Way out in the Middle of Nowhere

My right hand/wrist has been swollen and achy now for over a week. It's an aggrivation of an old injury that won't get better until I stop using the stupid hand as much as I do. So...distraction will come in the guise of a giraffe. " Mango the Giraffe from KnitPicks.com Knitting " Go get a copy of your pattern today. I'm working on Mango's head right now..slowly.

Every day we drive down the same road to our home. This road goes up and over hills, through fields of hay and corn and soybeans and then into a stand of trees. For the last month or so, I've seen these large nests way up high in the trees about 200 yards back from the road. Now screaming down the country road at 60 miles per hour, there's not a whole lot of time to get a real good look at these birds. From the passenger side of the van, I knew they were big, with long legs and neck and were dark. The nests looked huge and were perched on the top of what looked like ancient oaks. Today I decided to walk the 1/2 mile over to this stand of trees to take a picture of this mysterious bird. It's been nagging me; what in the heck is this bird? I took along my husband's expensive, but so worth it Nikon camera and the telephoto lens. Hey, he spent some of his retirement on the gear, so who am I to argue? It's still so worth the $ he spent! The big damned birds are Hero...

This pattern was in the Beadwork magazine in the Feb/Mar 2011 issue. It was so intriguing that I hunted down the issue and then got the beads to make the bangle. Mine is more of a bracelet, since the bead shop didn't have enough of the magatma beads to make it longer. It was my first ever attempt at making a beadwork bracelet. Oh sure, I flirted with a bead loom in my younger years, but only made a small thing. The pattern was well written and I managed to figure it out by myself. If you're wanting to do this for yourself, I would recommend getting out some plastic clay to seat the first row in while working on the 2nd row. It keeps things from moving around so you don't have to feel like you need 5 more hands to get it off the ground.

Sometimes it is good to find a focus and stick with it until it works. A few weeks ago, my friend Sue and I were reminiscing about good Jewish food. That got me thinking about Challah - that wonderful braided bread made around Passover. Wouldn't ya know it, but Passover is this next week! So I've taken one day each week to attempt to perfect my recipe for Challah. The first few tries were uh....tragic. Not enough flour led to something that looked like a pie crust and too much yeast led to something that resembled a 9 x 13 brown rectangle. The last few have been more successful. This last one was made entirely by hand and tasted very good: not too sweet, yeasty with great chewiness. That is what it looked like after the first rising and before the next rising. Like the 95 year old pan? I swear, it's from my Grandmother's stash. It very well could be 95 years old! The last Challah will be made for Thursday. Perhaps I will find another focus. I'm thinking somethi...

Random stuff. Why? because I can: 1. I've got asthma. Had it for over 30 years. It's biggest triggers are cold air and exercise. Pushing a car out of a snow bank has almost killed me once. 2. I've never watched a reality show. Survivor? American Idol? Big Brother? Bachelor? any of those I've never seen. And yet....I still live. How weird is that? 3. I've never seen an episode of Sex in the City nor Desperate Housewives either. Still living too! 4. I wear socks like 99% of the time. My feet are almost always cold. 5. I use handkerchiefs regularly. I'm probably the last woman who does so. 6. I read abnormally fast. I've read 700+ page books in one week. I'm glad for ebooks now, because I would not buy books with less than 300 pages. It just wasn't cost effective for me. 7. I think that apple cinnamon toaster strudel is crack in a box. I can eat the whole box in one sitting. 8. I speak English, French, Spanish and am learning Italian. My next goals ...

My friend Sue, or as we call her Cashmere Sue suggested a book for me to read a few weeks ago: The Name of The Wind by Patrick Rothfuss. Mr. Rothfuss is a Wisconsin Boy, a true Browncoat, and a great writer. I recommend the book. And when you're done with the 700+ pages, read the next one. A Wise Man's Fear is just out. I am a confessed speed-reader: I finished the first book in a week. I am now on 350 or so of the 1100 pages of the 2nd book. They are fast reads as a book goes. The story is linear, which is so unlike some of the other Fantasy novels I've read that have so many story lines going on at one time that it is difficult to keep track. *and YES, that means YOU, Terry Goodkind!* And for a picture? There's gotta be a picture, right? Um.... "Hot tub bunnies" From Last Year's Easter.

Ok, so I had a bit of a familial meltdown earlier. It was over 2 weeks overdue. Now I am back to my old self, working and reading odd stuff on the 'net. I have to share though, my time-consuming project. Over the last few months I've been slowly working on a custom-order for 60 bags. They are all the same fabric, all small KIPs and all going to one very lucky group going to Maryland Sheep & Wool festival from Pennsyvania. They will be enjoying these! I've been keeping them secret so that the knitters will be surprised when they get them. I have to do my touchdown dance, though. I am finished sewing them! Now they all get their strings and the final check before shipping. But I'm done sewing!!! And..I'll be getting more of this fabric for regular customers to the shop. It's just too cool not to!