Weaving

I have started a new weaving project on my small loom.  This is so I have a portable project to take with me.   I am letting my elbow rest so that my knitting elbow will heal faster. I am using left over Anne yarn from a yet to be published pattern for the warp.  I am using a single spun during last years Tour de Fleece for the weft.  Even though the weft is lace weight yarn I do believe that this will weave up fast.

Since it will be over 105f all weekend we will be keeping Eric home.  He gets to supervise all my projects this weekend. This weekend I will have John cut some warping sticks down to size for my larger loom and warp the shawl for my sister in law.  It will be a purple shawl with as many purples as I can add.  The bonus to the higher temperatures is that everything will dry fast.  

Here is the start of the scarf.

Extreme Zenning

For the last two days I have been in the extreme zenning mode. Yesterday it was a closet. I have filled three bags of clothes that will be going to Goodwill. There is actually room in my closet now, not much but a little more. Unless I find the time to ride about 100 miles a week on my now nonexistent bike.  Swim laps for 90 minutes a day, six days a week and rock climbing a few days a week these cloths will never ever fit again. I am sure that some very skinny person will love these retro clothes.  As mom to Eric that level of fitness is never going to happen.  I am lucky on most days to walk 8,000 to 10,000 steps, just a small fraction of the steps my younger self took. As a grownup, I do not have as much time as my teenage self to get all that movement in every day.  

The Zenning continued today with old paper work that no longer needs to occupy space in my closet. Eight bags of shredded papers from the 2010’s  made their way into the recycling bin.  I managed to fill it up half way.  We have a 90 gallon bin.  I need to save the rest of the bin for every day recycling. As a bonus I found enough none expired coupons for a free case of diapers.  This has inspired John to find more old papers for me to shred.  

Even though I took most of the day off from knitting to let my knitting elbow rest, the rest of the world knows this as tennis elbow. Let it be known that I no longer play tennis so , therefore I can not possibly have tennis elbow.  I have decided that I must start finishing projects other than hats, which seem to fly of my knitting needles. I am really great at starting projects. Not so much with finishing.   Speaking of knitting needles, I might give some more away to a young mother who home schools her kids and teaches knitting to the next generation.  More space. I need more empty space in my closet. 

Well it is getting late and I need to try to rest, ahem I mean sleep.  

Projects 129 to 134

This weeks projects include 6 hats for the Flowing Wells School District Clothing Bank. Two are super wash wool and four are a soft cotton.

Knitting

I had a day of knitting. Two hats were finished and  considerable  Progress was made on two more. Pictures to follow when I have better lighting. It’s a little dark for using natural light.

I did a lot of walking to reduce my stress and ended the day with 14,896 steps which is about 4.68 miles. Noe to call it a day.

Me Time

I am not quite sure why but lately me time involves a 2 to 3 hour nap.  Which in turn messes up my plans for the day.  Although I have to admit that I feel a whole lot better after the nap.  I still did manage to get to 2 grocery stores and get most of the house restocked.  I even managed to find a turkey breast to cook for dinner.  The leftovers will be tomorrow nights dinner.  A turkey salad with pecans, celery and cherries served over a nice salad.

I did not manage to catch up on the laundry. My prediction for this weekend will be knee high.

I even managed to finish knitting a hat and cast on the next.  For the bonus points I emptied a knitting bag.  Tinked two half finished wash cloths. I do not need any more wash cloths, I have a few dozen in a storage tub if anyone needs some.  The yarn went into the hat bag. The extra knitting bag now very empty went into my closet.  The knitting needles will be put away tomorrow.

John and I started binge watching Highlander tonight.  We got through season 1 episodes 1 & 2.  So far it is fabulous.  I am wondering if some of the actors were also in The Game Of Thrones?   The  scenery is wonderful too.  I like all the costumes.

Eric spent most of his day sleeping.  That about sums up today with the exception of steps. I got over 12,000 today.  I am trying to  exercise away the stress.

Family Time

We had a great weekend with Simiglen of Instagram fame and his family.   Yes, my younger brother is great barbecue chef.  If enough people ask him, I bet we could get his secrets for a perfect steak and fresh grilled salmon.  By the way he is just as good with grilling vegetables.

I was able to give his kids new water bottles to help their quest for a better future for our planet. I was a little disappointed that we were not able to find Tucson sweat shirts, just because we have summer temperatures in the 100’s  does not mean that visitors don’t want to bring home a sweat shirt.  Oh well, I will just have to look for them and mail them.

Eric did enjoy the company but did a lot of sleeping.

Projects 121 to 128

The next seven projects include 5 hats and 2 scarfs.  I hat snuck out of the house without a picture being taken.  I bet you did not know that hats could be camera shy.  These remaining hats and scarfs are headed to The Flowing Wells School District Clothing Bank.

Find My IPhone

I lost my iPhone earlier this evening.  I used the iOS app Find my iPhone.  It found the section of the house down to a few feet, that is really fantastic. The app find my iPhone has one major flaw as far as I am concerned, it will not tell me if my iPhone is under a pile of yarn.  Really, I know that there are a lot of great software engineers out there.  Can’t one of you write a program that will find an iPhone under yarn or in the case of younger parents in the kids toys.  I am sure that they all know people who lose their phones in purses or briefcases too.

As you can tell it has been another long day at Casa Karobonik.  I am hoping that the leg/foot massager will work a miracle tonight.  I also pray that we have no headache inducing pressure changes tonight. I also pray that Eric has a peaceful and restful night. This is not happening so far. Here I sit in Eric’s room waiting to give the second half of The Tylenol.  Send Justin’s cashew and peanut butter cups in dark chocolate please.

Now to get in some knitting while I wait.

Crazy Busy

It has been crazy busy around here lately. Today was the first day in almost a week that I could knit. I have been spending my knitting down time plying very thin yarn into a heavyweight yarn to knit with. I tend to get a lot of bits and pieces of lace and sock weight yarn that I am given for hats. I generally prefer to knit charity hats on larger sized knitting needles.  So I ply the yarn on bad hand days. 

I have also been Zenning more and Teri helped for a few hours last weekend. Sadly the space she made is almost filled. It has been a long day. So night all. 

More Spring Cleaning

I spent the day spring cleaning with an emphasis on going through everything and getting rid of what I don’t need.  This included going through the fridge and freezer and having one of Eric’s aides taking home all the high carbohydrate foods that would get me in trouble.

The craft room is now clean , dusted and vacuumed. Although at times like this I am jealous of the author Stephen King, because he has a dedicated work space and can close the door when company comes over.

I found something interesting about my new Fitbit Inspire HR model.   When I am cleaning and madly dashing around the house it thinks that I am running.  I did not know that I walked that fast.  It also did something totally unexpected.  It buzzed me and told me to take a rest. I took this to mean that my Fitbit wanted me to knit.  Why it just did not say it’s time to knit, oh well.  I also found that the larger band fit my wrist better.  I do have to admit that about 10,000 of the 12,000 steps taken today were with out leaving the house.  I did manage to get out for a walk around the block after dinner.

It’s time to call it a night.

119 and 120

I have spun 1 skein of mohair and silk yarn and knit the 30th hat of the year.

Projects 109 to 118

The next nine projects include 6 charity hats and 3 skeins of yarn that I am keeping.

Busier Than Usual

I spent my day recovering from a whirlwind day yesterday. I had one meeting all about Eric, which left me exhausted.  Eric’s aide had an early appointment so he had to leave early.  I missed seeing my Friday friends.

So today was spent spring cleaning. Guess what I found out today? John loves getting rind of bags of junk and will even carry it to the recycle bin.  John also volunteered to drive to Goodwill when I fill up my boxes. I also managed a 2 1/2 hour nap. Did some spot decluttering in Eric’s room. I just have 3 major areas to finish tomorrow.  As long as I sleep tonight that should be possible.

I also finished a visit from my older sister today.  Maybe a little less very rich food will help me feel better. Some how with my family it’s always over sized meals and not enough walking.

At this point it’s hard to call it an early night.  But if Eric let’s me I get to sleep in tomorrow.

The End of May 2019

My day started off at full speed ahead this morning. I had 2 loads of laundry finished before breakfast.  I had all the laundry for the day done by 10am.  Some how Eric hijacked my day. All forward progress came to an immediate halt.

I felt with my frustration by going to the grocery store and wondering the aisles looking for low carb treats. vegan doughnuts came to mind but at 65 carbs per doughnut it was a no go. I don’t even want to think about how many carbs a scone has, but I am guessing more than a doughnut. My treat landed up being a couple of pieces of fresh fruit and a hot lunch that I did not have to cook.

My timing was so bad I missed an opportunity to get out of the house to knit.  I did manage to get dinner with my sister tonight. We knit after dinner.

I did manage to get a little more cleaning done before Eric decided that the afternoon was all about him.  I am a bit tired and way behind, but there is always tomorrow.

Spring Cleaning

Now that everyone is feeling better and 2 rooms of carpets are clean, spring cleaning shall go forward in earnest tomorrow. My goal is to have the craft room finished by Saturday afternoon.  I will also be  decluttering counters and polishing cabinets. The floor boards are also over due for polishing.  My expectation is that I want to be finished by Wednesday.  I, of course will leave the windows to John.  Wish me luck.

Eric is back on formula tonight.  So this makes me very happy. I have a busy day tomorrow so it’s time to call it a night.

Exhaustion

Exhaustion has set in. Eric is almost over P, but to do that we have a medicine that is given every 6 hours. That with extra suctioning and laundry on top of being sick and getting over a very bad cold.  Yes, the one that gave Eric P.  Today I slept through knitting with friends. I layed down for 20 minutes and woke up 2 1/2/hours later.

To unwind tonight,I spent 2 hours spinning. I finished a small bobbin for teaching plying. Then there was a 4 ounce blend of silk and mohair, it is in the sink ready to be washed. I also got the second plying spin on some lace weight yarn that I was given to make hats with.  In my very humble opinion it turned out gorgeous. If I can leave Eric’s room tonight, I will take a picture. See below., the lace weight was first Z plyed and finished off with an S ply.  Next it will get a hot bath to set the twist.

Now I am just waiting for Eric to settle in for the night. I have already filled the suction machine a 1/3 of the way up.  John emptied it before he went to sleep.  At this rate it will need to be emptied soon. Also the later I stay up, I get hungry.

Taking It Slow

This morning the laundry room was knee high. Still being in the recovery mode, I choose to take  it slow.  Of course Eric’s laundry came first, he had 2 overflowing baskets.  I still can’t figure out how he makes so much laundry all by himself.  Then since it was Sunday, I washed the sheets, just because they take up so much space when they are dirty. This still leaves 3 loads of laundry for tomorrow,if Eric does not make any more tonight. The truth is he has already made a good start at filling his basket.

Most of the day was spent resting.  I would do 15 to 20 minutes of work then rest. It seems the older I get it takes me longer to recover. Tomorrow will be spent resting and doing a little spinning research. I think that Eric has settled down for now so I will take this as my cue to get more rest.

I will leave you with a little yarn porn tonight. I don’t think I could have gotten much more yarn on this bobbin. The spinning wheel is a Louet Victoria on the art bobbin. It went slightly over the edge.

Feeling Better

Tonight I finally started to feel better.  After a few days of napping and being a couch potato I really wanted to spin tonight. Since I was not up to much, I plyed some sock yarn to make it more suitable for charity hat knitting.

Eric and John are feeling better too. We fell line dominoes with this cold, first Eric, then John and because I was exhausted I got it too.  I hope to have my voice back soon, right now it is very spotty. Some times I have it and sometimes it is gone.  Although I think we will be staying home until our regularly scheduled activities next week.

I expected the laundry to be knee high tomorrow.  I do not intend to get caught up for a few days.  We will e on minimum work and maximum rest for a few more days.

Projects 101 to 108

The next 7 charity hats.

The Sick House

I am not sure whom shared with whom. Even if we have the same bug.  All I know is that we are all sick. It got bad today because I am sick.  We usually can manage if I don’t get sick.  I am not sure which is worse for me, being dizzy or sleeping almost all day and still being exhausted.  We are calling it an early night although I still have to get up twice to give Eric medicine.

Beware While Driving - Staged Accidents

Please be aware that a new/old scam has hit the streets again.  This has happened to me twice this week. It happens every so often. The cars are usually full of passengers, all the seats are full. They like to dart from parking lots or side streets without regards to traffic conditions.   Usually a driver will cut you off and come to a dead stop even when the traffic ahead of them is moving.   These cars usually have rear end damage already. They seem to get really angry when I did not hit them as they had planned. Yes they did flip me off.  This is dangerous for the entire community.  

Their  goal seems to be to get hit so they can soak you and your insurance company for everything that they can get.  They usually work with an  unscrupulous medical clinic and lawyer.  If this happens to you please call 911 or the emergency number in your area.  The only way to stop this scam is to get the lawyers  sanctioned  and the clinic operators charged. 

Be sure to take lots of pictures of both the car and all the people in the car.  Sometimes if there is not enough damage to the car or the people. In this case they rough up the people to make the injuries look worse and  crash the car again to make the damage worse.  If you have good pictures of both the cars and the people in the car, your insurance company will  handed the accident over for prosecution.

I avoided hitting both cars and with the grace of G’d I did not get rear ended.  Both the brick and I are fine. For those that do not know me well, I call my car the brick, because it looks a like brick and is as aerodynamic as a brick. 

Please drive defensively.   

The ISP

After being up with Eric a lot last night the last thing I wanted to do was prepare for Eric’s ISP which is short for an individual service plan.  Better understood by parents as the  quarterly we want to annoy you and tell you how you are not living up to some silly  bureaucrats idea of how we should be living our lives and that our kids are not making enough progress. Can you tell how much I hate the process? Every few years they decided to revise what they want and this was the year.  So instead of taking a much needed nap, I went through 42 pages of regurgitate questions.  Before I even got there to look through the questions, while eating breakfast, I was the very annoyed recipient of 16 robo calls in 32 minutes. I do not pick up calls when I don’t recognize the name and instead let it go to voicemail.  Yes, all 16 calls during breakfast went to voicemail and did not leave a message.   This did not make for a calm start to my day.

I did manage to make a good friend very happy with a box of gluten free cupcakes and a half a loaf of bread.  I also introduced her to goat cheese sandwiches.

With all that was going on today, I forgot about my step count and had to walk 5,000 steps after dinner to meet my daily goal. Well Eric is asleep so wish me luck tonight. I hope I get a full nights sleep tonight.

Bits and pieces

Today was all about making a lot of progress on many different projects and completing none. With any luck Eric will sleep tonight and I will have energy tomorrow.