I Could Write a Book (Harry Connick, Jr. version)

It's been a little while since I blogged. It's been a bit crazy here as it always is. Somehow I always manage to make my life barely controlled chaos. And while it's different chaos since I retired from the private practice of law, I'm feeling like I need to take it down a notch again. We'll see how that works for me. Ha, haha, ha.

Anyway in fiber news, I finished lining Kat's wedding purse that I designed and knit in a white cotton. I double lined it so that none of the rough seam edges are exposed either on the inside of the purse or on the outside lace surface, and I used a ribbon with wire it it as a draw string, so that she could arrange the bow in anyway she wants.

I also finished the two helmet liners that I promised Lori A for her husband's deployment. Thanks also to Donna D for sending me one that she had done earlier also. I gave all of them to Lori A and she said if her husband couldn't use them all, he'd pass them on to people who could.

Alison also finished her green devil hat for her cousin's (?) graduation, which she is modeling here. There's like 4-5 people I can think of making this hat for...hmmm.

Last Friday before Memorial Day weekend, Kat had to bring Kenna to work for a bit as she was out of school due to a case a raging poison ivy or sumac. Kat ended up going to a meeting so I had to supervise Kenna for a bit. It took me a while to take down the decorations in my office after she left. And the joke in the first picture was all Kenna's. She asked me to read the sign for her, (she's a very tall six) and then she posed with out me telling her to do it.

Memorial Day weekend was supposed to be my slug marathon. Sort of didn't really work out that way.  Saturday morning, I received both the yarn for the next round of secret projects and the Pampered Chef items for everyone.  So I spent the day sorting all that out and dividing up yarn for everyone.  I have to say though, if you ever get a chance to get the forged knives from Pampered Chef, get them.  They are wonderful. Really, really fricking sharp though.  I did nick myself unpacking them and putting them away.  On Sunday, I worked on designing my contribution to Sarah A's secret project, went to Sunday knitting guild at Borders to dole out Pampered Chef and secret project yarn and visited with my inlaws as my brother-in-law was home.  Then I headed out to Lora K's for a bit to bring her the breadmaker I had borrowed and her yarn for the aforementioned secret projects. 

I had mentioned to Lora K that I was thinking about buying a breadmaker because of the whole milk thing. (Do you know how hard it is to buy sliced bread without milk in it? Try it, let me know how it goes.)   Lora K let me borrow hers to try to see if I liked it, and I ended up buying a breadmaker as well.  I liked Lora's and I found a really great book with help from Linda D for whole grain breads.  It's called Whole Grain Breads by Machine or Hand, and it has directions for making the bread by hand, with a stand mixer, with a food processor and with a bread machine.  I made the 10 grain bread in the book so far and it was really good. 

I had Monday off for Memorial Day.  Since I had been a loser for the last two months about writing, with the whole milk thing exhaustion going on, I decided that Monday should be a writing marathon day.  I wrote for about 5 and half hours, six hours if you count me cleaning my desk off so I could work.  I wrote the prologue where I have to kill off the main character's sibling.  Then, since originally the main character was an only child, I had to rewrite the rest of it so that the new back story was there.  What surprised me was how upset and grossed out I got, even though I was the one writing it.  And this was a new character, so it wasn't like I was attached.  At this point I have 98 pages and 29,056 words.  The plan for this week is to work on scheduling time to write.  I'm better if I schedule the time, otherwise the current baby wave knitting takes over.

On Wednesday I had knitting guild at the Ewe, and I handed out more secret project yarn and Pampered Chef stuff.  I got to visit with Paula, Fred, Aunt Sue, Alison and Edgar afterward, and I got to have some yummy rhubarb pie.  On Thursday, Lisa E came by to pick up her Pampered Chef stuff and we got to visit for a while. 

This weekend my mother came down for her birthday.  She was early (shocker) and so she got to come to my office and see where I work now and meet Kat and Elaina.  Then we headed back to ManchVegas, picked up my new breadmaker at the office and headed to Yarn and Fiber in Derry to deliver the last of the Pampered Chef and pick up my Lia Sofia earrings from Gina H.  Then it was off to Taipei Tokyo for dinner, since Mom loves it there, and can't get really good Chinese in Maine.  We then came home and made chocolate lava cake for her birthday.  On Saturday we ended up checking out Ocean State Job Lots and we headed up to the Concord Coop to look for a non dairy replacement for nonfat dry milk.  I ended up getting a powered soy milk that I'll try in the bread machine and see how it goes.  

On Saturday, I hit a snag with my part of Sarah A's secret project.  It was using too much yarn.  So I ended up ripping the whole thing up and going up a needle size, which meant regauging and calculating.  But I'm hoping it will work this time.  I have about 4 inches again, and it's looking okay so far.

On Sunday we had a huge turnout at guild at Borders.  I'm not sure what was up with that, but it was good.  Except for the storms and tornado watch thing.  But everything worked out okay, and Shawn got back from Baltimore without a problem.

I also ordered my soda stream. I've been meaning to do it since February, but I finally had the dough to do it.  Since the whole milk allergy thing, I can't drink coffee for my caffeine delivery system.  Well, I can, but I can't stomach the milk replacement products for creamer in place of half and half yet.  Maybe when I've been milk free for six months or so, I won't remember what half and half tastes like and it will be okay.  In the meantime, I'm drinking diet pepsi first thing in the morning and throughout the day.  Plus we have no recycling at the complex (jerks) so this will be better for the environment.  So I got the value pack so I can make the soda and bring it to work as well.  Can't wait to get it.

Lastly, I have a friend that may need a bone marrow transplant shortly.  For any of you reading this, please register to become a donor. You might help save someone you know, and you might help save someone I know.  Here's the link to the American Bone Marrow Donor Registry.  Please consider registering. 

And that's all the news that's fit to print since our last installment.

A busy couple of days....

Well, it's been a little while since I last wrote. I feel like I've been in a whirlwind, but this coming week should be calmer barring any unforeseen catastrophes. I'm knocking on wood as we speak, never fear.


Wednesday evening I cleaned the house as I had a knitting/Pampered Chef party planned at my house on Saturday, and planned the menu for the party. Thursday, I had to get a coffee cake fluted pan for the blueberry nut coffee cake I was going to make, so I picked one up on the way to my friend Alison's as I was headed there to knit. My knitting friends are hilarious. My face is usually tired when I get home from laughing so hard. I got home around 10 pm, which gave me a chance to clean the baby angelfish tank. Friday, I came home, went grocery shopping, picked up Vietnamese takeout at the Golden Bowl, vacuumed, did dishes and laundry. So, no major progress on any fronts except some net knitting at Alison's. (In our knitting group, net knitting means additional progress including any amounts ripped out. For example, if you knit 3 inches, but then have to rip out 4 inches, no net knitting occurred).


Saturday was the day of the party. There was knitting of course, and both Alison and I demo'd Pampered Chef recipes. My mom came down from Maine for it and to spend the night. In addition to the blueberry nut coffee cake, I made a rotisserie chicken in the Ronco Showtime Pro Rotisserie (I know it looks lame on TV, but I love that thing!!) and then used it to make a chicken and broccoli pastry wreath. I wish I took a picture, it was so awesome! Lora and Donna asked for the recipe, and it was really pretty easy to do, while looking fabulously gourmet. (Yes, I'm emailing the directions to you both later tonight). We also had some lovely fruit, as Alison tested out her new Pineapple Peeler/Corer. Alison made a fabulous coconut macaroon brownie pizza. It was so good! I also got to see some knitters I had not in a while, although it made me feel horrifically old. Liz and Mary, who are a mother daughter pair of knitters, took a class with me when I first started teaching at the Elegant Ewe somewhere in 1998 roughly. Liz was 14 then. She's now married...you can see how ancient this makes me feel. Also we had entertainment, as the angelish decided to spawn again during the party. I have another 200 eggs, the little aquatic rabbits.

After the party was over, since Mom had not seen the new wheels yet, we took it out for a drive and went to the Rockingham Mall. Given the disastrous state of colors available (everything appears to be orange, brown or teal, none of which I ever wear, unless I want to imitate a corpse), I bought two shirts for Shawn and some socks for me. Mom also bought socks. It was not a productive trip.


Today Mom and I hung out for a while and then I dragged her off to Goodale's bike shop in Hooksett to "look at" bikes. I ended up coming home with a Trek 7200 in eggplant. I spent a bit more than I wanted too, but the bike fit me, it was comfortable and it was purple! How could I not? I did have them put fenders on it though. I'm not into any type of splatter. I also got a doo-hicky that tells me my mph, has an odometer, and has a trip counter, temperature and time on it. After we got back, Mom headed back to Maine, and I headed up to the Borders in Concord for guild. I was pretty late, but I did get an hour of knitting in on the jacket I'm designing for Jen's daughter in New Zealand.

After guild, I met Shawn at his parents' house for dinner. It worked out pretty well, because his dad gave Shawn his old mountain bike, so now Shawn and I can ride together! Shawn is not terribly enthusiastic about the prospect, but it'll be good for him :) And if I can't cajole him into doing it, at least I can ride by myself, and we didn't spend any thing on his bike (other than getting it tuned up for him). Although I have to say, I'm pretty good at cajoling Shawn! I got home too late to try the new bike for a nice long ride, but I'm looking forward to tomorrow night after work.

I also I cleaned the baby tank tonight. There are 3 baby fish left from the first batch I tried to save, 2 left from the second batch, and now 200 eggs in the baby tank. They don't have great survival rates, but I swear I am not going to raise baby brine shrimp to feed these things.

Well, that's the blow by blow up to the minute. I am looking forward to finishing cleaning up the office reorganization this week, getting a writing schedule together, and riding the bike.