Bloggers' block

I’m finding blogging very hard right now. More so than ever before. It used to be enjoyable, I’d write about fun things I’d done or cool things I made. It’s slowly become more of a show-and-tell than anything else. For now, it may have to remain that way, simply because I have things to show and tell, and because the things in my life that aren’t crafting and chickens are not in a place where I can talk about them.

Last time I posted was 30th May, and that means there’s lots to update you on for June, because it has been a busy month.

First up, we have two new chickens!


They are called Inara (with the ginger ruff) and Kaylee (with the white ruff). They’re a breed we hadn’t met before called magpie. I think they’re very pretty.

To go with the new chickens, my dad and husband built a fence so that the five chickens can be introduced and have some more space.



I love living out in the countryside, and that photo is a really nice example of why. It’s so beautiful and peaceful. I’m not sure I could go back to city life, even in a small city like York.

So, the new hens are starting to settle in. We had an escape yesterday, so we need to watch them and see how they managed that. Either they flew out, or they took a sneaky route round the shed that we need to block off (we need to do that anyway). If they flew out, the best option will be to move the house.

The good news is that they were rounded up by the neighbours (we have such nice neighbours!) and they’re perfectly fine. They were not happy about not being let out this morning though!

The day before yesterday Faith decided to eat the leaves of my potato plants. I’m pretty sure that’s not good for them, so I’ve netted those now. I was worried that Inara and Kaylee would dig up the courgettes or chard in the main garden, but they did not. I suspect it was lack of opportunity rather than lack of desire. I haven’t checked the peas – last year Faith, Buffy and Willow almost killed off the peas by eating the creeper shoots.

Here’s an up-to-date picture of the “old guard” as hubby keeps calling them.


I know they look a bit scruffy and scrawny, especially Buffy (the ginger one). I think this is because they’re recovering from an infection – they had worms. Yuck. Also, there’s been a lot of feather pecking going on, so they don’t have many full feathers – most of Buffy’s are very short. I’m hopeful that when we can give them more space they’ll be less bored, and so the feather pecking will cease. All being well we’ll get them looking just as healthy as their young counterparts soon. We’re also feeding them extra at the moment, with more mealworms, more pecking blocks, and more treats. I’m hoping to give them some cottage cheese and garlic mash soon.

I’m really enjoying having the new space for them. I hope that the weather is nice this weekend so that I can spend some time outside; just watching them is so much fun!

So, what else have I been up to? Well, tournament 8 of Nerd Wars has begun, and I’m on team Browncoat once again. I’ve actually been doing quite a lot of baby knitting since my sister is expecting her first child in November. She isn’t finding out the sex until it’s born, so I’m knitting (and crocheting) gender neutral things at the moment.


There’s going to be a hat to match these as well. I’m on the lookout for a ladybird patch and buttons, to make the sweater a bit less cricket-y and to finish the booties.

The baby sweater is the Seamless Baby Sweater (Ravelry link) by Sarah Stanfield. It was easy to follow and worked up nicely. My only adjustment has been to work the arms two-at-a-time, and I knitted a few less rounds on the yoke than I should have.

The bootees are Saartje’s Booties (on the right of this linked page) which I have made before. They are cute! I changed the pattern for these by adding a YO into the end of the straps for a buttonhole rather than using the yarn tails.

I’ve also made this square. I can’t tell you why just now, but hopefully later I can.



And I’ve cast on for another Clapotis.


I have been meaning to make another Clapotis for ages, and I have been meaning to make my Mum a scarf for ages. My Mum is allergic to wool, and so it had to be made of something else. This yarn is bourette silk – that’s the kind where the worms are allowed to hatch before the cocoons are harvested. It was dyed by Violet Green, one of my favourite indie dyers in the UK. These colours are amazing!

The Clapotis is part of a Newlyweds’ Clapotis-along that I’m taking part in on another Ravelry forum. The Newlyweds board is a source of much interesting information, support and general niceness. We’re also doing a swap, I have bought some nice goodies for my partner, but no yarn yet. I’m planning on getting that at Woolfest.

That’s right, we’re going to Woolfest again this year. I really like the event, it’s always interesting and there’s always lots to see and buy. I have lots of ideas of things I might like to get. Hubby will almost certainly try the ewes’ milk ice cream again!

On the 29th I’m taking part in my village’s Open Studios event. There are a number of talented artisans in the village, and hopefully hubby and I can be counted among them. I’ll be spinning in the Village hall, I don’t know if hubby will bring anything to do, or whether he’s going to leave me to it and head off to the ceramics studio, or something else! I’m very excited about it anyway.

Knitting owls, and Chickens.

Well, I'm still knitting! I've had a nice week so far, though the weight loss isn't really on track right now everything else is going well!

So, Still being inspired by Nerd Wars, I have two items for you today (and when I get the pictures uploaded I'll have some more!)

The first is this cute little stuffed toy



Pattern: Owl Puffs by Jenna Krupar (Rav link)
Yarn: Random Leftovers
Needles: 4mm
Modifications: Used buttons for eyes
Verdict: Cute! Ideally I would have used a firmer gauge. Also, it's quite small, so perhaps extra increases and extra rows for a bigger owl. But still, cute!

And the second is this lovely tie which I knitted for my hubby while watching the Buffy season 1 and 2 box sets.



Pattern: Knit Necktie by Lion Brand Yarn
Yarn: Pure North Ronaldsay Wool (from woolfest a couple of years ago)
Needles: 5mm
Modifications: cast on less stitches for a skinnier tie. Also, cast on an odd number so all rows begin k1, p1... makes the moss stitch easier!
Verdict: Great! I'm really pleased with how it looks, and hubby likes it too!

I have also completed a small bag, a bowtie and I've cast on for the re-knit of the Klingon sweater. All being well it will be more successful this time.
I also hope to complete hubby's Christmas present and some spinning I have on the wheel. I've no idea what I'll knit after that though!

January will be a month off in Nerd Wars, so I'm free to knit whatever I like! Not that I haven't knitted things I've wanted to knit over the past few months, but...

In other news, the chickens are well.



Buffy, the older of the three, laid her first egg on December 9th. She's laid 4 days out of 5 since then, so lots of lovely eggs now starting to be available. We had a lovely flan type thingy made with the first four eggs yesterday for lunch and it was very nice. Looking forward to my Christmas Morning eggs and bacon.
They all seem quite happy too. We let them out in the garden for the first time at the end of November



They seemed to really like it! We let them out for an hour last Sunday too, and they all spent the full hour hiding behing the shed. While this made me quite nervous that they would either accidentally get into the paddock out the back or else into next door through the hedge, they didn't bother about that! They all came back to the house for bedtime like good little hens. I'm getting more relaxed about letting them out in the garden to free range, though probably only when we're in. I'm looking forward to the summer when we'll be able to let them out after work for a few hours!

Well, that's all for now. I'll show you my other crafting when the photos are up!

RIP: Aran

Our hamster, Aran, died in the night.

He was about 2 years old, which is good going for a dwarf Russian hamster.  He outlivd his brother (Rowan) for some months. Since Rowan died, we've been giving Aran extra treats, but not handling him as much (he liked to bite) so as not to stress him too much.
We've really enjoyed having Aran as our pet and he will be missed.

Sad News

I realised that I didn't pass on some sad news.
A few weeks ago one of our hamsters died. That's Rowan when we first got him. He and his brother (Aran) have been with us for almost two years now.
Rowan managed to escape about a week before he died. While I don't think this was the direct cause of his demise, I suspect it can't have helped. We found him trying to nest in my walking boot. My first instinct, sadly for the blog but happily for Rowan, was to scoop him up and take him home rather than take photos.

We miss Rowan, but his brother Aran is still fit and well. He's enjoying extra treats now (he especially likes fresh veg) and seems quite happy.

Random Weekend

On Saturday we went to Harrogate, mainly so that OH could have a haircut. I decided to book in with the same lady so I now have new hair too. Hmm. I’m still not sure if I like it; sometimes I do, sometimes I don’t. Still, it’s shorter. Which is good.
I got a reasonable amount of knitting done on the train there and back and also while waiting for OH. I’ve got about 15 rows left on the “Sock Putt” socks. Then I’m experimenting with a stretchy bind-off from Interweave Knits. If it works, I might have to un-bind-off the other sock and re-do it the new way.
I also did some shopping and bought prezzies for my sister ready for her birthday next month.
Sadly, there are no yarn shops in Harrogate. Well, I say “sadly” but it meant that I didn’t spend a fortune!

So, I’ve shipped my final SP12 package today. Hopefully there are enough clues for her to guess who I am. I’ve quite enjoyed this round so far. I am not sure whether I will join in the next one – it depends on when it is I think. This one fell quite nicely for me with regards to holidays, finance and life generally. Also, I’ll be getting some news from work next Monday which might change everything. My department is being restructured. It’s a good thing for the business, but it means that things will be changing, including my job. But we’ll see – I’m not worrying about it; it would do no good to worry about it, I’ve done all I can.

I also have a package to collect from the post office. I suspect that it is the Niddy Noddy that I ordered from Forest Fibres on e-bay. Actually, they’ve been really good at Forest Fibres, there was a delay with the shipment of Niddy Noddys (customs I gather) and so it’s taken a while longer than expected to ship it. They’ve kept me informed through the process, and have responded to my emails, which is always good, and they’ve even offered me a discount next time I buy. Which I will be doing, next time I want spinning supplies of some sort!

On Sunday I went to “Range”. I intended to buy some wire cutters for jewellery making, but it’s harder to find them than you think! So, I ended up with some more heavy duty ones for now, plus quite a few beads and things. I’m wearing a bracelet I made right now! I’ll take a photo later.

I don’t think I mentioned that we’ve had to split the hamsters up. Aran and Rowan don’t get on, so we now have two cages. We already had two of most other things (bowls, bottles etc) and now we have two cages, two houses, two chewy logs (well, one cut in half with a junior hacksaw), two wheels, the works. They both seem much happier now, no more squeaking. Aran still runs around his cage quickly and Rowan potters around more sedately. They both like the wheels, though Rowan doesn’t run so fast, he prefers to eat!

News!

Lots of news!
In fact, there’s so much news, I’m going to split it into more than one post!
That way, you can read just the bits you are interested in.

Over on My Knitting Blog, there is a post about my dying exploits. I had a lot of fun at the weekend experimenting with Kool-Aid, food colouring from Supercook, a steamer and some yarn. Here’s a link to the actual post.
Also, I finished the Urban Vest

But, here’s the news that more of you will be interested in:
On Saturday we gained two new additions to our household. I’d like you to meet:

Rowan
and Aran

Yes, OH allowed me to give them knitting names, though they’re proper boy’s names too. They are beautiful little dwarf Russian (or Campbell’s) hamsters. All five that were available to choose between were of this colouring, the same as Aston was. We chose the two who were most interested in getting in to the random cardboard box!

Now, to tell them apart, Rowan has darker stripes down his flanks than Aran, and Aran is a little smaller than Rowan. Aran also squeaks, a lot.
We’ve had a look in the book, and he’s behaving in a way that the book suggests means that he’s afraid. He tends to lie on his back with his paws in the air and squeak.
I already love having pets in the house again. We’re not tidy enough to have anything that can roam free, and although I love bunnies (and guinea pigs, but less so) and we could replace the shelving unit with an indoor-rabbit cage, it would be quite expensive. So perhaps not yet. Hamsters are a good size for taking care of, they’re portable enough that we can take them with us when we visit places in the UK, and also portable enough that we can take them to visit friends if we go out of the country.

Sad News

Many of you who read this blog will know that about two years ago (on July 17th 2006), OH and I bought two Dwarf Russian Hamsters who we named Aston and Martin.
Almost a year ago, after a brief illness, Martin sadly passed away.
Last night, when we came back from the gym, Aston was laying in his house very quietly. He responded to my voice, but only in the slightest of movements. We left him alone in peace, and as we suspected would be the case, he died overnight.

As you can imagine, OH and I are quite sad. But Aston was around 2 years old (which is the life expectancy for Dwarf Russian Hamsters).

As with when Martin died, I’d like to share some of my favourite pictures of Aston with you.
Image Heavy Post from this point!

Here he is not long after we got him with his brother Martin (Aston is the dark one) This is one of my favourites, he’s so inquisitive! He loved to burrow in the sawdust And he was always on the lookout for food! We’ll miss him.

Robot Chicken

So yes, the previous post was a little on the brief side. Though what else needs to be said except “Robot!”?

Anyway, other than the robot painting, I’ve been spending a lot of my time making costumes for the PTH. There is only one more weekend between now and then, so I do really need to crack on! The boys’ costumes are ready to be cut out (always the scariest bit) and then they just need sewing together. I even know what order I’m sewing the pieces together in! My costume is ready, but needs some finishing touches. I hope to do some work on these on Thursday night. (Tue = knit, Wed = gym) and then finish them over the weekend.

We’ve also spent a lot of time at the gym. I’ve been five times in the past couple of weeks. I think. We went on the day that it opened, which I think was the 14th (my brain is like a sieve!) and I began my program from the “New Rules” book I mentioned before. So far I’ve been able to squat with a 15kg bar, row with 20kg and shoulder press with 6-8kg each arm! Yey! I haven’t really noticed any difference, but I haven’t measured myself since we began. I plan to weigh and measure myself once I have completed the first “stage” of the program (in another 4 weeks if we keep up with the 3 times a week).

I’ve joined another secret swap on Ravelry, the CSI Swap! (Sorry, it’s closed now) The idea is that you buy some goodies for your pal (who doesn’t know who you are) and then you send the goodies to the pal along with some “evidence” as to who you are. I’ve ordered the yarn that I’m sending and I hope to also send some needles to go with, and maybe even a pattern to show off the yarn, who knows… in any case, it’s all good fun. I hope that my upstream is enjoying deciding what to get for me! The evidence bit is quite tricky though, I’d like my pal to be able to guess who I am based on the evidence, but also for it not to be too easy. I’ll work it out.

Knit-night has fallen well for me. I’m back to Telford on the 6th, but since knitting is happening on the Tuesdays either side of that all is well. The week commencing the 5th May is going to be hectic to say the least! On the 4th my parents are visiting, then the 5th is (in theory) free, on the 6th I’m off to Telford, on the 7th there’s the meeting and then I come back from Telford, on the 8th it’s the PTH, on the 9th I have my official gym induction and also need to arrange a haircut. On the 10th we’re off to a wedding (I’ll be wearing this dress) - What a week!

I’m toying with the idea of taking some more time off, but we have to decide whether or not we’re going to Australia. It’s not really a place that has ever called to me, to be honest. While the reef and the rock are surely spectacular… well, if there weren’t people I know there I don’t think I’d be inclined. I don’t know. But if we’re going to go all that way we’re not going to go for a week, it would be for two, or even three weeks. If that’s the case then I have a limited amount of holiday to play with!

And finally…
At the weekend we went to visit a local farm shop, who also had a petting zoo type thing. Here’s me holding Helen the Chicken. I had so much fun! Helen the Chicken was so sweet, she didn’t mind being picked up and held at all. In fact she was dozing off in my hands! Bless. She is a Belgian Bantam. There were also some chicks. They were normal chicken variety, some were brown (those ones were going to the hen coops to lay eggs) and some were yellow. The girl told us that the yellow ones would be “taken away and then brought back again.” I don’t think that the other people there understood that she meant that when they came back they’d be going into the fridge in the farm shop. I guess she put it like that because of the children who might have been upset. That is the way of things though.
I look forwards to having room for a chicken.

Hamster on Sunday

I've been promising pics of Aston for a while. I can't promise there will be more soon, because he's a funny so-and-so and really doesn't like the camera. I think it's because it's shiny. The photos are a little orange too, because the flash is also scary to a little tiny fur ball like Aston.

Anyway, here he is, little Aston:

Isn't he sweet? He did do some hiding while we were photographing him too...

He loves to burrow in the sawdust you see!

I think he looks cutest on this last one... but I must apologise for Leon's thigh being in the shot :)

Waiting (im)patiently

Knitting and Craft Related
So, a mere two nights ago, on Wednesday evening, I ordered a big load of yarn from cucumberpatch. They say on the site that usually parcels arrive on the next working day. Now, I’m not so harsh as to expect the yarn on Thursday – the order wouldn’t have reached them until then. However, I am hoping that it will arrive today. It requires a signature, of course – I wouldn’t want them to leave my yarn with some random person who doesn’t appreciate it. However, I’m stuck at work not able to wait at home for it. As we only live 5 minutes away from the post office sorting office I don’t mind walking down there to collect it, so I am hoping that it is delivered early enough that the little card that the man puts through the slot says “please leave 1 hour” or some other short time. It will be annoying if it is delivered 15 minutes before I get home and if the card says “please leave 24 hours” because I’m not going to be here, so I can’t collect it until Monday if I can’t get it today. How depressing.
I promise to photograph and blog it as soon as I get chance.

I also ordered a small amount of yarn from Get Knitted which I would expect to fit through my letterbox, unless they have a very peculiar way of packing. So I will at least be able to begin my Christmas knitting marathon. I can talk briefly about the Get Knitted package because it’s yarn for making a nice scarf for Leon’s Grandma. I’m planning on a pattern from one of the Stitch n Bitch books and using some very posh Louisa Harding - Kimono Angora, which is 70% angora. I’m quite excited about using it, and it’s an excellent price at Get Knitted at the moment as it is on sale.

I know that I should relax, some yarn should be there when I get home.

I also made a sad discovery last night. I bought some lovely yarn from Sheepish which is my LYS. [They have been very good in there] However, in my excitement at buying Rowan Pure Wool Aran, I accidentally bought only one ball of each colour I wanted (two balls total) when I actually wanted two balls of each colour. Oh dear. The chances of me getting more of those two colours from the same dye lot is pretty slim I think. This means that I can’t make the cusion covers just yet, which is a shame. However, it also means that I have one of the seven balls of yarn needed to make Leon’s manly sweater. The cream ball will make the cream stripes (the thinner one, I believe) so now I only need to buy 2 balls of green (or was it another colour?) and 4 balls of brown. I'm thinking about using the other ball I bought to make the newsboy cap, though I need some plastic stuff for the brim. I fancy a green knitted hat.

In Other News
I’m thinking about growing my hair again. It’s gone a bit mullet at the moment (!) because it’s been too long since I last had it cut. It needs colouring too because my roots are showing. I’m probably going to go for something a bit warmer now it’s coming in to winter. I usually end up with a gingery colour in winter. I don’t want it to be a horrible mess for the wedding in November, so I’ll have to get it trimmed at least again then. Growing out this very layered and choppy style could be fun.

Aston is still well. I see other bloggers posting “dogs on Thursday” and “Yarn Pron Friday” and I wonder whether there should be something similar for my little hamster. Bless him. He’s been quite grumpy since Leon cleaned him out on Wednesday night. The new sawdust isn’t as nice, it’s much rougher. He doesn’t seem fussed though (Aston, not Leon, Leon was quite worried about the sawdust). So if anyone knows of any “Hamsters on …” rings (I’m thinking days of the weak, not toast here) let me know. If not I might just make it up, pick a day and go for it. He deserves a little limelight.

Lastly, I need a new winter coat. Some days haven’t been too cold so it’s not the end of the world yet. Anyhow, I’ve seen a very pretty coat in New Look which is so nice, but a bit more expensive than I usually go for. It is a wool blend though, and has an attached hood with fur trim. I’ve seen some nice ones in Next too, about the same price, but not quite as nice, and black. I don’t really want a black coat, too miserable. Lights and brights cheer me up in winter.
In a move to keep cheerful today (half day at work!) I’m wearing pink-and-brown which is a brilliant combo and matches my allstars. I like pink.
On that note, I’ll sign off, leaving you with that statement once more:
I like pink

I'm Hooked!

Last night I decided to begin my first proper crochet project. I didn’t want to begin on the nice silk that my pal sent until I have had one practice go and I wanted to do some stash busting! So, I dug around in my stash for some “doesn’t matter” yarn – some bright orange acrylic it turned out – and the “One Skein Scarf” pattern from the “Happy Hooker” book.
Well, I did not expect to get as far as I have already! Crochet is fast! I’m not turning away from my knitting – the two crafts give such different results – but I’m loving crochet! So anyway, I’ve had to change the pattern somewhat. It’s my own fault! The pattern calls for aran yarn, but I am using DK and a smaller hook. I’m using the smaller hook because I didn’t want it to be all holey. So, anyway, I did the chain 203 bit and then thought that’s not very long for a scarf so I chained another 50. Once I was happy with the length I began the next bit. I had done three rows of the pattern (and longer than the pattern, though not in aran remember) and looked at my handiwork (this was just before bed last night). Yes, I am going to need to make it wider I thought. So I have begun on two more rows up and down my chain of 253. I don’t mind really though because it’s good practice and doesn’t take long either. And the ball of orange stuff is massive.
Once I’ve got the width I’ll be doing a shell pattern around the edge, and then it will be done. I might make a couple of these as gifts for Christmas because they are quick and easy and look nice. I have other things to knit first though.
Like hats for innocent.

Aston was quite excitable this morning, I don’t know why! He was running in his wheel and going on his see-saw for ages. Little sweetie! It’s nice to see him being active and friendly, he’s often sleeping and grumpy when he’s not sleeping. I hope he will still be in a good mood tonight as I need to clean him out. That usually makes him grumpy.

Last exciting bit of news, I now have my tickets to the Pork Pie Festival at one of the pubs in town. Woo!

No Pigs For Me

So, my new books are here! I am now the proud owner of Stitch n Bitch: Nation and Stitch n Bitch: The Happy Hooker. I’ve had a bit of a read through the first chapter or so of both, and had a good leaf through the patterns. I’ve also ordered myself some sets of crochet hooks from ebay which should be with me soon. I will have to use yarn from my stash at the moment, because I am skint. There are a couple of items that I am itching to have a go at crocheting. I must work on the secret project though, as my time to complete it is limited. I do want to learn to crochet before we go to Florida because then I can crochet on the plane. There’s a clear notice that one can not take knitting needles, but there’s no limitation on crochet hooks – though I might need to pick up a nasty plastic one. I say “nasty” because I like the way that metallic knitting needles feel in your hands, the way they click when you knit, the way the yarn slides along them. That said, crochet hooks are a different beast…

I do have plenty of yarn in my stash to use up too! as well as the yarn I’ve bought specifically for projects (where I do tend to end up with too much!) and the yarn I’ve bought to get me started (mostly DK) I have a big pile (well, drawer full) of yarn I bought as a job lot from ebay. This yarn is an incredible mix of stuff, from some beautiful baby 4ply in white and pink, some black 4ply, loads of Peter Pan from Wendy, a cone of black spotted stuff (it screams lacy shawl to me, but if lace knitting is always as evil as the stuff I’m doing right now, I may not tackle any more for a while!), some weird wool-fleece stuff, loads of spotty patterned yarn and some ribbon-like stuff too.

I’m selling the eyelash yarn that I bought on ebay. I bought a four scarf pack with three balls of each colour, pink and blue in feathery texture and burgundy and white in eyelash texture. I made a scarf with the pink, which is funky, and I think I have enough left to cuff some mittens with (the mittens can be in the leftover of the pink or cream from the pom-pom hat) I’m not sure yet about the blue, but I was thinking about a bag for the red and white, but decided against it and so I’ve put it on ebay. Two of the balls (one of each colour) are ball-band-less, which is a shame. There are people watching the items, but not bidding on them yet. I’d quite like to sell some other things on ebay too, I think. The yarn is a good start.

Last night I went for my first solo drive, it wasn’t as scary as I thought it might be, although the roundabout near Tesco was a bit flustering! I did go to pets at home too, and bought some treats for Aston. I looked at the baby guinea pigs too. I’d love to have a guinea pig, but really I’d like to have a place to put them. A friend of ours has guinea pigs (who are adorable!) and they do tend to chuck hay everywhere. We pig-sat for them one time, the pigs were fab! They squeak all the time, it is so sweet! As I said: no pigs for me. Not even the cute ginger one who squeaked so adorably at me through the door of the pen in pets at home.

A Bad Day

Today, when we got home from work we discovered that there had been a death.
Martin, our cute dwarf russian hamster, has passed away. He was only about a year old. He was a happy little hamster, and very friendly to everyone.
Here are a few of my favourite pictures of him:



Here he is with his brother Aston

I'm going to miss him, so is Leon, and so will his brother.

A Good Weekend

This weekend my parents were visiting to bring us a sofa-bed (as I may have mentioned, I intend to sit on it to knit)
However, we ended up going off on a jaunt down the M1 to look at a car, which we bought! It’s a fairly revolting colour, being as it is electric turquoise (or similar, I’m sure) – though it will be easy to spot in a car park etc! It’s an N reg Polo, with the electrics kit. It’s nice, and I look forwards to driving it, with or without L plates, preferably without, but we’ll see about that one. That’s my big purchase news.

Aston is much better now, we took him back to the vets and a different vet saw him, he had a feel of the bad leg and said that he could feel a hard bit which meant it was healing. We’re still giving him pain killers for another few days, and he can’t have his toys back for three weeks. Poor Martin, Aston’s brother, is a bit under the weather at the moment. One of his eyes looks a bit gunky. We’re keeping an eye (no pun intended) on him and if there’s any funny coloured or smelly discharge then we’re taking him to the vets.

The Smoking Ban came in to force in England on Sunday. We went to what is usually a smoky pub and took part in a scary pub quiz. Much nicer than before, though I’m not sure I’ll become a regular there.

Secret Pals! I’ve just signed up to SP11, which I'm hoping I can join in with. It’s quite exciting, if you’re a knitter or you crochet. Should be quite exciting, I think. I’m sure you’ll see more about this soon.

Knitting has been going pretty well. I am about half way through the first piece of the secret garment I am knitting. It’s looking pretty good, though I’m a little concerned about my gauge. I’m already plotting some covers for the cushions that come with the sofa bed, possibly to match (or compliment) the throw. Photos will be here when I sort them out.

Best go now, happy knitting.

It's Thursday!

So, Aston is on the mend (this is not a recent pic, I may try to get one soon). I’m not sure that his foot is being used, but he is getting about better than he was. We will still be going back to the vets though, and we’re going to take his brother Martin with us too, because we might as well for the price it’s costing us! Hopefully the vet will be nice, as it’s a different one than before.

I’m trying a new moisturiser-with-self-tan, the one from Palmers. I really like the body butter that Palmers do, so I thought I’d give the tan one a try. I learnt two things:

1. Don’t try to mix the tan with the non-tan product, it’s too squishy
2. Don’t forget the backs of your arms

I also confirmed that the usual don’t put too much on your toes or elbows also applies to this product. Otherwise though it’s a nice smell, a nice texture and it soaks in well. I may be a convert. It has to be said that it is much easier to go get someone else to put some goop on, but it is expensive. I have one of the home kits for the St Tropez Tanning System, and it’s really good. it’s not easy to get your own back, but I am very flexible so I find it okay. I like that system because you can see where you’ve been when you put it on, and then you have a nice glow when you take it off. However, the moisturiser ones have an extra benefit – daily moisturising, which I should do, but don’t do.

Image courtesy of knitting on the net

In knitting news, I’ve managed to get past a bit in the pattern for the secret item which was causing me problems (I had to unravel [or frog] the entire thing twice!). As it’s a lace pattern it’s quite difficult, and the pattern changes every 10 rows, and is 10 stitches wide, with lots of yf and k2tog bits. I quite like how the stitch sl1 k2tog psso looks though, which I have been introduced to by this pattern. I’m a bit worried about decreasing in pattern, especially as the pattern’s author claimed that it wouldn’t be suitable for beginners. As I’ve only knit about a dozen things ever, I consider myself a beginner, but I also like a challenge. If I find any useful resources on the web about decreasing in pattern (or if you reader(s) know of any) then I’ll be well away. If they’re really useful I might add them to the blogroll.

Mum and Dad are up at the weekend to bring us a sofa-bed. It used to be theirs, and then my sister had it, now it’s going to be ours. Well, it’s not the most comfortable as a bed, but it’s not bad as a sofa. I’ve also asked for my big sofa-sized throw (shop bought, I’m afraid) to be brought up to throw over the sofa as it’s purple and I'm not a big fan of purple. The throw is burgundy/maroon (they call it “wine” on the label) and lovely. I will probably combine it with my pink smaller throw too, and it’ll look real pretty! Anyway, then I plan to make a cushion cover for the massive cushion we have left over from when we bought cushions (I think it’s 21 inches, but I could be remembering wrong) – I might even knit it! (my other cushion covers so far are sewn, and they still need Velcro fastenings attaching to them.) Well, once that’s all done, since it’s in the room with my yarn in, I thought I could sit in there in comfort and knit. That way I will be less likely to be distracted by the telly and ssk when I should be sl1 or knit when I should purl! Oddly, this is a situation where I’m seeing the most positive outlook on the sofa arrival!

Update!

Okay, it’s been some time since I posted. There’s lots of news!

The Race for Life has been postponed! So, I will now be running the race on the 18th July 2007. This gives me an extra three weeks to train (woo)!
We’re not flooded out (yet) though the water will have to get pretty high. That said, we’ve been raising the issue of the flood defences with the council for quite some time now. If we do get horribly flooded it’s likely to be horrible! We should check our insurance too.

Poor Aston! On Wednesday (we think) night, Aston (one of our two dwarf Russian hamsters) managed to hurt his back leg somehow. He was limping pretty badly, though still getting around and eating. So we took him to the vet (don’t get me started on how expensive that was!) because I can’t see him suffer. Anyway, the vet gave us some painkillers for him (usually for cats, but hey) which we put on a couple of sunflower seeds for him each morning. We’ve also had to take away all of his toys, so there’s no see-saw, no house, no log, no wheels and no upstairs floor in the cage. Just sawdust, bedding and two food bowls and a water bottle. Poor boys. Martin has been climbing up over the water bottle it seems, the little terror. However, the good news is that Aston is looking to be trying to use his leg a bit more. If it’s dislocated the vet said that they would chop it off, which is best in that case I guess, but as it looks like he might be using it again, that might not be necessary. I’d prefer that, because I don’t want him to be under anaesthetic any longer than he has to be. Being so small, it’s really risky. If they need to x-ray him then they’ll have to knock him out. Anyway, back to the vet on Saturday to make sure.

Body Pump One of the classes that they offer at my gym is called Body Pump, it’s basically aerobics but with a bar weight. We went last Friday and I quite enjoyed it at the time. I didn’t enjoy not really being able to move about on Saturday, still being pretty sore in my legs and arms on Sunday and then still being a bit tight on my triceps on Monday when we went to pilates! What a class! However, we are planning on going back, hopefully we can get on a bit better. I intend to use a slightly lighter weight for the triceps section this time. Otherwise should be good.

Knitting There is not much to report on the knitting front. I don’t think that it will be a problem if I mention my current project on here, but as it’s a surprise gift for someone who might surf on in, I’ll refrain until it is done. I do intend to cast on the gypsy socks soon too, probably for my next journey anywhere in the car. I have also completed another square on the sudoku blanket, but have had to poach the needles for the secret project. I’ll get back to it once either the secret project is completed, or I buy some more appropriate needles!

That’s all folks. Thanks for reading.