What's Up - Or Weekending

Thursday afternoon we got a call from Smith's cousin to say he was in town for three days to ski and would like to meet for dinner. We quickly regrouped, as we had planned a night out for our 38th wedding anniversary, and happily met Jeff for dinner. You can see the family resemblance, no? It was fun to catch up, eat up some really good seafood, and commiserate on our miserable snow year. We're less than half what we should be this time of year, but that's another story. Jeff and his friends still had a great time given the snow we had that day.

Much of my weekend was spent with camnesia, a malady I often suffer from, but that only means I'm living more in the moment (methinks). Friday we went to a play (Don't Drink the Water) at a regional theater in a town just north of Salt Lake. (Thanks, Cheryl!) The play was corny, the characters funny, and we enjoyed the silliness and laughed a lot. 

Earlier in the week the Sunday Knits newsletter arrived and the minute I opened it up I knew I'd found my next sweater. I had started a something gray sweater and decided it didn't suit my mood. Then I found a pattern and yarn in my stash, this time dark gray, and thought I'd enjoy knitting Merle, but when Sunday Knits new pattern Sunday Morning came along it hit all my buttons and I broke down Friday morning and ordered the kit, which arrived Monday! In Delft. I'm in the mood for yarn the color of spring! 

Saturday I spent the afternoon immersing myself in the Liz Steel watercolour class. My head is swimming with water and pigment, brushes and paper, lines and puddles and my lack of control over all the above. I feel as if I am not absorbing much. My attempts at control seem to fall far short of "good", but I am determined I'll keep practicing, I know someday I'll find my own style. Regardless of ability, I find the pursuit of control to be fun and challenging. The amaryllis picture there as distraction. 

Sunday evening I had the pleasure of meeting one of my long time blog friends, Lauren W. Our conversation picked up as if we'd been face to face the day before. Meeting friends for the first time, but feeling as if you've known each other all your life, and talking the night away, well, that's what having a blog does. Lauren and I started blogging around the same time, 2004. You may remember Project Spectrum, one of the many projects bloggers thought up as a way to learn and challenge ourselves. PS was Lauren's baby and we had a great time coming up with blog posts for the colors in a color wheel. Those were the days, my friends. Despite walking away from her blog we have stayed friends on Instagram (which is my favorite SM) and Goodreads (my runner up). How thrilled I was that she came to town and we were able to spend an evening together. 

Happy Monday Tuesday, everyone.

Weekend-ed

The big news of our weekend is that Saturday was the snowiest day of our winter! We woke to several inches of snow, thrilled that the nature had decided it was our turn to revel in the "white stuff". Our mountains have been brown and bare, the ski resorts barely able to open, and we have all been worried, but also enjoying our balmy temperatures to the fullest. 

This is the first pure white mountain picture I've been able to snap all winter! Smith and I sat back, canceled a few plans and enjoyed a day of puttering around the house. As it turned out the roads were no problem and 8" of snow isn't quite "all that", but we enjoyed the day nonetheless. 

I spent much of the day in my "office" and since the most excellent amaryllis resides there, too, I took a copious number of pictures.  She doesn't have a bad side and my thrill is that she has two more healthy shoots growing quickly. Along with the elegant pink blossoms in the dining room, I'll have blossoms well into February. Already I have plans for an even bigger amaryllis forest next year.  Her beauty was quite a distraction while I worked on my watercolor class, did a bit of bookwork, and looking through my mail, but I still got a lot of work accomplished because of this snow day. 

I'll set pride aside to show you my first attempt at watercolor and sketching from my Sketch Now Watercolor class. Controlling the amount of water on my brush is proving a little challenging, but since I'm only beginning I'm giving myself a break and going through all the exercises several times. Even if I'm not a great watercolorist, I'm having a super good time. 

One of my favorite parts of the day is when mail arrives. Saturday was a very good day as I got a note from a no-longer-blogging friend, a package from my sister, six postcards from the far reaches of the planet earth, and couple of Christmas/New Year cards (it's never too late). Last year, two of my sisters took a trip to Europe and visited The Netherlands, Germany, France and Switzerland. From each location they sent postcards (so much fun to get postcards from my sisters!) a couple of which arrived after they'd come home, but it was nice to know they thought of me while traveling to such beautiful places. In the mail Saturday was a desk calendar, just the style I like, with pictures of them while visiting many colorful and iconic spots. 

The best thing about this unexpected day at home is it included knitting, reading and all of the above, and morphed into an evening of watching The Crown and having a delicious dinner with Smith (he had the day off!). I can't help but feel very grateful for my life. 

Weekending After Another Break

This is where I say, life has had a way of getting "in the way". I had to look at the calendar to see what I'd been up to, as the past week has been a a whirlwind. Suffice it to say, the week was full of busy fun. I'm not great at remembering to take pictures and I'm not great at chronicling my life for the blog, but there was a jazz concert, an afternoon at the movies to see a special production of As You Like It by Shakespeare, and a evenings out with girlfriends. There was even a little time with Smith. It was a great week! And then, it was the weekend!

After work Friday, I set off for a much needed haircut. I thought I'd share this photo is of "my mountain" from the shop, which is just a few miles south of where I live. The day was beautiful, but because there was a  northerly breeze, it was cooler than it appeared. I was more than ready for a haircut and asked how long it had been. They told me less than 4 weeks! My usual is 5 weeks. But, then she then they said hair grows more quickly in the spring than in the winter. Did you know? Do you know it is spring? I am here to attest it is so. 

As you can see the apricots are in bloom and this week a winter storm is forecast for 2-4 inches of snow in the valley! In the 5-6 years we've been in the garden we have never had a single apricot. This year is true to form. At least I had a few minutes to commune with the beautiful blossoms. 

I have not had much time (or much inclination) to do any sort of crafting. I have a sock on the needles and a sweater, too. I have not put a stitch into my Alabama Chanin T-shirt, but I have been reading, spending a lot of time with friends, and generally enjoying a life is as it should be! 

I Love Weekends

The weekend was low key, quiet and pretty much normal. The weather was gray (it's winter) with a few inches of snow on Sunday (it's winter). Stella was at the top of her game and added a much needed bit of color to the grayness.

The grocery shopping was accomplished, I enjoyed a night out with a girlfriend, and spent an afternoon at SnB (with girlfriends). And then, the best part of the weekend--a celebratory dinner out, as Smith and I marked our 36th Anniversary (today!)!

Weekends!

Hallo!

How much do I love the weekend? 

This weekend was spent dining with friends as much as possible--sushi for lunch, Chinese for dinner. If I could have fit in a visit to my favorite Mid-Eastern restaurant, I would have (I might do that today!). 

Sunday was warm and beautiful, the perfect day to wash my car (far right) and get off the road-salt and dirt. (I love my car!) We've lived with gray skies and smog since the first of the year and it was fabulous to see blue sky, plus the temperature was over 40!

I also spent quite a bit of  time knitting, as well as, stitching. I've embarked on my new AC T, the Lata T.

Today my office is spending the better part of the day doing a service project in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King. Every year we pick an organization and help them out in any way they need. We have fun and we enjoy giving to others as a group. 

"Life's most persistent and urgent question is, 'What are you doing for others?'" ~Martin Luther King

Over the Weekend

After 8 days of gray the sun played hide and seek with us with only revealing itself  a couple of times, and then, only for short spurts of time. The next week doesn't look very promising, as more gray, and maybe a little snow, are in the forecast. Saturday afternoon the blue skies came into view and Smith and I went for a walk just to celebrate. 

I spent quite a bit of time listening to books (Americanah for the second time), podcasts (innumerable), and, either, knitting or sewing. My dark little secret is the jigsaw I work on while watching TV (Big Bang episodes from the library). Every couple of years I run across a jigsaw puzzle that catches my fancy and this one, Charlie Harper's Rocky Mountains was too cool to pass up. 

On my needles is a second pair of Trip Mitts, which should be in the recipients hands by weeks end. Also, another Alabama Chanin project was started, but you'll have to wait to hear more about that later. The size T-shirt I bought may be a little big, which worries me some, but I'm going to enjoy working on it and wearing it no matter what. 

Smith and I looked through seed catalogs while dreaming of spring and he listened to me moan about the too long nights. I listened to him explained plants need at least 10 hours of light to respond (we're not there yet). Have you noticed the slightly longer days? On January 29th we hit the mark. YAY!

How's the weather in your part of the world? 

Welcome 2016

Returning to the normalcy of a workday life (as well as a world of "have to,") after the long, lovely weekend feels like a rude awakening.  We had a mix of weather starting with Tuesday, when I missed SnB as the roads were too treacherous. Wednesday and Thursday we were visited by the "dreaded" inversion, but the New Year started with clear blue skies. I hope the clear sky is a portend of the coming month, as we would not like the inversion to come in and stay. 

My weekend was relaxing, productive, and had plenty of fun scattered in. Even at the carwash, as I had the salt cleaned from my car, I found a friend who had a moment to share a little conversation. We had a grand time laughing and squawking. I complimented him on his choice of color. 

I was honored to receive one of Beverly's hand drawn postcards of her 2015 Postcard Project. I have enjoyed watching her daily progress of creating one card for every day of the year. Her new daily project looks even more ambitious and personal. 

Smith and I went to a concert on the spur of the moment, something we rarely do. The music was a joyful way to bring in the New Year and being spontaneous is one of the things I'd like to work on in 2016. I don't usually share intentions and have never picked an official One Little Word, but I'm thinking about directions to head in 2016. I may even end up picking a "OLW", but that's still up in the air. 

There were a couple of "finishes" in 2015 and a not so great start for my 2016 crafting. I do not accept it as a failure, but will treat it as a slight delay. My last project of 2015 was a pair of Gale's Trip Mitts and I think they're so cool! Somehow I ended up buying a too light weight yarn and the second pair turned out too small. My first project of 2016 will started later this week after I procure the right supplies. 

Despite the crafting setback, 2016 is going to be a great year for making, reading, moving, and doing. Plans and ideas dance around my head and I'm looking forward to seeing where the path of a new year leads.

Day 30: Weekended

Friday - I shopped, but only at the LYS and local grocery. I also cleaned, cleared, and organized, even started to decorate. But, most of my day was spent with my nose buried in a book. I crafted in the evening, but it was not the focus of my day. 

Saturday - Lunch with a friend, but the rest of the afternoon was stringing lights, placing menorahs, putting poinsettias here and there, mixing in a Santa or two. But, mostly I read (or listened) as much of the day as I possibly could. Since my hands were free, I worked on my Alabama Chanin market bag and made good progress. I have made a renewed promise to finish it (soon). Crafting is one of the main reasons I love listening to books. 

Sunday - Decisions were made...the cowl project abandon and a fire lit under the desire to get the sweater off square one. I was 10 books behind in my reading challenge, but by reading as much as I could this weekend, I have only 5 books to go. The market bag and the sweater will help me reach my goal of 65 books this year--or at least I hope so! 

Thank goodness today the 30th! whew

Day 23: Weekend Blur

When the weekends are so packed with life from beginning to end, and it is near 10:00pm Sunday night and you trying to sort things out for a blog post, it is best to jump to the last few things that happened. 

The weekend involved time with friends, time for movies, and time for dining out, but not enough time to do everything I'd like to have done.  There was a little time for knitting, sewing, and walking. I am Marching Through Time. Sunday afternoon Smith and I thought it was a fine enough day we could walk along the Jordan River Parkway. The sky was brilliantly blue, but the air grew colder and colder. We started at 4800 So. and walked until the sun started to set and it become too cold and dark to continue. Part of the river had a thin layer of ice, which had very likely formed a few days before and never had a chance to melt. The ice would certainly thicken overnight. 

The last thing I did, before falling into bed, was make an unplanned pot of soup. We had a fridge full of veggies, a bunch of leftover chicken, and Vicki's Roasted Tomato Sauce in the freezer. It all translated to a big pot of deliciousness. I love it when unplanned happenings turnout so well. 

Psst. Speaking of unplanned...check out the newest new header on my blog. Vicki was inspired by my Saturday's sky and decided to redo the redo! I LOVE IT! 

Day 16: To Be - It Was

My Saturday afternoon was spent with Cheryl at Hamlet with Benedict Cumberbatch, which was almost as fabulous being there in person would be. Ok, well, maybe not quite, but it was very good and we enjoyed it immensely. 

Not everyone loves Shakespeare, I understand that, but it doesn't take a "Shakespeare ear" to enjoy a great production and seeing Benjamin would get you through it. The production was from the National Theater Live (of London) and it was a one off...Saturday was the only showing for our area. 

The rest of the time was spent doing what I usually do on the weekends, erranding, gathering groceries, laundry and trying to get ahead of myself come Monday. But...

...in addition, we planted the 75 bulbs Smith bought last weekend because the weather peoples say there is a storm coming in Monday. The wind blew all day Sunday, but became stronger and more steady as night fell. I'll let you know how it plays out. 

How was your weekend?