a.k.a. The Pergola Project. Most of the progress can be had here. I can't wait to plant stuff in the planters next spring. In the meantime, there will be lights and decorations.
Chances are, if I owe you a package, it's heading to the P.O. as we speak. There are two to go -- one awaiting an address, one the knitting of a sleeve -- and then I think my obligations will all be met, for the moment, at least, and it feels good.
Had I not begun to number the Pergola Project Days, perhaps I wouldn't feel the compulsion to blog Day 3, but I did, so I do. It may seem painfully slow, but that's okay. DH has been working on it steadily, while I have been supervising, making meals, going shopping/to lunch/the store, running to the lumber lard (twice) and/or hardware store, schlepping kids and/or friends of kid, starting to seam Fib, etc. Those 2x4 pieces on the top are not attached yet, but they are all cut and shaped and the holes are drilled and screws started (I'm responsible for the drilling and screw-starting) -- tomorrow!
Last night's supper: roasted tomato sauce, baked eggplant, multigrain pasta, homemade bread. It was the best yet. ; )
Please read this post of Celia's and donate, if you can, to help Kick Asthma! My husband suffered as a boy, and has again in recent years, and two of our daughters have suffered, as well -- it has been frightening at times. Let's kick it, kick it good!
The note about tomatoes was scrawled on an envelope and found sticking out of the mailbox yesterday morning -- our neighbor has gone on a trip. From my reaction, you'd have thunk it was a money tree she'd left in my care. ; ) Yeah, third batch of sauce in the oven today...
DH is a table saw man -- it's been my experience that a fella is either a radial arm saw man (my dad) or a table saw man -- not that he can't use a radial arm saw, he just prefers the table saw. He unloaded lumber and set up the table saw in the lower yard while I cleared off the deck and trimmed back the flora. He also dug up the iris patch for distributing and transplanting elsewhere.
I must admit that for the rest of the day, I consulted and supervised and did my level best as lovely assistant, holding things steady when needed, etc. I took Maddy to school, went out to lunch with Ali, made a run to the grocery store... it's not like I wasn't busy! I believe my services will be more in demand today. The picture was taken just before we went in for BLTs last night -- there was one more post planted after supper; one to go and then we start the top part.
Lunch with Ali was very nice. It was mainly to take her pulse, you know? I've seen and suspected some things and just needed to let her know how I feel about them and there was only a teensy bit of a lecture. Really, I don't know if you could even call it that -- I just told her that I loved her, that I'm glad she's going to school, and said my piece -- and she reassured me about a few things and then we went shopping. ; )
Updated to add my first Saturday Sky of September (with hammer and nails).
Katie had to be to work at 5 this morning, and Ali at 6:30; it's Maddy's first day of school, which would normally start at around 8, but only the lowly freshmen have to go so early on the first day of school. Maddy's going to have one last weekday sleep-in, then go out for Chinese with some friends before heading to school at noon.
I've got a pre-moving-to-college lunch date, too, with Alison. We'll have a little mother-daughter chat. ; ) I was going to surprise her with the cloths, but she surprised me! She was surprised, and touched, just not as I'd imagined. Sweet.
Last night I had a little walk past the front garden area and was stopped in my tracks by this gigantic weed, that I only noticed just last night, at a full 4 feet in height! It's amazing what we edit out! I've been meaning to get out and trim back the spent ferns, anyway, and even the meadow rue which I usually trim much earlier. I donned the gloves, grabbed the pruner, and it didn't really take too long to spruce it up a bit and pull the most offending weeds.
I planted the porch pot with the begonia in a gardening class earlier this spring -- it also has impatiens, but the alyssum has long since expired. The begonia just took off and I have always loved yellow against my house, so that's perfect! The porch planter has something dark green with purple flowers in the middle, and two sweet potato vines on each side and, man, did those vines ever take off! This is the front porch, which faces north, so the bright yellow of the impatiens and the bright green of the foliage really lighten it up nicely. It was a pretty good year for the front porch.
Here's the back yard, which is actually on the side. It's very, very tiny. The back of the garage is at left; the right leg of the brick walkway leads to some steps that go down to a path (the playhouse is down there, and more hostas); the concrete walk at the bottom also leads to some wooden stairs that lead to the "lower yard," which is actually in the back and is half grass, half garden -- and there's a ravine/wooded area beyond all of that. Our house was basically, literally, built on the edge of a ravine and our "back yard" is wedge-shaped because of the natural line of the bluff, or whatever. The corner of the garage that you see? It's not a normal, 90-degree corner -- our garage is rectangular except for that corner, which is just lopped right off because of the lay of the land -- and, because of the lay of the land, our deck has only two square corners, too.
It used to be, when the kids were little, we didn't even have a garage. I didn't want a garage because where in the world would we put a sandbox? Where would the kids play? The lower yard is great, but it's only partially visible from one room in the entire house -- and even that with great effort! No, I decided that I'd scrape snow and ice off my windshield, haul in groceries and kids through torrential rain and blizzards, figure out how to steer a wheel that's baked in the red-hot summer sun, because the kids needed a yard, for crying out loud; no-brainer. Well, the kids got older and we got older and they didn't use the yard much -- so they helped us build a garage! ; )
We love our little deck, but it, too, bakes in the red-hot sun. Sometimes that's okay, but an option would be nice, don't you think? I had the bright idea a few years ago to build a triangular pergola over part of the deck, providing dappled shade, with extra seating, some planter boxes, trellis-y things for stuff to grow on. You can see that the tomatoes have pretty much taken over the deck -- it's like a jungle out there! I have been editing out the weeds surrounding the deck for a while now, and soon they will truly be deleted. Heh.
Labor Day Weekend, 2006 -- The Pergola Project. Day 1: Plans are drawn, lumber is in the van.
I finished the wallpapering yesterday and I had a feline supervisor. The tile that you see behind Duncan is a problem. They're nice tiles -- handpainted trillium and mushrooms stuck randomly throughout -- in good condition. They don't "go," but they're not coming off -- that's too big a can of worms, too many unknowns. I'm happy to ignore it, but it's a thorn in Ali's side. Do we dare paint it? Can I fashion some kind of cover-up?
I had plenty of wallpaper and only had to use a few of the pieces that had registration problems -- and those I placed mostly above doors and windows. DH stained the crown moulding yesterday and might put it up today (it's pickled, same as the ceiling). He'll work his way down, building the cap and applying the strips to the paneling, and then he'll bow out and let the painting/decorating team take over.
Here's a closer view of the paper. The background is off-white, but with a hint of pink -- the wood on the ceiling has a bit of pink, too, and they really look nice together. There's kind of a dusky, antique coloring to the paper, which I really like. The yellow pansies have an almost parchment look, very similar to those in a favorite, vintage Paul de Longpre pansy print* I have in the living room. I'm no professional, but I don't think I did too badly matching at the seams. (I did get paid to paper once; DH worked for a firm that designed trade show displays and one of their customers was Kohler. They had a few displays that needed papering and I was tapped. It was very cool, but scary -- limited quantities of expensive, handmade wallpaper made me kinda nervous.)
I had an email last week from Shelli in Canada. She'd been searching for paint in a terra cotta color and was having a hard time finding one that wasn't too orange or too brown or too red. She perused the While You Were Out album and asked for details about the color we used. I copied and sent all the information from the sticker on the paint can. She wrote yesterday to say that she'd taken my email with her to the store, had a can mixed to specs and it's perfect! Yay!!
*I meant to tell this story at Christmas, but now's as good a time as any. Quite a few years ago, I was at an auction with Mom and my sister Sharon. I must have been distracted because by the time I realized that a beautiful, half-yard-long pansy print was on the block, Sharon was already bidding on it. And she won it. And I pouted and drooled. Even though it wasn't mine, I think it's the item that made me a bonafide pansy collector.
A few years later, downsizing and preparing for a move from Wisconsin to New Mexico, Sharon decided that she didn't want to take the print with her, but neither did she want to give it up, so she gave it to me for safe-keeping. Eventually, she landed in Ohio and had room for it, but knowing how much I loved it, she let me keep it a while longer -- with the understanding that I'd (happily/sadly) give it back at any time. During a trip to the Outer Banks one fall, we planned to stay overnight at her house. Knowing we were coming, she asked if I'd bring the print. Oh, I was very sad to give it up, but it was time; we had a few good years together.
All my siblings were home for Christmas (festivities at my house!) and another sister, Karen, had my name that year. When I opened her gift, I immediately turned, in complete and utter disbelief, to Sharon and said, "Thank you," then, rather confused, to Karen. On my lap was the pansy print I'd just delivered to Ohio. Karen had bought it from Sharon to give to me. It was one of the best gifts I ever received -- so completely from the heart -- and like a gift from both of them! Sharon says that that's the best gift you can give anybody -- something that you have that you know would make someone else happy. I think she's angling to have it re-gifted one of these years...
If you've stuck in there this long, then run right over to see Celia. She is a funny, funny lady and sure makes me look forward (even more) to International Pajama Day II.
Yep, step right up for your daily dose of lunacy! Bonne Marie calls it "mitten mania" (isn't she kind!). She linked me in her sidebar and she *hearts* me, she really *hearts* me! I'll tell ya, it's better than a triple-chocolate brownie for breakfast. It was while doing an internet search back in February or March for something knitting-related that I happened upon ChicKnits and what a treasure trove of information, inspiration and energy it was. I sat bug-eyed at my computer for days and days and days. Her site was my portal to the world of knitbloggers, too; prior to that, I had no idea that there was such a thing and only vague knowledge of blogs in general. I added her to my Favorites and she was my jumping-off point for a long time ('til I started my own blog, I guess). I would have to say that, unbeknownst to her I'm sure, Bonne Marie is the #1 reason why I started blogging and why I look at my knitting so differently now -- the woman is fearless in everything she does (the way she cuts things up without even a tremble!) -- and shows everyone WHO's the BOSS: You Are!
I finished the thumb while watching the Eagles send the Vikings packing, then took Stephanie's advice and blocked it -- wet, no steam -- and it's still pinned out so I don't know the result. I may have found a little extra length, but is it enough? When I look at my fingers in relation to my thumb on my hand, and then look at the same on this picture, well, they're a lot different. Results of the jury will be forthcoming tomorrow. I didn't lose any sleep over it.
The little Tanguy hat is progressing -- the triangles and brim are finished and standing by on the needles to be joined with the hat. The hat was cast on with an "invisible cast on," which I'd never done before, and I hope it's right; I followed directions from my Vogue Knitting reference book (the only book of three where I found directions). I'm at the point where I'm making decreases every 3rd row, so it shouldn't be long. This little thing may be small (I did not swatch), but it's so cute and quick that even if it fits a teddy bear, I'll be just fine. I love the way it just sits there in Kate's picture and think it would make lovely decor, too. I'm using lovely beaded stitch markers that Yvette sent me long ago -- finally something on small enough needles to use them. They're very cute (thanks, Yvette!).
I had a hammer in my hand and nails in my pocket for a good part of the weekend. This is where we were at game time (noon) yesterday. If there was a Land of Futz and Putz, my dear husband would be king; he spent nearly the entire day on Saturday working on those little strips onto which we're nailing the beadboard -- cutting them "just so" in order to make the ceiling level, screwing them into the ceiling, putting in shims here and giving a shave there, and Good God, Let's Get On With It!! The whole damn room and everything in it is off-kilter, but the ceiling will be level! Anyway, we were more than half-way by the time we called it quits yesterday. It's looking very fine -- and level.
In between construction and knitting, I finally hooked up our refurbished computer, installed a mouse with a cord on another (the wireless is great but very jumpy), did lots o' laundry, roasted a chicken, and watched a little football. I didn't leave the house even once. Too darn cold, for one thing!
I don't care how many mittens I knit, I don't think I'll ever stop trying it on in the middle of knitting the thumb with DPNs going every which way. It tickles me. Even when I'm somewhat displeased with the mitten (like now), this little trick humors me.
Yes, I am displeased. I finished 'er off last night and tried it on. Hmm. Somewhere between the first and second snowflake on this little number, I must have given up my loose ways because this baby is SMALL. I was so happy with the feel and fit at the half-way point, but man, things changed. It even looks smaller -- noticeably -- than the right-hand mitten.
So what did I do? I pulled out the Tanguy pattern and drew the Baby Ull near. I knew that starting the hat, no matter how fun and new (and colorful), was not going to make things right with the mitten, but I needed a diversion -- even if only for a minute. I read through the hat pattern and contemplated colors, then I picked up the thumb stitches on the mitt. I'll knit the thumb, then tear out half the stupid mitten (that I really do love very much, just not so much right this minute) and re-knit it. I'll do it all before starting the cute little hat (or anything else).
Before leaving for my dentist appointment this morning, I cleared all the crap out of the upstairs kitchen. We don't use it as a kitchen, of course (it's storage, what else?), but the cabinets and sink are still there (handy, too!). The big hunk o' plaster missing from the ceiling came crashing down some time ago while my young nephew was upstairs playing. I believe he thought that the sky was falling, or that somehow it must have been his fault. Poor thing. In reality, it's the result of having hired the roofer from hell some time prior to that. Yes, hiring a shitty roofing contractor can have major consequences on the ceilings in your home. Especially an older home with lathe and plaster. Cheap can end up costing LOTS.
So, it's really been quite some time since that chunk fell down, and the walls suffered from some of our own happy hands at home remodeling downstairs (jacking up a wall, putting in a microlam beam), and we've decided that it's finally time to fix it. While I was listening to Elton John (quite loudly) on headphones as the dentist broke a sweat scraping plaque and tartar off half my teeth, Kate & DH took the plaster off the ceiling. He's up there cleaning up the mess (Kt's on her way to a knitting at the coffee shop date with one of her friends!) and I'm waiting for feeling and normal speech to return. We left the lathe and will staple some plastic over it later today. I can't staple with a numb mouth. Then we'll be putting up beadboard -- I love that stuff. We're going to do a panelled (but not really) thing on the walls that'll go up about 3/4, and I have some pansy wallpaper (scored at a rummage sale last summer) that will cover the rest. There's a lot to do before we get to that point, though.
Celia's International Pajama Day is on my calendar. Sunday, February 6th. It's not official -- cripes, who would schedule that on a TUESDAY? -- but who cares, it's pajamas? Honest to God, have you ever seen anyone looking more relaxed than Celia? I want to look like that. I will!
There's a pathetic lack of knitting content. I've decided that I don't like the cardigan re-do -- this realization came at about the 12-inch mark on the back. Maybe it has to do with frogging and giving it a bath, but I just don't like how it feels -- not substantial enough for a cardigan (at least not this pattern). Hopefully, I can come up with a good use for that yarn, because I do like it. I gave both St. Brigid and the North Star Mitten a thought last night, but I guess it was late and I was feeling tired. I was wearing a sweater, too, and it's a struggle knitting with DPNs while I wear a sweater -- like it would be real easy to make mitten and sweater one! I paged through a few books with baby knitting in mind, instead. I hope to return you to your regularly scheduled knitting blog soon.
Meanwhile, Cara asked about what's in my cupboard yesterday, so I'll show and tell. Atop are some of the pieces my dad has turned for me from various woods. Some have covers, some are lazy susans, some have interesting grain features. The top shelf is home to some porcelain dolls -- all but the dark-haired one and jester were made by my grandma for the grrs. There's also a playful, ceramic candleholder that Kt made in 2nd or 3rd grade -- I should have taken a close-up of that; it has joyful figures of children around it and never fails to bring a smile.
At left on the middle shelf is a Lefton piggy bank with an iridescent glaze and applied flowers that I got for my 6th birthday. It was dropped on the fireplace hearth when I was about 8 (I think my brother had something to do with that) and one of the rear legs broke off, but I love my gimpy pig. There's some pansy stuff -- two plates and a compact -- a glued-together sauce dish (my fault) in the same pattern as dishes one of my great grandmothers had, another Halloween-ish school clay project, a small silverplate jewelry casket that my mom bought at Goodwill ages ago for $1 (in the days when they'd meet and buy stuff right off the truck), Mdd's Cinderella figurine from Disneyland, jars of dried lavender buds from my own garden, and some dried hydrangea flowers from the same.
The lower shelf is more mish-mash. An old covered sewing basket, more turned wood, some tins, lavender wands that I made years ago, a vintage hat, an old "Mother" motto print with pansies, and a gorgeous vintage tile that looks like it has a marijuana leaf design. The back of that tile is almost as interesting as the front, the manufacturer's name imprinted with flair and style -- I feel the same about the backs of some of my old cabinet photos.
The cabinet looks like furniture, but we did build it in -- it's screwed to the wall and there's quarter-round all around the bottom. It's a funny room, part of an addition to the house that was made in the '20s or '30s -- huge for a bathroom -- and until our remodel a few years ago, didn't have a single electrical outlet! It's toward the rear of the house, but there is one more room beyond -- it is one of my favorites in the house and if I could have everything I wanted, it would have become part of the bathroom. As it is, there's another huge old cupboard with drawers that I once marked with clothing sizes and used to store the grrs' hand-me-downs, and a cabinet at the top where I store all the Christmas stuff. Opposite that is a narrow, steep stairway to the attic -- there are drawers built in beneath those stairs. It is the coolest thing -- drawers in a triangular space. The entire room is hideously painted and is used for storage (what else?) and needs a good cleaning.
Do you think Stephanie had her little "lie down" yesterday after breaking $10,000 for Doctors Without Borders in about 24 hours? I think it's more likely that she fainted -- the total this morning is over $15,000. Unfreakingbelievable! I think she may have recruiters on her tail soon, and offers in a new career -- fundraising! Bravo to her for thinking up a great idea, explaining it all very well, and using her popularity to do good, and even more to all of her generous readers. It's amazing. And don't forget about the patterns -- socks and wristlets -- the proceeds of which will go to Oxfam or Unicef (I fixed the links in yesterday's post). My PayPal transfer was finally official this morning, and that's the first thing I did today!
This is what DH was doing when I got home from work last night. He said he'd just "see how it goes" and told me (with a grin) that the hardware store was open 'til 8:00. When he replaced the commode in the downstairs bathroom in May, it took most of a day and a couple of store runs. This installation was pretty smooth; he was finished before 8 and we had a time out for dinner, too. Woohoo!
And that's not all the privy news you're privy to... My sister called last night and she has a brand new outhouse. Believe me, it's absolutely thrilling.
I thought y'all might like to see the the cabinet in the bathroom. We traded some "architectural elements" that DH salvaged from a local remodeling project for this little jewel. It was originally a built-in, so the sides were single, unpainted boards. We beefed them up and used some moulding to hide the seam, and then put on a top and a crown. I matched the original paint and put on a fresh coat, and also painted the outside of the HUGE clawfoot tub that color (a little of that is visible in the potty pic).
Oh, that bathroom... When we first bought our house, it was a two-family: the lower unit included one upstairs bedroom, and the upper was the remainder of the upstairs. We occupied the lower, so I didn't ever see much of this room. I did know that one wall was papered with flocked wallpaper (every room in the house had one papered wall) -- olive green flocking on a metallic gold background. Kinda '60s foyer-ish, not bathroom-ish -- at any point in time! I stripped the flocked paper sometime between tenants. And a couple of years ago, we did a near total overhaul -- the tub and toilet were all that remained of the original. Heh, that tub ain't never goin' nowhere -- it must weigh a ton!
I knit a very little bit, but mostly tried to keep my eyes open during a family viewing of "The Terminal" last night. Soooooo sleeeeeepy. Oh yeah, say howdy to Duncan and don't even ask me why there's another cat in my house... but isn't he cute?
*******
Hearts are heavy in Salt Lake City; Margene had sad news this morning. The devastation of the tsunami, half a world away, is unbelievably far-reaching. For over a week, the family of a friend of my sister's in NW Wisconsin awaited news from a family member vacationing in Thailand. They finally had word from her yesterday; she'd been completely unaware of events, having gone on an expedition far into the mountains. I hope more stories end that way.
Hugs & Kisses Sock pattern, proceeds to Oxfam; Eyelet Rib Wristlets pattern, proceeds to Unicef; Mittens Without Borders incentive, benefitting Doctors Without Borders.
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