The Last Leg...

It's been a wild, wild week, culminating with FANTASTIC news. 

We have a priest! 

And that's all I can say right now. A 2-year search has resulted in a selection, and the person has accepted the offer. 

And now we move on; more on this the MOMENT that I can tell you all. 

Knitting...

It was kind of a crazy Friday today. Got a late start at the hairdresser - she was late, not me. And then she took her time, so I was an hour late to the church office. After staying far too late (interruption after interruption), I whizzed home, grabbed a guitar for my lesson, and whipped out to the college to meet my teacher. As I was writing my check, the green pen I had managed to explode in my hand. I now have a right hand with tints of Kermit the Frog...

Got through the Mass parts that we're working on, sped home, and got a text from the mover...he stood me up again. 

I'm in charge of moving the church offices to the next-door building and I've been trying for 3 weeks to get this guy out for an estimate. I gave him an ultimatum and said, "This is it, dude. I have a deadline!" He swears he'll be at the church tomorrow. Hmpfh. 

So, since my plans changed, and I was blessed with some free time, I figured I'd knit. I'm on point number 17 of 18 of the Close to You Shawl. 

I figure I can finish it this weekend, I think. Each point is 14 rows, and then I have a 12-row finish and a picot edging. It has been a fun knit, but I'll be glad to set this pattern aside for a little bit because I have others I'm itching to knit.

The Last Leg...

So as usual, we were eager to get going on the last day of our trip. After breakfast (standard hotel: egg-ish things, sausages, bagel, etc.), and a couple cups of tea for me (one of them in a to-go cup) and we were off. This time, I wanted to make sure my caffeine level was adequate to the drive. 

And this time, we swore that we wouldn't repeat the day before, even though our GPS said about 6-ish hours to home. I didn't want to risk that whole "low energy driving" thing, especially as we were heading more toward "civilization" (read: More traffic!). 

We got all the way to Iowa - and stopped at IOWA-80, which is billed as "the largest truck stop in Iowa." Okey-dokey... It was a mall-ish kind of place; The Kid had a burger, and I had an egg sandwich from a Panera. Bought some Amish goodies for my friend A., gassed up and left. 

We drove a long, long, long, long way on Rt. 88 in only one lane because of construction. It was ridiculous. 

Nope, not even a photo for you. It was that kind of drive! Got The Kid home and helped him off-load his stuff, then headed home myself. 

I hit up a car wash on the way home; I knew I wasn't going to get that sprayed-on oil off, but the car was absolutely bug-encrusted. 

Got back late afternoon, to Hubby and happy dogs. 

And - so far, The Kid and I still like each other! Another successful road trip in the books. 

It sounds maudlin, but seriously - I don't know how many more of those I'll have with him, and I want to enjoy all of them. At some point, he'll date, have a life that doesn't include me - which is fine - and I want to have these memories. 

Strawberry Moon...

Lately, the moons seem to be either "super" or "strawberry" or "orange" or whatever. Whatever happened to just a plain old "full moon" in the meteorological realm? Anyhow, I caught a photo of the supposed "strawberry" moon. 

I know - we're too close to town and lots of lights and lots of buildings. We didn't and we don't see these moons in their full glory. And when I'm going home from the yoga studio, the only places I seem to have a beautiful view are not good to take photos in. For example, the cemetery on the outside of Stateville Penitentiary. They don't like when you're in there in the dark - you'll get a visit from a guy in a car with lights on the top. 

Well, the moon was full. Not so sure of the "strawberry" part, although my students told me a day or so later that, for some of them, it did indeed look strawberry. I'll take their word for it. 

Cookies...

In case you're wondering what the cookies are, they were purchased at the Polish Deli near the chiropractor's office. They do a great sandwich, wonderful soups, and a "hot plate" dinner full of stuff that would've come out of my granny's kitchen. 

These are Liebnitz cookies - a bit graham-cracker with hazelnuts and chocolate bits. Today, I was on the run all day and was thus starving. I even had Raisa eyeballing me while I was chomping on a piece of cheese. I was giving her the eyeball back, with a "no way, kiddo" slant to my side-eye. 

After a dinner of salmon and baked potato (thanks, Hubby), I sat down to watch Season 5 of "Great British Baking Show," knit and munch on some cookies... It's a great finish to the evening. 

Plans for tomorrow...

Tomorrow, I have (in the middle of a heat wave, by the way), a photography gig. I'm taking pictures of the Frankfort, IL "Families Belong Together" protest march. 

I have to figure out how to haul the camera, wear the appropriate hat to protect myself from further sunburn, get sunscreen on and survive the heat. Oh, and keep hydrated!

Today, it hit in the 90s, and it's after 8 p.m. - still muggy and sticky. It ought to be interesting. 

All I hope for, in this environment lately, is that nobody gets hurt and the protest is peaceful. 

With the recent killings at the newspaper in Maryland, and the political hate-fest emanating out of DC? It does make you fearful and makes you wonder what happened to America. What happened to civil discourse? What happened to "agree to disagree" as a way of communication? 

Well, we know what happened. And it can't be gotten out of the White House soon enough. Along with family members, cohorts, conflicts of interest, and co-conspirators. 

We need a broom to sweep clean - a big broom. 

And perhaps the protests around the nation and the unexpected winning of certain primaries - perhaps those will help correct our course. That, and an indictment or two. Soon. Please. I want the country back for my kids. 

Random Picture...

One of the patients at the chiro clinic had never seen a red husky. I had to persuade Madame to sit still for a picture. 

This was the best of the 3 shots. 

She finally figured out that I had a treat in my hand, but she wouldn't deign to smile at it or me. She did decide to put her ears up. You can see in her eyes, "I'm only doing this because I choose to. Not because you want me to or I want to look cute." 

She's such a diva. Right now, she's "banished" to the kitchen. She hasn't done anything wrong; we're just having the Elkhounds in the living room because idiots are blowing off fireworks and the elkies are frankly terrified. 

So here's my PSA for you: Don't shoot off fireworks yourself. The 4th of July is the WORST holiday for dog disappearances. They're usually terrified and they will bolt. And if you don't like pets, think of the vets...PTSD and fireworks? Not cool.