Drive-By Blogging

A really fast and furious post tonight, as I'm very tired and want to get to bed before 11:30, if possible!

I finished the STR Korppi Feather and Fan socks - these were the February edition of my Personal Sock Club:
Pay no attention to the photo on the Knitting Stitch Per Day calendar, okay? I've already flipped it to tomorrow...I really did finish these on February 26!

Details:
Yarn: BMFA Socks That Rock lightweight in Raven colorway Korppi
Needles: Knitpicks Options fixed circulars, size 1.5, 16-inch length
Pattern: my corruption of Judy's Magic Cast On, my heel, and Wendy's Feather and Fan sock pattern (free on her blog).
Time to knit: Started February 1 and completed tonight, February 26. This was a little bit of a push because I also knit the Vest-uary Vest and have continued to work on my STR Valkyrie Seraphim shawl...I'm almost at the half-way point of Chart 2.

And yes, I have a BMFA STR obsession.
*wink*
Just a couple of days ago, Wendy mentioned that she'd gotten a set of Hiya Hiya Stainless Steel circulars for her socks because she was having a time with her Knitpicks metal fixed circulars. Since I've been very worried that something would happen to my one set of KP metal fixed circs (which I adore) and the second and third sets I got from KP were all "tarnished" - or whatever - I thought, I'll order the Hiya Hiyas and see if I like them.
I ordered them from Knitting Today fairly late in the evening on the 23rd. They arrived today, and I asked for regular mail, which cost me $2.02! THAT is good service and good value (but the Hiya Hiyas are a little more expensive to start with! Well, $5 more, which isn't enough to quibble - not when the shipping was so inexpensive and FAST.) I love my Hiya Hiya bamboos, even if they do have Meezer teeth marks in them now!

I like the feel of these needles, tho' I haven't had time to knit with them...I'm looking forward to starting my March edition of the Personal Sock Club with these on Sunday! I'll let you know what I think of them once they're in my next socks!

KCS4 Mail Call!!

Wow. What fun this swap was? Corinne and I had a lot of fun emailing back and forth...our decorating tastes are so similar (go visit her blog, she's got gorgeous photos up there! Oh...well, go after you see this, okay?)

Here's the overall haul:
Coffee, yarn, goodies!

From Neurotic Needles a couple of interesting items:
I use these all the time to corral my dpns, but I didn't have any bejeweled ones! Aren't those pink and lavender beads lovely?

Then, something I'd never seen before - yes, of course you know what that is:
A black coffee cup...swathed in fabric?
Well, yes, there really is a coffee cup.
And when you untie this and pull it off, and flatten it out? Pockets (and you know how Nana Sadie Rose loves her pockets, right? It's an organizer - I don't know how many times I've used old coffee cups to hold pens, pencils, my sewing supplies...THIS is an organizer for your coffee cup sewing supply holder! See? It's too cute, and is a really inventive idea!

There was cotton yarn (two colorways so I can make a market bag), a cotton blend, all in shades of pink, and a couple of balls of Fixation that Corinne didn't have any idea what to do with as she's not a sock knitter...(I am planning to use them as practice socks for Cat Bordhi's sock ideas). Corinne even added in a thimble (!), and then the requisite coffee (Starbucks, thank you very much!), and a dark chocolate raspberry bar...I'm saving that for later. Yummm...

But here's the piece de resistance!
Corinne knew I was envious of her lovely warm weather out there in southern California. So she sent her son to the beach and sent me REAL California "Sand and Sunshine!"

How cool is that?

Thank you Corrine! What fun this was...What a great package! I only hope you're half as pleased with yours!
(((Hugs)))

Things to Knit, Bags to Sew, Cats to Enjoy...Anny's to Celebrate!

The blog titles just keep getting more and more lame...(sorry)

The weekend has, once again, been devoted to production of Nana Sadie Rose items (and don't forget to visit my Etsy Store as the sale and month-long giving campaign for WomenHeart ends on the 28th!)

So I finished the last of the bags from the Star City Cat Show:
This great fabric, is so long out of print. The purchaser really wanted her Mavis bag made from it, but I did not have enough to do the entire bag. She suggested the black handles (which I've done before, but am not wild about) and so I agreed - and you know, in THIS bag it looks terrific!

Then a repeat customer from Northern Virginia/Maryland area, phoned asking me to make a Mera bag out of this fabric for her own use. I discovered that it's much cuter in person than any photo I've seen online - 1950s kitties from good old Michael Miller!
while this one is for an grown up gal to carry as her everyday purse, can't you just see this fabric used as a day-bag of necessities for the new mom? I hate to call them diaper bags (I make the Maddy for that!), but when you outfit a Mera with a few diapers, teethers, small pack of diaper wipes, a small bottle and your billfold? You're set for a few hours out to run errands or to visit a friend! Cool, huh?

After I finished up the sewing duties last night, I came upstairs to read a few blogs and catch up on email...Look who's taken over the office chair?
What do you mean I have to move? I was here first!

I discovered, via Jocelyn and a few others (like Judy who will be teaching there) that the Sock Summit has posted it's list of teachers....Jocelyn and Judy and I were emailing back and forth about the possibility of meeting up there in August.

I don't know if I can go or not, but what a dream trip that would be? I am considering it, seriously...

And this morning, I was up with the Sunday news programs and my regular MMT Chocolate Raspberry coffee and Valkyrie Seraphim shawl. I'm just 4 rows shy of the end of Chart 1 now, and into the second skein of STR Raven Valkyrie yarn...
What better way to spend a very cold Sunday morning?

Oh. I was terribly sad to learn with my most recent issue of Country Home magazine that the publication ends with this issue. While I do prefer Country Living, I've always liked this one...

And yes, that's the newest IK behind it. I'm reserving comment at this point. I usually don't care as much for the spring and summer issues of the magazine, as I really don't knit summer items (except for shawls!).

I'm trying to make today a quiet, calm day doing what I love, in order to celebrate - ta-da - my FIFTH anniversary of quitting smoking! Wow. I had to go back and check data on The Q because I wasn't sure it really had been 5 years, but it has! I'm grateful.

Let's hope for a calm and easy-going week, shall we?
(((hugs)))

Finished - Vest-uary!

Yes, it's really done, my very first article of clothing that's not a pair of socks.
My First Vest. I'd be remiss if I didn't mention that my co-worker LD took these photos for me, for which I'm very grateful!

I used virtually every single speck of the five skeins of Noro Iro that I had (okay, there might be as much as a yard left, but barely)...
I'm delighted with the knit (who can be upset about garter?), and with the fact that it was easy. I'm less delighted in the requirement for such a large size (there is no one to blame for that but me!)...but the pattern goes up to 58, and I wasn't near that...I do think I could have deducted a few inches and been safe (I made a 44), but the instructions to measure one of your favorite sweaters at the bustline, might not have been the best advice for me. I took it to heart, and I really think I could have done well with a 40 (or maybe I'm terribly vain and out of touch with reality about my size! Could be, but I'll wear it to Knit Night sometime and see what the gals think about that!)

I used my Knitpicks Harmony's - the size 11 interchangeables. I started on February 4 and finished sewing it up last night. Hopefully, my hand sewing of the seams will suffice, as I surely wouldn't consider it a fine job by any stretch of the imagination. You can't tell it from the photo (tho' you can click to embiggen), but there is quite a bit of color in the yarn (the colorway is 63) - there's the taupe, which is fairly obvious, and the black and gray, but there's also navy, and emerald green and a plum to match the turtleneck top I'm wearing underneath. In all, a lovely yarn...I was lucky to get this yarn at Little Knits during a 50% off sale so it wasn't as pricey as it might have been! I love Noro, but it's not cheap!

Will I knit another garment? Well, since I already have 3 sweaters worth in stash, I guess I'll have to! Either that, or make a LOT of large shawls in worsted weight!! Hmm...I could do that, actually, since I love Folk Shawls! And the one thing you can say about Cheryl's shawls is, due to her 6-foot frame, they're big!

The UPS man arrived today bringing my knitting book order:

I'd hoped to get them from Knitpicks, but they were out of stock on the Knitted Lace of Estonia. So I ordered from Amazon.

I've been asked again about CC, and I think I'll just say that she seems to be hanging in there and better than she was last week...I'm still afraid to say too much, as she's so tiny and frail, I just don't want to jinx it. If you look cross-eyed at her, she keels over from the weight! Ok, that might be an exaggeration, but if she runs off into the kitchen for her dinner or treat, you have to stay back from her, or she really will lose her balance and trip on her own paws. I don't like to then have to toss my own weight to another direction to avoid tripping on her! I guess I can relate: after all, I used to be able to barrel around doing all sorts of things that can now cause a fall or disequilibrium when I least expect it...you don't suppose "old age" hits us all, pretty much the same way, do you?

*wink*

Monday? or Tuesday? ... Hmmm...

Ok, no question, this is a short week due to the President's Day holiday - and they always seem a lot longer than four days. No, I don't have a clue why, do you?

Today was even shorter for me (at least at the office) than usual, as I had an appointment at the eye doctor. It's also pay week. So doing payroll, a job that normally takes a couple of days before direct deposit deadlines kick in, was crunched into basically half a day. I always get the last appointment of the day for my retina specialist: that's 2 p.m.

Do you know when I saw my doctor? 5:10 P.M.

Things have always taken awhile with this guy (yes, he's very good), but I've never - ever - had to wait anywhere near 3 hours. And I feel sorry for the 3 other patients who were still there waiting when I left. I've never seen so many people in his office at one time. The doctor, to his credit, apologized, and said I was the only patient he'd seen this day who was perfectly fine (I have to have these 6-month checkups, in part to make sure I stay fine).

My next 6-month checkup? Well, the soonest we could manage that was the end of September. Yes, I know. I keep reminding myself that he's that good...

I just have two things to say about it all:

1. I cannot imagine how I waited in doctor offices before I started knitting again! I managed to knit a LOT on the Raven Socks while I waited - finished the first one, and got the full toe of the second OTN!

2. I think everyone needs to take up knitting because the people there who had nothing to occupy themselves (and I'm including those who brought someone with them)? Were becoming increasingly hostile. Now I wasn't happy, but I wasn't hostile. (I will admit I think the likelihood of some of the older men in that waiting room taking up knitting is a bit of a stretch, even for me.)

Then I came home so dilated that the best I could do was knit on my vest for Vest-uary, since it's all garter. It came off the needles tonight. Now to sew it together.

Any suggestions? lololol
(nope, never have sewn a sweater together)

Wish I'd Made a Video!

I mentioned that yesterday my daughter came to help me move a bookcase downstairs, and we shifted the position of my dresser to the opposite wall...well behind the dresser (and under it) were a ton of kitty toys that had gotten shoved under and to the very back, and forgotten...

One of them was BB's catnip teddy bear. One of those "spur of the moment" treats you pick up when you're in the pet store, picking up food, I never thought any of them would like it (since I'm well aware that if it costs real money, cats immediately think it's worthless and you're an idiot for bothering them with it). But BB was totally besotted with it, carried it around like a baby kitten (she would have been a great momma kitty), and drooled on it to the point I would refuse to touch it, as it would be dripping....

And every once in awhile, The Meezer would swipe it. There would be a huge fuss, as BB insisted it was her toy, her baby. The Meezer wanted it, mostly because it was BB's.

So when I found it, I didn't do anything with it other than move it away from the dust bunnies and try to clean it off a bit. Then left it on the bedroom floor.

Much later last night, I was sitting here at the computer, and I kept hearing scuffling, scooting, and mewing noises...I didn't think too much of it, until suddenly here was The Meezer with the catnip bear:
The scuffling and scooting? Well, she was tossing that bear in the air and chasing it...
and she finally brought it into the office (please pardon the rug, the vacuum has been used in much of the house, but this room right now is "on hold" at least till next weekend)
She rolled and rolled, mewed, and tossed...
Sometimes she'd lose track of where the bear was, but only briefly...then she'd toss it up
and it would land on the chair, sometimes on the desk...
She carried it all over the room, into the hallway and back...
until suddenly in her scooting around with it, it slipped under the rolling drawer storage I recently brought up from the sewing room to hold knitting supplies (nothing in there yet, this room is a work in progress)
Poor thing, she couldn't figure out how to reach him, tho' she tried hard, so I had to roll out the drawers and rescue him for her...

She slept on top of the bed last night, with her baby bear...and at one point this morning, when I got home from the dentist, I found him on my pillow.
(sigh)

I think it's a good thing there's no competition for baby bear now...But I can't really imagine that the catnip scent is still strong enough to make him so appealing! Especially after all the times BB drooled over him.

(and I wish I'd thought to make a video of this - not just snap away at the photos! The Meezer talked all the way through this - you would have gotten as good a laugh as I did!)

Sunday Sunday...

And for once, it's a longer weekend, so I'm not wondering (yet!) where it's gone. I spent yesterday running errands and working on the vest for Vest-uary. Then today I've been really busy with cleaning and moving a bookcase from the upstairs bedroom down to the living room, then of course, filling it with books...DD came over with eldest grandson, and they both helped, for which I'm grateful! Running the vacuum, sorting thru some things for a yardsale, dusting...even hanging of a painting. It's been a day...

I've been promising you photos of the Mustang Sally Spiralucious and here they are, finally...this one shows that I really did a bit of blocking to ensure that the lace would stand out, as Mustang Sally STR is superwash sock yarn...

And here, thanks to DD is a photo of it on...(no, I didn't let her take a photo of me, as I was in "housecleaning grunge" mode)

I'm just delighted with it!
The specs:
Yarn: BMFA STR in Mustang Sally colorway.
Pattern: referenced with link above - Spiralucious by Anne Hanson of Knitspot.
Needles: size 3, 16-inch Harmony circulars from Knitpicks.
Time to knit: January 4 to February 7, 2009 (there was a space of about 3 weeks or so where I didn't knit it, as I was out of yarn and waiting for reinforcements to come from K to mail her leftover yarn from Canada! I'm eternally grateful, K!

Notes: None. I did nothing different from the other two of this pattern I've made - I love mine the best, but I suppose that's the way it's supposed to be? This will work nicely with the Knotty Gloves I made with most of my skein of Mustang Sally and my dress black coat. It's lovely and warm.

And if you haven't tried this pattern? You should!

More news?
Well, here is a SPOILER ALERT! (For Art Walk Sock Yarn Club members!) If you don't want to see February's club selection, then don't go any further, okay?

Petunia! This is another of Georgia O'Keefe's paintings done in yarn by the fabulous Roxanne of Zen Yarn Garden. She did two colorways this month, and I got the one I would have chosen, myself - the pink and purple (as if Roxie doesn't know perfectly well how I'd choose? lolol!)
I love it. It's gorgeous.

And now, a note about CC. She's okay. Still not perky, still not doing much more than sleep - oh, and eat, as this kitty eats whatever isn't nailed down. The only thing the vet could find was ... shhhh ... impacted anal glands. And the CC was mortified (Most kitties are) by the "treatment." I was glad the vet gave her 1/2 a baby aspirin, as I think it's helped her these past couple of days. At least she's not screaming at me every five minutes now. That's a huge improvement.

And The Meezer is finding an out of the way spot to hide in, as she hates it when I clean (another reason it's not done as often as it should be!)
Mommie put a towel on the box under her desk that she uses for a foot rest. Too bad, Mommie, it's my bed now!

Happy Valentines Day!

I know it's all about hearts and flowers and candy and romance! I do...And I love the Ravelry vintage ecards. I got my share of lovely Valentines there, and from family and friends in my inbox and mailbox...they're all really appreciated, especially when this Knitnana is not participating this year in the romance category...(and isn't feeling sorry for herself, so don't go there, okay?)

I'm as sappy as the next gal. Roses are perfect, tho' I really prefer them in white or pink, not the traditional lover's red...If there's dark chocolate to be had, I'll partake. Lace and merlot, a lovely dinner out? Yes. Thank you.

But every year on this day, I take a bit of time to reflect about hearts...You know it's a subject near and dear to Knitnana. February is heart month, I always honor National Wear Red Day (tho' not in a dress! I'm really a jeans gal all the way), and I try hard to get all my female readers (the guys, too - hey, this isn't a sexist issue or blog) to take a few minutes to jog their memories of the symptoms of women's (and men's) heart disease. One of my very favorite sites in the world is WomenHeart because of the amazing work they do to advocate and educate around this issue. Let's face it, women are usually under-diagnosed.

So what's the big deal this year?

Well, Knitty published a pattern that quite simply took my breath away. The Knitty Heart. I told you about it the minute I saw it, and some suggested that something so anatomically correct wouldn't be a heart they'd knit.

Okay. Fair enough. We all have different tastes, and I appreciate that completely!

But I knew I had to make it. A gift to myself. A Valentine for my own heart. A reminder that just 3 months (minus 2 days) after Valentine's Day in the year 2000, my own heart almost blew apart. Thanks to a wonderful doctor, (and a team of cardiologists and cardiac surgeons) I was properly diagnosed the first time (not the norm, especially for a woman aged 43!) and got the treatment I needed.

I am inordinately grateful to them, and to my family and friends who held me together while the medical establishment pieced me back together, first with a stent, and then with a bypass surgery when the stent gave up the ghost, two months later. To this day, a chest x-ray reveals the wire mesh tube inside the clogged artery, and the wire circles that held my breastbone together while it "knitted" back solid after my chest was cracked open...I have a white scar bi-secting my chest (I told the surgeon I could have taught him a thing or two about sewing a straight seam! *wink*) and a bit of numbness in the muscle tissue just above my heart, where the mammary artery was removed to bypass the stent.

So when I saw the Knitty anatomically correct heart, my brain danced! My mended heart danced! I knew I'd knit her...but that my Knitty Heart would get a bit of an "adjustment" to the pattern...
What do you think?

I'll post details of the knit on my Ravelry page. Here? I think I'll end with this bit of Valentine's advice:

1. Remember that heart disease is the Number 1 killer of women - still. It kills more women than cancer (Cancer of all types is the Number 2 killer of women).

2. Know the warning signs, know your numbers (blood pressure, cholesterol, blood sugar levels), talk to your doctor about your risks. If you smoke - stop.

3. Love every moment. With all of your heart. Say everything you have to say...and if you get a warning sign for a heart attack? Whatever you do...

DON'T say "I don't have time for a heart attack!"

Dial 9-1-1
And love your heart with ALL of your heart!

Early Saturday Morning...

at about 7:50, I got a call from the cable guy (who was very nice, btw). He could give me ten minutes, but was it okay to come and start looking at the outside line?

Yes.

He did.

He fixed it!
(water in the line, corrosion...solution? New line - completely, from top to bottom!)

I'm WIRED! (and it feels so good...)

I'll be back later for Valentine's Day!
(((hugs)))

Update...and an Alert!

The alert is this: I have no internet access at home right now (and precious little TV, tho' there IS signal, so I can watch, if I can stand the fuzz and snow!) - the cable line has been compromised, probably by the high winds we've had the past two days. Cox will be out in the morning Saturday, and I hope this will all be rectified quickly, but I won't have email after I leave work today (at least for a bit). I've been working on Valkyrie Seraphim (now why is it that it seems terribly appropriate to be working on something called Valkyrie when the wind has been howling and tearing at the windows?) and have gotten quite a bit done! Yes, Catie I have been semi-monogamous!

And as for CC, the medical tests so far have come back fine, other than that she's operating on the equivalent of only one kidney - as the vet says, that's not really a big deal, as we people donate kidneys and survive on only one just fine. So that's not her problem.

I left her at home yesterday, went back home at lunch to check on her, and finally last night decided that if there wasn't any change, she'd go back to the vet this morning. She did. They'll do an xray, at least, and evaluate for some other things, but at almost 18, if anything truly serious is found, we won't be performing heroics.

She's a very traditional calico who has never been happy - hence her name on this blog, the Calico Curmudgeon: a cranky old broad, mean and ornery. She got that way honestly. Some kitties should never be exposed to children. She was one of them. It formed her personality and we've just had to deal with it all these years.

Still, in a lot of ways she's a sweet girl. And just to spite me (as calicos do), she's probably planning on creating as much ruckus as she can before she makes her way to the Rainbow Bridge.

No wonder she was the kitty my late "spunky" mom liked the best!
*wink*

It's Only WEDNESDAY?

If you've missed me? I'm sorry...I'm not quite sure where this week has gone, it's been nutty. I promised you a blocked Spiralucious, but it's not blocked yet...so this will have to do:
See the cute "I *heart* sheep?" - a Christmas gift from Sis-in-Law, who is, tonight, even more appreciated than usual. 'Nuf said, not going into it, she knows why...but I love my sheepie.

Ruinwen awarded me this:

The official rules are as follows:

1. Copy the award to your site
2. Link to the person from whom you received the award
3. Nominate 7 other bloggers
4. Link to those on your blog
5. Leave a message on the blogs you nominated.

My seven bloggers are:
1. Opal who inspires me with her sense of color, the artistic photos she shares, and her special kitties! (plus she's in Hawaii, so you know that's just a really special place to be)
2. Lana who selflessly knits for those in need, every day.
3. Jane another charity knitter, who gets fired up over unfairness...often.
4. Jocelyn who knits and writes beautifully, and always, always, makes me think - just like I was back in grad school. And that reminds me that even tho' we get older, we don't lose our mental acquity as long as we stay challenged.
5. Catie who may not appreciate me doing this (she's pretty low-profile in blogland), but is one of the most talented and giving women I know (and I know many, so that's saying something). A local friend, Catie keeps trying to teach me about knitting monogamy, and I may someday learn - because I'm deeply impressed by the quality of knitting she produces in a small amount of time - an entire, exquisite lace shawl in a month, often of her own handspun. But she does it by knitting one thing at a time. I *heart* Catie!
6. Chris who is not just a talented knitter, but an amazing jewelry designer, and now is becoming a fabulous photographer as well...(yes, I know, photography is becoming an obsession of mine these days...but it's so critical to a good blog!)
7. Melanie a knitting librarian with a knowledge of literature that astounds me. Her sense of what's fair and right in the world and her ability to articulate it, moves me.

So there you have it...my seven Kreativ Bloggers.

And here's my special girl. She's a little on edge tonight as her housemate, the CC, isn't feeling all that well. Nothing could be found at the vet, but there is something very not right with CC and that makes both Meezer and me concerned...

She doesn't like me much, that CC, but I don't like when she's not feeling well, I can't pick on her then.

Day of Rest? Weekend of Peace?

Someday...I promise, I'm going to schedule one. Just like that *snap*

Do you believe me? Nah, me neither.

I stayed up way too late last night finishing Spiralucious. She's not been blocked yet, so you have something to look forward to, now!

Today was all the regular chores and making up a bag order (since I helped DD with bead shopping yesterday, by corraling eldest and youngest DGSs while she browsed). But today was also a matinee symphony concert. I poured on the makeup, tossed on a winter white wool blazer over dark charcoal jeans and a black dress "t" shirt, a red heart pin on the lapel, and my black Birkis. Oddly enough? I might have been a touch over-dressed - the matinees are definitely a variety of attires - including the occasional blue jeans, tweed jackets and jogging shoes - but mostly blue-haired ladies coming from church.

No blazer here, just the black dressy T (notice the satin edging?). I think I feel most comfortable like this. Wish I'd have finished Diamond Fantasy Shawl to toss over the blazer, but that's been on the back burner for a bit...and needs to get done!

Birdsong mentioned on my 1000 post that perhaps it's time for a new look to the blog. I had to call DD last night to say, "you haven't started on the template now have you?"

"No, why?"

"Well, because I don't think I want it pink and pretty and Victorian and roses...That's Nana Sadie Rose, that's not Knitnana."

At which point my daughter began a serious discussion on the topic of my mental health and whether or not I have multiple personality disorder - HAH!

I assured her that having more than one persona did not mean one had a mental illness. Quite the contrary. I have a whole different side of me that I use as a designer and bag maker, and then there's the accountant, logical side of me, too - finally there's Knitnana. (Someone yesterday overheard this discussion and said, "She uses both sides of her brain" and that is the perfect description!)

We've come up with this so far:
Purple (was there any doubt about that?)
Everything knitting (cables, lace, socks)
The Meezer

I tend to think of myself as someone who's best suited to jeans, Birkenstocks, and lace.

Now just how she's going to come up with a blog design that encorporates that (tho' I did suggest some faded out photos of Miss Meeze, some of the knitting and such...) I'm not really sure.

What think you all? What visuals come to mind when you think of Knitnana? (Again, be nice *wink*)

Cause mentioning that multiple personality thing, well...just ain't gonna fly!
I hope your week goes well!

1000 Posts? Wow I Had No Idea!

I started to do this post on Blogger, and saw that this is my 1000th post! Amazing!

So in honor of that? Well, I'd already decided to acknowledge that I fell down on the job today and didn't notify you early enough that today was "National Wear Red" day (for Women's Heart Disease, a cause near & dear to MY heart). I did wear red, I hope you did, too...but even if you didn't? Stop by Womenheart and familiarize yourself with the symptoms of women's heart disease, okay? What? You know the signs? Guess what? It's really really really easy to forget - and to think...oh, well, it's not that! So if you have one of those symptoms? Remember what a good friend who's a EMT said to me: "We don't care if it turns out to be indigestion, we're rather you'd call us and still be alive, just in case it's NOT indigestion!"

So don't forget - you are never too busy to have a heart attack, and heart disease doesn't care what you wear!

Message sent and delivered...

Now on to more enjoyable stuff? Yesterday, the Mustang Sally leftovers from K arrived, so I'd already planned to work this weekend on finishing up my Spiralucious (in red). I'd also thought I'd really LIKE to make Knitty's Heart and in thinking... "hmmm... what do I have that's red?" I suddenly realized I not only had what will be leftovers from Spiralucious, but also the Claudia Chocolate Cherry to use. So there's my plan there.

Tonight, DD and I went out for a Chinese buffet "Girls' Night Out" - something that's kinda unfair to my son-in-law since he's the daycare provider and has only "Boys' Days IN" - then we shopped a bit...stopped at Barnes & Noble (the new store on the OTHER side of town) and got Chocolate Raspberry Mochas (her treat, I did dinner!) and then I picked up this issue of Artful Blogging...
I was showing it to DD, as she'd never seen it before and of course, being all graphically inclined, I knew she'd enjoy it.

"Do you need a new blog template?" she asked.

"Um...why yes!"

"What do you want...?"

"Well, you know me...pink and pretty and probably some roses ..."

Don't be surprised if you don't see it for a bit - she works awfully hard. But I'm hopeful she really will consider making something special for her Dear Mother.

Wouldn't that be the perfect 1000th post present?
*wink*

KCS4 Still Life Photo Contest Entry

Here I am this morning. Noro Iro, Harmony needles, and coffee (with mouse and computer nearby).

Could it get any better? Oh, well perhaps it could be warmer. They say it's going to be "warmer" tonight - a sultry 17 degrees!

I did make it into work later in the day, and managed to get my client's payroll done, and even made it to RV Spinners & Knitters group tonight - had a wonderful dinner at our local coffee shop - Mill Mountain Tea and Coffee - and picked up something special for the swap (as well as for myself!). And great conversation with Tanya and Catie about dyeing roving. Ok. They talked and I listened. Then I went off to the library to knit with others...when we left the library? I think T & C were still talking over there at the coffee shop. I know they'd planned to come and spend time with us....Catie was wearing the most amazing, stunning lace shawl that took her only a month to knit (she reminded me that she's monogamous in her knitting which is why she finishes things quickly, she's not spread too thin). It's just gorgeous and I know the others were hoping she'd stop by and show it off! But those two were very engrossed in their discussions...

We missed you gals!

Mid-Week Miscellanea...

It's Wednesday.
It's cold.
It's way beyond cold. (In the teens)
Needless to say, my whole system is reacting to it.
Yuck.

I missed St Brigid's Silent Poetry Day. Since I did? I want to direct you to the blog of a friend of mine, Geraldine, who is a very talented lady. She's into fiber arts, sure, but she's also written and published a very good vegetarian cookbook Not Just for Vegetarians: Delicious Homestyle Cooking, The Meatless Way. These days she's writing a lot of wonderful poetry and exploring other avenues of creativity (specifically photography). Had I posted a poem for St Brigid's? It might have been this one (if Geraldine would have allowed me to post it that is...)

Anyway. Maybe that makes up for my missing it?

Today was a lost day, in that the muscles, joints, and tendons reacted to the cold in a very negative way. So I hibernated with microwave hot packs and muscle relaxers. I did spend a little time online, and visited Margene's blog as I'm liable to do most days.

Margene was in a quandry over the next sweater she wants to knit (Margene is a gifted sweater knitter, but I'm so very impressed that she's committed to knitting a sweater a month!) and then mentioned a Ravelry group that has sprung up to knit an entire vest in the short month of February - you've got it, it's called Vest-uary. Margene was considering doing a vest this month and earning the newest blog button for her sidebar.

And you know me, right? If there's a blog button to be earned? I'm all over that one. So I jumped on board (it's in my sidebar)...I immediately went to pull out my Noro Iro, bought to make My First Vest by Leslye Solomon (there is no real link to this pattern, but you can google it and find it at several online stores - the pattern's not even in Ravelry for some odd reason...).

I wound up the first skein, and started to knit it, and suddenly thought What is wrong with me?...I'm knitting BMFA Raven Korppi socks:

BMFA Raven Valkyrie Seraphim (pardon yet again the fact that this piece does not open up well to show the lace - there really IS another line of holes down the left side of that center line...but one-handed photography doesn't allow it to be seen - wait till it's blocked, okay?)

And I swatched the Noro for Vest-uary:

Do you sense a trend?

DULL...DARK...BROODING...(this wouldn't be February would it?)

It's a bit better now that I've started the second skein and you can see the stripes of color in the Iro (plum, emerald, charcoal, taupe, gray, navy - just my very favorites!)


And of course, there's still the forest green chemo hat on the needles too! More dark.

And why have I put so many things on the needles in the first place? I mean besides the fact that I'm suffering from a severe case of Startitis?

Well, one of the things that has been bothering me in this aching chilly-ness is a tendonitis-y sort of thing in my left hand. So each of those projects is a different size needle (and the chemo hat isn't making it into my knitting time very much because it's a chunky acrylic that is killing my hands all by itself - only a couple rows a day allowed). So I've got 4 projects going with size 1.5, 3, 7, and 11 needles...and I'm rotating them.

I got up briefly this afternoon to check email and came back to my knitting chair to find this:
Why, yes, Mommie, I did take your seat, what of it?

(sigh)

I Should Give Up and Go To Bed...

because after the exciting game, I didn't sleep all that well last night...Still, I wanted to share a couple of things with you...
Isn't this gorgeous? A new Knitnana and checkbook order, this is Hoffman fabric. The insides are every bit as striking, but I didn't snap a shot, of course.

And then I took the leftover squares from the no-sew blankets I made two of my grandsons for Christmas and made a quick and dirty kitty blankie from them...
and can you see a Happy Meezer? She loves the warmth of fleece.

I've got the squares left from the third grandson's blanket started for another, smaller blanket for CC. She, however, has the furry purr pad upon which to nest, so she's not desperate (ok...The Meezer isn't desperate, either, but doesn't she look pleased as punch?)

I got an email today from my reader in India!!! I was so excited. Like my reader from China, she used to live in the US, and still follows me in her new home. Now if I could just find out who is reading me in Turkey!

Blogging makes for a really, really small world...

Me? A Football Nut? Steeler Nation!

Well, okay, maybe not quite that!
lol
But what a great game! I was waving my Terrible Towel all the way (except at one point I forgot...hmm...they weren't doing very well at that point, either - maybe there really is magic in those towels?)

Much good food, beer (okay, ale!), conversation (SIL knows more about football than I do, so there was even some instruction going on), and knitting - yes, I did knit, in between Terrible Towel waving. SIL's pretty Miss Tabby Cat was quite incensed about what fools we made of ourselves yelling at the TV, and her Lhasa Apso slept blissfully through it all - being both stone deaf and mostly blind has it's advantages, Miss TC!

Progress was made on the Raven socks. (See, I do remember that this is a knitting blog)

And decisions were made about two upcoming cat shows for Nana Sadie Rose - more to come on that note, but if you're near Richmond, VA and Charlotte NC in April? Make a mental note now to come see us!

Wow...that was some game - a 100-yard interception TD and then another game-saving TD in the last 40 seconds of the game. (Gee, I hope I wrote that correctly?)

(And the Knitnana crowd goes wild!!!!)
lolol
(I'm so going to regret this tomorrow morning...)

It's February!

And that means I can open my next installment of my Personal Sock Club - and this time the puple and gold gift wrap...
Opened on STR Korppi - Yes, that's another of the Raven series! I was surprised!

I haven't decided what pattern to use (tho' Feather and Fan is right up there in my thought processes) but I have to get the toe started first anyway...


Since it's Superbowl Sunday, and Sis-in-Law and I are going to have a party at her house...lots of snacking food and football - I'm secretly thinking how neat it would be for the Cardinals to win, tho' I'll be waving my Terrible Towel in support of the Steelers.

Oh, and there's a special sale and promotion going on in my etsy store. All items already in the shop (plus a few new ones) will be 20% off, and ANY item with a heart theme sold during February will have a donation in the amount of 10% of the purchase price (less tax and shipping) made to WomenHeart, the National Coalition for Women with Heart Disease...There will be a few new things in the shop today, and then there'll be more arriving later this week. Keep watch, okay? And when you see something, jump, because I can't guarantee you'll see it again!