How Will the World Remember You?
A friend of mine tweeted this question today... "How will the world remember you when you're gone?" It gave me food for thought...
To be perfectly honest, I have absolutely no aspirations whatsoever to have "the world" remember me. I will be completely satisfied if a few close friends and family members think of me fondly. Hopefully, those few close friends and family members will have a nice knitted item from me that they can remember me by, paired with some funny memories of fun things we did together.
What about you? Do you wish the world to remember you? Will you be perfectly happy if only a dozen or so people show up for your memorial service, or will you only feel that your life was well lived if hundreds of seats are overflowing with people?
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
A Visit to Cece's House!
I got to hang out with Maggie (um, and her mother, Cece) this past weekend... as soon as I arrived, an adorable sleeping Maggie was deposited in my arms, where she slept and cuddled for quite a long time, actually! Being half the size of Max, she felt small and light and wee. I loved it!
Eventually, she woke up, and I was able to get a couple of pictures of her, including a shot of her in her new Viking hat, knitted up by Yours Truly. She was a bit of a Crabby McCrabbersons during the photo shoot, but still managed to look adorable.
I love that last arty shot of Maggie, don't you? All professional-like.
And, a couple of cutie pictures of her older brother, lovingly referred to as Hulk:
I got to hang out with Maggie (um, and her mother, Cece) this past weekend... as soon as I arrived, an adorable sleeping Maggie was deposited in my arms, where she slept and cuddled for quite a long time, actually! Being half the size of Max, she felt small and light and wee. I loved it!
Eventually, she woke up, and I was able to get a couple of pictures of her, including a shot of her in her new Viking hat, knitted up by Yours Truly. She was a bit of a Crabby McCrabbersons during the photo shoot, but still managed to look adorable.
I love that last arty shot of Maggie, don't you? All professional-like.
And, a couple of cutie pictures of her older brother, lovingly referred to as Hulk:
Christmas Pictures, FINALLY!
I don't know why I was dragging my feet on this, I really don't. No, wait, I think I do... I took SO MANY pictures, and I kind of dreaded going through all of them and culling out the good ones, deleting the terrible ones... so, here they are.
I know you all are probably wanting to see the Max pictures most of all, because really, who doesn't like to look at a cute baby doing cute things? Even if you don't like babies, it's just PICTURES of a baby, without the reality of bad diaper smells, screaming, drooling, or other things that dislikers of babies generally object to. So, on with the cuteness!
First up, how much fun is a Viking in the box... especially a lampshade box!
"Isn't there more? Please???"
"I like my truck!"
Father and Son
"Hewwo!"
Max and Auntie Amanda (sure, it's not the most flattering pic of me, but... don't we look like we're having fun?)
Up next, a few candid family shots:
My pretty mom:
Her snazzy husband, my dad:
My grandma:
My sister Liz, and her future husband (!!!) Markos:
It snowed over the time I was at my parents' house, and I took a ton of snow pictures... but I cheated and took them all from inside! Hahaha! Here is one I liked a lot:
And finally, some photos of the Christmas tree decorations:
You all are in for another treat for my next post... pics of my friend Cece's kids! Yippee!
I don't know why I was dragging my feet on this, I really don't. No, wait, I think I do... I took SO MANY pictures, and I kind of dreaded going through all of them and culling out the good ones, deleting the terrible ones... so, here they are.
I know you all are probably wanting to see the Max pictures most of all, because really, who doesn't like to look at a cute baby doing cute things? Even if you don't like babies, it's just PICTURES of a baby, without the reality of bad diaper smells, screaming, drooling, or other things that dislikers of babies generally object to. So, on with the cuteness!
First up, how much fun is a Viking in the box... especially a lampshade box!
"Isn't there more? Please???"
"I like my truck!"
Father and Son
"Hewwo!"
Max and Auntie Amanda (sure, it's not the most flattering pic of me, but... don't we look like we're having fun?)
Up next, a few candid family shots:
My pretty mom:
Her snazzy husband, my dad:
My grandma:
My sister Liz, and her future husband (!!!) Markos:
It snowed over the time I was at my parents' house, and I took a ton of snow pictures... but I cheated and took them all from inside! Hahaha! Here is one I liked a lot:
And finally, some photos of the Christmas tree decorations:
You all are in for another treat for my next post... pics of my friend Cece's kids! Yippee!
Monday, January 11, 2010
Fresh Bread
Next up on the list, making my own bread. I used a recipe for whole wheat bread from the book, "Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day". I got the book from the library, to see whether the idea of pre-making the dough and storing it in the fridge for future use would be of any use to me. The actually turned out fairly well, but I think I will need to do some tweaking in the future in order to come up with a bread that will be good for sandwiches and such. A big bonus was that the bread was no-knead, which made it pretty low maintenance. I think I will wait and take a look at "Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day", which features more breads with a higher percentage of whole grain flour used in the recipes, which is more my speed.
So, things are already looking up - making my own bread and croutons. The toilet is looking like it's ready for a cleaning with some home made cleaner, so maybe I'll have something new to report soon.
Also, I've been sick with a disgusting cold, so have been low in motivation... I have a bunch of pictures to upload of my nephew from Christmas - I WILL get to them eventually, I promise!
Next up on the list, making my own bread. I used a recipe for whole wheat bread from the book, "Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day". I got the book from the library, to see whether the idea of pre-making the dough and storing it in the fridge for future use would be of any use to me. The actually turned out fairly well, but I think I will need to do some tweaking in the future in order to come up with a bread that will be good for sandwiches and such. A big bonus was that the bread was no-knead, which made it pretty low maintenance. I think I will wait and take a look at "Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day", which features more breads with a higher percentage of whole grain flour used in the recipes, which is more my speed.
So, things are already looking up - making my own bread and croutons. The toilet is looking like it's ready for a cleaning with some home made cleaner, so maybe I'll have something new to report soon.
Also, I've been sick with a disgusting cold, so have been low in motivation... I have a bunch of pictures to upload of my nephew from Christmas - I WILL get to them eventually, I promise!
Thursday, January 07, 2010
Croutons!
I love making enormous salads, with a wide variety of veggies, and lots of croonchy stuff on top, too, like nuts, seeds and croutons. However, store bought croutons tend to have some weird ingredients in them, so I decided to make some of my own. I looked at my new cookbook, "How to Cook Everything Vegetarian", and decided to try a hybrid of the crouton recipes I found. The dry baked croutons sounded a bit TOO dry for me, and the others sounded a bit too oily. So, I cubed a few slices of bread, tossed the cubes with a tablespoon or so of oil, along with some Italian seasoning and some salt and pepper. I spread them out on a baking sheet, baked them at 300 degrees for 10 or so minutes, tossed them around again, and baked until I was satisfied with the crunch level.
Verdict? Very yummy! I will definitely continue making my own croutons. I get to use whole wheat bread, no weird ingredients, and the cost is much lower than buying them at the store, too.
Confession: I initially tried the oven at 400 degrees as suggested by the recipe, and promptly burned the croutons. I figured a lower temp would give me more time to notice that burnination was happening.
Second confession: I ate said unburnt croutons before I could take a picture of them atop my lovely salad. Many apologies.
I love making enormous salads, with a wide variety of veggies, and lots of croonchy stuff on top, too, like nuts, seeds and croutons. However, store bought croutons tend to have some weird ingredients in them, so I decided to make some of my own. I looked at my new cookbook, "How to Cook Everything Vegetarian", and decided to try a hybrid of the crouton recipes I found. The dry baked croutons sounded a bit TOO dry for me, and the others sounded a bit too oily. So, I cubed a few slices of bread, tossed the cubes with a tablespoon or so of oil, along with some Italian seasoning and some salt and pepper. I spread them out on a baking sheet, baked them at 300 degrees for 10 or so minutes, tossed them around again, and baked until I was satisfied with the crunch level.
Verdict? Very yummy! I will definitely continue making my own croutons. I get to use whole wheat bread, no weird ingredients, and the cost is much lower than buying them at the store, too.
Confession: I initially tried the oven at 400 degrees as suggested by the recipe, and promptly burned the croutons. I figured a lower temp would give me more time to notice that burnination was happening.
Second confession: I ate said unburnt croutons before I could take a picture of them atop my lovely salad. Many apologies.
Tuesday, January 05, 2010
Not Exactly a Resolution...
... but sort of. It goes along with my free floating idea of being nice to the environment, as well as the idea to being nice to my body, too. The resolution? As products/items in my home are used up, I will think about how to replace them with healthier, eco-friendlier products.
The first opportunity for making a change is going to be finding a new toilet cleaner. I will be turning to a great book by Linda Cobb for a lot of the cleaning solutions called "Talking Dirty with the Queen of Clean". It contains loads of make-it-yourself cleaning ideas. For cleaning the toilet, she recommends vinegar and borax. I have also seen suggestions of vinegar and baking soda, and borax and lemon juice. I believe I'll give the vinegar and baking soda a try, and see what happens.
Actually, in my research, I have found that baking soda and vinegar appear to be rather popular for all sorts of cleaning applications, including washing one's hair!
I will naturally continue the updates as they occur, but will continue to use whatever products I have in my home until they run out - it seems silly to just throw them away!
... but sort of. It goes along with my free floating idea of being nice to the environment, as well as the idea to being nice to my body, too. The resolution? As products/items in my home are used up, I will think about how to replace them with healthier, eco-friendlier products.
The first opportunity for making a change is going to be finding a new toilet cleaner. I will be turning to a great book by Linda Cobb for a lot of the cleaning solutions called "Talking Dirty with the Queen of Clean". It contains loads of make-it-yourself cleaning ideas. For cleaning the toilet, she recommends vinegar and borax. I have also seen suggestions of vinegar and baking soda, and borax and lemon juice. I believe I'll give the vinegar and baking soda a try, and see what happens.
Actually, in my research, I have found that baking soda and vinegar appear to be rather popular for all sorts of cleaning applications, including washing one's hair!
I will naturally continue the updates as they occur, but will continue to use whatever products I have in my home until they run out - it seems silly to just throw them away!
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Max the Conqueror!
I jumped the gun and HAD to try the hat on Mr. Max before gifts were exchanged... I just couldn't resist! It's not like he knows it was supposed to be a gift anyway, right? Without further delay, here he is - and the hat is a perfect fit, with just a little room to grow.
(Back story: My family JUST congregated last night for our family Christmas celebration) - tonight will be Christmas Eve, complete with a Thanksgiving-like turkey meal, as requested by my sister who lives abroad where there is no Thanksgiving. As is traditional in our family, we will open most Christmas gifts tonight, after an early-ish dinner. I always loved that when I was a kid - after I opened my presents, I ran to the phone to tell all of my friends what I got, and they were always VERY envious that I had gotten my gifts a full 12 hours before they had! Tomorrow will be Christmas day, where we open up our stockings. When we were younger, "Santa" filled the stockings, but now that we are all much older, we pick names from a hat and fill the stocking of a family member; it takes the burden off of Santa. It's fun to try and guess who filled your stocking!
Well, although we are just about to have a merry Christmas, I know it's almost New Year's... I need to nail down that resolution thingy, and soon! Or maybe since Christmas was late, I have some more time to decide, hmmm...
Stay tuned for more Max pics... I've already taken a bunch!
I jumped the gun and HAD to try the hat on Mr. Max before gifts were exchanged... I just couldn't resist! It's not like he knows it was supposed to be a gift anyway, right? Without further delay, here he is - and the hat is a perfect fit, with just a little room to grow.
(Back story: My family JUST congregated last night for our family Christmas celebration) - tonight will be Christmas Eve, complete with a Thanksgiving-like turkey meal, as requested by my sister who lives abroad where there is no Thanksgiving. As is traditional in our family, we will open most Christmas gifts tonight, after an early-ish dinner. I always loved that when I was a kid - after I opened my presents, I ran to the phone to tell all of my friends what I got, and they were always VERY envious that I had gotten my gifts a full 12 hours before they had! Tomorrow will be Christmas day, where we open up our stockings. When we were younger, "Santa" filled the stockings, but now that we are all much older, we pick names from a hat and fill the stocking of a family member; it takes the burden off of Santa. It's fun to try and guess who filled your stocking!
Well, although we are just about to have a merry Christmas, I know it's almost New Year's... I need to nail down that resolution thingy, and soon! Or maybe since Christmas was late, I have some more time to decide, hmmm...
Stay tuned for more Max pics... I've already taken a bunch!
Sunday, December 27, 2009
Adorable Hat!
I'm pretty sure that Max doesn't read my blog, and for that matter, I'm fairly certain my brother doesn't, either, so I think I'm safe in posting this - I just couldn't wait! Of course, I'll post more photos once I actually get the hat onto Max's wee head, don't worry.
Isn't it cute? I hope he enjoys wearing it as much as I enjoyed making it!
I basically followed the Viking Hat pattern by Becky Veverka, with a few changes: I had a different gauge, so I cast on fewer stitches, and also rewrote the pattern for the horns so that they were a bit smaller and so that they could be worked in the round... ANYTHING to avoid seaming!
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
Finally!
Well, after being at this job for 3 1/2 years, I FINALLY have an inhabitable office! They came in and gave me a thermostat that WORKS, and set the temperature to a very bearable 68 degrees. For some reason, it still gets up to 10 degrees warmer than that at times, but not because hot air is pumping into the room, but maybe just because I"m on the top floor and in the middle of the building.
I can live with that. After all, it's below 90! Woo!
It is so nice to be able to actually pick out a sweater to wear to work, that I'll be able to wear ALL DAY and not have to plan ahead to have a light, summery top on underneath...
Finally!
Well, after being at this job for 3 1/2 years, I FINALLY have an inhabitable office! They came in and gave me a thermostat that WORKS, and set the temperature to a very bearable 68 degrees. For some reason, it still gets up to 10 degrees warmer than that at times, but not because hot air is pumping into the room, but maybe just because I"m on the top floor and in the middle of the building.
I can live with that. After all, it's below 90! Woo!
It is so nice to be able to actually pick out a sweater to wear to work, that I'll be able to wear ALL DAY and not have to plan ahead to have a light, summery top on underneath...
Finally!
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
The Holidays: The Problem, and The Cure!
We all know what the problem with the holidays is... rushing around, trying to find gifts for everyone, cooking cleaning, party hopping, and whatever else is unique to your own life.
For me, my regular job is extra busy around this time... when teachers are stressed, kids are stressed, which stresses teachers out even more, which stresses kids out to the max! My office has been a busy place, because it's one of the places stressed kids get sent.
In addition, it's the busy season for selling jewelry, and I spent the first two weekends in December at my studio, selling things. This past week, I brought my jewelry in to work, brought it to our monthly social work staff meeting, and then brought it to knit night up in New Hampshire. By the end of this week, I was totally frazzled!
Friday night, I was so 'on' that I really couldn't sleep. I woke up in the middle of the night, going through checklists of things that still need to be done, FINALLY fell back to sleep, and was then awakened at 5:50 AM by a terrifying zombie dream. TERRIFYING! My heart was in my throat, and I think I woke up gasping in fear. At that point, I gave up on getting any more sleep, and just got up for the day.
Anyway, the jewelry selling frenzy is over for now, most of my gifts are in order, and my 11 day winter break starts after work tomorrow. To celebrate, I BOOKED A MASSAGE. A friend of mine mentioned that Oasis Day Spa in Lowell, MA was having a 50% off sale on all spa treatments, so I signed right up! I was hoping to get the appointment for tomorrow after work, but ended up having to book for last night.... ohhhhhhh my, it was so very relaxing! The name of the massage therapist was Erin, and she was really great. It was a very nice combination of relaxing massage and deep tissue work to get out some of those awful knots that build up - I hate it when there is NO deep tissue work, but I suppose an hour of deep tissue might be a bit awful! Anyway, hot stones were involved as well, which I really liked, and I totally started falling asleep and SNORING at one point. I figure that is actually a high compliment to a massage therapist, that it feels so good and relaxing that you fall asleep, right? Another big plus was that Erin took her cues from me regarding when I wanted things to be all quiet, and when I was feeling more like chatting a little... I wish I could go every week! THAT would be nice...
We all know what the problem with the holidays is... rushing around, trying to find gifts for everyone, cooking cleaning, party hopping, and whatever else is unique to your own life.
For me, my regular job is extra busy around this time... when teachers are stressed, kids are stressed, which stresses teachers out even more, which stresses kids out to the max! My office has been a busy place, because it's one of the places stressed kids get sent.
In addition, it's the busy season for selling jewelry, and I spent the first two weekends in December at my studio, selling things. This past week, I brought my jewelry in to work, brought it to our monthly social work staff meeting, and then brought it to knit night up in New Hampshire. By the end of this week, I was totally frazzled!
Friday night, I was so 'on' that I really couldn't sleep. I woke up in the middle of the night, going through checklists of things that still need to be done, FINALLY fell back to sleep, and was then awakened at 5:50 AM by a terrifying zombie dream. TERRIFYING! My heart was in my throat, and I think I woke up gasping in fear. At that point, I gave up on getting any more sleep, and just got up for the day.
Anyway, the jewelry selling frenzy is over for now, most of my gifts are in order, and my 11 day winter break starts after work tomorrow. To celebrate, I BOOKED A MASSAGE. A friend of mine mentioned that Oasis Day Spa in Lowell, MA was having a 50% off sale on all spa treatments, so I signed right up! I was hoping to get the appointment for tomorrow after work, but ended up having to book for last night.... ohhhhhhh my, it was so very relaxing! The name of the massage therapist was Erin, and she was really great. It was a very nice combination of relaxing massage and deep tissue work to get out some of those awful knots that build up - I hate it when there is NO deep tissue work, but I suppose an hour of deep tissue might be a bit awful! Anyway, hot stones were involved as well, which I really liked, and I totally started falling asleep and SNORING at one point. I figure that is actually a high compliment to a massage therapist, that it feels so good and relaxing that you fall asleep, right? Another big plus was that Erin took her cues from me regarding when I wanted things to be all quiet, and when I was feeling more like chatting a little... I wish I could go every week! THAT would be nice...
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Resolutions, Revisited
So, we are quite close to the end of 2009 now, and I have to say that my budgeting resolution for the year has been a screaming success! To recap, I had a goal of decreasing wasteful spending, so that I could start paying down my debt more aggressively. I reviewed all of my bills, cut down monthly expenses where I could (I STILL miss my DVR, sniff), started writing down every penny I spent, and started working various extra jobs as they came my way.
I have kept up with the blistering repayment pace I set for myself, and will continue to do so until the only debt I have left is my main mortgage. At this rate, this magical date will be approximately 30 months from now, and I can hardly wait!
I had never been much of a resolution maker until a couple of years ago... but in 2008, I resolved to reduce my use of plastic bags, and that went quite well, too. I am still using reusable shopping bags on a very regular basis.
So the question is, what to tackle next? The idea I've been toying with is to adopt a new eco-friendly habit every month. It could be small things, like not using that after-shower spray every day, or not using popup bathroom cleaning wipes. I am also thinking about ways to stop using/consuming products with loads of creepy ingredients, and either making my own, or shopping for organic/ earth friendly alternatives. I already make my own laundry detergent, so that's cool...
I am still shopping around for ideas, though... and still have a couple of weeks to decide!
So, we are quite close to the end of 2009 now, and I have to say that my budgeting resolution for the year has been a screaming success! To recap, I had a goal of decreasing wasteful spending, so that I could start paying down my debt more aggressively. I reviewed all of my bills, cut down monthly expenses where I could (I STILL miss my DVR, sniff), started writing down every penny I spent, and started working various extra jobs as they came my way.
I have kept up with the blistering repayment pace I set for myself, and will continue to do so until the only debt I have left is my main mortgage. At this rate, this magical date will be approximately 30 months from now, and I can hardly wait!
I had never been much of a resolution maker until a couple of years ago... but in 2008, I resolved to reduce my use of plastic bags, and that went quite well, too. I am still using reusable shopping bags on a very regular basis.
So the question is, what to tackle next? The idea I've been toying with is to adopt a new eco-friendly habit every month. It could be small things, like not using that after-shower spray every day, or not using popup bathroom cleaning wipes. I am also thinking about ways to stop using/consuming products with loads of creepy ingredients, and either making my own, or shopping for organic/ earth friendly alternatives. I already make my own laundry detergent, so that's cool...
I am still shopping around for ideas, though... and still have a couple of weeks to decide!
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
'Tis the (dark) Season
I'm kind of glad this is the time of year to be bustling around, shopping, and preparing for the holidays, because otherwise, I might get around to noticing that it's pitch black out there most of the time I'm not at work! We're getting closer and closer to the date when the days start getting longer again, though, and I'm grateful for that.
I know nobody likes getting to work and leaving from work in the dark, so I won't claim that I'm special and deserve your sympathy, because I know you're probably in the same boat, too! I also think it is cruel to design work offices without any natural light... I neeeeeeeed to see the sun, please!
Soon enough, I hope...
I'm kind of glad this is the time of year to be bustling around, shopping, and preparing for the holidays, because otherwise, I might get around to noticing that it's pitch black out there most of the time I'm not at work! We're getting closer and closer to the date when the days start getting longer again, though, and I'm grateful for that.
I know nobody likes getting to work and leaving from work in the dark, so I won't claim that I'm special and deserve your sympathy, because I know you're probably in the same boat, too! I also think it is cruel to design work offices without any natural light... I neeeeeeeed to see the sun, please!
Soon enough, I hope...
Tuesday, December 01, 2009
Thursday, November 26, 2009
Happy Thanksgiving!
I spent a quiet day up at my parents' house, with mom, dad and grandma. It was a very low key afternoon, and the most melodramatic thing that happened was that mom forgot to serve the stuffing! It just sat right there in the bird, with none of us even noticing that it was missing from our plates!
One thing that I think everyone is grateful for is family. My brother sent us the most recent picture of my nephew, who is now sitting up and looking adorable:
I can't wait to see him at Christmas... just a month away!
I spent a quiet day up at my parents' house, with mom, dad and grandma. It was a very low key afternoon, and the most melodramatic thing that happened was that mom forgot to serve the stuffing! It just sat right there in the bird, with none of us even noticing that it was missing from our plates!
One thing that I think everyone is grateful for is family. My brother sent us the most recent picture of my nephew, who is now sitting up and looking adorable:
I can't wait to see him at Christmas... just a month away!
Monday, November 09, 2009
Broomstick Lace
I stumbled across some broomstick lace somewhere on Ravelry the other day, and immediately decided that I needed to try it. The internet being what it is, I was able to find several tutorials, and got to work. Basically, you use a crochet hook and an oversized knitting needle or broomstick or a broomstick lace 'pin', whichever you happen to have available. You begin by creating a chain of a multiple of 4-6, then get down to business!
"Business" = alternating rows of pulling up big loops and putting them onto the broomstick, then bunching those loops together and creating a row of single crochet. That's the simplest way I can figure out to explain the basic nature of broomstick lace.
Of course, all of the pictures online were 'backwards' for me, since I'm left handed, and I needed a bit of experimentation time to make sure I was working into the correct loops.
Here's a photo of the scarf I'm making; I'm using some of my own handspun yarn. The effect is quite different using a thick/thin slubby yarn versus a very smoothly spun yarn, but both are very visually appealing to me. Also, this works up fairly quickly, and I will definitely be including this technique in my scarf making activities in the future. Very fun and different!
I stumbled across some broomstick lace somewhere on Ravelry the other day, and immediately decided that I needed to try it. The internet being what it is, I was able to find several tutorials, and got to work. Basically, you use a crochet hook and an oversized knitting needle or broomstick or a broomstick lace 'pin', whichever you happen to have available. You begin by creating a chain of a multiple of 4-6, then get down to business!
"Business" = alternating rows of pulling up big loops and putting them onto the broomstick, then bunching those loops together and creating a row of single crochet. That's the simplest way I can figure out to explain the basic nature of broomstick lace.
Of course, all of the pictures online were 'backwards' for me, since I'm left handed, and I needed a bit of experimentation time to make sure I was working into the correct loops.
Here's a photo of the scarf I'm making; I'm using some of my own handspun yarn. The effect is quite different using a thick/thin slubby yarn versus a very smoothly spun yarn, but both are very visually appealing to me. Also, this works up fairly quickly, and I will definitely be including this technique in my scarf making activities in the future. Very fun and different!
Saturday, November 07, 2009
Images of Autumn
A few weeks ago, I took a nice, long walk around Lowell, determined to find beautiful foliage to photograph WITHOUT having to leave my neighborhood. I will let the photos speak for themselves.
I will note that I did not process any of the images in Photoshop or anything like that, but I did recently purchase a polarized filter for my camera. The result is that it brightens and deepens some colors, especially on this particular day. In a couple of the photos, the sky looks sooooo deep blue! I love the effect, despite the fact that it's not really what color the sky actually was.
A few weeks ago, I took a nice, long walk around Lowell, determined to find beautiful foliage to photograph WITHOUT having to leave my neighborhood. I will let the photos speak for themselves.
I will note that I did not process any of the images in Photoshop or anything like that, but I did recently purchase a polarized filter for my camera. The result is that it brightens and deepens some colors, especially on this particular day. In a couple of the photos, the sky looks sooooo deep blue! I love the effect, despite the fact that it's not really what color the sky actually was.
Rhinebeck, part deux, extremely late!
Because I have been so remiss in posting this update, I'll get right to the point of sharing yarn pictures!
The first two are worsted weight yarns from Maple Creek Farms, in a wool/merino blend. I have several skeins of the first, solid yarn, and will use the variegated yarn to do a 'fake isle' style pattern on the sweater I am planning for:
And although I have a zillion skeins of sock yarn, I couldn't help but pick up this lovely yarn from Creatively Dyed:
I am always drawn to variegated sock yarns, so I feel that it is important to build up the stash of solid and semi-solid sock yarns... so this purchase was a success!
Next post, I plan on sharing some great fall foliage pics I took a couple of weeks ago... it was a perfect day for it, and the pics turned out great... stay tuned!
Because I have been so remiss in posting this update, I'll get right to the point of sharing yarn pictures!
The first two are worsted weight yarns from Maple Creek Farms, in a wool/merino blend. I have several skeins of the first, solid yarn, and will use the variegated yarn to do a 'fake isle' style pattern on the sweater I am planning for:
And although I have a zillion skeins of sock yarn, I couldn't help but pick up this lovely yarn from Creatively Dyed:
I am always drawn to variegated sock yarns, so I feel that it is important to build up the stash of solid and semi-solid sock yarns... so this purchase was a success!
Next post, I plan on sharing some great fall foliage pics I took a couple of weeks ago... it was a perfect day for it, and the pics turned out great... stay tuned!
Monday, October 19, 2009
Rhinebeck, part 1
Well, I am now recovered from my weekend at Rhinebeck, the New York State Sheep and Wool festival! I have caught up with sleep, unpacked my bags and put them away, and am working on figuring out where to put my newly purchased yarn!
I rushed home after work on Friday to make sure I was all ready to be picked up by my pal Marianne, and we went and got Katy and Yovani afterward. We got a little mixed up on our way to the KOA Kampground we stayed at, but the mixup meant that we got a good look at the town of Saugerties, which helped us scout for restaurants and get the lay of the land. The "Kabin" was small, clean, and 'heated' by a space heater, and the bathrooms were in a building a few campground spots away.
After we quickly settled in, we headed back out for some dinner... I don't remember the name of the restaurant/pub, but the menu was interesting and the food was good. We went to bed fairly early, but I had a hard time adjusting to the cold and such... and didn't sleep very well at all!
However, I did my best to look alive the next day, and we started out with a great diner meal before heading over to the fairgrounds. The festival itself offered so much to see - so much yarn, fiber, so many animals, great fair-type food... the best of which was the maple cotton candy - yummmm!
Our plans to eat at a particular fancy restaurant that evening were foiled by a desire to be a bit more free-wheeling with our plans, but we know for next year to make a reservation... otherwise, you end up at a restaurant with empty tables... and the tables are empty for a reason! The food was pretty good, but the service was fairly poor, to be honest.
After dinner, we made our way to the Ravelry party. By that point, I was awfully tired and didn't have as much fun as I probably would have otherwise! However, I chatted with a bunch of nice people by the bonfire, and tried to do some dancing to the tunes pumped out by a groovy dj who had a great, grizzly beard and a cigarette perpetually dangling out of his mouth.
I slept much better on Saturday night, which is usually the case in a new bed... the second night always goes better!
On Sunday, we ate at Mezzaluna for breakfast... it was SO GOOOOD! After that, we swung by the fairgrounds one last time, and I bought some wonderful yarn from Maple Creek Farm - enough for a fabulous sweater, which I plan on designing myself!
On our way home, we enjoyed the sight of snow while we drove along the Taconic Parkway, which is actually a beautiful drive!
Many thanks go to Marianne for taking the lion's share of the driving responsibilities, you were a champ, my dear!
I haven't taken photos of my new yarn yet; that will be taken care of whenever I get around to "Rhinebeck Part 2"!
Well, I am now recovered from my weekend at Rhinebeck, the New York State Sheep and Wool festival! I have caught up with sleep, unpacked my bags and put them away, and am working on figuring out where to put my newly purchased yarn!
I rushed home after work on Friday to make sure I was all ready to be picked up by my pal Marianne, and we went and got Katy and Yovani afterward. We got a little mixed up on our way to the KOA Kampground we stayed at, but the mixup meant that we got a good look at the town of Saugerties, which helped us scout for restaurants and get the lay of the land. The "Kabin" was small, clean, and 'heated' by a space heater, and the bathrooms were in a building a few campground spots away.
After we quickly settled in, we headed back out for some dinner... I don't remember the name of the restaurant/pub, but the menu was interesting and the food was good. We went to bed fairly early, but I had a hard time adjusting to the cold and such... and didn't sleep very well at all!
However, I did my best to look alive the next day, and we started out with a great diner meal before heading over to the fairgrounds. The festival itself offered so much to see - so much yarn, fiber, so many animals, great fair-type food... the best of which was the maple cotton candy - yummmm!
Our plans to eat at a particular fancy restaurant that evening were foiled by a desire to be a bit more free-wheeling with our plans, but we know for next year to make a reservation... otherwise, you end up at a restaurant with empty tables... and the tables are empty for a reason! The food was pretty good, but the service was fairly poor, to be honest.
After dinner, we made our way to the Ravelry party. By that point, I was awfully tired and didn't have as much fun as I probably would have otherwise! However, I chatted with a bunch of nice people by the bonfire, and tried to do some dancing to the tunes pumped out by a groovy dj who had a great, grizzly beard and a cigarette perpetually dangling out of his mouth.
I slept much better on Saturday night, which is usually the case in a new bed... the second night always goes better!
On Sunday, we ate at Mezzaluna for breakfast... it was SO GOOOOD! After that, we swung by the fairgrounds one last time, and I bought some wonderful yarn from Maple Creek Farm - enough for a fabulous sweater, which I plan on designing myself!
On our way home, we enjoyed the sight of snow while we drove along the Taconic Parkway, which is actually a beautiful drive!
Many thanks go to Marianne for taking the lion's share of the driving responsibilities, you were a champ, my dear!
I haven't taken photos of my new yarn yet; that will be taken care of whenever I get around to "Rhinebeck Part 2"!
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
There is Hope!
A few of you may have been reading my blog from the beginning, and may remember one of my very first posts where I showed a picture of the bottom of my foot after a run. Here is a link if you wish to see an incredibly gross picture. Don't click if you do NOT want to see an incredibly gross picture!
For those of you who do not know the blistery saga I live with on a regular basis, here goes: I blister very, very easily. I can't run more than about 20 minutes without blistering. I cannot hike up a mountain without blistering within the first 10-15 minutes or so. In order to avoid blistering on a daily basis, I wear floppy, loose, and/or unsupportive shoes, because achy feet are easier to deal with than blistery ones.
People, I have had ENOUGH of this. ENOUGH! I want to climb a mountain! I want to go for a 5+ walk in the woods on a beautiful Autumn day without getting a blister the size of a quarter (this happened a couple of weekends ago) on the back of my heel! (I couldn't put on regular shoes for a week, when I finally cut the blister off because it was getting too cold for flip flops)
I did some research, and found the company up in NH that seems to be quite popular for custom hiking boots. However, my research also revealed that the boots take A YEAR of heavy use to break in, and let's face it... that would probably take several years for me, because of the blistery thing. So, I kept looking. I found another company that is in Vermont, and the woman in charge talked to me for a long time on the phone, explaining her process and listening to my various complaints and concerns. She sounded great!
So, yesterday, I headed out to VT (gorgeous drive, too cloudy for a lot of pics, though, bummer) to get my feet measured for some custom walking shoes and hiking boots. I was very impressed with the exhaustive nature of her examination of my feet. She told me things about my feet I have been trying to tell doctors for YEARS... that attempting to 'correct' the pronation in my feet just causes more pain and discomfort, and that they are just supposed to BE that way. Terry told me that I DO have an arch, and that my foot hasn't 'fallen' into pronation over time, that this is just the way my feet are meant to be. So, the blistering happens in highly supportive shoes because my feet are being forced into a more upright position that they do not like, and they fight the shoe to tilt back inwards, into their natural position.
She told me a bunch of other interesting things about my feet, such as that my heel is the size of a size 10 foot, but that my feet are only size 8 1/2, meaning the front of my foot is even smaller than an 8 1/2. Also, that my arch does not spring like a shock absorber like it is supposed to. And that my foot does not spread out when I stand up, like it is supposed to. And that I have a very flexible ankle, but very inflexible plantar muscles. And that my ankle bone is 1/2 inch higher than the upper average limit for regular peeps. She said the walking inkblot looked like that of someone with a VERY high arch, which is not what anyone would ever have guessed, just looking at my feet. She said she'd use the inkblot to stump people if she ever got the chance.
Anyway, she will now make a custom last, which she will use to make me some hiking boots and some walking boots. If they work out, I will probably look into getting a couple more pairs... maybe some sandals for summer, and maybe some more heavy duty walking shoes, for times I'm tromping around in the woods but not exactly hiking up a mountain? Or maybe some running shoes? Who can say.
At any rate, the idea of getting to the top of a mountain without a blister is highly exciting to me, and makes me mist up a little... cross your fingers for me!
A few of you may have been reading my blog from the beginning, and may remember one of my very first posts where I showed a picture of the bottom of my foot after a run. Here is a link if you wish to see an incredibly gross picture. Don't click if you do NOT want to see an incredibly gross picture!
For those of you who do not know the blistery saga I live with on a regular basis, here goes: I blister very, very easily. I can't run more than about 20 minutes without blistering. I cannot hike up a mountain without blistering within the first 10-15 minutes or so. In order to avoid blistering on a daily basis, I wear floppy, loose, and/or unsupportive shoes, because achy feet are easier to deal with than blistery ones.
People, I have had ENOUGH of this. ENOUGH! I want to climb a mountain! I want to go for a 5+ walk in the woods on a beautiful Autumn day without getting a blister the size of a quarter (this happened a couple of weekends ago) on the back of my heel! (I couldn't put on regular shoes for a week, when I finally cut the blister off because it was getting too cold for flip flops)
I did some research, and found the company up in NH that seems to be quite popular for custom hiking boots. However, my research also revealed that the boots take A YEAR of heavy use to break in, and let's face it... that would probably take several years for me, because of the blistery thing. So, I kept looking. I found another company that is in Vermont, and the woman in charge talked to me for a long time on the phone, explaining her process and listening to my various complaints and concerns. She sounded great!
So, yesterday, I headed out to VT (gorgeous drive, too cloudy for a lot of pics, though, bummer) to get my feet measured for some custom walking shoes and hiking boots. I was very impressed with the exhaustive nature of her examination of my feet. She told me things about my feet I have been trying to tell doctors for YEARS... that attempting to 'correct' the pronation in my feet just causes more pain and discomfort, and that they are just supposed to BE that way. Terry told me that I DO have an arch, and that my foot hasn't 'fallen' into pronation over time, that this is just the way my feet are meant to be. So, the blistering happens in highly supportive shoes because my feet are being forced into a more upright position that they do not like, and they fight the shoe to tilt back inwards, into their natural position.
She told me a bunch of other interesting things about my feet, such as that my heel is the size of a size 10 foot, but that my feet are only size 8 1/2, meaning the front of my foot is even smaller than an 8 1/2. Also, that my arch does not spring like a shock absorber like it is supposed to. And that my foot does not spread out when I stand up, like it is supposed to. And that I have a very flexible ankle, but very inflexible plantar muscles. And that my ankle bone is 1/2 inch higher than the upper average limit for regular peeps. She said the walking inkblot looked like that of someone with a VERY high arch, which is not what anyone would ever have guessed, just looking at my feet. She said she'd use the inkblot to stump people if she ever got the chance.
Anyway, she will now make a custom last, which she will use to make me some hiking boots and some walking boots. If they work out, I will probably look into getting a couple more pairs... maybe some sandals for summer, and maybe some more heavy duty walking shoes, for times I'm tromping around in the woods but not exactly hiking up a mountain? Or maybe some running shoes? Who can say.
At any rate, the idea of getting to the top of a mountain without a blister is highly exciting to me, and makes me mist up a little... cross your fingers for me!
Thursday, October 08, 2009
Autumn is Kinda Here...
The evenings are coldddd, the leaves are turning, apples are being picked by the meeeelions. It must be Fall!
With this time of year also comes my favorite bike riding weather... cool and sunny. I took a nice bike ride from Great Brook Farm a couple of days ago, and took some photos afterward. I also got test-stung by a bee... on the butt. That was not my most favorite part of the day.
I did enjoy seeing this nice woolly bear... I resisted the urge to pat it... might as well leave it alone. Plus, I think I ran over a dead one on my ride, and I was feeling a little guilty.
Look at those lovely clouds!
This picture made me think I was peeking into a secret glen - check out the foliage I spy!
More foliage:
Some neato pods:
On that day, I enjoyed two things that seemed like such extravagant expenses at the time... my fancy schmancy custom bicycle, and my snazzy camera. But since I've gotten the bike, I have enjoyed it every time I took it out for a ride, and I have taken over 6000 photos with my camera since I got it a couple of years ago. That's an average of over 8 pics a day... I'd say it was well worth the investment!
I'm planning on doing a bit of leaf peeping this weekend... crossing my fingers for some decent weather and clear skies!
The evenings are coldddd, the leaves are turning, apples are being picked by the meeeelions. It must be Fall!
With this time of year also comes my favorite bike riding weather... cool and sunny. I took a nice bike ride from Great Brook Farm a couple of days ago, and took some photos afterward. I also got test-stung by a bee... on the butt. That was not my most favorite part of the day.
I did enjoy seeing this nice woolly bear... I resisted the urge to pat it... might as well leave it alone. Plus, I think I ran over a dead one on my ride, and I was feeling a little guilty.
Look at those lovely clouds!
This picture made me think I was peeking into a secret glen - check out the foliage I spy!
More foliage:
Some neato pods:
On that day, I enjoyed two things that seemed like such extravagant expenses at the time... my fancy schmancy custom bicycle, and my snazzy camera. But since I've gotten the bike, I have enjoyed it every time I took it out for a ride, and I have taken over 6000 photos with my camera since I got it a couple of years ago. That's an average of over 8 pics a day... I'd say it was well worth the investment!
I'm planning on doing a bit of leaf peeping this weekend... crossing my fingers for some decent weather and clear skies!
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