Lucky Monday

Oh, I was dreading it. I SO did not want to get up and go to work this morning. I had a work-related event Sunday night, and I always feel a little cheated when my nights and weekends get sucked up by work, even if it was a pleasant work-related event. If I'm not home curled up on the couch with knitting or in my Sock Monkey or cowboy pajamas communing with my cats or my husband, then it's work. (What I do for a living is hard, time-consuming, far from a 9-to-5 schedule, not wildly lucrative, and stressful (I now have gray hairs to prove it), but it is also rewarding and sometimes even fun. I shouldn't complain; I still do.) I woke up early (darn you, time change!) so I got on the computer to surf while the husband occupied the shower. That's when I saw this. It made Monday a whole lot easier to take. Thanks, Bonne Marie!

Meme, which I never do...

1. FIRST NAME? Angela
2. WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE? Not that I know.
3. WHEN DID YOU LAST CRY? I get choked up but don't cry often. The last time was two weeks ago having a serious chat with a colleague about his health.
4. DO YOU LIKE YOUR HANDWRITING? Absolutely not.
5. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCHMEAT? Smoked or cajun turkey.
6. IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU? Yes.
7. DO YOU HAVE A JOURNAL? Just the blog.
8. DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TONSILS? Yes.
9. WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP? No.
10. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CEREAL? Oatmeal.
11. DO YOU UNTIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF? I'm trying to think if I have any shoes with laces...
12. DO YOU THINK YOU ARE STRONG? Pretty strong.
13. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM FLAVOR? Cherry Garcia or Green Tea or Vanilla Peanut Butter Swirl or Roasted Marshmallow (from an ice cream store across the street from the ROM in Toronto).
14. SHOE SIZE? 8.5-9.
5. RED OR PINK? Red.
16. WHAT IS THE LEAST FAVORITE THING ABOUT YOURSELF? IBS. Not the best fun ever.
17. WHO DO YOU MISS THE MOST? My grandparents. I don't see them often.
18. DO YOU WANT EVERYONE TO SEND THIS BACK TO YOU? N/A.
19. WHAT COLOR PANTS, SHIRT AND SHOES ARE YOU WEARING? Black skirt, white and blue striped shirt, denim jacket, black boots.
20. LAST THING YOU ATE? Beef with broccoli. And a fortune cookie.
21. WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW? A colleague talking in the other room. He's from LA but he still has his South Carolina accent.
22. IF YOU WERE A CRAYON, WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU BE? Green-Blue.
23. FAVORITE SMELL? The ocean.
24. WHO WAS THE LAST PERSON YOU TALKED TO ON THE PHONE? Our accountant at work.
25. THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE ABOUT PEOPLE YOU ARE ATTRACTED TO? Large-ish, distinctive noses.
26. DO YOU LIKE THE PERSON YOU STOLE THIS from? I like her blog a lot; I've never met her in person.
27. FAVORITE DRINK? Cran-Raspberry LaCroix. Mint Iced Tea. Mojitos. Coffee would be on the list, but I have had to stop drinking it and decaf sucks.
28. FAVORITE SPORT? The only sporting event I watch is the Indy 500. I watch it every year in my pajamas. I don't watch any other sports or sporting events, just Indy. It's weird, I know.
29. EYE COLOR? Blue.
30. HAT SIZE? ?
31. DO YOU WEAR CONTACTS? Nope.
32. FAVORITE FOOD? Raw oysters with mignonette.
33. SCARY MOVIES OR HAPPY ENDINGS? Neither, really.
35. SUMMER OR WINTER? Summer, but not when it is really hot.
36. HUGS OR KISSES? Hugs.
37. FAVORITE DESSERT? Too many to name. My homemade sweet potato pie is pretty high up on the list, though.
38. WHO IS MOST LIKELY TO RESPOND? N/A
39. LEAST LIKELY TO RESPOND? N/A
40. WHAT BOOKS ARE YOU READING? All knitting-related, natch. I have huge stacks of other books to read, but I cannot knit and read at the same time, so knitting usually wins.
41. WHAT'S ON YOUR MOUSE Pad? My husband's firm's logo.
42. WHAT DID YOU WATCH LAST NIGHT ON TV? Dancing with the Stars, which I never watch despite my profession.
43. FAVORITE SOUNDS? Springsteen music, waves crashing, my cat, Pitch, "talking" to me, and both my cats purring.
44. ROLLING STONE OR BEATLES? Not wild about either, but I guess the Beatles edge out the Stones.
45. THE FURTHEST YOU'VE BEEN FROM HOME? Hubbard Glacier, Alaska.


46. WHAT'S YOUR SPECIAL TALENT? I'm a jack of all trades.
47. WHERE WERE YOU BORN? Reading, PA.
48. WHO SENT THIS TO YOU? I lifted it from Carrieoke.

Kentuck

While many of you were at Rhinebeck (yes, I am a little bit jealous!), I made my annual trek to the Kentuck Festival in Northport, Alabama. My friend Sandra and I left for the airport at 6am Friday for our 8am flight, anticipating lots of art finds, turnip greens, purple hull peas, and warm weather. One of those things was not to be. When we landed, the flight attendant cheerily announced the outside temperature to be 42 degrees! Not what we had in mind. (It is usually in the 80 degree range for the festival; the big weather dilemma is not usually temperature, but precipitation. Oh, and it rained all of Saturday night, so while it did warm up in Sunday, there was mud puddle navigation and the occasional slog through a pile of wet mulch to contend with.)

Sandra eating fried pork rinds.

Every year Sandra and I choose the first big purchase for the following year. At the end of last year's festival, we chose painter Patsy Blake as this year's first stop. Here is the painting that will hang over the mantel in the first floor living room:

Some of her work reminds me of Edward Hopper's use of shadow, although the subject matter is very different.

I also purchased several pairs of earrings (and a future Christmas gift that cannot be divulged here) from Nancy at Conceits. I debated long and hard and did purchase a second painting from Bethanne Hill. (She was my "first purchase artist" last year.) It is a small painting of a bottle tree. I've also decided to start a small face jug collection. (I should have done that years ago when I first started going down to the festival.) This one came from potter Jerry Brown. Paper artist Katy Dement's work kept calling our names. We stopped by three times and made purchases each time! We bought candle hurricanes, light boxes (mine has these marvelous mermaids devised from old corset ads and drawn tails), and lampshades. All are made from handmade paper, dried leaves and flowers, and are coated in sweet-smelling beeswax. (That's the draw for me--I love beeswax!)

The lampshade has hydrangea flowers and a big hydrangea leaf on the other side.

Despite the weather issues, a good time was had by all. My friend SA, who is the Executive Director, did a great job as always. Here she is wearing a marvelous straw witch's hat from Best in Show winner Ignatius:

This festival is a marvelous little gem and I am so fortunate to be able to enjoy it every year. So, while I really wanted to go to Rhinebeck, Kentuck, at least for the time being, owns the third weekend in October for me!

Back with a Vengeance

Not really. In my next life, I want to be a Bermudian. Knitting would not play as large a role...

...although there is at least one yarn store in Bermuda, but my new-found love of snorkeling would fill the void. (No pictures of that; I was too busy swimming among the fishes. Tons of them. It was amazing. I swam through and with a school of squid that was incredibly beautiful. There were Parrotfish, Sergeant Majors, Slippery Dicks (really, that's their name), Bream, and others. It was fantastic.) If you have a chance to visit Bermuda, go, and have a Dark and Stormy for me. It was a really nice getaway and Mom had a good time (the whole point of the excursion.)

In honor of the Yarn Harlot, the sock posed for a photo.


Not 12 hours later, I ripped back much of what you see and everything I had knit in the hours hence since the heel flap was going to be just too big. Ah, well.

Yesterday, the husband and I trekked up to the Chicago Botanic Garden to the Country Living Fair. Artisans, antiques, etc. Corinne was there and her booth looked great (see good pics of it here). We managed to collect a few goodies, including several varieties of honey, some delicious hand-blended teas, a Christmas gift for Mom, and a little bit of handspun. The pumpkin and gourd display at the entrance was fantastic.

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Halloween and its accoutrements.

One more treat followed: a concert by my other Bruce.

If you think Bruce Hornsby is just about "Mandolin Rain" and "The Way It Is," you should check out one of his concerts. He is a really fantastic musician with amazing facility. He is constantly reinventing his music which keeps it interesting. For those in the audience who only know the songs that get radio and Lowe's commercial play, it baffles the hell out of them. (I was at my fourth or fifth Shawn Colvin concert not long after she had her breakthrough hit. About ten minutes in, she said she was going to play "Sonny Came Home" for the people who just came to hear that. Not long after she did, a number of people left. I am always amazed at those who come to a live show and want to hear exactly what they can hear on their car radios. I love an artist who can switch it up, make it new, and keep it fresh.) As a bonus, the price of admission included his new box set which I enjoyed this morning while I started knitting my Briar Rose Rosebud Vest.

No one is sadder than me that the real world is calling and it is back to the salt mine tomorrow. (There is no Columbus Day holiday in the not-for-profit world.)