Mother Nature is a Furious Babe

Hi, all! Sorry I didn't update you sooner. I got a few e-mails from people who wanted to know if I was all right & whether or not prolonged power outages had driven me completely feral & forced me to cannibalize Weedinator. Thank you for your concern, but I didn't have to turn savage.

We did get a LOT of rain. I'm not in a flood-prone area, but as you can see, even people who don't live in low-lying areas can get water buildup.

Driveway & street

Backyard -- we've lived here for 4 years & I've never seen the water this high

I completely respect Mother Nature. Storms, hurricanes, tornadoes, etc. are nothing to sneeze at. Which is why I don't understand all the people we saw on the news down at the beach while the storm was passing through. Standing on piers, swimming in the ocean...and drowning. Yes, we had some folks drown here who needlessly did so. For reasons that escape me, they chose to go swimming in waters that were nasty, violent & very strong. People, you can't beat Mother Nature. I wouldn't even try.

A wee bit windy

So I was huddled up in my house, surrounded by books & yarn. Strangely, rain puts me in a knitting mood like few things will, so I'm almost finished with my first lacy sock -- normally, it takes me a good two months to finish a pair because I'm so slow. I knitted, listened to the wind (which sounded like it could rip the bricks right off our house), watched the storm's exceedingly slow progress on the TV...and was thankful that we still had power, that no water came inside our home, that we were all safe.

Mother Nature may be furious at times, but she can also be gentle & sweet. The same wind that tore down trees can drift over you on a hot day & offer relief. The same pounding rain sometimes comes down in little sheets that make the flowers grow. I'd never underestimate her because I've seen all the damage -- and the beauty -- she can bring.

Thanks again for being concerned. We're doing fine!

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Weathering the Storm

We're hunkering down in Florida for the latest tropical storm. May my fellow Floridians and East Coasters be safe through this current weather event. Thankfully, it's not a hurricane -- that's already passed through #1 Girl's room and left a path of destruction in its wake which we'll try and recover from at a later date.

Since the storm is supposed to pass right over where I am, we've been advised we might lose power. Luckily, I have things to do that don't require electricity.

See you when the storm passes.

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7th (8th?) Time's the Charm

Finally, I "got" this cuff. I started over at least 6 times. Went over to Ravelry (of course) & did a search on the forums to see if anyone else had trouble with the cuff instructions and, being Ravelry, someone else had & had already asked the question I had. And it was finally made clear to me. (What did we do before Ravelry? If I had another kid, I think I'd name it Ravelry.)

For being frogged several times (and cussed out & thrown down a few times & threatened with being the dog's next meal), this yarn held up amazingly well. You can't even tell it's been through the wringer. As you can see, I found a pattern for the red yarn. I was really inspired after seeing this post -- that cuff is so pretty. I wanted a sock pattern with a pretty cuff like that, something really feminine & lacy in a bright color that would just cheer me up whenever I put them on.

I pulled out my pattern books (what? no Ravelry pattern browser this time?) & settled on the Fancy Silk Sock (Rav link) from Knitting Vintage Socks. Even though I kept messing up, I was determined to knit them & now, I think I finally get it.

She's gettin' it!

Ravelry, if I wasn't already married, I'd let you take me to a drive-in movie. Double feature, if you know what I mean.

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