It's Truly Pathetic Photo Thursday!

I finished the Scarfigator and RammieGays Istmas-Chray Ocks-say. Here are a couple of truly hideous, hastily-taken photos. The scarfigator is drying on the blue towel so I couldn't mess with him to take a pic. Even though I got the gauge that was called for in the pattern and added 3 full scale repeats to his back, he's nowhere near the 6 feet long he was supposed to be. He's the runt of the congress* I guess. The width is correct but the length is too short. I'll probably go up a couple of needle sizes next time to try and nail it although he'll be a bit wider too. But he's a good size for the Employee Art Show at work next week. He was SO MUCH FUN to knit!

And the socks are...well....just basic socks made out of Tofuttsies (sp?) yarn. It's REALLY splitty stuff and I won't be using it again. I noticed it was splitty when I made my Tidal Wave Socks out of it, but this time it was SO splitty that it had separated and made a rats nest in several places inside the skein so that when I pulled it out, I had to spend ten minutes untangling. Don't like that one bit. If I make the mess, it's OK.... but if the manufacturer does...not so much!

If you haven't seen Franklin's snowman hat over at The Panopticon, go there NOW. Then come back. I'll wait...(hums to self....twiddles thumbs)...

I KNOW right?! That is the cutest thing EVER! That Abigail is one lucky little chick! Hey Franklin! I have a gigantic head too!!! And it's cold in WI!

Now I'm working on a project that I can't talk about...so I won't. Off to watch the Thursday night sitcoms and work on it!

*Seriously, a group of alligators is called a 'congress'. Who knew? I didn't. Heather told me. I thought they should be called a 'raft', but once again, I wasn't consulted early enough in the name-pickin' process! There, that's your trivia for today!

Who got New Piggy Slippers For The Sow's Ear Sleepover?!?!?!

Me! Me! I did! I did!

Our five-day vacation is almost over. Jeez I hate to see it go! It's been relaxing, we had fun and got some chores done too. Doesn't get any better than that! We had a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner with friends D & T. Here is a shot of out table before we descended upon it. After dinner we went to see 'Fred Claus'. And ya'll know that in my world....any day with Vince Vaughn is a very...VERY good day.

We spent plenty of quality time with the fur babies, who in turn spent quality time basking in the sun..(the little white lump in the blue cage in the upper left of the bottom picture is Sneakers the bunny).

We had friends E and A and their kids R and E over last night to play games. For once, the adults wore the kids (and the Bentley) out first! They slunk off to the living room to rest from the excitement of playing Hoopla.

I went to last Saturday knitting and had a wonderful visit with all the lovely ladies. Elizabeth is working on an absolutely beautiful scarf! Hop on over to her site and take a look!It's made from some fiber that has an alien name...can't remember it but it was the butt of a couple of really good jokes. It's gorgous stuff! Cindy brought the pair of green socks she just finished and the new pair she's working on . Linda was in control enough to be working from a chart! A chart I tell you! Don't know how she does it. I'm lucky if I don't screw up a sock foot and that's just knit round and round and round! Dale-Harriet brought a very artistic friend with her; Ginny Tiffany who used to illustrate Little Golden Books! All the fine company AND a gingerbread latte by the fireplace at Victor Allens Coffee Shop. Blissful sigh!

I nearly finished my scarfigator. I should finish it tonight during Extreme Makeover Home Edition and Dexter. Then I have to whip up my Wee Paddy quilt. Both are going into the Employee Art Show at work week after next. It'll be a wonky week for me since I will be working for a different 'boss' for a couple of days next week. I will be doing some Admin work for our General Managers meeting. Should be fun. The managers from our branches in France, Germany, The Netherlands, China, Japan, Spain, Italy, Australia, the UK and Switzerland will be at the home office where I work for a week. It's always nice to see friendly faces from far away.

So that sums up the mini vacation, time spent with old friends and new, fur baby love, Vince Vaughn and piggy slippers. I'm a lucky, lucky girl!

Happy Thanksgiving 2007

The pumpkin pie is fresh out of the oven. The loaded mashed potato casserole is in the fridge beside the cranberry, mandarin orange, raspberry, pineapple salad . All ready for tomorrow's feast. Friends Donna and Tom are coming over and we'll have our dinner at lunch time and then spend the afternoon at the movies or playing games. Low key and relaxed. Donna's bringing the pecan pie and the squash. I've got a 6# chicken in a roaster bag, a head of broccoli in a steamer bag and fresh rolls all ready to go! Yum!

I've been having a lot of 'silver lining' moments this week just in time for Thanksgiving. One of my best friends back home had a double mastectomy at the end of October. She's 43 and had been doing 'all the right things' since she was 30; self exams, mammos...and they never caught it. The silver lining? Actually there are two. They feel they got ALL of the cancer AND 3 years ago, when she turned 40 she was overweight and at a crossroads in her life. She decided to make some changes and now, three years later, is in the best shape of her life just in time to fight this fight. Makes her chances for a wonderful, positive outcome a thousand times better. Instead of dreading what may come, she is devoting herself to spreading the word that even if you get a green-light report on your mammogram, if you think there is something not right, push it. Her physical, emotional and spiritual strength amazes me. She is a true inspiration.

So I've been doing a lot of thinking about this 'it was the best of times, it was the worst of times' stuff. I have my moments when it seems like the whole world is falling on my head. We all do, but I also realize that most of that is my own doing-attitude wise. I really have it pretty darn good. My family is keeping as healthy as they can and we are all still able to do the things we love as well as the things we need to do. I love my job (despite what I may tell you on SOME days). It pays well and allows me to do the things I want to do with my life and my leisure. We have a cozy nest of a home and I couldn't ask for a sweeter more caring man than Mr. Bee in my life. He makes me feel cherished and safe and content. We have amazing friends. As we get older it becomes more evident who our true friends are; the mature friendships that endure are cherished. Our furbabies fill our lives with light and love.

Why does it seem to take a really dark moment in your, or a loved ones, life or a special turkey-eating day set aside to count your blessings? They are all around us every single day. [Please remind me of this entry the next time I skewer myself with a knitting needle or go to the dentist!]

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving and may your life be as rich and filled with everyday blessings as ours! Speaking of blessings, here are a couple of my very favorites!

Bentley Bee Goes Postal

It was a big day for Bentley Bee! As loyal readers know, Big Ben LUVS Mailman Travis and his Magic Mail Truck. If we know he's on the way up the street, we go out on the front step and watch for him. We wag and wag and bark hello before toddling to the mailbox to help bring in any especially drool proof mail. Today, Mailman Travis backed the Magic Mail Truck right into Ben's driveway and got out! He was beside himself with joy! Mailman Travis opened the Magic Mail Truck up to get some boxes for Mr. Bee out and Bentley Bee jumped right in! Once he was convinced to come out, Mailman Travis lavished him with lots of mailman love and attaboys. Big Ben was beyond ecstatic. Mailman Travis was considerably soggier that when he first got out of the truck. It was a red letter (get it?) day in DoggieLand. Blissful sigh!

I got my 6th Secret of the Stole clue finished last night and took this truly pathetic picture today! Yay. A whole night to knit my alligator scarf before the next clue comes in!

Tomorrow night is Knit Night at The Sow's Ear and a bunch of us local bloggers will meet up. Dale-Harriet of Cat, Sticks and Books fame calls us the 'Hog and Bloggers' (since it's the SOWS Ear, get it?). Yesterday I got a message from Beth over at Chocolate Sheep that said that she had gotten a message from Dale-Harriet and she was 'calling the hogs'. Not flattering but hysterical nonetheless! Can't wait. Hopefully I'll get a good head start on Grammie's second IstmasChray Ocksay!

Palm Piercings and Chimp Chatter

Mr. Bee and I share a car so I knit to and from work. Just socks 'cause it's easy, portable and I don't have to think much. Yesterday we hit a bump and I poked a size 2 nearly through my palm. I had to forcibly pull it out and it bled...a LOT! I couldn't get it to stop so ended I up sporting a dorky-looking bandage around my hand all afternoon because I couldn't get a Band-Aid to stick to my palm. The 'kids' asked what happened and I told them. Now the balance of power has shifted. They are uneasy. Unsure. They are afraid that if I'd do that to my own self, there's just no telling what I might do to THEM. I'm liking having the upper hand, even if it does have a 2.75 mm hole in it.

The kids are extra funny today. We got a demos of a new gadget that lights up when someone is on the phone. Honest to God, they are like a bunch of chimps with a June bug; poking at it, scurrying away and chattering at each other about it. I suspect they will spend the next couple of days crank calling each other to make it light up. I love my job.

Went to see Fred Claus on Saturday as a treat after we did all of our outside-button-up-the-house work. I LOVED it. Of course Vince Vaughn could just doze and drool in front of the camera for 2 hours and I would be perfectly content and entertained. He can come down my chimney and eat cookies any time! Ho! Ho! Ho!

Tonight is TV night at Chez Bee. 'House' and 'Bones'. Sigh. Pure bliss. I plan to get step six finished on my Secret of the Stole. I'd like to finish it up and work on my Scarfigator a little more. I had wanted to complete it for the Employee Art Fair, but not sure if that's going to happen. The Stole is taking a lot more time and effort than I thought it would. Lace isn't my forte I guess. Especially in the mad count-down before the Holidays. But I'm hanging in there and the pattern is totally worth it! I think Nautical Knitter will be having another KAL soon and I am looking forward to participating in that as well. I'll get the hang of this lace thing if it kills me!

And then there's my after-Holiday project. I always pick a project to work on in January that's just for me. For after the hustle bustle of Christmas projects has ended and there's nothing to look forward to. This year's project is the purple and white snowflake Christmas stocking from IK Holiday issue. I KNOW, right?

But here is the #1 reason why lace knitting is so difficult for me. The 80# sleepy lap dog!

Check out Mr. Bee's flashy 'lounge pants'. I like this picture because it makes him look like Wilson on Home Improvement!

Don't Go In The Water!!!

Dah Da... (First two notes in 'Jaws' theme)

Dah Da... (Second two notes in 'Jaws' theme)

Dah Da... (Third and fourth notes in 'Jaws' theme)

AAAAAHHHHHHHH!!

Nah, don't be afraid! It's just a scarfigator!

She's A Legend In Her Own Mind...

I went to a seminar today. I think the speaker may have been a whack job. She started out normally enough but then by the time she finished she was spinning tall tales about disarming hijackers and saving people from exploding airplanes. I gave her the benefit of the doubt as long as I could, but a quick Google search on a few of her more interesting stories didn't pan out which leads me to believe she was having a psychotic break of some kind. It was...er... entertaining...in a train wreck kinda way but not that educational.

On a happier note, I made the Cranberry Pie recipe from Knitzu's site and it was FANTASTIC. I posted it over on Molly Bee's Kitchen. The link is on the left side of this page. We had it after a smothered pork chop dinner tonight (Doncha LUV the Crock pot!) and it was delish! You HAVE to try it!

Off to the living room to finish hint five of my Secret Of The Stole project. It's good that I will get it done a little early this week so that I can work on a pair of (Close your eyes, Grammie!) istmas-Chray ocks-say for a certain randmother-gay's gift, if you know what I mean (wink). Tonight Bones and House are on so I'll be a knittin' fool! Go try the pie recipe!

Gourd Contest

As I promised, here are some of the entries for the gourd contest. You could only use things that were around the department. You couldn't take it home or bring in anything special. I won for Scariest with "After the Alien Autopsy. Plus I made the kids uneasy when they got a little too much insite into how my mind really works. Click to make the bigger!

The Fly (won judges choice)

Turkey
Cousin Itt
Alien Autopsy

A Snapshot of a Moment of My Work Life

November is ‘Blog Every Damn Day’ month or some such nonsense. So I thought I would give it a try. Since I won’t be home this evening…KNIT NIGHT AT THE SOW’S EAR YAY!!! (Happy Dance)…ahem (gathers self together) I will just post a shorty from work on my break. Here is an example of the conversation going on in the dept. at this very moment.

'Diet Pepsi is bad for you in the long run. You can tell this by some experiment that someone heard of about someone watering their crops with Gatorade which is full of electrolytes which plants love in the short term but kills them in the long term.' I kid you not. They are almost in a fist fight about this. Of course I'm paraphrasing but you get the gist.

Meanwhile the other half of the group is trying to figure out how to dress up gourds to look like flies, turkeys, monsters and in one case, a camel, to enter into the departmental gourd decorating festivities. (Pictures in tomorrow's entry) Judging is in 30 minutes. The place is a flutter. I have been running around looking for special office supplies for people all morning and saying things like, “No, we don’t have any orange fuzzy felt just ‘laying around’!” and “No, Highliters are not guaranteed to write on gourds..” Apparently the Gatorade boys finished their entry early. They have agreed now that Diet Pepsi hasn’t been around long enough for anyone to decide if it’s deadly or not. They will patiently await more data and reconvene in 20 years or so

As you can tell, it’s a very busy day and we are getting lots of important work done here so my break is over…

Secret of the Stole Hint #4 Finished

I am the queen of the last minute finish! Officially I have 4 hours until midnight to complete this week's section. Pleeennntttty o' time! :-) I am really loving this stole. It's been a long time since I attempted lace and it seems I have some experience under my belt because this is going pretty smoothly now that I'm into it. Let's just say that my last lace project-Violets by the River (or Violence by the River or Violets by Chernobyl since none of my 'violets' ended up with the same number of petals...) didn't go as smoothly. Still haven't guessed what the theme of this stole is though although I can see crabs, fish and bubbles.....hmmmmm. Am thoroughly confused about the weekly word clues to get the anagrams to spell the theme so unless I happen to stumble on it, I guess I am out of the running for that contest! The joy is in the making anyway, not in the prizes. Anyway, here it is in all it's unblocked glory!
The swelling in my lip had gone done quite a bit. If I didn't insist on showing people the bruise, they probably wouldn't even notice. But c'mon! Lip twisted around a dental drill! You know you'd be showin' it too!