Yet Another Mail Day

I’ve definitely gone off the rails this summer with yarn mail. I shouldn’t feel guilty but being a frugal Yankee I sort of do. 

This is the final package from the Camp Loopy Club and I am overjoyed. I love Western Sky Knits yarn so much and this colorway, Betty Brontosaurus, is perfect for me. The Hygge item is a Lulu soy candle that is vanilla and nectarine scented. It smells so good, clean and sweet at the same time. 

As my first yarn club experience comes to a close I thought I’d share a few thoughts. I enjoyed the mystery of the yarn club more than I expected. I had prepared myself not to love every part of it but in the end I did. As a person who tends to like to be in control and make carefully thought out decisions (The Husband would tell me to get rid of the “tends” in this sentence) I am surprised how freeing it was to have no control. I think it helped that I have seen past yarn clubs that The Loopy Ewe did and I knew what to expect. They strive to please their customers and go above and beyond what is expected. I would do another yarn club again in the future, particularly with The Loopy Ewe. 

Nothing Is Perfect

I am ready to start the last section of Phi. When I was counting the last blue section I discovered that I did an extra increase (2 extra rows). I briefly considered taking them out and then said forget it. It isn’t visible. If anyone gets close enough to me to count rows when I’m wearing the shawl they won’t have time to count. I don’t like people thatclose. 

I still haven’t managed to wrangle Myles into the tub for a bath and onto the grooming table for a haircut. He might be weakening though. It’s been hot here the last couple of days and I keep finding him standing (or sitting) in front of the fan. He’s so goofy!

Things And A Garden Update

Blog stuff: Before using the WordPress App (which I love!) I used Photobucket to host my photos. It seems they have taken leave of their senses and now want to charge for what was supposed to be a free service (third party hosting.) So all my previous photos now have their notice. I don’t know what I’m going to do. I am open to suggestions if anyone has one. 

I thought that now that we are about half way through the summer I’d give a little update on the garden. Things aren’t doing great. We’ve got a couple of tomatoes that are nearly ready but that is about all. The tomato and pepper plants are looking pretty spindly. As I said there are tomatoes but not a pepper or even flower in sight. 

The summer squash is doing ok. The plant has put out three tiny squashes but two quickly dried up and fell off. I have no idea what is up with that. 

The cauliflower is progressing. It might be getting near ready to pick but I’m not sure. 

The jack be nimble pumpkins are doing well. It looks like buds are forming. 

Overall I’m not sure we’ll bother with the full garden next year. I might do an experimental thing next year with just pumpkins. I’d really like to try growing a big one. I’ll reassess in the fall. 

On Capturing Color

Let me start by saying I am a horrible photographer. I like to blame being rushed on why my photos stink but really I am lousy at getting everything composed correctly in the right light. Add to that that I use my iPhone for my photos. So when I see the opportunity to catch the right colors I grab it. 

N is doing lacrosse clinic this week. When I was waiting at pick up I noticed how fabulous the colors of the yarn I’m knitting looked and I grabbed my phone so I could show you. This is the Into The Whirled Pakokku Sock in Stanley Stegosaurus that I’m using to knit Trillian. And if you look back at the previous photos you’ll see the yarn looks nothing like what I’ve got above. I told you I stink at photography. 

I have one more photo to share with you. I wish I could share this ginger molasses cookie I got at the Berkshire Mountain Bakery with you. It was delicious. I ate every bite. It was chewy and flavorful with just a hint of sweetness. A perfect cookie, but sadly now gone. I should have bought two. 

Day trip

Yesterday we got in the car early in the morning and headed west to The Berkshires. It was a beautiful day. The sun was shining. Our first stop was North Adams where we visited Mount Greylock, the highest point in Massachusetts. 

This is the Greylock War Memorial Tower at the summit. Unfortunately it was closed for renovations but we did walk all around the area and went into the lodge. 

The views from the top were just amazing. This is looking towards New York State. The clouds seemed low enough to touch. 

We also stopped at the Berkshire Mountain Bakery in Housatonic. It’s a tiny out of the way place with some of the best bread in the country. Along with three loaves of bread we got some cookies and yummy pastries. This croissant was gone moments after we got home. It was the best I’ve ever eaten. 

Can You See A Difference?

Yes, I stood on the bed to take this photo and yes, I bought a new fitted sheet. The sheet is from Target. While they aren’t percale, they are 100% cotton and very soft. They also are very deep so they fit our thick mattress. I picked the grey since it will go with the many flat sheets we have and it doesn’t show the crumbs and such the dog leaves on the bed. When I get back to Target I’ll probably pick up another one. 

Anyway, I’ve knit, knit, knit and progress is slow. The rows are long and now that I’m moving into the last sections there are many rows of dark blue. At night it’s a wee bit hard to see the stitches on the green needles. I should take some time to hunt up the circular needle but I’m not sure where I last saw it. Oh well. Back to knitting!

Mail Day

The yarn I ordered on Wednesday for my August Camp Loopy project arrived yesterday. I am always in awe of the speed with which The Loopy Ewe gets my yarn 3/4s of the way across the country. 

Along with the Cascade 220 in greystone heather, my package contained a new dinosaur to join the gang, a dinosaur tattoo and the usual Loopy kisses in the form of Tootsie Rolls. 

I’ve got 2 weeks to complete my July project, Phi, wind the yarn for August and buy and print the pattern for Dayton. That seems doable but I better get on it.