Promises, promises

I said I'd post some about my last trip to Texas.  Sorry for making you wait; I know y'all are just about to turn blue holding your breath for this one.  This trip was about as spur of the moment as it's possible for me, since it started with the airline reservation being changed the day after I bought the tickets.  I did have the sense to ask for a wheelchair at check-in -- it's only about a 2 mile walk from the check-in to the gate!  Much nicer to ride that distance, and my assistant got a pre-boarding pass for me, too.  While sitting at the gate, I rewound the Shibui Sock (light green, sorry don't have the ball band handy).  I usually don't do a lot of people watching, but did see two young boys traveling alone (separately).  I showed them some Fuzzhogs, and they each took one.  I had cast on and knit the first few rows of my Jadeite Color Affection, when it was time to board.  After getting situated on board, before takeoff, I took a pic of the shawl.

I think that's about eight rows in.  I knit a bit, and gave away another Fuzzhog, and just before landing I had this much done:

Yes, I had to hang it on the tray table latch to get a picture.  Couldn't do that now!  I have eight of the twelve contrast color A stripes done.  If you've knit this puppy you know where I am.   So, I landed in Austin a little early due to a terrific tailwind.  I had packed all I needed into the medium size luggage, and set that down inside the large size, so really only had one bag to wrangle off the carousel.  And I got help with that -- if you're wagging a cane folks want to help.  I figure that's only right, so I let them.  Sis showed up in Memaw's car (Memaw doesn't drive anymore, thank goodness!), with the Peerless T!  My how that girl has grown up.  She helped her ma get the luggage in the trunk, and accepted a Fuzzhog.  (Are we tired of these silly things yet?)  The three of us went to The Egg & I for lunch, then picked up Pup at his new digs.  Then it was on to the house.  I had a wonderful surprise there, as my brother and sister-in-law had come from Oklahoma to spend a few hours.  I hadn't seen them in several years, so this was a treat.  SIL looks great, she's lost a lot of weight.  Bro is still more or less bear-shaped.  I didn't ask if they objected to seeing their faces on here, so you won't see them.  So, there we were, the three surviving siblings & dear old Pup.  I can't think that there will a lot more such occasions; Pup has dementia and I have my health conditions, so I guess it's a toss up as to which of might shuffle off first.  Well, we had a nice visit, but Bro & SIL had to go home.  Before leaving Bro passed on something our nephew had told him about wanting another puppy.  Nephew had arranged to go to a breeder for a pup, and when he arrived the breeder said there was a second pup available if he wanted it.  So Nephew calls the wife, and gets the skinny, she telling him "It goes puppy, BABY, puppy".  So I guess they're "gettin busy" so he can get another puppy!  Love it!
There was a pool party planned for Peerless and her classmates, and I think 4 or 5 little girls showed up.  Mr. Sis grilled a nice batch of burgers & dogs, and we had sides too.  Pup & Memaw stayed inside, and I stayed with them.  After the party & dinner both our elders went to their respective homes, and when Mr. Sis got back we all just deflated and went to bed.
Sunday after breakfast, Sis & I "retired" to her second closet (!!).  She is a professional, and really works at looking the part.  Piecing together this story, Sis had been trying to lose a good bit of weight, while still wearing her same old wardrobe.  Eventually, some weight came off and these clothes started hanging on her -- not the look she wanted!  At this point she was pretty close to the size I am now, and really tired of wearing old clothes.  So she went shopping, as only Sis the Super Shopper can, buying a lot of clothes but rarely paying more than 50% retail for any of them.  And she was buying nice clothes, Charter Club and various designer names.  Anyway, she started wearing her new wardrobe, believing she'd be wearing these things for a while based on the long slow process she'd been thru to lose weight.  However, as sometimes happens, she suddenly lost about 20 lbs, and then over about a month lost another 10.  And she was back to baggy clothes!  Unacceptable!!  So, she sorted all these too-big clothes into the second closet, meaning to take a lot of them to work to sell to other ladies there.  Then she found out I was to visit!  So for four hours Sunday, we had a marathon sizing session in her closet.  I was in and out of pieces one right after another for four freaking hours.  But  now I have a nearly new wardrobe; actually, some of the blouses still had tags on them.   Two big moving boxes of clothes just arrived via FedEx on Friday last.  I'm going to have to refigure how I'll be storing the yarn stash, since I'll need the closet in the the front bedroom for my own second closet!   I am just thrilled, what a nice gift from my Sis, with whom I used to get so angry because she would raid my closet!  Sis and I figured that with what she gave me and my own puny wardrobe, I could go to work for 250 days (about a year) without repeating an outfit there.  So, if you've been paying attention, you've seen the first 3 weeks of that process here.  I'm gonna need a spreadsheet, I think.
One thing quickly became clear: I needed some better bras!  And appropriate bling to wear with my "new" duds!  On Tuesday, Sis & I went shopping, Sis-style.  First we hit Hancock Fabrics for supplies needed for (oh noes!) more Fuzzhogs -- I'm commissioned to produce one for each of the cheerleaders at Miss A's school.  More on that later.  Then we went to TJ Maxx for some padded push-up bras so I be a sexy Mama.  While there we picked up some bling.  Then we went to the Clothes Mentor for more bling.  I need to call those folks, and tell them that Nashville needs them!   What fun!  Check out these pics (sorry, cell phone & night time shots -- bleh!):

Some of these items came from Savers, which we did not visit until Saturday just before my flight home.  The Plaidman hung up an accordion-style hanger to hold these in the master bedroom, and it looks like an art installation.  

Well, it sounds like dinner may appear soon, so I'll close this & come back to my travelogue in another post.  

Kicking off the 250 Workday Outfits Challenge!

As promised, this post kicks off my self-challenge to put together 250 different outfits for work, from the huge wardrobe my sweet Sis has given me, plus my own puny closet.  I've decided that weekly posts with pics of the past week's fashions will be the way to go.  Now, this first week I was using trousers from my own collection, as most of Sis' are too long and I haven't had time to do any hemming.  So, in the following pics, the blouses are all from Sis' closet, with some of the new "bling" from the Clothes Mentor (seriously, can we get one of those in Nashville, please?) and from Savers, both in Austin.  This week, all the pictures are taken after work (because no one will get up early enough to take them before I leave in the morning), in front of our house.
Monday:  My grey East 5th poly-rayon trousers paired with a Notations Woman 3/4 sleeve striped blouse, with a Savers necklace of red, green, blue & brown beads and charms on doubled nylon cord. I wore my trusty plummy-brown pointy-toed fabric heels (ancient!) and carried a dark royal blue bag.

I have just a couple of pictures of each outfit, and I have been trying everything I have available on our home system to get these $^&#$ things to load in here upright.  They were all rotated & saved, edited for brightness, cropped (why my photogs can't get closer, I have no clue...), resized and saved, then compressed and saved -- all to (almost) no avail.  This first one is the only one I've been able to move into this format looking the same way as it's stored.  So...just tilt your head to the right, for the close up of the blouse below.
ETA: just remembered (was reminded) that these can be edited in Picasa.  Ta-Da!!

Tuesday, Day 2, sees me in a lovely "leopard" print with tiny silvery brads on the neckline trim -- no need for a necklace! -- by XCLUSIVE.  The tan stretch trousers by Westbound Woman still look good, after being in the rotation for about 3 years.  My black "shooties" by B0RN have boot-style top stitching,  The purse is a Rosetti belted bag in caramel.  Wow, I look remarkably fresh for having worked a full day...

Wednesday, Day 3, was for floral-like colors -- I actually think of Monet's flowers when I look at this blouse.  It's a Liz Claiborne Woman sheer, with its own deep purple camisole.  The slacks are my navy East 5th, the necklace is a very long silvery chain with blue & aqua stations and tiny rhinestone charms, worn doubled.  The purse is light blue leather, bought at Goody's in Springfield, and doesn't seem to have a brand name on it.  A.a.a.and we're back to sideways pictures.  Good grief.

It's late, and my brain is getting tied into knots with these stupid sideways pictures.  If they're stored & saved 18 times upright, how the heck are they uploading sideways?  Well, I'm just going to put the pics here and try to revise them tomorrow.

Thursday, 4th day, Lee Relaxed Fit twill trousers with a Jaclyn Smith semi-sheer rayon blouse, in an unusual "camo" print that almost looks floral.  The colors are tan and brown, leaf & olive green, and cream.  I paired these with my light brown strapped "shooties", and a tan purse.  The necklace is from the Clothes Mentor, looks Anthropologie-inspired, fake ivory and bronzey chains. 

Day 5 Friday at last!  We have Casual Day at work, and we can wear jeans.  So these are my skinny jeans, with a soft green Verve top, with a nice deep scoop neck,  Love this necklace, one Sis spotted and brought to my attention, at...I think it was Clothes Mentor again.  The sandals are antiques, and used to be my mother's.  Proof that taking care of leather shoes is worth the time spent.

The purse is a fun fake croc, in aqua, with lots of room inside.  I actually used it as my "carry-on" bag when I flew to Texas, stuffed with knitting and other important stuff.  I will go into more detail about the fun times there, in the next post.  Right now, I need to become horizontal for about nine hours.  

That wraps the first installment of the great 250 Workday Outfits Challenge!  Goodnight, Gracie.

6/22/15  I've been playing with these pics in Picasa, so some are now almost "ok".

Discuss among yourselves

Hello Hokitka.  Hello whomever reads this in San Antonio; wish you'd comment!  I really like San Antonio a lot, been there several times and always find some fun. 
The Peerless Bunny Hop has been shipped off to its new owner & intended recipient, Princess T.  I sent it inside another gift for her (& for Sis, sort of), a storage bench that is, if not spot on, a really close match for the off-white furnishings of the Princess' room.  See, I usually sleep in her room when I visit -- it's full of toys, and some nice girly furniture, but the bed is super high (I'm only 5'1") and unsuitable for seating, and the only chairs are all tiny kids' chairs with the seats about 1' from the floor.  It's kinda hard for a "traditionally built" gal to use those chairs while trying to get into her trousers or socks & shoes.  So...I bought a sturdy storage bench for T's room.  Shipping cost about two thirds again the price of the item, but it  was quite a bit less than the Postal Service wanted. 
The Plaidman has been under the weather since mid February, having been hospitalized twice and had two procedures.  Dog, he's just falling apart since he retired!  And couldn't wait on this mess until his Medicare starts....oh well.  I think he's finally getting serious about his diet, at least.  Nothing like being kept fasting for long periods, with a threat of liquid diet only after, to make you think about what you put in your mouth! 
Hopefully, DiscoDame will be attending a job fair this afternoon.  Let's all think good thoughts for both her & The Plaidman, please. 

Fly Girl

My Darlings,
If you do not hear from me for a few days, do not despair!  For on the morrow, I depart for the wilds of South Texas (Behar County, y'all) to reside in the bosom of my family, or what's left of it.  I have handknit gifts for the Princess, Miss A, and Sis.  I'll carry along Pup's Steelers socks, so he can see what progress I've made; also I expect there will be plenty of knitting time for me this week so I might actually get thru the  &*%$$^ heel -- which is all black with black reinforcing nylon.  It's enough to make my dry eyes really tired.  But I'm hoping there will be lots of daylight to knit by, always very helpful when knitting tiny dark stitches. 
Miss A's gift hasn't been photographed yet.  I used the Elegant Alpaca Fingerless Gloves pattern, but only worked three repeats of the lace -- I wasn't sure how far my partial skein of Debbie Stoller's Stitch Nation Alpaca Love (Dusk colorway -- deep purple!) would go.  As it turns out, I probably could have worked one more repeat on each glove -- but oh well!  I have found some more of this yarn online, and expect delivery soon (likely while I'm gone to Texas), which I'd like to use for leg warmers for Miss A. 
While I'm visiting San Antonio (love that town!  and they love Volunteers, too: the Alamo is right downtown) I'm going to check out the Yarnivore yarn shop, which is on (near?) NW Military Dr.  I've read some good reviews of this shop, in Ravelry, and would like to visit & review myself.  Of course, I'll see the Riverwalk again, and maybe a museum or two.  Should be fun.  Then it's off to Austin, to see the gals there & deliver their gifts in person (be still, my heart!).  I may even make it there on the Princess' birthday!  Woot! 

Hey, guys! I got pictures!

Oh, I had such a terrific time in Texas back in October -- didn't really do a whole lot, but relax! First, I have to show you my gorgeous niece in her fabulous lace beret:

Is she gorgeous, or what?!?!? She's very bright, plays the cello, and is just the nicest young gal you could hope to meet. And proved her "knit-worthiness" by wearing this beret almost the whole time I was visiting; I think she took it off to sleep & bathe, but that was it. The younger niece, Princess T, wanted a hat too. I had a ball of K1C2 Ty-Dy sock yarn with me, and access to Ravelry--so started a beret based on the Feather & Fan aka Old Shale pattern. Had some issues with it, didn't try to get it done while I was there, but frogged & restarted it once I was home. It's turned out well. Voila!:

I had quite a bit of yarn left, so I'm whipping up some itty fingerless mitts for the Princess:

And, taking an idea from Knucks in Knitty, I will embroider the right mitt with "PRIN" and the left with "CESS" -- which should make her mother crazy.
I did visit Hill Country Weavers, down on Congress in Austin, and took a picture or three:

Yes, I bought some from the clearance section (the first pic) and I bought a ball of this lace yarn, which I haven't seen since -- Sis is supposed to be mailing this stuff to me; I hope it gets home soon! I mentioned sitting in on a class, that didn't seem to really be a class so much as a sit-n-stitch, and here are the ladies of the class (if any of you see yourselves, please give me a holler--I'd love to know who you are!):

Well, we had a lovely visit, and I really should write another thank-you note. I've sent one to Sis already, but her Mum-In-Law, my "other" Betty, was kind enough to spend part of the Saturday with me--we two went to the neighborhood's Garage-A-Palooza yard sale! Most streets in this large (& well-to-do!) neighborhood had several yard sales in progress; we just cruised around until we saw several close together, then jumped out & visited all of 'em. I picked up several cashmere sweaters for pennies, practically! I don't think they'll fit me, but they can be unravelled & the yarn put to other uses. I bought some purses, and some earrings too. All in all, it was a splendid haul for very little $. Thanks, Betty Too!

Oh well (deep subject!)

I was studying the pictures of her Austin visit, on the Yarn Harlot's blog. I'd let Sis & Miss A & MeMaw & even BIL Steve know that she'd be coming to their home territory. I can't find either Sis or Miss A in the Harlot's photos, so maybe they didn't make it there. Too bad, Stephanie's such a fun speaker.
Sunday I finished the knitting on Princess T's lace beret, and tried it on -- it appeared to be more of a beanie than a beret. Last evening, I washed it and blocked it on one of our huge dinner plates--and I think it will actually be a beret! Success! I have quite a bit of the yarn left, so would like to make a pair of fingerless mitts for Princess T, to match the beret. And I will get a pic of the beret blocking.

Home on the range

Ah, back in Texas! I've been at Sis' house for a few days, just unwinding & playing with her "foster" dog. And knitting, of course. Miss A has received her lace beret, and was gobsmacked with it. I think she's worn it three days straight now. Her classmates are also gobsmacked; they should be so lucky as to have knitting aunties. Sis used to teach at the Austin School for the Deaf, so she made up a sign for Auntie Ann; I will have to see if I can get it on video for Plaid Patrol. Miss A's little sib, Princess T, may have been struck green-eyed with envy of the fab hat. So now I'm knitting her a lace beret as well, although it's considerably simpler in design (& hopefully a lot faster in execution!) than Miss A's.
I took a field trip to South Congress, to visit Hill Country Weavers! I'll have some photos of that later. I found some lovely yarn, and sat in on a sit 'n stitch -- which was supposed to be knitting lessons, only everyone there looked quite competent. I had all of 90 minutes there, so made the best of it. South Congress has a lot of fun-looking shops, and the St. Vincent de Paul Thrift Shop -- none of which I got to see this time, but I'll remember them for next time. Well, I'm on Sis' laptop, & not sure how to load up my photos here, so I'll close by saying "stay tuned".

Fast but not so furious

My holiday knitting may be outta hand: just figured out the work currently on the needles includes 3 pairs of fingerless mitts, 2 pairs of slippers, and 2 pairs of socks. This doesn't include anything currenty in "hibernation", like the Lorna's Laces stole or the bamboo tank top, or the red sweater that just needs to be seamed up, or the tiny stealth novelties (need at least 3 more knitted, then all felted). However, I've heard from Sis that she's used the latte jacket (tall enough to cover a Starbucks grande, felted, crocheted buttons applied--finished ON HER BIRTHDAY while she was getting her highlights!). She loves it. I'm tickled. I must get started on the girls' bracelet bags ala CAP. When? Your guess is as good as mine...

DiscoDame & I went to Cheekwood on Saturday, to see the Chihuly glass sculptures. Dingbats that we are, we left our camera at home. Now, that wouldn't have been a problem if all the glassworks were indoors, as photography is prohibited in the museum proper. But most of them were outside in the gardens! So we had to run into the gift shop & pick up one of those one-time cameras. We used all 27 shots, then I filled my phone's camera memory and she just about filled hers, and we still wanted to take more pics. You see, in addition to the beautiful glass, there was a Dio De Los Muertos festival going on -- including Aztec and Spanish dancers, lots of folks in costume, a Mexican market, parades, crafts, whew! We were there fore about 3.5 hours, just wore ourselves down to little nubs. After all that, we couldn't face cooking our own dinner, so we went to Dalts & had the special. Anyway, the pictures on the one-time camera aren't on a memory disk, our computer's CD player/reader is borked, and I don't have the equipment to move pics from the phone camera into the computer. So there's no telling when I'll be able to show any of them on the blog. Just imagine Disco & I having an absolutely wonderful carefree day, with lots of walking around a extremely interesting site, and the two of us getting along so well!!
11/20 ETA TO ADD PICTURES (FINALLY!!)

Why yes, I did crochet her shawl. More pics later.

*Pack; repeat from * (with apologies to Franklin)

I started packing last night, for the trip to Texas. I nearly knocked down DiscoDame at least 4 times -- small house, big gal running around crazy trying to gather gear, and Disco trying to play with the cats -- it was a madhouse. Only the cats have sense enough to stay outta my way!
I've got all the thumb gusset stitches held on a length of yarn, and about two more rounds done after, on second of the black mitts:

* * * * * * * * *
And I have such a lovely model: DiscoDame wears my printed scarves very well, don't you think?

WOOT!

I'm going to Texas this weekend! My sister has a birthday (so does my brother, but I don't think we'll see him), and I've got handknits for her & her "brood". I may be able to watch the Pittsburgh game with my Dad, shades of long-ago childhood. And I won't have to cook or clean for at least 4 days...I hope I can pack enough of my knitting to keep me busy. I have 5 pairs of fingerless mitts finished, and one of a pair done with the mate about half done. This pair is special: they are my own design, and my first test knitting of that design. If it all works out (I plan to knit it again in a different size, so will write that size as an option in the pattern), I'd like to ask another knitter I know if she'd test knit it--just to be sure the instructions are clear enough for a knitter who doesn't live in my head, as it were. And if the instructions are clear, I'll put the pattern here and link to Ravelry! But I really have so much to do before then: Sis' handknit needs to be fulled completely (enough so that I can cut it if it's not the right size--I'm pretty sure it's bigger than needed!), and I have to start filling all my 3 oz bottles, and figuring out what to wear in Austin, and what knitting to pack & what to carry on, and whether I should take the interchangeable needle set only or pack a bunch of sock needles too...all before 6 am Friday. Travel is so enlightening.

Home again, home again

I'm ba-a-ack! The Plaid Patrol returned to base this past Wednesday, from the great state of Texas. We were there almost a week! ALL of us! My poor sister, bless her, mortgaged the farm (practically!) at WalMart just to feed us all. She had her troop (BIL & the nieces two), the Plaid Patrol (Plaidman, Boss Lady & DiscoDame) and the patriarch himself (aka Pup) for dinner Thursday thru Saturday. Pup left for San Antonio after breakfast Sunday; he was a little antsy about leaving Mrs. W alone for so long. We didn't play tourist, but boyoboy DiscoDame (chronological age 26, going on 7) sure did play with her cousins! The three of them were joined at the hip almost the whole time. This gave Sis some time to get a few things done, since she didn't have to entertain the 4 year old (aka Princess T). So we sorta vegetated...which may be just what we needed. The Plaidman smoked his VERY LAST cigarette while backing the car out of the driveway, on the way to the airport! He'd equipped himself with some Commit lozenges; he's officially been a non-smoker for 8 days now! Start the fireworks! Well, maybe not. The nieces weren't too sure what to make of Uncle Plaidman; he wasn't saying much since he had a lozenge in his mouth most of the time, and was trying to keep his hands busy by working on a crossword puzzle book. He got his props though: Sis found a toy castle she'd bought years ago for the older girl, that had never been assembled--but Uncle Plaidman got to work & soon the girls had a second castle playset! That same afternoon one of Sis' clients came by the house for a treatment, with her own two little (about 3 yrs & 5 yrs) girls in tow. The five girls (you're keeping up? no? ok, two nieces 4 & 11, two visitors 3 & 5, and DiscoDame!) were all on the floor playing. How cute!
Probably the most interesting part of the visit, for me, was going to Sis' salon for a treatment. She's got a skin care salon, which is so tiny that it looks like a large closet with it's own exterior entrance. I have visible capillaries, and she treated them with a tiny electric current. There was a little pain, but I can definitely see a difference. And this is one of the few "defects" in my appearance that I've always thought I'd do something about if I had the money--only I didn't need money! Sis said she normally charges about $300 (US) for the treatment I got, for free. Next time I visit, we'll treat a few more of 'em.
Monday, Sis & the nieces carried the Plaid Patrol down to San Antonio, where we met up with Pup. Then we all went to El Mercado/Market Square, and had a terrific lunch at Mi Tierra, followed by a cruise through the Market (shopping!!) and then Sis & her family went back to Austin. Pup took the Plaid Patrol back to his house, where we all went back to vegetable mode. Tuesday, Pup & I visited with Mrs. W, then he went back to his house (two doors away!), collected the rest of the Plaid Patrol & his car, and we all went out to the Olive Garden for lunch. After lunch, we went to the San Antonio Shoe factory outlet, which is a fun destination even if you're not shoe shopping. They have a little "country store" & gift shop within the outlet, and outside they've got a fabulous collection of antique cars & trucks. I'm wearing my new shoes right now...and Plaidman wore his to work yesterday & today. DiscoDame got some nice black sandals, sort of semi-dressy. I have no idea why she thought she needed them. Anyway, we dropped Mrs. W at her home & pretty much returned to slumping, with intermittent packing. Wednesday saw us out the door by about 7:15 to catch a flight just after 10 a.m., and here we are all safe at home.