Yay!

More blankie yarn came! Courtesy of chuckieknits. Thanks, Ann!

Whiskers And WIPS

Last night, I dreamed I went back into the Navy and was going through basic training all over again. I did pushups all night, and woke up more exhausted than when I went to bed. So, with that in mind, here is the weekly WIP report:

1. Sock yarn blankie--No progress this week. I'm waiting to get more yarn.


2. Trekking Scarf--No progress this week.


3. Queen Anne's Lace-- moving right along and making good progress.


~~Whiskers On Wednesday~~

Mama, do not take my picture! NO! Don't!! OK, but do NOT post this picture! Seriously, I mean it! DO NOT post this picture! NO! Mama!

At least don't let Ace see it! Please Miss Robin!

How embarrassing.

(Does this boot make me look fat?)

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Nope, Not Today

I had a post all ready to type out, but I've decided to just go to bed instead. Just so you don't feel you've completely wasted your time coming over here, I leave you with a picture of the sunrise one day last week. Unfortunately, this will come all too soon for me.

Honeysuckle

It's one of my favorite summertime flowers.

It smells so good.

As a kid, we used to suck the nectar from these delicate little flowers.

As an adult, well...

sometimes I still do.

And Knitting, Too

Just so's you won't think the last two days have been all about football, here is my knitting progress:


Even in natural light, I still can't get a color accurate photo of this yarn! I've made pretty good progress since casting on for the final time yesterday morning. I had to keep this on DPNs longer than I normally would, because both of my 24" cables broke! But, as you can see, I finally got it large enough to fit onto my 32" cables, and we're moving right along. It's still just a blob, but it will be that until it is blocked. That's the fascinating thing about lace knitting. Turning a shapeless blob into something beautiful.

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Draft Day 2009

The NFL draft is over and done for another year. Though some may argue with me, I think the Cowboys did pretty well this year. There was no "Wow" factor, but then again the needs this year were more for acquiring depth than starting positions. So let's run down their draft selections.

The Cowboys' first pick was their third round pick, and they chose Jason Williams, linebacker from Western Illinois. They needed this pick. Last season DeMarcus Ware was on the field for nearly every play--defensively, of course. You want a player like him on the field as much as you can have him out there, but even the Incredible Hulk needs a break now and again.

Second pick was Robert Brewster, offensive tackle from Ball State. He can play guard and tackle, and may eventually replace Flozell Adams when his contract runs out.

Third was Stephen McGee, quarterback from Texas A&M. He will be groomed to be Tony Romo's backup, eventually replacing Jon Kitna, who isn't getting any younger.

Victor Butler, defensive end from Oregon State--possibly drafted to be a pass rush specialist.

Brandon Williams, also a defensive end, from Texas Tech.

DeAngelo Smith--cornerback from Cincinnati, who could possibly be moved to safety.

Next up, Michael Hamlin, free safety from Clemson, who is expected to eventually start opposite Ken Hamlin (no relation). That ought to be interesting. A pair of Hamlins at safety...

I don't understand this next pick--David Buehler, kicker from USC. To me, this was a wasted pick as the Cowboys already have an outstanding kicker in Nick Folk. But he didn't have any touchbacks last year, some might argue. Maybe not, but that's not because he doesn't have the leg for it. In the 2008 Pro Bowl, he was making field goals in practice from 70 yards. If they would just let him go and let him kick, he'd have the touchbacks the fans seem to want so much. (I don't understand that either. You don't want touchbacks. You want to pin the opponent down as close to the goal line as possible. Not give them a free 20 yards.)

The last four picks of the day--Steven Hodge, strong safety from TCU; John Phillips, tight end from Virginia, who will compete with Rodney Hanna for the third tight end spot since Tony Curtis was not resigned; Mike Mickens, cornerback from Cincinnati, and finally Manuel Johnson, wide receiver from Oklahoma.

All in all, it was a pretty good draft, since the Cowboys were drafting for depth and special teams needs.

As for LSU players, five more were drafted on the second day. They are:

Quinn Johnson, fullback, Green Bay Packers
Herman Johnson, guard, Arizona Cardinals
Curtis Taylor, free safety, San Francisco 49ers
Ricky Jean-Francois, defensive tackle, San Francisco 49ers

and another personal favorite of mine, Demetrius Byrd, wide receiver. He'll be joining his old team mate Jacob Hester, who I'd once promised to name my next child after, in San Diego.

And that was it for this year's draft.

Next up: mini-camps

2009 Draft Day 1

The first day of the NFL draft, and as expected, the Detroit Lions chose Matthew Stafford as the #1 pick. Mark Sanchez was drafted by the Jets at #5, and Michael Crabtree was chosen at #10 by the 49ers. Only one LSU player was drafted, and that was Tyson Jackson. He was the #3 pick and will be joining his former team mate Glen Dorsey playing for the Kansas City Chiefs.

The Cowboys didn't draft a single player. They had previously traded their first round pick to Detroit for Roy Williams. They had a second round pick, but ended up trading it to Buffalo for two picks in later rounds. Tomorrow ought to be a busy day for them, since they have 12 picks. You betcha I will be here for them!

The only Texas player drafted was Brian Orakpo, and he went to just about the worst possible place he could go to, the Washington Redskins.

Overall, I'd have to say that this draft has been uninspiring so far, but with the Cowboys doing all their business tomorrow, it ought to get better.

Re-Runs

Since I can't think of anything clever and interesting to say, I thought I'd repost something I had written in April 2007.

Grandmas

Lou posted a really nice story about her grandmother today. It's worth a read. It also got me to remembering my grandma. I don't really have a lot of those kinds of memories of her.

My maternal grandmother was named Edith Elizabeth Wright. When I was 3 years old, she had a massive stroke that left her right side paralyzed. The stroke also affected the speech center of her brain and for the rest of her life, she was never able to speak clearly. Though I was still very small, I remember going with my mother to take Grandma to physical therapy. Grandpa hadn't retired yet, so we took her to her appointments. There was another man in there who would scream. One day as he was passing through the waiting area, I asked him why he screamed so much. "Does it hurt," I asked? "Yes," he responded. "Sometimes it hurts." The next day he gave me his little exercise ball that the therapist had given him.

The stroke happened in June of 1967. Sometime before that--I believe it had to be that same year, because I remember it so clearly--we went camping. Grandma and Grandpa had bought one of those pop-up campers. Dad had bought a tent, and we all went camping together at Lake Sam Rayburn. Grandpa liked working with wood, and had made me a little stove and a cradle. He'd made my brother a double Ferris wheel. I remember this because Rus got to bring his Ferris wheel, while I had to leave my things at home. To add insult to injury, he wouldn't let me play with his Ferris wheel. I had to play with the much smaller, cheap plastic toy Ferris wheel that was bought from the store.

Grandma and Grandpa also had a boat. They took my brother and me out fishing. Grandpa put the minnow on my little hook and told me to put it into the water. Having the patience of a three year old, I pulled my line out about every 10 seconds to see if I'd caught anything. Grandma told me to leave my minnow in the water for a long time, to give it time to grow up, she said.

"How will I know when it's grown," I asked?

"I'll tell you," said my grandpa. After what seemed like forever, Grandpa told my I could pull my line out. When I did, I was astounded to discover a big fish where my little fish had been! "How could it have grown so big that fast," I wondered? My mother says I screamed, threw the fish back into the water and tried to climb out the other side of the boat, but I don't remember that.

That is double special to me, because not only was it the first fish I caught, but it is also the only memory I have of my grandma before the stroke.

Grandma died when I was 14. Soon, Grandpa remarried. We weren't quite sure what we should call our step-grandmother. We didn't want to call her Grandma, because Grandma was Grandma, but it seemed disrespectful to call her Vivian. Finally, my sister just came right out and asked her, "What should we call you?"

"Just call me Granny, like the rest of my grandchildren do."
*

Question Of The Day

What do normal people do when they find a mouse in their house?

They kill it.

What does Becky do? She puts it in a cage and makes a pet of it.

But it was just sooo cute!

Whiskers And WIPS

Can you believe, I'm down to three WIPs? Really, only two active ones, because the blankie is contingent on my finding yarn sources, so it's sort of a WIP in waiting. Well, really only one, because I haven't cast on the new lace shawl yet. Right now it's more of a work in preparation than a work in progress.

Without further ado, here is the weekly WIP Wednesday report:

1. Sock yarn blankie--No progress this week. I'm waiting to get more yarn.


2. Express Lane socks--Finished! I'd link to the pattern, but it seems to have been taken down. I keep getting a 404 error.


3. Trekking Scarf--Just a few inches done, but still, it's progress.


4. Branching Out #2--Finished!

5. Queen Anne's Lace--I'll try to get the yarn wound and cast on the shawl later this evening.



~~Whiskers On Wednesday~~

brought to you by a cantankerous cat.

Squeaky says, "Don't bother me, I'm busy.

Staring out the window takes some serious concentration."

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Another FO

In this case, FO stands for Finally Over! It seemed to take forever to do these socks. I cast them on back in January.

I just don't like Magic Loop, and of course, doing both at once (which is why I did them on the Magic Loop anyway) makes it seem much more tedious.

But they are finally done! The next pair will definitely be done on DPNs. And probably with Cherry Tree Hill supersocke--though I'm not sure which color I want to use. I have two in my stash. I really like Cabin Fever. Now to search for the right pattern.

Since I got the socks finished, I am allowing myself to start my next project. I was holding off as kind of an incentive to get the socks done. Pattern is picked out. Yarn is picked out. It needs to be wound, then I can cast on!


The color in this photo is way off. The one I posted here is much more color accurate.

Woo Hoo! More lace. Complicated lace is like the knitter's version of crack. It'll have you bleary eyed, unable to think straight, suffering violent mood swings--but once you get hooked, you can't put it down.

Sigh, what's a knnitter to do?

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A Candid Shot

He didn't know I was there, or I would have never gotten away with it.

Adventures In Blocking

When blocking a lace project--or any project for that matter--the first thing to do is to give the item a bath.

Next, we rinse the item, then soak it in diluted vinegar to help set the dye so it won't fade as badly.

After rinsing one final time, we roll the project in a towel and jump up and down on it to get excess water out. Some people like to put theirs through the spin cycle of the washing machine. I do that sometimes, when the washer is not otherwise occupied.

Next, the fun begins. Pinning it out.

And pinning, and pinning , and pinning...

Finally we're done!

Please ignore the state of my carpet. That's what I do, and it works for me. The nice thing about these blocking mats is that I can pick the whole thing up and lean it against the wall--or in this case the dresser--to get it out of the way. Please ignore the state of the top of my dresser. That's what I do, and --well, you know.

After several hours of drying time, we unpin the project, and voila! A beautiful lace scarf:


Branching Out #2. Completed.

Next up I think will be Queen Anne's Lace. Off to finish my socks so I can get started.

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Saturday Questions

What do you do under this beautiful sky?

You teach Brit how to mow.

Off she goes.
What do you do when you have a hankering for toasted marshmallows, but no fire?

You improvise.

Yes, that is a knitting needle that marshmallow is skewered on.

Scarf photos tomorrow. I promise.

FO

I have a Finished Object to report! I have successfully completed Branching Out #2. I will block it this weekend and will get pictures of it up after that.

Sad news...John Madden has retired from sports broadcasting. It's a sad day for Sunday Night Football fans.

Sadder news...he will be replaced by Chris Collinsworth. I don't need to tell you what I think of him. I can't even stand the sound of his voice. It's a sad, sad day for Sunday Night Football fans.

Daily Dose

In case you haven't seen it already, here is your daily dose of inspiration.



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Whiskers And WIPS

It must be Wednesday.

1. Sock yarn blankie--thanks to a generous donation, I was able to add another row and a bit.


2. Express Lane socks--slowly inching along, and I'm remembering why I don't like Magic Loop.


3. Trekking Scarf--No progress this week.


4. Branching Out #2--Ive gotten several more pattern repeats done. Judging by how much--or how little--yarn I have left, I'm almost done with this one.

Squeaky says, "I don't want to do this any more.

I'm not playing. Seriously.

I mean it. I'm going to sleep now.


Leave me alone."

2009

Football schedules are out!

Now the season needs to hurry up and get here!

Music Monday

Robin posted a video of someone playing a beautiful song on the guitar, so I thought I'd all my two cents worth and post one of my favorite guitarists. This is Jeff Wahl. If you'll notice in my left sidebar, there is a player for one of his Magnatune albums.







This is only sort of a cop out post. I woke up at least three times last night--only one of which I can blame on the dogs.

Cowboys Classics

Courtesy of DallasCowboys.com. Because I'm really missing football season.

Buffalo Bills--2007

Indianapolis Colts--2006

Washington Redskins--1999

Happy Easter!

Azaleas

I planted these azaleas about 12 years ago, not long after we moved here.


I planted them on the East end of the old house, thinking that since Azaleas are shade loving plants, they would do OK.

They didn't.

They did fine the first year or two, but then began to bloom less and less.

Last summer, they had maybe a grand total of two or three blooms between the pair of them. I was seriously going to cut them down and just start over. I just didn't get around to it.

But then, I got that old trailer house moved out and they were able to get sun throughout the day. What a difference it made!

I think I'll keep them.

Conversations With Cody

I'm going to go try on my suit, now.





How do I look?

You look good. It still fits, too. It may be a little snug around the middle though. Well, it'll be fine for one night.

I'll just leave my jacket unbuttoned.

Not if you're going to wear a tie. You need to button it.

Brother Bob [our pastor] wears a tie and he leaves his jacket unbuttoned.

You're not Brother Bob. You're my son and I'm telling you to button your jacket.

I would think you would want your son following the example of his preacher!

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Knitters

are the most generous people on Earth! Seriously!

I was talking about the blankie on a message board I'm a member of, and three wonderful ladies popped up and offered to send me yarn scraps. I already received one package of yarn a couple of weeks ago. Today, I got a second one!


Look at all the pretty yarn! I began incorporating it into the blankie right away. The lavendar/purple yarn on the far right has already been knit into a square, and the rainbow colored ball that you can barely see behind the red and black ball is being knit even as we speak.

Thanks, Chuckieknits! This'll help out a lot.

I figure I'm going to need close to 500 squares to finish. I had wanted to have 500 squares of different sock yarn, but I just don't see that happening. Still, I want to get to the halfway point before I begin repeating, so there's still a looong way to go.

I was thinking about having a contest to beg for sock yarn scraps, but I haven't decided if that would be tacky or not.

What do you think?