No Naps Today

Evidently I'm clawing my way back to health or, at least, I can see being healthy in the distance because I didn't take a nap today.  I was tempted but managed to not sleep.  Makes me feel almost virtuous.


I finished knitting the felted hat.  It's a little too big (that's me wearing it so... understatement) so it's been though the hot cycle of the washer six times and now it's in the dryer.  There'll probably be more washer cycles tomorrow given how huge the hat was.





Oh, look at the Christmas cactus bud.  It's staying alive and getting bigger.  There are more tiny pink dots of buds on the leaves but no other bud seems ready to volunteer to bloom.






It started snowing this afternoon and looks like it just stopped.  We've probably gotten an inch or so.  I hope that's all we get.

Last week I was rifling papers on my desk and found a gift certificate to Knit Picks that I didn't remember redeeming so I went online, found some yarn that I liked, and ordered it.  It worked!  The yarn came today.  The purple with pink is called Dragon Lily, the gray with gray is called Wednesday.  I wonder who names yarn.





Once the hat was in the wash I realized that I didn't have anything to knit so I cast on another training sock for the Advent garland, making it through the heel flap.





30 December--Barbara Malcolm, Spies Don't Retire. 

It was George and Dimitri’s turn to organize the snorkelers’ monthly activity.  As the newest members of the group, it fell to them to plan the activity and get the information circulated.  They emailed each other and searched forums on the internet.  George got a chuckle when Dimitri wrote that he thought that they should go to a whole other island for the next meeting, just to get out from under their wives’ scrutiny.  George wrote back that he thought that was a good idea and suggested that they meet for an early morning breakfast at the Rose Inn the next day to plan it.

Dimitri arrived first and was seated at their usual table with two mugs and a pot of strong island coffee already there.  “I did not mean it really, George,” he said as George sat down next to him.

“I know you were making a joke, Dimitri, I’m not that old, but I think you might be onto something.”  George picked up the carafe, poured himself some coffee, and refilled Dimitri’s mug.  “After I got done laughing at the idea I realized that it was perfect.  Have you noticed that Franz isn’t running his inter-island ferry lately?”

“I saw it tied up at the customs dock the other day and wondered what it was doing there.”

“He’s had to have some heart surgery and his son, Davis, didn’t want to let Bunny and his Rasta pals run it while Franz was laid up.  He plans to start it up again in a few months when he’s back on his feet and the docs say he’s clear to work.”

“What does the fast ferry have to do with my idea?”

George drained his mug and refilled it.  As he did their young waitress came and took their orders; both of them still got a lot of pleasure out of ordering eggs and sausages and fried potatoes, flaunting their wife’s orders.

“So, what is your idea, George,” Dimitri said.  “Don’t keep me in suspense.”

“Well, I was thinking, why don’t we rent the ferry to take us all over to Arowak Island to snorkel and dive for the day, have a big beach barbecue, snorkel some more, and then come home in the evening.  Make a real day of it.  That boat of Franz’s is really more of a big pleasure boat than an official ferry.  It would work great as a floating dive platform.”

Dimitri was silent.

“Well?  What do you think?”

Dimitri laughed and clapped him on the shoulder.  “I think that is a capital idea, old chap.”

George threw back his head and roared with laughter.  “I’ll give Davis a call and see about setting it up.  We’ll have to make sure there’s a spot on the leeward coast of the island so that we can pull in close enough to offload the food and such without damaging the reef.  I’m sure they sell charts at the Harbor Village Marina; I’ll stop there on my way home and pick one up.”

“You had better wait until we know we can rent the ferry before you go buying charts.”

“But now that you’ve had it, I want to get this idea moving.  You’re a bad man, Dimitri Roskova; you’re going to land me in big trouble yet.”

They both laughed at that and tucked into their platters of eggs that the waitress had just set down in front of them.

I absolutely detest having a cold.  That is all.
--Barbara