Intermission

Indulge me, please. I was transferring old photos the other day from one computer to another and to off-line storage. Since I am wandering aimlessly through knitting land, I thought I'd share a few of my favorites. All of them have personal meaning for me.

I love the shades of the ferns on the stones in this picture. Purely accidental and not due to any photo composing skills on my part.

Oxford Lake, Newaygo County, Michigan. Such a serene setting and such a grim history. The body of a murdered female was found in the lake. Since the lake is on Federal land, the perpetrator was tried in Federal court and sentenced to death. The woman's child has never been found. When I was still working at the prison reception center for youthful offenders, I performed the psychological evaluation of the nephew of the perpetrator. He was quite proud of his uncle. The family that commits crimes together stays together?

Fall has arrived in Michigan.

Isn't he cute? But watch out he spits too.

Peggy while she was still alive kissing her llamas.

Storm clouds are accumulating over Big Twin Lake, Newaygo County, Michigan.

View of Big Twin Lake, Newaygo County, Michigan, after the storm has passed. The photo was taken from my former cottage on the lake.

Travelling in Knitting Land

Diane asked if I was yet tired of knitting socks. Since I am mostly a process knitter (I like knitting for the sake of knitting), knitting only socks is not a problem. It's still one stitch after another, with some interesting and for me new patterns thrown in. However, about once a year I seem to be aimlessly wandering in Knitting Land, not really being satisfied with much of anything. That's when dishcloths come into play. They satisfy my need for process (knitting) and for result (getting something done quickly). Additionally, they are useful items which can be put to use quickly or stashed away for quick gifts.

This is my third year for belonging to the Yahoo group Holiday Mystery Gifts. A wealth of patterns are offered up for the knitter and crocheter, many more than can be knit between the end of September and Christmas. The group usually gets active in September and fizzles down to almost no traffic after the holidays, with an occasional afghan square thrown in during the year. Some of the patterns are true mysteries while others are not. While the group does not officially start with its Holiday knitting until September 22, a pattern for a big and matching smaller coasters was posted today. I pulled out some needles (not the size that was recommended, of course), a ball of Peaches 'n Cream and a wandering I went, and here is the result.

Knit on merrily!

Another pair of socks has been started.

The pattern is by Monika Eckert from her Klabauter-goes-socks subscription and, as often with Moni's patterns, challenged my skills even after 60 some years of knitting. The yarn is Plymouth's Rockin' Sox in a green/blue (almost purple) shade. The yarn contains some Bamboo which gives it a nice shine. Of course, the camera didn't pick it up. But here is a photo of the first sock.

The pattern is named "Bad Toelz" after a Bavarian town in Germany and reflects the ornate architecture of the spa. I found this photograph on Wikipedia.

Knit on merrily.

Labor Day Weekend

Angie and I went Yard Sale shopping over the Labor Day Weekend. The weather was beautiful. Not too hot and little humidity. This made it possible for me to get in and out of the car without every bone in my body aching.

As I got out of the car at one of our stops, I immediately spied a corral like mushroom that I absolutely needed to photograph. My reference book of mushrooms shows that there are two corral like mushrooms that look almost the same, but one is poisonous and the other edible. I did not take a chance and decided to enjoy it instead as a photo.

I also found a "new" microwave. The old one had given up the ghost several months ago after 27 years of faithful service. Angie also found a knitting book for a dollar. It's The Country Diary Book of Knitting by Annette Mitchell. The patterns were inspired by the drawings in The Country Diary of an Edwardian Lady by Edith Holden. The book was published in 1987, but many of the patterns can still be worn as they are presented. One of these days, I will photograph the pictures in the book. A search for the title shows that the book is still available. But you can't beat the price we got it for.

We ended our shopping excursion by stopping for desert at a new bar in the area. This really is a big thing around here to find a place that actually has some food that is higher up on the food chain than "greasy spoon" food. The owner/chef is from Grand Rapids and is an actual trained chef. The place itself has the look of a typical back woods bar, but he has the best Portobello mushroom sandwich on a Pretzel bun and some excellent deserts. Thus, I had desert, a to die for chocolate like cake, and Angie had deep fried pickles and hot chicken wings.

A perfect day.

Health Care

I am watching Ghost Hunters instead of President Obama's speech tonight. Since I am unable to post pictures right now, I decided to post the following. A dear friend sent it to me. Just a wee warning: some language may be offensive to some folks, but the punchline is worth it. I think so at least. Do not read last bulletin point while drinking a beverage.

The AMA weighs in:
Apparently the American Medical Association has weighed in on the new Health Care Initiatives from the Obama Administration.

• The Allergists voted to scratch it, but the Dermatologists advised not to make any rash moves.
• The Gastroenterologists had sort of a gut feeling about it, but the Neurologists thought the Administration had a lot of nerve.
• The Obstetricians felt they were all laboring under a misconception. Ophthalmologists considered the idea shortsighted.
• Pathologists yelled, “Over my dead body!”, while the Pediatricians said, ‘Oh, Grow up!’
• Oncologists fear it’s malignant, while Osteopaths see it as holistic.
• The Psychiatrists thought the whole idea was madness, while the Radiologists could see right through it.
• Surgeons decided to wash their hands of the whole thing.
• The Internists thought it was a bitter pill to swallow, and the Plastic Surgeons said, “This puts a whole new face on the matter.”
• The Podiatrists thought it was a step forward, but the Urologists were pissed off at the whole idea.
• The Anesthesiologists thought the whole idea was a gas, and the Cardiologists didn’t have the heart to say no.
• In the end, the Proctologists won out, leaving the entire decision up to the assholes in Washington.

The above should not be construed as my feelings about healthcare. I am on a Government plan called Medicaire and have lived under two nationalized plans, the German and British plans. I thought I was and am well taken care of.

There will be a brief intermission in blogging. My current computer has bit the dust. I am currently working with a 1990 laptop and cannot access the DSL Internet, so only phone hookup. So no blogging until I get the computer fixed, get this one to access DSL or have the money to buy a new one.

So have fun knitting all of you.