A Busy Day

 I had a very busy day today.  I ran errands until my lesson.  I transferred my students knitting from 14 inch straight knitting needles to circular knitting needles , in the process I knit one row.  All I can say about that is ouch.  

My big failure of the day was trying to write a lace pattern with just a pencil and paper.  I tried making a chart. That was an erasers heaven.  Then I tried visualization of the pattern in my head and tried to write it out long hand better, but I could not figure out if the knit 2 stitches together should be in the middle of three stitches or right before the yarn over. The shawl is on hold until I can knit again or figure out the knit 2 together thing  

I think I will look around my yard for inspiration on a washcloth patterns.  No yarn overs to place.  I was thinking of sitting outside and playing with cactus, no not literally. Rather with graph paper and a pencil.  Maybe even a small cottonwood tree.  

I have to find away to end my boredom.

My Day in a Nutshell

 This just about sums up my day today.  Yes, they are two different shoes. Both from Finn Comfort.  Similar but different styles and different colors.  I did not realize I had mismatched shoes on until we came home from lunch. Thank goodness that the skirt grew in the closet, so my shoes and feet were covered.  Yes the shoes are very comfortable. I have several different pairs that my husband who indulges my comfortable shoe habit buys.  

No money was received from Finn Comfort Shoes or their agents for this blog post.  I just like how comfortable they are and my husband buys them for me.  I hope this covers all the bases for regulations worldwide.  

A Day Off

 Today I took most of the day off.  I also found out that my shoulder does not like to be iced.  After that mistake I immediately went to put some heat on.  The heat did the trick.  I am still trying not to use my hands much.  It is not help my hands, but my elbow is better.   

Connections

 I am beginning to think that there is a connection between our summer rains and my arthritis flare ups.   The bad ones seem to happen at the end of July or beginning of August.  I wonder if having the humidity between 46% and rain for days on end is the reason.  

Meanwhile I have not knit or spun for days.  Yes, it is quite survivable, but depressing at the same time.  My right hand has been on almost total rest for what seems like forever.  I put away my Ashford Drum Carder today.  I only have a small box that did not get carded.  My hand is slowly getting better.   I am getting ready to set up the sewing machine to do a few lap quilts.  Nothing fancy, just basic useful quilts and a few more dog pillows.  Sewing uses different hand movements than knitting or spinning.  

It has been suggested that I add another art to my line up that is not hand intensive. So i am open to suggestions.  Right off the bat I am thinking that pottery is too hand intensive.  Anything that involves extreme heat or fire my dynamic tiro would say no to.  I have gotten a punch yarn kit to try.  Someone also suggested adult coloring books, that might be worth a try.  I might even get bored enough to go through my books to see which ones to keep and which ones to sell.  

The lighting and thunder seem to be winding down so it’s time to call it a day. 

A Pattern, No Not Knitting

 I have found a pattern to my bad flare ups.  Somehow they are triggered by our summer rains aka the Monsoon.  I am not sure why.  I will look into that.  

Today was spent icing my elbow. Putting knitting things away, By the way I have more room now to put things than when I set up the new craft room / pantry.  This means that I am doing something right.  I must have used a lot of yarn and roving since the start of COVID19.  

Now that the house has cooled off, it’s time to reset the thermostat and go to sleep.  

Mandatory Down Time

 My arthritis flare up is being quite stubborn. Instead of getting better with lots of rest, the inflammation is getting worse.  So for the next few days I will slowly put everything away. I will rest more, which to me equals major boredom.  I will try to catch up on my reading. Nothing but the bare minimum will get done. I am down one hand, thankfully it is my right hand up to the elbow. I can usually get by with just my left hand.  I will also see what my doctor thinks.  

On the bright side, I did manage to fill 2 boxes for Goodwill today. John will drop it off when he has a chance.  

This too shall pass.  

O-Rings and Yeti Tumblers

 I have 3 Yeti 30 ounce tumblers that I rotate through, using a new one every day. I have noticed that over the years the o- rings on the lids all die with in a few days of each other.  It’s like they are talking to each other saying it’s time to annoy Sheri.  It always seems to happen during a flare up, when my hands are all but useless.  I have to ask for help to get the new one on.   I pretty sure that this is the 4th set of o-rings that this has happened to.  

John would probably say that this is just the life cycle of the o-ring. That they wear out because you use them so much.  Silicone has a limited lifespan. Since you use the same cups every day it’s bound to happen that they wear out together.

Me on the other hand is just think that the o-rings get tired of me and the constant work, so they all decided to quit together. Quitting In mass seems to be a thing these days.  

I am sure John’s logical answer is correct, but mine is more fun.  What is your take on the o-ring issue?

These are my personal Yeti cups. I bought one to try and liked it so much that I bought a second one.  The third was a gift from John and the kids. No endorsement money was accepted. We paid for every cup and replacement o-ring.  This is my personal opinion.