resulted in frustration and fibre tantrums. It's taking a lot of will power to make myself knit on my projects rather than spin more yarn though. I spent most of yesterday completely enraptured in spinning, and my dwelling is starting to show it. Woefully neglected. And seeing as today is Sunday, I don't see that being remedied any time soon.

Anyhow, enough of this gibber-gabber. Off to craft.

Until later...

Writers Craft...

So about this writers strike in Hollywood. It's making me want to cancel my cable. For a couple of reasons. First off, I hate most reality television. Not because it's debasing and morally corrupting our society, but because if I watch it, I get totally sucked in. I have to keep up with every episode and stay with it till the bitter end, and that just makes me feel dirty. Like I must make penance and cleanse my spirit of icky, whiny Bachelor contestants and horrifyingly bad Americon Idol auditioners who set themselves up for complete and total humiliation.

Second, this is the first tv season in a very long while that there have been new shows that I was excited about and looked forward to watching. Ever since Friends went off the air, (yes, I'm a cliche, I LOVE that show) I haven't cared too much about what's new or up and coming. I briefly mainlined on Lost, hung in there through the second season, way past the point where it became abundantly clear that the writers and creators of the show never anticipated it becoming as popular as it did and then had absolutely no idea how to intelligently and believably go forward.

Then the Dark Ages of Television set in, where it seemed as though no one even knew how to write a story anymore. Production costs of reality tv must be so freakishly low that the temptation is just too great. I mean really, Amish in the City for crying out loud. Although, when the Amish kids saw the ocean for the first time, I did get a little misty eyed.

Now here we are, present day, and I have not one, not two, but three new shows to look forward to. They may not be your taste, but for a brief time, they were delighting me and keeping me oh so entertained.

First off, Pushing Daisies. I haven't been this excited or this engaged in a television show since Northern Exposure, which, by my estimation alone, has been the single best television series in the last 20 years. What I like about it the most is that it is pure escapism. The show is it's own little bubble, it's own weird little world that looks different and feels different, with it's own merry little band of quirky characters. I want to go to The Pie Hole as much as I wanted to go to The Brick in Cicely, Alaska (plus I totally have a crush on Ned).

Second,Moonlight. This is not a show I expected to like, but I'm usually home on Friday evenings and as I kinda got suckered into The Ghost Whisperer, this came on right afterwards, and when you're knitting, you're less likely to take the time to flick around to find something else to watch. Surprise of surprises, I really am digging this series. Here's a brief synopsis of the premise; A private investigator, Mick St. John, also a vampire, befriends a reporter and together, the dig deep into the vampire culture of Los Angeles. Attraction and sexual tension ensue. There's much more to it than that, but there's the basic gist. Yeah, I know, it sounds cheesy and when I first started watching it, I immediately thought of the Beauty and the Beast series back in the 80's. But it's really quite good for a Friday night, need something to just chill out and watch kind of show. The action is good, the story moves along quickly but not too quickly, there's real chemistry between the two lead characters (and uh, excuse me, but Mick isn't too hard on the eyes) and who isn't a little (or a lot) intrigued by vampires? It's got everything. Especially the guy who plays Mick (who's actually Australian in real life, which only makes him sexier).

Thirdly,Samantha Who? This is just plain cute and funny. Christina Applegate has amnesia and is trying to put together the pieces of her life, only to discover that the life she had isn't really the life she wants. And she has had to move back in with her parents, her mom being Jean Smart, who is always good. Anyhow, this is a great take on the sitcom, cuz there is no audience and therefore the usual conventions of the sitcom have disappeared, leaving just good writing and the opportunity for the viewer to get the jokes without being told when and where they happen. Christina Applegate is great at comedy. She's got great timing and does that whole vulnerable yet a bit crazy thing very well. Her two best girl friends really hold their own and make the show that much better. Especially the girl who plays Dena, her friend from 7th grade. She's hilarious.

So what was my point? Right. I was really enjoying all of this until a bunch of disgruntled writers and their stick in the mud corporate demon bosses had to all go and throw a big hissy fit and ruin all my fun. The only upside is that I am watching a lot more CBC and PBS and feel somewhat smarter for having watched Frontline or The Hour. I'm catching up on some movies, 3:10 to Yuma being good enough to recommend (cuz I'll watch anything with Russell Crowe...are you also noticing a theme here in my viewing habits?). Ben Foster, who plays Charlie Prince in the movie, is awesome. If any of you were Six Feet Under fans, you may recognize him as being Claire's boyfriend. I think he's one to watch.

I hope that the writers do get some of the revenue that they're looking for with regards to DVD sales etc. because the only way I'm going to be watching my stories now I guess is to get them when the seasons come out on disc. There's really no chance of talking me into watching The Moment of Truth.

Until later...

A Hank of Hank...

I may have gone to a very strange place already with the spinning thing. More on that in a moment.

This past Saturday was the final installment of the two part spinning workshop that I attended. As already discussed, the first part was drop spindle spinning, which, if I do say so myself, I caught onto fairly quickly. And really enjoyed.

The second part was spinning on a spinning wheel. I was really looking forward to this experience, as it's something I've wanted to do for quite some time. It may look effortless and easy, but like with everything else that is new, it requires a great deal of co-ordination of movements that haven't been tried before and a whole heap of patience. I'd say that I was in short supply of the latter on Saturday.

A lot of the participants at the workshop already had their own wheels, so I felt a bit like the one and only guest at the party that didn't bring any chip dip. But there was a wheel for me nonetheless, a weird, compact travelling contraption that must have been designed by Lucifer himself.

Our wise and patient leader Sharon assured me that since I did well with the spindle, I would probably be able to handle this wheel. Well, if you want to see me having a little bit of a yarn tantrum, just hop over to Heddy's site (I'm the one in the blue sweater).

I eventually gave up on the wheel in a box and tried out Heddy's version, as she graciously offered to let me have a go on something that wasn't spiteful and determined to make me insane. With her wheel, I had much more success and I think that by the end of the day, I actually was getting a hang of the treadling and drafting etc. Anyhow, here's what I spun...



When I showed it to the constable, he called it barf yarn, as he didn't care for the colours. I quite like it. It's extremely inconsistent, as I had some problems with the bobbin taking up the yarn as it was spinning, but hey, what can you do. It was my first try. I'm just happy I have something to show for my efforts.

Overall, I've totally caught the spinning bug. I've been scouting out wheels and when the weather stops being so schizo, I'd like to take a trip to Gaspereau Valley Fibres and see what they have to offer. I'm happy with the drop spindle for now, which is good, but I definitely see myself making the investment in a wheel before too long.



Another aquisition at the workshop was my very own ball winder! I figured I'd better snap one up while I had the opportunity, as buying one some other time would require either travel or shipping. Here it is with my first and second skeins of handspun all joined up and caked. I love my new toy. I want to wind everything.

So here's where the weird comes in. I know that people spin the hair from their pets. There was a lady at the workshop that wanted to do just that. She had collected fibre from her poodle and had planned to spin what she had into something knit-able (picture also on Heddy's site). I think that's pretty cool, and even have a little bit of spun dog hair (a demo piece I picked up at a craft fair) in my stash. But I never thought I'd be the kind of person who would do that myself.



Guess what. I am. The constable gave Hank a bath this morning and the brushing he received afterwards resulted in a decent amount of fibre. He was kind of kidding around with me about spinning it up, and so I took some, just to see if it was possible. The hairs aren't incredibly long, but they were long enough to spin. So I did.



And I like it! It's quite a pretty colour I think, and soft. We had joked about making a Hank coat someday, cuz his fur is so soft and soooo warm. I guess that idea might not be as far fetched as we had thought. Anyhow, if I continue to collect his fur and spin it, I might blend it with some wool, just to make it a little more stable. It tends to break very easily, I'm guessing because it is hair and not wool, which would be more likely to cling to itself a little more.

So yeah. I may have taken the whole 'waste not, want not' philosophy to the next level. But it keeps me entertained.

Until later...

What Shall We Do?

It's raining, and Hank really, really wants to go outside. Didn't get a walk yesterday, and it looks like he won't get one today either. Pray for us both, won't you?

I'm Going to Learn Jujitsu...

Do you remember the part in the Matrix where they've got Neo hooked up and ready for combat training and he says the following; "Jujitsu? I'm going to learn...Jujitsu?" It's the best line in the movie and a prime example of Keanu acting at it's finest.

Anyhow, that's how I felt on Saturday. I went to a spinning workshop that Heddy organized (if you click the link, you'll see foe-toes...even of yours truly) and learned how to spin straw into gold. No wait, that's another story.

I haven't blogged about it until now for two reasons. One, I've been on the obsession side of things and also consumed with a three day near-migraine. The one might have some correlation with the other, but I'm not willing to concede that just yet.

So yeah...I am now at the very beginning stage of making my own yarn. We started with a drop spindle kit, which had some natural and dyed roving in it, all combed and carded and ready to be spun. Here's the result of my first few attempts.



Three little mini skeins, wherein I am setting the twist in this picture. All three skeins are two ply. The two white or natural ones are plied with themselves, and the one in the middle is the dyed roving plied with the natural, which reminds me of a candy cane or stick, although it doesn't come out quite as yummy in the photo. The two white ones are a little over twisted, one more than the other, and the colour/natural skein was nicely balanced, which I was pretty pleased about.

But I couldn't stop there. I had to see what else I could do. So I spun up a few singles of the dyed roving and then plied those together, and I was so impressed with the result. It's so pretty!



Here is my two ply dyed yarn still on the spindle...



And here is my wee skein that I wound on my antique wool winder . Who knew that would come in handy so soon??!

Anyhow, after this photo was taken, I spun another skein of two ply just like it. So I have a total of five little skeins of yarn, and I still have plenty of roving left over in the kit. I really am not sure of the total yardage. I've wound the skeins around a variety of different apparatti, including my feet, so there may be no way of ever knowing. I didn't measure my wool winder either. I may go back and do that, perhaps re-wind everything to see how much I've got.

I was talking to the lady beside me at the workshop and we've decided that there just simply is no time left over for a job, so the best course of action would be to start a co-op and do some sort of job sharing, so that we can all get more crafting done overall. And I think I heard Heddy say that when she first learned to spin, she wasn't sure if she'd ever knit again. At first I thought she might be a little daft, but now I know exactly what she means. I have a couple of projects on the needles that really do need to meet some immediate deadlines, and all I want to do is spin.

Next week we learn about spinning on a wheel, which I'm both excited and sad about. If spinning on a wheel is like this awesome experience, then I'll be both elated and totally put out, cuz there is no way I can afford a wheel at this point, and I'll totally want one. I've already told the constable that I now MUST HAVE an umbrella swift, ball winder, niddy-noddy (or is it knitty-naughty?) and whatever else I can get my grubby little hands on. He wasn't as enthusiastic as I was about it all.

Anyhow, I've got a free day, which really means that I have a pile of housework that I am going to ignore in favour of spinning and knitting and just generally indulging in things that cause me neck pain. I don't think I'll go so far as to never knit again in favour of spinning, but I'm pretty sure I'll never do another load of laundry.

If you don't see or hear from me in a while, send moths. That oughtta get me moving pretty quickly.

Ah yes Grasshoppaaaah, Be One With the Puppy...

I was Googling something about dog training and behaviour last night and I came across this...well, I don't rightly know what it is. A journal entry? It hardly counts as an article. Anyhow, upon reading this, I laughed so hard I was crying. Its as though whomever wrote it, put it through an automatic translating or thesaurus machine of some kind. In any event, you simply MUST read it. Enjoy.

Be One With the Puppy

Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to locomote over to the life room and cognize that I should knit a clip.

Death by Hardcover...

It's Hank-day. Here's both my boys after an apparently gruelling beach outing. Both had been cooped up all day in their respective cages. A little run to let off some steam seemed to have wiped them both out completely.

Knitting news: I finished the contables felted clogs finally. They came out close enough to the right size after another wash. One clog is still a little bigger than the other though. I'll have to get a pic with them on his feet. I think he likes them. This may spark a intense like for hand knits, which could be both a good and bad thing. I pointed out to him the Cobblestone Pullover that everyone is raving about at the moment (including the Harlot herself) and I got a 'yeah, I could see myself wearing something like that'. I'm terribly excited at the prospect of being able to knit for him, as we all know that knitting is love, one little loop at a time, and who better to knit for than one's most beloved? But of course, as we all also know, you tend to put not only your own knits on the back burner when it comes to gift knitting, but the spouses knits as well. This has yet to present itself as a problem, but if he starts liking and then asking for hand knits, I'm in trouble. No need to worry about that just yet. We'll see if I ever get around to making the pullover first. BTW, if you're on Ravelry, type the Cobblestone Pullover in the pattern search and check out all the different shapes and sizes that have been churned out. This sweater really does look good on everyone. And it looks like such an easy knit too.

In other knitty but not photo-y news, my big, bountiful book order came yesterday and I wasn't here to receive it! I got home around 4 pm and there was a little tag waiting for me. Torture! I had to wait till this morning to trek down to the post office to get me my knitty books. I still haven't made it there, as as soon as I get them in my hot little hands, you can forget about seeing me for the rest of the day. I will update with a photo to show you me buried under a pile of knitting literature.

Anyhow, guess that's it for now. I have a busy day of errands, best get to it. Just a quickie update for the Hank fans, if there be any.

Until later...

I am Connor McLeod...

Back in the fall of 2006, before I moved away from Ontario, I taught my best friend Carrie how to knit. We started with a baby bootie, which was a success. She went on to knit a few pair. From there, we jumped right into sock knitting. At her request. She had a firm grip on the basics, so knitting in the round wasn't such a great leap.

She had purchased some lovely Moda Dea Sassy Stripes yarn and generously gave me enough to do a pair as well. So together we worked on our socks. I tried to keep pace with where she was at so that I could show her step by step what was going to come next.

If memory serves, she finished one sock. We had a little incident with toe grafting, but we won't go there. In the interim, we had moved onto other projects, and we left it at that, for Carrie to finish her first pair of socks on her own. She had reference materials and tutorials from me...I was confident that she'd do just fine. Since the socks were such a quick knit, I went ahead and finished mine up right away.

Skip ahead, skip ahead, skip ahead, I've moved to Nova Scotia yadda yadda yadda and it's now Dec. 27/07 and Carrie completes the first pair of socks she ever knit herself. It was a proud day for both her and I.



As of dinner time last night, I had worn through the heel on the right foot.

There can be only one...pair.

(all cleverness of this line is attributed to Carrie, who was the one to speak it wherein I promptly informed her that I was stealing it for my blog...it was my sock that died, after all).

I'm quite put out by this, as these socks were very comfy and washed really well. This is the first pair of hand knits that I've worn through.

Ah well, nothing to lose your head over I guess.

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I'm Strangely Honoured...

First a Harlot comment and now this. If you got a kick out yesterdays post about the Knit Walking, you're going to want to check out that link...for sure.

The internet really is the weirdest and most wonderful place on earth.

Thanks to Dr. Steve for stopping by and taking an interest in my wacky behaviour!

Knit-Walking...

Do you sleepwalk? I do...but only on the very odd and rare occassion. It's so rare in fact that I can remember all of the handful of times that I've done it. More on those later. For now, here's an amusing anecdote that you can share with your knitty friends.

I guess yesterdays yarny excitement may have been a little more than my subconcious could handle! I came home with my loot and as I had obsessed about it before we went and then obsessed about it while we were in the store, I thought the best course of action was to sit on my couch and obsess about it some more.

I pulled out my Interweave Knits Fall 2007 issue and began to pour over the Tilted Duster that I've been dreaming about since I bought the magazine. The black Debbie Bliss is what I had in mind for the Duster. I checked and re-checked my yardage and did the conversion from meters to yards (yes, I know there isn't too much of a difference, but I was hoping the numbers would magically turn in my favour) and I don't think I'm going to have enough. Of either colour. To make two individual sweaters (the red was destined to be a Central Park Hoodie).

I knit up a gauge swatch last night on 4.5mm needles, even though the pattern calls for 6mm. And I got pretty darn close to 4 inches. I knew I was a loose knitter, but this was still suprising. Anyhow, I figure I'll knit the sweater on 4.5 cuz I like the tension that the yarn knits too. I think it looks...'right'. Plus, I've had problems in the past with knitting things for myself that turn out too big anyway.

So I cast on for the back of the Duster. I got about an inch knit and then I was just terribly sleepy. It was midnight after all. We'd watched Wild Hogs (which was as mediocre as I had expected), wherein I finished up some knitting I'd started earlier in the day, so I went to bed. I took my IK Fall and Winter 2007 issues with me to see if there might be another sweater option that I'd like as much as the Duster, but didn't require as much yardage.

As is always the case anymore when I try to read in bed, I lasted about two turns of the page before I was practially unconcious. I shut out the light, got cozy, and then remembered an idea for a sweater that I had a while ago, an idea for my own design, so I locked that little image in my mind and decided to let it marinate for a while, and promptly fell asleep.

I don't know how much after that the sleep walking happened, but the next thing I know, I'm sticking my head out the bedroom door and talking to my husband, who's snuggled on the couch, still watching some tv (our apartment is very small...right off the livingroom is the bedroom). The dog is also sleeping just outside my bedroom door. I look at the constable and start asking him, while pointing at the dog, when he's going to start doing the increases for the dogs sweater. The conversation is all a little foggy, I don't remember exactly what I said, but I do know it was knitting related.

Rightly so, the constable looked at me like I was loony tunes. He asked me to repeat myself. Now I'm getting mad, because my unconcious self is sure I've made it perfectly clear what I would like done while my concious mind which is just a faint little whisper is like "YOU'RE SLEEP WALKING DUMMY! SHUT UP AND GO BACK TO BED!"

Anyhow, I proceed to try and explain myself and the increasing and decreasing of stitches and am getting frustrated that my husband can't follow simple instructions until I finally say, 'Fine! I obviously don't know what I'm talking about! I'm going back to bed!'

And that was that. I only remembered this when I woke up briefly at 7:10 this morning (there was no way I was getting up before at least 8:30 on Sunday. As a childless woman, I have this luxury...as long as the dog doesn't need to go out).

So you know knitting has really morphed into much more than a hobby when you dream and sleep walk about it, then think to yourself, 'hey, this is going to make great blog fodder!' And after I went back to sleep, I had a dream that I was helping the Yarn Harlot remodel her kitchen. Apparently my psyche doesn't have enough to process with one mammoth remodel project, it has to invent another (and from the few snippits of the Harlot's kitchen that I have seen, she certainly doesn't need my help). From there I somehow got roped into a marketing focus group that wanted to know my opinions on a very cheaply made, brittle plastic baby car seat. My opinion was not favourable.

There you have it. A brief glimpse into the inner workings of my mind. The other sleepwalking incidents? One happened when I was about 12 I guess. I thought my house was a huge volleyball court and it was my turn to serve. The serving area was our sunroom. I wandered into the living room and explained this all to my mother. Another time, I asked in a rather accusatory tone whether or not an ex-boyfriend of mine was going to do anything about the six foot worms that were under my bed. And I think there was one other incident with my hubby, but I can't remember that one at the moment. Must ask when he gets up. I'll have to apologise for my rude behaviour anyway!

Hope at least you had a restful night!

Rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrroad trip!

Today was the big Knit Niters road trip to Mahone Bay to, what I call, the South Shore knitters Mecca, Have a Yarn . Nova Knitter, Lexa, Heddy, and myself all jetted off this morning for a day of knitting immersion.



First we stopped at the Inlet Cafe for a scrumptious lunch. Here's Nova Knitter and Lexa...



...and here's Heddy and a very tired and greasy looking version of me. Do I really look this bad when I go out in public? Ya know what? I am soooo getting contacts. That's it...I've had it with the glasses. I HATE them. I can't stand it anymore! But I digress...

We stopped at a gift shop, Teazer, before hitting Have a Yarn and I totally cleaned up in some Christmas related stuff, some of which will be gifts next year, so I'll keep it on the QT for now. But trust me, it's pretty cool.



Then of course, the yarn shop. Here's some of the wall of sock yarn.



Here's Heddy shortly before a major yarn score!



Heddy and Nova Knitter study socks and sock yarn.

I got a few other photos of our in-car knitting, but they didn't turn out terribly well (half closed eyes etc., not terribly flattering) so I don't think I'll post those. Anyhow, it was a great afternoon. It's so nice to yarn shop with knitters cuz not only will they be honest about your yarn choices, but they'll also let you wander aimlessly and pet everything without trying to rush you or think you're weird. The overall consensus is that we'll definitely do this again sometime.

I guess I am a little tired, cuz I feel a nap coming on. Oh, what did I buy you ask?



A sick amount of Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Aran. Enough for two sweaters...for ME! Mwhahahahahahahahhahaha! Back away from the Bliss...it's mine. I'll sick Hank on you. He might lick you vigorously or ask you to get him a toy...he's vicious.

'Kay, I've been home for over an hour now and have yet to knit. This must be remedied.

Until later...

Hank n' Ball...

Hank. It's Friday after all.



Ball. Courtesy of The Ninja Knitter! I won a little item in her advent giveaway, and it is soft and squishy and so very very pretty. Big thanks to her. The photo is kind of crappy as I didn't use the flash. I wanted to get as close to the true colour as possible. This lovely little ball of handspun (and dyed I believe) will be my little pet for a while until I figure out something special to knit up.

Tis all. Off to yarn shop tomorrow with the Knit Niters! So excited.

Be Vewy Qwuiet...

Shhhh, the hat is blocking.

Goals for 2008; 1 Down...

Today I was going to post about all the stuff I plan to make/do in 2008, but I opted to have a nap instead. So there's one down.

*yawn*

Maybe tomorrow.