30 January 2006

I've been tagged...

I've been tagged for the "4 Things" meme by f.pea (head over to her blog for an update on the So Fast So Sleazy story).

Here it goes:

Four jobs I've had in my life:
1. Bakery counter-person at a grocery store
2. Teller
3. Office Clerk - at a car dealership
4. Handled calls at an in-bound call center for PA's Driver & Vehicle Services

Four movies I could watch over & over:
1. Grease
2. Wayne's World
3. Shrek
4. Lord of the Rings series

Four places I have lived:
1. Key West, FL
2. Long Beach, CA
3. Imperial Beach, CA
4. Great Lakes, IL

Four places I have been on vacation (vacation?? what is that??):
1. Catalina Island, CA
2. San Francisco, CA
3. Ocean City, MD
4. New York City (NY)

Four websites I visit daily:
1. my website
2. many, many knitting blogs
3. site meter
4. my bank's website

Four of my favorite foods:
1. Chocolate
2. Pasta
3. fresh-from-the-garden peas & green beans
4. locally-grown cantaloupe

Four places I'd rather be right now:
1. San Diego
2. California
3. someplace warm with an ocean (and low-no humidity)
4. SoCal

*are you starting to see a pattern with the places I'd rather be??

Who am I tagging? Anyone who hasn't done it, and wants to. Be sure to let me know, so that I can read your answers.

I've been knitting...I have no current pictures. I started another bag. I'm using Nature Wool (in blue), and the "Cloud" yarn I got from my Secret Pal. I love that yarn! (thanks SP!) It is as soft as a...cloud! I'll be sure to take pictures before I felt the bag. I knit alot of the bag yesterday (I was stressed and pissed - which makes me knit really fast) but my hands & arms kinda hurt today (the downside to fast, pissed- off knitting!), so I haven't knit as much today.

MAKE it a great day!

24 January 2006

So I have buttons on my blog...but they don't link to anything. Any suggestions on how to do that???

More about the Boycott of So Fast So Sleazy (Don't you just love that term? I stole it from Scout's Knitted Swag): go here to sign up in support of the boycott.

That's all for now...I'm trying to put links on this blog (just when I think I may kind of, somewhat know what I'm doing with HTML codes, I find out I know NOTHING!)

MAKE it a great day!

23 January 2006

Free to Stitch. Free to Bitch.

That's right. I'm Free to Stitch. I'm Free to Bitch. But I'm NOT free to Stitch-N-Bitch or Stitch & Bitch...I don't even think I'm Free to Stitch and Free to Bitch.

In case you haven't heard, there's this NYC sewing company that claims that they own the rights to the term Stitch & Bitch. For more information, go to the freetostitchfreetobitch website.

Hundreds (ok - I don't know the actual number) of Yahoo Groups were recently notified that they are no longer allowed to use StitchNBitch (or any variation of those three words) as their group name because this sewing company owns that term. I belonged to such a group. We are now called SnBLancaster.

Most (if not all) of these groups were started because of one of these books by Debbie Stoller. The groups are simply a way for people to get together to knit (sew,crochet,etc). The groups did not profit from the name. My guess is that there were so many groups by that name, that whenever a search was done, the groups popped up first (instead of the sewing company's "cafe").

Interestingly enough, this sewing company now offers logo'd knitting needles . WTF??? I can't have a Yahoo group using that name, but they'll take my money for knitting needles (I didn't even look to see what the needles are made out of - probably plastic)?? I don't think so! As if that's not enough, the Yahoo group moderators (of the shut down groups) were invited to join the sewing company's "forum". There are something like 6 pages of Stitch & Bitch messages that were sent out (to each group, in each state)saying "Anybody interested in meeting up?". Click here to see for yourself.

Cafe Press has put together a ban. They also have logo'd items we can use without being slapped with a lawsuit (Free to Stitch. Free to Bitch) click here. While there, you will learn about how the money that's raised will be spent.

This post was brought to you because I'm Free to Bitch...now I'm off to Stitch!!

Oh! If you want some cute Free to Stitch. Free to Bitch. banners and/or buttons for your blog, go here.

MAKE it a great day...and feel free to join the ban!

22 January 2006

Buy More Yarn...



Last night I was reading (knitting) blogs, when I came across Carole's. She has been ridiculed for her tiny yarn stash. She only bought yarn that she had plans for. She had no idea how to buy yarn without a project in mind (being a new knitter, I can relate to this!). If this is something that's hard for you to do, too, click here to go to Carole's blog. There are some wonderful stash-building tips in the comments section. So she decided to start the Increase-Your-Stash-Along. I joined right away. Click here for the rules...and the winner's prize.

I took pictures of my yarn "stash", so that you had an understanding of why I joined the Stash-Along. I pulled the yarn to the front of the cubes so that it wouldn't be too dark for pictures (so, those cubes aren't full of yarn, what you see is all that's there). I also have 5 skeins of Lion Brand Homepspun which are not pictured (I stocked up on the Homespun when it was on sale the day after Thanksgiving, since it's what I use for the Prayer Shawls). I'll keep you updated with "Increased Stash" pictures...the Stash-Along goes until April 1st.

Wednesday night was the Nutty Knitters "meeting". I was very close to finishing my 1st Prayer Shawl...but I didn't get much knitting done that night (I was talking too much...and showing my button "stash"...and looking at other's knitting projects). So Thursday night I finished the shawl (at my daughter's Brownie Troop meeting). Here are pictures of the finished shawl (Sorry about the one! I forgot about rotating the picture before I blog it!) - modeled by my daughter (the Queen Princess ). I asked her if she wanted to be my model. She said, "Sure...what's a model?" While she was in a modeling mood, I had her model a shawl that my Mom finished (it's the blue shawl). This shawl has Fun Fur at the edges, instead of fringes. The Fur used for this shawl was one of the Fun Fur Stripes yarns. By this time, the Queen Princess was getting bored with the photo shoot (plus, something very important was on TV - probably a commercial).

I cast on for the next Prayer Shawl. This time, I'm making it with the Fun Fur on the ends (I don't like putting fringes on, and tying each fringe!). The Homespun color is "Tudor" and the Fur is "Ivory". The Queen Princess says that it looks like a rainbow. I don't think the pictures quite do the colors justice, but you get an idea.

In other news...You'll notice by the button on the sidebar that I am a Knitting Olympics spectator. To find out more about the Knitting Olympics, click here. To get a Knitting Olympic button for your blog, go here.

The Goddess, Kathy, has done it again...another fabulous creation. Check out Sarit's Hat. Kathy has posted the "ingredients" for this hat. She's making a second hat to test the pattern before she posts the actual "recipe"! I can't wait! I'll be making a trip to the yarn store this week to get the yarn & needles I need to make this hat.

MAKE it a great day!

18 January 2006

It Arrived!!!

I thought that the package from my Secret Pal would arrive yesterday. It didn't. You see, there was a holiday Monday which messed up the mail delivery. Don't get me wrong. I'm not saying we shouldn't have had the holiday...I'm just saying that holidays mess with mail delivery. And since I tend to be impatient about this kind of thing, it's doubley (is that how that word's spelled???) hard to have to wait an extra day!

But today...IT ARRIVED!!! And it was a BOX!!!! My Secret Pal sent me a box!!! You'd be proud of me. Instead of opening the box as soon as I got it into the house, I restrained myself. I went upstairs to get the digital camera so that I could share the experience with you all (very grown-up of me, huh?).

So I opened the box. And inside were two gift bags. Two. Can you guess why? No? Well, one bag was mine...and one was for my daughter! Can you believe it?!? Isn't that sweet?!? (I have to tell you, my daughter was getting ready to have a boo-boo face when she saw the box & saw that it was for me. Her face lit up when I told her one of the bags was for her!) The bag on the left is mine.

I let my daughter open her bag first (again, very grown-up!). She loved everything inside! She got 3 pencils with very cool erasers (my daughter explained to me that they are not lollipops but are erasers - they kinda look like lollipops - guess that's what she thought they were at first), lots of lip glosses - jelly bean scented, icing scented, strawberry kiwi & a sour fruit scent - the sour fruit fell out of the bag, so it's in the next picture), and a very sweet Pooh card. All of the lip glosses had to be put on right away(the living room had a sweet, fruity kind of smell). The pencils had to be sharpened. The bag with her goodies is right next to her bed tonight as she sleeps.

While the lip gloss putting on was going on, I opened my bag of goodies. I got a Guardian Angel metal bookmark (wrapped in angel wrapping paper!). Perfect - because I'm always reading a book or two. I also got a lip balm - mango - very nice! The ball lip gloss in the picture is the sour fruity one that I mentioned earlier. The next item is a scissors set. It is a JoAnn Scrap Essentials set. There are three pairs of scissors in a case that zips shut! So I can carry them in my knitting bag...or my scrapbook bag...or my card box (because I've been known to make cards, too) and not have to worry about them being loose! Sorry about the shadows on the pictures - the sun was being really weird today. SP also sent me a nice card. You can see it in the background of the closed scissor case picture. What's that? You see something else in the background of that picture? Oh! Right! The yarn!! Yes, she sent me yarn, too (I told you, she's the best SP! She wouldn't leave out YARN!!!). I got 3 skeins of Knit Picks 100% Peruvian Wool .The color is "Cloud". I had to restrain myself from casting on for a bag (again, with the grown-up behavior). SP said that she's heard this yarn felts really nicely...so, of course that make me want to cast on. But, you see, I'm determined to finish the Prayer Shawl I'm working on. So all three skeins are still intact. But I knitted that shawl like a fiend today, so it won't be long before there's a "Cloud" colored bag on my circs!

Secret Pal: Thank you!!! And my daughter thanks you, too!!

Well, that's it for my exciting day! I guess I'll put the yarn in my "yarn" cubby-thing to wait for the shawl to be finished...

MAKE it a great day!

17 January 2006

B is for...

Buttons!

Not only have I learned how to add buttons to my blog, I've also found some buttons for my button stash. There are buttons I bought. These buttons were carved (I forget what they're carved from). I found them at one of my local yarn stores. I "discovered" them not long after I decided that I need a button stash (see earlier post).

I also found a button (at a different yarn store) to put on my latest felted knit bag (which still does not have handles). This button is heavy - I forget what it's made out of (I'm a wealth of information today!). I think it'll look nice with the blues, greens and browns of the bag. One of these days (soon!), I'll finish that bag. It needs handles, the button and I think I also want to try sewing (that should be interesting!) a liner.

So, with buttons on the brain, I pulled out the pack of Sculpy that I have. I bought this box containing many different Sculpy colors, thinking that it would be something I'd like to do...I've never used it. Over the weekend I decided to make buttons out of Sculpy. Should be simple, right? Here are the results. I used cookie cutters for the hearts, stars and flower. For the "round" buttons, I rolled the Sculpy into a log and cut the buttons off. To get the little ball buttons, I rolled Sculpy and then used a toothpick to put a hole through the center. I don't know if you'll be able to see it on the blog, but some of the buttons I coated with (clear nail polish) to make them shiney (I think the shiney ones look much better than the dull ones!). The picture of the 2 stars, heart and "round" button shows the shiney buttons. I'm sure there are other things one can use to make Sculpy shiney, but I'm a licensed nail tech, so I have nail polish on hand (I don't work as a nail tech, but I am still licensed).

Speaking of making things...Kimberly has been making stitch markers. Click here or here to view what she's made so far. She has recently announced that she's thinking of selling them! So, if you want some unique and interesting stitch markers, head over to her site & leave a comment to find out how to obtain some.

In other news (and this is probably the most exciting news for me!)...I heard from my Secret Pal. She has sent me a package (already!) and it should arrive TODAY!!! I'll try to restrain myslef, and not run down the driveway as soon as I see the mail truck coming down the street. Isn't my Secret Pal wonderful?!?!

MAKE it a great day!

11 January 2006

The Nutty Knitters

Several months ago, a knitting group was started at my church. The Nutty Knitters. We make Prayer Shawls. We meet every week - on Wednesdays.

For a while, I would take whatever I felt like knitting along to the meeting. I wasn't getting much work done on the Prayer Shawl. So I decided that on Wednesdays I can only take a Prayer Shawl to knit...and it has to be a Prayer Shawl for the ministry (not for myself, or for my daughter, etc). This has been working well. You see, I don't love knitting the pattern (I love knitting bags!). It's a nice enough pattern but gets kinda boring. What I discovered once I made myself only knit the shawl on Wednesdays, is that this is the perfect pattern for the meetings! You see, we sit...and talk...and knit. With this pattern, you can talk AND knit (and not have to worry about the pattern!).

I want to tell you about two lives this Nutty Knitter Prayer Shawl group has touched already.

The first is an older woman. She's retired and has been knitting for years (decades, probably). She was the first person in the group to finish a shawl for the ministry (the rest of us are slackers compared to her!). She has finished at least 3 shawls (at least one of those was a gift for her daughter). We found out that knitting these shawls (to give to others in need) makes her feel useful and needed again. Imagine how useful she will feel when she learns that the shawl she knitted went to...

A woman in the congregation who's son was killed in Iraq. He was 40 years old. I'm not sure what branch of the military he was in. A memorial service was held at church a few weeks ago. This woman was the first person to receive a Nutty Knitters shawl (the shawl the other woman knit). Last week, she came to the Nutty Knitters meeting. She wanted to learn how to knit. She hopes that it's something she can do that will take her mind off losing her son. She said that one night when she couldn't sleep, she went downstairs to sit. She wrapped the shawl around herself (it's knitted with Lion Brand Homespun). She said it was so soft and warm and it just reminded her of holding her son when he was a baby (to all the moms out there - doesn't that just break your heart??).

Isn't it amazing how knitting can touch people's lives? Two women. In different circumstances and in different periods of their lives. Both benefit from knitting. And this is what I will try to remember as I'm knitting. That it's not "just" knitting. At the very least, it benefits me (calms me, helps me hold onto my sanity on those crazy days). And it just may benefit someone else, as well.

MAKE it a great day!

10 January 2006

Life is good!

You may have noticed that my blog now has some buttons in the sidebar...and that these buttons are the right size...and that you can read the web ring thing? This makes me so happy!!! Thanks to Nancy and Michelle for their help with my technical deficiencies.

The Secret Pal 7 matches have been announced (they were targeted to be announced Friday but those awesome Hostesses sent the matches out today)!! I am so excited about Secret Pal 7. My Secret Pal has e-mailed me already (she's on the ball!) to introduce herself. :o) I have not e-mailed my Secret Pal yet (that is, the person I get to spoil). But I have been reading her blog...and already have some goodies planned for her.

I took some pictures today. The pix I took of the bag looked weird when I uploaded them to the computer. We'll see how they look on the blog. If they're bad, I'll take more tomorrow. I'm still working on the i-cord (handles) for this bag. I'm also going to add a button & loop closure. This bag was knitted with a mix of yarns. I used Noro Kureyon for the body of the bag. For the bottom & the top edge, I mixed Nature Wool (blue) with Paton's Classic Merino (brown). I'm into blue & brown right now. I may actually keep this bag for myself (I haven't kept any that I've made so far). I'm not really happy with the box (size) that I dried the bag on. I don't have a box the exact size I want. I think I also want to add a lining to this bag (which should be interesting, since I'm not great at sewing!).

I mentioned in an earlier post that I'd cast on (several times!) for a hat. The yarn is Lion Brand Magic Stripes. It's a washable wool - self-striping. This is just the cast on row. The next rows are a k1,p1 rib. I don't like k1,p1 so I've been putting off doing any more rows (plus, if I don't do any more rows, I don't have to frog!) :o) Once I finish this hat, I want to do one for my Dad. He doesn't wear scarves. He sometimes wears sweaters - but I'm not ready to try knitting a sweater yet. So, a hat he'll get.

Can you believe my daughter will have off school Friday, Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday??? They just went back to school (from an incredibly loooong Christmas break)! Tomorrow I'll be busy arranging "playdates" for her. She's an only child & there aren't any other kids her age in the neighborhood, so she gets bored being at home. I just never thought I'd be a six year-old's Social Coordinator!

Looking on the bright side...my blog now has buttons!...I have a Secret Pal (to spoil me)!...and I have a Secret Pal (to spoil)!...so Life is Good!!

MAKE it a great day!

09 January 2006

It's Monday

Ok. So I semi have buttons on my blog. First, I posted them (as a post). Then I managed to get them to the sidebar...but you can't read them 'cause they're too small! And HOW do I get rid of that little Picasa thing???? You know, many people manage to put buttons on their blogs...why is it such a challenge for me?!? (any help you can give me would be greatly appreciated!)

Knitting News...

I have one bag finished & felted. The handles aren't done yet. Saturday I "discovered" another cool yarn store in my area...rows and rows of yarn (which makes me a very happy girl!). I spent over an hour in that store (my daughter was hanging out with her Grandpa so I could take all the time I wanted, looking at yarn!). I found the most wonderful button (for the bag I just finished). I'll take pictures tomorrow (I'm pretty sure we'll have sunshine tomorrow, so it should be a good picture day).

I started a hat. I messed up on the second row. I frogged. I started again and did 5 rows (and was feeling rather proud of myself). Then I got new circular needles (which were the correct size - US 5 - the one's I had been using were US 6). So I frogged again. I cast on again...and that's where I stopped. The hat's done on size 5 needles (the smallest I'd used before now were US 8), using a k1,p1 ribbing (I HATE knitting one and then purling one). But I really like the hat, and the yarn's self striping (this amuses me to no end!). So we'll see how quickly this hat gets finished.

Oh! And I started a washcloth. The first thing I ever knit was a washcloth. I finished it, and it was ok for the 1st thing I knit...but I didn't want to actually use it. So I decided to knit another one. I knit better now. And I'm using smaller needles. And the yarn's a color I like. You see, I really want to love hand-knit washclothes. So that's why I'm trying another one.

That's all for today. I'll take pictures tomorrow (maybe I'll finish the boring i-cord for that bag!) and hopefully get them posted.

MAKE it a great day!

07 January 2006

Secret Pal 7 Questionnaire

Here are my responses/answers to the questionnaire for Secret Pal 7 (perhaps, one day, I'll learn more about blogs and figure out how to add this some other way...until then, I'll have to add it as a post).

1. Are you a yarn snob (do you prefer higher quality and/or natural fibers)? Do you avoid Red Heart and Lion Brand?
I avoid Red Heart. I've used Lion Brand yarns. I like natural fibers & love high quality yarn (although I don't often buy the pricey yarn for myself) - it just depends on the project I'm buying the yarn for.

2. Do you spin? Crochet?
I don't do either but would like to learn how to spin. Crochet seems too complicated to me (I've tried it and can't "get" it).

3. What do you use to store your needles/hooks in?
Right now, the knitters bag I got for Christmas (see one of my earlier posts). I'm working on a felted needle case.

4. How long have you been knitting? Would you consider your skill level to be beginner, intermediate or advanced?
I've been knitting less than 6 months. I consider myself advanced beginner - I'm happy with my knitting but there's still alot for me to learn.

5. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list?
No. I've never needed one (and didn't even know they existed!).

6. What's your favorite scent? (for candles, bath products etc.)
I have alot of fragrance allergies, so I don't burn candles. I only use bath products from the company I am a consultant for.

7. Do you have a sweet tooth? Favorite candy?
YES! ...to sweet tooth. I love chocolate. And marzapan.

8. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do?
Are you kidding??? Who has time for any other crafts??? Knitting has taken over!! But I do like stamping and scrapbooking. I've done counted cross stitch - but not for several years.

9. What kind of music do you like? Can your computer/stereo play MP3's? (if your buddy wants to make you a cd).
I like alot of different types of music. R&B. 80's Pop and 80's R&B. Disco. 70's Pop. 70's R&B. Some rock. No Country. Some of my favorite artists: Prince, Def Leppard, LL Cool J, Olivia Newton-John, Bee Gee's, Barry White, Guy. I'll stop there. I'm pretty sure I can play MP3's .

10. What's your favorite color? Or -- do you have a color family/season/palette you prefer? Any colors you just can't stand?
Blue is my "official" (meaning, if I had to pick only one color, I'd pick blue) favorite color. I like bold colors. I also like neutrals. Right now I'm really into orange & hot pink. I don't like pastels much...and NO pastel pink!

11. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets?
I'm a single-parent. I have one child. We have a goldfish & a cat.

12. Do you wear scarves, hats, mittens or ponchos?
I wear scarves and gloves or mittens. Sometimes a hat. I've never worn a poncho.

13. What is/are your favorite yarn(s) to knit with?
I'm new to knitting, so I'm still trying yarns. I like merino wool, cashmere, alpaca, silk, blends of those. I also like cotton. Depending on what I'm knitting, I also like novelty yarns.

14. What fibers do you absolutely *not* like?
Can't say that I've found any yet.

15. What is/are your current knitting obsession(s)?
BAGS BAGS BAGS...felted bags and other felted items.

16. What is/are your favorite item(s) to knit?
(see #15) ...right now, it's bags!

17. What are you knitting right now?
(2) felted bags, (2) Irish Hiking Scarves, (2) felted needle cases, (2) prayer shawls, a hat, a scarf, a wash cloth

18. Do you like to receive handmade gifts?
YES!

19. Do you prefer straight or circular needles?
Depends on the project, but if I had to pick only one, it would be circular needles.

20. Bamboo, Aluminum, plastic?
Bamboo

21. Do you own a yarn winder and/or swift?
I own a yarn winder...not sure what a swift is.

22. How did you learn to knit?
Books and Knitty Gritty (on DIY Network).

23. How old is your oldest UFO?
I've been working on one of the prayer shawls since October 2005.

24. What is your favorite animated character or a favorite animal/bird?
I like butterflies... and cats. I don't really have a favorite animated character.

25. What is your favorite holiday?
I don't have a favorite.

26. Is there anything that you collect?
Well, now I collect yarn :o) Ooooh! And buttons! I'm trying to get a button stash.

27. What knitting magazine subscriptions do you have?
None.

28. Any books, yarns, needles or patterns out there you are dying to get your hands on?
I'd love a book to learn how to knit socks. I'd also love to have "Felted Knits" by Beverly Galeskas and "Christmas Stockings - 18 holiday treasures to knit" by Interweave Press. Oh! And I'd love some Socks That Rock yarn.

29. Are there any new techniques you'd like to learn?
Yes (see #28) socks!

30. Are you a sock knitter? What are your foot measurements?
(see #28 & 29). I wear a size 10 shoe...not sure what measurements one needs for socks!

31. When is your birthday? (mm/dd)
03/07

For those of you not in the Secret Pal 7 - I'll post again tomorrow...I may have a finshed bag by then!!

MAKE it a great day!!

05 January 2006

A is for...

Angelia!! (I know! What a surprise, since this blog is "AngeliasKnitting"). I joined the ABC along. Every two weeks, I'll post a picture of something that begins with the letter of those weeks (A,B,C,D,etc.). So by the end of the year, we'll have gone through the entire alphabet. Hopefully I'll find something for "Z". One of these days, I may even figure out how to add the ABC along button to my blog!! Posted by Picasa

I've also joined Secret Pal 7. Soon, I'll find out who my secret pal is!! I'm excited! (and yes, I may figure out how to add that button to my blog too)

This is a short post today. I haven't finished any knitting. I have some pictures, but they are for the ABC along. My daughter has a Brownie Girl Scout troop meeting tonight, so I have to figure out what we're having for supper (soon).

I'll leave you with this thought:

"Happiness does not depend on outward things, but on the way we see them." - Leo Tolstoy

MAKE it a great day!

01 January 2006

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year everyone!! We all know that New York drops a ball in Times Square to celebrate the New Year...around here, all kinds of things dropped or rose at the stroke of midnight. I have to tell ya, it's very exciting in South Central PA New Year's eve (we are quite the party people!). Here's a listing:

Things that dropped...

1. A white rose - in York,PA. York is the white rose city.
2. A bologna - in Lebanon,PA. Lebanon is famous (ok - so they're only "famous" around here! It counts!!) for their Lebanon bologna.
3. A strawberry - in Harrisburg,PA. Not sure why Harrisburg uses a strawberry!

Things that were raised...

1. A red rose - in Lancaster,PA. Lancaster is (you guessed it!) the red rose city.
2. A kiss (as in Hershey's Kiss) - in Hershey,PA. The reason's obvious.

I think that's all. Our local TV station showed all of the dropping/raising things at once (all 5 from this area + the ball in NYC). I told you! We are some wild, party people here in South Central PA!! :o)

Speaking of wild, party people. Did anyone see ALL THE PEOPLE in Times Square last night??? Bet it was fun trying to get home!!

We were in NYC one year for 4th of July (actually, we were there twice for the 4th, but I'm talking about the one time!). We didn't see the fireworks, but were in Manhattan that night. Well, we decided to go back to the Bronx (not even thinking about what time it was!!) at the same time that everyone was leaving the fireworks...we had to stand up on the train (the subway) the WHOLE way to the Bronx!!! For those of you who don't know, usually there are seats available once we get to Harlem. Not that night! Now I know how sardines feel!!

I'll leave you with a picture of one of the felted (knitting) needle cases I'm making. This was a free pattern from Paton's, that I found in my local art & craft store. I'm using Paton's Classic Merino wool & size 8 needles. It's a VERY simple pattern. I'm actually making two of these. This one is for my Mom. The other one will be for me (it's a dark grey). The outside of the case will have felted flowers on it. This is a picture of the actual case. I think I need 3 feet of this (it's all stockinette stitch), so I guess I'm a little over 1/3 of the way done.

Well, I have to get ready to leave. We eat our New Year's dinner at the church of a friend of my Mom. They have a sit-down, family-style dinner each year. They accept donations for the meal. The money goes towards their missions trips. For those of you who don't know, Lancaster County's New Year's meal is: roast pork & saurkraut (there are usually mashed potatoes too). The meal at the church is: raw carrots & celery, applesauce, rolls & butter, pork & saurkraut, mashed potatoes and dessert (the church ladies make all kinds of yummy cakes and things for this!!). Pork & saurkraut are supposed to bring good luck. Being vegetarian, I eat the mashed potatoes and saurkraut (Mom's friend keeps some saurkraut out for me - they cook the rest with the pork).

Here's to a healthy, happy new year for you all! And remember...you can MAKE it a great day!!