September Start-itis...

It's a thing. Start-itis. That irresistible urge to start something new. It often hits around Labor Day for many of us, because we that September is our "new year." I don't know if it's  because for those of us of a certain age, school went back in session on the Tuesday after Labor Day, so we have those "new year" feelings associated from childhood. 

I don't know if it's the change of seasons. The leap from summer to fall often makes us feel invigorated with the color changes, cooler weather, changing length of days...all of it is a bit nostalgic and energizing at the same time. 

I've finished a few projects and I need to think about what to do next. I need to finish a few single socks, and I need to finish the Precious Metals scarf. But I'm itching to start something new... 

How about you?

Babies, I've got Babies...

So from 9 caterpillars, I'm back to two of them, one a brand-new baby. I hope that the big ones have gone on to begin their transition to Black Swallowtails. I've been seeing more of the Swallowtails around, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed for more of them as the season goes on. 

As you can see, my parsley has taken another hit! Oh well; if it's serving the butterflies-to-be, how can I complain? It comes back. 

Toting up so far, I've had two batches of 9, and today I saw 2 more. Not a bad haul for someone who didn't expect anything from this pot of herbs. 

I haven't seen anything on the dill. It's all dried up, which I think is kind of quick, compared to last year. Of course, the patch wasn't as large either, so maybe that's it. Or maybe they just like parsley better. 

I'm hoping the weather holds out for a bit because the Brown Eyed Susans are now seeding, and the Phlox is having a bit of a regeneration with the rain and slightly cooler weather. The hanging plants are just about done; I'm thinking of doing mums or something else - not butterfly or hummingbird friendly, but the season is waning. There's a bit of life left in the coneflowers, and the butterfly bush is doing ok. But the bee balm is done and so is the lavender, which surprises me. 

I've got a good crop of Rosemary, so a bunch of that will go into the freezer for winter time. Maybe I should resurrect the Rosemary Jelly I made a few years ago? The basil flowered almost immediately, so I figured that was "hummingbird food" and didn't even bother plucking anything for cooking. 

Finished Projects...

So this is what I've been doing this weekend. I admit, I heisted this one from a post in my "Make & Take Group" FB page. It's little "oily bugs." 

I got some stiffened felt and bought a cutter - which I found won't cut felt... So I resorted to a biscuit cutter and pencil. Used my snips, as they're easier on the hands, and cut out 15 circles. 

I bought larger pom-poms and used Tacky Glue to stick them on the base. I was looking for pre-cut, but all I found was foam, and I didn't want to use that. Had the Fiskars cutter worked, it would've been scalloped. But I'm not that dedicated...

After they sat for a while, I added some glitz. I saw these initially as "google-eyed" with little antennae. Nope. A bit too cutesy for me, frankly. 

I got gems. Stick on, but some of them didn't come off with the glue on, so again with the Tacky Glue. I still want to add more around the backside, because I did three in a cascade, but they still seem to look like sparkly eyeballs. Not the look I'm going for. 

What the heck are these for, you might ask. Well. There are numerous ways to use essential oils in a yoga class or at work without a diffuser or direct application on the skin, though to me, on the skin works the best. 

Some teachers use cotton pads, which are really nice. Some use sprays, which I've used. But I saw these, which were given out as party favors, and I thought, "How nice would these be to sit next to your mat?"

Except right now, they look like scary-eyed space monsters. So - the answer to that is MORE JEWELS (channeling my inner Elvis here). This is for a Yoga + Oils class I'm doing with one of my teachers and we plan to use 3 oils. This will enable us to dot them onto the critters and set them next to the mats. 

The students can take them home to use with oils they have at home or take them with them to work, to put on their desks. 

They're handy, slightly adorable, portable, and cheap to make. 

Next up is the most recent prayer shawl. Yes, in the background, you see about a zillion oils on my table next to my diffuser. Those are ones I use at night (not all at once, but as I see what I need). 

I really REALLY wanted to do a picot bind-off for this one. But I didn't leave myself enough yarn. You need something like six times the length to do a picot bind-off. Knowing that would've saved me a lot of angst with the last Close to You Shawl, I gotta tell ya...

So Hubby and I did the math. Did it again. And did it a third time, just to make sure. See, this is super-bulky yarn, so I had what I thought was an insane amount of yarn left - like over 21 feet. And it still wasn't enough. There were 105 stitches on the last row of this puppy, so that would've meant I needed about 3 times what I had. But I had plenty for my plain bind-off, and about 6 yards left. That went into the "oddments" bag, and I'll use it for something. 

Pocket Priest has an idea for us to do "Prayer Squares" - instead of doing a whole afghan, which is a great idea. I mean, I was "on a mission" with this particular shawl, but overall, I'd like to volunteer for our church's Prayer Shawl Ministry. But with my crazy schedule? I don't want to take 6 months to do an afghan. And I'm not keen on doing a bunch of them in the super-bulky. I have a lot of worsted in stash, but that's what'll take me 6 months... 

Squares are good for kids, elders who don't want a whole lap robe or afghan, and folks with sensory issues. I remember my kids used to love the tags on their stuffed animals. That's the same concept. 

Storing My Oils...

For a few years, I had totes to store my Young Living Essential Oils in. As I accumulated more, I added more totes. It was getting out of hand, and I didn't always know where things were when I was looking for a particular oil. 

Well. I was in JoAnn Fabrics the other day, buying the stuff for the Oily Critters, and I saw these storage things for sale at 50% off. I thought, "WOW, this might work!" I was hoping they'd work for the 15 ml. bottles, but they're not quite deep enough. That's ok. My totes work for those for now. 

So the bins are labeled: "Vitality" (the ones we can use to cook, bake, eat, etc.); "Singles;" and "Blends." 

I did the same thing for the totes, and that basket up there holds the empties. Sometimes, I re-use the empties for samples or blends of my own (taking off the labels). 

If you're an oiler, how do you store yours? I've toyed with the nail polish holders, and I've kept them in a basket. But I think this is better for me. I'm sure it'll evolve. Right now, they're on top of a dresser. Eventually, they'll move into my office. 

It's fun to find new uses for things; that bin system is actually for scrapbookers, and there are indents in the top to keep paper clips, pencils, etc. Which means it'll be a pain to dust, but there you go. 

Random Picture...

Ok, this time it's a funny. I saw this and sent it to my kid to share with my grand-cat... 


I love to see some of the internet humor. It's clever. Memes - love 'em. Yes, some are pretty trashy, and yeah, vulgar. 

But the great thing about the Internet is that you can almost always find what you want. If you want to watch cat videos for the next 2 months, you can do that. My friend Preston finds these awesome pictures that he posts as "series" on his FB page - cats + kids, cammo cats (cats hiding in obvious sight), and the latest one is rocks painted as pets. 

It's all engaging. Yeah, it can get to be a total time suck, but only if you let it. Heck, I can "waste" a ton of time on Ravelry, looking for shawl patterns, but that doesn't always translate to a "waste." It's kind of engaging my creative brain, taking me away from the crap that's on the news, and giving me a respite from everyday stuff. 

In moderate doses, there's nothing wrong with spending time on the internet. Like anything, you can go all the way to crazy-town. But you don't have to. 

My mom now has WiFi (yeah, I know - stop the presses!), and she's a bit concerned about "frittering away" her time. She has friends who play games and spend hours online. I told her, "Here's the thing, mom. It's a machine. Set a timer, and turn it off." She has lots of hobbies, and she's a bit afraid that she'll get sucked into the vortex. 

Remember: It's a machine. Turn it off. Unplug. Go outside, look up, enjoy the world off-screen. 

Knitting On...and On...

...and on... 

The prayer shawl isn't necessarily going as fast as I'd like it, but it's my fault. Well, it's the big needles and hand pain, so I need to figure out how to move along faster. 

On the plus side, I'm already over half-way through the 3rd ball of four. So it's gotta come together soon. I haven't touched a sock. I'm wondering if I'll even know how to knit with "toothpicks" after I'm done with this shawl. 

Maybe I need to gradually "taper down," and work on the Precious Metals scarf for a bit...

Anyway, the thing is a monster. The recipient will have a lush, huge shawl to cozy up in when needed. The yarn is still quite delicious on the hands; soft and cushy. And I can't complain about the tension; it's knitting up nice and even. I still have an issue with joining the yarn; can't find a good way where my weaving doesn't show, but then, when using super-bulky yarn and size 17 (US) needles? How in the world DO you hide that?? 

Thankfully, I'm not fringing this puppy. Nope. Nopety nope. I don't like fringe anyway, and with this yarn? It'd be poodle-fuzz by the time the recipient wears it a few times. 

If all goes well, I will get this done over Labor Day and have Pocket Priest bless both shawls so they're ready to go off to the place they're destined to go. 

Did I show you the Close to You Shawl? It's finished. Here it is. 

A couple things: 400 yards almost exactly in this hank - so if you're using Expression Fiber Arts, buy 2 hanks. You'll be grateful, and if you buy a limited edition color (which almost all of them are anyway), you won't be weeping in a puddle when you're on the bind off and you come up short in Yarn Chicken. 

Just talking about a friend in that situation, you understand... Learn from my her experience, friends! 

Next, it's a nice firm yarn and the stitches pop, but I'm not sure it's drapey enough for this style of shawl. I mean, God knows I have enough of this yarn, and I should have frogged the existing bind off and done about 3  more repeats at least. It's short-ish. This is sock yarn, but honestly, it doesn't feel like it would be comfy on the feet, so I did this shawl. But I'm not the happiest of campers, and I think I could have done better. 

Next, the picots don't show. You can see them in the picture, but note that I had it on the blocking board for a MONTH. Yes, I was telling that yarn what I wanted it to do. And I'm sure it listened for now, but I don't think it'll last. In which case, I could've saved myself a ton of trouble and skipped the picots. 

Finally, if I use this pattern with this yarn company again, I'll make sure it's more of a silky blend. 

Young Living Essential Oils...

Wowza. I mean really - WOWZA!! This was just announced yesterday and it's fan-freaking-tastic news! Now, for a yearly fee (much like Amazon does), you can get free, fast shipping. So when I order my cases of Ninxgia Red, which can be really heavy, I'll pay nothing in shipping - zippo. Nada. Nic. Nista. Nichego... Because I've already paid my annual fee, I can get any of my Essential Rewards orders for no shipping, no matter the weight. Everything ships in 4 days...That's super-quick! It's like "flying oils" or something. 

It's a giant leap for those of us who are on Essential Rewards, and it's such a great benefit. As long as you're ordering, why not get it for free shipping - saving yourself hundreds of dollars over the course of a year. I can't wait to tell my oily folks this great news. 

We Have a Piano...

Well, "we" don't. It was in a closet in the church office, and I moved it out to test it. In the process, I slightly scraped up the hardwood floors with one of the bookcases, but I can empty it and put felt pads on the bottom. I'll take a green scrubby to the floor to buff it out a tiny bit. I'm also still waiting for the Oriental rug to come back. I asked the folks at Stanley Steemer, and I have to  hear back from them. 

It's a nice piano and you'd think that it might be weird in an office reception area, but it'll be good when the Youth Group uses the space, and if Pocket Priest meets with our organist, they can go over music right there. 

Do you love the blues? I do. It's (as Pocket Priest says) "fun" and also very crisp. And amazingly, it warms up the floor. Can't wait to get the ceiling fan installed and the new drapes up. 

GoFundMe for Medical Help...

So - who'd have thought that an app would now be the most popular way to get medical bills paid? Well, it is. According to a story in the Chicago Tribune, "recent reports show that more than a third of all global GoFundMe campaigns sought to raise money to pay for medical expenses." 

I want to be clear: I'm not asking for any money... I'm pointing out that, now-a-days, because healthcare costs are skyrocketing, people have to resort to having a fundraiser to pay for medical care. 

I think it's shameful. I think that it's great, on the one hand, that people will donate, and that they apparently trust GoFundMe to do this sort of thing. But -- and this is a big "but." 

Why? Why is healthcare only affordable for the 1%? I mean, one of my friends told us of her nephew, a micro-preemie. That baby's bills were approximately $1.7 million. 

How can the average family face bills like that? And why is our system so broken that we can't assure health care for every person in this country? And what will happen to this little one, because you know that somewhere along the line, he may have medical issues that can be traced back to his birth. 

GoFundMe isn't a social safety net. But people are sure using it like one. Heaven forbid we should need to do this - how many people do you know that would contribute to your hospital bills? And then what do you do about continuing care, if it's something that requires that kind of thing? I mean, let's be logical. If you're fortunate enough to have savings and investments, most likely they're modest. We don't have a money tree in the backyard. Honestly, even with decent insurance, one severe health problem can wipe out the insurance, the savings and the investments.

This isn't an issue of "pulling yourself up by your bootstraps." It's an issue of conscience and morality. Every single one of us is one health crisis away from disaster, even if we have insurance. 

Frankly, the Republicans are now trying on the "oh, we're ok with your pre-existing condition" thing in the recent bill they're pushing  and even CBS is reporting that. 

Problem is, it's wrong. The bill they're pushing says that people with pre-existing conditions can BUY insurance. But -- (big, huge, honkin' eye-roll BUT) insurance companies can deny coverage for the condition they have. Read more here...

Well. That ain't nice. 

Let's set aside the fact that a major news outlet got it wrong. Let's set aside anything other than this: if you have a pre-existing condition, if this bill passes, your insurance company can deny you coverage. 

Then what? 

You go to GoFundMe because that's your last resort. 

Welcome to an America I don't really recognize anymore. 

Random Picture...

This is the front of my church. I took it the other day when I needed a picture for the church bulletin. Our doors are fantastic, aren't they? They're not the original doors. Those burned when the church burned in 1910-ish. 

Recently, we had the doors redone. We had them refinished and coated with a lacquer that was more weather-resistant than what we had on them. And the metalwork was redone to be cleaned up. 

We love our doors and we love our stained glass. We love our building, actually. You can feel the history in the place and you can sometimes sense the ones who've gone before us. There are rumors that the place is haunted. 

When I go in, I always say hello "to God and the ghosts." I figure it's not a bad idea... I don't know either way, but why not keep everyone happy. 

When I'm next in church, perhaps I'll send up prayers for the politicians to see reason and not stick their heads up their backsides. Maybe pray that they do the job they were once elected to do: represent us, and not the special interest groups who're buying politicians left and right. 

We've got some powerful spirits in our church. Maybe they need to get into this fight with us... 

End of an Era...

You know it's bad when someone says, "So-and-So is discontinuing treatment." Or "So-and-So has entered hospice care." You think, "Oh, it'll be a while."

But not. Both Aretha Franklin and John McCain died swiftly after their respective representatives issued statements saying that there was a dramatic change in their circumstances. 

John McCain's camp actually said he was ending treatment for brain cancer yesterday. He died today, around 4:28 p.m. 

And I totally get it. Who wants to be dogged as you're in the process of dying. Both Franklin and McCain died of cancer: Franklin's was pancreatic. You just had to take a look at her in her last performance (linked here) to see she was a shell of herself. While she had total command of the stage, her voice was clearly not where it was. This was 9 months before she died. The average survival rate for pancreatic cancer is -- just about 9 months. I know. My dad died of pancreatic cancer. 

McCain, who died earlier this afternoon, was a figure who was almost unilaterally respected. If you didn't agree with him, you had to admit that his arguments were almost always classy. He never resorted to petty name-calling, mocking, or other things we routinely see from the White House lately. I rarely agreed with him, and it's not like we had coffee every week, but I understood for the most part where he was coming from. I wished he wasn't so wishy-washy on some things, and wished he'd have decided otherwise on other things. 

But you had to admit that, for the most part, he had principles and was mostly the "maverick" he made himself out to be. 

The Governor of Arizona needs to appoint someone - who will serve till 2020. And who, apparently, has to be a Republican. It's going to be interesting. 

Great Prison Break-In...

Tonight was the Great Prison Break-In...the first fundraiser for the work we've been doing at the old Joliet prison. The crowds were polite and steady. Kid #2 and I were there, but we didn't stay long; he's got an hour drive home, and we were able to see what we wanted to see and take some photos. 

Folks were settling on the grounds with their folding chairs, and in the various tents placed around. The first band was rocking when we were there - there were 4 bands scheduled, including - of course, the Blooze Brothers...

If you aren't aware, the Old Joliet Prison was a pivotal location for "The Blues Brothers" movie. I have a picture of Joliet Jake's cell and we entered through the sallyport that Jake took when he left on his Mission from God. 

The Prison Kitties  (Jake and Elwood - Ellie for short, since she's a girl) were on display with a big bucket for donations for their care. They were feral kittens found by volunteers. These little stinkers managed to make their way (or mom brought them, most likely) to the front of the prison, where Mamma Kitty lives in the far back, under a ramp. They almost died. 

I believe they're being rehabbed and will be up for adoption soon. They're darling little beasties, and Kid # 2 said, "The trouble with kittens is that they turn into cats." They're going to be terrors. Hopefully, they get a home together. 

SAC building

We were only allowed in 2 buildings: SAC (Solitary Confinement) and into one penned area where we got a glimpse of the cells. Of course, as a volunteer, I was all over the place when we worked, but tonight, it was all blocked off and locked up. Which it should have been. There's stuff in there that'll hurt you or kill you; the public doesn't need to be there yet. 

So the "tour" through SAC was literally walking in the front door, peering into the cells that were open (many were locked shut) and walking out. You got to see the ancient cell they had, and there were lovely display boards all over the place. 

Kid #2 wants to volunteer for the continued clean-up and I spoke to one of the organizers. They're taking a few weeks off - as they should because this was an INCREDIBLE amount of work (you may have seen some of the pics I posted before), and Lord knows these folks need to relax a little!

It's going to be an amazing place. 

Knitting...

So I started a prayer shawl. I had the yarn, and I needed a break from socks for a bit. I have to say that I'm surprised. This is on huge needles, and I really can't knit with them for a long time, because they're stressful on the hands. 

But it's working up nicely. This is Lion Brand Hometown USA yarn - a super-bulky weight in Washington Denim. It's kind of periwinkle. I love how the K1 Y/O on the ends makes a "rope" with this size of yarn. It's a great texture. 

It's acrylic, which is fine. You want easy care in a prayer shawl, so that the person getting it doesn't have to futz with it. 

I'm hoping to get it done in the next few days, actually. It's zipping along, all things considered. I'll put in a big pile of knitting tomorrow, and see how it goes. 

The pattern is a Simple Triangle - it's a Lion pattern. The original pattern is for smaller needles, but I figured what the heck... I have 4 balls of this yarn; and it has to get to 36" from the cast on. So it's super simple:

Cast on 3 stitches. Knit 1 row, then Row 2 is K1, YO, knit to end. By adding those YOs you get a lovely "lace" bit on the edges. You just keep knitting, repeating Row 2. With this bulky yarn, the rows add up fast. You knit till it's about 35-ish inches from cast on and then bind off loosely. This yarn won't even need blocking! 

I really do have someone in mind for this; I'll get it blessed and we'll see about getting it delivered. I like this shape and I'm really liking the drape of this fabric. Of course, it helps that I'm doing it inside, with the AC on! It's still August, and tomorrow's supposed to be beastly, in time for the full moon. 

It's a great mindless knit while I watch the old Dr. Who series. I feel really bad for that "Traveler Scarf" that Tom Baker wears as his doctor's costume. The man is stomping on it half the time!! He's one of my favorite doctors, but jeeze - that scarf!! I'd love to do that one day, when I'm in the mood for TWELVE FEET of mindless garter stitch... It's not a great picture of him, but it's a fantastic picture of the scarf. 

I love the mythology of this garment. Apparently, the BBC plopped this big box of yarn in front of some woman, and told her "we need a scarf." She used ALL the yarn. This is now an iconic piece of Whovian lore. Imitations abound, and to really make it can cost a small fortune if you're looking for the exact yarns. It's on my Knitting Bucket List. That and Orenberg lace...

Not sure when I'll get to either of them, but I'm thinking that in the long run, 12 feet of garter is going to be more accessible than learning to read an Orenberg lace chart and then knitting it with smaller-than-spider-web yarn. 

In the Kitchen...

I'm addicted to the Starbucks Green Tea Latte. I mean seriously addicted. I get them unsweetened and I thought I was being very virtuous. I made them at home and of course noticed a taste difference. After some digging, I found that the "unsweetened" version had -- hang on to your hat -- about 14 grams of SUGAR in it. The matcha powder they use has sugar in it. Seriously. Unsweetened my rear leg. How in the world do people drink it SWEET??

After drinking some godawful combinations I worked on, I've finally figured out a home-based alternative. 

I take about 2 heaping teaspoons of pure matcha powder (not a "drink" powder, but pure matcha), put it in a jar, and add a little unsweetened almond or almond/coconut milk. Shake the living daylights out of it.... Add more almond milk till it's about 14-15 ounces and then shake again. If you need sugar, either put a tiny dab of honey in there (organic or pure - check the label) or a couple crystals of rock sugar in there. You don't need much. Shake the daylights out of it again to mix in your preferred sweetener and pour over ice. I think if I used sweetened almond milk, I wouldn't want to add any further sweet to it. Matcha is delicate as it is. You don't want to make it disappear. 

I still make the hot matcha with water and a drizzle of the almond milk. Since I'm off dairy, I want to keep the lovely energy of the matcha but I don't want the dairy or calories of half & half. 

The other night, I was looking for something to do with cauliflower rice. I found a Spanish Rice dish and I added to it (of course). Again, since I'm off dairy, there's no cheese in here (which would've been delicious!). I was a bit heavy-handed with the Penzey's Arizona Dreaming spice blend, so it's kinda hot. But I added sliced green olives and a couple drops of Young Living Essential Oils Lime Vitality oil. The Vitality oil line is specifically designed to ingest. 

The taste and scent of limes was so lovely! It actually cut the heat a tad. I'm going to make this again, but not so heavy on the hot. 

It's good with avocado slices or with guacamole. I would have used sour cream, but...dairy... 

I had it with chicken tonight. It's "plan-over" (not left-over) and I ate it yesterday with some salmon. 

I like finding new ways to use cauliflower rice. I don't rice it myself; I could. I have a lovely Vita-Mix and it would be simple to do it. But it's simpler to buy the bag. I may try it, but I'm honestly afraid I'm going to have "cream of cauliflower soup" by mistake... 

Random Picture...

Someone posted a pic on Pinterest which ended upon Facebook regarding using "vintage recipes" as kitchen decor. Duh... 

Got that one. I give you my father's potica recipe,which has been hanging in my kitchen for about 18 years. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to pry his rolling pin (solid oak with ball bearings) out of my mother's hands, despite me being the potica baker in the family... But I wouldn't hang that on the wall anyway. That gets its own drawer. Someday. 

This was his handwritten recipe. It's one page long. The actual recipe for potica is about 4 pages long. He lists ingredients, barely lists amounts, and says, "Bake at 350."

I'm sorry the picture is a bit keystoned. As you can see, the flash spot is below the actual picture. Otherwise, it was right in the middle. 

There's a story... My sister and I each got some handwritten recipes from my dad and we both had them framed. Hers was neater... Mine was folded up (this is looseleaf paper) and crusty. Dad wasn't a neat cook. 

The poor framer at Michael's actually looked at me as if I was crazy. She did a beautiful job and I love it. 

What would you do with a family favorite recipe? Any other ideas?

Not So Awesome...

I was all excited. I wanted to show off the completed Green Traveling Sock. I was going to tell you about this "Awesome!!" Star Toe Chart that I found on the internet, from a blog by a knitter. 

But.. 

(1) Not so awesome Star Toe chart... I have a "nubby toe" and I ended up finishing it with a 12-stitch Kitchener. 

(2) The decreases were row-by-row and the toe is tight. 

(3) And for some reason, the sock isn't long enough on the cuff, but it's the correct number of inches. 

Not a Happy Knitter... I know it happens. But it doesn't happen often to me, if I may say so. The toe of this one looks like the first Kitchener I ever did. 

There are a few positives:

• I have a FINISHED sock.
• I still kind of like the color...
• It's not baggy.

As you can see on the head-on shot, the toe is more rounded, which is more comfortable. Which is why I wanted a star toe on this one. Kind of a nice change from the standard decreased toe. I've done them before, and I thought they were easy. 

Except, with research in 3 different directions, this  silly "Star Toe Chart" was the only thing I found. 

On my Sock Knitters group, someone just pointed me in the correct direction. Off I go to find the Vanilla Latte pattern - there's a star toe there. If they don't match? Doesn't matter. They're for me, and they'll be in shoes or boots. 

Now, I'm going to figure out which "complex" sock I want to finish. 

I have the "Bigger on the Inside" sock, which is sitting here in my project bag. I'm a little skittish - it looks as though I'm going to be playing Yarn Chicken with this one again. It's Lorna's Laces Sock yarn, so I'd like to assume that I'd have enough. But I think it might be really, really close. 

Then there's Petty Harbour. That one's only about 1/2 way down the cuff, so that's got a ways to go. 

There's the Soul to Soul - that one, I think I frogged. I'm looking forward to that one, actually, because I love the colorway, with the wide stripes. 

So once one of those are done, I can finish Green Traveling Sock - for a pair. Then I bounce back to whichever one of those I choose to take on next. I think I'm going to give my fingers a few days off - still working on the Before & After Scarf, but that's not as intense as a sock. 

Christmas Witch Hunt...

Today is an interesting day -- Paul Manafort is guilty on 8 counts. And Michael Cohen turned himself in and copped a plea. Cohen is saying that Donald "knew." He was directing Cohen. He was in on it up to his orange tan lines. 

The Manafort jury wasn't able to come to consensus on 10 of the 18 counts, but they managed to get these done:

• 5 counts of tax fraud
• 2 counts of bank fraud
• 1 count failure to disclose foreign bank account

Seems that Mr. Manafort was counting on a presidential pardon. Only problem with that is, don't you have to be guilty to be pardoned? The innocent don't need a pardon. 

And Mr. Cohen. Well. Pleading guilty to illegal campaign contributions "at the direction of a candidate for federal office."

Got a feeling that it wasn't Hillary...

While someone wasn't mentioned by name in court or in documents, one of Cohen's lawyers later said that Cohen "testified under oath that D*** Tr### directed him to commit a crime."

(Sorry about the symbols. It's kind of a point of honor that He Who Shall Not Be Named not have his name on my blog.). 

I'm almost afraid to see the spin that's going to happen. We're already dealing with global warming. But with the amount of spin and Twitter-versing we'll be seeing? Surely the earth will heat up as it tips on its axis. 

Agent Orange was at a West Virginia rally. Because, you know, there's nothing else he's gotta do. He's done presidenting at what? Lunchtime? He surely doesn't put in the days he told us he would. I mean, really, he said he was going to work harder than President Obama. 

Only things he's working harder at are his Twitter account and his golf game. And you can't deny the statistics about how much time he's spending - and how much of our money he's billing - um, sorry, bilking us out of - by going to his own properties. You know, those properties that were likely funded by Russian money, and which he never divested himself of. 

The goons at the West Virginia rally are shown in some viral videos chanting, "Lock her up!" Seriously. 

What frightens me, in a very narrow scope, because so many things lately frighten me, is that indeed, as was once said, he could shoot someone on live television, with a million people watching him in Times Square and ... nothing. 

McConnell has no soul; they're ramming through a Supreme Court justice who would likely exonerate him of any crimes he'd be convicted of, in spite of an airtight investigation by Mueller. 

His rabid followers would riot in the streets. There'd be chaos. 

How do people continue to support him? How have people sunk so low and gotten so stupid? 

I have no idea. But it scares me. 

Selenite Tower...

I was rock hunting. Well, I'm kind of getting a thing for rocks, gems, and stones. This selenite was found in the Garden of the Gods gift shop. Kid #2 bought one, too, and the other day, he came by and tossed this little square thing in my lap. Turns out he bought one for himself, and it runs on a USB cord out of your computer, or using some AAA batteries. 

Selenite is an interesting mineral. The tower is actually quite fragile. Named after the Greek goddess Selene, goddess of the moon. When it's not hot pink, lit from below, it's a blazing white - not solid, though, it's somewhat translucent. You can see the "shards" of the stone if you look closely. 

I had the little stand on "moving" colors, so it kept rotating through 5 or 6 colors. 

Reportedly, selenite is good to quiet your mind. Heaven knows I need that lately!

It balances the body and emotions. Good for mental and emotional flexibility, too. Of course, some folks go all the way over the edge and claim it's good to help one get pregnant (sorry, that ship has sailed!) and that it can help cancer. 

Let's be real. It's a cool stone, makes me happy to look at. And it's pretty. 

That's about all I ask of my stones. I know folks believe in a lot of the "stone or crystal lore" but I'm not there, thanks. 

I like to hold them, and I like to display them. I do think some have properties that can help, but I'm not all hog-wild about telling my cardiologist that if I just hold that garnet a little closer to my heart, I'll be all fixed up...

A Rose is a Rose...

Unless it's a metal rose. I got these from my friend C when she attended the Bristol Renaissance Fair. She had several of these roses and talked me into them -- it wasn't hard, once she showed me these. These are the 2018 "special" colors of Sunrise and Sunset. 

I'll say that I was a tad disappointed - they're kind of small, for what I paid. And I know  - they're art, and art costs. Just that they looked bigger on the website. 

I had her get me one full blown and one half-blown, mainly due to the cost, because I also apparently needed the vase. The roses are very top-heavy, and so is the vase. 

There's a little black pad in the center of each rose. Those hold a drop or two of essential oil. Of course, I have my lovely Young Living Essential Oil in Rose -- a drop of that would be amazing on these buds. Right now, they're sitting in front of my TV. I haven't decided where they'll land yet. I have a couple of options. 

Of course, I could clean up my desk in my home office and put them there...I think eventually they'll land there, but I can't promise that'll be soon. 

You can see that one has the rose gold at the tips and the other has the rose gold at the bottom. I can't remember which is "sunrise" and which is "sunset." I got them because they remind me vaguely of peace roses. 

I lost my entire rose garden a couple of years ago. I'd spent years planting roses in honor of people that we'd lost.  I noticed over the last 2 years that I had the garden that the roses were, in a word, 'pathetic.' I had over 100 rose bushes. I had people all over the neighborhood coming to see my garden. I used to bring a dozen roses to work easily, and I enjoyed the scent and the beauty. 

But they got scraggly. Turns out I had a ground fungus. Turns out that it destroyed my roses. And it turns out that it started with my huge maple tree. I'm not getting rid of the maple. Even if I did, the fungus is in the roots. 

So. No roses. Instead, I've got a natural garden; none of the native plants seems particularly bothered by the fungus, and they're all thriving. 

But I miss my roses. 

Random Picture...

Crazy husky. Hubby tossed the bone into Quinn's cave and Raisa got it out. He did it a couple of times, and then put the bone on the couch. 

She was convinced that it was still in there. 

I showed her the bone on the couch. She looked at it. I could truly see the wheels whirling in her brain. 

And then she went back to trying to find it in the cave. She wouldn't believe that the bone wasn't there, in spite of evidence to the contrary. 

Much like those who think that Agent Orange is truly innocent of collusion when every shred of evidence seems to point in that direction. 

Luckily, my dog can be convinced otherwise. Eventually. 

Hopefully, those folks who refuse to see what's before their own eyes will eventually get woke and figure out which way the wind is blowing. 

It was the Sushi after all...

Well. Doctor says that I apparently had food poisoning. And, one of the "fun things" about food poisoning is that you can have "IBS-like" symptoms. For upwards of a month. 

Holy crap. Literally and figuratively. 

So, I had the lovely "poop test" that I had to finish and the doctor has asked me to "rest and reset" my gut. No dairy, no gluten, nothing packaged or artificial. Cleaner than clean. 

Oh, and I got beat up about both my blood pressure and my weight. Well. The weight I'll give them. Luckily, at least a month of clean eating will certainly fix the weight issue. Here's my story on the BP, for anyone who chooses to use it themselves... 

For some reason, I thought it was a good idea to make 2 appointments on the same day, something like 30 miles away, which wouldn't be an issue, but it's all cross-town driving, which around here can take hours. 

I got up at 4 a.m. for a 7 a.m. physical. Got there, got that done, and was watching the clock because I had a 9 a.m. cardiologist appointment... BP was high then - driving to that doctor's office was certainly a challenge with the rush hour traffic. Went off to the cardiologist, got there FIVE MINUTES before my appointment... Wonder why the BP was high??

Anyway, I'm watching it for a week, and we'll see how it goes. 

Gardening...

Well. The tomatoes this year are making up for the several years where we had "all hat and no cattle..." In other words, too much vine, too few fruits... 

Not this year. Getting bowls and bowls of cherry tomatoes; the bigger ones - nice and fruity. 

The larger tomatoes are coming gradually, which I like. Of course, I know we'll be bombarded with tomatoes at the end of the season. 

Still waiting on the yellow tomatoes, which I checked on yesterday and this morning. We may have some of those in the next few days. 

I don't know if we'll can anything, because I'm still not sure what we'll end up with. Right now, we're eating what we're plucking. 

Still disappointed by the radish failure - but there you go. The perils of gardening. The carrots? They're coming along and I know I should have thinned them more. But I didn't. I don't know if it's too late - probably not, just have to get out there. 


And the strawberries? Not going to grow those again. Too fussy and not giving us anything much to be jazzed about. 

The parsley has come back! I used it in a Whole 30 "Dump Ranch" which has that lovely peppery taste from this herb.

I got some "ready to eat" quinoa the other day and it had pesto in it...yeah, I realized later that there was a bit of Parm in it. Yikes...  I can't tell if it bothered me. Probably not. 

Anyway, this parsley will be used for more Dump Ranch, and will be sealed in our food sucker thingie and frozen for winter use. 

I'm happy it came back. The basil is done, and the Rosemary is doing just fine. It kind of likes the lack of rain we've had, so I'm just leaving it alone. That will also be frozen. Maybe I'll also infuse some oil? Thinking about that. 

 Knitting...


The Green Sock progresses down the foot. I was kind of shocked. The other day I picked up my hunk of Labradorite and noticed how the green sheen seemed to match the Green Sock! It's my "mindless knitting" at this point, as I work my way down the foot. 

After this, I'll pick up the Petty Harbour sock and get one of those done. Switch back to the Green Sock, finish that pair, then pick up either Petty Harbour, or start another simple sock. I figure alternating socks will result in me having pairs sooner rather than later - I've got too many "singletons" laying around. 

I've also picked up the "Before and After Scarf" for a work project. It's easier because it's all "increase on one side, decrease on the other" to get a bias shape. 

Still a little worried about the beading on the bottom of that scarf, though - because the provisional cast on at the beginning was a bit wonky. I used a larger yarn than I should have. Being that that was ages and ages ago, I can put that down to "not knowing what I was doing" because it's the first provisional cast on I did. 

Proof that when you know better, you do better. 

Lucky for me, I've kept the beads in the same bag -- I was worried a bit ago that I'd lost the beads, but in another lifetime, I must have decided to keep them together. Probably because I had ended up buying another copy of the pattern - it went astray and I couldn't find it. 

The colors in the photo are a bit off; that green is actually more yellow in tone, which is why I'm having a qualm about it. Not sure if it was a good idea. Too late now... If I do this again, which will probably be for a gift, and that's a BIG, BIG "if" - I'd probably do something different. This is a lot of knitting, though - not sure that I know of anyone knit-worthy for this. Maybe if one of the kids finally gets married.

Maybe. 

Migraine Menace...

Unfortunately, with everything going on - I ended up with a migraine. So, with the detox, lack of sleep, weather going nuts - yesterday, after work, I succumbed and tried everything to not take the Rx because I was really hoping it would go away. It didn't. 

I felt guilty. Imagine that. Feeling guilty about something I had no control over. Why do we do this to ourselves? I did admit to a slight conundrum. One of the things that really helps is a flat Coke. But - no sugar for the detox.

I did drink a lot of tea. Hydration helped. So did the prickly pillow (an acupuncture pillow Hubby got me). So did the "traction" he did on my neck. And so did about 8 hours of sleep. 

This morning, I went out and did 2 hours at the prison, coming home after my tummy started growling. No thanks on the Port-a-Jon.... 

I asked Hubby when I last had a headache this bad. He couldn't remember. I think it's been at least 6 months. That's a record for me! Especially off the Keppra. 

Collusion and the First Amendment...

OK, so recently, over 300 newspapers ran editorials wagging their fingers at Agent Orange, because of his relentless assaults on the free press. 

There are a few things... I wish that they wouldn't give him so much press. I know - sounds crazy, right. But stop reacting. What made me giggle (and giggles have been in extremely short supply what with everything going on) was his tweet about "colluding against me" in regard to the massive editorials scolding him. 

Yes. The press did collude against the idiot in the White House. Because they want to save the FIRST Amendment. Everyone's so crazed about the Second Amendment, but they forget about the fact that the Founding Fathers made the First one the "first" for a reason. 

Freedom of the press to speak truth to power. Freedom of the press to call out bogus information and clarify what's really happening. Our problem has been the permutation of "news" and "opinion" - when reporters were asked for opinions, it all kind of went somewhere. Somewhere not good. 

People don't research. We love to have people agree with us and when we find a news channel, a newspaper, a website...anything that proves we're "right" - we hang onto it. Sometimes in spite of proof otherwise. 

I'm just as guilty. We all are. 

Reverting back to "news as news" and "opinion as opinion" would be a start. Also, perhaps we need to have conversations again. Real, honest conversations. 

I'm having a problem with wanting to clean up DC at the same time I want to bring civility back to our lives, and at the same time, I'd kind of like to avoid nuclear war. And I'd like a mid-term election that won't be hacked by Russia. 

Can we do it all simultaneously? I'm afraid we have to. Otherwise, America as we know it will cease to have existed. We're near that tipping point now. 

Maybe we've passed it. 

The only place to go now is back up. 

If we can. 

Random Picture...

A long, long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away... Oh, wait. Wrong story. 

A long, long time ago, when I worked for a university and thought I'd stay there forever, I used to enjoy seeing wildlife outside. We backed into a forest preserve. We used to see deer and the occasional turtle. 

And one day, as I left for somewhere, I saw a hawk. Well, we often saw hawks, because of the bunnies and other small animals. This one, however, had caught his lunch. 

As I drove by him, he stopped in mid-bite, and looked at me. With those piercing eyes. With that attitude of, "Yes, I did kill the vole, and yes, I'm enjoying my lunch." I just took the picture and kept on driving. 

I miss seeing the wildlife. We don't see them where I work now. I saw a hawk at my friend's house and I occasionally see them along the highway. But I miss having them as "neighbors."