LFL

The Girls now have not only a house, but a Little Free Library too.

Made by The Best Uncle Ever:

Aren't they adorable?

Art and a Little Food

I heard about a gallery exhibit of Hot Tea's stuff in Minneapolis so I went.  I was a little underwhelmed, although this self-portrait was kind of cool.

Especially close up.

I liked this figure rappelling down the wall with yarn.

Maybe I was underwhelmed because the exhibit is small.

Other than that, nothing exciting here.  I made chili using a new mini mortar and pestle for spices.  It's the first time I've made chili in the new place (you can tell Boy-child is back).

And I have a new Kandinsky print that just got back from framing.

It's called Balancement

Nostalgic Musings

 Electronics seem to be my new addiction thing.   I recently acquired an iPod touch.  Justification can be declared on many levels, but perhaps my favorite thing is being able to listen to audio books anywhere, anytime (yes, the iPad works too, but it's so clunky).  I'm not sure if the audio book thing is due to the nostalgia of reading to my children, or if I've regressed to the point where I'm relishing being read to myself, as if I were a child again.  Maybe both.

At any rate, I'm making a sweater for the iPod.

 You may recall the gardens of the past couple of years, which were rented space in a churchyard.  I'd always wanted a garden like the one when I was growing up (when I did not appreciate the fresh tomatoes).  This year I decided to skip the community garden plot, but I did buy the biggest tomato plant I could find at the Farmer's Market last Saturday.

I also purchased a stand for the balcony garden and some herbs.  Here you can see it with gifted petunias and spider plant.  Saturday was so cold and windy I didn't get anything else.  Maybe next weekend it will be nice enough out that I'll add more.

I volunteered for the Knitters' Guild at Shepherd's Harvest on Sunday.  Didn't take any pictures (not sure why) and I did not buy yarn (so proud of myself) but I did come away with amaretto fudge and a pair of black sheep earrings.   I was always, and I guess I continue to be, the black sheep of the family.

At some point last winter (or maybe it was during The Spring That Never Came) I found a pair of Carlos Santana sandals online.  Not kidding.  They are so retro I love them.  No doubt I had a similar pair during the 1970s (although I wouldn't remember the details since my 1970s memory is missing a few pieces).

Knitting and Spring and Stuff

It looks like spring is here now. I know I've said it before, but this time I'm not kidding. We missed that big storm a week ago but it did snow on Friday.

We're not going to talk about that though.

I made a square from Sue's SABLE yarn for the project The Girls are working on at Hubbs Center.  Installation is on Monday, May 13th.

In honor of spring, I got a bird bath for the balcony.  That little window it sits under is in my bedroom; I can see it from my desk when I'm working at home in the morning.

I'm making a silk/cotton t-shirt that will hopefully be done before autumn.

Christmas knitting has started.

I had a weird package arrive the other day - postage due since it was forwarded from the Eleanor Pound house.  I was baffled by it as it came from a publisher, and I never get stuff from publishers at home, only at work.  When I opened it I was delighted.  I remembered the book, but I couldn't remember ordering it.  After searching for the order, the bill, or anything else that would reveal how I came upon it, I realized it is a Library Thing review copy.

Score.

My Grand Plan for 2013 included joining the YWCA across the street.  Then I found out what the monthly fee is.  Not going to happen.  So I bought a hula hoop instead.  (Yes, that was Girl-child's idea).  It was rough going at first, but I'm happy to report progress has been made.

Don't know if you've ever heard of Dining out for Life, but this year they gave out stickers, which I thought was kind of cool.

Finally, this scarf is going with to Chicago tomorrow -  a gift for the gal in the business office.

A Near Miss

There was concern that we would wake up to 6-9 inches of new snow this morning.

I am happy to report that did not happen.

The poor souls who live south and east of here were apparently hit pretty hard. Up to 13 inches.

Speaking of souls and weather, things are getting green here at Cemetery Way.

The Gypsy and I did a little investigating last Sunday, when it was 80 degrees (today it is in the 30s). We investigated the identity of the neighbor who is the focal point of the weather shots I take from my balcony. Turns out the large headstone is of a Hillyer who passed away in 1883. The small stone adjacent is Susie Dell - we assume she was a Hillyer child - who died in 1882. We also assume the fake poinsettia sits atop a flat stone, but we don't know that passed soul's name.

We decided that visiting cemeteries where we don't know anyone is pleasant compared with visiting those where our relatives can be found.