My discovery

As you may have guessed, I'm not the most up to date person on gadgets and technical things. In my defense, it was the way I was raised.

My Dad is one of these people who never buys electronic stuff when it first comes out. His reasoning? Because in a short period of time, it'll be obsolete.

We didn't have cable tv until the mid-late 80's. We didn't get a VCR until around the same time period (and the only reason we got one, was because my Mom went out and bought one). My Dad didn't get a computer until the late 90's. So, you see, it's how I was raised.

So, for Christmas, my Mom gave me an iPod (she won it at her work Christmas party). I love love LOVE it! I can load all of my favorite songs onto it and listen to them. I like songs from several different decades and genres. With my iPod, I can play all of them - randomly! It's so awesome.

Well. I was reading Dave's blog. He asked his readers to tell him which podcasts they listen to. Then, a few days later, he mentioned the women at Lime & Violet. That gave me an idea. I could load my audiobooks onto my iPod and listen to books while I"m knitting.

I spent about 5 hours on Sunday, listening to The Magician's Nephew (from the Chronicles of Narnia) while I knit!

This got me thinking that I should check out this podcast thing & see what all the fuss was about.

Why didn't anyone ever tell me about these things????

I mean, sure, I've read about podcasts - like when Grumperina talked about the It's A Purl, Man podcast - but why didn't anyone ever tell me how much I would like them???

I love them! I spent something like 6 hours yesterday, loading podcasts into my iTunes. I now listen to podcasts while I knit (did you know that it makes your knitting go quicker?).

So far I have about 300 songs and almost 60 podcasts on my iPod (some of the podcasts are video podcasts). I figured that my iPod memory (or whatever it is) would be at least half used up (I have the 30GB iPod). I've only used a little over 2GB!

I know some of you are probably shaking your heads. You have to understand (and with that last paragraph, you probably do understand) that I have no concept of giga bytes. I also have no concept of square feet (as it pertains to a living space). So if you tell me that you just bought an 8,000 sqare foot house, I have no idea if that's alot of space or not. Same with computer terminology. I had no idea that 30GB is so much!

I know I've been promising knitting pictures. I have taken some - I just need to load them onto my computer. I haven't had time to do that because I've been downloading podcasts! :-) Actually, since I now have these podcasts, by the time I get pictures on my computer, you may have 50 finished objects to look at - or alot, anyway!

MAKE it a great day!

And now it's winter.

Remember a few weeks ago, when I posted about how spring-like the weather was? And how the trees had buds on them? And spring flowers were coming up?

Yeah. Well. Now it's winter here in South Central Pennsylvania. We got some snow yesterday. Just a "dusting", really. But this morning, most of the schools had a two-hour delay. I think the delay was because the roads were icy early this AM. By the time I took the QP to school, the roads were just wet. Some were even dry.

The QP was so thrilled this morning. She got to help clear the snow off the car. She said it was the best day ever. She feels very grown up now because she used to "just sit in the car" while I cleared off the snow & ice. But now she can help me. How long do you think it'll take her to decide that clearing snow off of cars is NOT fun??

I was happy for the school delay because I was up until 2AM. Why? Myspace. Is anyone else addicted to myspace? You see, my best friend lives in California. I get to "talk" to her online alot more often now - thanks to myspace. The only problem is, California is three hours behind PA (which means it's barely late for her but really late for me!). Oh. And then we were also "talking" to a guy we went to high school with (I started high school in CA and finished it in PA - so this guy is from the school in CA). I need to take naps during the day, or something!

That's all I have for today. I've been knitting, but don't have any pictures (the sky has been greay here for days). I can't wait to show you some of the things I've been working on (there was some intarsia involved!)!

MAKE it a great day!

Hat knitting.

Lately I've been "into" knitting hats. I really like to knit them. They're quick and easy. They're useful.

Today (yes, I'm behind on my blog reading - and missed out on ALOT) I read that there's a woman who is collecting chemo hats for kids in the Boston area. The kids love hats made from eyelash yarn (like Fun Fur). Well. A few weeks ago, I was going through my stash. I have quite a few skeins of Fun Fur (from when I first started knitting), and I wondered what I would ever do with it all. Now I know! I'll make some chemo caps for kids!!

As if that's not enough, Cara (January One) is donating some prizes (Socks That Rock yarn!). Click here to read Cara's blog entry about the prizes. Click here to learn how to sign up to knit the caps.

So, go! Sign up to make some hats! Use up the Fun Fur you have laying around (come on now, I KNOW I'm not the only one who has some!).

Stay tuned for some finished objects, some new projects, and some intarsia knitting!

MAKE it a great day!

Wait, what's this?

Why, it's 2 items that are finished! Can you believe it? I know. I'm having a hard time believing it, too.

This first item is a French Market Bag (or Basket, can't remember it's exact name). The pattern is from Knitty (sorry - don't have the link). The yarn I used is a wool/alpaca blend. The outside that you see is actually the inside, but I liked the nubby texture better than the smooth texture of the actual "outside" of the bag. So I turned it inside out and now the inside is the outside (did ya catch all of that?).

I now use this bag as my "knitting bag". Anytime I go somewhere, I grab this bag. It holds alot of stuff. Here's what I have in it:

*Knitter's Companion (book)

*various knitting patterns

*sock that I'm knitting

*baby bib that I'm knitting

*yarn & needles for a hat I want to knit the QP

*2 "notions" bags

* Magic Loop instruction book

*a pack of Puffs to Go (it's still allergy season here!)

And there's still plenty of room!

This baby bib pattern is from the Mason Dixon book. I love it! It's so simple. I've already cast on (& almost finished) another bib. It's knit using cotton yarn (I used Sugar & Cream). You can easily make one bib out of one ball of Sugar & Cream yarn. **I still have to add a button, but other than that, it's finished!

That's all for today. More finished items are on the way! MAKE it a great day!

Springtime in PA

Hello. Happy New Year. And welcome to Springtime in South Central Pennsylvania! Temperatures today were in the high 60's with some areas getting up to 70 degrees (F).

I took a walk around the yard today, and look what I saw:

Buds on the red maple tree.

Flowers poking up through the dirt.

Buds on the pussy willow tree.

Buds on the walking stick tree.

Buds on the other pussy willow tree - in fact, I think this one even has a little pussy willow (if that's what those little fuzzy things are called).

We went to the park, so the QP could play on the playground. My Mom & I had our knitting along, of course. The park was crowded.

Here's the QP. She doesn't look too happy here because the friend she was playing with (who happened to be a girl she knows from summer day camp) had to leave.

Yes, it was a beautiful April spring day! But wait! It's only January! That means that my Mom's birthday and the Farm Show are coming up. One (or both) of these events usually bring us snow (it's a fact!).

So, break out the inhailers, the antihistimines, the antibiotics, and the decongestants and buy facial tissue by the truckload because this never-ending allergy season still isn't ending!

MAKE it a great day!

Happy New Year!

Sexy & Romantic glitter graphics from www.sexiluv.com



Wishing you the best in 2007! See you next year! lol

Finished Object

I finished something! Woo-hoo! Well, it was supposed to be a Christmas present for my Dad - but it wasn't finished until last night. I may still give it to him as a belated gift.

I started it in plenty of time but then, well, Christmas stuff got in the way. Shopping, wrapping, cooking , preparing, etc. Somehow, the time got away from me & all of a sudden, it was Christmas morning & I'd only knit about 2 inches of the hat (at this point, I realized that there was NO WAY I would have it finished to give to him on Christmas).

So, after the presents were opened Christmas morning (and all of the QP's toys were taken out of the packaging - which is ANOTHER story!), I picked up the hat & knit. Christmas evening, we went to my cousin's house for our family get-together. I knit while I was there. Last night, I knit while watching tv. And then the hat was finished. I really like the pattern - very simple & quick & a great "guy" hat.

The pattern is one that I found, & printed , not long after I started knitting. It's called the Late Christmas Hat (hehe!). I used size 7 KnitPicks Options circular needles (one for the body of the hat, and then two needles once the decreases started). The yarn is Patons SWS (soy wool stripes), in "Natural Navy".

The yarn is kind of fuzzy, so I'm not sure I'll like how it looks after the hat's been worn. We'll see. It feels silky & smooth. I love the colors. I bought some of this yarn (in a different color) a few months ago, to make mittens for the QP. I made one mitten & then ripped it out because I had the thumb in the wrong place. I may make her a hat out of her SWS yarn, instead of the mittens. She was enjoying wearing this hat today (I think she just likes to take things from my room - shoes, yarn, knitted items, etc). **despite how the hat looks in that one picture, it's not lopsided at the top - that just shows my lack of photography skills today. :-)

Is anyone doing a New Year's finish up some of your wip's kind of knit along???? (just asking - because I'm thinking that I really should finish some things I have on the needles - and I know I can't be the only one!)

MAKE it a great day!

Happy Wednesday

It's Wednesday. For those of you who celebrate, only 4 days or so til Christmas. Hard to believe it's almost the end of 2006!

I haven't been doing much knitting. There's so much to do this time of year. Especially if you have kids. Then you have your stuff and their stuff to do! It's crazy.

I "discovered" myspace. It just so happens that one of my best friends is also on myspace. She lives in California (which is 3 hours behind the time in PA). I've been able to "talk" to her more within the past week or so, than I had in a while.

I also got an ipod (early Christmas gift). I can't believe I never got one before now! These things are so awesome! The things can hold 7,500 songs!! 7,500!! That's a hell of a lot of music! I have almost all of my cd's downloaded. I love it, because every song that's played is a favorite. It's like having the perfect radio station. No commercials and every song that you like!

I think that's all I have right now. MAKE it a great day!

Thanks SP9!

I got a package from my SP! The package arrived Wednesday. I can't tell you how happy that made me. I've had a shitty week & the package really helped.

First, there is this card. A yarn card. Who knew there were such things? The yarn is Schaefer Yarn. My SP says that she recently tried this yarn & likes it. I've never tried it.

This was my package. Some Regia sock yarn (I love it!). It's blue (my favorite color) and it looks like it'll have thin stripes of color (red, yellow, a different shade of blue). Very cool. I love the bold colors. There are three tins of hot cocoa. Yummy! Two Lindt Lindor truffles - they were gone within 20 minutes of opening the package. A beautiful glass ornament. A bag of dipping pretzles & a jar of raspberry honey dipping mustard (which is almost gone!). There was also a cool, quilted change purse (which may become my "notions" bag). My SP sent me stuff that'll take care of my knitting obsession & also my snack urges. What a great SP!

Thank you so much SP!!!

That's all I have for today. Not much going on. It's Saturday - and it's cold outside. Now I'm off to read my book (or, maybe get some Christmas knitting finished) while the QP watches tv.

MAKE it a great day!

Easy come, easy go...

I'll be so glad when this year is over! Remember how I had a new job? Well, now I don't. I was told it wasn't working out. I'm not really sure what didn't work out. But, well, it was within the 90-day probationary period, so they can do that.

Now I get to start looking again. Yippee. Interviews and wearing pantyhose! What's not to like?!?

Can you tell I'm in a pissy mood? I won't "talk" too much tonight because, well, if you can't say anything nice, and all that. I'm just tired of bullshit. And I'm tired of people's bullshit.

So, onto the knitting...

Here ( to the left, to the left) are my KnitPicks Options needles. I love them! It's such a powerful feeling , having a full set of interchangable needles! I feel I can knit anything!! I do need to get more cables though. And a few more needle tips (there are certain sizes that I use alot, so I'd like to have more than one set of those sizes). To the right, you see KnitPicks yarn!

Yes. A whole mountain of yarn! Yarn for felted bowls, stockings, socks, Moebius items, PICC arm bands. Lots & lots of yarn!!

I also got the tools to needle felt. I didn't take any pictures of them. But I've been playing with them. I don't have any roving, so I've been using wool yarn. It's so much fun!

Here we have a felted bowl. The pattern is from KnitPicks. No, it's not one of their free patterns. But KnitPicks patterns are only $1.99.

It's knit using sock yarn. I have to work on the lid (I'm going to block it again). It's a little too small for the bowl (and not quite round). This yarn color is called Pansy. Don't the colors look like those you'd see on a pansy? See how the colors swirl? I think they look so cool. It was intersting knitting this, because you have to match up the colors and then have them off by a few stitches. I have two more hanks of yarn that will become bowls (each hank makes one bowl & lid).

Here is my 1st Moebius basket. This was a really quick knit. I used KnitPicks Wool of the Andes Bulky & Bulky Hand-Dyed yarns. I have enough left over to make another basket (with the colors reversed).

I'm not sure what I'm going to do with the basket. I kind of doubt I'll keep it - I don't really have any use for it. Maybe it'll be a Christmas gift. I don't know.

Betcha had no idea that I joined the Knit Unto Others kal. I mean, how could you have known? I never blogged about it. I still don't have the button added to my blog. But yeah. I did join it. And I actually have been doing some knitting for others. Here are two things that I have pictures of.

The first, a red scarf...can you guess what that's for? Yep! The Red Scarf Project. I have more red yarn in my stash, so it's likely that there will be more red scarves.

The second item, a Prayer Shawl. This is one that I just started.

It's going to be a triangle shawl. The pattern is from the Prayer

Shawl book. I'm using Lion Brand Homespun. This yarn was sold as "mill ends". I love the colors in this yarn. The red/oranges remind me of a sunset or something.

I find the mill ends at my local AC Moore. They are sold with three skeins in a pack. The packs usually have at least two colors in - so you have to buy at least two packs (sometimes three), to get enough of the same color yarn for one shawl. This yarn came in a pack with one other color. I managed to find a pack with two skeins of this color and one of the other color, and then another pack with two skeins of the other color and one of this color. So I only had to get two packs of mill ends & I'll be able to knit two shawls. The beautiful thing about mill ends is that the bag (with three skeins) costs about $5. With a 40% off coupon, it ends up being $3 something. A little over $3 for yarn for a shawl is a great price!

Well, it's time to get the QP to bed. She's been watching a movie & I'm sure it's finished. Tonight was a big night for her. Her class participated in her school's Christmas program. It was all music. The kids were from kindergarten, 1st grade and 2nd grade. It was nice. No Frosty the Snowman or Jingle Bells. Only Christmas carols (she goes to a private school). I have an intense dislike for "Christmas" music - the kind that's been playing, non-stop, on at least three different local radio stations since before Thanksgiving...but that's another post! It's still time for me to get the QP to bed!

MAKE it a great day!

Updates

Boy, it's been a long time since I posted anything. I have quite a few pictures for you, but they are still on my camera. I'll post them another day.

I have some finished objects and some new projects. I've been knitting a good bit. Knitting and felting. I finally got the KnitPicks Options needle set. I love them!!! That's why I've been knitting so much! They are so smooth and quick! If you haven't tried them yet, go to KnitPicks & order some.

I haven't posted much because I've been job hunting. You know. Sending out resumes. Making follow-up calls. Going on interviews. Sending thank you notes. Making follow up calls. All that fun stuff.

The good news is....I have a job!! I started on Monday (the 27th). I'll be working most Saturdays. I'll have off Wednesdays and Sundays. It's at a local wholesale produce company. I'll be doing some customer service/order taking (as needed) and also helping with the A/P A/R and other back office type stuff. I love it. It's enough different jobs to keep me occupied (and busy - so that the hours go fast) - and it's things I like to do. The best employee benefit - a discount on produce!! Yeah, there's medical, vision, 401k and all the usual stuff - but a discount on produce - I think that's so cool!!

That's all I have for now. It's my bedtime. The QP & I have to get moving early now in the morning.

I'll post pictures for you soon.

MAKE it a great day!

An eventful weekend.

This is Smokey the Cat (that's his full name). I call him "cute cat" when he's doing things like this (he likes to be called cute cat). I haven't figured out how to take pictures of him in the house without making his eyes glow-y. Anyway, this "pose" was too cute! He had one paw up to his face & the other curled up. He often lays on his back like this, once the QP's in bed. He's 8 years old.


Here's my Socktoberfest sock. The broken finger really cut down on my knitting (and blogging!) time. I decided that I really didn't like how the stripes were looking so....

I frogged the sock. I did re-start it, I just haven't taken any pictures yet. I like the new pattern I'm doing much better!

In finger news, I saw my family doctor for a follow-up visit. She referred me to an orthopedic doctor. I saw him this past Thursday. He said that I no longer have to wear the splint, but still have to keep the finger taped. It's taped to my ring finger. He said these things usually take 6-8 weeks to heal. I can start moving it, but can't do anything major with it (like lifting weights). Thursday I knit my sock for several hours (with the splint on, I could knit one, maybe two rows and then my hand hurt too much). Friday, my finger was pretty sore. I can feel it when I've been knitting too much/too long. The finger's still swollen, but doesn't hurt as much as it did at first.

Yesterday the QP, my Mom & I went to one of the local alpaca farms. They were having an open house. The weather was perfect. Here's what we saw:

This baby was chewing/licking the opening to the feed bag.

Another baby.

The QP had to feed an alpaca, first thing. She said it tickled her hand.

The alpacas tend to move in a herd. It is an amazing thing to watch. The farm has over 60 alpacas.

Here they are, moving in the other direction. See the many shades/colors? They are beautiful!

I liked this one, with it's white forehead. It is owned by a boy who's in the 4-H club. He boards the alpaca at this farm.

The QP got to hug many alpacas!

After we were there a while, she got the chance to walk one around. Her name is Samantha.

Here's the QP, hugging Samantha.

And there were free kittens. No. We did NOT bring one home! Smokey would NOT like another cat in his house, sharing his people!

The open house was today, too. I'm glad we went yesterday, because it rained and was cold today!

Oh! The farm also has a store that's open year-round!! They sell sweaters, hats, gloves/mittens, scarves, shawls, stuffed toys , yarn and wool to spin!!!! The prices are reasonable. I WILL be returning to purchase some yarn!

MAKE it a great day!

Thanks SP8!

Here are the long overdue pictures of my final SP8 gifts. Everything was wrapped (it's so much fun to unwrap things!).

There was yarn. Some Bernat Soft Boucle (because blue is my favorite color), some Trekking XXL sock yarn (which I've never tried!), and some Knit Picks sock yarn (because I love KnitPicks!).

Some stitch markers in a cute little blue fabric bag (the picture I took that showed the bag didn't show the markers too well). I love unique stitch markers! They are so much fun to use!!

Lots of other goodies - a cute pumpkin container, a notepad, a calendar & some notecards. The postcard (the card with the rose on it) is what my SP used to write me a note, revealing her identity.

The QP even got some stuff! She just loves getting presents. She doesn't quite understand the whole Secret Pal thing, though. She keeps trying to guess who sent her stuff (out of the people she knows). I tell her it's nobody that she personally knows & then she just looks at me, confused.

Thanks Karla!!!!

And now Secret Pal 9 is in full swing. I've received my match (the person I'm to spoil), so I'll be reading her blog over the next week or so, to learn about her. And I've been contacted by my Pal (my spoiler). I'm so excited!

That's all for now, as typing is somewhat of a challenge with no middle finger. :-)

MAKE it a great day!

A sad day at Angelia's Knitting...

I uploaded these pictures in reverse. You can kinda see the swelling of my middle finger - and the brusing on the underside of it.

Yes, it's a sad, sad day - well, actually, days - here at Angelia's Knitting. I broke my finger. I can't knit too easily (I may soon do some knitting even though it hurts my hand!). Some people are saying my finger is liable to take 6 weeks to heal! I don't wanna hear that! 6 weeks! I'm not going to not knit for six weeks!! And I don't want to talk about how I can't do my arm workout now - just when my arms were starting to get little muscles!

In addition to the knitting, there are a whole lot of things this complicates. I'm left handed - and I broke the middle finger of my right hand. I didn't think that would be a major problem. Well, I discovered that I use my right hand for alot of things: opening doors, cutting with scissors, pulling up the zipper on pants, washing my hair, blow drying hair, putting my hair in a ponytail, putting makeup on...you get the picture.

How did I break my finger, you ask? Well, I was shooting some baskets at the gym, went to catch the basketball, and it hit my finger dead on. As soon as it happened, I knew it was broken (the same thing happened to the ring finger on my left hand when I was in 9th grade - but with a football, not a basketball). I went to the doctor later that evening. This was last Wednesday (Nutty Knitter night). By then, the finger was black & blue & swollen - and, of course, painful.

So that's my sad story. It's a short story tonight because, well, typing without using your middle finger, is not that easy! :-)

MAKE it a great day!

Sock History Questions

Here are my Sock History questions for the Socktoberfest that Lolly's having. I know they're late!

When did you start making socks? Did you teach yourself or were you taught by a friend or relative? or in a class?

I taught myself - with the help of the Magic Loop book. I knit my first pair of socks at the end of last year (I think - or else the beginning of this year - I know it was cold outside).

What was your first pair? How have they "held up" over time?

My first pair was made using Regia 6 ply sock yarn. They've held up well - considering I've only worn them a dozen times or so. :-)

What would you have done differently?

Nothing. My first sock was my "practice" sock (the tension was all over the place!), then I knit two more to make the actual pair.

What yarns have you particularly enjoyed?

I've only knit that one pair. I did get a skein of Trekking from my Secret Pal, so I'm excited to try that.

Do you like to crochet your socks? or knit them on DPN's, 2 circulars, or using the Magic Loop method?

I knit my pair of socks using the Magic Loop method. I recently tried knitting a sock on DPN's and don't care for it. I currently have a sock started using 2 circulars. Crochet is a language I don't speak, so no, I don't crochet my socks.

Which kind of heel do you prefer? (flap? or short-row?)

I've only ever done flap. It works well for me.

How many pairs have you made?

1 1/2 - remember? I've knit three socks! :-)

Secret Pal 9 Questionnaire

1. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with? What fibers do you absolutely *not* like?
I'm not very fond of acrylic, although I do use it on occasion. I prefer natural fibers. I would love to try some Socks That Rock and Koigu yarn.

2. What do you use to store your needles/hooks in?
Right now - a decorative oval Kleenex box. :-)

3. How long have you been knitting & how did you learn? Would you consider your skill level to be beginner, intermediate or advanced?
I've been knitting for a year. I consider myself intermediate.

4. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list?
No, I do not.

5. What's your favorite scent? (for candles, bath products, etc.)
I only use bath products from the company I work for (Arbonne). I don't use candles - too many allergies.

6. Do you have a sweet tooth? Favorite candy?
A sweet tooth??? Am I a woman?!?!? Chocolate!!!

7. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do? Do you spin?
I stamp, scrapbook, cross stitch. I don't spin, but would like to learn how.

8. What kind of music do you like? Can your computer/stereo play MP3s? (if your buddy wants to make you a CD)
I like 70's and 80's pop (including disco), R&B, some Rap. I don't have any way to play MP3's.

9. What's your favorite color(s)? Any colors you just can't stand?
Blue is my favorite. I love bold and jewel toned colors. I don't like pastels much - especially not pink!

10. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets?
I have a 7-year old daughter, a cat and a goldfish.

11. Do you wear scarves, hats, mittens or ponchos?
I wear hats, scarves and mitten on occasion (like, when it's really cold & I have to wait for my daughter's school bus). I don't wear ponchos.

12. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit?
I like to knit & felt bags.

13. What are you knitting right now?
A sock (2 circs), 2 Prayer Shawls, a baby blanket, and 2 scarves.

14. Do you like to receive handmade gifts?
Yes.

15. Do you prefer straight or circular needles? Bamboo, aluminum, plastic?
I probably prefer circs - it depends on the project. I like aluminum for socks and bamboo or wood for most anything else. No plastic.

16. Do you own a yarn winder and/or swift?
I own both.

17. How old is your oldest UFO?
Almost a year old.

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

19. Is there anything that you collect?
Yarn? lol!

20. Any books, yarns, needles or patterns out there you are dying to get your hands on? What knitting magazine subscriptions do you have?
Books: Yarn Harlot's last two books (I have "At Knit's End"), Mason Dixon's book, Cat Bordhi's Magical Knitting book, anything by Ann Budd or Elizabeth Zimmerman or Meg Swanson. Needles: I've been lusting after KnitPicks needles! The interchangable circs, the regular circs, the dpns!!!! I have a subscription to Interweave Knits.

21. Are there any new techniques you'd like to learn?
Needle felting! And spinning!

22. Are you a sock knitter? What are your foot measurements?
I do knit socks. I wear a size 10 shoe. My foot is 9 1/2 inches around, and 10 inches long.

23. When is your birthday? (mm/dd) March 7th.

Sunday ramblings

First, let me thank my Secret Pal from the SP8 swap - Karla Cardell. She sent me my last package and it was so awesome! I did take pictures, I just don't have them uploaded yet. I don't have the link to her blog written down, either. I'll give you all that info in another post. Thank you Karla!!! And the QP thanks you, too, for everything you sent her!!!

I've been knitting. I'm knitting my first sock using the two circular method. To me, it's very similar to the Magic Loop, except that you're using 2 circs instead of one. I also bought some sock yarn to use with the Magic Loop method - so you may be seeing quite a few socks from me soon. I'm still working on 2 Prayer Shawls, and a scarf for the Red Scarf Project, a baby blanket, and the Shell Counterpanes I mentioned in a previous post.

Thank you to everyone for the good thoughts & wishes in regards to the Amish school shooting. The county is still reeling from the event.

I'm told that it was even front page news on the BBC. Wow. I think most of the reporters are gone now. The funerals are now over. There were some tense moments when there was talk of a church group protesting at the funerals of the Amish girls. The group was offered an hour slot on a Christian radio or TV show, so they took that instead of protesting at the funerals. This same group has been protesting at military funerals. I'm not linking to them. I think it's incredibly tacky and disrespectful to protest at a funeral - no matter what your belief - so I am not going to give them any extra publicity.

A woman tried to get into one of the Amish funerals (they were closed to the public), dressed in what she thought was "Amish" clothing. The first reports were that it was a reporter. We later found out that it was a tourist. When I first heard of the incident, I wondered where the woman got "Amish" clothing. You see, even though the Amish dress very plainly, it is hard to copy their clothing. There are so many details that most people don't know about (like the lack of buttons, or the color of the garments). Anyway. It was tacky of this woman to try to get into the funeral.

There are quite a few charity events under way in this county for those involved in the tragedy. There was an auction. There will be a chicken bar-b-que (I spoke, at some length, about chicken bar-b-que's in the county in a previous post). Originally, the people in charge of the bbq planned on selling 500 chicken dinners. They have sold over 3,000!! Incredible! Several of the hospitals and doctors (and people/groups involved in the medical aspects of this tragedy) have written off the medical bills for the Amish girls. There will still be bills, but at least some of it's being taken care of. Local banks, churches, convenience stores & other places are accepting monetary donations. As I mentioned before, there are funds for the Amish families and for the family of the shooter.

Amish people attended the funeral of the shooter - to show their support for his wife & kids.

Can you imagine what the world would be like if we all looked out for, and took care of one another?

Well, that's all for tonight. I'll get back to you with pictures, links and my SP9 questionnaire.

MAKE it a great day!

A county turned upside down.

I wrote briefly yesterday about a shooting in one of the local Amish schools. I first saw the news on my computer's homepage. There was one paragraph to the article. I then went to the website of a local TV station. They had more information. Click here to read what they have now. The evening newspaper today had a HUGE headline - and most of one section of the paper was about the school shooting.

This is one of those events that I know I will always have a clear memory of where I was and what I was doing when I heard about it.

I'm told that national newspapers and TV channels picked up this story, too. Pennsylvania's Governor was here (in the county) today to give a speech or something.

Let me tell you a little about the Amish. (You can click here to read more about them.)

First, there are different sects of Amish. Some are more strict than others. The group of people who sent their kids to the school where the shooting took place are Old Order Amish. They are the strictest. They don't drive vehicles. They travel in horse drawn buggies. Sometimes they will pay a person to drive them in a vehicle (long distances, or in the winter) - like a taxi service. They have no electricity or telephones in their houses. They don't use buttons on their clothing. They attend one-room schoolhouses. They take turns hosting church - there is no specific church building that they attend - they just go to each other's houses. They speak a form of German, commonly called "Pennsylvania Dutch". They call non-Amish people "English". They are a very close-knit group and it's rare for an English person to be invited into an Amish house. They are pacifists. They don't fly or have their picture taken. They don't "join the church" until they're young adults. They do not hunt, or join the military, or own guns. They take care of themselves.

I'm not saying that they don't have some of the same problems the rest of the world has. There is rape and incest and spousal abuse and even drug use. And "Amish" kids - before they join the church - tend to be pretty wild. The boys, especially, are encouraged to "sow their wild oats", because once they join the church, it's all straight & narrow. But the Amish community takes care of itself.

Yesterday, a man (who has three children ages 7 and under), went into an Amish schoolhouse, told all of the boys to leave the schoolhouse, barracaded the door, tied the hands and feet of the girls and shot them in the back of their heads. Apparently, he had planned on molesting them, but the police showed up & he had to act faster than he had planned. So he just shot them - and himself.

Here are some facts:

*5 girls are hospitalized - in several hospitals in PA and Delaware
*5 girls are dead
*2 of them died in the early hours of this morning
*The two who died this morning were 7 years old and 8 years old
*The other girls who died were 12, 13 and 7
*There were 10 families who sent their kids to this school
*7 of those families have a wounded or dead child
*The girls who were sent to the hospitals went by helicopter - the Amish don't fly, so the parents had to find someone to drive them to the hospitals
*Hours went by before the parents knew if their child(ren) were alive or dead. The Amish don't have their picture taken, so the parents had no images to give for identification of their child(ren).

This happened 5-10 miles from where I live. I cannot imagine not being able to go to the hospital with my child, and not even knowing if she's dead or alive. I cannot imagine having to decide to take my 7 year old off of "life saving" equipment so that she could die.

I can only imagine the hell all of the families are going through. The Amish families and the family of the man who did this.

The Amish community has set up two funds. One for the families of the school children. And one for the family of the man who shot their children.

I have to wonder if I could be so forgiving, if my child were dead? Would I be able to forgive the shooter? I do believe that I would see that his wife and children are victims of this, too.

Because of the actions of this man, his wife and children will have to deal with the hatred and insensitive comments of others. The Amish community is now in the national spotlight (which they do not like) and pictures of Amish people are being published all over the place (pictures - against their religion). Children are dead or traumatized.

The whole county has been turned upside down, because this could have happened at the school of anybody's child(ren). It could happen at any school. How do you look your child in the eyes and tell her that she's safe in her school - when you know, deep in your heart, that she's not safe at all? We usually tell our children that monsters aren't real. They don't have to be afraid of monsters, when, in fact, the biggest monsters are people, just like us.

That's all for now. I'm so sad and so troubled by all of the school shootings - it seems like they are more frequent than ever. And this one. Well, it could have just as easily been my daughter's school that this man walked into yesterday.

So hug your loved ones extra tight and be sure to tell them that you love them. :-)

Hi...my name is Angelia

Hi! My name is Angelia - and this is my knitting blog. I live in Pennsylvania and have a 7-year old daughter. I call her the Queen Princess - or QP, for short.

I thought I'd introduce myself, since it's been so long since I posted anything. Why haven't I posted? I don't know. Every time I thought about doing it, I realized I really didn't have anything to say - and didn't even have any pictures to post.

I've been doing a little knitting. Not much.

The Nutty Knitters are meeting again (we had a summer break), so at least once a week I'm knitting a prayer shawl. I currently have two on the needles.

One of the women in the Nutty Knitters does Civil War re-enactments. She's currently working on a knitted Shell Counterpane. You knit the individual shells & then sew them together to make the counterpane. I'm helping her with the knitting. This is a picture of the first shell I knit & blocked. I like the pattern. It looks very cool when put together, and the shell knit up fast. Luckily, I won't be the one sewing the things together!!

I have also been attending the weekly SnB meetings. It's a fun group. My Mom & I go to SnB while the Queen Princess is at her Brownie Girl Scout meeting. One of the SnB'ers, Heather, recently started her own blog.

((I had this post written & somehow it got lost. So now I have to try to remember what I wrote. Plus, I just saw on the news that a gunman held some Amish kids hostage at their school - TODAY. That's some crazy shit! The Amish are pacifists. And here a gunman comes in & holds school kids hostage! He shot himself before the rescue people could get into the school - damn coward!))

Almost three weeks ago (it'll be three weeks on Wednesday), I joined a fitness club. I had received a free week's pass & went there to check it out. I ended up joining. I've been there every day (Mon-Fri) & two Saturdays (when the QP had a playdate & I had "free" time). I've also signed up for a personal trainer. I call him Killer. I'm convinced he's trying to kill me! I meet with him once a week. He pushes me to work harder than I would if I were on my own (plus he knows ways to use the weight machines that are especially painful - and, I guess, effective - but painful).

To date, I've lost 5 pounds and about 8 1/2 inches. Not bad, huh? I have quite a few pounds to go. :-)

I'll leave you with a picture of a flower. I don't know the name of the flower, but this particular plant used to belong to my Great-great Grandmother. The flowers only bloom at night, and they only bloom once. The next morning, the flower is drooping & closed. I love how they look - and they smell nice, too.

That's all for today. Now I'm off to see if I can find out some more info on the Amish school shooting. I can't even express how crazy that (the shooting) is!

MAKE it a great day!