Purling Oaks

Lucky

I'm so glad I blogged about heading to northwestern Wisconsin.  I got an email from kmkat saying she lived up in that part of the state, where was I heading?  The next day I read her reply and she is *so* near-by where I'm working and hoteling.  Our schedules had a convenient match-up and we met up Tuesday, after I was finished with work.  We originally were going to meet at 5 pm at the cool coffee shop/art gallery/etc store but they closed at 5 pm.  Hmmmm.  Never fear.........we are in Wisconsin.  We just walked down the block to the new sports-bar, each had a beer, and we knit and talked and had a very nice time.  

I could insert a photo here but I'm just going to link to this blog entry of Kathryn's because her photo is much more flattering to us both.  When you read her blog entry, you'll read  we found we have more in common than just knitting.   I did more frogging on my sock than knitting but Kathryn made great progress on a lovely bamboo yarn sweater.  Chance favored me this week with a meeting with Kathryn.  Lucky me!

Winners and the 300th post

The randomly selected (DH, paper slips, and a tupperware) winners are:  blogless Nicole, Julie, and Stacey!  Congratulations and thank you everyone for your great suggestions.  The redo of the studio is in the preliminary planning stages.  That is code for we are waiting for the general contractor's bid and the check from the insurance company.  I won't be able to avoid blogging about the basement re-do, so you will see, eventually, the final studio with all the suggestions taken to heart.

My 300th post finds me in Rice Lake, Wisconsin, and thankful for high-speed Internet access.  All of Wisconsin is lovely and this area is no exception.  It is so green here and the traffic is certainly much lighter than around the southern part of the state.  So, even for a Monday after a week of vacation, I feel pretty good.

Thanks to everyone who reads this weblog and to all of you that comment.  I've been blogging for about one and a half years and it has really enriched my life.  I've found wonderful new friends through blogging and I've even gotten closer to members of my family that read the blog.  Thanks for enriching my life, you guys.

California dreaming

Here are a few of my favorite photos from my vacation:

DH on the ledge.

Stacey looking back at me, wondering what I'm doing with the camera.  (as if!)

Stacey going for the 300 yard target with the big black rifle thingy.

Stacey shooting with her LEFT hand and doing a pretty decent job.

(I know this photo didn't get the approval stamp, Stacey, but Dr. E emailed it to me.  We were so smiley I had to include it.)

What can I say?  I love this guy.

DH, me, and the 2 DNs in San Diego on the harbor cruise.

Birthday cake with Stacey

DB and his #1 son

It was a fabulous vacation.  Family is very important to me so spending time with family is always a good time whether we are working or playing.  The timing was fortunate that DNs #1 and #2 were available for most of our visit.  Meeting Stacey and being part of reintroducing her to shooting has to be a highlight.  She is so enthusiastic, fun, and talented.  Our fibery adventures on Thursday were frosting on my cake besides being able to celebrate her (mumble mumble)th birthday with her.   Very good memories, all.  And even a little sock knitting.

No knitting, just family stuff......

The adventure continues......

My guys in front of the "singing tree" on the UC-San Diego campus.  The "tree" is actually an art object with music somehow played through it in a loop.  It is located in one of the eucalyptus groves on campus.

(l-r: DN Hunter, DB aka Dr. E, DN Micah, and my DH)

Tuesday we toured campus with our favorite guide, Micah.  We had lunch on campus from the "farmers' market" food vendors. In the afternoon, we took the two-hour harbor cruise then we toured the USS Midway.  It is amazing how well those men work together in such close quarters.  We had a great pizza dinner at Filippi's.

After our full day, we hugged Micah goodbye and climbed back into the car for the drive back to Los Angeles.  We were very much a group of tuckered out vacationers!

On Wednesday, we visited the Angeles National Forest where LAPD has a shooting range and DB wanted to check out a new shotgun that his friend/old partner was testing.  The National Forest is lovely.  It really isn't a forest in the way I think of them in Wisconsin when they are full of trees but the mountains are gorgeous and Morris Reservoir was full.  We traveled the winding road between the water and the mountains.  I was so busy hanging on that I didn't take any photos.  *g*

We all (DB, DH, DN, DB's girlfriend, and moi) had an opportunity to shoot and it was an enjoyable time.  Since we were with two instructors, we also received a quick rundown on the training that takes place at the range.  For lunch, we had In and Out drive-through fare, which was quite yummy!  If you have to eat fast food, go to this classic California institution.  Stacey told me later I should have tried my burger "Animal" style.   Hmmmm.

We then stopped at Major Surplus, a military surplus store that has just about anything you might want.  I stocked up with three of my favorite nylon blankets, also known as poncho liners.  If you have ever used one, you, too, would want several for your very own. 

Thursday, Stacey and I are going to go wild in the knitting and fiber stores of the Santa Clarita Valley.  It should be a great day.

Hello from Gate 29

I'm waiting for my connection to Madison which won't leave for about 2 hours. Good travel weather just poor luck with flight timing. The sock on the needles is the second Jaywalker...the socks on my feet are not standard business attire, believe it or not. They're my reserve socks when my feet get tired of my shoes

The daffodils and magnolias are starting to bloom in Washington, DC, the grass is green, and it was sunny. Can you see me smiling?

To Remind Me

This is yesterday's view of the day. I captured it less than a mile from home as I was heading North to start my work week. I'll have to keep this view in mind tonight while the temperature drops, oh, maybe 50 degrees to way below zero, the whips the the expected couple of inches of snow into a blizzard, and I' trying to remember why I love Wisconsin. Stay warm and safe!

A little contemplation....

I'm back home from Dallas. Although a bit cool, the weather was great in Texas. I flew back to Wisconsin today. The flights were a slightly delayed but I made it back within two hours of my original schedule --- not bad. Fortunately, I missed the actual snowfall of about six inches but had to drive home (about 25 miles) from the Dane County airport on slick, snow-drifted roads. Whew. I hope my shoulders relax soon. *g* Of course, the good part is being home.

I have a four-day weekend ahead of me. I wonder what project will get attention? Williamsro? Jaywalkers? More spinning? Will I pull out my weaving cards for Stacey? Or......will the laundry monster demand all my attention?

I'm going to relax with a beverage and contemplate my options.

DH took this photo today during the snow fall.

Driving north

I can verify that Eau Claire has almost but not as much snow as we have at home. It was a nice uneventful drive north. I do enjoy driving north, if only to see all the pines and the interesting billboards about "antiques" and waterslides and old motel signs that you aren't sure if the place is still open but you aren't so sure whether you would want to stay there now or not. Driving north is relaxing. The traffic is sparse, the view is varied, and my thoughts have an opportunity to roam. I drive in silence. I have no need for the radio or a cd playing. I am a morning person and with my travel mug of coffee, I have no need of noise except that of the road to stay awake and stimulated. Today, I wished the drive was longer. My thoughts had barely finished churning and had started the process of developing new pathways and ideas when my slightly less than three hours was up. What a luxury is three hours of time for thought alone. I don't "zone" out when I'm driving and thinking. I suppose I've done this enough, especially in the morning, that I can pay attention with two brains--one for driving, one for, well, thinking.

My hotel has wireless Internet. So, I've caught up with my bloglines and I've read my emails. Replying to emails is another challenge since I apparently have to go to the web application to reply rather than use my Mac's Mail application. Lazy. Lazy, lazy, lazy. Photos are a different challenge. Okay, I'm off to answer a few emails.

Monday was good!

Amy Detjen was a great speaker at last night's MKG meeting. She's a wonderful tall person with great stories and even greater sweaters. If you go to her blog you can see the sweater with all the squares....I got to touch that sweater! I didn't go up to say hello during the break because I couldn't think of anything that didn't sound too dorky. Yeah, silly, I know. She teaches some knitting classes at the Sow's Ear in Verona besides working with Meg Swanson. She was very funny last night and made me feel so good about being a knitter. That isn't what she focused on during her talk but she so obviously is immersed in knitting. I was smiling and laughing all during her talk. Life is good.

I'm on the road. No surprise. That is part of what I do to make my living. I am, however, very much looking forward to Thursday night when I'll be home and getting ready for the next week (plus a few days) of family, hunting, eating, and tree-sitting. (Oh, yes, and knitting.) I can be quite sure that there will be some nights in the next week when I'm bone-tired but it will be a good physical tired....not a *mental* tired. Not that I enjoy getting up at three a.m. in the darkness of the night but it is only for a few days. Besides, once I make it up my tree, I can, um, rest until the sun comes up. *g* Don't worry, I won't fall out of my tree. I have a tree house, a virtual Taj Mahal castle of deer blinds. (I didn't realize the Taj Mahal was actually a mausoleum. Lovely architecture but my blind is not a mausoleum. I may be old but I'm not that old.)

But, I'm getting ahead of myself. No tree until Saturday.

Cacophony and Color 109

The theme yesterday was cacophony. DH and I were stranded waiting for our aircraft to arrive at the DFW aiport. It was a long wait, in part, because of our flight schedule and our early arrival at the airport. Our wait also seemed long because of all the noise! We were forcefed CNN with multiple monitors and speakers in almost every ceiling tile. There was absolutely no place to escape the speakers--except the restrooms. If you've spent anytime in an airport, you know you don't want to spend any more time than necessary in an airport restroom. In addition to the airport version of CNN, there were cell phones ringing constantly with the accompanying loud conversations and folks watching a sit-com (with laugh-track) on their PC without using headphones. There was no quiet place. No wonder it is easy to be irate in an airport.

Whew, I'm glad that is out of my system. Thank goodness for sock knitting. I'm sure it kept me sane yesterday. I cast-on a sock late Sunday so I would have some travel knitting. I don't enjoy traveling with a sweater project since I'm at risk of losing important components. Anyway, I decided to try a Jaywalker by Grumperina in Trekking XXL (color 109). I used stash yarn and wanted minimal challenges, so no short-rowing. Here's my progress through Tuesday night. I'm sure to make more progress this week since I'll have some good passenger-in-a-car knitting time. I'm really enjoying the way the color is changing in this yarn and pattern.