At the Kitchen Sink

It's so nice to be able to use the kitchen once more now that the oil slick has been removed. I don't know about most people but I sure don't like to eat out all the time. I can manage for a few days but it isn't the food I prefer. I like hot oatmeal & raisins with a little dark brown sugar on top. And I like stir fried veggies with lots of ginger & garlic on top of my brown rice. The Mcdonald's drive thru may have good coffee but even my favorite wrap gets boring after several days!!

Now that my kitchen is functional again, I can think about setting the spin on all those white skeins of yarn I've spun up over the years. About 10 years ago I bought 15 pounds of Brown Sheep mill ends. The majority of the roving was a wool/mohair mix while about a quarter of it was plain wool in knots. The knots undid into a bouncy roving that spun like a dream into a spongy yet  bouncy yarn with a slightly yellow cast. I liked it better than the wool/mohair & decided it would make a great Kimono style sweater. But I didn't want white yarn. And I didn't want to dye it until ALL the yarn was spun. I waited to dye it all at the same time to get at least related skeins in the same color. I just wish the knots had been a light grey because I'd like to have a light base color & then paint some spots in a bright primary RED with a few dots of some other color to contrast. Since the weather is not so great at the moment, maybe I'll have to think about it until it's warm enough to let the skeins dry outside.

When I ordered that big bag, I never thought about what I'd DO with all that wool. And the bag didn't look that big until I opened it. The air rushed in & it grew to more than twice it's previous size in the box. And that's a lot of wool roving when you have several other bags of fleece, at least 20 bags of hand painted or dyed rovings & several bags of mohair & alpaca. I told myself I was buying for the future for when I was retired & too broke to afford the good stuff. Sort of like a fibre RSP - hahahah. Mind you, when I ordered that bag, the Canadian dollar was higher than the US dollar so maybe it wasn't such a bad thing after all.

Skating Rink

Tuesday, I knocked over a full quart bottle of Extra Fruity Olive Oil. I have this big brown wooden cupboard about 5 feet long & 4 & a half feet tall with shelves inside that I use as extra storage in my kitchen. I think it was once a huge entertainment centre because one side of the  top lifts up when you press on the corner & the shelves inside are all different shapes & depths. I love that cupboard. It weighs a ton but it can store giant containers of pasta, flour, sugar, oatmeal, boxes of garbage bags, cases of mushroom soup, rolls of paper, foil & parchment, big Tupperware containers, sacks of rice & all the bits 'n' bobs that come with my Nutriblender. I don't normally store liquids in there but I needed a tall shelf for the tall oil bottle. So, there I was, on one leg with the other in the air - think crane - balanced on the cupboard top with one hand so I could get low, reach in & pull out a can of soup. And 'bink' said the bottle politely as it tipped over & fell one inch to my tiled cement floor.

It broke into three main pieces along it's side seams & oil poured out everywhere. I couldn't move fast but was able to grab newspaper from the recycling bag & cover the whole lake as it spread. I managed to drop paper towels on the edges of the paper & then more paper on top of the whole mess. I've spent the rest of the week trying to figure out how I'm gonna get it all cleaned up. I can no longer reach the floor easily. Most days if something drops, it stays there unless I can pick it up with my grabber stick or there's a counter nearby where I can pivot on my good leg while lifting the bad one which doesn't bend like it used to. Stuff that falls with an end or side sticking up I can often grab but a lot of stuff stays flat on the floor until it's dry enough to sweep. I sometimes long for my huge old dog Linda who could vacuum anything remotely foody from the floor before you realized it was dropped - even raw eggs.

Today, I managed to pick up the glass with my grabber stick just as neatly as you please. It was the part I really worried about. I thought it might be too heavy for my grabber or too flat because it broke along the side seams. It looks like the newspaper has soaked up most of the oil - all that Extra Fruity goodness whaaaa - and is stiff enough to pick up without too much mess. So I should be able to stuff all that oily paper into a garbage bag without calling for help. A little industrial degreaser on my floor should take care of any leftover oil - I hope. I'm really looking forward to getting back into my own kitchen & cooking again. I like eating out too but nothing tastes quite as good as your own brown rice & curried chicken!!

Down the Hole Again

Leftovers Bag

I don't know how it is in your house but sock yarn is a staple in mine. Yeah, I would say it has actually become the equivalent of a Food Group over the years. One of the Essential Food Groups. There's always sock yarn in this house even when I'm out of bread. Not only do I have new balls of plain & patterned yarn but I have sock yarn leftovers grouped in three main color groups - Reds, Blues & Purple/Pinks in a box & three bags!! Seems that nowadays, most people love the leftover, scrappy socks a whole lot better than plain ones. Good thing. Because I've made a lot of socks since I left my husband 17 years ago .   .   . 

A couple of years ago - I can't remember exactly now - I decided NOT to BUY any more SOCK YARN. None. I decided I would knit up all the left-overs until they were all used up. That was okay for a while until I ran out of plain colors for heels & toes. Socks that are made up of all kinds of patterned yarns really, really need plain toes at least. What's more fun that a pair of blue patterned socks with shocking pink toes??? The kids I know fought over them! So I bought a half dozen balls of neon pink, yellow, green, turquoise & red yarn for toes. But basically, I've made nothing but scrap socks for the last year & a half.

Of course there's the yarn I traded for or was given for my birthday which doesn't count toward's stash, it's personal. My friends know I love Kroy for my winter socks & even a pair or two of mitts & I will donate the scraps to the box, if there are any. And last fall I fell off the wagon & bought 6 balls of Knit Picks Felici sock yarn in Goth Kitty for me!! It's a delicious blend of plum, pinks & greys. Just my colors!! I love hot pink with grey & black!!! Or plum & green together - like pansies & violets!
And then along comes Gail, the Enabler, with her big sale on sock yarn at dirt cheap prices & offer to share the shipping cost .   .    .    .    I fell down the hole & bought another 20 balls. They won't have to embalm me when I die, they can just stuff sock yarn into all my orifices & wrap me into a giant ball.

A March Day

I was sitting in my favorite spot in the Rotten Ronnie's parking lot today enjoying my Xtra-large coffee with two milks & Fruit n Fibre muffin, cruising the free Wi-Fi for more books by Alys Clare. I love my Kobo ebook reader & use it every chance I get. It's totally back-lit so reading at night or in poor light is amazing. The font is adjustable & I can actually read without my glasses!! There's no glare on a sunny day & no bright spot or dark corner when it's back-lit.

But, as I was saying, I was was in my usual spot, after going through the drive-thru & looking for another Medieval mystery by Alys Clare. I park in this spot for several reasons, free WiFi, good coffee, sunshine - when we get it, people can't find me unless I tell them to & I can people watch. It's amazing what goes on in a Mcdonald's parking lot!!! Yeah, I could go inside & get free refills but I don't want to listen to kids shrieking & whining - man, the older I get .  .  .  .  . this particular spot has a huge playroom so the noise level can be pretty loud!  I can also knit in my car & listen to an audio-book if I want while drinking my coffee. And I can take all my cups, napkins, bags & cardboard home to be recycled.

Today, it was a glorious sunny day that got me outside checking on my fern garden.  My stiff leg reminded me I should go grocery shopping early if I wanted any 'specials' & I decided to go for a coffee on the way home & read the last of my latest 12th century 'Who Dunnit'. On the way to Rotten Ronnie's, the sun shone brightly & I had to put on the summer shades!! Got my coffee, parked in the sun, got out the ebook & watched the big, black cloud roll in. It even brought it's own wind & rained down on everyone crossing the parking lot - especially the ones in shorts!! Then the  temperature dropped suddenly & it turned into a hail storm. The hail hit so hard it bounced & came down twice!! Then, as suddenly as it came, it moved off & I was bathed in sunshine once more. Then I had to go home & get back to work .   .   .    .    .

It's Looking a Lot Like Christmas

At 7:14 this Saturday morning, I had 6 & a quarter inches of snow on my drive. I couldn't help myself & had to go outside with my ruler & check. It was lovely, soft & light. And brought the entire town to a halt. 

Although we were warned that snow would fall on Friday morning, most of what fell in my yard, fell after dark. I was supposed to take the Ex to an eye appointment around 3:00,but it was falling very heavily so we canceled. His little suburb has only one way in & out to the main road with deep ditches, narrow streets, few lights & no sidewalks. I was concerned about getting back OUT with all that snow falling!! Good thing I did MY shopping on Thursday so I wouldn't have to go out for the next few days!! The weather office promised SUN for Saturday & my lunch date, it now looks like it won't be here till Sunday although our temps are above zero for the next few days. And once again, I am so glad I no longer have to commute anywhere!!

Knitting - I finally finished my 'car' socks in Hopscotch. I always have a pair of socks in the bag in the car but I'm thinking about changing it up a little for Spring. A few years ago, I fell in love with a cowl/shoulder wrap in Knitter's magazine. It was made simply from the top down in random rows of knit & purl  & in three weights of the same colorway, fingering, sock & worsted. The Designer used a yarn which really appealed to me. Since I couldn't find the yarn, I asked Linda at Sunset Fibers create some roving for me so I could spin my own. Linda's roving is not as screamingly bright but I think it will do the job. It's called 'Red Hat'. The yarn has been spun up for ages so I think it's about time I got started on the knitting before it gets too warm to need it.

Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

Just a memory of summer past

Snow in February!! Although this last couple of small snowfalls haven't been a total surprise , this is the month we're most likely to get snow. Or sunshine for that matter!!  Remember the Winter Games in 2010 when we got summer in February, all wore shorts & they had to truck in snow??? hahaha This snowfall wasn't as disastrous to the suburban streets of Vancouver as it could've been, but it's been cold enough for the mice to come indoors, that's for sure.
 I remember a couple of days of huge snowfalls - for Vancouver, that is - about 30 years ago when I worked in West Vancouver, about 40 minutes away on the other side of  two bridges & a freeway. One dump was on Valentine's Day. So much snow that people working downtown were trapped there because everything stopped running. And so much snow that all the people who planned to go out, couldn't! Hotels just opened the doors. People worked double & triple shifts because they couldn't go anywhere anyway.
I left work early because the snow was getting deep & it took me almost 7 hours to get home!! People just abandoned their cars in the middle of the street. I had good winter tires & kept it in second gear all the way home. My new husband was waiting anxiously, we didn't have cell phones in those days so he just had to wait. By mid afternoon the next day, most of the snow was gone & all the roads were clear .   .   .   a week later, it  happened all over again! Only the second time they closed the second bridge & left me stranded a mile from home. Lucky for me, I had a friend just up the road & a couch to sleep on. I am so glad my commuting days are over!!!

Just a Box of Magazines

Red Hat 

A Box of old magazines came my way last week! A box of old Spin-Off magazines that is. I love Spin-Off & bought it faithfully every time a new issue came out until my favorite magazine shop went bust. I also bought Knitters & Interweave Knitting as well. I looked forward to each issue with great excitement even when I didn't make anything from the patterns on their pages. I learned new things, new stitches & read about new yarns & equipment. Then I ran out of money & couldn't afford to buy any of them for a few years. When I could afford them again, I couldn't find Spin-Off anywhere. So I was delighted to find a box of old issues, back from before I knew about the magazine, up for grabs.

It's fun to see all the adverts for Spinning machines! I know quite a few people with Wheels but most of them have similar ones. It's fun to go to a spinning related event & see all the Joys & Louets lined up in the spinning area!! I once saw a Columbine in the flesh, so to speak. And I got to try it out!! It was heavy but spun like a dream. I liked taking my old Indian spinner to those events because it often was the only one there - people think it can only spin plain, heavy yarns but I can spin silk thread with mine .  .  .  .  I like to think of the Indian as an ideal machine because it can spin anything, has a wide orifice - no fiddling around with pulling yarns through with a piece of wire - and a huge bobbin - no extras needed!!! It's light, comes apart into three pieces for carrying & stays quietly in it's corner when not being used. I once spent a lot of money on a Suzie Pro from Majacraft but in the end, sold it on. I just couldn't manage the double treadle after I wrecked my knee & I'm just not a production machine type of spinner.

Rainbow leftovers

It's fun to see what people were doing with their handspun. A lot of them were weavers. I am not. I can't imagine the boredom of warping a loom .  .  .  .  although, I did buy a small tapestry loom & enjoyed making wall hangings & pillows. But my real love is knitting. I have to admit that knitting your own handspun yarn is wonderful. I should do more of it. I like to spin woolen with lots of color & texture. Knitting that woolen yarn is a joy - soft & sproingy in your hands. There's no other way to describe it. 

It's too bad I got this box during the busiest time of my year because all I want to do is get my nose back into that box again. And I can't. It's year end & tax time. But I can dream about May & spinning outside on the patio. I have two little dark grey fleeces to spin. And a bag with a couple of pounds of  poorly processed Merino full of neps that's dyed neon pink. And four pounds of light grey alpaca/wool - don't know what breed. I think it's going to be a spinning summer this year.

Chrome Wheels

Yesterday, I learned all about chrome wheels. I never did learn to check my tire pressure very often but did try to remember to do it when I filled my gas tank. And then Mr Lube & Action Tire told me to come in every 5000 miles & leave it to them. I was relieved. My knee is temperamental nowadays & I can't even get close enough to DO anything about it if it IS flat anyway. Most days, if the car starts, I take off.

Friday I realized I was starving after a hard morning of banging on the keyboard & ran out with my wallet & book in hand to get a coffee & a wrap before the kids got out of school & took over the place. Never checked anything before I left!!  Got my food, backed into a sunny spot & got waved at by a truck load of fellas who pointed at my 'flat'. Oh shit time!

Now I've been a BCAA member for eons, especially back in the day when I not only commuted to work but drove more than 10 miles away from home all the time. I have no idea why I continue to pay them since I have at least two friends with tow trucks who will rescue me any time I call much faster than any BCAA truck could. BCAA's waiting time was 47 minutes at 2:28PM. My tow-truck buddy said 15. And then I watched a BCAA truck go through the drive-thru, get a coffee & park two slots over from me while I waited for the tow-truck. Yessssss, he has the right to take a break too .   .   .   .

The tow truck showed up before I finished my coffee, blew up my tire & followed me down to the tire shop - love that guy!! Action guy takes off my wheel & snorts. His co-worker checks the back wheel & pronounces it bad, too. They tell me it looks like I've been driving on the rims, take off the tires & give me the real bad news. All four of my wheels are fawncy chrome wheels. But chrome wheels have a problem - cheap chrome jobs. Cheap chrome peels, wheels rust where the chrome gets loose which pushes more chrome off. The wheel under the peeling chrome builds up a huge pocket of rust which pushes the tire off the wheel. My problem exactly. So the boys ground off the rust & chrome, painted it all with some primer & put the tires back on. Perfect they said. Don't need new tires at all. Just need new rims ALL ROUND soon. Wonderful. There goes my yarn budget again. Good thing I know tow-truck drivers!!! Got my order in for a good set of steel rims already .   .   .   .

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.

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!

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!!

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. .

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!!!

2018

2018 WOW.  It'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

It's a New Year

A Merry Historical Christmas

I think I heard someone on the radio say that it will be a record year if it snows on Christmas day - well it's snowing out there folks. Not much, just a whisper over night but it did snow off & on all day until it got dark. A record broken for the Lower Mainland this year. Not enough snow to make a snowman unless you shovel the whole drive, but we got snow.

I took the Ex & a friend out for late lunch/early dinner yesterday for Christmas. The Old Boys don't drive after dark because they can't see very well so they got a Chinese lunch - their choice!! Both wanted combination dinners Apparently they get turkeyed to death this time of year with all the church dinners, senior dinners & family get-togethers!! Both of them have somewhere to go for Christmas dinner but they say it's too much noise & bother - they'd rather stay home with the fire & TV on. I don't blame them a bit. I think a lot of us would be happier with leftovers than endure hours of family squabbles & noise. I used to go to one family gathering years ago just for the ham bone & turkey carcass. They used to throw everything out when guests went home!!! No one would eat 'leftovers' in that family!!! I used to get at least two big pots of soup out of those 'leftovers'. 

I'm not cooking turkey either this year. I love the legs & thighs & if I could buy only thighs I'd be in heaven & would cook it monthly. Luckily the Ex loves white meat so when I do cook a small turkey, he gets the white & I take the brown. I just wish they grew turkeys with bigger thighs though .   .   .   .   

Knitting content - Nada, Nothing, Zip. The new pills the doctor asked me to try for my knee pain not only did nothing for my knee pain but also did nothing for my hands. And while I was taking it I couldn't take anything else so I've been stiff, sore, burning, aching & weak. Not a good couple of weeks. Tonight, before bed, I shall return once more to my Tylenol Arthritis/Ibuprofen combo & hope tomorrow is better. Maybe I'll be able to get back to sock knitting once more!!

Let it Snow!!

Just sitting here in my office taking a Snow Day. It's mighty pretty out there & I'm seriously glad I don't have to go out in it today 'cause it's already starting to accumulate. Another couple of inches should begin to shut the burbs down. I have fond memories of fighting my way home to Surrey across two bridges & down a freeway of abandoned cars from West Vancouver in over a foot of snow when I was first married 30 years ago. It took me 7 hours but I made it home. This was before everyone had a cell so my new husband had no idea of where or in what shape I was. He made sure I had good tires & a working car but I was on my own after that. People just don't understand what to do when it snows in Vancouver since we get it so seldom. Yeah, well, we usually DO get a couple of DAYS of snow most years .  .  .  but it's heavy, sloppy, turns to ice as soon as a person steps on it, never mind a car driving on it. I made it home through the snow mostly because I had studded tires & drove in the fresh snow when I could. I made new paths through snow so I had some traction. I drove on the median, on the gravel & between lanes of abandoned cars. And I stayed in second gear. When I could, I packed the car with extra people for traction, too. These days, I have my snow tires on, gas tank filled up, extra jacket & blanket in the car, folding shovel in the back & don't drive unless I have too. Hahahaha

I wish everything could be as simple as avoiding driving in the snow!! I've been using the same accounting software for eons. Periodically, I upgrade it just because you can't work in DOS forever. So I have multiple copies of the program since 2007, all in my software sleeve. I even have a 2014 upgrade that I just took out of the package!! To my shock & horror, someone new has bought out the company, added some spiffy new features & now RENTS in out by the month. All of my copies, including the new one, are not only redundant, they are no longer supported & I can't even register the last one so it will work. You no longer need to buy the software - that cuts out the pirates - but little businesses like me who only use a couple of the modules have to pay for the whole thing, use the old software until it stops running or find some other software to use. I am pissed. I've got half a year on for an old client & the program will no longer run!! This is partly Windows 10's fault as well!! Can't find a patch so I guess my only option is to start over on an older version . . . . .  grrrrr

I had intended to watch YouTube reruns & knit but I guess that's no longer an option. I really wanted some Goth Kitty fingerless gloves to wear!!! And, believe it or not, I'm actually turning a heel on my Hopscotch socks.

Slip Slidin Away

I've been having a Simon & Garfunkel week with everything 'slip slidin' away'. Boy, does the time fly by when you're busy!! Doesn't hurt of course when people you haven't seen in ages keep calling to go out for lunch or dinner. Maybe it's just that time of the year!!! For a very long time I've found the Christmas season a pain in the butt. Traffic jams, road blocks, more drunks & more beggars of every description. It annoys me.
Everybody talks about giving this time of year - giving to what??? Why give 'em a taste of Vegas when they live out of dumpsters the rest of the year, eh?? And why on one day, once a year anyway?? I'm not saying stop helping. Let's consider a Hand up not hand out.

I could rant all day about the housing shortage. If the local government was serious about low cost rental housing, it would be building portable modular housing everywhere & not just talking about it. And who's the idiot allowing Developers to bulldoze existing housing months & years before they're ready to pour the foundations for replacements?? If there's no housing, there won't be any workers. Think about that for a moment. Who will man that drive-thru when you want a coffee?? Who will sweep floors in the schools?? Who will help you at the Mall or bag your groceries? Never mind Food for the Poor, let them have affordable Housing & Daycare instead, they can always find work to feed themselves!! Think about it folks, most of us who rent are only 3 months away from living in a tent in the park.

In the meantime, life goes on. I have a roof over my head & it's usually warm but not tonight. So I bought myself some wild pink & purple hoodies & heavy grey sweats - I am the recipient of my own gifts this year!! I collected the last two boxes today!!! The cupboards are full, warm clothing is at hand & I can watch YouTube on the computer & Public TV on the tube. Now if we could only do something about all those bloody commercials.

Saturday - Six Days Later

Stevo - my favorite computer friend - came by after coffee on Friday & fished my new accounting program disc out of the inside of the computer. He just pushed down the centre lock mechanism in the floppy drive - the part I didn't - slid it all the way in & pushed the button to make it come out again. When it came out, the disc was in the drive. And he did NOT laugh at me. Apparently it happens so often, he has a special price to make a commercial office visit & fish them out. Good thing I bought his coffee .  .  .

My New Doc got her way on Monday & I agreed to try a new-to-me medication for my knee so I - hopefully - don't get seized up in Safeway again. My only hesitation in this is that I've also got to take medication to protect my stomach from the pain meds. And the cost is not thrilling me either. I've heard of this stuff - Celebrex - before but not for a long time. So I have this one month trial period. And there's time to research the stuff.

I can tell after 5 days, that this medication does NOTHING for my pain. I'm not as stiff as I would be with all this cold, wet fog blanketing the burbs in the Lower Mainland but everything, including my fingers & right hip, burns. I think the best combo was the one Tylenol Arthritis & one 200mg Ibuprofen together. A nurse at Peach Arch Hospital told me to do that because it seems the combination works better than doubling either med on it's own. And most of the time, I only take it before bed & in the morning. And it's cheap too. But, I've only taken one course of Celebrex & now I'm off for a week before starting the next course. Research tells me it has to accumulate in my body to help. More research from individuals who've taken it say that when it works, it's a miracle that usually works right away. The others claim it ranged from doing nothing to a rash &  agitation to heart palpitations & trouble breathing. So far nothing has happened.

On the Knitting Front - Hopscotch socks haven't progressed much since my fingers are sore & I've been doing a lot of data entry. I do have plans to make myself a big, snuggly touque & some new wrist warmers. I do like the wrist warmers the best because they fill that gap between your jacket & hand where the cold air hits in the car. I don't like to drive with gloves at all but I can wear the wristers all day long & do find they help keep my hands warmer.

MAD MONDAY

Monday turned into a mad day. I did not want to get up in the morning but got myself up anyway after another night of tossing & turning. I swear it's that  huge gibbous moon glowering into my bedroom that's causing problems!!! Have you seen it out there around 4 AM these days??? Got myself down to my new semi monthly appointment to find my knee x-rays had arrived. Gee, no one's talking about my cardiogram or cholesterol any more!!! My torn meniscus has turned into degenerating osteo-arthritis so my next appointment is to be with the Bone Guy. Whoopee. And my sore hands?? - the Doc is yakking up carpal tunnel but I'm holding out for arthritis since most of my thumb & first two finger joints are involved & there's no numbness or tingling at all unless I play video games all night. When she asked what I'm taking for pain & inflammation, I told her I preferred Baileys & tea, she decided I need prescription pain meds. I actually asked the Pharmacist if the Doc owns shares in the place.

Managed to drop off a Jade plant cutting at the Doctor's office. The poor thing & it's sister were still outside in their yellow pots so I took one with me to the appointment. I think I'll be dropping off some magazines next!! Jades are great plants for offices. No one has to remember to water them regularly & they quite nicely live a long time in the same pot in varying types of light when the office is closed.

Three of my little business guys actually dropped stuff off for year ends too. I haven't seen two of them for months & suddenly, here they are with paperwork in hand. Wow. I guess I know what I'll be doing for Christmas!!! One actually brought a bottle of my favorite libation for my tea!! Guess I'll do HIS stuff first!!

I was a real twit today. I bought the latest updated Accounting program last year & decided to finally install the silly thing. My new computer has one of those thin, floppy DVD drives in which you have to carefully install your disc before closing the door. Well, I was in a hurry, slipped in the disc, did not press it down & pushed the door. The disc slid into the slot just as neat as you please while sending the sliding reader/writer drawer BACK out. Great.

Knitting Stuff - since the sun is shining & the sky is blue, I'm off to Starbucks with my latest sock - in Hopscotch - in hand & my Creative device loaded with audio-books. I don't care who needs what today, they aren't getting it till after dark!!!