Tag Archives: four things

four things | thirty

Posted on by
4

Wow, this week’s gone by fast! I’ve been busy but do not have many pictures to show my busyness.

Let’s just right to the reading, watching, loving/not loving, and doing…

what I’m reading

I’ve been reading about altering furniture to make it work better for my needs. This is something I’d love to do to my IKEA knitting storage table but I would have to modify one of the drawers to make it fit. I need to think about this some more.

what I’m watching

Mr. Aitch and I have been watching the old, old, old Gunsmoke series. I think we are still on the second (of twenty) season and the early episodes are only 30 minutes long. One thing I notice is that the dresses Miss Kitty wears zip down the back.

Zippers that we use today have only been around for a little over 100-years so Miss Kitty’s dresses would not have used a zipper.

Elias Howe, the inventor of the sewing machine, developed an early version of the zipper in 1851 but failed to market it. Along came Whitcomb Judson, who debuted his “Clasp Locker” at the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair. He patented it but it didn’t have much success. Gideon Sundback improved upon Judson’s closure and patented his version in 1917. That’s the design we know today.

These closure devices weren’t used in clothing but for boots and tobacco pouches. Click here for more information on the zipper.

what I’m loving/not loving

We’ll be attending a party this afternoon. Yay!

It’s a going-away party for our neighbor who is moving after living here for 29 years. Not yay. We understand that her house is too big for just her and there is a lot of upkeep but will be sad to see her go.

what I’m working on

I finally got back into the knitting groove! I started these socks at the beginning of the year and was going full steam ahead until my knitting mojo snuck off during the night. I’m so happy that my mojo is back but she brought an unwelcome friend – the Dreaded Yarn Chicken.

It never occurred to me that I didn’t have enough yarn to complete the second sock.

I have 18 more rows before the toe. I found another yarn in my stash from the same manufacturer and it’s going to be close enough.

The tweed yarn has little slubs instead of little pops of color. These will be going into my sock drawer and they will be good enough for my feet.

Stay cool this week!

four things | twenty-nine

Posted on by
Reply

I don’t know where this week went but it went fast. We finally had dinner on the deck last Sunday. It was the first not-too-hot-and-humid day we’ve had all summer. Steak, foil packets of potatoes and onions, fresh tomatoes from my plants, and a bottle of cabernet sauvignon.

Quite the feast and quite a most delicious meal.

Onto this week’s reading, watching, loving, and doing…

what I’m reading

Actually I’m listening to Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver because the audiobook was available before the digital version. It’s quite a long listen – over 21 hours. I’m about 3/4 of the way through and it’s taken a dark but not totally unexpected turn.

There are lots of f-bombs, drugs, sex, and more so be aware.

what I’m watching

It’s August. I’ve been watching the days grew shorter and the evenings cooling down (thankfully).

I was outside one morning this week with Pepper and the angle of the sun, the sounds and smells in the air reminded me of my twelve-year-old self thinking of the end of summer and the beginning of school. It was a fleeting moment but so real all the same. School begins next week here and for my grandkids.

When I was a kid, the school year began the Wednesday after labor Day and ended the first week of June. We had days off during the school year but evidently not as many as they have now. I would not want to be in a classroom this early.

what I’m loving

Procraftinating: v. doing craft projects when you should be doing laundry, cleaning, or making dinner.

what I’m doing

When we had our deck flooring replaced a few years ago, the contractor snuck in a wooden piece of quarter round to finish off the seam between the house and floor.

It rotted.

I bought a piece of outdoor (a composite of some sort) to replace it. Voila! The hardest (and most time consuming) part was trying to figure out which way to cut it so the angles would be correct. The contractor should have used the right material in the first place. I detest shoddy workmanship.

I need to paint the screw heads white and add some caulking in the corners but at least it’s not rotted.

May your week ahead be filled with joy and happiness.

four things | twenty-one

Posted on by
3

The hot, muggy days of summer arrived this week. Mr. Aitch and I are getting the outside of the house ready for summer living: grilling, dining al fresco, and relaxing. It’s been a busy week outside.

Today is Worldwide Knit in Public Day! I’ve still got my sock project so maybe I’ll make some progress today. What a great opportunity to knit at the local Celtic Festival!

what I’m reading

I finished My Cousin Rachel by Daphne du Maurier and thoroughly enjoyed it. I figured out the ending three pages from the very end. The description classified the book as a gothic novel but I viewed it as historical psychological thriller. Whatever.

what I’m watching

We heard great things about Bonfires of the Vanities so we watched the movie starring Bruce Willis, Tom Hanks, and Melanie Griffith. The book got rave reviews so I can only assume that the book is much better than the movie.

what I’m working on

Mr. Aitch got a new battery operated power washer a couple of weeks ago. The weather hasn’t cooperated much until this week so he/we finally got to try it out. The deck isn’t huge but it took us two days to clean it. He has two sets of batteries but the downtime between recharging killed the momentum.

After the deck was clean, Mr. Aitch washed the outside concrete stairs to the basement. It’s a one person job so I puttered around with other things: watered the pots of flowers, moved/rearranged the deck furniture, did a load of laundry, brought all the outdoor cushions upstairs for easy access, hung the solar mini lights around a part of the deck railing, and took a much needed shower. I still need to put the other electric lights around the deck but it was just too freaking hot with the sweat running down my face burning my eyes and practically blinding me. Note to self: wrap a bandana/headband around forehead to catch the sweat.

what I saw on my walk

I only walked two days this week due to the outside chores but I spotted this little guy in my neighbor’s yard.

Have a stupendous weekend!

Patti nona

four things | twenty

Posted on by
8

School’s out for summer…at least in our county. When I was a kid we stayed up late (11:00 PM) on the last day of school and slept in the next day. Of course, we didn’t sleep too late as there was so much to do: kick ball, dodge ball, hopscotch, Red Rover, swing on swings, ride bikes, roller skate, go to the pool, and stay out until the street lights came on. Yes, there was a lot to do in the summer.

Yesterday was the first day of summer vacation and it started out great – sun was shining, warm but not hot, then the clouds moving in and it rained the rest of the day. So much for getting outside and playing. I did see two 6-7 year old boys playing in their yard with little toy construction trucks, roads made of old wooden boards, and just messing around in the dirt. Lots of dirt. Good for Mom and Dad for encouraging outdoor play!

On to this week’s four things…

what I’m reading

I was between books for one day. I got a digital library book Saturday afternoon: My Cousin Rachel by Daphne du Maurier. I’m about halfway through and it certainly is as mysterious, romantic (though not sappy romantic), and full of intrigue as her novel, Rebecca.

what I’m watching

Rain Man with Tom Cruise and Dustin Hoffman. Another great movie. I can only imagine the outtakes. Have you seen it?

what I’m loving

what I saw on my walk

This row of honeysuckles just filled the air with sweetness.

Enjoy the week.

Patti nona