Unsolicited Advice

I really don't have a thick skin.  When people say mean and hurtful things to me I take it very deeply.  I wish I were different.  I know I should just brush it off and not let it bother me.  But I can't do that.  Sometimes there is a certain level of guilt that I feel if there is even a smidgen of truth.  I wish I were more able to take a deep breath and move on.  Today was one of those days that painfully reminded me about how personal I take some remarks.

We've had a green ash tree in our front yard.  This year, only half the tree leafed out.  The other half seemed to be struggling.  This tree hasn't been right for several years and it looked like this year was going to be its last.  A couple weeks ago one of the neighbors stopped Ed and commented about the tree.  This neighbor feels it is her place to point out to the rest of us when our yards don't meet her standards.  Now I have to admit her yard looks very nice.  Her husband works on it every day.  But not everyone has a green thumb, nor do they have the time or desire to work on their yards every day.  Now Ed and I don't have green thumbs.  We don't have the eye to create an asthestic border or coordinate shrubs and perennials.  Our landscaping is more utilitarian.  It frames the house without being the showcase.  We also don't have a lot of time.  Our kids are still at home.  WE both work full time, plus some.  And our hobbies lie in other areas.

Last weekend Ed and I worked on cutting the tree down until a huge storm rolled in and we called it a day.  A third of the tree was left. Given all the rain we've had it was really the first chance we've had to do any outside project.  While I was bundling the branches I was looking for evidence of what might have killed the branches.  I did not seen anything that was classic symptoms of the Emerald Ash borer, although I suspect that's what it was.  My neighbor thinks so too.  She gave me an earful this morning about getting the rest of the tree down.  She doesn't want her best tree to get infected from our tree.  I told her that her tree is very possibly already infected.  My college roommate is a forester and has worked on the EAB project for over 10 years.  She tells me that the only certainty is that all green ash trees will be gone because of this pest.  Its only a matter of time.  Anyway, after I got the EAB lecture from my neighbor, she then comments about the weeds in my flowerbeds.  And if that wasn't enough she made some remarks about my girls and the fact that my younger daughter is hanging out with my older daughter and her friends occasionally.  She also threw in a remark that I should start making my kids do yardwork to clean up the weeds. 

That's about the point I almost lost it.  After she pointed out how nice the neighbor's yard was, I took a deep breath and walked inside.  That was about 11:00 this morning.  As you can tell I'm still obsessing a bit and not over my anger.  I've decided that she is nothing but a bully and I'm her target. One of these days I'll muster up the courage to tell her off.    Maybe I should make sure I'm wearing my new T-shirt next time I see her. 

Confession is Good for the Soul

I blame it on having children and the Internet.  Keeping focused on a task for any length of time was impossible when the kids were little.  Getting 5 minutes of uninterrupted time was a luxury.  Getting 15 minutes was a Godsend.  I realized after a while I became conditioned to these short bursts of activities.  I became ADD. 

I used to not be this way. Going 'heads down' on a task was easy. Projects were finished within a reasonable amount of time. I used to quilt. I would make 2 or 3 quilts a year for a now defunct service organization called ABC Quilts. I also made a quilt every year for Christmas to give to a member of my family. One year I even made 4 for Christmas!! Not sure what mental disorder I was suffering from at that time, but I was like a woman possessed. But as the kids got involved in activities, my time by my sewing machine ended and I returned to knitting since it is more portable. Slowly I would cast on and knit while at soccer practices, dance lessons or volleyball matches. My projects were small pieces like scarves or hats. Then I discovered the Internet and blogs offered all kinds of new things to try. Shiny objects started popping up everywhere. I became friends with another knitter at work and she and I would trade project ideas. That's when it all fell apart for me. I jumped at the latest trend. Casting on became a frequent occurrence. My problem was following through to the end. Finishing is just not in my vocabulary.


Just to prove I have a serious problem, here is a pile of fiber that has my attention at the moment.  In there is a sweater, afghan, stole, scarf, and a pair of socks.  Trust me, it's true.

The sweater is the Go Live Minimalist Cardigan.  I am making progress on it.  I'm almost finished with the second front panel.  That leaves the sleeves.  There is a knitting group at work that meets Wednesdays at lunchtime.  I have started joining them and this is my project.  At least 30 minutes a week is devoted to getting this sweater done.

The Great American Aran Afghan is going to be my ADD project.  I figure whenever I need a little diversion from other projects, I can work on a square for that.  I have no timeline for it.  This is the first block, designed by a lady from Cincinnati.  Chosen because that is my hometown.

The stole is the Taize stole I started a year and a half ago.  It is about 1/3 finished.  Again, no timeline.  I work on it whenever it piques my interest.

Last but not least are the silk hankies.  Yes, I fell 'hook, line, and sinker' for that little craze a couple months ago.  I bought 2 sets in 2 different colors.  The blue is going to become socks for Trisha to wear at night.  She has Reinold's Syndrome and needs to keep her feet and hands warm.  The cream colored silk is going to be a helix scarf for me.  I've altered the pattern slightly to make it a bit wider.  It will have a little more ruffle to it since I'm doing 3 short rows per side instead of just 2, as the pattern states.

There!  Now that I've admitted my problem, it is time to make some resolutions for action.  Being realistic, I can't go cold-turkey and say that I won't start another project until these are finished.  I will, however, vow to not start a new scarf until the helix scarf is done.  And I won't start a new stole until Taize is finished.  Another sweater will not be cast on until Go Live is off the needles.  I will not begin another block of the aran afghan until the current one is bound off.

With that resolve, I need to get cranking on the Go Live sweater.  Yarn is being delivered next week to make sweaters for the girls.   Told you I had a problem!! 

Spring Abandonded

This was a bit of a shock to the system.  After being in Florida last week where it was sunny and mid-80s, coming back to Ohio and getting slapped with another round of winter weather is too much.  

BRRRRR!!!!

Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

Woke up this morning to the sound of a robin.  It wasn't sing.  It actually sounded annoyed.  But it was a lovely sound to me because it meant spring is its way.    There were two other signs when I opened the door to get the paper off the front porch.

My daffodils have started to come up.   I just hope they don't bloom while we are away on our spring break trip.  The other sign of spring is in the next picture.

It's not the beautiful sky or the tiny buds on the trees, it's the 'For Sale' sign in our neighbors lot.  This actually makes us very sad.  The kids have told them they are not allowed to move.    These people have been the best neighbors and we are going to miss them tremendously.

I've made a bit more progress on the Go Live cardi.  The right front panel is done and I'm almost halfway through the left front panel.  This project will go on my trip with me.  Hopefully I'll get the pieces done and then when I get home I can block them and sew it up.



Since knitting monogomy is not something I practice, I have another project in the works.  This is going to be a long term project, the Great American Aran Afghan.  I figure I'll do a block here and there as I need a project to break up the monotony of other projects.  I started with the block designed by the lady from Cincinnati, since that is where I grew up.

And finally, here's a picture of a pizza I made last week.  I recently subscribed to Cooks Illustrated.  I love that magazine because it satisfies two things about me:  my love for food/cooking and the science geek  in me.  The pizza was called St. Louis style pizza.  The crust is made without yeast.  It comes out thin and a little crispy, but not too crispy.  The sauce recipe is very simple, a blend of tomato sauce, tomato paste, sugar and some spices.  The magazine recommended pre-cooking the pepperoni in the microwave using paper towels to get rid of some of the oil.  That was a great tip!! It reminded me a little bit like LaRosa's pizza from Cincinnati.  The family absolutely loved it and it was very fast to make.  Win-win all the way around.

Enjoy your weekend and get outside if spring is popping up around you.