Quiddity

Cautiously Optimistic (knock wood!)

Ok, it’s been a month, but in all fairness, I’ve been crazy busy and I’m doing the best I can just to get normal stuff done, much less fun stuff like this.  Hopefully, things will improve over the next couple of months. 

Anyway, let’s talk knitting for a minute, as this is ostensibly a knitting blog.  I’ve mentioned before I’ve been on a hat kick this year, and if all goes well I’ll have finished another by this time next week.  In the meantime, I’m also working on a worsted weight baby blanket as a commission for a friend.  Her niece gave birth to a baby boy last month on the island of St. Thomas.  As the hurricane was blowing through.  In fact, giving birth on the third floor of the hospital while the roof over the forth floor BLEW OFF!!!!!  Mama and baby are fine and the lovely little boy now sports the middle name of, what else, STORM!!  So I’m very happy to be able to make something to wrap this little survivor in on behalf of his loving Aunt.  

Languishing in the knitting basket are two projects.  Of recent vintage is a linen laceweight shawl that I love working on, but that has been cast aside for the more important blanket project. There is also a long suffering blanket of many colors that I will get back to if the weather ever cools off.

And speaking of weather, what the heck!!!  The September hurricane, Irma, blew through with great ferocity, sporting wind gusts of up to 65mph.  I lost power for about 35 hours and both internet and tv for a week.  But in light of all the recent hurrican devastation, not so bad.  Now, what will be Tropical Storm Nate is threatening for this weekend.  We were saved further trauma from Irma because our weather was actually very unseasonably cool ten, but now it’s hot and humid, so who knows what that means, but hopefully not the threat of tornados.  This morning, we rode in a heavy mist, which I actually liked because it made it a little cooler.  Chino the horse was not as amused, though not that I blame him, because the rain was probably worse flying in his eyes than in mine.

On the horse front, please reference the blog title - we are riding Gracie!  Mark, my trainer, has been working her at an easy walk/trot every day for the last couple of weeks.  I’ve been on her several times and while I enjoy her big trot WITH NO LIMPING, it’s clear she and I need to learn to be in better sync with each other.  She still sees me as the lady who hands her treats over the fence and not as someone to be guided by.  But she’s sweet and willing and we will both get there.

Gracie is also very lucky to have a girl of her very own. Every horse deserves a girl to love her and Gracie has Julia, my friend Katrina’s daughter.  Last Saturday and this one, Julia has donned her safety vest and ridden Gracie in the pasture just at walk.  Today, they were joined by our friend Hannah and her pony, Rhapsody.  Miss Rapsody is a survivor of a series of self-inflicted traumas to her right eye and now has only her left, but you’d never know she has what some might consider a handicap.  She not only loves spending time in the pasture with riders, but also volunteers as a therapy horse.  Katrina sent me this video of today’s saunter around the small pasture.

So while I”m somewhat afraid to admit Gracie is really all better, we at least seem to have turned a corner.  My fingers remained firmly crossed and will remain that way for a while longer. But isn’t it nice to see her enjoying herself!

Have a great weekend.  

Here We Go!

Ok, Friday, not Wednesday.  I am going to be making some cosmetic changes to the blog over the next week or so, but in the meantime, I think I've successfully added two other blogs for you to look at.  Check the sidebar where it says "My Blog Friends" to see them and then let me know what yours is so I can add it.

I usually talk about the cats, the horse, and knitting, but today I thought I'd put up a couple of links for books I've been reading that I have enjoyed.  You can also find me on Goodreader.  I am much better about staying current there than I have been here.  

First, I've been listening to a four book series I heard about on NPR a few years ago.  "The Neapolitan Novels" trace the story of one woman from childhood and involves family, friends, her county (Italy, of course), politics, and all the complications those things bring to a life.  I've just started the fourth book and have to say that on the whole, this is a very enjoyable series.  Very gritty at times, and sometimes a little bogged down in minutia, it is nonetheless a very in depth look at how one woman finds meaning for herself even though at times at the expense of others.  

On my Kindle, I just finished "The Comet Seekers".  I was telling someone about this book and described it this way - at first, I didn't understand what it was about, but then things got complicated and much more interesting.  I still am not sure I can do an adequate job of describing it, but at heart it's about finding, losing, and keeping love, but it's not a love story.  Just read it.  I think you'll enjoy it.  

I took Socks and Mittens to the vet for their yearly check up yesterday.  Despite his heart murmur and one kidney, Socks is doing great.  He is maintaining weight and his energy is boundless, much to my dismay sometimes!  Mittens has seemed a little off to me lately.  He's been suffering this year from on again/off again congestion.  We are able to knock it out with antibiotics, but within a few weeks, it comes back.  I wouldn't mind so much but this very large, very lazy cat becomes "HELL CAT" when I try to put a pill in his mouth.  Pill pockets don't work, syringes don't work, I can't sprinkle it on his food because they share bowls.  I'm stymied and he's snotty.  More worrying, however, is his weight loss.  Because he's so big and fuzzy, it isn't noticeable, but when they weighed him the stats showed he lost about 3-1/2 pounds in the last five months!  So, I had blood drawn and am awaiting a diagnosis.  The suspects are: kidney disease, diabetes, or hyperthyroidism.  The cure for any of those better not involve pills!!!! 

And so, on that cheery note, I'll leave you with a photo of the boys doing what they do best - stealing my chair.  I'm off to Friday night knitting group.  And tomorrow and Sunday will find me enjoying the Decatur Book Festival.  Stay tuned for more recommendations!  Have a wonderful Labor Day weekend.

Let's Bring Back Blogging!!!

For a long time, I waxed poetic on this blog (and also not so poetic, to be fair), but Facebook and Ravelry sucked me away.  I admit it, I completely fell for the allure of new info every time I check Facebook, and what's not to like about zillions of patterns to ponder and snarky forums for read on Ravelry.  But something essential was also lost - the back and forth engagement with my blogging friends.  Some of us are still talking on Facebook, but it's not really the same.  So, if you have a blog that's been languishing, or even one that hasn't, I'm ready to reconnect.  I'll do my best to post here at least once a week, but if I go missing, poke me

To play just a little catch up - Still knitting, of course.  Socks and Mittens still rule the house.  Gracie is still lame, so that's something you will see me struggling with over the coming months as we decide if she can be rehabbed at all or if I need to find another home for her, with or without me.  Jim is still working in DC, but also upstairs in my craft room because his real home office is about ten feet from me and the tv and that's not a good situation for anyone.  So up he went amongst the yarn.  He doesn't seem to mind, but then again, it's the only option.  I still ride horses six mornings a week and can't believe I just passed the nine year mark at the barn.  Wow!

So, the biggest thing this week has to have been the total solar eclipse.  It was only going to reach 97% of totality here, so Jim and I, along with Cory, his wife, and her parents, decamped for Highlands, NC where it was going to be absolutely, completely total.  We rented what turned out to be a a very comfortable and amazingly well equipped cabin right outside of town.  We got an invitation from the people who live next to the property we've owned for the last 30 years to come watch on their deck and that turned out to be a perfect spot.  We gathered with great anticipation, a big telescope (the host's), several cameras (including mine, of course), filters, solar glasses, food, drink, and waited for the show.  We were treated to clear sky to the point just past 50% of coverage, and then the clouds rolled in.  Big, dark, fluffy, threatening rain clouds.  Much groaning ensued and we all went in to eat.  But lo and behold, just as the event hit totality, the clouds thinned and we were able to see the ring of fire!  Within the space of no more than two or three seconds, it became totally dark.  The birds and crickets became silent, the temperature dropped 25 degrees, and a sunset-like glow appeared on the horizon.  For 2 minutes and 24 seconds we basked in the eerie and beautiful darkness.  And then, just as quickly, it was over and the sky brightened and the clouds gathered again.   We left about 20 minutes later and went a little way down the ridge and I was able to snap a couple of photos of the last of the eclipse.  And now, I'm totally hooked on totality!  I'm definitely planning on Carbondale, IL in 2014, but if I can find the ways and means to get to another one before that, I'm in!!  Here are the beginning, totality, and end of this wondrous event.

So why not join me in blogging?  Leave your url in the comments and I'll add you to my reader so we can keep in touch.  Or link it to Facebook.  I suspect I'm not going to leave that too far behind, no matter how crazy it makes me.

 

 

 

Balm

I've had a tempestuous couple of days this week, so I was happy to be able to get out of town to visit Gracie this morning.  I try to go once a week and since she went there in October, I've only missed once.  There is a certain satisfaction in seeing her raise her head and trot towards me when I call, even though I know it's all about the apples.

This morning, the barn owner had just filled the pasture hay rack and the herd was gathered all around it, munching contentedly.  It was like watching a living merry-g0-round as the horses moved around the rack, weaving in and out shuffling for position, and sometimes ending up with horses that didn't particularly care to share their space.  At one point, Gracie, being the strong girl she is, took exception to being shoved.

But sometimes just a dirty look will suffice.

I also got some nice photos of  a few of her pasture mates.  These two are hardly ever apart, although I've heard the lighter colored one sometimes hangs out with Gracie.  They, obviously, are on to the fact that Gracie is getting a treat and they aren't!

Arent' they cuties!!

Here are a couple more that I like a lot.  All of the horses in the herd are very friendly, but most of them have figured out I'm not going to give them anything and generally stay away from the fence when I'm feeding Gracie.

I headed home feeling much better.  This farm has quite a few horse-filled paddocks, so the walk to the pasture and back to my car takes me past a lot of different groups and they are all so content.  And who wouldn't be?  Lovely pastures, groves of trees full of singing birds, hawks soaring and calling overhead.  Just a great way to start the day.

It's been at or near 70 degrees for the last three days, but unfortunately rain moved in this afternoon, so I expect that trend is over for a while.  Not that I'm complaining, it is February after all and I know many of you have to bundle up to go outside.  I hope wherever you are, you enjoyed sharing my morning walk.

Of course, it's not just horses that claim my heart, it's also Socks and Mittens.  Both boys are doing well and still causing everyday havoc here.  I was able to catch them in a reflective moment the other day, though.

Awwww!  

I finished knitting a long cowl last weekend and just need to Kitchener the ends together to call it done.  Hopefully, I can show that soon, as well as the cabled hat.  And there will probably be more cat and horse photos, along with whatever else crosses my path.

I wish you all peace.  We need it.

 

Life Goes On...Weirdly and Frightenly

Ok, maybe it's not really that bad, it just seems like it.  I'm not going to talk about the election, although with all the pussy hats I knit, you can probably surmise my feelings on the matter.  

Last Saturday, I attended the Atlanta March for Social Justice and Women and it was exciting in more ways than one.  To begin with, my friends and I walked out of the underground transit station and into a hurricane!  Seriously, the wind was fierce, the rain worse, and the storm even threw some hail at us.  We had about an eight block walk and it poured the whole way.  The good thing was I had just the right clothing.  A waterproof, but not too warm, jacket with a hood, quick dry hiking pants, and wool socks in not so waterproof shoes.  I could not believe how fast my pants were soaked through, but about ten minutes after we arrived at the staging area it stopped raining and I soon dried out.  While my feet were soaked, especially after stepping into several puddles that came up to my shins, those wool socks did the job of keeping my feet comfortable.  And my kitty hat did the same for my head, although I was smart enough to pull up my jacket hood to keep my hat dry.  Hooray for wool!

Even though we were close enough to see the featured speakers, including my Congressman, John Lewis, their sound system was lacking, so we couldn't hear.  But it was still amazing to stand on a hill overlooking the street below and watch people pouring onto the lawn and sidewalks once the rain had stopped, although there were plenty there even in the deluge.

After an hour of speeches and music, we hit the road.  We ended up right behind the beginning of the parade, which was led off by local celebrity, Baton Bob.  He was followed by the dignaries and organizers and then what turned out to be 63,000+ marchers!  The line of marchers stretched for over a mile, but it was the most energetic, but mellow, giant crowd I've ever been in.  Men, women, teens, kids, babies, everyone was having a wonderful day.  There were lots of anti-Trump signs, but also signs of support for many human rights groups and individuals, conservation, clean energy, and almost any progressive cause you could imagine.  The signs were so imaginative and many were very funny.  My favorite said, "Orange is Not the New Black"  hahahaha

We walked from Centennial Olympic Park to the gold domed State Capitol, a distance of almost two miles.  More speeches took place nearby, but we couldn't hear those either, since we elected to stay outside of the amphitheater so we could leave before the majority of the crowd.  

We made it back to Decatur five hours after we started out, a little damp, but very energized for what comes next.  Wanna see some photos?  I know you do.  (Oops, iPad Typepad app loaded them in reverse order.)

I don't know any of the people in this photo, but there sure are a lot of them!  Look how far back the line of people goes.

People at the first venue, waiting to start marching.

Hey, it's Baton Bob!!  

My friend Benedicte's pal, Silvia (far left and far right respectively) made this banner with some of her artist friends.  Isn't it awesome!!   I think we had the best banner in the march.

 

As for knitting, all I finished this month were hats.  Ten pussy hats, one for my son, one for my friend, and a random one.  Here's the random one, which is "A Little Unexpected".  And hey, sorry if theses photos are huge. I'm still learning how to post from my iPad.  I'll work on that.

I'm knitting a long cowl and still working on a mitered square blanket, so hopefully one or both of those will be finished before the end of February.  I love making hats, but I think I've hit saturation point for at least a couple of weeks!

So, that's been what's mostly been going on her for the last few weeks.  Knitting, sometimes hiding under the bed because of the uncertainly of our post-election prospects, riding horses, and protesting.  Hmm, seems like a pretty typical life after all.
  

 

MEOW!!!

Oh, sorry, did you expect to see cats?  Nope, not yet.  Right now, it's hats.  Pink hats.  Pink hats with ears.  Pink kitty cat hats with ears.  Pussy Hats.   A few examples (I've knit five so far)

I know the design and the sentiment behind the design is not to everyone's taste, and frankly I'm not sure about either, but then again I'm usually waffling about most things.  Be that as it may, some of my friends and I will be sporting them at the Women's March in Atlanta on January 21.  I still have lots of pink yarn left and will be knitting more between now and then, so if you want one, let me know, even if you aren't in the Atlanta area.

The only knitting I've finished this year is hats.  After the first kitty hat, I knit a hat for my son, Cory.  This is a hat with a story. Cory and his wife were in Ireland early in 2016 and went into a store selling, among other things, knit hats, sweaters, etc.  Cory saw a cap he liked and took a picture to show me.  He said he would have bought it, but there was a big logo tag sewn onto it, so he asked me to knit it for him. It looked like a fairly straightforward elongated basketweave so I sat down with yarn and needles and began.  And very quickly ended up with a mess.  There was something missing in the construction that I just couldn't wrap my head around.  So, having a great bunch of knitting friends, all of whom are much more talented than I, the hat photo was posted to our Facebook group and I asked for help.  It didn't take Doug long to figure out the missing piece and before I knew it, I had a pattern on my computer.  Yarn rewound, I started again and soon had what looked like a hat.  But it also looked like too short a hat, and when Cory came over to try it on that was quickly confirmed.  More unknitting and reknitting and then, SUCCESS!!  A nicely fitting, very soft and warm, wool and alpaca hat to keep my boy warm.  I figured out the crown decreases, but it's Doug's brain that deserves the credit for making this possible.  Please excuse the crappy picture.  I took it on the kitchen table at 9:30pm under the light of a table lamp.  I'm making Doug his own hat right now, so hopefully will get a much better photo when it's finished.

My next commission was from Jim.  I've made him several of the same basic watch caps over the last five years.  Except for the first one that was regular wool that he felted, he should still have the other four, but all he could manage to find was one in the closet and he wanted on to leave for when he's in DC and it turns cold.  Ok, here we go.  Plain warm hat. (Oh, and when he got to DC yesterday, he found the other three in his storage area.  Figures.)

I've also been working on a long cowl that I'm pretty sure I won't have enough yarn to finish to the full length, as well as a mitered square afghan that is going to be a surprise gift for someone special.  They will make an appearance here sooner or later.  But mostly, I'll be knitting pink hats.

Ever since Gracie went to live at the farm where she is rehabilitating, I've gone to see her once a week.  If it's warm, I'm able to take her for a little walk and graze, and after she has some treats, we practice "stand" and "come" and other little things to make sure she doesn't turn into a complete lunatic.  But when it's cold, it's treats, pet, take a picture, and get my cold self back to the car!  She definitely recognizes me when she sees me coming down the road, but after she snarfs up all the apples, carrots, or cookies I bring her, it's back to the herd.  I think that's a good thing that she feels comfortable with the other horses, especially since I found out two of the cute horses out there that I always see hanging together haven't been allowed to be part of the herd by the boss mare.  Kind of sad and I'm going to give them extra pets the next time I go.  Here they are.

They always walk up to see us.  The lighter colored one is extremely shaggy and both are friendly.  I know they'd love some treats, too, but I really can't feed someone else's horses without permission.  (sssh, don't tell if I sneak them a carrot!)

Gracie is also getting shaggy, but she had her new blanket on last Friday.  She was also a hot mess.  One of the straps was hanging and her mane looked like she was trying to grow dreadlocks!  Rasta Horsie!!!  Next warm day, she's getting groomed.  Here she is coming in for her carrots.

So, that's the last few days so far.  We escaped the predicted snow on Saturday, being left with just a little ice in the trees and on the road and really cold temperatures.  Places just a little north of here did get some snowfall, though.  All is not lost, however.  It will be 72 on Friday.  For real!!!  Winter in the South.

Oh, and don't forget the kitties!

Surprise!

It's 2017 and the time for resolutions.  Except I'm not going to make any.  Just going to ride the year through the best I can, as always.

The year has started out stormy as far as the weather goes.  The last few days have been very foggy and rainy.  Right now, I'm sitting her listening to the thunder and seeing the windows fill with lightning.  It's been a mild winter so far, with only a few cold mornings.  

I'm still riding every day but Sunday at 7am and loving it more and more.  I feel like I'm finally making progress on my skills, and of course that makes it more enjoyable.  Of course, it's usually three steps forward and two steps back in this process, but that's fine.  It's through mistakes that we learn.  And I had a good lesson today --- if you are going to stand in the arena chatting to a friend who is on horseback, be very aware of your surroundings.  I took half a step back and my head made contact with the head of the horse ridden by my friend's daughter.  It was my favorite horse, silly Chino.  He was misbehaving and not listening to his rider, and he has the habit of wanting to run into the center of the arena, where I was.  Just as I stepped back, he plowed right into me, knocking me to the sand.  I guess you could say we ran into each other!  Fortunately, I have a hard head, and after sitting with an ice pack and taking some aspirin, all was well.  But heads up out there!

Gracie, still lame, is having a year sabbatical at a farm in the country.  She's out in the pasture 24/7, unless there is really, really bad weather, in which case they bring her in.  Her mane is matted and her sides mud streaked, but she's having fun with the herd.  She's about an hour away and I go see her once a week to bring apples and cuddles.  She takes the apples and leaves the cuddles!  Really, it's pretty funny.  She's all "HI MOM WHERE ARE THE APPLES!!!" And the after she's gulped them down its, "So long!"  But I so happy she's made her place in the herd, even if it is apparently far, far below where she was here.  We will try riding her some time in April or May, just to see if there has been any improvement.  In the meantime, she's living the country life.

The cats are the same as always, constant fun and naps.  They are such a part of my life, always waiting at the door for me to come home and begging to sit in my lap all day, that when they do go nap somewhere other than the living room, I miss them.  

Jim, who left his job with the Federal government to work in the private sector here in town went back to the Feds last Spring on a year-to-year basis.  With a possible Federal hiring freeze looming, we are very happy that he just secured his job on a full time basis.  He's still living here and commuting to D.C., so it's really the best of both worlds for all of us. 

So, as you see, life goes on. I'm still knitting like mad. Right now, I'm working on a hat for my son.  He found one he liked in a shop in Ireland and instead of buying it, took a photo and asked me to knit it for him.  Thanks to help from a friend, I was able to get the pattern worked out and I'm hoping to have it on his head in the next few days.  Of course, I'll post a photo.

I'm not going to make any promises about how often I'll update the blog, but I think I might actually try to make it more of a priority this year. I've been keeping a private journal for the last few years, but I have some exciting plans for this year and it would be nice to not only have this record of them, but to share them as well.  Stay tuned, as always!!

Are Hats the New Socks??

Do you get on knitting "kicks?"  I guess I do.  For a long time, I knit socks like there was no tomorrow.  I don't have a recent count, but it has to be nearing 150 pair.  But once I couldn't fit another pair in my sock drawer, I let it go for a while.  Sure, there was the occasional just-because-I-don't-feel-like-knitting-anything-else pair, but for the most part, no socks.  Lots of shawls and cowls took their place.  

However, now I seem to be on a hat kick.  Just take a look at my Revelry project page and you will see just how many hats, big and little, I've completed lately.  Here are the ones I've knocked out in the last couple of weeks.

  

The first two hats are now gracing the head of a good friend.  And just in case you didn't notice, the last three are the same hat.  It's Elizabeth Zimmerman's "Very Warm Hat."  Knit the first hat, pick up around the cast on edge and knit the second hat.  Turn one side into the other.  Very. Warm. Hat.  This one is for me to wear to the barn.  It's darn cold in that metal and concrete block building and this is perfect for keeping me toasty until I have to put on my helmet.  I also made matching mitts.  

Goofy, yes.  But fun.  My old hat and mitts set has been in almost daily winter use for five years.  The hat was getting droopy and the mitts unraveling, so these are a welcome change.  

I'm also working on a cable & lace cowl, as well as a lace and bead mystery shawl, plus a secret project that is not a hat that will be going to a friend.  Busy, busy.

Like our summer, we've had an on again, off again rainy winter so far.  This week, temperatures are rising, but the rain has come back, to be followed again by colder temperatures.  Real roller coaster weather this year, but hopefully it will be a short winter.  While it hasn't been super cold so far, I'm more than ready for Spring.  Although I probably need a longer colder winter to be able to wear all my hats!

 

Moving Forward

When I bought my horse, Gracie, two years ago today, I expected to spend many happy hours riding her in the arenas and pastures of the farm.  Instead, I've spent time worrying, paying vet bills, and hand walking her.  Only a few months after she came, she sustained an injury to the suspensory ligament of her right rear leg.  This is a very big deal for a horse, and is an injury that takes forever to heal.  However, usually not as long as it has taken her.  Even the expert vets at the University of Georgia are baffled at why she hasn't healed in all this time.  To that end, she had surgery at the end of October and has been on a very light rehab program of daily walk under saddle riding for the last six weeks.  Today, our specialist vet came out to see where things stood post-surgery/rehab.  The verdict - cautiously optimistic.  She's stiff, but that's to be expected given the light amount of work she's had, but she looks better at trot than she has in a very long time.  So now we are going to ramp it up, slowly, slowly, to working a few days a week with added trotting.  She's ready to go, that's for sure, but like any athlete coming off an injury, we need to make sure she doesn't over do it.  You know how it is, "I feel good, so I must be good" is not always true.  So slow and steady, we hope to win this race and by the end of February see some very marked improvement.  Good thoughts would be appreciated!

When the vet left, we turned her out, which is, of course, one of her favorite things.  I hoped to get a close up of her mugging at the fence, but she went straight for the little grass that's out there.  I don't blame her.  You can see from the photo what it is like having pasture that is a flood plain - it's been almost a week since it rained and look at those puddles! f

As for the knitting portion of my life, I added up what I completed last year:

• Afghan - 1
• Adult hats - 10
• Baby blanket - 1
• Baby sweaters - 2
• Cowls - 5
• Lace cowl - 1
• Lace scarves - 2
• Lace shawls - 10
• Mittens - 2 pairs
• Shawls - 7
• Socks - 2 pairs

That should come to 47 projects.  They can all be seen on my Ravelry project page, if you are curious (although I haven't finished blocking and photographing a few of them.)  Here's the last project of 2015.

It's a tiny hat for my friend, Mark's, new grandson.  It goes along with the first finished project of 2016.

The set is called Mairead, and includes the hat, bunting, and blanket, all with the same XOXO and cable motifs.  I changed the bunting pattern to use an i-cord for the drawstring, and added a placket to the neckline because I thought it was too open.  Here's a closeup of the placket.

They were easy and fun to knit, and I'm going to make the blanket, but am taking a break from the pattern for a few days.  Since it's cold here, I've already delivered these, with the promise of the blanket to come.  In the meantime, I've started two other projects.  Never not knitting!

We are having roller coaster weather here this week.  It was 28 degrees yesterday morning and 42 today, but will dip back down into the mid-20's this weekend.  Still better than a lot of other places and as long as the prolonged rain stays away, I'll be happy.

Hope your New Year is starting off well.  Mine seems to be going in the right direction -for now, at least.

 

2015 Year In Review

It's the thing to do, this recounting of the past year.  To remember good times and bad, I guess, and there was plenty of both around here.  

January

I started the year as I had done for the past four - visiting Jim in Washington, DC.  I went to my very favorite local yarn shop - Fibre Space, we took in the National Mall and monuments, went to the big Smithsonian Air and Space Museum by Dulles Airport, saw an interesting movie (The Imitation Game), visited the Spy Museum (in keeping with the theme of the movie),  and ate at all my favorite restaurants.  Can I just say,  I LOVE DC & Alexandria!   

February

Eh, not much going on.  It was a fairly cold and wet month.  Good to stay inside and knit.  Did you know I knit?  Hahahaha!  Did a lot of that.  On a nice day when Jim was home, we took a stroll along the Atlanta Beltline.  It's one of those rail to trails things and is a VERY BIG DEAL here.  It's done a great job of adding green space, recreational areas, art installations, and neighborhood revitalization to many heretofore neglected parts of the city.  Most of all, it's fun!  We stayed until almost dark.

March

This is a changeable month in Georgia.  Cold, warm, cold, warm.  And I was still riding every day and....knitting!  At the end of the month, Jim and I flew to Florida to visit his brother and sister-in-law who are bi-coastal, with a home there, as well as one near Lake Tahoe.  We had a great time in Florida.  Maybe we can make it to the other coast this year.  Anyway, we did a lot of boating with them.  Tim has a BIG sailboat, as well as a nice size motor boat.  We did both.  Lucy likes either, and swimming.

April

Such a pretty month.  Flowers and grass and singing birdies.  Did I get pictures.  Um.  Well.  No.  It was Socks & Mittens 8th birthday.  They did not have cake.  I also did not take a picture of them on their birthday.  But here's one from a few weeks before (that I think I already posted on this blog, but whatever.)

They are still characters.  Socks has some health problems - he has a heart murmur, and after seven years of vet visits, it turns out he has only one kidney (how did they miss that???), which is starting to have issues.  Nonetheless, he's still raising hell all over the house and making life alternatively pleasant and not so much for poor Mittens.  They are the best!

May

Did stuff at home and the barn.  Yawn.  Life.  Snapped this one evening - the moon and two planets (Venus and Jupiter?)  Fuzzy, but interesting, I think.

June

One weekend when Jim was home, we drove up to property we own in North Carolina.  We have had this property since 1985.  Always meant to build a small weekend house on it, but one way and another life intervened with other plans.  But we like going up and traipsing through the woods.  Further up the road from us is a beautiful meadow that was once a homestead.  There's a trickling little creek, ancient apple trees that still put out some fruit in Fall, and the remains of the old cabin's two chimneys.  It's a tranquil site that the owners have let be, building their house further back on another lot.  Oh, and there are lots and lots of mountain laurel around.  We were lucky and caught it blooming.

July

Hot.  Humid.  FIREWORKS!  For the first time in several years, it didn't rain like crazy on the 4th, so we went into town, sat in our little town square, and saw the fireworks.  Not a huge show, but it's ours, and it's fun.  This is the place we ate dinner before heading over.

August

Well now, August was kind of a locally monumental month here.  Jim, living in Alexandria and working in DC for the last five years, came home.  He took a local job with a private company and left the Federal government behind.  We both are going to miss DC a lot!  He didn't think he would, but he does.  We will have to go back as tourists, which isn't quite the same thing as being "locals."  Anyway, we made the best of it before packing up and heading home.  I made sure we ate at all of my most favorite places, we took a long walk along and around the National Mall at night, I shopped 'til I dropped at Fibre Space, we spent lots of time in Alexandria, and we even took a road trip to Mt. Vernon, home of President George Washington.  He was quite a guy, that Washington!  He even had sheep.  Ok, not these particular sheep, but you know.

September

My birthday month!  Not mentioning how many years, but quite a few.  One of my best friends got married this month.  I am SO happy for her!  She and her husband asked me to take photos of their post-nuptial wedding day and I was thrilled to do so. (And I still owe them a wedding album - SOON, I PROMISE!!!)  Ah, love.

October

Well, SAFF, of course.  Hali, Diana, and I made our yearly pilgrimage to the Asheville area for this sheepie event.  Held in a new venue, it was not the same, but still an exciting and wallet draining experience.  We always have such a great time seeing old friends and meeting new yarns.  Did you all know I knit?  Baaaa!  Gracie also had surgery this month to try to correct the lameness problem she's had since April 2014.  Love that horse.  She needs to get better!!!

November

So, as part of Jim's new job, he goes places.  Lots and lots of place, most of which do not involve me.  But every year, his company hosts a party as part of a larger conference.  This year, sadly, it was in Hawaii.  I know, but someone has to spend their tourist dollars.  And I went along!!  Hooray.  Ok, it was mostly meh, but there was also quite a bit of Hooray!  Hawaii is very lovely.  We saw lot and lots of beautiful and unusual sights.  We went to the Honolulu Zoo, stayed on Waikiki beach, took a boat ride out into the ocean from that beach, circumnavigated Oahu by car, walked part way up Diamond Head volcano (extinct), flew to Kauai, circumnavigated Kauai by car, drove to the world's wettest place (yes, it was), walked along beautiful beaches, ate good food, and flew home.  The meh comes from the fact that the first half of the trip was mostly work, but also because Hawaii did not meet my expectations as being a verdantly lush, parrot laden, tropical paradise.  Opinions, I has them!!  I'm really glad I went, but would rather go somewhere else next time.  Oh wait, the next time will be in Orlando.  I could do that!  Anyway, here's one of my favorite photos from Hawaii.  Diamond Head lighthouse.

Beautiful!

December 

Hectic.  Isn't it always?  We had two events on consecutive weekends at the barn. First, our annual Holiday Bazaar & Quadrille Performance.  I sold some knitted stuff at the bazaar and rode a horse in the quadrille.  Both were fun.  The next weekend, we had our annual Holiday Party for the barn.  That was fun, too.  The day after that, the knitters gathered at my house for our yearly party.  Great people, tasty food, and a fun gift swap.  Yarn and stuff.  You know.  We knit.  Then it was time for Christmas.  I may not be a religious person, but I do like Christmas - family, food, togetherness, gifts.  Not the getting of gifts, so much, but I do love to pick out special things and then watch my family and friends enjoy them.  That's the very, very best.

And now it's 2016.  I'm sure that this year, like last, will be filled with the special and the mundane, the happy and sad, the known and the unknown.  My wishes for this year are that I will continue to hold my friends and family close, that my dear pets - Sock, Mittens, and Gracie - will continue in good health, and that any sadness that comes my way will be balanced in equal parts by joy.  In short, life should go on as it is intended to do.  I hope you will all continue to be a part of mine.  And I promise to be a part of yours.

Love from me to you!