Thinning The Nest: Thursday Number 2

This week’s Thinning The Nest is sponsored by: Knittymunchkin!
 
I found out last summer that one of my former co-workers is expecting a little boy in March (almost exactly 2 years after Knittymunchkin’s original due date – if he wasn’t in such a hurry to arrive 5 weeks early!).  We were given three HUGE rubbermaid totes full of baby clothes by one of R. Darling’s co-workers when Knittymunchkin was born, and I remember how amazingly helpful that was for us and how grateful we were to receive it.  Though R. Darling does well with his job, money always seems to be tight with a newborn in the house.  So I thought, what better way to pay some of that good karma forward, than to do this for someone else.  Many of the things that Knittymunchkin has worn have been through several kids, lots of spills, and assorted newborn/toddler antics.  So there isn’t a whole lot that’s still in good shape.  But once I started collecting things I was happily surprised to see the pile of stuff I was able to get together for her.  Four giant bags of things, and more to come!  Technically these aren’t out of the house as of this Thursday, but they will be by tomorrow, so I’m counting this as my week’s accomplishment.
 

Because nothing says "Welcome Baby!" like stuff in a Harley bag!

 

Week 2:  Four big bags of baby things!  Done!

 
I read an article in Better Homes & Gardens last year about this family that tried to see how little garbage they could produce in one year.  At the end of one year they had perhaps a small handful of detritus to show for themselves.  Impressed, I read the article wondering how they could possibly do this.  There were some interesting tips in there, and a lot of things that I didn’t really think I could feasibly do myself without a lot of inconvenience.  I know that sounds crappy, but there it is.  Sometimes convenience just trumps saving the planet (if only for a moment or two).  But one of the things that really struck a chord with me was their suggestion to take photos of sentimental items instead of actually saving those things and having them take up space. Most especially when you just store the objects rather than using them frequently.  One of my biggest problems with clutter is that I am too damn sentimental.  I want to keep everything.  And I mean everything.  I have letters that I received from pen pals in middle school for crap’s sake!  So I like this idea.  And I think it would work for most things.
 

Knittymunchkin at 20 months

 
I thought it would work here.  I mean, there’s the photo.  I don’t need the sweatshirt, right?  But when it came to this face, and my memory of this day, I had a moment of weakness.  That photo can’t show me just how tiny this little bit of fleece was when I look back at it 20 years from now, when my son is 6’4″ like his daddy and this day is a distant memory.  So I’m afraid to say that little sweatshirt was rescued from today’s Thinning The Nest stash.  Let’s face it.  I’m weak.  But I’ve still got some time to let go.  If I can :)

 

Love….

Love, thy name is Hexipuff.

 

Hexipuffs!

 
Ever since my lovely friend Jess bought me the The Beekeeper’s Quilt pattern and we agreed to knit it together for “however long”, I have been undeniably enamored with this charming little project.  Hexipuffs are smooshy, and squooshy, sweet and cute.  And each one is a little mini FO that you can pat and poke and imagine occupying its future spot in your darling little quilt.
 
At first I thought I wouldn’t dare touch my enormous sock yarn stash.  I mean, that’s for socks, right?  So being short on sock yarn scraps, I scoured etsy, and found someone selling minis.  Then I scoured Ravelry and found another.  A few bucks later and I was in business!  Then I joined a swap at the Sanguine Gryphon Group on Ravelry.  Lucky for me, there was one for newbies that didn’t fill up about 2 seconds after it was posted.  I swear those SG people are fanatics (me included, mwah-ha-ha!).  It’s hard to get in on a destash or a swap because things disappear before you can say “flapjack”.  Sadly, The Sanguine Gryphon is no more in a few short days.  But that’s a big boo hoo for another day :(  I’d say my bank account would breathe a ginormous sigh of relief if it weren’t for the fact that they are dissolving into two new dye studios and I’m afraid that means twice the amount of temptation!
 
I also discovered that the very talented Didi (creator of Little Red Bicycle; whom I got to meet at Sock Summit 2011 for the first time after “knowing” her for a few years online) had a mini-skein club going.  What better way to support a friend, and a mini-skein habit, than by signing up?  I’ve already received October and November, am waiting on December, and have signed up for another 3 months of January – March 2012.  Everything I’ve received so far has been gorgeous!  I can’t wait to make puffs out of them, and I am just stunned by her beautiful sense of color.
 

October 2011 Mini-skein Club from Little Red Bicycle

 

November 2011 Mini-Skein Club from Little Red Bicycle

 
Finally, after a little contemplation of my stash, I decided there were definitely some fingering weight sock yarns that I could (and should) part with.  I had a few smaller skeins that weren’t enough for a full pair of socks anyway and I didn’t have immediate plans for them.  Nor was I sure they’d look good on a larger scale.  That’s the nice thing about the Hexipuffs.  You can use some of your loudest or even – dare I say it – ugliest yarns, and they don’t look so bad on a small scale.
 
Flush with so many choices, I am working steadily on this project.  I know it will take me years to make enough to fill out a quilt, but each time I finish one I get a tiny spark of satisfaction.  They are the perfect little fillers for when Knittymunchkin is in his high chair eating a snack, or when he is playing independently (however briefly) and I have a spare moment without him clinging to my leg.  They are simple, elegant, and can be put down at a moment’s notice without losing your place.  In case you didn’t already guess…. I love Hexipuffs!
 
Because I’ll be working on this for the rest of my natural life (most likely) I think it would be fun to do a little gallery each month of the puffs that I’ve knit.  I’ve been keeping count and I knit anywhere from 10 – 25 of these in any given month.  So a little retrospective might be fun.  January is just days away (how did that happen?) so I think I’ll start after I’ve knit January’s puffs.
 
Until then, Happy Holidays!  May your days be merry & bright :)

 

Sock Summit 2011 Day 3: July 30, 2011 – Far Afield

Back to our regularly scheduled Sock Summit Update (warning – picture heavy)….
 
Saturday morning found us a little more leisurely than usual.  That’s not to say we slept in, but Jess didn’t have class at all that day and Troy and I didn’t have class until 1:30 PM so there was no rush to get out the door immediately.  We had decided this would be the perfect morning to do a little exploring and we thought the Farmer’s Market would be the perfect thing to do.  Jess was amazing and pretty much figured out exactly where we needed to go and which TriMet route we’d need to take to get there.  Luckily, we were in the free zone for where we wanted to go, so it was super easy.  All I can say is, kudos to Portland for their public transportation!  If only we had something this nice where I live.  Of course, it’s not hard to get around in my town, but there are times where I’d like to not have to worry about driving or parking.
 

Skidmore Fountain

 
We hopped the Trimet to the Skidmore Fountain stop which was a quick 5 minutes or less from the Convention Center block. At our stop, I was initially put off by the group of scruffy looking loiterers shouting obscenities at each other over their shopping cart, but we just walked the other way and I put it out of my mind.  What caught my eye first was the historic architecture surrounding us; buildings with flourishes, and the historic colonnade housing a portion of the market.  I never cease to be fascinated by old structures and their histories.  The stories are there, buried, waiting for me to discover them.  I wonder about the people who lived and worked here. What was life like for them?  Were they happy, sad, indifferent?  As I soaked it in I snapped a few photos for posterity.
 

Architectural Details of The Colonnade

 

The Saturday Market - Portland, OR

 
We wandered, we looked, we soaked it in.  I found a lot of inspiration at the market, seeing all kinds of items that had been re-created from vintage or cast off things; upcycling being the buzz word I presume.  This has always been an interest of mine and seeing examples of this in the marketplace gave me all sorts of ideas for future projects.  I bought a couple of leather cuffs made from old belts.  Because I needed to “toughen up my image” I told Troy.  Couldn’t hurt.  Before long we were getting hungry and we decided we’d all divide up and get the food that sounded best to each of us.  Troy and Jess convinced me I’d love pierogies, which I had never before tried, so I bought my lunch at a cute little cart just across the street from the Portland Saturday Market sign up above.  Mmmmm…. Potato and cheese filling with onions and bacon on top.  I have to say, my first experience with pierogies was a blissful one!  Troy, who was holding a table for us, had to have the same after I came back with mine.
 

My First Pierogies

 
The picture is a bit blurry you see, because I was salivating so hard I could barely hold the camera straight :)  I told Jess and Troy that I did believe my blog was starting to turn into a food blog as most of the pictures I took over the weekend seemed to be of food!  After eating and looking a bit more, we thought we spotted the mecca of doughnut shops – Voodoo doughnuts – on an adjacent corner, and had to have a look for ourselves.  As we got closer, we asked a few people what the situation was and they told us that the line was at least an hour long.  An hour long!  And it was mid-morning, not even breakfast hour anymore.  Of course, there is no bad time for a doughnut.  But none of us was down with waiting an hour just to say we’d been there.  We satisfied ourselves with snapping a picture of the sign and Jess even got a guy sitting outside at a table, about to bite into a doughnut the size of his head, to agree to having his photo taken.  I’m pretty sure one of his friends had one of those specialty maple doughnuts with bacon on top.  Oy.
 

All Hail Voodoo Doughnuts!

 
After that, we wandered around a little longer to see what we could see.  We thought maybe there’d be a fun little shopping district or some such somewhere near all this other goodness, but no such luck.  We did see this, which explained a lot:
 

Keep Portland Weird!

 
Coming up on Chinatown, we thought perhaps there would be something fun to explore here too, but it was all but dead.  I did find the entrance enchanting though, and thought a rather funny sign deserved preservation on film.  Do you think they realized what they were advertising?  Or did they think it was funny too?
 

Entrance To Chinatown

 

Hung Far Low

 
Perhaps this was old Chinatown and there is a new and bustling Chinatown somewhere else in Portland.  By then in our travels, it was getting close to time to head back.  So we boarded the TriMet and were on our way back to the Convention Center.  I’d had a raging headache all day and it wasn’t getting any better.  I think we got some coffee before our class and maybe poked around the Marketplace again and at 1:30 PM Troy and I headed to our Perfect Rib Class with Cookie A.  I have to admit, I wasn’t feeling 100% by the time we got to class, and there was a lot to cram into this one-hour wonder.  Despite Cookie A. being a friendly, knowledgeable, and all around excellent instructor, my brain was at maximum capacity and most definitely not firing on all cylinders.  So I didn’t get much out of it, unfortunately.  Through no one’s fault but my own, of course.  There were lengthy handouts that I brought home and I imagine I will study them later, the next time I get around to trying to design my own sock.  I loved the idea that you can incorporate ribbing into the pattern itself (the main idea of this class) and I think that is perhaps why Cookie A.’s designs are among the most beautiful of all sock patterns.  Her ribs never look just stuck on, in fact, everything flows seamlessly together into a harmonious design.  I know accomplishing this myself with my own pattern, will make much more sense when I can sit down and study it later with my brain in a more receptive state.
 

Cookie A.!

 
After class, we met up with Jess again and decided it was time for another field trip.  We piled into Troy’s car this time (I think yesterday’s trek had taught us that it would be much more relaxing to drive just in case we got lost again) and headed to the nearest LYS, Portland’s Twisted.  What a sweet little shop!  They had all sorts of yarns my LYS doesn’t carry and a lot of local indie dyed stuff that was really fun to see.  The Twisted booth at the Marketplace at Sock Summit had been handing out 10% off coupons for the brick and mortar shop, so of course we had to take advantage.  I bought some beautiful Madelinetosh Tosh Merino in “Grasshopper” for a slouchy hat.  I love slouch hats, but don’t know if they love me back. I’m thinking this is a bit like shawls.  They look funny on you only if you feel funny in them.  You have to work it and just know you are cool and then, in turn, you will be cool.  It’s my new experiment.
 

Twisted Yarn Shop - Portland, OR

 
Jess asked the gals in the shop for a restaurant recommendation and they gave us a few.  Jess and I were thinking sushi, but after driving back and forth a bunch, with no sushi place materializing, we settled for the one place they recommended that we could actually find: Cha! Cha! Cha! Taqueria.  It was cool inside and inviting.  Most of the clientele were seated outside, so it was nice to have the place to ourselves.  The food was billed to be authentic and locally sourced which is apparently a condition for every restaurant in Portland.  But you know, I do believe it makes a difference!  Our meal was delicious.  Troy and Jess got something called Molcajete that Jess says is served at one of her favorite restaurants back home.  All I know is it arrives in a ginormous sizzling bowl of goodness and smells heavenly!  I got poblano chile and cheese tamales and we all got the requisite frosty adult beverage necessary to complete a summer meal such as this.
 

Jess & Troy

 

Mmmm... Tamales & a Margarita!

 
After dinner was consumed, we headed back to the convention center for a “special kind of baby shower” in honor of Ravelry founders Casey and Jess’ new baby Eloise.  Each of us had knitted a hat to donate to the cause and it was astounding to arrive there and see the sheer number of sweet knitted things that people had made.  There were several gift bags on the tables and I was a little confused as to what that was all about until Tina Newton and Stephanie Pearl-McPhee started looking into one of them and exclaiming over the huge amounts of tiny socks nestled inside.  I guess that one knitter had gone sock wild and knit dozens upon dozens of socks for donation.  Kind of made me feel a little subpar with my one measly hat :(  But I guess every little bit helps!
 

My Little Hat for Eloise's Charity Baby Shower

 
We kind of thought that, since it was a baby shower and all, there should have been some cake or something.  But no cake.  We settled for milkshakes from Burgerville (yum!) and some knitting in Troy’s room instead.  I’d all but convinced Troy and Jess to take on the Westknits Mystery Shawl KAL 2011: Earth & Sky with me so we purchased the pattern and discussed color choices while sipping our cool frosty treats.  After a while Jess and I bid Troy goodnight and headed back to our room for some shuteye.  A thoroughly wonderful, totally exhausting day.  And one of the best ever in recent memory! And tomorrow would mean goodbye :(

 

Sock Summit 2011 Preview

And much gluttony was had by all!
 
Or, at least by me!
 

Loot!!

 
Just a little preview of the mad yarnage purchased by my very own sweaty little paws at Sock Summit 2011.
 
From Top Left to Right:

1. Limited Edition Dancing Sheep project bag complete with pattern & 1 hank Hazel Knits Artisan Sock in “Jam Session”
2. Overweight hank of Sanguine Gryphon Codex in unnamed colorway (turquoise)

 
From Bottom Left to Right:

1. Project Bag purchased at Goth Socks Booth
2. MissPurl notions tin
3. 1 hank Hazel Knits Artisan Sock in “Jam Session”
4. 2 overweight hanks of Sanguine Gryphon Eidos in “Monadology” (The Gold Bug equivalent)
5. 1 hank Hazel Knits Divine; a  red “Rogue”
6. 3 hanks Sanguine Gryphon Gaia Lace in “Owlets”

 
So much more to show you and share with you, but that must wait for another day….
 
Last but not least, Troy, Jess & I jumped on the Westknits Mystery Shawl KAL 2011: Earth & Sky bandwagon while at Sock Summit.  Yes, I have fallen down the slippery slope that is shawl knitting.  I blame Mr. West for that completely.  Sock Summit added fuel to the fire with a new and exciting shawl spotted covering shoulders everywhere you looked.  Oh dear.  What happens next?  Do I start wearing housedresses that zip up the front and putting out bowls of congealed hard candy?
 
It was a joy to, for once, pick out yarn specifically destined to become a certain pattern.  What better place to drop my wad ‘o cash than The Sanguine Gryphon booth?  Here she is, Clue #1 all finished and ready to be continued:
 

Clue #1 - Westknits Mystery Shawl KAL 2011: Earth & Sky

 
Back soon for more Sock Summit 2011 fun!

 

Babymoon

The view from our porch

 
Why hello!
 
Yes, sadly, we are back to normal life once again.  Our 6 days in Maui almost seem like a distant memory already, though it was only a mere few weeks ago when we set foot on that sun-kissed isle.  Every time I arrive on Maui, or any of the Hawaiian islands (and yes – I know I’m incredibly lucky to be able to say “every time”) I am instantly transported by the tropical sun, palm trees, white sand, and bronze-skinned locals, to a timeline that could have been.  Once there was a girl who dreamed of a carefree life not her own; if only she had the guts to make the leap, the confidence to turn wishful thinking into reality.  I entertain these thoughts quietly upon each visit, wondering if we could make it work even now.  I could get a job at a luau shakin’ it for the tourists and R. Darling could spend his days at the beach spearing fish for supper and pretending not to look at the local hotties while working on his tan.  But under the mystique of island life and the glossy tourist facade, lies a place rife with poverty and an astronomical cost of living.  So we settle instead for an exotic sampling every few years or so and then make our way back home with happy memories, gaudy beach towels, and smatterings of sand packed in our bags to remind us of time well spent and much enjoyed.
 

An unusual rainbow

 
Given that I was just over 5 1/2 months pregnant during our trip, and that it was our second time in Maui, we didn’t plan anything too strenuous for ourselves.  We had chosen to stay in a condo this time instead of a hotel and were instantly pleased to have made the decision as it was quite like staying in an apartment but with many of the wonderful amenities that come with staying in a hotel.  Because our digs were so cozy, we found it easy to laze away our mornings and even our afternoons just dozing, sitting on our ocean-view porch (so glad we paid extra for that!), or reading inside when it got too hot outdoors.  The weather was somewhat uncooperative when it came to swimming as the winds were rather high while we were there, but the intermittent rain didn’t bother us at all.  With temperatures in the mid to upper 70′s and low 80′s, the rain was actually kind of a nice contrast to the heat.  We were rewarded with rainbows the first 3 days of our visit due to the showers and the one pictured above especially fascinated me.  It was situated directly over the surface of the ocean, quite close to the shore, and I can say I have never in my entire life seen anything like it.  Truly spectacular!
 

Giving the palm trees a haircut

 
One lazy mid-morning after breakfast on our balcony, there seemed to be a quite a lot of commotion going on down below on the grounds of the building.  Peering curiously, and vertiginously, over the edge we spotted several workers beginning their ascent of the assorted palm trees surrounding the pool area.  We watched them climb fearlessly up these palms, swaying in the somewhat stiff breeze, with nothing to keep them safe save the spikes on their boots and a single chain attached to their waists.  I watched, both fascinated and increasingly queasy, as each man swung his giant machete lopping off huge limbs and tossing them down to the velvety grass below.  Over and over they climbed up, chopped and hacked, then made the trip back down. And on each return trip I sighed with relief knowing that they would be safe on solid ground and their families would be able to welcome them home that night with laughter and a warm meal.  Until, there was one remaining palm.  The palm directly in front of our balcony, 9 stories up.  It swayed more heavily than the others, its rubbery trunk set in motion by the winds that picked up throughout the day.  The picture above shows the poor man whose job it was to trim this beast of a tree.  Did they draw straws to choose who would have to wrestle with this leviathan?  I could see him almost directly in front of us as he casually went to work sweating in the sunshine.  And once he made his trip back down I remembered how to breathe.
 

Can you see my baby belly?

 
As I mentioned, we spent a lot of our time lazing, but we did make it to the beach several days for some swimming and snorkeling.  Maybe you can tell by the face I’m making in my photo up there, but I was absolutely miserable this day.  It was the first day we went swimming and I was wearing a new maternity swimsuit that we purchased in Maui seeing as it wasn’t exactly the best time to find a swimsuit here on the mainland.  Without going into any TMI gross-me-out kinda detail, let’s just say my skin is uber-sensitive these days.  And what doesn’t feel so bad to the fingertips can be excruciating in other places.  I thought I could live with an itchy swimsuit, but it turns out, I really can’t.  I tried everything and frustrated, finally resorted to cutting out the lining on my tankini top.  Ah, so much better.  Who woulda thunk it?
 

Say "Howzit!"

 
Our best day of snorkeling came with an early morning and some crappy weather. This pretty much guarantees the tourists will stay home.  But not us – we love adventure!  By just before 9 AM we had found ourselves a nice parking spot in one of ten public parking spots near the Sheraton (where we stayed on our honeymoon). Black Rock in front of the hotel is one of the best snorkeling spots on the West side of Maui, or so we’ve been told, and we’re inclined to agree.  The wind made it difficult to spread out our mats and towels, and the lack of sun wasn’t exactly picturesque, but the water felt just fine and the fish rewarded us with plentiful attention.
 

A Pufferfish!

 

Unicornfish

 
The most wonderful part of the day was being able to swim with a turtle.  It made the whole $36 snorkel gear rental completely and totally worth it.  We had the good fortune to swim with one for quite a while when we were in Kona a few years back, and we felt incredibly lucky to get to do it again here on Maui.  Later in the day he apparently made his way back, quite close to shore, and the resultant swarming horde of snorkeling tourists made us feel rather sorry for Mr. Turtle.  We were glad to have had a more private glimpse of him earlier on.
 

Mr. Honu

 
On our last day we treated ourselves to a lovely dinner and show at the Hyatt called Cirque Polynesia.  We decided to splurge a little and pay for the show package that included dinner and, honestly, I almost enjoyed the dinner more than the show.  Though the show was quite spectacular, it really wasn’t nearly as glamorous and big-budget as the Vegas productions we’ve seen.  Perhaps if we hadn’t been spoiled with the “real” thing, it would have been a wee bit more exciting.  But having dinner on the veranda in front of the Hyatt with my sweetheart, while watching the sun sink into the ocean, was possibly one of the most romantic things we’ve done in a long time.  A fitting end to our Babymoon.
 
Though our traveling days aren’t over forever, the time with just the two of us is fast coming to an end.  It’s bittersweet because, as much as I cherish the trips we’ve taken and the time we’ve had as a couple, the arrival of our little one is going to be a journey that will outstrip everything else we’ve ever seen and done in our lifetimes.  And it will be wonderful!  But best of all, it’s a journey will be taking together, one step at a time.

 

Christmas Shopping & Friday Fill-In #102

Seen through the window at The Gap this morning in my local mall

 

This morning I knocked out a bit of my Christmas shopping while R. Darling was out testing a new kayak. It’s horribly dark and rainy outside, and I have no idea what could possibly be so interesting about sitting in a little tippy boat out there getting drenched. But that’s fanaticism for ya. And I seem to remember myself, freezing my ass off in my kayak last January on a snowy river anyway, so I guess I don’t have room to talk.

Anyhoo, back to the shopping. On a day like today, it’s good to be in a place where it’s warm and things smell good, even if everyone has to walk about 3 mph slower than you want to walk and obliviously amble along in front of you blocking every possible route around them. But what’s this? Much to my wondering eyes appeared a little yarny vision in the window of The Gap. My thoughts raced back to my stash busting plans for the upcoming year. This would be the ultimate scrap scarf! So, rather surreptitiously, fearing I might be hauled off for taking photos of proprietary fashion at the mall, I snapped a quick photo. What do you think? I loves it. Now, just to figure out how to make it! Oh and what is up with Abercrombie & Fitch anyway? I didn’t even go in there but for some reason I keep catching whiffs of myself and I smell like the prepster teenagers who shop there. Mall osmosis?  Yikes – what’s next?

 

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

Friday Fill-In #102

(get yours here)

 

1. Friends, really true ones, are one in a million.

2. Good health; it’s so easy to take for granted.

3. I’m ready for a weekend without any running around to do (2010?).

4. Hillary Duff’s “With Love” is one of my favorite perfumes.

5. The oldest ornament I have is probably the ceramic Ernie I’ve had since I was about 4.

6. Take some cocoa & Bailey’s, mix it all together and you have one of the best holiday treats evah!

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I’m looking forward to decorating the Christmas tree with R. Darling, tomorrow my plans include sleeping in, and Sunday, I want to knit knit knit! 

 

************

Happy Holidays Bloggy Peeps!!

 

Stuff From All Over

Meh.  The end of another hot, sticky week at work.  Still not feeling extra blogalicious, but I do have a few things to share and it’s just not as much fun to keep them to myself even if they’re not particularly blogtacular.

Last weekend was complete and total knitstonage.  Kind of embarrassing how really knitstoned I was.  I left the house on Friday only because I felt like a loser for sitting on the couch and knitting the better half of the day.  So I went out, bought a coffee, a size 8 circ that I needed to start a project, and some sushi, and then promptly returned home to plant my ass on the couch for the remainder of the day until I decided I should probably go to bed before I feel asleep in mid-stitch.  I would say it was a waste, but I did finish one entire project that day that I’d been putting off for months, so it wasn’t a complete loss.  If you ask my thighs though, they might disagree.  I finished a total of 2 projects over the weekend (pics to come soon) but managed to start 2 times that many.  I think I have a problem.  I didn’t really start like, 4 new projects did I?  Needless to say, the knitstonage continued for 4 days while R. Darling was away running another marathon.

I finished a few more Warm Woolies projects toward my goal of 100 for the year.  We are up to 35 items now and I have a box packed with 18 items that will most likely get shipped out next week sometime.  I just couldn’t fit that last item in there without the box busting open of its own accord, so I figure it can go in with the next batch when they go out.  It’s silly, but it makes me feel good to already have one item to go into the next box.  And Item #36 is already on the needles.

 

Items #33 & #34 for Warm Woolies

Item #35 for Warm Woolies

 

O.k.  So I cheated a little with the vesty.  I actually knit that one last year but wasn’t sure if I liked how it turned out so I held on to it until now.  I blocked it this weekend and decided it wasn’t so bad after all and will send it in my next batch of items to go.  I did a funky little half-linen stitch action in it and it seemed to be pulling a little before blocking which I didn’t like.  But it seems cool now.  I’ve never thought much about using Lamb’s Pride for a sweater, but I have to admit, it feels ever so much softer and more appealing after blocking.  Hmmm…. may have to give that some more thought.

 

 

My tigridia is blooming again!  I had doubts as to whether these would survive the winter in my garden, but here they are to astound me yet again with their vivid beauty.  These flowers are like a secret that floats away on the breeze if you are not there to hear it whispered.  They will bloom and fade in one day of glory, which can be easily missed if you are not vigilant.  Last year I had a red one as well but so far I only see a clump of the yellow.  I’m keeping my fingers crossed for a lovely surprise sometime soon though.  This one stopped me in my tracks this morning when I did my quick before-work garden perusal.  I had no idea it was even close to blooming!  What a beautiful way to start my morning.

Tomorrow….. The Dark Knight!  I’ve been waiting.  And waiting.  And waiting.  Christian Bale has to be the best Batman evah.

Other than that, just hoping for more knitting!  Hope all of you have a lovely weekend doing whatever it is that makes you happiest ;) 

 

**Our Gulf Islands Trip: Day 6 – June 12, 2008

Our trip route for Day 6

(click for larger image)
Image courtesty of KayakSuccor (aka R. Darling)

 

Our last day.  Though I desperately wanted (needed) a shower and I was ready to go home, there’s always that small desire to stay on vacation and run away from everything else in the “real” world.  I knew that when we got home, there’d be chores to do, gear to clean, and Father’s Day preparations, and I really wasn’t very keen on rushing back to that.  We had some paddling to do first!

After a little breakfast we got our gear on and the kayaks in the water with the plan to discover more of Sucia’s wonders.  As we started out of Fossil Bay, the weather was much nicer than what we’d encountered for most of the trip, but the wind was picking up a little as we reached less protected water.  I’m not a hugely experienced paddler so this made me a little nervous, but I tried to swallow my uneasiness and follow R. Darling’s lead.  From Fossil Bay, we paddled across the mouth of Snoring Bay (love that name), peeked around Johnson Pt. and then headed towards Echo Bay, passing the Finger Islands on the way.  There were seals, beautiful wooded islands, eagles, and astonishing cliff faces to draw our eyes up and away from the choppy water.

 

 

(click for larger images)

 

Doesn’t that last photo look like a skull?  Creepy!  After reaching Echo Bay, we pulled the kayaks ashore and had a little break.  A granola bar and plain old water never tasted so good!  The sun was getting warmer despite the wind still blowing a bit, and it had turned into a really lovely morning.  Sucia Island has several spots where very small spits of land separate one side of the island from the other.  We had happened to land very near one of these narrow spots separating Echo Bay on one side and Shallow Bay on the other.  Taking a look at Shallow Bay, we saw that the water was nearly glassy calm on that side and decided it was feasible to carry our kayaks over land to the other bay.  I happened to be all for calmer waters. 

From Shallow Bay we paddled on down towards Little Sucia Island where we caught sight of a very regal bald eagle perched in a tree.  He seemed very unconcerned as we floated on by down below him snapping photos as he sat there.  It was wonderful to be able to get so close to such a majestic creature. 

 

(click for larger image)

 

After seeing our share of Mr. Eagle, we paddled across Fox Cove (this was where we’d watched the sunset the night before) and headed out around Ev Henry Pt. and Wiggins Head on our way back into Fossil Bay.  It was a good 3 hours or so of paddling and we were starved!  While FIL got us under way for the trip back home, we heated up spaghetti from the night before and chowed down.  Then, complete with hot chocolate, we headed up to the flybridge for the rest of the trip home. 

 

Goodbye Sucia!
(click for larger image)

 

So all in all, it was a fantastic trip, even if I didn’t get as much knitting done as I’d hoped ;)  Thanks for keeping me company as I recounted my memories and shared my photos.  It was fun to look back on everything with all of you.  We may not have found Sas and snapped that million dollar photo, but we definitely made million dollar memories.  I don’t think I’m quite done with my Sas dream though.  R. Darling and I decided that there are plenty of hairy Sasquatch-looking guys living around here.  Wouldn’t it be awesome if we bombarded Field & Stream with photos of hairy dudes?   There’s got to be a prize for Honorable Mention or something.  A girl can dream.

Hope you all had a Happy 4th of July!

 

**Our Gulf Islands Trip: Day 5 – June 11, 2008

Our trip route for Day 5

(click for larger image)
Image courtesty of KayakSuccor (aka R. Darling)

 

This morning dawned cold and grey (again) as we prepared to leave Ganges and return to the U.S.  By law, you are required to check into US Customs as soon as possible after entering our waters, or you may suffer up to a $10,000 fine.  Yikes!  So you can bet our first stop was Roche Harbor since none of us happened to have that kind of cash just sitting around.  And anyway, if I did, I sure as heck wouldn’t be spending it on customs fines!  Fine customs, maybe.

We reached Roche Harbor (on the northwest corner of San Juan Island) after about an hour of travel and tied up to the Customs dock to await clearance.  My FIL took all our paperwork up to the booth while we waited on board the boat and then came back with a Customs Agent in tow.  The agent asked us if we purchased anything in Canada and when we answered, “Some soap,” I think my FIL almost had a mini-stroke right there on the dock.  “And a bottle of wine,” he quickly interjected as we were laughing with the Customs Agent about the importance of being clean (not like we’d know anything about it, having only had one shower in 5 days).  “Oh right.  And some wine,” we said.  Turns out, FIL had told the Customs Agent about the wine, but didn’t know about the soap, so when our stories didn’t match up he got a little nervous.  ’Cause you know, R. Darling and me, we look like some pretty shifty characters.  But luckily the Customs Agent didn’t think so and we were free to go.  I’m sure if he’d decided to detain us though, we could have easily overpowered him with our collective stink and gotten away.

As we approached the fuel dock, not a soul was in sight except for Sarge, The Fuel Dog (R. Darling gets credit for that one), who greeted us rather nonchalantly and then via some secrety doggie signal, alerted his human peeps to our need for fuel.  While FIL fueled the boat, we snapped some photos and walked up to the historic grocery building for some refueling ourselves.

 

Sarge The Fuel Dog
(click for larger image)

 

I loved this adorable white church
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Hotel de Haro
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The historic grocery building
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And I do believe I mentioned in a previous post that I’m about as mature as an 8 year old and anything to do with poo, or funny names for its disposal is guaranteed to make me laugh.  So for all you fellow 8 year olds, here’s a funny shot of something I saw cruising around in Roche Harbor:

 

Gotta love that tagline!
(click for larger image)

 

With customs and fuel out of the way, our next stop was Sucia Island.  I decided to ride out the trip in the cabin again because it was just too cold on the flybridge with the boys.  How cold you ask?  Well, when we were in Roche Harbor a local newspaper headline caught our eye:  “Colder Than Siberia!”  It was a sad day to read that headline.  How often is it 61 degrees in Siberia vs. 59 degrees in Seattle?  Brrr…..

By the time we arrived at Fossil Bay on Sucia Island it was starting to warm just slightly.  We tied up to the dock and decided it would be fun to have a look around the island.  It’s a large, hospitable island and I could envision people settling here at the turn of the century.  We did read at some of the vantage points that there had been sandstone mining, homesteading and logging here at various points in time.  In fact, we saw quite a few massive stumps that bore the signs of early logging techniques.  What struck me most was the sheer number of eagles populating the island.  I remember a time, not that many years ago really, when seeing an eagle was a rare and wondrous occasion.  Here, their presence was constant, from massive wingspans soaring across the horizon, to whistling cries in the distance.  I was sorely tempted to take a feather home with me, but it’s illegal for someone non-native to possess one here in the U.S.  Though I am of native descent, I don’t have the proper paperwork to prove it and figured I could do without a fine and a black mark on my record, so I refrained.  But we did take a photo for posterity.  I have to thank FIL for this one as it was his idea to hold them so artistically against the wild roses.

 

 

We saw so many other lovely things on our walk around this charming island.  Sucia was, by far, one of the most enchanting places we visited during our trip.

 

 (click for larger images)

 

But I have saved the best for last!  After our walk, we relaxed at the boat a bit while FIL socialized with the newcomers.  The Park Ranger had arrived and was chatting with him when we noticed something moving around in the water.  Since I love the creatures and all, I had to get closer to investigate and R. Darling busted out the “good” camera just in case.  Swimming around the boats was a river otter.  He appeared unfazed by all us humans hanging out watching him, and seemed very intent on having himself some lunch.  We watched him, fascinated, for quite a while as he swam around catching fish (at one point swimming under the dock beneath my feet and then surfacing so I could hear his breath under my toes) and later, as he climbed onshore to roll in some mysterious ecstasy on a muddy patch of land.  It was really amazing to see one so up close and personal like that.  Sooooo cuuuuuute was all I could say the rest of the day.

 

 (click for larger images)

 

After a nice dinner, we ended our day the way any good day in the islands should end:  with an island sunset…..

 

(click for larger image)

 

**Our Gulf Islands Trip: Day 4 – June 10, 2008**

Afternoon on Salt Spring Island
(yes, it’s cold enough that we need hats!)

 

Summer has finally peeked its golden head up over the horizon here in the northern regions and currently, it’s my favorite time of the day.  The light is getting mellow and soft outside, and it’s still warm out, but not scorching.  I have an iced mocha keeping me company and it’s a good time to write.

By now I’m sure you’re quite bored with my account of our Gulf Islands trip, and maybe I’m a little bored too.  But I have only two more days of photos and tidbits to share after today and then we’re done.  This is supposed to be a knitting bloggy, right?  Yet I somehow feel compelled to finish what I started.  So just a couple more entries and then we’ll be back to our regularly scheduled blogramming.

 

************

 

Our trip route for Day 4

(click for larger image)
Image courtesty of KayakSuccor (aka R. Darling)

 

On this morning the weather was slightly better than it had been the day before.  It was sprinkling only lightly, but we could still see our breath out on the deck when we left in the morning.  I was finding it hard to believe that June had arrived.  The plan was to take a peek into Conover Cove for a possible few hours of paddling, but once we arrived there the scenery didn’t strike us as anything very different from what we saw back home.  And for the amount of effort it would have taken to anchor up there, it just didn’t seem worth it.  So we motored on by and headed for Ganges on Salt Spring Island.

I was looking forward to Salt Spring Island because I’d heard that it was sort of artsy and part of me was hoping for a yarn shop.  Or even just an iced mocha and some touristy crap.  Be careful, we’d been sternly warned beforehand, there’s hippies there.  As if hippies were some dirty creature that might contaminate us by being in the same vicinity.  Now that I think about it, I was probably the dirtiest creature there anyway (no shower since yesterday, but who’s counting?), so maybe the locals were the ones who should have been afraid.

 

Entrance to Ganges
(click for larger image)

 

The yacht Paraffin
(click for larger image)

 

As we pulled into our slip we couldn’t help but notice this huge-mongous yacht docked nearby.  After coming home, R. Darling did some research and discovered that this ship is owned by the Yankee Candle Company. It has more amenities than most hotels I’ve stayed in, and is better staffed too.  It’s hard not to get nauseous with that kind of glamor staring you in the face every time you look up.  Maybe I should start buying lottery tickets or something.

Once we were settled, our tummies growled for food so we took ourselves into town and had some lunch at The Oystercatcher.  After lunch we walked around a little and because I was with the boys I was loathe to do much shopping, only peering in windows longingly as we passed by.  My FIL decided to go back to the boat for a nap after scoping out the ice cream shop (which he never went back to visit) and R. Darling and I explored a bit further.  The town does have an artsy feel to it with sculptures and gardens abounding, but I was a bit disappointed that the attractions of the main avenue seemed few and far between and were exhausted in mere minutes.  We’ve since been told that Saturday is the day to arrive as there’s a big art fair held every Saturday which we missed, pulling in as we did on a Tuesday.  

 

“Service Above Self”
(click for larger image)

 

 

I was fascinated with these stones paving the Mermaid’s court
(click for larger image) 

 

 

But what’s this?  A knitting shop??  Can it possibly be?

 

 

And a friendly hummingbird outside to greet me?  I have to go in!

 

 

No, I was very very good and didn’t buy anything.  I was tempted, but responsibility prevailed.  That and I didn’t have my wallet on me, and there was no possible way to make a sneaky purchase without first getting R. Darling who would then be witness to the carnage.  No sense filling him in on how much my little hobby actually costs.

Once back on board the Ragunda, the sun decided to make an appearance and we thought that was probably as good a reason as any to go for a little afternoon paddle.  One of the nearby islands was said to have the ruins of a castle on it built many years ago by a Scotsman who seemed to like his liquor a wee bit more than he liked construction.  The island was later purchased by an American who discovered that trying to heat a castle is not a whole lot of fun, and he demolished most of it.  But we had to have a look now, didn’t we?  We paddled all the way around First Sister Island and only saw one small bit that even remotely looked man-made.  A bit disappointing, but interesting nonetheless.

 

Crumbling remains of a man-made structure on First Sister Island
(click for larger image)

 

After navigating around First Sister Island, we stopped for a bit on Third Sister Island.  This island has a gorgeous white shell beach that looks almost like it belongs in the tropics.  There are no houses here, unlike many of the other small islands in the area that are privately owned.  We walked from one end to the other and were rewarded with some nice views of the neighboring islands as well as some very unique flora to investigate.

 

White shell beach on Third Sister Island
(click for larger image)

 

 

Interesting island flora
(click for larger image)

 

With the help of a 1 knot current in our favor, we headed back to our boat, taking in the sights as we passed.  With the help of the current, we were paddling close to 5 knots at times and I snickered to myself when I saw the speed limit sign in the channel.  There was a stern warning against vehicles moving at more than 5.5 knots.  Hard to believe that we could almost be breaking the speed limit in our kayaks!  But something we found even more peculiar, was the gigantic ReMax sign posted on Powder Island.  Apparently, if you have a spare, oh, $650,000 or so burning a hole in your pocket, you could purchase this skimpy pile of rocks with the ramshackle house squatting on top.  Once glance and I wondered what would happen if Neptune got a little peeved one day and decided to whip up a big ole storm.   

 

The house on Powder Island
(click for larger image)

 

Goat Island
(click for larger image)

 

Returning back to the boat, my FIL cooked us a nice bunch of steaks and we settled in for another wonderful evening.  All that paddling had made me hungry!

 

Next stop:  Sucia Island back in the USA…..

 

**Our Gulf Islands Trip: Day 3 – June 9, 2008

Our trip route for Day 3

(click for larger image)
Image courtesty of KayakSuccor (aka R. Darling)

 

This morning I stirred awake to the sound of rain gently pattering on the deck above me.  The boat had been still most of the night and was rocking just the slightest bit when I first came to.  Having had a terrible night’s sleep, I rolled over and closed my eyes for another hour hoping to nod off again or at least postpone the cold and damp I knew awaited me when I crawled out of my cozy sleeping bag.  I could never hack it as a true sailor, or even a pirate queen, kickass though the outfits might be.  I hate being damp and cold, and I get seasick (though I was mercifully spared this time).  Plus, I’ve noticed, when you get insomnia on a boat with other people, there’s not much you can do about it except count to 1000 over and over in your head until you either fall asleep or go crazy and jump off the back deck.  Luckily I eventually fell asleep.  It would have been a long damn swim to shore otherwise.

After some coffee and chitchat, we untied ourselves from the mooring buoy and headed off into a cold grey morning, rain gently but steadily dimpling the water.  Today was the first day that I decided it was just too cold to ride on the flybridge with the boys so I stayed in the heated cabin and knitted blissfully.  This was my first day of real knitting and, though I hated to miss out on the scenery I knew was probably terribly enchanting, it was lovely to spend a little time alone with my fiber and get reacquainted.  Foolish me, I’d brought enough yarn to start and finish 28thirty, yarn for a complete Fake Isle hat for myself, and enough yarn to make 6 pairs of Warm Woolies socks give or take.  I laugh now to think I thought I’d have enough time to knit all those things, but I guess I was feeling optimistic.  Or maybe just hopeful.

 

28thirty in progress (knit from stash…..boo-ya!)

 

After about 2 hours of travel we arrived at our first destination for the day:  Degnan Bay on Gabriola Island.  We unloaded the dinghy from the boat and quietly motored our way into the harbor, heavily anticipating one of the major highlights of our trip.  It was eerily silent, with little signs of activity, and I almost felt as if I should whisper.  As if speaking aloud might awaken some sleeping creature that wouldn’t be too happy to find interlopers in their harbor. 

 

Inside Degnan Bay
(click for larger image)

 

A small wooded island outside Degnan Bay
(click for larger image)

 

I was particularly excited to be going ashore as we had been promised that Gabriola was the site of some amazing ancient stone carvings.  As to how to find them, well that part was rather vague.  Walk to the main road, turn left, walk to the church, then take the path behind it to a large field.  Nothing was clearly marked at all, but after a mile or so we found the church and made our way into the clearing behind it.

 

 The field behind the church
(click for larger image)

 

 I can’t begin to describe the feeling that engulfs you when you find yourself in the presence of carvings made some 5000 years ago.  Carvings so ancient that they pre-date the Native People indigenous to the area itself.  What struck me most was how different they were from most Northwest Coastal Native art.  Alien, in fact.  Who were these stone carvers?  What did these images mean to them?  Sadly, the site is quite evidently eroding from exposure to the elements as well as exposure to unappreciative humans who seem to feel compelled to walk over, and desecrate the images with their own brand of graffiti.  It’s sad that a wonder such as this isn’t better protected.  I feel extremely grateful that I got to see it before it becomes just a footnote somewhere in a long-forgotten book.  Here’s a few of the better images that we were able to see (click on them for a larger view):

 

 

Contemplating what we’d just seen, we walked ourselves back to the dinghy and took a quick look inside the bay itself before heading back to the boat.  We had hoped to catch a glimpse of the killer whale image that is supposed to be visible on one of the rock faces at low tide.  It’s the best known of the Gabriola petroglyphs, but we didn’t appear to have arrived at the right time to see it.  Instead, we were rewarded with this little guy eating some shellfish on the rocks.

 

 

In a steadily falling rain, we weighed anchor and headed for Telegraph Harbor on Thetis Island.  If I thought Gabriola seemed eery, then I wasn’t prepared for the creepy that was Telegraph Harbor.  Imagine boats in varying degrees of disrepair, rocking gently in the water, hidden eyes watching closely as the newcomers arrive, unsuspecting, in their midst.  The perfect setting for a horror film.  We even had the pounding rain and ominous mist necessary to set the stage.  But rest easy dear readers, we were safe.  The afternoon was spent knitting, napping and watching movies.  And later, I was rewarded with the most blissful 5 minute shower (in 2.5 minute increments) imaginable.  Never mind that it cost me 1 loonie ($1 Canadian coin) per 2.5 minutes, never mind that a good 2 minutes of each increment was either lava hot or glacier freezing.  For the first time in way too long, I was clean!  Whoever invented hot water and indoor plumbing, you are a true genius and I salute you. 

That night we fell asleep to the sound of pounding rain and the feeling of clean limbs.  Lovely.

 

Next stop: Salt Spring Island!

 

**Our Gulf Islands Trip: Day 2 – June 8, 2008**

 Our trip route for Day 2

(click for larger image)
Image courtesty of KayakSuccor (aka R. Darling)

 

Sunday morning arrived and we climbed out of our damp v-berth (everything on a boat always seems just a wee bit damp no matter what) to my FIL’s traditional early morning greeting of, “Good afternoon!”  He falls asleep ungodly early and wakes up ungodly early so no matter what time you arise, he will greet you with “Good afternoon!” even if it’s only 7:30 AM and you feel as if you haven’t slept in at all thank youverymuch.  This charming routine would persist for the remainder of the trip, but despite this little quirk, I still have a very nice FIL.

 

Friday Harbor from the water side
(click for larger image)

 

Following the smell of bacon with our noses, we walked up the maze of docks and slips in search of breakfast.  But something very curious stopped us in our tracks. R. Darling will be the first to confirm for you that I am instantly enchanted and completely sidetracked whenever I see a creature of any sort in the vicinity.  Near the water I am continually scanning for seals, and peeking at the sky for eagles.  On dry land I will cast about for squirrels, bunnies or deer.  This morning we clearly saw a seal at the dock and it was doing the strangest thing:  bringing its flippers up to its face as if it was eating something.  We were transfixed by its strange behavior and had to get closer to find out what exactly it was doing.  I had seen a woman on the dock and speculated that the seal was greeting her in some way and as we got closer we witnessed one of the most magical and memorable things I have ever had the privilege of seeing.  One by one, the woman threw a series of bait herrings to the seal.  One by one it snapped them up and when they were gone the woman told the seal ”No More.  That’s it.  They’re all gone.”  The seal flipped backward, showing us its belly and swam away.  Fascinated, we asked the woman about her friend.  She told us that this seal, Popeye is her name, had been coming there for 15 years or so and every morning this woman feeds her 12 herring.  Once Popeye eats her fish, she swims away only to appear again the next morning for her breakfast.  My FIL being the kind of generous and friendly guy that he is, asked the woman how much one pack of herring cost her.  She replied that it was about $5 each.  He handed her a ten and told her that breakfast was on us. 

 

A video of Popeye we discovered after we arrived home

 

Delighted with our chance encounter, we took ourselves off to a little diner for breakfast where we stuffed ourselves silly.  I was to discover, over the duration of our trip, that there’s something tricky about the outdoors and marine air.  If you spend too much time out in it, you will soon develop one of the most voracious and indiscriminate of appetites imaginable (remember that 4 pounds of excess luggage I mentioned?).  If it was in plain sight, my hand would surreptitiously snag a bit and stuff it down the hatch before my brain could mount a proper defense and put a stop to it.  But no matter.  It’s vacation is it not?

After breakfast, we rearranged items in the boat from sleepy time arrangements, to running time arrangements, and left Friday Harbor around 11 AM bound for Canadian Customs in Bedwell Harbor on South Pender Island.  We arrived around noon (spotted a porpoise on the trip over!), tied up to the dock, and proceeded to clear customs via phone.  Is that not the strangest thing you’ve ever heard?  Apparently, if they question your citizenship or intentions, you must then pilot your boat over to the other side of the island and meet with an actual officer.  It seems so strange in this day and age of heightened security, to clear customs without ever speaking to someone face to face.  But clear it we did.  Walked ashore briefly to buy a bottle of red wine for me and 2 mochas (if I had ever wanted to give up mochas, this trip would have been the perfect occasion as not only are Canadians seemingly mystified by iced coffee – no offense my northern friends :) , but espresso stands were few and far between in the islands).

 

 Customs at Bedwell Harbor, South Pender Island
(click for larger image)

 

The extremely narrow Pender Canal
(click for larger image)

 
Thusly reinforced, we navigated the scary passage through Pender Canal between North and South Pender Islands (at times there was only 4 feet of water beneath our hull, and no room for error on either side of the canal) gripping whatever each of us could and gritting our teeth with nerves until we were safely through.  Beers were opened soon after.  From the canal, we passed up the north side of North Pender Island, into Navy Channel and up to Galiano Island.  We arrived in Montague Harbor around 2 PM and tied ourselves up to a mooring buoy where we would spend the night. 

After a bit of lunch we unloaded the kayaks for the first time during our trip and set out from Montague Harbor for a leisurely paddle around Gray Peninsula.  It was low tide and there were so many interesting things to look at as we paddled around.  We saw more seals, clams the size of salad plates, eagles and great blue herons, starfish by the bushel, an eerie and beautiful lichen formation, small fish jumping, and stark and mysterious rock formations.  It was peaceful and lovely and so nice to take our time examining all the wonders displayed so openly for us.  We paddled for close to 2 hours and then made our way back to the boat where we prepared dinner as the sun sank slowly in the northern sky.  A lovely way to spend our second day.

 

  

  

  

(click the thumbnails for larger images)

 

Stay tuned for Day 3:  petroglyphs, lots of rain, some knitting & a much wished for shower (the first since the day we left!)……