Quiddity

Porch Sitting

You see me mention my time on the porch a lot these days, and frankly, it’s weird for me.  We’ve lived in this house what I believe will be 14 years this September, and before last year when I was undergoing chemo, I never spent significant time out here.  I don’t know why, but probably the bugs - I HATE BUGS!!  Haha. As it turns out, the bugs aren’t really a problem, until the mosquitoes start up mid-summer, and I think that with the enforced at home time, just being out in the warm sun does a lot for me, both physically and mentally.  Today, it’s cooler than it has been and extremely windy, making being out here marginal at times, especially when a cloud covers the sun.  But here I am, anyway, and I’ve managed to get some painting done, soon to be followed by more knitting once the sun hits the other end of the porch where the more comfortable chair is, instead of the wrought iron table and chairs I’m at now.  In the meantime, I’ll most likely finish this post and then go take a walk, which I BADLY need!

First, the last three days of Doodlewash prompts.  Olives, emu eggs, and a nice blue crab.  All the prompts this month involve something colorful, so it’s already been fun putting hues together to get the effect I want.

I ordered a small box of six paint colors, handmade with minerals instead of commercial pigments.  It’s a very muted, earth-based palette, so I did a quick try with some little flowers, adding the pen lines afterward.  A mineral garden, as it were.

Oops, looks like I got some shadows on it as well.  Anyway, that was a fun way to see how the colors work together, although I left out the gray one.

The knitting I’m working on is a shawl project where the end result is a mystery.  One clue comes out each Friday for five weeks.  I’m behind, as the last clue came out this past Friday, but I’ll be done soon, I think.  Of course, when it’s finished, I’ll post a photo.  No spoilers, though!  

I hope everyone is having a nice day.  Remember to stay safe, and if you leave home, please wear a mask!

 

Happy Birthday, Gracie!

Today, Gracie is 15-years old!  A good age for a horse, I imagine.  Because of the virus, there aren’t any riding lessons and we aren’t allowed in the barn unless there’s an emergency, so she’s having a nice vacation right now.  Because she is in a paddock near the road, I’m able to stop by once a week to say hi and give her pets and treats over the fence.  She always comes running when I call her, but I’m under no illusion that it’s anything more than for the treats - which is proved true as she wanders off when the treats are gone. 

The weather is supposed to cool off significantly over the next few days, so I’ll most likely have to be inside more than I like.  I used the last really warm day for a while to hang on the porch to paint and knit.  For my painting today, I chose to work from a photo I took many years ago, which I call “Vanishing 316”.  Highway 316 runs due east/west between Atlanta and Athens, and back when I was in grad school at UGA, I traveled it every day for two years.  The area it travels through was in the process of turning from farmland to suburbia, and I was enchanted by this abandoned home.  I stopped twice to take photos of it and I’m glad I did because I’m sure the corner it’s on is now a motel or gas station.  It’s not exactly how I wanted it to come out, so I’ll most likely tackle it again, but for now, here it is.

I think it’s ok for a first attempt, but I also love having the chance to revisit it again.  Painting, like knitting, allows plenty of room for “do overs”.

Just for fun, here’s a photo of Socks, contorted on the back of the couch.  How he got his back leg in that position, or why he thought it was comfortable, only he knows.  He’s getting older, but definitely not any less goofy!

Just Another Day in Paradise

We’ve had typical Spring weather this week - warm and sunny, then chilly and rainy.  Last night, a big wind swept through, knocking the power out for about two hours.  I pulled out my headlamp and finished penciling in a drawing I’d started just as the room was plunged into darkness while listening to my Audible book through ancient iPod and portable speaker.  Not too bad, actually.  

I’ve been spending these quarantine days eating too much junk food, watching too much tv and YouTube, and spending too much time online.  But I’ve also found time to knit and paint, so I’m not being a complete slug.  I am badly missing my strenuous morning exercise of riding, not to mention both my barn friends and yarn friends.  I’ve managed to stop to see Gracie on Fridays when I go out to drop something in the mail, and even though it’s pretty clear she’s mostly happy to see the treats I bring, I’m very happy just to see her.  

This week, I finished a simple shawl pattern, perfect knitting for these complicated times.  It’s called Storm Shawl.  I bought the pretty pink and green yarn at a shop in Colorado Springs a few years ago and it was perfect for this pattern.

 

Today, being April 30, is the last day of this month’s Doodlewash prompts.  I’ve enjoyed this exercise and have been shocked most days to see what I’ve been able to not only come up with, but actually produce.  I’ve written down the prompts for May, which look intriguing and certain to stretch my skills even more, so hang on for more little drawings.  Have I mentioned that each is credit card size?  I saw that idea online somewhere and ran with it for this exercise.  I’m also signed up for two workshops in May, so there is definitely a lot of drawing and painting ahead, as well as knitting, of course.  Oh, here’s the last three days of Doodlewash.

Today, I took a long drive around town, just to get out of the house and then ventured out to the small market a few blocks from my house.  It’s not Publix, but it has almost everything I need right now and is a lot less fraught with peril since there are generally few people inside (they limit it to 5, but I’ve never encountered more than one or two others).  I’m being very, very careful because of this virus, so I don’t know when I’ll feel safe going out much farther than that, but one thing for sure is that even if I feel bored sometimes, I actually do have quite a lot to keep myself busy.  What do you do these days besides any work from home duties?  Have you learned a new skill or continued an established one?  I’d love to see what you are doing in your own quarantine!

Oh, Hi There

I thought I'd give this blog thing one more try and January 1 seemed as good a day as any.  Here's a summation of some of the things that happened in 2019.

 

From February 20 to May 30 I underwent:

• 1 chemo port placement surgery
• 8 sessions of chemotherapy
• 1 lumpectomy surgery
• 20 sessions of radition
• Resulting in the complete and utter destruction of one triple negative breast cancer, as well as the loss of all my hair, fingernails, toe nails, and about 40 pounds.  The fingernails are back, but the weight and hair are a work in progress.

I also lost two wonderful friends from the barn this year, one to epilepsy and the other to lung cancer.  Both were way too young to leave us and I miss them very much.

On a happier note, somehow I managed to keep knitting through all that cancer stuff.  Frankly, I was shocked when I realized just how much I was able to accomplish because I would have put my finishes at a much lower number.  I completed 70 projects between January 3 and December 31, both small and large.  A list:

• Ravelry says I used 22,988 yards of yarn, but since I sometimes estimate, it's probably between 23,000-24,000.  Whatever.  I made:
• 1 large and very warm blanket
• 2 baby hats
• 4 baby sweaters
• 2 women's cardigans
• 12 star shaped Christmas ornaments
• 1 Christmas stocking
• 24 coasters
• 5 cowls
• 2 pairs of fingerless mitts
• 19 adult hats
• 1 lace scarf
• 7 lace shawls 
• 4 women's pullovers
• 3 scarves
• 11 washcloths/dishcloths
• All of the above can be seen on my Ravelry project page

Jim and I took two vacations this year.  The first was a long weekend to Hilton Head before I had my lumpectomy.  I figured if they were going to cut me open, I deserved a trip to the beach first.

The second trip took us three places we had never been.  We started in Pismo Beach, California for the wedding of Jim's oldest nephew.  Most of his family was able to come, except for his mom because the long trip from Connecticut would have been too hard on her.  The weather was beautiful, as was the wedding, and it was nice seeing family.

The next stop was at Sequoia/King's Canyon National Parks.  We stayed in Sequoia and spent most of our time there, but the whole area is just beautiful beyond belief.  It's impossible to describe how BIG those sequoia trees are, and it was interesting being there at the end of October when it was abundantly apparent why California is called "The Golden State".  Driving from Pismo Beach, through the Central Valley, and up into the high mountain ranges brought such a contrast of scenery, but gold was definitely the dominant color.  We spent just over a week in the parks and had a wonderful time, hiking and driving.

The last stop was a few days' visit to San Antonio, Texas.  Jim was there for a conference, so while he worked, I played.  I was able to visit the zoo, botanical garden, and and art museum.  We stayed on the Riverwalk, not far from the Alamo.  I loved the inexpensive bus system that took me every where I wanted to go with no fuss.  

It's been a long year with, I sometimes feel, more downs than ups, but on the other hand, I faced a very serious health  crisis and I'm still there, breathing, riding, and making trouble.  I'm back to my usual six mornings a week horseback riding, I've read a lot of books (audio, Kindle, and dead tree), had wonderful vacations, and enjoyed my life with my family and friends.

I can't say enough about the people who surround me, both near and far, because it's them who got me through this year.  Visits, phone calls, emails, texts, bringing dinner food, cookies, and continually telling me that I was bad ass enough to kick cancer to the curb, which I did with relish, and only with their help.

Obviously, I don't know what this year will bring.  I'm not going to say it will be better or worse, because it will, of course, be both.  There will be knitting, horseback riding, kitty cuddling, shopping, washing and house cleaning, and all the other minutia of life.  And through all that, my family and friends will continue to be my strength.  They are the only thing that really matters.  Thanks to all of you for being here for me in 2019.  Let's kick some more ass in 2020!!!!  Socks and Gracie agree.

Hey, It’s My Blogiversary!

I can’t believe I remembered to blog today!  And an eventful one it was.  If you saw my Facebook post, you’ll know we had some excitement at the Farm this morning.  One of the pasture gates was left open yesterday afternoon, after the horses were brought in, and was still that way at turnout today.  Many of our geldings decided that was the perfect invitation to take a little runner, down the street, across the road, and onto the highway!!  The good news was they chose the state highway and not the adjacent six lane interstate.  I don’t even want to think what would have happen had they made it onto that high speed, high volume road!  Where they were was bad enough.  But thanks to the local police, a few helpful citizens, and the intrepid adults and a few kids from the barn, we rounded them up (although no too easily) and walked back to barn.  We were quite a sight, ten horses and humans walking in a line on the breakdown lane for over three miles, but nothing compared to when the horses had been running in pack down the middle of the highway, dodging cars and trucks.  This was our worst nightmare come to life, and although it all ended with only a few minor horse injuries so far, not anything I want to have to do again!

So, what else has been happening?  Pretty much the usual.  Riding the horses, knitting, and oh yes, I had cataract surgery on my left eye.  My sight in that eye was very, very bad, but now, almost three weeks later, it’s good.  I really want to get the other eye done, but apparently it doesn’t meet the protocols yet, so I’m a one contact lens girl right now.  I had laser assisted surgery and that was really weird.  The machine kind of sucks the eye up and then uses the laser to make the cuts for removing and replacing the lens.  It was a very “2001 A Space Odyssey” kind of experience with lots of moving and flashing lights.  Odd, for sure!  I really didn’t think I had been having a color change in my vision, but the difference between the two eyes is extremely noticable.  I can’t wait until the other eye is done - I’ll be seeing colors that have been missing for years.

Of course, I’m still knitting up a storm.  Shawls, hats, and even a pair of socks.  As many socks as I’ve knit over the years, they’ve actually become something I do infrequently now.  I dug out a skein of self striping yarn and ended up with a very colorful pair.

Zippy!  I might have to do a few more like this.  

Gracie and Socks are both doing fine.  Socks must miss Mittens because he has become even more attached to me than before, both literally and figuratively.  He wants to be sitting on me 24/7, and constantly demands attention when he’s not.  Poor little guy, but otherwise, he’s the same nut he’s always been.  Gracie still has her bumpy moments, but I’m riding her a lot more and the more she works, the better she should be, so moving forward with that.

And so ends my blogiversay post.  I didn’t bother to look to see how many years it has been since I started, but a lot.  Hopefully, it won’t be this time next year before I’m back again.  

It’s My Party And I’ll Cry If I Want To!

Let me preface this by saying that I’m really not seeking sympathy, but am basically just venting. THIS JANUARY SUCKS!!!!!!! Why? Because it feels like eight zillion and counting things have gone wrong from the teeniest to the most monumental.  A list:

1 - My DVR, which has always been flaky, gave up the ghost twice, both times losing everything that had been recorded.  On the plus side, got a bigger capacity one and three new remotes to replace the three that had also stopped working.  On the negative, despite signing up for better internet speed, the wireless still stinks.

2- My brand new in September MacBook Pro refuses to hook up to the shitty wireless.  It used to.  And then it did sporadically. And now it doesn’t.  Online chat says “hardware problem” so into the shop it goes.

3- My eyes.  I have had an annoyingly large cataract in my left eye for a while, but we were waiting to see if the right one would grow enough to get rid of them both in a short time frame.  Nope.  Just lefty.  And that’s not really the problem.  It’s the glasses.  Because I wear gas permeable contacts, I have to go without them until I can get a clean measurement for the replacement lens.  That means glasses, which I haven’t worn for more than an hour at a time once a year since I was 13.  This is not good.  I have really, really bad eyesight and my glasses are thick!  And since the prescription is based on my contact lens one, it’s not exactly as accurate as it might be.  I can see well enough, but not as good as I like, and sometimes things are a little wavy.  Erp.  Hopefully, my eyeballs will round themselves up by my appointment next Monday, but the doc said she’s seen it take up to a month in some people. Do. Not. Want.   I have to say, I especially enjoyed the part today where my glasses fogged up while I was riding Gracie this morning.  I’m now on the hunt for anti-fog spray!  Grrrr.

4- Being sick.  I had that horrible head cold that’s been going around.  It lasted almost two weeks, one of which I spent alone at home, sleeping, while Jim was suffering from the same thing in DC.  No barn, no knitting group, no nothing.  I did get a lot of tv series watched, but damn I was bored.  Although I shouldn’t really complain.  Poor Jim had to try to go to work everyday.  Frankly, I don’t know how he did it.  I think there was a lot of snoozing on the desk involved.  Good news - both well now!!!

5- Mittens.  As many of you know, I had to have sweet Mittens put to sleep last Saturday.  He had stopped eating and it turned out he had cancer in both kidneys.  Because nothing we did could induce him to eat, we had to make the hard decision to let him go.  Despite the kind vet who came to the house, it was horrible and we all took it very hard.  Socks seems ok for the most part, but from time to time, he sniffs the back of the couch where Mittens liked to roost, looks around, and then plops down in his own place on the couch.  I know he’s wondering where Mittens is from the confused look on his face.  It’s been just over a week, and I’m still looking for Mittens, too.  So sad.

6- Cancer stinks!  My dear friend and riding instructor, Mark, has just been diagnosed with Stage 2 non-Hodgkin lymphoma.  I know there are a lot worse cancers and that this one is pretty responsive to treatment, but damn it all to hell, this is just not right.  Mark is the most giving and caring person I know and it makes me mad as hell.  If you want to do something, send healing thoughts out into the void.  I know that doesn’t really work, but it doesn’t hurt, either.

So, let me see what the happy news might be.  Gracie, who I’m trying to ride every day now that I’m feeling better, is doing fairly well.  We had a fabulous ride on Saturday with no limping and lots of energy.  She was a little more reluctant today, but then again, so was I due to trying to look through the fog of my glasses.  Haha!  I’m off to a good start with my 2018 knitting.  I’ve also begun cleaning out some of the excess stuff in the house.  How does all this stuff accumulate?  I go back and forth between the idea of a yard sale and just doing what I have been and taking it to the charity shop.  Thank goodness I have lots of room in my car to haul it over there.

I guess that’s enough babbling.  I’ll leave you with the last photo I took of sweet Mittens.  He was one of a kind and is dearly missed.  But my lap is always full of Socks, and that’s a very good thing, indeed.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

It’s just a little less than an hour until midnight and the start of 2018, so while waiting for the ball to drop, I figured this would be a good time for a knitting recap of 2017.  

First of all, I finished all four of the knitted gifts I wrote about last time, despite being thrown the curve ball of two additional projects!  The four original items were two kid size pullover sweaters, a toy cat, and a scarf, the last of which was for Jim and was the project I didn’t feel too much pressure to finish. That one was the last and was completed at 11:37pm on Christmas Eve, so I got in just under the wire.  The two extra projects were both hats, so they didn’t take too long to finish, thank goodness.  The sweaters fit the kids, the cat found a good home, and Jim is happily wearing the scarf as the temperatures here continue to plummet, as are the recipients of the hats.  I won’t bore you with all the photos - you can find all of my projects on my Ravelry page - but while I like them all, I’m most proud of the cat.  I even knit her a little lace collar.

Awww!  So, here’s the final tally of what I knit this year.  It’s a nice list, but I think I should definitely make a resolution to knit less and do other things more in 2018.

1 baby blanket / 6 baby hats / 2 child sweaters / 3 Christmas trees / 4 coasters / 3 cowls / 1 pair fingerless mitts / 29 adult hats / 11 pussy hats / 1 lace scarf / 5 lace shawls / 7 jar covers / 1 tiny lace collar / 2 scarves / 4 shawls / 1 pair socks / 4 toy Dala horses / 1 toy cat

Not finished: 2 lace shawls / 1 pair socks - but soon!

All that knitting, and yet I still managed to find time to ride horses six days a week, read a whole bunch of books (I’m on GoodReader if you want to see my list), do a tiny bit of sewing, and fritter away many hours on the internet.  

Overall, except for that whole getting turned upside down in my car thing, it was a good year.  Husband, son, and daughter-in-law are all healthy and working, cats and horse are doing fine, and I finally got myself a vacation outside of the United States!  Really couldn’t ask for much more than that.  I have plans and goals for 2018, and like most years, I’m sure I’ll make some and miss others.  But no matter what happens, it will be interesting in one way or another.  

My very best wishes that your 2018 will be just as full of wonderous things as I’m sure mine will.  So, on behalf of all my family, human and animal, I wish you a very very Happy New Year!  2018, bring it on!!

 

I’m Nuts

Ok, so you all already know that, but I seem to have ramped it up a notch.  There are, let’s see, approximately 20 days until Christmas.  20. Days.  And yet, I have taken it in mind to knit four projects before the big day.  Four.  Knitted things. Obviously, I’m not going to tell you what they are becasue people who may be getting them read this thing - or at least I think they do - so I don’t want to spill the beans.  On the other hand, I’m already negotiating with myself.  Such as, one of these projects can go into a box...on the needles!...if need be.  And wouldn’t one of them be more fun if I got some fabric and sewed it instead of knitting?  Much faster, too.  The others, well, they are going to have to be knit, blocked, and wrapped in time for the big day. 

Now, having committed, more or less, to this schedule, I should also mention that I have not yet begun to Christmas shop for my family, decorated the house, or basically done anything for the holiday except gone to the nursery and obtained two big wreaths, which are now gracing the front of the house.  Sans bows, however, because as has become apparent to me the last few days, there has been an inexplicable run on large outside wreath bows and none are to be found.  Make one you say?  Hahahaha hahahaha!

So, this past Saturday was the culmination of all the knitting and crafting I’ve been doing, as well as hours of practice for our annual mounted quadrille performance.  Both the bazaar and the performance were successful.  It was, in fact, a perfect day for both.  Sunny and warm, with the temperature near 70.  Despite the warmth, people bought wooly hats and cowls and scarves.  Thanks everyone!  My silly holiday trees sold, as did the Dala horses, and a couple of the candle jars.  I did not fall off my horse during the performance and managed to mostly follow the pattern.  So, not a bad day at all.  Here’s a photo of my booth.

We also had a very nice Thanksgiving here.  Not a big crowd, but we had a enjoyable day and everyone seemed to enjoy the food.  I actually don’t care a whole lot about most of the traditional food.  Turkey to me is just, well, meh.  I usually make fresh green beans (ok), mashed potatoes (YUM!), sweet potatoes (ick), a green salad (eh), rolls, and one more veggie.  This year, that other veggie was a really delicious corn casserole that my friend Doug brings to our annual knitters holiday party (coming up this Sunday!!)  I don’t claim mine was as good as his, but everyone, including me, liked it.  I also made a killer chocolate pie, which is my favorite part of the meal, of course. Pumpkin pie is also provided for those that like it.  I don’t.  Picky, that is me.  I hope your meal and your company were as delightful as mine.

Now, it’s on to Christmas.  It’s supposed to rain tomorrow, so that seems a good time to stay in and decorate. And, what else, KNIT LIKE THE WIND!!!!

 

 

 

Bizarre or Bazaar?

That gifty holiday is approaching and while I’m not planning on knitting anything for anyone (ok, maybe a couple little things), I’ve been working like crazy on stuff for the Holiday Bazaar at the barn.  Hats are always requested and I’ve been making those all year, mostly as part of a Hat A Month deal on one of the Ravelry forums.  I’ll be taking about two dozen of them to the bazaar to sell along with some shawls, scarves, and cowls.

I decided to also make some smaller things that are not wearables.  Some small stuffed horses, candle jar covers, and Christmas trees/Chanukah bushes/shrubbery.  Now, let me say something about those trees.  First of all, I’m not someone who cares for bling or glitter in any way, shape, or form.  Thus, it’s puzzling to me the appeal these fuzz bombs hold for me.  I could crank these out all day long.  Fuzzy!!  Shiny!!! Eyelash yarn!!! (WHUT!)  Strange days, I tell you.  Of course you wanna see them.  

Gah!  Kinda large photos!  Anyway, see what I mean?  I have little embellishments for them, but thought I’d let the buyer pick what they like or leave them plain.  These are from the pattern Chanukah Bush.  The knitted tree is slipped over an adult size party hat.  I found I neeeded to sew the bottom edge to the hat to make sure it stayed put, which was not mentioned in the pattern, but improvisation is good, right? Glitter eyelash yarn for the win.

I’m also making little stuffed Dala horses.  There will be two white and two red.  I also want to knit at least one “regular” horse and have several patterns I’m considering.

I knit seven candle jar covers.  The jars are Ball Jam Jars and I’ve put a little lcd flickering candle inside each one and a snowflake on the top.  They are very cute when lit.  The pattern is called Midsummer Greetings to Santa Claus. 

I also have a shawl in progress, but it’s been in time out while I have been working on all this stuff.  But now it all has to wait a few days while I get ready for the arrival of my mother-in-law.  She’s great, but there’s a lot of cleaning up to do around here before she shows up on Sunday.  I also just spent two hours at the grocery store buying food for Thanksgiving and otherwise.  There will be seven of us on the big day and I usually do all the cooking.  I’m missing one vital ingredient for my famous chocolate pie, so I’ll be searching grocery stores next week, but everything else is safely tucked away, including the turkey.

So, from me, Jim, Socks, Mittens, and Gracie, have a wonderful Thanksgiving Day next week!

Silly Things

Most of you know that I like to take photographs.  You may not know that I’m also quite the electronic gadget freak, too.  Put to two together and I’m trouble!  Hahaha   One of my friends gave me a very generous birthday present last month - an Amazon gift card - so I was flipping through my wish list to see what odd things I’d thrown in there and came up with this.

 Camera - check!  Gadget - check!  Add to cart!!!

I took it to the barn this morning to try out.  Of course, Gracie had to be my first subject.  Isn’t she cute!  She was a little discouraged that I hadn’t brought treats, but posed nicely for me anyway.  This little plastic camera actually has some fairly advanced setting options and even though the photos are small (business card size), they look pretty good.  I am thinking of all kinds of fun things to do with this.  Such a great gift!!!

The other silly thing is my last finished knitting project.  It’s a hat!  No, it’s a cowl!  No, it’s a different hat!

I mean, really, how silly is that!  Actually, though, it’s not a bad idea.  This one is going into the pile for sale at the barn’s Holiday Bazaar.  I love the concept, but I’m more of a slouchy hat person and this one is a little too form fitting.  I’m sure someone will love it.  

Here’s another silly thing - bat houses!  Ok, they aren’t silly to the bats, but it is kind of funny to get fifteen people out at 8:30am on a Saturday morning to dig holes to drop 25-foot poles topped by two 40 pound bat houses into.  (That last sentence is grammatically awkward, oh well).  But that’s what we did.  And everyone was quite proud of theselves, too - very deservedly so.  All that remains to be seen is whether the bats will move from their tree houses into these cozy shelters.  And whether or not the horses will decide the poles make excellent butt scratchers or not.  Whoops!

So you see, I do manage to do some things that are less than boring.  And just wait until you see what I’m up to next weekend!!  Bwwwaaahahahahaaa!