Thursday, November 28, 2013

Turkey Day!

“Hello, my name is Lisa, and it’s been 20 days since my last blog post…”

I’ve emerged from my turkey coma this evening long enough to try and get a post up since the dust is gathering on this blog.  It’s been a very good day with The Husband and my daughter.  We feasted on the traditional fare of the day, eventually.  I say “eventually” because one tradition I never miss on this day is the annual “event in which the timing of Thanksgiving dinner is thrown completely off.” 

This tradition began several years ago with the very first Thanksgiving dinner I attempted to cook at my own home.  The short version is, my stove had been moved out from the wall for some reason which now eludes me, and when it got put back, the plug did not get pushed fully back into the outlet.  This gave the stove just enough juice to turn on the light that indicated the oven was on, but not enough juice to actually heat the oven.  Two hours later I still had a cold bird, hence the timing problem.  Throughout the years when I have cooked the meal, there have been various such events, all with the same effect of keeping everyone waiting to eat.

This year was no exception…

His best "I'm starving" look
This year’s “event” was due to my own poor planning.  I had two pies to bake and a cold dessert that is always made the day before and yet last night this particular bit of knowledge went missing completely.  This morning, when I realized what I’d (not) done, I started the cold dessert right away but then in a flash of stupidity, I put the pies in to bake before the turkey instead of putting them in after the meal was cooked (because really, who ever has room for pie until after the initial turkey coma has passed?) and the pumpkin pie stubbornly refused to get done.  True to form, we ate precisely two hours later than I had planned.  And we were thankful.  At least all the food turned out very good.

Our house is set to be finished by the middle of December, so things are getting a little crazy in trying to get ready for the move.  By crazy, I do NOT mean that I’ve actually packed more than a couple of boxes.  That would be way too organized.  Instead, I plan to pack everything in two days’ time in a frantic rush, piling things haphazardly into boxes that will be too heavy to lift.  And yes, I’m okay with that.

On the knitting front, I’m trying to stay focused on Christmas stuff in the limited time I have to actually knit and I have been only partially successful.  Two projects in the works, two more not even started, one is all finished but the seaming – will I be done in time?  Perhaps, as long as I keep my knitting out of the overstuffed moving boxes.

So here’s a little poetic rundown of what’s on (or soon to be on) my needles:









Something pink














And something blue.














Something for my mother, too:







Something orange, and violet,
<--Something not even started yet.








This day we give thanks for all
Our blessings, both the big and small.
Among their number are you, my friends
And this is where my poem ends.

Cheesy, I know, and yet I couldn’t seem to help myself.  Must be the turkey…

Lisa

xoxoxo

Friday, November 8, 2013

I’ve Got The Money vs. Time Blues

It’s Friday and I’ve got a little time before I have to head into work.  I’ve been thinking about how since I’ve gotten this job, even though I really like it, that I’ve had next to no time to work on my blog, knitting design, or even just knitting.  On the odd day that I do have some time, I have to catch up on other things or I’m too pooped to purl.  It makes me sad.  But what are you going to do when you need the money?  You’re gonna work, that’s what.  And dream of when you might not have to put in so many hours. 

The good news is, we’ve nearly accumulated the money we need to have at closing on the house we’re building, and it’s looking beautiful.  We’re scheduled to close mid-December, so we’re almost down to a month.  And every morning when I go to leave the house we’re in now and I have to manually heft up the old, heavy garage door, back my car out of the garage, then get back out of the car and manually put the old, heavy garage door back down, I think to myself, “All this work is SO worth it…only a few more weeks until I have a garage door opener again!”

It’s the little things in life that make me happy.

On the oh-so-slowly-moving knitting front, I am close to releasing my second pattern (“close” being a relative term at this point – closer than 3 months, let’s say – and I’m pretty excited.  Two more test knits and some photos and I’ll be good to go. 

I did manage to finish the Holden Shawlette that started as a pair of socks with the Rowan Fine Art yarn I got in Indianapolis last summer.  I’ll get some better photos of it soon, but here’s a quick shot:

Definitely not a sock

I’m much more pleased with this yarn as a shawl than as socks.  I can’t wait to wear it out.  Speaking of which, I’m wearing a garment that I designed to work this morning and I have to say, I am nervous.  I think it looks great, but what it people think it’s horrendous?  I feel so…vulnerable.  Is this normal??

Have a day filled with loveliness,
Lisa

xoxo