he's back

Husband is back. I did not realize how easy is was to sleep without the snoring until about 2AM.

Husband said that his Mom was shipping him stuff that would not fit in his suitcase. He had to have room for the tortillas! You can not get him within an hour of Quatro Milpas without eating. Las Quatro Milpas is the oldest, best kept San Diego eating secret. I imagine the neighborhood scares off most tourists, it is in Bario Logan. If you want the real deal, this is the place.

So there are stacks of tortillas on the counter. I think this will be a Black Bean Soup night. I have made many pots of black bean soup, but this one is my absolute favorite. It came out of the Seattle Times and never fails.

Van's Black Bean Soup

I cup olive oil
1 large onion
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 pound back beans, soaked in water overnight
~~I partially cook in the pressure cooker instead of soaking~~
2 meaty ham hocks
~~no ham hocks for me~~
32 ounces chicken broth
2 tablespoons ground cumin
1 tablespoon dried oregano
2 bay leaves
1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1 tablespoon brown sugar
6 ounces tomato paste
juice of one small lemon
1/4 dry sherry
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

You can probably figure it out from here. Oil in the pot, onions then garlic, saute 10ish minutes. Beans then chicken broth then spices and herbs. Bring to a biol. simmer until tender, 1 -2 hours. Add brown sugar, tomato past lemon juice, simmer 15 minutes. Stir in sherry and Dijon. Ta da!

no camera

Husband took the digital camera to San Diego, so no pics of the new fiber entering the house this weekend.


Here is a pic I took yesterday





This is going to be plyed into sock yarn. I am loving the colors and how they are spinning up. I am not so sure about the fiber itself. I do not know what the actual content is and the dyer cut (!!!) the roving. It arrived in a big braid with the ends cut! That means I have to pull out the cut ends before I do anything else, which wastes fiber and makes me cranky. On top of it all I can see spots in the middle of the fiber where it was cut and stacked. I do not want to put anyone out of business, but I will not be purchasing from them again. Back to colors....white, dark grey, light blue and bright blue. LOVE the colors.

I received a new Loopy Ewe order. I ordered more Shibui. This color is everything I hoped it would be. I need to get more. My mother in law will need some in her Christmas package. And then there is Oceanwind Knits. It is SO soft. This side of cashmere soft. I have Vancouver Island and it is amazing. Be sure to pick some up as soon as it is restocked.

Now that the holiday knitting is all but done I have cast on for a lace wrap. Baltic Sea Stole to be exact. I have begun this pattern before but had the wrong gauge. Luckily I put a sticky note on the pattern and I was able to start right in with the right size needles and the stitch count all figured out. I have such a hard time doing lace in this busy house. But I have a long term goal, of being able to hand everyone who is out on the deck when the sun begins to set, a wrap to keep them warm. It is good goal. Keep your fingers crossed for me.


The next lace pattern I need to purchase is the Wild West Lace Shawl. Youngest Daughter is going to love this. If I give it to her for her 18th birthday I have a few years to get it done. I will need everyday day.


Are there enough links to make up for the lack of pictures?

fiber filled weekend

This morning routine of mine really has become a routine. I get up around 6, turn on the tea kettle, grab the laptop, bring it and tea back to bed. I work on a no look project while I read the days news. It is glorious and wonderful.

I used to start my days by dealing with the email. All the stuff that people needed to me deal with. I was stressed out before my kettle even boiled. Now it is all good.

An FO

Shibui Knits with Koigu toes. Size 2 needles. One done with DP's one begun on DP's and finished with circs. Interweave Knits Father and Son socks.

The finishing of Husband's socks means that I am able to return to my Fleece Artist socks. SO pretty, I just love going around and around while admiring the colors.

A WIP

Oh how I love spinning. This is on its way to becoming 2 ply sock yarn.

This week the new STR club will ship. I was not at all excited until I figured out that there will be something from the new Ravens line in there. Now I can not wait!

This week will also bring a Loopy Ewe order, a Dragon Fibers order, probably the new Spunky Fiber Club order and possibly a set of Harmony needles. The cherry on top? Husband heads out of town Thursday morning. That means a totally fiber filled weekend. I hope the kids have plans because I will be busy.

fires

We are originally from San Diego. We have family and friends still there and things do not look good. Some of them have already been evacuated, the ones who live outside the city. As of now the city proper is safe. But all of Michael's brothers and his mom live on a canyon. I am checking the web updates frequently. I let them know if they need to get out they should head this way. There is always room for more.

There were fires the last summer we lived in So Cal. Whenever you were outside there was ash drifting all around you. It was so sad to think that this is what is left of peoples homes.

The first time I remember that experience I was young, 10ish. The sky was grey and the ash covered the ground.

Cross your fingers. Those people need some luck right now.

dragon fibers

For the spinners out there...Dragon Fibers has just restocked her site. Her stuff is a joy to spin. Keep your hands off the Spooky, it is all mine! OK, she'll make you more if you ask.

Tonight I was at the computer, working on schools for Youngest Daughter when I heard Youngest Son ask Husband where I was. Husband replied, "She is in her cube." This made me laugh. I never thought of my work space as a cube. I feel like I have it pretty good. My desk is large, in front of a glass wall, and has a view of the Puget Sound. Then it occurred to me that Husband also has a desk with a glass wall, on the 13th floor with a view. We are both pretty damn lucky.

The school search is winding down and doing well. The local high school (nickname Edmonds Weedway) is coming along. We have some on the street interviews to conduct, it all looks good at this point.

The saddest news of the day? I broke a needle. My long time friends, the set I have made more socks with than I can count. It is tragic. Not in the grand scheme of things, but it feels tragic for me. These needles have been with me for years. I love them. They have made an embarrassing large number of socks.

Last night I placed an order with Loopy Ewe. This afternoon I emailed Sheri asking her to throw a set of #2 needles into my box. SO sad.

There is knitting progress. Tomorrow there will be pictures.

why is it so hard?

Homeschooling is WAY easier than dealing with the government school bureaucracy. OMG it is insane! Everything we have looked at and tried is painfully out of reach. Yeah they talk a good game, "school choice". HA! It is like that line in Cinderella when the stepmother says ,"I said IF." With the if being something that can not be obtained. Oh, and it turns out that an enrollment for the fall of 2008 should have been begun in January of 2007. Deer in the headlights.

OK, time to shake it off for the morning.

Husband's Log Cabin Socks are done. Yipee! I guess I did not save the picture. Rememebr the picture of the first finished sock? The second one looks just like it.


Husband also requested more brown socks.



This is truer to the actual color. Shibui feels very much like Koigu. It is easy to knit without looking and the colors are gorgeous. I will use it again.

This shows the nice color variations.

This shows the pattern and texture. Notice that one cable with an extra row? Yeah, me too. Husband will not notice so I knit on. The leg is worked as Father and Son socks from Interweave Knits (spring of 2005?), the foot is worked plain. I will finish the sock with a round toe. Husband has big feet and I have noticed that some yarns pull tight across is toes when I Kitchner them.

I bought Trekking bamboo for the light brown socks.

I am looking forward to knitting with this yarn. Have you tried it yet?

The Jayne hat is flying along. Easily finished over the next few mornings.

That leaves the Dragon Scarf for holiday knitting. Now that is good news!


Last evening I ordered a set of the Knit Pick Harmony DP's. A few weeks ago I tried to order a couple of pairs to try but they were not available. So instead of waiting for this and that size to come in I just picked up the whole set. They are backordered untill the 22nd. That is not at all unreasonable. If I hate them they will go right up on ebay.

gifts and al gore

When I heard that Al Gore won the Nobel Peace Prize, Laurie is the first person I thought of! I smiled all the way through her post and then felt a little sad, because I wish I had a family like hers. Full of brothers and cousins and people in cowboy hats having a good time and enjoying being with each other.

My family is small. No brothers or sisters. No standing around posing for pictures. No sharing a bottle of wine. I really wish I had a strong connection to a family.

Luckily Husband has a big family, and we got right busy about making a big family of our own. No matter what, my kids will have each other. It is the best gift they will ever receive.