Happy Holidays, Every One!

"...and it was always said of him, that he knew how to keep Christmas well, if any man alive possessed the knowledge. May that be truly said of us, and all of us!" Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol.



DH and I have certainly celebrated it well. Our holiday began on Friday with dinner for eight for friends from in town and friends who were stopping for the night on their way to their family. I made chicken adobo and a delicious salad of greens, strawberries, chopped almonds, and peppercorn dressing. Paired with good wine and good bread, it was a hearty meal. The following night we had another set of friends for dinner. Sunday I recovered from all that cooking and finished decorating the house.

Christmas Eve was spent with DH's family and Christmas Day with part of mine. It was great fun to see my 74 year old dad playing wii with the nieces and nephew (and beating them all at bowling!). Tonight was a family dinner with DH's family at an Indian restaurant (lots of yummy dishes - we all order one dish, then share). Then it was back to our house for dessert and playing games. The celebrating will continue this weekend as all of my family will be together then at my parents' house.

I love to sit in the late hours of the evening, just with DH or alone, the cats cuddled near my feet, the lights off, carols quietly playing, enjoying the sparkle and glow of the decorations. I especially like how the Christmas tree lights are tripled by the reflections in the windows.



I had help decorating, of course.



The cats have never tried to climb the tree. But this guy likes to drink out of the tree stand - what is it about pine-flavored water that he enjoys?

A friend gave us two cat/knitting ornaments.





As for my last post, Ralphie and I both had our dreams come true. The person who drew my name for the gift exchange in DH's family gave me these...





and, this - a gift card to a LYS.



The other is from DH, the dear man, who for a person so concerned about the size of the stash, is quite enabling.

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday - whatever you observe - and that it included loved ones, traditions meaningful to you or the making of new ones and, at the very least, knitting, fiber, and good food.

All I Want for Christmas is...

I feel like Ralph in A Christmas Story.

I've gotten the knitter's version of "you'll shoot your eye out, kid."

So, the relatives (on DH's side, of course*) asked what I wanted for Christmas.

My very logical, very practical answer was to say a gift certificate to one of the many LYS in this area or I could sign up on the gift registry at the nearest LYS. I gave them the option as they seem to have difficulty giving gift certificates - they want to pick it out, purchase it, take it home and wrap it, etc.

"Don't you have enough yarn?" was their response.

Ouch. I was like Ralph sitting on Santa's lap - too shocked and astounded to respond.

I recently sent a fellow knitter a card that says "There is a fine line between a hobby and mental illness." I think the relatives believe I've crossed that line. They made it very clear they did not want to give me anything knitting related and kept asking if there was anything I wanted for the house or the garden.

"No, actually, I don't," I told them.

Our "garden" consists unknown species of bushes along a fence that separates our yard from our neighbor's. We do have some tulips along side the house, but they were planted by the former owner. I do not have a garden as I have no interest in gardening and no knowledge about gardening. I've killed every plant I've ever owned - not intentionally. I can't tell the difference between a new plant and a weed. The most I can manage is planting VERY hardy flowers in planters for our porch and steps - and this is only out of shame of having the least tended property on the block. I admire people who have a gift for, or a love of, gardening. I am just not one of those people.

As for the house, DH and I married later in life than most couples. Between his house and my apartment, we had what we needed to set up house together. I don't care for knicknacks - just more things to dust. DH thinks we have enough clutter already as he is quite minimalist in his decorating preferences. Like every homeowner, we have things that need to be done - rooms that need to be painted, woodwork that needs to be refinished, windows and doors that need replacing, two more trees in the yard that need to come down, The list could go on - but it's not a Christmas list. Not unless your budget for gifts is 4 figures or more.

It doesn't bother me that they think I have too much yarn - most non-knitters would share that opinion if they saw the stash closet. What bothers me is that they have made themselves the arbiters of what will make me happy and what is or is not appropriate to give to me. I would never think of telling them I don't really want to give them a gift certificate to the local nursery or DIY store like they asked because I believe they really don't need anything more for their house or yard.

DH and I are very lucky - we have food, shelter, and clothing when many do not - we have jobs and can pay our bills when many cannot - we have indoor plumbing in a world where many do not. What we take for granted as the basics in life many would consider a luxury. I don't want to sound ungrateful. I know I'll like whatever they give me. I like what I've been given in the past. Now I feel like a scrooge for complaining and writing this post. I've actually had this written for a couple of days, but waited to post it. I guess the whole point is why did they bother asking me? They already knew the answer and ended up ignoring and dismissing it. And maybe I'm taking the whole thing too seriously, but it also felt that they were unintentionally belittling something that means a great deal to me - the art of knitting. I decided to post this because I want to know - do other knitters run into this? What can I do the next time this happens?


*I say "of course" because my mother, as one who sews, quilts, and used to knit, understands the concept of the stash and the idea of learning more about your craft, She's got a stash of fabrics, notions, and patterns going back 30 years. In fact, about 2 years ago, she made a quilt using silk from Thailand she had been given by her sister in the late '60's. Some day I'll post a picture of it.

Have a Laugh and Do Some Good at the Same Time

Need a break?

All that Christmas knitting got you down?

Got those shoveling blues?

Need a reason to procrastinate from starting/finishing whatever task you need to accomplish?

Tired of sending the same old holiday greetings?

If so, get on over to Jessica's blog and click on the link to play the Holiday-O-Matic game. Besides, time spent supporting a philanthropic endeavor is never wasted.

Best one I had tonight said, "May your soiree be litigious and filled with hand knit mittens.

It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas

The decorating (and thorough cleaning that comes beforehand and during) has begun at the Stash Haus in preparation of the holiday season. I've started a bit late this year in comparison with other years but I was too busy last weekend wandering around yarn shops and enjoying various libations.

Yesterday - either in a fit of hyper-organization or in a fit of procrastination and not wanting to face the dirtier jobs, like cleaning the bathroom - I spent a couple of hours entering books into Library Thing. I'm Stash Haus over there, too. I had difficulty uploading the file from Library Thing to Ravelry, so I just re-entered the info on Ravelry. I feel like another chore has been crossed off my list - and at least my bookshelf is more tidy now.

I bought a new Christmas decoration the other day - found in a little shop in a small town I often travel through. You can see why I couldn't pass it up.

The Fiber Enthusiast's Santa Claus.





I wonder how much yarn his sleigh can hold?

Sweet Haul Chicago

Ah, Chicago. A lively weekend was spent there with friends from Meg Swansen's Knitting Camp.

We had a beautiful apartment right in the middle of the loop...one block to Macy's on State Street...a couple blocks to Millenium Park. This is the view from the rooftop lounge.



The weekend was spent knitting, eating, drinking, and visiting LYS (and not necessarily in that order). Nostalgia for the U.K. filled me while sipping cider (on tap) at the Elephant & Castle on North Wabash - Mmmm cider. The fact that everyone had more luggage devoted to knitting projects and yarn than to clothing and a review of the contents of our refrigerator speak for themselves as to the kind of weekend it was.



I went to Lorna's Laces on a mission for my local knitters guild. I was so overcome I forgot to get the camera out. But wait a few months - come spring there will be a full pictorial.

We also went to Loopy Yarns - again, too overcome by yarn fums to take photos.

Also on the itinerary were Knitwerks





and Arcadia Knitting.







This was the haul from Arcadia - and all of it 40% off.





Love my new knitting bag!



From Knitwerks, a couple of skeins of 4/8 Wool from Mountain Colors.



From Loopy, 12 skeins of Berroco Ultra Alpaca Light. I'd not seen this laceweight/fingering weight before. I've got a lovely lace project in mind for this.



All three shops are lovely, have helpful, friendly staff, and each carry some yarns that the others do not. Loopy Yarns has the most stock. Knitwerks, although small, is bright and airy with interesting stock. They were also very helpful with dinner recommendations for tourists. Arcadia has plenty of room and a whole wall of needles and accessories. I highly recommend a stop at any of these shops.

Winter Wonderland

Winter is here in full force. We've had three snowstorms where we've gotten 5-6 inches of snow each time. There's so much snow piled on the medians by city plows that it is difficult to see oncoming traffic when turning. The countryside I see on my travels reminds me of Fargo - it's difficult to tell where the sky ends and the ground begins.







The guest speaker this month at our local guild meeting was Candace Eisner Strick. She was a wonderful, engaging, and humorous speaker.





Knitting continues at the haus. As usual, I'm working on several projects at one time. I've been getting home too late for proper photos - maybe this weekend.

Winter Storm = Knitting

This was the perfect weekend if one was not planning on going anywhere.

Our first winter storm. We had 6 inches of snow, topped with 1/2 inch of ice. The snow was incredibly heavy and difficult to shovel. I have no pictures (too busy shoveling and pushing DH's stuck car off the street and into the driveway).

As it was the perfect weather for staying indoors, plenty of knitting happened in between laundry and a tiny bit of cleaning this weekend and I've finished some easy knits. (Click on them to see the colors up close.)

Scarf made out of Lorna's Laces Shepherd Worsted. Simple pattern of k5, p5 with slipped stiches on the edges. It's very "sqooshy."





The pattern for this is Amy Anderson's Hat Trick. The band is made from Artful Yarns Merino. The crown is Cascade 220 in a denim blue.



The last is a simple scarf out of Frog Tree Alpaca Handpaints which I had picked up on sale at 50% off the price. It is also a very soft, sqooshy piece of knitting.





The first two might be gifts, but the last may end up around my neck this winter.

(Note - this post edited. The pictures weren't appearing, so I tried again. Let's hope Blogger works.)

For Jean

The other day Jean Miles commented that I have the cat she's always wanted.

I'd never had a cat before and had not planned on having cats. I was more of a dog person - our family had a great dog when I was growing up.

Then three and a half years ago, on our way back home from a trip to the western part of the US, my husband and I stayed with friends who live on a farm in Minnesota. A very friendly pregnant cat had adopted their farm. Three to four weeks before our arrival she had given birth to a litter of kittens. My friends had set up a cat bed on their unused back porch and were monitoring the new family - with 2 cats and a labrador dog, they had as many indoor pets as they could handle. A few hours before we arrived at their farm, they found her in the road - killed by a passing car. The kittens were not weaned at this point, so we used a bit of the formula they used to bottle feed calves. We tried to teach the kittens how to lick - 3 of the 4 learned, but not the runt. I began feeding the runt by using an eyedropper to force the fluid down her throat.

I was often on that back porch that weekend feeding and playing with the kittens - or at least the 2 that would come out of hiding. The runt was very curious, extremely outgoing, and always begging for attention. When her brother would see what she was doing then he would join in. The other 2 of the litter stayed in hiding, coming out only to eat.

My husband steadfastly ignored the plight of the orphans - trying to delay the inevitable. I begged and begged to take the runt home - "she's going to die without our help!" was my mantra. She was losing weight during the 2 days we were there. Finally, I took her and her brother into the house, put them into his lap and said, "how can we not help these?" He knew the battle was lost. Surprisingly he agreed to take both, concurring with my logic that they would be company for each other when we were gone all day at work.

So the kittens rode home with us in a Pepsi carton lined with an old towel. The kittens were so small when we got them home - one would fit in the palm of your hand. We fed them with a bottle the first night and after that a gruel made up of soft cat food mixed with kitten formula per the advice from the vet. (I never knew before this that you could buy kitten formula, just like baby formula.) All the little girls in the neighborhood would come to our house as soon as we'd drive up after work, asking if they could play with the kittens. As a result, the cats are quite social and at times, to me, act like dogs; they run to the door to greet whoever is at the door, they often roll on their backs to have their stomaches petted, and they have a "pack" mentality in that they don't like being alone and are happiest when DH and I are both at home.

The white tortoise is the female runt, who was so ugly when we brought her home that our sister-in-law called her "Ugg". I have to admit - she really was ugly. She didn't seem to have much fur and her skin was translucent. She looked like an albino bat. She is a real life version of "The Ugly Duckling." My friends say she looks and acts exactly like her mother. Her favorite activity is jumping to the top of the doors in our house (which measure about 8 feet high.)



This is one of her favorite "hiding" places when they are chasing and stalking each other around the house.



The tabby is her brother and he's just a big bucket o' love - a mama's boy. Cuddling on my lap is his favorite activity.



Unlike his sister, he's able to be on my lap while I knit because he can withstand the temptation to attack the yarn. He's also quite smart and has figured out how to open doors - which was an unpleasant discovery on my part as the door he had opened was the closet door to my stash. There were casualties - not the cats, although they came close - but a few skeins of yarn that were discovered strung ALL over the house (2 stories) one morning. The closet door now has heavy boxes permanently stacked against the door.

This is the usual scene at our house - at least when they're not bouncing off the furniture or trying to break into the stash.