June 2018

At the end of each year, I have made resolutions for the coming year.  Not everybody likes to do this, but for me, its a matter of goal setting in hopes of self improvement.  I think I'm just that kind of person.  I like things neat but not too neat. I'm not a clean freak, just orderly, as it brings peace of mind mostly.
Setting goals helps me to keep the end in mind. This sweater WILL be finished by the end of June.

I wanted to knit a sweater for each of the grandkids but have taken a little detour to knit myself a sweater. Supposedly an easy raglan sleeve, top down, *seamless* (so far) summer-ish sweater.  This lovely Coastal thingy has been straightforward, but way more of a commitment than I really wanted.  Its knit on size 4 needs, so there's red flag number 1. It got me the gauge and look I wanted, with lovely drape.  Not too loosey goosey, just good solid fabric, that's not dense either.
All I can say is, I'll be glad when I'm done.  I haven't even started the sleeves....maybe I should move on to those now, and it will feel like I'm going faster.

I've just about kicked the regular TV habit.  I love Britbox and Netflix and some Amazon video.  I love audio books and classical music while knitting.  As for books, I'm reading Stormie Omartian's biography, relating to childhood abuse, a later relationship with Steve Martin, and finally her marriage to music producer Michael Omartian.  Very good book, notably, she was a regular cast member on the Glen Campbell show back in the 70's.

I have loved getting my fiber of the month shipments from Paradise Fibers.  Each box is a little (okay, a lot) different from what I would normally order, but like many other subscribers, it gets me out of my comfort zone and helps me work my creative muscles.

I have so many spinning works-in-progress aka WIPs but only one knitting project. Why is that?  I need to get to the bottom of this. Note to self. 😊

Work has been good, steady and pretty peaceful.  Like I said, I like things orderly.  Summer is pretty quiet at the office and we work on projects that get us ahead of the game.
Family is always good, and in the last month, we gained a two new family members.  My niece married a very dashing young man from Australia.  Beautiful bride.
My son and his wife had a new baby girl, who has lovely dark hair.  A first for all the grandbabies, since all the rest are blonde, or close to it.

Church is always inspiring.  We are growing and changing all the time, yet this congregation remains faithful and very traditional.  I love the physical aspects of the sanctuary, the wood beams and beautiful mid-century light fixtures.  The activities are all very people oriented and the deep southern roots mean there's always a pot luck around the corner.

Just pulling in to the station

KNITTING
Last month I posted about knitting sweaters for the grandkids, namely my oldest granddaughter and my youngest grandson. This month I have knit a little pink sweater for my soon to be born granddaughter.

I am getting excited about blogging again.  This month I permanently deleted my facebook account and feel like I'm starting to get back some control of my life. I have Instagram for now and Snapchat but never post there. Blogging helps me feel connected to the inter-webs, without all the drama.

Work keeps me busy, and church, but in my spare time I'm finding moments to knit a few rows on this.

I love this Sunshine Coast sweater. I purchased the yarn from LOVE KNITTING and got a sweet deal on this soft DK weight cotton blend.  This is such an easy pattern, even though I had to learn a new technique.  I am familiar with short rows but had not done a yarn over at the end of the row.  It seems like there must be a better way to do it, but the sweater is coming along just fine after the hiccup/learning curve.  I am just about ready to move on to the sleeve separation. The sweater is knit in the round from the neck down, so the sleeves have to be separated at some point.  The only "details" in the sweater are 1) neck yarn overs to create little holes at the yoke and 2) extra panels in front of and behind the sleeves to add fullness, I guess.  It makes for a loose fitting look and keeps it sort of swingy.  I like that, because my hips need all the room I can get.
Back to the little holes in the front yoke section. I must say that this the one thing I changed from the original pattern.  It says on the row after the yarn overs to knit them together, but in my opinion, it pretty much closed up the holes and took away the five extra stitches that appear in the rest of the pattern for the front section. I'll post close up pictures next time so you can see what I mean.
SPINNING
I love getting a fiber box each month from Paradise Fibers.  Their club shipments help me think a bit differently and try going in some new directions. Its always a highlight to track the thing and finally open the box!  Alas, I will be dropping the club next month as my work hours are about to change.
FAMILY
We are going to Nashville in a few weeks for the birth of our new little Julianna, whose sweater I mentioned before.   It seems like our family is in a growth spurt and that's super fine with me. We will also be attending my niece's wedding that same weekend.  She's marrying a young man from Australia, who's moving to the US.  We are all so happy for both of these big events that add to our family's numbers.

Sock knitting and sweater knitting

Last year, sock knitting became my obsession.  Lurking on Ravelry, pillaging my stash of yarns, and even spinning beautiful rovings I'd purchased online, in order to make a beautiful sock yarn. All of this played into my addiction.

I had made a couple of New Year goals with a particular theme in mind. Seize Opportunities.  Not so much, 'seize the day' but rather seize or take hold of chances to do something I might usually have declined .  Often I talk myself out of a whole lot of good ideas.
I read a great quote online that convinced me to take advantage of every opportunity. Especially ones that I was inclined to pass on.  As a result, we made a good start with a trip to the Woolery in Frankfort, KY.  We were often making trips to see our kids in Nashville, (we now live in Mobile, AL) so this was a good opportunity to branch out and take a little side trip.  I have a friend who lives about an hour from Frankfort, so we decided to make the trip, see my friend, visit the Woolery, and even visit the birthplace of Lincoln, which is in KY, not Illinois. The cabin has been preserved at a National Park.
On the trip I purchased several bags of wool roving to spin in hopes of making socks, etc. (Why does one really need a reason to make purchases while on vacation?)
I also bought a new Jenkins spindle, some unspun cotton and a few acid dyes. A truly great haul for me!

SOCK KNITTING
Lots of sock knitting groups on Ravely inspire me with free patterns.  I finally learned to do a toe-up sock, giving me no excuse not to seize the opportunity.  Last year I knitted a whole drawer-full of socks. Some were given away as gifts but many are still in the drawer; a sort of 'collection' if you will. I have found however, that living as far south in the United States as we do (an hour from Florida) that I hardly ever wear wool socks.  All those beloved socks just sit in the drawer like a stamp collection, waiting to be admired but never used.

SWEATER KNITTING
This year I determined to knit sweaters.  Inspired by Barkingknitter on Ravelry, who also has a blog showcasing her lovely handmade sweaters, I decided to start small and make sweaters for the grandkids.  Its March already and I've almost completed three.  The one for my new grandson was mailed a while ago and the Post Office lost it.

  They are doing a search, but I am doubtful about ever seeing it again.  I will knit another one. The one for my first grandchild is done and in a box waiting to be delivered, but I will not mail it. No way.

The third is for my soon to be granddaughter, and its almost finished.  So is she.

I made a sweater last year for my other granddaughter, and it fit perfectly and I believe she wears it a good bit. I will soon start a sweater for my other grandson.  I made him a hat earlier this year, with blue and white Egyptian cotton, with a little wave design.  So cute.
And for me, well, I've purchased a pattern and some yarn to make a pullover summer sweater, perfect for the office.
SPINNING
In November, I signed up for a fiber-of-the-month club with Paradise Fibers.  It never disappoints.  I look forward to that box with lots of anticipation and it always has more fiber than I can spin in a month.  I'm changing to part-time on June 1, and maybe I'll be able to spin a little more when the time comes.

Don't be such a slouch, Louboutin!

In the dead of winter, I find myself going to great unusual lengths to brighten up the day.  While social media of the day is fine, I'm doing more lurking on Ravelry than ever before.
If you're not a knitter, I'm sure it sounds like a great big yawn.  Maybe.  But I'll tell you that when I logged on with my morning coffee today, there were thousands of "Ravelers" online at that moment, all over the world! From the northern Europe and Canada to Australia and South America, and from middle east and the far east to the mid west of the United States.  I am always amazed, and its one of the most customized websites I've ever seen.  Truly a place I like to visit all the time.  I'm in!

KNITTING
I found a group on Ravelry whose goal is to spin wool/yarn to knit socks. That really fits one of my main goals for the year, as I have knit more socks than any other item.  I'd like to be able to reproduce the sock yarn sold in the yarn shops, but have never been very successful.  I'm better at getting the plies and finished yarn fine enough, but there's definitely no spring to it.  And socks need spring, or else they're just slouchy.
And even though no one ever really sees the socks I wear, I feel better if they stay UP around my calf, at least.

Which brings me to a funny story I'm sure I've never told anyone but my husband in my adult life. When I was growing up I attended a small private school that required us to wear uniforms.  Mine was the typical plaid skirt with button up blouse, oxford shoes and dark blue socks.  Knee socks.  And let me tell you, while we had no say over style, seeing as we all wore the self-same-outfit-every-cotton-picking-day-of-our-lives, we DID have the opportunity to flex our individuality in the way our outfits looked.  Some wore wrinkled shirts (rebels), some wore pocket protectors (won't go there), some girls wore their skirts short (hussies) and girls like me spent their days pulling up their slouching socks.  Until, that is, I learned that some girls had overcome this dilemma by keeping a rubber band around their calf and turning the cuff of the sock over it.  This may sound insignificant to you, but to me, it was revolutionary.  And even though the rubber band cut off all circulation to my toes, it was worth it. And it wouldn't be the first time a female sacrificed their feet for the sake of style. Just ask Christian Louboutin.  

I started a little hat from some acrylic.  Cast on 90 stitches and used a size 6 for the ribbing and 8 for the crown. Easy knitting while dear husband made dinner last night!

SPINNING
Lovely things will be knit from this springy, bouncy yarn.  The color is cream or ecru.

I should be able to get another bobbin at least so that should make about 4 or 5 skeins. 

PERSONAL
This past week I celebrated my 49th birthday.  It just gets better and better.

My daughter and DIL made dinner and cake and hosted a little game-time for me.  I LOVE playing board games and had told my husband the day before that what I really wanted for my birthday was to light a fire in the fireplace and play some board games. I got a much needed new Starbucks drink cup and an adorable charm for my new bracelet.  My birthday dinner party was actually the night before my birthday so the evening of my actual birthday, my father in law took me and my husband out to eat, and DH and I spent the rest of the evening in front of the fireplace playing Battleship and Bingo. 

Cozy birthday fire

Husband won at Battleship, and I won Bingo!

So here we are!

The month is progressing as they usually do, this time of year.  Weather is a bit gray, cool, cloudy.  Holidays are basically over and the house is returned to normal.  I'm getting word on a recurring basis from friends and family that big things are happening to them. Houses being sold, career changes, job promotions, etc.  Big changes that affect their entire family. Most are good.  At this point, for me, maintaining is a good thing.  Staying the course.  You understand what I'm saying, don't you?  I'm happy for those whose lives are a bit topsy-turvy, but not envious. Not right now.

SPINNING
I did a great amount of stash-work last fall, and packed up a lot of fleece and un-spun wool.  I recently found this black wool that I'd dyed and put away before the cold weather arrived.  Now I'm completely inspired to card/comb and spin it.  Here is the sample on my Bosworth Midi spindle.  I just love it!

Its so refined, so classic. So elegant and understated.

And I've started the plying of the great white roving on my Kromski.  Love-lee!

KNITTING
This lovely white scarf is nearly done, and has been a joy to knit.  Rarely does a knitter find that perfect combination of yarn, needle and pattern that are still yummy even after eleventy-hundred rows.  Three cheers for me and my stumbling upon this project!  I raise my glass coffee cup to you, and hope that both of us are so lucky the next time!

GARDENING
I feel like I need to mention gardening, even though there is exactly zero gardening happening right now.   My seed and flower catalogs are within arm's reach most of the time, but I'm holding steady.  I did find a packet of kale seeds from last year and would like nothing more than to have one sunny day in which to plant them.  My fingers are crossed, but that is all.

READING
Still enjoying my Hamish Macbeth novel, and have no plans to change anything at this time.  Bravo to British mystery writers!  You rock.

PERSONAL
Last week I had strep, and this week I had a call-ralph-on-the-big-white-phone-headache.  As I was leaving my weekly prayer meeting at church on Tuesday, I suddenly felt such pain in my head that I felt ill.  By the time I got home, I informed my DH that I had a terrible migraine.  Within 30 minutes I was you-know-where making an unpleasant phone call to you-know-who. Ralph. Oh my goodness that came out of left field.  I was useless for the rest of the day, although the pain was gone in an hour.  I still don't know what happened.  Gee!

I've been leaning heavily on the FlyLady detailed cleaning lists as we transition into full blown winter.  If I can't be outside working in the garden, I'll have to be satisfied with cleaning out closets and bathtubs.  Not that I mind.  I actually enjoy cleaning house, so long as its my house.

In Search Of...Entrelac

KNITTING
If you're a baby boomer or a little younger, you will remember a TV show with Leonard Nemoy called In Search Of .  He was always on a quest for some unknown thing.

 This week I'm in search of all things Entrelac. I am looking for the most beginner friendly project, and I'm thinking maybe a potholder.  That's what they usually recommend to kids learning to knit.  Or a scarf.

Entrelac Sample

Here goes:
Ravelry came up with 1,207 matches and very few patterns look enticing.  The prettiest seem to be the ones done with all one color, or very little variation.  Maybe that defeats the purpose, but it seems like the color should be the thing that makes the technique stand out.
 (I do like all the hats.)  Still thinking about this one.  And still knitting on the little scarf.  I got sick this week and am just now feeling like myself again. 

SPINNING
My shoulder has been giving me fits lately so I've completely sworn off spindle spinning and stuck to the very basic wool spinning project on my Kromski.

Love spinning this wool roving

Two bobbins FULL of singles - ready to be plied!

READING 
Loving M.C. Beaton and Hamish Macbeth at the moment, I've just started "Death of a Chimney Sweep".  To make the experience more realistic, I've looked up the location online and using Flickr search tools, found great pics of County Sutherland, Scotland.  If only I could actually go there.....

PERSONAL
Pinterest is a whole other universe when it comes to getting ideas for things.  Recently someone posted a photography challenge for the next 52 weeks. Week 1 was black and white, and week 2 is food.  I have attached my flicker feed to the sidebar so you can go directly to the current photos.  Week 1's photo challenge: Black and White.
The picture I took when I walked into the kitchen - it looked like a crime scene and all that was missing was the chalk body-outline.
If you click on my Flickr page to the right, you'll see the body of poor old "Bananas" just like I saw him!
Week 2 - photo challenge: Food
Today I'm making couscous and lentils - and here's the shot.

Very simple Mediterranean lunch! Lentil and couscous - YUM.

Now for the actual list of resolutions for the new year, 2014.
 Well, all I have to say is that its different from all other years past.  This year I have a lot of "Things to do and try" and a whole lot of "experience" this and that.  I am still using my planner, so that's a good start (see previous post). Life is as challenging as its ever been, more so than I really remember.  But I'm handling things so much better than I did when I was in my twenties.  I'm more resolved, as a matter of fact.  I'm more subdued in my reactions to things that used to tick me off.  I'm more determined not to let things get to me. I'm more at peace with life and have a little more understanding that life is just what you make of it. Plain and simple.  It does no good to resolve to lose 10 lbs, because statistically it will just come back.  It does no good to resolve to save more money when you can hardly pay the bills as it is.  Rather, I'm just giving myself a bit of breathing room this year, and I hope I won't be too difficult to be around.  I hope I'm kind and generous, thoughtful but firm when I need to be.  I hope this year I'll be happy even when life sucks all the air out of the room.  And I hope you and I will get to talk face to face sometime.  That would really be great!

Punctilio - a fine or petty point of procedure

Writing this post today is not easy for me.  Not because I have any sadness or serious burden to discuss.  Rather, its hard to write because I don't feel like I have my ducks in a row.  One of my biggest flaws is that I don't like to attempt things if I don't feel like I'll be successful.  I avoid risk, in other words.  Yes, that's no big surprise, I realize.  I'm right up there with the cat-lady-librarian category of women who like things to be predictable and organized.  Which brings me to another thing.

Lately I've been obsessed with planners and video reviews of planners. Probably because of the new year, but also because I can tell I'm really yearning for control over things.  Another flaw. That makes two in two paragraphs.  (Sad face.)

Anyway, the new year is moving right along and I have yet to post anything of significance.  I don't feel well today and have had way too much coffee and more than enough pain killers to make me high as a kite.  Nothing seems to help, so I'll just stop putting off this post and get on with it.

KNITTING 
Here is my first informal project of the year.

scarf is about 5 inches wide

1x1 rib makes for about 7.5 stitches per inch

 I'm knitting this little scarf from some white acrylic in my stash.  Its the same yarn I used to make this hat for my little granddaughter.  (That looked really weird when I typed it. I have a granddaughter.)

Anyway, its not something on my list of things to do this year, but there you have it.  The first item of the year, knit on size 5 needles, in 1 x 1 rib.

SPINNING 
I have completed two bobbins recently of this lovely wool roving from Paradise Fibers.  Great customer service by the way.

2 bobbins spun from the pound of wool I got from Paradise Fibers

Wool roving, about 8 ounces left

READING 
I'm inspired to knit a heck of a lot of socks (which I will never do) after picking up this book from the library.  I literally set up an excel spread sheet of a few particulars of every single pair of socks in the book.  I realized that I do not like toe-up socks, so I eliminated those pairs.  One pair of entrelac socks looked interesting, but I'm sure I won't knit them. At least not two, which are necessary to make a pair.

I wanted to knit the socks in homespun so that I wouldn't have to buy any yarn.  Why would I buy yarn when I have a garage full already?  So anyway, I think I got it down to around 6 pairs of socks that were contenders, and it occurred to me that I basically wanted to come up with a formula for knitting socks where I could throw in a lace or rib pattern to jazz them up a bit.  Most of the sock-contender-patterns had around 64-72 stitches (cast on) and were top down, and used around a size 2 needle.  That would mean a fingering weight yarn.  So, well,....there's the formula; the components of the socks I want to knit this year.  That wasn't so bad!

I've also started a book about a quest for cheese called The Telling Room.

  Interesting read,  but I am less and less inclined to sit down and read anything for fear that I will fall asleep in 15 minutes. I think if we had a cord of firewood, I'd be reading by the fireplace every evening.  We have no firewood, and the stuff from the grocery store is $1 per piece.  Yes, I'm talking about the stuff in the bags out front.  I might as well buy the pre-made logs next to the charcoal and the lighter fluid.  One of those burns for 4 hours and costs about $3, as opposed to 4 logs at least for 1 night. Am I cheap or what?  And totally off topic. 

PERSONAL

My old planner sitting on my new camera box

Here's my planner.  Its old, worn out, and I'm using homemade dividers, etc and filler paper from old unused planners.  I told myself that if I got back into the swing of using this thing again, after two full months, then I would reward myself with a new one, or at least new inserts.  Right now I'm happy with this set up and I'm gonna keep moving forward regardless. By the way, I mentioned looking at planner videos. Mostly they were Filofax Youtube videos which seemed a little bit juvenile to me; lots of Hello Kitty and stickers and catchy sayings like something you'd see in a Facebook post.  I really only want the bare-bones kind of planner.  The one pictured is a Franklin Covey planner and that suits me fine, although I really like Filofax, Kikki K, Erin Condren and Emily Ley. 

NEXT POST should contain my list of resolutions and some other interesting additions.  Lets hope! Fingers crossed!

Getting to know you, getting to know all about you

HAPPY NEW YEAR! 
 As 2013 comes to a close, the frenzy is on for knitting.  Its cool, its hip, its appropriate to wear scarves, hats and crazy knitted items.  And yet... I still knit reasonable, predictable items.  Things you might find at a store in the mall.  Things that aren't boutique-y. I just love the regular, normal way of doing things.

But as a knitter, I still like to do something new every now and again.  I am in the process of learning more about cabling and  trying to learn about left and right twist. This is a method to achieve a cable "look" without actually using a cable needle. Actually it was way easier than I thought it would be, and I definitely plan to use the technique again.

Recently I cast on some socks  (six sox knit along twisted diamond) with some wool that I spun during the Tour de Fleece on my spindles - a grab bag of yarns that would have made some interesting socks. Except that the yarn/needle combo was just not right.  The yarn proved to be too dense for the frail bamboo needles, and after a bit, I decided that the project was just not meant to be.


Today at the library I happened upon a great book from Clara Parkes that has more sock patterns than I can handle!  I can't wait to pick at least one pair of socks from the book to try.  Her stuff always looks good when its knit up. 

I've done a little bit of spinning lately on my Kuchulu.  I love this spindle.  Its my favorite, hands down.  Small, light, cute and easy to use.  #You'reWelcome

For Christmas, I got some very meaningful gifts, and that's pretty special to me.  One was a lovely bracelet from my daughter and son in law.  My parents gave a gift card that enabled me to buy the camera that has replaced my poor, taped-up, rubber-banded Nikon.  And my son and daughter in law are upgrading my website so that I can blog in style.  I love my family and they mean the world to me.  And we are certainly blessed with a very warm and comfy home, reliable transportation, plenty of food to eat every single day, and lots of fresh clean water for every thing we'd ever need it for.  I am very blessed indeed.

As we look into the New Year, I'm super excited to be re-organizing my old planner, making my list of goals and resolutions (aren't they the same thing?) and dreaming of things to come in 2014.  There are so many things to be thinking about, that I had a hard time sleeping in today.  I can't wait to meet the new year, and get to know all about what things it has in store!

A Little Bit of This and That

KNITTING
Its been a while since you've seen a post from me, and for that I apologize.  You deserve better, and this blogger has failed miserably.

The coolest part of fall is upon us with Thanksgiving around the corner.  Lots happening everywhere we look, all leaning toward the peak ahead of us; the holiday season.  

For knitters, its the best time of the year, because there seems to be no limit to the number of projects we imagine we can undertake.  Its cool outside, so we want to knit scarves, mittens, hats and throws.   Its gift giving time, so we attach potential recipients' names to these projects.  We stash dive and pair up yarns with patterns, and start a lot that will never be finished, often because they look weird, even to us. 

Here are a few that have made it beyond the "forget-about-it" distribution cull.
Thing 1:  Burgundy Christmas Stocking for my DD

Cabled Christmas stocking on size 9 bamboo DPNs

Better color in this pic

Thing 2: Fuzzy Fingerless Glove for HH

Fingerless glove knit with Elann Peruvian Highland Wool

SPINNING
There are more things spun than one would care to view. But currently here are the things in my spindle basket.

Some silk/wool combo on both the Bosworth Midi and Jenkins Kuchulu.
Some natural cotton on the Bosworth Mini.

The Kuchulu goes with me most everywhere that is Instagram-worthy.  If you follow me on Instagram (my handle is brendamyfrienda) you'll see lots of "where I've been" pics and a few items I've been baking, etc.

Wool and mohair PURPLE!

Carding Wool and Llama blend - super fluffy!

GARDENING
Yesterday the leaves in the front got thinned out just a bit, and a few piles went to the back garden/flower bed to mulch over the winter.  After my morning walk, I noticed that everyone in the neighborhood had limbs out by the sidewalk to be picked up by the city. After raking the yard, I hauled all those branches from the last post to the driveway edge. The city came by just a few hours later so my timing was impeccable.
I also managed to prick my finger on a rose thorn. I'm a wimp, I know because you can hardly see the dot where I got pricked, yet I'm blogging about it cause it hurt so bad.

No vegetables got planted this year so there's just no harvest to show off, although I'm getting excited about next year.  Perfect timing, huh?

READING
You don't even want to know how little I've been reading lately.  Big time fail.   The only things I've kept up are my personal devotions in the morning via the massive volumes of Matthew Henry.  (Yesterday I read from Ex. 27 about the horns of the altar and their meaning.) These books are outstanding by the way, if you are religious!

PERSONAL
The last few weeks have been particularly good.  We got an unexpected respite as caregivers - a whole week of stay-cation.  REALLY an awesome week! Good family times interspersed with outings and a retreat for me and a friend.  She and I met online through a virtual support group that has really gotten me through the last couple of years.  (When and if therapy is not an option, go for the support of friends. MAKE them happen; get with people who lift you up!)

My friend came to stay with me for a few days and we attended the retreat with all the other members of our virtual support group from all over the country.  It was so empowering and uplifting.  I had no idea how down I'd felt and how upside down things had gotten.  I also discovered by accident (a cold) that a very small dose of Percogesic, 1/4 of a pill, has helped me to stay asleep through the night and greatly improved my mood in the mornings.  Apparently I haven't really slept through the night in a long, long time.  Sleeping pills are way too strong and make me groggy and lethargic, but this small dose is just what I needed!

We've had fires in the fireplace, homemade cookies and lots of Netlfix to keep us busy; doctors appointments for my father in law, and opportunities to volunteer in the community.

My husband has recently written a book that is extremely well received.  He has worked so hard on this, and poured his heart out to potential readers.  Not just a bucket list item, but a real true accomplishment!  You go sweetie!!  My son did the artwork and the graphics inside so I'm doubly proud !!

Seduction of a Wisteria Vine

GARDENING
Most of us have at one time or another, been gifted a plant. Sometimes they are for indoors, and sometimes they are meant to be planted outside.  I have a friend who is a Master Gardener and she was "cleaning out" her back yard of unwanted plants several years ago.  We had not been in our house for very long at the time, and I was more than happy to take the extra plants off her hands.  Most of them have worked out really well, and I'm ever so grateful for her generosity.
 But one plant, while beautiful and healthy, has begun to take over and manipulate (yes I said manipulate) the other plants in the vicinity.

Garden of Eden - NOT

The blooms have gradually ceased because of the competition with the other plants.  And the roots of the wisteria have literally strangled the once healthy hydrangea underneath.

Wisteria vs. Hydrangea - no contest

This bully plant comes on strong with vines, leaves galore, and quick growing shade.  What's not apparent is what's going on underground.  The roots are growing wide and deep, surrounding other plants' root systems like a zombie invasion. And the roots of a wisteria can't be pruned like their vines overhead. I had intended today to just move the shrubs underneath to a new location, allowing them more morning sun, and  less competition for water.

Insidious Roots

But no, there was NO moving the shrub, because on further inspection, I could see that the wisteria roots had taken over the neighborhood like the gang in West Side Story.  Surely they've been snapping their fingers and flipping their switchblades when I wasn't looking!

This morning I knew I had one  day to either move or remove whichever plant I determined was the problem.  Clearly it was the seductive wisteria.  It kills me how much I've bragged on this vine and Instagram-ed pictures of the almost non-existent blooms.  No more.  I sawed and clipped and pruned until my arms gave out.  That sucker is toast. Good riddance to bad rubbish.


SPINNING
I did actually participate in the Spinzilla challenge, although not online.  The colored wools that were dyed back in the summer found their way to my spindles and wheels. Maybe mittens??

Purples, Greens and Blues

KNITTING
This afternoon my ever protesting muscle groups made their demands.  Espresso and knitting until time for supper.  Espresso has been deposited to my tummy.  Now for the knitting.
I'm watching Eunny Jang's video on how to knit cables from a chart, and found the inspiration I was looking for.  Ah yes!

One of the things on my New Years Resolution list was to learn to knit cables from a chart.  I can cable just fine, and really enjoy it, but complicated cable patterns make me look away.  I'm all of a sudden shy, and I know why.

 I don't want to flex my mental muscles and learn a new technique.  (By the way, I learned how to spell t-e-ch-n-i-qu-e today.  It has a CH where I would've put just a C)
Anyway, I'm out to learn to knit cables from a chart, and that may just take me all the way to Christmas. Guess what you're getting for Christmas, honey?

Incredible!! (Blogiversary)

Today I feel incredibly proud of myself.  After setting a goal last January to learn to steek a sweater, hopefully handmade, I have completed my task!!  There really are no words to type that would convey how amazing this feels.  Its a sweet and simple euphoria to make a really good, fitting goal, and then to meet that goal within the time frame you gave to yourself, and after having overcome numerous obstacles to get there.  Probably this is like running a 5K for some people, or making an important journey.  There's hope fulfilled, accomplishment, and a lot of exhaling.

CUTTING THE SWEATER OPEN

I didn't realize how much I'd been holding my breath lately.  The final stages of this sweater have by far been the trickiest.  Its finishing touches have made me collapse every so often, thinking this was just going to be one more sweater that I'd throw in the back of the closet and never wear.  My goodness I was not sure if this was going to happen or not!

PICKING TRIM AND SEWING UP THE RAW STEEKED EDGE

CHOOSING AND SEWING THE BUTTONS

Steps to the final phase:
After making the actual sweater, the center front section had to be crocheted on either side of the steek stitch.  Then the whole sweater had to be cut up the middle.  LIKE AN AUTOPSY.  Oh my word that was hard to do.  And after having read all the comments from the online class by other knitters who had complete disaster with their sweater,  I was shaking in my boots!  Then the facing band had to be sewn on either side of the steek, and finally buttons and button loops added.

BEFORE BUTTONS

AFTER BUTTONS

What a journey to card this beautiful white fleece months ago, with some delicate angora. The carded wool was spun on my Kromski Symphony wheel, and then knit by hand.


When I learned to spin, making a sweater from wool I'd spun was one of my main goals.  I moved to Tennessee in the fall of 2001, and moved into this very house 12 years ago next week.  Not long after moving here I set out to learn how to spin.  Which I did.  In late October 2004 I started blogging and have made myself stick with it - mostly to keep up the momentum of projects started.  To this day I don't really know who reads my blog, and I get very, very few comments, but that doesn't matter.  I don't blog for numbers or feedback.  I blog for me.  Like a diary.  And I'm so glad I've been posting about this sweater these last few months.  It has given me the push I needed to stick with the project to the end.   So, here it is.  My first Icelandic sweater; picked and carded, spun and knit entirely by hand.  Yay for me!!

FINISHED AND READY TO WEAR!!

What I did today (no knitting, just chit chat)

So today I've had a ME day.  Every so often I need a little time to myself.  Some women/men go the spa, golf course, mall or shooting range.  With the way the economy is lately, it seemed prudent and even frugal to just wander around my home town, doing things that I might not ordinarily do.  Today I did a couple of things that I felt would put a little gas in my emotional tank while saving gas in my car's tank.

(As I type this from my backyard, my computer is sending me lots of pop ups to tell me  that I have no spyware protection, that the world will end in less than an hour if I don't update, scan and arm myself immediately.  I thought this ME day was supposed to get rid of the stress, not fill me with more.  I need more gas in my tank, not threats from my laptop!)

So, back to today.  I always join a friend of mine on Tuesday mornings to pray at the church.  I'm not Catholic, but it would be pretty cool to show up one morning and find some nuns praying on the front pews, with some candles lit nearby.  I always wanted to be a Catholic, mostly because my whole neighborhood was Catholic when I was growing up.  Catholics got to go to church on Saturday night, the women got to wear pants and they had this great "Lawn Party" every summer.  Oh yeah, and they took communion all the time and dancing was okay with the priest.  I grew up Baptist, and that's a whole 'nother story. 
So anyway, I went to church this morning to pray, and when we were through, I went to a local park to take a walk.  I brought my iPod and earbuds, and made sure to wear my hiking shoes and cargo pants.  The weather was beautiful; sunny and clear.  Perfect for walking, right?  But I got to the park and it was full of young mommies and their tots, strollers and sippy-cups.  It felt really warm in the car, and I chickened out.  After a few minutes I drove a couple of miles away to another park that proved to be perfect and inspiring. The paved walking trail follows the path of a creek, in one big meandering circle. One lap around  was 9/10 of a mile.  Some of the path was shady and the breeze was enough to keep me cool for the entire trek. 
After the walk, I went home to get some lunch, change clothes and go to the Books-A-Million to get a cup of coffee and check out the latest books. 
I'm so proud of the book stores that made it through the financial collapse a few years ago.  I really want to support them if I can, so I try to buy something every time I go, although mostly its just a magazine or cheap paperback.  Either way, its my way of saying "Way to go!"
On the way home from the bookstore, I drove to the local rec center, to see how far the walk would be from my house to there. I'd like to try doing that walk every so often, although there's one part of the walk that inevitably creeps me out.  I don't know why.  It creeped me out today when I drove over there.  They say our area is full of civil war battlefields and there's no telling who might have died there a hundred years ago. 
So, maybe I won't walk to the rec center after all.  Maybe the half mile there and back would be better spent at the track by the creek. Don't you agree?