Walk or Knit?

OK. I can’t believe this.

But I have a friend who has asked me to start walking with her in the mornings.

DOES ANYONE ELSE REALIZE WHAT THAT WOULD MEAN?!?!

It would mean giving up my knitting time in the morning.

I don’t know if I can handle that.

But, it is a very good idea. The Big Texan and I have both started eating healthier. We are trying to make ourselves exercise too. So far we haven’t started exercising, but I know as soon as we do – HE will start dropping weight like mad and I won’t. If I start walking now, well he wouldn’t even have to know about (except that he reads my blog – I guess I didn’t think that through).

But I need to start walking. I need to get my metabolism going. I could even use the whole thing as an incentive… You know – I lose so many pounds or walk so many days and then I can knit for a morning or get some new yarn or something.

Let’s see, I could say after 5 days of walking, I can knit for 30 minutes with NO GUILT.

No. I can’t give up the knitting in the morning completely. That is one of the only things that gets me out of bed at the ungodly hour that I have to get out of bed (after only 5 hours of sleep).

I wonder if I can walk and knit…

I know I can – I have done it on the beach and on vacation. I would have my friend to stop me from barreling into oncoming traffic.

Also, this is a new friend and she would be a good connection to have (both things that are worth fostering).

I was considering walking after work. I could bring a change of clothes, walk around town before I drive home (thus missing traffic), and then take a shower.

The only thing wrong with that is I like to go and meet my knitting friends after work (not every day – but a lot of days). I guess I could use THAT as an incentive. If I walked so many days in a row, then I could go to the next knit night. That would curb how much I knit away from home and get me to do some exercising.

Hmmmmm

I wonder what other people do.

I have a couple of days before I have to decide. I am going to think about it.

Episode 14 podcast is up

Here is one of my pupils in her Autumn shawl.

Isn't it beautiful?

Podcast is here

ADDITION: She used Boku yarn (by Plymoth)- I don't know the colorway - but it is reasonably priced and easy to work with.

Wanna go Swimmin'?

In my living room?

yeah - this week there was a little mishap (hahahaha - that is such an understatement).

We had a small leak with our faucet in our kitchen. (yeah - I know - any story that starts with "we had a small leak..." is doomed).

Anyway. I turned off the water under the sink to stop the leak and it didn't work. The water didn't turn off and now there was a new small leak under the kitchen sink (unless you held your tongue just right and crossed your fingers and tightened the nozzle 'just so'). So we had to call a plumber.

thank goodness we called a plumber. thank goodness.

The plumber came out and fixed the leak, put in a new faucet and closed up.

The Big Texan started putting things back under the sink, and there was some water down there. So - he called the plumber back and he fixed the leak again. He double checked everything and made sure he wouldn't have to drive back AGAIN. So all was good.

I had a work dinner, the Big Texan was joining me.

Betty Boop and Grandpa Texan (the Big Texan's father) were going out to dinner.

No problem.

until...

Betty Boop and Grandpa Texan pulled in the driveway and saw water coming from the garage door down the driveway...


oh - not good...

..it wasn't as bad as it looked, because with the garage door up - the water was not as WIDE



They walked in and there was over two inches of water in the kitchen and moving to the living areas...

Boop called me. I could hear water GUSHING LOUDLY in the background.

Things happened fast then. I blurted instructions to Boop to get our next door neighbor and get the water turned off at the street. (she couldn't even SEE under the sink to get the water turned off there). I called another neighbor and asked him to RUSH to my house to help. (THIS IS A WONDERFUL NEIGHBOR!!) He got over there as they got the water turned off. We actually had three neighbors come out and they had the water off within 2 minutes of the first call.


The Big Texan and I came home (we were about 40 minutes away) to our WONDERFUL NEIGHBOR and Boop and Grandpa Texan all cleaning out the kitchen and the living room.


They had most of the water out by the time Big Texan and I got there.

It even came out the back of the house...



We called the plumber back (again) and explained the situation.
They got the 'Drying Carpet People' out there. The 'Drying Carpet People' sucked water out of the carpet, measuring the saturation in the walls and started up fans, blower, and dehumidifiers all over the place.





The plumber came the next day and fixed the leaks again (and it is now really fixed...).

And that is what I have been living with for the last few days... LOTS OF NOISE, in a FREEZING house (because cold air doesn't hold moisture as much as warm air and they asked us to turn down the a/c). And I can't walk through the kitchen except with a map...



No TV (trust me - you can't hear it anyway - it makes no difference). No downstairs, basically - NO KITCHEN (and you don't want to stay in there because it gives you an awful headache from all the noise).

fun

ok - not so much fun - but very interesting.


Thank goodness the Big Texas didn't try to fix this himself... Thank goodness for plumbers...

Wooo hooo!!! I am a Porsche 911

I'm a Porsche 911!

You have a classic style, but you're up-to-date with the latest technology. You're ambitious, competitive, and you love to win. Performance, precision, and prestige - you're one of the elite,and you know it.

Take the Which Sports Car Are You? quiz.

Where were you two years ago?

Where were you in 2006?

I was trying to recover from life at that time.

2006 was the year that I lost two mothers-in-love. Here is the story of one mother-in-love.

Here is the other one.
This is Janie (or Lou-lou as my kids always called her). She was my first husband's step mother. She was a wonderful woman and a very good friend. She was my mother in many ways after my own mom passed away. She was always there for me and my kids. I still miss her.


My sister was in a coma for several weeks and everyone thought that she would pass away.
Here is a picture of her in her healthy days...
She is very fragile now...




My husband lost his job of 15 years.

I lost my job.

All three of my sons were married within a couple of months.

My middle son was deployed to Iraq.

My other sons moved to different parts of the country. Here is one of the last pictures of all of them together (from 2005).
They are (top row from left: Army Guy, Marine Man, Navy Nuke; Front row from left: Betty Boop, Marine Wife, Navy Wife) - None of the Wives were yet wives - they were all girlfriends. Army Wife was brand new in the picture at that time - she wasn't there that night.

Here is a recent pic (I can't seem to get them all home at the same time-so just pretend that Marine Man and Wife are in it).
left to right: Army Wife, Army Guy, Betty Boop, Navy Nuke, Navy Wife

All my sons are in different branches of the service...

Marine Man and Army Guy

Navy Nuke

My husband and I were on the verge of divorce.
Once upon a time…
There was a man and a woman who were very much in love.
(the story is about halfway down the post... )
We were roommates.

My life was spinning out of control.

But I was knitting and I had friends that I could help me pretend that everything was OK.

And I did pretend.

Eventually, life did become OK.

My sister recovered.

My son came back from Iraq (with some emotional scars, but he is recovering).


My husband got a new job.

I got a new job.

I will never completely recover from losing my two mothers-in-love (that is our reference for mother-in-law). But I have been able to live with it and so has my family.

I have had one son go to Afghanistan and Iraq return healthy. I have had second son go to Iraq and return healthy.
I have learned to adjust to life with my sons far from me. It isn't easy, and my heart hurts sometimes, but we still have a strong love and we let each other know it. They are wonderful people who I value and respect. I pray that some day we will all be able to live close again, and until then perhaps we can at least vacation together.

My husband and are no longer just roommates. We have finally turned a corner and see our lives together on an uphill slope. We found out there was a medical problem that was complicating our issue.

It was sad to realize that much of our pain could have been avoided for the last few years.

But things are looking up and I am no longer having to pretend.

The best part is that my knitting friends have been there all along. They were always supportive and caring. They knew everything wasn't always perfect, but they never pressed. They always let me share just as much as I needed to...

I want to say thank you to everyone who has listened to me, cared for me, prayed for me, emailed me, or just thought about me fondly.



Thank you all for your support and love. I am so hugely blessed that I feel my heart will burst.

Interview with Betty Boop - Show Notes

Betty Boop gives her thoughts on what it is like to live with a knitter. She knits - but not very often...

My Podcast Link Episode 12

Picture of Betty Boop


Socklets



You knit what? (now defunct - but there are lots of old archives)
It has been replaced by a new site - but I think they are pretty mean there - so I don't read it.

Blanket fix blog; with pictures. It was scary!

The Big Texan