Under the Dome – mud&string

ON THE NEEDLES

I decided to give myself a little break from fiddly stuff for a bit and have been knitting up dish towels instead, finally using some of that Sugar and Cream that’s been in the stash for lo, how many years. My current favorite is the Yarn Over Cable Cloth from Dishcloth Boutique. After just a couple of repeats, I’d memorized the four row pattern, a welcome relief from having to look from pattern to knitting and back to pattern.

I’m getting the sock knitting itch again, I just wound some new Shibui Sock from Yarn Mart and am pondering patterns even as I type. I have a couple of ideas – Spring Forward or Kew, both from Knitty. Love them both, maybe I’ll flip a coin. Here’s a look at the new Shibui –

This color is called Poodle Skirt and how cute is that??

MR. CANON AND ME, WE GETTIN’ TIGHT

Beginning to feel much more comfortable with Mr. Canon and today, it took only about 30-45 minutes to remember and do what took hours yesterday. Josie, Mr. Canon and I just may take a field trip tomorrow morning, especially if the weather stays as beautiful as it has the last two days.

Photobomb by Josie

BY THE BOOK

My Yarn Along contribution today is Stephen King’s Under the Dome, in preparation for the mini-series scheduled for sometime in June. I’m still technically reading Annie Dillard‘s Pilgrim at Tinker Creek, but haven’t picked it back up since Monday afternoon at the library. I’m planning to get started again this afternoon, the weather is predicted to be stormy and this seems like it would be a good book to cocoon with.

DON’T FORGET TO

Visit Tamis Amis’ WIPW blog for more WIP goodies and Ginny Sheller’s Yarn Along for lots more book and yarn love. Prepare to be inspired!

The better part of happiness is to wish to be what you are. Desiderius Erasmus

OLD DOG NEW TRICK

I’ve been thinking for a while about working on my photography skills – what skills haha – so this Sunday afternoon, I got the manual to Mr. Iknead’s fancy schmancy camera and did a little reading. Really, cameras nowadays (this one, anyway) have a much higher IQ than I do. What I learned mostly was where all the buttons were and what they did. OK, so far so good, photos look pretty good and the Mr. Canon and I are getting acquainted. Next up, transfer pics from Mr. Canon to Ms. Dell, which took me what felt like forever, but really a couple of hours, to figure out, but still, mission accomplished. Final step: Upload to Flickr, which, again, has taken me a couple of hours to figure out, with their fancy new uploader, but again, mission accomplished. Finally, it dawned on me that I needed to update my browser and then, I could drag and drop to my little heart’s content. Done and done. Here’s a few of my first attempts –

I could get into this whole photography thing, like I need another hobby!

BY THE BOOK

My reading/listening is all over the map the past week or so, ranging from Stephen King’s Under the Dome to Annie Dillard‘s Pilgrim at Tinker Creek. I started Pilgrim at Tinker Creek yesterday, just a few pages in, but am already enjoying it. She writes about learning to unsee the obvious and find the hidden in nature, which I find compelling, especially when she writes about stillness and the frenetic activity underneath it. Like I said, compelling.

Pilgrim at Tinker Creek

FINALLY, SPRING

The past few days have been absolutely, positively gorgeous – short sleeve and sandal weather. I’m finally motivated to do something- anything-outside. The sunshine and breeze during my morning walk today felt like such a gift after so many cold, rainy, windy days when I literally had to force myself to just get out of the house. Thunderstorms are predicted for tomorrow, but I’m living in today and it’s lovely. I’m letting tomorrow be tomorrow.

I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life and see if I could not learn what they had to teach; and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived. Henry David Thoreau, “Walden“