Happy Halloween!

I won the family punkin carving contest!

I can't believe it. I don't think I've ever won before, and we have been doing this a long time. And mine was really a rush job, I had barely walked in the door from driving 2 1/2 hours to get to Rexburg and I had less than an hour to get a finished product. So that's why it's such a simple design.

Just got back home, and I am wiped out. And I have a hella busy week ahead of me too. I didn't get to go play in the sand like Some People I Know.

I've been thinking about MCM a lot today, since it was Fall Back. He hated the switch back to standard time, because it meant he rode the train home in the dark. A small consolation is that next year we get an extra week of daylight savings time, so that our precious trick-or-treating-aged children will have extra time in daylight to go around begging for candy. I don't know why this wasn't figured out decades ago. I know MCM would have some caustic kid-hating smart-ass comment to make, and although I wouldn't necessarily like it, I'd laugh along anyway. Because I pick my battles, and fighting over a dumb off-the-cuff comment made by someone I care about is not a way I like to spend my time. MCM, I still miss you . . . . . but the pain isn't quite as bad.

My First Meme

48 Things You Could Not Care Less About

1. FIRST NAME? For the purposes of this blog, Tolajyn.
2. WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE? I was given this name by the Silver Elves, about seven years ago.
3. WHEN DID YOU LAST CRY? When did I last think about MCM so hard it made me cry? Thursday.
4. DO YOU LIKE YOUR HANDWRITING? Not particularly. But I've met one or two folks who like it for some unknown reason.
5. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCHMEAT? Not a huge lunchmeat fan, so I'll eat whatever's available.
6. IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU? I sure hope so. But probably not.
7. DO YOU HAVE A JOURNAL? You're reading it!
8. DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TONSILS? Nope, they got yanked when I was 8. They took my adenoids too, but they've since grown back which is why I have the weird nasally thing going on with my voice that I LOATHE.
9. WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP? Not for all the tea in China. But when I was in college I was in ROTC and I went rappelling a few times. I got to the point where I wanted to try it out of a helicopter but I never got the chance.
10. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CEREAL? Count Chocula of course!
11. DO YOU UNTIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF? I wear Birkenstocks 90% of the time. The one pair of sneakers I do have, I bought a half-size too big on purpose, just so that I DON'T have to untie the laces to take them off. The alternative is replacing the laces with soft-stretch elastic which I did to the DD's shoes when she was small. Worked like a charm!
12. DO YOU THINK YOU ARE STRONG? No. Neither physically, mentally, or emotionally.
13. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM FLAVOR? Depends on the day. I like Farr's Huckleberry a whole lot, but there are just so many other flavours out there!
14. SHOE SIZE? Before pregnancy, 7 1/2. After pregnancy, 8 to 8 1/2. But in Birkenstocks I am still a 37 regular.
5. RED OR PINK? You seriously have to ask?
16. WHAT IS THE LEAST FAVORITE THING ABOUT YOURSELF? I am too tightly-wound.
17. WHO DO YOU MISS THE MOST? Obviously, MCM. He's been gone 2 1/2 months now.
18. DO YOU WANT EVERYONE TO SEND THIS BACK TO YOU? Everyone as in the three people in the world besides my mother that reads this? Knock yourselves out!
19. WHAT COLOR PANTS, SHIRT AND SHOES ARE YOU WEARING? Blue jeans, pink t-shirt, and one hand-knit snock and one orphan sock. We don't wear shoes in the house.
20. LAST THING YOU ATE? A Godiva caramel that my mother bought for me.
21. WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW? The Dividing Line Broadcasting Network. It's Rene's show and he is playing Porcupine Tree's Renevant. I am not loving it, although he played an hour of Yes awhile ago.
22. IF YOU WERE A CRAYON, WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU BE? Any and all pinks.
23. FAVORITE SMELL? Patchouli. And Grapefruit Kiss lotion from Vicki's. It's discontinued.
24. WHO WAS THE LAST PERSON YOU TALKED TO ON THE PHONE? The DD. She was downstairs watching TV and I am upstairs. I hate yelling through the house so it was easier to call her cell phone. Before that it was my mother.
25. THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE ABOUT PEOPLE YOU ARE ATTRACTED TO? I don't know. If it's a guy, probably how much he looks like Jon Anderson. I'm not attracted to women.
26. DO YOU LIKE THE PERSON you stole THIS from? I like all the people I stole this from.
27. FAVORITE DRINK? Diet Coke with Lime.
28. FAVORITE SPORT? Baseball. Go Cubs!! (and for MCM, Go WhiteSox!)
29. EYE COLOR? Teal green. Really.
30. HAT SIZE? Average.
31. DO YOU WEAR CONTACTS? No. I've had glasses since age 12 and the one time I tried contacts they bothered my eyes. I'm kinda interested in Lasik, but I probably won't do anything about it.
32. FAVORITE FOOD? Roast beef with smashed potatoes and gravy, and baby carrots. I request this for my birthday dinner and one year I even got it for Christmas dinner. When I graduated college from BYUH, my mom and grandmother came over and one night they made it for me. Now that is love.
33. SCARY MOVIES OR HAPPY ENDINGS? Happy Endings. I HATE scary movies.
35. SUMMER OR WINTER? Fall.
36. HUGS OR KISSES? Yes please and plenty of them.
37. FAVORITE DESSERT? I have to choose just one? I can't choose.
38. WHO IS MOST LIKELY TO RESPOND? Pass.
39. LEAST LIKELY TO RESPOND? Pass.
40. WHAT BOOKS ARE YOU READING? Not reading any books right now. I have 5 magazines I haven't even opened yet though. MSL, Faerie, MaryJane's Farm, Country Home, and Country Living. I love magazines.
41. WHAT'S ON YOUR MOUSE Pad? My mouse (duh).
42. WHAT DID YOU WATCH LAST NIGHT ON TV? Did I watch TV last night? I think I watched The Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants the night before.
43. FAVORITE SOUNDS? Yes and Jon Anderson music. Also my daughter laughing. And MCM's voice. I have about 15 minutes of messages he has left on my answering-machine over the years. And RP's laugh.
44. ROLLING STONE OR BEATLES? Neither. DD likes the Beatles though.
45. THE FURTHEST YOU'VE BEEN FROM HOME? Tarawa, otherwise known as Hell-on-Earth.
46. WHAT'S YOUR SPECIAL TALENT? I don't have one.
47. WHERE WERE YOU BORN? Idaho.
48. WHO SENT THIS TO YOU? Snagged from a bunch of knitting blogs...

Maybe if I blog I will feel better

Ennui has hit at Chez FaeryKnits today. I love autumn, and to have to be cooped up inside on beautiful fall days just kills me. Especially when my doing-fun-stuff partner has to work all weekend and I have Friday and Sunday off. If tomorrow is nice, maybe I will skip church. I love church, you all know that. But my favourite days don't happen every day and with winter soon coming, I need to go enjoy the sunshine while it's still here. We'll see . . . . . If the weather co-operates, we are planning on traipsing through a 13-acre corn maze Monday or Tuesday afternoon and gutting punkins that evening. What in the world do I have to have Ennui over? Hell if I know, but I have it.

So, time to count my blessings. With photographic evidence.





About 50 pelicans playing in the air a couple of weeks ago. They were so high up I could barely see them, but they were so loud!






This is what pelicans look like, but this photo is from Spring 2005 when RP and I went to the Great Salt Lake.







I finished BT's snocks and gave them to her last weekend. Not quite so matchy-matchy (to quote the Yarn Harlot) but she loved them, and I guess it was a good thing to have when you're not able to move much and you have a cold house.




Two sets of wristwarmers (with thumbs!) one for me, one for the DD. And yes, the photo of me is the best one of that particular photo-shoot. *sigh*




Me with Nana in a period dress she didn't actually make with me in mind, but it looks as though she had. I feel pretty and I love Nana!








Ever watch Extreme Makeover: Home Edition? I do sometimes, and Ty Pennington has So Much Energy! And the crew is in Logan this week. We haven't gone to see the house because yesterday when I wanted to go it was raining to beat the band and I was in a crabby mood because my feet were cold and I didn't have the right shoes on. Tomorrow is the reveal, and I believe the show will air on ABC in December. The DD knows one of the children in the family from school.



And I bought my pink paint! Now I just wish I knew how to paint. Will someone help me?

So yeah, I feel a bit better now. Still have the Ennui, and I need to somehow summon the energy to clean out my closets. I miss my mom being more active because she's always pretty good at that kind of stuff. I wish I missed my sister, because she is super good at that kind of stuff. Not that she ever really volunteered to help me with that . . . . . I guess I do miss what I wish she was. Was that cryptic enough for you?

*ETA*
I think I must have low-blood sugar. I forget to eat most of the day. My stomach no longer gives me that "I'm hungry, feed me" feeling and hasn't since 1994 when I almost starved to death. When I have Ennui or I get crabby, I think I need to try to think if I've eaten yet and remedy the situation before I have a melt-down. And honestly, I don't think peanut M&Ms are the answer. Gnome sane?

Lost Weekend

Well not really a lost weekend, but it happened a week ago and I'm just now getting around to talking about it.

Last Wednesday after SCA, the DD went home with Nana to get ready for Crown Tourney down in Provo. Thursday I got up early (for me) and drove to Idaho. Saw JN and BT and MB and KJ and of course my folks. Found a lovely dress to wear to the reception. I had brought one, but this one was way better. It has pink roses on it!

Friday I hung around the house, ran errands in town, saw BT again (she had hurt herself and had to stay home and couldn't go play with me) and also MB again. On a whim, I rang up AW and she was actually home! I stopped by and we got milkshakes at Arctic Circle and sat outside and talked. She has a new grand-baby that I got to admire.

Saturday my mom went with me to Idaho Falls and we did some shopping. Found a great pattern at the LYS. I can't tell you what it is, because it figures heavily into holiday gifts this year. I traded some lotion at Vicki's, but I apparently chose the wrong thing because it wasn't appreciated by the person I was hoping would like it. So a trip to Ogden is imminent, to trade it again.

Saturday night was the reception. I walked in, and immediately saw someone I know from work. Apparently she is the bride's sister! I also saw lots of my friends who live in JN's neighbourhood.

Sunday of course was church. Saw all the rest of my friends, and even made a new one! There is lovely lady who was teaching the Relief Society lesson who moved in after I left last year. If our paths had crossed earlier, I know we would have been friends. Another reason to look forward to going back to Idaho as often as possible. I do have to mention something that the youth speaker said: This young man has had many health challenges over his short 14 years. He recently had his second kidney transplant (his mom was the donor) and he has always been a very sweet and sensitive child. I remember one memorable Testimony Meeting where he got up and told us all "I love you back". I have always remembered that. So it was his turn to speak this past week. And I've heard him give his testimony enough to know that this is a talk you don't want to be sleeping through, and sure enough, he didn't disappoint. The topic was Agency, and he decided that his example would be comparing the high school kids who drink, and the ones who don't. According to him, it looks like the party-ers are the ones having the good time, and the ones who just take a date to the school dance are the boring ones. Not so, because the good kids will be tired in the morning, yes, but they will also have great memories. But if you're drunk, you don't remember anything! Anthony, I can't wait to see what you grow up to be.

After that great talk I had to get going, so I could get back on the road. Music and the Spoken Word was on the radio, and as I was driving along, the announcer stated that the next piece by the Choir and Orchestra would be Hurry Home. I always link certain phrases that I hear to titles of Yes songs, and I figured there had to be more than one song called Hurry Home, and there was no way that this was the Jon Anderson song I am so familiar with. But the next words out of his mouth were "by Jon Anderson" and I almost had a wreck! I stopped the car and just listened to the wonderful performance and marvelled that Somebody In Charge of what the Mormon Tabernacle Choir sings, thought that a Jon Anderson song was worthy. It's something I have known for years, but to actually hear it happen was pure magic. Thank You to that person, and to the Choir and the Orchestra. You did an amazing job, and I wish I could find a recording of it.

Speaking of Jon Anderson, his third solo album Animation has finally been issued on CD. It's £15, plus shipping and as far as I know it's only available one place. Click on the YesWorld link in the sidebar for more info please. I hope it comes to Amazon because I have to have it. I have Olias of Sunhillow, I have mp3's of Song of Seven and Animation, but the ones from Animation are from a vinyl copy that had been converted. And we all know my copy of 3 Ships is a total bootleg but aside from the very expensive Japanese import, it is not available on CD. But now Animation is, so maybe 3 Ships isn't far behind. Ebay is full of other bootleg recordings, some of which I have mp3's of. My whole iPod is filled with Yes and JA. It is true, I am the original YesGirl.

*knitting news*
One of my merino/alpaca snocks got a hole in the heel over the weekend. I am so sad because I love those snocks. I examined the other pair and they too are starting to wear thin in the same place. Maybe I should reserve them for sleeping only and not walking around on.
Also, today I finished one Opal snock. It's one of the DreamCatcher colourways which is fairly pretty, but I'm probably going to be hard-pressed to want to even cast-on the second one. I have decided I am not in love with Opal. I have the rest of this ball, and one more full one and part of another one. I will use them as I practice perfecting my Perfect Snock Pattern, but that's it. It's not very soft and squishy. For all I whined about the Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino that I hand-dyed and knitted into snocks, they feel better than the Opal. I know me, having just one snock will bug me, so I'll do the other one. And I'll probably hurry, just to Get It Done. But I won't enjoy it.

WIPs and FOs

So in my last post I teased about all my numerous WIPs, and I refused to share pictures. This time I am sharing pictures, but ONLY of the WIPs that have now turned into FOs. I am a very private person, and I choose what I want you to see!



DD's hat that needed the black removed. DONE!



BT's snocks (on the left). To be given to her this weekend. DONE!



A crocheted bag. FROGGED! (I wasn't kidding when I told you crochet kills my hands. I decided discretion was the better part of valour and I gave up gracefully.)

Still working on my second Booga Bag, about halfway done now. And I am playing with working on the snocks. DD thinks I should be working on her wristwarmers, since I am halfway done with the second one. I want to get my bag done first, so I can felt it this weekend. My washer's load selector is permanently broken on Extra Large (which is way better than broken on Extra Small, where it was before. Thank you RP, for fixing it twice!)

So I only work 3 days this week, I am off after Wednesday. Thursday morning I am on my way up to Rexburg for a fun-filled 4 days. The DD will be going on another camping trip, this time in Provo. JN's son is getting married and I will be going to the reception. And I need to go have a look in the storage shed and see if I can find a few things. I know what box I want, but I'll bet you anything LilBro has a bunch of his stuff parked in the way still.

My mom and grandmother spent a couple of days here with us, and it was so nice to have them. Mom is taking Gram down to Salt Lake to spend a few months with my uncle. They left this morning, and although I've called said uncle's house twice, I cannot get anyone to pick up or return my call. So needless to say, I'm starting to get a lilbit upset. *ETA* She just called, so no need to Freak Out.

And because I could not stand it, I gave Mom her Christmas gift already. And I forgot to photograph it so I'll have to do that this weekend. I know me, I'll get her something else for the real day. I'm such an idiot.

I need intervention

Hello, my name is Tola, and I'm a yarnoholic.

It is pathetic and slightly disturbing. I counted up all my WIPs, and I had 11. Eleven. Four of them are snocks. Sick and wrong. Yes, I photographed them; no you can't see. It is Too Embarrassing. However, I did get busy and finish one of them. Actually, it was a hat the DD is making, I had to tink back 2 rows of ER because she had joined in some black to some teal green. Not a good combination. So now it would stand to reason that I am down to ten WIPs. . . . not so, I cast on for another Booga Bag Friday night. Got the i-cord done, and finished the bottom at work today. Picked up around the edge and have got 2 rounds done already. This one will be bigger (I hope) and will hold more "stuff". But it's not pink, it's blue.

Two of the WIPS are crochet projects, and I think I'll frog one because I have lost interest and crochet just plain hurts my hands too much. The other one is the circular jacket from Interweave Crochet. If I only do one round at a time, I think I can do it with a minimum of pain.

Went to the LYS the other day. She had just gotten in some Colonial rosewood DPNs, in 5.5 inch length, sizes 1 and 2. She let me try one with a sock-in-progress and I Have To Have. . . . . soon! If I thought Addi Naturas were pricey, these are even more so. I honestly dont care about the type of wood, although rosewood IS very pretty. But the length is perfect, the points are perfect, and the finish is perfect. Saving my pennies now . . . . . To make myself feel better, I bought a set of Brittanys in size 2. I do like the length of them but I still hate the points and the finish. Will I ever find the Perfect Sock Needle to go along with the Perfect Sock Pattern?

Am I the only person in the world who shops out of the laundry basket every day? About every 3 months or so I look at it and realize I am missing So Many Clothes, because they have migrated to the bottom of the basket. So tonight was my quarterly fold-and-put-away-the-clothes-hour. I emptied two baskets AND a box left over from moving a year ago. I know, I know . . . . . I always feel so much better when I do it but in another three months I'll be doing it again. I also went through my closet and tried on all my jeans and threw out several pair because there is No Way In Hell I will ever wear them again. I do like getting rid of stuff, but the actual process isn't so much fun. My next goal is to put away all the books and magazines that have been languishing in piles on my bedroom and living room floor.