BusyBusyBusyBusy

Hi everyone! It's been a busy time for me lately, what with the impending party for my daughter and son-in-law, and graduation, and good-byes...I will expound on this later.

Right now, I will either make you laugh or cry with a few pictures....

I did not see the person who delivered this today. I'm pretty sure he dropped it on my porch and high-tailed it out of the neighborhood in shame. Really! You have the nerve to leave this without some sort of note or something?....Methinks I have a phone call to make tomorrow.

What else has been happening? I had a scare with Athena, but it turns out that the lump on her chest is just a lipoma (benign). This morning my water heater broke, and a good part of my bottom floor was flooded. We now have a brand spanking new water heater, and the floor is being dried out as I write.

Knitting has slowed up due to many things going on in my life right now. I will be back, though I promise. Hope your spring has been enjoyable. I personally am looking forward to a calm June.

Insanity.

I have been knitting socks for a long time. Many pairs of socks. Probably close to 50 pairs. I like to think that I can tackle a good sock pattern. Until now. 

I was over a friend's house tonight, and she was organizing her books. She knits, crochets, and primarily quilts. I had to borrow this book to show you what happens when a knitter goes over the edge. Clearly this designer is ether a sadist, or she took in one too many yarn fumes. 

Let's start with a quick lesson (for all you non-knitters). A knitting pattern is either written out, or it is put into chart form. Example:

For these tweed socks, you knit a 3-stitch repeat all the way around on each row. In chart form, it looks like this:

Ok, non-knitters. Wake up. Lesson over. 

Now, let's look at the cover of the borrowed book:

Pretty socks on the cover. Wait....let's look a little closer....

Whoa...that looks like a pretty intricate pattern. Let's see what the chart looks like inside...

Aaauuugh!!! Did someone switch the book with an anatomy textbook?! What IS that?!

No. That's just wrong. 

I think I missed my exit.

Wool.

First of all, I finished my five year socks. If you read this blog, you know that I started these socks probably five years ago, and couldn't find the second skein. After a concentrated stash search, it was found a few weeks ago, and now I have two socks! I love them.

Speaking of woolly things, I was asked if I wanted to accompany some knitting friends to The Mannnings. This is a wonderful place in the Pennsylvania farmlands. There are rooms (yes, rooms!) full of yarn and fibers for spinning, weaving, and other fiber arts. But mostly, it's YARN! They also hold master classes in all of these things. 

It's a lovely place on beautiful land.

Now, for the buildings of yarn..

Just some of the sock yarn. Yes, I was in sensory overdrive. I was drooling and I don't think that I blinked once.

Spools of fiber in every color for weaving. See the beautiful woven runner on the table?

Just one corner of the room with all the looms. 

Room full of spinning wheels in the back.

A wall of needles and notions. 

So many pattern books that it will make your head spin!

Ok, so if you don't dabble in the fiber arts, you may be bored right now. How about some romping wool?

It's lambing season, and the farm down the road from me is proof.

Look at this little lamb nursing. So cute. 

This one was running to catch up.

Have a good Sunday, readers!

That's It, Folks.

The title of this post has nothing to do with my blog. It has everything to do with a memory of mine. When I was little, we spent many hours looking at slides on my Dad's Kodak Carousel Projector.  You may remember these. The slides were put in this round receptacle, which was attached to the top of the projector. It moved along when you pushed the button, dropping each slide one by one into the projector. 

I loved looking at slides when I was young. Usually, they were from some time within that year, when we were having a great time. Whether it was a neighborhood crab feast, or a summer with my cousins on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, it was fun to revisit that time. Now that I've scanned these slides, I often watch a "slide show" on my laptop for a trip down memory lane.

When I was scanning my Dad's old slides onto my computer, I came upon the slide above. It brought back just as many memories as the other slides did. Carousel provided this slide so that you could place it in the last slot. That way, you would know when the "show was over". I can remember sitting in a dark living room, eyes wide and used to the lack of light. Just when you were used to taking in every slide, this one would show up. OW! It was bright! Even though back then it was an annoyance, I scanned it anyway. It was part of the whole experience. And Mr. Director kind of makes me laugh!

Lots of Green

Last week was Baltimore's St. Patrick's Day parade. Why they did it last Sunday and not this Sunday (the actual day) I'll never know. But it worked out fine, because the weather was just wonderful. As always, here are some pictures..

That's it for now! Hope you have a great St. Paddy's Day, if I don't post before then!

Lucy: Before and After

I started knitting a pattern called "Lucy Bag". I bought the pattern from a designer called "Two Old Bags".  The pattern was not mine, but the design was all mine. It's a felted bag, which means it's basically a big blob of knitting until you shrink and felt it down in your washing machine.

Before:

This thing looks like a bathing suit for the Hunchback of Notre Dame, doesn't it? It's about 24" tall and 16" across. 

After felting:

And with ceramic embellishment bought on Etsy:

Love this little owl...

Here's the back:

Next post will be non-knitting in nature. There will be lots of green on the move!  Can you guess?..

Snow Day

It's a snow day for me. My boss closed our workplace for the day. This is a sure sign that she's a caring boss, as a closed day means lost income. I work for a small company, and it's much like one big dysfunctional family. But we manage to get our work done, and we couldn't have a better boss.

Bella has decided that it's not time for me to knit yet. She wants a nap on my lap first.

Be careful out there, knitters. And for those not in the snow zone, enjoy your day!