Desperately Seeking . . . . .

Trekking XXL colour 71. Nobody has any on Ravelry. If anyone has it, I'll pay the going rate for Trekking in your LYS plus shipping.

Overheard

I was at Woolbearers Saturday night for their Christmas Finishing Frenzy because I was determined to finish my BFF's socks (and I did!) About half of the people who showed up I have never met before, so it was nice to talk to new people. The conversation turned to the topic of "Stupid Stuff People Ask" and one of the new ladies told one she heard the other day: "Why are the stars so much brighter after an earthquake?"
*blink blink*
"Ummmmmmmmmmm cuz you're special?"


PS The yarn is Trekking 147, 3x1 rib on 56 stitches and size 2 circular needles.

What To See Your First Time to Philly

After going to see the Liberty Bell, and Ben Franklin's underground house, you take your out-of-town guests to the Magic Garden on South Street! In a city chock-full of American history, said guest is more awed by an entire city block covered with mosaics. I agree, it's very cool! Go here to see more photos. I am still waiting for LL to send me his photos, so I'll add them to the set when I get them.

Gratitude

(A day late due to severe turkey-coma)

I am most grateful for my family. My husband the VIP, my DD, and brother LL. My folks and granny, and other assorted siblings and their spawn.

I'm grateful I have a job that isn't too difficult, that I can leave at work at 5 o'clock, and that I work with the VIP.

I'm grateful that I like living here out on the east coast. I can't imagine much worse than hating where you live, even if it isn't what you're used to.

I'm grateful that all our dinner leftovers fit in our fridge, and that we will have lunches for the next week due to my excellent skillz (ha!).

I'm grateful that LL is coming to visit us tomorrow!

And I'm grateful that Tan's daughter wasn't anywhere near Mumbai while travelling in India this week.

8 Things (tagged by Lynn)

My friend Ms Ravelled asked me to play along on the 8 Things meme, so here goes!

8 Favourite TV Shows: (I am including shows that are currently in production)
1-- Criminal Minds
2-- CSI: NY
3-- CSI: Miami
4-- CSI (Las Vegas)
5-- Numb3rs
6-- Pushing Daisies
7-- Top Gear
8-- Martha Stewart

8 Things I Did This Weekend:
1-- Slept a lot
2-- Enjoyed "private time" with the VIP
3-- Was rear-ended while stuck in traffic on Rte 70
4-- Took my Charlotte's Web Shawl out of time-out and knit 4 rows
4-- Finished a pair of socks and decided they were too big, so I gave them to the DD
5-- Cleaned the kitchen after the VIP made dinner and our week of lunches.
6-- Went grocery shopping
7-- Re-organised part of the storage unit
8-- Dropped off some more wool handbags at the consignment shop

8 Things to Look Forward To:
1-- The weekend!
2-- The new episode of Top Gear
3-- Maybe finding a new knitting group in Haddonfield on Tuesdays
4-- Drinking hot chocolate from Wawa
5-- Lower gas prices
6-- Seeing LL the weekend of Thanksgiving
7-- Hoping that most doctors' offices will be closed on Black Friday and therefore *not* calling me
8-- Finding a Queen Victoria shilling on Ebay

8 Favourite Restaurants:
Pass. I am *so* not a foodie!

8 Things on My Wish List
1-- Knit all of my sock yarn
2-- Buy more sock yarn
3-- Acquire a circular sock machine so I can make 1 and 2 happen faster
4-- Learn Irish Gaelic
5-- Go to England/Ireland/Scotland/Wales
6-- Buy a cute, big enough, old house and enjoy its ambience with the VIP and maybe a cat
7-- Not to have to take Prozac
8-- Be happy or at least not unhappy with the way I look

8 People I Tag:
You're all grownups, if you wish to play along please do! Pick a list and leave a comment so I can learn about you.

<3

Yep, It's A Full Moon

It is insane here today! I have had every single crazy in the entire state of New Jersey on my phone today, and it's only noon! I tell ya, I am *thisclose* to seriously asking the next idiot how s/he dressed him/herself this morning. I need to be at home, drinking some Stephen's Hot Chocolate, watching the Kirks Folly show I recorded yesterday, and knitting all manner of things. So who wants my calls?

Our Trip to NYC

Wow what a fun day! I totally recommend a day trip to NYC when you're feeling sad and picked-on.

We left the house about 8:30am, to get to church by 11am. We made it, and met LL (my brother) in the foyer. He was decked out in his tailored grey Italian suit and looking oh-so-metro. We only stayed for Sacrament Meeting, then we went to lunch at a Caribbean restaurant called Malecon. Oh my goodness, the roasted chicken was amazing! We also had fried yucca (a first and last for me), rice, fried bananas, and beans. We all ate our heads off, and still had two take-home boxes stuffed full. We stopped off at his apartment to put the food in the fridge and change clothes. Then we hopped a subway down to Times Square.

I'm glad I had a seasoned subway veteran with me on my first underground excursion. I would have for sure gotten lost and confused if I had been on my own. We came out of the underground, blinking, and acting like tourists. I had forgotten my camera, so I borrowed LL's. He just emailed me the pix yesterday, and I figured out Flickr this morning. Hopefully I'll be able to figure out how to let you all see them! Until then, click here.

We passed by Radio City Music Hall, and the NBC Studios. We were convinced to go up to the observation floors of the Rockefeller Center, and that's where we got the best photos of the city. Then we had some hot chocolate in the Starbucks downstairs. A panhandler asked me for my spare change; I gave him 23 cents. I think he was offended, because he chased after us, asking for more. After that, we got DD some oboe reeds, and then we hit the M&Ms and Hershey's stores. I overloaded on both chocolate, and pressed pennies. We got back on the Subway headed back to LL's apartment. Three brothers got on, selling bags of M&Ms, "not as a fund-raiser, but to put money in my pocket." We can respect enterprising young people, here's your dollar. It being Sunday, there was someone preaching a bit of fire and brimstone. Although as I listened, I didn't hear anything that contradicted what I believe in.

We got back to the apartment (a space that I cannot believe that four 20-something men occupy, as it is clean) and collected our leftovers and took our leave. We got lost trying to leave, but we ended up seeing the Yankee Stadiums and we didn't get into any too-scary neighbourhoods. We stopped and had dinner at Cracker Barrel (my suggestion, I love comfort food) and fell into bed when we got home. It was a wonderful day!

Rhinebeck Stay-cation

We are not going to Rhinebeck. We want to go, some of our favourite people are going to be there. But we cannot justify the gas money to get there, and 2 nights in a motel, plus spending money. I have been agonising over this for a few weeks, and yesterday was Fast Sunday, so I prayed about it and got my answer. I am sad not to go, but I honestly wasn't properly prepared both financially and mentally. I knew that going to such a huge event takes personal organisation, and mine is in short supply since I seem to be using it all up at home, trying to get all my stuff put away.

However, I will be going to Stitches. My LYS is offering a bus trip that includes transportation and admittance and the price seems very reasonable to me. It will be a very long day, but I'll be able to meet up with AlisonH and I'll be with my friends from Woolbearers. It will be okay, I feel that this is the right decision.

ETA
I found out today why we aren't going to Rhinebeck. We are going to NYC to go to church with my brother instead.

Feeling Different

The house is slowly getting more organised. I try to do something every day, even if it's just putting one thing away. Some days I get a lot more done, which helps in the morale department. Saturday I woke up and showered, then started in on the laundry, cleaning the kitchen, emptying boxes and putting away their contents (easy to do when they are CDs and we finally got the CD shelves stabilised) and taking out trash.

The VIP and his DS went to a nearby U-pick farm and got us three bags of Empire apples. I'm not sure if this is an old breed, which has gotten a new lease on life, or if it's a new hybrid. It's good though! The DD unfortunatly missed her marching band practice, because her room was not cleaned. I felt bad for her, but I finally had to put my foot down and insist. She got it cleaned up wonderfully by Sunday night.

Sunday we had to speak in church. I had stayed up Saturday night writing the talks while the VIP cooked. Okay I totally lifted the talk from the church website, but at least I told everyone that I did. I know it's not really in the spirit of preparing a talk, but at least I know I didn't teach false doctrine. The VIP decided he was too sick to go to church, so I gave both my talk and his. The topic was prayer, so I got him back by saying that I pray a lot when he is driving.

Monday morning I woke up feeling like I was Going To Die, so I didn't go to work. I spent the day sniffling and sneezing and wiping and feeling Like Cr@p. I got quite a lot of the VIP's new sock knitted, and I watched 2 John Wayne movies. I also took out some trash, emptied a box, and eventually took a shower. The DD had to go to the doctor for her yearly school physical, so I had to go along for that. Then we went to Ikea for dinner and to get the screws to put the computer desk back together. I know we saved those stupid things, but we sure can't find the plastic baggie we saved them in. We got stuck in construction traffic on 95 on the way home, so we got home very late. I was tired of feeling the way I did, so I took a Claritin and went to bed.

Now to explain the title of the post: I hate taking cold/allergy meds. The side effects of the darn things are often worse for me than the original symptoms. But after 2 days of sniffling and sneezing and blowing and wiping, I just wanted to not have to. So now I don't have to, but I feel quite disembodied. And Claritin is supposed to be the one that doesn't affect you! I went to work today, but if I still feel this bad at lunchtime, I'm going back home to rest. No movies today, just sleeping. I just couldn't resist Hatari yesterday though. I love that movie. I have the DVD, but I will watch it on tv every time it comes on, all the way to the end.

Scared Out of a Year's Growth

Seminary (catechism) classes started this week. Since we are not in Utah or SE Idaho, we don't have the luxury of release-time classes, so we have to do early-morning. I survived early-morning seminary, mainly because in my senior year my dad was the teacher. (Remember, Shauna?) Personally I don't get seminary. Why does having five more hours of religious instruction per week on top of the three gotten on Sundays plus the whatever-amount on Wednesday nights make a difference? Are teenagers so stupid that they need it? Speaking for myself, I only went because I was expected to, not because I wanted to. Except for spending more time with my dad that final year, I don't really think I got a whole lot out of it. I enjoyed my teachers, and being with the other kids, but I saw them every day at school anyway, plus Sundays and Wednesday nights.

So in our new ward, they have decided that seminary is Monday, Tuesday, and Friday mornings, with another lesson on Wednesday nights. Not Thursdays. Today is Thursday. My alarm went off as usual at 6:15am. I got up and went to go make sure the DD was up and getting ready for school. Her bus comes at 6:50 and if she has ignored her own alarm, she can still get up and ready for the bus when I get up. No child. The house was completely black. No evidence of bathroom activity (except that toilet really needs to be cleaned) and the bedroom is its usual tornado-like state. The computer was asleep, so it had been at least 30 minutes since it had been touched, and the front door was unlocked. Calls made to her cellphone went to voicemail. Panic mode ensued.

Being the practical person that I am, I wasn't about to start calling the cops until I was presentable, so I got into the shower. The VIP called the school, and reported our "missing" child. I called her phone again and left a message this time. I got dressed hurriedly and located my keys, intent on driving the neighbourhood. I was halfway down the stairs when my phone rang, playing Bob Marley's Three Little Birds, which is the DD's ringtone. Apparently, it was decided to hold seminary on Thursday mornings as well, but we the parents had not been informed.

Pass the Xanax, please.

Parenting

So I need to know if I handled this correctly. Last night after work, DD cornered me and begged for a trip to StuffMart for a new backpack. Yesterday before work she had cornered me and begged for the VIP's backpack, which request I politely declined. I told her I would buy her a new one at StuffMart after work. So we went, and it was LOUD. Sometimes I just get over-stimulated and I Can Not Deal with the cacophony of daily life. As soon as we got the backpack and a couple of other items, we got out and went home, and I retired to my bed. At 9:30 she came in and requested another trip to StuffMart for index cards. I told her to ask the VIP to take her as I was in no shape to go out again. I assume that he did, because I saw index cards in her room this morning. So as I was getting ready for work this morning, she called me. She was already at school, and wanted me to bring her oboe to her. She had forgotten it. I declined. I simply did not have time to do that and get to work on time. One day in band class without her instrument of choice is not going to kill her, and it may propel her to remember it tomorrow. So am I awful?

Discoveries

I found the lunchmeat! Unfortunately it was not in the same box as the leftover cheese-and-onion pie. I found that a day later. All had to be dispatched to the great garbage disposal in the sky.

I found my chocolate stash. It's fine. I shoved it under my bed.

I didn't lose my yarn stash. I made sure I packed it and moved it myself, and placed it in the new house and it has not moved. It is still there.

I found the shims that go under the shelves so that they dont fall forward and kill somebody. They are at Lowe's in the pre-hung doors section.

I opened my housewarming gift from DG. She knitted me three beautiful dishcloths and included a bottle of Bath & Body Works antibacterial soap. The computers aren't up yet so no photos have been downloaded off the camera. But believe me, they are lovely and will be loved. I miss her so much!

DD's birthday lasted several days. We finally ended it on Saturday by taking her to dinner at an international buffet with a Mongolian grill. She thought that was pretty cool. The VIP gave her a gift card to Barnes & Noble so we spent another couple of hours there looking for books. She still has one item coming in the mail from England. She asked Grandma for more books, which I gave her the night before her birthday because she had been so helpful with the moving. I think she made out okay.

I am having to be more creative about storing things in this house. One of the bookshelves has been called into action as a space for storing kitchen ware. As soon as we find the cookbooks they will go there as well, but it is also going to hold the rice cooker, the crockpot, and some other like items. I can't really store anything on the balcony and not expect it to get weather-damaged. I'd like to take advatnage of an end-of-summer sale and get some patio furniture, but it would be a shame to have it sitting out there all winter getting ruined. So maybe we will just get a couple of folding chairs that we can take out there on nice days.

I've been re-organising the sidebar, hopefully making it more easy to find what you want to read. All ideas welcome.

And go give Lynn some love. Her children's father is having serious health challenges and it is affecting them all.

And locals, let's meetup at Philadelphia Knit in Public Day.

Heavy Labour

This is just a note to say that I am still here, although I've been AFK during the move. We have one laptop up and running, but using the keyboard and mouse is a pain so I do the minimum on it. We are moved in, and I would like to publicly thank a certain person that works with us by the initials GW for all the incredible hard work he served us with. We could not have done it without him at all. I managed to hyper-extend both knees early on in the game, and had to spend most of the time directing from the top of the stairs. A big thank-you also to the Elders Quorums from both the Pennypack Ward and the Medford Ward.

Now comes the part where I do my best trying to get everything organised and put away. Tonight's job is putting the bed together not only so that we have a place to sleep, but also space to store boxes underneath while I get other things taken care of. I don't even want to think about all the stuff that has to be done, so I'm giving myself one big job at a time to accomplish.

The DD turns 14 tomorrow, September 3. She is a mostly-good girl and I'm proud to say she is my daughter. She has been a challenge to me, but I can see that she is growing up and will be an exceptional adult with wonderful service skills. I love her very much, even when she pushes every button I have. If you'd like to send her a birthday greeting, post in the comments and I'll pass them along to her.

Love you all, forgive my intermittent-ness please?

Two Years

I wear my LiveStrong wristband still, I put it on the day Mark was diagnosed with cancer, which was 3 years ago. He lived 49 weeks, and eventually died from lung, liver, throat, and brain cancer. I still cannot believe he is gone, and even though I believe my religion, I have questions about where he is and what he is doing. I miss him terribly, and I am always seeing things I think he would laugh at.

More Changes Afoot

This is a warning: if there are links on the sidebar that you like to read and haven't bookmarked, please do so. I'll be cleaning up that area soon and I don't want anyone sad that they can't find a favourite blog anymore.

I got a job! It's not spectacular or glamourous, but it pays more than minimum wage and it's at the same place that the VIP works, so we drive in together. And as we are moving in a month, we will be even closer and hopefully saving money!

I am still begging for foreign coins. I've been buying some on eBay, but I always want more.

I've been knitting a Pi Shawl, and I am at row 67. I have been at row 67 three times now. I think somehow my start-of-round marker has gotten moved, so I'm all confused in the lace pattern. This is my first real attempt at lace, and except for the constantly being lost, I am quite enjoying it. I finished a pair of Sunday socks for the VIP, which he loves. I used a dark grey variegated Trekking, so it was fairly boring. I'm knitting a pair of socks for myself, out of some discontinued Trekking that I bought from someone on Ravelry.

I'ts still very hot here. Sunday we went to the shore though. By some miracle, it was hot and sunny every single place except right on the beach. It was cloudy and foggy, and even though the temperature was still warm, it was just the perfect beach day. I didn't have to worry about getting sunburned at all. We found lots of shells to drill and paint and put on the Christmas tree, and we saw two seagulls playing tug-of-war with a crab. The skinny seagull won, but the fat seagull went and got his own crab that turned out to be even bigger. We started the day by attending our new ward. It is barely big enough to be called a ward, but apparently they are getting quite a few new families in the next few weeks. They are very friendly, and I think we will really enjoy it. We brought my friend DG because she is moving to California in about three weeks and we will miss her. She and I are enough alike to enjoy each other's company, and enough different to always have something to talk about. Even the VIP enjoys being around her.

So who is coming to help load and/or unload the truck?

All The Best Freaks Were There

And still no photos, but this time I'm sure you won't mind too much, because I got a HUGE bruise last weekend. The VIP and I (along with our friend Stochastic) went down to the Fillmore on South Street to see a Fish concert. (And that's Fish with an "F"!) As the VIP had to go to the train station to pick up Sto, so I was left at the Irish Times to hold a table. If you're not a Freak (that would be a Fish fan) then you wouldn't have gotten the email telling where there pre-gig meet-up was. The VIP is, so he did, and we went.

I sat and waited for the guys to show up, and then we ordered dinner. The Irish Times actually does pretty good Irish bar food. The meet-up was scheduled for 6-8pm, because the concert started at 9. There were CDs and DVDs and t-shirts being sold. People were eating and drinking and swapping stories. Then I saw some activity at the front door, and I looked . . . . and beheld . . . . . Mr Derek "Fish" Dick himself. It took me a moment to recognise him because even though I watched the Kayleigh video a thousand times, that was over 20 years ago, and he's changed just a bit. However, he's still six foot eight inches tall.

The whole bar erupted in shouts of adulation, and he was escorted over to the corner booth where he held court. Sto got right in line, the VIP was a bit further back, and I was stuck baby-sitting our stuff. So I stood on a chair and took pictures. And then I fell off the chair and got the afore-mentioned HUGE bruise on my left thigh. I thought I was going to pass out from the pain, but I didn't. As soon as Sto came back, I went and joined the VIP in line. It came to be my turn, and I asked Fish to sign my t-shirt. It's the VIP's, and it's from the first year the Garden Party was held. He signed it, the VIP took our picture, and then we swapped places and then we left. All those years ago I never ever thought in a million years that I would meet Fish.

So now to the changes. We are moving. The VIP's contract job has turned permanent (yay!!) and I have been offered a post with the same company. I start on Monday. They have a small call center, seven seats. They are growing though. It will be nice not to have to drive nearly an hour, 35 miles each way, with gas at over $4 a gallon. I was in charge of finding us a new place to live, and I looked at about 20 places in 2 days. By the third day, I had narrowed it down to four places, and took the DD with me. The first we only looked at the outside of, because I had already seen it twice. The second place, I got lost trying to get to, so I figured that was a sign right there. The third place, we got to actually see our apartment, not just the model. It is scheduled to be renovated prior to our occupancy. The DD pronounced it good, and didn't even want to see the fourth place. The rent is about the same, but we are going up 20-25% in size, plus it's only 5 miles from work. And even less to the Trader Joe's. The DD gets a large bedroom, which includes a huge Harry Potter cupboard, plus her own bathroom. We also get a large bedroom and en-suite bathroom, plenty of closet space, and the living room is large enough to accommodate the VIP's huge piece of wall furniture and his many computers. I'm not sure yet where my sewing machine will go, but it is fairly small so I doubt it will be too big a problem. I'm excited about a new place, but not about the actual move itself. I swear, didn't I just move?

Where Are My Red Pyjamas?

We are having a heat wave here in the Northeast. I'm not going outside unless I absolutely have no choice. It's even too hot to walk the half-block to the pool. I'm hanging out inside in my underwear, and occasionally jumping in the shower trying to keep somewhat cool. I begged the VIP to turn the AC on, just to 80*. I can handle 80*, if the humidity is low. I have no idea how I survived in Kiribati, with 120* temps and over 90% humidity. I guess I was younger then.

On a different note: does anyone have any foreign coins they don't want? I'll even take Canadian. I'm also looking for Opal #1235. Everyone who has one listed on Ravelry won't part with theirs.

No Pictures . . . .

. . . . because the VIP downloaded all our camera memory cards onto his laptop and then erased them all. So until I get that reversed, no photos. And since a blog post is Boring without photos, no blog posts until I get my pictures back!

Girls' Road Trip

Last weekend my friend DG and I decided to have a girls' weekend and she rented a car and we drove to Palmyra, NY. I was in charge of navigation and I done goofed up, so we were almost to Canada before we realised we should have taken a left turn at Syracuse. Oh well. We got there, and our motel was on the banks of the Erie Canal, so we took a walk down the path. It was a nice walk, helped unkink my body which was sore from sitting in the car.

The next morning, DG had a reservation for the 11am session in the Temple, so we did a bit of sight-seeing beforehand. We saw the Smith farm and its buildings, and a view of the Temple from there. My photo turned out blurry, so I stole this image from the Hill Cumorah website. You can tell, because we went in May, and the leaves in this photo are obviously turning colour. I am disappointed that my photo is blurry.

DG went in for her session, and I waited in the car for her. I did some knitting, and I had a little nap. Then she came out and we continued on our tour of the Smith Farm and the Sacred Grove. It is so quiet in there! The paths are dirt, but are smoothed well. I don't think it would be difficult to take a decent wheelchair through it at all. They ask you not to remove any material from the site (leaves, flowers, grass, etc) but I will admit that I flouted this rule. Someone had dropped a plastic baggie (I sincerely hope it was a young parent who overlooked the fact that their toddler discarded it) so I did pick that up and carry it away. And of course, as I thought it would be inappropriate to shake the dust off my feet as I exited the Grove, some dirt came with me. But I think that's probably okay. The paths twist and turn, and there are many benches to sit on to rest or to contemplate. It's one of those Perfect Places. When you think of the words "forest path" this is what your mind conjures. I could very much feel the Spirit and the presence of God and Christ. I have never been a very gifted writer, so I have difficulty in putting into words my experience. All I can do is encourage you to go there yourself. Even if you are not LDS, it is still a lovely and peaceful place. I hope to bring the VIP and DD there this summer.

















When we returned back to the farm, we went through the houses. As a knitter/spinner, I was pleased to see handknit socks hanging up to dry by the fireplace, a spinning wheel with a skein-winder and a basket of roving nearby, and socks-in-progress. Clickety-Biggety



After all that, we drove a few miles to the Hill Cumorah. When they say "hill", they mean it. I thought I was Going To Die while climbing it. But the view from the top is so beautiful. I had brought my special copy of the Book of Mormon with me, and it wanted its picture taken with Moroni.



Our last stop was at the printing press. That ink on the floor is original and from that time-period. The press is still in operation and facsimile copies are produced from it. You can buy them in the bookstore next-door.










On our way home we took a short detour to Chenango Forks NY, birthplace of some of my ancestors. When I go back, I want to stop at the cemetery and find the graves.

I had a great time, and I want to thank DG for inviting me to go with her. She is moving to California soon, for school. I will miss her very much.

Because Even I Am Tired of Not Seeing a New Post Up Here

We really have been doing things around here, I promise. The VIP got a new job, which he started yesterday. Unfortunately it's 35 miles away in the opposite direction where he used to work. So far I haven't gotten up the nerve to learn the drive so I don't have the car.

DD has been feverishly working on getting her homework caught up so that she can go on the school band trip to NYC this Friday. I have been so frustrated with the non-communication I've been getting from her teachers that I finally went in and spoke with the vice-principal. And I think all that did was make me feel better by unloading, I don't think it actually accomplished a single thing.

I've met Colleen, and we have started a weekly KnitNight at her place. The VIP goes to his second job on Thursday nights about 30 minutes from Colleen's, so I tag along, leave him there, and we girls go play yarn. We have been joined by a few others, but most often by Miss Laura, who is a lot of fun. We eat and drink and laugh and knit and sew. As soon as summer is here for real and our complex pool is open, Colleen will come to our place for a day poolside. She is selling my recycled-wool handbags on her Etsy site, so go have a look.

This past weekend we went to Haddonfield NJ, which is a cute town. There is an English shop there, and the VIP likes to buy food and candy and ginger beer. Around the corner is a fun eclectic shop that sells, among other things, Birkenstock shoes. They were having a Spring Trunk Show with a sale of $20 off per pair of shoes. I chose a pair of pink Tahitis, and have been getting them broken in. I still haven't given up hope of finding my bag with my pink Madrids in it, but I needed a new pair anyway. The DD and I wandered some more and found a cute shop called Pure Couture, which specializes in upscale consignment. The owner loved my wool handbag and asked where I got it. When I said that I make them, she got very excited and wants me to put some in her shop! So needless to say, I have been sewing the past two days!

Actually, I've been sewing quite a lot lately. I've been teaching Colleen how to sew, and we started with pillowcases. So I made a couple of sets for me as well. I've been mending slacks and shirts for the missionaries because they have enough to do without worrying about that too. **If anyone who reads this has any gently-used black men's dress shoes in size 14, please contact me. There's a missionary here who wears size 14.** I organized all my thread and other sewing supplies, and I've actually emptied some more boxes that have been stacked in DD's room. She is unimpressed with my slowness, but at least there is some progress.

Okay, back to sewing.

She Held My Socks!

It's all yellow and blurry, because the flash wasn't on. But we went to Annapolis and met the Yarn Harlot! Scroll down and you'll see the photos she took of us. We had a great time. The VIP had brought his laptop, and he spent the time waiting reading her blog and making comments on it. She is a great speaker, has the natural ability to spin a yarn (pun intended) and is just all-around Nice. She told us about The Worst Day on a Book Tour, and since it has been almost three years since it happened, the story has gotten better with the retelling. I almost peed my pants, it was so funny to hear her tell it. And then her talk was over and she went on downstairs to sign books. We were # 125 in line, so we waited awhile. Remembering her harrowing 14 km hike on St Patrick's Day, we brought her a 4-pack of Guinness, and a glass to drink it from. I also gave her my pair of Jaywalkers that I didn't like for myself, and I think she liked them. It was so great though, because even though she had already been through 125 people, when we walked up, she looked straight at the VIP and said "I remember you!"

Lynn has written new lyrics to a favourite Primary song. I have had the original stuck in my head all week, because there are some beautiful white trees blossoming around here. Lots of what my dad calls "tulip trees" too. And then there's this one that hangs like a weeping willow, but has tiny pink blossoms. So beautiful! I do love spring.

LYS Review

Yesterday was the first Saturday we have had in awhile where nobody had anything at all scheduled. So after doing Nothing for awhile, the VIP and I went to a couple of LYSs. I am going to review one, as I'm going to leave the other one for another time.
Nangellini is in Center City Philadelphia. We were lucky in the fact that it stays open until 8pm on Saturdays. It took awhile to get there, as we were coming from Germantown. It was just as easy to go through town as it was to find I-95 to follow the GoogleMap directions. We saw some *interesting* parts of town, I'll tell you what. We went through Temple University, we passed the Shriner's Hospital, and then finally when we saw the statue of William Penn, we knew we were almost there.

Nancy who owns Nangellini has awesome hair. I was so fascinated by it that I forgot to take a picture! But the good news is that they have knitting meetup every Sunday afternoon, and the VIP says we can go sometime. She had just finished an amazing shawl, which the VIP photographed. She didn't have a whole lot in the way of sock yarn, although she had a lovely selection of Silky Wool that her assistant Nicole says that lots of folks use to make socks. I wound up buying two hanks of laceweight yarn, because it was such an incredible price and I *may* double-strand it and make socks with it. That was on the advice of the lovely Nicole. They very kindly wound it into center-pull balls for me and we chatted about all the wonderful yarn and the artwork and the clothing that she has for sale there.

In case you want to go, you can park for free in the Whole Foods parking garage. Apparently at some times you must get your parking ticket validated with a purchase, but when we went it was free parking time so we didn't have to. We bought supper there anyway. They have a wonderful buffet for $7.99/lb.

Here are a few more of my favourite images from yesterday. Enjoy! Click for big, it is worth it.

Yes! We Are Going

Finally, after 25 years, I am going to a Yes concert. They are coming to Baltimore and I bought our tickets today. Now I need to pay for them! I have some wool patchwork blankets I'd like to sell on Etsy, but I don't know how to get started. Can anyone help me?

PS I also have a pair of Jaywalkers knit from Austermann Step that I will never wear. Anyone want to buy/trade for them?

He Is Risen

Happy Easter to everyone. As much as I love Christmas and all that it signifies, I love Easter even more. For one, I don't have to fret about endless parties and gifts and all that. It is just mostly a family day, with an extra-nice dinner if you like. This year Easter means even more to me. I feel like this should really be New Year's instead of January 1. I hope you all have a wonderful spring, and that you get what you want and need.

Occasional Zinger

Last night, it being a Tuesday, the VIP spent time with his DS (my DSS). I was commandeered to drive to NJ, because the VIP has been sick lately and was too exhausted after work. So I brought my sock-in-progress, and the pair of socks I had just finished for DSS. He is such a joy to knit socks for, because he loves anything I make for him. Anyway, after supper, they were working on his homework. He had some vocabulary words. Here is the convo:

VIP: "What do you call the back of a ship?"
DSS: "The stern."
VIP: "Correct. And don't ever call it the 'hind-quarters.'"
DSS: "No, because that would be the poop deck."



Want to see my latest Kaffe Fassett socks?

This just in:
Madeleine Albright loves to knit socks!

I Like It Here

Go have a look at my beautiful city.

And then go have a listen to this woman from Philly, who does amazing accents.

Now With Actual Knitting Content!

Since there's an extra day this month, I decided to post. Hang on!

In the left-hand column is three shots of the same pair of socks. Before I left Logan, the LYS got in some 100 g bags of Bearfoot mill-ends. I bought a couple, wound up all the little tiny skeins into walnut-to-golf-ball-sized balls, and tried making a somewhat fraternal pair of short socks. I used my regular needles, and my regular stitch count, but they fit my DD. So they are hers. I'm not a huge fan of Bearfoot for socks, anyway. I still have 200 grams left, in basically two colourways, so I think I'll make a couple of Moebius scarves to have on hand for whenever I need a gift for someone special.

The right-hand column is yarn given to me by Prairie Mama as a going-away gift. DD saw it and begged for socks from it. The yarn pooled quite strangely, but DD loves pooling socks. The second photo down is a pair for the VIP, which started out life as a Brown Sheep mistake, which I overdyed. One sock has a Harry Potter-like lightning bolt going up it. The last photo is proof that I have actually been knitting for myself as well. All of these are mine. All have Wendy Johnson's short-row heel (which I finally learned!) Across the top is Austermann Step, Regia Kaffe Fassett, and Opal Zebra, which I overdyed pink. On the bottom row is Regia Galaxy, the new Noro sock yarn, and Lorna's Laces. I haven't worn or washed the Noro yet, but I did knit it on a half-size larger needles than I normally use, because although it has nylon, it is not superwash. I am expecting it to felt a bit, but hopefully it won't shrink too much. If it does, one of my small-footed friends will have a nice birthday present! There's one more pair that I made for the VIP's son, but they got given away before being photographed. I'll be spending most of the weekend with him, so I'll see what I can do about getting a photo.

Currently I am working on another Kaffe Fassett pair. I think I want to collect all twelve colourways, and then after I've got all the regular socks made, make monstersocks with all the scraps.

Now that I've got that out of my system, I can concentrate on my second Stuff I've Noticed post. It will also be picture-heavy, so it may take me a few days to get it together. Talk amongst yourselves until then! I also have visited a few LYSs in the area, and have some reviews.

Of Special Interest

I got an email from LDS Living this morning, and there was an article about a young lady who has written a song around the special prayer that President Hinckley offered on behalf of the youth of the Church. Please go here for more information. You can download the song for free by right-clicking, and saving. I have iTunes, so I just saved it to my desktop as an mp3 file, then imported it into my iTunes.

Taking A Poll

Hi folks! I am taking the time now to clean up my sidebar links. I need some input, such as what links do you go to and browse, and which ones do you not? Are there some blogs or websites you think I and my three other readers would enjoy? Does anyone know what happened to Whoopsy Daisy? She seems to crop up and disappear without warning from time to time.

I've got another edition of "Stuff I've Noticed" brewing, but I'm going to wait a bit while I think of more stuff. In the meantime, please comment! Tell me what you want to know, or want *me* to know.

Stuff I've Noticed

I've made some observations in my month living here, and I'd like to share them.

We have to drive ten miles to get to church. And, said church has a brick-and-wrought-iron fence around it, and the gates lock. Last Sunday we had a potluck dinner after church. It looked like a bunch of piranhas had swum through. And far too many women wear pants and jeans to church. I still don't have the story behind that, but I'm surely going to ask about it! Our lesson manuals are distributed in English, Spanish, and Portuguese.

The banks are open seven days a week.

There's a Dunkin' Donuts on every corner. Their Milky Way hot chocolate is really good.

It's humid here.

They have so many streets and roads here, that they have run out of names. You may *think* you're on the right road, until you realise you want Bristol Pike, not Bristol Road. Also, there is a Street Road here. Talk about unimaginative!

There is a turnpike here. What that is, is a highway that you get to pay to drive on. Supposedly it is maintained better, but so far I haven't noticed that. The fun thing about the turnpike though is that they have these things called Service Centers. These are like rest areas on steroids. Each of them has a different name, and they are usually named after prominent historical figures. There is not only a gas station, but a building that houses at least two different choices of eating establishments, plus a convenience store. The restrooms are clean, well-lit, and climate-controlled. Many of the Service Centers have a pressed penny machine, which is fortuitous, since I collect pressed pennies. While you are driving on the turnpike, you'll see a sign stating the distance to the next Service Center. It also lists the brand of gas station, and the current price of gas. Also listed are the restaurants. That way, if none of those floats your boat, you can drive on. I think Service Centers are way awesome.

There is no Deseret Industries here. And the Goodwill store leaves a lot to be desired. But there are a million antique stores around.

The squirrels here are grey, not red. And they are FAT! They look like those pickups with an extra set of wheels on the back.

There's a laundromat down the road from the school. The sign outside says "AUNDROMA", because the L and the T fell off. I just *know* there's a little girl running around here named Aundroma, because her mom thought it was a cool name.

People talk funny here. I have to ask everyone to repeat themselves, because the first time it just didn't compute.

But overall, I like it here. I like the trees and the hills. I like being in a smallish town, but close enough to the city. And I like being near my brother.

Ceiling Cat Haz U 2

Our dear Prophet has passed away. My mother called me last night about 90 minutes after it happened, to tell me. My wonderful DD woke late this morning, but took extra care to dress in church clothes, in respect for President Hinckley. The Rexburg Temple is due to be dedicated next Sunday, and as I understand, plans had already been made for another member of the First Presidency to be there, rather than him, so it will probably go on as scheduled. If we follow tradition, President Monson will be ordained as prophet in the next few days.

I will miss President Hinckley. He has been so dear to us, even before he was Prophet.

Ceiling Cat Haz U Nao

If you don't already know, this is what I'm talking about.

Stuff Is Missing

You *always* lose something when you move. But I have lost some very precious things, and I'm quite upset about it. First and foremost, my marked-up scriptures. My working copy, so to speak. My BoM has something written on every single page, and the notes began in 1996. I even notated the pages where my daughter scribbled on them. Now, all is not totally lost, because before I left Rexburg, I made a copy of my BoM for a friend, and I know she would lend it back to me for a few weeks while I re-copied it. My D&C and Bible aren't marked up as much, and because of that I think all of those notes made it to my small-edition. The bag they are all in, is a special Kirks Folly bag that I got when I went to Fairyland 2000. It's a nice bag, but I really just want the contents. I am also missing a bag that has my pink Birkenstock sandals that my Mom bought me for Christmas a couple of years ago. I *think* it also has the special door-holding-open rock that I've had since 1991. I could be wrong on that count though. And then there's the sock yarn. I've lost my sock yarn. Not my huge sock yarn stash, but my leftovers stash. All the remnants of all the socks I've made. I had enough there for at least another six pairs of socks.

I have gone through almost every nook and cranny in this tiny house, and I have not come across these items. I am positive they all got into the truck with us. I am even sure I've seen them in the past 3 weeks. But now they are nowhere to be found.

Oh, and I woke up this morning with a sore throat. It's 20* outside, too.

We are home of the sharks......... yay?

*Today we have a guest blogger, DD*

Kai. So mai mommy and I went to the middle school to register for schooly... We got out of the car. We walked up to the scary doors of education and security. IT WAS LOCKED!!! There was a sign on the doors that told us to ring the bellithingy. So.... We rang the bell thing and the door unlocked. Kai, the first thing you see when you walk in is:




So take a little moment and uhmm... GAZE upon the very real-stuffed shark. I BELIEVE IT TO BE BEAUTIFUL....

Okais well lets stop staring at the purty sharkie now. SO! I shall continue my story.

Well, after seeing the shark, I was kinda excited. We walked into the office and..... there was the secretary. AHHHHH!!!! RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!!!! Waaaaaah she's really scary. Wowzers! *cough she kinda looks like a dragon cough* Yup yup. And so after a veryveryvery long time of giving her papers and her yelling at us for not having the right stuff, she sent us out to the BIG scary hall of edjumacatin to wait for the registration secretary. Well, here is a picture of how it was while we were supposedly "waiting" for the registration secretaryperson.



Wowies!! It was... BORIN-nuuu i mean it was so much fun and HAPPY BUNNIES!!! hehehehehehehehe I like orange juice.

I think the only thing keeping us from falling asleep was making fun of the office peoples names.... WHICH we did take a picture, but i don't really feel like putting it on here.

Well, the registration secretary came back and we talked to her for a bit. She is KINDA COOL! But, ya kno, not.... cool. And we had to fill out this paper thingy for gym clothes... grr i do not really care for gym.

Yes well this unpleasant experience could not have possibly prepared me for the next few days of.....ABSOLUTE HORROR~!! dun dun duuuuun... or for mathnetters, dun dun dun dun. DUUUUUUN!