It's THAT time of year again

Haven't accomplished a thing lately - not even a pair of socks! The poor Sierra Socks are still in the bag toeless. I managed to turn the heels & then got too busy to do much of anything. And I'm sleepy all the time! Spring fever?? Nope - Spring Allergies!! The Benadryl goes with me everywhere to ease the itchy, sneezy, wheezy, coughing paper shuffler I've become. Thank gawd for EFile!

For all you people who still have or are in the process of getting SNOW, Vancouver is now busting out all over. I noticed both of the scrubby bushes outside my favorite Greasy Spoon are in full bud with just a tinge of color - I'm surprised they bother since the customers dump their butts in the planter just before they go into the cafe!! My Clematis plants have TWO INCH sprouts on those dead looking branches & the rhubarb is six inches tall! I can't wait till I can fill the hanging baskets with lovely little plants with big buds on them. I've been out pruning & cutting off dead ends - the spider plant has been out all week & looks very happy in his corner. Even the strawberries have perked up in the last week or so - I do believe our long, grey, wet winter is over.

Now I'm just hoping for another couple of sunny days warm enough that I can set up the spinning wheel outside & spin the afternoon away . . .

Time Tinkering

I wish the Powers that Be would stop tinkering with time! As in clocks, that is. This Daylight Savings thing kind of gets my goat. We aren't Farm Folks who plan our days with the sun's comings & goings. Most of us in this country even have electricity. When it's dark, we can turn on a light if the flickering television doesn't already light up the room. We don't go outside to find the Convenience down the path behind the house any more. So why are we still turning the clock back & forward to gain a little more daylight?? I think it's old fashioned, archaic & plain silly in this modern age. I find no real, useful reason to carry on the Tradition. And I'm sick of changing over all the battery operated clocks in my life! Instead of battling the HST - a lost cause in my estimation because it's actually GOOD for businesses - let's do battle to eliminate Daylight Savings instead!

Odds & Ends

I've got this large basket of odd balls in the corner of my living room. Because I tend to knit a lot of things for Charity, I've been given quite a lot of yarn over the years & have amassed quite a selection of 50gm balls in a variety of weights, colors & natural materials. A lot of the samples are not suitable for local knitting since they're not machine washable but are also not suitable for infant caps & socks for foreign donations because of weight or content, either. So, I've accumulated quite a stash. I've tried giving some of it away but my friends suffer from the same problems as I do - what the hell to DO with it???!! My Niece - adopted her at 41 - sent me a text message asking for Wristlets or Cuffs. I think she's expecting left over sock yarns but my eye drifted over to that big basket when she also went on & on in the text about creme, tan, brown, rust & any other combination of the above I cared to find. Resting on the top of that thigh high basket were several 50 gm balls of blue, brown, tan, rust & snotty green! Amen, said I.

I found at least 10, 50gm balls of merino or merino & silk that would work for her in the basket. I also found that 50gms will make 2 pairs of cuffs easily. Cuffs are also a great way to try out new patterns of all kinds. And I discovered I love knitting with this merino! It's so springy & soft! I mean, I looked at the yarn & thought it was kind of thick & too evenly spun & wasn't really inspired or impressed. Ho Hum! And then I used some of it. Changed my mind! It's definitely mostly a sport thickness in the ball but knits bulkier. It sprongs & stretches beautifully. And I'm glad I decided to make cuffs. They're fun & warm & very quick to make. I was experimenting with a combination of seed & knit stitches in the snotty green cuffs to make something a little fancier. Originally, I tried a twisted knit stitch but it wasn't really right with the seed - I'm thinking the heavier weight merino & silk would make lovely cables with seed fill on size 5 to 6mm needles! The snotty green cuffs are in the lighter sport weight merino & silk on size 4.5mm needles. The tan cuffs are just knit 2, purl 2 in a heavier merino on 4.5mm needles. The flare at one end is just to make them look different depending on which way they're worn. Being the wild & crazy person I am, I pulled out a few other balls which may become cuffs for ME!! That cherry ball would work with my purple jacket . . .

Out for the Count

Remember when the Doctor told you to get that flu shot & you said "Yeah, yeah, I'll worry about it later"? Or "Gee, I never get the flu." Well, you'll be sorry! I'm just getting over my very own personal encounter with this year's strain of the Killer Bug & I tell you, GET THAT SHOT! I've heard noises coming from my very own GI tract that I never thought I'd hear outside of a Horror Movie. It came out of nowhere, with no warning, struck a terrible blow & left me flat on my ass, wishing I could just die & get it over with. And then when I thought I was improving & ate one little piece of sushi, the GI tract went into such paroxysms of rage, that I was hammered back to square one again. So, I am back to fluids only, sleeping & taking better care of myself. I will drink shakes & juices until my damned stomach begs for something solid.

I have started another pair of socks in an interesting yarn I saw on-line a few years ago & just had to have. I know I knitted up one pair of socks but I'm not sure what happened to them! A couple of weeks ago - between bout's of coughing & sneezing which I've also had - I found a 100gm ball of this Supersocke yarn in the Sierra colorway. I immediately cast it on the needles & have been too sick to finish it up. Damn. I could use those socks right now!