hand eye crafts

Boy, it's been a big day.    First, I got a new toaster!   I went to Target!  (And actually left with only the things I went in for.) Then, I had a hiccups fit while trying to polish my nails.  Whee! I forgot that the apple cider in the bottle was sparkling, and when I opened it after wrestling with the top for a bit, it spewed all over a countertop and part of the floor.  Stickiness, hooray! And did I sit down on a knitting needle?  Of course I did!

The cowl/wrap/capelet is done. (It doesn't quite go with the Canucks shirt, but still. . .)   You all know how hard it is to get a yarn's true color captured, but this is a little closer.  It's more a rust-ish hue. I made the neck a bit larger than what the pattern called for, since it has to be pulled down over my rather big head.  When I make the next one --- and I will --- I'll know to make the shoulder longer.  I followed that part of the pattern exactly, not knowing how much yarn I'd need to finish the whole thing.  

 When, strictly unplanned, your mitts and your nail polish coordinate. (Sunflower boots making a background appearance.)

Most, if not all, of you, here know  Bridget , and so you might know that she and her husband lost their beloved Hamlet last night.  She is one of the handful of knitting friends I have spent in-person time with, and she is one of the biggest-hearted, smooshiest animal people I've ever met.  If you can send her some love and good just now, she certainly deserves it.

 I am a night person.  My energy and inspiration don't get into full gear until most people's bedtimes.  Since I've no job, nowhere to be each day, this isn't really a problem.  Staying up late, sleeping late --- not problems. So, here I am at 10:30 PM, just kicking into my knitting groove.  We'll see how late it takes me.

We got a smidgen more snow last night. It was that hard, crisp cold all day yesterday;  the cold that makes you hopeful something fun is coming.  Or makes me hopeful, at least.  This house faces north, so there's still some left on the front roof and the shrubs by the sidewalk.  It stayed cold all day today, so there's a little white left yet.

 And if I didn't already have a nice turntable. . . It's available at Uncommon Goods , one of my favorite shopping places.  "Shopping place" because it isn't a physical place.  I don't think.  You know what I mean. . . Isn't it cool?

But it was hard not to buy one of these bottles of wine today.  

This is as far as Tap got on his first trip out this morning before making a speedy U-turn. We Southerners know others think we're hysterical and wimpy when it comes to snow.  Those of us, though, who squeal and clap and maybe throw in some little hops when it does snow, don't particularly care.

We might get a little snow here overnight and into tomorrow.  The sky has been that beautifully promising gray/silver all day, and it is  cold.  We'll see.  

I am extremely down today.  It's hard to explain, as it's not so much mental as mental stuff flooding down into my body.  Not pain, just utter lethargy.  There were a couple of things I had planned to do today --- a couple of things that would simply get me out of the house --- and it is not going to happen.  There'll be no long walk(s) for Tap.  My body is sad. So sad that, no, I won't even be driving the mile between here and Wal-Mart to take a gander at the National Championship trophy.  The trophy was on display at the Wal-Mart on the other side of town yesterday and is here today.

Yes, I watched the game.  Even if I hadn't, though, the outcome would have been very clear, what with all the yelling and car-horn-honking and firecrackers being set off around here.  And this was five miles or so from where the real craziness went down.  Parade Saturday.  I'll be a non-attendee. 

Yes, I've gone a bit retro lately. In perfect honesty, I prefer the old metal looms to these plastic ones, but that just fits in with the "retro" thing, huh? Also, the loops need to come from a broader palette.  Maybe a yarn dyer can hold a symposium or something.

 Not making much progress on the asymmetrical poncho, but I add a few stitches every now and then. Making lots of cotton squares for the Mason-Dixon mitered squares quilt.  It's my third one. Just cast on for this (from "Cowlgirls 2") in this Knit Picks' Wool of the Andes Tweed in Gingham.

 

Do not let the behavior of others destroy your inner peace.  ~Dalai Lama  

 . . . you miss a couple of calls from your son, and he winds up pounding on your front door to tongue-lash you about how you're living your life? And that torpedoes the entire rest of your day? And you have to find busy work to keep your head from exploding with steam coming out both your ears? (I'm rolling pennies, is what I'm saying.)

If I only knew the yarn. . . . . . but the label was missing from inside the wound cake. I've been on a turquoise thing lately. And yes, even straight needles can give you a nice top finish.  

Last night, I realized it was 11:45 pm and I hadn't made a blog post.  I had 15 minutes to come up with something that would make a genuine "today" entry, but nothing had happened to me that warranted talking about. Nothing has happened today that is burning to be spoken of either, honestly.  I watched "The Lost Daughter" on Netflix this morning.  I adore Olivia Colman and love Ed Harris, so it's a movie that's been on my radar for a while.  I recommend it, though it's slow and moody.  Colman is just amazing. I finished the slouchy hat last night, so the poncho is now The Only Project.  Perhaps I'll have a photo of the hat one day. I'm not one of those to rush into new years with crazy energy or resolutions.  I've never been that much of a long-term planner, honestly.  I've never had a five-year plan for anything.  What's in front of me is what I think about. You?

 As if football weren't the single topic of mass conversation in this town anyway, now there's going to be a week of non-stop jawing.  Yes, I live here, and yes, I got a degree from and taught at Alabama, but this is so tiring.  Can there be new and different championship teams?  Maybe?  One day? New year, same stuff. Remember the beautiful journal My Twinnie (a line of dolls just waiting  to be launched) gave me?  I've landed on using it for haikus.  Daily haikus.  We'll see how creative I really am. Still working on the slouchy hat.  It's an easier pick-up project than the poncho.  And as if having one project languishing on the needles isn't enough, I've spent time today looking through patterns for another cast-on.  We knitters, huh?