catching up

Have i said that i really like the new Prius?

actually, i love how it drives, how comfortable it is, how much room there is for all our "stuff" AND the fact that we got 51 mpg the last 2 tanks full of pricey gas. that mileage was with a combination of 70mph on the highway and stop and go city type driving. i had heard that the car sacrifices pep and power to the economy, but i havent found that to be true at all. have had no problem with getting plenty of power for passing etc!! love it! and it is kind of cute, too... not in the category of Mazda Miata, but cute nonetheless!

and then there is the current knitting project... the stole! once again my "casual" approach and lack of planning has risen up to bite me in the ass! you'd think i'd have learned by now to be sure i have enough fiber dyed for the project i want to do, even tho i dont have all the yarn spun.... but no! took a critical look at the accumulated yarn and decided i'd better do some figuring as to how much i'd used so far and how much the stole would require to make it 60 inches long. it would have been SO much easier to do this calculating while i was dyeing the fiber... but did i? no! of course, i now need at least 6 more ounces and i know damn well i cant dye fiber to match closely enough for it to work, and of course, all the original fiber is spun up, so i cant do the old trick of mixing first dyed and second dyed fiber as i spin it and work that into a "design element" (and i DO love "design elements"). so, plan B developed: use same Iris and Turquoise diluted, then alternate the more intense and the softer shades. Last night i ripped out the 14 or so inches i'd knitted, decided to eliminate the olive-y yarn completely. now just need to get this new batch spun up, which should go quickly as i love spinning the alpaca/merino/silk, and i'll have a bag full of yarn and a travel project. pictures later, maybe.

last month when i went to the beach, i visited my friend, Gail, who i hadnt seen in way too long. our kids went to school together in Banks, are now in their 30s and both of us are now grammas! Gail's grandson, Sam, is precious and sweet, and let me give him lots of hugs!


have been keeping busy with working thru the list of things to get done before we leave (in 18 days). got some audible books downloaded and on my iPod (John Irving's _Until I Find You_, Ann Cameron's _Colibri_, Sue Monk Kidd _The Mermaid Chair_, Mark Haddon _The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime_, Patricia Storace _Dinner with Persephone_) plus lots of music including Helen Reddy's Greatest Hits (1987) which hearing again has turned into a huge blast from the past experience... oh, my! it amazes me how much i've put on the iPod and barely dented its capacity. have been trying to get used to the dell laptop and windows. what an alien experience that is. am beginning to wish i'd been able to find the $500 or $600 more it would have cost to have a mac laptop. i did get a wireless mouse which eliminated the frustration of the damn touchpad. well, "they" say that by learning new things one can keep the brain cells and synapses firing and stave off the onset of oldtimers brain..... this dell challenge should fill that bill!

had lunch with brother Curbhead on wednesday at Maggie's Buns in FG, which was fun and we agreed to do that again. what i had to eat was a wrap with eggplant, feta, tomato, hummus... and i plan to make that for supper one of these days. will add basil leaves and sliced kalamata olives plus a bit of olive oil and balsamic vinegar. yum. Last weekend my dear friend Anne came out for dinner.... first time she's been out since she helped me choose the tile for my new kitchen and also, the first i've seen her since her dear Dave died in Jan. Anyway, she's planning a 3-month trip to SE Asia in december, and since Pam is moving there in october, they had lots to talk about and will get together when Anne is in Chung Mai. on sunday, Ryan and Sonia came out to help Jim with wine bottling and to get more pointers on grape harvest since they will be in charge of it this year while we are picking grapes and olives in Crete. Also, Marge (DSIL) and Loren came for dinner as we wanted to be sure we see them before we leave. Today Pop is coming out for dinner. Judy's bringing him. she and i had wanted to have dinner at a steak place before i leave, but that just prob. wont happen, so we'll have to settle for Jim bbq-ing some fish and we'll share a bottle of Retsina. tomorrow is a twisted sisters spinning get together here at dome central... havent seen anyone but Linda since BSG, so it'll be great to see them. hoping that Rachael will get back from her weekend up by Port Angeles in time to see everyone. ive been needing some chocolate in a big way, so will make some super-chocolate brownies for tomorrow and an orzo salad.

and next weekend, C&K and the kids and puppy will be here for a wedding on sat. night (Jim's niece Brittany is getting married). on friday night we'll have dinner with Pop - the monthly Candlelight Dinner at Avamere, which was quite good the last time we went. grandkids and wedding saturday. then Chris will leave early sunday to drive back to Duvall and fly out on another microsoft trip to London. Pop and (Curbhead) Bud have planned a family dinner at Bud's as a going away for us and BD for celebration for Bud. Then with 9 days til departure, i'll do my best to avoid any social getting together, going anywhere etc, and try to figure out what's essential to take with me for a 3 month stay... and get it packed. i keep reminding myself that there are stores and plenty of opportunities to buy anything essential that i forget. it doesnt totally sink in. but since i cant count on finding yarn and fiber and knitting books, i am definitely packing lots of those things. have gotten a big bunch of Falkland wool yarn dyed up in bright colors to make some kid things for xessmass as there wont be much time for that when we get back.

i dont know if anyone has read this far ... it's been pretty long and blabby, but this is the end for today!