Saturday, September 30, 2006

Saturday Sky - Indian Summer

Saturday, September 30, 9 am CDST:


It's supposed to warm up to almost 90 today--where'd those cool northern breezes go?

Sunday, September 24, 2006

Can you say "procrastination?"

Hell, I can barely spell it, but there it is. I've been practicing my procrastination this week. I just haven't had a lot of get up and go. Work was really tough this week, and I'd come home every day with the best of intentions, and still nothing got done.

So I have nothing to show. I have a few inches of sock, but nothing worth looking at. I'm almost finished with the merino/silk blend I seem to have been spinning for eons. I actually finished the background piecing last weekend for the "Howdy" wallhanging, but when I stepped back and looked at it, it was way off. I have a horrible time cutting and sewing a straight line--how could I have forgotten that? So I spend a couple of hours this afternoon ripping it apart and putting it back together. At this point I think it's fine, but I have to leave it for a couple of days and then look at it again, and it'll probably be crooked then, too.

Someone please remind me why I wanted to start quilting again? AACK!

I keep reminding myself that it's more about the process than the finished product, but that doesn't really seem to impress me that much. I have always had a hard time breaking large (or large-seeming) jobs down into smaller bits. I'm a "do-it-all-at-once" kind of girl. Sewing, spinning, knitting, housework, gardening, you name it--I end up sitting on my ass and bemoaning the fact that I'm not getting anything done, when if I'd be happy to do just a little bit, I would eventually accomplish my goal.

I did really well when I was participating in Le Tour de Fleece because I had a set goal--30 minutes of spinning a day--and people watching me to make sure I did it. I need to apply that kind of schedule and pressure to my normal life and see how it works out.

Anybody want to start a "do SOMETHING every day"-along?

Saturday, September 23, 2006

Saturday Sky - Happy First Day of Autumn!

Saturday, September 23, about 9 am:


We have a nice, gentle, cool breeze from the north, and highs today about 75 degrees--awesome.

It truly feels like Fall.

Tuesday, September 19, 2006

Today sucked . . .

and I never got to talk like a pirate.

Aaarrgghh . . . .

Monday, September 18, 2006

Aaarrh, matey, don't forget--

Tuesday be Talk Like A Pirate Day!


Aye, and don't forget to practice your pirate phrases--otherwise, you might be walkin' the plank.

Sunday, September 17, 2006

Well, I missed yesterday's Saturday Sky,

but here's what Sunday's sky looks like:


It's 945 and the sky looks like it's about 630 am. This makes me happy, I tell you.

I'll update more a little later, but here's some fun for a rainy morning:

Feed The Kitty

The Three Little Bops

Enjoy!

Friday, September 15, 2006

Eye Candy Friday

I'm not really an Eye Candy Friday participant, but I needed an excuse to post this:


I'm enjoying them while they last.

TGIF!!!

Tuesday, September 12, 2006

A surprise from Mother Nature

In the spring I planted several plants I had started from seed, some of which were two different colors of morning glories and a white moonflower. I was so disappointed, because they looked really healthy, but the heat absolutely scorched all of them, and so I figured I'd try again next year. Imagine my surprise when I came home today to find this:


A Grandpa Ott morning glory! Apparently one of the vines survived, and it looks like there's going to be quite a few blooms. It worked its way into the mandevilla, and I had no idea it was there. I'm so happy--at least something I started from seed survived this horrible summer.

I wish the nurseries would restock petunias, periwinkles, and other spring flowers, because now seems to be the perfect time--they're going crazy:


And to top it all off, my poor, scraggly tomatoes are now covered in blooms. Who woulda thunk?

Monday, September 11, 2006

One half an FO?*

Look what I finished last night:


Isn't it pretty? And sooo comfortable--I absolutely love this pattern.

Here's a couple of closeups:



I love the cuff, but because I always have problems with too-tight bindoffs, I used a Size 4 needle to bind off, and it's a little looser than it probably should be. But it's very easy to get on and off, so I like it!

Now--I've got to beat that dreaded Second Sock Syndrome!

*Is it "an" or "a?" Would be "a finished object" but "an FO?" I need an English teacher, quick!

Saturday, September 09, 2006

Saturday Sky - the joys of September

Saturday, September 9, around 830 am CSDT:


Clear but cool--the temperature is in the very low 70s this morning, with a forecast for intermittent rain later in the day. It's so nice to be able to get up in the morning and open the windows and enjoy the breeze and the sounds of the outdoors. Gives me energy that I truly need if I'm going to accomplish anything this weekend.

The sock continues to grow:


I would have been farther along than this, but I forgot one slightly important thing--READ THE PATTERN INSTRUCTIONS!!! I didn't realize I needed to leave the leg increased to 72 stitches, so I had to go back and tink several rows. But all is well now, and the fan and feather pattern is starting to look very nice. I tried to take a closeup of it, but it didn't look like much of anything, so you'll just have to take my word for it.

Plans for this weekend include working on the sock, spinning on the silk/merino blend, finishing up the back room, and some actual sewing. I bought a little wallhanging kit for a friend of mine who just moved into a new place. She's had a rough summer, so I thought a little something for her entry might be nice:


I wouldn't mind making one of these for myself at some point. I'm not big on cowboy stuff, but this is just too cute. I'm anxious to get to it. I think I can at least get the back pieced together and the appliques cut out this weekend.

Next week's plans include a road trip to Guthrie to the Apples and Quilts Festival, otherwise known as "The Continuing Saga of Missy and Katya's Great Adventures." We haven't hit the road since before little Mo was born, so this should be fun. Apparently Mo has started laughing and smiling, so surely she'll be a little happier to have me around this time.

Friday, September 08, 2006

There's a new kid in town . . . .

Goodbye, Foley's . . .



Hello, Macy's!

OKC's movin' on up!

Monday, September 04, 2006

I learned three very important things this weekend--

1) When a box says "simply snaps together," it really means "get out the hammer."

2) I'm really bad housekeeper.

3) I need a maid.

Speaking as someone who's put her fair share of furniture and other stuff together, I can tell you that these simple wire cubes were a bitch to assemble. They kept wanting to pop apart; however, once I got the hammer out and started using it, they behaved much better.

The room's not finished, but I can show you the "wall o'fiber":


It looks nice, doesn't it? But what an eye opener. It's really scary to see just have much stuff I've accumulated, and most of it's been within the last six months. I would say that the fiber stash on the right isn't so bad, but it's all squished in there pretty tightly, so there's really more there than meets the eye. And the second and third cubes from the left on the top row? That's all sock yarn--good grief! I didn't count to see how many pairs of socks that represents, but let's just say it's substantial, especially given how slowly I knit.

Seeing all this in one place has made me realize I need to put the brakes on my fiber buying for a while (yes, I'm saying that, but don't hold me to it!)--at least until Missy and I go on our next yarn crawl. It's a good thing I'm into knitting small stuff that doesn't take a lot of yarn, or I'd be in big trouble. I do have a large garbage bag full of acrylics and other stuff to take to Gourmet Yarn for their charity knitting. No more stuff for me unless it's the good stuff (famous last words).

The plan from here is to move my unused dining table in here for my sewing machine, but I need to wait until I can get the bags of trash and boxes out. That will probably be in a couple of days, since our dumpster is overflowing right now (I think the trash guys have forgotten us the last couple of weeks). I still have a lot of books, etc., to move in from the living room, which has turned into Stash Overflow Central, but that's stuff that can be moved once I actually have a path into the room.

I'm so glad to have today off--for some reason, as I've gotten older, it's not as easy for me to get a room as messy as this cleaned up. I have to take breaks. I can't do as much in one day as I used to--I get so stiff and sore it's not funny. That's not normal, is it? I dunno.

Speaking of socks, there is an actual FO on this blog today--WOO HOO!


Plain Vanilla Socks, Toe-Up Version
Trekking Sock Yarn, Color #100
Started May 6--finished September 3

Four months to finish a pair of socks--how sad is that? I've got to get better at knitting while I'm doing other things. Speaking of that, here's what I started while I was watching "Mystery" on PBS last night:


These are going to be Wendy Johnson's Feather and Fan Socks--that's a pattern that even I hopefully can't screw up! The yarn is Cherry Tree Hill Supersock Potluck in Blues/Purples. I've had this for a while, but wow, do I love this yarn, and not just because it goes along with my "I love everything from and about Vermont" thing. It's so beautiful to knit with--it's just as nice as Koigu, I swear. I'm using Size 2 needles, and the knitting's moving along really fast. I'm determined to get up to a pair a month, especially seeing all that yarn I have stashed away. These were cast on with the figure-eight method, and I love it. Yes, you do have to futz with it a bit in the beginning, but it's so easy. And believe me, if I can do it, it must be easy.

(Funny--I just realized the pair of socks Wendy just finished in this pattern were also made from CTH Potluck in Blues/Purples. I guess great minds think alike, huh?)

I haven't touched the wheel at all this weekend, so I think I'm going to enjoy my last afternoon of freedom and the nice, cool, overcast weather by sitting by the window and spinning for a while this afternoon and maybe watching a movie. And at some point I've got to clean the kitchen.

But that can wait a little longer, right?

Saturday, September 02, 2006

I'm beginning to feel human again.

Saturday, September 2, 830 am CDST:


Isn't this glorious? It's 69 degrees and has been raining off and on since last night. I'm almost delirious with joy. The last few days have been beautiful, with lows in the 60s and highs in the 80s.

It's interesting that every time I walk outside now, I find myself preparing to be hit by a wave of heat. It's a wonderful feeling to have a nice, cool breeze hit you instead.

This break in the heat is also appreciated by my plants--they seem to be bouncing back:






I need to get out and clean up the dead plant stuff, maybe consolidate some plants. It's funny that I noticed coming home yesterday that the plant tent-shop that I pass every day is getting ready to open again for the fall season. It'll be a while yet before I'm ready for pansies, that's for sure.

I have spinning to show, too! This is the first bobbin of the merino/silk I've shown previously:


It's actually a little darker than this, but really nice, and quite shiny with all the silk in it.

I also started some Corriedale pencil roving from Crown Mountain Farms, colorway "Fire."



I was trying to spin this a little thicker for a heavier yarn, but I'm not very happy with it (it's my spinning, not the fiber, believe me). I think I'm going to stop here and play what's on the bobbin and see what it looks like. Then I can decide how to go forward.

Today I plan to spend the day working on the back room and getting things organized. It's the perfect type of day for me to be really productive, so I'm going to open up the window, turn on the radio, and start sorting stuff.

Maggie, of course, has offered to supervise. She's been dragging the blanket from her crate around the dining room all week, looking for the perfect place to sleep (see the black thing behind the back chair leg? That's a shoe--she loves to carry them all over the house):


I'm not sure this is good, either.