Day: February 15, 2005

It’s funny, somewhere along the ride I intended this blog to be 90% knitting and the rest just flotsam and jetsam. Turns out I’ve flipped the ratios, so I thought I should do a quick Knittin’ Update.
Nearly Done: Self-designed, ribbed and BEADED (for my pleasure) fingerless gloves. Of course as I finally get down to the knitty-gritty and try them on, I find myself wishing I’d done another column of beads. Sigh. Not so much I’ll rip them back out. All I have to do are the thumbs and presto, Rocky, I’m done! Pics to come.
Still Slogging: My Folly. I want this sweater to be done. Teeth-gnashingly so. Not in a bad way, just an anxious, eh, come ON self, get this sweater done, with our Faux Spring days, I’m feeling the pressure of fewer cold days left and thus opportunity to wear this sweater.

I’m gone this weekend to Rocheport, MO, where I’m meeting up with some fellow knitters from the Ample Knitters list, and we’re going to have a great time. I’m hoping with all the time to focus on knitting, I’ll get the Folly that much closer to completion.

In the wings, waiting to leap onto needles:

-Bumblebee socks for JWo. (He wanted black and yellow socks. I will knit him some. Found some self-striping yarn, he will be buzzin’.)
-Maple Leaf scarf in some yummmy Lorna’s Laces
-Something springy/summery! And I will be shopping from my stash for the project, oh yes I will!
-Oh, and one of those popular Buttonhole Bags from Mason-Dixon knitting. I like anything with such immediate gratification!

So Miss Kristin and I enjoyed ourselves a little Thai food therapy, and then strolled over to Tea Drops in Westport, which is just a lovely space. Every time I go in there I want to plop down and hang out there for 3-4 hours. Especially on sunny afternoons. I got a peach-flavored black tea with boba (the black tapioca-esque blobs) – YUM! I chose a bright red straw because I felt, well, very bright. And red. This straw would make a serious spitwad shooter, if a person were so inclined. My lid/seal featured red tulips, too. Very springy, very happy. I enjoy the boxes that have Asian calligraphy next to them with English subtitles, “Few Sugar”, “No Sugar”, “Few Ice”, “No Ice”. Then I notice the small print on the right-half of my seal. It’s in English. It’s the lyrics from the Black Eyed Peas’ “Where Is the Love” song.

The first words I discern say, “people killin’, people dyin'” and I’m thinkin’ YO, I’m trying to enjoy a spot of tea and sunshine here, folks. Let my boba go.

Other random thought/observation: on the walk there, a young female dalmation was sunning on her dog bed in front of her owner’s store. It was the happiest thing, and as everyone went by, they just smiled, and some stopped to pet her. The world needs more smiles and less stress. I can’t wait to get home and hug my (very clean fresh-smelling) dog!

I don’t usually list out things I feel are dreadful, because who really needs a written reminder of awful things? But this week has gotten off to an abysmal start, and in the spirit of Best Things Ever, we have to have the rain and sad things to help our Best Things shine more brightly.

1. First item will be covered in tomorrow’s post. I’m still reeling. And also feeling way old, and that I’ve already turned into a squawking senior citizen about These Kids Today.

2. My dear friend Kristin lost her gorgeous knitted Charlotte shawl on it’s debut day. Heartbreaking. I see she has a similarly titled post as well. I continue to get tears in my eyes for her, it is just so unfair.

3. My darling dog and I have opposing ideas about what constitutes Best Thing Ever. According to Polly, Best Thing Ever! list includes rolling in dog poo. That would come, of course, right after EATING cat poo. Yesterday morning, she thoroughly coated herself in excrement. Why not? It has the same detoxifying qualities as a mud bath, and people pay good money to be detoxified. Here, we have it in the front yard for FREE! Yippee skippy! James put her in the kennel right away and then gave both dogs a bath when he got home last night. We’re having Faux Spring right now, so he hooked up the hose and washed them outside. Unfortunately, Eau de PoochiePoo is a powerful, powerful cologne. She still wafted an ever-so-faint nasty scent every time she tried to snuggle up to me. So, before going to bed, we had an indoor bath as well, to wash away the last of the scent residue. Have you ever bathed a medium-to-large-sized dog in a tub? If so, you’ll understand why I choose to be half-clothed, otherwise I’m in the wet t-shirt contest, party of one. It may not be the sexiest thing on earth, but it’s functional & it works.

I told Miss Polly, while bathing her in the tub, that people would pay equally good money to be bathed and massaged and scrubbed by a topless woman. Some might even consider it to be a Best Thing Ever. However, I don’t think it makes her list…..or mine.