Tuesday, January 30, 2018

The End of January

Good Grief - another month has flown by! Can't say I've accomplished much but I am walking about with a little less pain in my right leg, just below the knee. I made a promise to myself that I would stay out of mega stores or take a Gofer if I felt the need. So far, so good.
I did my Christmas shopping on-line this year very successfully & even bought myself two pairs of handmade earrings, one pair in Peridot  & one with  Pink Quartz. Both are round & about an inch long. I love earrings but prefer ones that aren't too big , not studs & I want them to close in the back or have a loop closure. A lot of great looking earrings these days have that long fish-hook back which easily gets 'hooked' in hand knit sweater shoulders when you have a short neck & like to nap.

I've just about finished my fourth pair of socks - since Christmas - but two are infant sized so they don't really count!!! And yes, I still have multiple sweaters started for myself - less the one I frogged because it was way too big. But, because it's year-end, GST, T4, T5018 & Tax time, I'm going to make myself a Swancho or Wrapper that doesn't take any thinking or adjustments. What's a Swancho??? It's a Poncho with sleeves. I've turned up my nose at Ponchos for decades. I always thought they were stupid unless they came in plastic with a hood so kids could carry their books to school without an umbrella & still stay dry. Well, I do like to knit outside, with a coffee in my hand, with friends who bring dogs. A Swancho is not as big as a Poncho, has side seams if you want them,  arms at least from the elbow to the wrist to keep your arms warm & room underneath if a small pooch wants to snuggle! That's what really changed my mind.
I particularly like this simple Modern Wrapper from Churchmouse Yarns but there's also a lighter version as well for finer yarns - Modern Wrapper Fine. I thought the frogged blue Briggs & Little Heritage wool would make a warm & wonderful mindless Wrapper for Spring.

Friday, January 19, 2018

Limping Faster

Today I rolled out of bed with no pain in my leg. Yesterday wasn't too bad neither. I got to watch the sunshine all afternoon while I yakked on the phone though, which wasn't my intention at all. I intended to bask in the glorious rays of sunshine outside with a GIANT coffee in my hand but it escaped before I got out there. Today? Well, I'm letting my Ex take me out for lunch. I need to get out & about slowly but I have to get out. And then, when I get back, I have to figure out how I'm going to get the pile of stuff I knocked over, off the floor. Sigh, I broke one of my pasta dishes in the crash.  .  .  .  There's dishes to do & laundry, all the fun stuff. And then soup to make. I got a huge bag of chicken breast bones just before Christmas with the intention of making a big pot of chicken noodle soup with home made noodles - ooooooh so good. Home made egg noodles just suck up the chicken flavor & make your heart sing. They're the kind that make you feel better when you're sick even when you want to stay home.

And I finally found my camera. Now I can take pictures of my projects again!

Monday, January 15, 2018

Hobbling with a Little Slide



Spent most of yesterday in my office. Managed to get dressed & get into the kitchen & feed myself thanks to the 8 cup plastic measuring cup with a handle on the side. When I shopped on Thursday, I indulged in my favorite Stomping Cowboy Chili & a family sized tray of precooked, breaded, chicken tenders in the deli. They are both delicious cold & carry well in the measuring cup. I drank water in my huge WW cup with the big handle - doesn't stain if it gets slopped or dropped!! So I didn't go hungry or thirsty. And actually got some business type work done & watched some British Antique Road Show episodes on YouTube too. Not a bad day as days go.

Today I got up, tested the leg & decided I'd had enough of being an invalid. Still sore, still unstable but I thought I could drive well enough to drive through Mcdonald's for a coffee & a chicken wrap two blocks away through the slow residential streets. The sun was out, the air was fresh & I got to the car just fine while leaning on my damn cane. I have to admit that driving was sure easier than walking!! Holding the brake in the lineup was not. But, I made it through with my EXTRA Large coffee & read my Kobo Reader in a sunny spot in the parking lot. I think Mcdonald's now makes the best coffee compared to Tim's & Starbucks. I don't like much of their food except for the chicken wraps & egg mcmuffins but their coffee is great.

So, I guess I'm on the mend. And I guess I've learned a sad lesson about trying to improve the knee with exercise while I'm standing on it. It isn't going to happen. And I suppose the best thing I can do for it is lose 100 pounds or amputate the leg. There are drugs but I'd like to HAVE a life not DREAM about one in a drugged haze.

Knitting content - I have moved my HOPSCOTCH sock & yarn into the Office so I can work on the second sock while I watch YouTube. I think this is the longest I've ever taken to knit a pair of socks since I started making them!!

Sunday, January 14, 2018

The Best Laid Plans . . .

I had good intentions - refer to the last post - but life tends to kick you in the ass a lot when you get older. At least, that's what's been happening lately in MY life. Last Thursday afternoon, I got the flashing red SNOW Fall Alert on my computer for not only the Coquihalla & Eastern Valley but also for the Western - that's Me - Fraser Valley. Only 4 to 6 inches but that 4 to 6 inches would make a mess out there especially if the Arctic air plunges us into the deep freeze as well. Our heavy, wet snow turns to ice sheets immediately! I checked out the weather news & the Eastern Valley was a mess already!! So, with the sky getting greyer & the rain pouring down, I went straight to the grocery store to stock up all the emergency food groups. I love the Safeway Superstore across town because all the Gimp parking is along the sidewalk at the door & has a buggy return right there in front of you! The only problem with the store is that it's HUGE. I didn't buy a lot but I had my walk because I had to trudge the perimeter of the whole store to get fruit, veggies, bread & milk!! By the time I got home & put it all away, I needed a nap!!
Woke up three hours later unable to put my weight on my right leg. Friday was a misery. I could get from bed to bathroom with a cane very slowly. Saturday I made it to the kitchen & back  but mostly I spent my time in bed with my knee on a pillow listening to audio books & sleeping. Today, I'm up & moving with the cane but if I had to drive my car anywhere, I wouldn't make it. My only conclusion is that the store is too big & the floor is too hard to shop there anymore. And that's not a happy thought!

On the craft front - Nada once again. Getting to the front room where it's all sitting was too painful to contemplate. If this keeps up I'll have to move my sock bag into the Office next to the computer. .

Sunday, January 07, 2018

We're Talking About Walking

Yeah, you read that right. While my knee continues to complain when I use it too much, I can't sit on my ass all the time. 

A pudgy pal & I were talking - the thing we do the best you know - & we admitted that we could afford to lose a couple of inches. We're both doing sedentary jobs & spend hours sitting all day. And it's not that we indulge in bad food so much as we eat too much good food. Neither of us likes to cook for one. I think if we lived on the same block or in the same building, we might even take up eating dinners together. But, that isn't going to happen any time soon so both of us eat out too much or grab something out of a box. We spend much too much time eating  Chicken Wraps & Subway Veggie Delights!!!

We do tend to eat lots of veggies, Chinese style. And we both love fruit. We're not huge meat eaters although we love cheese, yogurt & eggs. So we decided to spend a month EATING IN & limit ourselves to whole grains, fruit, non starchy veggies, very lean meats, beans, 2% dairy - neither of us like whole milk & all the greens we can stuff in our faces. Starchy veggies are okay if they're part of a bag of mixed veggies.

And then someone mentioned walking. I think I'd die right now if I had to walk to the end of the block without a shopping cart to hold me up - but, in for a penny, in for a pound as granny used to say!!! I dug around on the net for the Walking with Leslie program. We can walk for FREE in January on YouTube. The weather is frightful most days this time of year & we don't want to have to pay money to go for a walk. So Walking in place at home with great music is the answer. At least, we're gonna see if it's the answer. It's a good thing I'm a competitive animal .   .   .   .

Knitting/Spinning - Hey, I've finished a sock!! One sock in Hopscotch down & one to cast on. 
And I pulled out my Old Indian spinner & am winding off all the yarn on that GIANT bobbin. When it's all skeined up it will go into the bin with the other skeins until I spin up the last three 'eggs', whewwwww. What a job - only took me 10 years to spin that!!
I think I'm going to dye all the skeins by dipping a third of each in a solid color & then splattering another couple of colors over the other end. Or dye the two ends in different colors. Haven't decided exactly. I still have a Kimono style jacket pattern in mind & a giant silver safety pin to close it with. But, dyeing is for warm weather!!
When the white is off the Indian & the last three lumps have been spun, I have a light grey fleece I want to get too. It's been washed but very lightly. It smells wonderful. I had plans to spend the summer spinning last year but would up feeling bad & slept away months of good spinning time - not this year!!!


Tuesday, January 02, 2018

2018

2018 WOWIt's hard to imagine that it's 2018 already when you were born in the 50's. I never dreamed of 2018 when I laid on top of the hay pile & watched the clouds make pictures. I never thought that far ahead in 1969 when I wanted to dance all weekend at Woodstock or when I went to college to take Criminology in the 70's. 2000 was so far away. And now, here we are. Another year older & about to step into the unknown.

I'm not going to fill this blog with Resolutions. I don't believe in them. Well, it's not that I don't believe so much, it's that most of them get forgotten at the first temptation. As sure as every January will bring forth sales on Exercise equipment & weird diets, last year's failed Resolutions come back to give you a kick in the ass as you try to do your first squat. Louisa at (damselflys.blogspot.ca) has declared this the Year of the Slug. Yes, that slimy creature of the back garden & deep Rain Forest path. She makes a very good case for it!!

I'm particularly fond of Don't Rush, Go at Your Own Speed, Wear Comfy Shoes, Stay  Moisturized, Play in the Garden & Avoid Hot Sun. All good things to help ease you into the new year gently but without fear.

I'm planning on getting new shoes this year. Or maybe some boots, for a change. I've been giving things away. And I plan on continuing the practice. I bought so much stuff I couldn't breathe - I never thought I wouldn't want to DO THOSE THINGS when I got older. Crazy eh?? I mean who doesn't use a toaster or a coffee machine?? ME And when I bought all those crewel embroidery kits?? Yeah, I was in love with them in the 80's but now, the eye-sight is not so good & I'd rather spin or knit socks. And all the other crap we tend to save - like perfectly good shoe boxes - crap. Tea tins??? So I'm recycling more stuff too. What I'd really like to do in 2018 is get a bin delivered to my door for a week & throw in everything I don't want. Mmmmmmmmmmm