Everyone's NOT Working for the Weekend

Thank you for the bloggiversary wishes. Y'all are the best. (Hugs, hugs.)

Did you have a nice weekend? We did over here. The work thing ended up being a non-issue and the weekend really felt like an extended weekend. Amazing!

We took two walks in the persistent drizzle. Oh, clouds above, I thank you for the moisture you have brought to my parched yard. Aside from giving my thirsty plants a well-deserved drink, it meant all yard work was put on hold. Well, I did try talking Kidlet into going to the nursery yesterday but she refused and ordered me to clean the closets. Really.

We had dinner one night at a friend's house and then had the same friends up the next night. They have an almost 3 year-old boy and Kidlet and he were wild things, jumping and pounding on furniture (and sometimes each other). Kidlet was heartbroken when her requests to have them over again last night were denied. We needed a quiet night before the working week.

Did a little knitting on Hubby's sock. The cuff looks too loosey-goosey, but I need to knit another inch or two before I can properly assess it. I also am now 12 rows from being officially half-done with Clapotis. I finished the little bird over a week ago but haven't had time to give it the photographic treatment. Maybe when the sun comes out again I can do some visual updating since no one wants to just hear about the same three projects endlessly without photos.

We hit the museum to see the Frank Lloyd Wright exhibit. Lovely. I felt so inspired. Kidlet and I did projects with circle stencils and rulers. Seeing so many amazing things lately (via Flickr, mostly) it reminds me that I need to start doodling again.

No pizza was made, but I baked two loaves of bread.

I rubbed our dog's belly half the night, last night. She has a bad tummy ache. :(

Oh, one more thing...check this out. Love this idea and what happened to the webs

Rainy Days and Fridays Rarely Get Me Down

Despite the fact that Kidlet did that neat trick where she wakes up at 4 a.m. with eyes wide open and only falls back asleep 10 minutes before I need to get up for the day...

Despite the fact that I have a scratchy throat...

Despite the fact this three day weekend is starting to look less 3 day-ish due to work obligations...

It's lightly raining and it's cloudy and that makes this girl mighty happy.
Tea in the tea pot and homemade raisin bread from my Grandma for breakfast.
Homemade chocolate chip cookies from last night for a morning snack at work.
Feeling happy, lucky and melancholy all at once.

And today is my two year blogiversary. I may not be the most prolific, but I'm glad you hang in there and stop by when you can. It's all the folks I've met in my virtual (and sometimes real life) neighborhood that make this fun.

Enjoy your extended (or not so extended...I feel your pain!) weekend. Think I'll make pizza.

Friday can't come fast enough. Really.

The weekend...well, my moodiness continued through Saturday in fits and starts. I think it had to do with the instant middle-of-summer heat (at least in part). I go limp when it gets too hot. But many good things happened this weekend. Let's recap, shall we?

Dabbled in the garden and didn't make too much headway. I now have a pile of leaves from the fall that is about 3' high and 5' wide and another (much) smaller pile of twigs that I want to compost but I'm paralysed; I can't move forward. "Do I want the pile over here? Do I want it over there? Do I want to wait and buy a tumbler? Should I buy a wood chipper so I can chop up all the bits to make compost faster?" One small thing that may have pushed me a little further along is that I saw a nice compost set up at the local nursery yesterday afternoon for a fair price (like this one). I'm still waiting to be stimulated by the government so maybe when the check comes, I can consider it. I did at least plant Kidlet's Tiger Paws Aster, Echinaecea, some Thai Silk Poppies for me and silver leaf thyme. Got one packet of Snack Mix Sunflowers in the ground too. I was going to plant the tomatoes, but they just look so tender. I don't feel ready to put them out into the rocky, windy desert otherwise known as my yard.

Played mini golf! It was Kidlet's first time and about 2/3 of the way through, she started wilting in the heat. Cold fruit smoothies were obtained shortly after, as was a checkerboard and checkers so all became right with the world again.

Friends came up for pancake breakfast. Children ran amok. I drank buckets of coffee.

I'm 95% done with my bluebird. He just needs some eyes (and a nest). I'm hoping tonight will be the night for finishing.

First, thank you for all of your fine book recommendations. I need to write them down in my little notebook so when I have that dilemma; I've got a list to work from. But the book I had put on my queue at the library a week ago came up so I'm diving in. I chose it based on recommendation of Katie at GardenPunks. I'm nervous to read it because I know it is going to be full of scary info, but I'd better start educating myself (and growing more of my own food!) At least I joined the CSA this year...

Splurged on a few summer things for Kidlet and myself and then we took Hubby out for a celebratory sushi dinner...not sure if I'm officially able to release the details but congrats, Greg! It was Kidlet's first real sushi dinner and she was a champ. She didn't really eat much, but she was game for trying things out. Her favorite were the 'jewels'...tobiko, aka fish eggs.

Ok, back to the working week. Sigh.

PS. I apologize if this post is a little harder to read today since everything is smooshed together. I'm done fighting blogger today with the line spacing + photo issue. Don't know why it does what it does, but grrrrrr.

"Kidlet as a kitty with her friend, two beds, and a mouse"

My mood has been icky lately so instead of spreading that around, here's something cheerful (see picture above).

One thing that doesn't make me feel icky is that I'm about 90% done with my little bird. This is the first stuffed toy that I've made that has made me down-to-the-bottom-of-my-heart happy. I can't wait to share.

I'm hoping to kick some booty in the yard this weekend but the weather might kick me...90 degrees?! We've leaped right into summer. I can say that now, but it isn't unusual to have a brisk Memorial Day. Well, if the weather kicks my booty, I will finish my bird, make sno-cones and try to find a new book to read. I can't commit to any book lately. Any suggestions?

Have a lovely weekend, friends. Blow some bubbles, will ya? I think I will.

Flying Along

I'm cruising along with my little bluebird (that looked nothing like the pattern once I finished the 'head/body' so I happily started modifying). I need to get down to the yarn shop for some beak and leg yarn, but it's coming together so quickly. I love it. I think I'm going to make a flock.

I spent my Mother's Day cleaning the garage. No, no need to groan. It was AMAZING. Kidlet kept herself occupied for the entire three hours and I did a massive reorganization. I thinned out stuff last year so this was just putting everything in its place. I love the gentle ache of a finished project. Next week: the yard. It can no longer be put off.

I ate pie, spent time with family and friends (and had buckets of fun), cooked and knitted. I also revisited my Create-a-Thing-a-Day Month and while I was coming up for weekly themes, I found a theme that I want to explore for a month: children's books and illustrations. More details to come!

Edited to add: whoops! I forgot to link to the original bluebird pattern. See, mine didn't quite look like that little guy.

The Day of the Mama

It's Mother's Day and I give you a photo of a baby. I would have brought you flowers and chocolates but the flowers hadn't opened yet and neither had any store with decent chocolate. Oh, and I'm not dressed yet.

Happy Mother's Day to you...you know who you are. You work hard. I know you do.

Hope your day is filled with the good stuff. Y'know...sunny skies, wildflowers, cool breezes, and happy, smiling kids.

And a special shout out to my own Mama...I love you Mama! You are my best friend. I'll call you later and maybe we can do something, ok?

Done! (or Things are Looking Up)

Exam finished! I will start queuing up the movies. Thanks for the suggestions!

Super groggy, despite the gallons of coffee I drank this morning. I am sure the coffee will kick in about 7 pm tonight and I will knit like a fiend. Knitting...oh, how I've missed you.

The weekend after this abbreviated work day will include: a meet up with fellow bloggers and kids, breakfast with Mama, dinner with Mom-in-law and GMom-in-law. Garage cleaning? Compost pile formation? Creativity. Wine. Bread. Love.

Some "Argh!" and a Whole Lot of Random

Argh! Tom Waits tour dates are announced and the closest date is in Phoenix. Looks like I'll have to miss it. But it's dubbed "The Glitter and Doom Tour"; with a name like that, it is so hard to resist! At least I've seen him twice. Not gloating (much). :)

And I think I need to learn to crochet. Here are a few reasons why...

...so I could make a lovely blankie like Smosch and like Alicia.
...so I would have need for one of these nifty hook rolls by Bean.
..so I would have an excuse to purchase more gorgeous yarn (well, I already have an excuse called knitting, but more yarn can't hurt, right?).

I started knitting a bluebird today while waiting to go to Kidlet's school for their annual Parent Tea. 'Twas adorable. I love Kidlet's school. I didn't love Kidlet's meltdown when it was time for me to leave. She's having some big mama separation anxiety issues as of late. Poor little sweetie-bee.

Me? I'm feeling a bit better. I believe this was the culprit.

Tomorrow, final exam! I've hardly studied at all! Woo hoo! Flying by the seat of my pants!

I'm going to start loading up the Netflix queue with goodies to watch this summer, since I've only watched...hmmm...maybe one movie in the past six months. Any suggestions?

One question...

Why is it that as soon as the weather really starts getting good, I get sick?

Never fails.

My eyes are little red slits, my sinuses are full of fire, and I'm feeling small.

It rained last night and that is a mighty fine thing in my book.

Now go out there and have a loverly day.

Settling

The earth seems to be settling down a bit and I'm trying to do the same. Things are still feeling uneasy but let's just skip over that, eh? Onward...

From a friend I heard about a new CSA. After receiving some government money, I may do my part in stimulating the economy and join. The year before last, I joined a CSA that was linked to the co-op. It was their first year and I felt like I should support the effort, however meager it could turn out to be. I skipped joining last year because I wasn't digging the pounds of bitter greens we seemed to receive weekly. Now the co-op CSA subscriptions are creeping toward $500(!) so there is no way I will be able to give them a second chance. I know joining this new CSA is a risk, particularly since it is only one farm but I'd like to support them (and partake of their farm eggs...love, love, love straight from the farm eggs!). I'm really excited about it!

I didn't get much done at all this weekend (are you surprised? no).

--Got the hair cut but it didn't turn out at all like I hoped. Hubby seems to like it however; he has been telling me it looks really good. To be told I look very nice even though I don't feel like I do is a good thing.

--VERY glad Kidlet and I missed the Kentucky Derby. I would not have like to explain that they were euthanizing the poor, dear horse, right there on the track. So very sad.

--Made some pumpkin curry soup and chapatis for dinner.

--Pushed my way through oceans of paper in order to distill them into our Important Papers file. It feels so good to have that done. Now I know where to go when I'm looking for Kidlet's birth certificate, although I couldn't tell you where mine is.

Hang in there, dear readers. I'll be posting more interesting content soon. Just let me get through this week of final exams and then we'll be talking projects galore.

Meme Me

Katie over at GardenPunks tagged me for this one earlier this week. A wee meme to send us off to the weekend...yay!

What was I doing 10 years ago?

Hubby (long-term sweetie, at the time) and I had just moved back to our roots from our beloved, debauched New Orleans. I started working for the company for which I still work. I guess I am stable after all.

My to-do list/What I actually did recently

My to-do list is so enormous. Truly. But here is a sampling...

Get important papers together.
Make an emergency contact list.
Clean the garage.
Start the compost pile.
Get my hair cut.
Find a new doctor.
Study for my final exam.
Change my blog header

What I really did...

Made an emergency contact list.
Made an appointment to get a haircut tomorrow (yay!!!)
Tried to study last night but Kidlet was being a pill and wouldn't go to sleep. I heard her padding out of her room at 9:40, "Mama! I'm lonely!" Mama's patience had run out about a half hour previous. At ten, she went to sleep and about 10:15, I followed suit.

Snacks I enjoy

Oh, chips...how I love thee. And how you make my tummy hurt.
Cheese. I can't live without cheese.
And fruit. I always try to bring fruit to work so that I don't sneak out to the snack machine to buy the aforementioned chips and experience the tummy ache.

Things I would do if I were a billionaire

We would make a big family homestead. Keep sheep and spin wool. Give buckets of money away to help the plight of the honey bees. Become a bee keeper. Help Kidlet's school start a huge garden ala Alice Waters.

3 bad habits

Stressing
Being a cranky old lady
Stressing (can I stress this enough? Ha ha...)

5 places I've lived

Omaha, NE
Dillon, CO
Palo Alto, CA
New Orleans, LA
Reno, NV

5 jobs I've had

Dog Washer
Cook in a restaurant where the servers were Asian transvestites
Registrar for art galleries
Maid (starting at the tender age of 12)
Hologram salesperson

5 people who have interesting blogs that I'd like to tag

Me, I'm just going to tag a couple of homegirls...

Madre Adoptiva
Coyote Craft

Join in, if you like!

Have a splendid weekend, crossing things off your very own to-do list and not doing things on your to-do list like basking in the sun or watching the Kentucky Derby (argh! I think my hair appointment is at the same time as the race!).

Escapism

The earth keeps rumbling and we carry on. We drive north to our beloved desert lake and soak up the sun. I was chilly but resisted putting on my sweatshirt, trying to keep in the spirit of 'early summer'. I ask myself, 'what if this earthquake pattern continues like this for months? For years?' Gotta say, all this quaking doesn't do my little anxiety-ridden self much good. I am trying to just ride it out (ha ha). The one I experienced this morning was actually pleasant, sort of like riding a floaty air mattress on gentle waves.

Didn't get much work done in the yard this weekend. Tied up some rosebushes, did battle with the junipers (can I tell you how much I hate those plants (ie. fire hazards)?), watered and weeded. The whole backyard is in desperate need of loving care but I don't think it is going to get much until school is out (two more weeks!) and possibly until after the garage is cleaned out (soon? I can only hope...).

Things may end up being a little bit quiet around here for a while (no surprise there, eh?) . I am busy getting (well, attempting to get) settled into my topsy turvey work situation and finishing the aforementioned school. I'll try not to be a stranger.

Whoa, easy there Mama Earth

No, not a belated Earth Day post but just a crazy fact. We've had almost 400 earthquakes out here since February 28th. Yeah, 4-double-0. Just felt a cluster that had me half-diving under my desk. Luckily, the majority are tiny (1.2, 1.4, 2.2) but this is, as my geology professor would say, "an unusual pattern".

Well, ok...I do have a little something in the honor of (belated) Earth Day. A friend turned me on to these blogs, GardenPunks and Little Homestead in the City. Gotta say, I'm catching the fever to build some raised beds and grow food all year long.

Upheaval

I'm experiencing extreme work upheaval which is giving me extreme stress so let's look at those Monkey socks that I forgot to post a few weeks back, shall we? Knitting = comfort.

Knit in a one-of-a-kind colorway of Lorna's Laces sock yarn for my mama's birthday. I really loved this pattern. It never got boring and was always nice to see how it emerged with the colors. My mama was pleased (yay!). And I think maybe I'll knit up a pair of these for me next year. Yeah, next year. I've got so many projects lined up that I think my queue won't be in need of filling until sometime next year.

Stalled on Clapotis and a birthday bunny (like this one, if you can see past the whiskers), but I've just been too tired at night to get any knitting done. At least the semester will be over in a few weeks and...all knit, all the time, baby. That is, except for my create-a-thing-a-day-month project but knitting is creation, right? Actually, I've been thinking about the CTDM project (let's just call it that, eh?) and I'm really excited. I'm going to have specific themes for each week and I'm coming up with some good ones.

Hope you have a good one...

Poetry

This morning during the usual rush to get out the door, Kidlet pointed to a book that I had sitting in her room. I told her it was a book of poetry.

"What's poetry, Mama?"

I opened the book and read a brief poem about sleeping under the pines and on the boulders and how a calendar was no longer necessary because they were living in the moment, at peace. I explained it to her as best I could.

"I've got a poem for you, Mama, 'I love you'."

That's a good one.

Snow in Spring

Sorry, I've been a bad blogger-pal lately. Guess my mood is, well, moody. Creative projects are at a standstill, except for coloring in coloring books with Kidlet. I guess I'm just at a holding pattern while I finish up the last few weeks of school and get through the next little bit work stress (it's 'personal evaluation' season and I have to assist with an upgrade this weekend).

But despite the 'slogginess', I do have ideas.

--Taking a cue from the illustrious Keri Smith, I'm thinking of instituting my own little 'create-a-thing-a-day month'. It won't be until June since there's this thing called 'final exams' in May.

--Nessie has inspired me with her entryway to tackle ours.

--I need to start thinking of gardening and some fun ways to decorate the yard. I think I'll get Kidlet to do some rock paintings but I want to really go all out this year. Lights, lanterns, sparkly bits that shine in the sun, gnome houses...

Ahhh, just thinking about all that good creative stuff makes me feel better all ready. How 'bout you?

Lanterns and a Party

"You can tell it's a Halloween party by their spooky eyes." Kidlet is very interested in Halloween, despite the fact it's 6.5 months away.

Have a festive weekend, all! Maybe hang lanterns on your patios to celebrate spring...

How do I do what I do? A ramble on creativity...

Here is the question that was posed to me by Dominique...

"How can you, as a creative person, find the right balance in doing many projects simultaneously? How do you manage to complete many projects while keeping a healthy body and mind?"

I've been thinking about this question for about two weeks now. Pondering the question of creativity and how I shoe-horn it in to my life, made me question...what the heck am I doing? The answer slowly revealed itself to me. How do I do what I do?

I make multitudes of lists. While I am sitting in class at school or waiting for a computer to reboot (endlessly) at work, I make lists. Lists for arts/crafts/ideas I want to try. Lists for books I want to read. Lists of upcoming knitting projects. Sometimes I make the same list more than once but making the list multiple times takes me that much closer to fruition. Having such limited time means I need to distill the idea until it becomes very clear to me what I want to do. Once I'm there, I can execute it in fairly short order.

Be satisfied with small bits of progress. I find I just about lose my mind if I don't take time to knit at least every other day, and I'm better if I can get a few rows in every day. While I'm not adding a huge chunk onto my project, at least I have touched it and that soothes me like nothing else.

Finding creativity in the most mundane things. I carry my camera everywhere and try to keep my eyes tuned to the easily overlooked. I also try to look at activities that wouldn't be considered artsy in a creative light. Making bread. Digging a hole for a plant. Even cleaning the house with an economy of movement and a song in my head can be satisfying (well, not as satisfying as making a collage, but I try!).

Taking it all less seriously, although this is not easy as art has always had an elevated status in my mind. Somewhere inside me, I feel like I need to take it seriously, as if some collector was going to come across a pile of my stuff and say "Oh! You undiscovered genius! I will be your patron!" and shower me with accolades and cold hard cash. I need to remember that I'm doing this for myself, and that is all.

My creative life is quite limited right now. I have so many obligations: a full-time job, part-time school, full-time mama/wife/family member...I could keep going but won't for fear of overwhelming myself. I'm finding that I like to work on several things at once instead of slogging through one project at a time, despite the fact it feels counter intuitive (wouldn't it be faster to concentrate on one thing? for me, the answer is no). Despite lack of time, I still manage to end up with finished objects and I think that creativity in my life is one of the few things that keeps me sane (sane-r?). I also look ahead to the future for when I might have more time to undertake larger projects or expand my arsenal of the crafts that I do.

Thanks so much, Dominique, for bringing this question my way. It's been quite enlightening and cleared out a few mental cobwebs.

A Dilly of a Day

Despite starting out with a humdinger of a night the night before we left (Chest pains, anyone? 3 hours of sleep due to the lovely anxiety attack? Sheesh...), we had a fantastic day out of town yesterday. The weather was amazing, right around 70 degrees. Flowers of all hues and forms were in great abundance. It felt so good to be out, running around like a kid at Fairytale Town and being full of wonder at the Zoo (Ahh, the zoo. Such mixed feelings about zoos).

Some of the best...Hubby and I sharing thoughts and plans on the drive down. Running the Crooked Mile with our friends (who joined us for the Fairytale Town portion of the day). Watching the vulture spread his wings, Kidlet and I whisper back and forth about how amazing and beautiful he is. Eating veggie burgers and sharing milkshakes.

Hope your days were just as lovely. Back later this week with more knitting and some thoughts on creativity that I didn't get to relate last week (sorry I'm taking so long, Dominique!).

We'll show you the way...

Map to Fairytale Town, by Kidlet. We're finally going this weekend, yay!

I'm just going to pretend the weekend starts right this minute, despite the fact I still need to make crepe batter for dinner tonight, mop the floor, take a shower, take Kidlet to school and take myself to work. That's right, the era of happy relaxation has begun. The weekend is merely a state of mind.

Have a lovely one, friends.

My LYS away from Home

A week ago (just a week ago!) , I put out the feelers to find a good sock yarn for hubby. Raina voted for ShiBui, a brand I had not tried but I was intrigued. My beloved LYS has a large inventory however, ShiBui is not a part of it. Away to the web I went. The Loopy Ewe showed up in my search and as I had seen their name around on Ravelry, I thought I'd give them a go. Lovely folks and the fastest shipping EVER, definitely recommended. And the yarn, like butta'. Can't wait to cast on...just need to decide on the pattern.

Pleased to Meet'cha!

I have had the pleasure of meeting two lovely ladies through the blog, Ms. Noodle and now Crafty Bean. It's been great fun to put words out in the land of bits and bytes and have it turn out that I can meet flesh and blood people.

All Sunday morning, Kidlet's mantra was, "is it time to go meet our new friends yet?" After much stalling until our appointed hour, we finally got to meet up with perennial friend W and new friend, Annabel (Bean's daughter). The small girls had a good time romping about the park, as did the women who met and munched snacks in the sunshine. We have tentative plans for more meet-ups and camping. I can't wait! (Please tell me we really are going camping!)

And the photo has nothing to do with our meet-up except I thought it was pretty. :)

"You have a choice every day...will you do everything, despite the circumstances, to generate love and light or will you give in to the darkness around you?"

--Mayor of Newark, NJ, Cory Booker
as heard on Bill Moyers' Journal podcast, episode "Race and Politics"

Cast Your Nets

What shall we find?

Discovering new desires, finding new hope.

1. I want to write poetry. Don't worry, I won't burden you with youtube videos of me wearing all black, reading some supremely awful drivel that I've written in a dark mood during a thunderstorm. I think I need to read a whole lot more poetry before I even start, but the seeds of desire have been planted.

2. Also, I want to write a children's book. I have thought about this pretty regularly for several years (with my mom) and I think I (we) need to get rolling. Mama, get ready!

3. I believe I will finish school. I believe I will finish school. Repeat for the next 4 years.

4. Trying oh-so-hard to not be so high strung. Deeply grateful for hubby's hand signals to calm down when I am starting to get wound up. Maybe I will be more even tempered one day. I will keep striving (as long as hubby continues to make hand gestures...ha ha ha...remember, Boo?).

5. I love spring. Spring = hope + renewal.

Will be back shortly with my answer to little meme-y/question that Dominique posed and some words about the weekend (Hi, Liz! Hi, Bean!).

Dreaming in Yarn

I finished another project last night (Kidlet's dresser scarf) which has me down to two projects. My clapotis is almost half done but I haven't worked on it in almost a month in the interests of finishing my other 3 projects. And I still have the sneaky project to finish up (which is probably two nights away from completion). I'm really happy with my knitting skills lately. I feel like I've progressed quite a bit in the past year. I can now weave in ends without it looking like a big mess (thanks, Knitty!). And I'll have to post later the brilliant blog that I use to refresh my memory on seaming techniques (because I don't have the link with me).

Anyway, with all this finishing at hand, that means I'm going to be ready for new projects. Woot! Of course, I'll keep plugging away at the clapotis but it's about time for me to embark on some socks for hubby (still looking for the perfect yarn, any suggestions?). Also, I'm going to knit a little bird and nest for a little one's birthday in August (need some yarn for this too, but I've got ideas). I feel like I want to start another project too...but not sure what. It seems silly, but I feel I knit faster when I have several projects going at once. I used to be one of those folks that would dedicate all their time to one project and not start another until it was completely done. It was miserable, slogging through the one project, all the while staring wistfully at piles of patterns and scribbled ideas that I wanted to start. Now I can knit on whatever appeals to my mood, within reason, as I think 4 projects is my maximum load. I want to try a sweater but I have a phobia. Maybe I should take ol' Daisy out of hibernation and get a few more inches along until something else grabs my fancy.

And this concludes our knitting update for today. Feel free to wake up at any time!

Renewal

And here I am...one small person's stomach flu, tons of knitting, not-so-great nights of sleeping, a lasagne, a holiday, and one trip to the nursery later. As crummy as the tummy flu was for the little one, it made for forced relaxation (and knitting!) for me which was desperately needed.

We had a pretty nice holiday and renewed (at least in a small way) our Easter tradition of going to the nursery after Easter breakfast. It was an amazingly warm Spring day. Perfect. I couldn't resist picking up a container of icelandic poppies. I adore poppies; I think they are my favorite. Sure, it is scheduled to get cold(ish) again but I'm a sucker.

Things have been awfully quiet around here on the blog but to be honest, I'm not expecting a whole lot of pick up in activity, despite having some quiet time after an insanely hectic week. I haven't been taking many photos and don't have a ton to say. I think it's that time of budding before the blooms emerge where I go all quiet and just need to do some mental digestion.

Upcoming and what I'm 'mentally digesting'...I'll do a big knitting progress post in about two weeks (after my Mama's birthday so I will be able to officially reveal that super-secret project). Here's what I'm reading (very interesting, I'll save a post to talk about it when I'm deeper into the book). Thinking about my vision and photography (or lack thereof). The desperate need to learn to sew so I can use these fabrics. More dreams of new shoes. In other words, nothing new. Hope Spring is starting to sprout in your neck of the woods. Hugs!

Today is the Day

Four years ago...

I had to decide whether to be induced or be on bedrest for 3 days and then get induced.

I finished knitting a scarf for hubby with an IV in my arm, pumping in the drugs of induction.

A Brownie troop that was touring the maternity ward visited me about 3 hours into labor to 'see what a lady in labor looks like'. I smiled and was friendly. The nurse couldn't believe I didn't have any pain meds because I was so calm.

I watched the opening rounds of the NCAA basketball tourney, checking my bracket in between gritting my teeth and doing yoga breathing through contractions.

I remember thinking about 8 hours after being induced, after a particularly strong set of contractions, "Damn. If this was anything else in the world, I think I would throw in the towel and say I would try again another day." I kept the image me running long distances in my head. Push on through. You are strong.

Pushing was hard. Hubby was a blessing (as was the dear nurse).

I was gifted after 11 p.m.. I gasped, "She's beautiful. She's perfect."

And she is.

****

I went to Kidlet's birthday celebration at school today and it was so sweet. They place a work mat on the floor, light a candle and place it in the middle of the mat. Next, they surround the candle with little 'sun rays' (triangle shaped pieces of paper); each one has a month of the year printed on it. Kidlet was told to bring the globe and put it in front of March. Her teacher showed photos of Kidlet from each year that she's been on this earth. After each photo, she was told to walk around the 'sun' and then the children would do a handclap for the number of years being represented. Then we all sang Happy Birthday and Kidlet blew out the candle. Next, the children were allowed to raise their hands and say something nice about Kidlet. She passed out the muffins I made and we ate.

She's such a serious student! It was fun to see her in her school environment. The only bad part was that she got sniffly when it was time for me to leave.

****

I'll be back soon with a regular update. Things are just so freakin' hectic right now. But soon, my life (for a week, anyway) will be full of knitting and other happy things. Spring break, anyone? Heading to Mexico? Not me, just heading for work but at least there's no school in the picture.

This just in...

One of my favorite bloggers who went on hiatus over a year ago has returned to blogging...Loobylu! She was one of the first blogs I started reading four years (can it really be that long?) ago. Enjoy!

Wish me luck...

as I am still feeling worked over by this cold/flu thing and I've got an overflowing list of 'to-do'. I was trying to keep it together, but I have officially just stepped off into the region of 'oh dear, I still need to do what?!' (i.e. overwhelmed). In short, you won't be hear a whole lot from me for about a week until this 'house cleaning-home birthday party-school-school birthday party-school-and oh, don't forget you have to work' thing is all done.

Right now, this is test study avoidance tactic number 3. I should either just skip it tonight and try to sleep or get on it. (cough, cough) Nighty night, sweethearts.

And this was the good part of going to lab today...

There were only a couple going and I worry for their health with the upcoming cold snap. I will check on them next week.

Last night was so warm, we were outside in just long-sleeved shirts (well, I was in a light sweatshirt because I am always cold). Despite having been pile-drivered by this cold-flu thing, I suddenly had the urge to start cleaning the garden. Y'know, doing the tasks that should have been done in the fall: pulling dead morning glory vines off the pointiest rosebushes in the land, raking leaves, pruning (I'm never quite sure when this is supposed to be done but my lack of knowledge has yet to hurt me). I only managed to clear 3 rose bushes of the twisty twiny morning glory skeletons and pulled out one dead bush, but it definitely is a start. Of course, right before the big party weekend and a planned pre-birthday jaunt to Fairytale Town, it supposed to start raining and possibly snowing. I'm basking in the warmth while I can...that is, between running back and forth between work and school (oh how I love lab week, not at all).

This week is a one giant list, done with one hand behind my back that has its fingers crossed, hoping no one else gets sick or relapses before the party. Food lists and recipes need to be finalized, the presents wrapped, the decorations finished, reminders to be put out that 'yes, we are having a party this weekend', house cleaning and oh yes, don't forget to write your lab report and study for your exam coming up in a week. Also, get together the supplies together for Kidlet's birthday-at-school celebration. I might sleep a few hours in the night too. Maybe. It hasn't worked well for me lately so it would be a novelty.

Despite the fact I may sound a little harried or bitter, I am not. I love lists, hustle-n-bustle is my middle name. I can't sit still. Even in the depths of illness last week, I was busy building Kidlet's doll house and cleaning the house. The emergence of spring is making me think about not only clearing out the dead wood in the yard and the extraneous junk from the house, I'm thinking about cleaning out my head too; the bad patterns and attitudes that seem to seep in during the dark winter months need to be tossed. I feel the change coming and I say it's all right.

Green Friday

So, when I took my green photos last weekend, this is what I expected to post today...



Imagine my surprise when I opened the Kidlet's blinds Thursday morning and I spotted a very small point of yellow on the hill.



Eeeep! The tiniest, earliest daffodils emerged. It's official, Spring is here. True, this photo is less about the green and more about the yellow, but I couldn't resist.

Thank you, Emily, for hosting a lovely week. I found many new blogs to explore and enjoyed all that green. Sigh.

"He who searches for spring with his knees in the mud finds it, in abundance."

--From A Sand County Almanac by Aldo Leopold

Green Wednesday

I picked up this little pot at the farmer's market last summer. She had such wonderful items; I wanted to buy them all. It's holding some silky green yarn too. Just filling my life with green, eh? Love it.

The embroidery is from my Grandma. I treasure all the pillows, tea towels and dresser scarves that she's made for me over the years.

Totally off topic but interesting. I was listening to Talk of the Nation the other day and they had an interview with these two folks that compiled this book, Not Quite What I Was Planning: Six-Word Memoirs by Writers Famous & Obscure . I can't come up with my life story in six words today, but I can come up with one that sums up today...

Feeling rather sick, sadly must work.

What is your story today?

Green Tuesday

Turning seasons turning wildly
away, morning's majestic calm

unfolds. Out in spring clothes,
I cross eastern fields. A few

clouds linger, sweeping mountains
clean. Gossamer mist blurs open

skies. Feeling the south wind,
young grain ripples like wings.


--From the poem "Turning Seasons" by T'ao Ch'ien found in The Selected Poems of T'ao Ch'ien

More green here...

Green Week...Monday (really Sunday)

This weekend was full of errands, cooking, knitting and one small, yet extremely snotty nose. I didn't get anything done that I had originally planned to get done (ie. start cleaning the house for the big shindig later this month) but it was good, nevertheless. We went to lunch yesterday at a local California-style Mex joint. They have super yummy lemonade (seen here). The salsa verde you see in the corner of the picture is quite tasty too, but the crazy unnatural green puts me off. No need to worry though, the restaurant makes its own chipolte salsa that's so good that I could drink it (and end up coughing and crying due to spiciness).

Also, I apologize for the kind of weird processing on this photo. I didn't process it at the perfect processing hour on my laptop (2 pm). If I try to process photos at any other time of day, they end up with weird colors and are really dark (no matter where in the house I try to move the laptop). Ahhh, the pleasures of my dear lappletop. Hopefully my greens for green week will be better for the rest of the week.

Is it a list if there are only two things on it? I think so.

Today's topic, films. And since I don't get much time to watch, there are only two on my radar at the moment.

1. Juliet of the Spirits had been sitting in its little red Netflix envelope for about a month. I finally broke into it last weekend. I loved it, as I knew I would. I don't love it as much as Fellini's earlier black and white, less surreal films but Giulietta Masina is a brilliant actress and anything she does...well, I'm there to love it. The over-the-top 60's Italian fashion vibe was great fun too.

2. Next up on my queue is Jules et Jim. Never seen a Truffaut film but I'm looking forward to it. I'm a little ahead on my schoolwork so I'm hoping to start it tonight, while I wind a couple skeins of yarn into balls.

Have a lovely weekend, all. Next week: green.

Today I'm Thinking About...

1. This photo from last year. I thought this image was appropriate for today, which is wonderfully warm. All we are missing are the blossoms.

2. Coming up with ideas for Emily's week o' green.

3. Dinner. Shrimp with soba, asparagus, broccoli and green onion with some sort of soy ginger sauce that I haven't figured out yet.

4. Vacation. Gotta finalize the plans.

5. Need to start my seeds and find my forcing vase for the bulb that Alicia sent with her photo swap package. Love it, Alicia! Thanks!

What I am Thinking About Today..Books

1. Heard about Roberto Bolano on the NY Times Book Review podcast. Hoping to find his books in our library.

2. Also thinking about the Mitford sisters. Would like to read this or this.

3. Hubby said I need to read Pale Fire. Which I think I will as soon as I finish rereading...

4. Breath Sweeps Mind

Sigh. I love books. I went through a brief phase a few years back where I just didn't read much at all. I can't tell you how happy I am to be totally back in it...reading, reading, reading.

3 Weeks Off...The Party List

1. Theme officially decided...garden party

2. Puffy ball tissue flowers to hang from the ceiling are in full production. Idea found kicking around on flickr sometime last year and it lead me to Martha Stewart's site but I can't find the instructions anymore, only kits that you can buy.

3. Ideas for the three goodie bags are set. Happily (actually it's a mixed blessing), Kidlet hasn't asked for any of her schoolmates to come to the party so I only need to make three goodie bags. I kind of wish she did want to invite some schoolmates so I could spend some time with them but it does make the party smaller. And that, my friends, is a good thing in our tiny home.

4. Food. This year, I decided to not cook through the entire party (I've done pancakes for the past two years) and I'm not sure what to do. Kidlet has requested fruit salad, but a bowl of fruit salad does not make a party. Of course, we will be having cupcakes. Any ideas for easy brunch finger foods?

5. Eeep! The invites! I've got to make the invites!

6. The presents are arriving in the mail. I went for this with a bunch of these little guys. I am having mixed feelings because it is a 'Made in China' product with plastic bits mixed in. However, they haven't had any recalls and they use their own factory. When I looked at more natural options, I wasn't overly enamored of the blocky, all-wood house-and-people sets I saw. To be honest, I don't even know if Kidlet will dig this stuff. She latches on to things for a week or two and then drops it. Except for her pinata. She'll play with her pinata anytime. Amazing that's it's been a year and it still is in one piece.

7. The weather. Must send a note to those in charge of the weather to make it blissfully warm so the plum blossoms on the tree will be in full bloom mode.

The Midweek-Weekend Wrap

Today is misty, with a chill in the air. Snow is dusting the hilltops. Am I sad that winter woke up again? Nope, it's refreshing. And there's still a touch of that fresh, green spring in that breeze.

I enjoyed a three day weekend that actually felt like three days. I managed to get a lot done, without hearing that little voice say "hurry, do more!" However, I did have a lot of anxiety/panic issues. I am going to start charting when they happen so I can start getting a handle on the problem. I know many of the root causes (having too many responsibilities, hormones, grief) but I want to see if there is a pattern and perhaps if I can recognize the pattern, I can figure out some tactics to fight it. It ain't fun. 'Nuff said.

I made some incredibly yummy pizzas this weekend (bbq shrimp, veggie and pesto, for those keeping score at home). I've been working on tweaking the recipe for some time and I think I finally have it just right. Yay!

In knittingland, I have officially reached the halfway point on my mom's birthday present (and it's awesome), did my first dropped stitches (that's a good thing, in this case) on the clapotis, and started the dresser scarf for Kidlet. We went to the yarn store to pick up the yarn for the dresser scarf and well, we had some trouble at the yarn store. No, it wasn't just the fact that I splurged (via a gift certificate) on one skein of this (color 158) but Kidlet picked up a huge glass vase that was on display and dropped it. Yeah. I turned my back for...yes, you guessed it...just a moment and then I heard Kidlet say "Look, Mama!" and crash. They were very nice about the whole thing but ugh. I still feel terrible.

Well, I wish I could say I was snuggled in front of a fire surrounded by my knitting projects and birding books, watching the birds come to the feeder but no. Today it's work and then it's studying for an exam tomorrow. Wish me luck and spontaneous deep knowledge of volcanoes, the rock cycle and plate tectonics.

A Dozen Bits of Randomness on a Friday

1. Books Kidlet has been reading nightly:

Barkley by Syd Hoff (I love the illustrations.)

Mr. Tall by Roger Hargreaves (I've purchased many of these books. I usually buy the ones I think pertain to Kidlet (ie. Little Miss Contrary, Little Miss Bossy).)

Thanks, Mom by Ed Emberley (Kidlet loves Ed Emberly)

2. I think I am getting sick before a gorgeous 60 degree-ish 3-day weekend. Uh huh.

3. I have to study for my midterm and finish my lab paperwork.

4. I sent off my taxes. Horray!

5. I am getting a cavity.

6. Buying yarn for a project for Kidlet this weekend. No, she does not want me to knit a sweater, socks or a toy. She wants a dresser scarf. I'm thinking of doing something like this.

7. Trying to decide what my next book to read should be. Almost done with Dharma Bums (loving it) and one of the books I'm most interested in right now isn't at the library. Any suggestions?

8. Feeling the desire for new shoes. Trying to shove the desire out of the room.

9. One of my favorite podcasts that I've just started listening to is Radiolab.

10. I'm obsessed with the color green right now. Mmmm, green-y goodness.

11. This weekend, I think I will make waffles.

12. How come I can't find a decent a-line skirt?

Hope you get a dose of spring this weekend. Enjoy!

Mud, Yarn, Mourning and a Sighting

The ground is coming out of its seized up state. The yard is still a safe harbor for a 10' x 20' island of snow, but the rest of it is mud or dirt hiding a mushy subsurface. Grape hyacinths are poking up as are the frighteningly large populations of irises and white onion-y things. Go to sleep, fellas. This is Nevada. This is the land of Memorial Day snows after February 'springs'.

Took advantage of the 60 degree temperature to trim the hedges so they no longer scratch at the windows like a gnarled fairtale monster. Made a lovely bowl of soup and some of the best bread I have ever baked. Also, baked some chocolate chip cookies for our Sunday morning guests.

And I spent a lot of time screwing up my knitting. I finished my Jaywalker sock. I wove in all the ends and then tried it on my right foot. Too long for my foot, strange bunching about the ankle and too tight around the calf. And my calves are not that big. I went to bed, woke up for a couple hours in the middle of the night and tried to assess the situation. What do I do? Start over? Make a second ill-fitting sock? I am honest with myself and decided that I'm so sick of this yarn and pattern, I will rip it out in the morning and make a scarf out of the yarn a few years in the future when I can stand to look at the yarn again. In the morning, I try the sock on my left foot. It fits better, but the calf is still stretched thin. I decide to not rip out the sock right away and I start working on my Mom's birthday present. I am groggy (note that I said I was awake for a couple hours during the night). A few wrongly placed yarn overs later and I'm cursing my knitting. Sigh. It took me about an hour to 'fix' it, but it's not the perfectly knit item that it once was. I work on Clapotis and as I am about to start the meat of the pattern, I realize I did some seriously funky yarn joining. At least that was easily remedied. Oh, Clapotis! Have I told you how much I adore you?

And mourning? Yes, but nothing too serious at the moment (although I did feel choked up when I was sweeping under the couch and found about a dozen of Nora's tennis balls). Kidlet has officially given up her nap. My two hours of peace in the middle of the weekend have been rudely and abruptly stripped away.

The sighting: spotted towhee. I love bird watching. It feels good to get back to it. I used to be obsessed with birds when I was very young. I would pour over the bird section in the encyclopedia, memorizing the birds and the motions required for flying. No, I didn't not stand on a chair in the spare room trying to move my arms in the same manner as the birds in the hopes I would fly. Nope, that wasn't me. Ok, it was.

Design Element

You probably can't see it, but there is a mistake. A few rows away from finishing sock 1 and of course, we have a misaligned pattern. Now the question comes, do I drop 6 stitches down to the offending row and attempt to knit back up, even with all the decreasing that needs to go on or do I just soldier on and hope no one (including myself) ever notices it? I am tempted to fix it, but my dropping/fixing skills are...well...null. What if I completely mess it up? I usually 'unknit' all rows back to the problem and fix it that way (or just rip the whole thing apart). The problem is so far back that unknitting isn't an option this time. Shall we just call the offending pair of stitches a 'design element'?

Everything has been pretty mundane. I've only taken about 1/2 dozen photos in the past week. I've been reading my school assignments and knitting Clapotis. Planning Kidlet's birthday (still over a month off). Finally watched the Herzog documentary that has been lounging about the house for over a month. Started reading The Dharma Bums. Trying to decide if I want to make the (longish) trek to Stitches West. Did the taxes. Paid the bills. Planning the summer Disneyland vacation with the tax refund. Made a veggie pie. Curry tonight.

Is it just me or is February made for slogging through as quickly and painlessly as possible? They even made the month shorter because it feels like it's a million years long. Ok, that's not true but I just feel so uninspired by February. I was going to try and come up with a February project but...well, it's the 6th of February and still nothing. I guess I've got a million years left to go.

A Baker's Dozen plus 5 more

I've been tagged by Ms. Cathy for "6 things you may not know about me". You all probably know a whole lot about me since I've been spewing a lot about myself for almost two years in this virtual journal and from a couple of other tags. But as I've been a weak bloggger as of late, a framework assists me in the writing department. So, 6 more things about yours truly...

1. If I wake up for even a moment during the hour of 2 a.m., I'll be up for at least the next two hours. I (inadvertently) tested this last night when Kidlet cried out for me to be her potty escort.

2. A perfect day starts with one of the following combinations: coffee and a bearclaw, coffee and a maple bar, or coffee and yogurt with granola and honey. Of course, pancakes are in the mix too (but not made from a mix. The horror!).

3. I like to pick towns and 'shop' for early 20th century/late 19th century houses. A few towns I have recently 'researched': Portland, ME, Sacramento, CA, New Orleans, LA and Albuquerque, NM.

4. I am painfully shy. I'm getting better at hiding it.

5. I wish I needed glasses for reading because I think I look cute in glasses.

6. If I knew how to sew, I'd make myself 'uniforms' that were kind of like apron dresses or smocks. They'd be kind of like these or the beloved smocket. And yes, these are for todders but really, I think I could pull it off. Really! Now to find a pattern for someone my size...now that's another story.

Your mission should you choose to accept it: continue the meme. Or just have a nice weekend, k?

Dreams

Sorry I'm so quiet. I've been caught up in my head again which seems to happen before a flurry of activity. Not sure what that activity will be but I hope it will be good.

Dreams I've had lately....

--Hubby got a tattoo of a big old oceanliner and it had 'Terran' written across it
--Nora visited but as she was 'on the other side' her eyes were sealed shut (horribly sad)
--Brioche stitch! Two nights ago, I kept waking up thinking about brioche stitch. I know it's because I covet this sweater but brioche stitch seems impossible to my wee skills.

I'm having daydreams of moving into an old house (impossible in this market).

I'm dreaming of new careers. Got any ideas that don't require me to finish school? Ha ha.

Spring. This spring will be a gorgeous riot of full blooms and bright, juicy green due to all the precipitation we've been receiving. Makes me wish I had done a lot more fall prep so I'd have bushes with a good head start. But I'm still dreaming of planting with Kidlet all the seeds I just ordered and watching their daily progress from the warmth of the kitchen.

Sleep well!

Reflective

Been quiet here in Pancakeland lately. I've been thinking (too much, probably). I have been in my semiannual 'I feel like I'm soaking up too much from flickr' mode. I'm taking photos and when I go to process them I say "Huh? This isn't me. This isn't mine." I need some space, but I'm not sure how I want to achieve it. I was thinking of forbidding myself to look at flickr for the month of February. Then I thought, 'Hmmm, maybe I glean too much from blogs'. Maybe I need to ban myself from the internet for the month of February (aieeee! the horror!). Maybe I need a project to work on? Still thinking...

School started this week and it looks like it may be less intrusive than I had anticipated. It starts an hour after I drop off Kidlet so I get a little bit of time to knit and sip a coffee before the class starts. It's a 'geology for dummies' class and I'm almost wishing it was a little more intensive so I could learn more, but I'm certainly not complaining. Easy is a good thing at this point in time. The hard stuff will come soon enough with the graduate level classes. Sigh.

Thinking about the weekend. What do you have going? Me...I'm hoping to knit on my CLAPOTIS (hearts and butterflies, smooch smooch). I started it and it's just a tiny little triangle of softy bliss. I am so very, very happy with the Malabrigo silk-wool blend. I can't wait to wrap myself in it (most likely in about a year, when I'm able to actually finish it!). Still working on the secret project and it's about 35% done and looking oh-so-nice. Jaywalker number 1 is about 2 inches away from the toe and I'm getting nervous about running out of yarn. Ahhh, the 'pleasures' of having size 11 feet. I'm already making some tentative plans to do the toe in a different color. Oh yeah. Gotta do schoolwork. And if I can find 'pretzel salt', I'd like to try my hand at pretzels. Maybe make some sort of stew or chile on Sunday night? Hope your weekend is full of softy bliss and yummy food too.

Little Mama Homemaker and Sparkling Snow

She helps with the baking. She washes the floor. She folds laundry. She scrubs the bathtub walls while she takes a bath. However, she resists straightening up all the toys that she drags out during the day.

Some days, she doesn't nap.

This makes big mama kookoo.

My weekend was full of emotional turbulance, baking (pie and failed bread), cooking (curried pumpkin soup, muffaletta mix, corn fritters, pancakes), errands, some sock knitting, and watching the Packers lose (poor Brett Favre).

I awoke this morning to a dusting of snow that sparkled brightly and covered the grey, dirty leftovers from two weeks ago. I need a little snow dusting in my head to cover my stress with something sparkly to distract me from my worries. Don't you worry...I'll snap out of it as soon as I can get my car into the shop to find out what is wrong with it and make it through my first week of class.

Thinking about some new projects, details to be worked out while I daydream during data entry.

Sweet dreams!

The Rambler

I've been wanting to post something, anything, to move on from my previous post. A huge thank you to all of you that commented, emailed about Miss Nora. She is definitely missed.

So in the interests of posting something, here's a long rambling account of some sock knitting. Feel free to skip it.

We are photoless but I've had intended to take a photo of the cute little heel portion of my Jaywalker sock, but the sock and I are rarely in natural light together. That sock and I are starting to have a bit of a tumultuous history. See, I'm such a slow knitter that I actually get to have a history with a sock. Since I've restarted them, I had a mistake here and there, but nothing worth fretting about ("nothing that you could see while riding by on a galloping horse" as my Mother-in-Law would say. Thank goodness for Mother-in-Laws.). Well, I've been working on some troublesome computers at work and while I wait during the endless rebooting, I thought it would be a keen idea to do a little knitting while I waited. Sounds good, right? I think I've made more mistakes on this tiny portion of sock than...well, I don't know what. I've had to unknit rows when I knit the wrong pattern on the wrong needle. I somehow forgot how to do the double decrease (hence, there are still a few wonky double decreases that I'm trying to ignore). I had to pick up a mysteriously dropped stitch from 8 rows back and do lots of snugging up of stitches. Yeah. These socks better fit like a dream and make me feel like I'm floating on little clouds. That being said, I'm still in love with the little heel.

The weekend is rapidly approaching and I look forward to it with a bit of dread. Next week, I start school. I did not do even a quarter of all the things I wanted to do on my break. Once school is in session, even though it's only one class piled atop my other responsibilities, I can pretty much say goodbye to most of my knitting and movie watching opportunities. Sigh. And the caucus? I still don't know who to pick! Aieee!

Ok, enough rambling. Maybe I'll be a little less prickly and a little more cheerful tomorrow. And I'll think about pie. Yes, I will make pie this weekend and that will make everything better. Right? Right? I thought so.

It was almost 6 years to the day from when this skinny little dog put her head in my coat when I bent down to greet her at the SPCA to when she left us. Excuse me for a few moments while I babble on about my Squizzy-Roo...

We brought her home and in the first week, she managed to find a trove of mini airplane-flight-sized booze bottles (some glass, some not) that we had received as a gag gift for our housewarming. We came home to the reek of booze, the detritus of broken glass and chewed up plastic and a wiggly pointer dog. I still don't know how she didn't cut herself with the glass bottles.

We gave her the back story of a washed up movie actress from the 20's and 30's who made some appearances on the Love Boat in the 70's.

She'd only come when you called her in a high-pitched sing-song manner.

She loved to daintily eat tomatoes off the vine and roll in the catmint.

She was a champion snuggler.

She was always cheerful, a comedienne, and quite the dancer.

I'm glad that we were able to make her acquaintance and give her a good life until the end. And mercifully, the end was brief.

An ear skritch, tennis balls, filets and martinis to Nora...cheers!

The Thaw

The weekend has arrived along with sunny skies. This means last weekend's pure snow has now melted into a sludge-y, muddy mess and the streets are covered in gravel and dust. It also means that I won't be confined to the house. Already I've made a list of imaginary errands that really don't need running. We'll see if I can keep the spirit of hibernation going and make some more progress on my knitting and bake something with the giant can of pumpkin that is taking valuable shelf space in my cupboard. I also need to settle on a recipe (or two?) for Vanessa's cookbook project. So many possibilities!

I'm feeling the need to get as much 'pleasure time' in as possible since next weekend is the caucus (I just gave away where I live, eh?) and then it's back to school...not online but in the REAL WORLD. I have to go to a giant classroom with people half my age. Not looking forward to this but if I want to continue my scholastic career, I have to finish up these basic requirements that I've put off for close to 20 years. And I'm not exaggerating on the 20 years part either.

Fit in as much 'pleasure time' as you can this weekend too, k? And if you have a yummy recipe utilizing much pumpkin puree, let me know.

Hibernation

This weekend was wonderful. While I did not hibernate in the 'go to sleep for a long time' sense, I was snuggled down in the house, knitting and baking, broken up by walks out in the snow and games with Kidlet. There was no rushing about here and there, running errands of dubious importance. It was all about the small things. The shadows of the drifting snow. Figuring out the best way to shore up the snowman so he wouldn't fall over. The scent of yeasty bread and chili. Meanwhile, the snow piled up outside and I was happy in the hopes that our usual drought conditions might not be quite as desperate this summer.

There are a couple more days of snow in our future, according to the forecast, but then it is back to our typically mild winter conditions. And back to our usually scheduled program of running around. I'm hoping that the lure of my latest knitting project (yet another secret project) will keep me home, hibernating.

Fresh

I love the feeling a new year brings. It comes to me in colors: cold, clear sky blue, seafoam green, lemon pie yellow. Being a list maker and organizer by nature, I revel in brushing off the darkness of the longest night of the year and the clutter that the holidays seem to drag along with them and putting everything in its place.

The resolution? Same as last year. Simplify and sit/stand up straight. I failed miserably at the latter but did pretty well with the first through about July.

The new tradition? I'm going to make pie on New Year's Day from here on out. This year's edition was lemon meringue. I think it went pretty well, particularly since I've never made it before and only half followed a recipe.

We are swimming in meyer lemons over here, fresh from California trees that belong to the family of one of my mom-in-laws. Love! Lemon Cranberry scones. The pie. Soon, pudding cake. And crepes with blueberries and lemon sauce. Sigh. Suits my mood perfectly after all the ubersweet chocolates and candies of the holidays.

Ready to brush myself off and start all over again. How about you?