A bit of bright color for a grey morning.  It looks like rain outside and I really hope it rains hard today.  The trees are so ready to burst forth with pollen that it's only a matter of hours before they let go.  Our car is covered in pale greenish yellow dust and I can just imagine what I'm breathing in.

I know how it's affecting the histamine levels in our bodies.  Peter Kevin almost never takes medication for anything but even he is giving in and taking allergy tablets.  A good rain shower would wash that pollen right down onto the ground.

This is the sparkly sock yarn (Summer Sky by Marigoldjen) that I bought at MDSW.  I am a bit further along and the yarn while not especially sqooshy, is fun to knit with visually.  I keep watching my hands to see how the colors pop up.  I'm making just plain stockinette socks and so far, I love them.  (the hot pink thing is my ipad cover.  It really is that pink, just not quite that bright).

And now for something completely different.....a Finished Object!  Pk's mock-Thorlo socks.  I know it's a bit difficult to see but the insteps of the socks were done in a one by one ribbing to pull them into the foot more and give them a closer fit.  It makes for funny looking socks but Pk wore them yesterday and he loves them.  I have a feeling they will become my go-to pattern for his socks.  The yarn is one from Artwalk sock yarn club.  It's merino/nylon.  Pk's socks can only be made with sock yarn containing nylon, he's hard on socks.  These were toe up with short row heels (because I haven't figured out how to do a flap heel toe up)

I started this last night.  The pattern is called Anthea and the yarn is knitpicks merino style dk weight in hollyberry.  I saw the pattern online yesterday while browsing the internet (as you do).  I had already purchased the yarn for another sweater that never came to fruition and I fell in deep love with the pattern (it is not striped- my printer needs to print out a warm up page because we don't use it enough and the ink cartridges get a bit wonky).

I don't often make impulse pattern purchases but the simplicity of the design appealed to me.  I will probably make it a bit longer because the cropped design is not figure friendly for me and I will definitely lengthen the 3/4 sleeves. 

The merino yarn is soft and squishy and easy to work with (the pattern is made in a cashmere blend-a bit pricey for me).  I thought this would make a cute cardigan to put on in the everpresent a/c in the summer.  I brought it in today to work on during the knitting group.  I want to show the people who are afraid of patterns that it doesn't have to be that difficult.

I'll be busy sewing once Em decides on a dress for the wedding.  We are going pattern shopping in 2 weeks.  She wants something simple so it will be doable.  I'm getting Pete a guyaberra shirt.  He wants a straw fedora to wear with it.  No suits and ties at this wedding. 

And for Roxie, a manicure update.  6 days later and not a chip, crack or dull surface.  Despite all the typing I do at work and all the things I do with my hands all day, my nails look just as nice as they did when I left the salon.  I am not a terribly vain woman but since I use my hands (and talk with them) all day in a public setting, I want to look neat and well groomed.  Keeping up a regular manicure takes time and patience and great quantities of acetone.  This took 30 minutes one afternoon and that was it.  It is so worth the extra 10 dollars it cost.  (and now Peter Kevin can't complain about the nail chemicals....)

Work is going along.  Nothing earth shattering or new.  Pk's office is undergoing a reorganization and he'll end up with a new manager, always an interesting thing.  I have a diagnostic mammogram on Monday to check an Area of Concern.  I'll have to leave work early so I can have the test done while a radiologist is on the premises (because it's diagnostic and not screening).  If she sees anything, I'll have an ultrasound done right away.  In my head, I know it'll be fine but there's a niggling part of my gut that is nervous since my mother lost a breast to cancer.  So, cross your fingers for me on Monday.

We have a chore filled weekend coming up.  Pk is helping our neighbor with some yard work and he wants to work on the siding.  I'm going to switch out the summer/winter clothes and I think I'll clean out my closet.  There are probably unidentifiable life forms growing in the corners since I can't remember the last time I actually cleaned the closet out.  If you don't hear from me next week, someome might want to send in some Marines (preferable young, buff ones).

Well, Mother's Day came and went and it was lovely.  When my family asked what I wanted, I said that I wanted to just do what I wanted and have someone else cook/clean up and do all the work.

And that's what happened.  Saturday, we put together a bag full of food for our mailman.  A few times a year, they put a brown bag into our mail box and we fill it with food for the food bank.  We try to fill it with as much nutritional non-perishables as possible.  After Ed (our mail carrier forever) picked up the bag around 11, I decided to head over to the nail salon for my self-promised manicure/pedicure.  (and was prepared to wait for them, being Saturday and all)

I was pleasantly surprised to find no one there.  I walked right in and planted my tired, worn out tootsies into a bubbling bath.  After scrubbing and cleaning, my toes are a color called Ruby Pumps.  Yep, sparkly and red.  Gorgeous with the pale, pale winter white of my feet.  (who am I kidding?  My feet will be that color all summer long.  My people, they are pale.)

I talked to them about the fact that while I love getting a manicure, I hatehatehate the fact that it chips in less than two days.  I was convinced to get a gel polish manicure (some women at work raved at how long they last without chipping) and look!  Two days later and my nails are chip free.  I haven't had a french manicure in years (the chipping factor turned me right off).  And, for the record, it is extremely hard to take a photo of your own hand. This is supposed to last for 2 weeks or so.  I type a lot at work so we'll see.  In two weeks, Kate wants a pedicure for her trip (she and Patrick are headed to Jamaica and she says she wants pretty toes) and I'm going back with her so maybe this will last until then.

I made dinner and finished the laundry.

Sunday, I got up at 8 to find Pk already gone to the bakery.  He said it was crowded but he managed to snag our favorite donuts.  He then made omlettes for breakfast and I spend the morning sitting in the sun reading the paper and photosynthesizing.  It was too windy/chilly to sit outside but the sunshine through my clean windows was nice.  So nice that I took a nap for an hour.

Kate came over in the afternoon and we spent the time weaving/knitting and talking.  El made angel food cake and strawberries and cream for desert.  Pk and Em and Kate made roast chicken with mashed potatoes and green beans.  It was delicious.  I sat on the couch and let them do it all. 

Kate sent me a lilac bush/tree (I'm not sure which it will be yet).  I love lilacs.  When my grandparents died, I wanted to dig up their enormous bushes and transplant them but one of the neighbors got there before me and took them.  This is a dwarf korean lilac tree.  I have no idea how bit it will get.  I was hoping for some blooms this season but I think the trauma of delivery might have killed off the buds.  They're crispy.

All in all, I got exactly what I wanted.  Time and space to just be. 

I know that Mother's Day is a hard day for a lot of people, for a lot of reasons.  I know that I am lucky that my family is good to me and loves me every day.  I am grateful that they "get" me and know that I don't want a flashy-get-dressed-and-be-the-center-of-attention kind of day.  I am not that person.  I like quiet and shared time and conversation.  (although I am looking forward to Friday when Pk and I are upgrading my iphone!)  I don't need a day for this.  I am the empress of my own little universe and I know it.

We talked of wedding plans for a bit and it sounds like things are firming up.  Em is also not a center of attention kind of person (and neither is Jim) so this will be low key and friendly.  We're going pattern shopping for her dress right after Memorial Day.  She wants to do it in person.  I will be doing a lot of sewing this summer since I'll be making Elanor and I dresses to wear as well.  We're thinking of t-shirt style dresses, just plain short sleeved, scoop necked a line dresses.  Mid calf length.  In some beautiful, drapey fabric.  Something we can throw a shawl on over when it cools off in the evening.  Comfy sandals and casual hair.  It's a beach wedding so no formal wear need apply.

And now I am back at my desk, waiting for my morning doctor to come in.  We have no one coming in until 10:30 so there's no rush today.  That is a luxury for a Monday morning. 



This is an illustration of a Primary Restraint Technique before the take down.



To help schools and organizations create a therapeutic milieu or classroom that is emotionally safe, physically safe and personally empowering for everyone in it…

I just finished my Cheerios and banana breakfast (I am allowing myself one banana for breakfast each week.  I refuse to give them up entirely.  I have checked the emails and thank goodness there are no voicemails needing attention this morning.

 

I am mentally psyching myself up for another Handle With Care session this morning.  My partner, Clarence, and I were just talking about mixing up the order we teach things to help make it more interesting for us.  We usually start off with an informal round circle discussion about safety and what's new and what's the same.  We invite folks to share their experiences. 

 

Sometimes, this is a lively discussion and sometimes, it is so quiet and deadly dull I want to scream.  We take a break and then move into the physical interventions.  This usually wakes folks up and gets a bit more interesting as they have to have physical contact with each other and that's when we learn who doesn't like to be touched and who gets overly aggressive.

 

Then we have a wind down and debrief the session.  For over 10 years we have done this 8 or 9 months out of the year, one Friday each month.  It's getting old and we need to liven things up.

 

So this morning we decided we're going to do the physical part first and then when we have our discussion part, we can talk about how it feels to be that close to someone else and how uncomfortable the Primary Restraint Technique can be.  None of the group this morning are new employees.  They are all familiar with this as everyone has to take the course each year for certification.  Clarence and I do an all day training to become trainers and then we train everyone in our building.

 

I'll let you know how it goes because of course I am crampy as hell this morning with a headache and lower backache.  hoorah.  This should be fun.

 

4 hours later...

 

The experiment was a success!  Getting folks up and moving around first and interspersing the talking parts within the physical parts made the training go easier and kept people engaged.  I "let" Clarence put me down on the floor today instead of the other way round.  It is just as brutal as I remember.  Now I have some paperwork to do this afternoon.

 

I am sitting here, eating the salad Pk made for me this morning (he says he wants me to eat well so I stay around longer) and feeling the soreness from the morning setting in.  Thank goodness it's Friday and I don't have much to get accomplished and can work at my own pace. 

 

This weekend is Mother's Day here in the US.  I hear people disparage it as a "hallmark holiday" and maybe it is.  But I'll take any excuse to have my family all together for a meal. Pk is going to roast a chicken and make dinner.  I am going to sit back and let them pamper me.  I am going to get a sparkly red pedicure and maybe a lovely, feminine french manicure.  I will knit and or spin or maybe just sit and watch some X Files.  I'd love it if the weather were nice and we could spin in the park but I think today is the nicest day of the weekend. 

 

Otherwise, things are good here.  I know Pk wants to try to put some siding up on the house this weekend (this involves climbing on the roof) if the weather holds.  He and Elanor have been working on the garden beds.  They have pea plants growing up a trellis.  They look gorgeous (and I hate peas) and the few tomatoes and one pepper he planted already (for early fruit) are doing really well.  If we don't have an extreme hot and dry spell this year, we may get some nice tomatoes.  I'd like to do some canning if we have a good enough harvest.

 

Do you change out your closets for the seasons?  I put the off season clothes in rubbermaid tubs in the spare bedroom or leave them hanging in the closet in there.  So far, it's not been warm enough to think about putting away the winter woolies and taking out the summer cottons.  It may not be much farther off but it's been so hard to tell this year. 

 

But today is lovely and I am sitting here in my office with the window open.  The air is warm and the sky is blue and the sound of traffic is almost deafening sometimes.  But I also get to hear the sound of people all around outside.  It makes me want to speed up the next 2 hours so I can get out of here.  I always feel this way after I spend the morning with Handle with Care.  It's like a whole day of work condensed into a few hours.  I got nothin left.  I wish you all a great weekend.

It seems that most everyone loves bananas.  I don't have to give them up entirely, just not have them everyday.  Today I had some Special K with Red Berries-whole wheat flakes and dried berries.  It was almost as good as Cheerios with bananas but not quite.  I'll get used to not eating them on my cereal all the time. 

Friday I left work early, ostensibly to do the grocery shopping so we wouldn't have to run around on Sunday and do it but the day was so lovely, I decided to get my nails done instead.  Even if we didn't have food to eat, I would look lovely not eating!

I love getting my nails done and having them painted red (I'm Not Really A Waitress Red by Opi) but I hate the fact that they chip so soon and it's so noticeable.  I am a bit obsessive about chips in my polish and so I spend a lot of time touching it up.  I'm planning on a manicure/pedicure on Mother's Day but I think I'll have my fingers painted a pale pink.  Chips don't show as much.  My toes are a sparkly red color and I think I'll keep that.

MDSW was a great trip!  The weather was absolutely perfect-sunny and very bright and warm but not hot.  Pk has a bright pink nose because it didn't occur to him to use some sun block.  I used a tinted moisturizer with spf 30 and only had a lovely pink glow.

You can see the bright blue sky.  It brought out the crowds!  I don't like being in the middle of crowds like this but I managed to survive while we were outside.  Inside the barns it was a different story.  Don't people realize that if they stand in the middle of a small and very congested aisle that others can't move around them?  Evidently not because it was crazy crowded and trying to get from booth to booth was almost impossible. 

We did get through some of the barns and I was surprised and delighted to see a number of baby sheeps this year.  They were hard to get photos of because a large sheep (presumable Mom) would stand in front of them and block the view.  I did manage to get this one before Mom (a very large and wooly creature with suspicion in her eyes) stepped in front of her/him.  Just 10 days old.  I wanted to cuddle but Mom had other plans.

I had a friend from work with me (along with Pk and Elanor) who is not a fiber person.  I was surprised when she said she wanted to go but we had a good time.  There are enough other crafters there to make it interesting for non-knitter/weaver/spinners.  Like me, she bought some KettleKorn and honey (I got Cranberry and Buckwheat). 

We also bought a new corn broom.  Pk is in love with these brooms.  He was looking forward to going so we could buy a broom for the garage, I mean workshop.  We have one for the inside and it is a great broom.  (I should have bought one for my neighbor who is enamored of gas powered blower devices.  He needs to meet the broom).

We also bought some flowers for the front of the house.    They should fill the space in front of the window and are good in poor soil and full sunlight.  They look like small daisies and I'm looking forward to seeing them bloom.  Pk planted them yesterday.

I didn't find the icelandic wool roving I was looking for (no great loss, I have plenty to keep me busy spinning for a long time).  I thought these Paca Pops were adorable but a bit pricey for plain alpaca.  But what a cute marketing idea!

I bought these two sock yarns.  I looked at sock yarns all day but nothing spoke to me (actually EVERYTHING spoke to me but my pocketbook smiled and said NO).  These two spoke the most politely and they sparkle.  It's subtle but I think will make some gorgeous and fun socks.

The only other thing I bought was an egg separator and a mug for Pk.  I couldn't resist the egg separator.  Who wouldn't want that smiling face looking at them in the kitchen?  

Pk admired the mug so I bought it for him. 

Remember when I had all the trouble with my Namaste bag? (which I have fixed and use everyday because I love it).  They gave me store credit and I got this small bag.

It was just perfect for a day like yesterday.  It held my money and drivers' license and my epi pen (all the bees!) and various other necessities and went across my chest and wasn't heavy and left my arms free to touch sheep and pet wool. 

As for touching sheep, we squicked out my friend.  She couldn't believe that we were touching the animals and not running for the hand sanitizer immediately.  I said "they're just sheep, what's a bit of dirt?".  She said "but I saw poop!!" and that was that. 

It was a great day.  We wandered around the lots for the auction and saw a few great wheels and several huge floor looms and some things we couldn't identify.  Next year we're going to watch the auction and see how it works.  It's probably fun and who knows?  I could come home with a great wheel.......

The grocery shopping got done yesterday and the laundry.  We now have food and clean underwear.  Life is very good.

I headed off to my regular 12 week bp check up at the doctors last night.  I got my blood work done before the appointment and I was all ready for her to tell me that all my numbers are looking good. 

I have been taking my medication and eating more fruits and vegetables since Pk has started making us salads for lunch each day.  He makes amazing salads and somedays he makes fruit salads with lettuce and whatever fruits we have and a citrus/honey dressing.  It is so yummy.

Imagine my surprise/distress when she told me everything looks good but not the triglycerides.  I have been taking the Omega 3 fatty oils and all the fruits and vegetables!  I know triglycerides are a measure of fat in the body.  I have cut down my fat intake! 

Well, it turns out that the fruit we've been eating (and the banana I have on my cereal every morning isn't helping) is adding to the triglyceride level.  Any fruit that you have to peel to eat counts as a carb.  I knew that fruits are high in sugar but somehow I guess all that Food Pyramid stuff about "5 A Day for Health" sunk in and I assumed we were doing a good thing.

Sigh.  We can have the occasional fruit salad and it can contain things like pears, peaches. plums, blueberries and strawberries but no more clementines, tangerines, melons, BANANAS or mangoes.

The no more (or way fewer) bananas really makes me sad.  My favorite weekday breakfast is cereal, lowfat milk and banana.  She suggested I have blueberries with my Cheerios but that's only good when they're in season.

We also had a conversation about allergies since my bloodwork shows that my body is actively engaged in a war against the pollens (I didn't know blood tests could show this but evidently they can) and the damn hormone fluctuations due to perimenopause.

Some days I am so cranky and I have started to let people around me know it.  I am not cranky by nature and I hate this.  I can hear myself being cranky and can't seem to help it.  My sleep is interrupted and that doesn't help and parts of my body are so sore I'll belt the first person who touches them.  I am not a good candidate for HRT and really, this is all more annoying than anything else.  I can deal-it's the people around me who are going to suffer!  I have mild power surges but so far nothing extreme.  The scary part is that it could go on for several years.....

I have been awake since 3:45 this morning so I have a feeling the energy level will drop sometime soon so I need to get as much work done this morning a I can.  I think I'm going to take a half day and do the grocery shopping and then Pk and I can have a low key Date Night later tonight. 

Tomorrow we are going to MDSW.  I will make sure to take the epi pen (yellow jackets and hornets are ubiquituous at these kind of things), and load up on antihistamines.  I am really looking forward to it and so is Pk.  He likes to go to the show.  He looks at spinning wheels and says "I can make that" and of course he admires the Feeder Lambs.  The weather is supposed to be perfect.  Not humid so lots of yarn petting can happen.

How about you?  Are you feeling ok?  Any plans for the weekend?

At the end of the day on Friday, I asked a coworker if he had any plans and he said "No".  I said "me neither, isn't it great?"  and he agreed.

Isn't it nice to have one of those weekends where you have no real plans and don't have to be anywhere or see anyone?  And the weather cooperated and it was sunny and more mild than it's been in a long time.

Pk chose to fix the front of our siding. 

See the small black square there above the front door?  That's where the old roof used to be attached.  It had been covered with some flashing for a temporary fix but the siding needed to be repaired.

And look how nice it looks!  It took him most of his day but it is so worth it.  He used some of the siding from the back of the house.  It all matches in color and looks really good.  He was so proud of himself. We have enough pieces of siding that match to finish up the "public" sides of the house, the front and side.  We'll put some T111 siding on the back until we finish demolishing the old porch area and decide what to put in its place. 

I washed the windows and curtains on Saturday and did a general clean up (and of course did laundry).  I love the way the windows seem to shine.  I never realize how many water spots and how much dirt is on the windows until I clean them.

Today, we "puttered".  Pk cut up some logs so they could go out on the curb and I worked on his socks (and watched episodes of the X Files- I've never seen it).  It was a beautiful weekend.  We slept in and ate our favorite foods and let life flow over and around us.

MDSW is next weekend.  Pk and I are going on Saturday.  He is really interested in a "feeder lamb" (a small lamb that you fatten up and then have butchered).  I have a feeeling that it will cost more to feed and butcher the lamb than it would be to buy lamb in the grocery store.

Purple tulips!

I am interested in some Icelandic Sheep roving.  I had a conversation with a woman who raises them last year and I think I'd like to try spinning some.  I am not going to "buy all the things", just things I've never used or can't get anywhere else.  Or maybe some sock yarn.  The artwalk sock yarn club has changed and I miss it.  Now I have to go and actually choose my own colors.  Roxanne pulled me out of my comfort zone and I will have to make an effort not to fall back on my old faithful colors.

Oh, and a new broom.  The man who makes corn brooms will be there and Pk is looking forward to seeing him.  And there's the booth that sells honey and the potters and and and.....I just hope the weather is good. 

But before that, I have to get through this week at work. 

""Be grateful to everyone" means that all situations teach you, and often it's the tough ones that teach you best."
~Pema Chödrön

This is one of those no brainer things.  I try to remember that I learn something from everyone but often walk away from situations feeling like it was a waste of time.  It's often only later that I realize that I am looking at a situation differently because of the encounter.  Now if I could only remember that sooner.

Blogger is messing with me this morning.  When I went to New Post, I got the full line of options at the top, which gave me hope that I would be able to write a post with photos.  But somehow it won't work.  I should have known better but Hope Spring Eternal.....

Ha!  Where there's a will, there's a way.  I did an end run around blogger and voila.

These are some rogue daffodills.  That's the edge of our lawn.  There are a crowd of daffs up by the house but these few are starting a colony of their own down by the sidewalk.  Every year we say we will be bringing them back into the fold but someone forgets and mows over them.  And these are some tulips from an Easter past.  When I look into the garden bed, I can see the ghosts of Easters Past.  We don't have too many tulips left.  I love them.  We are planning to put some roses in this bed but since we know virtually nothing about growing roses, it will be a slow process so we can learn as we go.

Our weather has been so eratic.  Yesterday the high temp was 47 degrees (8.3 C) and today it's supposed to hit 74 (23 C).  That's a 30 degree difference between the two days.  It's impossible to dress comfortably and we are always checking the weather to see where we will be on any given day.  Layers are my friend.

We celebrated my brother's 45 birthday last Friday (his actual birthday was the 14th but everyone was busy).  I invited him and his family to pizza and wings and we secretly brought cupcakes and candles and a present.  He called and said that due to circumstances beyond his control he wouldn't be joining us.

We ordered food to go and descended on him at home.  It was fun.  We don't live too far but time and circumstances often conspire and we don't see each other as often as we could. 

We gave him a set of Pk's salt and pepper mills (the ones in the front).  Peter Kevin is getting good at making these and I'm so proud of him.  The ones in the back are pear wood and are rather heavy.  You could bean someone on the head and knock them out but they feel so smooth and warm in your hands. 

His next project is to learn how to make pens.  I'm not sure why he wants to make them.  I guess it's like learning to knit lace or to spin a certain kind of yarn.  It's the learning how that's the interesting part.

I am experimenting with a sock pattern.  I know I've spoken of Pk's favorite commercial socks.  He lovesloves Thorlo socks. 

He likes the cushioning on the foot and the fact that they are ribbed on the instep to make them fit better.  I have made a pair of socks that I ribbed on the instep and will try to add some extra padding on the foot by "darning" some yarn into the existing stitches.

The photo is a bit dark but you can see the instep pulls in with the ribbing.  They are the strangest looking socks I have seen. 

When I finish this one completely, I'll take a better photo.  For now, it's an experiment in progress.

This coming weekend is Clean the Curtains and Windows weekend.  As much as I love the clean bright windows, I don't look forward to it.  It makes me feel accomplished when I'm finished.  I ought to sweep and wipe down the baseboards, too but I don't want to be too ambitious.

But now it's time to get to work.  I have treatment plans to write and some charts to close and a client to chase down.  I'd rather sit here and watch the clouds float by and watch the leaves grow on the tree outside my window.  (Did you even wonder at how fast leaves grow?  It seems like one day the bud is just opening and the next, the tree is in full leaf.)

Happy Wednesday y'all.