Sandy Update

It's looking like Hurricane Sandy will come ashore a little north of us so we'll miss the brunt of it.  We will be having lots of rain (I'm hearing 3 - 9 inches) and some wind.  Basically, the wind will be that of an average thunder storm (30 - 60 mph.)  The problem is, instead of having your average thunderstorm wind for the 10 or 15 minutes it takes for the storm to blow past, we'll be experiencing it for 24 - 48 hours.

At the moment, all is calm here.  Mostly.  We've had a few rain bands hit, it's much cooler today and a pretty stiff breeze is blowing.  But our windows are still open.   And the so-called sun-rise this morning was beautiful.  The sun didn't really rise - it was too cloudy to see the sun, but the light sure was interesting.  Between the angry dark skies and the yellow & orange fall foliage, the little bit of sun light that did make it through turned everything a beautiful golden color for 20 - 30 minutes.   Of course, my camera refused to see the pretty light.

I'm feeling fairly confident about power outages.  Our electric co-op is pretty good about responding quickly.  They've also spent the summer cutting back trees from the power lines.  They've done all they can to prepare.  Except, have they?  Take a look at part of their Facebook status this morning:



"We are prepared for prolonged outages and urge our members to do the same."

Sort of sounds like they are planning to take a few days off.  I'm sure it's just a wording thing on their part & possibly a lack of enough coffee thing on my part, but.....

Meanwhile, I'm wishing the storm would hurry up and get here.  I promised myself I would save the special Hurricane Junk Food for the storm, but the Doritos are calling.  Personally, I think they'd make a pretty decent breakfast.

Sandy

Hurricane Sandy preparedness check list:

• cars are full of gas - check!
• extra gas & charcoal for the grills - check!
• extra gas for the stove & fireplace - check!
• a week's supply of water - check!  In fact, we have 3 weeks worth!
• groceries - check!
• soda, chips & chocolate (these don't count as groceries) - check!
• booze - check!
• Candles, matches & a hand operated can opener - check!
• chainsaw tested & fuel available - check!
• generator tested & fuel available - check!
• chargeable electronics have been charged - check!
• an over abundance of reading material - check!
• an over abundance of yarn - check!
• announcement on the Etsy shop warning folks I may be forced off line - check!
• outdoor furniture, yard "art" & trash cans secured - check!

I think we are ready.  Oh, no, wait.  I still have to charge my phone.  Then we'll be ready.

Now for the big question.  Will Sandy hit us or go further north?  And an even bigger question - will it really snow on Tuesday?

And one more question.  Am I going to continue to have that song from Grease running through my head the entire 3+ days it takes Sandy to blow through here?  You know the song I'm talking about, .... "Oh Sandy...."

Stay safe & I'll catch you on the flip side.

Silly dog

I'd forgotten how much our silly dog, Max, hates men in hats.

I've been working on a new hat design & finished it this morning.  I stuck the hat on Mr. Poser and proceeded to set Mr. Poser on the craft table.  Now, each time Max walks into the room, he starts growling & snarling.

The hat does need a name.  Maybe I should call it the "Max."  No, probably not.  But it deserves a better name than "kooky hat" which is what my husband keeps calling it.  He's not overly risky when it comes to fashion.  Anything beyond kaki pants or jeans with either a blue, white or flannel shirt (in tones of blue or brown) is "kooky" in his book.   A bright red hat with ear flaps definitely falls into his idea of kooky attire.  If you've got any suggestions, feel free to send them my way.

Last night, I finished a pair of cabled fingerless gloves that I made for myself.

I am going to LOVE these this winter!  The yarn is pure Alpaca & comes from a local farm.   Actually, the yarn comes from Sampson, one of Alpaca Pastures of VA's herdsires.  I'm pretty excited because I'll be meeting Sampson in a few weeks when our homeschool group takes a tour of the farm.   I bought this yarn when I met Sherry at a fall festival we were both participating in.  It's incredibly soft and I sure hope she has more available.  I've been kicking myself ever since for not also buying a few skeins of gray.  Frankly, I think I should own it all!

Don't forget - if you've got a hat name idea, let me know!

In the cold light of day

My crafter's ADD has been rearing it's ugly head lately & last night I pulled an all nighter.

In the cold light of day, it's not so pretty.  There's an awful lot of clean up to be done.  And a lampshade to be replaced. 

I did get lots of projects finished and even more started.  There were fingerless gloves, lacy knitted bookmarks, a variety of beaded Christmas ornaments, a few framed Christmas pictures/sayings, and a few wine bottle decorations.

When I uploaded that photo this morning, I discovered a few other pictures.  I think the kids have been playing with my camera again. 

My favorite wind chimes.  They are so tinkly!  They are also loud enough that I can hear them from my office area, but they aren't so loud that they wake you up.  They must also be pretty dang strong because they've survived several hurricanes.

My failed attempt at growing basil in a coffee can on the porch.  The plant was doing great for a few weeks then the summer heat got to it.  Or perhaps it was my black thumb.

And this lovely photo of me falling off the steps while trying to model/photograph a pair of fingerless gloves.

As you can see, the basil was not the only failed attempt at growing things in pots.  I can't even get mint to grow!

The Missing Month

Wow.  I have missed a whole month of blogging.  Good grief!  I had to get a post in today though, if for no other reason than to have it show up as 10-11-12.  Yes, I'm easily amused.

A lot has happened over the last month.  First, I became a Great Aunt.

Allison Danielle.  She's perfectly adorable & seems to sleep & eat when she's supposed to.  Can't ask more of a newborn than that!

As for the knitting, I've finished numerous projects and branched out to non-knitting.

It's a Scattered Leaves table runner.  I absolutely love it!  I looks like a pile of leaves scattered down the table.  I'm keeping this one for myself but I've also listed it as a Made to Order item in the Etsy shop.

And remember this shawl?  I loved it so much I decided to make another in shades of green, blue & purple.

Wow.  Is that showing up as being very washed out on your screen?  It's not looking anything like the actual colors on mine.

Have you ever wondered if a Lands End canvas tote bag is really worth the money?  I'm here to tell you, Yes!  I have two of them in different sizes and I absolutely LOVE them!  The handles on one have started to fray a bit but I've been carrying it around with me since I was 14 years old.  I'm 50 now!    That's 36 years of use and the bag itself is still going strong.  My other one is only 5 or 6 years old and it still looks great.  Well, it's a bit dirty - I don't think I've ever washed it, but other than dirt, it's showing no signs of wear at all.  But, my local craft store had bags that looked exactly like Lands End bags for about a fourth of the cost.  I bought one.  I washed it.  And look what happened -

The color ran.  Now, the white part has green splotches all over it and the green part has faded, almost white splotches all over it.  And if you look in the photo up above, you can also see that the cheap bag's seams are not finished.  You definitely get what you pay for with these bags.

Now, I must go knit some more on the cocoon baby sack for Allison.  She likes to be bundled, but she also likes to kick & keeps kicking off her blanket.