Friday, August 28

I am currently obsessed with bowls.

Felted bowls, to be precise.



Here's a shot of my very first attempt. I think it turned out quite nicely. (I just need to learn how to take decent shots of my felted goods. I have to admit, it is not my favorite type of photography.)



I was picturing something much smaller than the result, but it's all good. Big bowls, little bowls, why not? I have two more made that are experiments with size and shape, but I haven't felted them yet. Once I get them felted, I am going to go bowl crazy.

flickr faves

8/28/2009

1. Untitled, 2. morning shower, 3. day before the ride, 4. Untitled, 5. dining out | may 16. 2009, 6. . . ., 7. Weekend is finished, 8. senang, 9. eucalyptus bark, 10. ., 11. Silverchair, 12. tiny yellow, 13. Untitled, 14. Tabby's nose, 15. fields of gold, 16. Untitled

Created with fds flickr toys.

Thursday, August 27

Pickled peppers.

Pickled peppers.

We have a plethora of jalapeƱo and cubanelle peppers, more than we could possibly eat all at once. So I pickled them. I used this recipe because it sounded tasty and simple enough for my first attempt at pickling. They are supposed to sit in the refrigerator for a week so I'll keep you posted on how they taste.

I never used to like pickled anything, not even pickles. But when I met Will's granny for the first time and she sent us off with some jars of her pickles, that was it. Granny's pickles were the best thing ever and turned me into a pickle person. So I am all for trying my own pickling. I hope the peppers turn out well as I am going to have lots more ready to pick in another week or so.

And of course anytime I think about pickling peppers, that childhood rhyme come to mind:

Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers;
A peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked;
If Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers,
Where's the peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked?

Things that go bump in the night.

Last night I woke up at 1:10 in the morning. I kept hearing weird noises. Or I kept thinking I heard weird noises.

So I woke up my husband.

"I keep hearing weird noises."

He got up and checked the house. No one in the house. No one lurking outside the house. All was well.

Except that we were both wide awake. And we woke the cats up.

It's not so bad being wide awake when the person laying next to you is also wide awake. I felt like a jerk for waking up Will, but he was very nice about it.

The cats were restless and kept me from sleep until 3:49 when I finally gave in and let Rocky go outside. (I let Simon out at 3:16. Rocky usually isn't allowed out until after 4:00, but I've been giving in lately. And yes, I remember exact times of the night. I think that's what happens when you have problems sleeping.)

I think that I have an overactive imagination because the past few weeks, all I've been doing is knitting and watching crime shows. Crime shows plant all sorts of scary and gruesome scenarios in my head. I need to start watching sitcoms or something.

Wednesday, August 26

I just sat in the car in the driveway

so I could finish listening to Balls to the Walls. It made me inordinately happy for some reason.

The video link is worth checking out. Classic 1980's hard rock cheesy video.

My love for the hard rock/heavy metal of my youth will never die.

Granted, I don't think I could name any other song by Accept.

Tuesday, August 25

Rain, rain and rain!

It's coming down steadily and I am not complaining. We've been needing a some rainfall, big time. It also means that I don't have to water the garden. Double yay!

We went to see District 9 this afternoon. I'd heard good and bad reviews of it and I wasn't quite sure what to expect. I liked it. It was a good story, touching and suspenseful. But good lord, way too much blood and guts for my taste. It didn't make me not like the movie, but I am just not a blood and guts person. I thought I was going to throw up at one point. Yuck. And yeah, I know that I suck at movie reviews, so I'll just say that this was definitely worth going to see at the theater. No regrets.

I've still in the midst of a knitting frenzy. Today I felted my first bowl. It turned out much bigger than I expected, but it is quite nice. I'll post a photo when it's dry. I think I'm going to knit up a few more bowls, maybe in some different sizes and then get back to handbags as I still have so many new ideas. So much fun!

Hope your week is off to a good start!

Wednesday, August 19

Why is it that people in Santa Fe

are completely unable to use their turn signals? Is it so hard to make it blink, blink, blink so I know that you are going to turn, and when needed, which way you are going to turn, or that you are going to squeeze into my lane? I don't know about you, but when I learned to drive, I was taught how to use turn signals. The habit is so ingrained in me that occasionally I find myself hitting the turn signal when it's not even necessary, like when I am turning out of my driveway and there is no one behind me or anywhere around.

I mean, come on people, turn signals! How hard can it be? It's not like I am asking you to actually yield at yellow lights or come to a complete stop at stop signs. I know that would just be way too much to handle.

It drives me effing insane.

And today we are wishing

Happy Birthday to you!

p.nut (aka donut) a very happy birthday!! Hope you have some fun celebrations plan and have an excellent day. We miss you and send you much love. (Kisses for the kitties too.)

Tuesday, August 18

Another new one.

Another new one.

I thought this one turned out looking very "Santa Fe".

Excuse my language,

but you've got to be fucking kidding me.

Favre likely to return (again): QB meeting with Vikings

Three weeks ago he said he was done. Retired for good.

Dude, give it a rest already. I think he just likes being in the news. How long is this going to go on??

Monday, August 17

Stripes and checks.

Stripes.

Checks.

I ran out of wool yarn last week so I switched to cotton and made a couple of baby hats over the weekend.

Note to Alyssa: I really need all of your kids to be hat models for me!!

Saturday, August 15

Wishing a very happy birthday



to CC today. We love you and miss you tons!

Tuesday, August 11

New cables and stripes.

The leftovers.

Made with all the leftovers.



The cable patterns I chose for the red and the yellow really came out well. The cables show up quite nicely. I think I am also finally starting to figure out which yarns work best for certain designs.



I got a special order for this one today. Someone wants the color and the zigzag but in a larger bag. Yay!

Monday, August 10

'Tis the preseason.

Of football, that is. This summer is flying by...I can hardly believe we're already a week into August! And today we are officially one month away from the first game of the season. That first game being a Steelers game! Woohoo! (And okay, we're going to have out-of-town guests that evening and miss at least half the game, if not all of it, but still, it's exciting.) Preseason is not so exciting to me, but I do plan to check out the game on Thursday and I'm sure I'll peek at some of the other games that are aired throughout this month. Preseason is a nice little taste of football, but it never gets me revved up. The real football fever never begins until September. I'm looking forward to it.

As per usual, I have mostly taken the summer off. Yes, I read the headlines and follow the big stories, but I don't turn the NFL Network on every single morning and/or evening. So I don't have too many thoughts about the upcoming season. I am dreading the media coverage of Tom Brady, dissecting his every move in a season back from injury. I am curious to see how badly Josh McDaniels chokes on some of the decisions he has made in the past few months. And while I have few expectations about the Steelers season, I have to say that I don't think we are going to have the post-SuperBowl slump that we had after our last SuperBowl win. I really don't see Tomlin letting that happen. I don't know what to make of our schedule. Based on last season's standings, it appears that we have a pretty "easy" schedule, but who knows what those same teams are going to be like this season. Besides, so-called easy schedules aren't necessarily a good thing. I think a challenging schedule brings out more motivation.

August also brings the aroma of green chile roasting. It's one of the best smells in the world. I love it. And I can't wait to stock up on loads of it. Yum.

Lots of August birthdays too. My mom's 70th birthday is later in the month, but we had her party this past Saturday at Rio Chama. (We had to have it before the granddaughters head off to college.) It was a great success. Mom (and Dad) had a wonderful time as did everyone else. I know I thoroughly enjoyed catching up with relatives and old family friends that we don't see that often. And the food was superb. I was positive I was going to end up with a well-done filet mignon that someone else ordered, but nope, my steak was a perfect medium rare. Delicious. It really was a splendid day.

The two days before the party, we had our two nephews staying with us. Our two nephews who barely talk to us most of the time. We weren't sure what to expect, but they were awesome. Super quiet Dylan talked up a storm the entire time. We played some endless rounds of UNO which was fun. We had pizza at Rooftop Pizzeria. Will took them to see the GI Joe movie. And the cats liked them which was pretty shocking since the cats generally don't like anyone under the age of 25. (The nephews are basically complete opposites of my nieces, the biggest difference being how quiet they are.) Of course the main activity was video games. Lots and lots of video games. Including one that Will assured me was suitable for everyone, but after a lot of cursing and prostitutes getting their throats slit, I looked at the box and saw that it was rated "M" for Mature. Oooops. Anyway, it was loads of fun having them here and I am glad we got the time with them.

I've still been knitting up a storm since my handbags are selling fairly well these days. I'll post some shots of a few more new ones tomorrow. That's about all I'll probably do this week. Knit, knit, knit and felt. And maybe pull some weeds. Yeah, I know, I have a rough life.

Cheers!

Tuesday, August 4

New design.

Before felting.

After felting.

I'm super happy with the way this new design turned out. When I knit things up, I am never quite sure what's going to happen during the felting process. I really like the shape of this one and of course the pattern around the middle.

Fun!

Monday, August 3

Sunday, August 2

D is for

Dana. And damn awesome.

Dana.

Dana and her new friend.

Dana with the horse on her head.

Dana is damn awesome and these are three of my favorite pictures from her recent visit.

Saturday, August 1

Tumbling.

I can't guarantee it is going to last, but I have been posting some links and faves on my Tumblr. (Mostly because I can't help but repost all the great things Cat posts!) So take a peek when you have a few minutes!