Wow, just wow

Yesterday Vancouver set a new record for hottest day recorded, since they started keeping track of those things.  It was 33.8 degrees Celsius*.  Pretty amazing, right?  Well, sort of.  There just a few things wrong with that, i.e.

1. The weather station where they get the temperature is at the airport which is a bit of a distance from Vancouver.
2. It was actually hotter in Vancouver than it was at the airport, therefore the record is a bit lame.
3. It was even hotter than that at our little corner of heaven out here in the ‘burbs.  Like about 6 degrees Celsius hotter.
4. Perhaps most important, it was even hotter today**.  Way to compete, eh?  Break a record then break your new record immediately.  We’re such over achievers.

Seriously, what weather gods have we angered and how can I appease them?

In other news, I won’t get my Klaralund done before midnight tomorrow.  Sure, I only have to finish a 1/2 a sleeve but those sleeves are soooooo long.  I wasn’t really realizing that the sleeves are basically the entire top of the sweater.  More of a bodice/sleeve combo, really.  It’s 66 stitches wide and over 27 inches long.  Factor in washing/blocking/seaming and there is no way I’ll make it.

But that’s okay.  I finished 2 projects and frogged on (still counts – catapult event) out of 5.  That’s 60% and that’s good enough for a pass for this little camper.  No summer school for me!

Next up, I’m knitting a super secret project.  It’s lace.  The whole thing only weighs 50 grams.  I can’t wait to not have all that Noro sleeve in my lap.

Keep cool local kids.  Make sure you’re drinking lots of water!  And now, here’s a pici of a cute little garden turtle.  He used to light up at night but he’s broken now, or retired, as I like to think of him:

*The old record was 33.3C.

**The new-new record was 34.4C today.

Competitive knitting

July is WIP’s Wrestling month and I’m desperately trying to finish just one more project before the 31st of July.  It’s the Klaralund pullover that I’m doing in Noro Yuzen.  So far, I was smoking right along.  I’d finished the back, front, and 90% of the first sleeve.  See:

Please enjoy these photos.  I fell off the bloody ottoman and almost went through that glass table taking them.  I’m such a ridiculous klutz and shall now have a fantastic bruise for my efforts.  Embarrassing.

Then I got smarter and moved to the lawn and took some nice safe pictures where I would not need emergency medical care if I fell over.  Again.

A bit of Stella leg there in the top right for you dog lovers out there. 

Unfortunately, it was 96 degrees here today and apparently that will be the normal temperature for the next week.  That is not, I repeat NOT normal and I’d really like to know who I can complain to about it.  The thought of having a Noro sleeve in my lap during that kind of weather is just offensive to me.  I’m from German and English stock and my people simply do not do well in these conditions.  Needless to say, this sweater may not do very well in these conditions either.  Sigh.

It’s supposed to be even hotter tomorrow, something like 34 degrees, which is like….ummmmm, (double it and add 30),…..98.  But then there’s this thing called a humidex, (sneaky weathermen!), so apparently it’s going to feel like 40 degrees.  Umm, shoot, that’s…, (again, doing the maths), 110?!?!?!?!!?!?  Whoa, that can’t be right.

I’m ready to emigrate just about anywhere cooler and I’m pretty sure I can talk Bethany into coming with me.  I’m going to check the weather in Wales & Scotland.  It’s GOT to be raining there!

Flickr

This is a test post from , a fancy photo sharing thing.

Friday, Friday, let’s sing the song of Friday!

There was a moment there, I think it was about 2:30 on Wednesday, where I didn’t think I was going to make it to the weekend.  It was a new moon on Tuesday, (sorry, not quite close enough to sing Duran Duran), and the callers to my office were um, very energetic and agitated.  Always a good combination.  It was tiring putting out all those mental health fires and still managing to keep my own brain in a happy place.  A couple times I found myself humming  ‘Just keep swimming, just keep swimming‘.  Oh, and then I booked Monday off.  I’ll be hiding in my basement doing some sewing and enjoying the fact that it’s always 17 degrees (65 or so Fahrenheit) down there.  I will be taking the vacuum cleaner with me to deal with any aggressive spiders.

Thank you for all the lovely comments about my new sweater!  I’m pretty smitten with it and I wish it was fall right now, but it’s not.  I was also really happy that most of you liked the same buttons that I was favouring!  42% of the votes went to the carved bone suns and they will be getting stitched to the sweater this weekend.    Huzzah!

It’s supposed to be low to mid 30′s here this weekend (that’s somewhere in the 90′s for those of you on Fahrenheit).  There is exactly one week left to get my WIP’s whipped so I will be spending a good portion of the weekend with the sleeves of a Noro wool pullover in my lap while I quietly lose 10 pounds because of sweating.  I’ll leave you with the tasty thought and get myself up to the kitchen to make a little supper.  Barbecue – you are my best friend!

Button, Button

I finished something!  Whoo hoo!  Two completed projects in one month, amazing.  The knitting is done, the ends woven in, it’s washed & blocked.  All that is left is to choose its buttons.  The finished object is my February Lady sweater.  Started last August as part of Ravelympics.  Needless to say, did not finish in time.  Almost a year over, actually. 

Added bonus shot of my toes.

Now, on to the button choices, for which I need your help.  Please pardon the seeming changes in colour of the sweater in the next shots.  My flash and I are not on good terms right now.

Simple domes in copper

Sort of brassy with hieroglyphs on them.

Carved bone suns.

Carved wooden hearts.

Okay, I think I’ve added a voting thingy.  The technical skillz, I haz ‘em!  Tell me what you think. 

If you could see what I see…

Oh wait, you can.

It’s been hot here again and tonight I was sitting outside, enjoying an early evening breeze, and minding my own business, doing a little knitting, listening to an audiobook, when all of sudden I was set upon by a hoard of little black flies.  Not the biting kind (thankfully), not fruit flies or midges or mosquitoes, just a swarm of little black flies.  I probably could have handled it if they had just you know, flown around, but no.  They all wanted to land.  On my bare feet and legs.  Shudder.

Needless to say I’m back in the rather warm house typing to you instead of finishing off my almost finished February Lady sweater.  One more sleeve to go and I’m out of there!  What you see above is all the stuff that I feel is absolutely necessary to take out to the deck with me.

• at least two baskets of knitting, minimum three projects
• one ipod loaded to bursting with books, podcasts, and music
• various patterns, pens, scissors, and other tools of the knitting trade
• hiding in the basket on the right are various skeins of sock yarn just waiting for inspiration to hit so that they might become socks
• cool refreshing beverage (this one is club soda mixed with one of those splenda sweetened ice tea singles thingies.  Make sure you mix the ice tea thingie with a bit of water and then add that into the club soda.  If you pour the club soda on top you get a really cool volcano in a glass.  Sorry, there are no picis of that particular learning experience.
• hiding in the basket on the left is a book I’m currently reading

I’ve never been able to pack light.  How can I?  What if I need such and such?  How will I survive (in the yard a mere 20 metres from the house) without it?  You should see me pack for a trip.  Crazymaking.

I’m currently listening to Obedience by Will Lavender.  I’m not sure if it’s the narrator or the story or what but I don’t think I’m having a good time.  Not a bad enough time that I’ve given up, but not a good enough time that I can’t wait to find out what happens next.  Know what I mean?  It’s like I’ve gone to the theatre to see, oh I don’t know, say an all singing, all dancing, all shirtless Lord of the Rings spin off (hello Sean Bean!) but it was sold out.  So now I’m in the theatre next door watching a remake of Howard the Duck starring Rob Schneider (in a duck suit, obviously) and Lindsay Lohen.  I’m still at the movies but it’s not nearly as much fun as I thought it was.  My popcorn is probably stale too.

The other book I’m reading is Confederates in the Attic which is amazing but also very disturbing.  It’s all about how for some people in the American south the Civil War isn’t over, more like it’s just in a time out.  Some very interesting people and stories but also some people that you wish were wearing a sign so that you could know up front the level of hate and anger that they are carrying around.

Well, that’s about it for me for today.  I’m going to go find a cool spot and do some more knitting.  Hopefully it will also be a fly free zone.

Pssst, wanna see the cutest thing in the world?

Yep, you got it, swimming pigs.  How amazingly cute is that?  Can you guess what my new wallpaper on my ‘puter is?  Uh huh, swimming pigs.  More photos here.

Beentsy is offended.  She says cats that lay in puddles and roll around in the dirt are far cuter than any ol’ swimming pigs!    Come to think of it, both of those things are distinctly pig like activities.  Hmmmm, maybe Been is a piggy-kitty?

Wanna have some fun?

Sure you do.  Here’s what you’ll need:

• three dogs – preferably a set with some very high jealousy issues – today’s example will include a small, medium, and large dog.  You may choose any size dogs you prefer or are available in your area.
• one bouncy rubber ball

Now, and here is the important part, bounce said ball across the lawn and through the gaggle of aforementioned dogs.  If you can get the ball back from whichever dog catches it, repeat previous step until you’re tired of all the barking.

Super cheap entertainment in these financially challenging times.

The garden is definitely coming along great.  We have a bazillion snapdragons:

And the sent of Sweet Peas is almost intoxicating.  I wonder if you can make Sweet Pea water the same way you can make Rose water?   Hmmmmmm.  Must google later.

Her Beentsyness has also been hanging out in the yard lately.  She’s still a bit too skinny for my liking but she sure seems to be feeling a tonne better.  Although today I found her laying in a puddle of water on the driveway.  Rolling around.  That’s not normal cat behaviour, pretty sure.

Short, visual, and now with more irony!

Met the knitters for a little knitting & yarn shopping yesterday.  It’s so nice to be with my people!  Folks who won’t talk you out of a yarn purchase, but will instead ask if perhaps you should get an extra skein.  You know, because it’s on sale and all.    Why yes, the Indigo Moon was 30% off, why do you ask?  My feet are going to be sooooo warm this winter!

First there was coffee, both pretty and tasty:

Then there was this rather cutely modified sign that used to be about Shell gas stations and their other locations but is now much more interesting:

Welcome to Hell station!  Sorry for the nasty cell phone pici!

But before all that there was this:

That’s funny right?  Anacharists that manage to be organized enough to have a festival and a bookfair.  Love it.  Okay, dinner’s ready.

An example of Terrier problem solving

Last night I gave the dogs a few Cheezies.  I just sort of scattered them on the driveway and the dogs went to town.  What I failed to notice was that one lone Cheezie had landed on top of the garbage can.  Abbie did not fail to notice said Cheezie.  She remembered that Cheezie and probably obsessed about it all night long.  Today, when I looked out the kitchen window, there she was trying to figure out how to make that Cheezie hers.

Mr. B gave her the Cheezie when he got home.  Such a nice man.