Melllllllllllllt-ing!!

Monday - snow and ice

Like the song says, "What a Difference a Day Makes"... The picture on the left was from Monday afternoon's drive home. The picture on the right was my drive with Tippi YESTERDAY to her therapy gig. Yep. Twenty-four hours (just about) -- and look at the roads.

Today, Wednesday, we're melting. Melllllllllltinnnnnnnnng.... Just like the Wicked Witch of the West -- the roads are nearly cleared off and the piles of snow look beautiful in the sunshine. And Mother Nature is going to pull a stinky on us.

Tuesday - clear roads

Because THURSDAY, we have not only flood warnings, but potential for rain. Or snow. Depending. Maybe one, maybe the other. Maybe both. 

And high winds. 

As the Dowager Countess said on the recent Downton Abbey segment, "Oh goodie."

Today, you have to have sunglasses to look out my east window. It's a lovely 37* outside and Hubby brags on Facebook that after walking the dogs, on the way home, he was in a t-shirt with the windows and sunroof open. OK, granted - he grew up in Montana. They have snow in June, and so far, Illinois isn't there yet. 

Neighbor's snow pile

That being said, just for the sake of juxtaposition, this photo is what the left-hand side of my alley looks like. That was also taken Tuesday, before I hit the road. My neighbor is being a bit of a jerk, actually. 

The road is just beyond the right border of that picture. Like a foot farther right. So I have to pull my truck into the street to see if someone's coming from the left.

I know - it's melting. But jeeze - can't neighbors be nice? As it is, Hubby shovels the alley so that I can get out -- well, so that WE can get out. But the guy on the other side, with the snowblower? He does his driveway, blows the snow across the alley and figures his work is done.

This guy just piles it up here, never mind that it also blocks HIS view as he backs out... 

What makes me mad is that when this all melts, the alley will be a huge pile of slop and he will have contributed to it in another way: he put a drain pipe down the alley way. And he doesn't even use the alley; that drainpipe makes a major hole in the alley and he's just "I don't care" about the whole thing. I mean, yeah, it happens every year. But the higher the piles, the deeper the puddles. Oh well - the farmers should really be happy because the last few years have been in a drought. This should help fix the water table situation. 

I do believe we are getting a snow blower at the end of the season. It's time. 

On the other hand, I'm bummed. While we're supposed to get more snow later this week, I think I may have missed my snow shoe opportunity this winter. Which virtually guarantees that the next 3 years will be mild. 


Snow-brain...

I think we have an overwhelming case of "snow brain." Seriously. See, it's this way. I usually try to attend the local chamber luncheons and there was one I really, REALLY wanted to attend. So I marked it on my calendar. 

Then I got a bill. 

Ok. What?

Well. Apparently, I marked it on the correct DATE. Wrong MONTH. So of course I was not only billed, but I missed the one luncheon I wanted to attend! 

Snow-brain. 

Happy Period...

So, most females may remember the Always brand of feminine protection and their ad campaign of a few years ago, called "Have a happy period." 

Really. Obviously written by a man. 

Seriously??

In January, when I thought I was done with all this stuff, Mother Nature had other plans. So I had to make a run to the pharmacy to get some more supplies. And I see the copy on the side of the "overnight" size. Now, mind you, if you had these during the BP spill in the Gulf, the oil would've been sucked up in minutes. Hair? Pahhhhhh - this "miracle product" is much, much more absorbent. And honestly, it's very comfortable to wear, considering that I'm of the age to remember Kotex and belts. Google it, kids.

So on the side of the package, I see: "This amazingly soft & absorbent pad is the perfect accessory for a luxe pair of PJs or a flirty nightie."

Yes, that's what that said. "Luxe" PJs. "Flirty nightie." During your period when you apparently need super-absolutely-crazy absorbency. 

I hate to tell you, Always -- But when I need THAT level of absorbency, I'm not in the least interested in a "luxe" pair of PJs or a "flirty" nightie. I want sloppy jammies that mirror the way I feel, since lately, the period, cramps, and icky stuff are also accompanied by hot flashes. 

Yes, hot flashes. And they've been more and more frequent. I'm so stinkin' tired it's not funny. And my Shatavari supplement is failing me. Every 10 minutes or so, I'm doing the "blanket Hokey-Pokey" and it goes something like this:

                                                 ---feet outside the covers. 

                                                 ---roll over, feet INSIDE the covers.

                                                 ---roll over, feet OUTSIDE the covers.

                                                 ---repeat till it's time to get up. 

And it doesn't matter if I get to bed early. I'm awakened about 2 a.m. or so with this evil dance. Sometimes, it's the entire leg out of the covers. I finally fall asleep around 6 a.m. And I get up at 7 a.m. I try to get up at the same time every day, unless I have to get up earlier. Routine is important. 

Before you ask, HRT isn't an option to me. I've got hormone-triggered migraines, and thanks - they're finally easing. Adding MORE hormones to the mix will only aggravate them. And I do believe they are worse than the hot flashes. At least the meds make them so. I always feel what I imagine a hangover is. 

I'm not being funny. I don't drink, for a bunch of medical and philosophical reasons. I have never been drunk. Never been hung over. 

I have also never smoked (anything) and haven't cussed since my granny swiped a bar of Ivory soap over my teeth and tongue. I remember THAT, and I have no memory of the word that I actually said. 

I'm sure that one day, when I'm a little old lady, my "switch" will go off in my brain and remain permanently open. At which time, my inner Marine will come out. Yikes!! 

That's reason enough to keep my mind active with knitting and other things. 

Knitting...

Did you see the chart alongside the blog? It's a picture, not an actual graph, but I feel really jazzed about it. I finally made a 2014 master list of crafts (including sewing and counted cross stitch) and I have "what I want to do" and "what's in progress." The stuff on that chart is the "WIP" stuff. It's in excel in my computer, so when I update it, I have to just recapture the picture and put it back up there. I just have to figure out what constitutes a "% change" in the project. Maybe inches? Then I'd have to assign a value to the "inch" thing because one inch on a sock means you're closer to turning the heel. One inch on an afghan or cardigan is sometimes barely noticeable. 

Maybe pattern repeats, which is still not always going to hack it with socks. Maybe "inch" with socks, and "pattern repeats" with the other stuff? Will have to cogitate on that. 

I wish I had a way to put an interactive chart in there, but I haven't figured out how to do it. 

The sock is coming along. I'm on the leg. I have about 4 1/2" to go till I get to the heel. Yes, on size 2 DPNs, so that's about a million stitches. My friend P thinks I'm a genius because I can knit socks. It's not that hard, once you know what you're doing. 

It is, however, impressive. No matter if you use magic loop style or DPNs. I just think the DPNs are more wicked-looking. Many of the professors I work with think I'm a reincarnation of Einstein because I can work with this style of knitting.

Shhhhhhhhhhhh - don't tell 'em the secret: You're only knitting with 2 needles at a time!! We'll just keep that to ourselves, and I'll let the profs be overwhelmed with my intelligence! 

I got to the LYS at lunch to pick up the yarn. I also picked up a little sheep-weight thingie to attach my scissors to. I'll take a pic and post it soon. It's cute. It's wearing an apron.

So this weekend, providing that the Viking prediction of the end of the world (on Saturday) doesn't actually happen, I'll be finishing up the afghan. Done. Done. And Done. 

I want to get to some of these projects on that chart. As well as my "wish" list to get at least 3 more pairs of socks done. Entirely new pairs, since I have lots of Opal yarn in the stash. I have a couple of nice lace patterns I'd like to try, too.

When No is No...

This meme is making its way around the internet and I'm reminded of it as we teach Raisa the term "No." While our trainer prefers we not use that word, I find that tone makes a difference. 

If I'm saying "No, I don't want salmon for dinner," it's certainly different from hollering "NO" and taking something away from a dog in imminent danger of harming itself. 

Be that as it may... I like this graphic because it perfectly encapsulates the whole "she deserved it" excuse - and it kills it deader than a doorknob. 

Tippi, my robo-dog, will hold a stay. She will hold a stay till I tell her she can move. As, obviously, this dog can with a jar of peanut butter in front of her. 

So that being said, and her being a DOG (not that I don't think she's terribly smart, and smarter than some people I know) -- why do we let men get away with this silly argument? This is just one of many demeaning arguments made by politicians and other humans (though, some days, "human" should not be attached to the word "politician," but I digress) -- to in essence blame the victim for the crime. 

Let's be blunt. Women cannot be the perpetrators of forcible rape which is foist upon them. We lack the equipment. And it doesn't matter what the woman was wearing. What about nuns who are raped? You certainly can't use the "what she's wearing" argument when you're talking about a woman in a full religious habit. And yeah, they do still exist. The habits, I mean. And of course the nuns exist as well. 

Let me also be clear: women CAN rape men. There's the statutory rape of a minor male by a female; there's the "penetration" of the man by a woman using fingers or other objects* and there's the coercion of sex where the woman manipulates the penis to encourage the act of penetration.

The reason for the * is that often, laws are specific and they say penetration by a penis... so it could be construed that because we don't have the equipment, we can't do the deed. However, it seems like it's certainly probable that a female can violate a male.

So if he dresses inappropriately, does he deserve it? 

Random Picture...

Yesterday, we had our therapy visit. On the way out, we always have a potty break. Tippi just decided that she needed to plow her head into a snow drift. She was digging in the drift there, and poking her nose in the snow. 

I was a little worried, because the Christmas lights are still on those bushes and I didn't want her to get hurt. Anyway, she managed to leap over this, pee and then come back to see what was interesting in this drift. 

I also took her onto a flat spot on the campus and let her run around at the end of her 20' lead. It was fun; I was dizzy. She was happy. 

As we were leaving, the women's track team was jogging alongside where I parked my car, and they all stopped and got in a few pets. Tippi was thrilled, but they had to get running again; they don't have fur coats!

Yesterday, she also had a fabulous case of the "zoomies." One of these days, I'll get that on film.