The Weekend

It was an interesting weekend. Interesting in both the good and the bad.

• The bad:
  o Half of the people that came for dinner/theatre had issues – there were slips done incorrectly, payment was off and people were giving different names then the ones on the reservations. Now, this does happen on a regular basis, but it happened a lot more than usual on Friday.
  o It started to rain earlier than expected on Saturday. I had walked downtown, without an umbrella.
  o I got to the bookshop and realized that the list of books to procure was back at the house.
  o The yarn for the Scandinavian Star vest has still not come in.
  o I haven’t done the July socks.


• The good:
  o The weather has finally gotten cool!
  o I found some books for me at the bookshop.
  o I found a pattern for the rust/brown fallish yarn that has been calling my name, and procured the yarn.
  o 3 people told me that they could really tell that I’d lost a lot of weight.
  o The September sock kit came.

Enough with that, here’s some string.

I finished – and framed Fire Element. I just need to decide where to hang it. I even remembered to put my initials and the year on it.

Squirm tried on his kilt hose this morning. I have about two fingers left before toe decreases.

I have decided to adapt the July sock pattern to fingerless mitts. I’m not an anklet person.
Several people at work commented that I should make the socks and use them as the white elephant gift this year. They also made blatant hints for hand knits for themselves.

I have started the Austen jacket with the fallish yarn.

All I have left on Bettie’s Lace is to weave in the elastic and the ribbon.

And, just as an FYI, these pictures were taken inside, with artificial lighting.

Parental Details

Visa & Master Card are not everywhere you want to be, based on the email from the 'rents to wire more money as they can't use their credit cards in Mbeya. The TV lies!

I received a list of books to procure and sent to the 'rents for one of the teachers. I checked at the Bookery (the used bookstore run by the library). None of the books on their list were there. I did find some books for myself, though.

I have instructions to check other used book stores though.

I wonder, if I check their library and find some of the titles in question, will they notice?

The fiends received a postcard from the 'rents. I'm not really sure they appreciated it, but they did enjoy the treat that the postcard instructed them to be given.

Apples, Apples, Apples

One of the good things about fall is that it's apple time! Fresh apples in fall always taste better then the ones you get any other time of year.

Well, on the way back from Mortal's after her move, I stopped at Peter's Orchard on 94. And, the Honeycrisp apples are in! Honeycrisp is a new variety and they are a wonderful eating apple. Sweet and crisp! I don't like soft apples for eating. I bought a big box. I have made somewhat of a dent, but not a major one. There was a recipe in the Bon Appetit that just came for slow-baked honeycrisp apples. I'm not sure I want to waste any of my eating apples like that. Any thoughts?

I'm also getting hungry for applesauce. This may have something to do with the food mill that I got on sale at the kitchen store at the outlets. I actually went in looking (unsucessfully) for something different, but when have you ever known me to leave a kitchen store empty handed?

Hmm, or maybe apple crisp with vanilla ice cream..... Maybe I should get some from the local ice cream place before it closes.....

Celtic Festival

The Celtic Festival in Carlisle was this past Saturday. Mortal was up and we went. We took chairs and placed them where we could enjoy the music. We went roaming through the stands during a break. We didn’t go to the jewelry stands or many of the clan tents. There was this one vendor there selling skirt things. They are made from saris and look like double layer wrap skirts. The skirts come in 3 lengths and the lady there demonstrated several ways to wrap them into tops/dresses. We both procured. The one way she wrapped looked great on her but when she wrapped it that way on me, it accentuated my middle too much. But, on the plus side, she told me that I didn’t look like I needed to lose 25 pounds and that thin people were always saying they needed to lose weight. I thanked her for the compliment.
We spoke to the president of the Scottish Society and we also swung by the Scottish Society’s tent to say hello to people there. We picked up shortbread. Yum!
The most interesting thing happened in the afternoon. The artist we were listening to was taking a break between sets. An older gentleman came over and spoke to us about our knitting. He was very excited about two young ladies sitting and knitting while listening to music. He knew enough about knitting to know that Mortal knits English Style and I knit Continental. He asked if he could take our picture and we graciously obliged. Mortal then informed me that someone posted a video of her spinning on Utube.
We also procured Infamous Welsh Cookies. They look like little pancakes. We got pumpkin, blueberry & cherry hazelnut. Well, at some point that evening, gravity with or without assistance, took the bag to the floor. Somebeast, aided and abetted by his brother, dug into the bag and ripped open the sleeve with the pumpkin cookies along it’s entire length and nibbled on the cookies. Said beasts got in trouble and did not get the treat that Mortal had been planning to give them. My comment to said beasts was that if they had to get into the cookies, why couldn’t they have gotten into the blueberry ones? Of the kinds we bought, the pumpkin ones are our favorite and the blueberry are the least favorite.
The leg on the black kilt hose is done! It’s time to start the heel flap! Happy dance !!!! And, I finished Bettie’s Lace.

Never Forget

Take the time today to remember everyone who paid the ultimate sacrifice 8 years ago and remember those they left behind.

10 Things I have learned...

From Mortal's move.

1. Books get exponentially heavier as the day goes on.
   
2. Builders do not always consider the movement of furniture.
   
3. Carrying light boxes up two floors takes the same amount of energy as heavy boxes up 1 floor.
   
4. I should lift weights.
   
5. The number of boxes that can fit in a Honda Element.
   
6. Always get more boxes then you think you will need.
   
7. Cool & cloudy weather is best.
   
8. It’s best to paint before moving the furniture in.
   
9. Move the biggest stuff first.
   
10. Clearly label all items with the room they are to be placed in.
    

On a final note, the parents own more books then Mortal, Squirm & I combined.

Any ISP recommendations?

Well, I called my ISP about the flickering lights. I must have called at a very slow time b/c I wasn't on hold.

Well, after extensive testing, they determined that the DSL is working fine and that the problem must lie with the actual phone line, so they transferred me over to phone support. Fine and dandy.

So, the phone person asked me questions about what type of building I had, etc. She then said that I could test if the issue was inside the house by going out to the phone box by the electric meter. I would need a corded phone and a butter knife or screwdriver. Well, I have a screwdriver, but not a corded phone. Well, they will have someone check. If they check and things are good there, then the problem is inside my house and then they will charge mucho bucks. It's $50 for someone to come out and $25 for each 15 minute interval.

My phone line runs through the attic of the adjoining townhouse. The problem could be there and not in mine at all.

I'm debating if they tell me it's inside my house, to simply cancel all service and go with someone else for internet and just use my cell phone.