hand eye crafts

Another rainy day in Athens.  I've commented ad infinitum  about how I love the rain, despite my tendency to suffer bad sinus headaches when it is near.  Currently in the grip of both a sinus infection and an ear infection, I'm not enjoying today's weather as much as usual, but it's still nice to watch.

When I was in grad school, I contracted pneumonia.  Dale had already moved here while I finished out the school year in Tuscaloosa, so it was sort of just me and our cat Barrymore in sickbay.  Now, people say it isn't possible for humans to pass along illnesses to animals, but I saw him (Barrymore) get sick while I was recuperating.  We both recovered fully, so don't worry. Since I've been sick this past week, Tap has been dutifully by my side, sometimes jumping up into my lap if I'm sitting or onto my side if I'm lying down.  As I inch toward feeling better, he's still there ---  still here --- and I'm beginning to wonder if it's because he's still playing caretaker, or because he's feeling bad himself.  Hey, it happened once before. . .

Things I'm Learning While Sick 1.  Tap does not --- not --- like me in bed during the day.  He only settles down when I'm in the den. 2.  Ricola Herbal Immunity Honey lozenges are kind of tasty, even without a cough-y sore throat. 3.  If you can self-diagnose, going to the walk-in clinic is probably a waste of time.  Plus, all the people there are sick, too, and you might get worse.  (Sinus and ear infections, btw.  Antibiotics prescribed.) Things I'm Thinking About While Sick 1.  I'm glad I grew up in the era of mercury thermometers.  It'd be too hard to fake a fever with a digital. 2.  Thank goodness for hot chocolate, and tea, K-pods.

Dull headache, joint pain, low-grade fever, stuffy nose, achy skin --- I'm either suffering from a cold, a sinus infection, flu, or about half a dozen other ailments.  All I know is that I feel bad and just want to stay in bed under my quilts, sleeping as much as possible.

It's "One Spooky Night" at the library, and Briton has broken out his best Mr. Rogers gear. He said he's going to change shoes often, and call everyone "Neighbor." And if that weren't cute enough, how 'bout a sleepy, skooshed-up puppy?

It's cold and rainy today, and I am luxuriating in it. I've made a mitten and worked on a simple ribbed cowl and an asymmetrical shawl.  This is the photo from the shawl pattern, and the asymmetry isn't obvious: Trust me, in real life, it is.  And it's sort of unnerving, having made shawls and cowls and scarves all these years with an equal number of stitches on either side of the center.   Hannah sent me this picture earlier.  She said she got home from work and couldn't find Nell.  She finally uncovered The Hiding Spot. A slightly unzipped suitcase.  The girl can hide.

I try hard not to make this blog a dumping ground for all my worries and woes.  Therefore, all I shall say tonight is that my life the last couple of weeks had held very little beside worries, woes and various types of pain. So, to cute pictures. I took Nell and Klunk back to Hannah yesterday.  Her in a carrier is just about the only way to get a photo of her.  Otherwise, she shows up through the lens as a tortoiseshell blur. While they were here, Klunk seemed to enjoy my new Snoopy sheets.  (Granted, he likes anything he can curl up on and/or under.)