Almost Caught Up...

Well, I'm trying. 

Clouds rolling in

So let's get started on what's going on lately. 

June was horrible. It was wet, it rained almost constantly and the weather activity was frightening. 

And July looks to be the same. Tonight, again (it's always the nights I'm teaching yoga), tornado watches till 11 p.m. Thunderstorm activity this morning was brutal. There was a brief patch of blue, and now it's dark again. 

I'm holding classes; the stuff is to the south of us, and while I don't want to get complacent and think, "Oh, it's not moving," because of course it does, and it moves FAST, I don't want to be all Henny Penny about it...Or Chicken Little, if you roll that way. 

Above is this morning's picture, courtesy of Hubby, who loves storms. I was sitting and drinking my tea. He said to me, "Look out the window." And in ONE minute, it rolled in, and the bucketing started. It moved through fairly quickly, considering. And we knew we were in for it all day off and on. 

Early afternoon sunshine

The storms are just south of us and we don't know if they'll move straight east or wiggle its way north or just fizzle. 

At early afternoon, we had blue sky and sunshine, and the humidity began building. It was getting steamy and the air was getting more "chewy," which is never a good sign. 

Late afternoon

About 3 or 4 p.m., it darkened up again. The weather radio went off. My phone's been pinging all afternoon. And one of my teachers had called me asking if we were holding classes tonight. 

Yes we are. At this point in the Summer of 2015 That May Not Really Be Summer, we can't afford to cancel classes on the whim of the National Weather Service. Half the time, the warnings come to naught because the storms break up. It's just being watchful, and that we are. 

So today, I was trying to clean up the office and get some other stuff done. I was hoping to get Hubby to fix my camera. The telephoto lens was getting sticky and I needed to get it fixed before my upcoming trip. 

I was also hoping to get some knitting done. That I managed - at least 2 or 3 rows of the sock. 

I am almost caught up on the Yarn Harlot blog and I still have a sequence to write out for a private student. 

I did get a video of my own version of Surya Namaskara (sun salutation) done for that same student. I just have to put it all together, which will happen tomorrow. 

I got a few things ticked off the list, but not as many as I wanted to. 

The Trip...

Well, Kid #2 and I leave next Sunday for The Great Faulkner/Vonnegut Pilgrimage. 

We have the route confirmed, the hotels booked, and a list of stuff to see in Oxford, courtesy of a friend of mine who loves it down there. 

I'm looking forward to some mother-son bonding, and we both have similar attitudes toward travel: we'll just roll with it. 

Wednesday, I take the car in for the pre-trip check and then I can pack on Saturday. We take off sometime Sunday morning. We should be back Friday-ish, and I'm bringing my journal and the laptop, so blogging may ensue. Not sure yet. 

Knitting...

So here's the second of the Bowties are Cool socks. It's coming along nicely. I don't know when I'll get it done. I may take a vanilla sock along on my trip just for the heck of it. 

The only thing about the trip is that I'm driving, so of course I can't knit! Ha! But I can knit in the evening before bedtime. 

I'm knitting a few rows on this just about every day. I almost feel like it's forced, but I know that I want to get this done. I hate to have the knitting feel like a chore, but for some reason, the second sock of this pair feels a bit chore-like. 

Maybe because I'm not happy with the fit of the first sock, and I'm not anticipating the fit of the second one to be any better. 

But I still love the yarn. It's squishy and gorgeous. So I'm looking forward to the next Lorna's Laces sock; maybe it has to be a plainer pair. This is a ton of K1b - knit one below. And I think it's pulling it together a lot more so even at a 72-stitch cast-on, it's a bit snug. 

The Before and After scarf is coming along; it looks like I'm close to the end of the peacock variegated, but remember - it's lace-weight and it's going to fool the eye. 

I might actually take that one one on the trip. It's certainly mindless enough. 

Friends in Crisis...

I have two separate friends with two separate crises going on. One is an older friend, who's afraid that our other friend is mad at her. I'm pretty sure she's not. She's facing some pretty hefty back surgery, she's in pain and I'm almost 100% certain that she's just fed up with a lot of stuff and doesn't have much patience. So that was this morning's call.

This afternoon's call comes with my oldest friend's son being a royal jerk... He's getting married, and it's like we're looking at the King and Queen. There's some drama about him not including any of his family, and claiming that some family members "hate" his intended, and reminding his mother that it's "HIS" day so he can do what he wants. 

Oh, yeah... He's 4 days older than Kid #1. So don't tell me there's no such thing as a "Groomzilla." Because I've seen it. 

Not that I'm claiming any special privilege, but when I was over at their house this weekend, he didn't even introduce his intended around. 

That's basic manners. I would expect my kids to do that. And they'd better, if they know what's good for them. 

So my friend said she can't, in good conscience, attend the wedding. She wants to know if she's doing the right thing, and I assured her that she was. You can't expect to stand up for things if you don't stand up for things, you know?

If the son is treating everyone in his family like this, then he needs to learn that there are consequences for jerkitude. I just said, "Don't be surprised when he comes to you with his hand out, looking for your help." 

She says she's not intending to offer any, since he's apparently thinking nobody in the family is "worthy" enough to come to his wedding. 

Indeed. 

Christmas in July...

This was on television the other day. Yes, it's my favorite Alistair Sims version of "A Christmas Carol" and yes, it was on in the early morning. 

Along with the commercials for Christmas trees. 

And while I haven't been in there since the SCOTUS "birth control battle," I understand that of course Hobby Lobby has its Christmas stuff up and running already. They usually are early, but I think it's still idiotic. 

I haven't even contemplated Christmas knitting. And I ought to, if I'm planning any, since I'm not all that fast. And there's a vague possibility that I might have a full-time job which will cut into my time even more. 

I know. It's still 6 months away. 

But this is nuts. 



Random Picture...

It's confirmed. Huskies breathe through their ears. Raisa was on the couch yesterday. With her nose smooshed into the cushion. Snoring away. 

I can't figure it out. How do they do that? 

She seemed comfortable enough.