Unraveled Wednesday - July 31, 2019

Happy end of July!  I know many of you are not happy with that, but for me it means we are inching steadily closer to my favorite season - FALL!  There are still the dog days of August, but Fletch and I have started planning our Fall camping trip (New England!!) and I'm excited about that.

Meanwhile, this last day of July is starting off pretty muggy in Eastern PA.  I've received texts and emails regarding flood warnings from 2 p.m. - 8 p.m. today.  Maybe the rain will help break the humidity a bit?

On the knitting side of things, there has not been any unraveling...and there hasn't been a whole lot of knitting either, but I do have a new start:

Not much to look at right now, but these will be YinYang Kitty Ankle Socks - a free pattern on Ravelry.  I'm already on the heel flap for the first sock!  This is Intarsia knitting which I have never done before, so wish me luck.  The other night when I woke up at 3 a.m. and couldn't get back to sleep, guess what I was thinking about?  Yup - Intarsia knitting.  It may be a little tricky on DPNs. but I'm sure I can do it.  This is also a toe-up pattern which I am knitting cuff down.  At some point I want to try/learn toe-up socks, but thought this pattern would not be the smartest one to start with - lol.

My reading slump seems to have (thankfully) disappeared.  I'm about 1/3+ of the way through The Dakota Winters and am enjoying it.  Fletch and I should finish The Mysterious Island (Jules Verne) tonight.  We have really enjoyed this (especially having read 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea last year).

Joining Kat on this Unraveled Wednesday.  Head on over to her blog to see what she and others are up to making-wise and reading-wise.

July's Last Monday!

Hello All,

So hard to believe that August will be upon us by mid-week!  Our weekend was full.  How was yours?

We started by going to the Kimberton CSA farm Friday afternoon to pick up Colin & Mailing's share.  Whew!

A ton of veggies.  We kept some tomatoes, some carrots, a few peppers and some parsley.  the balance we took over to Colin & Mailing's Friday night when we went over to feed the cats.  Now their frig is full - lol.  We also were able to pick a bouquet of flowers, but I forgot to get a picture of those.

Saturday I headed out to meet Dee at a barn sale at a local community center.  It was very well organized and I managed to score a couple of things:

The Vera Bradley bag with bees on it had to come home with me - a perfect size for a sweater project and besides, it had my name on it!  The book is one I had heard about but haven't read yet - 50 cents for that didn't seem bad.

After the barn sale we headed over to the local farmers' market where I picked up some mushrooms and corn.  We had the corn Saturday night - very sweet, but extremely small kernels.  I used the mushrooms last night in a pasta sauce - just onions, garlic, mushrooms and fresh tomatoes.  So good.

We were back and forth to Colin & Mailing's twice each day to feed Talbot and Marcel.  Talbot was more interested in hanging on his perch:

He loves his cat tree in the sun room.  Marcel was a little more talkative and anxious for food:

Do you see that Marcel has both black and white whiskers?  And his eyes are so pale.  He's a sweetie (they both are).

I'm happy to say that the Porthos socks are finished!

I love the way they turned out and they are going to be for Colin (I think...or maybe my little brother...).  No matter who they end up going to, a gift is finished.

The heat is building again here in Eastern PA - today and tomorrow should be very hot and humid.  I'm hoping that temps moderate a little bit as the week goes on.  Enjoy your week!

TGIF - July's Last Friday!!

Good Morning and Happy Friday!

Yes, TGIF!  Yesterday I left work around 3:30 and headed home.  We got our picnic food together and plenty of bottled water (I decided against wine) and by 4:30 headed over to Colin & Mailing's.  Her parents and sister arrived a little later...Mailing was still at work, but the rest of us hauled chairs and blankets and coolers, etc. over to the park.  We plopped it all down in the shade and then found some picnic tables.

Dinner was good!  Corn on the cob, lots of raw veggies (carrots, celery, radishes, peppers, cucumbers), cherry tomatoes from our garden, hard boiled eggs, a little bit of meat (various types of salami), some crackers, grapes.  I love eating like that!

That's Mailing's parents and her sister, Anna (and Fletch and Colin).

Mailing arrived before the play started.  It was Shakespeare's Measure For Measure which lends itself to some very appropriate and timely remarks.  The actors were all good; the acoustics left a little bit to be desired.  There seemed to be a bit of a lag for sound to come through the speakers and some of it was difficult to hear/understand.  But still it was fun.

As the sun went down it really cooled as well.  I was surprised to feel chilly despite being in leggings and a long sleeved shirt (worried about ticks and mosquitoes).  The play started at 7:30 and around 9 there was an intermission and that's when we left.  Colin & Mailing were headed with friends up to the Hamptons for the weekend and I think the rest of us were just tired (and chilly!!).  Plus, there were a lot of bugs.

So, with Colin & Mailing away for the weekend Fletch and I are on cat duty and also heading to the CSA farm this afternoon to pick up C&M's share.  I need to stop at the library on my way home to drop off "The Salt Path" which I highly recommend. 

Tomorrow I'm meeting up with Dee at a barn sale...then we are heading to the farmers' market (don't think I'll need anything after going to the farm this afternoon, though maybe some good bread)...and then we plan to hang out at Colin & Mailing's to knit and relax.  Dee will get to meet Talbot & Marcel!

It's been getting a little bit warmer each day since our cool-down on Tuesday.  I'm hoping it doesn't get too hot or humid.

Hope you all enjoy your weekends!!

Unraveled Wednesday 07-24-19

Hello All,

What a major difference in the weather!  The temps have dropped, the humidity has gone way down.  Last night we slept with windows open and the AC off.  YAY!!

There has not been a lot of knitting, but there has been no unraveling.

The heel has been turned and the first 10 rows on the foot are complete.  Hoping to get a bit more done at lunch today.

Yesterday I checked some things off my "to-do" list (I don't keep a list, but these needed to be done).  I had my annual mammogram and this year a DexaScan as well.  My doctor should have the mammo results today and the DexaScan results in a week.

We are looking forward to tomorrow night when we are joining Colin & Mailing, Mailings parents and her sister and going to see Play in the Park at Whites Road Park (walking distance from Colin & Mailing's).  Tomorrow's play is Shakespeare's Measure for Measure (fitting for this day and age).  Col & Mailing are pulling together some Italian meats and crackers and hard boiled eggs.  We are bringing a bunch of fresh, raw veggies.  Oh, and wine - probably a vino verde which can be so refreshing.  Mailing's parents are bringing something too.  Should be fun and we are looking forward to this change of pace for a Thursday evening.  The weather forecast looks perfect too!

I'm still reading The Salt Path and enjoying this memoir.  I have about 80 pages left to read...it is due at the library today, but I won't be finishing it till after the library closes.  I'll return it tomorrow and pay a little fine.

Linking up with Kat for this unraveled Wednesday.  Head on over to her place to see what others are making and reading!

Porthos #2

Hello All,

I hope/trust everyone survived the nasty weekend?  Nasty here anyway.  Holy cow!  When Dee and I got in the car after coffee and knitting on Saturday, the thermometer read 113!  A small shower came through last night, but it really hasn't changed anything - still terribly humid and warm/hot.  I think our cool down should begin tomorrow (fingers crossed).

Despite the heat, I managed to make good progress on Porthos #2:

I have one more pattern repeat (12 rows) and then will be at the heal flap.  This came to work today, so perhaps I will be able to get something done on it at lunch.

My book (The Salt Path) came to work also.  I'm only about half way through it and it's due back at the library on Wednesday.  It's a very good book and I do want to finish it.

Not much else going on.  Naturally with the high temperatures, all I can think of food-wise are comfort-food recipes that require having the oven on, etc.  And who wants to eat hot food now?  We stayed with cold shrimp and salads over the weekend.

Here's to a good week ahead - enjoy!!

Friday Felines

Oh My!  Not even 8 a.m. and it is already SO humid out there.  I sound like a broken record.  The heat index today is supposed to be 107.  Oh well, nothing I can do about it, and I'm not the only one dealing with this.  So...moving on...

Yesterday it poured rain on my way home from work.  But, by the time we were ready to think about dinner, the sky had cleared and Colin was able to grill some steaks for us.  He also grilled some potatoes and onions and we had some green beans and cherry tomatoes from the garden.  Col snapped this picture of Tyg - mighty hunter that he is:

He just loves to sprawl on this little metal table we have under our apple tree.  I guess he feels a bit closer to the birds.  Froggy is still safe, though Tyg has been enjoying sipping frog flavored water - lol.

Well it is Friday which means I should be leaving work by Noon or 1 at the latest.  I need to make a few stops on the way home - bank (for $$), grocery store (for mozzarella) and the library (for this book which Kat had recommended).  After that I will probably sprawl somewhere like Tyg.  I have left over coffee from this a.m. so I can make a nice tall glass of iced coffee to sip.

Weekend plans include getting together with Dee tomorrow for a bit of retail therapy, some lunch and I'm sure there will be knitting and coffee too.  Looking forward to that.  And, the car that didn't pass inspection is being picked up today!!  We are donating it to WRTI, our local classical & jazz radio station.  It will be interesting to see what our donation amount ends up being - as Fletch said the car is only worth scrap, but that's something.

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend - enjoy and stay cool (or warm, depending on where you are in the world!).

A Finish on a Thursday!

Hello!

The morning sort of got away from me - I actually was pretty busy this morning.  But...I managed to take a lunch break and finished up the first Porthos sock!

I decided to add just a small touch of color at the end of the toe - used some of the Madeline Tosh in the Tart colorway and I love that bit of red.  That's a pretty long foot (70 rows before the toe decrease), but both Fletch and Colin have fairly large feet.  Not sure who these socks will be for, but most likely Colin (Fletch had the nerve to say something along the lines of his sock drawer was getting crowded...what???).  Anyway, I'm hoping to cast on Porthos #2 either tonight or tomorrow.

I haven't been outside since I got to work just after 7 a.m., but the temp is lower and we've had some showers all morning.  This weekend...however...is supposed to be brutal!  Temps over 100 with high humidity.  Dee and I do have plans to get together but I'm sure we can find air conditioning to hang out in.  If you are in the midst of this heat wave, stay hydrated!!  (Today's water has blackberries and mint in it😋)

Unraveled Wednesday July 17 2019

Good Morning!

It is already sultry outside and it's not even 8 a.m.  Yesterday when I left work around 3:45, my car thermometer said 104!  It is supposed to be like this through the weekend.

It actually wasn't all that bad outside around 7:30 or so last night.  Tyg has been dreaming of frog legs as a snack for some time now.  We have a very small water feature by our patio.  Often we have toads and occasionally a frog.  This year a small frog has been hanging around for several weeks.  Tyg will cautiously go up and smell the water and sometimes stick a paw in it.  Last night I was sitting on the patio and Tyg was lounging on the grass.  He suddenly got up and lunged into the gooseneck and other plants growing by the back of the water feature.  He came out with poor little froggy in his mouth!  I yelled and picked up Tyg...he opened his mouth and froggy fell out.  I put Tyg inside and called Fletch.  We looked around but couldn't see froggy.  A little later I went out and there was froggy on the edge of the water feature.  He saw me and jumped into the water with a splash, so I guess he is ok.  Perhaps a bit traumatized, but ok.  Whew!!

Yesterday I did manage to knit about 10 rows on Porthos at lunch and another 10 last night.  I think I have about 25 rows left before the toe decreases begin.

(Today's water has cucumber and basil in it - yesterday's was strawberries and rosemary)

I did not bring knitting with me today.  A visit to Trader Joe's is in order and if I have any extra time after that, I did bring a book to read.  On that front, I finished The Lighthouse Keeper's Daughter which I really enjoyed.  It was a good summer read - engaging but not taxing on my brain - lol.  I give it 4.5 stars.  Now I'm in the midst (well about 50 pages into) The Salt Path: A Memoir which I'm finding to be very good.  I'm enjoying reading *real* books for a change from my Kindle.

Wishing you all a wonderful week and if you are in the midst of this oppressive heat wave, hoping you can find relief somewhere.  Head on over to Kat's to see what others are making and reading this week.

Tuesday Mid-July

Hello All,

Well, I had intended to post yesterday, but I had another quick laser eye surgery in the morning and was pretty blurry the rest of the day!  I have had high pressure in both eyes and the procedure I've had done is to relieve that pressure and hopefully eliminate the need for me to take any drops.  Fingers crossed.  I go back in September for a pressure check.

Anyhoo, we did get a car on Saturday!  We bought a Subaru CrossTrek and so far I'm loving it.  You have to wonder about some dealers though.  We had been working with dealer #1 but he kept insisting that the car we wanted wasn't available locally and he wouldn't work with us on pricing.  Fletch called another local dealer and Voila!  They had the car we wanted in stock ...it actually had some additional features that we had not requested (like a moon roof which I had in another car and really enjoyed), but the price was several thousand less than what dealer #1 had told us.  We had an appointment at 10:30 Saturday morning and I was driving it home before Noon!  Now my "chore" for today is to go on line and donate the car we are getting rid of -- donating it to our local classical/jazz radio station.

Meanwhile the heat is building - we are supposed to be in the mid to upper 90's through the weekend with very high humidity.  I have a cold dinner planned for tonight, but need to figure out food for the rest of the week.

The Porthos Sock has seen a bit of progress - I'm about halfway down the foot now.  It came to work with me today and I'm hoping to get a bit done at lunch.

The table is a mess, but at least you can see the sock (and my water bottle and my Word:  Strength!! - merci my friend).  My Word is now gracing my desk at work where I really need to find Strength at times.....

Are any of you experiencing the Lantern Flies?  We do not have them on our property, but our neighbors sure do.  Their trees are now wrapped in bands that are like glue traps.  Fletch walked over to look at them yesterday and said there were hundreds of the flies trapped.  I don't think I want to look.

Hope everyone is having a great week!

TGIF July 12, 2019

Hello All,

Wow did we have some strong storms last night!  Lots of lightening and thunder and so much rain.  One of my roads to work today was closed due to flooding.  Hopefully it will be cleared up by Noon (when I am planning to leave to start the weekend early).

No new knitting to show and no Friday Felines this week.  But, I don't think I ever showed the garlic from our garden.  Fletch pulled it on the 3rd and it's hanging on our patio to dry.  We gave some to Colin, but this is the balance of what we have:

The yellow thing is Fletch's kayak, the wooden guideboat he built is below that.  I can't wait to use some of this garlic - so yummy!

I'm one of those people who cannot wait for Fall - my favorite season.  But even I think this is rushing things a bit:

This was from our grocery store ad that I was looking through while having coffee this a.m.  Before you know it, Halloween candy will be in the aisles. 

Finally - I think we (really Fletch - he did all the work) found the car we want.  We're going to look at it tomorrow!!  Fingers crosssed it will be perfect!

Have a great weekend.

Unraveled Wednesday July 10, 2019

Good Morning,

Said through a foggy brain.  Not sure what my issue is today, but I am definitely in a fog.  One of the roads I usually take to work has been closed for almost a month for bridge repairs. This morning I turned down that road...driving along when suddenly construction vehicles and roadblocks are in front of me.  What was I thinking?  Obviously not much - lol.  I did manage to turn around and make it to my office safely, but I still feel out of sorts.

On the bright side of things, I did knit a bit more on my Porthos sock and there was no unraveling.

I've now completed two pattern repeats for a total of 24 rows on the leg.  This is a quick knit (hoping I did not jinx myself by saying that...) and a fun one.

On the reading front, I started this book and am enjoying it so far (about 100 pages into it).  It is holding my attention which is more than I can say for some recent books I've started.  I picked it up at the library along with The Salt Path which I am eager to read.

Visit Kat to see what others are making and reading this July.  Happy Hump Day!!

Tuesday Doings

Well Hi There!

The heat and humidity are coming back.  Yesterday was actually pleasant and not very humid, so I decided to bake some banana peanut butter bread last night.

Thank you Nance for the recipe.  This could become a regular addiction - lol.

I managed to knit a little bit on the new sock.

This picture is really just the cuff, but I did 12 more rows for the beginning of the leg.  The pattern is Porthos - a freebie on Ravelry.  These will be boy/man socks - not sure who will get them yet.  The yarn almost looks like a grey/green and white, but I think it's really black and white. 

Meanwhile, the work day is somewhat busy.  I have a group of 14 in for a 2 day meeting - 3 of them were rear-ended this morning driving into the office!!  A young girl - most likely texting - rammed into the back of the rental car while they were on the on-ramp to Route 202.  Geeze!  Fortunately the guys are all ok.

That's it for now - gotta run.  Hope everyone is having a great week!

Back to Reality

Good Morning All,

It is grey and wet here in eastern PA and difficult to get motivated and back to work.  It was such a nice, long weekend break.  I hope everyone had a great holiday.

We celebrated the 4th with a cookout at Colin & Mailing's on the 4th.  It was a pretty muggy day, and  Fletch and I bugged out by 8 p.m.  Friday was more of the same muggy weather.  We were going out to pick up Colin & Mailing's share at the CSA farm and got there by 10:30.  We didn't know that shares typically aren't ready until Noon.  But, we went out to the fields to pick some of our stuff - peas, strawberries and beans (green, yellow and purple).  And flowers!!

A messy kitchen table, but gorgeous flowers!!

But holy cow it was hot in the fields!  Luckily everything else was picked for us.  Let me just say there was SO MUCH!  Really, a share is too much for 2 or even 4 people.  We kept some of the veggies and took a lot of them over to Colin & Mailing's since they were only away for the weekend.

Saturday morning I went back over to Colin & Mailing's to feed to cats, ran a few errands and then hung out at home.  My friend Leslie, her daughter Jaimie and her granddaughter Emory arrived a little after 4 p.m.  We had a quick, easy dinner with Fletch and then we girls headed over to Colin & Mailing's to feed the cats and spend the night.  We ended up all going to bed early  -  between the heat and humidity (and their all day driving), we were beat.  Plus they wanted to hit the road early Sunday morning to drive to Rhode Island.  And they were on the road before 6:30 a.m.!  A very short visit, but so good to see them all.  I fed the cats and headed home.  Later in the morning, Dee and I met up for coffee and knitting. 

The Rabbit Hole socks are now finished!!

So pretty!  Love the yarn and the colors.  And, yes, a new pair of socks (or rather one sock) was cast on last night.  The cuff was completed while watching the season finale of Endeavour.

And that's a wrap on the weekend!  Hope you all had fun too.

Unraveled Wednesday 7/2/19

Good Morning!

Yup, the humidity is back with a vengeance this morning.  It is just so damp outside.  Ugh!

As I mentioned the other day, Rabbit Hole Sock #1 was finished and #2 started.  Not much progress on #2 - just through the ribbing and the first 4 rows of the pattern, but it's a start.

Hopefully I'll get much more done over this long holiday weekend.

Tyg was also a bit wiped out from the heat last night.

After last night's short thunder storm, he plopped down in front of the sliding door to the patio catching a faint breeze.  Love those little tucked front paws😄

I've got a few reports to get out this morning and then I think I'll call it a day and get out of work by Noon at the latest (fingers crossed).  I am more than ready for a 4 day weekend.

Wishing you all a fabulous 4th of July! 

Teeny Needle Tuesday - July 2, 2019

Good Morning All!

A bit late posting this morning as I had my annual physical at 8:30.  All is good...numbers have improved...just need to schedule a mammo and dexa and then the dreaded colonoscopy in September.  I may have to postpone that last one as September is my birthday month and it is just not right to have to go through that procedure (or really, the prep) in one's birthday month.  Am I right?

It's been a long time since I picked up a teeny needle - not once in May or June!  But for some reason I was re-inspired to stitch on Sunday.

Can you see what inspired me?  The Flamingo needle minder - thank you Dee!!  I love that bit of bling.  And, Fox Forest is moving along.  On Sunday I stitched the tree on the right (with the gold *blooms*), the bottom tree and the bottom left Fox.  All that's left now is a flower motif between the Fox and Tree and then all the alphabet letters scattered all over the place.

Meanwhile, look who was in the backyard around 7 this morning:

There was another one running across the yard further in the back, but this guy (Fox 8?  Fantastic Mr. Fox?) was right by our picnic table and apple tree - just feet from our patio!  I think he was scrounging around for some apples that have already fallen from the tree.  Tyg was out, but not anywhere in sight, so I'm not sure if this is the same guy he sometimes meets up with or not.

On the knitting front, I did finish the first rabbit hole sock at lunch yesterday AND started rabbit hole #2 last night.  I'm about 2/3 of the way through the cuff ribbing and should finish that at lunch today and start the leg.

That's it for me - I've got some reports to run and updates to do to some spreadsheets I keep at work.  Have a great day!

Welcome July

Good Morning!

Happy July!  This will be a short week at work which is always welcome.  I'm working today and tomorrow and probably a half day on Wednesday and that's it!

How was your weekend?  Mine was filled with all kinds of good things.  I was able to leave by 12:30 on Friday and I stopped by our local library on the way home.  It's been a long time since I visited, but I've been wanting to read Fox 8 for quite some time and neither of our libraries have been offering it on Overdrive.  I knew there was a copy available in "real" book format and I got it.  I plopped myself down in a chair on our patio and read the book in one sitting (it's not long by any means - more like a short story).  Such a good tale.  If you have not read it, I highly recommend.  After that Fletch and I ran out and did the grocery shopping (2 p.m. on a Friday is a great time to go!!).

Saturday I met Dee at the Lansdale Farmers market and then we headed over to Backyard Beans for some knitting/chatting/coffee therapy.  Always a nice time to get together with Dee!

Sunday was a gorgeous day.  Low humidity and a breeze all day long.  I did a bunch of chores in the morning and then relaxed all afternoon.  The Rabbit Hole sock is progressing.

Since that picture early last night a bit more has been knit.  I worked on it while watching Endeavour (and how can next week be the Season Finale already???  We've only seen 3 episodes so far!) and the foot is now finished.  I brought it along with me to work today and hope to do the toe decrease area at lunch.

Here's to a great week for everyone!