I've been tagged

I got tagged by terby

1.) What was I doing ten years ago?
In 1998 I had two boys in high school. I was in my 18th year working for Kaiser Hawaii as a Family doc.

2) What are five (non-work) things on my to-do list for today:
organize a bit of my mess
knit on my River Forest Gansey
finish this meme:)
clean my fireplace
Shop for my retirement present. So far I've thought about new TV, fireplace screen, laptop, rewiring my patio and lighting, table for dining room, step tansu. Currently fireplace screen is winning, but rewiring the patio is coming in a close second.


3) Snacks I enjoy:
- chocolate
- nuts
- strawberries

4) Things I would do if I were a billionaire:
- pay off my mortgage and fix up the house!
- get my sons set up in their own places
- travel in my private jet
- donate to help feed and educate others
- I'd buy a little yarn;)

5) Places I have lived:
Hawaii, Colorado, Kansas, Kentucky

6) Jobs I have had:
Emergency Room registrar. Yup I had to ask bleeding, drunk and laboring people if they had insurance. It was better then working in the collection department though.
Family Physician, Kaiser
General Chemistry teaching assistant
pineapple packer, Dole Cannery (I only lasted two weeks)

7) Peeps I want to know more about:
sunflowerfairyknits
eklectika
theknittedbrow
lilikoiknits
yarnoverpullthrough

That Hat

How many of you out there in blogland watch a movie and get sidetracked by a knit? I was very distracted by a beret in blue that starred in The Wind That Shakes the Barley.
It's a bit hard to see. It has a nubbin on the top and a garter hem. I have more Ultra Alpaca crying out to be this hat. Sigh. Well see. The movie itself was set in the 1920s in Ireland. Brothers are caught in a conflict I still don't quite understand. It was sad.

I was totally surprised on Sunday with a "graduation" party as I like to call it.. I mean really surprised! I would have dressed better and worn some make up if I'd known. It was an awesome brunch with tons of flowers and best of all, I didn't have to make any speeches. I haven't had this many leis since I graduated from high school. There's no turning back now!

Ultra Totoro

Night shot in the box
A couple more are on Flickr
More photos for the beadlizard





Posing with epidendrums.

Saturday Sky Haiku

A moon rise surprise
Peaceful moments here then gone
Golden memory

Stash busting that eyelash yarn, Straw Lei

I used some cording I had laying around, but Isabelle used 3/8 inch grograin ribbon.
She also recommend the McDoogle (aka golden arches) straw because it is sturdy and wide enough to thread the grograin through.
I used the tube part of my fabric tube turner which I have misplaced since making the leis, and so the demo shows a drinking straw.

	Cut the ribbon longer then you want the lei to be and thread it throught he straw. Tape the end down to the straw. Tie the end of the yarns to the straw Isa used two, I used three.
	Grasp the knot and the straw and start winding the yarn around. Do not let the yarn wind over the previous wrap. Wrap so the loops are consistent, but lax enough to slide down the straw.
	Push the wraps down firmly toward the knotted end.
	When the straw is filled up, push the packed wraps on to the ribbon.

Repeat all the steps until your lei is as long as you want.

To finish, Isabelle (blogless) threads the ends of the grograin ribbin through shells and a
kukui nut,
and the wearer ties the ends into a bow to wear. I tied my ends together and the wearer slips the lei over their head. A ribbon bow can be tied on.

Seems to me that this can be done over elastic and made into hair thingies. I'm sure it´s been done:)


Ben Franklin Hawaii has nice instructions for a straw lei with beads.

Top Down Cardigan, FO

Pattern: Neck Down Shaped Cardigan #241 by Diane Soucy. Published by Pure and Simple.
Yarn: Berocco Ultra Alpaca, about 5.5 skeins.
Needles: 6s and 4s.
Mods: none

This is an easy pattern of mostly stockinette which was welcome humdrum. It' top down so the lack of seaming is a real plus. The raglan is not the best for my round shoulders, especially viewing from the back, but I love the top down idea. The yarn is very soft and fun to knit with. The color is called tanzanite. The sweater is very warm so I don't know how much wear it will get, but it is so comfy.

One month and 12 days until my retirement date. Getting all the paperwork done is annoying. I'm trying to focus on my mantra, "Grace, Gratitude and Acknowledgment" and soon:


I went to see Ironman last night with my sons. I enjoyed the action, story, acting and best of all the special effects.