There are only 15 and 1/2 hours left in 2008. I know it's traditional for people to look back and see what they've accomplished or look forward to what they'd like to accomplish in the coming year. My memory is not good enough to remember what I did this past year. I know I made several pairs of socks. I'm wearing a pair now and I often see them on the feet of my family. I learned the frustration that is lace knitting and the wonder that is blocking said lace knitting. I have completed one thrummed mitten and started another (both hands need to be warm).

I have learned to spin in a rudimentary way. It IS hypnotic and peaceful and calming, once you get the hang of it and get into a rhythmn (before that it is all about the cursing).

I have learned that I have infinite patience with people but inanimate objects piss me off easily.

I have learned that I know a lot of things and I am generally good at what I do, but, boy, do I have a lot to learn.

I have learned that getting old is not for the faint of heart.

I have learned that most people just want someone to listen to them and know that they are being heard. They don't always want you to solve their problems, just to listen to them.

I have learned to keep little bits of happiness around me so when things are tough, I can look at them and smile. Thus, the wind-up toys on my desk. I got two new ones for Christmas. A ladybug that runs around and does somersaults and a robot who walks around menacingly.

New Year's has never been one of my favorite holidays. I find it a melancholy time and used to resent being made to feel like I had to celebrate. I don't begrudge those people who want to party and drink themselves silly. I just want to opt out. The girls have plans with friends and Pk and I will probably start the Lord of the Rings marathon he traditionally likes to do this time of year. And I'll be ok with that.

I hope that 2009 brings you sharp needles, soft yarn, challenging but doable patterns and the time to sit and knit.

Happy New Year everyone!

It's Sunday night and I am trying to prepare myself mentally for the fact that I have to go to work tomorrow. My lunch is made, my clothes are chosen and my computer is downloading some books for my mp3 player. Now, if only my brain would cooperate.

This has been a relaxing 5 days. I haven't left the house so I haven't put on real clothes. Sweat clothes and slippers don't count. I haven't had shoes on since last Wednesday. (I sound like a hillbilly!) I have knitted and spun and napped and eaten about one million calories worth of cookies. It's been wonderful.

I finished the socks I was making for me. These are the Go with the Flow socks I was working on done in ArtWalk sock yarn. The colors are based on a painting by Dali called Girl at a Window and I love it. I gave them away to my Aunt Joan. She has repeatedly told me how much she likes the handknit socks I have given her so I gave her these. It was a wrench, I will admit because I loved these so much. I've started a pair for myself in a color dyed by my lys called Mahogany. I like the colors but the yarn isn't as squishy as the blue. These will definitely be mine! I've made this pattern several times and have given them away each time.

My aunt and cousin came for dinner tonight so I gave her the socks. She loved them so it's all good. We had a nice visit. Kate remarked that it felt good to see her looking so well. She is definitely getting old but she looked feisty. Always a good sign. My cousin, Cheryl, pulled out her crocheting and had a good bit of a triangle shawl done by the time they left. Crocheting is amazingly fast. I worked on the thrummed mittens. Don't know when I'll wear them, the temps are supposed to be abnormally high this week. It was nice to be able to open the windows and let in fresh air and not to have cold hands and feet.

I only have two and a half days this week so it's not too bad. They'll be busy days and will probably fly by. We have no plans for New Year's Eve. We used to get together and play board games with my brother and his wife but that stopped when they had children. We'll just hang out and play games by ourselves. Times like these remind me how important it is to be married to your friend. I not only love Pk, he is good company.

There was a good bit of spinning this week, too. I'll show you the beautiful yarn I made (it still thrills me that I can make yarn) . But not tonight. I'm tired and I have to go to work tomorrow. Sigh.

Here I am in my Who hat on Dec. 23rd right after work. Pk and I had to work a full day despite our attempts to get away early. We stopped at the grocery store to get some extra eggs and butter and then came home. We took a brief nap because he had a sinus headache and wouldn't lay down if I didn't lay down with him. It was nice to know that we had time and didn't have to hurry around.

There was dinner and then cookies. These are the blank canvases we started with. There was much laughter and creativity. We had a priest cookie

and a snowwoman in a bikini and a bunny that was hit by a falling star and was bleeding. Somehow I missed getting a photo of that one. The frosting we used this year was a little runny and we had a hard time getting definition. It was fun.

On the 24th, Pk worked from home for a few hours. Since he does all of his work on a computer, as long as he has internet access, he can work from home. Lucky for him. I spent the day baking 2 babkas, one mincemeat pie and one torte. I make this every year. It is mostly chocolate with only 2 tablespoons of flour. The rest is eggs and ground almonds. It is dense and fudgy and my family loves it. Me, not so much. I will have a small sliver and then I'm good until next year. We ate pizza and wings (our traditional Christmas Eve dinner) and then worked on the tree. Of course it's beautiful, full of the ornaments collected over 27 years of Christmases. We sat around and basked in its glow for a while just being aware of how lucky we are and how precious this time is.

Pk and I went to bed and Jim and Em wrapped presents and then crashed on the sofa bed in the living room. Emily was up early (7 am) and running around saying "wake up, wake up, wake up!!! It's Christmas!!". Yes, she is 22 years old but she has been doing this for years. We are usually already awake but her sisters are usually not. If it weren't Christmas, they'd probably clobber her.

The next few hours were filled with babka (a polish bread traditionally made with raisins but I used dried cherries, Pk's mom's recipe) and hot chocolate and presents. I think everyone was happy. Em got a spinning wheel from Jim and we spent considerable time trying to put it together. It came in this box from the Netherlands. Jim left it here last week and said he didn't want to wrap it becase he liked the box. "It says 'breekbaar' all over it". So we left it alone. Em was thrilled and we managed to get it together and I gave her a brief tutorial on getting started so she could play when she got home. Kate gave her the Amos Alden Book of Handspinning so she should be good.

I got a set of Denise interchangeable circular needles which I will try out sometime soon and some lovely sock yarn. One of the best presents came at the end of the day when my cousin came for dinner. My aunt has the stomach flu and had to stay home but we'll probably see her on Sunday. If you are old enough to remember the 70's, you've seen these. It's a ceramic tree with lights. It's hollow and sits on a base with a light bulb that makes the plastic lights glow. This one has a base that is a music box. There was a time when my aunt took ceramic classes and made everyone one of these. This one was hers. It was her pride and joy and she kept it wrapped up in a closet for the past several years because she was afraid the cats would knock it over (her daughters have over 20 cats between them). She decided to give it to me. I am touched beyond description. I know how much this means to her and she wants me to have it. It is in a place of prominence (on the sideboard) where everyone can see it. It will be one of my favorite things to bring out at Christmas every year.

We had a delicious dinner and sat around and talked and laughed and generally had a good time.

Today will be a quiet day. Pk is going to play with the computer and I am going to sit in the glow of the Christmas tree and spin and knit and probably nap. Maybe there will be some preparing of food but nothing else. It was a lovely day yesterday. And we have the weekend before we have to go back to work.

I hope you are all feeling content and full of quiet joy and wonder.

It's early Tuesday morning and I'm sitting at my desk wearing my hat that makes me look like I belong in Whoville with all the other Who folk. I am not a big fan of hats but I make an exception for this one. It never fails to elicit a smile from someone.

The Christmas plans are right on schedule. Sunday I baked three kinds of cookies (even a batch I found as a result of blog reading which turned out to be absolutely delicious). Last night Elanor and I made two more. I manned the pizelle iron and she made some molasses cookies. Tonight we traditionally make the sugar cookies. It is always a contest to see who can come up with the most bizarre cookie. Thus, we have ninja reindeer, snowmen who have been shot through the heart with arrows, and animals with two heads or three legs. Thankfully, there are enough bells and trees to put out on the cookie tray. The presents are all wrapped. Pk and I did it all last night in one marathon session.

Tomorrow I will make the chocolate torte (the one that will stop Christmas from happening at all if it doesn't make an appearance), the babka that we only eat Easter and Christmas and Kate will use the leftover egg whites and make some macaroons. We'll have some pizza and wings and decorate the tree. Emily and Jim are coming to spend the night and we will all be together for a while.

So, Merry Christmas to all of you. No matter what you celebrate or how you celebrate, I hope your holiday is filled with joy and wonder and love.

I heard the bells on Christmas Day,

their old familiar carols played

And wild and sweet the words repeat

Peace on Earth and Good Will Toward Men.

I am looking at at 5 day weekend and intend to enjoy every bit of it. I'll see you soon.

It's early Sunday morning and we dodged another bullet. On Friday when Pk and I were doing some shopping it was pouring rain. Not just raining but pouring. We decided not to try to go grocery shopping. It would have been a mess. So, we went Christmas shopping instead. We don't usually do much shopping together and this was rather enjoyable. We were grateful for the rain because it could have been snow and then we would have not been able to finish the shopping.

I did the grocery shopping on Saturday morning and then finished up the holiday shopping last night. Now I have to wrap the presents. Sigh. It takes forever and I start out with all of these beautifully wrapped and be-ribboned packages and by the end I'm lucky to get the paper and a tag.

I will be baking cookies today. I try to buy a new cookie cutter each year and this year I got train shaped ones. Pk is already planning how he can decorate them as a train wreck. We always get reindeer cookies with missing heads or fangs. It's never dull.

And despite my promise to myself that I was not going to squeeze another fiber related project into the next few days, I decided to spin some roving into yarn for my cousin. She is a crocheter and makes lap blankets for vets and people in nursing home. She is one of those people that lives their faith every day and not just on Sunday. She uses only acrylic yarns and I thought she might like some soft, beautiful wool to use for herself. Kate bought some roving that is blue/purple/pink/white and it's spinning up really beautifully. I spun it into singles and plied it with some beautiful shiny thread. I hope she likes it. I've never given anyone my handspun as a gift and I'm a little nervous as to how she'll react.

It's raining. Again. At least I don't have to go out. Pk has to finish his shopping. He complained that my christmas list didn't have any "fun" things on it. I told him the knitting needles and yarn I asked for were fun to me. Just like when he asked for clamps (He has more clamps than I have sock needles). "But I like clamps!" he says. And I remind him that I like knitting needles.

I have only two days of work this week. And only one clinic each day so the week won't be onerous. I'll probably have a full day on Tuesday and then I'm done until the 29th. I'll work three days that week and then have another long weekend. Usually, I try to take the full week between the holidays off but this year I don't have the time so I manipulated what I do have to have the best vacation time I can.

Today's buddhist inspiration seems appropriate for the holidays. It's a rerun. It's what appears at the bottom of my blog.

Thousands of candles can be lighted from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared.

~Buddha

This is one of the sayings I have on the board in front of my desk. It reminds me that while we tend to share our complaints easily, we also tend to hoard our happinesses. Joy and happiness shared are joy and happiness doubled. What a good thought to carry with us as the holidays approach .

Good Friday morning! It's 8 am and I am sitting at my desk getting ready to face the day. I have a fairly light day planned but we all know how that goes. Actually, it was a fairly easy week because the doctors were either on vacation or in training all week so no clinics. That gave me time to catch up on paperwork and just breathe for a bit.

This weekend is my big push toward holiday preparedness. I have done some shopping but will do the bulk tomorrow and finish up on Sunday. Grocery shopping first tonight and then dinner and some holiday shopping with Pk. Somewhere during the next two days, the laundry will get done and the house will get cleaned and the baking will start. I might find some time to sit and knit but then maybe not. That's ok. I don't mind a busy weekend. I have lists and lists of lists. I love a good list. I have gift lists, cookie lists, general baking lists, Christmas dinner lists, lists of which store to buy which gift in....the list is endless! (and now the word "list" sounds funny to me).

So, with a deep breath and a power bar for extra energy, here we go. Catch you on the flip side!

Today is typical winter in south jersey. It's raining/sleeting/snowing. It's not a pretty light, fluffy snow but a cold, icy wetness. The kind of wet that gets down your neck if you're not covered by a nice warm woolen scarf (which I am!). I left work early because I was feeling punky and had no real work to do. I came home and fell into a deep sleep. I feel slightly disoriented when I do that.

I brought the camera to work to take some photos of a dollhouse that they use in our Child and Family unit for play therapy. They need more and Pk wants to make some for them. Because I had the camera with me, I took a photo of the new mural in our C&F dept. A local artist, with some funding from the local Starbucks, painted it. It turned an ugly, plain spot at the end of the hall into a comfortable, friendly waiting area. I love it. I love the soft colors and the bunnies reading books on the end.

This is a shot of the hot air balloon that hangs in front of the window in my office. I made this for my girls about 20 years ago. It hung over the changing table and when they got too old for it, I brought it into my office. I like it and wish I could find the pattern but it's long gone. And what have we here? It looks like a sock. I call it Still life with sock and keys. This yarn is a merino/bamboo blend and is sooooo soft. Did I tell you how much I love this sock? I've got half of the foot done. It's probably the fastest I've ever knit anything. I started it Sunday and I'll probably finish it tomorrow. Well,maybe Wednesday. Work gets in the way.

Pk and I are going to do some holiday shopping tomorrow after work. I'm going to just say it aloud and you can all boo and hiss at me. "I like to Christmas shop". There. I said it. I like to look for presents that will make my loved ones go "ooooohhh". I don't mind the crowds too much and I like the hustle and bustle and I love looking at Christmas decorations. I like the anticipation of the holiday and the hiding of the presents and the conspiracies as we try to keep secrets. I'm not so good at the keeping of the secrets so I don't shop too early. I wish I had elves to wrap the presents but unfortunately I have to do that myself.

There have been some holidays when I was sure that life events would overshadow the joy and wonder (the year that Pk and I were separated comes to mind) but somehow the happiness that is Christmas to me has always come through. I know the world is not in an especially good place right now and the economy is in the toilet and the future is uncertain. I'm not hiding my head in the sand. I'm simply choosing, yes, choosing to make a happy holiday for myself and my family. Maybe because I don't know what is coming in the new year but I do know that things could always be worse and I'm very, very thankful for what good things I have.

I don't know if I've ever told you all about a woman I know who suffered a series of potentially devastating life events (breast cancer removed, apartment robbed, apartment burned down, father died, immigration papers stolen,diagnosed with a serious illness) all within a 2 month period. When I saw her and asked how she was coping, she said "Miss Donna, I am fine. Things can always get worse and I am alive". I keep this image of her smiling face in my mind. I can hear her tell me that things can always be worse and she reminds me to be happy and grateful for what I have. Thanks, Maria. I try to live up to you and your positive attitude!

And now I'm off to cook some dinner. I have a package of sausage waiting for me downstairs. I am not a fan of sausage but Pk loves it ("meat in a tube, gotta love it") so I cook it for him. I'll settle for some pasta and salad.

Stay safe and warm and dry! Oh, and if you happen to be vacationing in Hawaii ( Roxie) I hope you're enjoying your warm sunshine!

Halleluiah!! (I'm never sure exactly how to spell that) I finished the last bit of the holiday knitting, (well at least the stuff I had planned on). What a relief that is. I had no idea how it was bothering me until I cast off on Pk's sock. He told me I should make two more facecloths so I can give my aunts each two but I'm not sure I want to. I have my lace shawl (two, if you count Wildflower which is still waiting for it's edging to be finished and grafted on or for me to figure out how to do a knitted on edging), and the thrummed mittens and I started a new pair of socks with this (I borrowed the image from Roxanne at Arwtalk Sock Club because I seemed to have deleted mine). This is the October yarn based on a painting by Dali called Girl at a Window. As soon as it came, I knew it would be socks for me. I loved the blues and browns together. I started Go With the Flow socks (from 25 Favorites by IK). I think I've used this pattern two or three times and have always given them away. Not this time. These babies are for me. I like the way the colors fall into the pattern. No striping or pooling just blue and brown with an occasional bit of white. This is one of those easy patterns that you memorize and the socks fly off the needles. And the yarn is soft and squishy and I stop every once in a while and just squeeze the sock. An overall pleasurable thing to knit.

I think I'll pull Wildflower out of her bag today and see if I can figure out this whole edging thing. The last time I tried, I couldn't seem to get it despite all of the videos and directions I could find. Maybe I'm smarter now than I was then. Sometimes when I don't get something and I put it away, when I come back to it, I find that I somehow understand it. I think my brain is always working on something in the background and sometimes it figures out things I have not thought of in a while. Maybe this will be one of those times.

The sun is out for the time being. The temps are comfortable, well above freezing. Looking at the forecast for the week, it'll be wet and fairly warm. This last three days of rain left us with some minor flooding in the basement. It happens when the ground is frozen and it rains a lot.

Tomorrow I get my computer training for our new program. We're supposed to go "live" on Jan. 12. I expect chaos. I work with some really nice, warm, compassionate and caring people. Computer literate they are not. This should be good.

I hope you are all having a good weekend. Pk is cleaning out the refrigerator and then I'm making breakfast. Gotta love a man who cleans out the refrigerator!

Knitting content!! Whhoooohoooo! The photo is a bit dark because it's been raining for the last 24 hours and it's hard to take a good photo. It's that cold rain that you get in the winter when it's not cold enough to snow but precipitation is falling. Since it's been cold here, we'll play the "if this were snow, we'd have over a foot by now" game. We play that game all winter. Of course, it rains more than it snows here.

This is a photo of my first finished facecloths. They are intended as a gift for some people who don't read the blog. They probably don't know what a blog is so there's no worries about revealing a secret. They are made of cotton (of course) and are a feather and fan pattern. They feel nice and I now understand the allure. Pk commented on how good they feel and that he might like to have one. I told him after the holidays I'd make some for us. I'm almost finished his socks and then I'm not doing any more knitting for the holiday. I am feeling the need to do something that has no deadline and is just for fun. I am not a good deadline knitter and don't like the pressure involved. And I didn't do much, some small things for my immediate family. I don't know how people who choose to do major projects stand the stress! I did some spinning for the first time in a week. I missed it. I didn't realize how much I would miss it and reading the ravelry threads made it worse. The wheel is in my bedroom for the time being as the Christmas tree is taking up the bulk of the living room right now. It's kind of nice because I can spin while Pk plays on the computer and we're in the same room.

Tomorrow is Friday and should be an easy day at work. We're taking the social rehab program people to a local restaurant for lunch. We go out for lunch at the holidays each year. I'll finish my work in the morning and then hopefully, be done after lunch. Hopefully. Cross your fingers. I'd really like it if I could leave early.......

On Saturday, Pk, El and I took a trip to Lancaster, Pennsylvania. It is home to one of the largest Amish populations in the United States. There are buggys and horses on all of the roads and women in plain dresses with white aprons and hats covering their hair which is always pulled tightly back. I could not bring myself to take anyone's photo. It seemed disrespectful somehow. The Amish are very private. I'm sure that people ask them all the time but I couldn't bring myself to be one of the ignorant. This is a picture of one of the fields we drove by. You can see the hay bales lined up ready to harvest. It's hard to stop for photos. The speed limit is high and there is no place to pull over and then get back on the highway without causing an accident. There are hills (what passes for hills around here!) and sometimes you come around a corner and the vista opens up and you can see the neat squares of fallow fields. It's a nice drive.

Our first stop is Clyde Weaver's. It's where we buy hams and unbelievably delicious slab bacon and wonderful handmade breads and unusual tea. Iron Goddess of Mercy tea, anyone? We got a ham for the holidays, some other bits and bobs and then headed out for other pursuits.

Pk went online and found Labadie Looms (although he couldn't remember the name and seemed to recall it as "ladies of the loom", close enough). When you walk in the door, this colorful sight greets you. Looks like a candy store, doesn't it? This was a whole room full of rovings of all manner of wool. I bought some merino/silk blend and some local Lancaster coopworth wool. I've never seen coopworth in person and it's soft but not as soft as merino. I bought two bumps of soft grey and beige colors. I perused the yarns and ogled the spinning wheels. There was a thousand dollar Kromski wheel. It was beautiful but not worth a thousand dollars. The woman behind the register was friendly and wonderfully helpful. I didn't want to leave.

But we left and moved onto the Bird in Hand (Lancaster is full of delightful names such as Intercourse and Bird in Hand and Gap) farmers market. We bought some herbs and teas and honeys and jam. It's also the place we buy cherry apple cider. It's really, really good. I love this place. I think it's a good thing we don't live closer. I'd weigh over 300 pounds!

As we left there and were on the road home, we passed this truck with a van full of Sheep! Can you see the little sheep face looking out? There were lots of them looking at us and I tried to take the photo before the truck passed us on the road. Pk figured they were on their way to become dinner somewhere. I wanted to go and let them free. "Be free, little lambs!"

See this wall of rock? This is what it looks like all through Pennsylvania. They cut the Schuykyll (skookill) Expy through the rock. There are signs saying "falling rock" all over the place. I've never seen rocks actually fall but they loom over the road in a menacing way.

We drove through Philadelphia to come home. One of the really neat things about Philadelphia is the mural arts program. Years ago, they decided to have local kids put their grafiti talent to work and there are murals all over the city. This is on one of the main roads through the city. I like walking around the city and being surprised by photos on the sides of buildings.

It was a lovely day. We came home tired but satisfied. I got some lavender and goat milk soap for my aunts and am now making my first face cloths to give to them for Christmas. I'll get some nice lotion and wrap it all in some pretty ribbon. I'm also almost finished Pk's socks. I picked out the cast off on the first one because he told me he wanted them to have longer cuffs. I have enough yarn to make the cuffs a few inches longer for him.

It's been a tough week at work. There are a lot of people for whom the holidays are not pleasant, happy times but times full of pain and sad memories. It takes a lot of emotional energy to listen and be as helpful as I can and to maintain my usual upbeat manner. And to make sure I don't make it any harder than it already is.

I was thinking of Christmas trees and family traditions and had a funny memory. When El was little, about 2 or so, we always put chocolate ornaments on the tree. Well, she found an ornament and of course, being a 2 year old, put it in her mouth. She was delighted to find out it was chocolate. So, she pulled another one off the tree and put it in her mouth. It was not chocolate but wood (there were only chocolate and wood ornaments down where she could reach). She started to take off the ornaments she could reach one by one and taste each one. She was mightily disappointed that they were not all chocolate.

Wishing you all a chocolate filled week.

It's a cold day here in NJ. I am very thankful for my warm, woolen scarf. I wish my thrummed mittens were done but the holiday knitting takes precedence.

I am envious of all of you who can change your blog around with impunity. I've tried to put a picture up behind the title but it's always too big and looks silly. I don't have a flikr acct and maybe that helps? I also am a creature of habit. I wear the same three pair of earrings every day. I wear the same watch and rings. I don't like having to worry about things like that so I just leave them alone. Kinda like the blog. I like clean lines and a minimum of fuss. I did change the color of the header but it went from black to blue so it was not very noticeable. Maybe over the holidays when I have time (although where this time will come from, I don't know) I'll play with it.

I have finished the bulk of the holiday knitting. I want to make some washcloths to go with the lavender goat milk soap I bought for my aunts. They are elderly (scares me to say that) and don't need knick knacks or clothes or more stuff. But I saw the soap and it smelled so good I bought some for each of them. Now, I need a nice easy pattern to whip up. I think I might crochet the cloths because it would be quicker. This is what I love about the internet. I'll look for a quick, easy, pretty pattern and start tonight.

We bought our tree on Saturday. It's huge. Pk and Elanor chose it. After enduring endless ribbing last year about the "bush" I chose, I decided not to say a word. It fits perfectly in the living room. I mean PERFECTLY. There is not an inch to spare between the top of the tree and the ceiling. We'll have to cut a little off to accomodate the angel's head. We have 9 foot ceilings in the front of the house so it's a 9 foot tree. We don't decorate the tree until Christmas Eve. When the girls were little, we decided to tell them that Santa decorated the tree. That meant that we had to work magic after they went to bed. It was totally worth it to see the look on their faces when they got up in the morning. Now that they are all grown up, it's wonderful to share the decorating with them. The cast of characters has changed over the years but it's always a fun time.

I'm at work so no photos of the trip on Saturday. I'll do that when I get home today. Have a good Monday.

What Be Your Nerd Type? Your Result: Literature Nerd Does sitting by a nice cozy fire, with a cup of hot tea/chocolate, and a book you can read for hours even when your eyes grow red and dry and you look sort of scary sitting there with your insomniac appearance? Then you fit this category perfectly! You love the power of the written word and it's eloquence; and you may like to read/write poetry or novels. You contribute to the smart people of today's society, however you can probably be overly-critical of works. It's okay. I understand.
Gamer/Computer Nerd
Artistic Nerd
Social Nerd
Science/Math Nerd
Musician
Drama Nerd
Anime Nerd
http://www.gotoquiz.com/what_be_your_nerd_type">What Be Your Nerd Type? http://www.gotoquiz.com/">Quiz Created on GoToQuiz

We had a good day. Pk, El and I travelled to Lancaster and found a new yarn store. It was great fun and an all around good day. I have some photos and I'll tell you all about it tomorrow. Today, I am enjoying the fact that I am sitting on my bed in my flannel pj's, drinking hot chocolate and doing some knitting.

In the meantime, enjoy this quiz.

So, there we were last night, Pk and I having dinner at our local diner. (After the numbness wore off and I was no longer afraid of biting my lips off.) I was working on a sock as we waited to be served and the waitress (the same waitress that told me my toe up sock was "a cute little bag") came over. She looked at me and said, "Well, how's our little knitting coming along?".

"Our little knitting". Funny how three little words could push my buttons. I would never presume to call someone's pasttime "little" no matter what I privately thought of it. It was not meant to be demeaning but somehow it felt like it. I smiled a closed mouth smile and said "just fine, thank you".

I am not by nature a combatitive, confrontational person but it was all I could do not to stab her with my needles (nice sharp knitpicks dpns). But that might get blood on my knitting and that would not be so good.

Oh, well. There are persons of lesser social skills everywhere and it's really not my duty to school the world. But it might be my pleasure.

This is the sign that is on my front door right now. We generally wrap the door in some bright paper and this sign lets the world know where we stand on the Santa issue.

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I taught my last Crisis Management class of the year this morning. It was a huge class. Everyone in the building has to take the training and there were 8 offered dates spread throughout the year. Of course, everyone waited until the end. It made the class longer but it was interesting. We got some good ideas to add to the trainings for next year. I'll take my trainer class on Feb 9 and then we'll get together and put together a new presentation. But not until February.

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I went to see the dentist today. Again. She numbed my mouth and tried valiantly to pry the broken crown out of my mouth. It defeated her. It remains firmly implanted in my jaw. I was really hoping that she would be able to remove it and we could get it repaired. Now it will have to be cut out and I'll have to have a new one made. But not until January. I don't want to spend 1,000 dollars right before Christmas.Since she numbed my mouth ("so I can be aggressive and not worry about hurting you) I'm just waiting for the novocaine to wear off. I hate the way it feels.

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I bought this roving a short while ago. It's superwash merino, bamboo and nylon. The name of the color is Eleanor Rigby. I turned it into this.

This is the single.

And this is the plied yarn. I'm always fascinated by how rovings look when they're spun. Ten different spinners will take the same roving and turn out ten different yarns. I think that's one of the coolest parts of spinning. I took these photos with a flash so you can see the bamboo shining through. I can' t wait until the Christmas knitting is over so I can try it out. It weighed in at just over 120g and looks to be mostly fingering weight. I'm thinking I'll divide it into halves and make some toe up socks to see how far it will go.

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There is a new group on ravelry that is going to all buy the same roving and then all spin it and knit it up. It'll be interesting to see how differently each person uses their fiber.

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Pk just got home and as soon as my numbness wears off, we are going to get some dinner. It was a good day. Despite the darn crown.

***************these are my attempts to keep some kind of paragraph breaks. I don't know why sometimes blogger runs all of the words together into one large block.

We need a little Christmas

Right this very minute

Candles in the window

Carols at the spinet,

Yes, we need a little Christmas now.

The holiday is upon us and our home is filled with red and green (who decided those were Christmas colors?). The lights are up, snowflakes in the front window and in the upstairs hall. Garlands of starlights in the living room. The little angel is one I call "Anna's angel" because she was given to me by a 68 year old woman with Down's Syndrome who died a few years ago. I knew Anna for a long time and adored her. She prayed for my soul (if there's a heaven and I get there someday, it's solely Anna's doing) and gave me religious statues and pins of the Blessed Mother. (in an aside, when I moved into my office with my office mate, he was scared that I was a very religious person and thought that he would have to watch his language. he is an atheist and was afraid I would try to convert him. I explained they were gifts from someone who cared about me and I wouldn't throw them away. besides, somehow I think it's probably bad karma to throw away a religious statue)

We have the Santa nesting doll that is one of Kate's favorites. She loves nesting dolls. And we have the stockings. Pk and I have the same ones but the girls' are all different. I made each one and they are treasured parts of Christmas. We have had a good laugh at the Christmas Book. It's the book I started in 1981 when Pk and I first got married. Each year I write about the holidays. It brings back memories of the small things I had forgotten. Such as the year we were driving a Gremlin and it had to be jump started each time we turned it off because the battery was old and the weather was frigid. And the year the tree fell over on Christmas day, and the time we all had the flu.....you get the idea. It's great fun to read and reread our exploits. I am looking forward to the holidays and am determined not to stress myself by trying to do too much. My philosophy is "get done the important things and let the rest slide". I kinda have to do things that way because stress makes my stomach hurt. Cookies are important so we'll make lots of cookies. Shopping is important but fortunately, I like to shop. Wrapping is important but I get tired of doing that so I enlist help wherever I can get it.

It's three weeks until Christmas and my knitting is almost finished. I didn't do much, just socks for everyone. Easy and completely doable.

I hope you are all having a good December. It's almost time for the solstice and then the days will stop getting shorter. I swear, it seems like I get up in the morning and blink and the sun is already going down!