This is so cool!

Not much else to say about it. Hope your Thanksgiving was wonderful.

On my soapbox (for a short minute)

I have fought with weight/beauty issues my whole life. (My father told me when I was young that I would grow up to be "handsome", when the idealized beauty was the Breck girl and Marilyn Monroe. To be a handsome girl was to be a real dog. Not that being a dog is a bad thing, but you know what I mean.) Here is a great little movie, sponsored by Dove, that really hit home for me. I think you'll appreciate it too.

Cutest thing EVAH

Go see my friend Kathy's surprise - and check out her website while you're there!

http://uniquedesignsbykathy.blogspot.com/index.html

Go here!

This is too much fun. Couldn't resist sharing it. I made it to level 44. I'll try again tomorrow. And it has been so long since I posted on this that I forgot my password. Ha!! http://freerice.com/index.php

How about a picture to make you happy? It was taken 2 years ago at the Tucson Rodeo right before the cowboy was bucked off.

Thanks, Norma

This is how low rent I really am.

My blog is worth $1,129.08.
How much is your blog worth?

At least this proves that I'm actually alive and doing stuff. Knitting's not one of em, some spinning happening, mostly PT on my hand. I don't want more surgery, that's for sure, so I'm following dr's orders and not using my wrist.

Coming up for air

Just stopping in to say hi and tell you that Ravelry is one hell of a great place to be. I can hardly tear myself away! Hopefully I will be inspired to take more photos and keep in touch a little better.

Red Scarf 2008

Go see Norma's post

http://nownormaknits2.typepad.com/red_scarf_project_2007/

(and for cryin out loud I cannot figure out how to make a one-word link to an address - no matter what I try it doesn't work)

and after you're done, you can come back here and click on the PayPal button over there on the right, or donate via Norma Knits. Thanks alot - this is a great cause that needs all the help it can get.

As a reward I will post a cute photo - it's Buster!

Monsoon rainbow

This rainbow was so big I couldn't fit it all in the shot. It's rained every day for a week now and it's a wonderful thing.

Before and after

We had our gigantic palm tree trimmed last week.

Before (actually in the midst) I couldn't find a photo of a true "before" - but those fronds hung down nearly to the ground



And after



It's weird looking now! The neighbor's pool was filling up with palm crap so it was time to trim it.

HAHAHAHAHAHA

Oops. Sorry. I was admiring my lovely snowdrop shawl photo and decided to enlarge it to REALLY enjoy it and whaddaya know, there is a BIG FAT mistake right in the center of the shot. So the joke's on me. I'll have to take a better shot and post it eventually.

Oh - animal shot!! This is my wonderful Max, looking handsome as ever...

Actual knitting

Well, OK, I finished the Snowdrop, but that was such an old project! I have started a new pattern, Loksins socks, by Cassie at http://cassiana.typepad.com/too_much_wool/ and I tell ya, this is a pleasure to knit. I have been having some issues with numbness in my right arm (I think tied to the severed flexor tendon), which is aggravated by using these small needles, but if I take lots of breaks to rest my hand and arm, I am able to make some progress. It is very nice, no? I'm sort of glad it's slow going since I won't have to take any extra projects with me on the plane.

See you next week! Maybe I'll have a whole sock done by then.

My oughter-graph

Here it is. Proof that I (sort of) met Stephen King. He signed a book. To me. It happened several years ago (I had some really long hair then) but the thrill is not gone. Thanks to Jaime for capturing the special moment for me. Sigh.

Snowdrop Shawl

I can't believe that I stayed on course and actually finished a project (OK, so I started it over a year ago, but hey). Here is my finished beautiful snowdrop shawl (although in this color it's more like the "Slushpile Shawl"). Pattern from The Yarn Harlot, of course.

Are my arms really this fat? Oy vey. Thanks to my production assistants Max and Buster.



Another view - Greta promised a nice closeup and she certainly delivered



And here's one without benefit of a body



This was made with a wool/mohair blend single ply bought on eBay and let me tell you it was a bitch to tink (at least that's what they tell me - I NEVER tink!) but the result is a very soft garment with a soft halo which I don't think comes through very well in these photos. It weighs 2.5 oz.

I actually have finished a couple pair of socks but the dogs were tired of helping me so we'll save those photos for another day. Now, on to the project I was supposed to finish for a friend's 50th b-day - maybe she'll get it on her 51st.

Night sky

I was able to see the International Space Station tonight. It was thrilling to see something move so quickly overhead. I looked up http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/realdata/tracking/index.html (someday I'll figure out how to make a link just a word or two) (but you know it took me forever to figure out how to start a new paragraph so there you go), and realized that they were going REALLY fast, like 17,200 mph at an altitude of approx. 220 miles. It was like watching a very fast-moving, noiseless, plane, just a speck in the night sky but I was still moved by it.



On the knitting front, I finished my first monsoon sock and instead of starting the 2nd one (uh oh) I read the directions for the latest STR kit (tempting, yes) and decided to start a new shawl. I needed a break from the socks for a bit. I started a luna moth shawl in a dark variegated wool I found on eBay a long long time ago. It's looking pretty good after 20 rows or so. The needles are slippery and it's a real change from the tight gauge I kept on the monsoon sock. I like this change of pace.



So, I need to post a photo for your viewing pleasure. Let's see...how about this? I found this in my folder marked "animals". It'll do.

Things I LOVE

I LOVE deciding that I won't have surgery on my finger, since I am now able to do all the things I need to do and I don't really need the tip of my little finger to do those things. The thought of not having to go through surgery and PT is making me giddy with happiness.

I LOVE the blossoms on my tangerine tree - they smell wonderful

I LOVE my dog Buster. He is as sweet as he looks. I love Max and Greta and the cats, too, but I thought this picture needed to be shared.

I LOVE the book I'm reading: Too Far From Home, by Chris Jones. It's about the astronauts who were stranded on the space station after the shuttle Columbia was lost. Just a fascinating story!

I LOVE my Socks That Rock - This is the first sock, and the pooling colors are so beautiful. I thought this yarn would stripe, so I am thrilled that the result is this (front)

and this (the back)I sure hope the second sock will match. Progress is slow, as I only have about an hour each evening to work on this.

What I mostly love is that I have so many more things to list on this post than I did on the last.

Know what I hate?

I hate when I cut my finger and find out I severed the flexor tendon and I have to go have my finger flayed and fixed.

I hate that I can't knit. Believe me, I tried. I did about 12 stitches, very slowly, but the pain was icky and I gave up.

I hate giving up.

I hate waiting for the doctor's office to open so I can call them to schedule the aforementioned flaying. Craig thought I would take a photo of my sliced pinky and show it on the blog but I decided not to. I will post a photo of the after-surgery if it's disgusting enough.

I promise to post a pic of my STR sock which is going to be beautiful. I hope I can start working on it again soon.

Critters

It's March and the temps today hit the 90's. Whew! Here is what I originally thought was a hummingbird (picture taken with high speed setting while the moth was in flight - how cool is that?), and a lazy black bee which was blissfully buried in the same flowers.

Rockin' Socks

I used to hate knitting socks. I love it now that it's about the only thing I can wear here in the desert. Anyhow, I finished my first self-designed pair last night, and they are cute, and I will post a picture as soon as I make a light box, which I've been wanting to do for a long time.

Yesterday I got the first shipment of the 2007 Socks That Rock yarn 'n stuff (stuff being a binder and a button and a very cute teeny tiny skein of yarn for emergency use). The yarn they sent is too beautiful for words, so that will also have a picture (soon, I swear).

My daughter, who finds the best stuff online, sent me this link, in case you are looking for pirate bandages or other cool stuff. http://www.mcphee.com/index.html

More Grandma

Gosh, I really loved her. She died when I was 9 years old. I was with her (a trauma for another day) My brother sent this photo, which I can't remember ever having seen before, but I remember the hat and gloves, which played a large part of dress-up. Grandma had a box in her closet that had only dress-up stuff for the girls. I can still see the navy blue dress and the black velvet pumps. Thanks Pete!

Grandma's cherry tree

I just realized that I haven't posted for a long time. I also realized that I never posted the photo of Grandma's cherry tree. So here it is. That's me (the tall kid) and sister Andie with Grandma. The house still stands in Chicago, but the tree is long gone. Can you see the date at the bottom?

Oh, by the way, happy Valentine's day!

My fortune

My Fortune Cookie told me: Sheep will begin to unsettle you. Get a cookie from Miss Fortune