Progress & updates

There has been knitting, albeit not much with the heat and running around and the desire to grab needles and wool has been low.

Can cooler (with the caffeine addiction - Diet Pepsi)

In process - bottle cooler (Smirnoff Ice - black cherry, yummy!)

I've mentioned my gutter trees and how should I dig them out an plant them.... Well folks when I said gutter trees - I really meant trees growing out of my gutters.

Some of these are at least 2 years old and they appear to be thriving! I have to laugh in the fall when their leaves change color and actually fall off as if they were growing anywhere else but in my garage gutters!

I have also been feeding the squirrels in the front of the house for the past couple years. We started with just corn in a spring looking holder and then added a box with a hinged lid for squirrel chow (yes there is squirrel chow, not just cat & dog chow but squirrel chow). This feeding of wildlife initially started as entertainment for the cats. But we quickly realized that these furry-tailed little tree rats were pretty cute and entertaining to us humans as well. I've seen them climb the side of my brick house in such a fashion that would make Spiderman jealous. So their new nickname was born - Spidey!

Because of our feeding of these Spidey's and the fact that we still give them ear corn and there's corn in the squirrel chow - they bury it all through out the yard. There are times that the yard looks more like a corn field then a yard. So ladies & gentleman.... I present to you......

Gutter corn!

Not only am I growing trees in my gutters - the squirrels thought I needed corn up there too! I don't think any of the corn they squirrels planted will produce ears this year (last year they did!) but the cute little rodents have been entertainment for us even if their farming skills aren't up to par this year.

Is there a circus in town?

Have you ever been so restless or bored or just un-entertained in your own life or your part of the world that you wanted to run away and join the circus?

Now I'm not talking about the little kid who thinks his mommy is the meanest person EVER that he runs away to the park until he gets bored and meanders back home.

I mean becoming a true circus person - a "carni" if you will. Hot dogs, popcorn, cotton candy vendor. Or the chicky flying through the air on the trapeeze. Or the strong man who's married to the bearded lady.

Really just an escape from reality.....

Although to get past the fantasy of it all - I can picture the strong man and bearded lady fighting about the kids (lizard boy and lobster girl) doing their homework. Or the trapeeze chicky knocking back one more shot of Grandad whiskey before climbing that damn ladder again. And I remember my own summer jobs as a kid in the concession stands (showers never felt so good!).

I suppose that there's an escape in every part of the world no matter how mundane or uneventful it is. Even if its just the look on the other person's face as they realize that you just might be crazy after all.

For the most part I'm happy in my world - sure there's things I would change or fix, but it wouldn't be my world without those things (although some of them could go away.....). Time might fix those things or I might realize that they're just a part of the life I've created for myself.

Either way I'm not the hairy woman with the wet offspring that people pay to point and laugh at. I'm just me - whoever or whatever that is at any given moment. The magic of the circus will live on, if only in my wayward thoughts.

Hot dogs!! Carmel Corn!! Candy Apples!!
Step right up!! We have a winner!!

Heeeere's Jonny.....

Jonny Lang that is!

PB and I saw him Thursday night at an outdoor venue. This kid is awesome!! If you like the blues at all check him out!

He was 16 when his first (acutally 2nd) disc was out that made a decent splash in 1997. He plays like he's possesed by a long since gone blues legend and looks like it too. He has definately grown in style and heart since his early disc. However, he keeps his growl and rasp that made me love him in the first place.

Happy Birthday..... pt. 2

My mom calls me this morning and after the "hi"'s she asks - "Are you happy?"

A little puzzled I say "Yeah - why?"

"Well that's what dad and I wanted for you. So I thought I'd make my yearly question."

ok......

I suppose really though that it's not a bad thing if you think about it. The biggest thing my folks wanted for me was to be happy. Now that's not to say that grades, or a good job, or a family of my own wasn't on their wish list or weren't important to them. But above everything else they wanted me to be happy. If that meant a very prestigous career or a job that didn't pay much other than the bills. If that meant a husband and kids or single and traveling the world. If that meant living in the town I grew up in (where they still reside) or some far flung corner of the globe. They just wanted me to be happy.

I could say when I was younger and living at home - I thought my happiness was the farthest thing from there concern at times. But you grow up and look back and realize they were looking out for me, for what they believed was important. Many times they were right and often my views and beliefs ended up a bit different from theirs. But they still wanted me to be happy - whatever I figured that out to be.

Don't get me wrong they still drive me nuts - hey they are my parents... : ) but I know they love me and that they did what they felt was best.

And I don't think I turned out too bad.....

Happy Birthday.....

to me!

As of noon today - - - I will be one more year closer to 30.

Why do you knit....??

Really - it's a question that I've often thought and wondered about.

Why?? What possessed you to pick up these sharp pointy sticks and try to make something with yarn?

Why do you knit? To make something for someone? To become one of the crowd who have seemed to taken up knitting in the last few years? To find a craft? To take a class on an idle Monday night? To find yourself?

Myself - I started with an ad in the paper. My mom had seen an ad in the local newspaper for a LYS/sewing shop that was offering a class on how to knit, and wondered if I'd be interested. Sure - why not? It sounded like fun. (But come to think of it I remember mentioning something to my mom when I was a kid about learning how to knit. She - not knowing how - told me to ask my Aunt Mary about it. Aunt Mary was, and still is, a very nice woman and I love her dearly but as a kid under the age of 10 still slightly scary. I didn't feel comfortable or dared to say "Mom says you know how to knit. Could you teach me? I mean I only saw her on family get-togethers and as a kid most of your family is slightly intimidating anyway.)

So mom and I took a class. We both got the hang of it for the most part and finished the class. I learned something that could keep my hand occupied while talking or watching bad TV. Being of the internet/information age I searched online for patterns, and found a very easy triangle shawl pattern. Thus the obsession started.....

My mom has been stuck in a scarf rut since we took the class. I did get her to try the skull bag from Hello Yarns (minus the skull). Currently I've got her into the French Market bag from Knitty. She's not as hooked as I've become but if I keep finding ways to kick her out of her rut she could be..... : )

Yea!! It's here!!

I got a new DPN needle case! Ok so I never had one to begin with. I got the one of my dreams - custom made even - from Dave Daniels of Cabin Cove and his Cabin Cove Mercantile. I sent him an email asking if he could custom make one for me that would fit 2 sets of the smaller needles and up to size 15.

This is what I got:


The monster of all DPN cases! It's huge and it's perfect for what I wanted! All my DPN's in one place. No more looking through case #1 for this needle and case #2 for that needle. I have to do that with my straight needles and it can be a pain sometimes. Especially when you don't remember which needles are where.... I love the fabric - it's just too cool! There's one gingerbread man who got his arm bitten off.... I just love his eyes! Thanks again Dave!

On another interesting note - I taught my stepson how to knit last weekend. It was for a school assignment, he had to learn something new and then write out instructions how to do what he learned. I don't know if he'll knit much or ever again but I still think it's kind of cool. He even said that it was "kind of fun". I'll take that as a compliment from a 16 year old boy. He didn't make it much larger than what you see. He called it a 'toe sock'. Silly boy.

Happy 4th!

Happy 4th to all.

May you remember & know all that independence is.

Independence of yourself, your thoughts, your feelings.
Independence of our country and the fight for that independence.
Independence of others and their desire for it.

Happy birthday America!