Blue

We are bracing for a bad-ass storm here in Humboldt. Prediction is 6-10 inches of rain in the coming week. Viva El Niño! Figured, what the hell, let's make that part of my YIP project today. But, how to capture wind??

I tried getting a decent shot of one of our wind chimes whipping around, but that didn't fly. (Get it? I slipped in a pun there.) But then the first big drops started plopping around me & I changed tactics. The result is the view out my kitchen window, showing the stained glass moon that my friend Diane made and gave to me for my 40th birthday, with some of those ripe raindrops on our very dirty window. It's a blurry shot, but I like it. Can you see the trees blowing around in the background? Whee, hold on to your hat, it's a Winne the Pooh day!

Yesterday, some yarn showed up at my house. I stash-dived (dove? dunno) on Ravelry and came up with 2 skeins of Elsebeth Lavold Silky Wool + 2 skeins of Knit Picks fingering for dyeing, 1 each of Bare and Color Your Own; I can't resist stash enhancement, particularly for the bargain basement price of $23 for all including shipping!

I've got a couple of ideas for the Silky Wool: Ishbel, a popular small lace shawl, or the Cool Hemp Poncho, but neither really feels 'right'. I'd like to find a Help for Haiti pattern that would work for this yarn; the most likely candidate right now is the Calm Waters Cowl by Sara Amoroso, but I'm thinking I might want something a bit more lacy... Anybody with a suggestion, I'd love to hear from you!

Obviously, the Knit Picks yarns will get dyed; I'm thinking one will be done as a self-striping yarn using the warping board Cole made me last year, and the other I'll try out my Kenner knitting machine with, see if I can make myself a sock blank to dye and knit. Should be fun!

Tags: storm, humboldt, knitting

Can You Say 'Global Climate Change' Boys & Girls?

Wanna see some evidence of global climate change? Check out lilfishstudios' thermometer, then compare it to our thermometer. Brainerd, MN vs. Arcata, CA - who wins? My vote rests firmly with the latter. It still amazes me that people can even function in below-zero temps.

Seriously, it was -30F in Brainerd today, and 79F here in Arcata. Granted, our thermometer is smack up against the house, on the south side no less, so might be a tad inflated, but still... It's freakin' January!

Record setting highs & lows on the same day; something is definitely up with the climate. But don't get me wrong; I'm lovin' the warm weather we've been having. Today I walked the mile or so into town with my friend Jaimie & her dog Zukka. Perfect weather for a stroll! I needed to go to the P.O. anyway, & Cole had my bike today (he found his had a flat when he headed to work this morning), so I was gonna be walkin' anyway. It was nice having the company. (Although I don't usually stop for so many poo breaks.) Couple more pics here & here.


Yesterday I decided it was time to clean off my 'desk', the workspace where all the COLORBOMB / Velma's World magic happens. This is the 'before' shot, and, sadly, the 'after' photo as well, because I only got as far as deciding to clean it.

It started with a conversation with rawfish & oriridraco over on Twitter. Seems like this time of year brings out the housecleaning urge in lots of crafters. Consensus was that my workspace isn't *so* bad; messy isn't necessarily a bad thing! Besides, with weather like this, I shouldn't be inside cleaning anyway, right? I'm all about the easy justification for lazy.

Tags: weather, walk