Unraveled Wednesday 11/30/22

 Good Morning!

First of all, Happy Birthday to Mailing!  I could not ask for a better daughter-in-law.  She is smart, cute, kind, funny, and she loves my son!

It is a gloomy day here.  Rain is on the way and it will most likely rain all day...but it should be mild.  I'm glad I got out for a little walk yesterday afternoon.  I walked just under 2.5 miles along the Perkiomen Creek and the Schuylkill River.  The only thing I noticed was Tinseltown which I had never heard of.  Honestly it was very ugly in the daylight - just a mass of white trees and lights set up in a parking lot with lots and lots of trailers around.  I looked at the web site yesterday when I got home and it costs around $20 just to get in, but then you have to reserve time (and pay more) to skate on the ice rink or slide down the ice slide.  With temps in the 50's it doesn't feel so holiday-ish anyway...

Let's talk making (in my case, knitting) and reading.  Time to link up with Kat and her Merry Band of Unravelers.  My knitting is progressing.  No giant leaps or bounds, but steady progress.  The first Turning Leaves sock (the one that Dee and I are knitting together in a very loose KAL) is now ready for a heel to be turned.  An Eye of the Partridge heel flap has been completed.

The colors in this yarn are just so beautiful.  I'm glad we are knitting a plain vanilla sock and letting the colors just shout out all on their own.

The other sock I'm working on is a Christmas one (Hollyberry yarn from West Yorkshire Spinners).  The first sock in this set has had the heel turned and the gusset decreases have begun.

This just looks so festive to me.  As of now I'm thinking these will be a gift for someone...but who knows?  I could easily change my mind and keep them for me!  LOL

I'm happy to report two book finishes this week!!  Woo-Hoo!  Fletch and I finished listening to Graceland, At Last by Margaret Renkl.  As I mentioned in a previous post (or 2) the first half of this book was way too political for me.  The second half was better, but it still seemed a little preachy.  If you've never read anything by Renkl, I would suggest Late Migrations - I would also recommend this in book format rather than audio as the book includes lovely drawings by the author's brother.  Last night we started listening to The Cartographers by Peng Shepherd.  Too early to say how this one is.

The other book finished is The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O'Farrell.  Oh how I just loved this book!  I would start reading and find it difficult to put the book down; yet at the same time I did not want it to end.  Sarah commented to me a little bit ago that she felt the same way and that she also had a feeling of dread as she neared the end of the book.  I know that feeling so well, but like Sarah I liked the ending of the book.  I felt hope as I finished it last night.  True confession:  I have not read Hamnet as the idea of the story has not appealed to me.  However, after reading "The Marriage Portrait" I have added "Hamnet" to my TBR list.

Last night as I crawled into bed, I started Thunder Bay - book #7 in a series by William Kent Krueger that I am enjoying.  His books are a quick read, and I think I managed 40 pages before I turned out my light.  I still have several other library books waiting on my nightstand.

Today I will venture out in the rain.  I want to return "The Marriage Portrait" to the library as I know the wait list is long.  And after avoiding paying bills yesterday, I need to buckle down and get that done.

I hope this Wednesday finds you all well.  Be sure to make time to head over to Kat's blog to check out what others are making and reading.  I'm sure you will find inspiration!

Tiny Needle Tuesday 11/29/22

 Good Morning One and All,

It is a tad bit chillier this a.m.  32 decrees right now instead of the lower 50's.  But the sun is out and it looks really pretty outside.  Yesterday just looked so bleak...all day long.

I did venture to the office late morning and I had forgotten that the property management company always decorates the office for the holidays the Friday after Thanksgiving.  So, when I entered the building, this is what I saw in the lobby of the building:

And then, when I walked into our office on the 2nd floor, this was what greeted me:

So pretty.  In a way it seems a waste with most everyone working from home, but still it was nice to see.  The parking lot was pretty full yesterday and I could hear a group of folks talking in one of the conference rooms, but I just did my thing and got out of there in half an hour!  I know there are meetings scheduled for next week, so it will be nice for people coming in to see the trees.

Well, here we are at TNT and I'm happy to report that there has been progress on each of the three pieces I am currently stitching.  First up, that crazy, long-legged bird.  Nearing completion, but not quite there yet.

Ellen Harrison saw a few letters added.  The bottom line (the one I'm working on) reads so far "Remember now thy Creator i" - again, Ellen's placement of letters means that words tend to run together.

Last up we have the "Praise Loudly Blame Softly" sampler.  The second row of birds has been completed and now a row of Double Leviathan Stitches has appeared under that.  

I really enjoy stitching designs by Eileen Bennett as she always incorporates different stitches into her pieces - they are never just cross stitch.  It helps to keep my interest high!!

Today will be filled with bill paying and a light grocery shopping.  We had no mail delivery last Friday and Saturday!  Yesterday the mailman left a pile (rather large) in our box - holiday catalogues (of course), but also half a dozen bills.  Yuck!  And, since the sun is shining strongly, I'm hoping to bundle up for a walk after lunch.  Enjoy your Tuesday!

Weekending

 Hello and Good Morning!

It is cloudy and a bit damp on this Monday morning, but mild.  53 degrees currently (7:45 a.m.).  We had a ton of rain yesterday and it looks like some of it may have lingered around.

Well, how was your Thanksgiving and how was your weekend?  Both of mine were so nice.  Thanksgiving Day, Fletch and I walked with Colin a little bit in the afternoon.  A trail from the John James Audubon Center goes right behind Bonnie & Zhongren's house.  We drove over, dropped off wine and pies and some other stuff and then walked a bit.  It was a lovely day.  We saw plenty of deer and geese and a hawk flew right by us.

Zhongren had picked up Nai Nai (Mailing's grandmother) so she joined us for dinner.  We missed Bonnie though who is still in China until December 6th.  Anna was there and also Otto (her dog).

Mailing and Colin are too funny in this picture.  And I ended up trying all 3 pies!!

I will say that I did not feel well that night!  LOL  Major indigestion.

Zhongren gave us a bag with Persimmons from his friend's tree.  I had never had one before, but they are good!

I took another walk on Saturday along the Perkiomen Creek.  It was a bit breezy but again a gorgeous day to be out and about.  There were lots of geese along the dam!

I always wonder how they can just stand there without getting swept away!

As I mentioned, yesterday it rained and rained, starting late morning.  We went over to Colin & Mailing's in the afternoon.  What fun to see Talbot and Marcel again!  I completely forgot to take any pictures of them.  We watched the first episode of Get Back which we all really liked.  Fletch and I don't have Disney+, so not sure when we will watch the balance - maybe when we are in TX over the Christmas holidays.

The rain kind of stopped a bit, so after dinner we headed outside for a fire.

But by the time we left, I was damp and chilly.  What a nice time though and just a gift to have time with C&M.  We'll be getting together some more and they will be over for dinner at our house next Sunday.

Meanwhile, back to work today.  I may head to the office as I've stuff to print and overnight to Kevin.  Here's hoping that your Monday is off to a good start!

Happy Thanksgiving 11/24/22

 

Wishing you All a Wonderful (and Tasty) Thanksgiving.  Enjoy!!

Unraveled Wednesday 11/23/22

 Good Morning All,

Looks to be another fine day here in Eastern PA.  The temps have warmed up a bit (32 this a.m. instead of the teens) and the sun is out.  There is a fat male Cardinal sitting on a wire outside one of my office room windows.  So pretty.

Yesterday was full of food.  LOL.  Fletch and I did a quick, small ($138 later) shopping at one store.  We picked up some necessities:  cat food (Mabel consumes food like she has not had any in months!), sunflower seeds and a fresh suet cake for the birds.  No meat and no paper products or cleaning supplies which automatically jack up the bill.  My gosh a trip to the store has gotten even more expensive.  AND, we couldn't get everything there - I had to run to a different store in the afternoon for a certain kind of tea that Fletch likes as well as soda that he drinks, but also peanuts for the birds (which the first store does not sell).

The afternoon was then spent baking and cooking Fletcher's Mom's Cranberry Chutney recipe.  On the baking front I made Cranberry Pumpkin Pecan Bread.  Oh My!

This morning, Fletch will take one loaf over to a couple for whom he still works occasionally.  I think I'll send along a jar of the chutney too.

The second loaf of bread will probably be shared with Rob and Eva across the street.

Anyway, the house smelled marvelous all afternoon, but by the time I should have been cooking dinner, I didn't really feel like it.  Trader Joe's to the rescue!  When I shopped there on Monday, one of the items that I picked up that was not on my list was this:

Another shopper was scooping up bags of this into her cart.  I asked her how it was and she highly recommended it.  Well folks, if you like mushrooms, I highly recommend it too!  The truffle sauce is very rich tasting and yummy.  Best of all, it heats up from freezer to table in about 15 minutes!  The bag says it contains 3 servings, but we finished the entire bag...just the two of us.  To go along with this I threw together a salad of garden greens and garden radishes with a few sugar snap peas and a bit of cucumber.  Cleanup was a breeze too.

Let's get to the knitting, shall we?  After all, it is Unraveled Wednesday when Kat hosts the Merry Band of Makers to talk making and reading.  Dee had posted a shot of our twinie socks last Saturday.  Since then a bit more has been knit on the Turning Leaves vanilla sock.

The skein of yarn is LARGE - I will be making these socks longer than normal.  I've gotten to the point where I usually would start the heel flap, but weighing the yarn last night, I still have 92 grams!

The Christmas sock is also made from a very large skein of yarn.  I will start the heel flap on this one next.  There are 15 rows of ribbing and 85 rows of plain vanilla.

My head has calmed down a little (lol) and I'm not throwing around ideas of multiple other projects to start.  This is good - I want to concentrate on finishing these two pairs of socks and then move on to other things.  I say that today...we'll see what tomorrow brings.  

The reading side of things is pretty much where it stood last week.  Fletch and I are still working our way through (listening to) Graceland, At Last by Margaret Renkl.  I'm very happy that the second half of the book is not political.  There is more about music (Renkl lives in Nashville) and other things.

I am well past the half way mark of The Marriage Portrait which is the selection of the "Read With Us" group (hosted by Kym, Carole and Bonny).  I love it!  The other day I mentioned to Kym that it is a book I don't want to put down once I start reading, but at the same time, I'm trying to drag it out to make it last!  Most likely I will need to re-read or listen to it prior to our discussion in January.  My guess is that I will finish it up in these next few days.  That's ok as I have a bunch of other library books on my nightstand (including The Colony and Booth) - such a wealth of reading material.

Today I will be mixing up dough for pie crusts - most likely I will make the pies tomorrow morning.  Wishing you all a very Happy Thanksgiving!

Tiny Needle Tuesday 11/22/22

Good Morning!

Yesterday I did manage to get to Trader Joe's.  I went into the store with four things on my list.  $58 later I walked out!  Isn't it always that way?  But, I got good stuff.

The day was gorgeous.  Very, very sunny and bright.  Still chilly, but not quite as windy as Sunday had been.  I decided that I needed to get out and walk after lunch, so I headed to one of my favorite trails - the canal trail.  Our nights have been cold enough that the canal was starting to freeze over.  but look at the color of the water and the blue, blue sky.  Magnificent!

 You can see there was no one in front of me.  I passed a couple of dog walkers and a few folks on bikes rode past me.  I saw one couple running and that was it.  Oh, and a guy sitting on a bench with a huge camera.  Otherwise I had the place to myself.  This time I managed to walk the entire trail from where I park to Main Street in Phoenixville - a total (round trip) of 3 miles.  The furthest I've walked since my back episode in the Spring.  It felt wonderful to be out in the fresh air, but I will admit that my back was tired by the time I got back to my car.

About halfway along the trail is Fitzwater Station - a fun pub with good food and drinks.  A nice place to stop after a walk (which Dee and I have done!!).  They also rent canoes and kayaks.  Anyway, yesterday on my way back to the car I noticed they have a giant turkey on one of their decks.  LOL

And that brings me to this morning and Tiny Needle Tuesday.  That crazy long-legged bird that everyone seems to like now has a few letters added nearby.

Obviously a few more to be stitched.  And I will add the year (but not yet...in case it is not finished in 2022).

The Praise Loudly Blame Softly sampler saw no action this week, but Ellen Harrison had some more stitching added.  I'm anxious to finish these two rows of words because then the motifs will start below.

I will say that young Ellen was not great at spacing words apart - LOL.  But that just adds to the charm of the piece in my opinion.

Colin stopped by last night!  He and Mailing had gone over to Mailing's parents to have dinner with Zhongren (Bonnie is still in China until 12/6 or so).  Mailing picked up Bonnie's car to use while up here so that Colin will have his car.  And, last night, Mailing had to run to Target to pick up stuff (litter boxes, etc.), so Colin stopped by to load up his car with wood and say hello.  It was wonderful to see him.

We all plan to gather late afternoon on Thursday and, hopefully, get a walk in before we eat.  Today I need to do some cooking and also (more) grocery shopping.

Hope your week is going well!

Weekending 11/21/22

 Good Morning One and All!

As I typed the date in the title of this post I realized GOSH!!  It's only a month till we take off for Christmas in Texas!  Our flight to Austin is December 21st (my brother Chris' birthday).  So excited!!

We've pretty much decided that no Christmas decorations will be put out.  Mabel would most likely destroy anything we left out, so we will make do with the Swarovski ornaments hanging in our kitchen windows.  They are up year round and Mabel (so far) has not bothered them.  Since I mentioned those last week after our work holiday luncheon, I decided to try and get pictures of the windows to show you.

First up is our South-West facing window that looks out over our driveway.  We can see some beautiful sunsets from this window.

It was night and dark, so not the best picture, but you can get the idea.  And, yes, that is Gumby peeking out from behind the curtain on the left.  LOL

The other window is the one over our sink.  This faces East/Southeast and is the window that looks out over our back yard (and the munching deer).

The beakers on the top ledge are from my Dad's chemist days and the two bud vases on the lower edge were my Mom's.  Yes, these areas can get a little crowded, but I love having little treasures out that mean something to me.

So here we are at Monday (again).  How was your weekend?  Mine was so nice.  As you may have read on Dee's blog, we got together (as usual) on Saturday morning for a therapy session - a little knitting, some sipping of coffee and much chatting and laughter.  We always have such a good time!

While I was out, Fletch started harvesting our Gilfeather Turnips.  

Unfortunately the greens had all been ravaged by bugs and weather, but not the turnips.  Fletch refers to the one in the upper left as an elephant's leg!  LOL.  There are more in the ground to be harvested.  I cooked up two of the smaller ones last night (cut up and boiled and then mashed with butter and S&P - delicious!).

Yesterday Fletch went across the street to our neighbor Rob's to get some firewood (Rob has a TON of wood stacked up and we are free to take as much as we want!!).  Fletch took him a couple of the turnips, but you cannot give Rob anything without getting something in return (more than wood).  Fletch came home with a plate of oatmeal cookies and pumpkin cake.  YUM!!!

Meanwhile, the kids are home!!  They left Austin Friday after work, driving with Talbot and Marcel in a large cat carrier in the back.  The cats were not amused as you can imagine.  But they survived.  They stopped both Friday and Saturday nights at hotels, but drove long days and arrived at their home around 7:30 last night.

I went shopping on Sunday for a few necessities for them:  coffee beans, seltzer (plain and alcohol), wine, raspberries, mandarine oranges, peanut butter filled pretzels, olives from the deli bar, etc., etc.  I drove over to the house in the afternoon and left stuff in their garage.  I can't wait to see them, but that might not be till Thanksgiving Day.  It's wonderful though to know they are here for 3 weeks.  And wonderful to know they made the drive safely (always the worrying mother here).

It's cold here (in the teens), but is supposed to warm up a little bit by Thanksgiving.  I think I will avoid the office this week (it's only a 2.5 day work-week anyway), but I do want/need to get to Trader Joe's - most likely this morning.  I'm still not sure what I'm making/contributing for Thanksgiving.  Probably a couple of pies and some cranberry chutney, but I need to connect with the kids and find out what else - if anything - they want me to make.

I wish you all a wonderful week.  Don't make yourself crazy with holiday plans - just enjoy the days!

A Change of Plans

 Good Morning!

How are you this morning?  I've put the heat on and just poured my first cup of coffee.  It feels chilly (34 by my computer) and it still feels damp even though the skies cleared yesterday afternoon and it got very, very sunny.  Mabel kept me company most of the night.  She is a nudger if there ever was one.  Right up against my leg and pushing hard!  I almost feel a little stiff this morning, but I cherish her company at night.

Yesterday I mentioned that Dee and I might change our KAL plans and NOT knit Cascading Leaves socks.  The Turning Leaves yarn we are using by Less Traveled Yarn is so pretty...but busy...and better suited to a plain sock.  So...the yarn has spoken - or rather shouted a bit loudly.  Cascading Leaves has been ripped out and a plain vanilla sock shall be knit.  

Rather than "negative knit" down to the ribbing which would have taken me forever, I just ripped out the entire piece and I've now re-knit the 15 rows of ribbing for the cuff.  I'm using a peace symbol stitch marker hoping it will lend a sense of calmness to this project - LOL.

Since I now have two vanilla socks on the go (my Hollyberry socks are also plain vanilla), I may need something else that is not so plain!  I've been thinking about/toying with the idea of a rather large and colorful cowl.  Something like this:

It calls for 24 different yarns!  So far I've picked out a bunch (not 24, but I have a basketful of sock scraps waiting to be used for granny squares or something).  Here's what I've chosen so far:

The minis in the plastic bag at the top of the picture are a set that I bought at the very first Allentown Fiber Festival that I went to.  That was years and years ago.  Unfortunately that festival no longer exists.  The other minis are ones I bought at the NJ Festival this past September and the balance are just a few of my scraps.  Not sure when I will cast on for this, but I think it will be a fun project!

The other day Dee shared a picture of her Publix Pilgrims from back in the day.  That has prompted me to show you my little pilgrims...and a Tom Turkey!

These are candles!  My best guess is from sometime in the 50's.  My Mom always had them out on the buffet for Thanksgiving (and that's where they are now...but in my house).  It cracks me up that the turkey is as tall as the pilgrims and the poor little pilgrim girl seems to have a smudge on her face.  There was also a set of candles that were choir members (boys and girls) that my Mom always displayed at Christmas, but somehow they got lost over the years.

Time to pour another cup of coffee and get moving on my usual Thursday reports for work.  I need to get those finished and then I plan to make some wheat bread to go with homemade vegetable beef soup for dinner.  Have a wonderful Thursday!

Unraveled Wednesday 11/16/22

 Hello, Hello,

How are you?  Everything is drippy around here.  My we had some heavy rain yesterday afternoon and evening.  It sounded so nice when I went to bed!  And it is milder this a.m. -- 40 degrees as opposed to yesterday's 29.

The holiday luncheon yesterday was lovely.  Pomme Radnor where it was held is an "event venue" that has probably seen better days (the inside looked a little old), but the staff were wonderful and the food was tasty.  We were in an "outside" room (with plenty of heaters in the ceiling) for hors d'oeuvres (mini lobster rolls, mini steak sandwich eggrolls, spinach in puff pastry, a beautiful charcuterie board, coconut shrimp, etc., etc.).  There was a pond with a pair of beautiful swans swimming around just outside the room.  Lunch was served in a large banquet room upstairs - excellent short ribs, fried chicken, mashed potatoes, mac & cheese, some carrots, Brussels sprouts, salads, breads, etc.  Desserts were buttlered afterwards - mini creme brulee, little brownies, etc., etc.  Really too much food.  

There were raffles for amazing gifts and everyone got a lovely gift bag which (as always) included the 2022 Swarovski ornament (we get these every year):

My ornaments from all the years are hanging in my kitchen windows where they catch the sun.  Simply beautiful!

Every year, rather than sending gifts to our clients/customers, my company makes a significant gift to the Make a Wish Foundation in honor of our clients.  This year a spokesperson from Make A Wish came and talked a little bit, but also a 15 or 16 year old girl who was the recipient of a wish several years ago.  It was pretty amazing to listen to her talk.

All in all, a lovely afternoon and I did not get home till after 3 p.m.!  Now it is Wednesday and time for an Unraveled Wednesday update.  As usual, I am linking up with Kat and her Merry Band of Unravelers to talk making and reading.  Be sure to head over there and follow the links - inspiration abounds!!

Dee and I have decided to do a very unstructured Knit Along with the yarn we share ("Turning Leaves" by Less Traveled Yarn).  The pattern is Cascading Leaves (Rav Link).  Dee is further along than me.  This is where I am.

BUT, we are both kind of thinking that the pattern is not showing up so well with this yarn.  This yarn if gorgeous, but I have a feeling the pattern is better suited to a solid yarn.  Anyway...continuation is to be determined/discussed.  We may negative knit (love this term from Jane) and go with a simpler pattern.

Meanwhile, I decided I could not possible knit Cascading Leaves while meeting up with Dee.  It's a pattern I need to focus on and that doesn't happen when Dee and I get together - LOL.  Too much chatter and laughter and good times.  So, I decided a plain vanilla sock was in order.  Voila:

I'm using a Christmas yarn from West Yorkshire Spinners from a year (or 2 or 3) ago.  The colorway is "Hollyberry."  These may end up being a gift...not sure yet.  I also tend to knit on these for the 20 minutes or so after dinner when Fletch and I are listening to an audio book.

Speaking of books, reading has been good!  Fletch and I are still listening to Graceland, At Last by Margaret Renkl.  It is ok.  I enjoy her writing, but this book is much more political than I expected.  And, though we share similar beliefs and feel the same about the current condition of our Nation, I don't feel as though I need to read/hear about it ALL the time.  I enjoyed her earlier book Late Migrations much more.

On the pages side of thing, I have two finishes.  First up I read The Merchant's House by Kate Ellis.  I enjoy the Ruth Galloway series by Elly Griffiths and this book by Kate Ellis was billed as being one for those who like the Ruth Galloway series.  I found it to be ok (3 stars) - not riviting and a bit boring in places.  I may or may not read the next in the series...and if I do, it will not be for some time as I just picked up so many books at the library!

Next up I read Memphis by Tara M. Stringfellow and loved it.  A multi-generational novel set primarily in the Civil Rights era, the characters are richly drawn.  The book is rough/hard in places...but so was (is) life.

I finished Memphis last night and started The Marriage Portrait when I got into bed.  I only read 20 pages or so (2 chapters) but am enjoying it so far.

And, that's a wrap for me.  Thanks for sticking around for a long blog post.  Have a wonderful Wednesday!

Tiny Needle Tuesday 11/15/22

 Good Morning All,

It's a chilly 29 degrees here this a.m. and the grass looks all frosty.  Guess it's time to harvest our Gilfeather Turnips (best to wait until after a frost to do that).

Yesterday's massage felt wonderful.  And in the afternoon I did manage to make the Cranberry Walnut Upside Down Cake!

Oh my!  So yummy.  The recipe I used is this one Cranberry Walnut Upside Down Cake - the only sub I made was using some orange zest rather than orange extract (which I don't have).  

The basket behind the cake is filled with garden greens - lettuce, chard and collards  - which we used in a salad for dinner last night.  Hard to believe we had a salad with greens, radishes and tomatoes from our garden on 11/14!  That was the last of our cherry tomatoes (the plants have all been pulled out now).  We still have some radishes in the frig and the greens are in a cold frame, so they may well still produce.

I do have some TNT updates to show you.  First up is that crazy long-legged bird.

He/She finally has the gathering basket in his/her mouth.  I like it!  This piece is not finished.  As usual, there is an alphabet to be stitched and a few motifs along the outer borders.

Next up we have the Praise Loudly, Blame Softly sampler.  

The band I am now working on is a repeat of one above, except upside down.  The acorn caps in this band were to be done in hollie point stitch, but it looked too messy and crowded to me, so I'm stitching them like the others.

Finally Ellen Harrison - only 12 years old when she stitched this sampler in 1889!

And a close-up:

Stitching with the lighter colors on this fabric is not easy on my eyes.  I had to rip out the second 8 twice before I had it placed correctly!

So, overall not a lot of progress, but steady progress which is ok.  The main thing is I am still enjoying these pieces (thank goodness!!).

Today I will be heading to the office.  I've got things to print (personal stuff) and some work to do and then things to overnight to Kevin.  We are also having our "holiday luncheon" today.  Pre-pandemic days you may remember that we had luncheons at the drop of a hat or for any occasion - Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, etc.  With everyone still mainly working from home, those events have been cut back.  This year we are having just one lunch for the Fall/Winter holidays and it is today.  It is being held at Pomme Radnor which looks like a beautiful place.  

Here's hoping your Tuesday finds you enjoying life to the fullest.  It is amazing to see that we are halfway through November!  Take Care.

Sometimes Mondays...

 ...find you feeling much better!  Whew!  That Vertigo will throw you for a loop.  Not fun, Not pleasant.  I'm glad this latest episode is over and I'm glad to have my annual physical scheduled at the end of the month.  I know what vertigo is...I'd like to find out why I have started getting it (3 times in the past year) and what I can do to avoid it in the future.

We did manage to get our Shingles shot last Monday (the 2nd one) and neither of us had any reaction to it other than a sensitive arm.  The nurse at CVS did ask me if I was ok as I stumbled into the little room for shots.  I mentioned vertigo and her response was "Well, that sucks!"

OK, enough of the medical stuff.  How are you all?  I tried to read some blogs last week (mostly I just slept though), and will try to catch up today.  Fletcher's socks were finished last Saturday:

I do love the way they turned out, and Fletch likes them too.  He did mention that the cuffs were tighter than normal (I used 1.5 needles rather than 2).  That sent me on a hunt for sock blockers so I could soak (in Soak!) the socks and then block them out.  Of course I could not find my blockers...I was pretty sure they were in one of the chests where I keep yarn and I moved a lot of stuff looking for them, but no luck.  I soaked and stretched the socks and they dried better.  This past weekend I did a more thorough search and the sock blockers appeared!  Right where I thought they had been.

The last week did not see a whole lot of knitting or stitching accomplished, but I did cake up a bunch of yarn and thought about/dreamed of projects to be.  By the time Saturday rolled around and I was meeting up with Dee I had a multitude of projects swimming around in my head.  I'll show you Wednesday what I worked on that day.

In my dreaming and scheming I re-discovered a pile of yarn I had bought years (decades) ago - when I wasn't even knitting.  But the yarn was so pretty I had to buy it!  LOL  

Is this stuff even made these days?  It is very, very mohair-y.  I've been thinking of making Gossamer from the latest MDK Field Guide.  I started to swatch for that yesterday and then got distracted.  Ha!  In the course of finding that yarn I also discovered so much yarn I had forgotten that I had.  Yikes!!  Now I want to make ALL.THE.THINGS.  Anyway, that particular yarn (all 6 or 8 [I think] skeins) is now tucked back inside the chest with other yarns.

Saturday was warm enough that I didn't even wear a coat when I met up with Dee.  Sunday was another story - temps dropped a lot.  And this morning is quite chilly.  I'll be going out though as I managed to book a massage for 10 a.m. today!  WooHoo - it has been ages since I had a massage.

The weekend also saw me picking up 5 books from the library!  All the requests seem to come in at once, don't they?  And, if that is not enough, I received an email yesterday that "The Marriage Portrait" is waiting for me to pick it up.  That one really surprises me.  When I looked at my account on Thursday or Friday, I was still #85 in the queue for that book.  Two days later I receive word I can pick it up.  Go figure.  I'm not complaining as I was wondering if I would even get it in time to read for our discussion in early January.

How was your weekend?  Filled with good things, I hope.  I'll be back tomorrow with a tiny TNT update.

Sometimes Mondays....

 ... are just a bit off kilter.  Yesterday I woke up with vertigo.  Ugh!  We did manage to go out and drop off our ballots (Fletch drove), but that was it.  I spent all day in bed and then slept 8+ hours last night.  This morning I'm still a bit dizzy (not enough to merit taking a pill which would put me right back in bed).

Until a year ago I had never experienced vertigo (thankfully).  And, in the past year I've had 3 episodes.  

We are scheduled for our second shingles vaccines this morning and I'm hoping I can do a little stitching or knitting at some point today.  Right now though?  I think I'm going to go back to sleep for a little bit (even though I did not take a pill, I'm very, very sleepy).

Unraveled Wednesday 11/2/22

 Hello and Good Morning!

It's back to the early times for me.  I'm up and have sipped coffee and it is not yet 6:30.  It would have been so easy to roll over and go back to sleep, but for a change I did not.  I've got a bunch of things I should work on today, so I thought I'd best get up and at 'em!

I did manage to get out for a brief walk yesterday along the River Trail in Valley Forge.  I should have picked a different trail, as this one was very wet and muddy in places and covered with leaves.  Thus I was walking more carefully and rather gingerly at times and that ended up hurting my back.  But, because I was paying attention to where I was stepping and looking down ALL THE TIME, I spotted some tiny flowers blooming that I might have otherwise missed.

The river was moving along nicely and leaves were constantly falling!

Getting to the River Walk means driving past the chiropractor's office with the huge skeleton in the yard.  I laughed when I passed it:

He/She had been dressed for Halloween in a purple cloak long grey hair and a witches hat.  However, the recent wind and rain made her hat tumble off her head and fall on her chest.  A little disheveled looking!  And what knobby knees!!  LOL

Now it is Wednesday and time for some Unraveled news.  Linking up, as always, with Kat and others in the Merry Band of Unravelers to talk making and reading.  Two of my favorite things.  Both of which have been in limited quantities recently, unfortunately.  But, some progress was made on Fletch's 2nd sock.

I'm on the foot and about a third of the way through it.  I was working on this Saturday when I met up with Dee...finishing the heel flap, turning the heel and picking up the gussett stitches.  Then I promptly forgot all about the decrease rows.  Ha!  A little tinking occurred (just one row, fortunately) and I got back on track.  I really hope I finish this sock this week.  I'm itching to start something new and I won't allow myself to until this is finished.

Reading has slowed also.  I'm no longer reading "Graceland, At Last" by Margaret Rinkl.  Instead I downloaded it from Audible and Fletch and I are enjoying it after dinner.  (We got a little tired of the LeVar Burton podcast.)

"Bluebird, Bluebird" by Attica Locke has become a bit tiresome for me.  I'm maybe a third of the way through, but I doubt I will finish it.  While at the library I had picked up "Frog Music" by Emma Donoghue, but I can't seem to get into that.  I also picked up "The Merchant's House" by Kate Ellis, so I may give that a try.

Yesterday afternoon we booked our AirBnB in Austin for the Christmas holiday!  Excited!!!  And, the one we booked is only a 7 minute walk or so to Colin & Mailing's apartment.  Now we need to book flights.  And, our Thanksgiving plans are changing and evolving.  We may be having Thanksgiving here at our house for the first time in years!  Originally we were all going to meet up at Bonny & Zhongren's, but now Bonny is in (or going to be in) China for a month and will not be home for Thanksgiving.  I'm sure everything will work out eventually!

Meanwhile, time to pour another cup of coffee and wake Fletch.  Happy Hump Day!

Tiny Needle Tuesday

 Good Morning My Friends,

This first day of November finds me having overslept again!  In my defense, I was up until around midnight (usually I'm in bed by 10 p.m.) - we had a nice long chat with Colin last night and I also talked with my friend Leslie.  The hours slipped by, and then I needed to unwind a bit after all that chatter.  Anyway, it was a lovely evening.

We had no trick or treaters last night.  It started raining right around 6 p.m. and continued all evening - at times quite heavy.  But the morning was fairly nice and I (FINALLY!!!) got out for a walk.  I chose to walk the trail alongside the canal - one of my favorites.  I saw no turtles or herons, but there was still plenty of beauty around me.

Many of the trees alongside the path had lost their leaves, but there was still some brilliant color to be seen.  Also interesting fungi - almost like polka dots!!

And here's a picture of a house on the other side of the canal.  Just one of the many homes that I like so much.  I wouldn't necessarily like to live there (hello fear of flooding and hello fear of bugs in the dead of summer), I just think it's such a pretty home.

I may try to get out and walk again this afternoon - either the River Walk in Valley Forge Park or the path in Oaks that goes along the Perkiomen Creek.

But, here we are on a Tuesday morning and it's time to check in on TNT progress.  Nothing was done on the "Praise Loudly Blame Softly" sampler.  I never ever took it out all week!  But, that funny bird with the long legs now has the vine around it completed.  Next will be the basket (title of the piece is "Gathering Basket."

A fun piece!  And, Ellen Harrison now has the border under her name completed across the width of the piece and I stitched the word "aged" next to her name.  

You may need to click to enlarge to you can actually see the letters.  Stay tuned for next week when it will be revealed how old Ellen Harrison was when she stitched this sampler.  Quite a bit younger than me!

Well, I'd best be off to do a few things.  We will be going grocery shopping in a bit and I'd like to have some sense of what I'll be cooking this week before we go.  First up will be looking at recipes!

Have a great Tuesday and I plan to be back here tomorrow for Unraveled Wednesday!