Sunday wonder - O

O is for Oregano - our garden's superhero.

I know it really shouldn't go to seed but see how the bees love the flowers?

They work so hard all day buzzing in the sweet little blossoms.

This is good for our tomatoes which were looking kind of hopeless during the cooler, wet weather of July.

And now, the bean flowers which live right next to the oregano are also happy. The bees take frequent side trips to all the surrounding flowers.  I guess variety is good for them, too. 

And we shall have beans very soon.  Thank you, oregano - and bees!

Saturday Stash

Here I am with the stash report again.  That week sure rolled away quick!  I guess that's what happens when you're on the road for half of it.  Since I was travelling, I took along some little, quick-to-finish projects. 

So, in the drawer marked 'done' we have Sunshine + Raindrops = Rainbows.  Two little baby hats that I put together with elements from here and there.  I like the spiral y/o's on the crown.  I did the beanie with the ruffled brim first and decided that I didn't want to have to knit so many stitches next time. 

So, we have a picot edging that I think looks like raindrops all around.  Those who have done a picot bind-off, you know it's not that many fewer stitches.  Gotta keep it interesting, you see.  Made with an acrylic worsted, these would be warm enough for winter.

I've been having a bit of a sock-knitting withdrawal and I went down the inventory trying to decide on one of the yarns.  I chose the one with greens and pastels  because it looked so pretty.  Hey!  That's why I bought it in the first place.  But it turned out to be a self-striping yarn. Sigh.  I'm a little tired of the stripes (except for kids' socks) and have to search for patterns that work with the stripes.  Nothing on ravelry tickled my toes, so you know that means off to the stitch dictionary.

I have several wonderful books with lots of neat lace patterns but most either don't work for socks or are impossible difficult to knit in the round.  A few swatches later and I was happily knitting my sock.  Before it's stretched out, it looks like a hot air balloon to me. 

But when it's on, the pattern and the yarn  remind me of wind-surfing sails, waves and surf .  So, these are the Windwalker Socks.  I plan to make this a free pattern on ravelry.  Good thing there are two socks to make.  Tweaking the pattern is easier when you have an excuse to do it all over again.  The pattern has a natural bias as you knit in the round but can be controlled when knitting straight along the foot.  I kind of like the duality there. 

Also finished is the dark pink cable and seed stitch scarf.  Into the gift box it goes,.  And Charlie has chosen the finishing for his blue cardi.  He will have a hood - almost completed - and a zip front.  It should be ready for its fifteen minutes of fame next week.

That's this week's progress.  Oh, and I've crossed four items off the stash list completely. Gone from the chest and transformed into something useful and beautiful.  

The Magical Island

This is Newcastle Island. For the First People it was a place of healing and training in the spiritual arts.  I could easily imagine this being a place for the spirit.  While we were biking along the trails we saw no one at all. 

But we knew they were here.  Can you imagine waking up here?  To this peace and quiet and this view?

We biked along the shoreline trail and the city seemed so far away. 

Soon we headed into the woods.  There are many trails here but bikes are restricted to just a few. 

The bones of a tree bleaching in the sun.  Surrounded by a field of bright yellow yarrow. 

We cycled past a small but perfect lake.  Depending on the map you were looking at it was named Mallard Lake or Beaver Lake.  It's not hard to see why either name would be appropriate. 

Deep in the woods, a piece of the sun lights up an arbutus.  It has had to climb high above the other trees to find enough light.  I love the graceful shapes of these trees. 

The end of the trail.  We sit under the dappled shade of a huge Garry oak and just rest.

72 hours

There was supposed to be free wi-fi everywhere!  The intent was to post every day but it didn't work as planned.  Besides, this was a sort of visiting vacation rather than a tourist trip.  On Sunday we escorted two of the grandkids to spend a few days with their aunt.  We also were treated to our regular eye exams with our friendly eye care professional.  And new glasses frames...that's the best part for me!  After the family time, we took off to play.  So, in the past three days we have...

Ridden on a ferry three times...

Collected shells...

Gone swimming...

Watched deer munch on discarded pea-vines from the living room window...

Helped in the garden....

Hopped on a little harbor ferry (not one of the three)...

With our bikes...

And headed off to a magical island.  I'll show you more from the island tomorrow. 
It's very hard to catch up all at once, isn't it?