What's Happening?

As I wrote that blog title, I realized there used to be a show called that, and it's still on what we call one of the "lesser channels" on TV.  I never watched the show, but I do remember it.

Which is of course, apropos to nothing.  Which is of course not a surprise.

Moving on, I hope you had a lovely Valentine's Day.  At our house, Valentine's Day is also the birthday of Jetsam and Pip.

Jetsam turned 11 and Pip turned 5, and they are two of the sweetest creatures ever to live on the earth.  We usually celebrate, but The Tim had to work the closing shift last night, so we have decided to have their treats and presents this weekend, since it's a long weekend, and The Tim will actually be off two of the three days.  

We usually also celebrate Valentine's Day by exchanging cards and small gifts, often just treats we both happen to like.  And I usually bake a cake or brownies to celebrate both Valentine's Day and the kitty birthdays.  This year, I had absolutely no opportunities to get a card, much less anything else.  And I couldn't even dig up any decent materials to make a card.  So I mentioned to The Tim that we might want to skip it this year, and he said, "Don't worry about it."  So of course he gave me a card, and the kitties gave me this bracelet.

I already have one of the original Lokai bracelets (the white one) that I wear all of the time, but The Tim said the kitties gave me this one because it's red (and then also because it supports AIDS research).  So that was a nice surprise.  And I feel kinda bad that I didn't even have a card, but such is life.  

Then, yesterday was a really awful day at work.  When I left work, and took a cab home (because walking is too far with the crutches, and I can't maneuver the bus with the crutches either), there was a huge traffic jam on the way.  I was getting annoyed with the cost of the ride going up while we were just sitting there, so when we got to a reasonable distance from home, I just decided to get out there.  I was really tired by this point, and decided I had no energy to bake brownies or anything.  On the couple of blocks on the way home, I knew I would pass Carlo's Bakery, where we had gotten a cake for our anniversary back in October that was really wonderful.  So I stopped in and got us one of their strawberry shortcakes (image from their website).

I knew it would still be OK for us to have tonight. and I was pleased with myself for thinking to stop there.  And then I got home, and The Tim had made brownies!  Trust me, neither will go to waste ... but one would have been more than enough ...

So though it was not a "usual" Valentine's Day, all's well that ends well, and we'll enjoy it and enjoy our long weekend.

Moving on from that long and rambling story, I read this article the other day, and thought it was worth sharing.   I know that I am doing much better than I had been, once I told myself that I needed to pace things, since it appears life lately is becoming a marathon, not a sprint.  Recently, Kym's post talked about the same thing, and had some good suggestions for all of us.  I mentioned one thing to her that I have found helpful, and she replied she was going to try and do it too.  I have started to disconnect from all social media after 8:00 p.m. in the evening, and it's been really helpful. (OK, I'll admit I still look at Instagram, but I'm mainly talking about Twitter and Facebook.)  The reason behind this is that it keeps me from getting worked up, which was causing me to have problems sleeping.  (And not being a great sleeper to start with, I didn't need any more things contributing to that!)  Just this one thing alone has been really valuable for me.  I spend the evening being calmer/calm-ish, and sleep better.  And sadly, there's plenty to read about and hear about the next day anyway ... In any case, I thought maybe sharing these things might be helpful to others.

On the knitting front, I have two more projects going.  No pictures though, since the days have been so cloudy and I haven't been able to get indoor pictures that are worth posting.  I've started another pair of socks, Hermione's Everyday Socks, a pattern I've been meaning to try, and am enjoying.  I dug into my stash for some yarn and am using some from Black Bunny Fibers - from 2007, when Carol (Ms. Black Bunny Fibers herself) was dying a colorway called "Unity" and was using the profits to support the first Presidential campaign of Barack Obama!  Anyway, the socks are coming along nicely and I'm enjoying working on them.

My other project is a resurrection of sorts - Delaware River Waves, also using Black Bunny Fibers.  (What can I say, I love Carol and I love her yarn!  She is a talented knitter, dyer, wonderful friend, and overall badass.)  I had been going along OK on this project, and then one of the cats attacked it (I seriously don't remember which one), and my attempts at repair made things worse.  So I had to admit that frogging was the answer.  I wasn't sure if I would start over with the same pattern, or try something else, but I recently got it into my brain to try again.  As of this moment, I don't have a lot done, but it's working out OK, so hopefully I will have a nice lacy scarf for my efforts soon.  The pattern is one from Rosie's Yarn Cellar that was never published, but which makes a lovely scarf, called Ocean Waves.  The sample in the shop was always one of my favorites, and even if this version doesn't make it, I'm determined to knit it someday!

And that's what's happening around here.  What's new with you and yours?