What The Yarn Wants

 I think the yarn wants to be a cowl.  

In the meantime, I asked the yarn if at least part of it wanted to be a blanket square, and the yarn happily agreed.  I found the blanket and got it out to add a square, that's when I discovered I already had a square in progress.  

Now I know why I couldn't find my other size 3 needle when I needed it.  When I needed my needle...get it?  OK, never mind.  I can't even blame sleep deprivation this time, because I slept until nearly 6:00 AM this morning.    

Moving right along, 

I finished the square I'd already started, then knitted the new one.

By the time I was finished, I was pretty sure the yarn was telling me it wants to be a cowl, but the ball games had started.  As usual, I had one game going on the TV, and one on my laptop, so I couldn't search for a pattern.  

Speaking of football, Texas held on to win a nailbiter.  Hook 'Em.

Navy came from behind to win a nailbiter, for their first notch in the W column this season.  Beat Army.  

As of this writing, LSU is locked in a nailbiter with Auburn.  Geaux Tigers. 

All in all, it's been a good weekend for football, and will be real good if LSU figures out how to tackle Bo Nix.  Best of all, those obnoxious Alabama fans had to listen to Gary.  He he he...Now, back to knitting...

My friend Amy commented on my last blog post about wanting to start a scarf for when she needed some mindless knitting.  Naturally, I did what any red blooded knitter would do.  I dug out my mindless scarf and resumed knitting on it for a little while.  

It's real good for mindlessness.

And finally, on this date in 1835, The Battle of Gonzales was fought when the Mexican government demanded the Texians return the canon they'd given them.  The Texians refused, and in what later became known as Texas Lexington, the Texas Revolution began. 

Now, I'm down to one ball game at a time, so I'm off to search cowl patterns.  

Laters. 

Monday Blues

Part of the reason you no longer get witty and entertaining blog posts is because my computer has gotten so frustratingly slow.  I've done all the tricks-- defragging, clearing cache and cookies, etc, etc., but it hasn't helped.  So, by the time I get the page opened up and everything, I'm so aggravated that whatever it was I wanted to post about has long since fled my conscious.

I've got some pretty good stuff rolling around in my head, too.  I still haven't forgotten that book review, even though I've read two more books since then.

I've got one about a meme I've been seeing on FB, and one about judging people.

But for right now, you've just got to settle for some football talk-- and a music video at the end.

You know the Colts cut Peyton Manning, right?  Well, it seems he has finally settled on a team, the Denver Broncos.  Now the Broncos are looking to trade Tim Tebow.   I'm no expert, but this seems like a bad move to me.  After all, Peyton is getting on up there.  He'll be 36 on Saturday, which in football years is like 70.  Plus, he's had this neck thing going on that kept him out of the entire 2011 season.  There's no guarantee he'll be able to play again at all, much less up to the level he was playing before.

The good news is, Matt Flynn has signed with the Seahawks where he will compete with Tavaris Jackson for the starting job.  Matt is probably the most under rated QB in recent history.  The Packers didn't draft him until the 7th round, but by the end of training camp his rookie year, he'd beaten out second round pick Brian Brohm for the #2 spot.  By the end of the next training camp, the Pack cut Brohm.  They didn't need him.  They had Flynn.  Though he's only gotten two starts, he nearly pulled off the upset of the Patriots in 2010, and this past season he threw for 6 touchdowns in the season finale against the Detroit Lions.

And everybody forgets that he did win a National Championship when he was at LSU.

Yeah, I think he'll be OK.

Finally, the Cowboys have signed Kyle Orton to back up Tony Romo after Jon Kitna announced his retirement.  And the fans are once again displaying their stupidity in all its glory.  "Finally, someone to light a fire under Romo."  Morons.  Are you so ignorant of the game that you really think Romo needs someone to push him? Come on, the man played nearly an entire game with a punctured lung.  If that isn't enough fire for you, then there's no pleasing you. 

Another one that gets me is, "Come on, Jerry, loosen up the purse strings a little".  Dummy.  Don't you know there is such a thing as a salary cap?  Jerry can't loosen up the purse strings any more.  Especially not after Goodell slapped that $10 million fine on them for breaking a rule that wasn't a rule back when he broke it.  Besides that, the league approved every single contract during that uncapped year, and now, two years later, they want to say, "Oh no, you shouldn't have done what we said you could do."  So the other 30 teams (the Redskins were also slapped with a similar fine) get to share that money.  Even though they did the same thing and weren't penalized for it.

Sheesh, who needs reality TV when you have football?

About Last Night

There's only one thing I have to say about that game last night.

Jarrett Lee should have gotten to play. 

 (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

Even if it would have had no effect on the outcome of the game, Jarrett Lee should have gotten to play. 

Even if Alabama had a 50-0 lead, Jarrett Lee should have gotten to play. 
Even if LSU had a 50-0 lead, Jarrett Lee should have gotten to play. 
Even if the score was tied with 30 seconds left, Jarrett Lee should have gotten to play. 

Even if Jordan Jefferson hadn't spiraled out of control like those of us who have suffered through 4 years of his playing knew he would, Jarrett Lee should have gotten to play. 

Why? 


Because it was Jarrett Lee who lead this team to an 8-0 start.  Because it was Jarrett Lee who led the team to led the team to victory, playing three of its first four games on the road and against such opponents as Oregon and West Virginia.  Because it was Jarrett Lee who developed the poise and confidence to keep the team rolling.  Because it was Jarrett Lee who took control, took leadership, managed the team, and kept them winning all that time Jordan Jefferson was sitting in jail. 

Because without Jarrett Lee, LSU would not have even made it to the title game.

If for no other reason than that,

Jarrett Lee should have gotten to play. 

And Then There Was One

With Southern Miss taking down the Houston Cougars 49-28, that left one, yes ONE undefeated team left.

That one team would be the Bayou Bengals, the LSU Tigers.  The question is, would they remain undefeated?

At first it didn't seem so.  Not one single first down in the first half.  Only 12 yards of offense.  But, that's the way LSU plays.

They just toy with their prey before swooping in for the kill.

So they did this game, too.  Georgia was up 10-0 when The Honey Badger returned a punt for a touchdown.

And the floodgates were opened.

Like a mighty river, LSU rolled over the hapless Bulldogs.  Forty two unanswered points;  Georgia would never score again.  Final score:  42-10

LSU wins the SEC Championship and is on a direct path to the National Championship.

Now, trivia time-- who said this back in 2003?

"Anyone who doesn't win their conference has no business playing in the national championship game." 

Of course,now that it's his team who will probably play in the National Championship game without having won their division, much less their conference, Nick Saban is changing his tune mighty quickly.

"But, but, but" he sputtered in a pre-game interview, "it should be the best two teams in the country."

The question is, can a team who doesn't win its conference really be considered one of the best teams in the country? 

So, to get to the National Championship, LSU has had to win an extra game.

Alabama gets a do-over.

Surely I'm not the only one who has a problem with this.


Something is very seriously wrong in the BCS. 

Music Monday

Only 5 more days! I'd had high hopes for this season, but what with Jordan Jefferson arrested, and Russell Shepherd ruled ineligible, that could change very quickly.

Well, they've still got The Mad Hatter...

Monday, Monday

In response to the myriad unasked questions that I'm sure everyone was thinking after yesterday's post, yes someone really did come to church like that. No, it was not me, nor will it ever be. I hope. Now if I go senile and so some crazy things, maybe, but not while I'm ever in my right mind.

My excitement for today was fixing my toilet.  The sticky up thing in the tank was not working right, so that the water wouldn't shut off once the tank was filled.  I went and got another one, along with some chocolate chips, since I've had a request for cookies, and replaced it.  The hardest part was getting the old one out.  Whoever originally installed it didn't seem to understand the concept of "Do Not Overtighten".

Once I got the lock nut loosened, the rest was easy.  Now, I no longer have to shut the water off between flushings.  I know you're thrilled. 

In football news, Marion Barber has landed with the Chicago Bears.  That's a relief.  I can at least stand to watch them.  You have no idea how hard it was last year for me to watch the Steelers just so I could see Flozell.  They've cut him, by the way.  Anyway, Marion will be joining Roy Williams and Sam Hurd in Chicago, while Marc Colombo has signed with the Dolphins.  I haven't heard where Leonard Davis has ended up, if anywhere.  I'm sure someone will let me know.




Less than a month to go!  I'd better hurry up and get my cable hooked up!

What's This?

Could it be? Is it possible? Has there been a blankie sighting?

Yep, there was a brief sighting of the increasingly more elusive Friendship Blankie, as I got 4 new squares knit into it this weekend.

Try not to notice that there has apparently not been a vacuum cleaner sighting in far too long.

Change the subject...I'm making good progress on the test knit.  Almost through chart A.  

I'm really enjoying this pattern. It was a perfect day to stay in and knit, too. I woke up this morning to another light dusting of snow, and more light flurries throughout the day.

Now that Christmas is over, and gifts have been delivered, I can finally show you my new shirt.

I've been sitting on this one for a month, now, because I'd also gotten James and Cody each one for Christmas. 

Well, tonight's Eagles/Vikings game has been postponed due to blizzard conditions. The Giants and the Jets are both stuck away from home due to um...blizzard conditions. This is the second week in a row that the Giants have been trapped by snow, what with the Metrodome collapsing and all.



I blame global warming.

And since George W. Bush is personally responsible for global warming, I blame Bush.

Apparently, it's the in thing to do.

.

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.

But First

a bit of catching up...I woke up Thursday and the alarm hadn't gone off.  Well, it went off, but the radio station was off the air, so it didn't make any noise.  I woke up late.  It was only a few minutes, but it was enough to throw my entire day off kilter.  Thus, I didn't post what I'd intended to post Thursday.  And here it is:

another fun fur charity scarf completed, and another fun fur charity scarf cast on:

Rylea decided to try on her Halloween costume.

Friday was a plant shutdown day, so I didn't have to go to work. I tried to sleep in, but the alarm dog wouldn't allow it. Yes, Rylea, I'm talking about you! Well, when I went to do my grocery shopping, I saw this:

I usually walk right past these things without giving them a second glance, because we all know my reputation with plants. Sigh...I love them, but can't seem to keep them alive. On impulse, I bought this one.   Wanna take bets on how quickly I can kill it? 

This morning I woke up way too early, after I'd stayed up way too late last night. I got so excited about the Rangers going to the World Series, that even after I went to bed, I couldn't get to sleep. I wish cats understood such things.

She's a persistent little bugger, she is. Especially when breakfast is involved.

No matter. The sky was absolutely gorgeous

and Rangers are still going to the World Series!

I spent today dog sitting the neighbor's dog.  They called me yesterday and asked me to keep an eye on him.  He'd gotten hit by a car yesterday, and they had to go out of town today.  They didn't want to leave him alone all day.   Shortly after they left, I went over and got him and just brought him to my house.

Poor sweet baby!  You can see how his back leg is all swollen up.  He had some open wounds, too, so I put some of the leftover medicine I had from when Rylea got hit on them.  I sent the rest back home with him.  The neighbor asked me what I thought about his leg, and I said I thought it might be broken.  If he were mine, I'd have taken him to the vet.  Hopefully, they will go on and take him.  They also brought me a new t-shirt.

And look! The letters are sewn on!

I didn't have an LSU t-shirt.

Speaking of, the unbeaten LSU Tigers faced off against the unbeaten Auburn Tigers.  I don't wanna talk about it.

The struggling Texas Longhorns faced off against the Iowa State Cyclones.  I really don't wanna talk about it.

Sigh, I'm going to bed

to dream of happier days...

Just What You've Been Waiting For

I know you've all been waiting with baited breath, and here it is. I cast on the first of the Dardo yarn this morning.

Sharp eyed readers with good memories might recognize this pattern. Yep, it's the ubiquitous One Row Scarf.  I know the pattern doesn't show up that well in that photo, so you'll just have to trust me.  That's what it is.  I've knit several of these before, but it's such a good yet simple pattern that I keep coming back to it.

And since these take just a bit more time, I also cast on another Fun Fur scarf.

And I watched football.  Lots of football.  OK, only three games, but that counts as a lot, doesn't it?  It was the weekend of the upset, I tell you.  Unranked Texas handed #5 Nebraska their first loss of the season.  Unranked Mississippi State handed #22 Florida their third loss in a row.  And here's the shocker, #18 Wisconsin knocked #1 Ohio State out of that #1 spot 31-18. Both LSU and Auburn remain unbeaten, setting up a good match for next week when they face each other.

In between all this knitting and football watching, I finally got my fall decorations out and put them up. 

I hit a bit of an impasse when I got here.

The junk and I stared at each other for a good long while, but in the end, I persevered. Now this cabinet looks lovely and fall-y...ish. Whatever.

I took some Benadryl, hoping it would help me sleep a little better tonight.  I can't remember the last time I slept the night through.  Seems I wake up every hour or two.  If that doesn't work, I may have to resort to The Green Elixer of Death.  Otherwise known as Nyquil. 

Squeaky says, "I notice you still aren't knitting anything for me."

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.

Score!

Today was the day.   I was going to head out on the great superwash wool hunt. I had a little trouble getting going this morning. My usual inertia had set in. I just didn't want to leave the house. But I thought about those sailors, leaving home and their families for months at a time. So I pried my fat butt out of my recliner and headed up to Southaven.

First stop was Jo-Ann's.  Well, OK, the FIRST first stop was Wal-mart.  The one here has stopped carrying the leave in treatment I use in my hair, so every time I head up North, I stop and get two or three bottles.  While there, I picked up a new kitchen set.  I've been needing some new towels, and thought this was the cutest set, and only $5.00.  It has 4 towels, a dish cloth and two pot holders.

Then, I went to Jo-Ann's.  I didn't really think they would have any 100% superwash wool, and I was right.  They had wool, but not superwash.  They had washable wool blends, but not 100% wool.  The stop was not a total bust, though.  I picked up this skein of Lion Brand Wool Ease, color #180 Forest Green Heather.

 

I know, there is a shadow, but I'm not taking another photo, so you'll just have to live with it.  I'm not sure what I'm going to do with it, yet.  I was thinking a scarf to match the hat I made for my cousin last year, but then, he doesn't really wear scarves.  So, that idea is a no-go.  I don't know.  I'll think of something.

I also picked up some more sock yarns for the blankies.

It's about to get cold enough that having a blankie in my lap will be a good thing.

I stopped at Petco, but didn't buy anything.  I also stopped a couple of places to look for some new work shoes.  I really need to wear high top shoes or boots at work, because I've developed the habit of standing on the sides of my feet.  It's causing problems all the way up to my hips.  I don't do that when I'm wearing boots.  I didn't find anything.  Well, I did, but I didn't want to pay $80 for boots that are just going to get ruined at work.

Finally, I went on to Hank of Yarn, and scored big time.   First up, Cascade 220 Superwash.  These are colors 1912  (the browinsh one), #809 (red), and 814 (blue). 

I've already cast on the blue:

This is the Hurricane Hat, and is working up really quickly.  It calls for size 7 needles, and I was sure I'd had some.  Apparently, I don't.  I'm working it on size 8, and it looks small.  I'd hate to see it on size 7.

I also picked up these two.  The top one is Scarlet Fleece Painted Merino.  The colorway is Favorite Jeans.  This one might just have to stay with me. 

The bottom one is Cascade 220 Superwash Paints, color 9871.  It doesn't really look like the color in the photo and looks even less like the color on their site.  It's still pretty.  I though it would make a fun hat for a sailor to wear.  There are women on that ship, and this looks like a girly color. 

The Fun Fur scarves got set aside since the hats have a time constraint on them.  However, just to show you that they aren't forgotten, I cast this one on last night.

I got home in time to watch LSU vs Tennessee, and Texas vs. Oklahoma.  Texas lost, as I sort of expected them to.  They are where Oklahoma was this time last year.  They are still trying to find themselves after having lost so many key players.

LSU thought they'd lost, too.  That game started out with a bang, Jordan Jefferson scoring on an 83 yard touchdown run on their very first play.  They got really sloppy after that.  They were trailing 10-14, and on the last play of the game, there was some confusion, followed by a bad snap that flew right past Jordan Jefferson.  Time had run out, and Tennessee thought they'd won, but there was a flag.  Tennessee had had 13 men on the field, so LSU got one untimed down.  Stevan Ridley powered his way into the end zone and LSU won.  It was the craziest thing I'd ever seen!

Don't believe me?  See for yourself: