And It’s a Mixed Day

 I had a very good start to my day. I got a lot of work done.  Sadly I ran out of spoons before lunch and spent the rest of the day resting.   

Number One Finished

 My first finished UFO.  Now I only need to complete 9 more before I can start another project. I did find that my drop spindle from Ankerworks broke on the top of the whorl, but the 3D Turkish spindle that John made for held up.  The stitch marker has been put in the the small vase.  

This is a mini skein of wool yarn.  I spun the wool on the Turkish spindle starting with the pink then adding the green. I plyed them together.  It will be washed thwacked,then put in a box for coasters or embellishments.  

One Amazing Man

 My amazing husband can go from chopping the vegetables for tonight’s soup to heading to the workshop to trim down ridged heddles that were meant for a 20 inch loom and cut them down to fit my 15 inch loom.  

Now on to the less amazing part of my day.  Who would have thought that all the slippers in my size that I wanted would be sold out.  On the day after Christmas, no less.  Not available until next fall.  Seriously I was not ready to buy winter slippers when the outside temperature was still in the 100’s.  I am definitely not looking for warm and woolly slippers then.   Today it’s in the 60’s the perfect weather for warm woolly slippers.  I want to buy them now when they will be immediately useful.  Apparently it’s to much to ask for.

Now to finish the scarf on the loom so my husband can do his final check of the heddles.  

The Unintentional Gift

 I gave John the most unique gift for the holidays this year.  This morning I went through the desk shelves that I stored paper and other stationary.  I divided the items into four separate piles.  They were Goodwill, keep, donate and recycle.  By the time I was done there was a large pile for Goodwill and donate.  A bit for recycling and less than half was put back.  

There were duplicates and even triplicates of some items.  In my defense most of the duplicates and triplicates were at the very back of the shelves where I find it difficult to get to.  I then put back the keep stuff.  Had John move and pack up everything leaving the house. 

I then gave him a pile of John type stuff.  Not surprisingly most was recycled.  

After all that I told him I had a unique holiday gift for him.  I told him the bottom shelf was his, but he was responsible for dusting and polishing it.  He promptly took his 3D toolbox and put it on the shelf.  It fit perfectly.  Also added were two additional tools in their own boxes.  Apparently this was on of the best gifts that I have ever given him.   Who knew it could be this easy?  

I hope everyone is having a very happy holiday season.  

Random Thoughts

 The recovery from food poisoning has been very slow.  The good news is that I am able to eat again.   I am letting my body decide when it wants to eat. Also what it wants to eat.  So far so good.  I am also getting some energy back.

The real reason for this post is really random.  When I was younger and everyone seemed to smoke everywhere, the were always free books and boxes of matches.  I would take them if I wanted to remember the name of the restaurant. I kept them in a little fish bowl that still holds the matches to this day.  Today while getting ready for the holiday, I noticed that the bowl was starting to look a little bit empty.  Meaning that I have not picked up matchbooks in quite awhile.  

Which brought up the question of where does one get matchbooks and boxes in 2024.  I know that I will have a few more years to work this one out.  Since I don’t smoke, I can’t get them with purchase.  Are these businesses who use to give out free matchbooks still in business? Was it a really good form of advertising? Was it a liability issue for giving them out?  Did it just fall out of favor along with smoking? I could ask an AI chatbot, but the companies might get mad if I break their bots with such an irrelevant issue.  

Since there is no one else in this room, I think bringing up 6 relevant points is enough of a start.  If you have any other relevant points please let me know.  

With a blanket Happy Holidays to everyone, because there are just too many holidays and special occasions to keep track of in the next few months.  Before I forget Happy National Eggnog Day.  

Day 4

 I am on day 4 of recovering from food poisoning.  My best guess is it was either the chicken or the salad, since I have not heard of any recent outbreaks from pecans or dried cherries.  I am doing much better than Thursday or Friday.  My ribs are still sore from all the wild eyrping.  I am still on the bananas, rice, applesauce and toast diet. Although the rice hit very hard today so I am backing off for a bit.  

Is am not sure if this hit me so hard because it is the second time in a few months that I got food poisoning or that I got a stronger dose of the toxin.  

My 10 ounce Welly: cup is perfect for laying in bed and drinking.  No more drenching myself with a 30 ounce tumbler.  

I was able to do 2 very small chores today. This comes with a caveat of a rest was required after each chore.  I am also ignoring my Fitbit request that I move more. I have gone into snail mode.  

I am very sad that I am missing the Mercado Christmas Market this weekend.  I have been looking forward for this for a while.  

*my usual disclaimer.  I bought the Welly: cup.  I am not receiving and compensation for mentioning it.  I like it therefore it got a mentioned.  

The Next Step

 90 percent of the deep house cleaning is done.  It’s just things like the pantry, filing cabinet and curio cabinet that need my attention.  

So I am turning my attention to UFO’s problem. I currently have 4 baskets of UFO’s that need to be completed. UFO’s are projects that are in various stages of completion.  Last year I tried a log book to keep track of my UFO’s.  That was a terrible failure.  So I am going for a straight numbers thing.  For every 10 projects I completed, I have given myself permission to cast on another project.  The only exception to this rule will be charity knitting for the kids and some family members.  

To keep track of all this I plan on dropping a stitch marker in a jar for every completed project.  This should be totally doable for me.  It’s not like there is a shortage of stitch markers in this house.  I am also sure that I can find a see through jar or vase.  With a limited amount of hand time per day it will take longer than in the past. I have started this project today with a random project. I got 2 inches completed today.  Pictures for you of my progress when the items are completed. 

My goal is to get rid of my PhD in knitting. Projects half done.  Wish me luck.