I'm fine

Three weeks into recovery after surgery, and I am very VERY slowly getting there. I can now walk almost a whole block and back before I get exhausted.

I'm at a point now where I have to be very patient with myself, because I want to start doing things again, but then my body says. Oh no, chickie, we didn't go through all this only to have you mess it all up again.

So I'm behaving. Also, I've been getting pretty good at knitting while in the supine position. I can't sit for very long, and whatever sitting time I have I use for meals and windows of time at the computer.

While in a friendly competition in my rav group where we are trying to knit up 12,000 yards of yarn from Feb.15 thru Mar.31, I'm working  on several things at the same time. (You know me and my multiple WIP universe.)

Altogether, I made 19 Elf Hats for gifts. (Some of the ends needed yet to be woven in as of the first picture).

Meanwhile I am working on a blanket, which I'm not sure I'll keep. May be for donation.

And in other fun news, I've been asked to spearhead a yarn bombing for an arts event in a downtown business district in June. I think I may have to practice on a little cherry tree I have in the front yard, don't you?

since I last saw you

March sock kit has been sent out to subscribers

 and there are no individual ones available right now.

Things have been knitted.

The cat still likes to help me knit. Especially important since I am trying to knit up 12,000 yards between 2/15 and 3/31.
(I was in the middle of updating my project pages on ravelry, but -- see note at end of post. I am barely able to publish this entry.)

Spring is here way too early.

Tall Son was home to help us celebrate Dear Husband's 50th birthday and Crafty Girl's 15th birthday!! While we were at it, we also celebrated him finding a job last month for after college. Hooray!

Looking to tomorrow, I'm going in for a little bit of a procedure on my delicate female parts. I'll be in the hospital for a day and then in recuperation mode through the end of the month. I dyed the yarn ahead of time through June for the sock club, so no worries there. Local yarn shops have been stocked. :)
However I am unable to fulfill any extra orders for a few weeks. Once I am able to move about, I'll put what I have on hand on etsy (my shop there is in vacation mode for now) and in the Periwinkle Sheep online shop. So far I seem to have an audience for both shops so I am keeping them.

I am only a tad afraid of tomorrow's procedure, but alas it must be done. Meanwhile leave me and the other readers something to laugh about, a joke, a link to a cartoon, a funny video...I'd love for all of us to share some smiles.

(I would love to give proper credit to this artist. Who?)

A final note: this here little laptop has been acting up, it's over 5 years old and it might be time for a new one...I'll be putting it to sleep for now, and I'll see you in a few days.

sick computer

I am having laptop issues and am trying to avoid the computer ER...not sure yet.

Hope to be back with you in a few days, meanwhile I'll post to ravelry and Facebook from the family computer.

ETA: back to normal for now.

And now back to your regularly scheduled knitting.

light post

Crafty Girl and I went for an evening walk to other night, when we had a spell of freezing cold temperatures. She got all dressed up in her ski gear to find out if it would keep her warm enough.

I brought my camera to take some pictures of Christmas decorations, as they are sure to be coming down soon.

our little house

 neighbors

do not enter if on a diet

our local branch of the Albany Public Library - we love going there.

Fire House next door to the library



Yesterday, I took some packages to the post office and walked that too. So far I've been able to keep up with the walking.



(We won't talk about how some days I still just end up flat on my back at night. And can. not. move. another step.)

This is what the library looks like during the day:



it has a courtyard on the other side of the round part of the building, which took into consideration the trees which grew on the lot. I'll go and ask permission to take some pictures of it some time, I looks beautiful once there's snow out there...

and speaking of which: what's missing from this image??



Last Day

I walked around my neighborhood today and took some pictures.

no luck

friendship garden at the nearby elementary school

each letter has a matching plant that starts with that letter: H stands for Hosta

this year the city replaced all the old trashcans with these

 above and below: this building used to be part of a catholic elementary and middle school. It will be razed this year and replaced with a new Mormon church building.

a beam with lichen on it, by my local florist.

even in winter, so many colors:

an elegant bouquet by the side of a building:

Happy New Year, everyone!

desperate times

I am dyeing lots of yarn. Special orders, webstore, LYSs, festivals - I need to stock up.

It has been raining for at least 10 days. In fact I can't remember a full day without any rain.

One thing that can majorly hamper yarn dyeing is that the yarn doesn't dry fast enough. I have 4 drying racks, which altogether accommodate about 60 skeins, a whole day's worth of work. Usually I take one day's skeins down in the morning and dye the next batch.

This is yesterday's yarn, still not dry. It's getting here, but it's not dry enough to wind into skeins.

There is yarn all over my house, because guess what? It's raining again outside.

Fans are not helping.

Yarny home decor.

These are desperate times, and they call for desperate measures.

I am putting the yarn in the dryer.

I finally remembered that I have one of those shoe shelves for my dryer - you set the item that needs drying (but can't be tumbled) on it, close the door, and turn on the dryer.

3 skeins take 10 minutes on low (don't want to fry the yarn).

I have about 70 skeins to go.

We're having take-out tonight, probably.

sog

If there's fog after foggy, then there's sog after soggy.

Lots of sog going on - evidently we are trapped under a system that has shower after shower coming though, for the last five days....lots of low grey clouds...with the temps slowly rising.

These blooms haven't seen a ray of sunshine since they opened, practically.

japanese cherry

The wisteria is so wet it is sagging to the ground.

The scent is almost intoxicating though...

The lilac bush is bowing too.

I've had yarn trying to dry for three days now. I have fans on it to help it along.

But once again, I am thankful I'm not losing my house to flooding.  I'll take a bit of sog over a flood...