The Haul

I want to show you what I bought at The Knitting Room in Fond du Lac yesterday. I heard that they're closing soon because they're retiring, and we'd never been there so we needed to get a move on. It was a glorious sunny day so we went. I drove so I got to be the Mom. (Look what I had to deal with! Or maybe they just didn't want their pictures taken.) The yarn shop is right in downtown Fond du Lac and a very nice place. Everything is 25% off which makes some decisions easy and others hard. I will say that the longer we were there the easier it was to decide to buy stuff. Maybe my resistance got lower the longer I was there, I don't know, but I didn't overspend my mad money so I'm happy.

I bought a pattern for a Reader's Wrap, a shawl with capacious pockets at each end, a pattern for a toddler had called Go Fish!, and a CD pattern for Beatrice & Bernard stuffed bunny and bear friends.

In the yarn department, I bought 3 different skeins of Comfort cotton for the fish hat, a skein of Encore Colorspun in a variegation I don't have for a boot sock, skeins of DK weight cotton for Purl Stitch scarves, a skein of Silky Alpaca Lace to make a shawlette, and 2 skeins of Dream in Color Classy superwash worsted, one red, one brown. I didn't NEED any of the yarn but I didn't buy too much and can envision making nice things from each skein--eventually.


We stopped at the Outlet Mall in Oshkosh across from EAA and found treasures at CJ Banks (my first time in there) and Eddie Bauer. My favorite bargain is a slim denim skirt with little pleated parts on each side. Very cute.


We had lunch with all the oldsters at Schreiner's and enjoyed every bite. It was an excellent day running away from home.

It's Starting to Smell Like the Super Bowl

Durwood's got his turkey little smokies simmering in bbq sauce in the crockpot (I like to call it the incubator because I imagine all sorts of little germies growing in the first part of the process but I must be wrong since they sell so many and I don't see crockpot food-eating people dropping like flies.) and I assembled my Muffaletta sandwich so the garlicky bowl is on the counter. I put together the marinade for his Japanese chicken wings last night and got the tiny chicken parts into a bag to soak up all the soy sauce and sugary goodness to be baked later. Not much healthy eating going on. Maybe I need to get some kind of salad or veggies to have alongside. Is that even allowed during the Super Bowl? Not that I'll be panting to watch or anything; I'll be doing whatever craft I want to do today (maybe some sewing or maybe I'll go downstairs to see if I can't make the Ultimate Sweater Machine make some knitting. Z-Dawg borrowed one from her boss and had small samples at Friday Night Knitting. Hmm, that sounds like a winner. And I can't forget to move the random crap that belongs in my car out of Durwood's van way-back and back into my backseat and trunk. I had to empty out the trunk in case some extra-dedicated shopping or deal finding occurred yesterday on our adventures. My favorite find is a slim denim skirt with little pleated sections at the hem area on both sides. I'm anxious for real warm weather to arrive so I can start wearing skirts again. Maybe with tights and a slip I can start earlier? I have another one cut out but not sewn... hmm, perhaps I'll put that on this week's to-do list. I have too many things I want to do and not nearly enough time to do them. I'm sending out a call for an extra (free) day per week, please.

February 4--Horace Pippin--Lady of the Lake. Lana spread her blanket on the grass and stretched out in the sun. The breeze across the lake was cool on her skin raising goosebumps wherever it touched her. She had spent the morning in tow getting groceries and picking up the week's mail. It had been hard at first getting used to not having that constant stream of news and emails on the Internet. She didn't even get a paper every day. Well, there wasn't a daily paper in Bedford so that wasn't really a possibility. The only thing she missed was the daily crossword. Dan said he'd bring her a book of them when he came up on the weekend. She hoped he wouldn't forget. Until then she made do with puzzles she'd found in an old dresser drawer up in the loft.

I was thinking I'd show you what it looks like out my window today but it's dreary with gray skies, naked trees, scraggly snow. I'm not showing you that; you probably have that too. Instead I've found a photo of what I wish was out my window, a much better vista.
--Barbara

Saturday Escapade

Today I roamed the city to pick up my friends and comrades in adventure, Skully & Cookie, and drove us to Fond du Lac to visit a yarn shop that's going out of business. I found a few things, Cookie found a few things, Skully just looked and fondled. Across the street is a weaving store with lots of lovely looms and linen table linens. Oh, such gorgeous linen. I could have brought home one of each, at least, but I resisted. I will keep that shop in mind the next time I have to buy a wedding gift though. We lunched at the number one restaurant on the old peoples' hit parade, Schreiner's. I bought 2 pints of their frozen clam chowder for Durwood, he's a big fan. Then we went across the street to the mall to find a Victoria's Secret because Skully loved the body spray Cookie was wearing and kept sniffing her, so we had to get Skully her own so she'd stop it. Man, VS isn't up to its old standards. They don't have any of those pretty silk and lace negligees that a person could buy for a bride, just bright and kind of skanky undies. Too bad. I wonder where brides shop now? We stopped at the Outlet mall in Oshkosh and hit some awesome deals. We got home late in the afternoon very happy and tired. It's always fun to go with them, we go well together, and it was a gorgeous, sunny and warm day. And after supper I got to go over and feed Porter and then take her outside to play for a while. After playing we sat in the living room for half an hour, me on the floor and Porter in my lap. Excellent day all around.

February 3--Oscar de la Renta, Evening Dress. Chickens are good for lots of things--eggs, of course, and their meat. They're great for bug-eating and for scratching up every blade of grass in their yard. When I was a kid my cousin Oscar came for the summer. Mama didn't believe in treating kids like they were special so it was Oscar's job to take care of the chickens. For the first couple of days I had to show him what to do. He was afraid of the hens and nearly cried the first time one of them pecked at him.

Well, I never did get around to the feathers, did I? That evening dress was decorated with beads and feathers. It kind of grew on me.
--Barbara

Super Bowl Food Marinating

Actually I found this recipe in a Mardi Gras file online for Muffaletta sandwiches (I've never had one but I want to, love the name, don't you?) so I got the ingredients on my way home from the mechanic's and put the olive salad together to marinate overnight. I don't really watch the football but I think it's a good excuse to eat "special" food, plus I figure I can eat slices of it for lunches next week, and I'm taking half of it to DS & DIL1 so they can have it when they get home late from a brewfest tomorrow night or on Sunday, but (shhhh) don't tell them, 'k? Durwood wants to make either bbq pork riblets or Japanese chicken wings, he's more into finger food than a sandwich. I want to make some pesto today too. I spent too much on fresh basil at the grocery and figure I'll make a half batch. Doesn't pesto just sound like summer? I'm in the mood for a piece of summer right about now. They discovered that the lock switch in the drivers' door was faulty in my car and that's why it was still going haywire. That got fixed today so I should be good for a while. Monday the plumber will be here to fix the main shutoff and on Tuesday the basement fixit people will be here. I can hear you saying "already??" I know, we're surprised at it too but it'll get done quickly and with a lifetime guarantee. All that's left on our list are new gutters with leaf helmets, so we'll get a few estimates and get that done too. We are efficient and I'm determined to get this stuff done in good time. I hate having stuff hanging over our heads waiting to be done. I figure if you hurry up and get all your stuff done, then you can goof off the rest of the time. At least that's my plan.

February 2--Johann Christian Schleip, Lyraflugel. There was a hum, not loud, but I heard it clearly. I walked around the old house listening for the source. I found it in the living room or the parlor or whatever you call the main room in one of those big old houses. The thing looked like the love-child of a harp and a piano. I don't know what it's called or how you play it but it was humming like it was vibrating. There wasn't a storm so it couldn't be be reacting to thunder's vibrations. We weren't having an earthquake, not one I could feel anyway. Where had Lenny gotten to? I called out to him but got no answer.

I'm off to do a bit of that goofing off I was talking about. Durwood's taking a nap so his TV is off. It's quiet in here so I'm going to go and sit on the couch. Maybe I'll doze off myself.
--Barbara

WooHoo!

Last night just before midnight I knitted to the end of the Fair Isle on the Red Marl sweater. (can I get an "Amen") I'm nowhere near done with the sweater and I have no excuse for it taking me a month to knit fewer than 46 rows even with 2 colors involved, but if I EVER even think about knitting something larger than a hat or pair of mittens using more than one color of yarn (other than simultaneously) you have my permission to bop me on the head. For some reason the longer I did it the more I hated it, the more I ground my teeth, and the more I tensed up my back and shoulder muscles. I abuse those particular muscles enough as it is, I don't need a "relaxing activity" to help with that. Now I need to knit about 6" of solid red, divide for the fronts, knit those, knit sleeves, put it all together (which just happens to be the program at next Thursday's Bay Lakes Knitting Guild meeting) knit the collar, and wear it. Probably next fall or winter, but that particular monkey will be off my back--and I can go on to the next one in the queue. There's no dearth of monkeys (so to speak, I'm really referring to projects begun and shoved aside) at Barbara's house.

Can You Believe It's February Already!?!

Neither can I. Outside it feels like March with the temps in the 40s and the snowmelt flowing down the street (making the hardpacked snow like glazed glass). It was funny seeing the plumber's truck sliding a few feet yesterday but it's no joke when I have to park out there so Durwood can come and go and I have to walk across that 6' of treachery underfoot. Part of the plumbing problem was taken care of and now we're waiting for the Water Dept. to be able to shut off all the water at the street so he can replace the main shutoff valve in the basement, and I just heard Durwood call ABT to schedule fixing the crack in the basement wall. I suspect that my car's computer brain isn't really fixed after all. When I got home from work and put it into Park the door locks didn't open automatically. That's something controlled by the Body Control Module so I have an inkling we may be going back to the mechanic. I stayed up late knitting my way through the last few rows of Fair Isle on the sweater front. Now I can knit with one color for about 6" and then split for the fronts, knit the sleeves (both on the same needle so they're identical), and finally have that project done so I can move on to the next one. I get to go play with Porter on my way home from work today. I went to Petco and bought a few of their ninety-nine cent tennis balls because she likes to chase them. She won't bring them back yet, but we're working on it. Maybe I should get some Liv-A-Snaps, our old dogs would do anything, I mean ANYTHING, for those.

February 1--Auguste Renoir, Figures on the Beach. You wonder if they are friends. It's hard to tell by the way they hold themselves. Do they smile as equals? Giselle, she stands there with her basket, hand on her hip, the breeze tugging her skirt. Marie-Ange sits n the sand, her small son playing at the water's edge. I know Giselle and Marie-Ange were not friends at school. Too many times she set their caps for the same boy and neither one was the clear winner in that age-old contest. Marie-Ange wed the baker and had her son soon after. There was counting to judge the relative prematurity of the boy but it was not the malicious sort of arithmetic, merely the normal calculation when a baby arrives before the couple's first anniversary.

And that's the end of that notebook. I wrote right to the last page and left about 3" of lines unwritten on. Good for me. Time to have breakfast and get ready to leave for work.
--Barbara

Welcome To The Circus!

Yesterday after the basement fixing estimate guys left I went down to put a new washer into the cold water supply hose for the washer. It was dripping. I had trouble turning off the water so I used a pipe wrench. It still wasn't off, so I had to shut off the main. I changed the washer, turned the water back on, it still dripped but now the main shutoff valve was dripping too. Gotta call a plumber. At 8 AM the doorbell rang and I opened it to see a smiling young man--and behind him his plumbing truck sliding down the hill on the ice. Not far but it was moving. He sprinted, hopped in, and turned the tires into the hill. It stopped. Saved. He came back, checked out our plumbing problems, and gave us an estimate. Once Durwood regained consciousness we said to go ahead. The Water Department guy arrived to shut off the water at the curb so he could replace our main shutoff. First he couldn't find it, then he couldn't turn it. That means that later today or tomorrow they'll come and dig up the front yard (on our renter's side, no less) to fix the "curb stop" then the plumber can come back to fix the main shutoff valve in our basement. Whew. Happily we don't have to pay the Water Department to dig and fix, but we have to pay for the plumbing of course. Good thing the car repair and basement crack haven't cost anywhere near what we expected, eh? Geez, the fates learn that you have a bit of money put aside and, bang, shit breaks left and right. At least we can pay for it, right? That's something good, right? Right.

January 31--Eugene Cuvelier, Fontainbleau Forest. I was glad to be out of the stuffy house and walking in the woods out back. It had snowed the day before. The fallen leaves were nearly covered with snow which gave off an unearthly light from below my feet. I had managed to get away from the children and grandchildren. Only my daughter-in-law saw me leave and I swore her to secrecy. The house had been full of people for more than a week. As much as I loved to have them all around, the noise and activity tired me. A nice walk in the winter woods was just what I needed. It wasn't bitterly cold so my regular coat and boots kept me warm. My lab, Roxie, came running down the trail to keep me company. We were more than a mile from the house when she found the bare foot of a woman sticking out of a brush pile.

Do you believe that today's February 1 already? I don't. Time sure flies whether you're having fun or not. Love you. Bye.
--Barbara Sue