Merry Christmas, everyone

A sweet little something from 1966

Stupid Folgers commercial, making me cry

Folgers has a commercial for the Christmas season reminiscent of the one they did years ago, in which the college kid comes home in the early morning hours and surprises the family, waking them up by making coffee. This time, it's a young man who comes home to surprise his family and notes, "It's a long way from West Africa." Yes it is. I miss my (grown-up) baby!

Here's the original:

I couldn't find the current one, but you may see it early in the morning, when the morning news shows are on.

SNOW DAY!

It's been 19 years since we've had this kind of a snowfall...16+ inches in a few short hours. The university cancelled classes (they never actually close), which is remarkable enough, but even more amazing is they made the decision THE NIGHT BEFORE! Go Chancellor Martin!!

Here's a picture from the December 1990 snowfall. Cute kids and their dad, playing at Olbrich while mom stayed home and baked. Or decorated. Something Christmas-related.

Enjoy the snow day!

Treasures

I have material to make curtains for the kitchen. I have a sewing machine. The two have not yet been introduced. Today, in preparation for the big sewing day, I sat down at the machine, turned it on, and sewed a seam on some scrap fabric. This is big news because this is a machine that hasn't been used in a solid ten years, and maybe even longer, and yet it worked like a dream. It's my mom's old machine that my dad bought for her in 1968. There are a lot of memories associated with it, starting with its purchase. Dad asked me to go along and help him pick it out, because he would like the company. I remember this being a new and interesting idea, that I could be company for someone. I recall that I tried to rise to the occasion and have a grown-up conversation, though I don't remember what about. I was ten years old, and this was a big deal for me.

I learned to sew on this machine when I was in junior high, and all through high school with the help of Eula Jean Meier, my home ec teacher. And now, forty years later, the aqua Singer is in my possession, and it works beautifully. That is so sweet to me. Today when I sat down to use it, I opened the big drawer on the cabinet and realized it needed a clean-out. And when I did, I found these treasures. There were plenty of other things that I didn't photograph, such as the stockpile of shoelaces (need any? there were at least 35 pair). Shown in the picture are the button tin (formerly a candy tin), manual for the machine, plaid (!) shoelaces, something called mending wool, and cool leather laces. Oh, and the exposition item, which, when opened, looks like the second picture - full of needles!

And pretty soon there will be pictures of curtains...

Fall Festivities

We got back a little while ago from the trip to Lena for the Fall Festival parade and various other activities. I think I enjoy it more every year. Not because it's innovative or trendy, but for the complete opposite reason - it's always the same. Well - nearly always. One thing they haven't had for a number of years is kids riding their decorated bikes. My friends and I did that a few times. We'd weave crepe paper through the spokes, usually with no discernible theme, and dress in costume (in keeping with the theme of our decorations, if there was one.) There were prizes! I don't remember ever winning any.

But anyway - back to 2009. One of the great things about small towns is how nice people are. We were not able to get near to where we'd planned to park, due to roadblocks and hundreds of cars. I was backing up slowly on a very full street, intending to go look for parking elsewhere, when a man came up to my car and said, "You can park in my driveway". And he didn't mean for $10! So we parked right there, and my MIL did too, for free, and we were mere steps from the parade route. So sweet.

Tons of candy was thrown. Some politician even threw dog treats. He won Gunther's vote, although I'm not sure Gunther is registered to vote in the state of Illinois. All the high school bands from anywhere within an hour radius were in the parade, playing songs that ranged from painfully recognizable (when did Come Sail Away by Styx become parade fare??) to tunes that were not...tuneful. Pics of Gunth enjoying his first parade, Betty, Kev, dad and Aunt Jeanette (Behind her is the house I grew up in. So strange to be sitting by what was my home for 20 years and not go inside.)

Off to the pork chop dinner. Yes, we still miss the chicken, though the pork was tasty. Then we admired old cars and tractors. For quite some time. Dad ran into a guy he knew, Nevin Kryder. Very nice man - I knew his sons in school. Ever hear two 80ish farmers talking about tractors? It's a lot like a conversation between two wine aficionados. "We used to have a Farmall like that little one. Small, but gutty. Could pull a two-bottom plow." (note to self: google "two-bottom plow") I almost expected to hear "with notes of melon and oak undertones" at the end of that sentence.

Eventually we had to stop looking at tractors when the owners drove them away, though the tractor portion of the day was not yet over. More on that later. The big sensation this year was the Home Makeover going on just outside of Lena. We drove out that way hoping to see something, though we were warned that the roads were blocked off. And they were. We saw a silo and a crane - that was it. Back to town to cruise main street and the booths, and we happened across Paige Hemmis interviewing people for the show. We couldn't get very near but I took a few pics. She's the one holding the camera and wearing pink gloves.

Off to the cemetery to view my great-great-grandparents' grave. And then back to dad's house, where what do you think occurred? Yes. A parade of tractors, right by his house. Apparently they do a lap around Lena, for fun. We got to see them all, again...and maybe some different ones. Who can tell?

Back to Madison. Uneventful road time, just the way we like it. More pictures on Facebook soon.

Ahem

Notice the info under "Fish Fry Calendar" at right.

Also - kitchen photos to be added soon - once I do the dishes and generally tidy up. :)

Good, Bad, Ugly

We are remodeling! Actually, I'm writing about it while Sarah and Kevin do it. Because, you know, the kitchen's too small for more than two people. And someone has to supervise, and look online for new cabinet hardware. And post pictures.

So the first picture is my newly painted craft room. Lovely shade of blue and I like it very much. I'm trying to keep it in a usable state, but that means many of the things that were stashed there before the remodel are now scattered in other places. I'm slowly sorting through it all, and some of it gets tossed. A few things are allowed back in the room. As you can imagine, this is a slow process.

The second two pics are the work in progress that is the kitchen. The grittiness of the photo is the dust that's in the air because Sarah is sanding the walls. Breathing it in is bad. Also bad is the old hardware from the cabinets. We are finding many viable replacement options as far as looks and cost, but the spacing of the holes is unique. Everything we are finding in stores has a wider hole spacing, which would mean filling and redrilling holes. We are hoping to avoid this added chunk of work, so I'm going to see what I can find online.

The old wallpaper (which is nowhere to be seen, thank goodness) was ugly. The bare walls are actually a slight improvement :) Odd-shaped counter piece is also gone, to be replaced by something white which we hope to find through Ikea.

Stay tuned for the final pics - though I think we're a couple weeks out from that yet.

Happy Birthday to Andrew

Andrew is 27 today!!! He was born at 3:40 ET at the Naval Regional Medical Center at Camp Lejeune. 10# 6 oz...like no one has ever heard me mention that little fact :) When we was a day shy of two weeks old, we moved him across half the country, and he met his grandparents for the first time.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DREW!! Enjoy your day!

Losing My Landmarks

This summer, the long-awaited widening of Monona Drive has begun. The stretch currently under construction begins at Pflaum/Nichols and continues to Broadway (or vice-versa if you're heading north.) I had a hard time envisioning how this road could be widened, probably because I always overlook the fact that these kinds of things are brutal. The cuts were very deep. Trees, parking lots, business signs, landscaping - all gone. The lower half of Monona Drive is hardly recognizable.

All this digging-up meant the loss of some old landmarks. Not the historic kind that would bog down the process with preservation-minded efforts, but the little touchstones that I notice, usually subconsciously, as I run through the course of my days. For instance, Fat Jack's shrubbery tribute to their featured menu item - the pig. Had I realized that it was going to be bulldozed down, I'd have taken a few photos. So for now, until such time as shrubbery-pig-pics appear on the web, I will have to make do with my memories of the twelve-by-twenty, green, sculpted-by-Stihl pig, complete with snout and wired-in red spotlight eyes. Even though the eyes creeped me out a little, I'll miss him.

Another one of my favorites was also coniferous, and strangely, also involved lighting, and just came down a day or so ago. The big blue spruce at the corner of Acacia and Monona Drive has been on my horizon for as long as we have lived in this house. When I'd spot it from a few blocks away, I knew to move into the right-hand lane to make my turn. During the holidays, the tree was beautifully lit with gracefully-draped strands of the big, old-fashioned kind of Christmas lights. This lovely tree was removed so completely that I had a hard time even finding the spot where the trunk grew up from the ground.

The woods that border the drive used to seem deep and mysterious to me. Then, after having lived here for over ten years, I finally hiked through them. Turns out they are not all that deep, but beautiful nonetheless. At one time there was a fence along the Monona Drive side of the woods. That had been removed quite a number of years ago, but three brick pillars, part of that fence and gate structure, still stand. Or at least they did. If they aren't completely down yet, they are well on the way to it, having gotten knocked about and missing many bricks. The brick fence posts always reminded me that this area had been inhabited long before the Taco Bell and Dairy Queen came to Monona Drive, and I was glad to have that reminder.

Reading what I've written makes me realize that I've turned that certain corner (actually, probably some time ago) and now I act as historian for my children, telling them what used to be. I can drive around Madison or Lena and spend a good part of the time telling stories about and pointing out things that aren't there anymore. Keeping my landmarks alive, I guess.

Whoooosshh

That's the sound of time whipping past, which apparently it has done over the last month or so. Life has been incredibly busy, which is a little startling to me. By this point (and by "point" I mean "age") I thought I'd be spending days knitting, reading, taking gentle walks, gardening...and the reality is that I haven't done anything that passes for gardening in about 2 weeks, I only knit when I'm on the bus, reading is reserved for sleepless nights, and gentle walks have been replaced by rushing to the bus stop.

Here's the thing: I recognize that I don't have all the time in the world, and I want to savor the days, not blaze through them. But there's also LIFE, and so often that trumps savoring. So while LIFE is happening all around me (and not just me - many of us are in the same boat. Or to be more accurate, on the same high-speed train.) and I'm longing for a sedate middle-age, I can see the wisdom and grace in being able to roll with events as they come at me. That's never been my style, however, so although it's high time I developed that ability, it's difficult at times.

And so on a lighter note, and because it made me smile, here's an exchange between my bus-friend Tony & I this morning (Tony has some developmental disabilities, and we hadn't seen each other in a while, so we had some catching up to do):
Me: So, where are you working now?
Tony: At the Doyle Building and at the organic farm.
Me: Oh, which one? What's it called?
Tony (puzzled): The Organic Farm

I just left it at that. :)

A Short Update

Research indicates that six out of seven dwarfs aren't happy.

From the Garden

I've heard a lot of sad and/or difficult news in the past few days. In addition, it's the anniversary of the passing of two people who were young and had so much life in them, and who are greatly missed by their families. So more for myself than anyone else, here's a reminder of some of the beauty that exists even in the midst of sad and trying days.

This is what's blooming in my yard these days (not including the annuals which don't lend themselves to cutting/arranging in bouquets.) I did this rather hurriedly this morning before work, so the light isn't the best. But even so, there's color and loveliness galore, which is soothing and healing. Ah.

Hamburgers, Brit-style

I was reading through an old British cookbook, Good Cookery!, when I discovered their interpretation of the classic American meal. Many people will be grilling burgers this weekend, so these directions may be helpful. Click on the photo to read the captions in the cookbook pictures.

Get your palette knives ready. Enjoy!


Hamburgers
Few recipes are more typical of present-day America than hamburgers, which take their name from the German city of Hamburg. Yet by no means all English-speaking people know what a real hamburger should look and taste like. For a start, anything that contains ham is not a hamburger nor are mixtures made from pre-cooked mince or general purpose mince.

Serving Hamburgers
Serve the hamburgers in warm sesame seed buns. If you cannot find this particular type of bun, any variety of soft roll will do. Crusty rolls are not suitable. The rolls can be split and warmed in the oven if you are cooking for a large number, or lightly toasted under the grill.

Hamburgers are particularly succulent and tasty when served with a topping or with a selection of relishes. The topping is sandwiched between the hamburger and one half of the bun, while relishes can be served separately and people can help themselves.

Golden Highlights

Yesterday our friend Tom dropped off Josie for a two week visit. Tom is taking a nice long vacation to Idaho and Portland, Oregon, and so he needed someone to watch his baby while he was away. Josie and Gunther have met before and played together so I thought this would go pretty well. For the most part it has (so far - we're not even one day into this) but Gunther is definitely trying to show his dominance and prior claim on us. To confuse matters, Josie feels right at home here because she's been coming here for a year or more. But Gunther doesn't understand when I try to explain that.

So what happens is one dog comes over to be petted, and the other one pushes in. One dog goes to look out the window, and the other does the same. Open the door, and there's a little race to see who can go out first. Honestly, it is just like sibling rivalry (sorry kids) and I hope they can work it out. If they don't, we will need to get a bigger bed.

I'm what?

I took the "What Country are you?" quiz, and the survey says:
You're Sweden!
After years of trying to rule the world around you, you've finally put aside violence in favor of advocating peaceful resolution. There's still a little Viking in you, but mostly you like Nobel Prize winners and long nights by the fire. And safe cars. You always read the safety manual in airplanes, and you're just a little cold.

Pictures of Food

We attended the final (for this year) Friday Fish Fry in Ashton this past week. We left Madison earlier than we ever have in order to get there before the big crowds. At 4:30, as we were nearing the church, we speculated that we'd be waiting for the doors to open, since the sign gave the serving times as "5:00-8:00". Imagine our surprise at seeing a nearly-full parking lot. True, we didn't have to wait in line to get our tickets, and had a very short wait to be served - about 10-15 minutes. When we left, about 45 minutes later, the line was out to the parking lot again.

But it was yummy and I ate more than I should have. I also whipped out my camera and took a picture which was a little puzzling to the other diners at our table (the tables seat 10, and you get seated with other people in line who you probably don't know). Dessert that night was cupcakes, and I was hoping mightily for one that had green-tinted coconut - a favorite from when I was a kid. But no - the tray that was brought to our table didn't have any of those, so I settled (haha) for one that turned out to be cherry with malted milk eggs on top.

And look what my mother in law had made for dessert yesterday! I got to have my cake and eat it too, which doesn't often happen in life.

Cute Girl and Cute Sweater

Here they are! Erin models the sweater that was literally years in the making. To be fair, it was my first sweater but even so I probably could have moved the process along at a little faster pace. Anyway - it looks good on her, and she looks cute in it. In spite of all the measuring, however, the sleeves are too long. It's not a huge problem - she can cuff it for now, and when warm weather comes I will get it back from her and unknit a few rows on each sleeve to make them a better length for her.

And I'm ready to start another sweater!

If a picture says a thousand words,

then here are 2,000. This isn't washed and blocked yet, and I have a few stray yarn ends to weave in....but the sweater is DONE!!! My first sweater. WoooooooHooooooo! Gunther gives it his blessing.

Fish Fry Reviews

The reviews are in! Having finally visited our 2 favorite church fish frys and another one that was new to us this year, I can give you the definitive word on which one offers what and how good it is.

First up - So far this year we've been to Monona's IHM fish fry at least twice. They continue to serve consistently good fish with little to no wait time, and the ambiance is pretty decent for a church school cafeteria (little lights, decorations made by school kids, round tables). IHM offers three kinds of fish (all you can eat - baked, breaded and beer battered), tossed salad, cole slaw, applesauce, baked potatoes, french fries, rolls, water coffee, and 2-3 kinds of ice cream. Beer and wine are available at an additional charge. In our little group, opinions are divided about which fish choice is the best. Most of us prefer the beer battered but a vocal minority likes the breaded. The fish is cooked in the small school kitchen then transferred to steam containers to keep it warm, which degrades the breading/batter a bit. The CS was the creamy type, which about half of us prefer to the vinegar-type. The food is served buffet style, with volunteer waiters helpfully bringing refills of anything you need. Bottom line - good, reliable food, nice atmosphere, short wait if any. $10 per adult

Next, we checked out Madison's St. James Catholic Church's fish fry. This one was new to us and apparently has a shorter season - Feb 27 - April 3 (this year anyway - my guess is that it varies depending on when Easter falls in a given year.) They offer two kinds of fish - baked and fried (I think it was beer battered but don't recall - anyone?), roasted red skinned potatoes, highly seasoned potato wedges, coleslaw, applesauce, rye bread, coffee and water. Beer and wine were available at an additional charge, as was dessert. The guys found this to be the best option for beer - they got New Glarus' Spotted Cow for $2 (same price as the Miller offerings at other ffs.) The baked fish was quite good, as were the roasted potatoes. The wedges had a good, if spicy, flavor but were quite mealy. The fried fish was not remarkable. Volunteer waitstaff take your order and bring the food to you, which is a nice touch. Atmosphere is standard church basement, but fairly spacious. We were seated right away. Bottom line - good effort, but overall not our favorite. $9 per adult, tipping encouraged.

Last, and best - St. Peter's in Ashton. This is the first local church fish fry that I ever attended, probably at least ten years ago, and therefore is the sentimental favorite. But apart from that it's just really good. The least appealing feature is the long wait. Last night we were seated in record time, ie, about 40 minutes. When we left the lines looped up and back in the school hallway and out the door into the parking lot. That is a lot of waiting! We chatted with our hostess while we waited, and she was telling us that people come from out of town and plan their weekends around the St. Pete's fish fry. I believe it.
But onto the details...one kind of fish (fried), a vegetable (last night - corn), french fries, baked potatoes, bread, vinegar-type coleslaw, coffee and milk. Beer, pop and water available at additional cost. Dessert is included and homemade - last night, that cake that you bake, poke holes into, and then pour jello over - is it called poke cake? Anyway - yum! Great frosting! But I'm going in the wrong order...back to the fish, which is just fantastic! Crispy, hot, flaky - delish! Right from the fryer to the table - served family style. The fries were crispy and good, the baked potatoes steamy. The bottom line - Outstanding - restaurant quality fish, good to great side dishes, homemade desserts - other than the wait, no drawbacks. $11 per adult, plus the scenic drive to Ashton.

Happy eating!

And the answer is...

Buffleheads! This is not a bird I'm familiar with but judging from this link, that's exactly what they are - the smallest diving bird in North America. Case closed.

And on a completely different note, I've started a new blog (because I have so much free time!) where all the cards and other paper art will reside. The link for that is somewhere off to the right...above the moon phases, I think, but below the fish fry info. I'm doing this mainly for people who don't necessarily care about the cards, and in addition, I can now include that link when I post on the various stamping related lists I'm on. But if you want to see them, you still can!

Bigger Bird Picture

Does this help? I realized that you can't make the video any bigger, but you can click on the picture and enlarge it. I'm thinking maybe ring-necked duck or a merganser, but I'm not sure.

Name Those Birds!

Tonight I took a drive down to Lake Kegonsa to see if the ice was breaking up and washing over the dam. Two springs ago, Kevin and I serendipitously went by there just when the ice was breaking up, and it was one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen. It was a warm day, but standing on the dam watching, we got chilly from the wind blowing off the ice. The ice was shattering into billions of shards and crystals, and making such a lovely musical sound as it flowed over the dam. Even though we were diligent about making road trips down there last year and this, we haven't gotten there at the right time. The ice is entirely gone. But I did see these interesting birds and took a short video. They were so amusing to watch! I'm not sure yet what they are so I'll do a little sleuthing, but if anyone has suggestions, I'd love to hear them.

Crazy Late Night

Much to my surprise, I stayed up way too late last night watching basketball. I had been watching the Badgers play the Seminoles, and when they were down by 12 at halftime I was nodding off and almost gave it up entirely. But they started to rally and it turned into a game that was a little too thrilling. They went into overtime and won, 61-59! I'm used to the Packers going into overtime and losing so this was a doubly pleasant surprise.

Whenever there was a timeout or break in the game, the network flipped over to the Ohio State-Siena game, which was in double overtime. I had Ohio State winning that one, so my brackets suffered a little, but overall I'm doing much better than I usually do, based on nothing but lucky guessing. I have Louisville to win, and so far they are still in it. That's better than I usually do.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Gunther is all decked out for the occasion, thanks to my sister-in-law (his aunt?) Becky. Thanks Becky!

And on a completely different topic - here is a paper cone that I made for an upcoming party. It will hold some little goodies, candy perhaps. I'm going to make a few more, and some other surprises as well.

Baby Guts

Having a dog in the house is a lot like having a toddler around. You have someone extra in bed every so often (or...every night), you spend a lot of time making sure he gets plenty of exercise, and there is a lot more picking up to do. When they get ear infections, there's the medicine-twice-a-day routine. When you go to the store, you bring home a new toy because you know he'll like it. Oh, and you have a lot of cute stories that are probably not nearly as funny or interesting to other people as they are to you.

I was at WalMart a few days ago, and picked up a new "baby" for Gunther. He doesn't seem vicious in any way, but he is quite determined to get the squeaker out of his toys. And this is what is looks like when he does...

Did I mention that there's a lot more picking up to do?

Okay, okay, I did it

Twice a month I knit at Caribou in Monona with Carmela and Liz. I like it because they are both easy to talk with, I enjoy seeing everyone's knitting progress, and logistically, it's nearly effortless. They both live in Monona and I live a stone's throw away, so meeting up works very well.

So maybe because this is all so comfortable, or perhaps for some other unidentifiable reason, I was feeling so relaxed when we met late in January, that I experienced an unusual (for me) moment of bravery. I admitted that I wanted to pursue writing. And then (and here I blame Carmela) I took it a step further. We were discussing Helium (not the gas), a web site where people can write articles, ostensibly for pay, but mostly for practice. Carmela writes for them and encouraged me to, also. I'd already signed up but hadn't written anything. I think it was the soothing influence of yarn and green tea, but at any rate, I vowed to Liz and Carmela that I would write one article by the end of Feb. That didn't seem hard or scary at the time.

And really, writing wasn't hard or scary. The thought of failing at it is. But I did it and it's posted, and by whatever weird rating system Helium uses, it's ranked 5 of 34. I'd like to think it's the 5th best, but good writing doesn't seem to be the only factor in the ranking.

If you want to read it, go to Helium.com and in the search box type my name. There's only one article by me so it shouldn't be hard to find. Oh, and you generally have to write about the suggested topics, so keep that in mind.

There. I feel naked. But you can't die from naked, so it's ok.

Seeing Spots

I am having problems with Picasa, so this picture isn't cropped down as much as I would have liked. I got a new stamp set this week and am having fun with it. This is a change from my usual understated style, but I like it and it was a hoot to make. Bright colors! Polka dots, and lots of them! I may do more of this.

Dogs N Cards

I'm writing this with a Golden Retriever nose pressed up against my leg. I'm not sure what the message is in dog language, but if it's "I would like to go to the dog park, please" then he is in luck. As cold as it is, I'm going to layer up and take him over to Sycamore for some quality full-speed running. For him, that is. I am not interested in running today :)

So here is a picture of Gunther bonding with Jen. They met last Saturday and I think they hit it off really well. (Drew and Gunther hit it off too, but he's only partly in this picture. Right after I took it, my camera battery died.)

On Tuesday Judy and I took a little road trip back up to Baraboo to the Memory Bank to explore their classroom. Since we're both members we have use of it for the whole year. The main attraction for me was the use of some shape cutting tools called Nestabilities. With parts I cut that day, and card fronts that I embossed, I whipped out these two cards the other day. Nothing complicated but fun to do. Except the sympathy card - it's never "fun" to make or buy a sympathy card.

Stay warm!

Update

Turns out he answers to Gunther as well as Gunner! So officially, and by me, he will be known as Gunther. Kev will probably still continue to call him Gunner which will henceforth be an acceptable nickname. All the men seem to think that is a rockin' dog name...must be a Y chromosome thing.

Welcome Gunther! More pictures soon.

Our Newest Family Member

Here he is! He came to us named Gunner...I really wanted to change it but I don't think it's going to happen. He answers to Gunner, so there you are. Here's a picture of him trying to figure out his new home. He found our bed :) and also a stuffed monkey which is his "baby". So we think he will be just fine.

I (art) Medicine Lake

I'm still too tired to write much about our whirlwind trip to MN to visit Erin and check out her shanty, so I'll post some pictures and make some lists.

Things I did on a frozen lake for the first time
1. Decorated and mailed a postcard
2. Petted some dogs
3. Watched a play
4. Ate a hot dog, drank cocoa
5. Watched bicycle races
6. Used a porta-potty
7. Talked with several of Erin's friends
8. Watched an art car parade
9. Read people's confessions
10. Stood on top of a (faux) surfacing submarine
11. Warmed up in a building made of old wine refrigerators
12. Watched a slide show of aerial photography through goggles
13. Had my picture taken in a shanty

Places we ate
1. The Grand Cafe - best meal I've had in years
2. Butter Bakery Cafe - mmmm

Other notes
1. Best bathroom doors in a hotel
2. Easiest trip around the Twin Cities - thank you Garmin!
3. Best welcome home - thank you Jen and Drew!
4. Worst pictures of eagles I've ever taken - they look like gnats - and the video is even worse

Picture of the Week

You may have to enlarge the picture to read the sign on the door.

Card Art

I took a break from knitting so that I could spend time making cards. I was pretty pleased with these, and was wishing I'd made some for myself. Hey - I could do that sometime, couldn't I? These were a set that I gave to Jen, as one of her birthday presents. I can post the picture now, since I gave them to her earlier this evening when we had dinner. I just realized that the brown one is not oriented correctly in the picture - it should be turned a quarter turn to the left, so that the ribbon is on the left side. Ah well. Just turn your head to the right to get the proper effect. You can see details by clicking on the picture, and getting a larger version.

Now it's back to knitting. I'm psyched about finishing the sweater now that the end is in sight. My first sweater!

Because It's Winter

And because this is probably my favorite commercial of all time. Enjoy!

Progress Report

Learning new things is work. Finding my way through some new task, understanding and then becoming competent at it, takes effort, even if it's mostly mental, not the sweaty, dirt-under-the-fingernails type of effort. That's not a bad thing. The truth is it's satisfying to arrive at the point of mastery, or even competency. You'd think I might have realized that sooner in my life, but some of these light bulbs take a while to come on.

Working on this sweater has shown me how much I procrastinate when it comes to learning something new. And that, I realize, has to do with fear of failure, or, to be more accurate, fear of messing it up irretrievably. There's nothing like a deadline to move me past that fear and into action, so I gave myself a deadline in order to get on with this (way overdue anyway) project. Deadline is fast approaching, and I probably won't have the sweater completely done and in Erin's hands by tomorrow. Haha! But it's in the home stretch! There were three new, potential-obstacle points for me in this project - joining a second skein and knitting off both separately in the shoulder/neck area, the three-needle bind-off for the shoulders, and picking up stitches to create the neckband (and later, the sleeves). I am past all three of these, and they've all worked out quite nicely. Hurray and hallelujah! Instead of the real name of this sweater pattern (Skully) I'm calling it Just Do It. Here are some pictures of it when in was essentially in the vest stage - joined at the shoulders, and with neckband in place, but no sleeves, and a closeup of the neckband.

Works in Progress

I thought I'd share a picture of what I've been working on lately. I've been occupying myself with lots of knitting, since it's often been too cold to venture out for very long. At least to me, it is :) We did take a lovely walk on New Year's Day through the nature preserve and ended up at Caribou for some yummy lattes. I'll walk through a great deal of snow if there's the hope of a warm beverage afterwards. This first picture is from that little hike.

After that walk, Kevin decided that my boots were too girly and lame for real outdoor adventures. So today we did some boot shopping for me and I ended up with a rugged and cozy pair that no one would describe as girly. I've been breaking them in by wearing them around the house, and they are quite comfy and toasty! Although I should note that our house is much warmer than the outdoors, so maybe that's not a fair statement.

Anyway - back to my projects. In my usual enthusiasm for starting, but not finishing, I've managed to accumulate 4 good-sized projects in various stages of completion. The oldest is the pale green baby blanket (Big, Bad Baby Blanket from the Stitch & Bitch book). This will be for my first grandchild, whom I presume won't arrive for a year or two at least (unless there's something you kids need to tell me?) The blanket is over halfway done but there's still plenty to do. Almost as old is the lovely brown shawl. I would understand if you don't recognize it as a shawl - it's not very big yet. I'm a little frustrated by the way the edges curl up, and need to take that to my LKS for advice - I may end up ripping it out. Then we have Erin's sweater (also from Stitch & Bitch) which is coming along quite well - my goal is to have it ready by shanty season which is fast approaching...or at least, while shanty season is still going on. I'm ready to work on the neckband if only I can figure it out. The 3 needle bind-off went pretty easily, and it looks so good. And lastly, the purple shawl is a prayer shawl that I started when I worked at SMH, and we all know that I left there over a year ago. That's also coming along well. I should be finishing that up by Feb.

I have a sizable stash of very lovely yarn and I'm itching to get busy with it, but I'm making myself wait until I have finished at least 2 of these projects. And so what have I learned? Make smaller projects!