Tuesday Project Roundup: Winter Projects, Just In Time For Summer
Here are pictures of that chunky knit cowl top I knit when it was so cold and rainy last week. I did get one good wear out of it and now it can wait until the fall.
And I’ve made progress with Thing #7 of the 29 Things: Knit Christmas stockings, starting with Toby’s. Here’s Toby’s stocking.
He is not aware that it’s a Christmas stocking, as those concepts are hard to explain to a cat, but he does know that it’s wooly and he’s allowed to lay on it.
He also is allowed to help with photo shoots–actually, we can’t stop him.
For Your Summer Cocktails, Now That It Is Summer-like
I’ve been reading about an elderflower liquer in my magazines for a while now, and it’s finally available in the liquor stores here! (Well, in the new wine store, at least.) I’d been subsituting the non-alcoholic IKEA elderflower concentrate (“Fladersaft”) in the recipes I’d read calling for the liquer, but this
has nothing on this:
Buy it for the bottle alone, and feel like your apartment is really full of French antiques and witty people enjoying a full bar whenever you open the cupboard. The site is nice, too–the St. Germain Cocktail with sparkling wine and soda water is going to be the new fancy drink around here.
Friday Unrelated Information
1. The summer solstice is this weekend. Perhaps it will actually be WARM this summer. I’m not holding my breath, though.
2. I have another work project to share: Provo Craft’s microsite for a Cricut promotion. More exclamation points that I’ve ever used in my life contained herein. (I’ve also written the blog posts to date.)
3. Speaking of blogs, Mr. Isbell has one now: animaaeturnus.blogspot.com. It is geekier than I am really comfortable with–and I just heard him talk about the langugaes used in Star Wars (Galactic Basic and Huttese!)–but it shows off his mad model-painting skills. His blog name is “Lord Captain Valentine;” I call him “Cap’n.”
Oversleeping + Busyness = Picture Post
(From Married to the Sea. Click if you need it bigger.)
Because I Know You Were Wondering
I finished the sweater discussed yesterday and am wearing it today. I’ll have to wait to block it before I put it away for the summer, but I got a sweater in a week and a chance to wear it–not too bad.
Tuesday Project Roundup: My Window Of Opportunity Is Rapidly Closing
I blame the rain for this project. I was going absolutely crazy by Tuesday, so started looking for a summer sweater to knit, despite my history of finishing summer sweaters in time for fall. Then I saw an extra-chunky project that could, in theory, be finished over the weekend and worn while it’s still cool and rainy.
(This is not me, as I did NOT finish over the weekend. The pattern’s from this book.)
I’m not sure why anyone needs a turtleneck with no sleeves made out of really thick, really warm wool, but it looked cool, gave me somewhere to put my nervous energy, and the yarn was on sale.
I’m so close to being done, but I only have about two more days before the weather is going to turn nice again and I won’t be able to wear it until October. I’d better get knitting.
Say It With Poems
This poem was featured on The Writer’s Almanac last Thursday in the middle of the most emotionally difficult week in recent memory, so it was nice to read. I will try to keep it in mind this week:
Horses At Midnight Without A Moon
by Jack Gilbert
Our heart wanders lost in the dark woods.
Our dream wrestles in the castle of doubt.
But there’s music in us. Hope is pushed down
but the angel flies up again taking us with her.
The summer mornings begin inch by inch
while we sleep, and walk with us later
as long-legged beauty through
the dirty streets. It is no surprise
that danger and suffering surround us.
What astonishes is the singing.
We know the horses are there in the dark
meadow because we can smell them,
can hear them breathing.
Our spirit persists like a man struggling
through the frozen valley
who suddenly smells flowers
and realizes the snow is melting
out of sight on top of the mountain,
knows that spring has begun.
Friday Unrelated Information
1. If you like 30 Rock and you liked The Muppet Show, you’ll enjoy this blog post that compares the two. The pictures of parallel characters are great.
2. The gardening is going well. The tomatoes in the long bed got staked Saturday (the last day we’ve been able to work in the yard; stupid rain) and we planted cabbages and still more tomatoes.
3. Good times with student writing workshop commentary.