I Should Be Knitting...

...and watching "The Princess Bride." Which was the initial plan for tonight. 

Instead, I just ate a half of a jelly sandwich and I'm warming my hands on a cup of chamomile tea. I even skipped a conference call I was scheduled to attend (along with about a dozen others, and I basically lurk - I won't be missed). 

Today has been kind of a hot mess, and I blame most of it on the cold I got last week. I was fine (seriously) on Thursday morning, and then practically as I got to the office in the afternoon? WHAMMO - I got hit with a head cold. It was that fast. Spent the weekend (mostly) resting, hydrating, neti-potting, and not talking. 

Good news is that I finished another knitting project. Bad news is that I ripped out TWO socks... And I fell flat on my face, breaking my glasses, AND I'm still fairly snotty. Awesome. 

Knitting...

Fuzzy small scarf

Well, one done and two frogged. Out of the "stuff in the room," I had plucked this scarf. It's done. It's actually not long enough for a "real" scarf, but it's a small-ish, "could be a cowl" thing. It's that "fun fur" yarn, held double. No idea the color. Size 9 needles. 

And the socks... I pulled the Sole to Sole sock out of the bag, and one of the needles came out of one side. I put the stitches back on, but I must've screwed something up because there were too many stitches on the needle. And so, in a fit of pique, I frogged it. It's in time-out. 

I also frogged (AGAIN) the St. Charles sock. I didn't like the way it was turning out on the size 1 needles. So it's also in time-out. Again. It'll eventually be socks. I know it. But for right now, I don't want to deal with it. The yarn needs to breathe, and so do I. 

I've started another pair of socks. It's a pattern called "Peaks & Valleys" from the "Knit Socks!" book - it's a hard-cover book shaped like a Christmas stocking. The pattern is basically a ripple, and I'm using Cascade Heritage Sock in colorway 5610 - which is a camel color. I think that'll pop nicely with the ripple pattern, and even though it goes down the whole foot, I may leave it at the leg only. I'll have to see. 

That being said, I've gotten 3 rows done so far. I've been trying to get to it, but everything else seems to get in my way. 

The Meltdown...

So, falling on my face... As I raced home Tuesday, trying to beat the "leaving school" traffic, I had in mind the zillion things on my list(s). I needed to finish the 2017 ornaments. I hadn't yet started any baking, but Hubby was doing most of it. He's a good baker, but it was annoying because I do love to bake, and it seems like I just haven't had time to do much lately. 

Still need finishing

I set up the laptop and prepared to finish up a project for church. As I knelt over the arm of my knitting chair to plug in the charger, Quinn had stuffed herself under the chair. Well, rather than ask her to move, I stretched a bit more. And then I slipped. My face hit the glass table, my glasses broke, and I lost my temper. 

Back up a bit. I'd also been to the orthodontist that noon, and had a ligature placed on my front lower teeth, and had actually had the orthodontist pulling the teeth together. It was quite painful - Lamaze-breathing painful, and I'm still wired up so that the teeth get to where they need to be so that I can get my braces off next month. My face hurt. 

Lucky for me, the space where my chin would've hit the table was actually just air... I mean, my upper chest hit the arm of the chair as my right eye and nose hit the corner of the table, which is glass. 

Which, if I hadn't had glasses on, would've done a huge number on my right eyeball. 

My frames didn't snap, but the right arm of the glasses bent at a pretty nasty angle. Hubby made a remark about setting up a docking station on this little tray-table I'm using till I get my office in order, and honestly? I lost it. 

Hey - I was in pain, and upset. And I'm human. I snapped, stormed off to the eye doctor to see if they could repair my glasses, and wondered how I'd explain the black eye I was sure I'd given myself. 

Ok. Well. The eye doctor had just ordered a spare pair of my frames, and was able to replace them. They still need a bit of adjustment over the right ear, but I can run up there on Thursday or Friday to have them tweak it. I don't have a black eye, but my eye socket is a tad tender. And my face still hurts from the orthodontist. But I'm not mad at Hubby. 

And I'm still behind on the zillion things I have to do. This weekend, I'll be on a baking marathon to finish up about 4 different batches of cookies. Hubby is finishing 2 batches tomorrow. 

Sometimes, I do really dislike the "busyness" of the season. 

The Mosque...

This picture is from the mosque in a town nearby. I found that the quote on the sign kind of hit me. So for all the talk about "those terrorist MOOZLIMS" - you see this. 

A reminder that God's mercy is indeed great, and available to all of us. I don't get all preachy, and I don't mean to wave a Bible or Q'ran at anyone. All I'm doing is pointing out that this quote seems to me a very strong reminder that if you do worship God, then He (or She) is a being whose mercy is something offered to all of His (Her) children, no matter how badly we behave. Of course, this means that the Mango Moron who's driving our country into the sewer is also going to be forgiven in The Grand Scheme of Things. But maybe God has a special place for predators and those who think that they themselves are God... For example, according to a recent Chicago Tribune story, his own lawyer says he can't be prosecuted because he's the President. 

Ummmmmm. No. That's not how that works. One branch of government is not more powerful than another. They're all checks and balances on each other. 

But then again, you'd have to have a working knowledge of basic civics to understand that. And it's hard to do when you believe you're the Emperor. 

Super Moon...

Seems like all the full moons lately are called "super moon" and I'm not quite sure why. So the latest full moon was called "The Last Super Moon of 2017." Well, it wasn't as huge as some Harvest Moons we've seen, but for December, and the clarity of the sky? It really stood out. 

And it was a beauty. As I left my Yin class, I turned to get into my car and saw this. It was too perfect - a beautiful, huge full moon right over the top of my studio. I sent this out on my studio's Facebook page, and lots of folks loved it. 

This is one reason I love where I live. There are a lot of reasons to hate it. We're near a transportation hub, and the traffic and the semis are both horrendous. It's Illinois (that's usually enough of a reason...). But... We're nearly in the country. In one hour, going north, I can be in Chicago if I want to be. In one hour (or less) going south, I can be in the middle of corn fields. And we have walking/biking trails that are amazing, two rivers, lots of open space. 

It's a blessing to be out here in the 'burbs. 

The Orthodontist...

So my orthodontist has a heavy hand. I mean, I'm kind of seriously dreading the removal of the braces. But it is what it is. I know he knows what he's doing. However, that ligature thing the other day? I was nauseated. 

He was recommended by my dentist, and I trust him (my dentist, that is), so I'm sure my teeth will turn out fine. 

You know that "Elf on the Shelf" thing? Well, it creeps me out. That, however, is what the orthodontist's office is doing for Christmas. They're calling it "Doc on the Shelf" and they've pasted a picture of his face on the elf's head... 

It still creeps me out. But in a way, it's really funny. He's got a great sense of humor, and it seems like everyone enjoys their job. I love my technician - she's a hoot and has been a boon to me in terms of information on questions I have. I will miss seeing her. But I won't miss the tightening and the wires. 

Oily News...

There's a great Young Living Essential Oils blend called Christmas Spirit. It's spruce, orange and cinnamon, and it's quite lovely. In my last shipment, I got Pine...and I thought, "Hmmmmmmmmmm." So I added some tangerine and some peppermint, and I got a different kind of "Christmas" scent. It's really quite nice, and I'm glad I thought of it. I can't smell much of it yet (head filled with snot...), but I'm told it smells really nice. 

While I love the blends Young Living already has, I do enjoy making my own. I think it's the cook in me. I love to experiment. Some of my blends have been unqualified FLOPS. But many of them seem to be quite nice and I use them almost daily. 

And I like their single oils, too. Tangerine is one of my favorites. It's "orange but soft." It's "lemon but lighter." I love it in water and in my Ningxia Red supplement every morning. I also love it in a smoothie. 

And here's another "life hack." I'm a bit traditional...when people talk about "hacks," I still think of hacking into a computer... 

Anyway - my sister gave me a very nice black leather bag. But she smokes. And it reeked. She said she'd only used it once, and had tucked it away for me. But it still reeked. 


So here's the "hack" for un-stinking a purse or other object. I took a custard cup, put in 3 large cotton balls, and dropped about 8 drops of Purification blend on the cotton balls. I sealed them up (custard cup + balls) in each of the purse's 3 compartments, for about 6 days each. 

The other day, I thought it had "cooked" enough, and of course, still unable to smell, I said to Hubby, "please smell this and let me know what you think."

He said, "I think it smells like Purification." Well - props to him for getting the oil's name right, and recognizing the scent! And thankfully: the purse doesn't smell like smoke anymore. I can now use it. He's even more sensitive to smoke than I am. I think that, since I grew up with my dad smoking, I do have a somewhat "nose-blind" spot. I mean, we don't smoke in the house - or rather, nobody in my house smokes. So I am aware of it. But his nose is a bit better than mine. 

And I'm happy to have a second nose on board. 

Random Picture...

This is serious "yarn chicken." I thought I was playing chicken with the Close to You shawl. Well, p'shaw... I had OODLES of yarn with THAT project. 

The "rule" is that it takes roughly 3 times the yarn to bind off. I mean, you measure three "rows" of yarn across your project. So I did that. I even fudged with extra. 

And this is what I ended up with at the end of the project. Not even enough to put into my knitting notebook.

Well, there it is, kids. Another night with no knitting - worked through lunch, too, so no knitting there. And once again, I didn't sleep well (snot and sore face). So I'm going to sign off, wishing you an amazing evening, and a great day tomorrow morning. 

Find some time to do something you love. Just for YOU. Spend the time. You are worth it. 

By The Way...

...my glasses are correct now... 

A few posts ago, I told you all that I had gotten new glasses. And that I was having some issues with them. I couldn't see! So I took them back, sat at the eye doctor's computer and showed them how far off the glasses were. Even though the prescription was correct, it wasn't sitting right on my face. The lenses are larger than what I've had in the past 10 years or so, and I have the Varilux no-line bifocals. For a while there, the fashions were such that the lenses were getting smaller and smaller. I had metal frames, with the "no frame" bottom for a long, long time. And I had to watch how small the lenses got, so that I had enough room for the "reading" portion. 

This time, even though the proportions were correct, I couldn't find that spot mid-range, where I could see my computer screen and my guitar music. I was constantly tossing my head back, which didn't make my neck happy. 

So they took them back and a week later, I had another shot at seeing if they were going to work. It turns out that, even with measuring a couple of times, we were ONE millimeter off on the middle range vision. One millimeter! 

The technician ended up taking the earpieces and bending them ever so slightly, and now I'm fine. I can see and they're doing quite nicely. People have said they make me look younger. I'm not so sure about that part, but I do like the "new look."

The Movie...

I'm sitting here, knitting and watching The Miracle Worker with Anne Bancroft and Patty Duke. The amazing thing about this movie is the talent that Patty Duke exhibited at such a young age. Anne Bancroft? She's a classic. But for her age, Patty Duke, who was 16 when she played that role, it's amazing the talent... the way she portrayed what must have been a difficult role. It makes you think of what she had going for her and the obstacles she overcame to have the career she had in Hollywood. I was actually surprised to find that she was that old. She was a slight child, and she looked much, much younger in the film. But of course, that could be the "magic" that happens in a film like this one. 

The Knitting...

The baby knitting continues...I'm hoping to get the last of the afghan done this weekend, and maybe starting the sweater. I can't find my buttons. I'm not a happy camper. I had a bag full of buttons specifically purchased for the next several baby sweaters, and quite honestly, no idea of where they've gone. They're not in the "sweater bag" which I use to stash the pattern, needles and yarn. 

I also have - ta-da! - a "stashed" sweater that I've made. It's acrylic - I have no idea what brand of yarn it is - and it's an ombre in shades of bright blue fading to white. I've got a matching hat that sort of goes with it. That may end up in the bag with the Pumpkin set. Not sure if I can whack out the hat by the time the shower comes along, next weekend. I have to see how far along I am with it. 

I have a similar ball of yarn that's purple-to-white... that'll be knitted up soon. I can get a sweater and hat out of one large-ish ball of this stuff. My friend Doris had given it to me a few years ago. I figure that baby stuff is just about what I can do with it. There's not enough for anything else, and besides, I would probably (in all honesty) not knit something for myself with it. Not even a scarf. 

Yarn snob that I am, I'd rather have a wool scarf, thanks. 

Mugs...

I'm a mug fiend. Seriously, people give me mugs. I buy mugs. We have more mugs than you can shake a stick at. We gave the kids a box of mugs each when they moved out. 

Some of my mugs make a statement. Well, frankly, MANY of my mugs make a statement. I like the larger ones, and I like ones with snarky statements on them. Political mugs. Literary mugs. Dog mugs. Knitting mugs. 

One of my friends has posted her "morning mug of the day" on Facebook; this was mine a few days ago, but my camera didn't upload it fast enough... 

Jane Austen. From Kid #2, of course. Maybe this should be my Instagram project for a week. Heaven knows I have enough mugs to fill a week or so with images. 
What's your "morning mug" these days? 

Random Picture...

Our Quinn has a history of sebaceous cysts, and she's often worn the cone of shame. And this time, it's a hot spot on her hip that she won't leave alone. She was in the "inner tube of shame," and little acrobat that she is, she managed to get to her hip. Sooooooooo - cone. 

As soon as the weather gets a little nicer, we'll figure out with the vet which cyst comes off next. For a lot of people (sorry, maybe TMI), they can just get rid of them like you would a fairly disgusting pimple. 

But Quinn? She's gotta be different. Hers are not only multiples, but they're beneath the top layer of skin and they spread out. So if she scrapes herself or scratches herself, or if it hurts and she chews on it? We're looking at a good-sized vet bill to clear up an infection, not to mention repairing the damage. 

We've tried it all: diet; supplements; skin treatments. We hear that sometimes elkhounds "grow out of them." She's 7... still waiting on that. 

She's not happy. But hopefully, the hot spot will respond to treatment and she'll leave it alone. Till then, "Cone Queen" it is.