Mollywobbles

A Permanent Fix to a Temporary Problem.

2010-12-14T16:01:00.000-06:00

I had a whole mess of double-first cousins (Mother's brother married Father's sister) who grew up basically across the street from us. My cousin Tim was a riot -- always the life of every party. He always could be counted on to have a new joke or a funny story. He was my mother's favorite, probably because he had such good comedic timing. I admired him greatly. When I was growing up I wanted to be like him. He went on to be elected Mayor of my hometown.

This morning, in the midst of apparent financial problems, he committed suicide.

And there just aren't words.

I've Been Sad

2010-12-13T18:24:00.000-06:00

It has been hard to post.

My beloved cat, Legolas, fell ill and died suddenly 10 days ago, in my arms. She was a really great cat, and she loved me above all others. I keep looking around for her. I miss her tremendously. It probably sounds silly to some people, but Lego was my constant, adoring companion for 8 years.

Tomorrow.

2010-11-22T20:15:00.001-06:00

Rest assured, this isn't an Annie revival.

I have been very good. I let them stick needles in my wrist. I've kept the flipping brace on 24/7 (except in the bathroom and when washing dishes). It doesn't HURT as much as before, but the pain has been replaced by a loud clicking, uncomfortable grinding, and I do not think I will put up a fuss when he says we should set the date for surgery. Your wrist should not remind you of a rake being dragged across a feckin' blackboard.

I see the surgeon tomorrow. I am nervous. I am a big baby, I know. I think an exacerbating factor is that any other time I've been sick or broken, I have used knitting to keep my head in the game and speed healing. Without knitting to hold my attention I have more time to spend worrying.

I have a beautiful skein of Lorna's Laces Helen's Lace in Periwinkle. Enough for a shawl. I figure when this is all over I will have to knit something special with it. It's good to have a treat.

My Aunt Nan died Saturday morning at around 1:30. She was 95. She was out playing cards at my cousin CarolAnn's house -- cards being one of her favorite pastimes -- and she suffered a fatal heart attach. Anyone's passing is sad, but it is also sort of beautiful that she died doing something she enjoyed tremendously, surrounded by people she loved and who loved her back. Not bad.

My Aunt Nan had only one arm -- she had lost the other as a small child following an accident. A vivid childhood memory of mine is sassing her a little and saying to her, "Well, it isn't like you could spank me with only one arm!" Faster than lightning she grabbed hold of me, swung me around, and, just inches from my face said in the least-joking voice I ever hear her use, "Oh, yeah? Is that what you think? Just try me, Buster. I'll have you over my knee and give your hind end a whoopin' you'll never forget before you even know which end is up." And I could tell that she meant what she said and I never messed with Aunt Nan. Lesson learned.

Oh, did I mention that, in addition to cards, she also was an avid bowler?

I won't be going to the funeral -- I have too much riding on this appointment with the surgeon tomorrow. I feel bad about not going. But I also know that if I don't get this done before December 31st, it is going to cost me an additional $2600.00. And Aunt Nan, ever frugal, would probably sit up in her casket to call me seven kinds of stupid if I canceled the appointment.

2010-11-03T21:32:00.000-05:00

I want this.

Stephanie Pearl McPhee has one. And all week long she has been rubbing it in my face. I can hear her now. "Oh, look at this book full of psycho-complicated lace made with painfully thin yarn! Just the kind Aidan would love if he had this book! But he doesn't! Ha!"

OK. Maybe she hasn't been saying EXACTLY that. But it is something really close. Don't you think?

So. What else is new?

I made a batch of chocolate and goat cheese truffles, flavored with just a splash of Irish Whiskey. That was yum. Oh, did I mention I made the goat cheese? I'm not back with the goat until a weekend after next, but I expect to make a double batch of cheese -- this time I think I'll make some crottin and some Sainte Maure -- both are aged, mold-ripened cheeses which become sharper in flavor and more complex with age and culture.

I've only knit two rows of my shawl. It just really hurts my wrist, even with the splint. I miss knitting. Oh, and kneading bread.

Woe is Me.

2010-10-25T21:29:00.001-05:00

I spent a bit of time with a surgeon today.

What I thought was lingering tendinitis turns out to be an ulnar variance resulting in a tear of the triangular fibrocartilage. As comforting as that may sound, fibrocartilage does not have anything to do with fiber. At least not in the positive sense. It will, however, keep me from playing with fiber. For a while.

Today they filled my joint full of a steroid to get rid of the inflammation. This hurts like a futhermucker, which give me something to look forward to in 2 weeks when I go for another round. (Have I ever mentioned that I don't like needles and that I am a big baby and that I hate needles?) In 4 weeks I will go in and if it's clear, they will set me for surgery to repair the tear and to shorten the ulna by 4 mm. Hopefully I will have it before the end of the year, because the New Year brings with it New Deductible, New Insurance, and a New HSA account which will have Zero dollars in it. Oh, woe is me.

Planning Ahead

2010-10-24T11:56:00.000-05:00

We have spent a wee bit of time and more than a wee bit of money at a wonderful orchard near Shell Cottage. Our first visit we picked apples for 15 minutes and were surprised to find that we had accumulated over 40 pounds of apples! What further surprised us was how fast they disappeared, what with apple sauce, apple cake, and just plain eatin'!

I discovered a new apple on that trip, the Melrose. As big as my head (and I have a BIG head) and a wonderful balance between sweet and tart, I found them addictive.

We had to go back in very short order. And those apples went away pretty quickly.

That's when I realized, Hey! I have a yard! I can grow apples myself! So I started researching and studying and trying to make decisions. Yesterday I went back to the orchard -- the very last day of the season -- and asked a question about planting, and my friend the AppleMan asked me how much I was paying per tree. I told him and he said that he could tack on my trees to his order and get them for me for one-third the cost!

So come spring we will be planting three trees - Melrose, HoneyCrisp, and Smokehouse apples! And in 4 or 5 years we will be harvesting 12 bushels of apples a season! (A bushel weighs approximately 42 pounds!) We should be able to provide all of our friends and family with apples! And apple cake. And apple sauce. And apple butter. And mincemeat. And...and...and!

I'm Loopy!

2010-10-21T22:16:00.000-05:00

OK. I'm not one to gush about Local Yarn Shops. I've had some bad experiences. Especially with LYS owners. I've always liked Loopy Yarns because their people were friendly, helpful, and they listen to what I want...and then get it! (Really! I said I preferred solid sock yarn, 4 weeks later there were 6 colors of solids. I like the Cascade Alpaca Lace, but I've bought all I like of the colors they have...yup! 4 weeks later there are 12 new colors! And they have all my favorite needles!) But I have a new reason to like them. And I thought I'd mention it.

I've been working a bunch of hours, and I was getting off work after an 11.5 hour day. The point protector for the circulars I'm using for the Eiffel Tower shawl keep coming off, and I had noticed that they had come off and I had dropped a few stitches. (Luckily, only a few and I was able to correct it in no time flat.)

I rang up Loopy to see if it happened to be the night they stay open late. Vicki, the owner, answered the phone and said that they had closed an hour earlier, but if I hurried, she would wait for me to get there! And she did! She stayed late, for me. And my whopping sixty-six cent sale. Can you believe that?

You know, I could use a few balls of Alpaca Lace....

OTHER STUFF!

I just took a huge spanikopita out of the oven -- we are having our chavurah (group of friends) of people mostly from our old synagogue over for an informal Kabbalat (Welcoming) Shabbat service followed by a potluck. We will have about 25 people -- lots of singing, laughing, eating, etc.

Anyway, I've made this spanikopita a lot, but this time is a little different. Why? Because I made the feta cheese myself. From goat's milk. From a goat I know. And love. And milked.

I've been making my own chevre and other soft cheeses, but this was the first "hard" cheese I have made. Flavor-wise it is a great success, but I was disappointed in the texture. When it went into the brine it was firm, but after 21 days it was really, really soft. Almost marshmallow fluff. So I rinsed it off and the most fluffy part rinsed off and what remained was perfect for the spanikopita. Good and salty and goaty! I can't wait!

100 Chinese Foods to Eat Before You Die

2010-10-18T12:07:00.000-05:00

100 Chinese Foods to Try Before You Die

If you want to play along, copy & paste this list to your site. Put in bold the items you’ve already eaten and cross off the ones you would never try. Let me know your score by leaving a comment!

1. Almond milk
2. Ants Climbing a Tree (poetic, not literal, name)
3. Asian pear
4. Baby bok choy
5. Baijiu (chinese white liquor)
6. Beef brisket
7. Beggar’s Chicken
8. Bingtang hulu
9. Bitter melon - (hated it!)
10. Bubble tea
11. Buddha’s Delight
12. Cantonese roast duck
13. ~~Century egg, or thousand-year egg~~
14. Cha siu (cantonese roast pork)
15. Char kway teow
16. Chicken feet
17. Chinese sausage
18. Chow mein
19. Chrysanthemum tea
20. Claypot rice
21. Congee
22. Conpoy (dried scallops)
23. Crab rangoon
24. Dan Dan noodles
25. Dragonfruit
26. Dragon’s Beard candy
27. Dried cuttlefish
28. Drunken chicken
29. Dry-fried green beans
30. Egg drop soup
31. Egg rolls
32. Egg tart
33. Fresh bamboo shoots
34. Fortune cookies
35. Fried milk
36. Fried rice
37. Gai lan (Chinese broccoli)
38. General Tso’s Chicken
39. Gobi Manchurian
40. Goji berries (Chinese wolfberries)
41. Grass jelly
42. Hainan chicken rice
43. Hand-pulled noodles
44. Har gau
45. Haw flakes
46. Hibiscus tea
47. Hong Kong-style Milk Tea
48. Hot and sour soup
49. Hot Coca-Cola with Ginger
50. Hot Pot
51. Iron Goddess tea (Tieguanyin)
52. Jellyfish
53. Kosher Chinese food
54. Kung Pao Chicken
55. Lamb skewers (yangrou chua’r)
56. Lion’s Head meatballs
57. Lomo Saltado
58. Longan fruit
59. Lychee
60. ~~Macaroni in soup with Spam~~
61. Malatang
62. Mantou, especially if fried and dipped in sweetened condensed milk
63. Mapo Tofu
64. Mock meat
65. Mooncake (bonus points for the snow-skin variety)
66. Nor mai gai (chicken and sticky rice in lotus leaf)
67. Pan-fried jiaozi
68. Peking duck
69. Pineapple bun
70. Prawn crackers
71. Pu’er tea
72. Rambutan
73. Red bean in dessert form
74. Red bayberry
75. Red cooked pork
76. Roast pigeon
77. Rose tea
78. Roujiamo
79. Scallion pancake
80. Shaved ice dessert
81. Sesame chicken
82. Sichuan pepper in any dish
83. Sichuan preserved vegetable (zhacai)
84. Silken tofu
85. Soy milk, freshly made
86. Steamed egg custard
87. ~~Stinky tofu~~
88. Sugar cane juice
89. Sweet and sour pork, chicken, or shrimp
90. Taro
91. Tea eggs (actually made these myself!)
92. Tea-smoked duck
93. Turnip cake (law bok gau)
94. Twice-cooked pork
95. Water chestnut cake (mati gau)
96. Wonton noodle soup
97. Wood ear
98. Xiaolongbao (soup dumplings)
99. Yuanyang (half coffee, half tea, Hong Kong style
100. Yunnan goat cheese

10 Reasons Why Gay Marriage is Wrong

2010-09-02T13:29:00.000-05:00

This has been posted by a kabillion people on Facebook, and I don't know who the original author is, but this is a truth people should hear:
10 Reasons Why Gay Marriage is Wrong

01) Being gay is not natural. Real Americans always reject unnatural things like eyeglasses, polyester, and air conditioning.

02) Gay marriage will encourage people to be gay, in the same way that hanging around tall people will make you tall.

03) Legalizing gay marriage will open the door to all kinds of crazy behavior. People may even wish to marry their pets because a dog has legal standing and can sign a marriage contract.

04) Straight marriage has been around a long time and hasn't changed at all; women are still property, blacks still can't marry whites, and divorce is still illegal.

05) Straight marriage will be less meaningful if gay marriage were allowed; the sanctity of Britany Spears' 55-hour just-for-fun marriage would be destroyed.

06) Straight marriages are valid because they produce children. Gay couples, infertile couples, and old people shouldn't be allowed to marry because our orphanages aren't full yet, and the world needs more children.

07) Obviously gay parents will raise gay children, since straight parents only raise straight children.

08) Gay marriage is not supported by religion. In a theocracy like ours, the values of one religion are imposed on the entire country. That's why we have only one religion in America.

09) Children can never succeed without a male and a female role model at home. That's why we as a society expressly forbid single parents to raise children.

10) Gay marriage will change the foundation of society; we could never adapt to new social norms. Just like we haven't adapted to cars, the service-sector economy, or longer life spans.

SPREAD THIS FAR AND WIDE.

I'm Back!

2010-08-28T21:28:00.002-05:00

We had a lovely time at Shell Cottage. I was terribly sorry to leave so soon, but Norbert had an afternoon bat mitzvah to attend, so leave we did.

I suppose you'd like a little more info than that. Let's see. Monday was sort of an easy day. Norbert slept in, but Myfanwe and I acted like adults and only slept an hour (me) or two (Myfanwe) later than usual. We made a trip or two outside -- to the orchard for a big bag of peaches and a mess of corn -- but other than that, we were lazy. We went to the library -- I checked out another Foxfire book and a book on calving for persons involved in bovine husbandry. We had lunch in the village Saloon -- which we never would have done six months ago, but thanks to the new smoking ban in Michigan, we can and do avail ourselves of the vittles served up by our neighborhood publicans. In the afternoon I knit more on the Eiffel Tower Shawl -- I'm nearing the end of the 2nd Chart and will then do a repeat of it to create a large shawl. I sort of remember napping a lot, which must have been more tiring than it sounds, because I had to go to bed early!

Tuesday we kept to basically the same schedule. I slept an hour later than usual, Myfanwe slept two, but Norbert only slept three hours later than usual because we were going on an adventure. The three of us went kayaking on the Galien River. (River does sound a bit more...um...mobile than this body of water. We were told that the return didn't take any longer because there was "zero current".) Anyway, it was beautiful, peaceful, and a bit of a thrill. I was a little worried I wouldn't be able to do it. But I could! And we saw a beautiful, big Blue Heron at pretty close range! He flew out of the reads about 20 feet ahead of us and flew down the middle of the rive so we could get a really look.

Wednesday we drove to Shipshewana, Indiana for the Flea Market, the Antique Auction, and -- my favorite -- E & S Sales, the best Amish general store in the Midwest! I bought stone-ground course whole wheat flour, unbleached all-purpose flour, and bread flour (all grown in Indiana by people the owner knows, milled locally, and all carrying kosher certification!), six pounds of SAF Instant Yeast, raw honey, beef ring bologna, and various pickled veggies. We ate at the Auction House Restaurant -- we all ordered the chicken & noodles special and Norbert & I split a piece of peanut butter pie. Michelle bought an old 12-light window with frosted panes which she is going to hang in our bedroom at the cottage and use to frame photos from our trip to Ireland. She's going to mount one photo in each of the panes of glass, and hang it where she can look at it from bed. (She really misses Ireland.)

Thursday we went to St. Joseph, Michigan to Silver Beach, possible the finest beach on a Great Lake. It really is a stunning beach, clean, orderly, with benches in the shade along the periphery and a few shaded picnic tables for lunch. Myfanwe had packed a picnic, so we availed ourselves of the shade. It had warmed up nicely -- it was, for the first time all year, a little cooler than normal -- but warm air does not necessarily mean warm water. When Myfanwe says it's cold, it's COLD! After the beach we walked around downtown St. Joe, including and especially Kelwins's Ice Cream & Candy! Yum! I had two scoops -- 1 cappachino chocolate chip and the other toasted coconut. I would like to go back every day for the rest of my life, please! SO delicious!

Friday. Hmm. Norbert and I started off the day with another kayak excursion. Myfanwe begged off. The river was beautiful again -- though I can't move a quickly as Norbert can -- he flies! We need to find another person to go with us who can move at the same speed so we aren't holding Norbert back.

We made another library crawl. Norbert had to collect his prize. He entered the summer reading contest which offered a prize to the top 5 readers and a Grand Prize for the reader who read the most minutes over the summer. Noah felt a little handicapped, since he only had 3 weeks to read and keep track of time before he left for camp, and he was volunteering full time at his school's preschool during those weeks. But he really focused on reading and keeping meticulous time records. The outcome? Norbert read 43 hours 15 minutes, besting his nearest competitor by 6 hours and some odd minutes. His Grand Prize? $50.

After that Myfanwe and Norbert went to the beach in New Buffalo while I went and had a visit with our friend Jaye, who was our realtor when we bought Shell Cottage. I enjoy her very, very much, so that was a big treat. When I left Jaye's office, I staked out a little bench on the main, boardwalky sort of street and sat in the shade and knit. If there is a better way to spend an hour, I don't know what it is!

This morning I started off by going to a friend's to meet her new goat, Posie. Posie is a real looker! I'm completely smitten. I thought she was so cute that I felt her up at the first opportunity! Yes! Me! Milking a goat! It isn't as easy as it looks, but I did it, and I plan to get better in the future. Posie is a very patient young goat and forgiving by nature.

After I go home, we ran to the orchard again for more peaches and some apples this time. I do love quality produce! These are the last peaches we will have for the season, so I'm sorry to see them go, but with the end of the peaches we should also soon see the end of the heat, so I can start backing some apples pies and cakes!

I know there are no pictures. And that's because I can't find my camera. I took a whole bunch of pictures with my phone, but then my phone died a horrible death while kayaking. At least it was quick, that's all I can say. (And thank Bob our contract is up and we are all going to get new phones, maybe as early as tomorrow.)

Good night. I'll write again soon.

What Do I Do Now?

2010-08-21T17:46:00.001-05:00

We had a guest for Shabbat -- Norbert's best friend, Leroy. Knowing how much Leroy likes lox -- he really can eat a pound without noticing -- I picked up a pound of Nova at the grocery yesterday.

This morning I put out a spread of soft baby pita. homemade fromage blanc, lox, diced read onion, tomatoes, and blueberries.

Leroy arrived at the breakfast table, asked for cereal, and then ate a bowl of (dry) cereal instead.

We leave for a week at Shell Cottage tomorrow. What in the hell am I going to do with a pound of lox? Did I mention I don't LIKE lox? Oi!

Knitting Needles and Tools Reviewed

2010-08-19T08:52:00.000-05:00

Knitting Needles and Tools Reviewed

I don't like charts, so I would never use this, but this is an easy, inexpensive way to create charted patterns. $6! Who'da thunkit?

It's Not the Same as a Trip to Paris

2010-08-17T15:18:00.000-05:00

...but it will have to do for now. Last Thursday I cast on the Eiffel Tower Shawl, which was inspired by the iron work detail in the tower. I'm half-way through the second chart, and enjoying it. It is, for the most part, an easy, mindless knit -- which is exactly what I need right now! The end border will be more involved, which I am sure I will enjoy as well.

Norbert is home from camp. He grew two inches while at camp and is now 2 inches taller than I. And he is only 13! His return is much appreciated -- I didn't realize how much I rely on him for the tie breaking vote on things like going out for Vietnamese or buying ice cream for dessert! All joking aside, he is a good boy and I am so glad to have him back.

Next week is vacation. The three of us are going to Shell Cottage. We'll spend one day in Shipshewana, Indiana, but other than that we plan to stick around and go to the beach, go kayaking, and lay around and read a lot.

While on the subject of books, let me recommend a couple I have really enjoyed: "The Good Good Pig" by Sy Montgomery is at the top of this year's list. I enjoyed it immensely and it really touched me deeply. I'm also re-reading "Miss Mary Bobo's Boardinghouse Cookbook.". I love the unfussiness of the comfort food.

Gotta run. Have fun. Be good. Stay well.

HOW 'S ABOUT A QUICKIE?

2010-08-08T22:11:00.002-05:00

Myfanwe and I spent the weekend together at Shell Cottage sans Norbert, who is at camp. We went to hear Uncommon Folk at the band shell in the park and took a wonderful picnic of grilled pork (don't tell my Rabbi), sliced tomatoes, marinated green beans, some perfect melon, lemonade, and peach cobbler. We ran into a former colleague of Myfanwe's, Fakurdi, and her husband and son and ended up staying well after the concert was over. If the mosquitoes hadn't gotten so thick, I think we would have stayed even longer! They have a house nearby, so we'll be able to take up again soon.

So. This spring we had all the raggedy bushes in front of Shell Cottage ripped out and I planted 6 hedge roses (Rosa Rugosa) in front of the house. I wanted a low maintenance, healthy rose. When the roses came, they really looked like nothing more than sticks poking out of the ground. Not a surprise -- I knew and was expecting it. And I expected that they would bloom for the first time next year or possibly even the year after. So you can imagine my reaction to this:

I hope it will be in bloom when we are there next. If it is, I'll update the pics! Have a good week!

I Have No Excuse.

2010-08-03T20:38:00.004-05:00

Except to say that I've been having a good time.

I've been chided in comments, in e-mail, and in person. Please accept my sincere apology and know that I've missed you, as well.

Let's see. Since we last spoke, we've done our best to spend 2.5 days a week at Shell Cottage. More if we can. The spring was kind of cool and wet, which didn't stop us from enjoying much! It made the grass a bit harder to cut, but not for long. Because right behind the cold and wet Spring came the hot and wet summer. (We've had good luck, though, with cutting the grass. Only one weekend so far was too wet each to find a window of opportunity to mow.)

When I said hot, by the way, I wasn't kidding. More days over 80 degrees than in any summer since they started keeping records. Our guest room isn't air conditioned, which has cut down on summer company a little -- but not entirely. (One weekend Norbert slept on the floor in our bedroom, and another Myfanwe and I slept in Norbert's room while he was at camp. We took turns -- one of us in the bed, the other on an inflatable twin mattress.)

Just in time for Flag Day we found a piece of folk art that we love and had to have. (It is made from remnants of now demolished Three Oaks barns!)

Flag Day, which is a major holiday in Three Oaks, Michigan, was great fun. We had an open house and friends and neighbors filled the house up, ate, drank, then watched the Flag Day parade.
I have started making my own cheeses -- fromage blanc and chevre. It has been too hot to bake much, but I did find a wonderful recipe for Amazing Corn Cake in a Nebraska 4-H cookbook that I'm very happy with.

Norbert, Myfanwe, the pets and I are all happy and healthy. M & I are working a LOT, but feel lucky to have jobs. And lucky to have jobs that challenge us. Norbert is at camp until the 14th -- we miss him lots, but also are so glad to know he's having so much fun.

I've got to run and take a cake out of the oven. Stay well. I'll try not to take so long between posts. Love. Peace. Cake.

Quick Update

2010-04-26T18:10:00.008-05:00

Um. Where to start.

Work. Work. Work. Work. That pretty much tells the story of Monday to Thursday.

Friday. Worked -- a little bit longer than planned, but still out of the office in time to run home, throw the dog and the food into the (already packed) car, drive back downtown to pick up Myfanwe, and make it Norbert's school by 2:30.

We arrive at Shell Cottage in late afternoon, and I immediately started mowing the lawn because I wanted to get it cut before it started raining. I got the front law mowed before the rain came down, and it rained the whole rest of the weekend, so I never got to finish the back. It's going to be a bear to mow next Friday.

We had chicken, onions, mushrooms and sweet potatoes roasted with white wine and rosemary for dinner. It was ok. Norbert loved it. The boy is ALL about the mushrooms.

Saturday I woke with a migraine. Lots of meds and an ice bag later it was manageable, and coffee helped keep it at bay for the rest of the day. Which was good, as I had a lot to do. The rain was nice, soothing, and I loved knowing that the roses were being watered by G-d. That way I don't have to tote buckets. (Have I failed to mention that this house has no spigot to take water to the outside? No. Really! None.)

Mitzi had an appointment with the vet in Three Oaks. Mitzi needed her rabies vaccine and she desperately needed to have her nails trimmed. (Click Click Click all through the house!) It's so much easier to walk her over to the vet in Three Oaks than to drive downtown and park. The vet in Three Oaks is a quiet, pleasant man and I really liked that he apologized to Mitzi when he stuck his thermometer up her Hoopdeedoo. I also liked that the bill was half as much as in Chicago. We will definitely be repeat customers.

After the vet, we decided that Mitzi stank and needed a bath, so we drove a few miles to the town of Bridgman, which has a do-it-yourself dog was and feed store. Plastic aprons donned, we proceeded to wash and condition, rinse and dry poor Mitzi. She is such a good dog. I'm sure if I'd been poked and pinched and stuck with a needle, had something stuck up my folderol and then been dunked in water, well, let's just say that I wouldn't be happy about it. Mitzi is, above all, forgiving.

Saturday night there was a hog roast at the American Legion hall, the proceeds of which benefit the Three Oaks Flag Day Parade. Flag Day in Three Oaks is a very, very big deal. If you were taking your ACT, the correct answer would be, "Flag Day is to Three Oaks as the Tournament of Roses is to Pasadena." Or possibly, "Flag Day is to Three Oaks as Mardi Gras is to New Orleans." It's part of the life force -- the spirit of the place.

Sunday I made my favorite coffee cake. In the cookbook put out by the Women's Axillary of the Three Oaks American Legion it is called the Walton's Mountain Coffee Cake. Paula Dean has a variation -- which is really just the Walton's Mountain recipe without the 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon. (And, to be totally honest, it is better with the cinnamon.) I also increase the nuts and mess with the brown sugar, so I guess this is MY version, and I'm going to call it the Three Oaks Coffee Cake.

Three Oaks Coffee Cake

3/4 cup chopped pecans, divided
18 knobs of frozen white dinner roll dough
1 pack (4 serving-size) NON-instant butterscotch pudding mix
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1 stick butter, melted

Generously grease a 10 in fluted tube pan.
Sprinkle 1/2 cup pecans in the bottom of the pan.
Arrange the frozen dough balls on top of the pecans.
Sprinkle pudding mix over dough balls.
Sprinkle brown sugars and cinnamon over the pudding.
Sprinkle remaining nuts.
Drizzle with melted butter.
Cover with plastic wrap and leave to rise on the counter for 8 to 10 hours or refrigerate for 12 to 24 hrs.
Uncover and bake 350 degree oven about 35 minutes or till top is golden brown.
Let cool 5 minutes before inverting coffee cake onto a good size serving tray.
Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.

I really love that all of the work occurs the night before. And I love the flavor. SO delicious. And, yes, I understand that there are some food snobs who will turn up their noses at a recipe that calls for pudding mix. Feh. This coffee cake is one of the best things I have ever made. And I now make it almost every week. It's that good.

Gotta run.

I've Been Really, Really Busy

2010-04-20T11:20:00.007-05:00

But that is really no excuse.

I've been doing the job of two people. Well, except for the 7 weeks when I had help. But he got a better offer and his last day was Good Friday. So I'm back to the job of two people.

When not at work, I've been enjoying Shell Cottage every possible moment. We try to go three weekends out of the month. I've done quite a bit of gardening and can't wait for high season so I can see everything going wild and blooming! I've discovered an absolutely huge..um...vine doesn't seem immense enough, but that's what we'll call it for now -- vine of wisteria growing through/over/in a spray of pine trees in the back yard.! My neighbor, DeeDee, says it is gorgeous in bloom.

One of the trees in the side yard is blooming! I don't know what kind of a tree it is, but it is beautiful!

The other tree in the side yard is the bottle tree. We are up to 12 bottles. Norbert gave me an early Fathers' Day present -- three unusual bottles, including red and yellow, which are unusual colors. You can just see the red bottle near the top of the pic above. DeeDee says the tree will bloom soon, as well, and that the blooms are white. If you have any weird bottles -- unusual colors, shapes, etc. -- send them to me! Nothing makes me quite as happy as adding another bottle to the tree.

We also have a shrub, above, blooming in the back yard. Again, I don't know what it is, but it is pretty.

As for the front yard, all of the raggedy bushes have been pulled, the roots dug up, and 6 hedge roses planted in their place. It looks like six twigs have been stuck in the ground, but give it two or three years and they will be spectacular with blooms of pinkish red. (And in the fall, brilliant orange hips!) This past weekend Myfanwe and I put down landscape fabric around the roses and then a good, thick layer of mulch.

Knitting

I'm a little bitter about knitting, but trying to get past it.

I will not have the Cathedral Window Shawl finished in time for the State Fair. Early in the year I had scheduled to take a class at an LYS on knit-on lace edging, since it seems fairly difficult to learn from written instructions. But then, four days before the class, the LYS called, mortified, to say that the teacher's "scheduler" had inadvertently scheduled two events in two different states for the same day. The class was rescheduled, but -- such is my luck -- for a date I couldn't be there. So I'm going to have to put it on the back burner for a bit until I can find a teacher who can teach me.

I hated the Rose Leaf curtains (more than I can say) and ripped back almost to the beginning and decided to design my own using stitch patterns from books. It's only through one repeat and I already know I like it more.

More later. Please don't forget me!

5.5!

2010-02-28T21:16:00.005-06:00

We spent the weekend at Shell Cottage, where I was able -- for the first time in weeks -- to have genuine, guilt-free knitting time! And the result?

5.5 rows in 36 hours! That's 6347 stitches! And -- given work demands and the rigors of planning for the bar mitzvah -- I had been averaging half a row a day!

I have 8 rows left before the edging. And I can't begin the (1154 rows) edging until after I learn how to do it. And I won't learn how to do it until April 10th, when I am taking a class on Knitted Lace Edging from Franklin Habit at Loopy Yarns.

So when the body of the shawl is done, I am going to break my "One Project At A Time" rule and cast on a curtain for the front door of Shell Cottage. I have decided to knit Marianne Kinzel's Rose Leaf Curtain (above) in a butter-yellow cotton yarn that will take to starching. Mine will be probably a foot longer than that pictured, but I am going to stick with three repeats of the motif at the bottom. I don't want anything too fussy.

Over. Done. He's a Man Now. Whew!

2010-02-22T16:16:00.005-06:00

Things went very smoothly, Norbert did an exceptional job. He chanted beautifully -- his voice only cracking 13 times. (I didn't count -- two 16 year old girls did!) But nothing phased him. He didn't even pause. He just kept chanting with precision.

Dinner and services on Friday were spectacular, and the luncheon after the bar mitzvah was well attended and we didn't run out of food. (Always a worry of mine.)

Sunday's boy/girl party went well -- the kids had fun, and that really was the whole point of the party.

There are no pictures from Friday or Saturday -- our synagogue considers cameras (as well as any electronic devices) to be prohibited on the Sabbath. Today we got Norbert to put on his bar mitzvah clothes, ride over to the synagogue, and let us take a few pictures.

He's a good boy.

We are tired, but pleased. It was a lot of work, but we love the kid, and that made it a lot easier. The friends who came to our aid -- cooking, setting tables, delivering things -- touched our hearts in a way I can't describe.

Tonight I pick up the knitting and get cracking! But probably won't get too much in. I'm going to have to turn in early -- tomorrow we are all back to work, and I'm plenty tired still.

To Do List

2010-02-13T21:15:00.002-06:00

I have a few things to do. Just a few.

Sunday:

Norbert's school play -- two performances.
Clean the school kitchen and unload first load of equipment and ingredients.
Wash and dry kitchen utensils.
Make final lists for market and greengrocer.
Go to Target and pick up game for Norbert's class fundraiser.

Monday:

Work. 8 hours. Or maybe more.
Phone in final orders to market and greengrocer.
Check linens for Friday night dinner for our chavurah and our of town guests.
Arrange for someone to pick up food for Friday dinner.
While I'm at it, see if I can find someone to pick up the two cakes from Costco on Friday.
Photocopy program for the bar mitzvah.

Tuesday:

Go to Costco. Buy 35 pounds of lox. And 5 crates of clementine oranges. Take to synagogue to refrigerate. Pick up the rest of the stuff we need from Costco.
Pick up Decaf at Trader Joe's. (The darker roast, the better.)
Buy soda for Friday night.
Fold 250 napkins.

Wednesday:

Pick up orders from the restaurant supply company and the wholesale grocer. Unload at the school kitchen after noon.

Thursday:

8:30 am to 8:30 p.m. -- cooking at the school kitchen. And cleaning up. And labeling everything.
Buy 4 mylar (NOT latex) balloons for the kid tables.

Friday:

5:30 a.m. -- make 2 large batches of challah dough.
8:00 am -- set up 25 round tables and 8 buffet tables. Set up 250 chairs. Put on table linens. Set out the table centerpieces. Put the napkins around. Put the balloons on the kid tables. Carry food over from school. Put wine and soda to chill.
11:30 am -- set up 9 round tables and 90 chairs at site for the Friday night service and dinner. Put the linens around, plates, glasses, and drinks in place.
2:00 p.m. -- back home to bake challah. Bathe. Maybe nap. (Yeah. Right.)
5:30 -- Dress and to the site for service and dinner. Give instructions to the server helping with serving and cleanup.
6:30 -- Relax. Shabbat begins. Singing. Praying. Kvelling. Eating. Singing. Laughing.
10:00 -- cleanup. Load up the car. Go home. Go to bed.

Saturday:

9:00 -- arrive at synagogue. Check with catering company responsible for service.
9:30 -- our boy becomes a man.
12:00 -- lunch
1:00 -- games for the kids. The JCC will be open for free time.
4:00 -- snacks. Then home.
7:30 -- leftovers at our house. Family and friends hang out. No pressure.
11:00 -- I throw family and friends out. To bed. To sleep, perchance to dream.

Sunday:

Noon -- Boy/Girl Party. 7th & 8th graders only. One other parent there to protect us from things going all Lord of the Flies.
4:00 -- party over. Repeating the sleep thing.

Monday:

I don't care if your brother's mother's sister's hairdresser has free backstage passes to Sarah Palin being tarred and feathered by Keith Olberman and Rachel Maddow -- don't call me. The phone will be off. I won't be reading my e-mail. I won't be returning messages. I will not be answering the bell. If awake, I expect I will be sitting on the edge of my bed, rocking back and forth, muttering "Oh my dog. Oh my dog. Oh my dog. Oh my dog. Oh my dog. "

Tuesday through Friday Noon: Work

Friday Noon: Leaving for Shell Cottage!

Off the Needles ... err...Boards

2010-02-06T11:52:00.004-06:00

I finished this ages and ages ago as a gift for Norbert's bar mitzvah tutor. But -- in classic ME fashion -- waited until the last minute to block it and give it to her.

The Candle Flame shawl knit using Cascade's Alpaca Lace in Flax Heather. The recipient loved it and wore it the night we gave it to an opening at her husband's theater. Many compliments were received. I was pleased.

Crawling. Through. A. Bog. Slowly.

2010-02-05T15:20:00.002-06:00

I am not certain I will ever finish the last 17 rows of the Cathedral Window shawl. 1154 stitches per row of lace takes for blooming ever. I'm a little bit concerned that if I don't start knitting faster, the shawl is going to grow moss on its North side!

And then I think about the 1154 rows of edging that need to be knit on...and I spit up in the back of my mouth just a little bit. 1154 rows. Oop. There it goes again.

Let's face it. I'm not going to get much knitting done in the next two weeks. Until the bar mitzvah is over, I doubt I get more than a few stitches a day in before panic or sleep overtakes me. And I may need a few days off afterward to recover.

If I want to enter this shawl in the Illinois State Fair, I will need to have it finished, blocked, and in federal express by July 1. And there are 121 days between March 1 and July 1. 30,612 stitches (including bind off) will need to be knit in those 121 days. So I will need to knit 253 stitches each and every day from March 1. And more, if I can, because I expect blocking will be challenging. Wish me luck.

Nervous? Who? Me?

2010-02-03T18:01:00.002-06:00

In a comment, Sarah asked if I was nervous.

Why would I be nervous? Because in 16 days I am responsible for three events -- every one larger than our entire wedding party? Naw. because I have 350 pounds of linens to launder and fold before that? Nope. Don't be silly. Because my son has decided that THIS is the best time to start acting like a teenager? Pshaw! Because I haven't made the shopping list for the lunch for 250 that I will need to cook in two weeks? Nuh-uh. Because my father-in-law isn't coming for the dinner Friday night because his harridan of a wife doesn't want him to spend $89 on a hotel room and will, instead, drive 3 hours from home the morning of the bar mitzvah, attend, grab a bite at the luncheon and immediately drive home because -- wait for it -- the dog will be in the car? Nope. Not bothering me in the least. That there will be 40 kids in the synagogue running wild until sundown after the bar mitzvah? I won't blink. That my mother-in-law will be here?

Oh, shit.

Shoot. Me. Now.

Mushy, But I Love My Wife This Much

2010-02-01T20:52:00.001-06:00

You Never Forget Your First Time

2010-01-03T18:10:00.013-06:00

Myfanwe, Norbert and I enjoyed our first visit to Shell Cottage. We did a little rearranging, a little cleaning, a little cooking, and a LOT of lounging. (Lounging being a family favorite!) We were at the cottage from Thursday the 31st until early this afternoon, so we celebrated our first New Years Eve, our first Shabbat, and my 46th birthday boom! boom! boom!

We also enjoyed the 18 inches of snow we received over the long weekend!

We found a veritable treasure trove of furniture in the basement! You may note that the only items of substance in the picture below that were NOT left behind by the previous owner are the lamp, the rocking chair, and Mitzi, the dog!

This cabinet, in particular, made Myfanwe very happy. It doesn't have any interior shelves, although it clearly had them at one time, so I am going to have shelving cut to size.

This six-sided table was my favorite piece left behind. I love the claw feet and the Greek key motif. I'm not terribly big on the silk flowers, but they add visual interest until we are able to replace them with a lamp.

See this tree? I own this tree! I have absolutely no idea what kind of tree it is, but I believe it is from the genus mine mine mine mine mine!

I don't own this tree -- at least not directly. It is in Dewey Cannon Park in Three Oaks, Michigan, just a couple blocks from Shell Cottage. In the summer there are band concerts in the band shell every Saturday night.

This is the Dewey Cannon.

After a couple of nights of (restlessly) sleeping on the air mattresses, Myfanwe wanted to make sure this was not a long-term arrangement. So we went to a mattress outlet in Michigan City and ordered three beds -- all very high quality -- a twin for Norbert, a surprisingly comfortable futon sofa for the loft/guest room, and a queen size for us. We wanted a king, but realized that it would a) be too big for the room, and b) that a king mattress would never fit up the tight little stairway. A queen mattress can be bent enough to get up, but not so a king. We then realized that a queen box spring wouldn't make it up, either, so we bought a split box spring. They all will be delivered next weekend! We weren't going to buy beds so quickly, but I'm glad we did. Now we can have people come to stay.

It just hit me that, since we have a king size and a twin at home, we have now have a queen size bed and a full size bed in Michigan and do not own a single set of queen or full sheets! Oh, well. If people want to come, they can bring their own sheets!

MORE EXCITEMENT!

Today I spoke with my cousin Katie who lives in Piney Flats, Tennessee. She is going to be coming up to the Chicago area to help her parents pack up and move house to be nearer their other daughter near South Bend, Indiana/Notre Dame University.

Katie is one of my favorite cousins. She's so good and kind and gentle. She looks a lot like our cousin, Sister Clemente, who is also good and kind and gentle.

When Katie comes up, she is going to bring me a present. A spectacular, heartbreaking, wonderful present. She is bringing me a set of china which had been my grandmother's which, when Katie got married, my grandmother gave to her. It is beautiful china. I plan to take it to Shell Cottage and make it our Shabbat china. I can't wait.

CLOSURE!

2009-12-29T20:26:00.003-06:00

We went for the walk through this morning. Uneventful. Except that we didn't have a key. It seems our real estate agent lost the only key while traipsing through the snow with the roof inspector. (The roof has been certified for the next 5 years, and the one little iffy spot has been patched.)

Never let it be said that I let something as insignificant as a key stand in my way. (I once got a job in Illinois Government because I knew how to pick a lock. I kid you not.) I didn't have the proper tools to pick the lock, but I was able to open a small window and send Norbert through to open the door. The walk-through proceeded right on schedule. (And a locksmith will have everything straightened out tomorrow morning.)

I can't be upset with her -- she has been so helpful during this process. And she gave us a wonderful housewarming present -- a $100 gift certificate to Driers Butcher Shop! Smoked meats, here I come!

Some of the furniture we loved stayed, and some left. Ah well. We shouldn't be greedy. We have a sofa. We having a dining table. We have dressers and some glass-fronted cabinets. We do not have any beds, but we have inflatable mattresses which will work for now!

I cleaned the kitchen -- all but the floor -- and got the cabinets lined, the dishes unpacked and washed and put away, and all of the boxes we brought today unpacked. Tomorrow Norbert and I are taking another load, and I plan to sweep and wash all of the floors. Then Thursday he and I will go out and Myfanwe will join us after work and we will spend a relaxing 4 day weekend!

Myfanwe and I have talked about having a place of our own in Michigan for 17 years. It often made us sad, since we always thought it would be out of our reach. We hate to think we took advantage of the state of the economy, but in some respects, we did. We never could have afforded to purchase the house if the real estate market hadn't taken a serious dip. (I think it's on the rebound, by the way.) In another respect, the seller needed to sell the house, the realtors needed commissions to pay their bills, the bank needs to make money off of mortgages...we were sort of doing what we were supposed to do, right?

I'm tired, and I still have a van to pack. There will be pictures soon, but I don't know when. We won't have the interwebz in Michigan, so I probably won't post pics from there.

Thank you to all of my friends, both near and far, for their stalwart support and for never once telling me that I had grown tedious with all this talk about a stupid summer home.

After the closing we stopped for lunch

ENTERING THE HOME STRETCH

2009-12-27T08:10:00.005-06:00

We close on Shell Cottage on Tuesday.

We have packed dishes and pans, sheets and pillows, flatware and utensils, a down comforter and the extra coffeemaker.

We have purchased towels and shampoo, inflatable beds and a dish rack, glassware and dish towels.

You will notice that there isn't a lot of furniture on that list. That would be because we don't have any. Our plan has been, at least for the present time, to sleep on the inflatable beds in our respective bedrooms, then carry them to the living room or family room to lounge -- just until we can afford to purchase more, um, substantial furniture.

Yesterday, however, the phone rang. It was our real estate agent, Jaye -- who is really spectacular, so if you are in the market, you should really use her -- calling to say that the owner's agent had called because the owner was going out to Shell Cottage to get some personal items and wanted to know if it would be ok if she left some of the furniture! I nearly cried.

The only thing we know for certain she is leaving is the dining room set -- which makes us happy because now we can leave the Arts & Crafts set that we bought at an estate sale in our Chicago condo which actually IS Arts & Crafts! (Myfanwe wanted to all along, and I love being able to make her happy!) I would be so happy if the owner were to leave one of the couches. But I shan't get my hopes up. I also love all of the end tables -- they are all old 40's and 50's pieces painted white. But again, I shan't get my hopes up. We will know for sure when we arrive at the cottage for the walk through on Tuesday.

I'm going to bake some cookies for the owner tonight. And maybe some more tomorrow. She's been so very, very good to us and helped to make a long-held dream come true.

Tales From The Crypt

2009-12-19T20:23:00.002-06:00

Thursday evening, when I last posted, I had a bit of a cough.

By Friday morning it had developed into a raspy cough, a heavy chest, runny nose, fever, chills, headache, body aches, and a couple less pleasant maladies.

Having been vaccinated for the seasonal flu, it is just assumed that I have H1N1.

I don't feel great today, but I don't feel worse than yesterday, which means I'm not still on the downward path. I just basically am ticked because I have a lot of work to do before vacation. And I can't put vacation on hold, because vacation this year is moving into Shell Cottage.

Did I mention I was supposed to go get vaccinated for H1N1 on Friday?

SPIT! DUCK! HAM! BLUBBER TRUCKER!

I'M TOO OLD FOR THIS SPIT

2009-12-17T17:50:00.004-06:00

More Tales of the Home Inspection

Yesterday the inspector went to check the house out after the installation of new plumbing and the new hot water heater.

When he got there, the furnace was out. Again.

Thank Bob the temperature had only dropped to 47 degrees, so there was no damage to the plumbing, but the furnace is obviously a big problem.

Last night it looked like we would have to walk away from the house. This morning I was sort of resigned to it. This evening the owner is installing a new furnace and we are paying for half of it.

Shell Cottage will soon be ours. And it has new appliances, new windows, new plumbing, new heating, new floors, and is freshly painted. In 5 years we will put on a new roof, and the place will be so nice we won't know how to act.

Now I can turn my thoughts to varieties of climbing/mounding roses. I want to plant big mounds of roses on either side of the steps so when Myfanwe sits out on the porch in the morning, reading the paper and drinking her coffee, the scent will waft through the screens.

I feel like I have aged 20 years this month. I had no idea the angst that would accompany the search for and purchase of an hermitage. Please say a prayer that we make it through the closing on the 29th without heartbreak or heartache!

Shell Cottage

2009-12-14T22:36:00.010-06:00

Tales of the Home Inspection

The inspection didn't go exactly as planned.

As warm as the house looks, it was actually only 32 degrees on the first floor, and colder upstairs. The pilot light had, apparently, been blown out by the sustained 70 mph winds from the mistral two days earlier. To make a long story short, the entire house has been re-plumbed. The house also has a brand new water heater. We are thrilled, although also a little embarrassed that our good fortune comes at the expense of someone else. (Please note, though, that as soon as I save $1,500, I'm putting in a furnace without a pilot light so that this can't happen again!)

So -- the new pictures. (I didn't take as many as I might have, as it was REALLY cold!)

This is a bit of the kitchen -- we plan to put a kitchen cart or island here to hold the microwave and the coffeemaker. I love the framed chalkboard. If the owner were to leave it, I would not cry foul. The same goes for just about every piece of furniture in the house. The owner had a very, very good eye.

This is the living room. The corner on the right -- behind the sofa -- is where the gas stove will eventually go. I haven't decided if it will be centered between the window and the corner, or if it will be angled in the corner. I have time to decide that, though, as I will have to save for quite some time to pay for it. Norbert loves the chaise and seems rather sad that we would somehow let this slip out of our grasp!

This is the dining room, looking towards the living room. The door to Norbert's room can be seen on the right.

Norbert's room. The only color in the house that I am not completely over the moon about, but Norbert thinks it is the very best color ever chosen for a room and that any talk of glazing it or in any way muting it will be met with strong opposition.

This is the third bedroom. Myfanwe calls it The Loft, as it is open to the staircase. We plan to put a futon sofa in here, along with a big old steamer trunk, upon which will sit a small tv/dvd player. We won't have cable or a digital converter, so it will truly be just for videos. And the guest sheets and blankets and pillows can all reside in the trunk when not in use! I meant to buy some lavender this summer to make into sachets. Maybe I'll have to plant some and make my own. Lavender keeps away moths, doesn't it?
I really do love all of the white painted furniture. It is a fairly laborious process, but I expect we will become very adept at painting furniture in the next couple of years!

Please keep your fingers crossed and remember us in your prayers. Everything is going so smoothly -- the loan is in place, etc. -- but all three of us are frightened something will  pop up to crush us. We close on the 29th. Two weeks from tomorrow. I don't know whow we will survive it!

We are going to spend New Years and my birthday at the Cottage. I can hardly wait!

MORE NEWS!

2009-12-08T20:03:00.006-06:00

OK. So we lost The Store in Watervliet.

Never let it be said that when the going got tough, I just crawled in bed, pulled the covers over my head and said, "It's too hard!"

This is our new home in Three Oaks, Michigan.

We saw it on Saturday. We mulled it over on Sunday. We made an offer yesterday. And it was accepted today. (And an hour after our contract was accepted another offer came in. Thank Bob we got ours in when we did!) We close on December 29th. (Record speed. My head is spinning a little.)

I already have plans in my head to dig up the raggedy shrubs in front and replace them with climbing roses. I will enjoy being able to cutmy own flowers to bring inside. And I love the soft, oppulent look of mounds of rose bush.

Three Oaks is a lovely community ninety minutes drive from Chicago. It is 5 miles from Lake Michigan, so the prices are not as steep as on the lake shore, but it is very popular with young, creative, artistic people. It is a town with a population of 1,700 which is able to support a professional theater, an art cinema, a silent film festival, and six art galleries. On Saturday evenings everyone packs a beverage and snacks, grabs their lawn chairs and walks to the park to hear music at the band shell.

Myfanwe really loves the style. It's growing on me. Although I expect I will end up having to learn how to paint furniture so that it fits with the shabby chic cottage decor.

Some day in the not so distant future I will take out all of the upper cabinets, patch the wall, and put up open shelving. The upper cabinets are -- I kid you not -- only 8.5 inches from the counter top. My coffeemaker won't fit on the counter. Neither will a microwave. Or a vase. Or a glass of milk. And I'm thinking of taking an occupational therapy class at the Lighthouse For The Blind before I chop anything on the counter, cuz I won't be able to see what I am doing.

Doesn't this look lovely!

So once again, the inspection is Friday. It's a pretty full day. I will drive to Michigan for the inspection. Meet with the insurance agent. Stop by my real estate agent's. Drop by the mortgage broker. Drop a load of stuff for the house at a friend's place to store until the 29th. And make it home in time to make dinner for the first night of Chanukah! But (ptew, ptew, ptew) I won't have to drive to Michigan again on Saturday!

The plan is still to ring in the New Year in the new home, enjoying the quiet, peaceful nature Harbor Country. I need to make a note to myself -- somewhere betwqeen now and the 29th I need to get up north and buy a mezuzah!

All country homes need a name. What name do you suggest? I think Norbert and Myfanwe would like something Harry Potter-ish -- The Burrow, maybe? It's not hobbitty enough to be Bag End.

KNITTING

I have been making slow but steady progress on the Cathedral Window. I am on row 22 of the last 49 rows before the edging. Pictures soon -- but I'll warn you right now, it looks exactly like a placenta right now. But when it is blocked, I think it will be beautiful.

I think a shabby chic cottage in Three Oaks is just SCREAMING for some hand knit doilies, don't you?

BAD NEWS.

2009-12-06T15:56:00.002-06:00

Because of a serious structural defect identified during the inspection, we have had to walk away from the darling little house in Watervliet, Michigan. I am seventeen ways to sad.

And as I was talking to my real estate agent from the inspection to let her know, another call came through -- notifying me that a friend had -- not unexpectedly -- passed away.

I just got home from the funeral.

This has not been an upper of a weekend.

BIG NEWS!

2009-12-01T23:15:00.012-06:00

Myfanwe and I have made a big purchase. Monday we made an offer on a vacation home in sleep Watervliet, Michigan. It was rejected. An improved offer was made today, and it was accepted. It is a beautiful, quirky little place on Main Street. The back overlooks a river and a beautiful park. It used to house a store in the front, hence the way it looks...

It has a lovely deck over the garage, and it has a large screened in porch. Noticed the terraced gardens on the left. They are lovely, and NO LAWN TO MOW! Yeah me!

This shows the dining and living areas...

The floors have been re-done since these were taken. We purchased an antique Ford & Johnson arts & crafts pedestal table and 4 chairs for the dining room from an estate sale here in Hyde Park. It is a beautiful set.

The kitchen is small and very workable.

And THIS is the crowning gem -- the old storefront. Which will be our rumpus room. Try to picture it with the shelves stocked with board games, an air hockey table, a ping pong table, a couple of comfy chairs, and -- someday in the distant future -- a woodburning stove or fireplace!

This is the smallest of the three bedrooms. I don't have pictures of the other two, but I will after the housing inspection.

We close on the 29th, which gives us the opportunity to start the new year in our new (vacation) home!

MO PROGRESS

2009-11-21T16:26:00.005-06:00

Although I finished this in August on the flight home from Dublin, I didn't block it until today.

Pattern: Ishbel by Ysolda Teague. Yarn: Malabrigo Lace in Glazed Carrot. Less than one skein. (I still have 1.25 skeins left. Any ideas what I should do with them?)

This is for Myfanwe. She's allergic to lace, but I think, since it is in her favorite color, she might be able to wear this one.

As usual, I can only see its flaws. I am an average knitter, but I am a below-average finisher. If they had taught blocking at my high school, I would have finished in the lower third of my class.

PROGRESS

2009-11-21T13:03:00.004-06:00

OK. I know this must be getting tedious. Once a week I check in with a few words about the Cathedral Window Shawl with no pictures. Well, this is no different.

I managed to get all of the stitches picked back up and have now made it to row 12 of the 24 row repeat. Then I'll knit an eyelet row and do another 24 row repeat. And then I think I will be able to start the 1154 or so rows of edging. And then I will be done.

So, if I stick to the current schedule -- which I rarely, if ever, do -- I will need another 3 weeks before I start the edging.

Edging which, now that I look at it, I have absolutely no idea how to knit. So I should probably figure that out.

IN OTHER PARTS OF MY LIFE

Myfanwe and I have been looking in Southwest Michigan for a second home -- a weekend retreat in a greener setting...someplace quiet, with a fireplace. We found the perfect -- the PERFECT house. A 1960's rach backing up onto woods, 200 yards from Lake Michigan, on an acre of land.

We made and offer. Then an improved offer. And we lost it. And it has nearly broken my heart. We are still looking, but I feel like a mourner at each showing.

SNIT! FUDGE! SPAM! PASS!

2009-11-13T10:38:00.003-06:00

I have been working quite diligently on the Cathedral Window Shawl. Earlier this week I executed the next increase to 1152 stitches per row, inserted a lifeline, and began plugging along, knitting happily on the next 49 row repeat.

I was on Row 4

WAS.

As I was knitting this morning, about 30 stitches slid off the left hand needle. And promptly -- given the taste of freedom -- practically danced out of the constraints of the stitches beneath them.

I had to take the shawl off the needles and rip it back to the lifeline. I now have to pick up all 1152 stitches from the lifeline.

SNIT! FUDGE! SPAM! PASS!

P.S. I'm hoping to have some really exciting news very soon. Cross your fingers! Say a prayer!

Calling Out to My Seattle Peeps.

2009-11-09T22:06:00.002-06:00

I have a lovely niece -- for the purposes of the blog, I think I will call her Newsie -- who is currently a graduate student in Museology at the University of Washington. She is intelligent, articulate, hardworking, thorough, and trustworthy young woman. (She's also funny, talented, clever, mischievous, and cute!) She moved to Seattle in August for school and is still looking for a part-time job. She has experience in a law office setting, a pharmacy, box office, and hospitality (culinary) industry.

If you hear of any openings, could you please forward the postings to me? I'd appreciate it!

I'd Write a Haiku, But I'm Too Damn Tired.

2009-10-30T15:15:00.002-05:00

When last we commiserated the Mollywobbles family was leaving to spend a weekend with the Royal Family. We had a wonderful time at St. George's Castle, and the Principessa was thrilled with her shawl. She's looking great for someone who has been under the weather, and we had a celebratory birthday feast -- my first Peking Duck! -- and a fabulous, relaxing weekend with the de Rumball-St. George's and the adorable Infanta, Little Bird.

It was hard to drag my tuchas in to work on Monday morning, but I did. And it may have been the worst day I've ever had in the office. We were informed that a big case had, overnight, become a BIG CASE and would require Herculean effort to accomplish. And they laid off one of the staff that provides me and my boss with a huge amount of assistance and has been working on our stuff for the last 8 months.

I don't know how I'm going to manage the amount of work we have. I feel lucky that we have identified some able people who can give me some of their time, but I could use a LOT more people. I feel so close to panic all the time.

I'm still trying to get in at least one hour knitting a day. I can usually bank on getting half an hour in the morning and I try to get another half or a whole hour when I get home -- 8:30 or 9:00. Sometimes I'm just too tired, though. (And knitting lace isn't something one should do when drowsy -- a lesson I learned after some oral surgery.)

The Cathedral Window shawl is up to 544 stitches in a row. I'd post pictures, but right now it looks like a placenta. I won't know until I've finished the 49 rows of 1088 stitches if it will need another increase to 2176 stitches. When I've finished the 49 rows of 1088 stitches I plan to run a huge lifeline and then take it off the needle and pin it out to see how bit the sucker really is. Then I'll make a decision.

I'll post again when I can. Stay well. Be good. Have fun.

I CRIED, BUT I DON'T KNOW WHY

2009-10-19T20:36:00.007-05:00

I grafted the hem on the Lace Dream shawl on Saturday evening, and I blocked it this evening. It is prettier than I imagined -- even with my wanting skills and poor blocking.

I knit this shawl for my dear friend, the Principessa Maxine de Rumball-St. George. Maxine spent the greater part of this year very ill, and I was very worried about her and felt very impotent, being far away from her. I knit this shawl as a vehicle for focusing prayers for her health and well being. I wanted something really spectacular for her. As I neared the end of the shawl I received word that the Principessa's health was, finally, making improvements and that she had passed the first, most important milestone on her way to a full recovery.

I don't know if it was seeing the pattern finally revealed and realizing that it was even more than I imagined, or if it was a sense of relief and gratitude for the Principessa Maxine's recovery; whatever the reason, I was moved to tears.

I couldn't wait to show it to you. It may well be the most beautiful thing I've ever made. I still can't believe I could make something so beautiful. Tomorrow morning it will be off the wires and I will take more pictures. I will probably be working a great number of hours between now and Friday -- when we leave for the de Rumball-St. George's -- so I may not get to post more until after the weekend.

TUMMY YUMMIES!

2009-10-12T13:22:00.003-05:00

I recently made this Brown Butter Pound Cake and can't stop thinking about it. It was so, so delicious. It kept well. And it doubled well. Reviews mentioned it being too dry, but I didn't have that problem. I think it is important not to overbake. Leftovers were yummy for breakfast.

I'm now looking for reasons to make pound cake.

WHAT DID SHE CALL ME?

2009-10-08T22:30:00.003-05:00

As my regular readers will attest, I am incredibly fond of buying things. I reserve a greater fondness still for buying books. One of the few things I like more than buying books is knitting lace. And one of the things I like doing most of all is buying books on knitting lace. This, however, is a rare sort of treat, as good books on lace are few and far between. I have only a couple books devoted solely to lace. (I am still looking for an affordable copy of Gladys Amedro's Shetland Lace. Myfanwe refuses to let me spend that kind of money on a used knitting book. But please don't judge her. She's a muggle. She just doesn't understand. )

I recently -- ok, today on my lunch hour -- purchased a copy of Marrianne Kinzel's 1953 book, First Book of Modern Knitting, which has a few interesting patterns. I've already read all of the substantive text and the line by line of a couple of the patterns.

What did I think? Well, it's mostly stuff I would never make -- doilies and tea cloths, each knit out of crochet cotton, starched, then blocked withing an inch of its life. But her technique is good, and her method of blocking is interesting. And I'm thinking that the same pattern for a 64" square tablecloth, knit in a drapey alpaca or silk blend, would be a wicked shawl! And who knows. I might find it in me to knit a doily or two some day. They look to be quick and would make lovely gifts for the 80 year old women on my gift list. (Wait. I'm the only 80 year old woman on my gift list. Hmm.)

The book is a little anachronistic. It was written for housewives. Housewives in the 1950's. Kinzel's stated aim was "...to inspire the needlewoman of to-day [sic] to take up, in a new fashion, the old and fascinating art of lace knitting which enjoyed a tremendous popularity in the 18th & 19th century." (I'm not imagining it, am I? She did just call me a needlewoman, didn't she?)

The dedication of the book reads thusly: "A Dedication to ENGLAND, refuge through centuries of the persecuted, the proscribed, the people without a country, where my husband and I sought haven in exile and found most happily a welcome, a country, and a home."

I don't know where she was from originally, but I'm willing to bet it wasn't Ireland.

It's Like, Cosmic, Man.

2009-09-28T21:03:00.003-05:00

My niece pointed me towards this, and while I wasn't quite sure I would find this sort of thing interesting, my niece is pretty cool, so I gave it a shot.

This is a video remixing parts of Carl Sagan's Cosmos and Stephen Hawking's Universe series, setting it to music using autotune on their voices. It is actually really awesome! (I'm not sure what Autotune is, but just go with me.) Check it out!

KNITTING:

Everything but the grafting of the hem done on the Lace Dream shawl. I plan to undertake the grafting next Saturday or Sunday.

I cast on the Cathedral Window shawl. I'm not entirely sure I've got the right needle size. I figure I will wait until the first full pattern repeat is completed, then I'll look at it and see that I think. So far I've done the central few rows, plus half a repeat of the main motif -- at which point it starts over with the motif on row 1 through 24. I'm on 6 now, so tomorrow I should know if I'm going forward or if I'm ripping back and starting over on size 2's.

I DON'T KNOW WHY...

2009-09-27T08:56:00.002-05:00

...this spoke to me. Except that, even as a child, I loved her so.

Prayers

2009-09-21T13:54:00.003-05:00

Over the Rosh Hashanah holiday I mentioned to someone I know that, as I've been knitting recently, I was praying for a friend who had been ill for quite some time. This person was less taken by a man who knits than she was by a man who prays. (And this was at synagogue. Go figure.) She looked at me as if I'd just farted on her new sofa.

Is it so unusual to believe in prayer? Am I out of the mainstream, even for Jews? Is meditating on the life and health of a dear friend a sign of mental inferiority?

KNITTING

I'm approaching the end of the Lace Dream shawl. The length has reached my wingspan plus 4", so I expect I will knit another 8 inches or so and then begin the end hem. (I've not taken the time to figure out how the end hem happens. I figure I'll cross that bridge when I come to it!)

After that I will begin the Cathedral Window Shawl. I am going to knit it out of Cascade's Alpaca Lace in Amethyst -- this color way reminds me of the colors in the rose window in the Cathedral at Reims. (see the lovely picture.) I'll be using a finer yarn than the pattern and smaller needles. I will have to end up doing extra pattern repeats. I'm estimating that the edging will take me two weeks to knit.

It has not escaped my notice that extra repeats of the pattern will mean, when I get to blocking, I will have to pin out over 1,000 points on the edging. Does anyone know where I can buy T-pins by the pound? I've ordered 2 sets of blocking mats from Knitpicks. I figure they will come in handy when it comes time to block. Maybe I'll have a blocking party -- if 4 people are pinning out 1200 points, they only have to do 300 points apiece!

Does anyone want to come? Sometime next May or June? I'll make lunch?

MORE IRELAND

2009-09-14T19:53:00.009-05:00

Knitting at the seaside.

Grafton Street - one of my favorite places in Dublin. I didn't buy much, but the street was welcoming and vital and a wonderful place to watch people.

This is the best pastry I had in Ireland...an apple tart served -- of all places -- in the tea shop at the Newgrange/Boyne Valley visitors center. I never passed up an opportunity to sit down and have a pot of tea!

I couldn't help but think of my sock knitting comrades back in the States! I now have visions of 75 knitters rushing to the interwebs looking for transparent Converse sneakers/trainers!

Norbert took this picture of me knitting at Malehide Castle. I felt very much at home, knitting there. If anyone has a castle they aren't using, let me know. I'll go and knit there.

Myfanwe and I both fell in love. We both want to go back. Now. And every day away is just a little sad.

WHAT ELSE?

The holidays have snuck up on me. I have four days to plan and prepare Rosh Hashanah dinner. My house looks like we are housing the Jodes for the summer.

How long should a generous rectangular shawl be? Really. I need to know.

[Editor's Note: Norbert fell in love with Ireland as well. I apologize for the omission. In addition, he deserves an award for being a real trouper. He is really quite pleasant to travel with. We are, as ever, eternally grateful that G-d gave us Norbert!]

THESE ARE A FEW OF MY FAVORITE THINGS...

2009-09-10T21:48:00.020-05:00

... ABOUT VACATION:

These are just SOME of the pics. In no order. I'll post more if the whim strikes me.

We took a lovely hike on Howth Head. Aside from seeing Dear Sinead and Malachy, this may have been my favorite thing we did. Well, outside of the prison.

The views along the hike are breathtaking. The heather was in bloom. Those yellow flowers you see are orchids. Amazing. And then look at this:

This is Howth from the North. We hiked all the way to the end, around, then up to the summit. SOOOOOOO beautiful.

If you are ever in Sandcove, we highly recommend this pub. The BEST mushroom soup you could ever hope for. Perfect.

Rocks at the seaside at Sandycove.

Newgrange -- a Neolithic passage tomb in the Boyne Valley. Very, very cool.

The Boyne River. The water was high, and the river spirited.

The Hills of Tara. Note: The hills of Tara are active sheep pastures.

A statue of St. Patrick at the Hills of Tara.

And such a lovely view from Tara.

Dublin Castle

The castle garden:

The throne room.

Malahide Castle. (Which was in the Talbot family for over 800 years!)

Christ Church Cathedral:

Myfanwe and Nortbert at the water portion of the Guinness Storehouse tour.

I loved the name of this shop, but never got in to look for knoba for our diningroom sideboard.

This place is only open from 10 am to 1 pm, weekdays. And I was never walking by when it was open. I would have loved a keepsake tin or baking pan!

IT TAKES A VILLAGE!

2009-09-05T19:35:00.004-05:00

...to knit a shawl!

SO, my friend, Cheri, needs some knitting help. Knitting MATH help. And, really, when maths rears it's ugly head, I become that simpering Barbie Doll from the 1980's, whispering in my breathiest baby doll voice, "Math is hard!"

Could you please read the comments to this post and see if you can come up with the answer? I tried, but the answer I came up with -- Eskimo Pie -- didn't sound right to me.

The winner gets a gold star!

[note: edited to include the link. I am such a doofus sometimes!]

Gobsmacked.

2009-09-03T22:27:00.004-05:00

It has just occurred to me that I need to have the Lace Dream shawl done in 40 days. I still have 36 inches left to knit, plus hemming the bottom edge and blocking.

Of course, I've been working 11 to 12 hour days since we got back from vacation! But if I knit one inch a day, I can finish the shawl on time. I should be able to do this. Breaking it down into daily segments makes it seem less daunting.

IRELAND. Part One of Many!

2009-08-31T18:36:00.015-05:00

Let’s see. Where should I begin? I guess I should start at the beginning. A very good place to start...

Day 1 – which is really day 1 and 2, but we are just going to call it day 1 .The flight to Dublin was awful. None of us slept for more than 5 minutes. I sat next to an obviously troubled older woman with a jerky husband. He complained loudly that the light above him wouldn’t turn off. He kept complaining, even after they offered to move them to two seats elsewhere in the plane. But no, they stayed where they were. Mrs. JerkyMan divided her time between a) commenting on my knitting and saying – at least 100 times – that she only knit wash clothes and only knit them out of “crochet cotton”, as well as giving me a price history for the price of crochet cotton at Wallmart stores in Virginia over the last 10 years; b) leaning over he tray table and whimpering and/or sobbing; and c) twitching in her sleep – especially when her feet were touching mine. (She twitched so actively, if we’d wrapped her in copper we could have generated electricity.)

Our first day in Dublin was exciting, but exhausting. Our hotel – the Ballsbridge Towers, one of the D4 hotels -- was lovely, and our accommodations were definitely first class. Both Myfanwe and I have live in (several) apartments that were smaller! Our suite had a living room and a dining room! (That sat 8, no less!) And a kitchenette. And 3 – count ‘em – THREE flat-screen televisions! We even had a television in the master bath! We LOVED the bathrooms. Norbert had his own, and ours had a great shower and a spectacular soaking tub (with said television). I didn't think we'd use the tub at first, but you'd be surprised how many times we used it. (Our feet hurt a LOT over the week!) The pics don’t really do the hotel room justice, as we always seemed to explode crap all over the room the minute we walked in, but it we certainly couldn’t have asked for more or better or more comfortable. (Myfanwe loved the duvet so much, I think she will miss it most of all!)

Sunday night we were supposed to meet my friend Sinead and her partner, Malachy, for a pint a bite, but along about 4:00 I called and asked if we could reschedule for the next night. I only did this when Myfanwe and I had both fallen asleep at the National Museum of Decorative Arts. (An excellent museum, BTW. Norbert loved the arms and armor exhibit.) We both fell asleep so soundly that, when we woke up, neither of us had a good idea of how long we’d been asleep. Sinead was kind enough to reschedule, and we went home to the hotel where we had every intention of ordering a pizza from D4Pizza in the hotel. Instead, we all passed out. Norbert with his clothes on. End of Day 1.

Knitting. Let's see. This isn't limited to Day 1, but I'll cover my knitting stuff all at once. I took three projects, and I knit on all three. On the way there I mostly knit on the Koigu scarf I'm knitting for myself. Stockinette can be terribly boring, after a while. But I put about 2.5 feet behind me. I also got half a repeat or so knit on the Lace Dream shawl. And I -- drum roll please -- finished the Ishbel I was knitting for Myfanwe. (Only just barely. I finished casting off in the air somewhere east of Wawa, Ontario on the flight home.) I went to a lovely shop, This is Knit, while in Dublin. -- see the pic, above . I didn't purchase anything, but I had a lovely time looking and talking to the staff.

Places I knit: Dublin Castle, Malaheide Castle, Kilmainom Gaol, on the train, on the bus, at the Guiness Storehouse, a couple of museums, a cemetary, Trinity College, seaside at Dun Laoghaire and at Sandycove.

FINALLY!

2009-08-21T22:11:00.003-05:00

We leave for Ireland tomorrow!

Our bags are packed -- for the most part. I still have to decide which knitting project to take with me. I have the Lace Dream shawl on the needles, the Ishbel I'm knitting for Myfanwe, and a scarf I'm knitting for myself out of Koigu KPPPM in #P710. (I loved the yarn in a skein, bought it, then hated it once it was wound into a ball. But now that it is on the needles, knitting up, I'm completely in love with it.) I don't normally knit for myself, but I really do love the way this looks knit.

Anyway, in the morning we will do some last minute tidying -- Lil Myfanwe and Gale are staying with the kitty -- and then leave for synagogue for a bat mitzvah. We'll leave the bat mitzvah 15 minutes early to meet our ride to the airport. And from there? Dublin, Ireland!

I'll post pictures when I can. Until them, here is a topic to discuss in the comments: I wish President Obama would say the following in public: "Sarah Palin is a liar. If you believe her, you deserve to be lied to. Don't ask me to comment on Sarah Palin again. I don't have time for lightweights -- we have serious problems and we need serious minds. And that ain't Sarah."

Omaha!

2009-08-15T15:32:00.010-05:00

IT'S NOT JUST FOR STEAKS ANYMORE!

Norbert's best friend from camp, Woodrow, was called to the Torah as a bar mitvah this morning, and Norbert was invited. While I love a good bar mitzvah luncheon as much as anyone, normally this wouldn't be anything to blog about. Except that Woodrow lives in Omaha, Nebraska, which is several blocks from beautiful Hyde Park, Chicago.

I want to have something to counter with when Norbert comes home from therapy and says I never cared for him. So I immediately said, "Great! I'd love to drive to Omaha! This will be fun!"

Mapquest says that Omaha is 7 hours, 52 minutes from our doorstep. And it is. As long as you can hold your water for 7:52, it might even be a minute or two more than you need. But no more. If you are middle-aged, have had a child, or worry about deep tissue thrombosis, it takes 9 hours.

I would venture, though, that it was well worth the drive.

In addition to two synagogue services -- no camera allowed -- a dinner last night and a luncheon this afternoon, we took a little walk on the Bob Kerry Pedestrian Bridge. See below.

The Kerry Bridge spans the Missouri River between Omaha, Nebraska and Council Bluffs, Iowa. It's a pretty cool bridge. I don't know that I have ever seen a curved suspension bridge.

We walked to Iowa and back.

After the bridge, we went looking for a Starbucks on the way back to the hotel. Myfanwe was feeling a need. And we came upon a Starbucks in a lovely retail development -- lots of lovely shops clustered together. Myfanwe, bless her, suggested I drive around the shops to see if there was a yarn shop. And there was.

The shop is called String of Purls. And it might well be the most beautiful, comfortable, spacious yarn shop I have ever set foot into. This is just one room.

The owners and staff are incredibly nice women. They obviously love what they do, and they do it well. The shop, for lack of a better description, is sort of a Palace of Yarn. I could easily have spent an entire afternoon there. Everyone was so genuinely nice. If you are ever in Omaha, do yourself a favor and put String of Purl on your itinerary. You won't be sorry.

Don't ask me why I photographed this scarf. The best reason I can come up with is that I loved the whimsy. And I wondered how they made the i-cord off the edge of the scarf. It was pretty cool. I think I'd put some bells at the ends.

I have had a really good week at work. I feel like I'm getting back to my normal work again. (Which I really, really like.) My office no longer looks like the place used paper goes to die.

Blogging may be a rarity the next two weeks. Monday through Friday will, I imagine, be working hard at work, then coming home to get packed for Ireland. (And we will need to tidy up the house -- Li'l Myfanwe and Gale are house sitting for us.) I'll try to blog from Ireland, but I don't know how good the connection to the interwebs will be at the hotel. If the connection isn't good, or if we are having such a wickedly good time that I can't pause for a mo to block, I promise lots of pictures and a travelogue when we return.

KNITTING BY THE INTELLECTUALLY CHALLENGED

2009-08-02T10:36:00.006-05:00

I have been fretting over the Lace Dream Shawl for weeks. I have never been able to get past the 17th row -- which I have ripped back and re-knit at least 10 times. Each time taking pains to knit exactly as my lace book told me to. Several times referring back to the original patter (instead of my lace book) to make sure the instructions I had typed and printed in large type were accurate. I did this repeatedly. WEEKS. And if I wasn't re-working the row, I was feeling bad about my inadequacy and inability to complete a simple row of knitting.

Well, it turns out that I HAD typed the pattern wrong. And each time I went back to the original pattern, I continued to read it wrong. WEEKS!

Well this morning I have finally made progress. It hasn't made me happy yet -- I'm still slathered in my own stupidity. But eventually I will make enough progress to force the frustration from my mind.

In the meantime, here are a couple of pics that make me happy. This is our beloved cat, Liffey. Liffey adores me. The feeling is mutual. Liffey obviously doesn't hold on to stress like I do.

Oh. Speaking of stress. Have I mentioned that I have put away the Ishbel shawl for a couple of days because the first row of Chart C doesn't come out right for me?

Calgon, take me away.

On & Off

2009-07-25T22:53:00.002-05:00

I finished the Candle Flame Shawl last night after Shabbat Dinner. (Don't write and tell me that it isn't shabbasdik to knit on the Sabbath. Knitting is not work. It is relaxing and recharging and revitalizing and I don't care.)

I knit a few rows (20) on the Lace Dream Shawl, but made a mistake and didn't feel much like tinking back a couple of rows while watching a Harry Potter film with the family, so I cast on an Ishbel in Malabrigo Lace -- color, Glazed Carrot. Tomorrow morning I will tink back the Lace Dream and knit a few more rows. I don't know why a modified Feather & Fan pattern would give me so much trouble.

I would like to take one of these on the plane with me to Ireland. And I plan to cast on a simple scarf for me -- double stranded lace yarn. That should be good for mobile knitting.

I had a bad week at work. I'm tired. I'm going to bed.

A (no spoiler) Rant about Harry Potter & the Half-Blood Prince

2009-07-18T18:02:00.002-05:00

I don't understand why, if they have to take things from the book out because of time, they would add an entire scene that wasn't in the book.

I don't understand why they would make characters like Neville and Luna nothing more than walk-on roles.

I don't understand why they don't explore all of the memories.

I don't understand how the Patel twins suddenly became white.

I don't understand what happened to the members of the Order. It's like they were all on holiday in Majorca. For the whole year.

I think they beefed up Helena Bonham Carter's role just to justify the amount of money they were paying her.

And Fenrir Greyback. He looked more like a pedophile than a werewolf.

There. I'm done. For now.

I Feel Stupid.

2009-07-14T22:11:00.002-05:00

I began Eugene Beugler's Lace Dream Shawl on Sunday, and last night I had progressed to the end of the first 18 rows which are folded and knit together to create a doubled, finished hem. Although it was actually harder to pick up the live stitches from my provisional cast on, it was mainly due to the properties of the waste yarn I used, which didn't want to let go. The pattern is a modified feather and fan which creates an image of peacock plumes.

This morning during my 5:30 a.m. knitting time I began work on the shawl proper. And at the end of the first row, something was wrong. I didn't have enough stitches. I went back and counted, and, while I didn't have enough stitches to finish the pattern repeat, I had several more stitches than when I started the row, and it's a rectangular shawl, so I wasn't increasing for shape.

I ripped back.

I shook the cobwebs out of my head and started the row anew. I paid extra attention, or so I thought, to the pattern. And I still had more than my expected 115 stitches. And yet I still don't have enough to finish the pattern repeat.

What am I doing wrong? Why has Bob foresaken me?

Excuse me, but I have a row of lace to rip back.

OFF & ON

2009-07-08T06:24:00.007-05:00

... THE NEEDLES, THAT IS

I finished this piece a few weeks ago, but it has languished, awaiting blocking. I've no great love for blocking, and it is something I feel I do poorly. I don't seem to have the intuitive skills necessary to do an exemplary job. And when I say I find it more difficult than knitting a lace scarf to begin with, they look at me like I have three heads, and one of them is up my arse.

Anyway, don't get all vershtimmeled. I fixed the bottom edging before it dried. The yarn is Alpaca Lace by Cascade in the Turtle colorway. I used approximately 520 yards, or 1.25 skeins. The pattern is one of those from The Knitted Lace of Estonia, but I'm too lazy to get out of bed and walk into the library and get the book off the shelf. (Aren't you proud of me, though? I got the entire stack of books from my bedside re-shelved! Myfanwe is quite pleased, anyway. After a while the pile falls over and makes it hard to walk.)

You can't really see the mossy green in the photos -- I'm going to have to learn this camera better before we go to Ireland. I don't think I've taken a decent picture with it. I'm sure I just don't know it well enough, but my old camera, which broke, must have been idiot proof, because I couldn't take a bad picture with it.

Now for ON the needles. This shows about half of my progress on the Candle Flame Shawl. The pattern is free from knitpicks.com. The yarn, Alpaca Lace by Cascade again, is in the Flax Heather colorway.

This shawl does not have to be completed until January, so I am going to give myself a special dispensation from my One Project At A Time rule. I have some beautiful Alpaca Lace in Amethyst Heather that I want to cast on. You will see the Alpaca Lace a lot in the coming months. It is a joy to work with. It doesn't split, it is smooth between the fingers, it is easy to grip, it is fairly forgiving, and I love working with it. You will also see a lot of it because I have purchased a lot of it. I also plan to start an Ishbel in Glazed Carrot Malabrigo Lace for Myfanwe.

When I break a rule, I really break it big!

GOBSMACKED!

2009-07-04T22:26:00.002-05:00

Yup. Gobsmacked is exactly what I am. I am smacked in the gob.

This is a picture of my friend Lindy. Lindy works for a social service agency in Geelong, Australia and, in her spare time, freelances as Santa Claus.

I wrote Lindy a little e-mail telling her that I had found a copy of Yarn Magazine Issue 6 -- the one with the Cathedral Window Shawl -- at a distributor in Australia and asked, should the distributor balk at international shipping, if Lindy would be so kind as to purchase the magazine and have it shipped to her address, and then I could send her a check to cover the purchase and shipment to the US.

It must have been too complicated, because she wouldn't do it.

Instead, she informed me that she owned the magazine and would be happy to put it in an envelope and send it to me! Can you believe that? Lindy, who has never met me in person, is willing to go out of her way for me.

I say all the time that the people who read my blog are the nicest people on earth. And this is proof, yet again, of how very right I am.

I'm going to bed now -- and I will think about color choices as I head towards slumber.

I am gobsmacked,

CAN YOU CHECK YOUR MAGAZINE RACK?

2009-07-03T16:39:00.005-05:00

Or check in the stack by the commode? I am looking for the Yarn Magazine Issue 6, April 2007. I went to the magazine's website, and although they have most back issues available for sale, guess which one they DON'T have!

Why, you may ask, do I want this issue so badly? Here. A picture is worth a thousand words.

This is the Cathedral Windows Shawl. And I want to knit it. I have a cousin who is a Sinsinawa Dominican, and I would like to knit it for her or -- because she is not the greedy type and might well give it to one of her Sisters -- for a member of her community. I knit a shawl for Cousin Margie a couple of years ago, and when she was here for dinner a couple of weeks ago she mentioned how much she loves it. I think the Sisters will like this one, too.

So if you happen to have Yarn Magazine, Issue 6, April 2007 in your collection and would contemplate parting with it, I would be more than happy to purchase it from you. You would be doing a mitzvah!

(p.s. I borrowed the image from a Ravelry project. Do you think it would be wrong or bad or rude to e-mail the people who have knit the project to see if they would be willing to sell their copy? I feel a little uncomfortable. I'm kinda shy.)

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

2009-07-01T22:57:00.003-05:00

I spent the evening at Loopy Yarns, and I had a perfectly lovely time. Loopy celebrated Christmas in July -- Santa was there and passed out gifties to all the good little knitters. (Santa had an elf with him. I thought elves were short and looked like Jeane Kirkpatrick, but this one was tall, thin, and -- I don't think my wife will feel threatened by this observation -- he was more than a little bit hunky. Who knew?)

Anyway, I bought a bit of yarn. Possibly enough to keep me in stitches for the remainder of 2009. I bought:

3 skeins of Cascade Alpaca Lace in color 1407, Amethyst Heather;
2 skeins of Cascade Alpaca Lace in color 1411, Turtle;
3 skeins of Cascade Alpaca Lace in color 1409, Caribbean Heather; and
2 skeins of Malabrigo Lace in Glazed Carrot.

Technically the Turtle doesn't count as yarn for ME, as I bought it as a gift for someone.

My plan is to knit the Amethyst Heather next. (The Ostrich Plume -- which is also known as the Lace Dream Shawl) And although it is probably not the best color to be working on while in Ireland, I think I will start an Ishbel in the orange Malabrigo just before we leave for Dublin. That way I'll have several inches of mindless stockinette to knit on the plane.

Have I mentioned that I am terrified of flying...because I can't stand the thought of 12 hours without my Signature Arts needles? I knit lace on 7", stilleto-tipped needles, and I have heard conflicting stories about whether or not I will be able to take them on the plant. If anyone has flown Aer Lingus with pointy needles since the cowardly acts of September 11th, would you please drop me a line and let me know what your experience was like?

G'night!

Today.

2009-06-30T22:16:00.002-05:00

Today I worked a full day.

Then I met the Lovely Myfanwe at her office and walked with her to Grant Park for the Taste of Chicago. While at the Taste we ate: chimichuri chicken wings, cumin-dusted fries with sweet mango tamarind sauce, stewed goat and jollof rice, fresh/hot potato chips with hot sauce, a giant bbq turkey wing, chocolate chip cookies, lemon ice, and a rainbow cone. We ate the turkey wing while sitting 50 feet from the Barenaked Ladies, who were performing tonight. And then we went to hear Honeyboy Edwards, the blues performer.

All of this -- beginning to end -- cost only $40.00 for the two of us. No kidding.

I love Chicago.

KNITTING

In knitting news. I am about 1 third of the way through Candle Flame Shawl. The Candle Flame was my first lace, and it made me very tense. It wasn't an appropriate pattern for first lace. But nobody could tell me I wasn't ready yet -- I knew better -- and I did it anyway. It wasn't disastrous, but I really wasn't ready for it and it just made things more complicated. I wish I had listened and waited, but you can't turn back time.

Anyway, I'm enjoying this knit a great deal. But I already looking forward to my NEXT project, which I believe will be Eugen Beugler's Lace Dream (aka Ostrich Plume) Shawl from Shawls and Scarves: The Best of Knitter's Magazine. It is amazingly beautiful. I should have the Candle Flame done in time to start this and have it established so I can take it with to knit in Dublin. I want to have the shawl done by fall.

I'm going to knit it for a very dear friend (who happens to be a physician) who has been ill for several months -- she had a rather indelicate surgery which didn't go well, the surgeon really did a number on her, and the wound was an absolute mess and wouldn't close and wouldn't heal and became infected which made her even more ill and the surgeon told her she was a baby and stopped taking her calls, so she just kept on changing the dressing while things got worse, which resulted in her loosing 12% of her body weight -- and she was thin to begin -- and, to make a long story short, she's had corrective work done by a new surgeon (who has filed complaints with the old surgeon's boss AND his boss's boss) and has a would vac and has been off work for two weeks and is embarrassed to have to tell people what has happened to her. If she can make it through all this, the least I can do is to knit her a shawl.

It's getting late, and I have had a big day. Good night, Gentle Readers. To sleep, perchance to dream.

I Took Math for Music Majors

2009-06-09T12:25:00.002-05:00

CAN SOMEONE HELP ME OUT HERE?

I have 69 stitches on the needle. I need to increase 22 stitches in one row.

Maybe I'm loosing my mind -- I used to be able to figure this out -- but for the life of me, I can't. Can someone tell me -- in the simplest language possible (I'm VERY dim this week) -- how to affect this. I though it was after every 3 stitches, but that wasn't even. and I ended up off center. I've ripped back, but don't want to go through that again if my feeble brain is just going to spasm again. So I thought I'd ask The Blog for help.

May the Force be With You.

I Have an Odd Sence of Humor

2009-06-05T22:08:00.006-05:00

For the record, I didn't knit even a single stitch today, and I don't like the way it makes me feel. I don't like being so busy I can't find half an hour to get in a couple of rows. So I don't think I'll do this again.

Food is very important to me. I cook most of our meals from scratch, believing, as I do, that processed foods -- while not poison -- are not wholesome. I make my own soups. I can my own preserves. I try to explain to Norbert how food is grown, and I try to give him a connection to the food because I think that if you know how and where it is grown, you are less likely to waste it.

I particularly enjoy baking my own bread. Especially challah, the bread traditionally eaten by Eastern European Jews as part of the sabbath meal. It is a dough rich with egg and oil, braided and risen and topped with poppy seed or sesame seeds, or my own creation -- and my favorite -- with salt & pepper.

Knowing what you now know about the importance I place on food and my bread baking proclivities, you won't be surprised to learn that I buy my flour in 50 lb. bags.

A couple of times a year I drive to Shipshewana, Indiana to buy a car load of supplies. A few bags of bread flour, a few pounds of yeast. I do this because I like the fact that the wheat is grown in Indiana by Amish farmers known by the store owner. The wheat is milled in the next town over. Again, by someone known to the community. And it is then sold in the community.

And I never buy New Rinkel flour without getting a jolly.

Now why, you may ask, does this amuse me? My Jewish posse will see it right away.

This last picture has nothing to do with anything, except that my grandmother, z"l, always had a few African violet plants sitting in saucers in a north-facing dining room window. And they brought her a great deal of joy when they bloomed. Last year at the end of June I bought a few African violets on sale a t Jewel. And I lovingly tended them through the winter. And I was rewarded with this.

The picture looks blue, but the posies are more accurately purple. I happen to LOVE purple flowers. As Miss Shug once said, "I think it pisses God off when you walk by the color purple in a field and don't notice it. " So I try to notice it every chance I get.

Have a lovely weekend.

NEWSWORTHY NEEDLE NEWS

2009-06-03T22:51:00.002-05:00

For all my Chicago and Northern Illinois friends, I have big news. Extraordinary news!

Loopy Yarns, (47 West Polk Street in the Dearborn Station) has just started carrying Signature Needles! Since I purchased my first pair, I have become so attached to them that I passed on a lace project because I couldn't use the Signature needles for it. The quality is absolutely unrivaled.

I am extra excited because Loopy is the only shop in Chicago to carry the needles and they did it, in part, because I told them how much people will fall in love with them.

I plan to pick up a pair of 7-inch size 5 stiletto tips when I go to Loopy again. And I think you should go in and do the same! Tell them I sent you. And while you are there, ask to see their $9.00 a ball alpaca lace yarn. A very economical, soft, beautiful yarn perfect for your next shawl!

WHY ARE STUPID PEOPLE ALLOWED TO SPEAK AT ALL?

2009-05-27T14:01:00.003-05:00

Today is Rachel Carson's birthday. If you don't know it already, Rachel Carson was the author of Silent Spring, a book so powerfully and persuasively written it is credited as a catalyst for the environmental and conservation movements.

Reading about her -- even just the Wikipedia entry -- is an interesting thing. She did a lot in a relatively short life. (She died of cancer at 58.)

What really twists my titty, though, is this. U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Ezra Taft Benson -- in a letter to President Dwight D. Eisenhower -- reportedly concluded that because she was unmarried despite being physically attractive, she was "probably a Communist".

I hate stupid people. All of them.

DON'T LET THE LIGHT GO OUT

2009-05-24T22:11:00.004-05:00

My very first piece of lace was the rectangular Candle Flame Shawl, the pattern for which I obtained for free from KnitPicks. It was WAY too difficult for First Lace, but I ended up getting the hang of it and knit a gorjus shawl.

I very much want to knit another shawl -- in a gold/apricot heather alpaca lace -- but when I went to KnitPicks to download the pattern, I discovered that they no longer have it offered to the public. And I don't have it downloaded to my computer.

Does anyone have it? I would very much love a copy. I really want this pattern because the candle motif would be the perfect motif for a shawl for Norbert's bar mitzvah tutor.

Update - 5/25/09, 4:10 p.m.
Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! I have the pattern, I have the correct needles, and I have enough yarn. Now I know what my next project will be. Now I just need to finish my WIP so I can start! (Only about 4 feet left on a shawl. So I should be done in 3 weeks or so.)

Facebook Manners And You

2009-05-24T16:29:00.001-05:00

DOWN TIME

2009-05-22T16:51:00.003-05:00

I took today off from work. I've been working a lot of hours since the first of the year, and they have been pretty stressful hours, at that. And since I only work a half day on Fridays, and Monday is a holiday (Memorial Day, for my non-US readers), I decided to take 3.5 hours off and get myself a 4 day weekend! Woo hoo!

We've been having a bit of construction work done in our dining room and Norbert's room, and we had to move everything out of those rooms -- so our house is chaos. Despite that, MY plan was to spend today doing nothing but eating, napping, knitting, and maybe listening to a little music on the iPod.

Instead I:

went to Home Depot and bought flower boxes, flowers, and some house plants (on super sale!);
went to Target and bought a shade for the light in Norbert's closet;
planted the flower boxes;
cleaned up the back porch;
hung curtains;
moved book cases into Norbert's room;
moved the dining room rug into place;
took the dining table apart in the living room and reassembled it in the dining room, along with 8 chairs and pads;
did a bit of grocery; and
picked up Norbert from school.

I am so tired.

Tomorrow we have a bat mitzvah in the morning. Sunday we have to go to Ikea to buy Norbert's new bed, desk, and closet system.

Monday we are driving to Shipshewana, Indiana to buy bread flour, all purpose flour, and yeast from an Amish general store I love. And we'll might, possibly, maybe have a piece of pie (or two) at the Amish-run restaurant next door.

I don't know when I'm going to be able to work in some knitting and tea time. But it is my hope and prayer that the opportunity will avail itself.

SINEAD'S SCARF

2009-05-19T06:53:00.004-05:00

Thanks to international cooperation between the postal services of the United States of America and the Republic of Ireland, my friend Sinead is now in possession of the scarf I knit for her. (Please, Dear Readers, do NOT write about any of the flaws you find in the pics. I want Sinead to think I did a good job!)

The Photo Credits go to Sinead's partner, Malachy Geelan, whose photographic skill made my humble scarf look spectacular.

It is hard to capture the color -- aubergine -- in photos, but it will look stunning against Sinead's porcelain skin.

I was introduced to Sinead through this blog. One thing that strikes me most about Sinead is her generosity -- and how that generosity is an integral part of her nature. It's elemental. Where other people might think about doing something nice for someone else, Sinead follows through. She doesn't even have to think about it. And she certainly doesn't let something as trivial as an ocean stand in her way.

I think Van Dyke expresses my gratitude for the kindnesses and generosity Sinead has shown me and my family. (Try to picture Sinead as a she, and not a he. And more Catholic than Van Dyke's Presbyterian.)

He that planteth a tree is the servant of God,
He provideth a kindness for many generations,
And faces that he hath not seen shall bless him.

Having come to know Sinead through this blog, my family and I are planning to strengthen our friendship this August when we travel to Dublin. Hopefully Sinead and Malachy will allow us to buy them a pint or a pot.

I'd like to leave you with an assignemnt, Dear Readers. Go out and do something nice for someone.

IRAN SO FAR AWAY

2009-05-17T15:37:00.002-05:00

According to the stats for my blog, someone recently viewed my blog from Tehran in the Muslim Republic of Iran.

I can't help but worry that they read my little blog postings (here and here) and have now sent a bunch of hairy, women-hating Ninjas for Islam to beautiful Hyde Park to drive me into the sea.

My blog is not well read in South America, and Africa, well, they have other things to occupy them right now. (Though I am HUGE in Djabuti!) But someone in Iran is keeping track of me.

FINISHED OBJECT

2009-05-14T14:47:00.002-05:00

I just finished an object. The Peacock Tail and Leaf Scarf from Nancy Bush's Knitted Lace of Estonia. It was a pleasant knit. I learned a lot. I go over my fear of grafting the end border lace. I think I did an ok job of it. I knitted it from Skacel's Merino Lace in Aubergine. It is really the most incredible color. Just fabulous. And I think it may have been my best piece of lacework to date.

Unfortunately, I was unable to take pictures of it before I sent it away. I could have stalled mailing it another day or two, but in my heart I just couldn't wait. It is going to a wonderful person who deserves it greatly. I'm not saying who. But I had spent these weeks knitting it and thinking about her and praying for her -- I like to use knitting as a prayerful activity -- and wishing for good things for her. I didn't want to wait a minute longer than I had to to send my prayers to her.

I did ask her to take a couple of pics for me, when she has a chance, and I will post them when I get them.

I have already cast on my next project. I mentioned that I had overcome my fear of grafting the end lace panel. That said, I have cast on for the Triinu scarf, which uses a provisional cast on so the end lace edge can be knit onto live stitches.

Well, Poop!

2009-05-07T17:53:00.004-05:00

I got the brochure in the mail today for Stitches Midwest. Galina Khmeleva is teaching a 6-hour introductory class on Orenburg lace, and Joan Schrouder is teaching a 6-hour class on Shetland shawls.

So why the poppy outlook? Because $285 is too dear a price -- at least in a year when we are also paying for a bar mitzvah. (For my non-Jewish readers, this is, roughly, the same as paying for a wedding reception for 200 guests...and then another afterward for another 100.)

Speaking of the bar mitzvah, I've been thinking of knitting a lace shawl for Myfanwe to wear on the bimmah. It is the practice in our shul that women cover their head out of respect when on the bimmah. Myfanwe doesn't like the little doilies the shul has for women, and I suggested a shawl similar in size and shape to those worn by Muslim women...only out of fine lace. So now I have to figure out what pattern I should use. Any suggestions?

OFFICIAL Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince Trailer

2009-05-02T13:50:00.001-05:00

I can't wait. I just can't wait. How long til July 17th?

Unfortunately, the trailer shows less knitwear than previous trailers.

And I know this video is a little repetative, but the earlier one was taken down.

STOP THE PRESSES!

2009-04-16T17:44:00.003-05:00

CHANGE OF PLANS!

I have changed my mind. I decided I don't like nupps enough to knit the Madli Shawl. At least not this month. So I cast on the Peacock Tail and Leaf Scarf instead. (It's for someone special, but I'm not going to say whom that might be.) I'm knitting it in a lovely augergine colored merino.

While looking for a picture of the scarf on the interwebs, I happened upon Miss Alice Faye's recently completed project. The picture is hers.

If you haven't heard of Miss Alice Faye, please, please, please stop by her blog and look through it. She is an amazingly talented knitter. Her lace is the standard by which all other lace should be judged. I am in awe of her. I kind of have a knitters crush on her. If I were to run into her at a fiber event I'd probably stutter and stammer and blurt out words that don't string together. She's a Sorceress.

CLOSER

2009-04-15T22:23:00.003-05:00

I am on row 28 of the final 32 rows of the Lilac Leaf Shawl. It has been such a pleasure to knit.

So regardless of how bad work is tomorrow, I know I can finish 4 rows and put this baby aside until the weekend, when I can set aside a block of time to kitchener the two pieces together.

Something nice happened to me today. I entered my name for a chance to win an iPod Touch from a vendor who offered it as a way to get people to come look at their software.

I won!

I don't have it yet -- the vendor will bring it to me next Wednesday -- which gives me time to figure out what exactly an iPod Touch does. (I love my video iPod. Do you think I will like this?)

UPDATE

2009-04-12T20:58:00.002-05:00

I am only 28 rows from completing the Lilac Leaf Shawl. Even though this week looks to be really crappy with late nights at work, I am certain I can have the knitting finished by Wednesday.

Then comes the hard -- and stressful -- part. I have to graft the shawl and the end lace trim together using the Kitchener stitch. I'm really nervous.

28 rows.

I'm ahead of schedule!

I'm thinking about Madli's Shawl in Aubergine for the next project. What do you think?

Any Suggestions?

2009-04-12T13:41:00.003-05:00

The Lovely Myfanwe, Norbert and I usually take a vacation in August. We put back a little bit every month and, every other year, we take an "off budget" vacation paid for out of the vacation account. On the alternate years we tend to do something a little more restrained -- say 5 days at a friend's house in Michigan -- that can be paid for "on budget".

Last year we took an "off budget vacation" which, through frugality and good planning, we managed to pay for "on budget". So instead of $2,400 to spend on a vacation this year, we already have $3,600. With our usual frugality and good planning, we can have a good bit of fun with this budget.

If my bonus had been more like last years, I had wanted to supplement our savings and spend a week in Ireland. But this years bonus was NOT like last years -- I'm not complaining...I'm happy, happy, happy to have a job -- so I don't think Ireland is going to be in the offing.

But I don't know where to go!

We all like places steeped in history. We like seafood. We like to walk a lot. We like bakeries. We like museums. We like to eat. We like to take leisurely bike rides. And we like ice cream. Our recent vacations have included Boston, Baltimore, New York, Washington D.C., and New Orleans.

Norbert has complicated things by making life goals. "Before he dies" he wants to do the following things:

1. Go to a foreign country. Preferably one where they speak a different language.
2. See a whale in the ocean.
3. Ride an elephant.

Does anyone happen to know of somewhere we could go the 3rd week of August where we can see a whale or ride an elephant? If we can do that in the company of people speaking a language other than English, I think I might plotz!

Or is there somewhere else that you suggest? I've never been particularly drawn to the American Southwest, not the Northwest, for that matter, though I think I might like the Pacific Northwest far more than, say, San Diego. (I am not a hot-weather animal!) I love New York and would love to go back, but wonder if that's a surrendering to indecision.

Please advise.

HARRY POTTER and the Half Blood Prince - NEW Trailer!

2009-04-10T22:08:00.001-05:00

MO' PROGRESS

2009-03-31T19:57:00.003-05:00

My pair of 7", size 4, stilletto-tipped, bell-capped Signature Arts needles have arrived.

There is nothing more tortuous that having a super-duper, extra-special, pretty, shiny, new toy and not being able to play with it.

But I have to finish the Lilac Leaf shawl first. Then, and only then, I can start a new project.

I am placing lifelines on the first row of every repeat now, so that eve if I drop a lace stitch, I only have to rip back so far and can only be set back one day. It's really, really busy at work right now, and I'm working late most nights, so I'm getting up early and staying up late to squeeze in some knitting time. If I knit 15 rows a day, I can finish the center panel in 7 days. Then I'll need at least a week to finish the lace border for the end, and then I'm going to need to find someone to give me the courage to Kitchener stitch them together. I'm already nervous. And THEN I will still need to block it. Which I think I can get done before April 29th.

I don't know if I've mentioned it, but this is another prayer shawl. My boss, of whom I am quite fond and to whom I feel great loyalty, has been diagnosed with prostate cancer and will have surgery on the 30th. I am making this shawl a prayerful experience, and I plan to give it to his wife before the surgery. It may sound weird, but I'm the kind of person who, in the absence of a positive way to focus my nervous energy, will give life to all kinds of horrible uglies.

Knitting and praying for health, happiness, and grandchildren seems far more positive and productive.

PROGRESS

2009-03-30T06:25:00.004-05:00

I think it is coming along quite nicely...

It is an enjoyable piece to knit. I like it a lot, and have already have a second shawl from Knitted Lace of Estonia planned. I ordered a pair of Signature Arts needles with stiletto tips -- size 4, 7", with bell caps. They should arrive any day now, which is exciting, but I can't use them until this shawl is done, because I want to present it to the recipient before April 30.

Hug A Teacher

2009-03-22T20:15:00.011-05:00

I may have mentioned that I am working on the Lilac Leaf Shawl from Nancy Bush' Knitted Lace of Estonia. I love lace knitting, and really felt like this was a good "next step" for me and that it would present a challenge. (The pattern is entirely charted, which alone presents a challenge, since I am chart-challenged.) Little did I know that it was going to be much more of a challenge than I had anticipated.

I did okay -- a couple of false starts and a rip-back or two to the lifeline. And this was only in the initial border section. But I started to get the gist and understand how the lace was engineered.

Then I came to nupps in the pattern. If you don't know what nupps (rhymes with soups) are, look here. I tried to knit nupps. I really tried. I failed. And tried again. I failed again. I failed so badly that I had to rip back 9 rows to a lifeline and then trudge forward again. I did not want to rip back again, and I also didn't want to admit defeat. And I also really wanted to knit this shawl.

So I did what I should have done in the first place. I called a teacher. A really good one. Her name is Kristi, and she works with Myfanwe, and she has two darling dachshunds. In addition to her day job as computer maven for Myfanwe's law firm, Krity has a second, super-hero job at Loopy Yarns. And, as it turns out, Kristy is an accomplished nupptress. She learned from the Mistress of Nuppage, Nancy Bush, herself at Stitches Midwest. (I want to go, but Myfanwe doesn't think it's a good use of family funds.) Even though Kristy had taken today off, she met me at Loopy for a 2 hour lesson.

This is Kristy.

In the 2 hours it took for me to successfully get my arms around nupps and to successfully knit two rows of my shawl -- the first row containing nupps and the row in which the nupps are resolved, Kristy knit this lovely specimen.

This is a picture of me. I am, obviously, very happy. Why am I happy? Because I have mastered a new skill.

I know they don't look like much, but look there at the top row. Those little bobble-like things are nupps. Nasty little buggers. But there they are!

I went home, brewed a pot of tea, put a couple of madelaines on the tea tray, and knit a bunch more since then. I'm now finished with the border. And I'm through with nupps for 280 rows! Woo hoo!

It is going to be a very busy week, but I hope to get in a few rows every day. I'll keep you updated.

I'm On A Roll!

2009-03-18T14:26:00.004-05:00

Norbert was feeling under the weather today, so Myfanwe stayed home with him this morning while I went to work, and then I relieved her at lunch time and she went to work.

Norbert is doing fine -- he's currently splayed in a recliner in the family room watching a program on how pneumatic drills are made. With plenty of rest and relaxation, he'll be good as new tomorrow.

As for me, I've managed to find something to do to help me pass the time! A pot of tea (Supreme Breakfast), some fruit shortbread, and a little knitting on the Lilac Leaf Shawl.

What? You can't see? Here -- let me show you a close-up.

Those fruit shortbreads are really quite yummy. They taste like they may have a little graham flour in them.

Oh -- and if you wanted to see closeups of the knitting...

I'm half-way through the first border motif. The next motif contains nupps -- rhymes with soups -- and I'm a wee bit nervous about them. I'll let you know how they go. (I'm going to put in lifelines a row or two ahead of the nupps, in cake I really mess up.)

Let's See Now...

2009-03-17T23:08:00.004-05:00

I had a lovely evening.

We had friends over for St. Patrick's Day dinner. It was your basic Irish American fare. Corned beef, cabbage, potatoes, carrots, soda bread, with a choice of Guinness, Miller Light, or Kaliber, the NA made by Guinness. For dessert I served coffee, tea, and bread pudding.

After our guests left, I got in a few rows on my latest knitting project -- the Lilac Leaf Shawl from Knitted Lace of Estonia. I'm only half-way through the border -- and I've had to rip out and restart a few times -- but I'm enjoying it. (I don't feel bad about having to re-start the project twice because Stephanie Pearl McPhee had to start over eleventy-four times, and she about 243 times the knitter I am.) I'm knitting it in Lacey Lamb lace weight in a dusty rose color. Someone I am very fond of has been diagnosed with prostate cancer, so I am knitting this shawl as a gift for his wife and using the knitting as an opportunity to pray for my friend's well being.

Tomorrow morning, before I go to work, I'm going to put a lifeline in on row 30. Then I know I won't run the risk of having to rip the whole thing out.

Pics another day. It is late and I'm tired.

Happy Spring, dear ones!

AMEN!

2009-02-23T17:38:00.000-06:00

Dustin Lance Black's moving Oscar Acceptance Speech
by ohlalaparis

I LOVE...

2009-02-21T21:41:00.004-06:00

...the movie, "Notting Hill".

There. I said it. You can all snicker behind my back. Go ahead. Just come back when you are done.

First off, Norbert was 18 months old before Myfanwe and I had a proper postpartum date. And when we did, it was dinner and a movie. And the movie was Notting Hill.

I love the garden bench. "For June who loved this garden from Joseph who always sat beside her." And I loved the quirky friends and family. And I loved that, like me, William fell madly in love with Anna at first site.

And, possibly its most profound line: "Happiness wouldn't be happiness without a violin-playing goat." I mean, that is so deep.

Myfanwe and I have discussed this, and when I die, instead of a tombstone, I'd like a little stone bench. Nothing fancy, but big enough that Myfanwe could come and visit, sit a spell, and tell me a little about what's going on in her life.

I WILL SURVIVE

2009-02-20T21:21:00.003-06:00

I thought about using the title, "My Heart Will Go On", but I think everyone knows how I feel about Celine Dion. Just Say No!

Anyway, there was a bloodbath today at my office. 10 partners, 9 associates, and 35 staff let go. I'm fine, but I sure don't feel good. I know that every person who did loose their job really needed it. And I know how difficult it will be to find a job in this economy. I'm riddled with survivor's guilt, and sick with the knowledge that this might not be the last of the bloodletting and next time it could be me.

I KNOW I SHOULDN'T TALK BADLY ABOUT SOMEONE I LOVE...

2009-02-11T22:28:00.001-06:00

LEARN FROM MY MISTAKE

2009-02-10T20:57:00.002-06:00

Regardless of how calm it makes you feel, never EVER knit lace on a turbulent flight.

It's bad. Very bad. Possibly fatal.

And it was 7/12ths complete.

Frindle.

Kewl Vid

2009-02-08T09:20:00.001-06:00

I'm not a science guy, but I found this video really interesting.

ONE WORD

2009-01-29T08:43:00.002-06:00

Your hair? Thinning
Your mother? Difficult
Your father? Sincere
Your favorite thing? Cooking
Your dream last night? LittleBird
Your favorite drink? Tea
Your dream/goal? Weightloss
What room are you in? Office
Your hobby? Baking
Your fear? Abandonment
Where do you want to be in 6 Yrs? Here
Where were you last night? Home
Something that you aren't? Handsome
Muffins? Yes
Wish list item? HDTV
Last thing you did? Burped
What are you wearing? Turtleneck
TV? Yes
Your pets? Everything
Friends? Treasured
Your life? Grateful
Your mood? Fearful
Missing someone? Yes
Drinking? Tea
Your car? Santa Fe
Something you're not wearing? Watch
Your favorite store? Macy's
Your favorite color? Sage
When is the last time you cried? Yesterday
Where do you go to over and over? Chinatown
My favorite place to eat? Nancy's
Favorite place I'd like to be at right now? Kitchen

UNLOADING

2009-01-27T22:18:00.003-06:00

I am tired. Exhausted. Stressed.

I've billed 185 hours this month. (I only work 90% time, so my target is 125.) And there are still 3 days left in the month for me to work.

I have managed to get a couple more repeats of the shawl knit. I'm pretty sure I made a mistake, but I'm actually -- and contrary to my usual nature -- ok with my mistake. No one but me will be able to see it, and I'm really knitting it because knitting helps to keep me sane when the lack of light starts playing the bongos with my mental health.

Like I said before -- I'm going to finish the scarf, block it, and if it looks good, I'm going to give it to my bosses daughter, who is getting married. If it doesn't look perfect, but still nice, I'm sure there are people in my life who will enjoy it.

I'm going to sleep now. And maybe when I wake I will feel less stressed.

BTW -- if you ever have the opportunity to buy a pack of Fox's BisQuits, BUY THEM! MOST YUMMY! My friend, Sinead, sent me a few packs, and I've already finished 2 of the three packs! I saved the chocolate for last!

Myfanwe, Norbert & I are leaving Mitzi with the house sitter and taking a long weekend to visit our god-daughter, Little Bird, in St. Louis this weekend. My wee Little Bird is turning a year old! We haven't seen her in 2 months, and I can't wait to see everything new she's doing! I'm making a batch of cinnamon rolls and freezing them so I can bake them off in St. Louis. Which means somehow I have to find time tomorrow night to form them and freeze them. Oi! Wish me luck!

GREAT DAY! THE RIGHTEOUS MARCHIN'!

2009-01-21T08:54:00.003-06:00

This is the day of jubilee!
God’s going to build up Zion’s walls!

I couldn't get this to embed, so you'll have to follow the link -- you won't be disappointed.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l-0NvkuPHZI&feature=player_embedded

One personal observation.

I wasn't processing the who thing. It's so big. But last night, walking Mitzi past President Obama's house, it hit. Like a bag of cement. His house, once lit and full of life and light, was absolutely, completely, totally dark. Not so much as a porch light. And I said to Mitzi, "Well, I guess we weren't dreaming. They've really gone." I don't think Mitzi has the emotional capacity to understand "bittersweet".

Lace & Cakes

2009-01-19T09:46:00.005-06:00

This is how I am spending my long weekend:

Welsh tea cakes, the Lacy Wrap from Rowan, and decaf black Ceylon tea.

My friend Sinead -- Hi, Sinead! -- pointed me towards the recipe. (And also the book "A Nice Cup of Tea and a Sit Down: A book about having a sit down, a biscuit, and a nice cup of tea" by Nicey & Wifey.) These cakes are like a cross between an American biscuit and a pancake and a quick bread. They are actually harder to describe than I thought they would be. They are rich and studded (in my variation) with chopped dried apricots and sultanas. Rolled out, cut into rounds, and baked on a griddle. Yum. There are, however, more than we can eat at one sitting. I have been warned away from "jam splits" -- breaking them open, toasting them, then spreading them with jam -- as jam splits are, apparently, "an abomination". Since some of my favorite people/things/foods have been described as "abominations", I might have to try one. But I will do it with the requisite amount of shame...probably hiding it from my family and friends.

I'm also 1.5 repeats into the Lacy Wrap. On slightly bigger needles, so I get an airy, diaphanous look. If it turns out nicely, I plan to give it to my boss' daughter, who is marrying this fall.

I gotta go. The tea cakes are getting cold.
This

WINTER

2009-01-13T09:51:00.004-06:00

I happen to like winter. No, that isn't entirely accurate.

I LOVE WINTER! I love snow. I love snowstorms. I love winter, pure and simple. Because I love winter and I love snow, I live in Chicago, though oftentimes I spend a portion of the winter bemoaning how those lucky people in Indiana and Buffalo, New York get all the good snow. I am at my happiest when it is snowing like a scene from The Long Winter.

I don't understand Chicagoans -- particularly TV weatherpersons in Chicago. I'm not exaggerating -- at the very first hint that so much as a flake of snow could possibly fall from the sky they start running around in front of the camera screaming, "Oh my G-d! We're all going to die!" The next thing I know people are stalking around, whispering, asking if it's possible the office might close early "because of the weather". Complete strangers expect me to empathize as they moan and groan about it being a "freezing" 28 degrees.

This is Chicago, people! Man up! Quit your bellyachin' and grow a pair! We don't go home early because it might snow! We don't even go home early if it DOES snow. The worst thing that could happen is we get snowed in and end up sleeping under our desks, which, far from being the end of the world, builds character! Try to look on the bright side! If we do all sleep under our desks, I bet the firm will bring in breakfast!

This week we are expecting a blast of arctic air, with daytime high temperatures hovering at the -2 degree mark. And I have a response to every person who feels entitled to bitch and moan.

"To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven..." So shut up already.

A BLAST FROM THE PAST

2009-01-10T21:41:00.002-06:00

I have always loved Designing Women, and I remember this clip so well. I value loyalty -- I am, though flawed, a very loyal person. Don't mess with my friends!

BTW -- I will let you know what my present to Myfanwe was when I find the camera memory card. It has to have a picture to go with!

I Got a Wicked Present

2009-01-09T15:07:00.004-06:00

Hidden in chocolate bars...isn't Myfanwe cute?

What was the present?

Tickets to see Wicked in it's last week of a 3.5 year run. We saw it on Broadway, see the picture of Norbert and Sockey, below, for proof. We all loved it. So I'm excited to see it again.

THE WAY THE NEWS WOULD READ IF I RAN THE WORLD

2009-01-07T19:27:00.002-06:00

I saw a great headline online today

"Cheney says Obama should keep terror polices"

If I ran the world, the next line would be

"VP-Elect says Cheney should shut the fuck up"

Wouldn't that be refreshing?

Ah, well. In my dreams. In my dreams.

History

2009-01-04T16:53:00.005-06:00

This afternoon Myfanwe, Norbert & I got to watch President-Elect Obama's motorcade as it passed, taking the President-Elect to Washington. We waved. I didn't care if we looked odd. (Though thank Dog the CNN footage we just saw on the tube started just feet past where we were!)

It was a moving experience. I first met President Obama when he was first elected to the Illinois General Assembly twelve or so years ago. (Myfanwe and I were both lobbyists at the time.) When we moved to Hyde Park 11 years ago, he became my State Senator, then my U.S. Senator, and then he became my neighbor.

It is hard to reconcile the guy who stood in line at Walgreens with the guy who will be the leader of the free world. I mean -- our dog has pooped in their yard! (We pick up after her, not to worry.) And now the guy living at the corner who walked the three blocks to pick up his dry cleaning is now the President of the United States! Doesn't that sound like some sort of weird fan fiction?

Sad, though, that the guy who likes walking around the neighborhood won't ever be able to take walks like that again.

I'm hopeful President Obama can make some sense of things and get us pointed in the right direction once again. I also pray that it won't be at too great a price.

G-dspeed, Mr. Obama. We are very, very proud of you. You are in our prayers.

Burris on Blago: Before...and after

2008-12-31T17:44:00.001-06:00

I Decided to Ignore Her.

2008-12-31T12:30:00.002-06:00

I decided to listen to the voice of reason and just ignore the Friend request. Clicking it felt good. Maybe not as good as telling her off, but I also realize that saying my piece wouldn't make me feel any better.

One reader e-mailed with a (kind) suggestion that I should forgive this woman. Let me share a little backstory to explain why this person makes me so angry.

11 years ago she sat next to me at my first law firm. She was a few weeks my senior, and we struggled together to learn the ropes. It wasn't a good firm to work as a paralegal, and I soon moved on. Several months after I landed at my last firm, another position opened up. I knew that she was miserable at the first firm, so I used my influence to get her the job.

Within a few weeks of taking the job, she started talking about me behind my back. I didn't find out about it for some time. I suspected someone was poisoning the well, but I didn't know who or why. I almost lost my job because one of the name partners (whom my co-worker worked for) wanted me out. Her lies about my performance cost me my bonus and a good portion of my sanity. Unless you've lived through the trauma of living on the brink, never knowing if the next call to a partner's office would mean getting the sack -- well, you can't imagine what that does to your head.

How do I know my coworker was behind it? Because one day the office manager called me into her office and closed the door. (I almost passed out.) She told me that I couldn't trust this coworker. I said that we had known each other for many years and that I was certain she was trustworthy. My manager told me she admired my loyalty, but then put a file in front of me that had been compiled by the name partner. In it were 20 to 30 e-mails from my coworker. All of them blaming me for something that, in truth, had been her doing. Or had just been made up.

One e-mail string -- at a time when money was tight at the firm -- specifically suggested the firm fire me to save money. When the partner replied back that he had floated her suggestion, but that the other partners had objected because I was the most profitable paralegal at the firm, she intimated that I was only profitable because I padded my billable hours. He suggested in return that she keep an eye out for proof of that because partners couldn't ignore "criminal activity".

I'm so lucky my managers and the partner I worked for were so supportive. They saved my life.

I can't tell you how this affected me. I'm never going to get over this betrayal. But I'm going to put it away for a while.

Some People Have ALl the Nerve

2008-12-30T18:18:00.004-06:00

I've mentioned a former co-worker who treated me very badly. And I took the advice of some, though not all, of the comments and completely ignored the advisory e-mail I received.

Today, though, I received a notification from Facebook that this person wanted to be my "Friend". (I think she should have thought about that before she repeatedly tried to stab me in the back.) Her exact message said, "Would love to know how you and your family are doing and swap pics so you can see my newest addition."

Her new addition is probably a rabbit or a pup or some such. What I really suspect is that, with the economic downturn (and her full, thick beard) she isn't making enough money selling Mary Kay and wants some help getting a job.

I never understood why she didn't look for another job right away when our old firm closed. I mean, I know she said she wanted to "ride the Unemployment Train as far" as she could. (I never understood why someone would be so set on becoming a stay-at-home-mom when her kid was finally in school for a full day.) I figured she'd need the money. She's married to a low-achiever...a guy who wore a black AC/DC t-shirt to his wedding (under his tux shirt) because she told him to "wear a t-shirt underneath". Last I heard he made barely more than minimum wage after being at the same job for 10 years. AND they have to support her sister and her baby. I mean, I'd be desperate for a job. Desperate enough to try to shinny up to people I've treated terribly in the past and hope they don't remember the number of ways I've tried to screw them and their families.

I assure you that, though I may be bitter, I am not heartless. I will happy to help her. Just as soon as monkeys sprout wings and fly out of my ass.

Now all I have to decide is if I should just "ignore" her request or weather I should decline and tell her why.

Your opinions?