Where did August go?

 Yeah... what the heck? August - I kept saying, "gotta get the blog done, gotta get the blog done..." and then - the rest of August happened. 

On August 11, a derecho blew through, 90-100 mph winds whipping through, and several tornadoes in Illinois. This tree limb was about 2 blocks from my house, and it's resting on power lines. 

We live in an older neighborhood, where all the lines are above ground - and no, the city is not going to bother burying them. We're stuck with it. When a grasshopper farts, or there's a slightly quicker breeze or a "not quite heavy" rain, we can be guaranteed to at least have our power flicker. Or go out entirely. 

Mind you - Tornado Season is April - June. And Tornado Alley was "officially" shifted to include Illinois. When I was a kid, we were always told that we were in "Tornado Alley" - while it was, according to the meteorologists, closer to the Great Plains, Iowa going west. Well, now we're actually in it. 

I was at work when the storms first hit. My office is a renovated 1960s bungalow -- with a cinderblock basement. The power flickered, first, and then went out. Then the sky turned black - like night-time black, and it was about 11 a.m. I sit by two large picture windows, and I saw the wind picking up, so I actually grabbed the flashlight, my purse and my keys and headed down to the basement. I hate the basement. It's small, cramped, and claustrophobic. But I hated the thought of being shredded by window glass even more. The power briefly came back on, so I popped upstairs. 

Then, about 10 minutes later, the sky...turned green. I scampered back down there and stayed there as the sirens were wailing, and the rain was hitting the windows so hard that I thought they were going to break. I was not happy. As soon as it cleared, I packed up the office (now definitely without power and no sign that it was coming back anytime soon) and tried to head home. I work in an older part of the town across the river from where we live. I navigated the old streets, and the many, MANY trees and limbs that were down; neighbors were already out there with chain saws and axes, trying to get the roads cleared and making sure there were no downed wires that were under the trees. Several trees blew over, roots and all. I tried to go my normal route home, and found the way blocked by what seemed like the entire town's supply of cops and emergency vehicles -- there was a large tree that had fallen and taken down live power lines. 

Turned around and went the other way home. It was a mess, so many traffic lights out, so much storm damage. 

We were without power for 3 1/2 days. Thank God for generators. It seems like the "music of the summer" here in the summer of 2026 is the hum of generators. We'll be looking at a whole-house system later this year for sure. I called my mom and asked, "Do I remember that I hated camping as a kid?" She said that both my sister and I were VOCAL in our disdain for camping. 

I still hate it. We were lucky, and I know that. I can't complain: we had generators running, kept the fridge and freezer going, Hubby's computer, one light, and a large fan. But we literally lived in 1 room. I slept on a blow-up mattress and Hubby took the couch (my preference, so don't flame him...I preferred it). 

The neighborhood wasn't as badly hit as some, in terms of trees down. But the power -- Wow. So many people out, ComEd was overwhelmed, and some folks who actually DID get those tornadoes? They were out for the better part of a week. 

And those folks in NW Indiana? Good Lord. They were POUNDED and some areas are still - we're talking since August 12 or so - without power. This is nuts. 

But hey... Global warming is a hoax, right? 

The Knitting...

Oh wow - I managed to pull off an entire FULL-SIZED afghan in FOUR MONTHS. Yeah, I didn't think I could do it either. This is the lovely Soft Serve Panel Throw from Plymouth Encore. It's using 2 tones of Encore Worsted yarn - my personal go-to fave for this and baby items - and I added a border, because I don't do fringe or tassles. 

It's for a wedding, the couple requested the panel colors, and I added the dark pewter with the image of "stained glass" in my head. I hope it worked; I think it does. 

Nerdy Notes: MC = 3 balls of Plymouth Encore Worsted, CC = 2 balls. Size 8 circular needles (24" cable does just fine here) and size I (5.5 mm) crochet hook

FYI, I used 2 balls of dark pewter yarn for the contrasting crochet to attach the panels to each other. You can just use mattress stitch, but my mattress stitch sucks, so... And then I did a double crochet around the perimeter of the entire piece to tie it all together. 

Also -- for some reason, I used 4 balls of the green. I have no idea why. The colors are discontinued - Shamrock Heather and Sunflower. 

I'm back to socks, because I'll be doing some traveling. My mom's white Sophie Hood is going to wait till I'm done being on the road. White doesn't travel well... So I have a sock which I'll show you next time. Right now, it's just the first 6 rows, with my standard "roll" before I start the ribbing. Another vanilla one - using Opal's "The Little Prince" colorway. It's vaguely red-white-blue, which is only marginally patriotic - the tones are pretty muted, so it hollers "blue jeans" rather than "'Murrica!"

So this one is practically "vintage." A long, long long long long time ago, I took 12 balls/hanks of sock yarn, and put them in a large tote. I told Hubby, "Bag these in the brown lunch bags, one hank/ball each, and mark them for one month of the year, starting in January, because I'm going to knit a pair of socks a month for a solid year."

Yeah, no. It didn't work out. First off, I was relatively new at socks at that time, and I'm not the world's fastest knitter from the get-go. I got through the first quarter, sort of. Then, there were other projects: baby knits, a wedding gift, Christmas... and I started realizing that knitting a pair of socks a month just wasn't going to happen. 

I asked him to pull one of those bags for this "travel knitting," and he did - this was July, I believe. The plain vanilla will do well with this colorway, as it's looking like it's more variegated than self-patterning, but it's early yet. It feels nice to have my hands on socks again. 

I was finishing the afghan as the heat wave hit. Having a large wool afghan on your lap (even in the A/C) when it's 100 degrees outside is not optimal. But it's done and ready to hand over to the happy couple. 

Travel... 

Heading out to see Kid #1. It's the first time I'll have been out there in a couple years. Since before my hip replacement, actually. 

I have no pictures, but you'll have to trust me -- in order to prepare myself for the trip, I took a couple horseback riding lessons. I hadn't been on horseback in almost 8-ish years, and since then, with the hip replacement, I just wanted to be sure that I was ok. I ride Western, which is a whole lot more comfortable, given the new "hardware" (and yeah, even though it's been a little over 3 years, it's still "new" to me). 

I was able to ride at the stable where I volunteer, and I rode both Deuce and Zeus -- and yes, I know that sounds terribly confusing. Deuce is a lovely quarter horse, a big boy. Zeus is a Paint, a bit smaller. 

The picture here is Deuce; he's one of the horses I clean up after. Isn't he the cutest? He can be a bit spicy, but he is a very steady therapy horse. 

We have a new trainer in the barn, and she and I have really hit it off. I enjoyed my lessons with her, and I would like to book more - it was fun to get back on the horses, and while this was prep for trail riding, it was fairly easy - just walking, maybe a faster walk, learning (again) to steer, getting my seat back in order, and just moving with the horse. 

That's why I prefer Western. Posting - which I tried pre-hip-replacement - was not for me, and now with the hip, it's a no-go. I'm sure that if I had done it before, it would be different, but I dislike the constant up-and-down, and I want to just sit comfortably on the horse and follow its natural movements. More "Gary Cooper on a horse" rather than "Olympic dressage." 

The Garden...

I have 22 tomatoes. Only one of which looks like it might turn ripe before I have to leave for vacation... The squirrels got a lot of the green ones, and I'm hoping they've moved on to collecting the acorns which are starting to fall - for some reason, my tomatoes are late, even though I planted them on time. 

We had a weird summer, that's all I can tell you. 

And the hummingbirds are starting to migrate. My feeder has been like a Route 66 diner in the days of the Mother Road. The birds are ignoring the two bright red mandevillas next to the feeder and they're starting to fuel up for the big flight back toward Mexico. This little girl seems to be a frequent customer - but it's hard to tell them apart. We may just be getting more females this year. She posed so pretty! That's our maple tree behind her. 

Even though we tried for a second leafing-out of the red romaine, it didn't amount to much, and the basil all went to seed. What was left of all the plants after August 11 with the derecho - they were pretty beat up. The pink petunias seemed to handle things ok, though, and they're hanging in there. 

We didn't even get the fountain up at all this year. The birds had to do with the regular bird bath and the small solar fountain hanging on the lamp post. 

Current Affairs...

I thought I had some stuff to say about The State of Things... but I find that I really just don't want to deal with it. I want to go find dog grooming videos on YouTube. I'm not tuning out, honestly. I just need the mental break. 

I finished my 150 Signs of Justice postcards and they'll be mailed out in a few weeks, as a nudge to voters. 

PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT: This I will say -- If you have a mail-in ballot - DO NOT MAIL IT IN. Do a search or call your County Clerk's Office and find out where the authorized drop-boxes are. Drop your ballot in there. Don't trust the USPS. There's something brewing, even though there's a court order against it. 

Court orders are - apparently - suggestions. 

Ahem. 

Anyway, our local Clerk's Office has almost a dozen locations for drop-boxes, including several public libraries. I like to drop mine off at the Clerk's Office because the box is bolted into the concrete, has lights on it 24/7, is monitored by a camera, and there's usually a Sheriff's Police car sitting somewhere close by. I don't call that "election interference." I call it "Safeguarding my right to vote." 

The Demented Current Occupant and his merry band of under-equipped and stupid sycophants are determined to hold onto power any way they can. They've been TOLD that they can't implement any part of the SAVE Act. But like the following: 

• The Rose Garden 
• The East Wing 
• The Kennedy Center 
• The cherry trees 
• The weeping willows
• The East Lawn
• The reflecting pool... 

None of that matters. HIS word - his executive orders (which, I will once again point out, are NOT LAW - AND THEY ONLY APPLY TO THE EXECUTIVE BRANCH)... that's all that matters because Congress and SCOTUS have abrogated their responsibilities. 

John Roberts -- NOW you're thinking he's got too much power? Dude. Dude. Seriously? 

Oh. I guess I actually DID have something to say. 

Random Picture...

Who actually eats flour? I'm not kidding - I'm honestly asking. 

I was doing a very rare mid-year baking of cookies, and this label on the top of the flour bag just hit me weird. I mean, when I was a kid, we made paste out of flour and water, and yeah, a kid or two (not me, honestly - I thought the whole thing was gross) would taste it. We used to mix it up, tear newspapers into strips, and then we'd "paste" them over balloons. Pop the balloon and make a "bowl" as a gift to our moms. Hey, it was art. 

But who actually EATS raw flour? 

The cookies turned out fine, but it was certainly weird to make them in August instead of November, like I usually do. 

Now, I am going to go find those dog-grooming videos... 

A Chance to Breathe?

Probably not... As I mentioned (late) in the last blog, Quinn has been diagnosed with Lymphoma and it's advanced. So right now, all we're doing is breathing. And waiting. There's nothing we can do in the way of chemo - she's 14, and it's in ALL her lymph nodes, so it's too far advanced. All we can do at this point is keep her comfortable, spoil her within reason, and spend time with her. 

She just celebrated her 14th birthday this past week, so we had some freeze-dried sprats, she licked my yogurt cup clean (vanilla & cinnamon), and she had lots of belly rubs. 

Lucky for us, we are able to mostly have one of us at home for her the whole day. So we don't know how much time she has, and that's the hard part. I mean, on a metaphysical level, NOBODY knows how much time they have, but we're numbering Quinn's time in weeks, not years. So there's that.  All we can do - or hope to do - is time it so that she's not suffering. Our vet usually says, "better a day early than a day late." It's really hard. Elkhounds are notorious for "not telling." A very stoic breed. We shall see. 

The Knitting...

Well, I have progress to report on what may be my oldest WIP (or at least the oldest I can lay my hands on. I know there's a lap robe and a shawl that I can't find, so those 2 are still MIA) - the Before & After Scarf, which is now called The Bias Before & After Scarf and now the beads are an alternative. 

I really don't like Provisional Cast On - and the first one, I will say, was INCREDIBLY clunky. I think I used a yarn that was too big, compared to the Silky Alpaca Lace (70% baby alpaca, 30% silk), by Classic Elite Yarns. I've used Classic Elite Yarn a couple of times, and the only thing I might have done differently is to knit this on bamboo needles. I'm using Addi Turbos, and those suckers are SLICK. They're meant to be smooth, and the fact that this is an open fabric and the needles are huge compared to the yarn? It can get a little slippery. So far, though, I haven't dropped any stitches. 

The reason it's called "before and after" is basically because before, it looks like a wrinkled rag. AFTER the blocking, the magic is truly exposed. As you can see in the picture at the right, it looks like a hot mess till you block it. That little wad of yarn in the picture is what you use to bind off. You set aside about 2 feet (I did more like 2.5 feet because I'm just that extra) and tie it up and out of your way at both the beginning and the end so you have it to add the beads to the finish. I'll get to use my blocking wires with this project! A few new skills to learn, with the provisional cast on, the beaded bind off and blocking with wires. 

The peacock colorway, the first one of the 2 scarves in the pattern, is the one I chose to do first. and this was my long-time "travel project." I wasn't in any hurry, and would bring it whenever I was going to a bunch of trade shows, and this peacock also has the distinction of being The Project I Took to Switzerland... I have pictures (I'll have to dig them up) of me knitting in various places in France and Switzerland with this project. 

I finished it yesterday, and I really am now hooked on the beading technique of using a crochet hook (see what I did there??) -- the jewel-toned beads for that scarf are really pretty. Can't wait to block this one!

I did start the green one; I'm not sure exactly what shade this is. At first, I remembered it as more "lime" but now, I'm thinking a bright sage. Opinions??? Take a peek below and right...what do you think? There's only a color number, so I guess we have to use our imaginations. 

I initially said, "screw it, I'm putting the beads right on the hem as I cast on," but then, a cooler moment prevailed. The purpose of the provisional cast on is to make each bind off identical... so I sucked it up and learned how to do it over the needle, so it's a lot neater than the first one I did. 

The scarves are knit on the bias, so it's an increase at the beginning and a decrease at the end. It's amazing how nicely the green is knitting up. Of course, it hasn't sat jammed into a project bag for 12-ish years, too... that might have something to do with it. Let's put it this way: I probably have 3-4 copies of this pattern just because I've had it in the works for so long and kept losing the paper pattern! 

The idea behind the project is that you can wear either or both. The one is a hand-painted and the other is a coordinating solid. Looking at the green, I probably should have pulled a light blue or a lilac to go with the peacock, but the green does match the peacock...I just don't wear a lot of green, so it might be a challenge. The plus of this, though, is that the beads for the green are a beautiful peridot color. So they will look spectacular once it's done. The scarves are in a lace-weight yarn, but I'm using a size 7 needle, so it will be a fairly open fabric, kind of like the Sally Mellville "Wingspan" which I also did in alpaca (but no silk in that yarn). The beauty of this is that alpaca has a slight 'halo' effect, and it's incredibly warm, even in a lace-weight. And it will drape beautifully. 

I know I was talking about the Drops sweater, but I want to chug a way on this for a bit and see if I can churn it out. It's kind of mindless, and with everything going on with Quinn, right now I need mindless. 

Speaking of which, I finished the last 3 washcloths. The person for whom they are planned "doesn't like to receive gifts," but this is a relatively "un-gifty" thing. It's practical and I don't care if they use them on their face or on their dishes...either way works for me. 

I chose tones of blue because I understand that's kind of the theme of their home, so there's that. 

And for now, I am officially D.O.N.E. with wash cloths and knitting with cotton. My hands hurt. 

I have re-stocked the cloths for my own use, along the way I've knitted 6 for Xmas gifts, and these 3 as an extra gift. I think I can check "washcloths" off my list for 2023. 

The Tea...

No, I'm not spilling any tea. I have none to spill... 

I have been accustomed to drinking chammomile tea at bedtime, but it's lately been aggravating my allergies, which is really annoying. I haven't slept well since Raisa got sick and passed, and now with everything else, I'm so scattered. I don't need to not sleep. I read about Butterfly Pea Flower tea, and I just loved the idea of blue tea. 

I didn't know that research has been done talking about the effects it had as a sleep aid. High in magnesium, helps with blood pressure, helps to relax you... though honestly, any herbal tea is, in my opinion, relaxing. Hot beverages are inherently relaxing. 

So I've been experimenting for (a) the right TIME to drink this; and (b) if it makes any difference in my sleep. I have noticed that if I drink it too close to bedtime, I'm up at 3 a.m. to pee, even if I'm in a rare moment of sleep...who needs that? I don't think I've done it enough to determine if it works, but I'm sure that, as the weather gets colder, I will drink more tea at night. 

Funny, the mug I used to like to use with these "strong colored" teas (like the rose hibiscus, which is a deep pink)... it broke. And I broke it. I was washing it, I said, "Self, put this in the sink first so you don't bump it," and of course, I bumped it, and it broke into a bunch of pieces. Crap. 

Random Picture...

It's pretty much Fall, though the temps are kinda spring-ish -- till they're not. And it being Illinois, this can happen within one day. But I got to "Birken-SOCK" and I love the way my new sandals and the orange socks kind of match the leaves in the yard. 

Who says I have no fashion sense? Well, probably a lot of people, but do I look like I actually care? Nope. 

And I have hand-knitted socks, so there... 

When I bought the sandals, the leather looked a bit darker when I chose the color. Not sure if it'll get darker or if it will stay this color. I am stuck with them, however, because I'll wear them till they fall apart, which I did with my other ones. 

I love to wear my socks, and when the weather cooperates, I do wear them with the Birkenstocks. I know there are these "transparent" shoes and clogs, but I'm sorry, they seem sweaty to me. Ugh. No thanks. 

More Than I Expected...

Well. That didn't go as expected. I thought I had about 6-7" on that Long Sands Tee. Seems like I was wrong. I had most of the front done. 

I frogged it anyway.  Took me most of the afternoon. I cut out a join that I had used; untangled a bunch of knots (I have got to get better about either ending the ball at the seam or weaving in my ends, since this is in the round...), and generally picked my way through it till it was all nicely set back into the raw material that I started with. 

I was working away at my sock (more on that below), and I thought, "I have to grab that thing; I need to frog it today." Call it an irresistable impulse. I thought I knew where it was, but it took me a couple times to find it in the office - slash - junk room (#goals will be to clean that thing out once my hip is rehabbed...It's making me nuts). 

I found the bag, and sat down with "Star Trek: Enterprise" on the TV and started ripping. And ripping. And ripping. 

As you can see, that's a whack of knitting to rip out. I don't know why I thought I had less done. 

Luckily, it's linen, so it can kind of take a pounding. I unwound four balls. Four. As you can see, I have a total of seven hanks. And that dinky little ball is the "two ball cast on" technique that I have to revisit so that I can get the thing cast on in one go rather than try to estimate a couple hundred stitches and have to do it over a couple of times. I had found that on YouTube, and I really liked it. I don't know why I didn't do it this time, but I'm going to give it a go this next cast on. Since it's smaller than the size I initially knitted, it should be enough on that dinky ball. I know it's a risk; I may be in the same trouble of having to rip the thing out if it doesn't work. But again -- linen yarn can take it. 

I'm "getting a leg on" with the Petty Harbour sock. I think the reason I wanted to frog the Long Sands is just that I wanted a break from the leg of the sock. It's not like it's a forever-long leg, either, but I have to say I've been very faithful to this project, and I just needed to do something a little different. 

Ripping things apart usually does that for me. I've got a little over 3" on the leg, and it's a 5" length, so by tomorrow, I should be able to start the heel flap. 

I'm already imagining the rest of this yarn as the tops of a pair of scrappy socks. I'd have to knit those 2 at a time, just to make sure I got all my colors in a row. I need to investigate the "leftovers" bag to see what I've got there. I know it'll be colorful, if nothing else. 

I will have to wait to re-start the Long Sands; probably a month, so the yarn gets a chance to relax. So I could pick up a shawl I have sitting around; I'm not about to frog that puppy - it's about 2/3 done and it would be nice to have it ready for the holidays. I know - thinking ahead for once! 

Monarchs...

So we're trying to control our milkweed population. We really went nuts the first year and had far too many plants; they almost took over the whole wildflower bed, which wasn't my intention. Gradually, over the last few years, we've pulled them out and kind of tried to have order among chaos. This year, what with my hip and all, we really have done nothing with the garden and it's looking rather pathetic. 

A drought doesn't help, just so you know. 

Anyway, I was sitting on the porch the other day and noticed a Monarch butterfly dancing among the few milkweeds we had. 

And we always have some stragglers in the yard; Hubby tries to pull them up or mow them down - and it's a constant battle. Well, Mama Monarch decides to lay her ONE EGG on the one plant in the lawn. 

Seriously. You can see the tiny speck she laid there. Hubby is NOT amused that I want to put a cage over the plant. I have been trying to establish a Monarch garden for a while, and we just haven't had any luck. This time, of course, she picks the worst place. 

You can't mess with Mother Nature, that's for sure. 

The Hip...

I don't know if this is true for others, but over the past two days, it's like a switch has flipped. I'm walking better with the cane, my appetite is back (which is a blessing and a curse...), and most all systems are back to normal. Except my bowels (yeah, TMI) have been a bit slow to recover. 

I'm being a renegade and stopping the iron pill. Those things always give me tummy trouble, and I don't need any help there. 

The PT is amazed at the change in my gait. We start to do the hard work on Monday; I had the evaluation and it was a lot of walking up and down so he could see how I did, and some measurements were taken. 

I'm still doing some of the home PT that I was given, as well as trying to walk more each day. 

Random Picture...

Memorializing my first post-surgery meal in the hospital, it was an egg salad sandwich, small salad and tea. Now mind you, I'd been having IV fluids, and at least 2 of those large styrofoam glasses of water. 

And yet I had to gag that sandwich down. I was hungry, but I honestly thought I'd choke on it because my throat was so dry. Perhaps I should've stuck to soup...

The hospital has an interesting set-up - you can call and order your meals anytime from 6:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. - kind of like a concierge kitchen. My favorite sandwich is egg salad, though mine is more wet than they make theirs. 

At that point, beggars couldn't be choosers, I suppose. Anyway, it was food, it was tea and I was both hungry and under-caffeinated. So it worked. 

June 23, 2023

Well. It had to happen, and so it did. My hip is, according to one doctor, "trashed," and to the surgeon, "really, really bad." 

So surgery has been set up. Coincidentally, on a date which is important to me and which will be easy to remember. And, it's about 3 weeks away, which doesn't give me a lot of time to freak out. 

Unfortunately, I was so shocked at the xrays that I didn't snap a picture. Let's put it this way: First of all, it's been TWO years, not one, which I thought. And second, I went, in TWO years, from "ok, but arthritic," to "the head of your femur is destroyed." I couldn't tell where the socket ended and the femur began. In a way, it's nice confirmation that it is indeed as bad as it feels. But in another way, it's freaking shocking. 

"Do you have any questions?" said the doctor. Yeah. How soon can I get this done! They did say they'd "expedite" it, but you never know. Lo and behold, I was asked which hospital I wanted, and they gave me the date. 

They needed more x-rays, including one standing up, which wasn't pretty. That being said, when the techs had to help me swing my left leg back over the table to get down, it went into quite the "snap, crackle, pop, and lock" routine. They were so sympathetic, but it wasn't exactly painful - it was more noisy and uncomfortable. It's when I have to walk or stand where it kills me. 

I'm chuffed, because it's been horrible. But I'm also scared. But I'm also looking forward to getting my life back. 

I've been using a TENS unit on my knee. Yeah, the hip is shot, but you know the old "knee bone connected to the hip bone" jingle. My knee took the brunt of being unable to bear weight, so the TENS unit has been helping me keep the pain within range. 

One of the gals at work gave me a walker, which you'd think was a great idea. It is, and it isn't. I tend to baby the left leg more with a walker, and I need to make sure that I'm not making it worse. And I do need to bring the walker to the hospital for therapy/rehab, but from what I understand, they'll want to get a patient off all assistive aids as soon as possible. The doctor said that I would not feel the arthritic pain, but since my leg has lost a lot of muscle tone, the new joint is going to want to move, but the muscles will be out of whack. That sounds like fun. 

The Knitting...

I'm on the foot of the second sock. I've just been working away at this, figuring that I'd have my "hip replacement socks" done. Then I can move on. 

I have a kit of a baby sweater that I want to do; I've had it in stash for a few years; the original recipient is now 12 years old. But I have a Little Bug to knit for again, so if I can get my act together, this sweater will be out of stash and ON A BABY! It's a beautiful dusty rose boucle yarn. I don't think the kit includes buttons, but I can get those. That's the least of my worries. I think the kit has a button band, which is a first for me. Lucky, the Little Bug is still...little. 

Except for a few blips, which seem to be in every thing I knit, this sock is definitely going smoother than the last one. Of course, the last one sat for 10 years wayyyyyyyyyyyy too long and my brain was mushy from baby knitting. No excuse, but it was like I had completely forgotten how to knit a sock. 

I believe I can finish this one by the date of surgery. I'm not teaching, having subbed all my classes. So my evenings are free...

I have to get myself back on the Long Sands Tee, otherwise that will sit for another 10 years wayyyyy too long. And I do want to wear that sometime this year. 

I also bought another shawl pattern because I do have a few single skeins of sock yarn in the stash which I really don't want to use for socks. I bought them specifically for a shawl or shawlette. 

As far as I know, there are no more babies in the pipeline, so I can now concentrate on some of the projects that I had had to set aside due to said baby knitting. Not that I mind it - I love knitting for babies, and I really do want to do a "Baby Surprise Jacket" just to do it. You can always stash one of those, right? And I'd like to learn the EZ method without having to be on a baby deadline. 

The Postcards...

The squeaky wheel ministry continues. I wrote a batch to the Supreme Court with that perfect quote from Thomas Paine: "A body of men holding themselves accountable to nobody ought not to be trusted by anybody." I asked some if they would get the heat put under other justices to actually effect meaningful ethics reform, and I asked the other ones if they wanted their legacies to be as unethical losers... You can guess which is which. 

I've also been working on postcards to the various committees and generally to legislators letting them know how I feel. 

The postcards were from an online printer, and so the investment was relatively small. It's an easy way to make an impact and a point. Not sure who's listening, but I'm contacting them and making myself a pest, so there's that. 

You can write to compliment. You can write to complain. It's an easy way to get your voice heard. 

Random Picture...

Now you know I'm not any kind of "influencer," and I don't get any compensation fromanyone for anything, but I do have to rave about a new product I found. It's called "Tablespoon Chai" from The Republic of Tea. It's so super easy, it's spicy, and not too sweet. I just love it. 

I tried to make my own blend, and I really couldn't get the hang of it. There are some great recipes, but for some reason, they never tasted right.

I was dedicated to Tazo's brand, till it got to be too sweet for my taste. This isn't. There's a nice after-bite that I appreciate. 

If you are so inclined, try it! I find chai a nice alternative to the matcha I usually drink, and I make mine with oat milk. Hot or iced, it's really delicious. It's black tea, so unless you're related to Hubby, this is a morning-to-early-afternoon drink. Anytime, for me, after 3 p.m., and I'm counting sheep. And counting sheep. And counting sheep.... 

Stripping...

I'm not talking about taking one's clothes off. I'm talking about stripping as in "removing." In this case, the out-in-the-open stripping of rights from women. 

Rights to bodily autonomy.

Rights to equality.

Rights to vote (I'm not kidding - it's being said out loud now...).

Rights to make our own choices. 

Are you terrified yet? If you have a uterus or vagina, you should be. And if you're not terrified, yet?? WAKE UP!! Just because it might not be happening in your area doesn't mean you're safe and sound. 

Crap like this, like venereal disease, will spread. Yes, I went there. The generation of women who are now coming into their own have LESS RIGHTS than I did when I was in high school. And I'm in my mid-60s. 

And I haven't even touched on the area of LGBTQIA+ issues, book banning, voter suppression, and gerrymandering. If women's issues aren't your jam, there are PLENTY of other things we need to get involved in!

Do something. Anything -- preferably something to create action. Call your legislators. Contact groups such as Planned Parenthood or NARAL or Center for Reproductive Rights, or National Organization for Women to get involved on a local level. 

There are so many other areas where you can get involved: Moms Demand Action, ACLU, your local organizations which empower women. Find them. Get yourself a mission and do it. Whether it's a postcard campaign, organizing around voting rights, helping by being an election judge, pollwatcher, or getting involved with a candidate whose vision aligns with yours -- go do that. 

Now, please. The rights of our daughters, grand-daughters and women in this country depend upon our actions. And yes, individual actions count. Never let yourself believe that you can't do something because "it doesn't matter." It does. More than you know. 

Oh, and VOTE!!! In EVERY election, local, consolidated, national... All of 'em. Enjoy the right that your grannies fought for. 

The Ugly Sock...

Well. It's not going to win a prize, but it's coming along. Judicious use of decreases on the "knit around" round helped me tighten up that gusset area. It's not perfect. It's not going to be frogged - I can live with it. 

I'm really at the point of just wanting to get this pair off the needles. I'm not sure whether I should try the "two at a time on separate circulars" thing. I don't care about whether my socks match; I think fraternals are cool. They're "close enough." So to me, (sorry) it's like a waste of yarn to cut a yard or so off just so the stripes match. 

So my task is to buckle down, get skippy, and knit. I've got a couple rows more of gusset decreases, then the foot. I'm doing NOTHING fancy; just a round toe. There are enough "design elements" that ended up in this one sock. Not going to make myself crazy about this.

Now, if I'm being honest,I really SHOULD pick up a singleton. Maybe "Bowties are Cool" - which at one point wouldn't have fit me, but since I've lost a pretty decent amount of weight, maybe it will. It's one of those patterns where, I got it because -- Dr. Who... but there's not much variance in sizing. It also uses Lorna's Laces, and I've got this glorious TARDIS blue yarn. It's a dark-ish navy, but not black-dark. The first sock is actually done and in my sock box. I really just need to get #2 done. 

Petty Harbour is also on the needles; the first one, I think partially down the leg. It's in a lovely tan color - a neutral I kinda love. 

Then there's Sole to Sole - a vanilla+ sock. Meaning, Vanilla with a bit of spark to it. There's a line of ribbing down the outside of each sock. It's a lovely self-striping blue/tan/gold colorway. 

And that's all I have on my mind right now. There are most likely others (just look at my project list alongside the blog...). But hey. Gal's gotta start somewhere, right?

She's Back...

So I was really worried about our Very Weird Winter. And it's not done yet. This week, it was gorgeous. GOR-----GEOUS!!! Like in the 70s and 80s and sunny. 

And Monday, rain + snow are forecast. Of course. 

My friend D wants a cutting from The Monster Bleeding Heart. But I was quite concerned, because I hadn't seen her pushing her way up thru the dirt. And I should have. 

Well, I needn't have worried. She's up and green. Hopefully, the weather won't kill her off. My friend is jazzed. She's admired this Monster for years, and was broken-hearted when I gave her a Bleeding Heart (not from mine, the timing wasn't right), and the lawn service she used mowed the thing down and killed it. 

For those who might be new here... The Monster Bleeding Heart has been in my garden for over 30 years. She's at the northwest corner of my front yard, and she kinda wraps around. On the true north side, she's bordered by lily of the valley and hostas. On the west side, she's got a fountain. Which the birds seem to think is their personal spa, because they empty it at least once daily "taking a shower" so she's well-watered. 

Across from her is the "baseball diamond bed" -- a bed that's shaped a bit like home plate. That is filled with native plants and some herbs - mostly for the hummingbirds, butterflies and bees. Bee balm, Prairie Blazing Star, Purple Coneflower, hyssop, Icelandic Poppy, and a few other things. 

At the other side of the yard is a bed of Brown-Eyed Susans, and that's where most of the feeders are located. 

In the next few weeks (even though I'm itching to do it NOW), I'll be getting at least 4 hanging baskets. I try for, again, stuff that is colorful, hardy (it's a west-facing yard, so it bakes in the summer) and which will attract the pollinators. 

Once upon a time, I had a gorgeous rose garden. I had about 50 bushes, people would walk down the block to see it. And then, our maple tree got a fungus. Bad. 

Two years, and it decimated the roses. I talked to a biology professor I know and said, "What now???" He told me that the roses are done and done. No more roses. I planted some of those for people who I've lost. It took me 5 years to rebuild and renew with the native plants. 

I'm honestly having fun with it, and as things have progressed, people are now walking down the block to see what's coming up. 

I've even got a sort-of plan for the veggie garden. Wayyyyyyyy scaled back. I say that now. Watch this space, because sure as God made little green apples, it's more than likely that I will bring back a few too many tomato plants. 

Random Picture... 

So, funny enough, my phone is nuts. If I grab it the wrong way, I get a screenshot. Which is cool, but in my "photos" app, I have at least a dozen of these... And while I still miss Tippi, it's just laughable that I can't manage to grab my phone without taking another shot.

I still need to organize my pictures, just because I feel like I'm scrambling around to find things every so often. And yeah, everyone says that. I've been saying it as long as I've had singleton socks in the knitting bags. 

Anyone have a decent system to organize them? I have most of them stored on the cloud, because otherwise, my computer's hard drive would be the size of a room. My phone has an Android operating system, and I have to do something to get things into folders, on the phone. On the cloud, I can do it easier. 

I'm open to suggestions! In the meantime, I'm going to go knit some more, and probably will grab my phone once or twice more today and get more pictures of Tippi...

350

Three hundred fifty. 

Three. Hundred. Fifty...  Stitches. In the project I frogged and re-started. 

First off, the Secret Project is on the blocking boards, and tomorrow, I'll have Hubby help me with the linings. He also helps block for me sometimes, and is a great hand-winder accessory when I don't want to drag out my swift and ballwinder. There's a benefit to growing up with sisters who knit. 

And then I had to decide what would be next. I found my socks - which will be my "carry along and knit while you wait" project. It's amazing how many socks you can knit using this method. They're my 8x8 pair: it's a very wide rib and it looks pretty interesting with this yarn, which is a Lorna's Laces that's quite old. I started a pair with these and frogged them for some reason. 

It was interesting switching from size 3 needles to the 1.5 - you'd think I went from timbers to toothpicks, and both are kind of small, aren't they? 

I'm enjoying working with Lorna's Laces. I love the feel of the yarn. Though the socks are a bit smallish for me at 64 stitches. I've been liking 68 stitches; 72 is really too big. But maybe with the ribbing, the 64 won't be too small. We shall see. I'm going to do the regular heel flap on these. 

My next pair will be a broken rib, with a Strong heel. I've done one like that already, in grey variegated, but I want to use some of my stash - I might have a solid blue that would look good with that pattern. 

The Knitting...

The secret of casting on 350 stitches with neither too little or too much yarn on the left-hand? 

I wish I knew. 

I always end up either having to re-do the cast on (oh, that's fun!) or doing the opposite and having a lot more yarn (like a couple feet more) but I'm so relieved at not running out that I don't want to do it a 3rd time!

So I ended up choosing the "Long Sands" Tee that I had started last summer - I think. Because I lost my notes and I had no idea where I'd put them. So I wasn't sure which row I was on, but I knew I was in the middle of the lace bit. 

I frogged it. I wasn't happy, but I really wanted to finish this the first time around. It got set aside for a couple other projects, and my notes, which I thought I had clipped to the board, were nowhere to be found. 

This time, I jotted the details in my knitting notebook. I need to remember to do that, or put stuff in a binder so that it doesn't get separated from the project. 

The yarn is Quince & Co. linen and it's a beautiful silvery-grey color called "Moon." 

I didn't realize that there were dropped stitches in the lace pattern. I'm not a fan of dropped stitches, but there you have it, and I'm just going to have to suck that up, right? 

Linen, as my friend Sonda used to say, can be a bit rough on the hands; there's no give and it's not easy to maintain a decent tension on the fabric. And once you get it done, you have to wash your project at least 3 times. That gets the stiffness out of it and makes the fabric easier to wear. 

If you think about it, linen is the oldest and most sturdy fabric. Found in the ancient tombs. So if I can ever get that thing done, it will certainly outlive me!

The lace pattern required a bit of fiddling and I think I may have done something one-stitch-off, but I will live with it. I'm not pulling that out. I put simple yarn stitch markers between each pattern repeat, just so I could keep track. It's a 12-row repeat, so we'll see if I mucked it up too much. It reminds me of when I used to get permanent waves: the "papers" that they used! Here's what I ended up doing, and I must say it was pretty colorful! I'll take them out on the odd rows where there's no lace going on. 

So, knitting hack: If you don't have stitch markers (or you don't have enough), then use some lighter weight yarn. Just make a loop and tie a knot. That works a treat for markers and if you have yarn leftover from other projects, that's a great way to use it up. 

There are reports out there that say you shouldn't put your yarn scraps out for birds, because they get tangled in the material, and often, the yarn doesn't biodegrade, so it just sticks around, much like soda straws and other things we don't need hanging around in nature. 

Vax'd Again...

So today I got my 4th Covid shot (a/k/a the second booster). I spoke to my primary care doctor and she said that if I was going to get any vaccines, I should keep up with the Covid ones and get the shingles shot (actually 2 jabs), which I am doing. 

I don't even have a sore arm, but one never knows. Several folks have reported "sick as a dog," to "just kind of tired," to "what was the license plate of that bus that hit me." 

I haven't had a reaction to ANY of the shots, except for a bit of a headache from one. Fingers crossed that I can embark tomorrow on the finishing of the Secret Project, and continuing round and round with the Long Sands. 

The folks at the pharmacy consolidated all my vax records onto one card, so it makes it easier. And I like the bandages: they shoot right through this thing, and it's one of the few that doesn't make me itch. 

Random Picture...

When one makes drop biscuits with vegan butter, they're automatically rendered non-vegan when you add smoked Provolone. Along with some herbs to add a bit more zing. 

Kid #2, the vegan, gave me vegan butter, which was supposed to an addition to potatoes which I'd already made. Slight miscommunication there... So I decided to use it for drop biscuits. But then I considered that they needed cheese. Just because. So they're vegan-non-vegan... 

It's a simple recipe from the Better Homes & Gardens cookbook, just flour, salt, a bit of sugar, baking powder, butter, and milk. So I guess they weren't anywhere near vegan in the first place. You put the dry ingredients in a bowl, then cut in the butter. Add the milk all at once and stir just to combine and then drop 'em on a baking sheet (or two...). Of course, you can Google the recipe. It's worth a shot for a quick treat to add to dinner. They bake up in about 12 minutes. 

Looking for yoga but there's no studio near you? Don't want to be in a studio? We can help. 

Call/text us at (815) 546-2770 or email at info@just-breatheyoga.com for more information.

Just Breathe Yoga Studio is a boutique yoga studio specializing in small classes with personalized adjustments for each student. While yoga is for every body, we know that every body is different. Each person gets their own specific recommendations, based on their needs. 

The studio follows Illinois Covid-19 policies and mandates. We practice mask-optional; teachers use hands-on adjustments at their discretion. 

Zoom classes and hybrid (both Zoom and in-person) classes available. Check our website. Private sessions and small group classes available in-person and online. Special events like birthday yoga, bridal yoga, etc. are also available at reasonable rates. 

Hold My Beer...

As if doping in the Olympics wasn't enough? Vlad decides to take back Ukraine as if he actually owns it. And then has the blazing balls to say, "There will be trouble if they try to stop me." 

Looks like Vlad is getting the trouble... And also, my personal opinion is TFG needs to be OFF the airwaves. He needs to shut the pie hole and the press should be, I dunno -- over him? I know it's all clicks now. It's not even "if it bleeds, it leads," but "if the GQP says more outrageous crap, we get more clicks" rather than, perhaps noting that the jobs are up in January. And the pandemic, while not over, is getting to a point where the death counts aren't so high anymore. Though there's another variant, so we shall see if we get to have our masks off for a red hot minute before all the chickens come home to roost. 

I went to Ravelry (yeah, I know all the stuff about access and all that, and I should've done something different, but there you are). Sought out a Ukranian designer, picked 3 shawl patterns, and ordered them. I know it's not a ton of money; there are folks signing up for Air BnB in Ukraine, and donating that money to the owners of the houses. You have to pick houses owned by real people, not a real estate company or the like. And the owners of the homes are grateful -- and in many cases, can probably get the money to where it's needed quicker than my shawl pattern designer will get her money. Especially if the internet gets locked down. 

It's something. I've got an event coming at the studio which will raise funds for refugee organizations. 

I'm honestly glad to see that we're not using Russian oil and gas now. It was only a few percentages of our entire dependence on everyone else's oil, but it makes a point. 

Today, I gassed up my car and it was $4.29/gallon. I bet by tonight, it's closer to $5.00. But then again, we're not getting shelled, and we have intact homes and functioning hospitals. So. Complain about the gas prices at your peril. 

And no, Biden DIDN'T raise fuel prices. No president in the history of this country, no matter which party, can affect gas prices. It's a commodity. It rises and falls according to the market. And the market is susceptible to the whims of forces beyond a mere president. 

The Knitting...

Well, one down... I finished the blue striped socks. Last night. Wearing them today. I'm glad they're finished, even though for some reason, the toes don't quite match. But I'm fine with that, because the toes on my feet don't match...

They're on 64 stitches, and I should have done them larger. I have to find a sweet spot. 72 stitches is too large, even with my biker calves. And 64 is, let's say, a tad snug. 

At least now the toes mostly match, the foot length matches, and the heels not only MATCH, but are a decent length in the heel flap. I know most heel flaps are around 2.5" but I like mine a bit longer. I also pick up way too many stitches in the gusset, but that's ok. You can see how the edge of the heel is a bit longer, and the decreases are many. That also fits higher arches. So I just keep doing what I'm doing. 

That's the best thing about socks -- you can totally customize them. One of these pairs, I'm going to try an arch support at the underside. I'm going to go back to the Box in the Closet, and have Hubby pick another bag.

What's the "Box in the Closet?" you ask... Well. Many years ago (yeah, MANY), I set myself a challenge, which got sidetracked by baby knitting. The twins I was knitting for are now 8 years old. Ahem. 

Anyway. 

I put 12 brown paper bags into a tote. In those brown paper bags were 12 balls of sock yarn, one per bag. The idea was to knit a pair of socks a month. 

Normally, this is do-able if you buckle down a bit more than I was doing. Did you know that if you carry your socks around with you all the time, you generally get a lot more knitting done? Well, I wasn't doing that for a number of reasons, one of which was the knitting for said TWINS... 

I know I have several singletons, but I also have kind of a case of start-itis, brought on by a number of things, and I know that deadlines will be pressing upon me. But that being said, I'm looking forward to diving back in to the Box of Sox. 

Next up is my "secret project," which has had its deadline moved up a bit closer than I thought it would be! 

I am quite literally keeping this one hidden till it's done. It's a design I worked out myself, so I'm not sure how it's going to work. We shall see... But for now, I'm just going to beaver away at this and get it done, hopefully, by the deadline imposed upon me by circumstance. 

I'm also hoping to finish at least one more pair of socks, by making the mate, and maybe finish up the Copland shawl I started 2 years ago. Especially since the colorway is now, apparently, in fashion, being black and brown. The brown is hand-painted, and it's glorious. The black is also hand-painted so while it's black, there are layers of black, if you can imagine that. That shawl got set aside for Kid #2's afghan to finish. I'm not sure when I'll have more baby knitting to do. 

This will be my year to learn cables, too. I keep telling myself this. I keep procrastinating. This is the year. I'm going to do it. Honest. 

Gardening in General...

We're not quite sure what we're going to do for the veggie garden. I do want to plant sunflowers (not

solely because of Ukraine -- I've wanted sunflowers for a while now). At the local museum, they're selling native plant seeds, and I may pick some up to add to the wildflower garden in the front. 

I think our "old favorites" will return: radishes, romaine, carrots. Rosemary is a standard. I think I'd like to do celery this year. Last year, we got a taste of it, and -- much like carrots, it was good!

Inside, Hubby's orchids are going nuts. NUMBER SEVEN has bloomed. We seriously have SEVEN plants in bloom right now. We have nine total, and it looks like two will need re-potting, which means we have to figure out where to put two more plants. Our space is compact, to be kind. One more is budding, and ready to pop in a week or so. 

One of the cattleyas is blooming, the pink one with a scent. The one big phal is blooming and the other is the one ready to pop. And all the mini phals are in bloom. It's crazy. And beautiful. 

And we need that beauty right now. 

I have to remember what that little plant is behind this pink-and-white mini-phal. It's kind of like a succulent, and its purpose is to attract the little midgies which like to congregate around the orchids - like a Venus Fly Trap, it draws them in and ... eats them? Anyway, the flowers remind me somewhat of violets, and the greens are like hens-and-chicks but not as rigid. I had the paper that the orchid place gave me. I just don't know where I put it. 

Random Picture...

My studio is located in an old plaza and recently, we've had some pretty vile winds. The awnings over the suites were looking pretty care-worn, and two wind storms later? They were just trashed. Our landlord is very good at keeping the property up. He had all the awnings taken down and a week or two ago, they were returned, brand-new. 

He also put LED lights around the roof parapet, which is nice - the parking lot is well-lit anyway, but this adds more light. I teach night classes, and a little more brightness in the lot isn't going to be anything I'm going to complain about. 

Actually, we're talking about lighting at our house. A week ago, a neighbor's garage got tagged. We all realized that the area around 2 blocks was kind of dark. So we're all chatting, figuring out who has cameras, talking about whether we need to talk to the power company about the utility poles in the alleys, fixing lights atop them to light up where we park. 

I've lived here a long, long time. It feels weird to have this problem. 

Looking for yoga but there's no studio near you? Don't want to be in a studio? We can help. 

Call/text us at (815) 546-2770 or email at info@just-breatheyoga.com for more information.

Just Breathe Yoga Studio is a boutique yoga studio specializing in small classes with personalized adjustments for each student. While yoga is for every body, we know that every body is different. Each person gets their own specific recommendations, based on their needs. 

The studio follows Illinois Covid-19 policies and mandates; all are masked coming into and out of the studio and social distancing is required. We practice mask-optional; teachers use hands-on adjustments at their discretion. 

Zoom classes and hybrid (both Zoom and in-person) classes available. Check our website. Private sessions and small group classes available in-person and online. Special events like birthday yoga, bridal yoga, etc. are also available at reasonable rates.