Saturday Sky in the Odessa Forest

It's blue with baby persimmon leaves.



The forest? Well that is wrapped around the bunny and has an added bonus hat.


Project: Forbes Forest from Scarf Style

Yarn: RY Cashsoft DK
Needles: Addi Turbos in US6

Notes: Fun knit! I adore this yarn and had a great time learning to make bobbles and popcorns without turning my work. Since every project ends up with at least one oddity, this one had a doozie. They yarn came from three different sources and was in three different dyelots. I used the trick of switching balls of yarn for ever pair of rows. There is a noticable striping, but it almost looks planned.


Project: Odessa from Grumperina

Yarn: RY Cashsoft DK
Beads: Clear size 6 seed beads
Needles: Inox circular and Susan Bates dpns in US6 and Britney dpns in US4

Notes: This is my first knit beading project! It was super easy and looks great!

Booking Through Thursday and Then Some


Where do you do most of your reading? Your favorite spot? (Show a picture, if you want to!)
(And yes, I understand that these might not be the same thing--your favorite spot could be the beach, but you do most of your reading at home . . . in which case, tell me about both!)


Here is mine and it is both my favorite spot and the place where I do most of my reading. If it looks unlike someplace I might choose, there is an explanation. This is Young Man's lair (complete with favorite quilt and Harry Potter poster). This is where we snuggle up every night for reading before bedtime. The quilt is an I Spy quilt that I made several years ago.

Oh, and this is the big news of the week.

Booking Through Thursday

1. Speaking of writing in books, what about writing the entire thing? Do you write? Aspire to write? Dream about writing? I dream about writing, but it has never been more than a dream. Why? I have had several excuses for this over the years. At first, I thought that I hadn't "lived" enough (whatever that means). Then, I claimed that I didn't have the time. Now, I think I just am lazy. Writing is work. Passion is important, but good writing does take time and dedication. At this point in my life, that is not where my head is at. Maybe that will change in time. Mr. Engineer is convinced that I could be a fabulous writer and he wants me to write the Great American Novel so that we can both retire. Now who's the dreamer?


2. If you do write, do you do it for yourself, or because you hope to be published? (Or because you ARE published?) When I do write or even contemplate writing, it is for me. Being published is just too far out of sight to contemplate. Well, the absolute truth is that I am published - I had a research paper published in an obscure scientific journal when I was in college, but it's not something that is on my resume any more!
   
   

Sporty Things

Young Man has finally finished his second lacrosse season and it ended very well. After his first goal early in the season, his confidence continued to climb and he managed several more goals during games and his team ended the regular season undefeated! They did suffer three losses in festival play (smaller fields, playing teams from the south county league), but I am soooo proud of our boys for their play during those games.

Three weeks ago, the boys played in a festival and faced the undefeated team from south county, Team X. We quickly learned how that team won their games. Yes, they had skill, but they also made an incredible number of fouls and had terrible sportsmanship. The poor single referee had his hands full trying to make sure that no one got hurt! Making it worse was listening to the five adult coaches (and gaggle of parents) congratulating their boys when they made fouls! Our two teenage coaches kept our boys going, but it was tough.

Two weeks ago we learned that we were slated to play this same team again. I explained to our head coach what had happened (he wasn't at the first game) and suggested that he come and bring some coach friends to support his young coaches and see if we could have two referees.

Game day dawned bright and sunny. We had some moments when we wondered if we would even be able to field a team. At the last minute, our tenth player arrived. Our boys went up against their first opponent of the day with no substitute players! The boys played very, very well. It was frustrating to have a substitution time called and our boys could only change positions while the other team could swap out more than half of their players. Even so, our Team won the game 4-3. Young Man survived a horrific (for his mother) hit that layed him out on the ground. Unfortunately for all, the ref didn't see it. Young Man got right up, dusted himself off, and got back in the game. About three-fourths of the way through the game, an eleventh player arrived and we had one sub!

Our head coach arrived at the end of the first game and gathered the boys to pump them up before they faced Team X. Our coach also had a talk with the referee and I noticed the ref speak to the Team X coaches. I cannot say enough good things about this ref. He was calm, patient, and explained everything to the boys. Team X still had a fair number of fouls, but they played a MUCH cleaner game than the first time we faced them. Mr. Engineer had overheard some of their team "pep" talk. The coaches strategy was to denigrate the opposing team and basically shame their boys into winning. It was completely different from any coaching our boys have received.

Even with the added support and better officiating, our boys had a very tough game. The temperature went into the 80s and the boys were tired! Again, Team X had a full slate of players and could sub out over half their team at each opportunity. Our boys still only had one sub and they were obviously dragging. Things looked pretty dismal as Team X rang up goal after goal. As the second half moved on, our boys were down 10-0. Did they give up? No, they didn't! Young Man (my Young Man!) made two shots on goal and then recovered his own miss and scored! This rallied the team and they made two more quick goals. Finally, the game was over and our boys had made it! All were hot, sweaty, tired, but happy that they never let up.

The score (10-3) may have indicated a loss, but this was still a good ending for a great season.

Booking Through Thursday

1. Do you lend your books to other people? If so, any restrictions? I lend a few. Generally, I only lend books when their failure to return would not upset me. I try to just give the book away and trust that it will continue on to others. If I really want the book back, I am very careful about who gets them and I make it clear that I expect them back. It is difficult to part with books, but I am getting better at setting them free for others to enjoy.


2. Do you borrow books from other people? (Friends or family—I'm not talking about the public library)? I rarely borrow from others. I do have some co-workers and a friend with similar feelings about books so we share. I am far more likely to just buy books in which I am interested rather than borrow them.


3. And, most importantly—do the books you lend/borrow get returned to their rightful owners? I always return the books I borrow. Sometimes it takes me a while. If it seems to be taking me too long, I will just return the book before reading it. I almost always receive the books I lend, provided that I made it clear that I wanted it back. Recently, I had one that did not come back because it was a thick paperback and the borrower was so embarassed about its condition when she finished that she just paid me for the book!

Saturdays & Stash

It has been so long since I managed to post a Saturday Sky photo on Saturday that I almost forgot about it! Our Saturdays have been filled with lacrosse games so today was a refreshing change. The season officially ended last weekend, but we have a festival tomorrow. Good thing the gear hasn't been stashed away. My day started with some pampering by my favorite stylist. The red is back in my hair and the curls are free from the over-long locks. The best part about a morning at the hair salon is all that time for knitting! I made it all the way down the leg on the first of a new pair of Trekking socks. I finally got my hands on a skein of the 100 colorway. It is bright! Perfect for Spring. The rest of the day was spent on more mundane things such has cleaning in the craft room (I found the sofa!) and grocery shopping.

So, how is everyone doing on their Knit from Stash resolution? I did break down in January and buy some additional balls of Fun Fur to finish the kids chemo caps, but I don't think that counts. Most of that was to finish already started hats and all the rest has been knit and posted to Boston long ago. Otherwise, I have remained strong. All I have purchased in these first two months have been needles and magazines. Okay, one book, but NO yarn.