Tennis Shoes

 Yesterday afternoon John and I went on a nearly impossible quest.  To find tennis shoes that I could put on by myself without help. It involved going to 3 different shoe stores and buying something I was not expecting to get.  I was expecting to buy another pair of Finn Comfort shoes.  Or something similar.  

The first 2 stores were a total wash out.  I was ready to go home and take a nap.  Thank goodness John was driving because the next shoe store was on the east side of Tucson.  We went to a locally owned shoe store called Alan’s Shoes on Speedway.  I first tried on the Finn Comfort shoes and found out for closed toed shoes you have to go up one size which they did not have.  Apparently in Tucson these shoes are considered fall / winter shoes only.  

So I explained to the very knowledgeable sales woman that the arthritis was getting worse in my hands and I really wanted a pair of tennis shoes that I could put on by myself.  She asked if I had any objections to New Balance Shoes and I said no. So she went to the back and found a pair of shoes she thought would work. 

She came out with the New Balance shoes pictured below.  They are model WW813HWT Walking Shoes.   As you can see they have a long strap made with Velcro.  Don’t cut the strap as it will make it easier to put the shoes on. The secret to putting them on is to open them as wide as possible. Slip my foot in  then tilt my foot towards the heel of the shoes to make sure I am are all the way back.  Then just pull the straps starting with the toe strap first.  

I can put them on by myself  I wore them shopping today. They did not exactly go with my dress . They were comfortable although a higher arch support would be nice. That however is a tiny problem   

If you can’t get them at your local store Alan’s shoes has a website.  I used it during the pandemic and they were fast and efficient.  Alan’s Shoes is a link to their website.  

This is not a paid endorsement.  I bought the shoes myself.  If you use the link to Alan’s Shoes website I will not get paid.  I have been shopping at Alan’s Shoes for years.  The opinions are my own.  

Sunday

 The day was spent doing a little cleaning, laundry,and knitting.  A lot of time was spent Zenning.  We also went to a store that claimed that they just got a shipment of Tilly hats and had one in John’s size.  A knock of is not a Tilly hat with proper ventilation.  A tiring but productive day.  

The Next Project

 I am about to start my next project. I had to steal a pro owl from my weaving supplies because the skein of yarn is so big.  Updates to follow. 

The Picture

 The picture of Grandma’s Summer Shawl in yarn I spun.  Fiber from Cloudlover in 50 % merino and 50% silk. I also won yarn chicken.  The tiny ball in the center is all the yarn I have left.  The pattern is available on Raverly and Love Crafts dot com.  

The Shawlette is Finished

 I finished the shawlette at 9pm tonight. Alas it was to dark to take pictures.  I also won yarn chicken.  I did not even have enough yarn left over for an extra row.  

I also did something I have not done since March of 2020. I went to Starbucks, ordered a tea. Yes I sat on the lovely patio in the shade.  I had the patio to myself.  I listened to my book and got a whole lot of knitting done.  I also got to the post office and gas station.  The gas was down to $4.79 a gallon.  Then it was time to go home and do a couple of loads of laundry.  A little picking up too.  

This Much Left

 There is an old adage in knitting circles.  When a project looks almost finished. When someone asks how much more knitting do you have to go? The response is always holding up the last of the yarn and saying this much.  Well tonight is my this much moment on Grandmas Summer Shawl in my own hand spun yarn.  Ooo’s and awe’s welcome.  Tomorrow morning I will finish it and block it.  

More Progress

 Last nights dinner did not sit well on my tummy.  So instead of errands I relaxed and knit.  You can see progress on the shawl. I am about to add the last skein of hand span yarn to this project.  I did manage to make a color change on the 5 foot long scarf.  So very visible progress there. 

I am going to call it an early night.  

Works In Progress

 These are my current couch works in progress. These are the projects that I work on at night while watching television.  One wash cloth,  One drop spinning project. One shawl in the Indigodragonfly bag that I am making with hand spun yarn. One scarf destined to be 60 inches long, yes I have a bit to go.  

My stitch markers and darning needles are in the Altoids tin.  A great way to recycle them. 

It’s Finally Finshed Plus Commentary

 I delivered this completed baby blanket to the mom to be today.  Just 2 weeks before the baby is due.  

Commentary

My only issue was with the chiaogoo knitting needles. The workmanship of the knitting needles was, not up to my standards.  On one side the yarn kept getting stuck and would not slide like the knitting is supposed to.  I had to stop and free the yarn every 30 or so stitches. I could not replace the knitting  needles part way through the project because even though they are labeled the same size there can be a tiny variation in fractions to small for my eyes to see that can change the size of the knitting gauge.  I could not visually see where it was snagging.  This slowed down my knitting. Now that they are used I doubt that they can be returned or replaced.   Even though they are more expensive and do not have a curl free cord, I like workmanship on my Addi turbos and Lykke knitting needles better. I have never had this problem with any Addi turbo or Lykke Knitting needles.  I doubt that I will buy chiaogoo knitting needles again. 

Finished

 The baby blanket is finished. I will show pictures tomorrow.  I did ein at yarn chicken.  

Dog Pillows

 I had an incredibly bad night, followed by a BBD with a pain level of crying.  I still managed to sew 2 pillows to be filled and filled 2. This leaves me with one pillow to add my yarn scraps to.  The pillows are loaded in the back of my car.  Yes this is the 3rd  charity trip in the last 7 days.  I am on a roll.  I thought I would be able to make more pillows but the green one is very large.  There is just no comparison on the sizes.  Off to the shelter they go tomorrow. 

Less is More

 Getting rid of 2 car fulls of unwanted stuff combined with the yard sale has freed up space in the house and my head.  I now find myself wondering around the house putting things away or in the appropriate trash or recycling place.  

 Have also done some more fiber arts. Tonight I spun a little yarn, about a 1/2 ounce.  Finished project 14 for the year.  And worked on a hat.  

I am becoming a firm believer in less is more.  It’s just so hard to look at all the new spring yarn colors or look at the holiday Boxes for December and not order more yarn.  So I am in make more buy less mode.  It is so hard.  

I think I will drag the sewing machine out and bring it to the knitting room to make some dog pillows this week.  That should fill up my car one more time.  An free up more space.  

Well I Was Going Too

 Well I was going to show you the picture below and say this was the highlight of my day and I did not cry.  They were delighted to receive the box of arts and craft supplies, snacks and other goodies. Yes the art supplies included yarn.  

I was going to tell you about the lovely lunch we had downtown at Cup Cafe in the Hotel Congress named after the street it is on. For crime buffs this is where John Dillinger and his gang were arrested. The hallway to the bathrooms is lined with everything you need to know about this piece of Tucson history. 

Speaking of the hallway to the restrooms. There is a high step that you really need to look out for.  I tripped on that very step today and did a knee plant. Nothing is broken one toe looks wonky but I can bend it so it is not broken.  I have a few bumps. I expect to be a little more sore tomorrow. This is also the day I became an old geezer. I was suddenly surrounded by people checking on me.  I took a minute to pull my self together and let other people help me up.  Thank goodness I was wearing an ankle length dress so nothing showed. After getting up I headed to my original destination.  A young girl was very concerned about me and opened all the doors for me.  Sadly I don’t know her name , but to her mom and dad you are doing a wonderful job. She also walked me down the hall to make sure that I did not fall again.

I then found John in the Cup Cafe outdoor dining area. Told him about my adventure. We ordered lunch. It was very good. Then a stroll around downtown. Then a little sightseeing. Yes, Downtown has changed that much.  We did make the mistake of trying to take Broadway out of downtown, that turns into a parking lot because of the Broadway repaying project. It really looks like they are doing a sub par job at best.  I wonder what has happened to the work ethic of days gone by.  Yup even talking like an old geezer. 

Going,Going,Gone

 I promised myself that what did not sell at the yard sale would be leaving the house on Monday. Well I was exhausted yesterday. So I organized the things to go today.  John graciously load up my car so I could drop everything off at Goodwill.  At Goodwill the very nice employee unloaded my car.  It looks like I was not the only one doing spring cleaning.  There was a constant stream of cars  

Because it was the beginning of rush hour, a misnomer in Tucson.  Rush hour starts at 3:00pm and ends around dinner time.  I decided to turn right instead of left.  It was a good choice in the end.  I took Glen to Stone and went north on Stone.  Right at Prince a couple of fire trucks and an ambulance started turning on to Prince.  My guess there was an accident at 1st Avenue and Prince.  This is because the fire station is at 1st and River.  The accident must have messed up southbound traffic too.  I was so glad that everyone pulled over and we all let each other back into traffic.  This is rare in Tucson.  

I came home and vacuumed the back of my car. John loaded the back of my car for tomorrow’s charity drop off.  I am too tired to do much.  I hope that there will be knitting tonight.

Here is the picture from today.  The car is a lot smaller than the van, but I still got a full load in.  

A Mixed Day

 I had a lot of energy this morning when I started 2 loads of laundry and went grocery shopping, by the time I got home and put everything away  I was tired   I did finish the laundry   I was to tired to knit or do anything else this afternoon and evening. So goes my life   

A Fantastic Day

 Today I had my 1 1/2 hour targeted back yard sale. It was one day by appointment only.  I sold out of grab bags.  No additional discounts were necessary.  I sold a few cones and house hold items.  To make it easier on me, I will not be running around Tucson to try to get extra cash out.  I will divide it between 2 Charities, and either John or I will drop it off.  The house already seems emptier without the yarn grab bags.  

This is so freeing to get useful clutter out of the house.  Yes, the items are still very useful.  No, I don’t need them anymore.  So off it goes back out into the world.  

Yes 80% of that pile is gone and off to new homes   Hooray for us!!!!!

We Got Out Today

 Today we got up early and went to the 4th Avenue Street Fair.  We got fairly good parking considering that almost all the available parking even a decade ago is no longer available.  There was a church group asking or donations for their orphanage and the parking was only 2 blocks away from the street fair.  

After so many years everything seemed to be the same stuff  as the previous years. So no new items came home with us.  We did however buy 2 ears of roasted corn at $9.75 an ear.  Yes, that is not a typo. We used to be able to get 2 ears for $10 just a few years ago.  We debated burritos  at 18.00 a piece and went elsewhere for lunch.  

I came home and had a nap.  Then did some knitting while watching television.   I am into the longer rows on the Shawl and did 3 rows.  I have been too tired to knit a lot. 

Although something amazing happened this week.  I got so tired and depressed about missing my daily 10,000 step goal that I lowered it to 5,000 steps.  I have made and exceeded my goal every day since then. No I am not going to bump it up just yet.  I will be happy to make 5,000 steps a day, and elated if I pass it.  

Totally Mine

 There is just something so wonderful about knitting a pattern that I designed. In hand spun yarn made on a drop spindle that is truly fantastic.  I just started knitting with the third skein tonight.  It is going to be a truly bespoke shawl.  There will not be another one just like it.   I do love wearable art.  

Stitch Markers

 For those that don’t know me well, I have an obsession with stitch markers for my knitting. I have them in almost all shapes and sizes up until a U.S. size 19 knitting needle. The do break sometimes.  Which means I will put them aside to fix next week.  Well not quite next week from the pile of stitch marker repairs I did today.  I found 1 pretty white flower pot and 1 box of stitch markers that needed repair.  

 

This is the pile of repair work that I started with.  After a few hours of diligent work, I landed up with the next pile of repaired stitch markers.  If you really  want to know, I did not do a very through search for them. So there might be more hidden in the house. I just about filled up my smallest yarn bowl.  Below is a picture of the newly repaired stitch markers. You can tell from the natural light how much time has passed. Yes, there are Dr. Who themed stitch markers too. 

My Self Cleaning House is Missing

 Today was spent on chores and deep cleaning. Followed by an evening of knitting.  The most eventful event was getting out the hand vacuum to catch the dust bunnies.  They hide every where given the chance.  

I am stating to feel better, but still tire out very quickly. So it’s equal amounts of chores and rest.  I really want that self cleaning house of the future that G.E. Promised in the 1960’s.  It’s 2022 G.E. I really want my self cleaning house.  

Maybe?

  Am hoping that the swelling going down in my cheeks means that this round of Sjogren’s flare up will  Soon be history.  I am slowly starting to feel better, but am still very tired.  

In other news, my new shawl had to be switched to longer knitting needles.  I think that I might even go beyond the 100 rows of the pattern if yarn permits.  I am tackling spring cleaning in 5 minute increments.  So far so good.  I am busy pricing everything for my fiber de stash  / yard sale.  Once it is all priced I will hunt down more stuff to sell.  Almost everything is new or used just a couple of times.  Some was purchased or projects that I am no longer planning to do.  So it should be good.  Everything is being priced to sell.  

I also got to the loom today and wove for about15 inches.  Hopefully the project will be finished think.   I think I am going to call it an early night.  

Finally a Use For Some Hand Spun Yarn

 Sometimes it takes a very long while to decide what to do with my hand spun yarn.  Take this yarn below as an example.  I spun it on my first Jonathan Bosworth spindle gifted to me by Pat Woods.  On the very first braid of roving I bought from Cloudlover Fibers.  

Through the many years it was destined to be a hat.  I could never find the right pattern.  I was also not good enough to design a hat of my own back then.  Then it was gloves, but the yarn just did not feel like gloves to me.  Then it sat without a pattern for years.  Then I was going to weave it, but thought better of it  

Then in my lastest de stash effort I came across a lonely hand spun yarn.  Then I knew.  It had to be a shawl. Not just any shawl, but one of my own designs.  I choose Grandma’s Summer Shawl.  It is available on both Raverly and Love Crafts dot com, or your local yarn store.  If you do happen to purchase the pattern I split the sale price with the seller.  

I have to say being about 40 rows in I know that I made the right choice.  I am using US size 9 knitting needles. I will change to longer knitting needles tomorrow.   It is tight enough to hold the hand spun yarn in place. Also it is loose enough to show some great definition in the hand spun yarn.  It highlights the thick and thin of the yarn.  It will also be soft next to my skin.  The night time lighting does not do the colors Justice.  Or it could just be my screen.  My iPad is really old for tech. Over 10 years old.  

A Good Day

 Well I have reached the clumsy part of the flare up. No brain fog today.  The only question you have to ask is what did I not drop. That means I could manage more knitting today.  This afternoon I worked on a blanket until my hands got tired of tiny knitting needles.  Then I finished a hat, my 8th project of the year. Yes, I know it looks like a lot of other hats, I had a lot of this yarn.  One or 2 hats more in this color way.  Followed by a scarf for project number 9 tonight, pictures tomorrow in the sunlight.  I only started one new project today.

I sold a little of my stash for sale yarn.  1 box and 2 grab bags left the house.  Met with a friend for lunch outside and knitting.  Did a little cleaning.  Meet an on line yarn buddy. 

I also think I might have dropped my iPad one too many times.  It is acting really wonky on top of the strange colors.  It’s time to pick out a military grade case and the new configuration.  Plus back this one up.  I have had this pad so long I don’t think that they will give me any trade in credit.  I have to admit that I am not as prepared this time.  My current one was bought through gift cards that I save up.  

The Word of the Day

 Todays word is brain fog.  It’s what prevented me from doing a simple 3 needle bind off with 2 double pointed needles and a crochet hook.  A cast off that I can practically do in my sleep. However I can’t seem to do it with brain fog.  A state of mind where everything is merky .  Slow running brain.  Nothing makes sense   

Here is to a good nights sleep.  

Getting ready for a de stash sale

 Today was a better day.  I got plenty of sleep and rest.  Sat down to fold the laundry.  Got knitting in, but did not finish a single project.  I am not at 100 percent but my ears are starting to show. This means that the swelling in my face is going down .  

Since not one I invited is coming to look a my yarn de stash, I am getting ready for a yard sale on Sunday.   I will price everything tomorrow.  Lots of yarn needs to leave the house.  So if you want more yarn at better than Tuesday Morning prices just contact me.  Don’t worry I will still have lots of yarn left for me.  It’s just the fact the my knitting has changed over the years.  I want someone who needs it to get a good price.  The big white bags will be $20, with at least $100 of new yarn in the bags.  Kits and boo I’ll be individually priced.  Good discounts here too. 

Allergies and more.

 I spent the day going between resting and doing light chores.  I would like to state for the record that deal with an allergy and Sjogren’s flare at the same time is not fair. Stamping my foot kind of not fair.  The end result is my face is so puffy that even if I smile you just can not tell.  I think the plants are still in deep drought mode so they are sending out extra pollen.  

Tomorrow I will try to get as many projects off my knitting needles as I can.  At least until my hands say stop.   Have a good week everyone.  

Yesterday and Today

 Yesterday we drove to the Eastside of Tucson and went to Aqua Caliente Park. Before the water levels dropped in Tucson it was a natural hot spring.  It is a nice area to walk around.  It was too cold to brin a picnic lunch.  Here are a couple of photos that John took.  

Today we did the Walk for Sjogren’s.  Since it was a virtual walk, we walked on our street until I was tired.  If you would still like to make a contribution to The Sjogren’s Foundation there is a link on my Facebook page.  

This afternoon I did laundry and napped.  This current flare up is exhausting.  John is better at taking pictures than I am at modeling.  

Still Crunchy

 My hands are still crunchy.  I am trying to figure out which finger’s are triggering.  Not an easy task.  I am wearing fingerless gloves to keep my hands warm which seems to help.  I am also starting to drop things so I am being very careful with fragile items.  I have a few more pressing items take care of first   Then my hands. I am hoping that this will go away when the flare up ends .

I have made a design change to the baby blanket.  It should take a few hours off the total time.  

Crunchy Hands

 I had a better day today.  I am still tired.  My hands are on the crunchy side so not much knitting or cleaning got done.  My main accomplishments of the day were doing the Cubii2 for 7 minutes and planking for 11 seconds.  Yes, I know the numbers are low but hopefully they will get better.  

I am hoping for a better day tomorrow. 

Alexander Had a Better Day

 Need I say more. No. Great. 

Still Tired

 I am still tired today, but managed to get in a few rows of knitting.  Some on the current hat. Some on the baby blanket.  I really did not get much else done.  I tried my Cubii2 but only lasted 4 minutes.  

We did go out to lunch today, we tried one place and they could not give us patio seating.  Another restaurant a few doors down only had 8 people on a patio designed for about 100, so we ate there. I had steamed vegetables with tofu.  We also added 1 dim sum dish and edamame.  Along with a pot of green tea.  

Just Exhausted

 I found out something new about me this weekend.  I can actually be too tired to knit.  Yes, I have been known to fall asleep while knitting.  But I have been too tired to pick up any knitting needles.  I will put it solely upon the Sjogren’s flare that snuck up on me.  No I have not been sick. I have just been really, really tired.  

The rest of the really expensive Elon for nails package came today.  Yes, it included a note to send a thank you note to my husband.  I am not sure what he thinks about that.  However, I just don’t feel the need to thank my husband for a tube of nail cream, cuticle oil and nail files.  If it was something really big like…..

I have got to get my energy together to plan the yarn destash sale.  I am thinking a 4 or 5 hour window on a Sunday so as not to be in direct competition with my local yarn shop.  

Just Wow

 I can’t tell you how many years it has been since I have not broken or split at least 3 fingernails in a day.  They say that Sjogren’s drys out everything even fingernails.  Well something amazing happened this week.  My new dermatologist suggested a nail cream called Elon. It is lanolin rich mail conditioner.  It is on the pricey side of things.  It even came with a note reminding me to write a thank you note to whom ever sent it to me.  Yeah, that kind of product.  

While I was waiting for the cream to arrive ( it is not available in Tucson), I started using Badger Cuticle Care that I got at Artemesia here in Tucson a couple of times a day. This is something that Tracy carries  in stock and will not require a thank you note to get.  

I have been using both creams a couple of times a day depending on what activity I have planned.  I use the Elon when I know I won’t need my hands for a couple of hours, it can be a little sticky. I use the Badger Cuticle Care when I will be using my hands soon because it is not sticky.  

I can already see and feel the difference in my fingernails. I did not break a fingernail today or have to use a nail file because of a snag.  Even with all the hand washing I do on a daily basis.  I know from the information that I read I will have to keep this up forever. I personally think it is well worth the time. 

We will Call it a Toss Up

 My body and I were not on good terms today.  This resulted in numerous naps.  I would rather sleep through the pain if I can.  If I fall asleep quickly my body needed recharge time.  So not much of anything got done today with the exception of 2 outings.  

The 1st was to Whole Foods for a few things John and I neeeded.  They we not out of 1 item.  I stocked up on apples and Sumono Oranges. If you have not tried them you really should try this seasonal orange.  I got us a treat of 2 vegan croissants.  F John does not eat his croissant tomorrow just might have to eat it before it goes stale.  Also berries and oatmeal for breakfast. 

Since it was 85f today  no one of our favorite restaurants now opens a 4:30pm   We went out for a lovely dinner. We got there just as they opened and we had our choice of outside tables. We got our favorites   They even remembered that John does not use Teriyaki sauce.  

My body wants to sleep some more  so this is the end of the post