March 29, 2011

It's Just Tuesday

Tuesday is one of my regular days off of work and I tend to try to get things done. You know what I mean? House stuff, dog stuff, people stuff.

After brewing myself a fragrant cup of Chocolate Glazed Donut flavored coffee (I kid you not) and dining on a sumptuous bowl of Honey Nut Cheerios, I visited the dentist. This morning I had that invigorating, eye-watering, deep scaling cleaning done on one side of my mouth (had the other side done a few weeks ago) and a biopsy on my inner cheek because it apparently looks odd. She said she didn't want to scare me but it could be cancer or it could be some kind of auto-immune thing, which I think means I'm allergic to myself!?!? If you have hay fever, you take antihistamines; if you're allergic to dust, you clean; if it's a pet, you might have to part ways with it. I'm lying there thinking Good Luck getting away from yourself, sister. Anyway, I have a few stitches in my cheek that will dissolve on their own and we'll see what the verdict is eventually.

I decided to come home and baby myself, which means doing what I love to do ... knitting and watching TV. Our monthly crafting group, named Frogging Dropped Stitches, has decided to knit and crochet squares for an afghan to donate a la Warm Up America. We're all making 7" x 9" squares in machine washable, acrylic worsted weight yarn. It takes 49 squares to make one afghan: 7 squares in a vertical column by 7 rows. I completed my first 7 squares ...


One of the bonuses of this project is that it doesn't take a lot of yarn to make a square (they give patterns on the Warm Up America site) so you can use a lot of the stash odds and ends you have laying around. I knitted 6 squares and decided to crochet the blue one (on the left in the picture above). If you keep saying you want to learn to knit or crochet, this is a great way to get started. You can work on small pieces that eventually become something big and wonderful, learning new stitch patterns as you go.


I'm also working on an afghan as a gift. I am knitting it in long strips of large squares (the same basic concept as the Warm Up America afghans, except I'm joining each new yarn and knitting the entire vertical strip instead of sewing squares together. When I'm done, I'll have 4 of these strips to connect and crochet around to bring it all together in a pretty, cohesive package ...


I've found a 2-row stitch pattern that I find enjoyable, yet mindless, so I can knit while I watch TV without any problem.

Sand Stitch

Cast on an even number of stitches

Row 1: Slip 1, Purl 1, *Knit 1, Purl 1* - repeat section in asterisks to end of row
Row 2: Slip 1, Knit to end of row

That's it! It looks completely different -- and finished -- on both sides, which I love because I'm not so fond of stitch patterns that have a wrong side that looks wrong. Did that make any sense at all?


Then I decided to watch Julie & Julia, which always, always makes me smile. It's just so much fun! I stretched out on the couch and immediately became a cushion for Louie and Miles. I tried to take a picture with my phone ...


Louie is laying on my chest, Miles is down by my feet and that's Meryl Streep on the screen as Julia Child.

Sore mouth aside, it's a great day!


10 comments:

Liz Mays said...

I can't think of a better way to spend a Tuesday! You are quite talented, by the way.

Dazee Dreamer said...

oh my. I've had the Chocolate Glazed Donut flavor. I have to say one of my favorites is the mountain blueberry one. or the Carmel Vanilla Nut, or ...... ok, I have too many. I actually just bought a Keurig for my office at work too. And BTW, if you like iced coffee, you totally can do those too. Just don't waste the money on the "special iced coffee" k-cups. Regular ones do just as well, and if you brew the smallest size, with all the ice you use, it is perfect. ok, getting off my soapbox.

Loren said...

Well for heavens sakes! I AM PRAYING IT IS NOTHING SERIOUS!! I am sooo glad you took care of YOU and not only surrounded yourself with love and sweetness but you poured your heart into helping someone! You are JUST PRECIOUS you know that!
You inspire me & bless me more than words can say!

Praying Praying Praying!! Love and great big hugs all the way from OK and back!!

Pepsi Breath said...

You know you MUST blog the results as soon as you know them. But if it will make you feel any better, I'll remind you I had a growth on my inner cheek removed just over a year ago and it was a benign fibroma. That means you have genetics on your side, Sister!

Lovin' the squares and the afghan and glad you have 2 little snuggle buggles to relax with.

Tiffanee said...

What a great blanket that is going to be!! Sounds like a wonderful day!!

Connie said...

Thinking of you, saying a prayer & staying positive that all is well!! Hugs from Loren's mom :)

Snowcatcher said...

Ugh, hope the mouth is faring better now. That's such a cute picture of the pooches! And I just love the colors of the afghan you are making. Great idea to do it in strips, too!

Unknown said...

Sounds like an enjoyable day with doggie warmers, lol. I love your work! So pretty!! And the project with your group sounds wonderful. I've never heard of that coffee - sounds yummy!!!

Debby@Just Breathe said...

That coffe sounds wonderful. Praying that all is well with your biopsy. Love the squares, what a beautiful idea.

Baby Sister said...

I'm sorry about your mouth. :( That sucks!! The knitting looks like fun, especially the gift afghan. I would love something like that...