The Key to...

not twisting 350 stitches on a circular needle is..... to start out FLAT.

I started my Long Sands Tee (Quince & Co.) (here is the Ravelry link) using their Sparrow yarn, which is linen. I love linen, but I don't like knitting with linen yarn. I'm using colorway Moon, which is a gorgeous pewter color. 

The top itself has THIRTEEN INCHES of positive ease - so let's just call it really "floaty." For the size I need, I had to cast on 350 stitches. They call for 32" circulars - which isn't nearly enough. I did what they said, and it didn't last long; I ended up frogging. Went to Betsy's in Lockport, and bought 40" circulars (the largest they had) and started over. 

But I have to tell you about the cast on method I used. There was virtually no way I was going to "wrap stitches" to "estimate" the tail. I found the "Two Ball Cast On." I am in love. In. Love. This isn't exactly the link, but it's close enough. I thought I'd saved it, but apparently not. 

And another new thing...It's just been a great learning experience so far... After the frogging, I reached out on the Hive Mind of Facebook, and learned that, for a large number of stitches on a circular needle, one trick is to knit 2-3 rows FLAT, and then join in a circle. You can see whether you're twisted after the 2-3 rows of flat knitting and you're way less likely to twist. 

Jazzed with that, I am! 

The next new thing I'm learning is drop stitch. I dislike drop stitch stuff intensely. Reminds me of runs in nylons, frankly. But this is basically a tiny drop stitch after a row (350 stitches, did I mention???) of k1, yo, k1... So it won't be obnoxious. 

The shirt has a cap sleeve, and honestly, I'd wear a tank under it. It'll be a nice shirt for actually 3 seasons. 

Closing in on 200...

Masks, that is. I've made the pleats smaller, so I can get 3 of them in. We're thinking about doing them as a church fundraiser, since our Rummage Sale (spring & fall) is likely kaput for 2020. 

I'm working on several for Kid #2, since it looks like in Illinois, we don't give a rat's rear end for teachers... put 'em in classrooms where you can't circulate the air, social distance, or even open a window. With 1200+ kids in the average high school, plus another few hundred in teachers, staff, and ancillary personnel in there? 

Yeah. Let's just open the schools. 

Ahem. I digress. 

Anyway, what we were thinking was that we could put the masks out, ask for a $10 donation per mask, and maybe make a bit of money that we've essentially lost with the lack of rummage sale profits. 

We'll see how that goes. I'm also doing another of the more "fancy" masks for myself, using an over-the-head kind of tie so that it only takes a bow in the back. We'll see how that works. I want to get that one done prior to my next yoga training. 

I used a "coffee filter" mask (that's what I call the procedural masks that loop over the ears) for the last weekend training, and it was kind of a pain in the ears... I prefer the ties. But I need something a bit lighter than the ones I made for myself that were lined with flannel. Much too hot for summer!

Got Smoothies...

Well, I went a little nuts with the smoothies this week. You think I have enough? 

In my defense, I now only have about half of the Mason jar left. Here's the recipe:


2 T. Maca Powder
2 scoops your favorite protein shake powder
1 c. coconut water
1 avocado, do the usual prep...
1 cucumber, peeled & chunked
2 stalks celery, trimmed and chunked
1 Granny Smith apple, quartered
2 carrots, chunked
1 head romaine, chunked
1 piece of ginger, about 2" or so
6 ice cubes
1 c. frozen berries
1 cup Siggi's Yogurt, your favorite flavor
Extra coconut water if needed

WASH YOUR PRODUCE.... Use Thieves Fruit & Veggie wash (no need to wash the frozen berries - but if you use fresh? Wash 'em! 

In a VitaMix or Bullet or whatever you have, ingredients in as follows: 
Coconut water
Powders
Granny Smith
Carrots
Celery
Romaine
Avocado
Ginger
Berries
Yogurt
Ice cubes

Notice you're putting the "harder" stuff at the bottom, which, in the VitaMix at least, is the preferred method. Whiz. Adjust for thickness: Add more coconut water if needed. Don't make it too thick - you're not supposed to chew your smoothies, and if you're using a regular blender, a chunky smoothie is the quickest way to burn up a blender. 

Ask me how I know that...

Store in the Mason jar and however many extra containers you need. Use within 2 days. 

You can add any other fruit that you want; I'll often add a pear if I have it. But I like the Granny Smith for the snap. Always add veggies!!! If you just go with fruit, that's a LOT of sugar, even with using Siggi's (which has lots less sugar and a lot of protein). I don't add bananas -- too high in sugar for me. But if you use a banana, you don't necessarily need the yogurt. 

If you want, skip the coconut water and use almond or oat milk. 

I Broke the Dogs...

Or, the heat did. Well, I kinda broke Tippi. She wanted to go for a walk today, and Hubby said, "take her around the block." We made it 2 blocks. The humidity was awful. And she's recovering from a UTI, so I know the antibiotic knocked her for a loop - on top of giving her the runs. Poor baby... She came back in, drank about a gallon of water, and plopped over... Quinnie was behind my chair as always. 

Raisa, on the other hand, has now got the HVAC stuff figured out. She has found the kitchen AC vent and that's her spot. 


It is, of course, the most inconvenient spot, being right in front of the sink. 

Does she care?

Nope. 

Her butt is right by the vent. We call it her "Freezy butt seat." You should have seen her when we had to get the AC repaired. 

Thank goodness that day was in the 70s. She laid by the Freezy Butt Vent and there was no cold. She looked at me as if to say, "What the heck is this bamboozle???" 

Once the guy repaired it (we only needed a sploosh of freon), she was back at the Freezy Butt Vent and happy. She was mortally offended that, till he fixed it, she only had a fan to keep her cool. 

How Does My Garden Grow...

Well, pretty darned good in certain respects. My cherry tomatoes are coming along nicely; I usually buy Sweet 100s - very reliable. My romaine has bolted; I have one pot of parsley eaten to the nubs by the caterpillars. The kale and broccoli rabe have been eaten, I suspect, by Mama Woodchuck and her babies. She's living under the neighbor's tool shed. The neighbor keeps blocking the holes, and Mama just digs more. I suspect the neighbor should just give up, otherwise, the toolshed is going to fall into the huge hole Mama has dug...

My wildflowers are doing ok; the Brown-Eyed Susans are in bloom now. The rest of the garden is starting to fade, but it's time. 

I was quite skeptical when Hubby moved the tomatoes, parsley and lettuce to the deck. But he was right. Even though it's the north side of the house, it does get enough sun - and plenty of water with all the rain we've had. I have to tug the pansies away from the back door - they need to dry out a bit. They're a tad too soggy. 

It's so cool that the tomatoes are taller than I am. 

I can slice them up, and put them on pasta. A cool tomato on warm pasta or risotto is really quite yummy. Hubby says they taste spicy, but I don't think so. I think they're a bit sweeter this year. 

If the Beefsteak tomatoes come in, I'll be using those (and maybe some of my friend's Romas if she has extra) for a fresh batch of canned pizza sauce. 

The basil was really nice; I need to plant more of it next year. I don't have enough to do pesto, but I do have enough to add to a salad or to add to pasta sauce or pizza. My Rosemary, this year, is kind of slow. I have it in the same place as last year, but it's just not thriving. Not sure why. It's usually bigger by now. There's still enough to freeze, though. 

The Stormtroopers...

Apparently, the president of Chicago's police union wrote to Washington DC and asked for help. Not sure how the new Police Superintendent feels about that. But I am sure how the mayor feels. 


Having armed, unidentified "cops" in the street, just like they're doing in Portland, OR, is frightening. And unconstitutional, though that doesn't seem like it bothers anyone in DC lately. Can you smell the Constitution burning? 

There's a hot dog place called The Wiener's Circle. They're known for their "attitude." And lately, because of COVID-19, they've been doing business in a different fashion. You can call your order in, and then specify the "level of rudeness" you want. From basically just "Chicago rude" to F-bombs. 

It's a thing. 

This is their latest sign. In honor of the Stormtroopers. 

This is a swift fall toward authoritarianism, and martial law conveniently placed close to the 2020 election. It's also very bad theater for one madman. Who managed to conflate a test for dementia with a "genius" test. 

Citing the "failing New York Times".... (sorry, snark is now "off"), we have the Wall of Moms; the Wall of Dads. And now? The Wall of Vets. See the story here. Veterans have had it. After the beating of a Navy veteran who just wanted to talk to the "federales" -- they're now standing in front of the moms & dads. 

Now, given "white privilege" and all -- I get that many black moms are kind of upset about the idea of the Wall of Moms, given that they've been doing that for at least 2 generations. I hate the idea that we, as white women, are co-opting the thing they've been doing. 

I'm wondering how awful it sounds to just say, "But if we can get it noticed and change it, is that bad?" I don't know. I'd welcome discussion...

It will be interesting to follow up on the Portland story. The "cops" have now gassed the mayor, at which point #MangoMussolini crowed that he was "pathetic." 

Mirror, dude. Just look in a mirror. THAT is pathetic. 

Random Picture...

So I did something I'd been toying with; just something to "check off my list." I had my stylist put a few purple stripes in my hair. Jeeze - I'd forgotten that "hair dye" takes forever!! I was there for 2 hours! Now, as you can see, with short hair? I'm in and out. 

You can see the larger of the stripes in this picture. When it's really styled correctly, the purple is just under a "layer" of my silver/pewter (or whatever color you want to call it). 

I have to use a special colored-hair shampoo, which is kind of annoying, but I do want this to last. It's only semi-permanent anyway, but I'd like it not to fade at the first wash!

Anyway - it's something fun.I needed some fun. 

True Confessions...

...I have never seen a World Series. 

The snarky among you might mention that I am, after all, a Cub fan...

But I'm going to watch tonight; we'll see if the "family curse" holds, because my granny used to not watch. Yep. NOT watch. Because she said when she DID watch, they lost. 

I'm hoping the curse isn't really a curse. 

So the first thing that strikes me is the number of people IN THE STANDS who choose to watch the game through their stinkin' cell phones.

People. You are AT THE WORLD SERIES. Put down the phone... 

Most of the time we watch sports on TV we either watch for the commercials (Super Bowl) or to see who's singing the National Anthem and how badly they botch it. Baseball - tonight's game, for example - doesn't start with the anthem. They just started right in.

Well, I don't know if my heart can stand this game!

Knitting...

The sweater continues apace. I'm almost to the point of putting the left side onto the scrap yarn so I can continue with the right front and the rest of the right sleeve. It's progress. It's buttonholes, so on we go. 

Theoretically, I should be practicing my guitar. Christmas is coming... But I'm cranking away at the blog and then working on the sweater. I can't decide my next project. Oh, I know I'm going to shoot for a hat, at least. Maybe socks, if I can find a toddler sock pattern. 

But I need a project for me. I mean, aside from finishing the Shape-It scarf. I have to Stash Dive, though. Yes, I have yarn that I've purchased, but I really need to get into the stash and start some of those projects that have been sitting there for a while. 

We shall see. 

Socks, definitely, but I want something to wear other than on my feet. Or on my neck. Kinda tired of scarves, too (sorry, Shape-It - I consider you lace, not a "scarf" that'll keep me warm with a jacket).

Reading...

I've started "The Citadel." It's an oldie but a goodie. Yes, I have 2 books going, but that's not odd for me. It's a smaller book, so I can drag it to work and read on my (ha) lunch breaks. 

I try to take a "computer break" during the day; I work on computers all day and I get tired of looking at the screen. I usually try to read a "real" book, though I have used my Kindle. I get a lot of my books from the second-hand store, and that makes it easier for me to stay within my "book budget."

Smoothie...

So I made a smoothie with garden kale. Surprisingly, I was unable to find Haas avocados, so I bought something called a Florida avocado. And it stunk... I mean it wasn't ripe, and it felt like it was frozen solid sometime during transit. I had to skip the avocado in my smoothie. I was a bit concerned because it was very kale-heavy, so I added 2 bananas, a pear, a cucumber and an apple. 

As you can see by the picture, the Florida avocado has a smoother skin and it's HUGE. The gal at the Jewel said it was "just like" the Haas avocado, but from what I've read, the calories and the fat content are not alike. Aside from the size (which is the issue with the calories), I'm not all that sure I'd use it again. I'm not sure I'm going to be able to use it at all... It wasn't ripe, and I had to have Hubby help cut the blasted thing. And of course, if they're not ripe, they're not going to get any better when they're cut. I tasted it, and it was like eating a green banana. Urgh. 

I don't know - maybe it would've been better if the thing was actually ripe. Or maybe I should have just sprung for the Haas avocados, but due to a shortage, they were really pricey. 

So in order to "save the smoothie," I ended up adding honey. I rarely add sweeteners because I don't think you need them. But this one needed honey. 

And more. So I rooted in the freezer and found a small bag of blueberries. That did it. It looks a little "dark" but it tastes pretty good. It's a little more liquid without the creaminess of the avocado, but it's something I'd do again...if I can remember what it was I actually did!

The garden is still belching kale, and the carrots have to be pulled up yet. We may yet have an experiment with kale soup. Or kale pesto - that sounds good. While I like my sauteed kale, I'm a little bored with it. I have to think of something else to do with kale that's savory. I have to think about it a bit. 

Random Picture...

From last fall, at the park. It was a lovely afternoon, and we took the girls for a long walk. The colors were at their peak and the light was perfect. So far this year? I'm not sure how the colors will go. It was an odd summer, and it was on the wet side too. Our backyard tree hasn't decided if it's going to turn color yet, and the front yard tree is still pretty bright green. Mr. K's birch tree is a waterfall of green and gold; but so far, nothing else is moving. 

All I can do is wait and see what happens in the next few weeks. I'm afraid it's going to be a "blink and miss it" kind of fall. 

Thursday Already...

The older I get, the faster time seems to fly. I swear it was just Monday. Yesterday. 

Chicago is in shock because Charlie Trotter died unexpectedly. 

Photo from Google

Well, too soon, at least. He was 54. His son said that he had a brain aneurysm and was aware of it. He was warned not to fly anywhere and he flew to Jackson Hole to speak at a conference. His son came home, Charlie was on the couch, and when his son awoke the next morning, Charlie was still on the couch, unresponsive. 

So sad. No, I couldn't afford to eat at his place. And you'll see all kinds of memorials, I'm sure. Some will excoriate his temperament. Some will mourn because they had good experiences with him and they will feel his loss. Some will mourn simply because Charlie lifted Chicago from the "beer and pizza" town everyone thought they knew, to become somewhat of a foodie mecca. 

I mourn the early loss of genius, and I wonder if, when he unexpectedly closed his restaurant, he had a premonition. The picture is from Google. You'll see a lot of them in his somewhat iconic pose, but I kind of like this one where he's actually doing what made him famous, and what - I hope - made him happy.

Politics...

This has been going around Facebook for a while, and it's still worth a look-see. Bill Maher stops a panelist in his tracks, after the panelist insists that the Affordable Care Act is a ginormous "one size fits all" thing that can't possibly - cannot POSSIBLY work. Check it out here. 

And in more ACA news, Reuters reports that people are warming up to the website and sign-up despite the glitches. I have to wonder what Social Security would've looked like had it been web-based... I can tell you that Kid #2 got his explanation of benefits from his employer, and he said, "Oh wow -- I can have a pre-existing condition!" Which, being 25 and healthy as a horse, he doesn't...but his employer clearly spelled out what was coming, and it's good. He's in that coveted segment of young healthy folks. It's all good from here, I think. 

And in Chicago politics, the city is issuing bonds for buildings that have no hope in heck of ever being habitable. Somehow, this one generates a big "yawwwwwwwwwwwwnnnnn" -- someone knows someone. 

In Illinois, good news for the gay community. We trot into the 21st century by passing the gay marriage bill. Click here for a CBS report. Of course, the Council of Catholic Bishops is really upset. So are a boat-load of conservatives.

And there was the typical article in today's Trib saying, "Well, what if a vendor doesn't want to serve the gay couple? The law ONLY protects the clergy."

Okey-dokey. Here's where we need a huge scoop of common sense. Really, in this economy, you'd turn down business? Well, that's certainly your right. But you know what? You don't have to rub your religious objections in anyone's nose. If I came to you and asked you to provide a cake, a video, a dress, flowers - whatever it was, and told you it was for a gay wedding, all you have to say, truly -- just being polite and civil maybe -- would be, "I'm sorry, I can't provide that for you." And I don't mean I have to be blatant about the telling... It'd come up in the normal course of placing an order. "Bride's name: Jennifer; Groom's name: Susan." Well, there ya go....

You don't have to whack me on the head with your Bible. And I have the perfect right to go somewhere else. To someone who wants to take my money... Truly the most simple solution. 

Illinois needs the business. Aside from the human rights issue, we need the money. It's a whole new marketplace for us. Good for the government for finally getting something right. 

Knitting...

Finished one more Fluffy Scarf and cast on the next one. The yarn, Starbella, is not exactly as nice as it used to be. Perhaps they're going the "Homespun" route. Homespun, by Lion Brand Yarn, used to be the go-to yarn. It was good quality, had gorgeous colors, and hey - even Martha Stewart used it to make her "prison poncho." 

Then, there started to be quality issues. The nylon filament would untwist; the colors weren't consistent from hank to hank. And you'd be midway through a project and get this huge whack of "blank" -- as if about a yard or so would've missed the dye pot entirely. 

This last hank of Starbella had some real issues in terms of the gold braid at the bottom; one chunk was missing. The hank came apart on me mid-stream (it looked as if they ran out of one segment and just lumped another beginning string onto it) so I had to double up for a row or two to hook it back together. Not happy. I've marked that scarf and I'll use that one for myself. I don't want to have another choir member use it and think "Oh, I got the crappy one." 

I'm working this weekend, but I still hope to finish that charity afghan. I want my dining room table back, and Hubby wants to move the Ott light back where it belongs! 

Food...

I've got a lovely smoothie for lunch today. The weight loss stuff is back on track. Funny - it works really well when you're not mindlessly munching all day long. Hmmmmmmm. 

I'm going to begin working with my small hula hoops - you put them on your arms and do arm circles. It's quite a workout actually. I think that starting out slowly will help re-build my upper body strength. Yoga helps, of course, but anything you can do as well...it won't hurt.

Music...

Working on the Silent Night for Christmas. I have to figure out how to hook the guitar up to the sound system. If Hubby does go visit his mom for the holiday, I'm on my own. The church is really old. I mean, so old that they don't even have plumbing in the sacristy. We will look at it this weekend and hope to figure out something I can do on my own. It's not usually a big deal; at our other church, we had a sound board and I knew which buttons to push. Here, though - not so easy. 

I rather wish they'd let me play another one, but I'm biding my time. It'll come. Or it won't and that's fine. I play because I enjoy it, and if I can do it publicly, fine. If not, ok. Recently, at our university, they've started using guitarists, so maybe I can do it there. That might be better anyway, because I'd be one of several and not just by myself. 

Random Picture...

This is a picture of one of my knitting notebooks. It may seem silly, but what I like to do is write everything down, regardless of the written pattern I may have. 

Knitting Knotebook

It's this way: You may have a printed pattern, and unless you're built exactly to the specification of a pattern, you will have alterations. Or you may be hit with a brilliant idea which you think that the designer might've thought about (or not) and you want to incorporate it. Well, obviously, in a sweater, you want to document that so that, say, both sleeves are alike. I know there's this whole genre of "asymmetrical knitting" but honestly - I'd just look like I was wearing something I screwed up.


This one happens to be of a prayer shawl I knitted for a friend of mine, who happens to be an organist (hence the "Organ Pipes" pattern). I knitted it for her because her son died, and because we have been friends for so long. 

So I have them all over; I try to use each one till full, but sometimes (who am I kidding --- ALWAYS) I have multiple WIPs (works in progress) and I need notebooks for most of them. I like to even keep track of how many rows of a scarf or something like that. 

This way, you can re-use your printed pattern (the shawl pattern actually came from one of those "stitch-a-day" calendars, so it wasn't even a shawl till I did that). You don't have notes all over, and if you happen to knit something for two people, like when I did the hats for my kids, I was able to note the colors and the order in which I used them for each hat. 

Heck, even the Yarn Harlot loves it when people bring her their knitting notebooks to sign. It's a piece of history and maybe one day, a future knitter in my family will dig through my notebooks and be inspired to try something of his or her own, using my notes. 

Been A While...

I know - I had resolved to post more often. Then stuff just got nuts. I mean, overwhelmingly nuts, so much that Hubby seems to be in fear of my normal level of crazy-busy getting even worse. And he's probably right.

Nevertheless. I'm still standing, even if a bit more than on overload. So, let's see. Howzabout some Ruby Slippers?? Here's the scoop. We were at the mall...amazingly. We actually went to get my yoga teacher a birthday gift at Teavana, which is a dangerous place for me. Even more dangerous, however, was Walking Company. I stopped and said, "Oh, they have Dansko clogs. Now I know where to go." And lo and behold, Hubby says, "Let's go in." I got sized, which was a good thing, because my knitty clogs (no, no picture - I forgot!!) which I bought as my treat for losing the 30 lbs. were a bit tight across my very high instep, and that was after I had bought them one size larger. Turns out that it depends...each pair is hand-stapled, so they're all slightly different. We looked at all the nice styles, and Hubby says, "Don't you need a pair of plain black ones?"

Does that answer only one small part of why I married him????

We tried on the black ones with the no-skid sole, and about 4 other ones. He picked these red ones out, and said, "Now all you have to do is click your heels and ask to go home!" I think that was a rather pointed reference to the fact that for a few weeks there, I was not at home ONE. SINGLE. EVENING. Too much going on, I'm tellin' ya. And for good measure, he found a gorgeous pair of heels that might make it to the shoe closet; yes, there are even times I have to crawl into pantyhose and wear heels. I think he feels sorry for me - or perhaps himself because I can be cranky when my back and feet hurt! We didn't buy them, but we do know we can get them if we choose.

 
I finished the orange afghan, and I will take a picture once I've woven in the ends and blocked it. I've started Yellow, and for the life of me, it seems like it's taking forever. Could be because I frogged the original Fan-and-Feather, in favor of "Textured." I actually like this, because it reminds me of a basketweave stitch my Granny used to do in crochet, that I never quite learned to do.  Here's what it looks like, as is and close-up. I think it'll be much warmer for little Harper (the girl)... and no, I'm not certain that's her name. I'm just plucking one out of thin air because they want to use "literary" names, so Kid #2 and I came up with "Hunter" for the boy -- Hunter S. Thompson, but with none of elder Hunter's bad habits! And "Harper" for the girl - Harper Lee... All my nephew said was "I don't hate those names." LOL

I was seriously debating doing the afghan as a border with this basketweave and zipping along with a straight knit section, but my better sense prevails. I should not stint...even though it's taking for-stinkin'-ever!!!

It's kind of my own fault. The babies are due "anytime between March 15 - April 15" because they look to be pretty hefty little buggers. K has to wear a sling from now till delivery. Anyway, my mom is moving the Easter Feast up a week. Not only are we NOT doing breakfast ("At 75 years old, I'm not getting up at 4:30 a.m. to fix breakfast") but we're doing it all for a dinner on Palm Sunday. Once again, accommodates those who have in-law issues. But also, for me - gives me a reprieve from having to do much of anything for Easter. The menu includes: Cuban-marinated pork loin, "funeral potatoes," salad, broccoli salad, deviled eggs, nodif (a polenta-based sausage. DELICIOUS and a requirement.), and potica with perhaps a strudel or apple tart for dessert. I'm also commanded to make home-made ranch dressing and a vinaigrette out of this SPECTACULAR olive oil that Kid #1's girlfriend got me.

I'm telling you, the olive oil is scary...it's got a cork, it's in a dark bottle... I'm intimidated by a bottle. I'll have to look up some exotic dressing to use this stuff.

The point is, I want to give them the afghans at Easter (Palm Sunday) so that they can have them when the babies arrive. I can save the sweaters for Christmas because they're sized for 12-month and can wait a bit. So I'm knitting madly trying to finish this one.

So we also recently had my women's group fundraiser. I also had to accept a proclamation from the City for the Free Clinic. But I have to show you the picture of my friend Debbie. The theme for the fundraiser was "A Night in New Orleans" - which I am totally stealing for the Clinic's fundraiser next year!! We, Deb and I, have been through the mill with sickness, busy schedules and trying to "herd cats" with this group.  And through it all, we have found a lovely friendship. So here we are... I was really happy that we had such a great turn-out and that people got in the spirit by wearing their Mardi Gras duds.

The yoga training is going well. I'm actually teaching tonight to sub for my teacher at my local studio. We survived a touch of "snowpocalypse" yesterday, though it's snowing now. The farmers will appreciate this. We in IL have just forgotten how to use our "snow-legs" and we got all hysterical last night.

I haven't moved to Phase 3 of the new eating plan. I'm kind of stuck at 31 lbs. and frankly, have been having "I'm starving" cravings. I'm not starving. I'm at a plateau, and if this is it, then that's fine. I need to start exercising more, and I think that will help.

Oh, and I killed our Cuisinart blender. I was making my last smoothie, when something smelled horribly "burned." I thought I needed to add something to the smoothie, when Hubby said, "hang on, I think the motor's burning out." So we ended up with a new Vita-Mix. My yoga teacher says, "This will change your life." Well, I don't know about that. But it replaces a 10-year-old blender that did its duty.

The Vita-Mix is HUGE. I'll probably scare the dogs all the way to Lockport with the noise it's likely to make. But it's a lot more sturdy than what you can get otherwise, so it's well worth the investment.

I hope to get back here more often. Life gets in the way at times.