One Little Word - 2020

It has been several years since I did One Little Word, inspired by Ali Edwards.

I found a little quiz on her Facebook page (I believe) to help me choose a word for 2020 and the results stated my possible word is "Harmony".

When I read the meaning - I thought "BOY, DOES THAT FIT ME!"

Harmony: You are seeking agreement in your life. Your search for balance and peace propels you forward. 

That is exactly what I want...agreement in my life, balance and peace!!  So I am going to focus on this word for 2020.   Sadly, I am not going to follow Ali's workshop for various reasons but I am going to let this word be my guide.

#OneLittleWord2020

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas to One and All !

Funny Friday - A Pony's Christmas List

Funny Friday - Watch Out for Ice Holes

Happy Thanksgiving

Bloggy Changes

I haven't posted much lately and that is mainly because of 2 things

1) I couldn't figure out how to get rid of a tinypic image that was on every single post and looked like he was angry.  (I think he is supposed to be sad because tinypic.com ceased operations) I'm a bit sad about that too because I used to use them a lot to host photos on various message boards.  I hate they are not around anymore but I had kind of stopped using them because it was difficult with all the moving ads on their website

2) The CutestBlogOnTheBlock.com - where I use to find cute and more importantly FREE blogger backgrounds seems to be offline - I keep getting a message saying such and then this appears.

 

So...every blog post had this plain pink background and that sad/angry little tinypic face, both were annoying me because I couldn't figure out how to fix it.  I honestly thought about just shutting this blog down and starting over, but I didn't really want to do that.

Well...after much messing around with the HTML codes, I was able to finally get rid of the tinypic face and also change the background for my blog. 

So...now that I am happy again with the look of it, at least for now...so hopefully I will get back to blogging on a more regular basis.

God Tapped Me on the Shoulder

Have you ever had God tap you on the shoulder?  He did that with me yesterday.  Not literally, of course, but he did it just the same.

Yesterday morning, as I was leaving for church, I decided to stop by QT (gas station/convenience store) to get some tea (they have the best ice and several flavors of fresh brewed iced tea).  I wasn't in the best of moods because I was feeling a bit hungry, but didn't want to eat because knew I'd be meeting some friends after church for lunch.  Plus, I while I was looking forward to seeing my friends, I was looking forward to the place we were going and spending that amount of money.

Of course I dealt with a couple of bad drivers in the short trip to QT so that made my mood even grumpier.

When I arrived and parked, I saw a man outside the door asking people for money...I didn't want to deal with it so I hurried past him as he was engaged with someone else and he wasn't able to ask me.

While I was getting my tea, I heard a man behind me
"Excuse Me?"

Oh no I thought, he has followed me inside to ask me for money.  I don't want to give him money (I prefer giving to charities to help people in need and not give to people directly).

Again, I heard behind me
"Excuse Me?"

I admit it, I pretended I didn't hear him because I knew he was just going to ask for money and I would have to say "Sorry".  I was holding a $5.00 bill in my hand to pay for the tea so I couldn't tell him "I don't have any cash"

Again, the man says, kindly and quietly,
"Excuse Me?"

Know that he was not going to give up, I couldn't keep pretending that I didn't hear him so I turned around.

It was NOT the man I had seen outside, it was a different man, who appeared to not speak English well.  He pointed to the ground.

I looked down and he was trying to let me know that I had dropped my ATM/Debit card.  He was doing a GOOD deed, even though I was pretending I didn't  hear him - he persisted.

Boy was that a lesson...here this nice man was trying to help me and I was ignoring him because I though he was going to ask for money.  I felt like I was shrinking, like when Fred Flintsone is humiliated

Then I thought...what if it was the other guy that was standing there asking for money...I obviously had $5.00 I could have given him and wouldn't helping someone in need (even if they were not really in need but asking anyway) be better than me spending $1.00 for a cup of tea?

It was like God telling me....look, not everyone is out to get you or scam you and even though you are in a sour mood, some nice person took extra time to help you today.

I thanked the man so much for telling me about my dropped card (but not sure he understood me) and proceeded to make my purchase.  When I left, the man outside had walked away but had he been there and asked for money, I would have given him the other $4 I had. 

I am grateful to that nice man for telling me about my card, it could have been really bad if someone else had found it.

Sometimes God gets our attention in subtle ways and other times, he taps you on the shoulder.

 

Funny Friday - Humpty Dumpty

2019 Dishcloth Swap - Received

I mentioned before the dishcloths I made for an annual dishcloth swap.

I received my 5 dishcloths and here they are!! They are very nice and one of them even has some scrubby type yarn. Thanks to my fellow Ravelers that sent them.

Squeeze - 2019 Tour

I had the joy of seeing SQUEEZE at the Tabernacle Sunday, September 22nd

They were so great!!  The L.A. punk band "X" opened up and they were very good but just were on a bit too long for me.  I don't think a band like Squeeze should have an opening act but I did enjoy "X"

Squeeze mentioned that they first played Atlanta in 1978 at Rose's Catina (a former Tex-Mex bar).  They sang all their hits - it was awesome!!!

 

Rainbow by Kacey Musgraves

I heard this song yesterday, it is is rare I hear new music these days since I primarily listen to First Wave or the 80s on 8 on Sirius XM but both of those channels happened to be playing the same exact song at the same exact time and it wasn't a song I particularly wanted to hear (how in the world did they end up playing the same song at the same time?)

So...I poked around and this song was just coming on and I thought it was so pretty.

Funny Friday - Elmer Fudge

W.I.P. Wednesday - 2019 Dishcloth Swap

I took a break from the Around the World Afghan to finish some dishcloths.

So, since these are finished - I guess they are not really a Work In Progress (WIP) but rather a Finished Object (FO)

I have participated in an annual dishcloth swap for a few years now and almost didn't do it this year because I wasn't sure I had time.

I usually knit them because I really prefer knitted dishcloths to crochet ones, but I do have a few crochet ones that I have received in the swaps that I really love. Also, I crochet faster than I knit so I thought...I will crochet them this year.

I decided to make the Pretty Pastel Dishcloth (that I made a tutorial on before).  So, I made them.
Now I just have to get them in the mail - the deadline is this Friday - that is going to be pushing it, since I have no idea when I will have time to get to the Post Office....haha

 

 

Office Pet Peeves Week - Day 4

The "Quick Question"

If I had a nickle for every time says "Can I ask you a quick question" - then I could have retired about 10 years ago.

I honestly do not mind answering questions, if they pertain to my job, I really don't.  I am very happy to help someone that needs it because sometimes I need assistance too.

However, the pet peeve is that although your question may be quick, the answer and solution isn't. 

Example:
Employee: Can I ask you a quick question
Me: Sure
Employee: Can you give me all the revenue collections for the past 8 years broken down by tax type and by month?
Me: Uh.....I can but it will take me a while to put all that together
Employee: Okay - just send it to me when done and I need it for a meeting with the president of the company in 1 hour.
Employee: Walks away

All questions are quick, right?
Question: Will you explain evolution?
Question: Will you tell me the name of every US President in order?
Question: Will you give me directions to Kalamazoo?

All of the answers are quick - but the answers (other than telling them Yes I will or No, I won't) but the solution to the question is not quick.

The biggest annoyance is though is that they won't wait for the answer. 

For instance, today someone asked me for a telephone number.  I don't have 1,000 telephone numbers memorized.
I said "It is on this website, let's look it up"
While looking it up, I see the website had been modified so I was having trouble finding the number
The employee didn't want to wait around 30 seconds for me to locate it so said
"Just email it to me when you find it" and walked away.

Now, I am spending MY time looking for a phone number, that he needs but HE is too busy to look it up himself but yet it doesn't bother him that it interupts my work day or takes time away from my schedule.

If you ask me a "quick question" - at least be decent enough to hang around for the answer -  no matter how long it takes.

W.I.P. Wednesday

I have been busy and out of town so haven't had much crocheting time.  But I did manage to complete a full 1 1/2 rows and started a couple of new rows

I am not sure why but for the current section, I decided to do two rows at a time...We shall see how that works out.

That little lone blue square sitting there in the middle was added because I forgot to join the 2 squares below it so I added the blue square at the top to join all 3 together - I was afraid I would forget by the time I go there.  It is coming along!!  I am loving it so far.

Office Pet Peeves Week - Day 3

The closed door pet peeve

I rarely close my office door - if  my door is closed there are 3 reasons for it
1) Someone is in my office and we are having a confidential discussion
2) I am on a confidential phone call
3) I am extremely busy trying to meet a deadline

98% of the time, my door is open.

However, it never fails that when I shut more door the following happens

Scenario 1:
Rude Employee: * knock, knock *
Rude Employee: opens door before I say "come in"
Rude Employee: Proceeds to ask me a question or tell me their problem even though they can clearly see I am in the middle of a meeting with someone else because the other employee is standing right in front of me.

Scenario 2:
Rude Employee: * knock, knock *
Me: No reply because I am on a phone call
Rude Employee: * knock knock knock knock knock knock * (and louder)
Me: No reply because I am talking on the phone
Rude Employee: opens the door anyway (although I didn't say "come in") and says "Oh, I didn't know you were on the phone" - I will just wait
Rude Employee: Sits down in my office and leaves the door open.
Me: I have to tell the person I am speaking with to please hold, then tell rude employee that I will see them when I am done with my call
Rude Employee: But I only have a quick question.

There are many others I can list but these are the 2 main issues concerning closed offices doors.

Office Pet Peeve Week - Day 2

Today's Pet Peeve is called the long e-mail add in

Two or more people have been emailing back and forth for days (or sometimes weeks).  You are unaware of this email or the subject matter at hand.

Suddenly, you are brought into the chain by one person that says "Can you answer Tom's question?"

You have to read through 18 pages of emails to find out what Tom's question is about and when all is said and done, it is something as simple as "When is the deadline for submitting XYZ report?"

Why didn't the person just send me a separate email (or pick up the phone for that matter) that said "Can you tell me when XYZ report is due?

Simple...but no, I guess it is much easier for THEM to have ME read through 18 pages of stuff to answer a single question.

So...when you loop someone into a string of emails that has been going on...summarize for the person FIRST - don't make them read the entire chain.

Office Pet Peeve Week - Day 1

 

I am sure if you work in an office, if you are like me, you have quite a few Office Pet Peeves.  They are not major things in the scheme of life or in the scheme of work but they are just little things that happen over and over and really bug you...or at least bug me.

So I thought I would dedicate a week to them. I actually think I could write a book about them, but pretty sure no one would buy that - haha!!


Today's Pet Peeve happened before I even arrived at work for the day.

Last week, I had to set up separate, individual meetings with over 20 people....so 20 different meetings.

We are supposed to keep our calendars updated.  I set up meeting requests LAST Wednesday - WEDNESDAY!

Of course I checked everyone's calendar, and as you can imagine, it is tricky to schedule 20 meetings based on (a) each person's availability and (b) the meeting room's availability.  But I managed to schedule them over several days.

Friday night - at 8:30 pm (2 days after I had scheduled the meeting) - someone replies "I'm at a conference next week, can  you reschedule?"

Here is the a triple pet peeve.

1) Your calendar indicates that you are in the office all next week and that you even have a couple of meetings scheduled - how was I to know you were going to be out all week, if your calendar doesn't indicate that?

2) I set up the meeting Wednesday, yet you wait 2 days to tell me you are not available?  Rooms book up fast so if you told me 2 days ago, I may have been able to find a room, now I have to scramble to find one.

3) You notify me of this at 8:30 on a Friday night, when you know the office is closed, when you know you are going out of town Saturday morning and it is clearly outside of business hours.

UGH! 

So now I have to schedule the meeting again, work with the other 2 people that are in the meeting and adjust according to their schedules, and the room availability.....and all of this extra work for me could have been avoided very simply, if only you had just DONE YOUR JOB and had your calendar up to date.

Funny Friday - An Apple - Guardians of the Galaxy Style

What Happened? Parenting Syles at Kroger

When I was a kid, my mom would try to go to the grocery store during the weekday, while we were at school - she'd plan the meals for the week, cook them and what was on the table each night was what we ate...she didn't make a special meal for me and a different one for my sister.

There wasn't any concern of gluten free needs or nut free or wheat free - no problems for any kids

Now, kids have so many dietary limits but do they? Really?  Now I know there are some TRUE allergies to certain foods but I find it hard to believe that 1/2 of Mrs. Jones 2nd grade class as a gluten allergy.  Really?  Especially when NONE of the kinds in my 2nd grade class were allergic to it but then again, that was quite a few years ago and parents didn't parent they way they do now.

As I said, mom my picked out our food for us, we seldom ate out.  It was a treat to do so.

When we opened our lunch bag at lunch time, we had some kind of sandwich on white bread (oh the horror) and it was generally peanut butter & jelly (Heaven forbid) or bologna with mayo or American cheese with mayo or sometimes - surprise - bologna & cheese - yummy - I loved those! We would often have a bag of chips in there and sometimes a pudding cup or an apple, once in a while (rare), we'd have a Little Debbie Snack cake - we didn't always have dessert in the bag though.

We ate it, it was good, we didn't go home and complain to mom that we didn't have this or that or that we were sick of this or that - we ate what we had or if we preferred, they'd give us lunch money to buy our lunch in the cafeteria.

Today at Kroger, I witnessed, not one, not two but THREE different families letting their 5 year old pick out the groceries.  Both their mom and dad were in tow.

Mom:  Anna Grace (little girls these days always seem to be called 2 names) - do you want cottage cheese this week?

Dad: Make sure you get the fat free

Anna Grace: Meh

Mom: Honey, tell mommy if you want cottage cheese this week

Anna Grace: Okay, I guess

Mom: Good, do you want this brand or this brand

(I am not making this up)

Anna Grace:  **  points to one of them

Mom: Are you sure?

Anna Grace:  ** nods, then walks over to ice cream freezer

Dad: No, honey, you can have some frozen fruit pops if you want some, do you want some?

Anna Grace:   - I want those - as she points to ice cream sandwiches

Dad:  Anna Grace, those aren't good - let's get some fresh fruit pops (dad gets some Blueberry Acai fruit pops then tells mom he is getting Nutty Bars for him)

Anna Grace: Meh

Mom:  Anna Grace, do you want some cheese stick for your lunch, do you like mozzarella or cheddar?

Anna Grace: Cheddar

Mom: Do you want this brand, this brand or this brand?  Come away from the ice cream, Anna Grace and pick out your cheese sticks.

Anna Grace: I want both

Mom: Okay - I'll get both

Dad: Did you get the gluten free bread for her morning avocado toast?

Mom: We need to head over to that aisle

Me: Standing off to the side, rolling my eyes out of their view...and thinking "are you kidding me?"

This was just one family - there were 2 others very similar that I witnessed - the kid was picking out everything and the parents were just asking them if this or that was okay with them.

Now I get wanting to buy your kid something that is healthy and something they will eat but....we ate what we were given!  My mom knew enough about us to know what we liked and didn't.  She knew if she made tuna sandwiches, we wouldn't eat it.

Mom didn't have to say "Now, I know you don't like tuna, honey bun, but do you want Jif or Peter Pan?  NOPE - mom got what was on sale!

For crying out loud - be the adult, take charge!!!

Funny Friday - Crochet Dog Sweater

W.I.P. Wednesday - Around the World Afghan - Restart

This is a VERY old work in progress.  I can't believe how long ago it was when I started this project.
I began it March 20, 2010 - WOW!  There are lots of reasons it sat dormant.

It is a BIG project - 1,073 tiny granny squares in 13 different colors. So, it is a big overwhelming when I think about it sometimes.

Also, because it is such a big project, I would set it aside to do other projects that had didn't take as long and I could see some results.

Sometimes I would get asked to make projects for others or for charity and I would stop and do that.

Then in 2014 my life changed for ever and I couldn't physically crochet for a while and even when I was healed and could....I lost the desire - I didn't do any crafting for almost 3 years - I just didn't have the desire - all I could focus on for a long time was just getting through the days.  This project was in the back of my SUV when I had my accident - my friend helped me clean out my SUV after the accident and I think in ways...this project sort of reminded me of that and perhaps that is another reason I kept it dormant.

When I finally did pick up my crochet hook and knitting needles again, I started out with small projects and even then, it was a slow process getting back into it.

After I started getting back into it full swing, I would look at the project bag and once and a while (the very big project bag) and think...oh boy...that is a huge project...how will I ever finish it? I wanted to finish it but I just didn't know when since it seemed I was always working on something else.

Well...I recently finished a small project and didn't have another one already started and I thought...it is time...before I start anything new, by golly I am going to finish that afghan.

I really hope I have enough yarn in each color because if I don't...I'm out of luck since these colors (except for black) are all discontinued now.

I started working on it Friday night and was getting a little frustrated because every time I reached for the next color, I had to root around in the big project bag and search and search and no matter how I tried to keep them organized in the bag, they kept getting jumbled around and difficult to find.  And with this project, I am changing colors A LOT !!

So...after making a few squares, I stopped, wound all my skeins it cakes, (because the skein were taking up more room...then luckily I had a big box that they perfectly fit in and I could organize them and keep them that way.

Isn't it pretty?  It looks kind of small in the photo but it is really a pretty large box...probably 24" x 18" and maybe 24" deep, so just the right amount of room to store the yarn cakes and store the afghan on to top when not working on it.

So...I worked on it some Saturday, while watching the final season of Orange is the New Black.  Then worked on it Sunday, while watching a Good Witch movie marathon. 

It is kind of hard to get a photo because it is very wide - about 5 feet so as I continue on...not sure how I am going to be able to take photos of it as it gets bigger. 

So far, so good and I am really want to finish this afghan.  It is quite a challenge due to the size, the number of colors, the time it will take but I really like it and it will be nice to have a very old WIP completed.

Funny Friday-Time to Move

W.I.P. Wednesday

This isn't a WIP any longer - I finished the project....it is a....Tea Cozy.

My sister had been re-watching Call the Midwife and decided she needed a cute tea cozy (which show up often on this British Series)

I had a little rough start with it because I never made pleats before and at first I was making them inside out but I got the hang of it and I'm very pleased with it.

W.I.P. Wednesday

I haven't had much time for crafting because of my work schedule but even at 10:00 pm at night, when I get home after a 15 hour day, it is nice to sit down, even for 30 minutes, just to relax and knit.  It really does help me unwind.

Another problem is this cute little cat, has decided she thinks she belongs to me and of course the moment I pick up the knitting, she wants to be held and loved on.  If I put the knitting down, then of course she wants to go off on her own.  Ah ya ya - it is frustrating trying to knit like that.

Anyway, between work and between kitty loving, I managed to get a good start on a this.
It is worked in 2 parts, which I didn't realize until I finished the first part and thought - boy, this is too small, then I realized I had only finished half of it.

I am not saying what it is yet - can you guess what it is going to be - hint: It isn't a hat.

Hopefully by this time time next week (or sooner), I'll be able to post the finish project and everything will be Tickety Boo.

A Man Called Marco

One of my all time favorite instrumentals, featuring the AMAZING Marco Pirroni !!

Replacing Pets?

I know someone (that used to go to my church) and I am still Facebook friends with her. 

She has a thing for Great Danes.  She had one that lived a pretty good long life (for a Great Dane), then about a week later, she had a new puppy (Maggie) to replace her.  Also a Great Dane.  She recently died and from what I can tell it was some kind of heart problem, she had surgery, while her owners were hiking through Europe (which they do about 2 or 3 times a year).  So it seems they were not even home when their dog died. 

She was only about 4 years old.  They got back from Europe and a couple of days later, they now have a new Great Dane pup (Molly). 

I am not saying that people shouldn't get a new pet after they lose one, in fact, I think it is great to give an animal a good home but I just don't understand how someone can move on so quickly.

I guess to people like that, a dog is a dog and not family.  I still tear up when I think about Thatcher and even after 14 years, I am STILL not ready for another dog.  I miss him so much and barely an hour passes when I don't think of him. 

How you you just replace a pet the next day after losing one?  It is something I just don't understand.

Pretty Pastels Dishcloth with Instructions

I saw this pattern and decided I wanted to make it for the annual dishcloth swap. I usually knit the dishcloths for the swap because I like knit cloths better but...in last year's swap, I received some crocheted cloths and I really liked them - they have a bit more scrubbing power and are strong and durable to I decided that I would do crochet cloths this year.

I saw this pattern called Pretty Pastels Dishcloth and decided to make it.  I bought the book on eBay for $2 and was almost ready to go except I know the pattern contained an error (as noted on Ravelry).
However, I searched all over to find it and even sent messages to a couple of others who had made it and no one had the errata (what they call errors in the knitting/crochet world) information.

So I just decided to follow the pattern as written and see if I could figure it out myself.  Well...I found the errors - there were more than one and thought I would share it in case others wanted to crochet it too.  I hope this will help.

I found out AFTER I bought the book, that the pattern is now free and can be found HERE.  The pattern in the book is slightly different than the free pattern but I think the free pattern is a little clearer and since it is free, I am referencing it here instead of the version in the book.

Section 1:  Work just as stated in the pattern

Ch 3. 
Row 1: (right side) Sc in 2nd ch from hook, sc in last ch, turn. 
Row 2: Ch 1, working in back loops only, sc in first sc, 2 sc in next sc, turn. (3 sc) 
Row 3: Ch 1, working through back loops only, 2 sc in first sc, sc in each sc to end, turn. 
Row 4: Ch 1, working through back loops only, sc in each sc to last sc, 2 sc in last sc, turn.
Rows 5-18: Repeat Rows 3 and 4 seven times
Row 19: Repeat Row 3. (20 sc), Do Not break yarn, turn.


My Notes: At the end of section 1 - it should look like this.  The book says turn 90 degrees and work on straight edge - well as you can see, there are 2 straight edges - it doesn't say to turn 90 degrees clockwise or counter clockwise so how do you know?  You don't but the using the photo below, I indicated the direction on how you should continue to Section 2.

Section 2:  Work just as stated in the pattern

Row 1: (right side) Ch 1, working along straight edge at right angles to last row, work 20 sc evenly across, turn. 
Row 2: Ch 1, sc2tog over first 2 sts, working through back loops only, sc in each sc to end, turn. 
Row 3: Ch 1, working through back loops only, sc in each sc to last 2 sc, sc2tog, turn. 
Rows 4-19: Repeat Rows 2 and 3 eight times
Row 20: Ch 1, sc2tog, Do Not break yarn, do not turn

My Notes: At the end of section 2 - it should look like the photo below.  The pattern says do not turn but you HAVE to turn to continue. Again, the books says turn 90 degrees but you don't know if you should work down the straight side or the slanted side, Logically it seems you should work down the straight side, as before.  I indicated the direction on how you should continue to Section 3.

Section 3:  Here is where the errors start - Row 1 is okay as written

Third Section:Work as given for Second Section. Don't do this! If you do, your decreases will be on the wrong side and your dishcloth will suddenly look all wonky.  Instead....

Row 1: (right side) Ch 1, working along straight edge at right angles to last row, work 20 sc evenly across, turn. 
Row 2: Ch 1,  working through back loops only, sc in each sc to last 2 stitches, then sc2tog over last 2 sts, ch 1 turn. 
Row 3: Working through back loops only, sc in each sc to last 2 sc, ch 1, turn. 
Rows 4-19: Repeat Rows 2 and 3 eight times.
Row 20: Ch 1, sc2tog, Do Not break yarn, 

My Notes: To ensure the decreases are in the properly place, you decrease at the end (not the beginning of row 2 - so don't just repeat Section 2 as the pattern states, it is wrong.  Your cloth should now look like the photo below. I indicated the direction on how you should continue to Section 4.

Section 4:  This section doesn't have an error per se, but it isn't clear as written. 

Third Section:Work as given for Second Section. Don't do this! If you do, your decreases will be on the wrong side and your dishcloth will suddenly look all wonky.  Instead....

Row 1: (right side) Ch 1, working along straight edge at right angles to last row, work 20 sc evenly across, sc in last sc of Row 19 of First Section, sc in next st of Row 19 
Row 2: Ch 1, working through back loops only, sc in each sc to last 2 sc, sc2tog, turn. 
Row 3: Ch 1, sc2tog over first 2 sc, working through back loops only, sc in each sc to end, sc in each of next 2 sc of Row 19 of First Section, turn. 
Rows 4-19: Repeat Rows 2 and 3 eight times, Do Not break yarn, Do not turn.

My Notes: The part that I think is confusing in the book is that it implies you continue to work in the first 2 stitches of row 19 of Section 1, The free pattern is a little clearer in that what you are doing is actually moving up the rows on section 1 and joining section 4 to section 1 as you go - you just keep moving up.  When you are done with Section 4, your dishcloth should look like the photo below.  Now continue to the border (if desired).  

Border:  This section doesn't have an error, work as written.

Rnd 1: Work 20 sc along each side of Dishcloth, having 3 sc in each corner, join with sl st in first sc. 
Rnd 2: Ch 1, *3 sc in next sc, sl st in next sc; rep from * around, join with sl st in first sc.
Fasten off.Weave in all ends.

My Notes:  I recommend the border is added since it gives it the completed and finished look.  It works up quickly.  When you are done, the dishcloth will look like this.

Pondering....

W.I.P. Wednesday - Brilla Beanie

Well..that hat was pretty quick and simple.  I am happy with the results.

The model on the pattern shows the hat to be a bit more floppy/slouchy than my hat was...perhaps my gauge was a little tight or perhaps my head is a little big (more likely the big head thing - haha)

Anyway...I only used about 1/2 ball of yarn so I have enough most likely to make a 2nd hat, which I might do, down the road.  I may use it for something else, if I can find a pattern to use such a small amount.  (I was hoping the hat would take up most of the ball).

Anyway....here is the finished hat - I'm pretty happy with it - love the sparkles!!

W.I.P. Wednesday

I have posted before about how I won a prize package from Red Heart a little while back.
One of the yarns included was Red Heart Luce.  It is so beautiful, photos just don't do justice.  It is a mohair blend with sequins.

The color I received was "Verde" - is a lovely deep green.  It almost looks grey but when you get a good look at it in the light, you can see the true color.

I love it - it may have been my favorite yarn in the prize package because it isn't something I normally would have bought.

1) You can't buy it in stores, it is only available at RedHeart.com
2) I haven't really worked with mohair before and
3) It is a little pricey (worth it though)

I have been trying to decide what to make with it and I only wanted to use this one ball of yarn...luckily, Red Heart recently released this great Brilla Beanie Pattern and it only required one ball....PERFECT, I thought!

So...I have started it - it is knitted flat (much easier for me, although I have gotten better at knitting on circular and double pointed needles, I still prefer straight needles.

So far...so good.

Viva Las Vegas - Day 3

Ladies and Gentleman - this is about the 4th attempt to right this post.  I kid you not!  For some reason, when I am almost done and I start typing the last paragraph, Blogger erases everything I typed (kind of like a backspace) and despite the fact that I had been saving periodically, NONE of it was saved - so frustrating and aggravating. 

This time, I decided to write it all up in MS Word so if it disappears, yet again! At least I will have it saved somewhere else so I can just copy and paste.

Our 3^rd vacation day in Las Vegas was actually our 2^nd actual day there, since Mother Nature decided to sprinkle some snow on the ground and delay our trip a little.

Since we have been to Las Vegas a few times and almost consider it a home-away-from-home, we have a few traditions, one of which is to eat breakfast in Paris on our first full day there.  

As you can imagine, Paris has a lot of amazing restaurants, but we always like to go to a small, less crowded pastry shop, Café Bell Madeline.  We got a chocolate croissant and a cheese Danish, split and shared them. What a delicious way to start the day.

The last time we were in Paris, my friend had a lot of luck with the nickel machines, so we decided to play in the casino for a while.  However, neither of us ended up having much luck (and sadly, we couldn’t find any nickel machines anymore).

After a while, we decided to head over to the Bellagio.  We think the Bellagio is one of the most beautiful in Las Vegas.  Of course, no trip is complete without watching the synchronized fountains. 

Once inside, we must always visit the beautiful lobby, which has a ceiling full of Dale Chihuly blown glass art.  It is so incredible to see this in person. Pictures just do not do it justice.

We then headed to the conservatory, a must see! Each season, it is decorated with a new theme.  This visit, it was decorated for Chinese New Year – the Year of the Pig. I can only imagine how much time and planning goes into this.

Caesar’s Palace is connected to the Bellagio by a bridge, so we walked over to Caesar’s next. I always like to get my photo take with The David.  Caesar’s Palace is beautiful and HUGE.  Sometimes I think I would like to stay here for one night, but it is so big and the Flamingo is just the right size for me!

We shopped in stores that were WAY out of our price range…Tiffany’s, Coach, Prada, Gucci, you get the idea…hey, girls can dream, right? 

After a big of shopping, we went to The Palm Restaurant.  Since we knew this would be our last trip together to Las Vegas, we decided to splurge a little…but not too much. We chose lunch because it was a little cheaper, fit our schedule better and wouldn’t be too crowded. 

We asked to be seated in booth #88 and from the painting on the wall, I am sure you can understand why.

My friend got the Caesar salad, Lobster Bisque and a steak.  I got the Soup de Jour, which was Asparagus & Spinach Soup and a steak.  We chose steak since they are kind of known for that.  I chose the soup de jour since I have never had it before.  We both agreed that the Lobster Bisque was the best we had ever had…EVER! We also loved the Asparagus and Spinach soup and if I had only ordered that, it would have been enough – it was that good.  We both enjoyed the steak but agreed it wasn’t the best we had ever had (a little tough). 

We walked off our lunch by walking around Caesar’s and around the strip a little more.  We then decided to head back to the Flamingo to rest a little bit before the show that evening.

Also, just so you know...if you want to get the best view of the Flamingo Hotel with the Donny & Marie wrap, the best place to take the photo is from the front steps of Caesar's Palace.

Once back, we decided to visit the Flamingo Habitat.

Bugsy’s Memorial can also be found here.

We played the slots a bit (and I did fairly well) and we went to the room to change and get ready for the Donny & Marie show. I decided to wear a Peacock print shirt to show Donny that I knew the "Masked Singer" was him (remember, this was a week before it was revealed to be him).  No meet and greet but we did meet up with some new friends that we met at the show the night before.

We had great seats again – same as the night before but on the other side of the catwalk and next to Marie’s “favorite fan” as she jokingly discusses in her show.  

The highlight of the show and the entire trip actually – was while singing “It’s a Beautiful Life”, Marie noticed my friend singing along and she came up to her and gave her the microphone!!! So she got to sing with Donny & Marie!!  That was SO EXCITING!! I had never Marie do that before and she picked my friend out of everyone there!  It was AMAZING!!

Also, we found out that Sanjeev Bhaskar was at the show that night too - pretty cool!!

We decided to check out “The Linq” which is a new area since we were last in Las Vegas.  It is a promenade full of shops, eateries and entertainment, including the high roller (which we chose not to ride due to the cost and wait time).  We at a hot dog (since we were just a tiny bit hungry) and we shopped in several stores.  Before we knew it, it was about 2 am and we headed back in and eventually up to our rooms for some much-needed rest.