STOP. BLOWING. THINGS. UP.

For the love of God... Since MEMORIAL DAY, there has not been a night that goes by that my neighborhood isn't ablaze with booming fireworks. We're not talking the rat-a-tat-tat of the regular ones, or the ZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzPOP of a bottle rocket.

We're talking M80s and quarter sticks of dynamite. And if that's not bad enough? Last night we had a severe thunderstorm - wailing winds, sideways rain, thunder, power went out...And I honestly thought, "Ahhhhhhhhhh, BLISS! I'll get some sleep before midnite!"

Nope. The guys (and I know it's guys, sorry) started right after the T-storm blowing things up again. Really. REALLY??? 

I'd like two things: To not have to dope up my dogs every single night. And to get to sleep before midnight. It's not too much to ask. 

How Does The Garden Grow...

Well....We have cherry tomatoes. Lots of them. And we harvested a handful of snap peas. I think we can start plucking the kale. 

But there was a casualty today. And I was rather heartbroken to do it. We removed two very large Lemon Balm plants. 

I mean, they were 3 feet high and 3 feet across. Each. They took up the entire corner of one garden bed -- this year they just exploded. Last year they were reasonable. But this year, they managed to crowd out the gallardia and almost kill off the snapdragons, lavender and cosmos. 

This is the "after" --- before removal, you couldn't see the marble stepping stone there, and you can see where everything else was just being smothered. 

I hated to do it, but they were just too far overgrown and it would've been detrimental to the other plants. I want Lemon Balm, but I have to look for a smaller variety. 

The flowers at the studio are doing nicely: the alyssum is blooming in the one pot and the mixed wildflowers are coming along fine in the other. 

So perhaps the folks at the employment agency next door have stopped using my flower pots for ashtrays...


Speaking of which, I'm opening the studio back up!! We're in Illinois, and we're in Phase 4 of the 5-phase reopening. We've dropped in number of cases - precipitously. For those saying that the "virus ran its course," y'all are wrong... What happened was that our governor clamped down and most of us paid attention... 

What worries me is that as we can go about more, people will get complacent. And then? We get bit in the backside. Again. And I'm thinking most of us with small businesses won't survive a second shut-down. 

Just Breathe Yoga Studio...

Today, we went in, did a clean, and set up to open on July 1st. Hubby taped the floors so that everyone knows where their mats go. We can open at 50% capacity, but we're being a little more cautious. Our studio can hold 30; but we're topping out at 11 students per class right now. We'll see how it goes.

I wrote out some protocols on the one whiteboard. And I've notified the students. We're still going to do online classes - we're just doing them in a new way. We're back to doing in-person classes soon and quite happy about it. 

It's hard (in my opinion) to teach to a camera. I need to see people. Especially if I want to teach them something a bit complex. I need to see where your body is and where I may need to adjust your alignment. Can't do that the way we've been doing, but what we were doing was better than nothing. 

Each person gets a little more than "social distance" for his/her mat. And we're requiring everyone to have their temperature taken at the door...and we're lucky in one regard: once you're on your mat, you don't have to wear your mask. But it has to be worn inside and as you leave. 

I'm going to encourage everyone to be safe, but I can't police everyone. What I can control, I will. What I can't? I can't. 

Polish Sausage Risotto with Peas...

Bet you never thought of that combo...Neither did I till I was faced with dinner, a sore tooth, and lack of inspiration. Here's the recipe.

1 Polish sausage (or 4 links) cut into thin rounds
1 T. olive oil or bacon fat
1 c. risotto
4 c. hot water + broth cubes
1 1/2 c. leeks
Salt & Pepper to taste (save for last)
1 c. shredded Asiago cheese
1/2 c. goat cheese
1/2 c. half & half
1/2 stick butter
1 1/2 c. frozen peas
Penzey's Green Goddess spice blend
Penzey's granulated garlic

In a large saucepan, melt the butter, and then add leeks. Stir and cook till translucent. Add the risotto and stir around, till the rice has a bit of a shine to it. The leeks should be slightly golden. 

Add a bit of the water. Turn heat to low and simmer; stir every couple of minutes. When the rice has absorbed the water, add more; keep repeating that pattern till the water is used up and the rice is slightly al dente. 

While the rice is cooking, put the sausage into a large saute pan with a bit of olive oil or bacon fat (live large...). Stir it around till the sausage is warmed through and maybe a little browned around the edges, just for taste. Set aside. 

When the rice is al dente, add the peas, spices and pepper and stir. Then add the cheeses, stirring. Add the half & half and stir. Then add sausage. Taste. Salt here, if needed. The whole process takes about 45 minutes. You may have to add more water - if your rice is exceptionally dry. 

This serves 5 people. Or 2 people with really lovely leftovers... 

If you want to use this as a side dish, omit the meat. 

It's a Bird, it's a Plane...

It's a bell tower! The bell tower project is about 98% done. There's some clean-up work to do, but it's all in place. The grass is growing; we're planning a labyrinth and adding a deck to the office space to make it ADA compliant (there'll be a ramp to access off the church property). 

And tomorrow, because I said yes before getting all the details? I'm participating in another peaceful march. We're marching in support of Black Lives Matter again, but our destination is to go to a prayer meeting that the black pastors are organizing. 

Yes, in case you're wondering, we have their permission to march to their event; the timing is that we'd be there before they start. No way do we want to take away from what they're doing...we want to support them, because unfortunately, the neighborhood is kind of ... um... racist, actually. It's kept under wraps, but those of us familiar with the area? We know. And we want it to be better.

Back to the bell tower....The bell has been in the church garage since the late 1980s. It was given to our church from another church. And I have to do some research; it's from the early 1900s we think. It'll be fun to do that kind of detective work.

Knitting...

I'm still beavering away on the Breathe & Hope Shawl; only because I've been busy on other stuff. Not knitting, sadly. 

I'm half-way through Section 8. According to the change the designer made, the colors in this section are actually backward of the way I am doing it. She wants B/A/B/A and I did A/B/A/B. It looks fine to me. 

I don't think it matters in this section how the colors go. It's an interesting one that's going by quickly. See all that pink there? That's Section 6. Which was FOR. EVER. Honestly my least favorite part of this shawl. 

Section 7 in this pic is barely started (sorry, been busy knitting and haven't photographed it in its latest iteration)... it's the striped section, which is the unifying component of the whole thing. 

I'm finding that this is now going faster as I'm closer to the end. When I finish Section 8, there will be 193 stitches. Section 9 brings us to 208 stitches, and Section 10 gives us 211 before we bind off. 

Random Picture...

Well, Raisa is totally untroubled by the fireworks. She sleeps through most of it. And here's her teddy-baby. 

Which she disemboweled this morning. End of that one... I caught her before she could ingest any of the stuffing. 

I have to take a rake to her tomorrow. That will not be fun. She hates to be brushed. Another oddity. 

Every other Siberian Husky I've had has (a) been terrified of fireworks; and (b) adored --- ADORED --- being brushed. She's merely tolerating me plucking her floof. 

I have enough now to knit a small spaniel. 

And it just keeps coming...

...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! 

Fourth of July Frustration...

...This is my "not favorite" holiday of the year. The only bright spot is that the moronic pyromaniacs haven't been shooting off their stupid boomers since Memorial Day. Which has happened in the past. I will say that it's mid-afternoon and sunny - and they're just starting. You can't even SEE the sparkles so what the ????? 

I'm exhausted. Quinn's been throwing up for two days. Hubby and I are snapping at each other because we're taking the dogs in shifts, and it's getting old. 

And we're not upset at the dogs. We're upset that people are so oblivious. The town next to us has really cracked down, and they've actually arrested people and fined them $500 each for possession of illegal fireworks. On the other hand, while our city is patrolling, they missed an obvious pick-up. The kid across the street actually tossed a big boomer, and the smoke was still in the air as the cops pulled past the house. And they didn't stop. 

What does it take? Someone blowing off their fingers? Maybe. 

We've tried the Thundershirt. We've tried Benadryl. We've tried Pulsatilla (a homeopathic remedy). I massage them with lavender essential oil, and I've got it diffusing now. 

So far, Quinn's still hiding in the bathroom. Tippi's out here by me, snoozing before the late-night barkfest. Raisa is out with Hubby on a walk, to blow off some steam before the "festivities" start. 

For several years, I've really hated the Fourth of July. Actually, since Quinn became so spooked by the noise. I can handle Tippi barking - though that's only been in the past few years. Quinn's been really awful at this time, and we've tried everything we can think of. 

I'm actually ordering some CBD oil. Yes - I'm putting my dog on canabanoids. A friend of mine uses them for her dogs, and has had really good results. I need to do something because when you see your dog trying to crawl behind the toilet, when her pupils are dilated, when she's drooling like crazy, and now spending days barfing? It's time to do something more. 

I've ended up putting her in her crate early each night. Set the diffuser up in the kitchen, draw the drapes, crank up the fan for some white noise. And hope for the best. 

CBD oil is derived from hemp - it's pot without the THC. So it should relieve her anxiety and aggression issues (particularly with Raisa - and come to think if it, it might help Raisa with HER aggression issues) and it won't zonk her out like doggie valium. 

I'll let you know how it goes. 

Knitting...

Yes, it's another pair of socks. The sweater was getting heavy. Though I might switch back to it tonight, as long as I'll be up with the dogs anyway. 

This is a plain vanilla pair. I have a 15-row rib going on and then plain sailing through the rest. It's OnLine self-patterning. I've never used it - I actually won it in a raffle, and so I'm trying it out. With this kind of "busy" yarn, plain is best. Maybe a rib down the side, or K6 P2? But for the most part, let the yarn do the talking and skip the fancy stitching. 

And on top of that, it's kind of a brainless knit. The yarn is in a grey/black/blue/white colorway, and it looks like it'll knit up nicely. It got great reviews from my online (ha) sock knitters group, and they said it wears like my favorite: Opal. 

I like the way it's working up now, and I think it's going to be a nice "basic" sock - I mean, not my usual "wildly" patterned colors, but something I can wear like the grey variegated ones that I have. I may also try the "Strong heel" variety again. That worked up nicer than I thought it was going to. 

And the sweater is just going along. Like I said - not being a speed-knitter, I can't show you a "front" today, a "sleeve" tomorrow...I'm just plugging along. 

Go Cubs Go...

So yeah, this happened at Mass this past Sunday. My friend L officiated at the wedding of his niece and her new husband. This is what they gave him. Of course it's a replica. A very good replica. And it weighs a stinkin' ton! 

The women's version that I saw - and there was only one, which is really not cool - was a wimpy-looking thing that resembled a high school ring. This is something that they need to remedy because there are quite a few women fans. Many of us have been fans for a long, long while, too. 

But apparently, the ring can't be downsized? I mean it is rather a hunk of gaudy stuff - but I wonder if they could've modified it? Either way, it was rather thrilling to have even a replica. 

I mean really: A World Series ring. With a Chicago Cubs logo. The first in over 100 years. And I was able to, even with a replica, put it on my finger. 

Yes!  

Everyone's freaking out because they're 41-41 now. Relax. By this time, normally, we're rolling up the grass on the infield. This is an extraordinary time. Last year? Indescribable. Wonderful. Wonder-filled. Awesome. Can we repeat? Well, I don't know. I think so, but then I've been a Cub fan my whole life. I always think "This year!" 

This year, we have all the talent. We just have to get it together. It could happen. If the front office lets Maddon be Maddon, and then perhaps lets him get the players he needs? We'll be fine. And I have the feeling that even if the just let him do him? We'll be fine. 

Random Picture...

This is the lily garden next to the spot where we do garden yoga. The flowers are in bloom and the garden is shaping up nicely. Next week is "Art in the Garden," so I'm not sure if we'll be outside. I have to call them. If they're setting up for that lovely event, I'm pretty sure they're not going to want us around. 

Our own garden is doing well, too. The brown-eyed Susan and cone flowers are now in bloom. The dill is growing. The bee balm is bright and beautiful. Lavender and Salvia are adding pops of purple to the patch. We have a few gazing balls out there, and Hubby will put up the one bird bath. The hummingbird feeders have attracted a bit of an audience, so I'm looking forward to a lot more traffic in the coming few weeks. 

Our own day lily "fence" around the front yard is coming along, though we could use a little thinning out. 

Back to knitting. Gotta get a leg on that sock! Happy Fourth of July - if you're celebrating. Me? 

I'm trying to keep dogs calm.