I have a new love

Aloe Blacc
I stumbled upon this artist a few years ago when he did a cover of John Legend's Ordinary People, titled Gente Ordinaria.  You should be able to hear it with this link or buy with the other. 

Free music - Gente Ordinaria. 

I didn't buy the album back then. I am definitely purchasing this one if only for this song
. 
My love life is killing me right now....
NPR featured him on World Cafe
You may have already heard this song

I want to be alone with my yarn

I have been crafting.  I simply have failed to mention it.  I am still upset with myself for abandoning the tank top.  I had planned it to be a green with white trim top and I ran out of green.  I had sadness.  I did not have the heart to redesign it.  I will pick it up again in the Spring. It will be white with green.  I regret showing it to my roommate.  She probably thought that she would have worn it this summer. 

I began a scarf for Trey, since he asked for it. 
He has excitement for this scarf.  I am excited for him. I hope that I do not let him down.  When did needlecraft come with so much baggage?

I picked up a skein of yarn from See Jayne Knits for no reason than because I had some money.   This yarn is called Lumberjack.  I love it.  I have decided to make my first pair of socks out of it.
The latest issue of Crochet! arrived last week or so. 

I am back to working on my winter wrap.  I hope that I finish it in time.  The white spot is a piece of 8X11 sheet of paper.  It should give you an idea of just how massive it is.  And it is only 50% completed. I have transitioned to the second color. It will have three colors by the time I have it completed. 

dd

My stash.  this year, I removed it from under my bed and displayed it on the bookshelf.  I planned to discourage random yarn purchases by seeing my stash more often.  It has worked. I do not purchase nearly as much as in the past.  I love the clear bins. I can see everything. 

And here he is.  The gnome is making a statement about my landscaping.  His presence here tells me that he wants me to seed and water the front lawn. We are in a stalemate. 
 I composed a poem for him and all others who have asked me to do something about my lawn this summer.  (Dad, Uncle Curtis, Dude, Cousin L, co-worker, neighbors, etc)

I have no lawn.  

It will not grow

The lawn's not green

No reason to mow

It won't grow for rain

Not even for sun

The neighbors, they complain
What's to be done

It has fertilizer

It has seeds

Yet all that's there

Are some weeds

I have no lawn.  

It will not grow

The lawn's not green

No reason to mow

By the way
Green Eggs and Ham turned 50 this year

Spotted

Today I volunteered at a Habitat for Humanity house. In the picnic area where the volunteers meet, I saw this on the ground.

Always viligante

Created by Oatmeal

From the Archives: What the Men Things Say

This post was published in Dec 14, '05

I had attended a holiday party the day before.  Remember 2005, when people were too PC to say Christmas?

Good times.  Good times.

I have gotten away from the entire spectacle of the Christmas holiday.  I more excited about the Winter Solstice because it means daylight will be returning soon.

This entry was about being single.  Now that I am quickly approaching 40, I can really appreciate that attention that I used to receive in my 30s. Or not.  

Most of the men that I meet now are divorced or still think they are in their 20s.  It is odd having a conversation with a man with a gray beard when he is talking about twitter wars with 20 somethings.... Or casually dropping the word "hashtag" in adult conversation....

Social networking can prolong our youth,  but it isn't really that cute on a guy.
To the archives after the jump....

Tatting Done Easy

One of my new friends noticed that I like to craft during my lunch breaks.  He shared with me that his wife is also a crafter. He told me wonderful stories about his family and their domestic crafts. 
As refugees from Iran, he and his wife could not work while living in Turkey. To keep busy and make some income, she taught tatting to other refugees.

These are lovely.  Now that the pair are pursuing new degrees in USA (despite having them in their native country) she does not have much time to tat except during the summer. 

Like all husbands of women who craft he said to me, "it takes so long."
His story is very interesting. I have had glimpses into his past over the past 19 months.  Each time, I am left speechless.  A former soldier, a professional, a refugee, and now a student (with student loans).  On top of that he is a husband and a father. 
How can I complain when I consider where he has been and where he is going?
I need to start thinking about my goals......

For more information about tatting http://threadsofatattinggoddess.blogspot.com/

Nature

Shopping for flowers, I see a butterfly.

Abstruse Goose.

Abstruse Goose.: "

Abstruse Goose.

"

Happy Labor Day

I think the gnome wants bar-be-que.

The hibiscus has spoken

I found this surprise last night.

And they said it would not bloom  for me this year.

I purchased it for 5 dollars two weeks ago.

Yardwork and Tar

I have not posted due to the start of everything.
The sorority year.
The academic year.
And Fall allergies.
You are welcome.
I did have some work done on the house recently.  I hired my uncle to dig up the front yard and waterproof it.  He gave me two days to prepare the yard.  I wanted to link you to some of my old posts about the yard work I had done in 2005. Unfortunately, those posts went away when Yahoo 360 turned off. 

I had to do some foliage removal.
I dug out the Grandpa's peonies. I hope that I found all of the root ball.  I removed the Easter lilies and the Asian lilies.  I left the sedum. It just grows like crazy anyway.   

I used the pitchfork and removed all of the other  lilies. The sage. Everything.  I only left the clematis. 

I repotted everything while the men did their work.








It took them a few days.  They leveled out the yard when they completed their tasks. Unfortunately, the noodleheads emptied the dirt out of my POTS in order to level the yard.  I yelled at them. I asked them why did they not use the dirt behind the garage. My Uncle's worker informed me that he did not want to leave holes in my yard.
I thought that was the stupidest thing I had ever heard.  The men had watched me dig out my plants and pot them.  Watched me.  So why would it be a good idea to empty them out????? The patch of land behind my garage is about 3 feet wide and is nothing but a dumping ground for non-compost material. Besides the compost bin is back there and full of dirt.

  Oh look, this is my fifth year at my house and still no grass.
Stupid grass.

I have been finding perennials on sale. Look at this hibiscus that I found for $5.00. I am not going to replant the peonies here. I am going to move them to another location. I am looking for yellow coneflower that isn't 13 dollars and red coneflowers.  I would love a coneflower garden. 

You can see from the two previous pictures  that my uncle is a man of his word.  I wanted some waterproofing done so that my basement would be drier and he used the remaining tar to "paint" my exposed brick foundation.  I am still shaking my head. If he works on my house again, I will take the day off of work.   I repainted the brick to match the trimming.  Still shaking my head. 

I am thinking about submitting a picture of his work to There I Fixed It

I guess while I wait for the spring and summer bulbs that I ordered to arrive, I will use the time to make some mint liquor. 

 

And some pesto

I think the gnome attacked the elephant sculpture. You can see it in the background.  The gnome is standing where the elephant had been.\

Travelocity Gnome - 8-inch

The Full Monty

It is time for another Other People's Kids entry...

Drum roll.

I watched Little T and Trey this past weekend. I set them up with the UNO cards while I worked in the kitchen.  Dude was over so he pretended to watch them and Cartoon Network. I am sure that he secretly wanted to watch some sports or something.

Lil' T demonstrates her boredom with very peculiar habits.

She would walk onto the enclosed porch, pretend to read a magazine there.  Play with the wind chimes.  Then walk out onto the stoop. Pick up the sidewalk chalk. Make adjustments to her calcium sulfate masterpiece. Do some hopscotch. Return to the porch, do a little dance with a twirl. Walk back into the living room. Plop herself onto the couch. This went on for 30 or so minutes until I yelled, "stay in the house or stay out." 

Completely channeling my mother.... I wish I had had my camera. She amused me.

She wandered into the kitchen and asked me to show her how to cook.  I pulled out the stepping stool and we worked on washing, peeling, and chopping vegetables.  It was cute.

When I had set her up to peel her first tomato, I checked on Trey. I was making sauce from garden vegetables. 

I gave Trey a hug for being a good boy and noticed that my hand came away wet.

I asked him to explain.  This is how it went:

"I had to use the bathroom.  I ran up the stairs..... but I did not make it."

"and that is why you need a bathroom downstairs."

I thanked him for his remodeling advice and glared at Dude for not properly watching the young boy.  Dude tells me that Trey announced "I have to use the bathroom."  Jumped up from the couch and started towards the stairs, asked him to turn on the hallway light, and then ran to the bathroom. He returned a few minutes later and refused to sit down on the couch.

Men are so oblivious......

I drag Trey to the bathroom and ask him to remove his pants.

I get the full monty.

I ask him about the location of his underwear.

This is how it went:

"I told my daddy that I had no underwear."

"I told him. When I went over my cousins house and I had no underwear"

"He did not listen to me."

I found some of my roomies size extra small leggings and he wore those while his shorts laundered.  After much back and forth, I wrangled him back into the bathroom for a bath. 

You should have seen his father's face when he asked me about Trey's clothing.

This is how it went:

"So you washed his shorts and underwear."

"What underwear? The boy is going commando."

"What did you say?"

"Commando. You heard me"

Pause, as realization hits him that his 5 year old son has been playing all day without underwear.  

"Boy, you don't have any drawers on?"

"I tried to tell you Daddy, you no listen to me. But I tried to tell you. I sure did. I told you I had no underwear......"

Ahh. Gotta love the little ones

I want some....