Not Ribbed For My Pleasure...

I really hate ribbing. I mean HATE it. Those 12 rows may as well be 1200 as far as I'm concerned. 

I hate ribbing as much as I hate the 4th of July weekend. As I type, there are boomers going off. One dog is in the kitchen, relatively clueless. The other is in the bathroom, somewhat heavily medicated, and will be even more medicated in about 2 hours or so, when it really gets nuts. 

Anyone blowing off illegal fireworks (I'm in Illinois - if you're not a professional and it's down the block from me, it's illegal) needs to be fined. Not only for blatantly breaking the law, but for being a bass-pole and a dirtbag who doesn't care about their fellow neighbors. 

It's not only the pets. It's the folks with PTSD. The people with sensory disorders. The veterans. The livestock (where I'm at, there's a fair bit of livestock). Go visit any of the 4 or 5 towns which are having lovely, FREE displays of fireworks. It's safer, you don't have to worry about drunks, and you get to keep your digits. And those are over by 9:45 or 10 p.m. 

Last night it was 1:30 or so and tonight it'll be even later. I expect these shenanigans to go on all week. 

I get upset because these are the same people who complain that their water bill is going higher, their garbage bill goes up, or whatever. I have no sympathy. None. You blew your wad on pyrotechnics that you shouldn't have had, and now you have no money? Tough bananas.

And the other thing? It's always the same people. It's always the house one block over and up, and one on the end of our block. The town knows this. They choose to do nothing. 

And -- we're in a drought. Yeah, it rained the other day. Not enough. So maybe we wait till the houses catch on fire? Sounds like a solid plan. 

The Knitting...

So the detested ribbing is done and I've completed the first row of the leg. This is the second sock of the Petty Harbour pair. My hand hurts, and I have learned to stop when it gets cranky. Otherwise, I'm off knitting for a while. 

This weekend (I'm already thinking of the weekend), I think I'll go ahead and frog the Long Sands Tee. I will have had my first outpatient PT appointment on Friday, so Lord knows how sore I'll be Saturday and Sunday. 

As far as I'm concerned, I'm going to try to stay monagamous to the socks till I have the pair done. I feel like I want to finish stuff. So Long Sands is going to have to be in time-out for a bit anyway till the knitted yarn relaxes, and till I can wind up a few of the hanks that haven't been caked yet. 

That gives me time to make a mis-matched pair of the blue striped socks, since I don't think I can lay my hands on the pattern of the one sock that's finished. I may (go ahead, get ready to laugh) do a 4x2 rib on the second one. I think the first sock is something like an 8x2 rib, but I can't find the notes, so I figure if I get it "close enough," nobody's going to mind. 

And I might start a trend. Not only of fraternal twins, but of "almost" the same patterns. Who says it might not be a new thing? 

The Hip...

Things are progressing. I am FREE of the TED hose! One week post-op, I showed the nurse the marks on my left thigh, just above the knee. She was not happy, because the skin was being compromised. We didn't want to risk an infection so she determined I was very low risk for blood clots and off they came!! 

My skin is lizard-like, and I can't get around to my left foot yet, so that's been interesting. I've also started to sleep on the incision side. I checked with the PT and the nurse and they said it wasn't going to hurt. The hip is in there; it ain't goin nowhere... It's more building up your mind that it's ok. And I'm a left-side sleeper, so there's that. Even if I stay there for 3-4 minutes, my MIND says, "OK, we can move to the other side now." It's all a game. 

Physical therapy is doing well, except I'm not having fun with the hip flexor stretches. Your hip flexors are the muscles right in the crease of your hip, so if you sit down and place your thumbs at the very top of your thighs, you're close. My left side got really jacked up with the hip injury, and I was walking very bent over. Well, that's gotta be stretched out. And it's not happy about that. 

I have my last day of in-home PT on Wednesday, and then I go to outpatient. I'm off all the pain meds, and I have been "let outside" on my walker, with a companion and a gait belt. I'm also using a cane in the house.

So that using a cane thing... Wowza. I was using TWO canes pre-surgery, just so I could take the weight off the bum leg. Now, though, I have to use ONE cane to just lightly support the now "remodeled" hip, and bear more weight on the left hip. It's a real mind-trick, and has been an interesting adjustment. 

The other exercises, I can do pretty easily, thanks to some pre-hab work I did and just an overwhelming urge to get this therapy behind me. 

But that walking with a cane does have me slightly wobbly. I can tell how far my balance has been affected, and how much work I have to do. 

I have been practicing my Tadasana (Mountain Pose), just to straighten up my posture and get that balance back. 

I have a helper. We have a massage table, which has been a blessing for the PT, as it's firmer than a bed, and easy to adjust. And recently, when Hubby was helping me do the exercises, Quinn hopped up on the couch next to me to help. I have to tell you, it was a nice relaxing treat. I didn't think she had it in her. She's always been a snuggler, but this was deliberate - she  came up to where I could reach her, put a paw on the table and moved so that I didn't have to reach too far. Hubby said that I actually relaxed my leg more as I was petting her, so I guess she's hired for my in-house therapy dog for as long as it takes me to get this hip back in order. 

The Reading...

So aside from having a problem with my Kindle, which I will explain, I am reading Evelyn Waugh's "The Loved One." It's the book upon which the movie was based, and the movie is as camp as it gets. 

I'm enjoying the book, which is a skinny little thing considering how long the movie is. 

The book is enough like the movie that I can follow it. I love the skewering that Waugh gives the whole Hollywood scene, and he does it so lightly and completely. 

I was able to borrow this book from Kid #1, and I have to admit, I'm getting the vibe I had when I took "As I Lay Dying" on a plane trip... this might not be a book which you'd want to take as a travel book, but then again -- maybe you would. It would certainly start a conversation. Or stop one. 

So, the Kindle problem. I love Agatha Christie. I have a bunch of her mysteries on my Kindle and I noticed that the last 3 of them which I purchased had a problem with the downloads. It wasn't just me, because looking at the reviews/comments, this problem seems to be pretty consistent. It's as if all the "Alt" characters: *%&$^#@)>< -- all of that stuff just appears randomly in the text, making the books impossible to read. 

I complained to Amazon, which may or may not accomplish anything, but it's annoying because I paid for the books, and I cannot read the books. 

I'm not sure if it's an off-shore place which is digitizing the books. But I can tell you that when I was working in publishing, I had several projects in which I had to clean up stuff like this. 

I'm hoping that there's some resolution. But I'm not holding my breath.

The Shed...

So everyone always asks, "how much do your dogs shed?"

Here's a PART of ONE side of Raisa. 

As you can see, she is NOT amused. She is one of the few dogs I have had who doesn't like to be brushed. She grumbles, but tolerates it. 

Even Quinn is shedding more this year. 

When I'm asked, I always say, "Twice a year, six months at a time." My mom grumbles about her dog's hair (a puggle) and I just laugh. 

As long as you keep on top of it, it's not all that horrible. I did have one husky who liked to be vacuumed, which isn't all that common, I can tell you. 

So this is the "summer shed." There'll be another in the fall when their winter coats come in. Don't even try to figure it out - it's just how it works. 

Random Picture...

Talk about a throw-back. This is River. She's my first red husky. She's long across the Rainbow Bridge, and this was when we had the "perfect pack" of River, Tippi & Quinn. Quinn was so attached to River. 

She came to us just after Topaz (my black & silver husky) died, and was a boon to our then-first elkhound Gracie, who went into extreme mourning after Topaz died - so much so that my neighbor thought that BOTH dogs had passed. 

River was a retired show dog. She would have been the dog I trained to be a therapy dog if I had the job flexibility. This was after she was diagnosed with glaucoma, and before she had Cushing's Disease. 

She was definitely the queen. She had a presence; even people who were afraid of big dogs were drawn to her. I miss her. 

Finished with Fireworks...

Theoretically, I could've blogged the whole time since last Thursday....I was up anyway. It was the annual Festival of Scaring The Crap Out of Animals... commonly known as the 4th of July. This year, the 4th was on a Sunday, which gave us an extra day - the Monday - of chaos. 

It was lovely. Not. I spent a lot of time with Quinn in the bathroom. We finally hit on a formula that seemed to work: a VERY noisy fan; Sileo; Lavender butt rub and in the diffuser; Burrito Wrap her in a large bath towel... And read to her. Don't even ask me why that worked, but it did. Round about Saturday, I added the heavy bath mat for her to rest upon and she seemed to like it. 

Whatever works. And I really want to shoot people. Or give them an M-80 enema. It got so bad that even Tippi, who's older and half-deaf, was upset. And ultimately, there are more than animals involved.  Well, first, let me say, there are more than pets involved. Horses bolt. Chickens stop laying eggs. Service animals even get freaked out, and then what happens is they can't perform the duties they were trained for. 

And then the people: Those who have sensory issues. Veterans. People with PTSD. There are lots of folks who just can't stand the noise. And honestly? If my WINDOWS are rattling? Your fireworks are too big. 

And in Illinois? They're illegal. 

So when I call the cops and they say, "We have crimes to deal with," I do get a little snippy. After all, fireworks, as I said, are illegal here, so that's....um.... a CRIME, I think. I live in a small town; it's not exactly Mayberry, but it's close. I'm not asking you to arrest them, though that would be nice. I'm just asking for a few more patrols. That's all. Get your butt out of the station and drive around a bit. 

It's just a thought. 

The Garden...

Well, the romaine is done. One tomato plant may not make it. My parsley is going nowhere - the stuff for the butterflies has already bolted. I may not get celery this year --- unless it grows through to fall! 

My wildflowers are going great, and we've seen a few Monarchs. I haven't seen any of my Swallowtail caterpillars since they were babies. 

But I did see a Hummingbird Moth! So. Freaking. Awesome! I could only get a video of it, because the little stinker moves like a hummingbird. I haven't seen it since, and I've been watching. But if you check the section above...many people I know have said they haven't seen the usual birds and critters since the long 4th of July weekend. 

One of my students found a kitten cowering behind her house. My hummingbirds have been AWOL for a while, and we had a clutch of baby bunnies hiding out in the kennel - not the smartest place for them to be with our 3 dogs, all of which have very high prey drives. 

The Knitting...

Still on the Endless Cowl. On the one hand, I'm nearing the end of the cake. On the other hand, I ran into another knot and I thought it was ok, but now I have to tink back a few rows, because apparently, the knot is NOT ok. 

It looks like the dark charcoal will be the end of this; I'm a tad disappointed that there wasn't more white - like only about 4" of white in the whole thing. Lots of tan. Luckily, the person I'm giving this to is relatively small - the cowl won't overwhelm them, but they can wrap it more than a few times, so if there are any boo-boos in the miles, and miles, and miles, and miles, and MILES of stockinette stitch, the multiple wraps should help...I hope. 

I can't wait to finish it and I think I should be done this week. Then I can move on to the next Christmas project. Which is another variegated cake and will more than likely be a shawlette, just because it's NOT miles and miles and miles and miles and MILES of stockinette stitch. 

Nooming...

Well, I'm a couple months into Noom, my weight is kind of on track; I'm in the "low and slow" camp because I find that when I do that, I tend to keep it off longer. I'm hoping this "keep it off" is permanent. Because I'm kind of over the yo-yo thing. 

What HAS been happening is I've upped my exercise. I work where I'm at a desk all day, when I'm not teaching yoga. And 3 nights of yoga doesn't cut it for much of anything except a decent night's sleep (absent fireworks...). 

I've been walking a lot, and getting on the elliptical more. And I've been consciously moving around more at work. Boss Lady and I are working on getting healthier; she started Noom a few weeks ago, and we're comparing notes. Luckily, we are NOT each other's "buddy." We figured that would be a bad idea...and that way, we can each be on our own journey. It'll work better that way, trust me!

Random Picture...

The one time I got a stink-eye from Tippi... The Big Bunny Ears. In her early days as a therapy dog, she'd dress up in bandanas and hats. Well. This did not go as planned. 

She hated it. I think it was probably too big for her anyway and she felt like a Vegas showgirl without all the glitter. And it probably didn't help that we all laughed at her. 

I got the "I'm gonna crap in your shoes" look for this one. But it made a great picture for our annual Howl-O-Ween fundraiser, because it was just the perfect balance on her face of  "I'm doing this because you're my human" and "you're REALLY gonna pay for this one." 

She was also a bit chubby here, so those legs look like little toothpicks and her chest was kind of broad. Not her best look, but we still love her. 

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If you're in the Joliet area, workshops are being scheduled so come on out! 

Oh Yay. Fourth of July Weekend...

I wasn't sleeping anyway. May as well make it a challenge to see how many days in a row one can go without sleep.

Did I tell you that I hate this holiday? With a passion bordering on obsession? 

This is the girls before the hubbub. I can't get a picture of them now because Tippi is zonked out in the hallway and Quinn is hiding either under the massage table or under my desk, or crouched in the corner of the bathroom. She's already had 1 dose of Sileo; I am giving her wayyyy under the regular dose because Norwegian Elkhounds seem to not adapt well to the "regular" dose - and I can give her a dose every 2 hours. 

It's not dark yet. It'll get much worse then. 

I can't wait. 

(Did you get the snark in my voice? I hope so...)

The "Tooth" of the Matter...

I had (finally) the oral surgery on Tuesday. Apparently, not only do my roots "go to China" but I have an "iron jaw." My jaw wasn't ready to let go of the tooth. So I'm sore down my neck, almost as if you have "swollen glands" (remember those from being a kid?). 

Did you know that a moistened tea bag can control the bleeding? I used decaf green, because green is also astringent and I figured it would "tighten things up" a bit. So Tuesday I had to sleep sitting up; I was bleeding pretty good. Wednesday, I taught yoga, just basically sitting there talking my student through her sequence. Thursday, I was bruised and achy despite icing the jaw several times a day and swishing salt water; so my student Thursday suggested we just stay home. More ice; more salt water swishing. 

Funny enough (though the Kid doesn't think so)... Kid #2 had to have a root canal. I swear - we do go to the dentist regularly. Or at least he went regularly as a kid. I go regularly. Good excuse; Kid moved out of town and took awhile to find a dentist...ANYWAY, root canal, and they keep going, and going, and going. Apparently, long roots run in the family. Kid is not amused. 

I have a bone graft because the roots were nearly touching the mandibular nerve? Maybe trigeminal? I don't know. But it was technically an issue. So because the ultimate goal is an implated molar, I had to have the area "built up" with bone grafts before I can get the screw put in. 

Then my dentist puts on the tooth. 

If I stop to think about it, it all makes me queasy. I think the oral surgeon (who was great, by the way) took my tongue and wrapped it around my right ear. It hurts to eat. 

I figure, this taking almost a year? I can lose the COVID weight. Because the whole thing grosses me out. For the first week, I'm doing things like tepid tea; lots of tepid water; gelato (hey, it works) and soft eggs. Because I have to wear my bottom retainer to keep the teeth from shifting, I will be less likely to nosh. 

Instant COVID weight loss...

This is instead of a bridge; with all the time and expense I put in with braces, I'd really rather have this done, even though it grosses me out, than to have a bridge. That just aggravates the teeth ahead and behind of the one replaced. Keep it simple, if possible. 

The Knitting...

So I'm almost done with Section 8 of the Breathe and Hope shawl. I have 4 rows left; I'm probably going to finish it tonight. I'd love to finish the whole shawl this weekend. And FYI, I'm planning to do absolutely NOTHING on Monday. Except teach, that evening. 

This section is quicker to knit and it seems to have a definite rhythm to it that the other sections didn't. I don't know why. It just does. I can also see the "ekg" blips which I wasn't able to see in the other sections that used the K1b. 

Still not sure if I'll keep it; I have a couple prospects of people who'd like it. And I'm cool for giving this a new home if someone wants it. 

You can see in this picture the "ekg blips" that I'm talking about. It's kind of a cool feature and with the pink, it really pops. The blue not so much, but I still like the play of the neon over the top of the hand-dyed periwinkle/blue sock yarn here. 

I'm anxious to (a) finish one I started last year for Xmas; and (b) start on a t-shirt for summer (yes, I know it's July already). Plus continue to work toward finishing up the "singles" socks. 

I have a decent amount of yarn to work through, and I need to make it into stuff. My friend D, who I helped with online voter registration today, is going through a downsize, and she's offered me a set of her fixed circular needles. Fixed circular needles are the ones that you can't change the cable length on. 

I'm always using those, unless I'm knitting socks. In that case, I still love my DPNs. (Double-pointed needles for those who don't knit) I rarely use the straights I have; just occasionally, if I'm doing a quick project like a washcloth. 

How Does My Garden Grow...

The kale is doing well. Not quite sure about the Broccoli Rabe (above the kale). We're about ready to harvest the kale, and I'm fine with Hubby chopping it up and freezing it. 

I don't really like a raw kale salad - even if I could chew it right now. But I'll use it in smoothies. I'll also use it in soups and stews and if it's frozen, it won't matter if I saute it with a little garlic and leek, with bacon fat. 

Because, why not? Recipe is below... It's yummy. 

And the tomatoes are starting. These are the beefsteak. The cherry tomatoes are on the deck. We have 2 beefsteak plants, and somehow ended up with FOUR cherry tomato plants. 

Four. 

There are TWO of us in this house. 

Luckily, I can also roast the cherry tomatoes. Yummmmmmmm. 

Sauteed Kale

4 c. kale, stripped of stems, diced into bite-size chunks
1 c. leeks, chopped
3-4 cloves garlic, chopped fine
1 c. baby portobellos, chopped (no stems)
Salt & pepper to taste
1 T. bacon fat or butter
1/2 c. water or veggie broth
1 T. golden balsamic vinegar

Heat the bacon fat or butter in a large saute pan over med-high heat. Add the leeks, stirring gently till they get slightly transparent. Use a slotted spatula to remove them and set them aside. Add the portobellos, saute till they're tender. Remove those, too. 

Add the chopped kale and saute - about 4 - 5 minutes, depending on how big your kale is. Till it wilts and turns bright green; gets fork-tender. Then add back the leeks, mushrooms and add the garlic. Mix everything around in the pan and let the leeks get a little softer, the garlic a little warmer, and the 'shrooms warmer. **You can add a bit more bacon fat or butter here if you need it. 

After everything's nice and tender, add the water and clamp a lid on it to steam it for 3 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste. **NOTE: The timing for this dish is entirely dependent on the kale...just don't burn the garlic or leeks. You won't enjoy it. 

Splash around the Golden Balsamic at the finish. Serve alone, or over quinoa or wild rice. Or serve as a side dish. 

This is a good general starting point. You can add chopped bacon, or chunks of leftover ham if you want. You can also add chicken as extra protein, or garbanzo beans if you want to keep it on the lighter side. 

Random Picture...

I like leaving chalk messages. They're not high art. Not even decent calligraphy. But it's a little thing. 


This is today's message. I've chalked "thanks to delivery folks" and #BLM and a few other things. If it rains, it goes away. No big deal. 

Impermanence is ok in this case. 

The boomers are going off. Quinn has had her second dose of Sileo. The diffusers are running. 

Someone's shooting off the "pretty" ones, but mostly, it's just the bang-booms. 

Raisa is crashed out here next to me. Tippi is in the hall. In a moment, I'm going to refill the diffusers; I have TWO going in the bathroom. One has Lavender in it, but the other just has plain water. I just want the "white noise" in that room. 

Both hall fans are on Speed #3. My front room fan is on Speed #2 and Hubby's desk fan is also at high speed. I'm not blaring the TV. He's got to sleep. 

I, on the other hand, am going to go ice my jaw some more, watch the rest of a Midsomer Murder episode and see how long the chaos lasts. 

Nowhere Man

I hereby apologize to the Beatles for stealing their song title, especially since I'm about to rant on Agent Orange. Mango Mussolini, the pRresident*, Don the Con... Or, Nowhere Man. 

I mean seriously. This buffoon will put his name on anything. And I've got a pile of dog crap he can have. I wonder if I'd get into trouble mailing it to him? High grade, Siberian Husky stuff, which might make him all warm and fuzzy about his handler, Putin. 

Rebranding the 4th of July is beyond incredibly stupid. And you know what? He's going to get away with it because he's still a Useful Idiot in the grand scheme of Mitch McConnell, who seems to be single-handedly wrecking our democratic republic. Way to go, Mitch - everyone's gotta have a goal. 

Tanks sit outside Washington DC's downtown area. Luckily, they're not going to rumble down the streets - seeing as they'd tear the asphalt to ribbons. Grandstands are being built. Somehow, there's gonna be the BabyTrump balloon. Wonder how that got there???

And tickets are being offered - for a donation. Which will go into the grifter's pocket or that of his mendicant kids. 

And... WE get to pay for this. Yeppers - right out of our tax money. Never have I wanted more to have a say in where those tax dollars go. And nobody is listening to the screams. 

This isn't America. Or as my friend Alice (a very mild-mannered woman, to be sure) said, "What a dumb-f*&%." She doesn't use that language frequently. When she does, smart people hide under the furniture. 

I'm resigned to no impeachment, though God alone knows that if a Democrat did one iota of the crap that's been perpetrated upon this country and its citizens? Oy, the streets of Washington would be aflame with documents and that person would be escorted out in shackles. 

I know all I have is the ability to rant. So I will move on to other topics, since outrage is wearying and in this case, fruitless. 

The Knitting...

Well, the secret project is coming along, though when the heat hit the 90s, I set it aside to work on socks. Much easier to deal with in the summer! 

This is, however, a sneak peek at the second half of the project. I'm liking how this is working out and honestly?

If I could muster the energy to do a sweater, I'd use this kind of "fade" technique. 

There are a couple of techniques I'd like to start learning; one of the biggies is cables. And for that, I need to learn to read charts. Charts terrify me. I don't know why. But they do. 

I'd rather just watch someone, but I know that for my own skill-building, that's not practical. A knitter needs to know this stuff. 

I also need to work on lace knitting and learn how to read an Orenburg lace chart. Those things are wild. 

But anyway, socks. I'm puttering along on The Green Travel Sock, and am about half-way down the foot. So after that, just cut the other one, stringing a lifeline first, and then re-knit the foot + toe. 


And there's this little beauty -- my Shortie Socks. I will confess that they feel a tad-bit tight. I'm using Size 1 needles. This is my regular Opal yarn, which is my go-to workhorse yarn. The color is called "Model" - can't quite figure out why, but it doesn't matter. It's a very whimsical colorway, and I think if I'd done full-sized socks, they'd have been very striking. 

However - I wanted "instant socks" and this is as close to that as I'll get, if I'm knitting them myself. 

This is "my" pattern - in that it's out of my head. Let's face it: sock architecture is what it is. Heels and toes change, but every sock has the following:

• Cuff
• Leg
• Heel
• Foot 
• Toe

Just a matter of which ones you want to do, and how you do them. Do you want a deep cuff? I like mine rolled at the top. Do you want a long leg or short? Short this time! Do you want a Fleegle heel, Strong heel, afterthought, Sweet Tomato, Fish Lips Kiss, flap and gusset? And I'm probably missing a few styles. This is my go-to, "Doris" heel, for the woman who taught it to me. A nice heel with a bit of knit stitch on each side to aid in picking up stitches for the gusset. 

So my concession to the small needles (Size 1 is the smallest I've knitted with yet), I did my K2tog in "tbl" (through back loop) and it made this little "swoosh" of yarn along the side. It works for me. 


When these are done, I'll write up exactly what I did. I do take notes.

I like this close-up because it shows the detail on the yarn's colorway. It's very cute; and it goes with just about everything I own. 

That's what I like about Opal - there's a colorway that appeals to almost everyone. Their themes are usually adorable, and the yarn wears like iron. 

I'll confess that it's a bit scratchy to knit with. Nowhere NEAR as bad as Zauberball (I can't see how people can knit socks with that); and once you wash it and wear it a few times, it softens up nicely. 

I'm trying valiantly to knit from stash. So of course, my friend (the said Doris of the "Doris Heel") gives me a very belated Christmas present: a $50 gift certificate to my favorite LYS. Oy. Gonna save that for something special. 

The Garden...

Well, we've had some wonky weather (what else is new?) and there's more coming this week. Which is nice, because it ought to keep the locals from going nuts with fireworks. That being said, we shall see how it all shakes out. 

The milkweed is still doing well; we've noticed Monarchs flittering around, and from what I'm told, that means they're scoping it out. I'm hoping for Monarchs and Swallowtails on the parsley and dill. 

My veggies are almost done; those that are "summer veggies" that is. The Romaine is about finished. I need to re-plant the radishes and try again. The leeks are coming along, as are the carrots. 

I'm disappointed in the Borage and the Butterfly Weed that I planted from seed. My friend took the rest of my Borage and it's going nuts in her yard. Mine? Pfffffffffth. 

Here's a little video of the storm from Sunday. This was Storm #1. After that, we had Storm #2, which came out of nowhere. What's scary is that when this happened, the temps dropped about 25 degrees. That's "tornado" kind of stuff. 

So far, there have been a few warnings, but nothing really serious. We still have July and August to go, though. 

We had lots of tree damage from this little performance. But luckily, the half-dead tree in our neighbor's yard stood firm. Luckily because if it lands anywhere, it'll be in my kitchen. 

My Hair...

Yeah. My hair. So I'm getting it cut by a new stylist on Friday. (gulp!) I have a 15-minute consultation with her before she even gets me in a shampoo chair. 

For posterity, I took a number of shots as it is right now, because on Monday, it was behaving. Today it is not. 

I've got pics of what I want, I think. I mean I think it's what I want. I do have pics... I'm strongly considering cutting it short again. I know this is "short" to a lot of people, but I'm talking a cross between a pixie and a bob - a little lift and length on top, and considerably shorter at the back. 

My summer includes volunteering to clean up at the Old Joliet Prison and biking. Neither of those is conducive with longer hair - longer for me, I mean. 

And because of the heart meds I take, it's a little thinner than I'd like. I think the length isn't helping there either. 

I'll keep you posted. If you're wondering about the blue background, that's the wall in my yoga studio. 

Random Picture...

Where there's life, there's hope... Last year, this was my shot of a Monarch on my Purple Coneflower. I'm hoping for a lot more of these guys. 

As I look at my garden, I'm a bit dismayed at the amount of weeding I have to do, when the weather calms down; but ultimately, I'm proud of the "native" aspect of it. I've got mostly native plants in there, and everything will come back on its own. It's almost maintenance free. 

Now I just need to see butterflies and bees in regular appearance. That will make it just want I want. 

...and I lost...

Lost at Yarn Chicken. Badly. At 5" or so into the bind-off, I realized I was toast. 

Gutted. But - I went on the Shawl Knitting FB group and asked around. Emailed Expression Fiber Arts, and got a reply from Chandi herself! And checked Ravelry, where a lovely knitter had Stone Tulips stashed and was willing to part with it. 

So. One PayPal click later, it's on its way. And I'll finish it up in about 10 days, when it gets here. 

Whew! Thank the Knitting Gods and Goddesses for generous knitters willing to share. 

So then I figured I'd go buzzing along on the Green Sock. 

Stand still, kids... I think I'm liking the green sock now. As I'm knitting on it and I can see the pattern coming along, I'm thinking I might like it. Will wonders never cease? Opal comes through again with a colorway that grows on you. This photo is a tad off - the orange isn't as "coral" as it looks here. It's actually more pumpkin - overtones of rust. And the green in the wider striped bits is a bit deeper. The first orange + white pattern got a bit lost in the tail end of the ribbing; as you can see, it's a more fun pattern in the whole section down toward the needles. 

I found a great pattern for that mohair that Kid #1 gave me a few years ago. I'm not a mohair fan, but he doesn't know that. So I have some burgundy mohair - one hank. And I'd been wondering what the heck to do with it. I found a very simple scarf, done on larger needles. Yes, mindless, but worth the yarn, if you know what I mean. It's on Ravelry, "Quick & Easy Kidsilk Haze Scarf" -- quite literally cast on about 42 stitches on size 4.5mm needles, and knit. Bind off. It's stretchy and airy and lets the yarn "halo" nicely. 

Now I just have to find that ball of yarn. But in the meantime, I listed out my current WIPs. Something familiar is going on here...

Yeah. 

The top three are "Second Socks." 

I can justify why Bigger on the Inside is in "sock time-out." It's tight. Seriously, the "Bowties are Cool" pattern is as bad as "Jaywalker" in its tightness. Even at a cast-on of 72, it's tight on my biker calves. I love the color. I love the pattern. 

I don't love the tightness. 

Sole to Sole: That got frogged. I think I dropped some stitches, so I frogged the whole thing; for the second sock, as I recall, I was only about 2" in so frogging wasn't a huge issue. 

I set aside Petty Harbour to start on the Close to You Shawl. Nothing wrong with it. I was moving along on the leg - I was at about 5" or so and I figured I'd better get skippy and do that project before I ran out of time. 

You know how it goes: "The baby isn't due till November; I have time." "The birthday is at the end of the year and it's only June. Plenty of time." "Who starts Christmas knitting in May?"

Ummmmmm. Time is moving at light-speed, my friends. This time, I figured I wanted to get that puppy blocked before  I was on the eve of the birthday. Because it would've worked out that way. 

So I figure I have about 5 - 6 days to get the yarn; then I can finish it up. I only need about 5-ish yards, but I bought the whole hank. Next up: Search Ravelry for a project using 390-ish yards of this yarn. I'm not saying that I don't like the colorway, but it's not my favorite, so I have no idea what to do with it. Something will come to me. It usually does. 

I Hate the Fourth...

As you all know by now, I've got 3 wonderful dogs. Two of them are terrified by fireworks. 

When I say "terrified," I don't mean normal skittishness. I mean drooling, whale-eyed, shaking, won't go out to pee terror. This is Quinn in the bathroom on the 4th of July. She's been there since July 2, actually. And she's still there. 

Because people are idiots. Because people insist on blowing off illegal fireworks, and not only the little rat-tat-tat ones, but half-sticks and M-80s. Those are mortars, people. 

Here's a little 4th of July trivia for you: M-80s were used by the military to simulate explosives and artillery fire. So then, they evolved into professional fireworks. 

And then, somehow, the idiots got hold of them. And started shooting them off in backyards nationwide. 

Fireworks are illegal here in Illinois. They've been illegal for a long, long time. The larger gauge ones are so dangerous it's not even funny. 

Aside from blowing off your fingers (or your face), they can damage - permanently - your hearing. The guy across the street was blowing them off on the 4th before the storms hit. Hallelujah for the storms, but still - some idiots were blowing off fireworks DURING a thunderstorm. 

I sat on the floor with my older dog for over an hour trying to keep her calm. I gave both dogs a massage with essential oils. I had diffusers going. I gave them CBD cookies. I had fans on high speed to muffle sound. And still. Quinn wouldn't budge. 

We finally got her out of the bathroom and into her crate - she likes her crate in these circumstances. 

All I can tell you is that you should be safe on the 4th of July. You shouldn't shoot off fireworks unless you're a professional. And above all, remember your neighbors: the pets, the vets, the people who have sensory issues, those who are elderly and those with other chronic conditions. 

Go visit your municipal display. Leave us in peace, please. 

If You Don't Like the Weather...

Blue skies, beautiful clouds

...stick around for 10 minutes. I mean it. Usually, it's a joke, but on Thursday, these were the shots actually 10 minutes apart. I saw the clouds, around lunch time, and I thought, "How pretty!" so I buzzed out the door into the heat + humidity (nope, no walk on Wednesday) and snapped this. I went back to doing what I was doing, and then glanced up... to see Shot #2...Went out and snapped that, and heard thunder somewhere off in the distance. 

Thunderheads

Ten minutes later? Stormageddon... 

It bucketed, sheet-rain, sideways. The cloud-to-ground lightning was pretty impressive. Actually, kind of terrifying. The thunder was very loud. The rain was almost louder. 

If you can see in the last shot, right over the restaurant building? You can actually see the sheets of rain coming down, just like a Hollywood special effect. 

Sheet rain

And it just kept on coming. It lasted for well over an hour. The bad thing was that I heard a number of sirens, too, and saw at least 2 ambulances rushing down the street. I understood later that there was a big traffic issue at one of the major intersections a few miles down. It doesn't surprise me. 

And then, when it calmed down, of course, fireworks. Boomers set off in the neighborhood next to the office. Really. See paragraph above on my opinion.

In Thursday night's class, people were joking about how effective our "Yoga Rain Dance" was over the 4th of July holiday. It was effective, but not enough, apparently. 

Garden Glories...

I was at Menard's today, doing my good deed for the church. I bought play sand (jeeze, the smallest bag must weigh nearly 40 lbs!) for the "butt bins" at the church. I cleaned out one (I forgot the one at the front door). Then I put it the required 15 feet away from the door. And the group that meets at the church promptly put it back near the door. 

This does not make me happy and I'll have to address it. 

But. 

That's not the point of this section. The point was I was in Menard's. And I found something beautiful for the garden. This lovely hummingbird feeder was on sale. 

I also picked up some additional hummingbird food. We try to buy the pre-made but without the red dye. The birds don't need the red dye; it's really not good for them. 

We had a "mason jar" kind of hummingbird feeder and it didn't work out well. Bugs, probably ants, got in the feeder despite the very deep "ant well" we had on it. I think the openings were a bit wide and they managed to crawl in. This has smaller openings. The colored part is glass, so that's very pretty in the sunlight. It's under the maple tree, so it's kind of shaded. 

We haven't seen a lot of hummers lately, so I hope that this colorful feeder attracts them. The brown-eyed Susans are starting to bloom, the coneflowers are going nicely, and the pink thing that I can never remember the name of (see it right below the feeder, there) is coming up just as it does every year. The hanging baskets are a bit straggly. The wild mood swings from rain to scorching are taking their tolls on the baskets. But they're hanging in there (ba-dum)... 

And the milkweed. Wow. I don't think I've got monarch eggs after all. But they're feeding something. And we'll have some beautiful pods. 

I remember as a kid having those spray-painted silver and gold and then spray painting Michelob bottles. We'd glitter up the pods and make them into Christmas decorations. We found swamp milkweed all over the place. We'd also do cat tails. 

I expect that, this Fall, we'll have a load of milkweed. I'll have to snag it before it takes over the flower garden. Maybe I should plant some along the south side of the house. Hubby won't necessarily like it, but it's an option. And otherwise? I'll have milkweed to spare, if anyone wants some! 

Random Picture...

Speaking of garden delights, I have to say that while my basil isn't quite spiffy, and my Rosemary is sparse, the parsley? Wow. It's beautiful. Lush, and green, and fragrant. I've used it quite a bit and it's only gotten prettier. It's the prettiest we've had in a long time. I think it's better in the front garden and not in the herb trug. 

I think we're going to have to freeze some of it and maybe make parsley pesto. 

Parsley is a great herb. Yes, it's strong. But it's packed with Vitamin C, iron, and Vitamin K. It's not only good for you, but it's good for your dog! Chopped up in Fido's food, it helps with not only "doggie breath" but also with inflammation. It's antimicrobial - always a plus. And can fight some issues like arthritis. 

I'm going to try it with Quinn. Not sure if she'll eat it, but I'll give it a whack. It might be worth a try, particularly for her cysts. Not sure if cysts are caused by inflammation, but it can't hurt. 

For humans: bone health, an immune booster, full of antioxidants. Helps combat constipation, gas, indigestion. The only thing to worry about, and that's if you eat -- like that whole pot up there -- is that it can cause problems with high blood pressure and water retention. Which is odd, because it's supposed to help with UTIs and keep things flowing, if you know what I mean. Check this link for WebMD for more information. Just so you know I'm not making this up!