Plugging & Plodding...

I wish I had something remarkable to report. As I'm on Day 25 of Whole30, I wish I could say that it's awesome, I'm awesome, life is awesome, and I'll do this the rest of my life. 

But I can't. There are also no new revelations about recipes, food or anything of that sort. 

I've been doing more research, and I'm also listening to my own body. I don't like the protein content of this diet. I feel like my portions are all off. I feel as if I've done no good at all except that I've not eaten any processed food, no sweets, and gotten off sugar. 

I think I'm feeling unbalanced. I think that perhaps the fruit that we're allowed is even too much sugar. But I'm enjoying the fruit. 

I was thinking that I could eat this way for a long, long time, and the truth is, that in the main, I have been. All a long. Except for the sugar. If I were to truly go off sugar, I'd eliminate the fruit. 

But I don't like saying, "I will never have XYZ ever again in my life," especially when that XYZ is a whole food group!

I do have good  news, though - this has been rather morbid, hasn't it? All "woe is me" crap for a food plan where you really have to have the ability to pay for the food - it's silly. 

Anyway - I'm going out to see Kid #1 in a few weeks, so "clean eating" is still on the bill, but I'm going to start walking and exercising more. Kid has plans for hiking --- and I don't think I'm up for it right now. But I can work toward it. 

I'm really excited about that, because Kid hasn't been home in a long time, and frankly - it's hard not to worry. Of course, someone could make the case that moms having kids in the military have it harder - and they do. But that's not the case here, and I'm not apologizing for missing one of the kids. 

Knitting...

Well. Knitting has happened. I'm on Point 10 of the Close to You Shawl, and I'm plugging along on that. I've put a few more rows onto the traveling sock, but I haven't done a thing on the Petty Harbour sock. I need to start alternating projects. 

Of course, watching "Miss Marple" is kind of inspiring. The little knitting detective, plying away at whatever's on her needles (I've never seen a finished project in all the Marples I've watched!), and solving crimes that have stumped the authorities. This one is Joan Hickson. She's one of the better ones. I was going to say she wasn't the "iconic" one -- but it turns out she was!

I just haven't seen a lot of her versions. 

The one I'm watching now has a heroine who's apparently fallen for a real creep. She's just found out, and I've been thinking, "How could you NOT know he's a creep? I don't have to do anything but listen to him and I'm feeling queasy about him touching you!"

Anyway, I feel good about progressing on this project. I'm planning to spend time with the intended recipient this weekend, so that's kind of a nice, juicy secret I'm keeping - hoping the recipient will love it. 

I've been looking at other knitting blogs - different ones than I usually read. And honestly? I can't find anything else that engages me. I've read some and I either get turned off by the format (please don't type everything in a medium grey on white background and center every line of your work), or I don't like the projects, or I think the person is ... boring. 

Not like I'm lighting the world on fire with my prose. My friend Nat just wrote a lovely short essay on a jar of peanut butter which left me near to tears. My words don't often flow like that. 

There are so many bloggers out there, it's hard to read through all of them - I just don't have that kind of time! So I think I'll stick with the ones I read now. But I'm willing to take suggestions - if you know of a knitting blogger who just makes your needles sing - let me know!

I have to plan the knitting for the trip to see The Kid. Definitely the shawl. And a pair of socks. I'll be gone a week, and there are already activities planned, so we shall see how much I get done. I'm driving, so that's kind of no help. Looking forward to some time by myself and some silence. 

I hope to have lots of progress pictures ready after that trip. 

It's Spring...

We had the windows open! Spring has sprung! The daffodils at the church have come back to life after a wilting frost-ish kind of span of time. 

And sort of to celebrate, flowers were brought to work. Pink tulips. 

Funny enough, in a vase which I've had for almost 15 or 20 years - a crystal vase into which water and flowers were never put.

It's serving its purpose now, but I had used it as a "pretty" -- I put either shredded curly ribbon in it or Christmas ornaments, or those cute marbles. 

My thoughts are turning to the garden. Hubby, in spite of his continuing shoulder thing, managed to clear out two of the raised beds. 

My young tomatoes are looking peaked - so I may put them outside tomorrow to see if they perk up a bit. I talked to a friend who's done heirlooms from seed, she says that's not unusual. Thankfully. 

They're little sprigs of things. She says to plant them right up to the leaves. All I can do is try. 

I want to do lettuce (even though it's kind of late), mostly because of the whole "romaine scare." And I want to do carrots and radishes, along with the tomatoes. That should about do it. Though I'd love to try potatoes one year. Have to ask Hubby about that one. My MIL used to do potatoes every year. 

Herbs, too. But given our winter, I'm pretty sure I won't be able to start them from seed. It's almost May already. 

Stained Glass Repair...

I get to watch someone fix our stained glass windows at church. As you can see here, if you click on the picture, you can see the lead part slipping away from the glass. I understand from someone who knows about these windows that they're restored, and on the outside, they're protected by triple-pane thermal pane glass - also protecting them against fading and against the weather. 

On the inside, that wood frame is removable, so they can remove the stained glass when it's needing repair or something. The church is over 180 years old - and some of these windows date back nearly that far. 

Anyway, a couple of people noticed that two of the windows had some damage at the top. 

I called a restoration expert - happens to be the one who worked on the windows when they were first restored - and she'll be coming to the church on Tuesday, and I'm getting kind of excited to see what she's going to do. 

I will try to snap some pictures of our windows - now that the light is better, they'll be easier to photograph. I also have to take some new pics of the hall as it's being renovated. Which reminds me of a few other things I have on my to-do list... it just never ends!

Random Picture...


The sunset a few days ago after yoga class. We all enjoy watching it as the class ends, and we all joke that the building there on the left? We want it moved about 100 feet to the south, so we have a better view. 

It's a beautiful way to end the day. I turned around and saw the nearly-full moon, and it was stunning against a sky that was the total opposite of this one. 

I love to be able to look out at the sky. That's why I'm eagerly anticipating the trip to see Kid #1 - I've never been to that area, but am anxious to see it. I was told that, during one part of my drive, that I'll be "able to see the curve of the Earth." I'm looking forward to that! 

Best of Random Pics...

I'm not lazy. I'm just tired of the stale news cycles... So today we're doing a "best of" -- I've dug through the phone and I've found some random pics that I don't think I've posted before. But if I have, please excuse and just enjoy!!

Comments always welcome - and share my blog with your friends. (Doesn't that sound awfully needy??? Well, we writers are like that...)

Altar in my office

This is the altar in my office. I use it as a focal point for meditation, and it's a little "sacred space" for some of my treasures, including my great-granny's medals, Tippi's TDI badges, candles, a rock from a trip -- all kinds of stuff that just means something to me. 

I saw an article in Yoga Journal about the altars people kept and some were quite spare. Some were beautiful. But all of them reflected the individual who created them. Some were just a bulletin board. 

All you need is a little space where you can put something meaningful up in front of you. It doesn't have to be "religious" in nature. It can be a picture, a seashell, a candle... anything that causes you to pause and think. 

That's the purpose. Not adulation. Not worship. But a space in your life (at home or at the office -- or both) where you are reminded to "stop and smell the roses." Or look at the picture. Or light the candle. 

Basically, a spot that reminds you to breathe. We all need that. 

Hi temps...

I don't know when I took this, but it was last summer. Just because it's 7* here (feels like "spring may never come" -- a/k/a -11*F), we often forget that yes, spring will come. And then summer. And we'll be griping or boasting about how hot it is. 

When you're freezing in this, the (hopefully) last of the Polar Vortex times, remember this picture and realize that, come August, you'll be whining. 

Well, I'll be whining. Either way.

We took these clematis down this past year. They had actually rather withered and even though I know they can last for years and years, ours succumbed to either the crummy soil, the hot weather or the dogs who kept peeing on them. 

Or a combination thereof. 

Clematis

So last year, we took down the trellises and put in 2 lilac bushes. We will most likely trim the lilacs and keep them from getting "wild" but I will miss these clematis. I love lilacs, but I will miss the beauty of these flowers.  

If you get a chance, please plant these. They're gorgeous, hardy and beautiful in a mixed planting. Meaning, you can plant ANY combination of these flowers. If you want to be matchy-matchy, go for it. If you want to mix red, white, purple, variegated.

Well, do that, too. You can have big ones, small ones, a mix of the two.

You can plant one side in blues, one side in purples. Or any of the above combinations. 

Clematis have different blooming times, too. Ours always bloomed early and then by August, we were done. Mr. K., next door? His is GIGANTIC, but it's got smaller flowers. And it blooms a month or so after ours and lasts through fall. 

I bet he's got hummingbirds nesting in his; it's a very thick bush, growing up the side of his house. 

Raisa snout

So this is the first picture I captured of Raisa. First off, my Nokia is a second-generation. I'm truly looking forward to the upgrade this year!! Second, she's really quick! Luckily, my phone didn't come in for a slurpy Husky kiss. 

She's blending into the family well. And today, I got a text from Hubby, claiming "MY DOG" crapped all over the kitchen. 

"She's grounded for LIFE" he says. And then he takes them all out for a lovely long walk. He's putty in their hands -- errrrr, PAWS. 

This is her 3rd accident in the house, but she's barely 6 months old, and I think the excitement of having 2 other dogs in the house often distracts her.

Huskies always, ALWAYS have the canine equivalent of ADD - and puppies have it the worst. 

She'll calm down. Around age 6 or so... Maybe. 

This little lovely is a "chatelaine" -- Now, normally, the definition of a chatelaine is "the mistress of a household or large establishment."

Sheep chatelaine

The secondary definition is "a clasp or hook for a watch, purse or bunch of keys." In knitting terms, a chatelaine can be called a "scissors-keeper." This little weighted sheep has a "tail" and that has a velcro loop where you can secure your scissors. 

My scissors are usually kept in a project bag. And the ones in that bag (a/k/a an inexpensive zippered make-up bag) are the really sharp ones; I put a wine bottle cork on the tips to keep from jabbing myself when I'm rooting around in there. These are "airline approved" and blunt-tipped. This is a good place to stash them, so that the next time I fly somewhere, if I take something other than the "Before and After Scarf" (hey, 96" of knitting takes up most flights I'll be on!), I can grab these and be assured that the officials won't confiscate my good pointed embroidery snips. 

She's cute. Quirky. And a sheep. What more could a knitter ask for? 

If you're ever looking for a "little something" for the knitter in your life (or as a small treat for yourself), check these out. This is from Lantern Moon, and I got mine for under $20. You can get them at your LYS (buy locally when you can!!!) or -- of course -- on Amazon or at your favorite online yarn store such as Jimmy Beans or the like. 

Yes, since you asked: all the dogs DID think she was a new toy. She's on my knitting table where they can't get to her. 

Ahhhhhhhhh - spring-to-summer on the prairie trail!! This was last summer, at the beginning before it turned beastly. We were on the new prairie trail and I stopped a couple of times to snap some pictures.

Wild thistle

As you can imagine, a "prairie" trail is very short on (a) shade and (b) trees. But it's not short on wildflowers and grasses. This thistle was just beautiful and in a clump of them. 

Our local park district has been diligent about ripping out the invasive stuff and putting BACK the native stuff. This prairie area has been planted with milkweed (hello Monarch Butterflies!!) and thistle and all the prairie grasses native to our area.

The wild garlic and other invasive stuff has been removed and they're keeping an eye on it to make sure it doesn't come back.

I mean, we're talking wild roses -- they're just not native to our area; they've been tossed into fields and of course, they germinate and take over. 

Honeysuckle is another noxious weed. Ok, my mom had some planted alongside the driveway as a "living fence" next to our neighbor. But she quickly changed her mind when Hubby actually sawed the stuff down to a one-foot-high stump.

And the next year, it grew 5 feet and blossomed. It's lovely. It smells nice. And it takes over!!

Well, this brings me to the end of this post. Let me know how you liked my selection. Maybe I should do this every quarter or so?