Spring in My Backyard

I love my backyard.

It's not just the generic, featureless space you would expect from a rental house. It's fairly small, but packed with botanical goodies.As I showed before in a Fall post from last year, neat things grow here. It's Spring, and in HumCo, that means rhododendrons. The rhododendrons in my backyard are going nuts. In fact, they are going nuts all over town. even the wild rhodies are starting their bloom cycle; the wild variety are usually a few weeks later blooming than the hybrids. Yards all over town have them here. So does landscaping in front of businesses. In this country, rhododendrons seem to be not just a staple, but a requirement.

The rhodies here are both pink, but different. One is a clear, cotton candy pink that fades to a light baby pink as the bracts age. The other is a warmer color-- almost more a light red than a pink along the edges to fading in the center to a pinkish white. The stand in each corner of the backyard; the red edge is on the left and the pink on the right, with an apple tree in between. The rhodies are tall shrub for--each is 10-15 feet tall and in full bloom they make an impressive sight.

The white clematis that I posted pictures of last Novemberr has also exploded, and is mingling with a light pink small flowered climbing rose that almost looks like 'Cecile Bruner', but can't be since it blooms almost constantly. The yard currently has a rather wild, untended cottage garden look to it, and I need to get out and do some weeding and grooming, but still is a sweet, secret place to be. Little things just crop up all over the yard and it makes me happy!!

White clematis and roses on the right side fence:
















The red-edged rhodie in the left-hand corner:




















Closeups of bracts of the red-edged rhodie:


































The pink rhodie in the right-hand corner and some closeups:











































I really love the Springtime!!

Fun with Citrus

What do you get when you mix orange peel, a sharpie and a cute goofball?

You get THIS:















I've got a guy with a sense of humor--lucky, lucky me!!!

I call this picture "Humboldt County Dental Hygiene". Actually there are some excellent dentists here--mine is one. I get my new crown next Monday. Novocaine shots--my favorite (not!).

A Grand Day Out in Crescent City

It's a lovely late Sunday morning, and here I am blogging. The blogging is good, because it is distracting me from hearing "Arthur's Theme" by Christopher Cross inexplicably running through my head. Why THAT song? I hate that kind of soft '80's pop crap with a passion. Why not a GOOD '80's song, like some Devo or B52's? Oh well, at least it's not Elton John and Kiki Dee singing "Don't Go Breakin' My Heart", which I view as the musical equivalent of the ebola virus.

After the prodigious quantities of rain we had a week or so ago, Nature decided we needed a break. Fortuitously, the break fell on a Saturday, so P and I decided to head north. Our previous day-out foray a couple weeks back had been south to the beach outside Petrolia that also serves as the northern trailhead for the Lost Coast Trail. Logically, it seemed to me, that we should head north. The goal: Tolowa Dunes State Park. We had driven past many times, and usually one of us would remark, "We really need to go there sometime.".

So, with the promise of a good weather day, off we went after a tasty Los Bagels bagel breakfast in Eureka Oldtown. The weather was really good--some lingering coastal fog that was burning off fast. The countryside is still very green and the native rhododendrons in Del Norte Redwoods State Park were just starting to bloom.

We drove straight to Crescent City from Eureka with no stops. it's 80 miles, and some of the road is very narrow and winding. It takes 1.5 hours to get there and there is no getting around that time with the roads the way they are.

Crescent City is an odd little town. It's the seat of Del Norte County and contains the bulk of the county population at 8805 people. It is not the northernmost city on the California coast (the northernmost city, I believe, is Smith River.), but the geography north of town really starts to seem more Oregonian than Californian. If you know the landscape at all, you can recognize that you are in a transition zone. There are still redwood trees, but everything else screams 'Oregon Coast!!"

Unlike a lot of the towns in this neck of the woods, Crescent City doesn't have a really well defined main drag. Like Eureka, Highway 101 has been turned into two one way streets, running north or south, lined with businesses. Unlike Eureka, in Crescent City, a lot of those buildings are fairly new. There also is not an equivalent of the Eureka Oldtown, which has that old-timey Main Street feel. I think this lack is due to the '64 tsunami which trashed a chunk of the city and took out a lot of the buildings there at the time. It's an old harbor--the lighthouse there has existed since 1856--and it FEELS like there should be more older buildings, but there aren't.

Still, P and I have driven grids in the city streets in the past to see what's there, so we have a decent idea of what local businesses are available. In any case, I know there is a local yarn store! It's called A Perfect Yarn, and I had to stop . I spent a very happy 10 minutes browsing; it's a neat little place! Another reason to like Crescent City.

We ate a nice lunch at The Good Harvest Cafe and then headed for Tolowa Dunes north of town. It was bright and clear, but a bit breezy. We navigated the map and found the central entrance that has beach access. It was a tiny trial driving there. The road was flooded in one spot with standing water that turned out to be a bit deeper than we thought. Still, we got through it. The beach was nice, but EXTREMELY windy. Too windy, even for kites. We picked about for 10 minutes and bailed looking for a more sheltered area.

We checked out the north, but it is a hike to the beach from there. The same was true for the south, but there are some nifty wetland trails and it would be worth going back with with some binocs and a bird book.

A meadow by the South trailhead of Tolowa Dunes. Look at the great color mix; the red is grass seed heads:















We then drove back to town and decided to check out a couple of antique stores. Our first choice was closed, but the second, Sylvia's Attic, was not. What a great place! The shop was very well organized and had everything from the pricey to the affordable. The vintage kitchenware was fun to poke through and there was a lot if it. P and I went a bit bonkers, but we kept finding things we had been looking for. We found (and purchased) a set of stainless steel Turkish kebab skewers, a pyrex double boiler (the find of the day!!), a silver water pitcher, a free standing strainer with legs and a wooden masher, a spice rack, a complete set of tiny steel crochet hooks (guesses who those are for), a book on local culture and some yellow seed beads. The owner, Sylvia, is a friendly lady, transplanted from L.A--Beverly Hills, more specifically. She had quite a few stories and I now have the distinction of knowing someone who has taken her kids trick-or-treating with William Shatner. Her daughter was buds in high school with Miguel Ferrer and Billy Mumy (of 'Lost in Space' fame)--she showed as a picture of how they look today in a group shot. Quite a slice of fun! Also, a store to go back to. She had Corningware lids and I think she has one of a size I need...

We then headed for Battery Point lighthouse. Since the tide was out, we were able to walk out to Battery Point Lighthouse and we took a quite nice little guided tour. The lighthouse is still functioning and manned, as well. You can only get to it at low tide, though. The interior is very cool, with vintage furnishings. It straddles the line between working facility and museum. Another place worth seeing.

We tried to go to the Rumiano Cheese shop, but it was already closed, so we toodled off to the north end of Pebble Beach for some agate hunting. The agates there are small, but there are LOTS. We found a total of 257 agate pebbles in all different colors. Check out our haul:



















At this time of year, it stays light very late, so it was already 7pm and we were hungry. P had read of a place called Bistro Gardens on Yelp.com that was well reviewed so we went. It was casual, but the prices were quite steep. I had the special--Salmon with scallops in a champagne cream sauce. P had shrimp and andouille sausage that also came in a cream sauce. We had an appetizer of polenta with marinara. Well, I was underwhelmed, considering the prices. All the sauces were too heavy and salty. My fish was extremely well cooked--not too done or underdone, but tasted fishy, smacking of a low end supplier. For $24.95, I expected more. The presentation was pretty with smashed spuds and julienned veggies, but pretty doesn't save bad sauce. obvious The chef DOES know something about cooking, but I was quite disappointed. A gal at the table next to ours had the special ,too, and she said it was almost a " religious experience" which was what convinced me to try it. I guess I am not ready to get religion yet. I'd be tempted to go back for a second chance if it wasn't so spendy. All ageism aside, the salty sauces hinted that the food was geared to an older crowd used to eating fairly well. I remember my grandparents late in life salting their food to DEATH because that was what they could taste. There was even a 4:30-6:00 early bird menu, although they menu refrained of specifically calling it that. Well, so much for Bistro Gardens. Still, I had a nice meal with my sweetie and the view was good.

All in all, Crescent City is a cute, friendly little burg and it's worth spending the day there--there is a lot to see. P took some great shots--more than me. Click the link to see them at his Flickr site.

Sunset over Freshwater Lagoon on the way home from our Grand Day Out:

Rainfall Record

That weather bomb I showed a pic of on Monday the 4th yielded a rainfall record for the city of Eureka: 1.74 inches in 24 hours. The previous record was 0.83 inches in 1889. That's a whole lotta rain!

April Showers...and Mo

April showers bring May flowers... Wait... it IS May! So what is up with THIS...??

















It is really coming down out there right now. Here I am all snug in the house--early shift at work has me out of there by 3:30. The 6 AM alarm ain't so great, but the early departure is really nice.

Today, May 4th, is the 31st anniversary of the birth of my darling cat Mo (short for Mohandas K. Gandhi--I was a young, impressionable teen when I got Mo, and thought Gandhi was a Numero Uno Dude, so I named my cat after him. Rather misnamed, since Mo was all swaggery machismo with very little pacific about his personality. I still think MKG is a great man, though.) Mo was born in 1978, out of a white cat named Chaos, one of four kittens. I saw him and felt a bond immediately. I can't explain it; I just had a good feeling and begged both my parents and Chaos' person to let me have him. Sometimes it's like that with animals.

Mo had a big hiccup at age 2--he was running laps on the flat part of the roof at my folks' house, slipped and fell about 15 feet. He blew out his left knee and tore his diaphragm muscle about 75% loose from his chest wall. My parents, bless them, paid for expensive surgery and his vet Dr. Silver did a great job--Mo lived another 16 years after his accident, dying of kidney failure in 1996 at the age of 18. If you look closely at the picture, you can just barely see the midline scar of his surgery. He is about 10 years old here, in his characteristic roadkill pose that either says "It's too ****ing hot!" or "Here's my belly, notice me!!!"

Mo had one of those spirits that I truly hope I run into again in this lifetime. He was one of the mellowest, quirkiest cats I have ever known and he and I loved each other as only a cat and a cat lover can. I was definitely his person and I still feel priveleged. He was totally unfazed by other people, though and would work a house party of 20-30 people like a seasoned master.

"Hi. Welcome to my house."
"Thanks for sitting--I was looking for some lap."
"Tasty appetizers, yes? Don't mind if I do."

The January before he died, one of my roommates had a Superbowl party and Mo did his typical working of the room. Mo died on June 30th, 1996. The following January, another Superbowl party was in the works and one of my roommate's friends, who had attended the year before, asked "if that cat Mo was going to be there?", and when he was told that Mo had died he replied, "No point in having a party, then.". Mo was that cool of a cat.

So, Happy Birthday, Mo, wherever you are!!

Knitting Update

I know, I know--I just posted a bunch of knitting stuff in my last post. I can't help it. Knitting is really what I do these days. I was not able to knit much while I was in school and I am making up for lost time, I guess. It helps, too, to have my new knitting circle at NCK. I have learned more cute tricks in the last few weeks of going regularly on Thursdays than in the last 5 years--really useful stuff. These people are as passionate as myself about the craft and that is empowering to me. I don't feel like and obsessed weirdo; I am obsessed, yes, but not weird in that crowd.

I just spent an hour thrashing around in my garage, trying to organize my stuff. OK, today it is 'stuff'; some days it is 'junk, but not today. I got a fair way into putting my knitting mags into plastic bins, and in chronological order. This is how they used to be and I want them that way again so I can FIND things. I will be happier overall when I can finish those things I have the gear for, but that lie fallow because needed components are buried in a box in the garage or some random closet cranny.

Still, I am drowning in projects and it is time for an update to help keep me focused.
I wrote this current project update almost two months ago on March 8th:

1) Zarah is reknit and ready to block and sew except for the collar. I really needed a break, but I will pick it up to work on soon.
2) Jiada is still fallow.
3) I have started a small first quarter project and it is proceeding apace as my lunchtime/weekly knitting circle project.
4) Grant Avenue is still in a box--can't deal with it right now.
5) Hisdal Peony is untouched.
6) Da Vinci is untouched as well
7) New Shell was shunted aside in favor of other lace weight mohair silk projects:
8) the Belinda wrap which is at the halfway point
9) Clapotis, which is 60-70% done and a STASH yarn project to boot. Yay me!

So, here is how today compares to two months ago:
1) Zarah is blocked except for the collar. I am slowly sewing it together. The shoulders are done, and about 2/3 of the side seams, but a it is slow going to get a tidy seam.
2) The right front of Jiada is done and now part of the back, but went on the back burner.
3) My lunchtime smoke ring is done.
4) Grant Avenue is still moldering in a box.
5) The Hisdal Peony is started, but was set aside for the scarf contest project, due May 15th.
6) Da Vinci is still untouched
7) New Shell? Hah. What New Shell--shelved in favor of other things until firther notice and I am dropping it from this list.
8) The Belinda wrap is about 80-85% done, but it is a SLOG at this point and I only work on it at lunch at work.
9) Clapotis is DONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So I have finished 2 of 9 projects, and shelved one until further notice. I have also made real progress on four more. The speed of progress will pick up again on all of these, once my scarf is finished and turned in.

The scarf contest is a Northcoast Knittery deal and I HAD to do it--they made me an offere I couldn't refuse. The deal is I got to choose any yarn in the shop up to $100 and could knit any scarf I wanted with it. They get to keep the finished scarf, but I can enter it in the County Fair if I'd like to. How could I say no? All I put in is time. Plus, the winner of the contest gets a $50 gift certificate, so I had to take a crack. I have seen two of the other entries and they are pretty slick, so I have stiff competion. There is one other knitter ( four of us, total), so I am not sure how likely it is that I'll win, but it still means I get to make a pattern I was itching to do. Besides, I am not hurting for scarves right now, so I get to knit it for free and then not have it cluttering things up. I am doing Nicky Epstein's 2-in-1 floral scarf from 'Knitting Never Felt Better'--it's the cover project. I am doing it in ruby red rather than the salmon color shown, and plan to lightly embellish it with some embroidery and maybe some beads, as well.

On that note, I am going to knnit a few more flowers and start putting the scarf together for felting. The sooner it is done, the sooner I can finish the other things I want to do.

W.I.P. it good!!

OK, the post-title is a shameless DEVO paraphrase, but it fits the theme. Also, my dear husband checked out a Devo DVD from the library for me, knowing my admiration for the Beautiful Mutants. What a guy! That got me thinking in a Devo kind of way.

But I digress. The actual meaning of W.I.P. is "Work in Progress". This refers to things planned and on one's needles. For those of you who don't/can't see my Ravelry pages, I currently have 6 WIP's. Actually 8, but I was so embarrassed seeing all that unfinished, nagging STUFF that I sent two projects in to hibernation. Sheesh. (And just so she knows: K, your smoke ring is actually done, blocked and ready to mail. I have had such a short attention span, I haven't gotten my act together to package and mail it. {Yeah, yeah, Rabbit. Whatever, Dude.})

Aaaanyway, I keep starting things and not finishing other things. What can I say? I have been distracted. March was busy--I was panic-knitting to keep calm during Mom's health scare. Things there are at least temporarily under control. She comes home from the Nursing Home soon. This will make her happy, but then again, how well will she be able to look after herself? Time will tell.

Earlier this week, I had a Bad Tuesday in that I woke with an intractable migraine, stayed home from work and tried to sleep it off. That evening, I was snacking on a date and, lo!, one of my tooth veneers split in two and came off. I heard the 'crack!' and KNEW it was not good. Well, I love my dentist, Dr. Singleton. He got me in the next morning at 9 AM, so I only went around in public looking like an extra from 'Deliverance' for an hour. The temporary looks quite good and I was pleasantly surprised that the lab that makes the porcelain crowns was literally across the parking lot. They gave my teeth the once-over and Kim, the manufacturer assured me that he was more than happy to redo the crown gratis if I was not happy with it and even bring me in to check it before cementing. Not bad service for a small geographic area. This made me happy most of all because I miss the awesome Dr. John Shaffer in Hayward who did my teeth before. He did a really great job, but I feel like I am in good hands here, too. Big relief.

So, the flush knitting period of March has tapered. I have been going outside more often, although it is raining at the moment and supposed to all weekend. Not good weather for Spring hiking, but a good time to get some things done at home. I entered a scarf contest at Northcoast Knittery that must be done by May 16th, and since I am going out of town the 15th, I need it earlier than that. It's about 60-70% done. I really need to get some things off the slate, but I am putting the time-constrained scarf first. I have finally done some serious organization in the garage, but it is slow going. Mostly non-yarn-stash items so I can actually get to my stash in the first place. Slow going.

Still, I have promised Hubby to go out and mingle with real people this weekend, so I plan to make good. In fact, I think I'll go out now and get some sushi for dinner...