Strawberry Season

One thing that we did not have in New Mexico was pick-your-own farms. (Unless you wanted to brave the desert and pick your own tunas [tunas are prickly pear fruit; it's fun to say "Want some tuna jam?"]). So, for the past 2 years I have made it a point to go strawberry picking. This year I went all out and picked almost 9 pounds.

Most of those became freezer jam, which I'm hoping will last me through the year. I mix it with plain yogurt, in a jar, and then try not to let people see because that is such a hipster thing to do. I also made this cake, which turned out perfectly, I highly recommend it. No picture because we scarfed it.

The deck garden is now producing! I always have to laugh at those saving-money tips that suggest "Grow your own produce on your patio!" This will not save you money. This will be the most expensive produce you have ever eaten. My two containers of pea plants yielded about a cup of peas. You could buy an entire bag of frozen peas for what the seeds alone cost.

I have tons of lettuce. Lettuce is magic - you cut the tops off, and more lettuce grows back! It's like the Medusa snake head of nature. Ok, in this case, you might actually save money. You will also still be hungry, because no matter how healthy eating a salad for lunch makes you feel, you will be hungry again an hour later.

The peas have since been replaced with morning glory seeds. I don't know if this is the right time to plant them or not, but there's always an element of not caring that creeps in right about.... now.

Never Stop Knitting

Recently, it came up in conversation that a friend thought I had stopped knitting. Well, as it turns out, I never stopped knitting; I just stopped finishing things. Here's the current lineup of what is on my needles (and spindle and hook.)

Spring Forward socks: I cast on for these immediately after Sheep & Wool in a moment of renewed knitting motivation. Surprisingly, it's kept up, and I'm almost finished with sock #1. It also helps to have really tiny feet. (Yarn: Tess Designer Yarns Super Socks)

Haruni Shawl: I don't have much of a yarn stash, but the stash I do have is largely made up of sock yarn. Shawls it is! I'm slowly plugging away on this one; do any of you knitters feel that shawls get slightly less exciting each time a row gets slightly longer? (Malabrigo sock)

First spinning project: Two years ago I learned to spin on a borrowed spindle, but at the time I didn't want to start any new hobbies. Whatevs. I bought myself a spindle at Sheep & Wool this year, along with some really cheap practice roving. I also got some nice BFL roving, but I'm saving that for when I get my singles a little more even.

Lakeside Knee-highs: I can't even remember when I started these, and this sock has been sitting in this state for quite a while now. I considered ripping it out and using the yarn for something else, but it is pretty good looking. I'll just let it sit around for a while, reminding me of my failure. (Knitpicks Essentials sock)

Crocheted granny square blanket: Inspired by Attic24's colorful blankets, I ordered 12 different colors of wool yarn. I'm using this tutorial, and so far have about 35 squares. It'll probably take me the rest of my life to finish this, but when it's done, it will embody awesomeness.

Rocky Gap, Maryland & Pennsylvania

A few weekends ago Jason and I went to explore the "skinny part" of Maryland (aka Western Maryland), and nearby Pennsylvania. Of course, because this happens on all of my vacations, it rained most of the time. Because I know my luck, I planned ahead and bought myself a new rain jacket. Go me! We stayed at the Rocky Gap Resort near Cumberland, Maryland. The hotel is actually in a state park, which is great: we could just walk to trails. And also a random cemetery in the woods:

Even though it was raining, we decided on the Evitt's Homesite Trail, which would take us through a canyon and up a mountain. This trail was marked "difficult", but it wasn't really. There was a 1000' elevation change, but it was spread out over many miles. There's no way this was actually 5 miles, like the trail map claimed. If you add up the numbers on the signs, you get more like 6 or 6.5. So, who knows. After hiking down into the canyon, we crossed a small stream. There was a pretty impressive waterfall leading from the dam enclosing the lake, but it was hard to see through the trees.

The trail was marked quite well, with white blazes on what seemed like every other tree. This is a far cry from a lot of western trails that use rock cairns, which cause you to panic every time you see a small mound of stones. "Wait, is that a cairn? Or a pile of rocks? OH GOD I AM GOING TO DIE THE MOUNTAIN LIONS ARE GOING TO EAT ME."

Then, all of the sudden, we were in Pennsylvania! We walked to another state! Here I am hugging the Maryland side of the Mason-Dixon line, which I took to add to my collection of "people hugging Mason-Dixon markers." Right now there is only one other picture in this collection, taken in Delaware, but we're working on it.

Hmm, how about proofreading your signs before making them and lugging them up a mountain? Can you spot the error?

The next day we decided to act more civilized (i.e., shower), and drove up to Pennsylvania to see Frank Lloyd Wright's Fallingwater. I can't really think of anything funny or cynical to say about this house (other than you really have to have some balls to build a house over a waterfall) because it really was pretty impressive. I loved the walk-out from the living room down to the water... but see how close it is to the waterfall? Super dangerous! They don't allow photography inside, but to me it seemed like this house was built for small people. Sign me up! Also, extremely humid. The whole place was very damp, and the upholstered furniture gave off a musty smell.

So, Cumberland, Maryland? Totally like this.

My Kitty

For my 13th birthday, my parents got me a kitten, who we named Snickers. We brought her home in a laundry basket in the backseat of our minivan. For the first few weeks, Snickers stayed in my room, and would wake me up in the middle of the night, mewling for me to pick her up and put her on the bed. When I went away to college, Snickers stayed with my parents, and I looked forward to seeing her every time I went back home.

Yesterday morning Snickers passed away at the age of 17. She was a sweet cat, and I can't think of anything mischievous that she ever did (unlike my cat Kiska, who added eating all my pepper plant seedlings to her list of misdeeds this week). She was quiet and sneaky, but always left reminders of her presence on all of our clothes in the form of long, white hairs. Thanks for spending your life with us. We'll miss you, Snick.

Home Improvement: Craft Room

Jason always gets after me for saying, in regard to the house, "I love the colors, I'm not changing any of them!" and then proceeding to change them all. I have now repainted the entire basement. No matter what I say, I will never be "done" decorating the house.
The final room was my craft bunker (so-called because it is in the basement and does not have any windows). The green on the walls and the florescent light made everything look sickly. In incarnation one, I had a Target bookcase that literally fell apart, and a kitchen table for a workspace.

Then, I got a larger Ikea desk on craiglist from a guy who was moving to Norway the next day. I don't know, maybe in Norway your neighbors will scoff at you for owning Ikea stuff. "Sweden? Really Erik? Have some self-respect."

The panels on the bottom were straight-up glued to the wall. I have no idea what was going on there. I did a ton of cutting in and priming.

Before you have a heart attack that I painted something gray instead of a bright color, remember what I said about this room not having any windows? I don't want to feel like I'm sewing in a coffin. The walls are Martha Stewart Whetstone Gray (color matched to Behr), and the white is off-the-shelf Behr white in semi-gloss. It took 4, FOUR coats to cover up the dark green.

I replaced the light, as you saw in my previous post, and covered a bulletin board (more on that later.) The result is a craft bunker that I actually want to be in, and will be a pleasant place should we ever have to take cover from a tornado.

Gardening

Finally. This past winter seemed like it never was going to end; last year, I started planting flowers the first week in April. Now it's almost May and our Kwanzan Cherry tree out front is just getting around to blooming.

The deck garden has now reached critical mass. I've bought so much dirt over the years that I worry about leaving it when we eventually move. I love you, dirt. [These are not all the containers I have. There are 3 more bins on the opposite side of the deck, plus several more pots waiting in the wings.]

Sprouting now are peas and lettuce. I know my lettuce is all clumpy and crowded, but over the years I have found that it's best not to try very hard when gardening. Just throw some seeds in there and water every once in awhile. Seriously, if you coddle plants too much they will laugh at you and then die just to spite you.

The hostas are popping up as well. I know that some people irrationally hate hostas; at the garden center this weekend I overheard a woman ask, "How about these?" when pointing to some, and the other person responded, "Ewww, no." You try growing anything in clay soil in a completely shaded area, and I guarantee you will also develop a love for these leafy plants.

The tomato plants I started indoors will be transferred into larger pots soon, as well some peppers. (At least I think that's what they are. Not labeling things just makes it more fun.)

It Always Takes Longer Than You Think

Anyone who has ever done a home improvement project knows that it always takes longer than you think. This is why I start laughing hysterically every time a real estate agent suggests that someone "just take this wall down" on House Hunters [apparently I have been watching too much House Hunters lately.] Chances are that wall has electricity and plumbing running through it, and is inhabited by a small homeless man with squatter's rights.

So, silly me, I thought I could "just replace that light fixture." After painting my craft bunker, I took down the round fluorescent light and found this:

Who paints a ceiling orange? No really, please tell me. [A crazy person, that's who.] Multiple theories were tossed about as to the use of this once completely dark-orange room, most of which involved human organs and illegal activities. I try not to think about it anymore.

I tried to paint over it with the color marked on the previous owner's paint chip collection as "ceilings", but that color was anything but "ceiling." I really didn't want to paint the entire ceiling, so I jumped at Jason's suggestion to paint a design over it.

Flash forward, and I am cutting giant snowflakes out of newspaper. When I got one I liked, I taped it to the ceiling and traced around it with a pencil.

Then I just filled it in with an artist's paintbrush with the wall color (Martha Stewart Whetstone Grey.) Huge props to Michelangelo, by the way, painting above your head is hard.

April Readathon: Update 3

Pages read so far: 152

I finished Revenge! I also read a chapter of A Room With a View (E.M. Forster) as a palate refresher and to make myself feel smart. As an actual palate refresher, I made some crustless quiche for dinner. Now, because it is really quiet in here, I am moving on to the movie watching portion of the Readathon. I just invented this portion, but trust me, it's real.

Soon, back to regularly scheduled knitting and painting things content.

April Readathon: Update 2

Pages read so far: 92
Of note: I have been to the gym and made this tasty (but cold) strawberry and pineapple smoothie for lunch. No chores have been accomplished, but I'm on my way down to start my laundry. (I know you were on the edge of your seat about that one. "But what about the dirty clothes, Sarah, WHAT ABOUT THE CLOTHES??")

I'm continuing with Revenge, which is a retelling of The Count of Monte Cristo. It swings wildly between boring and fascinating, and is currently hovering on gruesomely murderous. I will probably finish it today, just to give myself a sense of accomplishment. Why won't it be warm so I can go outside and spray paint stuff? (Hint.)

April Readathon: Update 1

Surprise! I am readathoning. I guess I could watch like 400 episodes of House Hunters in which 24-year-olds buy 2,500 square foot houses for $7,000, and feel bad about my house that is not good for entertaining, but hey, how about something different?

So almost 4 hours into this, not much reading appears to be happening, so this might just be a day of "Look at all of the boring stuff Sarah does on a Saturday when left to her own devices". So far I have read 40 pages. I started out with David Rakoff's Half Empty, which seems like the book of my dreams. Negativity and pessimism are my expertise! But I just can't get into it. I think I was expecting David Rakoff to be David Sedaris, which is not proving to be the case.

On to Revenge by Stephen Fry, which I am only reading because, Hello, Stephen Fry! Have you seen A Bit of Fry & Laurie? (Bonus points for Hugh Laurie.)

Now the TV has been turned on magically by elves, and I am watching the Cherry Blossom Parade. I also need to go to the gym and then swiffer (I love that "swiffer" is a verb) the pollen-and-cat-hair covered floors. And maybe I'll go to the thrift store. In short, not read while "doing" the Readathon. I may also watch a French movie, which is TOTALLY reading, you know, the subtitles.