Pre-medication is...

...the best... Well, I was kind of out of it a lot in the past 48 hours, but I sailed through the CT scan without even a bruise at the "stick site." And I swear, she used a pitchfork tine!! 

The lovely tech who did the test is also a fellow yoga teacher. And there were a lot of long-held breaths! 

So now, next week is the TEE and then the PVI. I'm a little less freaked out now. I was truly worried about the allergic reaction I had to the IVP dye over 30 years ago. When they tell you, "Don't have that again" and you don't routinely subject yourself to these kinds of scans, then you don't realize how much has changed. 

Knitting...

Fluro #1

Fluro Sock #1 is DONE!! It's gorgeous! I've started #2, and no, it's not going to match precisely, but it'll be close. 

I think it's a waste of yarn to try to match them. It's probably the only thing I'm not worried about controlling. If you can't get the idea that it's a PAIR of socks just by looking at the colors, then you probably wouldn't appreciate hand-knitted socks in the first place. 

Doris heel

I used my "Doris Heel" pattern, and I love the effect of a "double-knit" heel. And yes, this time I took notes, so there won't be a repeat of The Teal Sock Incident... 

Star toe

I took pretty precise notes. And my friends will be surprised because this is cast on at 72 stitches. Usually, that's a man-sized sock, but for some reason, this fits me just fine. It accommodates my "biker calves" and the heel is nice and snug. And for the toe, I branched out a bit, trying a Star Toe pattern. It seems to fit the curve of my toes better than Kitchener, though I do like a well-done grafted toe. I have finally figured out how to do it without the dreaded "ears" but I wanted to learn something new. 

Top view

As you can see by the last picture here, the Star toe seems to conform better. I have wide feet, and this seems to look more tailored than usual. 

Sorry about the odd pictures, but I was my own photographer. The detail in the heel and toe doesn't really show up, but I think some of that is purely the neon colorway. 

I really think that #2 will only be slightly different. The cuff starts out as the bright pink, but I'm already on the purple/blue part, so I would say that it'll be very close. 

I mean, honestly? Tossing aside a couple yards of yarn just to match? What a waste.

Sock #2

Though if you're inclined, so be it. I'm sure there's enough here in the ball of yarn, even with the larger amount cast on. 

However, I did do a bit of Knitterly Therapy before I cast on Sock #2. I knitted on the Before and After scarf for a while.

Before and After scarf

I had taken it to the hospital for my scan, because it's totally mindless. You do all the work on the knit side: M1 at the beginning and K2tog at the end, then purl back, to make the bias. It had been a while since I did anything with it and I'm really rather close to finishing off the peacock color. I think I even know where the remaining yarn and beads are! (blue tote in the office)

Remember, this one is lace-weight alpaca on size 7 circulars. It's very hole-y and it's meant to be that way. The beads will help keep it from rolling, and truly - 

"It will look better after it's blocked."

So the pattern says.

I have the picture and it looks lovely. They did it in an autumn colorway, with two scarves as a set. I'm picking up that yellow-green for the second scarf. It will likely be that I'll wear both together. I'm not a fan of yellow-green, and I'm not sure what possessed me to do that color - probably that I didn't want more purple and the blues in stock didn't look right. 

I don't usually wear that shade of green. Unless I'm sick. 

Garden Goodness...

So here's our first batch of pickles. And 2 tomatoes. This weekend is "pickle relish weekend" since it looks like the pickles produced before the salad cukes. 

Pickle Relish!

Hubby is tearing out the lettuce that's gone to seed (we've been eating it, honestly!!) and will re-plant. We're not sure if we'll re-plant radishes. I've got some broccoli rabe, but maybe it's too late for that. 

It's been a decent season, all things considered, but we'll have to see what we have time to eat. No use planting it and then letting it go to seed. 

As for the tomatoes, there are lots of green ones, but they're coming along slowly. Maybe THIS is the year, after about 4 bad ones, that we actually get tomatoes to eat. 

Yoga...

So on the 19th, I go off the cardiac Rx. I'm still going to teach on the 21st, but it'll be a true "teach" and not "demo" as much, I don't think. Boss Lady has said that I can stay home from the day job, because she doesn't want me in the office by myself in case something happens. 

And yesterday, we had a really great Pranayama class by Kathy Williams. That will come in handy with all the stress I'm under. 

And it will also come in handy because my students are ready for "more." Many people come to yoga for the asana - the poses, the exercise. Often, they stay there, which is fine. 

King Pigeon Pose

But sometimes, they want more. Pranayama is a set of breathing exercises. As Kathy says, "pretty boring" because the breathing isn't as flashy as a really cool Eka Pada Rajakaoptasana (pigeon pose). No, that's not me. Obviously. 

My point is that I'm excited that they want "more." So Kathy's idea is to incorporate one or two poses with the breathwork, having the students concentrate on the inhale (for energy) or the exhale (for relaxation). 

It's something I'll be working on for the "after surgery" practice sequences. I don't want to teach it now, because I'm just thinking that a "usual" practice will be better. I'm not sure how I'll react minus the one Rx, though I'll still be on the Cardizem. 

Stuff In The News...

It's dismal. Kids fleeing Central America and the "good christian americans" (small letters deliberately) are screaming "go home!" 

What happened to "give me your tired, etc."? Well, Fox News happened. These people think they're doing the work of Jesus, but THEIR Jesus is a blond-haired, blue-eyed Swedish looking guy. 

Jesus was brown, folks. Get over it. 

The legislation reversing that abysmal SCOTUS decision was, of course, not moved forward. In a typically partisan manner, Republicans want their idea of "small government" -- sized to fit a woman's uterus. 

Surprisingly, Sen. Mark Kirk (R-IL) voted FOR the legislation. I had to fan myself. 

Reading...

"The Four Desires" by Rod Stryker. He's my teacher Tricia's teacher, and perhaps this time I'll get to the Prairie Yoga Book Club! Anyway, it's supposed to be about creating a life of purpose, so we'll see. 

I'm not normally big on self-help books. That being said, I think every book can be a learning experience, so I'll set aside my normal slant-wise view and read the book. 

I didn't finish the other one, nor did I make it to the group. This time, I'll try. I know one thing: I need better balance in my life. Right now, it does feel like things are out of my control, and I don't like that. 

Random Picture...

If I hide, they can't put the collar on me.

So Crazy Raisa got spayed finally. She's taken to hiding under the table - or more correctly the chair under the table. Anything to escape the dreaded COLLAR OF SHAME. We didn't go with a cone; that would have been a lost cause. And she slipped out of the "blow up" collar. So the "no-bite collar" works well, except she hates it. 

For now, it's only on at night. Hubby keeps a pretty good eye on her, and the stitches come out next week. 

She and Quinn got into a "sound and fury" yesterday; that certainly woke me up! Lucky for us, Kid #2 was home, because Hubby was out. We pulled them apart. No blood. Plenty of growls though, and both got tossed into their crates for a huge time-out.

Every once in a while, I wonder what the heck I was thinking...