Scary

This is a first for me -- I heard a coyote howling last night!  I have heard them before, in California.  But I have never heard them around my house.  I couldn't tell which direction it was coming from, but it was definitely a coyote.

I left my iPad at work yesterday.   How annoying is that?  My knitting patterns and book are on my iPad.  Yes yes, they're on my iPhone as well but it's not nearly so comfortable using the iPhone in that way.  I had to drive home over the bridge last night.  It's the first time I've done that since I've moved out there and it went well.  The traffic was light, which made it tolerable.  I can't imagine having to drive back and forth in that traffic every day.  I would just hate it.

I didn't get as much knitting done as I had wanted last night. I was tired.  And I spent 45 minutes on the phone with my sister, talking about our upcoming visit. I was in the mood to read but, as I said, not on the iPhone.  Maybe tonight.  The cooler weather has been such a relief.  It is supposed to get hot again this weekend though.

Is Tuesday the most boring day of the week?

I need a rest from the weekend!

Oh heavens what a busy weekend!  I hit the house Friday evening and it was just go go go!  I got the cake made and baked and the mess cleaned up.  And then it was a silly movie and early bedtime.  Saturday morning I had to get up and get the laundry started, my hair blown dry and the frosting made and the cake frosted.  The recipe made WAY too much frosting but what the heck.  It'll keep and maybe I'll make some cupcakes later this week.  The party started at 2 but we got there early and took Tink.  She was SUCH a good doggie.  Didn't run off once.  And there were three other little dogs there and tons of kids.  So she was super happy.  We were expecting clouds but not rain.  But it rained and we had to move everything until the garage until it blew over.  Not a hard job since it's at least a four car garage.  Plenty of room for everybody and everything.

We ate and drank and ate and drank and played and I was ready to go home and go to bed.  I must have been asleep before 9 o'clock!  Sunday we were meeting everyone at the Mariner's game, taking the bus rather than fighting traffic over the bridge.  So we got up and headed to the grocery store to get the shopping done, then I got rushed out of the house, forgetting my hat and asthma inhaler!  Ooooo, I was not happy.  I do not like to be rushed.  I especially don't like having to get up early and then getting rushed.  We ended up getting to the park 2 hours before the game!!  Two hours!!  Granted there's a lot to do at the baseball park as opposed to the football stadium, but still.  I know, it was about the socializing but ..... well, I was a bit crabby.  Our seats were awesome though.  Too bad the Mariners lost so badly.  They were just awful.  We left at the top of the eighth inning.

I stayed up knitting and watching an episode of True Detective.  I didn't have to be at the doctor's office until 9 o'clock which meant I could sleep in until 7:30 but instead I woke up at 6 and stewed and worried for an hour and a half before getting up.  Stupid.  Then I drove in to work and here I am.  It's quiet.  Happy Monday, world.

I almost fell for a phishing scam!

In the morning my iPhone is my alarm clock.  It goes off and I hit the snooze and then wake up while I'm going through the night's collection of email.  One of the messages was purportedly from Apple telling me that a purchase had been made on my Apple iTunes account from a device unknown and that if I wanted to cancel the transaction I should click here.  A few years ago something similar happened to me.  I awoke and found quite a number of eBay transactions on my phone that I hadn't made.  My account had been hacked.  So I clicked on that link but then realized that I couldn't see the address from my iPhone.  You know how when you're on a laptop or desktop computer you can hover over the link and see the address.  But ..... but it was freaking me out that my Apple ID could be out there so I clicked the link and signed in.  Ah, but then there's another form asking for billing address, phone number, etc.  Nope.  I was willing to let it go until I could be sure it wasn't a phishing scam.  The forms and logos were flawless, at least at 6 am on an iPhone screen.  But when I got in to work and logged on, sure enough it was a scam from Australia.  I have changed my Apple ID password just to be sure.  They are going to hook a few for sure.  It's very well done and no spelling errors. 

Hooray it's Friday.  Tonight when I get home I'm going to bake a cake for the party tomorrow.  I will frost it in the morning.  And on Sunday we're going to a baseball game.  It should be fun.  And bonus!  The weather has cooled down some.  What a relief.

A little cloud cover

Oh what a relief!  It's still hot, mind you, but the sun is not burning down.  Last night it was so very pleasant in the garden.  The little evening breeze and high clouds made it perfect.  And actually I think that perhaps the clouds are mostly smoke from the Wenatchee files.  That's not so great.  My eyes were burning yesterday.

I got my first beaded row done at noon knitting yesterday.  There are, I think, three more repeats of those tear drop rows.  It depends upon how much yarn you have left over.  If I can do four I will.  I am itching to wind up the Artyarns yarn and start on that project as well, but I am going to try to resist for a while longer.

My sister is at ComicCon and I am SO jealous!  I told her I'm going to come with her next year.  That's something to look forward to, isn't it?  But first I've got a weekend in Port Townsend at the end of this month which happens to coincide with the Acoustic Blues Festival at Fort Warden.   Nice.  Then the first week of September in LA.  And then .... I just don't know.  But I'm going to push for another trip in April.  Just two weeks this time.  Maybe go to the south of France with Eoghan and Deidre.  Or one week in Italy somewhere and one week in Paris?  Ah well, there's time to figure it out.

A cup of coffee does help

I am sleepy again this morning, but I had my coffee on the way to the transit center and at least I didn't nod off on the bus.  Because Tink is not on the bed when it's so hot I have actually been sleeping quite well, despite the heat.  But it's rather slow around here in the summer and it's very difficult for me to wake up.

Speaking of Tink not being on the bed ..... I have found little puddles on the floor these past few days.  I believe that because of the heat she is drinking more water than usual and finds herself in need of a pee in the middle of the night.  Unfortunately she hasn't barked to go out or ... just thought of this ... perhaps the sound of the fan disguises her cries to go out!  At any rate, I'm going to have to make sure I take her outside before I finally go to bed at night.  Not that I stay up very late, but I'm sure another little piddle at 9 or 10 wouldn't hurt.  I'll give it a try.

Knitting at home is still a no go because it's just too hot.  As is blowing my hair dry.  I can't do it!  Well, maybe if I had a couple of fans blowing on me while I was trying to do it, but it's not worth it.  So I've been wild and curly lately.  I don't mind.  It is kind of nice for a change.  Blowing my hair straight is a hassle in the best of times and in this heat and humidity it's practically impossible. 

I got my first Yarnbox plus Artyarns shipment yesterday.  Oh it's lovely yarn.  I love Artyarns.  I don't really need another shawl but this one is going to be very cute and colorful and oh PS, with beads!  I think I'll check my color selection though because I was sure I had blue as my favorite and I got (more) purple.  I can't keep track.  I am glad I stopped the classic box though.  I have enough projects in the queue.

Missing my caffeine

It was a little cooler this morning thank goodness.  In fact I still have my little lace jacket on.  It won't last, of course.  One of the unfortunately side effects to this heat wave we're having is that I don't really want my normal cup of coffee on the ride to the transit center.  And boy am I groggy today!  I guess I could make an iced coffee.  But this morning my commuter mug was in the dishwasher, running, so it wasn't possible.

Yesterday was hot as blazes here in the office and I was worried the gym would be as bad, but they were cranking that AC, so it was tolerable.  And I must have done something right because I can hardly stretch my arms above my head.  I am very sore.

It was too hot to knit last night, of course.  The evening breeze never showed up yesterday so I didn't even go sit in the shade.  I probably won't do it tonight either.  My next row is a beading row and I need to be in a good, well lighted space for it.  At least for the first one.  Noon knitting tomorrow will be the place.

I still can't wake up.  Time for another cup of tea I guess.

A very hot long weekend

Oh my goodness.  I am going to try my best to NOT complain about the weather but it's going to be very difficult.

I did get to see Jane on Thursday because she picked me up at a point I could get to easily and her ex-husband (don't ask) then drove me back to Market Street where I could catch a bus back to work.  Nobody missed me.  It was that quiet.  Besides, the administrator had told everyone they could knock off early.  My plan was to take the 2:40 bus and get to the nail salon by 3:30 so that I could get the manicure and pedicure done before the long weekend.  That was not to be, unfortunately.  The bus was late, packed with summer school students and then it broke down.  Before it reached the transit center.  We waited for another bus to take us to the transit center and by the time I got to Cottage Lake it was almost 4:30.  I rescheduled for first thing Friday morning and I headed home.

So I was up and out early on Friday and then we worked.  I cleaned the house and it was a sweaty job in that heat.  In the early afternoon I finally collapsed and had a little nap, then we went out to play cards and I lost.  It's just friends and we don't play for much, therefore I only lost a few dollars.  But it's not very fun when you can't get ONE win!  Then we stayed up much too late reading so that we slept in on Saturday.  I am not complaining.

Saturday was another project day and we worked in the garage and shed, putting garbage into the truck for a last(!) trip to the dump and donating the rest of the things to Ben's niece who sells it.  Fine.  Great.  It's gone is all I care about.  We were planning on going to Gregg's for the 4th of July party but frankly, the heat was just killing me.  It was the very last thing I wanted to do - get into the car and drive 45 minutes each way to hang out in the heat.  Plus Tink is so freaked out with the loud noise.  The pills the vet gave us this time, an anti-anxiety, worked very well for her.  I'm pleased.  They didn't just dope her up, but instead calmed her down.  I do feel guilty about miss that party though.  I'll give him a call today.

So on the last day of the 3-day weekend we again started out with labor.  This time a trip to the dump.  Then all of the shopping for (at least) the week - Costco and Haggen.  And then I washed my vehicle and I was cooked.  Ben wanted to work on the privacy screen in the front but it was by that time (just after noon) on its way to 90 degrees.  Insanity.  We put the fan on and watched the baseball game and then later in the day the Women's World Cup.

I am going to swelter all week in this office.  It's going to be crazy hot for another week at least.  I am sick of it.  Sick.

It was a long day

With a party to go to at the end of the day, I had to take the bus to the transit center rather than drive.  It's been a while since I've done that and I forgot how that second bus ride seems to make the commute that much longer.  I was sleepy when I got to work, so I had a nice latte to start my day. 

Noon knitting in the conference room was tolerable.  I was afraid it would be too hot but it stays cool enough in there in the morning.  I can't imagine I'm going to be able to get any knitting done this weekend unless I can find some quiet time in the morning.  My guess is that we're going to be up and out doing something or going somewhere.  Gregg is having a party on the fourth and they're setting up a stage outside and he wants me to come up to sing.  I am undecided. 

I left work around four, thinking I'd take a slow bus downtown (with air conditioning) and then find a place for a drink while I waited for the others to arrive to go to the party.  Well I had it partially right -- the bus was slow but the air conditioning was nonexistent and I was pouring sweat by the time I got off.  I found a nice bar though, full of people watching the soccer match.  I ordered a nice martini and then I am thinking I should probably have some little snack so I don't get too high before the main event.  I didn't want fries or nuts or scotch eggs - something healthy, I'm thinking.  Well, they had crispy Brussels sprouts on the menu so I ordered them, feeling so virtuous.  But they were just unrelentingly bitter.  I couldn't eat them.

The party was fun but too many "in" jokes.  It is to be expected since it was the going away party for the CEO.  I managed to keep it together.  And I had a great night's sleep.  My prize for being such a good girl.

This morning I'm going to take another try at getting to see Jane.  This time she's picking me up at a point I know I can get to.  Wish me luck.

A real cluster you-know-what

I had an appointment yesterday at lunchtime to see my friend Jane.  Since I never ever drive in -- the traffic is just too crazy -- I had to take the bus.  Now normally this is not an issue, because she meets up with clients in a friend's house off of Greenwood.  But this time she's doing her appointments at a boat at the Elliott Bay Marina.  I did my usual Metro Trip Planner research and found the bus I had to take.  But when I got off the stop I had somehow forgotten I had to take a second bus.  I thought I could walk the rest of the way.  But you can't and I got mixed up despite my best efforts with my Google Maps, and then another bus picked me up and further complicated things.  Long story short, I just had to bale and head back to work.  There is a bridge involved.  And I can't walk over that bridge, I had to take a bus.  That's what confused me.  You don't see it on the Google Maps app.  I was SO angry with myself.

And it was mayhem when I got home with all of the doors and windows wide open.  Tink had a great day though, since the workers had to have the windows and doors open, she got to spend the day out in the yard in the shade.  She didn't even want to go for a walk when I got home!

This heat is crazy.  I think we've got at least another week of it.  I have been sleeping a lot better than I was at my old apartment though.  That's something.

Maybe I'll nail down the trip to LA today.

It's all about football

For me, anyway.  It's five weeks until the start of training camp and this is the time of year that I'm just dying for anything football related.  I listen to sports talk radio. I watch old football movies.  In fact, last night I watched North Dallas Forty.  Well, most of it.  I forgot how much I hate the female lead in that movie.  The actress was just so wooden.  I wonder how much of it was direction and how much of it was just her.  She never really did much after that either.

When I got home the workers were still swarming over the house and sanding the deck in the back, so I had a quick shower (the windows were covered in plastic so I couldn't open them) and headed outside to the front where there was some shade and I could be away from the sanding.  Hopefully they can finish up today but I suspect not because they're going to have to do the porch and deck, two coats each.  Luckily we can come and go through the garage so they can do them at the same time.  I must say, it won't take them long to dry.

Tomorrow I've got to take the bus in to work because I'm going to a cocktail party right after work.  That's going to make for a long day.  It's noon knitting though so it won't be a complete bust of a day.  Plus I'll have to hang out for a while in the evening and I can knit. 

For now I'm enjoying the cool of the morning.  It won't last long.

Heat wave for sure

Friday was just plain miserable.  One of the faculty came into my office and exclaimed that it would be illegal for her to keep animals at this temperature.  Amen sister!  It is ridiculous and only going to get worse as the week progresses. 

It was too warm to knit on Friday so I sat in the shade and read for a while and ended up going to bed early.  The heat just saps me!  Therefore I woke up super early Saturday morning, which was good.  Ben had to work so he was out of the house before 7:30.  I got up, got cleaned up, got Tinkie walked, got a bunch of chores done and the laundry going and then ... then I had three solid hours to knit in the coolness of the morning before my hair appointment.  It was wonderful!  I got the first few rows of the pattern done.  It should go pretty fast, if I can carve out quiet time for knitting when it's cool enough.  But Sunday afternoon, before we had to go to a party, I had some time again to knit and ran up against another stupid knot in this ball of yarn.  Again, totally and completely my fault.  I spent another hour re-winding that ball.  Now we're good to go though.

I am getting SO antsy for a vacation.  A proper one, not just a long weekend, which is what we'll be having at the end of July.  Kelli wants us to come down to LA for a week, so I'm going to start working on that.  She wants us to come down in August, but I don't that that'll be possible.  More likely September.  It's something to work towards anyway.  And then .... Europe in April?  I'll have to count up vacation days.

First though I have to get through this hot hot day.

It's already hot

Oh lordy, it's going to be a long, hot day.  We are having a heat wave in Seattle and it's going to be in the 90s for the next few days.  The fan in my office does pretty much nothing.  And the house now is warmed up from the week of warm weather so there's not much comfort their either.  I think we'll have to bring the fans in tonight.

To make matters worse, I can't go to the gym today because I am stuck alone in the main office!  Monika has gotten that nasty stomach bug I had earlier this week and Bill is out at a meeting all morning.  I'll have to content myself with a walk up to the Ave at lunchtime.  I need some Clinique things anyway, so I can go up to the U Bookstore.  That will save me from having to go to Macy's this weekend. 

As soon as I got my chores done last night I sat down to untangle that ball of yarn.  It took a while, but I got it done and did a few rows as well.  I am not ready for the set up row and since there's Women's World Cup on tonight I know I will have the quiet time to do it.

Poor Tinkie got another ear infection, this time the right ear.  It's the heat causing the yeast to grow, I imagine.  She spent most of the night either in the bathroom on the cool tile or under the bed, but about 4 she wanted up onto the bed.  And then she was growling and barking.  I suspect there were critters out in the garden.  All of the windows were open, but I couldn't hear anything.  I don't have her hearing, that's for sure.  The only thing I have ever heard is a deer walk past the bedroom window.  I could hear its little hooves crunching on the gravel.  Kind of creepy.

Ball winding mishap

I will admit that I was a bit careless when I wound the yarn last weekend for my current project, the Shangri-la.  Sometimes when one is cranking the ball winder a little too fast the yarn will slip off the ball and wind itself around the spindle.  I try to catch it when that happens and unwind the yarn from the spindle and get it back onto the ball.  Then there are other times when I don't catch it until the ball is complete and it's nearly impossible to unwind at that point.  In this case, I hope for the best which is that the strands are near the end of the ball.  Not so with my latest effort.  For a while at noon knitting I was unwinding the yarn carefully around the wodge of yarn that had come up through the center of the ball.  But last night it just all went to pieces and the entire ball split into two equally snarled balls.  I cut the yarn and started the second ball but tonight I'm going to have to try to sort out the mess.  I am pretty sure I'll need that yarn to complete the project and I need to tackle the problem before it gets worse.  So much for getting some good knitting done tonight.

It's already hot in the office and it's going to get hotter today and tomorrow.  I have my blinds closed against the sun and a little fan blowing but it doesn't do much of anything.  No air conditioning in our office.  If I need some cool air I have to go out into the hall.  Stupid.

I saw a deer last night, finally.  Tink and I were on are way back from our walk and there standing in front of the driveway was a big doe.  Just beautiful.  It stood there for a while and I was trying to take a picture to send to my sister, but then Tink barked and it took off.  I know they are coming around at night though because you can see where they lay down in the garden.

True Detective

Since I wasn't feeling 100% Sunday evening, I forgot all about watching the premier of True Detective.  I remembered yesterday though and set it to record, so last night we watched the first episode.  Was I confused?  Yes, yes I was.  That is the point, I guess.  All of the actors were very good.  I might have to watch it again before the next episode.

Noon knitting today and it's going to be a hot one.  It was hot yesterday and each day this week is supposed to be hotter.  And next week as well.  It even looks like we'll be getting a hot July 4th weekend, which is always unusual.  We don't have any plans though.  There is a family party on the 28th of June for a graduation, and then another family party on the 11th of July for visiting relations.  I don't think we'll be able to host a party on the 4th so maybe we'll be able to just have a quiet long weekend.  I wouldn't hate that.

Some weekends just zip by

It was a quick one.  Saturday was chores and chores and then a graduation party.  The weather was great but I wasn't in the mood for a big ol' family party with a bazillion people I didn't know, so we didn't stay very long.  Just long enough to have a bite and talk to the major players.  

On Sunday all I had to do was grocery shopping and laundry.  Which was fine because I was not feeling all that great.  I don't know if something I ate didn't agree with me or if I had a little bug.  Whatever I was down most of Sunday and yesterday as well. 

On Friday I decided that I am not going to use that linen yarn but instead found a very cool wrap to make with beads (sound familiar -- I am stuck in a rut) to use the wonderful Ancient Arts Fiber Crafts merino bamboo from one of my Yarnbox shipments.  I am going to make the Shangri-la wrap.  Now I know I have a lot of wraps but my thinking was why make something just because I should use the yarn?  I mean, I enjoy making wraps and knitting is about enjoyment.  I know what happens when I knit something I should knit.  I don't.  It languishes in my pile of WIPs.  So maybe I'll trade or sell that linen.  I do have the yarn for a nice cardigan I'm looking forward to making so I don't see any reason to force myself to make a cardigan just to use the linen.  No, I don't want a linen wrap. 

Other than that .. starting a new project .. things are pretty stale around here.  I need something to shake things up.

It's all about the US Open

Oh my goodness.  That's all you hear about ... well, that and the Seahawks mini camp.  But this US Open course is very different and yesterday was the start of the tournament.  The course is very hilly.  I'm not much of a golf fan, but the general public is really getting into this event.  And of course the sports talk guys are also all over it because the Mariners are sucking SO bad and the Seahawks just started their 6 weeks off.  Or another way to look at it -- six weeks until the start of training camp!

It stayed cloudy yesterday, most of the day, but no more rain.  This morning it is sprinkling and you can almost hear the ground sucking it up.  Again, it won't last long but I didn't have to water my tomatoes or herbs yesterday.  Back to sunshine tomorrow.

I sure love the IMA during the summer.  It is so quiet in the locker room and I don't have to fight for space.  I might run today.  My foot was a little bit tweaky though so perhaps I should stick to the bike and try running next week instead.

Last night after a little trip to Triplehorn I got the ends woven in on the blanket and popped it into the washing machine.  It came out looking super good and now it's drying on the table and pads.  I will give it to Mai tomorrow.  I still don't know what I want to start next though.  I kind of know what I want to do but I can't find a pattern that does it.  Except maybe the Breezy Cardigan.  My problem, if you can call it that, is that I have to incorporate stripes into it because I don't have enough of one color.  I have four white skeins, two of beige and one of brown.  It will be a very classic neutral piece.  I think I'll just buy it and dig in.  It seems to be a very good TV knitting piece.  While I would love to dig into a difficult project, I don't get the long amounts of peaceful knitting time I used to get when I was single so I can't be doing those types of things exclusively.  I always need to have a somewhat mindless project to hand.  And I am looking forward to my Artyarns Yarnbox in a few weeks and I am hoping that will be my tough project.

This weekend we've got a graduation party for my nephews on Saturday and Tink's vet appointment.  That's about it so I suspect there will be some chores in there as well. 

Finished!

I finished the knitting portion and started binding off at noon knitting yesterday.  And then last night I finished binding off.  It took forever!  Tonight I'll weave in the ends and pop it in the washing machine.  It's a small blanket, but it is for a new born, so I think it's perfect.  Here is a picture of it on the dining room table. I just love love LOVE it!  And I chose to bind of knit wise rather than doing it in pattern.  I like the clean look of the edge.  It looks more finished to me this way.  Such a lovely baby pink too.  I trust it is going to wash up well.  It's Berrocco superwash, so it should be fine.  I won't put it in the dryer though.  I'd love to make another one but larger.  I made this with size 9 needles and I like the fabric.  I wonder how difficult it would be to add another layer, just reversing the last fifty rows.  Hmmmmm

But that's for another time.  Now I need to think about my linen project.  Or maybe the pretty purple very lacy project from the last classic Yarnbox.  I'll check on the website and look at the pattern.  So many choices.  Oh!  Plus I'll be getting the new Yarnbox plus Artyarns in a few weeks as well!  Yips.  An embarrassment of richest.

It was sprinkling a little bit this morning and it maybe will do it some more tomorrow.  We need it.

I am getting jazzed about football.  I have finished my audiobooks for the month and now must listen to either music or sports talk podcasts until I get my next one, which will be the new Shardlake book.  But football.  The Seahawks are having their first mini camp today.  Soon soon soon

Today's the day

I'm going to finish that blanket today.  Maybe not at noon knitting, although I should get pretty close.  But tonight for sure.  I just have a few more petals to knit and then the binding off of 550 stitches.  In pattern, which is a hassle since it's seed stitch.  I did want to do it last night, but what with one thing and another - getting my hair dried, Tink walks, preparing a deeeelicious meal, cleaning up.  At that point I just wanted to watch a little TV, read and fall asleep.  Tinkerbell has a very restless night, unfortunately.  She has an ear thing going on and that might have something to do with it.  Luckily I have an appointment with the vet this coming Saturday to get her some tranquilizers for the fireworks ahead so they can take a look at it then.  She hasn't had that problem for quite a while.  Not since I've been at this house so that's at least a year.  I kept the medicine so I'm able to get the treatment started, which is good.

Since my blanket is nearly finished I've got to choose a pattern for my linen cardigan.  I've got an idea of what I want but I've got to figure out if I've got enough yarn.  This was a pretty generous Yarnbox so I'm pretty sure I've got enough for the style of cardigan I want to make - an open fronted one kind of like the Whisper, but with longer fronts.

Well Saturday is the official start of Summer and the weather is still pretty spectacular as if we've been having summer all this month.  We should by rights be experiencing June Gloom, like they are in LA.  Ah well, no complaints here.  And the critters -- I saw two raccoons "sleeping" by the side of the road this morning on the way to the Transit Center.  And a few yesterday as well.  And the rabbits .... the only thing I've haven't seen yet this year are deer.  Maybe Tink keeps them away.

Where the heck is my gray running skirt???

I am mystified.  I actually thought it was here at work in my bottom drawer, where I keep my workout clothes.  But it is not.  So that's why I bought the new black Adidas one.  However, I would really like to have that gray one so I don't have to wash my gym clothes during the week.  My second guess was one of the bottom two drawers in my chest.  I keep T-shirts and lounging pants, miscellaneous stuff in there.  I did a search and no skirt.  So while we were watching a movie Sunday I took out the two deep drawers that I use for socks and stockings and camisoles and all sorts of things and took everything out.  I ended up with a garbage bag of worn out socks, tights with holes, bras I'll never wear again, old camisoles but did I find a running skirt?  No.  No I did not.  Now my last chance is the closet.  On the top I have a couple of baskets and I can't remember exactly what's in there.  I moved to this house in August of last year and I was sure I was using my running skirt then but maybe not.  Maybe it's up there in those baskets.  I'll check tonight.

It was super hot yesterday.  I had to drop by the doctor's office to check on how my new medicine is working and then I stopped at the store to get things for a nice seafood salad.  It was much too hot to cook and I was craving a salad.  I got shrimp and crab and lots of fresh veggies and then made a nice dressing.  When we were ready we made our own salad.  Lovely.  I think we'll do it again tonight since I bought WAY too much seafood.  Or maybe I'll make some pasta.  I can't decide.

The blanket is nearly done.  I'm on the last row and then the bind off.  Unfortunately on the row before I screwed up almost an entire row of seed stitch!!!  Arghghgh!!  I can't rip it out.  There is no way.  I will have to think of some camouflage or maybe once it's bound off and washed it won't be noticeable .... except for me.  I'll know it's there.  Gah!  If I decide I can't stand it I'll have to rip out about 20 hours of work.  I would have to rip it back to before the seed stitch section starts.  I don't know.  I will have a think on it.

SO close

The weather stayed decent this weekend - as in not extremely hot - and I was able to work on the blanket Friday night and Saturday and some also yesterday.  I am 1 1/2 rows away from the bind off row.  Unfortunately the temperature is set to rise today so I very much doubt it will be cool enough to work on it tonight.  I need to get it finished so I can give it to Mai this coming weekend.  Then I can wind that beautiful linen I got from the Yarnbox Luxe and work on a light weight summer cardigan.

I was awake super early on Saturday and took advantage of it to get to Home Depot before the worst of the crowds.  I got the fence post toppers exchanged for the correct ones and then had to sit in the parking lot for a while before I could drive up to the mall.  The mall doesn't open until 10 am, so I called McG to check on his dog's operation.  Poor little thing has to wear a cone for three weeks!  Max, not McG.

Ben got in Sunday morning and I went to pick him up in the fancy car, top down.  It was a gorgeous morning and we stopped for a meal on the way home.  We sat outside and Tink was nice and content in a shady spot.  Then we stopped at the store where I had shopped for groceries on Saturday and had left the beautiful roses I bought!  The checker didn't put them into my basket and I didn't realize it until I got home.  I phoned and they put them into the cooler for me.  That was nice.  And they are gorgeous.  A really pretty coral.

I have to leave early today to get to the doctor by 3 o'clock.  I probably won't be able to get to the gym.  I still need to check the bus schedule, but I'm pretty sure I'll have to leave around 1:30 and since I don't get back from the gym until 1, I probably shouldn't go.  We'll see.

Running

Yesterday I got an email from an old friend who has signed up to run a 5K in July.  He hasn't done a race in about 20 years so that's really something.  The sign ups are slow so the race committee asked people who had already signed up to forward the message in hopes of getting more participants.  Running was, therefore, on my mind when I got to the gym.  I climbed up to the third floor and decided when I got there that I would run and see how it went.  And it was fine!  I felt great and my foot felt great.  I was awfully tired yesterday evening and today I'm a bit sore but all in all, I feel it was a success.  I'll run a couple times next week and then I can assess the situation.  I truly would love to do the 5K.  It's a month away from now so there's plenty of time to get ready for it.  Oh ... how much fun would that be??  Since I've been doing cardio my wind is fine.  It's just how much wear and tear my toe can take.

The weather has cooled off and it was cool enough for me to knit last night and I did.  I think I did three rows.  Mind you, those rows (rounds, actually) are getting pretty darned big.  I will end up with around 550 stitches when it's done.  It's cooler even today so I can knit some more tonight on it.  Tinkie was pretty good last night, although she wanted to play ball twice in the evening.  She needs a nice long walk.  Hopefully I can take her to the park tomorrow.  I want to take a quick run to Macy's and that's pretty much my day tomorrow except for chores.  And then Sunday morning ..... woohoo! 

Why is traffic always the worst on Thursday?

Why?  I cannot figure it out!  Could it be more people drive on Thursday if they're having a long weekend?  Leave straight from work Thursday so they drive in?  That doesn't seem like it could make that much difference.  What else could it be?  And actually the parking garage was not nearly as full as it was yesterday so clearly more people are driving in.  School isn't out yet, but it is finished for the medical and dental students.  I guess I'll never know for sure. 

I got some good work done on the blanket yesterday at noon because I could put it on the table while I worked rather than having it laying in my lap.  I guess I could also do that at home, but it's not really comfortable to sit at the dining table to knit.  I had a few chores when I got home -- laundry and watering the plants as well as the normal Tinkie walks.  I wanted to knit but I was tired and it was a little too warm.  It is cooling down a bit so maybe tonight?  Let's hope. 

Football is very much on my mind these days.  I know it's basketball and hockey playoff time but I don't care much about those sports at all.  But football will be starting up at the end of July and the OTAs have already started so that means there is a lot of football in the news.  So last night I watched (re-watched, to be more accurate) some episodes of The League.  They never get old.

Disasters

Yesterday was quiet the day for disasters here at work.  One woman's aunt died, another woman's son had a heart attack.  Somebody else has the stomach flu.  Okay, so that's not as bad as the others, but it's a slow news day.

Graduation hasn't even happened and already it feels like the dead of summer.  It's this nice weather when we're expecting June gloom.  It puts you off kilter. 

It was too warm to do much knitting last night and even with all the windows open it felt stuffy in the house.  Tink was happy for her usual 5 o'clock walk but at 7 o'clock rather than walk up and down the streets she wanted to go around the perimeter of the yard.  Her long line doesn't get her near the tree line and sometimes that's where she wants to go, where the scents of the animals coming up from the ravine are the strongest.  I let her have a good long sniff and then I went to bed with her at 8 and finished my book.  SUCH a good read - A God in Ruins by Kate Atkinson.  It's kind of like a companion book to Time After Time, another awesome read.  I have a few books in my wish list but if anyone has a recommendation .....

So it's Wednesday and I know that I'll at least get a couple rows done on that blanket this noontime.  I have got to get it done soon.  Mai will be quitting work to have her baby at the end of this month.

Love Locks and Chipmunks

No, they have nothing to do with each other except they're both in my mind this morning.  I have for a long time been unhappy about those stupid locks on the bridges in Paris (and other places as well).  I noticed them when I was there last July and again this spring.  What an eyesore!  Well, I read last week that they are in the process of being removed!  Hoorah!!  Now if they can do something about keeping more idiots from replacing them.  And fining the people caught selling the locks.  Fat chance.

A few weeks ago I thought I saw chipmunks in the trees but I wasn't absolutely sure.  Well, last night I was inside and looked out to see one on the deck!  A chipmunk for sure.  I was under the impression they were only in the higher elevations because I've never seen them anywhere but in the mountains.  I guess they just don't like cities. 

I really wanted to work on my blanket last night.  But because the house had been closed up while I was at work and because of the heat from the days before, it was simply too hot to sit with a blanket on my lap.  So no knitting since I had left my socks here at work.  It might not be so hot today, but my guess is it'll still be too hot tonight.  Tomorrow though, for noon knitting.  I am rather anxious to get this done. 

My new running skirt was just the thing for the gym.  I was much more comfortable although still pouring sweat.  I would dearly love to run in my running skirt but my guess is it'll be another month or so.  I want to make sure my foot is 100%.

It's not even summer yet!

Heavens it is warm!  Hot!  And it's going to stay like this all week long and into the weekend as well.  Lucky for me the house stays relatively cool, not having any windows facing directly east or west.  That is a huge bonus. 

Friday was not a very productive day for me, since I had to spend the morning taking care of a little health issue.  But I went to town on the weekend.  I got a couple more herbs and some color bowls planted, I got the game/office finished and pictures hung there and a few more throughout the house, I got my yarn sorted and frogged a few projects I know I won't be finishing and hoorah, I found both of my long Denise cords.  The blanket is now on the 52" cord and crowding it something awful.  And I've still got around 25 rows to go!  I also trimmed back some bushes and did all the laundry and the bedding AND washed the dog!  And I still had time to read and laze around.  Tinkie was not terribly interested in going for long walks because of the heat.  She perks up a bit at night when it gets a bit cooler but then comes 8 o'clock and she's for bed.  Last night I put her in there and did not join her, instead knitted in the living room.  That didn't last long and she wanted to be out there with me.  But I threw in the towel around 9:30 anyway.

I am trusting the IMA to have the air conditioning cranked today and I also purchased a running skirt to wear rather than my long workout pants.  I know I have that gray one around somewhere but I can't find it so I got a cute Adidas one - black with a hot pink stripe at the waist.  I'm sure my gray one will turn up, especially if I look a little bit harder.

It seems like Ben's been gone for more than a week, but I suppose that's because he was gone for the weekend.  And this week as well as Saturday.  It's going to be a long hot week.

Blankie progress

I got back on the horse, so to speak, with noon knitting and got two or three rows done on the baby blanket.  Then I got right back to it when I got home, after Tink's walk, etc.  It is growing but still works on the 32" bamboo circular.  This weekend I really should search out one of the two long Denise cords I have and frog whichever project is on that needle.  I will certainly need a longer needle at some point soon.  The blanket will end up with over 500 stitches when all of the increases are done.  I estimate I've got about forty more rows to go and, at approximately 30 minutes a row .... that is a bunch of knitting left on this project!

I got my YarnBox Luxe yesterday.  I keep hoping for cashmere but this time we got seven skeins of Shibui Linen.  That's a lot of yarn, as in probably enough for a cardigan if I don't want to make another wrap, which I don't.   I'd like to make a drape-y cardigan, like the Effortless Cardigan, although I have ordered the yarn to make the Summer Lace Wrap Cardigan but you can't have too many cardigans now, can you?

I finally this week finished listening to the Outlander series.  How long have I been listening to those books?  Forever it seems.  I am now listening to the St. Mary's series and, because the Outlander books were so long, I had one already purchased and credits for two more.  So I got those ordered and in my library and then I see that there's a new Shardlake book available!  Oh hurrah!  I will get it when I get this month's credits and pop it in there to break up the St. Mary's series. 

Well we're supposed to get sunshine today and progressively warmer weather as the weekend goes on.  I haven't had to water my little herbs or tomatoes for the past couple of days, but I'll need to keep up with it for the foreseeable future.  There are already little tiny tomatoes on my Early Girl plant!  And this weekend I've got to get the rest of my herbs purchased and into pots as well as flowers for some color spots and hanging baskets.  I have a busy weekend ahead of me.

Impressed again with customer service

What a lovely surprise.  After being completely blown away when Amazon refunded the price of a rental video they deemed to have had playback issues without a complain from me, I was equally impressed by Sony.  Although I had to spend a couple of hours on the phone to be absolutely sure the player was defective, I sent it back and Monday I got a new one in the mail!  How awesome is that?  Pretty awesome, I'd say.

Tuesday was a repeat of Monday.  I came to work, went to the gym and had an uneventful evening.  Actually, I did a lot.  Of course the usual Tinkie walks and  playing, and I did my hair and cooked a fabulous dinner of roasted vegetables.  I mixed it up a little bit this time.  I omitted the summer squash and instead used a fennel bulb and, also out of the ordinary, I had an ear of corn so I took the corn off the cob and added it in for the last 30 minutes.  I used some fresh herbs from my teensie herb garden plus some Tarragon (which I want to get for my garden) that I had purchased for the mussels that I didn't get around to cooking.  It was SO good and, bonus, I've got leftovers for tonight.  Maybe I can actually do some knitting tonight.

Today is Wednesday noon knitting - we're back to Wednesday thank goodness.  It's cloudy and chilly so working on the blanket will be perfect.  I think it will be only two of us today though.  MaryEllin is gone until the end of July and I believe Diana is off on vacation.   

Cue the crickets

It is SO quiet here this morning.  I am alone in the suite and I haven't heard anyone walk by nor do I hear any distant voices.  It's spooky.  I know the chairman's assistant is here because I saw her when I came in.  But other than that ..... it's almost as if I got in an hour early. 

Yesterday was pretty quiet as well.  I had a nice workout at the IMA, and walked in the rain to get there.  Actually I was a little cold, having only brought a long cardigan rather than a jacket or coat.  It's the same today although not raining right now.  It makes me sleepy. 

I did have plans to knit last night, but I got cozy on the couch with Tinkerbell and just had a do nothing Monday night.  I watched stupid TV, cooked a Trader Joe's flatbread pizza and went to bed early.  I slept quite well so I am a bit surprised that I'm so sleepy but there you go.  Tonight I'll make roasted vegetables and do at least a couple of rows of the blanket.  It goes pretty quickly, actually.  It's perfect TV knitting.  Not totally boring.

June clouds

We had a super gorgeous Friday and the weekend was also very nice.  Not too hot, plenty of sun.  Today the clouds have moved in and we're predicted to get some sprinkles but later this week, it's going to be hot.  We're having quite the nice Spring.  I saw three rabbits this morning and yesterday noticed a round spot in one of the little flower gardens.  I believe something (a deer) is sleeping there.  I really wanted to get some more herbs and some flowers for some color spots around, hanging baskets, etc.  But we had seven stops to make on Saturday and a couple more on Sunday and the garden store wasn't one of them.  Ah well, I've got two weeks, including weekends, to get that kind of stuff.  It'll keep me plenty busy this coming weekend.

Gregg called Friday evening and we had quite a nice chat about reviving our duo.  The plan is that we'll get the songs we know back up to preference level and do a couple of open mike nights, and then add a few more songs so that we have an hour of material.  Then we'll look for a little gig or opening act gig.  It's something to do and I'm excited about it.  It will be so much fun.

I had wanted to make steamed mussels this Saturday and got myself all set for a nice seafood dinner, when there are no mussels to be had!  I guess there's some sort of red tide thing going on in Hood's Canal and/or Penn Cove.  Since we'd had such a late lunch anyway, we ended up with a nice arugula salad with tomatoes and a horseradish vinaigrette - I tried to recreate a dressing we had in Paris that I just loved - and some little beef things on the BBQ.  Just a little bite. 

After all of our running around yesterday I just wanted to knit.  I haven't touched that blanket since last week and I've got to get it done before this month is out!  It's going to be not so hot these next few evenings so I'll really get on it.  But I think I should search out a longer cord.  I changed last night from the 29 inch Addi to the 32 inch bamboo needles and I think it's going to be a real chore to get all of those stitches - over 500 when all of the increases are done - to fit onto that needle.  I've got Denise long cords.  Just exactly where .... not sure.  I think it's time to frog a few more languishing projects.

Just one of those days

I got up early yesterday so that I could get the early bus to work to have time to eat a yogurt before I started the exam.  I was sure I had left in plenty of time and indeed, if I hadn't been behind the school bus I would have made it.  As it was, I pulled into the garage just as the bus was pulling away.  Rats!  So when I got to work I made myself a cup of tea and went downstairs.  I had my audiobook going, so it wasn't so bad and we were done by 11. 

I held on until 11:30 and then went to get a nice salad for lunch.  Taco salad Thursday!  The chicken they cook for that is just wonderful and I was really needing some food in me, having skipped breakfast.  And then it was time to get the bus to Ballard for my mammogram.  I have been getting mine done there for ... wow, probably 20 years.  But they moved the office a few years and there are newer buildings around and I get lost every time I go there!  I made it in time, but took a very circuitous route.

That done I headed home, having nothing to do at the office.  I wanted a nap.  Unfortunately there was road work that made my commute from the transit center home until a long hot frustrating drive.  And I had to stop at the grocery store so I didn't get home all that much earlier.  Maybe an hour.  I tried to take a little snooze but it was too late.  Ah well.

Today is going to be hot.  I've got nothing on my plate at work although it looks like I might have a nice big project coming up later this month.  Fingers crossed.  Today I can go to the gym, finally.  And what else?  Maybe leave a little early.

Beautiful

It is a stunning morning and it's going to be super nice now through the weekend.  Tomorrow is the last final exam and I've got to proctor.  It starts at 8 am!  Can you imagine?  When I expressed my surprise at the early time, the guy from testing said that the students prefer an early start.  Or really?  I mentioned it to one of the students yesterday and she said that most of the students were not at all happy with that early start time.  They'd been talking about it on their Facebook page.  But they'll be done by 11 or so, which is good because I booked a mammogram appointment for 1:10 that afternoon.  It's only a 30 minute bus ride away so I'll easily make it.  What I am concerned about is waking up!  I typically have my tea when I get in and then about 8:30 do my oatmeal and berries.  I can't see me waiting until 11 to eat breakfast.  I guess I'll catch the earlier bus and get in with a little time left so that I can have a yogurt and take my tea downstairs with me.

I got a good start on the last section of the blanket yesterday at noon knitting.  I didn't knit last night though.  My schedule got off because we were waiting for the contractor to come by to look at the house so he could get a bid together for painting.  Everything was late - he was, of course, late.  An hour later than he said.  Typical.  And I was just so tired.  Already I'm anxious for the weekend so I can sleep in!

A busy long weekend

Wow - we went out three evenings in a row this weekend!  Friday we went to the Triplehorn.  We were both exhausted but we wanted to get out and it was the start of a long weekend.  We took Tink and sat outside, which is always nice. 

I was very disappointed in the music Saturday night.  We had gotten a bunch of people to meet us there, but the band was just awful!  The singer was terrible and the music itself was not dance music - or at least anything we wanted to dance to.  And loud.  Holy cow.  The best part of the evening was chatting with Gregg.  He wants to get together and put a few songs together and I am SO happy about that! 

I got a lot done this weekend including a trip to Home Depot to get herbs and tomatoes and some paint samples.  That place was a madhouse though!  Insane.  Just crammed with people -- rude people.  While I was waiting for my paint samples to be mixed I wheeled through the plants and got so flustered that I ended up with two Thai basil plants.  I must remember to either go early in the morning or try to do it during the week.  The weekend is not fun.

I got lots and lots of knitting done on the Dahlia blanket.  Today at noon knitting I will be starting the last petal section which will more than double the number of stitches I've got on the needle at this point.  It's going to be so cute.

Short week and the last week of the quarter before the students take off for summer.  Then it's really going to be quiet around here.

A rocky start

Yesterday after lunch I decided I would tackle the start of the Dahlia blanket again.  First I re-thought how I was doing the cast on - the suggested Easy Circular Cast On.  I reread the instructions and voila! I was doing it wrong!  It took me three tries to finally get the cast on right and then two or three more times of knitting up to row three to realize I was having a problem catching all the loops on a knit two together with the first stitch a YO.  I was also having problems getting the center of the hole to cinch up.  I finally decided to knit one round before I started the first round of the pattern and that was the right decision.  I knit up to row five and it looks right.  I'll do more today.  It's going to be pretty quiet.

It was very warm yesterday and when I got home the clouds had rolled in, so it was muggy as well.  But I didn't want to be inside, so I poured myself a nice glass of wine and sat in the back and listened to the birds.  Plans were laid for a fun evening Saturday.  My friend Rusty is playing with a band this weekend in Woodinville and the place has a dance floor!  And, bonus, Gregg, who played with us in that crazy band a few years ago and who I had a duo with the last time I sang in public, is also going to be there.  It should be a fun evening.

Other than that though it's going to be a work-y weekend.  The house painters are coming out on Monday to look at the job and let us know when they can start and we've got lots of work to do, most notably dismantling a lean-to firewood thing that is up against the tool shed, which will need to be painted when they do the house.  I've wanted to get rid of that eyesore forever.  But it's going to be work.

And hopefully knitting.  It won't be too warm this weekend.  Of course not. 

The right yarn for the project

As luck would have it, one of my appointments got moved yesterday so I decided to head up to Weaving Works yesterday rather than Friday, being rather keen to start that blanket before it gets too hot to knit on it.  I hopped on the bus and I was there in a few minutes.  That was my first visit to Weaving Works since it moved from the U District (walking distance) to Roosevelt and 65th.  It's not so much a larger space, but it is laid out differently.  They used to have what they called a "super wash wall", super wash indicating that the yarn is machine washable.  But now all of their yarn is done by gauge - smallest to largest.  The yarns that are washable have a blue dot on their description card.  Without too much trouble I found a beautiful baby pink yarn that fit the bill perfectly - Vintage Chunky by Berrocco.  I also had $10 credit on my rewards account there - bonus! 

After I got home and got Tink walked, my chores completed, my hair washed and dried I set about winding the six balls of yarn I had purchased.  And finally I set about starting this project.  It's done in the round and therefore the first few rows are bound to be a bit difficult.  I had to take it out twice and decided not to go for a third time.  I have brought it in with me today and hopefully I can get it done this afternoon.  It's quiet around here and I don't have any appointments this afternoon.  Two tomorrow though.  I was hoping to get out early but I've got one at 2:30.  Well, I'll still be able to leave early.  There is a bus before three that I can get.

Turns out there is a party on Sunday.  But the weather is not going to be very nice so I guess it'll have to be inside.  Oh well.  How long has it been since we've actually had a nice Memorial Day weekend?

Turned!

Noon knitting was just three of us -- in our lunchroom since MaryEllin is still gone and both of our conference rooms were occupied.  I got the heels turned on the socks I've been working on and then I need to do the gussets.  I want to get that done so I'll have a good TV knitting project.  Turning the heel is a bit fiddle-y but once I get the markers in, doing the gusset is easy.  And Monika brought me a library book with the pattern I want to make in it - the Dahlia Blanket from "Knitting from the Center Out".  My challenge is to find the right yarn for the project.  The pattern calls for Blue Sky Alpaca Hand Dyes, which is not going to work for this since it is going to be a blanket for a baby and hence,  must be machine washable.  But there are many many nice machine washable yarns out there.  I must go to a yarn store though because I need to feel them and get just the right color.  Maybe on Friday I'll take the bus up to Weaving Works at lunchtime.  Yes, that means skipping the gym but this is an odd week for that.  Monday I was at home, yesterday I had noon knitting, today I have two student appointments, tomorrow I have the dentist so Friday ... sure, I might as well go to the yarn store.

This coming weekend is Memorial Day weekend, the official start to the summer season.  As usual, rain is predicted but it's not supposed to be pouring so that's good.  So far, no parties are planned although we do plan to go hear some music and drink some wine on Friday night, and my old drummer is playing in a band Saturday night in Woodinville so we might go there as well.  But considering the work I'd like to get done in the yard and around the house, I suspect I'll be pretty tired.

One of the people down the street have a large piece of property that has a flat part with their large house and even larger lawn, and then on one side of the property is a steep bank with trees and brush.  Last month they cleared, by hand, a portion of it and put in a tree swing for their children.  I noticed Sunday there was a plastic fence put up around the other part of the hill and a sign on it about urban goats.  Sure enough, they were there yesterday, chomping away at the hill.  I stopped and had a little chat with the husband and wife team who own the goats.  They own Scottish terriers and so just loved Tinkerbell and she was very curious about the goats.  I've seen goats clearing blackberry bushes here at the UW - well, it was a few years ago.  It's pretty cool.

Work from home Monday

I had such a busy day yesterday.  I had my doctor's appointment and the rest of the time I was home.  The weather was lovely but I was tethered to my computer.  Well, I was multi tasking as well.  On Sunday the Blu Ray player I had purchased on September all of a sudden stopped playing regular DVDs.  I fussed with it a good bit on Sunday, trying to watch a movie.  It was very frustrating but luckily I was able to rent the movie I wanted to watch from Amazon Prime, which runs through that very same Sony Blu Ray player, by the way.  Anyway yesterday while I was setting up appointments for students to see me later this week I was on the phone and on line with Sony tech support.  Three different times, mind you.  Three different people and all three of them had me doing the very same steps to try to resolve the issue.  One hour and 30 minutes later we came to the conclusion that the machine is broken.  *sigh*  But the good news is that I will get a new one.  I just have to send it back to Texas, which I will do today.

The weekend was okay, but not sunny and you know me, I hate to garden when it's cloudy outside.  So no gardening, but a fair amount of running about doing errands.  This coming weekend will be a little more rigorous, since we have to start thinking about getting the house painted and what needs to be moved, etc.  Maybe another trip to the dump.  Fun times.

Noon knitting today.  I'm going to try to get the heels turned on these socks.  And I need a new project!  I'd like to make a baby blanket for my manicurist.  I have a lovely pattern picked out.

Bunnies galore

I swear, the neighborhood looks like a rabbit preserve, there are so many rabbits hopping around!  Tink is getting used to them and she doesn't try so hard to chase them.  Not that she wouldn't if she didn't have a tether.

The gym did help with my sleepiness yesterday.  It's a great time of year too because kids are studying for finals and getting ready for graduation and it's much quieter now.  It should be like this for the rest of the spring and summer.  Considering I've been off for more than three weeks, I had a really decent workout and I'm sore today.  I will go again this noontime and then I'll be off Monday and Tuesday because of my doctor's appointment Monday and knitting Tuesday.  Speaking of knitting ..... still haven't heard from MaryEllin.

I'll need to get it together soon for my garden -- herbs and tomatoes for sure and I'd also like to do some arugula and mescaline greens.  Those are going to be hard to keep away from the rabbits unless I put them into containers.  I'll give that some thought this weekend.  It's not supposed to be super nice, but hopefully not pouring rain.

Home a week and I'm still sad.  I want to go back to Paris this fall but I doubt it. I am going to try but it's going to be a hard sell.

A hard lesson

Yesterday my left contact lens was really bothering me.  Something was in my eye and I needed to use some eye drops BUT I had taken them out of my cosmetic bag and put them into the liquids baggie for traveling and I hadn't put them back into my bag!  Oh and it hurt!  I wanted to take it out and just use tap water but them I remembered that sometimes the lens does not go back in easily at that point, especially if the eye is sore.  I stuck it out and found someone who had a bottle of drops and gave the eye a good wash.  I couldn't leave to go buy more eye drops until after that stupid exam!  Ideally I would have taken them out and put on some glasses but I didn't have a spare pair at work.  Well, I do now my friends.  I most certainly do now. 

I was SO tired all day yesterday.  And when I got home I just collapsed.  I did not want to cook or knit or do anything.  I stayed up as late as I possibly could, watching the penultimate episode of Once Upon a Time and falling into bed at 9 pm.  I was asleep at 9:02.  And you know what?  I am still tired today! 

I have no children and I am hardly an expert on them, but I observed something while traveling on trains on this last trip and I can't understand it.  Twice I saw people with toddlers riding and the toddlers getting progressively more out of hand as the trip went on.  One was a couple with a precocious little guy about 3 years old and the other was a woman on her own with a little girl about 3 or 4 and two babies, one she was holding and another in a stroller.  Here's what I don't understand - nobody brought anything for the toddlers to play with!  No books or dolls.  No fruit or juice or anything!  How can you expect a little child to amuse themselves in their heads for two or three hours?  Well you can't.  The poor little things got progressively noisier and disruptive.  The couple would try to talk to the boy and distract him -- all they had was a folded map to distract him with.  The single mother ended up swatting the little girl because she wanted to sit down in a seat in our car rather than squat with the mother and the pram in between the cars.  Unbelievable.  Thank goodness they were not on the same train -- or maybe not.  I guess the little boy and girl could have played together and all would have been fine.

Thursday.  I can go to the gym today.  Maybe that will wake me up finally.  Fingers crossed.

Spoiled

I guess all of that good weather in Europe spoiled me.  I really miss the sunshine!  I hear the weather was good all the time I was gone, but now it's typical gray skies and mist.  Basically it's the same way in Europe I guess, from looking at my weather app, but a little bit warmer.  It's chilly here.  Not chilly enough to turn on the heat or build a fire, but chilly.  It's so difficult to wake up entirely without some sunshine.

Noon knitting was fun, but we missed MaryEllin.  I guess she had some sort of family emergency while I was gone and she's still missing. 

I don't record a lot of TV, but there are a couple of shows I do watch.  Once Upon A Time had four episodes waiting for me and I got through two of them last night and I've got one more regular one and the 2 hour finale.  It has gotten a little fantastic, even considering the fantastical nature of the original premise.  But I'll stick it out and watch the finale.  I am undecided about another season though.

I've got to proctor an exam for two people today and another one on Monday.  But Monday I've got my annual exam appointment and I don't want to move it.  Luckily I got somebody to stand in for me - it's not a big exam.  I really didn't want to try to get into work in the afternoon.  It's next to impossible.  At the very least a huge hassle.  IF I can find parking in the garage.  It's much better to work at home on those days.

Well I'd better have another cup of tea or I'm just going to put my head down on my desk and snooze!

The bus driver's detour

When I went out to wait for my bus last night I noticed that the earlier bus, which my app OneBusAway had said had already passed by, was loading passengers.  So I hurried along and was the last person on the bus.  I settled in with my headphones on and away we went.  I was playing a word in a game of WordFeud when I looked up to find that he had just driven past the entrance to the freeway and was turning right down the next street after the missed entrance.  A residential street.  He obviously did not know what he was doing or, more importantly, where he was going.  If he had gone up to the freeway he could have gotten on and right off and circled around and been fine.  As it was he took a 30 minute detour to get onto the 520 bridge.  Idiot!  And then the rear door got stuck open at one of the freeway stops.  This does happen from time to time and the bus driver just turns the bus off and when he restarts the door closes.  I think it's because the rubber stopper on the bottom of the bus hits the curb.  Anyway .... that was another few minutes lost until a kindly bus driver behind him came up and showed him what to do.  He had tried to turn it off but "helpful" people outside kept trying to force the doors shut.  Actually, truth be told, I finally couldn't keep my mouth shut and told the driver that the guys outside were not helping and that they should leave it alone and he should turn the bus off.  He didn't do that though until the other bus driver told him the same thing.  Yeah.

So I was quite late getting home and Tink was very very happy to see me.  I know she probably slept all day but after three weeks with other dogs to play with I can't help feeling a little guilty that she doesn't have a playmate. 

How was work yesterday?  Busy actually.  I didn't get to go to the gym and I won't be able to until Thursday.  Today is noon knitting and tomorrow I have to proctor an exam.  Thursday is fine.  I'm still fighting jet lag a bit, although last night I had the best night I've had since getting home, sleeping through until at least 5 am.  Plus I took a Benadryl before bed because I've been so stuffed up -- the cottonwoods are drifting.  I well and truly missed my nap yesterday though.  That's one of the awesome things about vacation, the naps. 

Back to the real world

So we're back.  Our trip was really really good.  It got off to a very rocky start though.  The plan was for us to pack on Thursday the 16th, and then I would go to work Friday morning and Ben would take the dog to the boarding place, close up the house and take the shuttle to the airport and I would meet him there, leaving work around 1 and taking the train.  So there we are packing and nearly done and ready to go out to eat when I say "Where's your passport"?  Normally I wouldn't even bother with a question like that, but he had said earlier in the week that I should remind him just so he doesn't forget - a joke like.  So he goes to the safe, opens it up and ... no passport.  He had gotten a new one, since his old one was about to expire.  He took it to work on the 1st to scan it so he'd have a copy for the trip and then it's gone.  Well he looked and looked and started to panic.  I looked too for a while, but it was obvious that it was not going to be found.  And he's really panicking at this point.  So I got on the internet and found a phone number for the passport hotline for when you lose your passport and I give them a call.  There is no way I was going to miss this trip and I know this has to happen now and again.  The woman on the phone was very helpful and told him that he should call and get an appointment and if he can get all of the necessary paperwork, pictures, etc. together the passport office can do a passport in 3 hours.  And that's what happened.  We still drove all the way to his office to make positive sure he hadn't left it there, and there wasn't much sleep Thursday night.  I got up and got the dog to the boarders then his cousin's wife picked us up and got us to the passport office an hour before his appointment.  So before noon we had his passport and we were on our way to the airport.  Needless to say I didn't relax until I had a couple of martinis under my belt.

We used Airbnb for our accommodations the entire trip and with the exception of one place, all went well.  The first place was quite noisy, being right on a main street in Paris.  For all I know Paris, I forgot that rue de Rivoli changes names up near Bastille and I assumed we were just off the main drag when in face our window opened up right onto it.  Good earplugs and jet lag afforded us enough sleep.

After three days we took Ryanair to Venice and had a really cute, albeit moist, little apartment off the beaten track and away from the worst of the tourists.  We loved it!  The crowds were insane though because the weather was awesome.  Hot even.  We walked and walked and walked.  On the day before we left we bought a day pass and just rode the vaporetto all day. 

It was rainy in Florence, but Emma met us there and we had such fun with her.  The apartment was large with a washing machine so we were able to do a couple of loads of clothes and have them dry in the three days we were there.  This is the only place we went to museums and I bought the tickets early so that we wouldn't have to stand in line.  The Academia was great because of the crowd control.  They don't let it get too packed.  After lunch we had a 3 o'clock at the Uffizzi and I swear I could not wait to get out of there.  It was completely nuts.  Too crowded and hot and I was not happy.

After Florence Emma went her way and we went to Monterosso al Mare.  We had a cute little place with a private garden.  That is where we found the best restaurant - Ciak.  We ate there twice.  Incredible seafood.  We didn't do any  hiking - the weather wasn't great but the amount of tourists was staggering.  It rained and it was still packed.

We then made our way by train to Geneva for a little break before going back to Paris.  Geneva was expensive, annoying for not using the Euro and our Airbnb place was disgusting.  We stayed one night and the next morning I found us an hotel near the train station.  It was a cute hotel and quiet, relatively.  We strolled around Geneva a bit and had fondue for dinner.  Ahhhh ... cheese and beer for dinner.

Then back to Paris for Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.  We had dinner with Eoghan and Deirdre again on Wednesday.  Eoghan was trying his hardest to get us to move our return home a week and go with them to the south of France.  But of course we couldn't do it.  I had to get back to work and my dog.

And here's what I found in the front garden:

They all bloomed and there are more buds.  Lovely.  Maybe next weekend I can do the herbs and tomatoes. 

For now I'd better dig in to the real world.

The cupboard under the stairs

Finally back in Paris for the last few days of the trip. I am looking forward to having a real keyboard so I can make a real post. Italy was great and Geneva was a disaster. The apartment I got from Airbnb was ridiculous so I found a hotel for Monday. Hopefully I can get a refund. The little studio here in Paris is like a cupboard but I do not care. This is home to me. But I keep seeing ghosts.

From Florence

One week in. The WiFi in Venice was not useable. I cannot post in my iPad very well so this is short. No knitting. Yet. The weather has been crazy good. Speaking of crazy, our departure was extra crazy because we had to deal with replacing a passport 23 hours before departure. It is doable bit I don't recommend it. How does a passport escape from a safe? You tell me.

It is pouring in Florence and we are waiting for Emma to show up. Her plane had to return to Frankfurt.

More later.

Temperature swings

This morning is the second morning in a row that I've had to scrape ice off of my windshield before I could drive.  It's been getting that cold at night!  But in the daytime we've had sunshine and nice warm weather.  I sure hope that is what we are going to get on our trip.  Well, I've looked at the forecast and it does look as though we will, at least for the first part.  I hope it holds for the whole time.  What a treat that would be.

I decided against trying to get my toiletries together last night.  I've plenty of time to do it tonight and it makes much more sense.  So I just had a lazy evening doing the last bits of laundry and heating up meatballs for dinner.  The fridge is mostly empty now.  I am SO ready to leave!!  But I've got to hang around for another little while.  I am leaving early again today for my manicure and pedicure.  I've really got nothing to do here.  I've gotten everything all caught up. 

There are a few more trip details to take care of, like calling the credit card companies.  But other than that, I wait.  I brought my knitting in but I can't really sit in my office knitting.  Not that I wouldn't love to, mind you. 

That doesn't smell like breakfast

First thing in the morning, even before I go into my office, I stop in the kitchen to make my cup of tea.  Sometimes it smells of bacon or scones in there, but this morning -- yuk!  I don't know what in the world somebody heated up in the microwave but it just stinks!  It's not fish, thank goodness, but something meaty, like beef stew.  It's not at all pleasant. 

I got my clothes picked out last night and I have plenty of room!  Layering clothes, springtime clothes, are so much easier to pack than winter clothes.  Tonight I'll get all of my toiletries together.  That's going to be a bit more of a challenge since we're carrying on but I think I've got it figured out.

I've got a 3 o'clock appointment so I will be leaving here around 1:30 or so.  And tomorrow I think I'm going to move my 5 o'clock appointment to 4 or 3:30.  We're going to go out to eat and I'd like to have my packing all done before we do that and, if I've got to re-do my hair, that's going to take some time.  Although .... maybe I'll just get up a little earlier on Friday and do it in the morning.  Hmmmm ... that is probably smarter.  We'll see.  It would be nicer if I didn't have to work on Friday, but unfortunately I do.  But not for long.

Hail!

Wow.  It has been getting colder at night and I knew it was pretty cold this morning since the heat came on, and I had it set for 60.  Brrrrr  Yesterday it was pouring rain most of the day and into the night.  This morning I heard it start up again, but when I looked outside it wasn't rain but hail!  The ground was all white.  And now?  Bright sunshine. 

I did correspond with my Paris and Venice hosts yesterday and have that all set up.  In Italy you have to provide them with a copy of your passport, so I did that and now I've only one more place that needs the copies.  I'll do that Friday morning.  I've got my phone package set up and the mail set to stop.  The last thing I need to do is call the credit cards.  And then tonight I'm going to see if the clothes I want to bring are going to fit in my carry-on bag.  That's my only real stumbling block.  Everyone knows I always over pack but there will be so much traveling this trip and no checking the bags on the flights to make sure I don't end up with a suitcase I can't handle in the train stations.  Been there, no fun.  So it's fashion show Tuesday. 

I sure am in a good mood.  That's what vacation does to me.  And sunshine.  I stopped for a coffee on the way in since I didn't have to walk Tinkie this morning.  It felt like Friday!  It'll be here soon enough.

What is going on??

Ever since last week Yahoo Mail has been acting up.  I cannot access my mailbox even though I can see the messages in the preview window on my front page.  I forwarded some pictures to my account and I can't open them!  It is SO frustrating!!!  Maybe I'll try a different browser.  Okay ... now it's working.  Crazy.

It was a busy weekend, as I knew it would be.  Saturday I got up early and had a very light breakfast before starting in on the mac and cheese for the party.  Then I got my grocery shopping done for the week, albeit a short week.  Yay for that.  The party was fun for a while but it got pretty old, since most people had known each other since childhood and I couldn't relate to most of the stories.  After about 4 1/2 hours of this I excused myself and went home to finish up my wrap.  I had finished the knitting on Friday night but I needed to get the ends woven in and get it blocked.  It was nice to escape and have some quiet time for myself.  And Tinkie was happy for the company, since it had been thundering and she's deathly afraid.

It is certainly springtime.  I bought and planted a clematis last year and it has buds on it already. I don't suppose they will be opening this week.  I sure hope I don't miss them altogether!  Three weeks is a long time.  I can't even remember if it's pink or purple!  Oh well.  It is a small price to pay for a 3 week vacation.

Today I've got to confirm the AirBnB reservations for Paris (leg one) and get directions to get into it.  Plus get the Venice accommodations set as well.  There is no address for them so I'll have to set up a meeting.

Work isn't busy so thank goodness I'll have plenty of time to get it all done.

Best laid plans

I SO wanted to finished up that wrap last night but I still have about 10 fields to go.  Yes, it's getting smaller, but each field is 7 to 11 wrapped rows and that is what takes the most time. I brought it in with me today and I'm going to take my lunch and work on it and then hopefully I can finish it up tonight and block it tomorrow.

It's going to be a very busy weekend.  I've got to get up early tomorrow morning and get my side dish made for the family party at noon.  Me and my big mouth - they asked for a side dish and instead of making beans or something super easy I asked if they'd like homemade macaroni and cheese.  It's a simple dish, yes, but very labor intensive.  Ah well, live and learn.

Despite a stop at the Starbucks on the way to the transit station, the traffic was so light that I got there WAY early.  I parked on the second floor and ran out, hoping I could catch the 7:11 bus and get to work early so I could leave early.  But I just missed it.  I needed the coffee.  I had a restless night and I am very groggy this morning.  I guess I can sleep in a little bit tomorrow.  Maybe until 9.  That would be nice.

One more week to go.  Next week is going to crawl by, I just know it. 

The huntress

Everyone knows that I love my dog.  And I spoil my dog.  But she is a dog, hence a killer.  I will never forget the frantic swooping and cheeps from the pair of bird parents when Tinkerbell got into the ground nest and killed all of their babies.  It was terrible!  But instinct.  This spring she has been very interested in a low evergreen shrub in the front garden.  She snuffles under it and digs a bit at the bark surrounding it, which is quite deep since it's less than a year old.  This morning she was not interested in her usual walk up and down the cul-de-sac.  Instead, after a little pee down by the mailbox she wanted to go back up to the garden and investigate the shrub.  So I let her sniff and paw a bit and then I noticed a little creature scuttle out of the opposite of the shrub.  It looked like it was staggering a bit, so maybe it was a baby squirrel or maybe it was a sleepy shrew.  Whatever it was it didn't want to be anywhere near Tinkerbell.  I took her away into the house.  And now I've got to be careful not to let her nose under there unsupervised.

Yesterday was such a busy day that it flew by.  I had a hard workout and the upper floor of that gym is SO hot.  I am going to have to dig out my running skirt to use rather than my longer yoga pants.  I was soaked ten minutes into my 30 minutes of cardio.  Not fun.

After dinner I worked on my wrap and I am thinking if I put my mind to it I can finish it up tonight and block it tomorrow.  That would be ideal.  I think one more field of the Grace Hand beaded near the end will look really great.  I am very happy that the color goes so well with the Noro. 

Mission accomplished

Yesterday was the day.  I finally got all of the reservations organized and put into folders for each leg of the trip.  Seven of them. The purpose of this exercise was to make sure that every part of the trip I had thought I had organized was indeed finished.  Perhaps it seems like overkill, but I know me and I know that I won't be able to sleep for worrying that I forgot some important reservation or never received the confirmation for a certain accommodation.  They are all there.  The most difficult part of this trip will be getting from Paris to Venice.  I booked the flight with Ryanair, which only flies out of Beauvais airport.  So that means an hour or so bus ride to Beauvais to arrive two hours before the one hour flight to Venice.  Then from Treviso airport, another bus ride to Venice and from there a boat to the Biennale stop to be met by the apartment owner.  Whew!  Five days in Venice, then by train to every other place. 

Noon knitting so no gym yesterday.  I got two fields done on the wrap, then last night another three.  At this rate I may get it finished in time to block it this weekend.  It is rather .... colorful.  I am still not sure I'm going to take it, but I want to have the option.

But I wasn't shopping!

I had an odd thing happen on Sunday.  I have my account at Macy's set up so that instead of hard copy receipts, I get email receipts.  We were driving back from a quick visit to Triplehorn on Sunday afternoon and I got an email from Macy's Southcenter saying my account had been credited $21 dollars for a returned item.  That got me a little concerned, since I hadn't been shopping that day and I haven't been to Macy's at Southcenter for many many years.  I poured myself a glass of wine and settled on the porch in the sun and called them.  After about 20 minutes of navigating through automated phone hell I got a real person and we started digging into this mystery.  She said the item returned had been purchased in November of 2013 and it was a sleeveless blouse.  Ah ha!  A couple of weekends ago I had cleaned out my closet for spring cleaning and one of the things I finally tossed was a blouse I had purchased that was just the wrong color of green.  I had never even taken the tags off of it.  Ben took the bag to the Goodwill donation center in Tukwila and voila, somebody found it and returned it.  I did not end up with the money however.  They realized the mistake and had the refund voided and redone as a gift card.  So the scavenger got their $21 and I got a good laugh.  Who knew you could take things back after more than a year??

Yesterday my Yahoo mail just quit working, which was a drag because I was going to start putting my trip details together and all of the confirmations, etc. are in a folder in my Yahoo mail account.  After spending a couple of hours troubleshooting I got the Yahoo people onto it and went to the gym for a good workout.  The crowds are thinning a bit, thank goodness.  And all was well with my email by 2 o'clock.  Whew.  So today is the day I put things together.

I was do nothing Monday and I had all good intentions of doing a fair bit of knitting, but I got distracted by sunshine and a martini.  But it's noon knitting today so we know I'll get a good hour done on it and hopefully tonight I won't be so easily distracted.

The excitment is mounting

What an absolutely wonderful weekend I had!  It started off a little weird.  I woke up Saturday morning at 5 and I couldn't get back to sleep.  I just couldn't!  I put my sleep mask on but no go.  But that was okay.  The sun was shining and there was bacon for breakfast.  And then there was shopping (I got a couple of layering tops) and lunch and more shopping (I got a pair of comfy boots with just the right height of heel).  Then I was tired, so a quick stop at the grocery store and then home for a little nap.  What was next?  A walk in the park with Tinkie and then knitting of course.  Knitting and a movie.  I was still sleep deprived from being up so early, nap notwithstanding, so I went to bed pretty early but I managed to sleep in until after 9 Sunday morning!  Glorious.

Even though it was Easter, there were no family parties because there's going to be a large one this coming Saturday.  Grocery shopping was first thing on the list to get done and I wanted to stop at Target but it was closed.  In fact, there were quite a few businesses that were closed, but whether it was just too early (10:30) or they were closed for Easter, I don't know.  Target usually opens quite early, so I guess it was closed for Easter.  The grocery store was not. 

I have been meaning to get into the garden and Sunday was the day.  It wasn't as sunny and warm as Saturday, but it was good enough.  In other words, NOT raining.  I got the hydrangea bushes pruned, the hydrangea trees pruned, and I hacked at a few bushes in front of the house that are simply the wrong types of things for that spot.  They should go.  Maybe this fall.  The laundry got done and the house tidied.  I didn't do any more knitting though, and that means I'm going to have to really get to it seriously these next few nights.  If I don't get it done in time to block it Saturday then I'll have to put it aside and take a different wrap with me.  I have to get the Koigu wound and the socks I'm meaning to take with me started.  Starting toe up socks on two circular needles is a very fiddle-y business.  I can't be doing it on a plane or a train or in an unfamiliar apartment with bad lighting.

This week -- my number one goal is to get each piece of the trip printed out and in separate folders.  Then I can stop worrying and just be excited.

Nightmare or .......

No, not a nightmare.  I woke up moaning but it was sore muscles!  On Wednesday I worked my upper back and shoulders and wow .... am I ever sore!  Obviously, because just turning over in bed and raising my arms woke me up.  I am pretty happy about it though because I am able to get soreness.  It has taken a few weeks of working out to get to the point where I can add enough weight to the machines to enable my muscles to fatigue.  And actually my thighs are a bit sore today too, which is another wonderful thing.  I've been gradually adding resistance to the biking and the Precor and finally I am seeing (and feeling) some results.  I have laid off the running and I think I will resist running for a few more months.  I wore high heels twice this week and my foot is fine.  I am sure the pounding was not doing it any good. 

I did a few more fields on the wrap last night - I'm up to 41, I think.  That's out of a total of 65 and it is getting smaller now.  I need to get it finished up by the end of next week, so I'm going to try to get some good work done on it this weekend.  There are things I need to get done around the house and in preparation for the trip too.  At least there are no parties or dinners or other obligations.  Next weekend is another thing - too busy for a weekend before we're leaving but I'll have to cope. 

Friday.  Hoorah and oh please let me be able to sleep in this weekend!!

The early bird gets the latte

It is a rare morning when I don't have to walk Tink before I go to work.  This was one of them and so I was ready to head out way too early.  What a perfect time to stop for a breakfast treat.  There is a Starbucks inside the Safeway store at Cottage Lake, which is right on my way to Avondale Road.  They open at 5 AM so off I went in search of a tall skinny vanilla latte.  There wasn't even anyone in line ahead of me.  I got in, ordered my coffee, paid with my app and was back on the road right on time.  I am groggy though.  I guess there wasn't enough caffeine in it!

Since I had worked my shoulders and upper back after my cardio yesterday afternoon, I was looking forward to a nice soak in the jacuzzi tub when I got home.  It was great and I'm barely sore this morning but that being said, I'll for sure do leg work today. 

I got one field done on the wrap.  I'll have to do lots better than that if I want to be done in 10 days!  I watched another two episodes of Louis while knitting and then went to bed early.  I slept well but still I could do with another hour or so.

It's going to be a long day.

Already April!

Despite being mostly bored to death at work, time is certainly flying by.  I cannot believe it's April already!  But the weather took a turn last night and it's cold cold cold this morning!  On the way home from the Transit Center yesterday evening there was a magnificent thunder storm.  I had to stop at the store for a couple of ingredients for dinner and by the time I got home the storm had mostly blown over.  Poor little Tink was waiting right at the door when I walked in.  She hates loud noises.  Even the popping of a champagne corks scares her, so thunder is really bad.  She bounced back and we had a nice little walk.  She's rabbit hunting now, since they are back.  I've only seen one a couple of times, but pretty soon they will be all over the neighborhood and she'll be tracking like a bloodhound. 

Sometime ago I came across a packet of lettuce wrap seasoning and I picked it up, thinking it would make a nice different dinner.  That's what I cooked last night and it was delicious!  I used ground turkey instead of chicken or pork.  I got a fresh butter lettuce and made a little rice.  Seriously, it was astonishingly good!  I had fresh cilantro to chop for garnish, which adds a lot to it.  You put peanuts, chopped carrots, onion and water chestnuts in with the sauce and meat.  Oh, it's making my mouth water just to think about it.  That's going to be a staple, for sure!  And just think how nice it'll be when I can use fresh lettuce from the garden. *IF* I get lettuce going this year.  With all of the wildlife around, I suspect it's going to be a challenge.

Last night, as I was catching up with Louie on Netflix in preparation for the new season starting April 9, I got over the half way mark and did another beaded field on my Spring Fusion wrap.  I am hoping I can get some good knitting in this weekend.  I've got to have the wrap done by the weekend of the 10th so I can block it if I want to take it with me on the trip.  I don't have anything much going on this weekend.  I would like to get out in the garden and prune the hydrangea trees and bushes, and I need to clean and wash the truck.  But that's about it.  I know it's Easter but hopefully nobody will decide to have a fancy lunch and I can have Sunday to relax and knit.  That's what I want.