Gloomy Saturday Sky

Back in the day when blogging was a much bigger thing, one of the blogs I followed -- I can't even remember which one -- started a thing called Saturday Sky.  She said, "We all live under the same sky," and thought it would be fun for everyone in her blog circle to photograph and post what the sky looked like where we lived.  

As the blogosphere shrank, things like that fell out of favor, and eventually I stopped doing it.  Until today.  This is what my sky looked like all day long. 

We are expecting storms, but no severe weather -- at least not down here.  My friends who live in Michigan and Wisconsin are getting hit pretty hard, but we haven't had much at all this year.  I'm seriously considering de-safefying my safe room.  

Even with the looming sky, I was able to get the last of my plants safely tucked into their beds before the rain started. 

I measured where I want to put my tomato plants, and set them there, though I didn't plant them yet.  They're still too small.  Just to be on the safe side, I covered each one with a Walmart sack.  They're saying we could get some heavy rain, and I didn't want my little seedlings to get pounded into mush.  

Once I'd set those into place, I managed to fit six basil plants in this bed, and put a marigold at the foot of where those tomatoes will eventually go once they're big enough.   I had a few basil plants left over, so I fit them into the raised bed where I'd put the others. 

Two of the smaller ones seem to have died, so I pulled them out and replaced them with these bigger ones.  I ought to have plenty of basil, but I don't know what I'm going to do with it.  I have plenty of pesto from last year still in the freezer.  I keep forgetting that I have it, which I shouldn't do because it's delicious.  

Back to the garden, I had planned on putting a pineapple sage in the other half of this bed, but now that will have to wait until next year, because I had three more cayenne peppers that needed a home.  Two of them went here. 

and the other one went here -- where my second lemon balm was meant to go.  That will also have to wait until next year. 

Oh well, it's all part of the learning process.  Maybe by next year, I'll be more organized.  Maybe next year, I'll start my own pepper seeds, too.  Anyway, everything is now planted and my little garden is done for this year. 

I'd debated on whether to give everything a good watering before I came inside, because we are supposed to get some rain this evening.  In the end, I did water because I figured with my luck, the rain would go all around me and we wouldn't get but a trace.   It's still early as I type this, but so far we haven't gotten anything but sprinkles. 

While I was out there, I noticed that sure enough, the little peppers that looked almost dead yesterday have perked right up after a night without the harsh southern sun.  

The seed packet said 6+ hours of full sun, but the way they droop in the afternoons makes me wonder.  I'm hoping that once they grow a bit more and develop a stronger root structure, they'll be better able to handle it.  

It looks like my French Tarragon is ready for its first harvest.  

I might cut some in the morning and hang it to dry.    

You know what's sad?  I'd cut and hung some herbs last year, but got so depressed after what that land scammer did, they're still hanging.  Maybe when I'm done here, I'll take them down and put them into some ziplock bags.  That way, my hangers will be ready for this year's herbs.  

OK, moving right along.  I finished piddling in the garden, then came inside and between bits of housework, I knit on my newest sailor hat while watching The Great Pottery Throwdown Christmas special on Roku Channel. 

And in piano news, I decided to go ahead and pick the Faber course back up, even though I'm still learning the last three pieces in the Alfred's course. 

I'd thought I would go back to the beginning and start over, but when I pulled the book back out, I realized I was more than halfway through.  So, I scrapped that idea pretty quickly.  I've also decided I'm not going to watch Mr. Let's Play Piano Methods videos for this book any more.  I've noticed that for the most part, all he does is change the fingering, because he doesn't like the fingering the books use.  The really funny...or sad...part is that his fingering is usually more complicated than what the book uses.  

The Faber book has QR codes you can scan and it'll take you to a video of Mr. Faber playing the piece, so you can at least know what it's supposed to sound like, so I'll just go with that.  

And finally, I'd intended to post an Eye Candy Friday yesterday, but I completely forgot so I'm posting it today.  Here you go:

Now, if you'll excuse me, I just found Lark Rise To Candleford on Roku Channel, and I need to watch it.  

Laters. 

Off And On

I'm tired.

I stayed up way too late last night watching football.  The Cowboys had the Sunday Night Football game, wherein they dominated the Saints the entire game.  Then, as usual, I was too keyed up to fall asleep easily, so it was after midnight when I fell asleep. 

Time being the uncooperative entity that it is, 5:00 AM still came at 5:00 AM.  I wasn't out of bed for 10 minutes before I was eagerly anticipating getting back into bed at the end of the day.  Nevertheless, I have just enough wits left to give you a rundown of my weekend. 

Saturday was an absolutely beautiful day.  Partly cloudy, breezy, but just a bit too warm to open the windows.

Still, it was fallish enough to put me into the baking mood. 

Look!  Mini pumpkin pies!  I made six, and put five of them in the freezer.  The other one met its unfortunate demise in my stomach.  I still have quite a bit of pumpkin left, so I might make a few more pies, or I might try that pumpkin soup recipe. 

Well, sort of.  I view recipes more as suggestions.  I'll probably just pick the best parts of the several recipes and wing it from there.  There is one drawback with cooking without recipes, though.  When you make something really, really good, and can't remember how you did it.  Been there...

Just to cheer you up, here is a flower. 

OK, onward...

I finished the scarf I was weaving. 

Then I warped the loom for another one. 

This one is Red Heart Supersaver in Gumdrop for both warp and weft.  I like the way it is turning out. 

Finally, Squeaky has laid claim to a sweater piece that I'd tossed on the back of the love seat.  

"Dis mine nao.  You not getz it back." 

It Always Amazes Me

It always amazes me how skies that can produce so much death and destruction one day, can be so beautiful the next.

Our thoughts and prayers go out to all those affected by the storms yesterday. Things got a little hairy here for a minute, but the worst of it passed to the North of us. We didn't even lose power, though I had both the phone and the kindle fully charged-- just in case.

Today proved blessedly noneventful. Yes, my big excitement for the day was to head back into town and get a new pair of rubber boots.

I went back to Wal-mart, thinking that they might have gotten some more in since Thursday.  Sure enough, they had some in my size.

As soon as I got home, I put them on, went out, and worked on clearing off some more honeysuckle from my plum trees.  I'm to the point now that I have to get somebody with a chainsaw to come cut down the other trees that have grown up through the plums.  Might as well get the elm tree out of the pear tree and I can work on that one, too.

Jake did help me with one.  I'm not sure what kind of tree it was, because it hadn't leafed out yet.  I was pulling the vines out of the top of it, and Jake grabbed them and started pulling, too.  After I'd cut the honeysuckle loose, the tree didn't snap back up. I shook it a few times, but it just laid there, draped across a few dead plum branches.

"Something is wrong with this tree," I said to myself.  When I walked around the plum tree and looked, Jake had broken that tree right in half.   It was a  young tree, too, green and alive.  About twice as big around as a broom handle, and he broke it like it was an old twig.

You know, sometimes people ask me if I'm afraid, living without a man in my house.  I just smile, and say, "nope".

Sock Progress

First thing this morning, I went out and took a photo of the yarn in natural light.

It still seems brighter on my monitor than the real colors show, though.

I've made good progress on the sock. This is after three pattern repeats. The pattern calls for a total of six before starting the heel, and that's probably what I'll go with. So far, the only modification I've made is to the ribbing. The twisted rib is just too tight to go over my heel, so I used a K2 P2 rib. That's about the only type of ribbing I can use for socks. Nothing else is stretchy enough.

I spent the rest of the day avoiding vacuuming my carpet.  One of the things I did to facilitate said avoidance was to take Rylea to the lake.

We hiked the Lost Bluff trail, and it was definitely a challenge. See what I had to climb up?

And that was just one part of the trail. The whole thing was 2 1/2 miles long, and the majority of it was either straight up or straight down. When we got to the very top, we were able to look out over the river.

By the time we got through, it had definitely become one of those What Was I Thinking? moments.

But, you know, if a pudgy old lady and a crippled dog can do it, anyone can.  All you gotta do is keep putting one foot in front of the other.

Kind of like life.

Just keep putting one foot in front of the other.

It's Amazing

how much better a good night's sleep can make a body feel.  I went to bed around 10:00ish and slept all night.  Wonder of wonders, the alarm dog let me sleep until 6!  After letting her out and feeding the cat, I went back to bed until the house warmed up, but didn't go back to sleep.

I got out of bed around 7ish, and after breakfast, just went plumb loco.  I did the laundry, which included stripping the bed, washing the sheets and blankets, and washing the old comforter before putting it into the spare room.  I even put the clean sheets back on the bed right away, instead of leaving it until bedtime, and of course, the new Dallas Cowboys comforter is securely in place on the bed.   And, I folded and put away the clothes, instead of leaving them on the bed for 3 days--or until they all get worn again.

I unloaded the dishwasher, then reloaded it, and cleaned up the kitchen a bit, then started a loaf of bread.

I swept and mopped both the bathroom and kitchen floors, cleaned the toilet and unclogged the bathtub drain.  Then I vacuumed and Rug Sticked the living room and hall.  I even vacuumed the bedroom, but didn't Rug Stick it.

Somewhere in the midst of all that, I finished another hat

and cast on another Fun Fur charity scarf,

all the while, dogsitting the neighbor's dogs. I even managed to get you a Saturday Sky shot.

Wonder of wonders, I got all this done in time to sit down and watch the LSU/Ol' Miss game.  And what a game it was!  LSU hung on to win 43-36, and the other half of my head turned gray.  Verne Lundqist made a joke about the Nutt and The Mad Hatter playing under a full moon, and of course Gary whatever his last name is had to repeat it 746 times before the game was over.  I swear, I don't know why they have him on there.  I can't stand listening to him.  Last year, he said that Trindon Holliday was the fastest man to ever play college football, and he said it about 2000 times.  OK, not really, but it sure seemed like it.  Verne finally shut him up when he said, "Oh, I don't know about that.  I watched Bob Hayes play."  Now, Trindon Holliday is fast, but they called Bob Bullet for a reason.

Question:  Am  I the only one out there who thinks Les Miles is sexy as he**?  Seriously. 

Seriously Sexy.

Uh, moving right along...The good news is, Texas finally won one!  Hook Em!  And I finally started my Christmas shopping.  Usually, I'm nearly done by now, but this year, I just don't know what to get anyone.  I think all the nephews are going to get gift cards.  I don't like sending gift cards, but I don't know what they have, or what they need. 

Of course, if I ask their mothers, they'll say to send them clothes, but what little kid wants clothes for Christmas?  I guess I'd better figure something out. 

I'm running out of time.

Random

well, just stuff. Not much thought in this post. I sure wish this dog of mine understood the concept of sleeping in!  So all you're getting today is a few photos with brief captions.

OK, and awayyyy we go...

1.  Washcloth, knit in Peaches and Creme worsted weight cotton, in the color Yorktown. 

Knitting it on the smaller needles made a nice, thick, squishy cloth, but it sure was hard on my forearms.

2.  Cherry cordial kisses.  Nuff said.

3.  I got my little bulbs repotted.  They'll be fine from  here on out.

4.  This sure was a nice treat this morning.

5.  Because I woke up to this:

The first frost of the year.  I'm so glad it happened on a day that I didn't have to go anywhere!

6.  Saturday Sky, with one of the few trees that has lost all its leaves already.

7.  Walnuts, good for your heart.  Good for your HDL levels.  Just good.

Speaking of good, you can't deny the LSU Tigers that moniker any more.  They knocked off the defending national champion Alabama 24-21, ending any hope of a repeat title. 

Say what you want about Les Miles.  Say what you want about Jordan Jefferson, or Jarrett Lee, but they are 8-1. 

And you can't argue with that.

Sailors, Skies, and Of Course, Football

Sailor hat #3 is done!

I wanted something that could be worn by either a man or a woman, but not just another plain hat.  I searched through all my old knitting magazines, but I just couldn't find a hat pattern that appealed to me.  So, I did what any good knitter would do.  I adapted the Roundabout Sock pattern to make this one. I am pleased with the way it turned out, though if I ever do it again, I'll do the decreases differently.  Oh, I would have decreased the same way, I just would have stopped the yarn overs a row or two sooner. This is the last hat I'm going to make for this project.  I have quite a bit of leftover yarn, though, that I could make more hats from.  Just gotta find another project.

The good news is, while searching for a hat pattern, I found my Socks Soar on Two Circulars book!  I'd been looking for this book for years--literally.  I've wanted to do the Columbine Peaks socks again, in a wool yarn this time.  They did OK in the cotton blend I used, but I think the pattern would work better in wool. 

For your Saturday Sky, once again, a sky free of clouds.

 We've had no rain at all since September 11, and no significant rain since the beginning of August.  There isn't any rain in the forecast either, until the end of October at least.  We are under a state wide burn ban.  I can't remember it ever being so dry, not since I moved here.

Texas had their bye week, so there will be no Gratuitous Garrett Gilbert photo today.  There was still plenty of excitement in today's football action.  Number 1 Alabama was knocked off by #19 South Carolina.  I didn't watch that game because it was on CBS.  Since we switched to digital, my CBS reception has been spotty at best.  So, I watched Arkansas hold off Texas A&M in a game full of mistakes and sloppy play. 

Then LSU, whew!  After last week's wacky finish, I didn't think it could get any more exciting.  But the Mad Hatter did it again.  It was crazy.  LSU turned the ball over twice, and Florida scored both times.  Then LSU got the lead back, then Florida ran a kick off back for a touchdown.  The lead was going back and forth and back and forth the whole game.  Finally, Florida had the lead, and there was less than a minute left in the game.  LSU lined up for a field goal that would have tied the game and sent it into overtime.  Only they faked it instead.  It wasn't the thing of beauty that Matt Flynn and Colt David pulled off in 2007, but it worked, and Josh Jasper got the first down.  A couple of plays later, Jarrett Lee hit Terrence Tolliver for the game winning touchdown with just 6 seconds left on the clock.

 
Final score:  LSU 33, Florida 29.  And half of my head turned gray.   These last minute come from behind victories are too much for my old ticker to take.  I'm giving up football.  

At least until tomorrow.

I Forgot The Title

I bought these cute little sandals yesterday at Wal-mart. 

They were on clearance, marked down to $7.00.  I love these Earth Spirit shoes.  I've worn them for years, and they don't wear out.  Well, I haven't gotten a pair to wear out yet. 

The sky started off looking like this

It cleared off for a few minutes,

 but then clouded up again, and even rained for a bit.  It never stayed clear enough for me to feel comfortable taking the dogs for their walk, so this is how Rylea spent most of her day, sleeping on my knitting bag.

While I watched movies via Netflix and worked on the Family Blankie.

The knuckleheaded thing I did was to get up early and watch the last episode of Northern Exposure, so I could send the disc back today, but I forgot to put it out in the mailbox.  So, I thought I'd run into town and put it in at the post office, but never got around to it.  Eh, I guess it'll just have to go out Monday. 

**Note: Yes I did publish this post without a title. I didn't realize it until Sunday night, so I retro-titled it.

Stuff

I was asleep, and dreaming, when at around midnight I was awakened by a clap of thunder.  Not just any old clap of thunder, but a super loud clap of thunder.  I nearly came out the bed.  What's cool is that in my dream, there was an explosion and a really big fireball. 

I'm still working on the second blankie.  I've decided to do it a little bit differently.  I put all my yarn in one big bag.  When I need a new square, I close my eyes, reach in, and whatever I grab is what I use.  I've gotten 13 squares done, and the 14th cast on.  I've put all my squares in a bag, too, and when I get ready to do the second row, I'll reach into the bag, grab some squares and that's what I use.  I think this is going to be fun.

A Saturday Sunset:

It's Here!

I used the gift card I'd won in the Football Fanatics Trivia contest, and this is what I ordered. 

I needed a new knitting bag for the blankie.  It's getting rather big,

and it needed a new home.  Now it has one. 

Here's something I haven't posted in a long time:  A Saturday Sky.

Yes, I know it's Sunday, but I took this picture yesterday.  I just didn't get around to blogging it.

Now, it's almost time for the series finale of Lost, so I'm outta here.

Later, peeps.