Just a quickie

Finally got a circulation notice from the library, seems my requested copy of Pride and Prejudice is ready for pick-up at the branch library ... which is closed on Fridays. I stopped in there last evening on the way home, hoping to find it, but no luck. Guess what I'm doing tomorrow! Library first, then grocery shopping. Then knitting, and more knitting. I must get started on the mitts for my KAL.

Lost and Found

I found my notebook! I got to wondering where my laceweight yarn was, and dug thru the knitting bag (in my house, every bag is a kntting bag) that I'd carried to Texas. Lo & behold, yada yada, there's the yarn snuggling with my notebook. So I couldgive you all the minute & finite details, but I'd rather we still be friends. Some highlights may be in order: I did knit in the airport, after checking my elaborately painted bag with the skycaps. The luggage painting was something I picked up somewhere on the web, as a way to tell my black fabric rolling luggage from a zillion other black fabric rolling bags. Worked really well, too! And several people at the luggage claim found it both amusing & a good idea. Sis came to pick me up, without the rest of the family -- we got a little "sibs only" time on the drive out to Chez Sis. There we found Miss T still napping, before her ballet class. After the class, several of her classmates came to the house for a puppet show (in which they were the performers -- not a one of 'em over 4 yrs old!) and a pizza luncheon. I couldn't get Miss T to pose for me in her leotard & tutu before all the young ladies changed into street clothes.
**

Image via Wikipedia

Miss T actually spoke to me! Last year she was too shy; I stayed in "her" house for five days and she spoke to me once about 5 minutes before I had to leave. This trip, she called me Auntie Ann immediately, and talked a blue streak. Too cute! But she's still a bit of a wild child, at least a willful one! If her Momma tells her "no", she sticks her tongue out! Miss A would have wilted, if she'd been disciplined at that age. These girls are so very different, nearly polar opposites in their personalities. A is a thoughtful, quiet & biddable young lady, as well as being pretty doggone bright. Miss T is willful, energetic, wildly imaginative, and still a bit of a wriggler. Plus, at about 1/3 of her sister's age she weighs about half what Miss A does, even though getting her to sit still long enough to get some food into her is problematic.

I decided to keep the trips up & down the stairs to a minimum this time. So, next morning, I bathed & dressed before going down to breakfast. I was sitting at the kitchen counter/island, having a terrific breakfast of eggs, bagel, clementine, bacon, MORE bacon, juice, coffee...and watching the beta cruise (this had to be the slowest fish in Texas) around his little bowl. I'm a bit surprised at what I took to be a weird fishbowl ornament: it looked like a scorpion laying at the bottom of the bowl. So I asked Sis about it (she was cooking the breakfast); turns out it actually WAS A SCORPION in there, quite drowned. Sis fished it out, & put it in a zip-loc type snack bag; Miss A collects interesting dead bugs. But how the heck did it get into Mr. Beta's bowl? and did the "agressive" Mr. Beta have anything to do with the scorpion's drowning? We'll never know.....and hey, welcome to Texas!

Ok, fast forward two days: Misses A & T, Sis & I all head over to Bluebonnet Yarn Shoppe (www.bluebonnetyarn.com)to outfit Miss A with the essentials she'll need to knit up some cotton washcloths. I'd been on Ravelry earlier, printing off some good basic washcloth patterns. I think washcloths are a great start for a new knitter, since they're so small & quick to finish -- unlike scarves, which can take a looooong time to finish.
Washcloths are knitter instant gratification, just the kind of encouragement the new knitter needs. Anyway, we invaded the Bluebonnet & had a great time picking out some (4 hanks!) cotton yarns, needles in two sizes, and a few other oddments. Our proprietress (God bless her, I can't recall whether she was a Pat or a Pam!) was helpful, and even let the two girls play with the ball winder. We wound 3 of the hanks, 'coz I wanted to use the last one to show Miss A how to wind a center pull ball by hand. Didn't actually get around to that, but that's ok. We'll have something to work on next time I visit, which may be this October.

Pup actually asked me to bring the family next time I visit! I sure hope he's warming up to the Plaidman; after all, they've only been in-laws for 31 years+11 months+18 days. Yes, the countdown to anniversary #33 has begun. And the two of them have something in common (besides their undying love & adoration of moi, that is): the Plaidman has turned 60 recently, and officially joined the ranks of the old farts. I'm married to an Old Fart. Oh joy.

The family has been out on an expedition to Wally World, and DiscoDame has just called to let me know they're on the way home. I told her I was blogging, and she wanted me to announce (drumroll, please) that she has an internship! in her field of study (web design)! and that henceforth & until she decides otherwise her new superhero identity is THE INTERN. So I've gotta remember that. Wish me luck.

Speak of the devil

Well, I went stash diving a few minutes ago, looking for the laceweight yarn I'd worked with in Texas. I just thought I'd get a photo. Guess what else was in the bag with the yarn...my notebook. I need to clean more often.

We have been busy lately, went out & got DiscoDame a new mattress & box spring set. Her choice, of course. Then we went to Big Lots & found her a bed frame, which we let her choose. She's got under bed storage in the form of two drawers under a platform bed. When we put both box spring & mattress on it, the top of the bed came up to mid-chest on me. Disco is an inch shorter than I am. Needless to say, she didn't want to feel like the Princess with the Pea.

How to put this...?

YIPPEEE!!! The Plaidman's been called back to work!! Break out the Champale, folks; this news calls for a celebration. That's after the prayers of thanksgiving, of course. So the boss called Plaidman on Tuesday, to ask if he'd be available to work starting Thursday (the start of their workweek--I know, it's odd), then called back a few hours later to say they could really use him on Wednesday. So, his first paycheck will be for one 10-hour day. Just in time to help pay for gas for the chariots; the local BP has regular up to $3.99 US now. I did make a fuel stop early today, & paid $3.59 at Kroger. DiscoDame had her last Friday class of the quarter, and we met up at the WalMart afterwards. We ate lunch at the Subway in the store, I pushed her into a "near" spit-take & almost got sprayed with chip crumbs--we need adult supervision. I hadn't gotten a cart, because I didn't really mean to get anything but one skein of Red Heart yarn. She's got her backpack fulla books, her purse, and a lunch bag (so why did she need to eat at Subway?), & I found my yarn. Then the store waylaid me: I found the thin plastic placemats I wanted (to be cut up into sock blockers!), and then the shoe department ganged up on us, and we came home with two pairs of red patent shoes (look! twins!), 3 placemats, and the skein of yarn. I have a serious love-hate relationship with Wally World. On the way home we spotted a BIG YARD SALE sign, and wound on over to it in the hope that there might be some crafty goodies to be had. Alas, no yarn or other crafty stuff, but they had some new & nearly new dresses in my size. I spent $15 for 3 dresses, which all need to be hemmed but are otherwise just dandy. DiscoDame spent $3, for a long khaki twill skirt, a vest & about four tops, and a nifty tote bag. Now I feel like I should empty some stuff out of my closet. DD says she's already got a sack full that needs to go to Goodwill; I'd like to get up another sack full.

OK, I said I bought some Red Heart, and yes it's a Super Saver. It's the bright white, needed for my Christmas stockings. The progress on the stockings: I now have 50 granny squares about 4.5" on a side, in various combination of red-green-white rounds. That's enough squares for 5 of my big stockings. The next step is to stitch 10 groups of 5 squares together in socky shapes, half with the toe to the right & half with a left toe. I just have to make myself do this, and it ain't happening today. In other craft news, I went to the Sit 'N Stitch last night. I hadn't planned on going, but after work I got to talking with a coworker, and in the midst of our conversation I found myself wringing my hands repeatedly. That sign means I NEED TO KNIT! So I rushed on over to Bliss Yarns, and borrowed a set of needles & some unidentified bulky yarn, and started knitting Aunt Maggie's slippers. It was a good night to be there, as we had a demonstration of the use of a portable Ashford loom, by a really wild & crazy kinda gal--she talked about gamers & DragonCon & other stuff that meant jack to me, but the loom was fascinating. I can so totally see me weaving on a loom; I'd have to research Celtic patterns & figure out what plaid to make for my Plaidman. But if I were to take up another yarny craft right now, I think it would be spinning. One of these days I'll make one of those CD spindles I've seen on the innernets, score me some fiber, & give it a whirl. Stop laughing, I mean it! Anyway, while I'm there anyway, I have a peek at the sale yarns. One of the other knitters (newbie--first time using dpns) came over to the sale section with me, and I pretty much talked her into buying some Karabella laceweight mohair. Sigh. I wanted it, but I have entirely too much mohair on hand as it is; besides, I wanted the Berroco sox yarn, so I got two balls of that and the Magic Loop booklet. So I've totally blown the yarn diet. Oh well. I will master the Magic Loop, and start turning out socks, by golly!