Knit Unto Others

A Knit along for the next two weeks (Nov. 15-30) to knit for your favorite charity:

Find out more here.

Use your inside voices please

I say it practically every day at school. Some little ones have their volumn level up too high and need a reminder that they do not need to yell to get someone's attention.

Well, a store owner also decided to remind the little ones (and I can't help to think the adults also) that it was important to use their "inside voices" in his eating establishment. And parents got miffed and offended. Read it in its entirety in the New York Times
At Center of a Clash, Rowdy Children in Coffee Shops

The owner of A Taste of Heaven, Dan McCauley, said he posted the sign - at child level, with playful handprints - in the hope of quieting his tin-ceilinged cafe, where toddlers have been known to sprawl between tables and hurl themselves at display cases for sport.

My goodness - a gentle reminder and folks get their noses bent out of shape. If only we had to worry about more important things.....

No zip in frappr and no place to call home

Ok, folks, I have succumbed to the trend of creating a Frappr map(where in the world (no pun intended) did that name from?) However, somehow when I try to put my zip in there to add my name to a map, it tells me I have an invalid zip code. Ok, I know I have a "new" zip code - its about 3 or 4 years old and I occasionally have to plug in the old zip code so an order or info can be processed through. I tried that, no go. Frappr likes none of my zip codes - not the old one, not the one across town, not the ones for the post office boxes only. So I have no home on a Frappr map unless someone has a solution. Sure I can place any ol' zip, but doesn't that defeat the purpose?
Here's my link to the map:

On another note, we are still in air conditioning mode - but that should change this evening with a cool front coming through. Where we live, we have been known to run the a/c at some point every month. Welcome to the south. We knit with wool just to pretend we need it 5 days out of the year.

Felted inside boots - Voila!

Yesterday evening, I finished the boots. And here they are:

I used Brown Sheep's Lamb's Pride Bulky Weight Yarn, and the embroidery I used some OLD Elsa Williams Tapestry Yarn I had from some stash. I used the pattern from Cat Bordhi's book Socks Soar on Two Circular Needles: a Manual of Elegant Knitting Techniques and Patterns
It went through the washing machine cycle twice to get the desired effect. After 24 hours, they are still a little damp. A quicker project than socks since they were on size 11 needles. Those of you that would like to try socks might want to try something like this since it is quicker and bigger, easier on the eyes and felting is MUCH more forgiving for any boo boos made along the way. I promise..
By they way, I did a whimsical design on there and fully intended for them NOT to match - that way if someone is wondering which should be their left shoe and right shoe, one has a loop, the other doesn't!
Come to our bazaar - they will be there :)

Knitting in the world of education

They have found that knitting is education worthy. But we all knew that!

http://www.educationworld.com/a_curr/profdev/profdev100.shtml

I just want to know who keeps count of the knitting needles.

Knitting, Felting, using 2 circulars

I am furiously working on bazaar projects for our church bazaar. I completed the icords for the Booga UGA purse and need to felt them.

Last night I began a inside boot using a pattern from Cat Bordhi's book Socks Soar on Two Circular Needles: a Manual of Elegant Knitting Techniques and Patterns . Notice it is 12 inches long and will swallow my foot. Once felted it should be where a size 8-9 felted boot. Twill see if I followed the directions correctly.

I also got a tiny notion to embellish it, so I decorated the top of the foot with this:

Now I need to get a move on with the second boot or I will be selling this to a one footed person.

Wizard of Oz is being shown on TBS over and over again - they are celebrating their new digitized version of the movie. I still don't like the wicked witch, but I am brave enough to stay in the room now. I still get that scared feeling when they mantra "Lion Tigers and Bears, oh my is being said.

Does anyone remember the knitter on the movie???

I've been tagged by a knitting meme

Jess tagged me, and I now become part of the tag team....

What is your all time favorite yarn to knit with?

Hmmm... I guess I don't really have a favorite - sometimes it is the one I am knitting -- probably a better question would be what yarn I DON'T like - I just tried knitting with a chenille yarn that was some stash that someone had donated and I couldn't get it to look right.
don't really like the novelty yarns.

I do like Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock as Jess does.
Wool-Ease is pleasant also. No yarn snob am I....

The worst thing you've ever knit?
If it is bad, I rip it out and take it out of its misery.
Each and every project is a learning experience. If I have knit a "worst thing", I haven't gotten there yet. But you will know when I do it.

Most valuable knitting technique?
I just learned a different cast on that makes my work a little quicker at the beginning.

Your most favorite knit pattern? (maybe you don't like wearing it...but it was the most fun to knit)
I noticed Jess likes Madli - I guess I need to get to a higher level of knit wisdom since I tried it several times... I am assuming she is referring to the Madli shawl - I will get back to it sometime.
I enjoyed the challenge of the Branching out scarf from Knitty.com. I loved the way it turned out. It now lives in Ireland with Kate..

Best knit book or magazine?
Of all the ones I have received in the mail, I do like Creative Knitting magazine. It's mainline, it really isn't cutting edge in the knitting world, but it speaks my language. It also makes me feel good when it says that a pattern is intermediate to advanced, that I could really do it -- other magazines, when it says it is advanced, it means it - and it "ain't" in my ballpark.
As one member of my church said, as in reference to my literary tastes.... oh you have such plebeian taste.... YUP, I do... but I like it.

Favorite Book?
Vogue Knitting: The Ultimate Knitting Book has to be in there for its value in being a reference. I am also charmed by: 50 Baby Bootees to Knit - who can resist those cute cute bootees?

If you look at my knitting books though, I guess my absolute favorite favorite favorite book right now is:

Folk Shawls: 25 Knitting Patterns and Tales from Around the World - I don't think there is a shawl in there that I don't like.

Your favorite knitwear designer?

Oh... I am not there yet... I do know that Nancy Bush does create interesting sock patterns.

Your favorite knit blogs?
Well, I would be remiss if I didn't mention the Harlot, but I will share a few that are lesser known...
Mason Dixon Knitting
Sandy Knits Just delightful

On the zanier more bizarre side:
http://electricbiscuitonline.blogspot.com/

The knit item you wear the most? (how about a picture of it!)
I haven't gotten there yet. I think I am failing this meme.... I did wear one sock for a couple of hours since I haven't completed a set once. I was quite proud of the fact I completed one. My husband didn't understand that one, but neither did I.

HMMMM... Who should I tag?
How about Ellen, Emily, and Sandy and Stephanie Sits and Knits and Tina (last two are newest members of the Blog ring "Knitting Episcopalians" -- are there any other knitters who are Episcopalian that would like to join this ring?

Booga uga

Tuesday evening.....
The of the booga uga bag is completed - as you can see in the photo, it's back and red. And... it's a true black and red, not washed out as the photo might indicate. Yarns used were Lamb's Pride Bulky and some red yarn I had in my stash.
It's for our church our church bazaar, in black and red, by request of a parishioner and possible purchaser.....


Wednesday afternoon.....
I take the Booga uga Booga bag out to the deck to get a better look. It has a halo of fuzz around it that reminds me of the commercial of those chimney swifts who have soot breath (have you seen that commercial?? I really watch little tv, but that one caught my eye... just don't remember what the commercial is about).

The effort to have little diamonds didn't have the impact it did in its prefelt state, so that is in vain. However, if you are a UGA fan or a DAWG, you might like the color combination (and actually is quite nice).

Here is my question:

The handles are icords. Should they be:

Katrina??? Read on...

Two homeschooling teens took a tour of the Gulf Coast and were there eyes opened. Their blog opened MY eyes reminding me that it "ain't over."

http://rebelution.blogspot.com/2005/11/out-of-sight-out-of-mind-continuing.html

Where has this week gone? And Fair Friday Five

This week has flown by and before I knew it, Friday arrived. It's been a whooooosh kind of week and it's been blur. Life slowed down for me to finish this sock. It's my first sock to be completed using two circular needles and I must say it is a LOT easier than using 4-5 double pointed. I am a convert to this method.

The sock yarn is Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock Yarn in the colorway Safari and I used size 2 circulars.

And........ Fall is slowly creeping into this part of the world and I found a little bit of Fallish colors in the back of the school I believe it is Virginia Creeper growing up this tree. Just enough color to know it is fall in "these here parts".

Fair Friday Five is particularly apropro with some of us gathering to work on "Gifts in a Jar" tomorrow morning at the church. Soups and cookies are in order for the day and we hope to wipe out a "mess" of them so we have some goodies to sell.

1) Favorite thing about Church Fairs
I love the anticipation of it opening and watching the community come in - it's like "I saw this last year too"

2) Best Item Ever at a Church Fair
My "saint" would create the most beautiful hand made dolls - one year she did Princess Diana in her wedding gown. It was stunning. The doll in this posting was made to look like my daughter - she had a dress just like that. (I refrain from showing her bloomers and slip - this is a family friendly blog.) Note the shoes are made from leather from purses. Hair is made of dmc thread. Maybe one day I will share her undergarments....
border on dress was the same that I usedon her dress as was the material. I treasure the dolls she made for my kids.

3) Opinion of cotton dishcloths, that staple of Church Fairs everywhere
I am making them. Don't usually like the color combinations, but they do seem be popular. Think we will make gift baskets with some cloths and soup in a jar as a basket gift

4) Major Lunch Offering at your fair or the last fair you attended
Wonderful chicken salad with chunks of chicken, pecans and grapes and celery. YUM!

5) Worst Item Ever at a Church Fair. Oh I have seen some of the white elephants that were questionable as to whether they should have been there. Also some bridge table cloths made from vintage 60's double knit were hideous.

Every year we swear we will never do another bazaar. This year, I think we will mean what we say....

Ever had this happen to you?

If you look closely, this young lady has her pantaloons in an uproar. Ever had it happen to you? She has an early start -- a woman's worst nightmare to get her skirt caught up in her tights pantyhose. Happy Halloween!

Guest Blogger

I am most pleased to present to you a guest blogger, Sharon, who is a master potter in many ways and to have her share with my Mom and me her expertise in the field of pottery and excitement with us on a Friday night in South Georgia topped off the evening. And here she is! Thanks Sharon.

I'm just finishing the last bite of a fairly decent tuna sandwich and my mind is rummaging through all the memories of the neat things I did last night with Cathy and Jo Ann (Cathy's Mom). It was a night of great camaraderie. Even the hour-long drive to and from Thomasville was fun. We chatted about everything, though knitting was a strong recurring theme. The evening's mission: dinner and a classical concert.

Upon arriving in Thomasville , we headed to George and Louie's for dinner. It was quite scrumptious; Cathy and her mom ordered the Gyro and I had the Oyster Poor Boy. G & L's has fried green tomatoes, a delicious and unusual menu offering, and their onion rings are the best. We ordered both to round out our meal. Filled to the brim, and the happier for it, we set our sights for the Thomasville Cultural Center for a concert by the Kalichstein-Laredo-Robinson Trio and the Miami String Quartet. It was a wonderful performance. You could tell the musicians were enjoying it as well. Cathy is mastering the art of knitting socks on two circular needles and she showed me her latest work while we were waiting for the program to begin. Doggoned! We should have gotten a version of, "the sock was here", picture. (editorial comment: sock must have been snoozing....)

Anyway...

In addition to the concert, the Cultural Center was hosting an exhibit of pottery from regional collections. My father, Ralph Weaver, had 4 of his original pieces on exhibit and my husband and I had contributed a Lanier Meaders face jug to the show(shown below).

The exhibit was being taken down in a few days and I was afraid I would miss it. As it happened, the pottery was displayed on the floor we entered, and we had plenty of time to see it before the program started....


Cathy, Joe Ann and I wandered through the exhibit, enchanted by the details, imaginative motifs and sheer variety of claywork, when I exclaimed,

"That looks like a Picasso!"

I pointed to a large white plate-form with the abstract image of a face sculpted on it. Knowing how artists "borrow" ideas from other artists, I never dreamed it could be an original. It was! There were three more very nice examples of his clay work as well. His is the name that would lend this display distinction with most people.

However, two other artists of much greater stature in the pottery world were also represented, to my great delight: Shoji Hamada, (a press-formed bottle and platter), and Bernard Leach, (a temmoku glazed vase-form). These, in my opinion were the jewels of the show. Not only because they were lovely pieces, but because they represented the works of two influential men in the Craft-Art Movement. I have perused Leach's publications, A Potter's Book, over and over, studied pictures of their pottery extensively, but never seen either of their artwork in person. Hamada was even awarded the title of National Living Treasure by his country. Yes, I guess I am swooning. It was wonderful show, and every piece in the exhibit was a treat. I was especially proud that my dad's work was represented there.
As a potter who hasn't made any pots in a long, long time, this exhibit made me yearn to play in the mud again.

Well, I do knit

After some time of not blogging about knitting, I am posting my almost, very nearly almost completed the baby blanket.

The adorable baby has entered into the world a few weeks early, perhaps to urge completion of her blanket. Tonight I wove the ribbon through the edging, and when I placed it on the bed, I noticed I had woven it incorrectly. Thinking I had finished it except for a few snips of the scissors to get to the yarn that was loose, it was frustrating.

The cat decided she needed to be a part of the action. She told me to wait until the morning to fix the ribbon. I think she is right.
Blanket will be the baptismal blanket for Baby E.

Friday Meme

ok, I have had a run on meme's but I like RevGalPal's Blog so I will participate.

A mixture of the deep and the shallow today, in honor of All Hallows Eve and All Saints Day---
1) Favorite Halloween Candy - specifically Halloween candy - Candy Corn
2) Least Favorite Halloween Candy - I don't like Gummi bears (is that Halloween Candy?) how about licorice (bleh..shudder)
3) Best Costume Ever - I loved my Raggedy Ann costume in 3rd grade
4) Worst Costume Ever - don't remember
5) A Saint you treasure (please feel free to use the definition of "Saint" that is meaningful to you and to your faith tradition and life experience)
Of the Saints on a calendar -- Julian of Norwich and Samuel Isaac Joseph Schereschewsky (I love his story)
Saints in my life - Maria, and those of you who know me know who she is and why - I wish I was more like her.

Copy, Paste, Answer and add one of your own

Hazelnut Reflections had this on her post. And as so often, I am a copycat! (I had to change just a few of her answers - many were the same)
1. smoked a cigar - no
2. crashed a friend's car - no
3. stolen a car - no
4. been in love - yes
5. been dumped - yes
6. dumped someone - yes
7. taken shots of alcohol - no
8. been fired - no
9. been in a fist fight - no
10. snuck out of a/your house - no
11. had feelings for someone who didn't have them back- yes
12. been arrested - no
13. made out with a stranger - no
14. gone on a blind date - no
15. lied to a friend - yes
16. had a crush on a teacher- no
18. seen someone die - yes
19. been on a plane - yes
20. thrown up in a bar - no
22. miss someone right now - yes
23. laid on your back and watched cloud shapes go by - yes
24. made a snow angel - no (never been in snow)
25. played dress up - yes
26. cheated while playing a game - no
27. been lonely - yes
28. fallen asleep at work/school - yes (but it was naptime in preschool and I was lying down by a little one)
29. used a fake id - no
30. felt an earthquake - no
31. touched a snake - no
32. run a red light - yes
33. had detention - no
34. been in a car accident - yes
35. hated the way you look - yes
37. been lost - yes
38. been to the opposite side of the country - no
39. felt like dying - no (had the flu)
40. cried yourself to sleep - yes
41. played cops and robbers - no
42. karaoke - yes (don't like it)
43. done something you told yourself you wouldn't - yes
44. laughed till some kind of beverage came out of your nose- yes (learned not to drink or eat while reading Yarn Harlot.
45. caught a snowflake on your tongue - no
46. kissed in the rain - yes
47. sang in the shower - yes
48. made love in a park - no
49. had a dream that you married someone - no
50. glued your hand to something - no
51. got your tongue stuck to a flag pole - no(got to get pretty cold doesn't it? and who would lick a flag pole anyway?)
52. worn the opposite sex's clothes - yes
53. Been a cheerleader -no
54. sat on a roof top - no
55. talked on the phone all night - no
56. ever too scared to watch scary movies alone - yes
57. played chicken fight - no
58. been pushed into a pool with all your clothes on - yes
59. been told you're hot by a complete stranger - no
60. broken a bone - yes (both arms - different times)
61. had a 3-some? - no !
62. dipped snuff? - no
63.lived overseas - no
64. Ever passed out/fainted? - yes
65. blown bubbles in the wintertime - yes
66. been in a hurricane? yes

Carve your own pumpkin online

You can now carve your own pumpkin without the mess:
http://www.theoworlds.com/halloween/

How many of these have you read?

A list of Time's top 100 English language novels since Time was published in 1923. Bold the ones you've read. See one that is half bold? Means I never finished it but read part of it. In RED? Means it's on the shelf, but hasn't been read. And, as with Hazelnut Reflections, I have certainly read books by the authors that aren't here... those had the author in BLUE

The Adventures of Augie March - Saul Bellow
All the King's Men - Robert Penn Warren
American Pastoral - Philip Roth
An American Tragedy - Theodore Dreiser
Animal Farm - George Orwell
Appointment in Samarra - John O'Hara
Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret - Judy Blume
The Assistant - Bernard Malamud
At Swim-Two-Birds - Flann O'Brien
Atonement - Ian McEwan
Beloved - Toni Morrison
The Berlin Stories - Christopher Isherwood
The Big Sleep - Raymond Chandler
The Blind Assassin - Margaret Atwood
Blood Meridian - Cormac McCarthy
Brideshead Revisited - Evelyn Waugh
The Bridge of San Luis Rey - Thornton Wilder
Call It Sleep - Henry Roth
Catch-22 - Joseph Heller
The Catcher in the Rye - J.D. Salinger
A Clockwork Orange - Anthony Burgess
The Confessions of Nat Turner - William Styron
The Corrections - Jonathan Franzen
The Crying of Lot 49 - Thomas Pynchon
A Dance to the Music of Time - Anthony Powell
The Day of the Locust - Nathanael West
Death Comes for the Archbishop - Willa Cather
A Death in the Family - James Agee
The Death of the Heart - Elizabeth Bowen
Deliverance - James Dickey
Dog Soldiers - Robert Stone
Falconer - John Cheever
The French Lieutenant's Woman - John Fowles
The Golden Notebook - Doris Lessing
Go Tell it on the Mountain - James Baldwin
Gone With the Wind - Margaret Mitchell
The Grapes of Wrath - John Steinbeck
Gravity's Rainbow - Thomas Pynchon
The Great Gatsby - F. Scott Fitzgerald
A Handful of Dust - Evelyn Waugh
The Heart Is A Lonely Hunter - Carson McCullers
The Heart of the Matter - Graham Greene
Herzog - Saul Bellow
Housekeeping - Marilynne Robinson
A House for Mr. Biswas - V.S. Naipaul
I, Claudius - Robert Graves
Infinite Jest - David Foster Wallace
Invisible Man - Ralph Ellison
Light in August - William Faulkner
The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe - C.S. Lewis
Lolita - Vladimir Nabokov
Lord of the Flies - William Golding
The Lord of the Rings - J.R.R. Tolkien
Loving - Henry Green
Lucky Jim - Kingsley Amis
The Man Who Loved Children - Christina Stead
Midnight's Children - Salman Rushdie
Money - Martin Amis
The Moviegoer - Walker Percy
Mrs. Dalloway - Virginia Woolf
Naked Lunch - William Burroughs
Native Son - Richard Wright
Neuromancer - William Gibson
Never Let Me Go - Kazuo Ishiguro
1984 - George Orwell
On the Road - Jack Kerouac
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest - Ken Kesey
The Painted Bird - Jerzy Kosinski
Pale Fire - Vladimir Nabokov
A Passage to India - E.M. Forster
Play It As It Lays - Joan Didion
Portnoy's Complaint - Philip Roth
Possession - A.S. Byatt
The Power and the Glory - Graham Greene
The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie - Muriel Spark
Rabbit, Run - John Updike
Ragtime - E.L. Doctorow
The Recognitions - William Gaddis
Red Harvest - Dashiell Hammett
Revolutionary Road - Richard Yates
The Sheltering Sky - Paul Bowles
Slaughterhouse-Five - Kurt Vonnegut
Snow Crash - Neal Stephenson
The Sot-Weed Factor - John Barth
The Sound and the Fury - William Faulkner
The Sportswriter - Richard Ford
The Spy Who Came in From the Cold - John le Carre
The Sun Also Rises - Ernest Hemingway
Their Eyes Were Watching God - Zora Neale Hurston
Things Fall Apart - Chinua Achebe
To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee
To the Lighthouse - Virginia Woolf
Tropic of Cancer - Henry Miller
Ubik - Philip K. Dick
Under the Net - Iris Murdoch
Under the Volcano - Malcolm Lowry
Watchmen - Alan Moore & Dave Gibbons
White Noise - Don DeLillo
White Teeth - Zadie Smith
Wide Sargasso Sea - Jean Rhys

So I've read 12 - Emily, you have read more than me.

This would make a nice reading list to take to the library when I'm standing there wondering what to read next.
via Hazelnut Reflections

Even though this is not officially a meme (or is it?) I pass this on to Naomi and Ellen -- I know they have read more than me on this list!

Spelling - Grammar police

Which is it?

Please bare with us
Please bear with us

Put it into Google and we find lots of both.
Please settle this dilemma.

Additional note:
Thanks to the folks that responded !My husband finally solved it by replacing it with "be patient"Of course he wasn't very patient waiting on me for the correct answer! :)
Cathy

New Blog Ring - Knitting Episcopalians

Well, a new web ring has been created - one for Knitting Episcopalians. Here is the description as the "ring leader" from Hazelnut Reflections states:

A ring for Episcopalians who keep blogs and knit. The blog does not have to be primarily about knitting, but it should be updated somewhat regularly (i.e. weekly or thereabouts). Ring code must be visible on the page to be in the ring.

Please join us if you fit into the above category. We would love to find out who you are so we can get to know each other in the world of blogville!

I am excited!

Two Little Pumpkins

Two twenty something year old friends get together on Friday night. These two have been friends for a long time and they are now being a bit competitive on the back porch. The had a pumpking carving contest and wanted me to vote which one had the BEST pumpkin. I knew immediately who did which one, knowing each of them well enough that I stated that I would post it on my blog and let my readers vote (all two of you). Actually, those two of you that conjured this up and wanted this, you best get your friends to vote so it looks like more than 2 folks voted.
love, Mom

Vote using this:

I now have completed....

It's official now. . . .



a sock. It's my first one - one half of the pair. Perfect??? No.... comfy?? Yes...

Now..I haven't cut the end of where I finished the kitchener stitch. AFter completing, I have woven the yarn in and out, but still a little nervous. How do I know it won't come undone?

My main "imperfection" is in the connecting of the heel with the gussett (I hope I have the right terminology. I think it should be tighter. ).
Now the challenge to completing the second half of the project - that will be the true test to verifying completion.

Could you pass an 8th grade Math Test?

You Passed 8th Grade Math

Congratulations, you got 10/10 correct!

Could You Pass 8th Grade Math?

Touchdown that really counts!

Well, football is not my favorite sport, but it runs deep in this part of the world. However, I found this interesting and seeing this redeems many of those inequities in the world of sports:

http://www.nbc5i.com/sports/5126283/detail.html

Go Lyndon! You are a hall of famer in my eyes.

Friday RevGalPals Meme

What was the last CD you purchased?
I just received in the mail tody Taize's Wait for the Lord CD.
Did you like it? Oh yes I do!
Is it the kind of music you would call your favorite? One of my favorites - sacred, but I also like LOTS of different kinds of music
What was the first album (CD for you youngsters) you ever owned? (One of my earliest albums I received was from one of my mother's friends who gave me a complete set of Artur Schnabel playing the complete collection of Beethoven Sonatas - I probably had earlier ones, but this one sticks in my mind. (one of these days I will write on how music was different then than today in terms of recordings)
And what was your favorite cut from that recording? Piano Sonata No. 21 in C major "Walstein" I remember playing that one over and over.

I have way too many CDs and wish I could place them in one of those things you could have 100 CDs and play them randomly. But that is not to be - oh well.

All in a Day's Play

I thought I would give you an opportunity to peer into a small part of the day during my classroom time. You see, I "play" for a living. Each and every day, I play with toys (and let's clarify this for those of you might think differently - CHILDREN'S toys).

Yesterday we finished a project that had been started the day before. We had placed little Halloween confetti objects into a one liter container (by the way, our school is #1 in recycling in the state and #2 in the nation - this is only a small part of our effort to recycle- we are working on creating a lifelong skill of recycling from a very young age). Placing these objects into the bottle is a wonderful task for fine motor skills for the little hands that need this skill.

Today was messier - and the reason it was postponed was I had left the funnel at home and could not find one in the school (the lunchroom's funnel was more industrial and BIGGER).

Our supplies included:

large bucket/container

a funnel

water

one liter bottles with Halloween confetti

the lid to the bottle

red and yellow food coloring

After filling up the container of water, and this is wear it gets WET, the child placed their smaller container in the water to get some water to pour into the funnel (this is where the teacher comes in and helps - she places some water into it the bottle to weight it and stabilize it). Then the pouring begins and into the funnel the water goes (most of it anyway). Down into the bottle it goes and allows the confetti to start moving around in the liquid.




Here comes the fun part - and I had to do this part. Little hands sometimes can't handle this and go a little overboard and since this was borrowed food coloring, I was not going to let it go to waste.

One drop of red and 2 drops of yellow start to swirl in the water. Oh what fun it is to watch it start to mix! (Science in action here)

Oh yes, we had to place the lid on and twist it on so the water wouldn't spill - another good fine motor skill!

And who can resist.....but to shake it afterwards....




Finished...

All in a day's work play.

Meme from Rev Gal Pals

1. What is your favorite word? peace
2. What is your least favorite word? hate
3. What turns you on, creatively, spiritually or emotionally? Good music
4. What turns you off? disrepect
5. What is your favorite curse word? hmmm... I guess I don't have a favorite. I really try not to use them - however, they seem to permeate into my conversations at times and I don't realize I had use them. Does that make them NOT a curse word then?
6. What sound or noise do you love? oh so many sounds, but nature sounds I love the sounds of cicadas on a summer night. I also love wonderful sacred choral music.
7. What sound or noise do you hate? loud obnoxious commercials
8. What profession other than your own would you like to attempt? If I get enough comments asking me what I would really like to do, I might answer :) - actually it's pretty silly and I might change my mind, but ask me!
9. What profession would you not like to do? debt collector
10. If Heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the Pearly Gates? "Come on in, there are bathrooms and they are clean and nearby."

A Taste of Heaven today...

I am trying to think of where to begin. Today we were part of a memorial concert for a beloved organist who passed away 10 years ago. We were the first group to perform beginning with Ave Maria by Joan Szymko, a 20th century composer. Along came Haydn's Magnificat, and Gaudete! Gaudete! which is a 16th century Christmas selection, and then Laurdisen's Dirait-don from Les Chansons des Roses. Pergolesi's Glory to God in the Highest followed. Lastly was Jordan's Angels by Rollo Dilworth and something happened....

Our group sings sacred classical music, mostly. And we are classically trained. Jordan's Angels is a blues spiritual, so it's a little out of our territory, but we really like it. Feel a bit like an imposter singing this since the style is so unlike what I am accustomed to singing. However, after about the 2nd or 3rd page, someone in the audience loved the piece and was "amen-ing" -- well we aren't quite accustomed to that, but it felt right, and the energy started to flow... and our director felt it too, and other affirmations came from others in the audience, and it was ok... in fact, it added what needed to be added, the affirmation of "Amen, Jesus" - we knew that the audience was with us and we were with them. After that our 2nd standing ovation of a crowd of (I am guessing on this so anyone that was there that has a better guess can add to the comments to let me know what they think) 300+, we were pretty psyched up.

After our performance (and there are about 24 of us in our ensemble) the combined choirs of 2 United Methodist Churches, a Presbyterian church, Lutheran Church and an A.M.E. church combined their energies of some awesome pieces. The four anthems were

• When in our Music God is Glorified (arr. Hariett Ziegenhals) -I know this hymn is in our Hymnal, but with different text
• Many Gifts, One Spirit by Allan Pote
• I Opened My Mouth to the Lord transcribed by Raymond Wise
• Hallelujah by Beethoven

I don't want anyone to think that I need to get out more often and hear more groups, but the combined efforts of these four choirs filled the church that brought me to tears. I could close my ears and allow God's word and music to flow through me -- very moving.

The organist then performed on the organ that Myron Munday was instrumental in planting the seed to the church finally having built and installed. The Toccata on "Lasst Uns Erfreuen" by Aaron David Miller allowed the organist to use the organ to its fullest and she allowed, literally, what it seemed all the stops (no pun intended) were pulled in this piece. The hymn tune is most familiar to us by this name - "All Creatures of our God and King" ran through the piece. Know how you like the building to shake when the organ plays - well we got that today!

Last, but not least was the Boys' Choir of Tallahassee - during the time we sang our first piece, we could see the young boys walk into the balcony to listen to us - other than seeing them we never could hear them. The self discipline of these young boys/men would make any parent proud. This choir knows how to bring the house down and they did not disappoint us. With their beginning selection of The Quest Unending by Joseph Martin which was hauntingly beautiful to the wonderful Spiritual "There is a Balm in Gilead" to the last selection "Canticle of Praise" which involved EVERYONE and brought us to our feet and I know that presence of the Holy Spirit rocked in this place. REmember the movie Sister Act? Well I had that sort of feeling as the fervor of entire church was electric.
The closing comment by the pastor stated that this was what heaven was like - where EVERYONE would be able to sing (well, I truly believe that everyone CAN sing - however, not everyone can sing well - and it seems to be popular for us to say "I can't sing" - but that is for another posting and I will not get on that soap box). However, if today is what heaven will be like, I want to be there RIGHT NOW - and I believe I got a taste of it today.
Ok, I really don't want to be in heaven right now, I just want to have that kind of good music here too...
A special thank you for Sharon and Dennis to making the special trip to hear this. Makes the heart glad to know I can share this awesome event with her. And, one of my biggest fans, my Mom came also. DH had to work so was unable to attend. I know he would have been there otherwise.
OK, last but not least - the socks had an opportunity to sing today. Ellen's (my coblogger on Plays with Pointy Things) and Cathy's socks had an opportunity to bond this afternoon in the choir room.
If you are still reading this, wow, bless you for sticking through this - I am just really psyched over it.

I almost didn't sing - it once was lost, but now is found

Right after posting my "Sing sing sing" entry, I got up to get my music and head off to rehearsal. So I started looking for my folder in the typical place I might put it. The book case, by the computer, on the piano are typical places. No go... so I went to the van. Did I leave it in there? Nope, not there. So then I started looking for less likely places. .. ..

Well, we did have company last weekend and I did sort of cram and slam some things in different places and by chance, could have ending up in a topsy turvy location? Nope.. not in those places either.

So I called up my dear husband, and asked him to look in the truck, knowing full well that we didn't take the truck last week. Knowing to keep peace with a frantic woman, he dutifully checked in his truck. Nope.

Hmmmmmmm.... now I was getting sick. Wha was I going to do if all of my music accidentally got thrown away in my quick tidying of the house? What if I go down to rehearsal without my music...rehearsal is an hour away...should I just not go. NO, I can't do that...we perform Sunday and I have a solo in the Haydn piece... hmmmm... I call the BAR (ha! ya got to read last week's post to put that piece together) to see if I left it there...No...my music wasn't there either...

I decide to go to practice..it's in the church we will sing in this Sunday.. and I get there late (I HATE being late and am almost always on time). The downtown area is PACKED with cars and I have to park a good ways away downhill from the church.
Get to the church and one could hang meat in there - mind you cold weather doesn't get here until November (and some of you would never thing it gets cold here). I could hear the warm up outside the big church and the acoustics were great. I hope and pray someone will have mercy on me to share their music and I have no reason to believe otherwise.
Well, I walk up and there my music was. Someone had picked it up last week. Safe and sound. I was relieved. I was exhausted from the worry - worry that expended energy as if that worry would have produced the find any quicker. Bless a fellow angel's heart (that's a southern statement) I had my music and could sing to my heart's content.
I have my music now..I KNOW EXACTLY where it is..
By the way, look for me at the concert Sunday. I'll be wearing black and I'll have my music.

Sing Sing Sing

Tonight our group, Voces Angelorum, makes a rehearsal site change from our regular Lutheran Church to Trinity United Methodist Church, as we rehearse for our concert this Sunday. It's a memorial concert for a beloved organist who died an untimely death several years ago and was dearly loved by many. Several groups will be performing, the Tallahassee Boys' Choir will attract the most folks, as they are dearly loved in this region.

We will be performing six sacred selections, from the Baroque to 20th century, with a spiritual, Jordan's Angels by Rollo Dilworth, thrown in that we truly adore.

This is part of my prayer time as singing, as St. Augustine stated to sing is to pray twice. I must say it is one of the easier times I have to pray....most of the time!

Kiss me Once, then Kiss me Twice

Monday night was special - My husband, my Mom, and I went to hear Michael Feinstein. Until I had heard he was part of the concert series, I had never heard them (sometimes I can have my head in the sand and be clueless about jewels).

This man has a phenomenal repertoire of 20th century music in his brain that transmits through the fingers and the voice. Especially the music from the Great American Songbook - he is a music historian/anthropologist/archivist of music from the greatest of composers and lyricists of Broadway and the crooners that we all know and love.

Not only does he sing and play, but he told stories of the times he spent with Ira Gershwin and Frank Sinatra, as well as other well known artists. And..... what I heard through some of his stories are the concerns that some of these tunes will be lost as time transpires.

I got to thinking of the tunes my grandmother would play on the piano, and how I rarely....rarely...hear these tunes today.. "I'll Take you Home Again, Kathleen", "My Buddy", "Whispering"- and though Feinstein only played one from that era -"Alexander's Ragtime Band"(who can hear Al Jolson singing this one?), I wonder when these songs will not be remembered. Which ones will remain in the repertoire of popular song? "As Time Goes By" should stick, as Casablanca remains popular to this day.

I saw folks excited about hearing these tunes, bringing memories known only to them. They lived when the music was popular on the radio - there was not MTV, and if you saw the movie, you saw it once, not over and over again as we can today. They had 78 records (I know that there are some of you that have no idea what a 78 is) and you had to get up after every tune to move the needle to play again - and you were lucky if it lasted 4 minutes on each side of the record (ummm - no remote). Tunes were heard on the family piano, with purchased sheet music (who has bought sheet music lately?).

And then during the concert, Feinstein thanked those that had an impact on his love for this music and for those that made a difference in his career. And then the surprise - - he thanked his parents, and his father came to the stage. Feinstein played the piano, and his father sang "It's Been a Long, Long Time" - and Feinstein joined him in a duet. I couldn't help but think of how nostalgic it was for both of them, and for the audience. I share with you the lyrics and a little history of that tune:
Peaked at # 1 in 1945

Competing versions charted that year by Harry James (#1); Charlie Spivak (#4); and Stan Kenton (#6)-
World War II ended the month before this Crosby recording hit No. 1 on the Billboard charts in 1945. Accompanied by Les Paul on the guitar, Bing effectively captures the swelling anticipation of Americans regarding the imminent return of their boys from overseas. The song remained on the charts for 16 weeks.

Kiss me once, then kiss me twice
Then kiss me once again
It's been a long, long time
Haven't felt like this, my dear
Since I can't remember when
It's been a long, long time

You'll never know how many dreams
I've dreamed about you
Or just how empty they all seemed without you
So kiss me once, then kiss me twice
Then kiss me once again
It's been a long, long time

Ah, kiss me once, then kiss me twice
Then kiss me once again
It's been a long time
Haven't felt like this my dear
Since I can't remember when
It's been a long, long time

You'll never know how many dreams
I dreamed about you
Or just how empty they all seemed without you
So kiss me once then kiss me twice
Then kiss me once again
It's been a long, long time
Long, long time

Extra credits added by Robin Hood

To hear the tune above click to this page and locate the song in the "Listen to Samples"

I brought home a souvenier Michael Feinstein's Romance on Film, Romance on Broadway
go check it out and listen to the excerpts and take a walk down memory lane. Got it autographed too!

Pictures of my Victrola in my living room:

My grandfather bought this when I was very young.

The collection of needles for the record player - they look like tiny nails.

Need to adjust the speed of tempo of the music - adjust the knob....

It was a fine evening... a trip down memory lane for many. Thank for the memories!

Which Peanuts Character are You?

Well, I can see me being a little bit like Schroeder, but some of his qualities don't quite fit me.....


You are Schroeder!


Which Peanuts Character are You?
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Five Idiosyncrasies

Well, my first blog tag, thanks to Lutheran Chik, I am going to share with you five of my idiosyncrasies. Now, if you were to ask my friends OR my husband, they may have completely different ideas of what the peculiarities are that make me who I am that some might thing as quirky. And, in addition, I get to tag 5 people, and oh, how I would like to tag some, but since they remain blogless (at least if they have a blog, they have not divulged that information to me), I will have to resort to only tagging those that have blogs. Now, since I am aware that my children also read this blog, I request no comments from their peanut gallery unless it is NICE.

I will also mention that 4 of the 5 of Lutheran Chick's peculiarities really sounded ALOT like mine, so I will try to spin my quirks on some different stuff.

Since I have now set the boundaries for my comments, I will proceed to what I perceive are 5 of my many idiosyncrasies to be. I know I have more than these 5, especially since I am reminded of them by the folks that love me.

• I can read upside down as easily as I can read right side up. I don't know why I can do that, I just can. I can also write in mirror style just about as easily. I also am considered left handed, but only use my left hand to write and use a spoon and fork. Everything else I do right handed. So what am I? Left handed or right handed? I don't think of myself as being ambidexterous, since I think of that as being able to use both equally well in the same task.
• I hate procrastination, but I seem to love to hate it, since I procrastinate on a regular basis.
• I can look at a musical score and can tell if the person playing the piece is playing it in a different key by listening to the music. I have an eclectic mixture of music recordings. I love choral music and two of my favorite groups are Anonymous 4 and Chanticleer. I also rarely know the words to popular songs of the 60s and 70s. I rarely know which group did which song unless it is a Beatles Song, Eagles (sometimes), and Sting. I also love the music from the 1920s -1940s, not to forget I love classical music.
• I am a clutter magnet. I really don't see clutter until it is more than anyone can handle. My husband doesn't believe I don't see it.
• I do have a pet peeve. I cannot tolerate commercials that feel compelled to yell at the listener. I avoid the stations that have them with a vengeance. Hence, I listen to ALOT of public radio. On the flip side, I can tune other stuff out and be in my own little world and not hear anything except what I am concentrating on.

Hmmm, who do I tag?? How about Ellen, Emily, Jessalu, Running2ks, and Norma. There, that ought to do it!

Who else would I like to tag?? My kids, along with Sharon, Beth, Kit, Sarah, and my husband - Angus has a blog, but I don't think he uses it. If the others have one, they have not admitted it.

Which Cross are you?

Via Hazelnut Reflections:

You are St Brigid's Cross: St. Brigid is an Irish
saint who hand-wove a cross,out of rushes she
found by the river. She made the cross while
explaining the passion of our Lord to a pagan
man.


What Kind of Cross are You?
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Tea for Two

Dear Rachael and Tara,

What a lovely ladies tea time we had today. While I was having a meeting, you two were getting your hair done at the beauty parlor. Then you got dressed up for us to have a nice ladies' day at White Columns at Lela, which is down the road between Bainbridge and Donalsonville and just right for a time for us to have a nice get together. You two posed for pictures before we ate our lunch and then..... after working up an appetite from all that picture taking, we were seated and got to choose what we wanted.
You two were special because the ladies there gave you hats to wear for your lunch. And, something else was mighty special too:
the ladies that work there made a special pot of iced tea and gave you special cups and saucers so you could pour your own tea without being worried that it was hot! Your manners were the very best.

Tara had a grilled cheese croissant sandwich with baked potato soup, with a glass of milk to top it off. Rachael had a quesadilla with pesto and cheese and other yummy vegetables and a tossed salad. And to finish their lunch, Tara had brownie ala mode, and Rachael and a lemon bar.

After the meal that left us so full that we should have found a bed nearby to sleep off our full stomachs, we went to the gift shop and saw all the teacups and saucers. Then, we got to go to the hat room and found two more hats.

I hope you two girls had as much fun as we did watching you. It was too much fun.

WHAT IS THAT SMELL? La dee dah

Never say our women's chamber choir is not flexible. In an attempt to bring us a little closer and have some social time, we were scheduled to have a rehearsal at a local restaurant. When we got there, we realized we needed to go to PLAN B because the lights were so dim in the restaurant that the majority of us over 40 folks would have not been able to read the music.

In addition, there was piped in background music, and that would have been interesting, not to mention the karaoke that was going to crank up at some point.

So, Plan B kicks in - we go next door to the La Quinta Inn - why do motels all have the same motel smell when you walk in the front door? WHAT IS THAT SMELL?

Where do we practice? We practice in the area that folks have their breakfast in the motel. Right behind our director was the orange juice. Look a little to his right and lo and behold, the coffee.
And in between breaths, we could hear the phone ring at the desk (I bet the people on the other end of the phone thought they had been put on hold with the singing nuns).

And, of course, we did have our social time - at the restaurant, this time in a little corner of the bar, being that it was ladies' night, wine was 25 cents, (don't know how much my iced tea was, it never got there before leaving) - DH had gone shopping and was back to get me so we vamoosed on home.

AND, WHERE WAS MY CAMERA??? I rarely leave home without it.. I have rehearsed many a place, but not in the lobby of a motel. Didn't even get a chance to photograph my knitting!

Fall Break

Yes, we have a Fall Break which gives a brief reprieve from school. Tropical Storm Tammy is teasing many as it gives us a smattering of rain while others north of us are getting drenched.

Tuesday evening, we had what looks to be a regular knit in in our little town. We have been working on Cloths for Katrina. Here is the LOOT:

57 - yes 57, cloths were turned in that evening. Well.....2 slipped away towards the end as 2 adorable little girls at the cafe were very curious... well who can resist those innocent eyes? And who knows, we may be planting the seed for future knitters!! So we are temporarily down to 55 until we get a few more in.

Now, my alter blog - Plays With Pointy Things, the blog I co-blog with some friends, has a little charity knitting door prize/drawing towards the end of the month. So, though I am ineligible by default and am giving yarn away (and there is something fishy about giving yourself a prize in a drawing) - I am linking you to the above site. It's got the rules and guidelines. Spread the word!!

Happy Birthday ALLISON

Another birthday arrives today. Allison Elizabeth, born at 12:12 pm, 8 lbs 8oz. on Oct 3, 1981. Born during a cool snap (cool for this part of the world in October), and an FSU game (not there, but its presence permeated the great event) and not a day too soon. She was DUE September 10, but was born 3+ weeks later than anticipated. Just in the nick of time since induction was close to happening. And, in celebration of her birthday, I will share a little about her:

• She was born with her own pacifier - two middle fingers with the index finger on the side of her nose (I know I don't have an actual picture, but it is firmly ingrained into my memory)
• She used her "pacifier" until she was around 4 - and I concocted some crazy story about something I cleaned her hands with one time since she got tar all over them and we had to get it off. It worked, but I am sure not without pain.
• She was an escape artist as a young child - one day she escaped out the back door and I got a call from the Social Security office (whose office was behind us...sort of) asking if we had a little girl named Allison - NEXT TIME I GET A CALL FROM SOCIAL SECURITY, IT BETTER BECAUSE THEY ARE GETTING READY TO GIVE HER HER RETIREMENT CHECK - and hope I am alive to tell it
• She burned her naked rear end on a space heater trying to get warm after bath time -ouch
• She embraced newness of things as much as her sister rebelled against change (still does)
• She had the worst case of chicken pox and had remnants of it for weeks after it was over. To add insult to her injury she got scarlet fever at the end of the chicken pox, a tornado hit town and she ended up in the hospital from dehydration (somehow this all happened at once, but don't seem to be related other than it was one heck of a crazy time)
• She looks like her Aunt "E"
• She has been on three mission trips - to Belize, Navajoland, and New York City soup kitchens (thank you Sonia)
• She seems to have nicknames by her friends that I am afraid to ask why they call her that
• Her brother and sister call her "Alson"
• She doesn't like that nickname
• She likes picking at food in the refrigerator (can't wait till she gets her own place and I can go do that at her place).

• She has a great sense of fashion.
• We HOPE she gets her degree in December in business
• She told me she didn't think 70 dollars was a bad price for a shirt. I cringed..where did she get that idea? What money tree did she go to?
• She can't tell a joke or a story - don't even try Allison
• She can't go ANYWHERE without leaving something for someone to have to mail back to her
  

HAPPY 24th BIRTHDAY - ALLISON

Love, Mom

ADDENDUM:
Allison likes this picture better - this is another trait she has.... she always likes to have the last word....er...picture....

She is pretty if I do say so myself :)

Baby afghan ALMOST finished!

I posted last night, but did not post a picture of my almost completed project. To look at this photo from here, it looks finished, but it is not. It's deceptive, since I hid the unfinished part. And if you were to look closely enough, you would find that there were still loose ends of yarn that needed to be worked into the afghan. However, here it is! It's an baby blanket from Debbie Macomber's book Knit Along with Debbie Macomber - there are others just as pretty and with the onslaught of expectant mothers, I will be keeping this book off the shelf working on the different patterns.

Close, but no cigar

Ever had a project deadline for knitting and get so close you can taste it, but can't get to the finish line? Well, today that happened. I had in the making a baby blanket, with an edging (I have had an awakening - I want to do a blanket that when it is done, it is done - no more of this edging stuff)

I worked a good bit on the edging last night and got to a point that the contact lenses had dried out. Got up early and started working on it...and I kept on making mistakes, but was clipping along and I had already sewn part of the edging on, to gauge how much more I had to do. Well...then Laura needed a ride to get her car/Jeep. Anxiety started rising - the drop in shower had already begun and I had not finished the blanket.

Plan B - go to local gift shop - find a little something to bring to shower.

The blanket will get finished... it's almost done.
Has this ever happened to you?
Procrastination...the thief of time.