So this thing leaped onto my needles... You remember that I had that panic with the Expressions Fiber Arts yarn and had to search high and low for more Stone Tulips just for a bind off? Well, I've got oodles left. So after trolling Ravelry for a long time, I found a relatively simple wrist warmer pattern. I did struggle with the choices for a while.
Pulse warmer?
Lace glove?
Wrist/arm length?
Fingers?
Thumb hole or not?
So I looked at the yarn, and since it's relatively busy, I nixed the idea of lace.
The person who's getting these barely wears coats, and I'm taking a gamble on even making the wristlets. So, no fingers; length just past the wrist - like a pulse warmer. And not too busy with the pattern so that you don't see it "move" when you look at it.
Much like the avocado + lime green shag carpet in my bedroom as a kid...but I digress...
Simple K2, P2 rib, but of course I can't leave well enough alone. I really dislike starting a K2, P2 rib right off the bat. So I added 3 rows of knit to the beginning. A teeny-tiny curl adds a little interest.
I may add that same curl to the end; I'll have to see how I feel. It might be uncomfortable, so I don't want to do that. This should use most of the yarn, which is cool.
The rest goes into the "Oddments" bag for eventual Franken-socks.
I should be able to whip these out for the birthday; I also didn't want to get into something so complex that I was "knitting under pressure."
Knitting is fun, meditative and creative. So that's how I want to keep it if I can.
A Little More Celery...
So I made some tuna salad for lunch the other day. For me, I like celery, hot mustard and dill relish. Used my homemade mayo and Penzey's spices. I pulled a couple ribs of celery, thinking they looked pretty slim. Till I started chopping. Wow - lots of celery.
How bad could that be? Love the crunch it gives to salads and one of my favorite snacks is "ants on a log" - celery, peanut butter and raisins.
Here's a little nutrition lesson for those who may have a throw-back idea that celery is "rabbit food" that women eat when they want to lose weight...
Celery has fiber, even though it's mostly water. Rich in Vitamin K, it also has folate, Vitamin A and Vitamin C, as well as potassium. It supports digestion, has possible anti-inflammatory properties, and it has a low glycemic index, meaning it has a nice, slow, steady effect on your blood sugar.
All in all, not bad for rabbit food, right? I have to say, I love it raw. Not keen on it cooked, but if I dice it up enough, it's a nice peppery flavor to add to soups and stews.
Flowers...but what kind...
These grow by my studio every year. They're lovely. And I don't know what they are. My landlord mentioned it once. Do you think I could remember?Ha.
I've reached out to "flower friends" to see if they could help me identify them. Heck, it took me 3 seasons to remember that "those tall pink flowers" in my garden are phlox...
I know that this thing makes seed pods and I'm told that I can take however many I want. I'm not sure how to plant them, but I'll let my students know so they can give them a shot.
A few folks from my women's groups are also interested. They don't have a clue what it is, but they want the seeds.
My landlord keeps our property beautifully, manicured to within an inch of its life, and he's always interested in new plants to make the place pretty.
Contrast that with the landlord of my chiropractor... lots of -- nothing -- and a boring storefront. I know they kind of can't help it because of the configuration of the storefronts, but jeeze - tuck some flowers into the parking berms. It wouldn't kill them.
Consume wisely...
Fox "News" (because, seriously - it's not...) claims "Failed Obama attacks successful Trump in bitter swan song" while the Washington Post says "An unexpected opportunity for Barack Obama."
They're talking about the exact same speech.
The. Exact. Same. Speech.
And you wonder why we can't have a sensible conversation? Look at the headlines. Look at the words. Look at the snark.
We need to be careful consumers. We need to discern what we're looking at and use our brains. We need to set aside our emotion and look at this stuff objectively, in spite of the partisanship of our news outlets.
Take the time to actually think while you're consuming. I guarantee you'll be a lot happier in the long run.
Random Picture...
Yesterday was, of course, the anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. I resisted posting for a long time. I'm not maudlin. I know it happened. It changed everything in this country, but sometimes looking back too much keeps you from looking forward.
But then I remembered this...
I think I did this piece in the year after the attacks. It was exhibited in the National Counted Cross Stitch Show that year under the "Patriotic Designs" category. It didn't win, even though this was my original design. Some design (not original, thanks, but a popular chart) that showed an eagle with the flag won. I was kind of bummed because I thought about this design a lot.
As I recall, I was reading about so many of the people involved and the story about Fr. Mychal Judge caught my eye.
This was the prayer he prayed every day. He was a firehouse chaplain. He ran toward the blasts. He died helping people.
He wanted to make sure that God got him where he needed to be. He was. He did.
I was looking for artwork to hang at the church, and I thought this would be perfect. Hopefully, it provides inspiration where needed. I think that, even though Fr. Mychal was a Catholic and this is in an Episcopal church, he'd be ok with that.
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