Tuesday, June 28, 2016

As We Bid June Farewell

Kathy gives us some things to ponder.

*Where do you keep your favorite old patterns? 
My paper patterns are in file folder organizers.  All my mother's patterns are in the big cardboard box she used to store them.  

*When was the last time you got to bottle feed a baby?
A couple of years ago at an LYS event.  The mother wasn't getting any time to knit, so I offered to help.

*What knitting will you pick up and enjoy today?
My next Blankapalooza square.

*Can you do a flip turn? 
Don't even know how to swim. . .

*You just won a raffle. 
What's your pick? 
*Craftsy on line class?
*Independent yarn dyers sock yarn?
*mystery yarny gifts in a wrapped box?
Oh, the mystery box!  I'm a sucker for mystery boxes, grab bags --- all that sort of thing.


*You can photograph anything perfectly and show us on your blog tomorrow. 
What will it be?
Ocean waves at a beach. 

* Name a New knit website to check out please-
GnomeAcres.com.  It's technically a yarn site, but they do have a blog and a podcast.

*Name something you only drink in summer-
My beverage choices are the same year-round.

*You are give a new skill
Do you choose
a) talk to the animals
b) talk to the dead
c)talk on the radio and have your own show for a night
The animals.  There are too many people on the other side that I'd want to hear from, and I'd be afraid I'd run out of time.  I think animals would be almost infinitely interesting.

Monday, June 27, 2016

How Are You Feeling Today?

Are you feeling strong?

Or maybe you're "whatever" because it's Monday?

Maybe you hit the ground running this morning.

I just hope you're feeling creative, 

because today's Palooza prompt is

Let your needles, and your imagination, run free.




Sunday, June 26, 2016

New Around Here

Hannah's medical bills have come in.  All at once.  Seven of them.

I've been drinking Gatorade to negate as many of the heat-spawned headaches as possible, and today I tried a new flavor, Green Apple.
It reminds me of Jolly Rancher Green Apple candies, which is a very good thing.


As much as I like polishing my nails, taking polish off has always been a chore.  I recently found out about this:
It's peelable base coat.  So ingenious.  And it works beautifully --- sometimes a little too well.  I can look down and see that one nail is naked;  the polish has peeled right off.  I can't see myself ever being without this again.







Saturday, June 25, 2016

Making Plans

I am beginning to think seriously about moving.  As in, spending hours on Trulia looking for houses, and clearing out cabinets and drawers.  Whenever, wherever I go, I'll be downsizing for sure, so I'm clearing for that and for a yard sale.  Besides, it has been blazingly hot all week, and staying/"working" inside in the air conditioning is infinitely preferable to even stepping outside and triggering a massive, crippling headache.

My first choice for a move is Chattanooga.  Nashville is a close, close second, though houses are more expensive there.  I'm also looking into Augusta and Savannah.  I want to be in, or very near, a city so that there's an airport handy.  (In case Briton and/or Hannah move far enough away that it will take a plane ride to visit them.)  My Ultimate of Ultimates, of course, is a beach house.  That just can't happen given my finances.  Both Augusta and Savannah get me nearer beaches, which is a "Pro" for each of them.





Monday, June 20, 2016

Summertime, and the Questions are Easy

Via Kathy, as usual on a June Monday.

*My neighbor's trumpet vine is in bloom. 
What's your preferencee? 
Butterflies or Hummingbirds?
We have gorgeous blue and black butterflies here, so I'll go with them.


*What's your preference?
Boxed water or bottled water?
(I just found this boxed water and I am crazy about it)
I'd never heard of boxed water before.  Progressive Chicago, huh?  Bottled, then, for me.

*For next to your skin softness, 
do you prefer 
angora, cashmere, alpaca, or acyrlic?
Alpaca.  Even though this one seems unhappy with my choice:

*Do you have an interchangeable needle set or do you  prefer the individual circs?
I did break down and buy a set of square interchangeables.  Not for the circleness, but for the shape of the needles.

*Do you prefer an alcoholic drink before, during or after your dinner?  
I don't drink often enough to have an answer!

*What cuts into your knitting time more, 
others in your home or your own wanderings on the internet? 
Oh, Internet.  Easy. 

*Would you rather have a snowstorm as in Blizzard, or a heatwave with violent thunderstorms. 
Snow, snow, snow!!  I've been through enough Southern heatwaves.

*You just won a all expenses paid trip to a Fiber Festival.
Would you go alone or try to bring a knit pal along? 
I'd bring someone along, and plan to meet up with friends there.

Thanks again, Kathy, for the fun questions! 

Sunday, June 19, 2016

Maaaaa-aaaahhhhmmm!

It has come to my attention that another photo taken on Friday is preferred to the one I posted.  Since she was the Birthday Girl, I acquiesce.
The make-up and yogurt stories remain unchanged.

Saturday, June 18, 2016

My Baby Girl

Yesterday was Hannah's birthday.  I offered her either lunch or make-up shopping.  Her choice was made quickly and resolutely.  

Hello, Ulta.  (I must say that we have a very new Sephora in town, but she said she could get "a lot more little stuff" at Ulta.)

I didn't wear a speck of make-up until deep into college, so I'm far behind the curve.  Hannah, with her artistic gifts and steady hands, is a natural --- and knowledgeable --- make-up pro.

We had fun, just walking around and around the store, seeing more with every pass.  At the end, we both had things we were happy with.  A short walk across the parking lot afterwards to get some frozen yogurt, and it was time to take her back to her place.

But first, a reminder of the day:
(Her lipstick was a Purchase of the Day.)

Wednesday, June 15, 2016

Doo, Doo, Doo

"Lookin' at your front door. . ."

'Cause that's to be the color of your next Palooza square.

This is mine:

Happy Looking!

Aw, heck --- Happy Listening, too!

Monday, June 13, 2016

Today's Vocabulary Word: "Quora"

Kathy has renamed her Monday Question Session "Quora Time."  Quora is a very, very interesting website.  As in, the kind you can spend LOTS of time on.

Anyway, the renaming was spurred by a game of Bananagrams (love it!) with her son, Zach.  And these week's questions are:

HAVE YOU KNIT BY FLASHLIGHT?
Yes, and by candlelight, too.

Do you play board or card games in summer?
Yes, both virtual and real.

Are you hooked on Amy Beth?
No.  I don't do podcasts.

Are you angry at a bird? 
No.  Birds are pretty, and they fascinate the cats.

Have you discovered you were wrong about something? Want to share?
Oh, SO many things!  I've misjudged people.  I've (unknowingly) given false answers.  I've over-estimated myself.

You are given a gift.  To a spa.  Would you get a massage, a facial, mani pedi or scalp treatment?
Massage.  I use a facial mask every morning, I do my own nails, I don't want anyone to have to deal with my feet.

Do you use a provisional cast on?
No.  I never have.

Have you lost a swift?
No.  I didn't have one until very recently anyway.

Is your 2016 New Years Plan still rocking it?
If by "Plan," you mean "resolutions," no, because I don't make any.

Have you made lemonade pie? 
Yes, indeed, I have.

Do you ask SIRI , What planes are overhead?
No.  I don't have SIRI.



Saturday, June 11, 2016

A Chewy Review, et al.

This month, the cats got to try out 
Whole Earth Farms chicken recipe.  The smaller cans work very well for me --- Erin and Lily can each get a serving without my wondering, "Is this really half?" on the larger cans.  Too, as they are both double-digit-ages, I was excited to see that the food is cut into very small, very manageable bites.

The verdict?  One paw up, one paw sort of sideways.  Lily eats this with relish.  Chicken is her meat of choice, and this did not disappoint.  Erin, on the other hand, was not particularly taken with it.  When one can I opened had a significant amount of gravy inside, she downed that heartily.  But the meat didn't seem to appeal to her.

Chewy.com allows me, under its Blogger Referral program, to receive and test pet products each month.  I receive no monetary compensation for my involvement in the program.  The reviews that result from the real-life tests are presented accurately, and without bias.

It was Kathy who helped me get involved with the Chewy program, and it was Kathy who brightened my day by sending me something she, herself, had made with yarn that I, myself, adore:
Yes, it is 96 degrees out, and I am delighted to have a Noro wool scarf wrapped around my neck.  Thank you, thank you, friend!

I came across this pattern several days ago, and have knit a small stack of the little jewels:
A virtually lifelong friend of my son's is getting married this year, and my plan is to make a substantial number of these and give them to her along with a tea kettle.  They're a whiz to make, and I think they're adorable.


Wednesday, June 8, 2016

Things That Make Me Go "Hmmmm."

Ten on Tuesday this week is "Ten Things You're Curious About."  Here we go!

1.  What it's like to have a sibling.
*
2.  What has happened to the boy I had the mega-crush on in high school.
*
3.  What Abraham Lincoln's voice sounded like.
*
4.  What Harpo Marx's voice sounded like.
*
5.  Whether snakes move by pushing their bodies or pulling them.
*
6.  How they get the sticky stuff to stick to one side of the tape.
*
7.  Why I can't think of more than seven things I'm curious about.


(Posting today because I somehow let yesterday get away.  Sorry!)

Monday, June 6, 2016

Now I'm Hungry for Ice Cream. Or Frozen Custard.

1. Do you prefer:
frozen custard
hardpack ice cream
soft serve ice cream
Shaved ice 
I've been on a serious frozen custard run for the last couple of months, but, ultimately, I like soft serve.  With hardpack ice cream, and with custard, I moosh it around in the bowl until it's soft.

2. Of all the colors of the rainbow, which is your favorite? 
Purple.  Always purple.

3. How do you keep your sock needles together? 
Because of my ineptitude with double-points, my sock needles are my regular needles.  No special  organization needed.

4. If you could run through a knit shop and pull as much of ONE yarn as you could carry, what would it be?
Noro.  Always Noro.

5.  Are you over shawls?
Not at all.  Some of most gorgeous knitting I've ever seen has been in shawls.  Plus, the range of shapes and patterns is astounding.

6.Do your peonies open with or without ants?
I don't have peonies, but my gardenias are usually aswarm with ants.

7. As a young girl I loved the book Charlotte's Web.  Want to share your favorites?
Black Beauty.  The Bobbsey Twins.  The Snowy Day.

 8.  Is it nothing but boring to you to knit stockinette? 
or do you love it like me?
I don't mind it.  It's great for watching TV or DVDs to.

9.  Are you more likely to get up early in summer or winter?
I've never noticed a difference.

10.
If you are disappointed with the way a yarn pooling  is working up,
do you:
a. Carry on
b. Mix it with a complimentary color
c. overdye it
d. give it away 
Carry on.  I don't mind pooling at all.  In fact, sometimes I get disappointed when there isn't pooling!


Saturday, June 4, 2016

Sweet Relief

Last year, I got, maybe, 4 blooms on my enormous, much-loved gardenia bush.  I assumed the previous winter had bitten it, and was going to tell the men who do my yardwork to just take it down, which was a crushing thought.  But, it really is huge, and I couldn't decide what to put there in its place.

Therefore, I take great pleasure in letting you all know that
there are beautiful blooms everywhere!

No scent makes me happier than gardenias.  That the flowers are beautiful is a wonderful bonus.  I also like the smell of honeysuckle (it takes me back to summers growing up), and there is a substantial honeysuckle vine growing at one corner of the house.  You can stand in a sweet spot on the driveway and inhale both sweet honeysuckle and dreamy gardenia.  That they both bloom in summer is the only thing that keeps me from loathing the season entirely.


Friday, June 3, 2016

What Color Is

YOUR TOOTHBRUSH?

That's your Palooza Squares Color Prompt of the Day!

(How many of you know without going into your bathroom to look?)

Wednesday, June 1, 2016

Space

This house has a peculiar closet arrangement.  The main bedroom, downstairs, has one small closet and one even smaller closet.  The even smaller one is tucked in under the staircase.  If you could walk into it, you wouldn't be able to stand full up.  It's held my shoes and what crafting supplies would fit since Dale and I moved in.  Dale's clothes, ties and shoes went into the other closet, and I kept mine in the closet in what was to become Hannah's room.

The biggest closet in the house is in Briton's room.  You can walk in, spin around. do calisthentics. . .  When he and Hannah were little, they each had those play tents with characters on them;  you could set up one of them in Briton's closet and still have some room. 

I've been cleaning out the main closet in the main bedroom today.  All my clothes are in there now, along with several things I brought from my parents' house, plus clothes and shoes of Dale's and Daddy's that I can't bring myself to part with.  Most of the floor is taken up by my scarves and shawls.  I didn't have any idea how many I had until I pulled them all out today and piled them on the bed.  

Man.  SO many scarves and shawls.  A lot that I had completely forgotten about having made.  I'm trying to sort them out into Ones That I Will Keep and Wear, and Ones That Hannah Might Want.

Do any of you need a scarf or two?  I'm willing to bet I've got one in your preferred color (unless your preferred color is orange.)  They will have cat and dog hair on them, so, if you're allergic. . .

48

If you've ever rented a movie on Amazon Prime, you know you have 48 hours in which to watch it.  (By the way, why do we "watch"...