Saturday Stash

I have noticed that as Saturday gets closer, I start to knit faster.  I really want to have something to show in this stash reduction project.  So, not too many things because I was madly working on this:

I call it Wildberry Mousse and I used Deborah Newton's pattern,  Buttercream Jacket.  Mine turned out not  as jacket-ish so I can wear it for a pick-up sweater anytime.  My yarn, which is an acrylic/mohair blend is very light.  It was hard to find buttons which wouldn't be too heavy for the fabric. I do like all the crunchy textures which aren't lost in the mohair halo.   The shawl collar was a bit fiddly but not hard at all and turned out well, I think.  Probably, it'll mostly be worn unbuttoned. 

 
I bought the yarn at a garage sale a few years ago.  I  made a cardi for oldest gd, Becky, just after I bought it.  Being made of this indestructible and quite washable yarn, I'm sure will last through all the other girls, too.  I must have had around 20 balls - I'm down to eight and a half now.  I dreamed that I would use it all up.  There's a whole other sweater in the stash still.

And, last weekend, when I was enduring enjoying all the ferry travel back and forth to Vancouver Island, I took along a sock to knit.  What else?  I found this fun striped yarn in the stash chest and cast on.  This is another made-up pattern to make those stripes not so, um, stripe-y.  I call it 'Walking the Line' because it reminded me of walking along railroad tracks.  It's a very simple lace and slip-stitch pattern.  I'll be writing it up for ravelry later this month. I think it gives some extra dimension to those plain rings of color which will be so happy-making to wear on a gloomy winter day.  Not sure why I can't stop buying the striped yarn...maybe I just do it to challenge myself to make them different?

Today, I'm going to experiment with felting swatches to make a few more pairs of those clog slippers. Since some wool yarns felt better than others,  I have to try them out in the hot water first.  I might even try the pink mohair.  Can't hurt - and it might work.  Stay tuned.

Memories

Many people from my generation have boxes of slides in the attic, the basement, the storage unit. And no one wants to get out the slide projector and screen - assuming they are still around and haven't been flogged at a garage sale long ago.

Slides were a little like the digital camera - a little.  Since processing was included it was cheaper than printing the photos.  With digital, we can snap and delete as much as we want in the effort to get the perfect photo.  Print film made us much less trigger-happy.  But, with slides, there was a little more leeway.  In any event, over the years the slide boxes multiplied.  Then we all moved on to digital and left the slides to gather dust.

I don't know anyone who doesn't like to look at old photo albums.  A few of the slides were printed at the time so there was something to put in the album but there were more that have been forgotten.  And, now, our family slides are being scanned and stored in a more accessible form.  This is a huge project, takes lots of patience and my ex is doing it all.  Of course, he also took most of the photos.

 

The other day I was searching for Thanksgiving pics and came across this one.  Love it.  It says so much to me.  Some day, historians will look at these kinds of photos and wonder at the fashion sense of the 70's.  Really.  Have you ever seen anything uglier?    My daughter is too young to notice then...I'm sure she's averting her eyes now LOL  This dress was strictly for home- it never saw the outdoors.  Does that help at all?

What else do I see?  Well, clearly, I have inherited my mother's (this was taken at my parents') ability to use every horizontal surface for not-so-temporary storage.  It's pretty obvious that my daughter is trying to escape eating that horrible-looking glop in the jar.  And, if you can mentally crop out the background, her dad did a lovely job of composing this photo. I'm glad of the background, though, for the depth of information it holds. 

I'm enjoying looking at the digital photo album that he's creating.  Ah, memories.

Front porch chattin'

I'm sure glad we get to head on over to Patrice's front porch this morning.  Here, it's raining and looks like fall.  But the view from her porch is always sunny.  I'm bringing a few carrots for Wendell...he specifically requested a donation today. 

Today's conversation starters get right to the heart of things in a hurry...are you ready?

1.  Did you have a way to earn money as a child or teen?  As a child I was captive to the chores for a weekly allowance cycle.  When I was around twelve, my brother and I shared a morning paper route.  It was hard sometimes to get up and schlep those papers around in the rain.  And not a little spooky sometimes out on the dark, lonely roads. I think we did this for a couple of years.  In high school, I worked at a diner: cooking and serving.   I also worked in the blueberry fields: picking and sorting but that was just in the summer during high school.  


2.  Does your body run hot or cold? (Are you in a sweater/jumper when everyone else is in short sleeves or do you wear a sweatshirt when everyone has on parkas?)  Well, I would say no.  But all the kids say that they need long underwear when they come to visit.  Apparently, it's like a trip to the high Arctic.  Of course, being a knitter, I believe in sweaters.  Being thrifty, I also believe in turning down the thermostat.  I admit to feeling the cold more as I get older.  

3. What's your level of computer savvy?  There's a level to be achieved?  Oh, don't tell me that...I'm so competitive.  I can do what I need to do on my computer.  That's where I'm at.  Remember, I am the Luddite who scorned the iPhone.  'Nuf said.


4.  When you have pasta, do you prefer a red sauce (marinara type) or a white sauce (fettuccine type)?  Red sauce.  My very favorite pasta sauce is a white wine clam sauce - no cream.  I'm not a big fan of creamy anything.

5.  What's your favorite thing to put in brownies?  I like my brownies plain.  I have a recipe that makes a really fudgy brownie.  I don't think additions are necessary.  But that's pretty selfish since I'm  not making (or eating)  brownies much any more.  So, if others want the nuts, I'm happy to throw 'em in the batter.  

So, come on over and visit for a while.   Just point yourself towards Everyday Rurality.  Did I mention that there's chai tea on the menu today?  And, of course, you must meet Wendell - he's the nicest horse.

Times change

And yet they remain somehow the same.  Yesterday was the annual gathering for Thanksgiving at my brother's home. 
I found myself a backseat passenger with my BIL in a car driven by my younger son    I vividly remember practicing his driving techniques with him - not that long ago.  Given the instructions we were throwing over to the front seat,   I'm sure he would say that we were back-seat drivers not passengers.  We were heading oft to this party that has been going on for many years now.  It's always different each year as new people come into the family and loved ones pass from our lives. 

Grampa and first generation of kids

 On the way home, we reflected on our status as passengers and how the wheel has turned. It doesn't seem all that long ago that our kids were kids and they needed to be driven everywhere.   And the Thanksgiving celebration evolved too, over those years, from a houseful of boisterous kids and teenagers to a kind of sedate adult-ish group.   

Becky gets the party started

The arrival of grandkids changed everything and now there are five youngsters in the next generation.  Yesterday was an afternoon of happy noise:  people laughing, talking, crying, running, cooking and finally eating some yummy food. Much, much too busy to take any photos.  I couldn't juggle a camera and cuddle the newest baby, too.  Guess no one else could either.