Lovin' the Welsh -

What else can I say except I heart Wales!

Miss Thing...

Spring 1992 - March 20, 2009

I was going home one day to do laundry and there was a "Free Kittens" sign on the driveway of a house... I stopped, and there she was. And she stayed for the next 17 years. From Missouri to Florida, DC, Seattle, Colorado, New York and back to Seattle.

She lived almost 3.5yrs after my dogs attacked her in December 2005 - resulting in a perforated liver, dislocated jaw and a miriad of other issues [plus the most jumbo vet bill ever]. She collapsed almost 1yr to the day - possibly due to residual nerve damage from that attack, but she recovered again albeit with a few physical changes.

She was there through my divorce last year, and had another collapsing incident in April 2008 that I didn't think she would recover from at all. She did, but there was a marked difference. Her balance was WAY off - kinda like a car driving with a noticably bent frame. She had difficulty walking and jumping, but she scooted along like a trooper the best she could - and she ate like a fiend.

After much thought and tribulation, I made the decision to send her to my parents in Las Vegas in August this past year, along with Molly, my other cat. I was actually hoping to go to Vegas next month for a visit and to see her.

She was a good little cat - and I'll always miss her.

What's All the Fuss?

Maybe I'm just not cool or hip. Actually, I'm pretty sure I've never been either. But anyway, I don't get it. I don't get twitter, facebook or myspace. What's the purpose? I have my little blog, email [5 different email addresses to be exact and I'm attempting to phase out 2 of them - and 2 are for junk mail only] and a cell phone - with madly insane text messaging attached to it. If you need to get in touch with me, send me an email or text or call. Why do I need to be on all this other stuff? What's the facination? I mean, I was hesitant about having a blog for fear it was too personal & there is a bit of anonymity lost. But with twitter, facebook and myspace, can you really be anonymous on the web? As it is, everything you post is out "there" forever.

Thoughts?

Jasmine...

BF sent me the following text/story this morning. I'm not sure where it came from, or who wrote it [sorry, but please, if you know, I'm happy to give credit!]. For all the ick in the world, this is certainly uplifting. Enjoy...

In 2003, police in Warwickshire, England, opened a garden shed and found a whimpering, cowering dog. It had been locked in the shed and abandoned. It was dirty and malnourished, and had clearly been abused. In an act of kindness, the police took the dog, which was a greyhound female, to the nearby Nuneaton and Warwickshire Wildlife Sanctuary, run by a man named Geoff Grewcock and known as a willing haven for animals abandoned, orphaned or otherwise in need. Geoff Grewcock and the other sanctuary staff went to work with two aims: to restore the dog to full health, and to win her trust. It took several weeks, but eventually both goals were achieved. They named her Jasmine, and they started to think about finding her an adoptive home. The dog had other ideas.

No-one remembers now how it began, but Jasmine started welcoming all animal arrivals at the sanctuary. It wouldn't matter if it was a puppy, a fox cub, a rabbit or, probably, a rhinoceros, Jasmine would peer into the box or cage and, where possible, deliver a welcoming lick. Geoff Grewcock relates one of the early incidents. "We had two puppies that had been abandoned by a nearby railway line. One was a Lakeland Terrier cross and another was a Jack Russell Doberman cross. They were tiny when they arrived at the centre and Jasmine approached them and grabbed one by the scruff of the neck in her mouth and put him on the settee. Then she fetched the other one and sat down with them, cuddling them.""But she is like that with all of our animals, even the rabbits. She takes all the stress out of them and it helps them to not only feel close to her but to settle into their new surroundings."She has done the same with the fox and badger cubs, she licks the rabbits and guinea pigs and even lets the birds perch on the bridge of her nose."

Jasmine, the timid, abused, deserted waif, became the animal sanctuary's resident surrogate mother, a role for which she might have been born. The list of orphaned and abandoned youngsters she has cared for comprises five fox cubs, four badger cubs, 15 chicks, eight guinea pigs, two stray puppies and 15 rabbits. And one roe deer fawn. Tiny Bramble, 11 weeks old, was found semi-conscious in a field. Upon arrival at the sanctuary, Jasmine cuddled up to her to keep her warm, and then went into the full foster mum role. Jasmine the greyhound showers Bramble the roe deer with affection and makes sure nothing is matted in her fur.



"They are inseparable," says Geoff Grewcock. "Bramble walks between her legs and they keep kissing each other. They walk together round the sanctuary. It's a real treat to see them."Jasmine will continue to care for Bramble until she is old enough to be returned to woodland life. When that happens, Jasmine will not be lonely. She will be too busy showering love and affection on the next orphan or victim of abuse.

From left, Toby, a stray Lakeland dog; Bramble, an orphaned roe deer; Buster,a stray Jack Russell; a dumped rabbit; Sky, an injured barn owl; and Jasmine.

Doing what she does best, being a mother.

Help?

I've eluded to it ever so slightly mainly because whatever is posted on the web is forever - and because this is embarassing on so many levels... But I am unemployed. I am a statistic that you read about on the news every night. And it sucks.

If you know anyone hiring, please let me know. Thanks.

Guam Greyhounds

Sadly, I don't know where I've been since November, and how this horrible news has flown below the radar until now:

The ONLY greyhound track in Guam [a US territory] abruptly closed in November. For whatever reason, the owner decided to have a "come get your greyhound for free day." Seriously - I don't know how else to describe it. In short, people just randomly came to pick a GH. No formal adoption process or anything - so you can imagine how that's ending up

GH were taken to be used in dog fighting as bait dogs [allegedly], as guard dogs [laughable], and a miriad of other uses that obviously aren't suited to GH. Numbers are being found starved and abandoned; some released into the wilderness/jungle to fend for themselves.

This is unacceptable on I don't know how many levels. The only welfare group on the entire island, Guam Animals in Need, is doing the best it can to try and get the dogs OFF the island. It's working with a local group in California to ship them a few at a time. Many are malnourished and in need of lots of love and compassion @ this point.

PLEASE VISIT www.guamgreyhounds.org and donate whatever you can. Whether it's $1 or $5, any little bit will help these dogs. I'm unemployed - and have been since November. I'm trying to get $20 together to help; as I firmly believe this shouldn't be allowed to happen anymore in this day and age. I won't even begin to try to figure out whether or not the track owner was just on crack or what when he allowed this to happen...

Pass this on to anyone and everyone you know. I know times are quite tight everywhere for everyone. But even if you can only give $1, that could buy a can of food for a dog.



Do you knit? How about making a greyhound sweater with this great pattern courtesy Terry Lea Royea: http://www.royea.net/side_button_greyhound_sweater.pdf

These needy little pups could use some hand-knit lovins. Pass this around to everyone you know!

Poor Evie

She's had the worst teeth, and sadly, I haven't had the money to get them fixed until now. Greyhounds are known to have bad teeth. Genetics mostly - some are blessed with fabulous teeth, others are not. It has nothing to do with NGA v. AKC breeding or anything like that. Just genetics.
I had saved enough last fall to get her teeth cleaned [and some likely pulled], but alas, I needed new tires for my car. Tires or pup? Well, if I crashed the car, I'd totally be SOL, so I went with tires. Saved up more $$ to get her teeth done.

And the results? Totally trust my vet - Dr. Kevin - who even has one of the puppies from the litter we had almost 18mo ago. Instead of 4 teeth [all pre-molars] being pulled, she had 4 pre-molars, 4 incisors, and 4 other teeth pulled = 12 total. [She also had a full senior blood panel, full mouth xrays and her nails lasered back beyond the quick to little nubbins...]

Evie is now at home, totally jacked up on tramadol, clavamox and metacam whilst recovering. Her face is swollen like a chipmunk who ate too many nuts and her tongue hangs out the right side of her mouth because of all the teeth pulled. The good thing? I swear it looks like Dr. Kevin used Crest Whitstrips on her teeth - fabulous! Also, I know that after she gets over the initial pain, her mouth won't hurt anymore [which I know was happening before] - and she'll be happy.

The cost? Hahaha. It pains me to say, so I won't burden anyone with that! Plus you all would pass out - like I almost did.

[Oh, and how 'bout that new pic of Evie this past fall in the title header? Dippin' her toes in the cool Snoqualmie River.]

21st century has arrived...

Ok. So there seems to have been continual leaks under the sink for whatever reason for the past few months. Fix & think everything's under control, then voila! Another leak comes up several months later. Blech. Tiring.

Anyway, so we had another leak last weekend. BF goes to see about fixing it & runs up to the Ace Hardware for parts. Sad because they actually know his name in there. He comes home and says, "I have a suprise for you!" Of course, I'm thinking cute adorable GH puppy.

Alas no, but ALMOST AS GOOD!!! He bought a garbage disposal!!!!! WoooHoooo! His rationale was that it cost as much as all the parts to fix the sink. He's never had a garbage disposal in the house! Do you have any idea just how nasty and gross cleaning those little traps in the sink were? Bits of food particles all floating around soggy and then start to smell. He spent all day Monday putting it in rather than go skiing. How wonderful is he???

It's a joy to scrape a plate directly into the sink rather than the trash can. Part of me secretly smiles too b/c I used to tease him about it for several years before we were even dating - and I have no clue why he never had one before. He's lived in this house for almost 14yrs!

We have joined the 21st century. He bought a dishwasher about 2wks prior. I know...

And on a side note... Hope all the peeps and pets down in AU are going to be ok! Just devistating about those fires. On one GH list I follow, a very prominant trainer lost his life and another lost his home. Haven't heard anythign about the dogs being in trouble, though lots are in temporary kennel situations while other living arrangements can be found. Hope you all are doing as well as can be expected at this time. Read more here http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/

Where Did January Go?

Wow, that month went by fast! Super fast. Hmph. Watched the inauguration streaming online at CNN. Pretty good, though I only really cared about Obama's speech. In terms of his prior speeches, I was disappointed. It was a solid 9 or 10. But I was expecting an 11 - the complete "WOW" factor. Something that would stay with me the rest of my life. Bummer.

Was diggin' Michelle's outfit and the kids' coats. Love the fact that they wear JCrew. Half my wardrobe is JCrew. If I ever run into her, we can bond over the latest JCrew catalog! Hehehe.

Random pictures. Here's Evie hittin' the sauce. You wonder what greyhounds do when people are at work? They raid the liquor cabinet. Apparently Evie likes the Bacardi.

And flowers from the bunch BF brought home last night. His response - because I haven't brought you flowers in awhile. I've been kinda hard to be around lately; studying for the bar exam doesn't help. He's a wonderful BF! They're still pretty.

Happy New Year [belated]

We had a good holiday. It was SO much better than last year I don't know where to begin. Best Christmas gifts EVER = Tiffany's holiday pattern tea cup & saucer. Seriously, tea tastes better in it. I'm totally determined to have a table set with this entire pattern at some point in the future! It's so beautiful!

Also got a pair of my favourite Ugg slippers. I haven't worn them yet because I need a bigger size & the store is still out of stock! Uggh [pun intended].

Finished boyfriend's socks after New Year. Oh well. He loves them though; wore them about 4 days in a row. Which was followed by, "I need a Danish pair of socks."

Boyfriend is Danish and for him, it doesn't mean some sort of fancy Scandanavian patterned socks - but just something simple in red and white [the colours of the Danish flag]. I thought Trekking XXL made some, but alas no. So, went to Etsy and found Sunrise Fiber Lodge Studio - which had the perfect red & white yarn.

I can't wait - it looks so fabulous - and is self striping! It's superwash merino, bamboo & nylon so it should be super soft. This is only the 2nd time I've purchased something from an Etsy shop. I think the items people have to offer for sale are nice, but I really dislike the search process for looking for items on it. Think it could be better - the search engine that they use needs to be improved IMO.

Funny...

I finished 1 sock for boyfriend. Had him try it on a bit to make sure the fit was just right - and it turned out great! Anyway, he's hilarious. Since I'm only 4 inches into the foot on the 2nd sock, he's been wearing the single sock around the house as a mis-matched pair. His comment, "hurry up and finish it because this is really nice."

Granted, he was taken aback when he learned his new pair of socks was about $30 for the yarn!

Smile.

And it's supposed to snow today. Still waiting for that to happen, although the internet has been sporadic since Sunday when I got a new computer! Hard to set up the computer when there's no solid internet connection. Damn Comcast! OOOOOOHHHHHH, flakes are now starting to fall as I write this.

1.5 projects DONE & What I Want For Christmas

So, I finished the shawl. Blocked and ready to be wrapped up for Christmas!

Once I got the stupid thing started, it was a pretty quick and easy knit. The overall project was pretty cheap too. Like I said earlier, I used 2.5 skeins of Frog Tree Alpaca.

And the other project? Socks. What pattern you ask? Widdershins from knitty.com summer 2006 issue. Plain pattern though - no cables. This is going to be BF's first pair of handmade socks so nothing too fancy. Help with picking up the wraps via misocrafty's tutorial. BF has big feet - 7.5" before I started the heel.

Glad this is toe up! I also realized it's not good to try and pick up wrapped stitches at night in a fairly dark room with inadequate lighting. So, after ripping the stuff out umpteen times last night, the heel went VERY quickly once I was able to see what I was doing.

And this is what I want for Christmas:

A greyhound from Vermillion Greyhounds. As I posted earlier, my puppies, including my other dogs, were awarded to my husband in my divorce. I miss my dogs more than anything in the world. These greyhound puppies are SO beautiful! And they're lines are amazing! Strong coursing/hunting backgrounds and because they are AKC/NGA crosses, more likely than not, they'll turn into some substantial dogs! White brindle or white parti are my favourite colors, followed by the blacks and light reds. Voila - an adorable light red puppy boy!

Note: this photo is taken from Vermillion so they get all the credit & props!

Update from T-Day and our TREE!!!

Thanksgiving was good. BF's family came over. Nice dinner - I thought the turkey was a bit dry, but everyone else seemed to enjoy it. It cooked super fast and I probably should've pulled it from the oven around 1130am [we weren't eating till 2pm] but didn't believe it would be done that early!

As for the menu: heritage turkey, mashed potatoes [instant, though everyone thought they were real!], stuffing with cranberries, asparagus, broccoli/cauliflower/carrot medley, herb rolls and homemade gravy. Best damn gravy too!

The one "slice" of disappointment? His family was in charge of dessert. He asked me at one point what he should tell them to bring - I don't care as long as it's apple. Apple pie, apple crisp, etc. Guess what? No apple anything. Pumpkin pie only. Blech. I don't like pumpkin pie. The only good news is that I was SO full from dinner I couldn't even attempt to eat it anyway but still...

There was no pear chutney because when I mentioned it to BF, it was followed by "WTF is pear chutney?" So..... the night before, MY parents came over for dinner. I mixed up the pears I had with some dried cranberries, splash of orange juice, cinnamon, brown sugar, nutmeg, etc. and used the Pillsbury pie crusts I had & made individual "tarts."

Very clever I must say. Just take a pie crust, cut it in half [so you get 2 tarts], spoon some filling on one end, fold it over & trim off excess dough, pinch the seams closed & cut some slits in the top. Put on a cookie sheet covered in aluminum foil to catch the drippings & bake for about 30-40min till golden. Voila! Individual pear/cranberry tarts. Very cool. My mom thought it was clever too!

As for the sticky buns? They turned out pretty good. I followed the recipe but they severely needed more cinnamon/sugar mixture in the "filling" so they didn't seem so doughy but otherwise very good.

And this past Sunday we went & cut down our tree! It was the best time. BEAUTIFUL TREE - it's a Grand Pine. Really thick, curly branches make it so full and beautiful. All the ornaments are from Ikea with a few suprises here & there. All red, silver & black. And the black ornaments actually look good. There's even little Danish flag garlands - both paper and handmade fabric - around the tree as BF is Danish. [If you click the link above, it goes to Wikipedia & gives this great story about the history of the flag!]

Wishing you & yours...

Recipe & dinner updates will follow! Hope you all enjoy your day!

T-Day Menu Countdown [part 2]

Fresh Pear Chutney

[again from Cooking Light & another great resource for recipes http://www.myrecipes.com/ which is great when you remember the recipe but can't seem to find it anywhere!]

I did this recipe several years ago as well. I actually think the caramel pecan bun recipe came out about the same time. Either way, LOVE pears. I normally omit the onions - or cut them extra big just because I hate onions but the flavor is ok.

Yield
3 cups (serving size: 1/4 cup)

Ingredients
1 cup chopped red onion
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup currants
1/4 cup rice vinegar
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/2 teaspoon minced peeled fresh ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
3 cups chopped peeled pear

Preparation
Combine first 8 ingredients in a small saucepan; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 5 minutes. Remove from heat; cool 10 minutes. Place in a medium bowl; stir in pear.

Nutritional Information [ok, pears are healthy and a fruit, so this is important...]

Calories: 55 (3% from fat)
Fat: 0.2g (sat 0.0g,mono 0.0g,poly 0.1g)
Protein: 0.4g
Carbohydrate: 13.8g
Fiber: 1.5g
Cholesterol: 0.0mg
Iron: 0.3mg
Sodium: 4mg
Calcium: 14mg

From Cooking Light November 1998

T-Day Menu Countdown [part 1]

Caramel Pecan Sticky Buns from Cooking Light.

I made this recipe several years ago and it turned out REALLY well. I'm going to give it a try again this year instead of our usual monster breakfast fare.

Yield
16 servings (serving size: 1 roll)

Caramel:
1/3 cup packed dark brown muscovado sugar or dark brown sugar
3 tablespoons butter
4 teaspoons light corn syrup
Cooking spray
2 tablespoons chopped pecans

Dough:
1 package dry yeast (about 2 1/4 teaspoons)
1 2/3 cups warm water (100° to 110°)
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
5 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, divided (about 23 1/2 ounces)
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 tablespoons butter, softened

To prepare caramel, combine first 3 ingredients in a saucepan over medium heat; stir frequently until butter melts. Continue cooking until mixture thickens and becomes smooth (about 1 minute), stirring constantly. Remove from heat; pour into the center of a 9-inch square baking pan; quickly spread caramel onto pan bottom using a spatula coated with cooking spray. Sprinkle with pecans; cool to room temperature. Lightly coat sides of pan with cooking spray.
To prepare dough, dissolve yeast in warm water in a large bowl; let stand 5 minutes. Stir in salt.

Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Add 5 cups flour to yeast mixture; stir until a soft dough forms. Turn dough out onto a floured surface. Knead until smooth and elastic (about 8 minutes); add enough of remaining flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, to keep dough from sticking to hands.

Place dough in a large bowl coated with cooking spray, turning to coat top. Cover and let rise in a warm place (85°), free from drafts, 1 hour or until doubled in size. (Gently press two fingers into dough. If indentation remains, the dough has risen enough.) Punch dough down; cover and let rest 5 minutes.

Combine granulated sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl; set aside.

Roll dough into a 16 x 12-inch rectangle on a lightly floured surface; spread 2 tablespoons of softened butter over dough. Sprinkle with cinnamon-sugar mixture, leaving a 1/2-inch border. Roll up rectangle tightly, starting with long edge, pressing firmly to eliminate air pockets; pinch seam to seal (do not seal ends). Cut into 16 (1-inch-wide) slices. (A) Place slices, cut sides up, in prepared pan (rolls will be crowded). Cover and let rise 30 minutes or until doubled in size.

Preheat oven to 375°.

Bake at 375° for 20 minutes or until rolls are light golden brown. Cool in pan 5 minutes on rack. Place a serving platter upside down on top of pan; invert onto platter. Serve warm.

Nutritional Information [really, they're sticky buns - do you honestly care about nutrition?]

Calories: 232 (21% from fat)
Fat: 5.3g (sat 1.9g,mono 2.1g,poly 0.7g)
Protein: 4.5g
Carbohydrate: 41.7g
Fiber: 1.4g
Cholesterol: 9mg
Iron: 2.1mg
Sodium: 249mg
Calcium: 14mg

From Cooking Light 2005.

FOR SALE just in time for Christmas

Addi Turbo needles for sale. Sizes are listed below. Plain & simple, I'm not that enamoured with them. Yes, I've spent a !@#$%^&* load on them, but, after using the KnitPicks needles, I really don't like the Addi. So, my loss is your gain!

[Note, the needles are sold AS IS and all together only. That means no picking them apart to get just one! And for the record, I take really good care of my things so do rest assured the needles are in very good condition.]

24" 3mm US2 [bamboo]

24" 3mm US3 [bamboo - though cable says US2 it measures a on my gauge a 3.25mm = US3]

24" 3.5mm US4 [bamboo]

32" 4mm US6

32" 4.5mm US7

32" 5mm US8

32" 5.5mm US9

32" 6mm US10 [markings have worn off cable]

32" 6.5mm US10.5

And...

16" 4.5mm US7 [BAMBOO CLOVER]

24" 6.5mm US10.5 [BAMBOO CLOVER]

32" 12mm US 17 [BAMBOO CLOVER]

Now for the price. Addi's on average are approx $20 each new. Hell, one web site I recently found has the US10.5 for $20.50 regularly & at that price for all the needles, it would be $185!

So... for everything, including the Clover bamboo, $100 + shipping [US priority mail to your address] unless you're military to an APO then free shipping. My guess is shipping won't be more than $10 or so in the US. Tell your friends. First one to email me [just reply to this post] so I can give payment info wins!

Enjoy

New Knitting

I promised & promised to give deatils on my new project & here it is: Fiber Trends Leaf Lace Shawl. The sample looked really pretty in the shop - in a light greenish, mint-ish, blue color. I'm doing mine in navy:

Frog Tree Alpaca fingering weight - color #59 [navy]

Problem is that starting the pattern sucked. What a stupid way to start a pattern:

"Begin w/provisional cast on. Using a crochet hook about the same size as your knitting needle & waste yarn, chain 4 sts. Using shawl yarn & knitting needles, knit up 2 sts in back bumps of crochet chain. Begin shawl on these 2 sts. "

...it took forever to figure out how to rotate, knit up, remove the waste yarn, etc. I even went to the local yarn shop [www.hilltopyarn.com] to have them help me get the damn thing started. Ugh. I guess a new knitting project of lace work isn't ideal when I haven't knit in forever b/c of the carpal tunnel diagnosis last year but eh, why not?!

And on a side note, yes my personal drama is somewhat waining. Not 100% solved, but hopefully not as dramatic. It's quite true, that old saying, when it rains it pours.

I Surrender

I quit. Period. Stick a fork in me - I'm done.

How many times must a person get the shit kicked out of them? Seriously. As I've stated earlier, this year hasn't been the best for me for a number of reasons. Lately, there have been a TON of fabulous things happening - things that have made me think - gee, ok, things were a bit rocky for awhile, but look, everything is turning around; life is good, etc.

So now, I'm reaching the top of the mountain. I can see the top of the mountain. It is clearly within reach & is beyond fabulous. Just as I'm about to reach my hand out to grab on & pull myself up to a point where I've been CONVINCED it can't get any better...WHAM!!!! A foot comes out of knowhere & kicks me in the teeth. I have now spent the better part of today tumbling ass over tea kettle down the mountain.

I am sick of being bumped and bruised. I am sick of getting my ass kicked for no reason. For all the crap I've been through this year, I was even slowly coming to terms with everything & accepting how things would and are going to be. I have a great boyfriend, a great house, Evie, etc. I know there are people in this world who clearly have things worse than me - so don't get me wrong but in my 60 square mile universe - I am at a loss.

I am SO SICK of trying to pick my ass up because I keep getting kicked in the teeth. For the past four years it's seemed like this vicious circle that has intensified in the last year. My health - and I'm not that old - has gone to shit. Severe weight loss [which actually has helped in some areas :-O ] - clumps of hair falling out - infections - and much more that's not right for publication seems to be killing me. My stress level is out of control.

I simply give up. Blech.

Fall in PNW

Evie has a bone spur. Basically like a knot on her wrist. She's getting around ok but limps alot after running hard. Annoying because I know it hurts her & can only do pain management at this time. Good news though is EVIE TURNED 8YRS on 10/17....whooohooo....

Picture of boyfriend, Evie & Tara enjoying a bright, sunny fall morning taken last Sunday. It was unusually dry and sunny! We'll take what we can get as it's better than drying off muddy feet. The girls had to go to the dog wash afterwards because they were covered in sand and mud - and we were too lazy to do it at home & clog up the bathtub.

And a photo of a nice fall scene - on the Snoqualmie River - taken on our walk this past Sunday. Again, unusually dry & sunny. About 60 and quite crisp out. Better than rain!!!

Oh! I also slowly started to knit again. Working on a shawl for boyfriend's mom for xmas. I am SO looking forward to the holidays with him! His family is coming to the house for Thanksgiving - and we're doing everything! So fun. He's never had his family to his house & he's lived here 13yrs! Against my own holiday rules of ettiquette, we even bought new Christmas ornaments when we were at IKEA the other day [I really hate anything Christmas - or any holiday for that matter - that's 'out of order' - i.e. no Christmas decorations before Thanksgiving, etc.] There were some really cool black ornaments I got but I may return them; combined with the red ones I'm either thinking deck of cards or I don't know what...hmmmmm