I Have Something to Say...

I have been very circumspect about a lot of things on here, because I'm normally a very private person, but I've kinda had it and I need to say something. 

"Stay in your lane" is normally a pejorative statement uttered by underqualified white guys while they lecture someone (usually a woman or a person of color, or -- looking at you, JD Vance, and THE FREAKING POPE) on a subject that they really have no idea about, but because of their white-guy-special-privilege, they get away with saying a lot of crap and demeaning a lot of people. 

But in this case, I'm issuing a "stay in your lane" regarding a situation which has come up. 

If a person has, say, 40-ish years of experience doing something, and is accomplished in their field, and has been noted as a professional in that field (i.e., has been paid to do the thing), if you do not have those or similar qualifications, and this person has been doing a job - without pay, and gladly, because otherwise it wouldn't get done and materially affects this person's ability to do another particular job... and if you think that in spite of all the above, YOU still know better? 

Stay in your lane. 

I try to not let this kind of stuff bother me, but man-o-man...some days you just want to tell people exactly what you think. Mind you, that's not always the wisest thing, and you can get yourself into a lot more trouble. But sometimes, things DO need to be said because otherwise, they live in your head rent-free, and you don't deserve that. 

So. Take my advice. If you're confronted with a situation where you want to make a suggestion, please don't let that stop you from making the suggestion. But to wholesale say to that person, "You are incapable of doing the thing you've been doing for 40+ years, because I can do it better, it can't be all that hard, it's just plugging things in..." Yeah. No. 

Stay in your lane. Resist the temptation to open your mouth, because you're only going to insert your foot all the way up to your quads. And I'm not helping you pull it out. I'll actually help shove it in a bit more, just because you deserve it. 

The Garden...

Sadly, we haven't seen a caterpillar on the parsley all season. We really haven't seen the Swallowtails either. 

The Borage has been covered by little black ants. The chervil was destroyed by same ants... 

We trimmed off all the red romaine, and Hubby left the stubs -- surprisingly, we're getting a second leafing of this lettuce. And to be honest, that's about the only lettuce right now I'd trust to eat. Thanks RFK jr and what's left of the CDC... 

We have 6 tomatoes on one plant, and the one on the Cherokee Purples GOT EATEN BY A TREE RAT....  so frustrating! I don't expect any of the yellow cherry tomatoes to actually happen, because I bought that plant late. It was a "rescue buy," and if it actually grows? That's a win. 

The Prairie Blazing Star (Liatris), also known as Gayfeather (who knew?) is doing well, but the 3 new ones? Bunny appetizers. Two of the 3 new ones appear to be trying to come back. Fingers crossed. 

The Coneflowers (the purple native ones) are doing quite well. Happy with that. As are the Brown Eyed Susans. I did plant some additional seeds, but I don't see any evidence of them coming up. 

The basil is going nuts. I'm letting one plant go to flower for the bees, and nipping the other one. The Kid is in Maine, and has tried basil ice cream, so I need to freeze some of this, and see if we can re-create it. 

While the petunias are a bit leggy, they're still blooming, so I'm letting them do their thing. 

And while the dill and Monster Bleeding Heart did come up? Nothing like they were last year. The Bleeding Heart didn't even bloom. And even the Icelandic Poppy was wonky. 

On the plus side, even though this year (so far), we haven't put up the fountain (a/k/a "Birdy Bidet"), we've put up two bird baths and a saucer on the ground for the other animals. And the birds have been rotating between the two baths in the front and the one in the back. For a while, the back one rarely got used, but they've found it and they seem to be very happy about it. 

We usually have a line-up, and woe betide us if we let the baths get low -- they yell at us! 

We're in the middle of a heat wave, complicated by smoke coming down from Canada. But who cares about global warming? Surely nobody in Washington, DC... 

Hold the Phone...

A miracle has happened. I came home after the meeting I referenced in my first paragraph. I was frustrated, hangry, and just Not. In. The. Mood... So I made a sandwich for lunch. I had an avocado that felt a bit squishy. 

I thought, "Oh, FINE. Just. FINE. I'll probably have to toss this one... " because why not - that's just the way my morning went. 

Wait a sec. Here it is. And it's freaking PERFECT. And it was delicious. It didn't quite make up for the crap I put up with at the meeting, but ya know what? 

It was perfect. In the moment, I thought, this is just ... perfect. 

The Knitting...

The afghan is moving a-pace... I might -- JUST - might get it done by the time we visit. I have the two gold panels done, and I'm working on the second green one. There are 3 green panels in the project. 

I'm really liking how the colors are working together. I wasn't sure as I picked them, but the gold is also a bit of a "heather" which seems to play well with the green. The green heather seems to have a little of a yellow cast to it, so it works nicely. 

All that garter stitch...Whew! This separates the knitters from the knitters! You can really see the unique quirks in the yarn, and this is a "tension test." You can see the evenness of your stitches -- or the unevenness? Anyway, like I always say, the plain knitting is where you see more than you might want to. 

I found a dropped stitch about 3 rows back. So the ONE nice thing about all this garter is that I could rip back with impunity. Which I did. I must've been knitting late at night, because I normally am pretty good about paying attention to my knitting; only because dropping a stitch terrifies me!

I can't wait to start putting it together. And -- since we're in that heat wave, of course I'd be working on an afghan. Lucky it's in parts, and I'm not having a whole big wool-blend afghan in my lap! 

My next project will be a single sock - I have to find one of my sock bags. We're thinking of taking some short trips, and socks are great car-knitting. I usually try to have the fiddly bits done: ribbing and heel turn. So I will knit on the leg or foot - the mindless stuff. A 7 - 8" leg takes a while to knit, so it works for a trip. 

The Grand-dog...

Well, we have Basil for a while. It's been a long time, and she's shedding. A lot. I'd forgotten how much ONE dog can shed, and it's like, "How did we do THREE DOGS shedding either simultaneously or in sequence?" It was a constant snow-storm in the house, I guess. I never noticed when they were around, but I sure do now that they're not...

She's doing really well, considering (the heat wave...) -- we have to be careful when we walk her, because of the hot sidewalks, and she really zonks out when she gets back in. 

She has, however, proven herself to be The Sploot Queen. She sploots on the carpet, on the floor, and even on the couch as she's napping. Boy, I wish MY hips were that limber again! 

She hasn't quite plopped herself on the AC vent, and surprisingly, she's quite incurious about what's going on outside. She's not much of a barker, but I don't think she has to -- take a look at her and you'll think twice about anything stupid you might want to try. 

Fun story: Well, it's not actually fun... Basil gets car-sick. We've tried everything: not feeding her, confining her, even taking away her water (which sucks). And finally, the vet suggested some meds. The last time I transported her, she yarked up so much (on an empty stomach) that she literally flooded my back cargo hold; thank goodness for WeatherTech liners. She's nearly 70 lbs. That's a lot of "tummy juice." 

This time, we had a slight miscommunication. I was at a birthday party (80th) for a friend, and I told her I had to bug out early because Basil's ride home was coming. Hubby gave her the pills around 1 p.m. We waited. And waited. And waited. You're supposed to give it 1 hour after eating and 2 hours BEFORE travel. She hadn't eaten since 6 a.m., so we know her tummy was empty. About an hour after she had the pills, she took quite a nap. 

Finally, around 4 p.m. I get a call, "I thought you were bringing her back..." (sigh) So into the car we go. Basil was doing really well. I kept thinking, "don't jinx it, don't jinx it, don't jinx it," and "who's the patron saint of dog barf??" 

I pulled into the driveway. And.... There was NO barf. None. Not even a tummy rumble. We were gobsmacked! 

I think, to make this all work, we have to give her the meds, WAIT for longer than 2 hours, and then she can get into the car. That's such a good outcome. She was so upset, she'd barf her guts out, and it was just so nerve-wracking to drive her anywhere longer than 20 minutes. 

So. Yay for a miscommunication? I'll take it. 

The Houseplants...

Well. My snake plants have had babies! We have three pots which have little pups. Two of the older ones are a little shaky, but I think they're still ok. And the big one in the back (upper right corner) has FLOWERED!! Yay!!! 

And Hubby's orchids are really doing nicely as well. A few are ready to pop again, I think this is the third time this year they've bloomed. 

I'm still looking for that elusive Golden Haanii, which was one of the first ones I bought and promptly killed. My Moonshine is a bit leggy; it seems to like the grow lights a bit too much. But I don't want to risk moving it. 

And my baby spider plant is fluffing out well. So the green thumb is working inside almost as good as the one outside. 

Random Picture...

We've had some pretty impressive storms. Lots of night time tornado threats, too. This was a shot I took from the studio, and these seriously look like "mushroom clouds," and were quite stunning when I left after class. 

That was a night when we had some particularly intense storms. With hail and all... while we didn't have any actual funnel clouds, they were around us in other counties. 

We've had so much wet weather. The maples didn't do their "twirly bird" thing, and the storm sewers are running like crazy. The rivers are high. I mean, I'm not necessarily complaining -- too many folks out west and in Canada are in droughts with wildfires burning like crazy. 

And in case you even THINK it, no -- raking the forest floor won't help. These are ANCIENT forests burning. Mother Nature is screaming at us. When will we listen?

We're pretty much past the tipping point; right now, we need to realize that the Earth will survive. As far as Mother Earth thinks, WE are the pestilence. We can be gotten rid of. And it seems like she's really trying. 

 

I "May" Have Skipped a Month...

My goal was to blog at least once a month. I was doing pretty well, and then -- May happened. I'm not really sure WHAT happened, but it's near the end of June, so I need to get skippy and get back on track. 

Probably lots to cover; I just have to think about it. 

Orange Foolious...

Those who refuse to read (or understand) history are indeed doomed to repeat it. In the War-Not-War-Temper-Tantrum, we're either bombing the crap out of Iran or we're not. All in a 20-minute span of time. After he ripped up the Obama agreement - because, you know, black guy negotiated it and Orange Foolious hates him with a burning passion - he wrote his own. Or someone did. And it gave Iran EVERYthing. All. The. Things. All the things that Obama had withheld for our benefit. But hey, who needs to worry - because The Great Deal Maker has spoken. 

Ha. 

Emanuel Macron deserves a medal. He got that doddering old fart to sign the "agreement," not a treaty or anything actually legally BINDING, but a "memorandum of agreement," at the Palace of Versailles. 

You know, where the Nazis surrendered. 

Foolious was totally impressed by Versailles. Who wouldn't be? But you know him - slap gold on it, and it's all good. He had no inkling of the optics. He was dazzled by the Hall of Mirrors and all the gold. He was unaware of the history that was made there, and oblivious to history HE was making there. And not in a good way. 

This MOU is basically surrender by the US. Iran got all the things they wanted, including, basically, reparations, AND the right to charge tolls thru the Strait of Hormuz. 

Give an idiot a pen and a microphone... 

I hear now that Congress finally passed a War Powers petition. Of course Fetterman objected. Four Repubs, including Susan "Concerned" Collins and Lisa "I need to think about it" Murkowski, crossed over to sign with the Dems. 

Of course, this will likely be taken up with the bought-and-paid-for SCOTUS, so we shall see if it even holds water. 

The Knitting...

It's been a busy bit here. I was making good progress on the white Sophie Hood, but FINALLY heard from Kid #1 about the colors for the wedding afghan. 

Did I tell you that Kid #1 eloped? Yep. So, as per usual, I wanted to do an afghan and it seemedto take forever to get their favorite colors. I set the Sophie aside, and picked a pattern called "Panel Throw" from Plymouth because I'm again using Encore Worsted, my go-to afghan yarn. It's a 5-panel throw, and I decided to add a twist to it. I'm using a dark pewter to outline each knitted panel, and that pewter will be crocheted, so that I can link the panels together. 

First off, my seaming skills suck. Second, I want this used, so I want something stronger than a mattress join. And third, with the colors I'm using, I feel like the pewter will make this look a bit like stained glass, which will be cool. 

The colors are Sunflower and Shamrock Heather. They said "green & yellow," which is, frankly, not MY fave. Because either the colors look like a baby afghan or they look like the Green Bay Packers. These aren't easy colors to work with. But I think the two of them are ok. I ran this by my friend J, and she said, "I don't like them." I said, "Well, that's good, because it's not for you!" 

Mind you, I'm not jazzed myself, but I think in the end, it'll look good. The panelsare elongated diamonds, and the initial pattern had tassels. Nope. I don't do those. The body of each panel is 49" long, so it's going to be a nice sized throw. With the addition of the grey, it will be a tad bigger as well. 

Nerdy Notes: Encore Worsted, Color 9862 (Sunflower) - 2 skeins; Color 389 (pewter for trim) - 3 skeins; Color 6004 (Shamrock Heather) - 3 skeins. Size 8 square circular needles (24" cord). I'm fairly sure I have too much of the pewter, but I also know crochet takes about 3x the yarn that knitting does...so I can always use grey tones anyway. Pattern: Soft Serve Panel Throw (free). 

It's a mindless knit after you get 36 stitches on the needles. Which is nice. At the end, you decrease till you have 3 stitches, so it's a beginner pattern, considering. And -- it's a challenge, because your tension has to be pretty even. My granny used to say that you could do all the "fancy" stuff you wanted, but "it's the plain stuff where your skill shows." And she wasn't wrong. 

I did have a small tragedy. My square circulars -- the cord broke. I dropped like 9 or 10 stitches, and had to frog back a couple rows. I use a 24" cord, which is easy on the hands. I had to switch, temporarily, to a 16" cord while Hubby attempted a repair. The 16" is easy for hats, but for this, it was a bit cumbersome. 

It's fixed now, and I'm plugging along. I've got about 31" done on the Sunflower, so we'll see how this goes. We're planning to go out there in September, but I sincerely doubt that this will be done by then - I'm monogamous with this - not knitting ANYTHING till this is done. So A's chicken will wait. I did have to order yarn for it, so while I was ordering this, I got hers. 

I did finish the Opal socks. They turned out well - the lilac color is quite close to the pink that I made ages ago, so it's hard to tell them apart if you're not paying attention. They fit nicely and I hope to get back to socks, the Sophie and the two chickens soon. I'll dig up a pic of the socks for next month... 

The needlework will wait. I also found BABY EMOTIONAL SUPPORT CHICKENS. Oh. My. I have the pattern and while I'd love to whack out a flock of these for my teachers at the studio, I'm not sure how that will happen. They'll be rainbow chickens if I do get to them, though. They're about the size of a 12" softball, for reference. 

Retreat...

So I went on a retreat for our women's group, and it was up in Adrian, MI. I didn't take a lot of pictures; one of the other gals did, which is nice. Most of the time, I'm taking pictures, but this time, I just wanted to be a participant. 

The retreat center was lovely. I got outside on the last evening, and was able to walk their (very big) labyrinth, and just move around. You know how you need to move once you've been sitting all day? That felt good. 

My room was nice, except for one thing. The AC was broken. I thought it was cold in there, but I don't mind that - I like cold. It didn't really occur to me. So Friday night, I get myself tucked into bed, and things go pear-shaped from there: The AC cycles on every 20-30 minutes. Every. Half. Hour. And BOOM! It starts. The cycle ends, and another BOOM! -- like someone's breaking into my room. Every time I was just drifting off, the thing knocked so loudly, it woke me back up. 

We're in a convent. That's seriously some big security. Doors are locked, people are badged, it's pretty safe. I knew in my head that it was the AC, but in that little "lizard brain" part of my mind, I felt like someone was trying to get in. So needless to say, I slept nary a wink. I was able to get a different room, thankfully they weren't completely full up! 

I took a workshop on iconography, which has always been an interest of mine. Of course, we didn't do a full-blown icon - that takes about a week, if not more! We did a simple one. It's not museum-quality, but you know what? I got some great insight on how the process works. The woman who taught it is a Deacon in the Episcopal Church, and has studied with Russian experts as well as Byzantine and Greek artists. Her work is stunning! 

The one thing I'd do differently would be that I would not "flip" the image. The initial drawing had Our Lady facing to the left, but many of us flipped it to the right, as Marcia (our instructor) had done hers. That made the outlining process a lot harder. Even though I'm ambidexterous, I had a hard time figuring out what was what. I should have just left it like it was. I did add a few things, but I figure nobody's going to toss lightning bolts at me...hopefully!

There's a whole process for this craft, and it's very meditative. I would love to take another of her workshops, and I'm hoping to do so in the autumn. 

We all hated the food...it just wasn't good. On Friday night there was pizza, and we had enough of that left over (it was good) that several of us took a piece to munch on for our ride home. We all left before noon on Sunday. I pulled into a rest stop about an hour into the drive to eat my pizza and a banana. (This matters...)

Got back on the road, and when we hit the Indiana border, the heavens opened. It started out in fits and starts, but about halfway through, we were all going about 40 mph with our flashers on - on I-80, where if you're under 75 mph in normal weather, you're going too slowly. 

After a couple harrowing hours driving among big trucks which were sending up enough spray to really challenge my wipers and the idiot drivers who not only didn't slow down but wouldn't put their headlights on, I ended up pulling off at the Gary exit, reprogrammed my GPS and took back roads the rest of the way home. I didn't realize how much I was gripping the wheel and how tense I was!

Monday morning, I was supposed to meet a friend...and I just felt --- off. Well. Let's just say it was a lot like colonoscopy prep. All day. Hubby finally made me eat something, and that was a big mistake. Tuesday around 2 a.m. THAT came up the OTHER way. 

That's a horrible decision to have to make -- which end lands on the toilet??? 

I stayed home Tuesday, and Wednesday got a doctor's appointment. It seems like I had a case of food poisoning. There was nothing bacterial or viral in my blood or urine tests. And the pizza I grabbed? It was tucked into a bag, not sitting in the sun, and it wasn't out so long that it would've gotten bad. (that's where that timing matters)

I have no idea - nobody else had this happen, because I asked. I lost 7 lbs., which was not good, because with having A-fib in the first place, the drop in electrolytes can be a problem. 

I'm all better now, my weight is back where it was. I had to postpone my weekly shot, but now I'm back on track. 

Health Overall...

So I went shopping for new bras. I'd been putting it off. I'm convinced that this is as traumatic as shopping for a bathing suit. The girls are deflated, 50 lbs. lighter, and I'm older, so gravity is taking its toll. 

On the way out, I saw a t-shirt that I adored. I love "The Starry Night" and I bought the shirt. It's a JUNIOR size. I have NEVER worn a "junior" sized anything! I'm pretty jazzed about that. 

I think I'll be doing maintenance in a few months. I have been hanging at the same weight for a while now, and it's time. 

My BP is in a good place. My energy is great - I'm doing more at the barn and today I took a walk all by myself... (I suck at motivation some days, so this is a big deal...) and the only thing I could wish for is better sleep. 

That, though -- that's kind of a victim of the existential crap floating around in our world today. I do what I can. 

I did a Yoga & Horses class this past weekend, and I've been approached to TEACH one - which will be fun. I got to work with Tater, one of my "boys" whose stalls I clean each weekend. He's such a cutie, and I enjoyed getting to work with him more. 

Random Picture... 

Well. My car turned 100,000 miles on the trip. She's showing her age, but we're going to wait a few years to make sure that we're in a good place for me to get a new one. I'm looking at a Subaru Forester. I've always wanted one, and since I'm now looking at overall safety as I get older, I think this is a good choice. There's enough room to haul Basil if needed, and enough room for my barn stuff. I'm not an off-road person, though I do some short travel. We're looking at a hybrid, so waiting a few years is a good idea, to let the tech settle. 

Hubby has a hybrid, and it's a Toyota, which has had a history for several years with good results in the hybrid arena. While Subaru has a lot of the Toyota tech, I still want to wait a bit to see how things go. 

Any Subaru owners out there? Your opinion is welcome! 

 

A Listicle... Maybe

It looks like it's gonna be monthly this year, kids... At least that's the trend. Randomly, unless I get inspired. 

1. I continue to finish things; several badges instead of the MTI hats, for those protests that will happen when it's too hot to wear a hat. Started a pair of socks. I'm about on the toe, I think I've found a spiral toe (as opposed to a star toe?) that I can do. Nerdy Notes: US 1.5 DPNs (Zings, color-coded, really nice!) and a random Opal (my ball band is MIA). This is a Vanilla pattern, with an Eye of Partridge heel (flap & gusset) and honestly, one of the shortest gussets I've done!

2.  Things to be done: A's Chicken - that repair has to be from scratch. Not enough original yarn to fix it, and I have to find something similar. Trip to Betsey's to see what I can find... Mom's Sophie Hood in white - I have to figure out where I'm at in the pattern. ONE single sock - any ONE single sock; I just need to make a pair out of the singletons I have. And several other things - I have a list of WIPs. 

3. I have a wedding afghan to start. I know the groom's favorite color - green. Just need to know the bride's - so I can make that work. Then I have to figure out what I want to do - knitted takes less yarn, but more time. Crochet is just the opposite: I can crochet faster than I knit but it takes almost twice the yarn. 

4. I need to pick up that counted-cross stitch Pecadillo - I'm on the 2nd quadrant and I'd like to get it done for Xmas. And I have 2 more "trifles" that I want to do for ME. The Pecadillo is coming along nicely with the beads and the metallic floss. I'm still not certain how I'll finish the piece. It's part of a 3-some, but it doesn't have to be. So do I finish it as a singleton for the recipient, or do I do a 3-year-long Xmas project for them? I'm not inclined to do a bell-pull thing - the pieces are lovely squares, but too big for a bell-pull. I'm pretty sure that as the weather warms up, the counted cross-stitch will be my preferred project. Knitting, depending on the project, is too heavy for the summer. 

5. Rosaries: The Demented Doofus and the Drunk are ... taking on the Pope. Yeah, the guy who was raised on the southside of Chicago (cue Jim Croce here, if you're old enough, or Google him). Schooled in Philly. Ministered in Peru (the country, not the town in IL) for decades. And now lives in the Vatican. He (Pope Leo) has called for a national day of prayer and even us former RCs, the Jews, Muslims, Lutherans, etc. - we're all rallying around. I have (top to bottom) my paternal grandma's rosary (dad brought it back from Mexico when he was stationed in San Diego) - which is silver, and the beads are roses; an Anglican rosary (of course, muted...) which is a lovely warm wood one; and my maternal grandma's rosary from Our Lady of the Snows, where all good Catholic grannies made a pilgrimage at one point or another, which is crystal beads. Frankly, I can do a Catholic rosary in my sleep, so I'll probably do that. Prayer is prayer. 

6. I found The. Best. way to caramelize onions... Start them in the oven! You can use whatever Dutch Oven you have; I'm still holding out to find an old but still decent LeCruset at the thrift store, but I do have an old cast iron one. About 1 hour in the oven at 350 or so, with a stick of butter and a couple tablespoons of olive oil. I ended up finishing them in a big skillet, because the onions discharged so much water. But it was sooooooooooo much easier than standing there stirring onions in a saute pan till my arms fell off. Now I have to do a dish with those onions. I originally used them in a rustic loaf, topped with Asiago cheese, but I think I might want to do a savory bread pudding or something else. 

7.  Dinner - homemade pizza, hubby's crust, my sauce. And this is leftovers for lunch the next day. Is it me, or is my family the only one who does cold pizza for ANY meal? Hubby always thinks I'm nuts, but a quick poll at our last family gathering revealed that most of my nephews agree with me and so does my sibling... We usually make a very thin crust, and use plain Italian sausage (not the spicy one), with 1/4 c. of my sauce -- we've been making smaller sized ones, since it's just the 2 of us. Though I don't get "bored" of food, and I can eat the same thing for days... Anyway, we add shallots or leeks sometimes, and mushrooms when I can sneak them in. And then about 3 or 4 kinds of cheese. I would like to expand that basic recipe to add a few other things, like roasted garlic or fresh chopped herbs when we have them. Though I do use herbs we've frozen. 

8. Cat Loaf - at the barn a few weeks ago, we were "invaded" by Canada geese. With all the rain, we ended up with a small pond near the community garden and the birds just flew in. They got all snippy about our coming and going in and out of the barn. Barn cat Brownie was on "observation" and (smartly) decided to stay in the barn. Even the horses stopped eating because they heard the ruckus. One of the pair of geese was a little cheeky as I brought out two big buckets of crap... I threatened said goose with a dousing if he didn't back off. Hey - you use what you got, right? 

Random Picture: So over Easter, there was a tragedy. In our family, a few of us like a particular "relish" - my dad used to make it from scratch, and you could occasionally find it in the "ethnic" markets when I was a kid (particularly the Kosher markets). I had to google the correct spelling - my dad always called it "hren" with a strong rolled "r" -- so for years, that's what I thought it was. Actually, it's cvikla s chrenom -- seems that "chren" (imagine it with a rolled "r") is horseradish in Slovak. 

Anyway, I found it in big jars in our local Berkot's...until I didn't! According to the gal at the check-out, "All the Polish stuff has just been flying off the shelves." It's all in the same neighborhood, so I didn't bother to correct her. I ended up buying a jar of shredded beets, and since I always have horseradish at home, I made my own. Stick blender, about a cup of the beets, drained (they come with a vinegar base), and about a teaspoon of horseradish. You can adjust the heat! So let's see how long this lasts. 

And yes, I love beets. Roasted, in a salad, AS a salad, with goat cheese, in a relish or sauce... Bring 'em on! 

I guess I'll go back to finishing that sock. Hopefully, by the next time, I'll have made progress on Sock #2, and we can show off a few more WIPs. This is The Year of the Finished Projects, so I want to keep that streak going! 

 

I Have Thoughts....

I've been on a knitting binge - Melt the Ice hats. I'm on my 7th (and hopefully) last one. I've also made about 6 of the "badge" variety that you can pin on your shirt or jacket. I have to find some Primary Election knitting. I thought for a nano-second of bringing my mom's Sophie Hood to the polls but... that might not be my best idea. It's white and there is always the potential of spillage. I will probably grab a sock - I believe I have one on the needles where I can just do the leg for a while. I also have a shawl in progress, which is knit on the bias, fairly mindless. So that's the other option and frankly, that one is closer to being finished, so...there's that. 

Nerdy Notes: The hat on the left was made with Cascade 220 Superwash Sport, held double, with an I-cord tail. Knitted on size 8 circulars and DPNs as we got to the crown. The colorway is 893. 

Death Knell to SAVE Act...

Well, John Fetterman (D???- PA) finally READ the SAVE Act. Amazing. A legislator READS a bill before it's passed. And he decides that it's Not A Good Idea because it will affect HIS voters. 

You know what? This dude has been a hoodie-wearing disappointment since his health crisis -- and no, I'm not slamming him for that. 

I'm slamming his decisions that seem to fall in line with the Republicans more and more of the time. His constituents voted for him because he promised change and promised progressive values. That's not what they've been getting lately. 

And honestly, I do give him kudos for directly addressing his mental health. That's not my issue. Deal with your stuff, dude, and recognize that you're getting PLATINUM level benefits while a lot of your voters are not. Because of the way YOU have been voting. 

I don't understand Dems who vote for things that obviously don't align with democratic values and which do not benefit their constituents. Call me naive, and yeah, I do realize that most politicians lately are bought-and-paid-for by the billionaires. But I still think they should vote for things on OUR lists at least MOST of the time. 

The Knitting...

Like I said, #7 of the MTI hats. And 6 badges. I'm happy to knit these as long as I have stash. I have to tell you, my hat is FANTASTIC!!! I'm so happy with Wicked Tint Yarns. I was kind of dubious when the yarn was in the hank. I thought it wasn't "red" enough. But it knitted up more beautifully than I could've imagined - turns out it's a soft ruby-red that just feels so nice on my head. 

Nerdy Notes: The hat on the left was knitted with Wicked Tint Worsted, 100% Merino Superwash, colorway Melt ICE Red, on size 8 circulars and DPNs, with the I-cord arrangement for the top. This one has 7" of ribbing, and 1" of stockinette stitch before I started the decreases. One round of knitting in between each decrease round. 

I did the MTI variation with the I-cord and tassle, so it's a bit different from the one I'm currently knitting, which is the traditional one with the braid. I dipped into the acrylic stash and will be finishing this one for one of my students. 

The badges (I'm doing the flat ones) take about half an hour, and that includes the red felt I bought to line them. They do need to be lined, otherwise you have a curly little crescent roll on your hands. It's taken me a minute to figure out the best way to add the pin finding, I think that so far, a North/South alignment has worked for me. 

Nerdy Notes: The badge here was knitted in the same Cascade Superwash, the pattern is available free on Ravelry, and I did the "flat" version. I lined it with red felt on the back, and put a pin-back finding on it. I used size 5 needles. Took me about a half hour, which is light-speed for me. 

I will also admit that I am actually looking forward to NOT knitting the hats. They knit up quickly even though I've made some variations on the ribbing. The last one I did for Kid #2 was 2x2 rib. And mine is a twisted rib. I can see the value of the 6-7" ribbing in how it fits on your head, since these are essentially one-size-fits-all. But that much ribbing is my penance for my sins!

Primary Election Day...

So the primary in our state is this Tuesday, St. Patrick's Day. I'm wearing green. We have ben given strict instructions on what we can and can't wear. As it is, we're already told to not wear name badges: we're Judge A, Judge B, etc. We have to have our party on the badges, because in our state, we need a certain percentage of each party. 

Today and tomorrow I'm reviewing the training. I also have to find my Election Day Reading, and my Election Day Knitting. And get my meals/snacks ready. We have to bring our own, though we do have a precinct committee chair who usually supplies pizza for dinner. 

We have to be there at 5 a.m. to open the building and get set up, and voting starts at 6 a.m. We go till 7 p.m. and hopefully, everything tallies, then we drive it back to the County building (one judge of each party is in the car for "chain of custody" of the documents and tally box), and then we get home, if we're lucky, around 9 p.m. 

It's a long day. And we have to be there the whole time; so they prefer that we vote early.. 

I encourage everyone to get trained as an election judge so you can see the process in your state. Consider it your civic duty to understand. Use your own eyes, ears, and brains. 

Also, check out Vote 411, the system whereby questions are sent to those folks on your ballots, and you can check them out to educate yourself -- don't be a voter who doesn't know what they're doing! 

Vote in your primary election -- I can't stress how important this is. In our state, we do have to declare a party. We don't have what's called an "open primary," but that's different from state to state. Don't let your rights dwindle. They need exercising, and voting is the biggest right you have (for now). 

In my state (and I have to insert that qualifier every time I talk about this, because jurisdictions differ), we can declare a party in the primary but at the general, you can vote however you want. You can even change parties for each primary cycle -- unless you're an election judge. Then, they want you to pick one and stick with it.

Especially as women, we are facing some challenges by the Tangerine Toddler. He's determined, somehow, to get that SAVE Act passed and he always can rely on his "magic Sharpie" if he can't actually do it legislatively. Right now, as I noted, they don't have the votes. And some conservatives, who've actually READ what the act says, are saying, "Wowza, this is really gonna kill MY chances..." because it disenfranchises such a large swath of people. 

I was talking about this the other day with Hubby and ended up explaining why I went through the trouble to update my passport and get the RealID. Which, it turns out, according to SAVE, would NOT be an appropriate form of ID. 

What? 

Nope. The RealID is not acceptable as a form of ID to register to vote. For women, we have to make sure our names match throughout all of our ID, from birth certificate forward. So that means, for many of us, a couple of options. 

A passport is an approved ID. That's about $150-170. Funny thing, what I had to provide for my RealID was the SAME documentation as for a passport. 

And yet the RealID is "not approved." Go figure. 

Birth Certficate, marriage license, divorce decree(s) if appropriate, new marriage licenses... That's what women have to provide. 

Or -- you go to court and change your name on your birth certificate. Which essentially erases your original identity and your family line. 

The name change, depending on the county, in my state, is about $700. So there's a filing fee of $300 - 400. You have to publish your name change so that creditors or the law can find you if in fact you're trying to hide...(not kidding) and that's around $388. And then there's a copying fee for the certified order. It's not "official" unless it's certified, for proof of identity. That's another ten bucks. So, roughly $700...depending on your county. 

Or -- you just don't change your name when you get married. Or hyphenate, like my friend did. 

I mean...it's nuts. And a passport can take 6 weeks, unless you pay an expedited fee - $60 for the fee and another $22-ish bucks for a quick return. 

But hey, since "illegals voting" is the "crisis du jour" for the Demented Dimwit in the Oval, let's all just suck it up and get our documents in order, because it's gonna be "papers please" if he gets his way. 

Oh, and the actual rate of illegal immigrants voting? 0.00000764% over ONE BILLION+ ballots cast over a period of 24 years -- that's FIVE zeroes after the decimal point. That's MICROSCOPIC. 

And that's data from the Heritage Foundation. The idiots who are trying (and succeeding at an alarming rate) to shove Project 2025 down our collective throats. 

But yeah, by all means, stay home because it hurts your feelings to declare a party at your primary election. And then moan that YOUR candidate didn't get on the ballot in the general, so you're also staying home "as a protest."

Thanks. Because YOU put us into this mess. 

Random Picture...

We had Basil recently. Hubby wore her out with lots of long walks. She's now able to fully "dog" and has recovered from her heartworm treatment. She loves destroying stuffies and playing tug with her toys. 

After the third walk of the day, she zonked out so hard that she was snoring up a storm. I could hear it while I was on a Zoom meeting... I used her picture for a restorative yoga class I taught - she's an excellent example of  "resting with intention." 

Now, we have to work on her carsick issues. Twenty minutes into the hour-long ride back home, both my "tire pressure" light went on and her yarking happend simultaneously. It had been a long day, so I just kept going. I figured if a cop pulled me over, they could either deal with the barfing dog or help me use my air compressor to fill my tire. It seemed like a logical idea at the time. 

Got her home, cleaned up and fed, and then tried to tackle cleaning up the dog yark. Luckily, the Kid wasn't too far from home and was able to assist. Good thing she's cute. 

As I sit here typing, I'm watching EVERYTHING in my yard blowing sideways with 60 mph gusts. I'm sitting next to a large picture window and thankful that there aren't any leaves on the trees...otherwise at least one of the trees would be blown over. I've lost one garden flag (I knew I should have pulled it in last night...) and we've lost power about 4 or 5 times so far. Make that 6 times...thank goodness for batteries!

Mother Nature is having a hissy fit. How's it going where you are? 

 

All My Flabbers are Gasted...

He is really desperate to NOT have his name exposed in those Epstein files, isn't he? Now, all of a sudden, Bill and Hillary are his BFFs and he thought Bill "always understood me," and Hillary went from "Lock Her Up!" to "a very capable woman." 

I'm pretty sure Bill DOES understand him. But not in a way that's complimentary. 

That stuff must be worse than godawful. 

For both Bill and Hillary to come out swinging - I'm actually interested in watching that hearing. They're demanding full cameras-and-gallery hearings, not behind closed doors. They're gonna eat Comer's lunch, and they've already put a big dent in the SCOTUS "total immunity" thing. Because him being a former president and her being a former Secretary of State -- that sets the precedent for dragging that entire Junk Drawer Cabinet in front of Congressional hearings. No immunity for you! 

And then there's "the post" about the Obamas. We'll just not give that any oxygen. But it would be nice if mainstream media would -- do its job. This is not "Oh, you know how he is." 

Yes, we do. 

And we're scared witless that a demented, diaper-loading old fart has the nuclear codes when he can't complete a full sentence. Who has more than certainly sold our classified security information. Who stored documents he should not have had in his gilded bordello. In the bathroom. 

This is "Weekend at Bernie's" on steroids. I want to know what they're pumping into him to make him even marginally coherent. And who's pulling the strings behind the scenes? Although I think I already know that. 

I'll leave this here for your enjoyment. When we had someone competent and capable and free of scandal in the Oval Office. 

The Baking...

Do you have "Two Banana Syndrome"? I can't be the only one. There's always -- ALWAYS -- two bananas left. No matter how small a bunch we buy, and it's only the 2 of us - there are always 2 leftovers.

I've made banana bread; with nuts, without nuts, with raisins, with protein powder, with yogurt, with sour cream. 

I've made banana cookies with protein powder - the bigger ones, like for a breakfast cookie. 

I've made banana cake, topped with powdered sugar. 

I'm sick of bananas. 

Today, I made another version of a banana bread with chopped dates. We had the big Medjool dates, which were sticky to cut. I added some hemp hearts and pepitas for extra protein. 

It was a bit of a different recipe, where you literally froth up the eggs first, then add the sugar, vanilla and butter. My butter was softened, but still chunky, which I did not like. And the frothiness? I thought it would overflow my largest loaf pan, so I split it into two pans. 

Bad decision. It didn't rise as much as I expected with all the beating. So now I have two small, flatter loaves. Which is fine for me; I'll eat them for breakfast. But they're not exactly coffee-hour ready, if you know what I mean. 

If you're out there and want to help a gal out -- what do YOU do with those extra bananas? 

I'm not even posting a picture, it's so...not good. 

The Knitting... 

I've been knitting the Melt the ICE hat. I have a list of 4 people who want me to make one - and one of those said, when her hat was just about done, "You can just make me the little badge..." Too late - you're getting a hat. I'll work on those badges AFTER the hats are done. Both patterns are available on Ravelry. Go check them out. 

It takes me about a week to do one. I did frog the first one; I had to tink it back because the decrease instructions didn't make sense and I was decreasing at every marker. You do what I can only describe as a "sock toe" kind of decrease - out of the 4 markers, N, S, E, W, (using compass points for reference) you'd decrease only the North and South ones. You just slip the East and West ones. 

Well. That made a world of difference. But Cascade Superwash Sport is a VERY soft and slippery yarn. As I was tinking back, I dropped a ton of stitches and it was just easier to frog, even the ELEVENTY BILLION rows of 1x1 ribbing, and start over. 

So, the Nerdy Notes on this hat: Cascade Superwash Sport in Colorway 893. There are 136 yards to a hank and this took one hank with some leftover. The pattern calls for 200 yards - mainly because that's about a standard ball or hank of yarn. I used size 6 (16") circulars with the corresponding DPNs at the top. 

I've started on #2 and this one is using Paton's Canadiana in "Cardinal" colorway. This is more of a worsted weight, though it says size 7 needles, I went up to a size 8. The Cardinal is rather a bright red, which is nice. And it's an acrylic, which is what the person requested. I have one more to do in Red Hat Soft, in a worsted weight in a dark wine color, another acrylic request. And then another in the Cascade Sport -- though I'm wondering about maybe doing that and holding it double so that I make it worsted. I have that in my stash, so while I think I have a sweater-quantity, I'm not much of a sweater knitter, so I can take what's left and do a lovely lace shawl or something. So I can afford to hold this double for a hat. 

And then mine... I picked two colors and while one isn't quite as red as I wanted, it's lovely. It's from Wicked Tint Yarns, and it's hand-dyed. It's a superwash merino (which I'll show you next time) and it's called Melt Ice Red - while it's actually kind of a maroon tonal. Very pretty, very definitely worsted. I actually found her on Threads, so social media can do some good! She's dyed up a limited number of this colorway and said she'd do more if folks are interested. Check her out. Support a woman-owned business!

And there's this one from Expression Fiber Arts, one of my favorite dyers. This is their Dewy DK line, which is 70% superwash merino, 20% nylon and 10% silk. This colorway is called Scarlet, and it's not quite as red as the Cardinal - more a pinky-garnet color. The label says needles sized 6-8, so I might actually do a swatch on this one... Be still my heart, right? 

The beauty of Expression is that there's such a wide range of bases and colors. And her patterns are from a variety of designers. And she has really nice tutorials in video form. 

My friend M, who's a basic knitter, has started her own, in a gorgeous Caron wine-colored yarn, and she calls this one an "in your face" color. Which it is. Kind of reminds me of the "victory lipstick" worn during the war. I won't wear lipstick, but I'll wear this! 

And I'll have to look for a nice shawl for the rest of the Cascade. It's a good workhorse yarn, and the one sweater that I actually made was in a Cascade cotton blend. It wore ok, but I found that I just prefer to knit baby sweaters. 

I have to find the second color for another wedding afghan. I have the green in mind but I have to find a complementary color unless the groom tells me what the bride's favorite color is - and then we hope that it works together!

I'm still pending on my mom's second Sophie hood, but at this point, I may still have enough winter left to get it done. And I have a shawl out of some Opal sock yarn, the plain Be Simple version (I already did the lace version) which is a "mindless knit" project. And the various Windy Valley projects: a hat, mitts with beads... And the single socks that need mates. 

Again, I'm thinking 2026 is going to be my "year of knitting stuff," because at this point, knitting is keeping me sane. 

I helped my friend R fix a problem for a pullover she's knitting for her granddaughter. The yarnovers were confusing her. She's an experienced knitter, but she knits Continental (the kind of knitting you see on classic movies) whereas I knit English - I hold the working yarn in my right hand, and she holds hers in her left hand. The Continental folks are "pickers" so they grab the yarn with the needle. The English knitters are "throwers" - we throw the yarn around the needle. It's a thing. 

She always looks like she's about to drop a stitch! But it's said that that style is easier on your hands. I may have to try it again. I took a class. Hated it. But maybe I can play with it. 

Life Goes On...

I had the weird experience of seeing 3 people in the obituaries that I knew. I know a lot of people; I've lived here a long time, and you get to know folks, and who's related to who. But this is the first time that THREE people I knew - as in, knew in some capacity personally - have died. One was my English professor in junior college (she died at 101, God love her), one was an acquaintance from my convent days, and one was the parent of one of my kid's best friends - the kids aren't taking it well, which is a position I understand. 

You know when you first "grow up" and people die and you know them? Like, when my friends had parents who died as we were in our 30s and 40s. That's where the kids are now. And I understand that. 

My thing is, these folks (except for my professor) are MY contemporaries. They're not some "older folks" like my friends' parents. It's a weird dichotomy when those folks who died are closer to my own age. 

Now I kind of know how my mom feels. She just had a friend from high school diagnosed with dementia. Which is a kind of living-death, in my opinion. 

So, one funeral this weekend. The other two had private services. 

Random Picture...

So I lied. I actually have a sweater-worth of yarn and a Nord Drops pattern. I'm hoping that this happens this year. But I've also heard that Drops patterns are a pain in the butt. You'll be knitting along, and turn the page and then see, "while knitting this, simultaneously do that..." So the only advice I have been given is "read the whole pattern before you start."

I guess that's good advice overall. Read the pattern so you understand what's going on before you get in over your head. 

I wonder if I'd have frogged the first ICE hat if I had read the pattern instead of assuming, "I've knitted a dozen-plus hats - how hard can this decrease be?" 

I do love this peacock-blue-green shade. I can't wait to get started on this one. But first... more hats. 

What's on your needles? 

It's the Year of FO...

No, not THAT "FO." (though..... just sayin...)

I mean "Finished Objects." I'm tellin ya - I'm on a ROLL. The Amy's Scarf was the first FO of 2026. Next was the Sophie Shawl, and right behind that was the Cold Snap hat. And I've got my (nearly) year-old Be Simple plain shawl on the needles and I'm chugging away at that. 

I also have an Emotional Support Chicken to repair...though depending on how that looks, I may just re-knit it. Dog got it. Not mine, but someone else's. Note to everyone: Emotional Support Chickens ARE NOT DOG TOYS!!! 

I have another Chicken to do (including one for myself that I never started...), and my mom has "ordered" another Sophie Hood. She loves her red one, but she says, "I need one in a neutral color for church." So I ordered more Friday Harbor (Cascade) in a lovely color called Macadamia, which is a silvery-grey (not sparkly) and I'll see how that looks. I hate ordering online, but my friend Kelly's shop is currently online only so we'll see. 

And then there's all the single socks that need mates. Maybe instead of starting new projects, I grab a project bag, figure out what I was doing and finish that? What a thought! 

The Knitting...

Sophie Shawl -- I'm addicted to the Sophie patterns. They're way more simple than they look and you look like such a boss when you're knitting them. This one is done with Cascade Friday Harbor in color 18, pumpkin. You can't tell from the pictures, but it's really a soft orange, with flecks of cream in it. And it's a Merino + silk blend that's just lovely on the hands. It really pops the stitch definition. 

I think it's bigger yarn - it's Aran-weight, and while the pattern calls for that, it also called for 2 hanks and I used just over 2... So either my gauge was off, or the yarn was bulkier than I thought. Either way, it was cozy this morning with our temps at 1 degree and windchill at -16 degrees.  

Yes, it is somewhat large. And it's not remotely "shawl" -ish. In the traditional sense, this is more a large scarf. You don't drape it round your shoulders like you'd think. You bundle it up much like a large cowl or ... large scarf! It was toasty without being heavy - to look at it you might think, "Good God, that's cumbersome." (or maybe it's just me...) But it's really not, and it was comfortable to wear for most of the morning, till the house warmed up. 

Our heat's fine. But my perch for the Zoom call was by my big picture window, which is old, and it's not the best at keeping out cold bitter enough to freeze a well-digger's belt buckle. 

Nerdy Nuggets: 2 and a bit hanks of Cascade Friday Harbor yarn. Size Large. Size 8 (24") Circular needles. Start date 11/5/25, finished 1/12/26. 

So that's FO #2. I recommend that you try this pattern, or if it's too much for you, start with the Sophie Scarf. It's easier to manage. 

The hat? I had the Bison Blend from Windy Valley Musk Ox to make the hat as a companion of the Amy's Scarf (also known as the Miss Marple Scarf), but it has a bit of a tricky crown configuration and I kinda wanted something simple. 

I did look for "simple cable hats" and seriously, people... What IS simple? I'm thinking one cable up one side and down the other, but I wasn't able to find anything that suited me. 

I did find the Cold Snap on Ravelry, and it was ok. I did try searching Ravelry and then I just did a general Google search. I don't know -maybe it's me. I ended up with this one because it was simple and I kind of wanted something brainless to knit, but with enough detail to keep my attention. 

The world is a scary place. Knitting is one refuge. I didn't want to over-complicate it because most of my stitching time is at night. But I did want something useful, and I have a hard time fitting hats to my head. 

Nerdy Nuggets: Remainder of the 3rd hank of Friday Harbor. Size 2 (there are 3 sizes to this hat), Size 4 (16") circulars for the ribbing and size 7 (16") circulars for the body -- same size DPNs for the crown. Start date 1/14/26, finished 1/18/26. 

The pattern called for DK weight, and Friday Harbor IS an Aran weight. Yes, I am RECLAIMING ORANGE.  I actually look good in it, and I refuse to allow a demented stooge to deny me a color I enjoy. Ahem. As I'm knitting I'm thinking, "What am I doing, this is a BARBIE hat???" But it turned out fine. I even got a little wild and made a small pom-pom for the top. It's a bit slouchy at the top, and I figured I had the yarn. Hubby told me to fold the brim; it's going to take a minute for me to -not- pull it down tight to my head, as I'm used to doing. I need to leave the slouch in there. It's going to be a barn hat. 

The Be Simple is an Opal project. It's got a ways yet, but I started that one on February 9, 2025, and I need to get it finished -- if only to reclaim my size 7 circulars for other projects. Not sure if I'm going to do the picot edge or just a plain one. The colorway is something that will go with most of what I wear, though now that I've lost a bunch of weight, I need to restock my basic t-shirts. 

I had gotten this yarn from my friend Kelly at Le Mouton Rouge and when I looked in my sock tote, I found that I had a bunch of blue-toned socks, so I figured I'd do this non-lace version of the Be Simple. Last year I did the orange version, using yarn that was custom-dyed for me. 

As much as you can, patronize your Local Yarn Shop. Mind you, Kelly is still 2+ hours from my house, but still - this is as good as it gets where I live, so do what you can to help them out! Kelly ships in the US, so go for it! 

Maybe I need a 2025 Retrospective of Knitting, since I didn't blog at all last year. 

Anyway, I really enjoy the asymmetrical shawls for office wear, so I'm not fighting the thing being around my shoulders, and yet it's warm enough. And these in sock yarn are perfect: they wash up like a dream and I have a nice stash of shawl pins to keep them in place, or I can just tie them. 

The Other FO... 

OK, still NOT that one. Found Objects. You know how, when you're decorating for Christmas or whatever holiday you're celebrating, you put things away, you bring things out, you shuffle stuff around? Well, in my house that's how that happens. 

I found a bag with fabric for a quilted table runner that I was going to make (which I didn't). I also found THREE circular needles. I think that I bought this when JoAnn's was closing. I also found in the bag the second of my pom-pom makers. I know I have another set - in a project bag somewhere. 

I had ordered small binders for my circulars. It makes it easier for me to have them handy, when they're not all stuck into unfinished objects (we won't go into that and I'm not feeling guilty). So these are size 8 bamboo needles, which are fine. They're 24" cables and my friend Sonda always said that 24" are all you really need to do anything from a scarf to a sweater. 

I also have become fond of Zings DPNs. They're color-coded which makes it nice. I use them for socks, but also for the tops of hats. The markings on the needles last nicely. That's the one complaint I have about the Karbonz - after a use or two, the numbers wear off the carbon part. Kind of annoying, really. 

I'm also still working on the Long Dog Samplers Pecadillo. I'm on the second quadrant of the one I'm doing, and it's coming along nicely. I do need to get the knitting out of the way first, so it'll be a while. I hope to finish this project in time for Christmas 2026, so that I can get it framed for its recipient. 

I think I need to do another one. We had a surprise at Christmas. Kid #1 eloped. So I also have an afghan to work on once I figure out what colors I need to get. 

THAT FO... 

Good Lord. I'm not really sure where to start. There are folks who are now in the "Find Out" stage and it's starting to get crazy. It was crazy at first, but now? 

So we have the Emperor with No Clothes posting crap at all hours, signing things he can't read, making stuff up and pulling "facts" out of his keister, and calling everything "fake" if it doesn't show him at the center of "The Last Supper" pushing Jesus to the side. (Sorry, God, but really...)

Since I last blogged about this, the Kennedy Center has been desecrated, there's no more East Wing of the historic White House, and the Oval Office is not only named like the wing of a dementia-care ward, but it's tatted up like a bordello the likes of "The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas," just to name a few things. 

And we have the delusion about Greenland, the invasion of Venezuela, the bombing of fishing boats, the caving in of a Nobel Prize winner who - I don't care what she did for her country - debased herself for a fool. 

What am I missing? Oh, election fraud (well in front of the midterms), the ICE goons, the destruction of Tim Walz's political career. SCOTUS is bought and paid for - Mitch McConnell, on his way out, has grown one ball. Thom Tillis too. 

And a pox on Merrick Garland, who could've fixed this. A double pox on Glitchy Mitch, who prevented Garland from being safely ensconced in the Supreme Court and out of the way. 

But the cherry on top is the response of Bill and Hillary Clinton to the subpoena for the Epstein files debacle. I mean, you have Stephen Miller as a deputy Chief of Staff who thinks he's running things, and for all I know, he DOES have his hand up Mango Mussolini's diaper-clad butt, trying to demand that Minneapolis "withdraw" and stand down. And you have JD Maybelline trying to act "presidential." What a waste of an Ivy League education. And for what it's worth, Usha, girl - you need a good lawyer! 

And they think they can pull an end-run around Bill? Really. Notwithstanding the fact that he's a Rhodes Scholar and a lawyer. You have Hillary. Who's brilliant in her own right. Both of them are Yale Law School graduates. Both of them, very kindly, and very specifically and pointedly, said to James Comer, "show me yours before I show you mine." 

They pointed out that they don't HAVE to comply with that subpoena. My contention is, when Gym Jordan complies with the Congressional subpoena he received, then Bill and Hill can respond. 

The situation in Minneapolis is insane. The Black Panthers are coming out. And if the ICE goons think Chicago was rough? Minneapolis is no push-over. And they want to go to Philly? I mean... Philadelphia burned its own city down more than once. Their police chief already said, "We don't play." 

I have no idea what will happen. I do know this is not the world I wanted to age in, nor have my kids grow up in. 

Random Picture...

We have a tradition now. We make a Snow Folk Choir. This year, Hubby went above and beyond and I think we're done adding to the group. He's talking about using wine corks to make "choir risers." I think it's becoming an obsession. 

I must say, I added the rice lights and battery-operated candles. And I did make arms for our "conductor," the only salt-and-pepper shaker who's a singleton. All of these have been part of a collection I've had for years. 

Of all your holiday decorations, which is your tradition? Which is a must-have for the holidays? Share with me!