Of Hemlock and Hair

. . . . the Hemlock Ring Blanket and cat hair, at least!

I've been knitting steadily away at the Hemlock blanket, and I'm on the last four rows (woo-hoo!). Home stretch! This is actually a fantastic blanket project for me, because it perfectly fits my obsessive-compulsive/overly-curious nature. Since it's knitted in the round, all the stitches are bunched on the circular needles. That translates into: I won't have any idea exactly how it will look until the last stitch is bound off.

Like I said, perfect for a knitter who hates finishing stuff and who's curiosity over rules better judgment.

I'm going to push to have it completed by tonight, as the suspense of opening it up is just killing me. An added bonus is that it is a @#$^#@*&$)#& cold day here, and I want something warm and cozy to make me feel better about living in this unnatural climate. (Really, how did a Hawaiian like me end up here? It's all Handyman's fault . . . Mum, don't agree too heartily, lol!)

(Please excuse the swearing in the last paragraph. Thankfully, due to frozen lips, it's impossible to actually understand what's truly being said. Just substitute the word "very" if that more suits your sensibilities.)

Okay, now on to cat hair, which of course means my cat, as my cat has LOTS of hair. (Why can't my daughter have that much hair?)

My cat, Rhapsody, has always been a bit of a snot for us. That is to say, she's not the friendliest feline in the field. My personal theory is that her Yankee nature hasn't adjusted to living 24/7 with this emotionally open family. (Affection of any sort is anathema to Midwesterners. A mere grunt can display a wide range of emotions, varying from utter loathing to passionate love.)

Well, since we've gotten back from our extended Christmas vacation, she's had a change of heart. Perhaps 3 weeks of loneliness convinced her that being nice was much less work than being homeless. She's a different creature altogether - friendly, and much less reserved.

I knew we had finally reached a state of well-being when I found her guarding my jewelry. Now that's a cat who truly has a sense of priorities.

This state of affairs has given me such a lift. I have hope again!

It's possible to convert a Northerner.

Crazy Pets

I forgot to mention that I found my "Houdini" Hunny Bunny again. She got out of her hutch early in the morning, and I found her later that evening. Peter and I walked around the block yelling "Huuuuunnny Buuunny" (me feeling quite foolish), and sure enough, out she hops from a bush, looking as fat and placid as could be. She's very tame, so she didn't even try to run away from me (or perhaps she was just too full from all the grass she must have eaten.)Crazy rabbit. Her hutch is located in the back yard, only 10 feet from my vegetable garden which is LOADED with yummyness for rabbits. Does she stay in the fenced back yard? No.

However, her days of freedom are over, and she's back in incarceration again.Speaking of crazy animals, Hunny Bunny and my cat Rhapsody are good friends now. At least, they seem to enjoy antagonizing each other in a nice, friendly sort of way. Here's Rhapsody on the neighbor's squirrel feeder. I don't think she's going to catch any squirrels this way.
Crazy rabbit. Crazy cat. They do fit in well with this family, though, don't they?!

Garden Stuff, and the Missing Rabbit

I'm not really having the best day. Hunny Bunny is missing again, and I'm hoping she's somewhere nearby.

Perhaps she's playing with Rhapsody . . .


These are just some random pictures I took of my flowers and garden, as I'm feeling rather blah today and not up to serious blogging.

Here's another reason why I'm feeling a bit down. I thought I was done cleaning the living room, but then I heard a crash . . . More work . . .

I've never seen a gladioulus look like this before, so I thought it was interesting. I'm not really a huge fan of glads; my SiL is much better at them than I am.

I'm really hoping my Bee Fields will show up in the mail, and I'll pick up my needles and my mood will pick up too!

Hope you're having a better Monday than I am!

Visiting

A dear friend of mine, Breanna C. just came up from Florida to spend a few weeks up here visiting with family and friends. It was nice to spend an afternoon with her yesterday, catching up on past "happenings".

The two "Breanna's" (well, actually it's Brianna and Breanna; I think my Breanna doesn't like having competition for the name!)

She has two little boys and a girl, but yesterday she only brought the two little guys, as Isabella was playing at a friend's house. The kids had so much fun "swimming" in the pool Grammy and Bompey bought them.

"I'm the man!"


"I tell you, they just don't make these freeze-pops like they used to!" (That's an empty freeze-pop container flying through the air.)

Whenever I'm outside for a little while, I let Hunny Bunny out of her cage to hop around the yard. She has a collar, which I attach to a short rope so I don't have to worry about her bolting away. Amazingly, she and my cat, Rhapsody, get along fairly well together. Bunny and Rhapsody are about the same size, and Hunny Bunny has made it clear she's not taking any flack from the cat.

"That's right, kitty. You just remember who big bunny is, and we'll get along just fine . . ."

Cats and Cold

"What's that up in the sky? Uh oh; it looks like . . . ."

"No, you can't mean it . . . . not MORE SNOW!"

"I am so sick of snow. I'm sick of being cold and having frozen paws. I'm tired of frozen mice. Yes. I'm grumpy. Cold and grumpy."

"What? You got a problem with that? I'd like to see you survive out here with no thermal boots and insulated jackets!"

"That's it. I'm moving South".


* All pictures were taken from Kerissa L. without her express consent. Opinions expressed are not the views of Yarn Over or its affliates. No animals were harmed in the filming of this photo shoot - at least, not intentionally.