One month from today is Christmas.  The mad rush toward the holiday starts on Friday (at least here in the US it does) with Black Friday.  The media will stoke the frenzy with updates on how many shopping days there are left and people will start to get that crazed, dazed look in their eyes when you ask about their holiday plans.

So.  I want to take the next few days and savor the quiet and enjoy my family.  They're all coming for dinner.  Em and Jim and Jim's sister and Em's friend Laura.  Kate and El and Pk and I.  Seven people who all mean the world to me.  I want to enjoy their company and not let the impending hectic-ness that is the Christmas season dampen our day.

I spend time frequently counting my blessings and being thankful for what and who I have in my life.  It's not always kittens and rainbows but it's not all guns and garbage either.  There's plenty of goodness and happy to balance out the other. 

I'm inordinately proud of my girls and how lovely and talented and smart they all grew up to be.  I wonder at the beauties who were once tiny bundles that I cooed to in the wee hours.

I'm proud of and thankful for my husband who does his best each and every day to make sure I am taken care of and that I have what I need and most of what I want.  He is a constant source of joy in my life.

I'm thankful for finding knitting even if it was so late in my life.  Because of it, I found a community that I didn't know existed.  I'm thankful that I can share in the bits of other lives and share bits of mine in return.

       

And I almost forgot.  Pk and I were in the store yesterday looking for some replacement bulbs for some holiday lights and I found canned pumpkin.  I was a glutton and bought 4 cans.  I can use two this year and put two away for next year when this shortage spills over and it's hard to get.  So, I'm grateful for the goodness that is pumpkin pie.

I want to leave you with the quote that lives at the bottom of the blog.  It's one of my favorites.  It's on a piece of orange paper on the bulletin board that's in front of my desk.  I see it every day and it reminds me to share happiness and joy with others and not just the complaints.

Thousands of candles can be lighted from a single candle and the life of that candle will not be diminished.  Happiness never decreases by being shared.

-the Buddha

Whether you're celebrating Thanksgiving tomorrow or not, I wish you a day filled with joy and peace and friends and family.

Good Sunday afternoon!  We've had a quiet weekend here at the Wood household.  Friday, I left work early to join Pk and some of his coworkers for lunch.  I've heard about these folks for a couple of years but had never met them.  It was good.He works with some nice folks.  


  While they went back to the office to work for another hour, I went to Barnes and Noble (bookstore) and bought a cup of coffee and decided to sit and knit and wait for Pk.  I found a table in the sunshine and sat by the window (it was very crowded for early Friday afternoon).  I was listening to The Friday Night Knitting Club by Kate Jacobs and working on a sock.  It was just about perfect. 

 I sat there for an hour and then Pk and I got on the train to come home and went to "our" bookstore and sat for a few hours. ( Ours is bigger and was far less crowded).  I bought the new Stephen King book, Under the Dome, (1074 pages!) and the new Star Trek movie.  I'm rationing myself with the book.  I love Stephen King's books and more than once I've given myself a headache reading far into the night and early morning.  I want to read this for enjoyment.  It'll probably take a long while but who's in a hurry?  (btw?  So far, it's really good).

Saturday was laundry day and some spinning was accomplished but that was about all. I woke up with a skull crushing migraine and was moving slowly about the day.    I'm in the home stretch with Pk's alpaca.  When I went to bed, the headache had moved off and left some residual soreness behind. 

We got up early today and went to Produce Junction.  It's a place where they only sell fruits and veggies and they sell them cheaper than the grocery stores.  Sometimes, this means that you have to buy produce that is not quite ripe so you have to make sure you've got time to let it sit.  And you've got to know your fruits and veggies.  Some things just won't ripen anymore once they're picked.   We got apples for pies on Thursday and some other goodies. 

When we got to the grocery store, we found out that our Thanksgiving meal was threatened.  The store has NO CANNED PUMPKIN.   None.  Nada.  I asked one of the managers and he said Libby was having some problems and they don't know if they're getting ANY in this week at all.  Now, I have no idea how much pumpkin pie is consumed in this country all year but I would make an educated guess that most of it is consumed the fourth Thursday in November.  When I first got married, I bought a pumpkin and cooked it and pureed it and made the crust from scratch. (I was soooo good).  Nowadays, I use plain canned pumpkin (I like the texture better than what I cooked myself, not to mention that it is WAY easier) and spice it up myself.  Today, I bought cans of pumpkin pie mix (I know!  I've never bought them before).  I was desperate and I didn't want to buy a frozen pumpkin pie.  And what if they never get any regular canned pumpkin in?  I couldn't risk not having pumpkin pie (I TOLD you about my family's obsession with traditional foods, right?)

Pk was afraid it wouldn't make a good pie so he 'suggested' I make a pie today to make sure it would be ok for Thursday.  Since I bought enough for 4 pies, I did.  The mix has sweetener and some spices in it.  You have to add evaporated milk and eggs.  I added extra spice and it really tasted the same as always.  The pie baked up beautifully.  I also made the fruit relish so it can sit and absorb all the cranberry flavors. 

There is beef stew in the crock pot and bread in the bread machine and the house smells so good. There is a quiet peacefulness in the air and I am loving it.  Pk and El are working on fixing her computer.  I'm working on my wildflowers shawl.  I'm almost done the body and getting ready to start the knitted on edging.  I'm really hoping I can remember how I did it last time.

The rest of the evening will be dinner, maybe a movie and then an early bed.  It's a short week for us (YAY!!!) but it'll be a busy three days.  This time of year is tough for a lot of people and my job gets harder from now until January. 

I hope you are all having a good weekend and that it contained enough work so you feel productive and enough play time so you feel rested.  Have a good week!

Did you ever have one of those weeks where you blinked your eyes and not seconds but whole days have gone by?  I am having one.  It hasn't been a terrible week (except for some intestinal virus which seems to be making the rounds) and it hasn't been a particularly productive week.  Just a normal, everyday very-warm-for-November week.

I don't even have any good progress shots.  I haven't spent any time on the bayerische sock.  It takes a fair amount of concentration and I haven't seemed to have it lately.  I have been working away on the wildflowers shawl.  It's pretty but looks pretty much the same, only bigger.I fell asleep with it in my hands the other night around 9:00 pm.  I've just felt tired and have gone to bed early every night. 
( Next week is Thanksgiving here in the US.  It's one of my favoritest of holidays because it's all about the family/friends and the food.  We have the same menu (my family is nothing if not consistent, violently so) and the number of people varies depending on who needs a place to be.  I have been fortunate that the girls are always home for dinner (and often bring friends).  I know the day will come when I'll have to share them with inlaws so I'll enjoy this time.  We have to do the shopping this weekend and the stores will be mobbed so it's either after work tomorrow or early Sunday morning.  I don't usually take a list, (I know what we're out of since I do all the cooking,) but for this meal, I'll make one.  I could get into trouble if the fruit relish was missing something or the stuffing wasn't full of sausage!

Does it feel like Christmas is creeping up behind you (quietly and very fast) and is about to poke you on the shoulder and say "I'm here!"?  I know that it's 5 weeks from tomorrow but my head just can't accept it.  I see all the lovely knitted gifts and wish I had planned some things for my loved ones but I didn't and I refuse to stress myself out by trying to quickly knock out something before the holiday. 

Interesting discussion going on in a forum this week about the appropriateness of knitting in seminars, church, meetings,etc.  Someone made an interesting point.  She said (not a direct quote here), that just because our hobby happens to be portable doesn't mean it should be taken out everywhere and that knitters shouldn't feel that they have a "right" to knit anywhere they please.  It can be distracting to others.  Of course this raised a hue and cry about "not being able to listen if my hands aren't knitting" and other such protests.  (and I do not mean to belittle anyone with ADHD or any of the autism spectrum disorders.  I fully understand how difficult it can be to sit still)

I know I don't listen well at meetings sometimes so I make myself take notes.  This means I doodle all over the page. You can tell how bored I was by how decorated the notes are.  I don't think I'd be insulted if I were speaking and people in my audience were knitting but then I understand that you can listen and knit at the same time.  There were a surprising number of people who think it is insulting and disrespectful to knit when one is part of an audience.  

I'm not sure how I feel about the whole thing.  I do not knit at work.  Not even at lunch time.  They've made the corporate opinion on that subject well known.  No big deal.  It IS a business, not a leisure time hang out.  I have taken my knitting when I've gone to trainings.  I sit in the back and quietly knit and pay just as much attention as anyone else.  No one has ever asked me to stop or complained.  I've never been bothered by someone else's knitting (although to be honest, only once did I run into someone else with yarn and she was crocheting).

As far as church goes, a minister wrote that although she would never ask people to stop knitting during services, she thinks it's not too much to ask someone to give up one hour a week to concentrate solely on God.  Even though she freely admits that she doesn't think God really cares if people knit and worship as long as they're worshipping!

So what do you think?  I don't think I have a "right" to knit everywhere and I can go out places and not take knitting with me.  Knitting is something I do, not who I am.  I can separate myself from my craft.  I tend to take something small with me and if the opportunity presents itself, I knit. If not, then I don't feel deprived.

 Just as often, Pk wants to hold my hand and that supercedes any knitting!

I'm patting myself on the back today because I'm looking out of clean windows this morning.  Since it wasn't technically raining yesterday, I decided to just do it and get it over with.  It's funny because they never really look that dirty until you see them clean. 

As for the china closet, I'm listening to an interesting scifi book called Dies the Fire by M. Stirling about an unknown incident which has wiped out all the electric power (it has to be some kind of electro magnetic pulse because batteries don't work either and planes just fell out of the sky) and how people react to it.  It kind of reminds me of Threads which is about the aftermath of nuclear war and how people cope.  So, I may just listen to that as I wash and dry the china and polish the little bits of silver.  Or I may put that off till next week......

In between window washing and laundry yesterday, I managed to make one of these.  It's the Heart Sachet by Vikki Severs from Ik (summer 2005).  They posted it on Knitting Daily and I loved it.  I really didn't plan any holiday knitting this year except maybe for a pair of socks for my aunt who loves them but these spoke to me.  It's made of mitred squares all connected to one another.  After 4 squares I had this. 

 Look at all the blue and gold bits.  Those are the last two stitches of the squares that have to be put on stitch holders.  I used bits of contrasting yarn to make it easier to work with.  Doesn't look like much, does it?                                                      I ended up with this.  It's stuffed with cotton balls and some lavender flowers.  I thought it would make a nice gift for my aunts.  They're both in their late 70's and really don't need/want any more tchatchkes.  (sorry for the flash photo.  Yes, it's grey again, although the sun looks like it's struggling valiantly to burn off the clouds).  The yarn is from Roxanne at Zen Yarn Garden.  It's the Geogia O'Keefe colorway called Iris.  I tried to make socks with it but no matter what pattern I chose, it pooled in a way I didn't care for.  I hung onto it hoping something would come along and I'd find a purpose for it.  It worked pretty well for this.  I think the yarn I used is a little thicker than the yarn specified but I didn't think it would matter because size wasn't an issue (well, ok, who wants a sachet as big as their head?)  It's sitting on two hanks of handspun alpaca for Pk's sweater.

Pk and I went to see Men Who Stare at Goats on Friday night.  It was funny but very odd.  We had dinner and walked around the Farmer's Market.  It's open till 9 on Fridays and it was only 8 but so many stalls were already closed.  It was weird and we felt like intruders as we were almost the only shoppers there.  We bought some kielbasa from the polish meat place.  That'll be dinner tonight with some sauerkraut and pierogies. We also bought some movies.  Buy 3, get one free.  We bought Hancock, Independence Day, The Three Musketeers (old one with Michael York, Oliver Reed and Charleton Heston-lots of fun) and the new version of The Women.  I love the 1938 version of The Women.  It's so catty and the clothes/makeup/lighting are beautiful.  I like the new version almost as much although it's not nearly as back-biting.  Very different in feel and women's lives have changed so much in 70 years. 

Well, I'm off to make some puffy omelets for breakfast and then have some time with the spinning wheel.  I need to make another sachet sometime but now that I know how to do it and how long it takes, there's no rush. 

Enjoy your Sunday.

It's a Saturday morning and it's one of those days where it's not quite raining but it's not dry either.  It's been like this for 3 days now.  I got up and showered and instead of going and getting breakfast and starting the laundry, I sat down with the computer.  Pk made some toast and the smell is making me hungry so breakfast will happen soon. 

But first, I wanted to respond to Bells' comment on my last post.  She wanted to know if I had come to "love ravelry".  And my answer is a qualified No.  There are parts I like.  For instance, I like being able to search patterns and to have interactions with other like-minded individuals.  I like that it collects information on yarns and techniques all in one place and they are easy to access. 

I'm not interested in uploading my collection of needles, my yarn or my projects.  I don't enjoy looking at other people's stash (I totally don't get the Flash Your Stash people at all).  I like to see what other people are working on and how their projects come out.  I loved looking at what  people made for holiday gifts (there are some really lucky  people out there this year who are going to get some gorgeous handknits!). 

I joined ravelry because so many people use it as a link for patterns and I couldn't see what they were talking about unless I could access the site.  I use it several times a week but I will admit, mostly to occupy myself during downtimes at work.  I'll pop on and see what's going on in a group and read posts and then pop off.

I think it's a genius idea and they timed it perfectly.  I wish it were less knitter-centric and open to more crafts.  There are a lot of creative folks out there who do amazing needlework of all kinds.  I like to look at embroidery arts (and I love Piecework magazine for this) and often I think some of the knitters look at this as an intrusion into "their space".  Not everyone, but often it seems like we are not as welcoming as we'd like to think.

I like the forums for their variety of discussion topics but they are so much cotton candy most of the time.  People post whatever comes into their heads and I sometimes wonder if they gave it any thought at all.  Some of the responses I read make me stop and say "whoa" because they're thoughtless or nasty.  The internet is somewhat anonymous but that shouldn't give people carte blanche to say what they're thinking.  We all have a filter between our brains and our mouths (or our fingers when we are typing) that should keep some thoughts inside.  Some people seem to have very thin filters. 

I don't think I'm smarter or have more common sense than anyone else.  I dont' think that my thoughts are worth more or are more considered.  I just try to make sure I give some thought to what I'm saying and how it will affect others before I post.  (This comes from growing up with a father who would say whatever he wanted no matter how hurtful, i.e. "your sister is the pretty one, it's a good thing you're smart", and didn't realize that you can forgive but you don't forget).

"Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will break my heart".  This is so true, it's a no brainer.  And I wish people would remember it before they blithely hit the reply button.

Having said all that, Ravelry is a good idea and I enjoy it.  Do I love it?  Nah but I don't hate it either.  Like all internet things, it's a way to reach out and make some connections and have some fun.  It's not the be all or end all but it doesn't have to be.

Wow.  A long answer to a short question.  I know there are those people who will disagree with me and that's ok.  I'm only one person and since Bells asked, I thought I'd answer.   

 Today I want to spin.  I should be spinning for my Ply by Night group but I want to work on Pk's alpaca so I'm going to ignore the shoulds and do what I want.  I do have to clean out my china closet and wash the things inside and polish the silver pieces.  The holidays are coming and some things can't wait any longer.  If we have a nice weekend soon, the curtains and windows have to be washed.  Unfortunately, when we have a rare nice weekend, I don't feel like doing chores.  Tomorrow is supposed to be sunny.  We'll see.

Have a good weekend!

This is blog post 499.  How weird is that?  (and how wordy!)  What have I learned in all that time? 

I learned that

• people who don't even know me in real life can be kind
• and generous
• and, yes, loving
• I can write whole paragraphs without saying anything
• I really like having the blog even if sometimes I'm not sure if anyone is reading
• I'm still not ready for facebook
• or twitter
• I am a very slow knitter but my skills are improving
• I like trying new things and the internet is allowing me to see what others are doing
• I'm probably never going to be a knitwear designer
• I'm ok with that
• I like shopping online but nothing beats being able to touch the yarn
• I don't understand why everyone runs out to buy a yarn if the yarn harlot says she is using it
• I like it that I can share a hobby with my daughters
• and even my husband
• spinning is as relaxing as knitting and one day I'll be really good

I've probably learned a lot more but it's been a long night.  No knitting here.  I spent over 2 hours on the phone with verizon techsupport.  Three different guys.  For some reason I could not sent out email.  I can receive it but got an error message when I tried to send it out.  It made it hard to reply to people.

The first guy was good and he seemed to really listen to me as I explained the problem and the steps we had taken to fix it.  He seemed to be able to fix it.  However, as soon as we disconnected, the problem came back.

I called back and got another guy.  He was not listening to me and kept trying the same thing over and over (something Pk and I had already done).  I thought about explaining the definition of insanity to him (trying the same thing over and over and expecting different results) but didn't think it would be helpful.  He decided my Outlook was corrupted and had to be reinstalled.  We didn't think so but we tried it.  He's going to call me back soon. (I'm still waiting)

We reinstalled Outlook and called back.  This time I got a guy who once again listened.  Especially to the part where I told him the machine came with Windows 7.  I heard his aha moment.  Windows 7 and Outlook XP have compatibility issues (Windows 7 seems to have issues with lots of things but then it's a new windows product).  He figured out the problem and told me how to fix it.  It's a pita but it works.  He also gave me the number for Microsoft so I could call them and see if there is a fix for it.  He said they'd had over a thousand calls regarding Windows 7 already but he'd not heard mine before so he'd learned something.  I like a tech guy who doesn't think he knows everything.  And my favorite tech guy tells me we have to  go and buy a book on Windows 7 since he wants to buy it in the spring after they've had some time to get some more bugs out.  He's a tech guy who knows that he doesn't know everything. 

I like that in a husband, too.

I got my H1N1 shot today.  My employer required it and I decided not to put up a fuss and just rolled up my sleeve (again).  When I went over to the main hospital at lunch time, there were only 12 doses left so if I had just waited a little longer I could have said "well, I tried".  My arm is a little sore this time.  The nurse was really good but there was a lot of serum.

I've been working on my Wildflowers shawl which is nice fairly mindless knitting. This photo shows the colors  too bright.  The colors are really the bruised colors of a rainy, thunderstormy sky.  It's alpaca/merino and called Smokey Sunset. This pattern is not lacey but has little lace flowers embedded in the stockinette.  When it's blocked, the flowers will stand out and it will be beautiful.

I have decided to finish this and two of the three pairs of socks going before I start the Travelling Woman shawl.  I can't stand the idea of that many wips at once.  It gives me a headache.

This is the yarn Jim gave me for my birthday.  The color is a soft gray and there's enough to make a scarf or maybe a hat.  I don't currently own a hat (I hate them, they always make my head itch) and I'm thinking I need one for the coming winter.

Here we have the artwalk sock club yarn for November.  I don't know if you can see the paper but the inspiration was The Scream by Munch.  The base for the yarn is bfl and it's probably the scrunchiest sock yarn I've ever held.  This is what I bribed Elanor with to get her to give up the yarn I want to use for the travelling woman shawl.  She is very pleased and not at all unhappy with the deal.  I'm thinking I'll make Fools Rush socks with this.  I've made them before and they show off the beauty of the yarn with a minimal pattern.

Group was difficult today.  I had a hard time getting folks to participate and I was fighting off the beginning of a migraine (funny aura and slow speech) so I was not in the best form myself.  No one seemed really interested and I just didn't have it in me to be entertaining.  It's a bit frustrating when people just sit there and look at you waiting for some words of wisdom to come out of your mouth and you have nothing. 

Today is Veteran's Day here in the US (Remembrance Day in the UK).  Pk is a vet and has spent the day reminding me to be mindful of the sacrifices that our men and women in (and out of) uniform make every day. 

So, thank you. To all the men and women who thought our country was important enough to give part (or all of) their lives to defend.  I appreciate your service.  I appreciate your courage and most of all, I appreciate you.