Thursday, May 29, 2014

I Made a Committment

Yesterday I got the invoice for the first 100 books.  Whew!  I am financially in shock right now.  I quickly figured out how many books I need to sell to make the money back.  It is a step through the rabbit hole and I don't know where the crazy queen or the mad hatter or any of them are hiding.

I am presently signed up to do a book signing in four different venues.  It is a teeny-weeny baby step into the unknown.  Hold good thoughts for me world.

I finished the blue skein.  Really, really pretty.  I think I did a good job with the color and the spinning.

My yard is lush and green and wild and out of control.  I know I say this every year, but there is no reigning it in.  I did manage to get the riding mower out today in between rain showers.  We have had the pre-summer stuff of one cloud goes overhead and rains.  After it passes on to the west, the sun comes out.  Hard to get excited about mid-July when the drought hits, but right now it is all green, lush, and wild.

Patty is somehow getting into ticks all the time.  Even with the poison stuff on her, I have to check her over constantly.  Luckily I have figured out that when she starts scratching, I look closely.  I find an average of two or three a day.  Noodles has been indoors more as he ages and the other cat is hanging around.  I have found some on him, but only when he is out foraging.

I just can't get too excited about knitting right now.  I pick it up and knit a few rows, but it is not interesting to me.  I got some new fabric to make a quilt top.  I think what I am planning is taking the striped quilt top that is not appealing to me and make it the backing for the new quilt top.  That way it is reversible.  It's a thought anyway.

So CJE reports she is finally getting well.  She is still taking the super-duper decongestant and the antibiotic.  So I guess she is feeling better.  I think she is still sleeping a lot, but her body is finally healing.

I had a good birthday.  R texted me and we had a nice text-conversation back and forth.  Isn't that funny?  My niece S sent me a picture of flowers on Facebook.  And Google wished me happy birthday.  I guess welcome to modern times, huh?

Not a lot to report.  Just wanted to mention the book.  I am so excited to finally be finished with one part and now the next journey begins.  This is the part I don't really care for-the meet and greet and marketing stuff.  I realize I have to do some of it, but I am not going to kill myself to get it done. I want to have fun with it.

Time to take Patty out and go to bed and read. 

Monday, May 26, 2014

Almost June

I have been a horrible blogger this month.  A whole lot of nothing going on.
-Yard work takes precedence over everything else.  It takes a big chunk of time to mow, trim, and weed eat.
-CJE and I went to Hollister, MO for an OWL (Ozarks Writers League) meeting.  We stayed in an old hotel that has been restored to nice accommodations.  The noise level from the bar and the people in the hallway made me feel as if I was in some dormitory somewhere.  CJE was deadly sick the whole weekend with sinus infection.  Not a lot of fun.  She slept the whole trip.
-CJE and I went to Eureka Springs after OWL meeting, stayed at the Writer's Colony Saturday night, and then attended Books in Bloom on Sunday.  Again, CJE sick, sluggish, and not feeling right. AE called me to talk to her, and we headed home after that.
-Moving slowly, but steadily, along on the sleeve of colorwork sweater.  After ripping out the four inches, I think this time it will stay in.  Looks good to me now. Interesting part- decreases every four rows. Repetitive pattern not so interesting to create, but looks pretty.
-Had a spurt of interest in spinning some yarn, and could not face white.  So dyed it pretty blue color.
The yarn will match my bachelor buttons outside.
-My yard is again covered in bachelor buttons and weeds mixed in those.  I am amazed at my neighbor's abhorrence of the untidiness of everything.  I like it, and I don't care that they don't.  She is afraid of snakes.
-Noodles has decided now to systematically kill off every chipmunk that might be around.  I wish he would kill other rodents, but he has his own menu.
-Patty was boarded while CJE and I were on our weekend trip.  She came home with some weird habits from the other dogs.  Noodles had to slap her down twice until she remembered she was out of control.  Things back to normal now.
-The dreadful privet bushes out front are blooming.  It is a very sickening sweet smell that I am highly allergic to.  Since I keep windows and doors open and sit on the screened porch, there is no avoiding the smell or pollen.  UGHHH!
-I started a barn-raising square.  I had so much trouble with the cast-on and double points.  Gave my one square to CP at LYS, and told her my problem.  I showed her the granny square afghan I am crocheting with the yarn I bought.  JF came in, laughed at me, and said she always teaches people to use the magic loop method.  That was a DUH! moment.  I never thought of that.  She said everyone on Ravelry that had problems used double-points. DUH!
-I had my birthday this weekend.  Weirdest thing-Google had birthday cupcakes, etc. When I pressed the Google logo to see who had a birthday the same day as me, it popped up "Happy Birthday, Juliann".  Now it is strange to know I have a relationship with my computer.  I also got a birthday email greeting from Toyota.  Too strange, huh?

So see not a lot going on.  Just mundane things that occur around here.  Not a lot going on.  I am moving towards sewing, but haven't gotten there.  Goal for the summer is finish the two quilts I started last year.  I want to do some small sewing projects too.  Just moving towards hottest part of summer when I am not as interested in knitting. 

So soon we move into June.  I really like June.  It is a transition month with the Solstice in the middle.  I enjoy the screened porch in the first part of the day, and seek coolness for the hot part of the day.  So come on June-I'm ready for ya.

Monday, May 5, 2014

Cinquo de Mayo!

Today is a lovely day in northwest Arkansas.  It has jumped into early summer from Spring, but it is very nice.  The endless winter seemed never-ending.  We had a bit of cooler weather last week, but this week is sunny and hot.  It is just a holding pattern until flowers start blooming. 

Patty has become very restless and wants out all the time.  Yesterday she disappeared while I was busy, and I found her finally in the woods.  She had been eating something, and her stomach was bulging.  I gave her a bath to get rid of the smell, but I watched her like a hawk from that point on.

Noodles is in active killing mode.  He has slowed eating of store-bought food, and leaves little guts and surprises all over the house.  He prefers to eat it on carpeting or a rug.  It is so much nicer than eating it alone outside or on the hardwood floor that can be cleaned easily.

We did not get the normal April rain or storms.  We did have one big storm last time, but the killing stuff stayed south of us.  The weatherman is predicting thunderstorms this Thursday.  We just need the water, and not in gushing proportions.  A nice soaking rain would be nice.

My book is scheduled to come out in June instead of August.  Whew!  A year in the making!

I was knitting along on the sleeve of the color-stranded sweater.  Something wasn't right.  I found one mistake in the pattern work.  It was not so noticeable.  Then as I am knitting along, I found I had made one other mistake.  So yesterday in a fit of angst I ripped out four inches of pattern work.  Sigh!

I am also ripping out the toe of a pair of socks I made about six years ago.  I made them for my friend that died in January.  They are worn and stained.  I would never give them away to someone else in this condition.  So I am ripping them down to my size.  I will wear them out.

CJE and AE are back from Peru.  She is seriously ill from two broken eardrums and a giant floater that appeared in her right eye. 

Nothing else new to report.  I hope you have a great week.

Friday, May 2, 2014

It's Finally May!

As usual the first of May is coolish.  I am still wearing sweaters.  Some idiots are wearing short sleeves, flip-flops, and occasionally I see a silly little girl in shorts; I am still wearing sweaters.

The weatherman is promising 70's by this weekend.  Be still my heart.  I will be sitting outside in the sunshine for sure.

Today is chaos.  The men are here installing a shower in the hall bathroom.  It is not a big job, but one that does require some skill.  I am not very good at plumbing.  They have their cloths laid out on the floor, and the work has commenced.

I spent my May Day (yesterday) with a friend who had oral surgery.  I couldn't help but compare his experience with mine.  I felt as if I was in a factory.  The workers were well organized, scripts were memorized, and the doctor was quick and efficient and on his way to another patient.  I barely understood all the instructions he gave.  It is helpful that I know what meds are what and how they are utilized.

Afterwards I was able to get my friend into his pharmacy and drugs purchased.  Then on the way home I pulled through Sonic to buy him a milkshake.  My surgery team gave me a free coupon for ice cream, his did not.  I know it is pure sugar, but I thought my friend looked a little bit shocky.  After eating the ice cream and some cold tomato soup I brought for him, he slept until 5 pm. 

I was able to get the dogs walked twice, checked on the horses, and I got a lot of knitting done.  My friend does not have t.v. or internet, so knitting it was going to be.  I got him up at a little after 5 pm and got two cups of warmed broth from the soup I made for him.  I left him a huge container of soup and some soba noodles for today. He was rearranging the horses in different grass eating places when I left.

Today he reported to me he feels fine and normal.  There is minimum swelling, and he is going to do some of his errands as planned.  He is telling me there is minimum pain.  So I guess he will not need the narcotics that the doctor ordered.

I am spinning some very lovely BFL in small quantities.  I find my attention span is limited to small batches right now.  The color is called oatmeal, and is a blend of two light browns of natural color.  Very pretty.  BFL has become my macaroni and cheese spinning.  It is comfort spinning.

I began knitting a square for the Barn Raising afghan.  I found the cast on very fidgety and had some difficulty keeping the stitches from falling off as I knit around in the beginning.  So after blocking it, the laddering is so apparent to me.  I don't like the way it looks.  I tried again to start a second square, and just had the same experience of loosing stitches as I began the knitting.  So I ripped it out and started crocheting a giant Granny Square afghan.  I like the way it looks and the mistakes I make are not so apparent.  It seems to suit the yarn better.  I am using Noro's Taiyo sock yarn.  The colorways are nice.

I have sewing on the mind, but my attention span is limited to short time at the machine.  I have a project or two going and I can't seem to finish anything.  Oh, well, when the summer heat arrives, I like to spend more time sewing than knitting.

I managed to get the riding mowing part of the yard work done this week.  It was rather silly to see me in a jacket and a knit cap out mowing the yard.  I knew I would lose yesterday and the men were coming today for the bathroom.  Then it's the weekend, and another week has gone by.  So to help control the weeds, I did the major mow job.  I still haven't gotten the trim work or the weed eating work done.  I don't feel compelled to run out in the wind and do it.

Patty is feeling rather clingy today.  She felt so totally abandoned yesterday that she is not letting me out of sight.  Noodles was somewhat following me around this morning, but he is off to his hunting routine at the moment.

I finished the red sockies, and they should be in Holly's hands today.

CJE and AE are home from their trip to Peru.  She is happy to be home.  I think she learned some valued lessons on this trip about caring for herself.  She needs a vacation from the vacation.

I guess that is all the catching up I can do.  I want to get the hummingbird feeder cleaned and restocked. 

Hopefully the news continues to be good news.  It is time for warmth and sunshine and happy days.