The Garbage Can Mystery

For several months now, I've been finding my green garbage can kicked over & the garbage strewn about. One evening, I even heard someone go down the back stairs quietly - my office window is beside the stairs but the blinds were down - AND HEARD the can kicked over!!! But, I didn't get out there fast enough to see the bugger who did it. I spoke to the Landlord & he's been getting his can kicked over too. I told him about someone sneaking down the back stairs the last time but he doesn't think it was his kid. He's blaming the kid next door! Guess we just have to catch him at it . . . Last night was Garbage Night - Pickup is sometime on Tuesday & if you wait till the morning - well, sometimes they come barreling through at 7:00AM when you're in the shower! Haven't had the can kicked over lately so I was surprised to see it on it's side waaaaay under the stairs. Dammit!! I had to get the broom to help me get at it & ran into the can kicker inside the can. Yup - waaaay inside with his head in one of the bags of leftovers! A half-grown Skunk. A real Stinker. He'd figured out how to get that thing on its side & jumped on it so the top would blow off - it's old, plastic, with split sides & the lid snaps on both sides just above the handles. I line it with double garbage bags but I guess he can still smell the goodies inside. He's been feasting on the fruit peels, veggie stalks & chicken bones for months. Then he gets to have a wash & a drink at the big bowl of fresh water I have under the plant stand & ferns for the local critters. And I suspect it was he, who left the stink under the stairs last week - probably met the local raccoons at the water dish. Perhaps it's time to buy a new garbage can with a hooked lid. Removing the water dish is not an option.

I bought a taro root almost two months ago for 18 cents. A lady in the veggie market was seriously checking out all the roots & I asked her what she was going to do with them. She told me Taro makes a wonderful house plant. She wouldn't tell me what it looked like but told me I'd recognize it when it sprouted. Well, it takes a long time to sprout. It needs heat & water, lots of water. It can be grown in moist soil or in a pot in a water garden because it also likes to live IN water. I tucked it into a BLACK pot & put it out in the warmest part of my garden spot on the concrete. I noticed yesterday that it had a sprout. It's been out there baking in the heat & FINALLY sprouted. I can't wait to see what it will become! Meanwhile, the Everbearing Strawberries are throwing out runners everywhere!! I suspect I'll be able to fill the Strawberry Pot with them this year!! And I'll have to check out the damage to the ferns where the Skunkette ran to hide when I disturbed his feast . . .

I've been pounding on the computer for up to 7 hours a day for the last 9 days!! Needless to say, I haven't spun a damned thing. My thumbs are not up to the task at all so I've dropped out of the Tour de Fleece. I can knit, barely, but I can report that both pairs of short socks in the Saturn color way are finished. I DID have to finish the second pair feet & toes with an odd ball of dark grey but they're DONE. Another pair are currently on the needles but only just. If I can get through all this work I've suddenly got, then maybe the old hands will get back in shape again. I've even ordered a trial sample of some Super Krill Oil from Purity Products in the US. They advertise on information & talk radio & made me an offer I couldn't refuse - for the total price of 7 bucks US, they will ship me a 30 day supply - & include the Hair/Nails/Skin product as well - which is guaranteed to make my joints better in 7 days or less or my money back. If I like it, they will ship for free! At this point, I'll try anything but heavy duty drugs!!! I have to make these hands work like this for another 10 years at least!!!

Was that June?

Got up this morning to July. I know it's a holiday because no one in my neighborhood was up at 5:30 AM loading siding, crashing garbage cans or yelling from upper sundeck to lower car parked in the alley. On holiday mornings like this one, all of the above seems to happen about 10:00 instead. As I sit at my desk, I see the walkers are out, the kids are already playing hockey in the alley & someone IS loading aluminum siding on a truck. And I'm sitting in my old tee & shorts, uncombed, unshowered, pounding on the keyboard & listening to Jean Auel's new book, The Painted Caves. I'm finding it hard to get started this morning even though I have HST reports to file for a couple of small businesses before I start on WCB reports. I have to do as much as possible since the Tour de Fleece starts tomorrow & I intend to spend most of Saturday evening & Sunday morning spinning while I watch a weekend marathon on HGTV!!

When rooting through my UFOs I came upon the three balls of yarn I spun from Arvik. Arvik was a little Shetland sheep with a lovely fleece that ranged in color from light grey to almost black. I fell in love with that fleece the first time I saw it advertised on Canspin!! I have three big balls of the medium grey with a hint of brown, a big ball of the darkest yarn & the remains of the lightest grey from two small fleeces. Since Arvik has died of old age, I won't be getting any more fleeces, dammit. This morning I had a great idea. I've already made two attempts to knit a work sweater with this yarn. Instead of using my yet to be spun, wildly colored, Paua for a work shrug, I think I should make it with the Arvik instead. Since I don't have enough of one shade to make the sweater I want - I was thinking about using a lace pattern & larger needles to stretch it - I do have enough to knit a large rectangle to make the simple Lion Brand shrug. I could even use the dark wool to pick up & knit the cuffs I was considering as well. It should be warm, snuggly & the color would work in dusty warehouses a whole lot better than Paua. And it would make a really great car knitting project for the summer!!

Haven't quite finished the second pair of short socks in Regia Saturn although I've turned the heel on the first sock & will turn the second this evening. Summer socks really go very quickly since they're only a couple of inches above the ankle - great for leftovers since half the foot & toe can be in a complimentary or contrasting color! The only part that's really visible is the ankle & ribbing so any other leftovers can be used - great opportunity to make some really wild Frankensocks.

What is Blogspot Doing???

I've been having a terrible time accessing my Blog!! I don't know what Blogspot is doing but they better fix it before I go somewhere else!!

I joined the Tour de Fleece on Ravelry. I'm in Team Canada - CrankyPants which seems to epitomize my attitude about the world these days . . . My project will be to spin up THREE bags of PAUA from Aurelia Wool & Weaving. I just love the colors in Paua & will, hopefully, be able to keep them separated enough to get runs of one color or another as well as some blending to keep it interesting. I intend to knit up a nice big shrug using the Lion Brand pattern I found & talked about in the last blog. It's just a simple big rectangle folded in half with a short seam closing about a foot or so from each end, leaving the middle open. I could pick up the end & knit a loose ribbed cuff or crochet around the entire thing just to give it a 'finished' look as well. I suspect I'll do the ribbing. But first, I have to spin the fibre!! And, I'm actually really looking forward to spinning every day - the patio is bursting with color & it's wonderful out there in the mornings & evenings with a recorded book & a cup of tea . . . Hell, it's even better out there at midnight with a bottle or two of English Cider!!

So, what have I been working on lately?? Summer socks! I have to wear my support sneakers - yeah, I still pronate - roll inwards - & I still need a 10cm minimum heel - and I just can't wear them without a sock!!! Those cotton footlets keep my feet wet all the time so I knit short wool socks to keep the old dogs comfy. Apparently, I also give most of them away since I only have 4 short pairs in the basket!! Just finished another in the remains of the Regia - Saturn colorway that I used for Bryan's birthday socks. I think I almost have enough to knit another pair of short socks - which are already cast on the needles - they will get blue or black toes if I fall short. Was rooting in the sock wool basket & found a lot of odd balls - don't even ask why - I normally buy in twos for most socks or threes if I'm knitting Ex socks so I have no idea why I have WHOLE 50gm BALLS of one color. But, one ball will make MOST of a pair of short socks & a solid color can finish them off. I found an interesting ball with short runs of celery, pink, grey & black in it. Bit wishy washy right now but I'm sure it will work with grey, pink, black or green toes to brighten it up. Fun to make socks like that!! Not sure if it will become summer socks or baby socks at the moment - have to see.

The city is constantly digging up & rearranging the roads around here & my favorite Truck Stop Cafe has been in the middle of a Road project for the last month. I never know from one day to another just HOW to get there. Since I haven't been there for over a week, I called to see if I have to go around the ROAD CLOSED sign & con the Flag Girls this week or if they finally opened the BACK DOOR. The Builders, in their wisdom, decided to build a back road around the Industrial Park to divert traffic from the main road while they worked on it. Since the Main Road will no longer allow access to any of the existing businesses, they had to build a Frontage Road in the rear so that the businesses could operate. It turned out to be another SNAFU the friday before last. The detour was almost completed & even paved before someone said, heh - how do we get into the Industrial Park. Not only did the public have no access, the folks at work in the Park couldn't get out & the work crew couldn't get into the Cafe for lunch. They bulldozed a temporary driveway through the existing road, ditch & curb for lunch that day . . . .

What's New?


Not a damned thing if you really have to know! Other than my Regia socks in the Saturn colorway. I, well, I frogged them back to the ribbing. I guess I'm just not the 'lace' type. And maybe I just like to knit without ever completing anything. I'm beginning to wonder . . .

It's been a little cool lately so I need to wear socks. When I dug into the sock basket - I only have 21 pairs of socks in there - I couldn't find a thing to wear! Most of them are winter socks. And the remainder - all four pairs of short summer socks - get worn really quickly & tossed into the laundry basket. I usually do the wash every couple of weeks since I have to rearrange the whole kitchen to pull out the washer & get it over to the sink to hook up. With the antique wiring, I can't operate anything else while the washer & dryer operate other than the coffee pot! I also can't operate the dryer if the washer's running, not because of wiring but because it's on a slightly wobbly stand & needs the washer support underneath when it's running. If it's warm, my patio becomes the drying station with my folding wooden racks because I have no clothesline but I have to stay home all day while it's out there. While this normally isn't a problem, I can always spin while the clothes dry, right now it's too warm to run the dryer - it vents through a filter INTO the house because it's tiny & it's too cold to dry outside on racks - I'd be outside for days! The only thing left to do - knit more summer socks!!

So the frogged socks are rapidly becoming two pairs of short summer socks. I have to have socks in my sneakers. I don't understand how people can wear them without. Much as I'd like to, I can't live in thongs or sandals because I need side support & a bit of a heel or I hyper-extend my Achilles tendons. All this gobblygook means that if I slop around in thongs or sandals I get burning, crippling inflammation & PAIN in the backs of my heels. So I wear thongs at home or to jobs where I'm sitting all day when it's hot & my support sneakers everywhere else - just a little compromise that would make my foot specialist cringe! I try NOT to push it too far since I spent several years in pain & TWO years encased in support sneakers every waking hour of the day to get it healed. I draw the line at heavy winter socks in the summer though . . . The heels are turned on the first pair of summer socks & the next couple of pairs are already planned out.

I still work in a warehouse on Sundays. It's so peaceful & quiet in there that I just love it. But, the floor is cement & I need a little extra covering except in the middle of the summer. Most of the year I need something light but warm that doesn't get in the way. I tried a Danish Working shawl in handspun which worked quite well but my arms were still cold. I've noticed that Lion Brand has several really simple SHRUG patterns that might do the trick. They're simple rectangles folded in half with cuffs on the ends if you want them. They cover the back - depending on the depth of the rectangle - as well as the shoulders & arms but leave the front more or less exposed, again, depending on the depth of the rectangle. Any lace pattern would work or even simple garter stitch like the one in the orangey Lion Brand Homespun! I'm seriously thinking about whipping one up to try it out for the warehouse. Just think of it in handspun alpaca or llama with wool!!! It would be soooooo comfy this winter when I watch tv or curl up to read a book. Maybe that's the project I should work on for the Tour de Fleece this year - to spin up that alpaca I was given so I can knit the winter shrug!!

I'm glad I'm not a Hockey Fan


I'm glad I'm not a Hockey Fan because, today, I'd be devastated by the ruination of Vancouver's downtown core by mindless Idiots who call themselves 'FANS'. I'd be ashamed & embarrassed by the U Tube clips going viral on the Internet. And I'd be wondering why the 'fans' of the losing team have to destroy their own city in protest. Isn't there something written about not shitting in your own nest?? Even a Pig knows better . . .


As a non-fan I propose we track down all the Offenders & prosecute with every tool in our judicial toolbox. Dress them in orange jumpsuits with 'rioter' on the back & make them WORK off their debt - sweep the streets by hand, pick up garbage in the parks & on the beaches - expose them to Public scorn. All those with pictures & movies of the 'event' - turn them over to the Police, News & show them to all your friends. Let's identify the criminals who spoil all the good things in this city. They make the streets dangerous. These are the people who take away all the public festivals & celebrations. The Sea Festival & the Sand Castle competition come to mind. Don't let them get away with this behavior. You rise up in anger against the HST - how 'bout some of that anger directed towards the ignorant, mindless, violence perpetuated by rioters & looters in the streets. Or will you wait until the Playoffs are no longer held in our city?

Oh Look What I Found . . .



The Traveling mug is cheering on the Team

It's Definitely Summer

My Jungle is growing wildly & you just have to believe it's summer at last!! I hit the sale bin at the Home Depot after Mother's Day & picked up two sorry looking geranium baskets & one crushed pink something or other flowering basket - I have no idea what this is!! Brought them home, watered & fed them, let them sit on the floor under the table on the patio for a few days & then hung them up. WOW! All three are blooming their hearts out in hot pinks on my patio. I planted winter pansies & a 'spike' in a large pot which sits beside the door & the fern box - four feet along the shady back of the patio - is filled to overflowing with ferns of all kinds. It's a great place to spin in the early morning with a big cup of hot tea! And it's where I'll be competing in the Tour de Fleece in a couple of weeks. I'm not sure yet just what I'll be spinning - four 250 gm bags of MAGENTA Halfbreed wool or three 250gm bags of Paua - Corriedale wool in turquoise, blues & hot pink from Aurelia Wools - much prettier than in the photo to the right. And I found a whole light grey fleece in a bag in the closet. I'm leaning toward Paua simply because there's less of it, I'm tired of spinning white wool & I might just DO something with handspun sooner if its a nice color!! Ever notice how wildly colored socks knit faster than dull or dark colors??? There's that Kimono I've been drooling over after all & that very interesting wrap/shrug pattern I bought last year that can be worn backwards, forwards, right side up & upside down.

And speaking of socks - only one pair on the go at the moment. I'm knitting the second pair of Saturn Socks. I decided to put a little twist into it though & tried a simple pattern of K1, yo, K2tog just for fun. Not sure if I really like it yet & may rip it out to work a new lace pattern I've discovered @ Notions, an on-line magazine that has ceased to publish. I tried the pattern in another pair of wristletts for my niece. I like the pattern. It's a simple K1,P1, yo, K2tog, P1,K1 on the 1rst row, with Knit on K & Purl on P 2nd & 4th row & K1,P1, SSK, yo, P1,K1 on the 3rd row. It makes a nice stretchy pattern for a sock, arm warmer or mitt. The Saturn yarn may be too busy for the pattern to work well but I will definitely use the pattern somewhere else!

Not much yarny stuff today

I woke up feeling pretty damned good this morning! After three DRY & SUNNY days, my hands have almost stopped hurting. In fact, my hip isn't burning either. Looks like Summer has finally arrived. I knew it was on the way when the Strawberries exploded into action but it really felt like the Wet Coast was gonna STAY wet. We'll probably go from Monsoon to Watering Restrictions in the next couple of weeks. But, the Jungle has decided to make the most of the sunshine we have. I've gone from one Clematis bloom to several & the big, furry buds just keep on coming.

Today I'm cleaning out my bedroom closet. I started at 5:38 this morning! I thought about it long enough & even pulled a few things out. But, today, it's all going to get cleaned out. I haven't done much in there for eons because I'd rather knit or spin or dye or do just about anything other than housework - yuk! But, I know there's all kinds of crap in there that has to go. Good crap, mind you, but still crap to me. Someone once said that there's FREEDOM in divesting yourself of CRAP. We'll see . . .

And then there's the Office.

Dilly Dallying Around

I bought an upside down tomato planter. I have friends who swear they're the greatest thing since raised beds!! Now, I like the Raised Bed gardening system myself - no bending, fewer weeds, the soil warms up sooner, no bending, no grass to cut when you put it where the lawn used to be & the plants seem to produce better! I like it even better when a trellis system is added to the raised bed so things like cucumbers, tomatoes, pole beans & squashes can grow up instead of on the ground where they're attacked by slugs, bugs & passing feet. So, growing things upside down kinda makes sense. My mother used to pull all the tomato plants - with green tomatoes still attached - out of the garden just before the first frost & hang them upside down from the basement beams. They would ripen slowly & taste absolutely incredible. So the Upside Down planter appealed to me.
Problem was, I didn't put my tomato plants into it till this morning. I put a Beefsteak & a Tiny Tim in there together. I hope they enjoy the experience & reward me well.
I have a Patio Favorite in the top of my Strawberry Pot with two Everbearing strawberry plants. The strawberries are survivors from the Invasion of the Hen & Chicks. Silly me. I planted ONE chick in the OLD strawberry pot. It reproduced & took over . . .

My Jungle isn't quite sure what season it is. The Ferns are putting out new fronds daily. The strawberries have tripled in size in the last two weeks & are just starting to flower. The early blooming Clematis is only now bursting into bloom - it usually blooms in late March or early April - the first bud opened only this morning - while the Easter Cactus is now bursting into bloom & the Christmas Cactus is setting buds!

On the Knitting Front - Still knitting cuffs for the adopted child. Added a couple more in plain ribbing with a LOOSE cast off so it kind of flares at one end for a slightly different look. Most of the Merino Odd Balls I have knit to a worsted gauge so lace is not an option when working on 32 - 36 sts. Seed stitch, ribbing, simple YO, K2tog are okay as are twisted stitches & cables but since I don't have the wrists in front of me, it's not easy to do cables to fit. But I think she'll be happy with a wardrobe of different colors in simple patterns. If I get into Arm Warmers - well, that's a whole other story!!

Ya Just Gotta Laugh

Last week I tried to get to knitting with the girls & made it to the parking lot after work with my dinner-in-a-box. Just as I was finishing dinner, I got an emergency call & ran off to rescue a friend with a baby locked in the car. She & the mother of the baby do NOT like each other much & it's nothing short of a miracle when said grandchild is ALLOWED out with Granny for an hour or two! So, when the kid got locked in the car, well, no one was gonna tell MOM. Granny has spare keys to the car - in the locked house & spare keys to the house - in the purse which is locked in the car with the baby who is happily playing with Granny's car keys with the automatic door fob. I just happen to have a spare key to the house - sometimes I cuddle with the pooch when Granny goes off for the weekend. Pooch has a doggie door, fenced yard & an automatic food dispenser at his beck & call but needs some cuddling when his Human's away!! Luck was with us last Wednesday, I showed up with the key before the daughter-in-law showed up to claim the kid! And nobody knows but us!!

Just a little shot of my Jungle-in-progress. The big Cedar planter has SIX kinds of ferns in it which die back in the winter & pop up again in the spring. While taking out the garbage, I spotted a couple of fronds peeking out from the moss along the north side of the house. I dug them up & transplanted them to my planter where they seem to be doing just fine. I've seen them before in mossy areas of the local woods. They actually grow up the tree trunks in the moss by sending out runners like strawberries!

On Wednesdays, I work for a Motorcycle School. Action used to be one of TWO in the Lower Mainland, but now, they're popping up all over the place like Magic Mushrooms! One of my last sales of the day was to two best buds who were actually sitting in the Competition's office about 20 miles away when they called me for information. Apparently when they went to sign up, the office person was yakking on the phone. They said they quietly sat there for 34 minutes without even being greeted before calling me. The office person, who still hadn't acknowledged them, was still on the phone when they left to drive all the way to North Langley to see me. And they brought cash!! I just don't know how some people stay in business! Must be a full moon out there . . .

I've finished the wild socks for my buddy Bryan at the Motorcycle School! He wants to wear them in his sneakers when he works in the parking lot this year!
I've also cast on the remainder of the Regia Saturn to make socks for ME. I've used my usual In-my-head pattern of 68 sts, top down, 3" K2,P2 ribbing but decided to do something just a little different this time. On the right front quarter, I've done ( YO, K2tog) 6 times to produce a simple lace pattern. I'll hopefully, do the same on the left front quarter of the other sock to match. I've lost count but I think the Saturn Socks2 will be Pair Number 8 or 9 so far this year . . . . I know it doesn't sound like a lot of socks but hell, Tax Season got in the way & nothing else is finished!! One thing about Retirement - if I can ever afford it - I'll be able to knit & spin a whole lot more!

I Have a Camera

I can take pictures again!! Not that my life is so exciting - very unexciting around here since I gave the BT the boot, I tell ya!! But, I think my blood pressure has come down & my bank balance has gone up! But, to get to the point - I now have a camera. Turns out to be a Video Camcorder. I can take 9 shots without adding an SD chip but no movies unless I add one. Today, I charged everything up - yes, internal battery toooooo - & stuck the camera into my USB hub to unload the pictures of my two latest projects . . . . Yeah, right. Spent the last two hours trying to delete the program that self loaded & sucked up all the BMP, JPEG etc files on my computer. Do you know how many that is??? Even I wasn't aware . . . I have now deleted all the extra files & found the file with the current pictures of the last two projects . . .
Here's a pic of my latest toy!! This was a very tough shot to get since I wanted to show IT not ME. It's the size of a cell phone & does all kinds of nifty things which I will probably never use. That's toy #3 in the past couple of months! Got my KOBO ebook reader, got a personal DVD player - I can play my WALKING CDs again & now this little camcorder. I love the single life . . . . it's the only life for me!!!

I found those two balls of yarn in the Sierra colorway & finished up the socks for ME. Fall socks now I guess since Sprummer(Spring/Summer) has finally arrived on the Wet Coast! I loved this colorway when a fellow blogger showed off a project several years ago & got several balls sent to me!! I remember knitting one pair up for a friend's daughter & forgot about the remainder. Well, I found the balls & had to knit a pair of socks for myself right away - the yarn reminds me of an African mud print. I'm not normally attracted to FALL colors because I look like crap in browns, greens, orange & yellow but on the FEET?? Yeah baby! I can wear anything!

My Office Buddy Bryan - brand new daddy of Solana who was three weeks old on Friday - wanted socks for his 34th birthday! He took my Saturn Socks to the hospital with him when Solana was born because he says he freezes in there & I hadn't finished the original pair of WILD socks I started for him. I had no idea he would scarf the Saturn Socks, he was supposed to try them on for size but somehow, they left with him. And the Stinker got two pairs. Oh well, good thing I have enough Saturn to knit myself another pair . . .

The Camera's on its Way!

So my new camera is on the way & I can't wait to play with another new toy!!! It better hurry up because Bryan's wild red, black & yellow socks are almost done! And I don't want to give them away until I have a camera so he can model them for the Blog! I forgot to get him to model the last ones - I usually don't carry the darned thing but I'll have to get used to doing so if I want the 'ON THE FEET' shots that others remember to get . . .

Still spinning the 'egg' shaped lumps of Brown Sheep mill ends. They're never ending!! The big bobbin on my Indian Spinner is full to overflowing with yarn & I found two more damned lumps to spin! This time, I'm determined to spin it ALL up for once & for all! I won't spin anything else until it's done!!! I think winding yarn onto the niddy noddy is my least favorite job. It's probably because the bobbin is SO big that makes winding off a real chore. I try to make those skeins as big as possible 'cause the old right arm really protests after a marathon winding off. And maybe that's why the bobbin doesn't get emptied as often as it should. Once upon a time, I even bought a skein winder from Don George - he makes lovely things out of wood - but I have nothing I can clamp it to so I can't use it - Great Planning, eh?? So I'm left with the old niddy noddy. And all that winding off . . .

This summer, I am really hoping to get more Craft Time out on the patio!! I have some macrame plant hangers to construct - I bought two baskets of Geraniums at the post Mother's Day Sale - I want to hang two baskets from the same hook. I'm making a simple double hanger so I can try to block the sun in the afternoon. Yeah, I thought about more lattice out there but then I can't hang anything high enough to keep the slugs out. I have a slightly damaged strawberry pot planted with strawberries - heh, the slugs won't climb that thing!!! & I want to hang the Geraniums above it as a sun block. I also got a Topsy Turvey Tomato hanger. The tomato plant hangs upsidedown!! I figure that will help block the sun too. I just may be able to sit out there after work & spin!! See, there is a method to my madness.

So Hard to DO

I know nothing about cameras. I don't even really like cameras. But, it's hard to post pictures of the latest projects, interests, neat things etc on a Blog without one. So I bit the bullet, checked out my Air Miles points & went in search of something to take pictures with. I decided I wanted a rechargeable battery. And I don't really want to mess around with taking out & putting back a memory card if I'm only taking 2 or 3 pictures! Oh, I really should have a 'smart' camera that can adjust to light & distance because I haven't got a clue - I just try to get my back to the sun & point. I'd like to be able to get in really, really close & take a picture of a bug or a special stitch or a blossom too. Can I really get all this for around 2500 points???

Apparently I can. I ordered a GE Digital HD Video Camera - it even takes movies underwater!! It adjusts for shaky hands. It plugs into the computer to recharge. It takes an SD card or USB thumb drive. You just point & shoot. Yeah baby!! And it only cost me 1200 Air Miles points. Because it's ORANGE.

In Mourning

Today, I realized my camera was dead. I didn't drop it. It didn't go for a swim. Sometime between taking out the dead batteries & replacing them with recharged ones, it quietly clicked it's last. And I didn't even notice. I totally blamed the batteries for not holding a charge. I blamed the batteries for not being as good, second class you know - they're rechargeable. I went out & bought very expensive electronics batteries to replace them. I guess I just couldn't believe it was true. The eye is open but the charge is gone. All the batteries in the world will not make my Kodak digital camera take sock pictures again . . . .

Leisure Time

I've actually had a little of it lately. Leisure time, that is. Time to sit & sip a cup of tea without paper in hand, on desk, in boxes, stacked, stapled, folded, etc etc. The phone is not ringing as often & I can almost walk into my office again. The FINISHED box rides everywhere in the car again. And the spinning wheel has been outside TWICE since I came back from the Retreat!!! I actually sat in the sun the other day & spun! Still working on finishing the last of the egg shaped knots leftover from the Grab Bag I bought from Sheep Shed Studios several years ago! I love the slight spongy feel of the wool in them. It's soft, a little fuzzy but nice to touch. Reminds me of Polworth in some ways & it just appeals to me, in a very tactile way. And, I do believe, I'm down to the last three bumps. Gotta check the bag again soon, just to make sure they haven't reproduced in there when I wasn't looking!!! I won't even discuss the wool/mohair roving that remains in the bag.

Got the Knit Kimono & Knit Kimono Too books out beside my TV chair & the decision is down to three. The lacy red one on the cover that first caught my eye, the really big 'wave' patterned lace kimono - I do hate the sleeves though or the indigo one with the textured sleeves & yoke that folds at the side. I love the LACE patterns but keep returning to the TEXTURED indigo kimono. It's simplicity, folded detail & subtle texture just gets to me. Mine would not be indigo though - not really sure exactly what I'd do with dye but I am leaning toward turquoise or plum with spots of brighter color. Oh for a warm, sunny summer to dye for!

And one last project that I'm waiting for a nice, warm day to work on - the felted cover for my new KOBO. I've discovered one bad feature of the KOBO, those buttons on the sides of the frame turn themselves on & off in my bag!!! Every time I go to use the durned thing, the battery's dead. The ON/OFF button on the top rubs against the side of my bag & turns it ON all the time. Ripped the guts out of an unused pocketbook sized Daily Diary with a zip closing that was in the "Donations" box. Unused, regifted, pages out of date!! It has a couple of pockets, a pad of paper for doodles, a pen to doodle with & room for my business cards. It's a little big for the KOBO but I could stuff a Driver's License, Starbucks card, $20 & a sock on a circ in there & go to Starbucks without a purse!!! !t works until I get something felted!!

A Day in the Life

It's officially OVER. I'm not talking Wedding or Election - although I could - but, I'm referring to TAX SEASON! Tried to E-file one last return just before midnight but the durned thing closed on me in mid file!!! I cursed but took the hint & went to bed. There's 5 unfinished returns left on the desk. Two will get refunds - no penalty, two always pay because they're always late & not because of me & MINE, which is also always late because I never have time till everyone else's is done! And then there's all the others who show up days & weeks or sometimes months & years, after the fact. Today, I don't care! Today I'm having breakfast OUT. Today I will read a week's worth of papers. Today I will get my mail on time. And later today, I have to take an ON-LINE course in BIDDING for EXCAVATING JOBS.

Nothing but Paperwork

I recovered from my re-entry into the yellow haze of smog that encases the Lower Mainland - every time I leave for a few days I wonder why I bother to come back to the wheezing, coughing & sneezing!! If it wasn't for my clients, the Motorcycle School, my stash & friends, well, I'd stay in Hope! I keep telling the Ex that we should sell the house & most of our junk, combine forces & move to Hope!! Why Hope?? Close enough to emergency services should we need them but out of the Transit Tax, Air Care, Hydro levy, traffic jams & yellow smog. Gas & housing is cheaper & we can zip to Chilliwack or Kamloops for groceries if we need too!! Since Hope got a Timmy's & a Mcdonald's, I can get my Steeped Tea & he can have his low fat muffin & Senior coffee! I think Hope needs a Dollar Store/Yarn Store too. Lion Brand yarn should sell in Hope. Gives me an excuse to order the good stuff for me & my pals & spend the days spinning in the store. I figure we need a nice little DUPLEX with a garage for his toys on one side & a nice covered porch on the other for me. My adopted child is now working for the Hope RCMP. A nice "IN" for me . . . But, I'm still paying off that damned loan so I guess I'll be in town for a couple more years . . . .

I have two more birthdays in the Motorcycle Office. My little buddy Bryan had his 34th on Saturday. We let him leave early for the Family Bash but I had no idea what to get him for his birthday other than Corona Beer. I was thinking about a 'Manly' pair of socks when he came in & told me he wanted WILD socks for his birthday!! Great minds think alike! Okaaaaaay. I have just the yarn - Regia - in one of the Nations colorways of Yellow, Black & Red! And he asked for KNEE SOCKS. He intends to wear them in the parking lot when he teaches in the summer!! He isn't getting knee socks because I only have 100gms but I can make em come halfway up his leg!! When the batteries in my camera recharge, I'll include a picture of what's on the needles so far!! The Boss turns 50 in May. We all know what to get him. I have my order in for a nice single malt scotch from the Misty Isles because we're teaching him that Johnny Walker isn't the only action in town!!

Haven't spun a thing since I came home. I like to get outside with my wheel & it's rained every day except when I'm stuck in the office cranking out tax returns or working in the office at the Motorcycle School!! Tax Season slows down on April 30 but small business stuff continues for a month or so beyond. At least I can take the afternoon OFF & sit in the sun - if we ever get two days in a row!!! WHEN summer finally arrives, I'll be out on the patio every day spinning the last of the 'bumps' I bought from the Sheep Shed Studios. I'm getting so close to finally finishing them that it's kind of exciting. I have the light grey fleece in the closet that I want to spin this summer too. And that lovely 'shades of purple' superwash wool & nylon roving I got at the Retreat to spin for socks!! I want to knit a couple of pairs of Barn Socks for a friend who will be 60 in September!! She has two huge pooches, two enormous horses & a pond full of migratory birds, herons, ducks & frogs in the yard. She's out in boots for more than half a day shoveling stalls, walking dogs, exercising horses & shooting bullfrogs. She needs warm feet.

A Surprise!

There's nothing like a little adventure once in a while! To my surprise, I got a phone call asking which bed I wanted at the Desert Mesa Spring Retreat. This was Tuesday & the Retreat started Friday . . . apparently my friend Gail sent an email a day or so before saying we were coming - if there was room at the Inn . . . Oh yeah. It's payroll week - 5 payrolls in fact. And it's Payroll Remittance week & three weeks before the tax deadline as well. What the hell, why NOT Go?? So I did what I could, threw a few things in a bag & AWAY WE WENT!! Had a good time, met some people I've been corresponding with for years but never met & spent too much money - as usual. Did NOT spend all my money on fibre this time - I bought a lovely bracelet & earrings in COPPER with an Indian motif - more Southwestern I suppose than local but very nice all the same!!! Laughed a whole lot - isn't that the reason we go to these things??? & got to see how our Blanket for the Bishop turned out!

Spent most of my time spinning up the remaining 'egg' shaped wool knots of the GRAB BAG I bought umpteen years ago from the Sheep Shed Studios in the States. I've decided to have a merry dye session later this summer on the patio & dye all the skeins at the same time! I've been slobbering over Kimonos since I bought the KNIT KIMONO book a coupla years ago & the Knit Kimono Too this year. I don't have enough handspun in any one colorway or type of wool to make any of them yet. But, I have seven or eight skeins in the basket & probably three more on the giant bobbin on my Indian Head spinner. I believe I have half a grocery bag of 'egg' shaped lumps left. There will be more than enough wool - I think it's Polworth - to make any of the short Kimonos!! Not sure what I'll do with the dye or what color I'll use yet but they'll be done all at the same time. I'm leaning towards a Kimono with a patterned yoke & sleeves with a plain body.

Found a home for two of the bags in the Office closet. The mohair curls & the best Border Cheviot fleece will go north to Quesnel. The seedy fleece will stay to become hanging basket lining. And, should there be any more fleece in there, it will go north as well. Thank you Lou for taking my leftover, forgotten fleeces!! I will de-clutter, de-stash & gain some storage space in spite of my hording ways yet!!!!

Today, I spent part of my first morning back sneezing, wheezing & watering whilst waiting in line to renew my Driver's license! What a picture I presented!! I decided not to wait one more minute since my license actually expired on Saturday & I had to drive sans license to the Driver Service Office. Some of the Nervous Nellies at the Retreat were telling me stories of rewriting the Exam & taking the Driving Test once more because it had expired. But, no one even looked at my license except to verify my address, mother's maiden name, height, weight, eye & hair color - somehow I shrunk 3 inches in the last 5 years!!! But, I'm legal again. And, the picture is now black & white - good thing because my nose & eyes were bright red! It looked about as good as my Costco picture. Whoopie - I just can't wait to whip that one out for ID!

April Already!

I've been mostly Lost in Taxland with the occasional venture into Motorcycleland lately - tis the season for both! And how do they connect? Every boy & more & more girls, want to get their taxes done early so they can buy a bike. A big bike with a motor on it! And of course, they want one NOW. All the paper dust & testosterone makes me realize that I'm rapidly crossing the line into OLD AGE. I just don't care WHEN I do my taxes & the only bike I want has at least three wheels, a heater, cup holder, a radio & a trunk!

And speaking of OLD AGE, I got my Official Bank Letter yesterday - the one that says," Happy Birthday Senior!" OUCH Apparently, they're switching me to the No Fee Senior Account. I don't have to do a thing! I'm not sure if I'm happy or sad. I know I've been looking forward to the NO FEE courses at the local University and Senior's rates at the Rec Centre! Woohoo. But, the bank letter sort of set it all in stone.

So to honor my Aging self, I've been trying to clean out some boxes, closets & piles in my office. I found boxes of paper that belong to a client who DIED three years ago as well as boxes of documents that should've gone home with their owners even earlier. And in the Office closet I found FOUR BAGS of fleece! There's one bag of mohair curls/2004 - 6 pounds it says, two bags of very dirty & somewhat seedy, Border Cheviot/2005 - probably 3-5 pounds altogether & one bag - 2 pounds - of anonymous brown/grey fleece with tan tips. I suspect there's another bag hidden in the big wicker basket in the back. I found a box with dry grey roving in it last year - I think it's the remainder of some Romney roving I bought years & years ago when I wanted to knit a grey sweater. The roving was so dry it was like spinning Dryer Fluff. So, it didn't get used. I sprayed it with spinning oil - still have half a bottle from the 70s - & tucked it into a plastic tub. I'm hoping it will be spinnable outside this summer!! Sigh, AND I was going to go to the Fleece Sale this summer!!!

Before I change my mind & give it a toss, the dirtiest BC is going outside to become hanging basket fodder. I have a wire basket that's usually lined with coconut fibre but the water just runs through as fast as you pour it in. Only succulents can live in that basket! I intend to line it with dirty wool this year & replace the succulents which have become thin & weak looking. I have several baskets which hold petunias, fuchsias, geraniums etc that dry out & bake unless they're watered twice a day - they will also be lined with dirty wool to keep in the moisture this year. And the rest? I'm going to wash some of the Cheviot & see if it's worth the effort. All this wool was given to me. I took it because I thought I could just wash it & use it. Free wool after all & I was poor . . . but I've been exposed to luxury fibre by other spinners at Spin Ins, Fibre shows & the Desert Mesa retreat. Because of them, I even tried to spin cotton fluff, dryer fluff, unspun nylon, rayon & even the anonymous fibre that the hairdresser puts around your hairline at perm time! I still DO love spinning right off the fleece but the wool has to be GOOD wool to start with & I've been spoiled by a small Shetland sheep from Alberta named Arvik.

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!

TaaaaDaaaaa


Pair #3 for the year - another pair of the crazy 'Nations' socks from Regia! These will be off to their new home on Wednesday. I used a slightly smaller needle this time around & I quite like the thicker fabric that .25 of a mm makes. This pair were knit on my new 2mm Harmony DPs until I ran out of needle & then switched to the 2mm circs. I was very happy I had them! I don't think I'd want to knit a Man's size 13 on these but I may use them for the next pair for myself for those dark, cold, wintry days when the mercury is heading down instead of up the thermometer!! Today, I wished for long underwear & blanket jammies to hang out in. The landlord cranked up the furnace overnight & turned it down once again, when the kids left for school!!

Just to make you jealous, here's a pic of all three pairs of socks knit since January 1!! That's two pairs on the bottom for MY sock basket & the wild one on top will be traveling. The gloves are still on the needles but I've been too busy to finish them - lucky I got the last pair of socks done!

I do have a plan to knit something else for myself but I have to figure out the math since I don't have the yarn specified & take a size larger than the largest in the pattern. Since I now have Sweater Wizard, Math Wizard, Sock Wizard & Print-a-Grid, I figure it should be a lot easier. There's also this crazy crisscross crocheted sweater that caught my eye but I may have to make it up for a kid just to see how it goes together . . .

Complaints Complaints

I've been whining lately about people who have blogs but rarely update them! I have a couple of favs that I've followed for years who just stopped blogging! How could they?? Or there's the ones who leave little hints & never get back to tell you what happened - they're probably the worst. And then there's me, I notice I haven't blogged for a couple of weeks . . . well, what can I say? It's February. The month that no one pays the book keeper. I've worked double the hours I normally work to get paid half the money. Every February I think about changing careers but get caught up in the backlog & suddenly, it's Tax Time. My favorite time of the year!! So, here we go again!!

I admit, I haven't done a lot lately. Steve, my techie buddy, tore the guts out of my computer & refurbished it so I haven't had a computer for a few days. I'm still on soft food & getting mighty tired of it! And I haven't vacuumed or cleaned out a closet yet this year! I haven't finished the latest pair of socks but they are ready for the toe shaping. Haven't finished Kyler's Kardigan in the purple Marble yarn but it's back in the car as Car Knitting! Coffeed with my adopted Niece on Friday & came away with an order for arm warmers & a hoodie in wool! I feel a Wonderful Wallaby coming on! Can't decide between the remains of the Briggs & Little Anniversary yarn I bought on sale - barber pole of two shades of blue or the multiple skeins of Briggs & Little Heritage & Regal in every shade of blue they make & one skein of cherry. I bought them at Knitopia when they were clearing out the storage bin in Langley. I was thinking about an Adult Surprise sweater at the time & I didn't want it to be too boring . . . I'd really love to do a Wonderful Wallaby in red or emerald for her but Sapphire blue is her color - a true WINTER child. She's training to apply to ERT - Emergency Response Team - & I've never seen her so thin & muscular! She's 42, in better shape than she was at 22! She rides horses & motorcycles, shoots & builds dragons in modeling clay. And wants a hoodie with a 'Lord of the Rings' hood. She'll probably wear it with lace underwear. . .