Sunday, April 22, 2012

Birthday Stuff



I got some nice goodies from the Wednesday Nite Nitters for my birthday!  It was totally unexpected but really nice. The topknot at the bottom is in the Paua colorway from Aurelia Wools. There's supposed to be enough fibre there for a hat, scarf, a pair of mitts or socks. I love the Paua colorway!!! The orange roving is superwash merino & nylon from smithandewe.com. It ranges from light mango to a burnt orange, sort of reminiscent of a tequila sunrise soooooo, it will become Tequila Sunrise socks! There's enough in there for three pairs I think. The deep purple on the right is called Grapes of Wrath! from SheepyTime Yarns. There's 100 gms there but its only 181 yds in about an aran weight. It'll probably become a cowl for the fall. The lighter skein is called Gloom 'Shroom from the same company but ranges in color from light lavender to medium grape with deep blue flecks. Lots of yardage & in sock weight so we all know what it will become. Last but not least, on the same Wednesday, the Boys at work gave me a Mr LUBE card good for TWO oil changes!! Yeah, baby.

Monday, April 16, 2012

Today is my Birthday



Today I turned 61. That's 61 big ones! Teenage angst, zits, having kids, finding a husband & wearing panty hose are loooooong in the past with my old 45 collection, telephone booths, Ford Falcons & fluorescent shirts! Yeah, yeah, yeah!! Gone are two Rons & a Keith. And that crazy 6 month fling with a Lorne. Nordics all. I just don't have the energy for Nordics any more. They work all day & party all night. If I was offered a choice between a red hot Nordic & a pound of cashmere, well, I'm 61, I'd rather be warm than red-hot! And speaking of red hots - those are in the past too. My temperature gauge has finally been adjusted back to normal, although I could really use a little tweaking of that Thermalosity during these damp winters lately. Getting old isn't the problem so much, it's the creaking like a ship in full sail & the failure of parts you depend on that gets me. By the time you learn what it is you really, truly love - you can't do it anymore!!


It's exciting to wake up on your 61st birthday! Especially when you had a Senior Moment the night before & somehow set the alarm clock for 4:31AM. And put it on the Country Station to boot. The shock of leaping out of bed put natural color back into my cheeks & lips. Who needs a Latte???


So, what am I doing for my birthday??? Nothing. Absolutely Nothing. I just don't have the energy after leaping out of bed this morning. So, I'm having a huge green salad with avocado/feta dressing even though I'd rather eat a big bag of LAYS plain ripple chips. I think I'll just lay about in my jammies. I might even listen to a new audio book. Or I might go out for a giant Latte all by myself. It's MY Birthday!

Friday, April 06, 2012

It's a GOOD Friday

It's been a long haul since that last Official Holiday here on the Wet Coast! April 06 is a loooong way from January 01! And it was nice to sleep in till 8:30 this morning until the kids upstairs started fighting. It's nice to be sitting here in my jammies today as well. What you can't see is the mounds of paper amid the boxes of work I have to do in my jammies!! The coffee pot is
brewing TEA as I sit here & pound on the keyboard. Later, I'll be making Cauliflower soup for dinner. Why soup?? Well, I just about froze yesterday & it's not that warm in here today either so I've got my heater plugged in & soup on the brain. I love a nice thick soup for dinner & I'm still being kind to my insides until the effects of that antibiotic are gone. Creme & broth based soup are on the menu for the moment. Egg Drop soup is a fav as is Broccoli Cheese & Creme of Cauliflower. I almost can't wait!!!

I'm working as fast as I can on gift socks before my buddy Bryan goes away. I know we'll keep in touch but it's just not the same as working together! It's been a ball mostly & I'll probably cry myself to sleep when he's gone . . . No pics until they're on his feet though because he told me he peeks at the blog occasionally . . .

And another project on the needles as soon as Bryan's socks are done. My Ex is always cold. Since the damn specialist put him on a ton of medication for his heart, he's always complaining th
at he's cold. He tried to get some of it cut back but the specialist told him to put more clothes on. I think he needs a new doctor but that's not up to me. So, I suggested I knit him a nice wool VEST to wear over his 4 layers of clothes to keep him warm. I just knew there had to be a good use for that wool in this climate!

I rooted through all my old stuff & found an official Sweater pattern put out by White Buffalo back in the day for 60 cents - I have the Touque, the Socks, the zip front Hoodie & the Vest. Oh yeah, did I say that I'd knit a lot of these waaaaay back??? I AM NOT going to bother with a knitted motif! I don't think he'd wear it if I did. Nope, I'm taking the beige Siwash wool & knitting a plain, zip front vest with a pocket for his wallet. Something to keep an old Geezer warm & get rid of all that wool.

Tuesday, April 03, 2012

An old Gift Box

I know, I know, TWO blogs in a row in the middle of TAX Season??!! But this isn't really a blog, it's a warning. Danger, Will Robinson, Danger!


As everyone knows, I can't pass a good deal without taking it up. I was born
the eldest in a scrounging family. My father was a Longshoreman in the days before they had benefits & great wages. And we had 6 kids. The house was clean, my mom could cook & bake & sew. In my family, if you wanted things other than the basics, you got a job. Or you took in strays. I love strays, especially when they come in boxes!! Most of the time that is.

Years ago, I
got two boxes of Buffalo Wool. You know the kind. We all made fake Cowichan sweaters back in the day. I think I made them for my brothers & boyfriends. Some of the wool, like Siwash wool, was minimally processed & still retained it's oils. Others, like White Buffalo, were dry as dust. Somehow, I ended up with two boxes of White Buffalo wool as a gift several years ago. I knit up touques & even a large hooded, pullover sweater with a pocket on the inside for a homeless woman one winter. I worked it down to a half dozen packages which I stuffed in a box to give away when I developed a cough from the dry wool. Yesterday I was rooting around in the office closet looking for something & came upon a box. I couldn't remember getting the box addressed to me but it had to be years old. And unopened. I dragged it out, opened it & it exploded into packages of wool . . . There must be 20 packages of Buffalo & Siwash wool in there. It looks like someone was going to knit a white, oatmeal & tan sweater at one time. Or the half dozen packages of wool in the other box gave birth in the closet.

Monday, April 02, 2012


And the moving finger moves on . . .

The more things change, the more they stay the same!! My job at the M
otorcycle School is changing once more. My buddy, the Office Manager, has been offered a job that gives him & his family financial security at last. But he has to leave in two weeks if he wants it. The season has been slow to start & his earnings have been lower than usual. But he'll be leaving just as it's finally beginning to heat up. OMG, not only am I the only person who can run the whole office again but I don't want to run it all the time!!! I only signed on for Part Time! Hopefully, we have a volunteer who will work at least 3 days a week so I only have to work the other three. I'm so sorry to see Bryan go but he has to for his sake . . . sob. Now I have to get his socks knit up quickly!!

Just in case
I have to work more than 3 days, I've been working tax return marathons to free up my time. Sunday, I worked 9 hours straight - well, I stopped for a Starbucks Latte & bran muffin midday but I went through the drive-thru & came back home again!! My poor printer was overheating! It was a hellova day! Luckily, my Ex called & took me away from all of it to eat Chinese. Oh, how I love Beef & Black Bean Sauce with Green Peppers!! It also gave me a chance to drop tax returns into the bin on my way home! And got there just in time to watch a Murdoch Mystery while I worked on the latest sock. Just a Regia sock but in a more interesting colorway than the last one. Still a conservative sock but definitely more interesting than plain blue.

While cleaning out a big basket - I'd forgotten what was in the damn thing - I found a bag with a half knit summer top, several balls of yarn & no pattern. Sigh. I'm in the process of frogging it but I really like the color. It's a little pinker - as usual - than it appears but the acid pink is soft with the purpley blue. Acrylic of course but as I said, I like it. Since the pattern's missing, I may rejig it into the Heartbeat sweater from Just One More Row which goes up to a 64" bust. I remember working on the Heartbeat Sweater in the past - it needed some tweaking - but I love the heart shaped front. I'm sure I have enough yarn in that bag. I hope. I'm pretty sure I do - but it will make something eventually if I don't.