Spuds and Grass

Dear Knitting Mojo –

Once upon a time, there was nothing like socks.  Knitting socks made my heart sing.

Little Pinky socks 2007

Then, we fell out of sock love, but it was okay, because I was testing my knitting wings and taking on lace, cardigans and more.  But earlier this summer, you packed up and moved away.  There was no knitting joy in podunk.

Until Saturday.

I couldn’t resist the Plymouth Grass in this green at Dog House Yarns & More.  So much so, I cast on.  More progress was made last night.  I meant to knit a couple of rows and go to bed, but Mojo, you are powerful, and I had trouble stopping.  (Pattern:  Buttercup, shown in this post.)

Mojo you are strong when you lock into a particular project type, so I actually had to be talked into just matching some stashed Blue Sky Cotton in a soft red and Lutea for another day…

And Mojo is taking the blame for a sweater’s worth of Spud and Chloe Sweater coming home with me from Pins & Needles’ going out of business sale.

It’s going to grow up to become the Tea Party Cardi.  I bought that at Knitting Addiction last time we were at the beach.

So Mojo, I just have one favor to ask…  Please stick with me through these projects, and on into the stuff I want to finish for Christmas. 

Thanks!

***********************

Speaking of the beach…  I hope Earl will ease up, change course a bit or something.  I’d really rather that he not hit the Outer Banks at all.  Those dunes are so fragile…

Delicate dunes spring 2010

This Little Light of Mine…

Yesterday was Gretchen’s birthday (see their blog for the fur girl account thereof), but on Saturday, I got a special delivery.

The lighthouse was but one of several items in the care package from Coffeeyarn.   As you can see, there was a little confusion about whose lighthouse it is.

I had some trouble getting photos.   Sis was VERY taken with it at first.  There’s a reason that long before Sis’s mother was even born, the Knight and I joked that we wanted a female basset next and we would name her Nosy Rosie.  EVERYTHING is to be investigated by those big noses, and evidently, the lamp had far more smells in it than most things. 

I even left it wrapped in bubblewrap, out of reach, for a good 24 hours before I even tried to unwrap it and get photos, but as you can see, that only seemed to make it that much more interesting.

Beautiful and unique as the lighthouse lamp is, there was so much more in the package!  There were orange crisps, but they didn’t live to see the photo shoot.  I had to use the first bits to bribe the fur-girls to allow me to open the box in peace, and then I had to taste it too, and then the Knight got home…

Aren’t the placemats and napkins cheery!?  I am itching to do a kitchen makeover, and these colors are very inspiring.

There were more goodies in the box too, but the other item I know will interest you was my own hank of wine-yarn.  Despite having cast on for a new sweater, I’m itching to make a wrap with this lovely yarn.  Coffeeyarn needs to change her screen name to Coffee&wineyarn, doesn’t she?

Another photo blooper, courtesy of the DIVA

Thanks so much, Barbara!  The lamp is going to find a safe, treasured spot in our home, and I can’t wait to go Rav-stalking and pick a pattern or two for the wine-yarn. 

Anyone else notice which doggy won’t let the yarn dyed in wine out of her sight?   Hmmm…  I don’t know what’s worse…  A terrier who clamors for cashmere, or the hound who seems to want the wine…

How was your weekend?  I’ll tell you about mine tomorrow…  It didn’t follow the plan so well, but it was nice just the same.

Blue Stink Bug

I had to have this yarn.  I mean, what a name!!

Blue Stink Bug.  Dontcha’ love it?!  Not a clue what I’m going to do with it, other than try to keep this cashmere blend off Gretchen’s radar…

That’s Skacel’s special Ovarian Cancer Sock Kit.  I’m not sure where all it is available, but that link will take you to The Loopy Ewe, where they are also donating THEIR proceeds from the sale of this kit to research.  I need to cast on for this soon and decide whether I want another kit or not.  The first pair will be going to an ovarian cancer survivor…  (The link also takes you to a better photo of the kit.)

What’s ahead for your weekend?  I’ve already mentioned my plans…  Really, I just want an afternoon nap.  I do know what I’m wearing tonight (gotta’ love a little black dress or three; one is always at the ready!), and I have a gift for the shower.  I do need to hit PetsMart or someplace and nab a cute PANK dress and whatever else jumps out at me.

Happy Friday!

I get the message…

Sis asleep on the job last week

If you’re here for Dogs on Thursday, please visit the girls’ blog, because Sis did a really sweet tribute post. 

You might recall a couple of weeks ago, we had no internet at home for about five days, due to a lightning strike, our DSL modem, and the ethernet card in our desktop computer.

I didn’t bother to tell you about the Knight getting his Blackberry replaced last week because suddenly, the volume control wouldn’t work, but now that seems a little relevant.  You see, we both installed major software updates about ten days ago, and then yesterday evening, my phone stopped doing ANYTHING but sending texts, and those were only going to email addresses, not to phones.  And I do realize our problems have nothing to do with each other, but if you haven’t read it here before, I don’t believe in coincidences.

My phone

Now, for the rant.  The Knight was ready and willing to upgrade my phone.  He wanted the new Droid.  None in stock.  He called me back; how about a slightly smaller version of what I had?  Fine.   Office phone rang again.  Nope.  Don’t have that either.  Doesn’t appear they have a SINGLE smart phone in stock, so they were able to do a master reset and my phone seems to be back to normal.

Great!  I don’t like change much, so if it ain’t broke (anymore) don’t replace it.  HOWEVER.

Sprint lost a sale just because they can’t manage their inventory.  How stoooopid is that?!  I know stuff happens, but how do you fail to have a SINGLE smart phone in stock?!

For the record, I’m done pretending I’m anything other than a very plugged in, techno-dependent girl.  When you have to note in your Gmail status that you can’t receive texts or phone calls via cell… you probably have a plugged in problem.  There.  They say admitting it is half the battle, but there’s no war here.  I am happy to be connected, almost 24/7.  But if you don’t know, I hate texting.  It has its place, but if you need to say more than “almost there!” or “What’s for dinner?”, email me.   That’s why I have a smart phone.

That makes Thankful Thursday easy as pie this week.  (Follow the link…  I am NOT happy that I didn’t think to have a wedding pie tower!)  I was born into a time where we still had a milk man and our phone was on a party line.  I remember picking it up and hearing Mrs. Chester talking to someone.  I do downtime; last night, I even closed my laptop while I was knitting, and many of you know that at home, my cell and I are rarely in the same room.

I love this technical age, and I’m thankful for my Blackberry, my Nook, my laptop, GPS, XM Radio, the Wii  and any other devices I’ve failed to mention that make it easier and more fun to do what I do.

Don’t call or text for a few hours though.  The Knight has my phone, and he knows how to use it.  Now that I know I have a working phone again, I can sincerely wish you a happy little friday!

PS – Anyone  have a recipe for a chocolate pumpkin pecan pie?  This is close…

Jumbled

Photo property of ... follow the link...

I just have a whole wad of disconnected stuff to share today.  Firstly, I love this cool wave we’re having.  Frankly, summer is my least favorite season and in my utopia, it would NEVER be above 80 degrees.   It makes me want to knit, if you can imagine!   What are you working on?  I have three projects I REALLY want to finally finish, but I have this urge to cast on….  THAT. 

Next, I’ve forgotten to remember several things.  A cocktail party Friday night.  (Nothing like apologizing your way into being told to come on anyway five days after the RSVP was due.)  A bridal shower Sunday.  Okay, some of you know I don’t care for “hen parties” but I do adore the bride and both her family and the groom’s family…  To RSVP for the same couple’s wedding.  Yeah, they know we’re coming because the Knight is in the wedding, but that’s not the point.  There’s more, but you get the picture.

I finally finished Survivor.  I feel like the survivor for finishing it, but again, Chuck made me curious enough about the characters that I had to see it through to the bitter end.  I really don’t know how to review this book without pushing a lot of buttons for a lot of people, so I’m going to leave it alone.  See Nannie, Nana, Ru-Ru, B’Leigh and all the other women in my life who tried to teach me to be a nice southern lady?  I CAN keep my mouth shut when I don’t have anything nice to say about… the subject in the book that I don’t want to have a discussion about.

Even though Sis had other ideas (scroll down to the previous post), I didn’t waste a second snatching up Death by Darjeeling.  I think Theo (the main character, a woman) and I would be great friends, and I know the fur-girls would love Earl Grey, her “Dalbrador” which is to say, her lab-dalmation rescue dog.  If I had the book, I’d look it up…  Gotta’ love the internet.  Page 12. 

This series reminds me of the tremendous gap in my US travels, in my lapse as a proper Southern lady.  I’ve never been to Charleston.  (But I have been to Charleston, not to be confused with its in-state rival, Charles Town.  The race track is NOT the capitol, in case anyone is confused.)

I *NEED* a sweetgrass basket from Charleston, SC

Whew.  I nearly confused myself there.  I wanna’ go to that historic, Southern port-town, Charleston, South Carolina.  I have been to and through Charleston, West Virginia, which has a most lovely capitol building, visible from the interstate.  Go it?

Well, I think that’s more than enough babble and geographical word play for one day.   Now, to figure out what to wear to the cocktail party on Friday…

Paper’s back

My reading onslaught continues.  It would seem Sis thinks Maggie Sefton‘s the way to go next.  I know I enjoy Laura Childs and her characters, so it will be great to read the first of that series, since I’ve already read the second.

You would think this would have been the book Sis went for, eh? It’s available at Dog House Yarns & More.  I can’t wait to sit down and really read through it; it has recipes for humans and then in the last section, it has pet treat recipes.

… and MORE.  There are at least two cookbooks in the store, a great line of jewelry, roving, etc.

But it is a yarn store, so aside from my gifts and goodies, the YARN did call out to me.  I think I touched just about every yarn in there.  That’s the problem with being locked in a yarn store when it’s closed.   I can’t just sit there…  I have to get to know it all!

In the end, I couldn’t get past the Hazel Knits colors.  I wanted them all, but this Aurora Borealis really spoke to me with its soft green and vivid blue.  I’m pretty sure it is destined to be a sweet little shawlette, but who knows!?

Why yes, you do see a wee paw up there in the corner.   There’s no cashmere in the base, so I guess she was just trying to get in the picture…

So, that’s how I spent my Sunday.  We also lunched at Lucio’s, and aside from a strange crostini appetizer that was really a salad with four slices of toasted bread and some roasted red peppers on top, the meal was outstanding.  I’d definitely get the eggplant parmesan sandwich again, and the tiramisu is some of the best I’ve eaten.  Please don’t confuse this spot on Main Street in an old home with Lugi’s, in a strip mall!  (I haven’t eaten at Lugi’s, but the names and locations are similar enough…)  Thanks Rosanne!!!

Time Marches On

Warning – might be heart-warming or a tear-jerker, depending on your frame of mind.

Today is the anniversary of the last day of Mugsy’s life.

Baby-man and his ball, Spring 2008 OBX

I don’t know that I’ll live long enough to stop missing him.  All the dogs in my life have been special, but Mugsy had so much personality and vitality!

Not a day goes by that I don’t talk to him.  I think of him when I see Wishbone, his female Jack Russell contemporary on our road.  I think of him when I see or talk about Roscoe, a friend’s JRT also about the same age.  I see him in Gretchen’s desire to play fetch and her funny little attempts to “guard” me.

Just a little reminder... Fall 2008 OBX

I love that he leaves us little calling cards, so we know he’s still around, keeping an eye on all of us.   Some of you are very familiar with the fact that I don’t believe in coincidences, so finding this ball under the beach house the first time we went down without him was bittersweet.  I left it there, because even a ghost dog needs his ball, especially at the beach.

August 2007 - Happy farmer dog & Dadaw

This isn’t meant to be a sad post.  I’m blessed to have had this darling creature in my life.   Oh, how it hurts to say good-bye, but I can’t imagine life without a dear pet or ten.  They give far, FAR more than we can possibly return.  

Girl behind the open door...

Luckily, when one door closes another opens.  In a few days, we’ll celebrate the birth of the other insanely special terror terrier in my life…  

(Why yes, that is a regulation sized tennis ball, but more about her another day!)

How was your weekend?   My only excitement was yesterday’s trip, but I’ll fill you in on that when I have time for some photos!

Baby Tuckoo

Once upon a time and a very good time it was there was a moocow coming down along the road and this moocow that was down along the road met a nicens little boy named baby tuckoo. . . .   – A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, by James Joyce

Baby Moo Cow?

Just so y’all know, that’s my favorite first line of a book, EVER.  I still want a dog named Baby Tuckoo.  It’s an autobiography.  I don’t generally care for first-person narration, because, well… it’s very limited by what the narrator sees, hears or thinks she knows, but this was one of my first nearly-adult book loves, and it helped me on my way to a love of biographies of any sort.

Why am I sharing this?  Well, I haven’t re-read A Portrait… in a few years, but I found myself thinking about Joyce’s writing style as I was reading Fight Club.  (I’m guessing that there are no more than two possible readers who have read both books… if you have, I’d love to hear your opinions!)

Fur girl fight club?

I didn’t love Fight Club, but I plowed through it quickly.  I hate to give spoilers, so if you don’t want me to spoil the movie or the book, skip the next paragraph.

I knew I had to see this dark, depraved novel to its finish.  I just felt in my bones that there was going to be a sharp twist and big message, and I wanted to know what both would be.  I wasn’t disappointed.  Sure enough, short of Marla (the love-ish interest-ish), our narrator was the last to put the pieces together and figure out who Tyler really was.  I didn’t see it coming, although with hindsight…  If you read Fight Club or saw the movie (I haven’t, but that same twist has to be in there), did you figure it out before the big reveal?

Because Chuck Palahniuk’s style isn’t like most things I read, I’ve already started Survivor.  His use of in medias res requires me to pay attention from the start, and makes me think more than a lot of books do.  There’s no easing into his works.  Like Jodi Picoult, his happy ending void is going to keep him from being a favorite of mine, or even someone I can suggest y’all need to read.  However, if you like dark themes and appreciate an author who makes you think, you’ll appreciate his work.

I’m also reminded of a very heated discussion I had more than 20 years ago about Stephen King.  I’ve written one rather brutal, no-happy ending short story that I’m very proud of, even though I wrote it in high school, so I don’t think twisted tales or sorrid subjects come from a warped mind.   I think we’ve all had a gripping nightmare or two, or witnessed a scene that really made us question the compassion of humanity.  I like to be challenged as a reader, and Chuck does that, to be sure.

Another book that came to mind while I was reading Fight Club was Life of Pi.  I truly HATED that book and had to make myself finish it, and was then VERY sorry I saw it through.  Maybe I’m in a different frame of mind now, but I liked the last part (once we found out who Tyler really was) of Fight Club best!

What are you up to this weekend?  What are you knitting?  My knitting mojo tried to return Wednesday, but it was stiffled by my inability to do a simple two-stitch repeat 240 times per row.

Gretchen wants to know if you'll come throw the ball for her because she's B.O.R.E.D.??

One Wood to Another

Vera Bradley Wildwood Park Collection Tote

I am smitten.  I’m counting the hours until I can get to my local Vera Bradley retailer and hold the Wildwood Tote in my own little hands. 

I live in the woods, remember?  And I love a big ol’ tote.  Microfiber should resist Sissy slobber pretty well, right?  And blue and brown?  What’s not to love?!

Why no, I don’t need another bag, but what does that have to do with anything?  I’m  craving another bag anyway…

There’s also the Bangle Wristlet from the Crossroads Collection.   It SAYS I can use it to carry my phone, and I’ve yet to find a small accessory that has room for my Nextel Blackberry.  It’s slightly thicker than most.

 

What do you think of the new collections?

(And to Jessi…  Nope.  I can’t use the text center buttons in WP in HTML.  Top photo was done by just importing from my ‘puter and bottom photo was done the way I described…  which for the rest of you is just all a part of our frustrated pursuits of pre-Flickr “improvements” blogging!)

Maidens’ Maiden Voyage

Happy Dogs on Thursday and little friday!  Sis has given a quick, happy status check on their blog, and before I launch into my post, there are two other doggy bloggies you have to see today.  Firstly, our pal Rudy and his mama kindly honored my request and honestly, you’ve never seen such cuteness.

The fur girls and Rudy (and his humans) May 2009

Next, you have to check out this post today.   I am so taken with the potential for a similar local fundraiser that I’ve already emailed a friend…  What do you think?  Have you seen anything like it in your area?

View from the driver's seat

Now, about the title of this post…  Today, the fur girls go their first ride in my new ride.  We’ve had it for three weeks now, and the light interior gave us the motivation to explore new doggy travel accessories.

Sissy kinda' shows you the zip-up, tie to the grab handle side

We’d long considered a hammock-style cover for the back seat.   The Knight found this model on eBay, so I’m afraid I don’t have much information, but I like some of the unique design features. 

(Dear Flickr:  You have mess up my blogging zen.  This paragraph exists SOLELY because you changed your format and I can no longer drop photos where I want them.  I know I’m not just being a techno-novice, because several of my bloggy pals are singing similar songs.  Hope this allows the following photo and paragraph to appear kinda’ as I want them to, but if not, at least my readers will know why… )

Better photo of the design

Each end zips on each corner, and that webbing loops over the grab handle or whatever you might call it above the back seat door.  It does make loading take longer, and while Sis just looked things over and leaped in, Gretch can’t make the big jump and can’t make her previous “loading technique” of jumping into the floor board, then into the back seat, work now.  She is NOT amused.

Gretchen is trying to show you the pad

At the Knight’s suggestion, I grabbed the large, long crate pad we used in my previous car and dropped it in.  The fabric is slick inside, to repel stains, so he thought they’d appreciate something softer that would prevent sliding.  They seem happy enough, which translates to Sis settled down right away and Gretchen survived the trip and didn’t try to figure out how to escape.

The jury’s still out, but so far, so good.

Thankful Thursday?  I’m thankful we got some much-needed rain.  How ’bout you?