Texas Travels...

Half-way thru my TX trip... When one has a business trip to city A (in my case San Antonio) to which one really does not want to go, it helps when you have a friend to visit in nearby city B (in this case, Austin)! Seriously... getting to see E. was a silver lining for a trip that I really didn't want to take.

I haven't seen E in over a year, and that trip was to visit her when her hubby was in ICU after a horrific car accident - not the most pleasant of visits. So it was great to see her... no agenda, just hanging out, putzing around town and thinking of ways to decorate her new house. It's amazing how daring you can be when it's someone else's furniture, walls and windows you're planning!! Neon orange? Bring it on!


Sadly no pics because my camera died and I didn't want to bring my 'big' one... I really wish I had it. Austin is such a wacky and eclectic city - fun pictures that beg to be taken. I love the pride that Austinites have for their city and the goal to 'Keep Austin Weird' - you have to love a place like that. Even if it is stinkin' hot...

Very little on the knitting front... clicking away on the Woodland Shawl for the other E.

And I'm missing Bailey big-time. We had one quick photo before I left as the 'before' shot... alhtough I love his long and furry look, he's long overdue for a haircut so will have one while I'm gone.

I'll hurry home!

Bailey meets Beach...

Saturday was the midst of a mini heat-wave here so was the perfect day to get away from the valley and get to the beach. My friend L and I took Bailey for his first beach trip to a dog beach in Santa Cruz.

He had fun on the beach, but frankly a game of frisbee ANYWHERE is his most favorite thing in the world. "What are you waiting for? Hurry up and throw my frisbee!":


He met a new friend, Zoey, who quickly decided his frisbee was much more fun than her tennis ball...


They had a great time together - until Zoey lost the frisbee in the surf. It was hilarious watching them - each time the water went out they would race and try to dig where they'd last seen it! Fortunately, we have a stockpile of frisbees at home - just didn't think to bring an extra with us.

On the knitting front, Voyager Stole is blocked and ready - however it was quite challenging to get a good picture without a model. Bailey offered, but it just didn't match his coat ; )

So here she is... the previously posted close-up of the lace shows the colorway a little bit better, but I wanted to take advantage of the daylight. I added 6 repeats to the length so after blocking it's a wonderful 21"x80". I love it... now to wait for the fall since the colors are such lovely autumn colors.


Happy Knitting!
- JavaNut

Voyager blocking...

Yes, finally - the Voyager Stole is blocked and drying. Pics and final measurements as soon as it's dry. I'm so excited to have finished... This is the largest lace project I've done and some of the nicest yarn, so I consider it a great accomplishment!! Now if only it were a better season to wear it...

shhhh. I have a secret... a different kind of project that M & I are contemplating. It could be a lot of fun and a whole new outlet for creativity. and a whole lot of things to learn about!! In the meantime I'm thinking about some designs for felted bags with the hope (and fear) that we go forward with it.

Too tired and too late to further swatch for a gift-to-be... so I'm going to call it a night and go listen to some new podcasts. Happy Monday!

Bailey says: But Momma, sometimes I like to sleep UNDER my bed.

It's too d*** hot...

That's the song that keeps running thru my head with the record heat...

Yesterday hit 104 and today just a little cooler. Supposedly we'll be back to our blissful 78-82 by Monday... until then Bailey and I are in low-energy mode!

Ever successfully knit a shawl while trying to keep anything from touching your lap? Not easy and thank goodness it's laceweight yarn or I would have to surrender. But I'm determined to finish Voyager before the end of June so with some minor twisted sitting and draping over the arm of the chair, I've been able to keep the extra layer of warmth from touching me.

This morning I did take Bailey out for his first beach trip... pics when I get them from L's camera tomorrow. But he had a blast until his new friend Zoey stole his frisbee and lost it in the tide (the little vixen!).

At the moment it's pretty even temp between outdoors and inside (which means it will start to cool off more soon -yay!). But in the meantime, Bailey says: I'm just gonna stay in the shade.

Thankful Thursday...

Prior to my blogging hiatus, I started the Voyager Stole in a gorgeous BMFA yarn. It's not quite done, but here's a peek. I was nervous that the yarn would compete with the lace pattern, but I'm going to love this.


Reviving the short-lived tradition...

Today I'm thankful that:
- unlike so many of my buddies in the She-Knits Ravelry forum, I have no risk of losing my job
- Bailey rings the bell when he needs to go outside
- in the midst of summer heat, the nights are still cool
- cranberry juice and sparkling lime make a great warm-weather drink
- I can enjoy the treat of a pedicure

Getting ready for the weekend and some Voyager Knitting!
- JavaNut

FO Frenzy

So it's been a frenzy of finishing objects around here... 2 felted bags are drying now so will have to wait for a post...

Two baby cardi's - the multi was done in a matter of days, the pink Picot was knit a year (maybe 2!) ago, but I just got around to adding the button and loop. How lame is that? Can get the needles flying to finish a cardi but can't be bothered to spend the 15 min to sew a button and chain stitch a few inches for the loop. totally lame!



A glorios scarf which can't begin to convey the silky softness through pictures... here's the IP photo (yes, I promise, it's actually done) because I love the way the 2 different yarns blend with the half-linen stitch)!. Purple + Yellow = PRETTY!!



And the last FO for this post (yes, there have really been more!) is my third Carie Lynn bag... and this one is to keep... yay! I love the color combo despite my initial disappointment in not finding the perfect brown.

Isn't she lovely??

Happy Knitting!

- JavaNut

And Bailey (aka Yoga-puppy) says: You don't really expect to sit in my chair do you? You mean share?

More MeMeMe...

Ok, how many days does it take to form a habit? To get myself back into blogging, here's another MeMe that I saw on Throws Like A Girl blog and I saved away for a post.

YOU CAN ONLY TYPE ONE WORD!
Not as easy as you might think. Now copy or forward, change the answersto suit you and pass it on. It’s really hard to only use one word answers. Be sure to send back to the person you received it from!

1. Where is your cell phone? counter
2. Your significant other? undiscovered
3. Your hair? messy
4. Your mother? compassionate
5. Your father? gone
6. Your favorite thing? wifi
7. Your dream last night? vague
8. Your favorite drink? vino
9. Your dream/goal? family
10. The room you’re in? kitchen
11. Your hobby? knitting!
12. Your fear? isolation
13. Where do you want to be in 6 years? elsewhere
14. Where were you last night? home
15. What you’re not? married
16. Muffins? nope
17. One of your wish list items? organizer
18. Where you grew up? Needham
19. The last thing you did? email
20. What are you wearing? PJs
21. Your TV? TiVo
22. Your pet? lovable
23. Your computer? employer's
24. Your life? experienced
25. Your mood? optimistic
26. Missing someone? yes
27. Your car? black
28. Something you’re not wearing? shoes
29. Favorite store? LYS
30. Your summer? busy
31. Like someone? many
32. Your favorite color? purple
33. When is the last time you laughed? today
34. Last time you cried? movie
35. Who will respond to this? dunno

Go for it... ONE work only! And let me know...

Bailey says: Momma, can we go to bed now?



-JavaNut

Revival...

A blog-post has been a long time coming... and the longer it's been the harder to get started again. But I think the Flickr Photo MEME is pretty cool... so after seeing the 5th one, decided to jump back into blogland. Let me know if you join the crowd!

The rules:

a. Type your answer to each of the questions below into Flickr Search.

b. Using only the first page, pick an image.

c. Copy and paste each of the URLs for the images into fd’s mosaic maker.

1. What is your first name?

2. What is your favorite food?

3. What high school did you go to?

4. What is your favorite color?

5. Who is your celebrity crush?

6. Favorite drink?

7. Dream vacation?

8. Favorite dessert?

9. What you want to be when you grow up?

10. What do you love most in life?

11. One Word to describe you.

12. Your flickr name.

I must confess, I realized after the fact my food-related answers were two words... so shoot me!