For Ann

Hi -Ann in Berkeley . Can you leave me your email address ? I would love to get in touch with you, we can chat about yarn- maybe do some exchanging , if your husband doesn't find anything for you in Munich. I was born in Berkeley- it's one of my favorite places :-)

I'm baaaack!

Hi ,
I am, hopefully, back. In a nutshell- Alexander was sick, I was sick, my mom came, my mom went, Michael came, we went on vacation, I got sick again, Michael left.. and I am still sick- but getting better and feel like I can sit at the computer for a few minutes again.
The picture is of my "men" putting up the Xmas tree. Alexander's shirt is from the Congo. Michael brought each of the boys a shirt and shorts , a shirt for himself and a Congo style dress for me. All out of the same material. Pretty scary and funny. I meant to take a picture of all of us together dressed in our finery- I will try and remember the next time Michael is home. Give everyone a good laugh!

Many thanks and apologies to those who wrote emails, snail mails,comments and cards, also to those who called and to those who kept us in their thoughts through what was a very Dark December for me. Even if I didn't write you back,and I probably didn't, I very much appreciated every communication. Things are looking up and if I ever get rid of this cold/bronchitis thing I will be cruisin' again.
I did not manage to stitch anything- including Carol's neighborhood ,but I will get that back at some point in the RR and get it done. I have knit one sock since November. Thats it! I sent no Xmas cards- mailed no presents- sent no ecards- again apologies. I will try to do better throughout the year. I am also going to try and visit everyones blogs over the next few days. Hope to hear from you soon.

Sorry

Hi everyone- things are not good here and so I am going to take a break from blogging. I will probably still read your blog but not comment. Sorry.

11-11-2006

Today is the official first day of Fashing or carnival- for those who are interested. The narren were out and about.

Here are two of the pairs of socks I showed in my last blog entry - but finished now.

I had to make a break in writting this entry to make spaghetti for 5 kids- where do they all come from? I am going to have to drive into town to pick them up from the movies at 11 pm. Blech- but I would rather go get them and know where they are than have them swaning around completely unwatched.

Talked to Michael today- Things are going well in the Congo. They have only had a little bit of shooting today - nothing to get excited about!

I also, have actually started christmas shopping. Have you ? :-)

11-11-2006

Today is the official first day of Fashing or carnival- for those who are interested. The narren were out and about.

Here are two of the pairs of socks I showed in my last blog entry - but finished now.

I had to make a break in writting this entry to make spaghetti for 5 kids- where do they all come from? I am going to have to drive into town to pick them up from the movies at 11 pm. Blech- but I would rather go get them and know where they are than have them swaning around completely unwatched.

Talked to Michael today- Things are going well in the Congo. They have only had a little bit of shooting today - nothing to get excited about!

I also, have actually started christmas shopping. Have you ? :-)

Pay it forward

I have joined the Pay It Forward Challenge:The first five people to respond to this post (via the comments section) will get some form of "art" made by me. It will be a hand crafted item made from sewing, crocheting, stitching, decoupage-just about anything. I will try to make the item something special just for you. After you comment, please email me your snail mail address . In return, each person will post the same action on their blogs and pledge gifts to the first five to respond, and so on. I think this sounds like a lot of fun and a good way to improve your karma!
My email is rachael@gmx dot de - you know how the dot thing works.
These are the socks I am working on at the moment. The little pink and red one is for one of my god daughters, whose birthday is in ten days. The green one is for her mother. The green yarn is Austerman step which is super soft and the pattern is a baby cable which is one of my favorite patterns. The blue sock is a pattern I am making for the first time and I really like the way it is coming out. The blue and pink yarns are both from Opal. I am also knitting a sock on two circs for the first time and I have to say - I hate it- give me 5 DPNs any day. The only thing I can think of is that my cables are too long. I will finish these socks on the circs in the hopes that I will get used to them . They are great for taking with you. Scrabbeling around on the floor of a train after a dropped DPN isn't really fun.

Alexander

Alexander in his new glasses- now if I could talk him into a haircut, he could be seen as well as see.

Schlampe!

For your enjoyment - A picture of the mess on my computer desk. Think of it as a still life. You can see it is geting cold here because I don't bother to drink tea everyday. I often go without caffeen if it is warm and/ or the weekend. The fact that there are 4 cups built up here since yesterday evening is a sign. Just in case your wondering three are from Starbuck's and one is a Harry Potter cup. All have had their day , but my absolute fave at the moment is the white one with the orange inside ( I almost called it "lining' ) I realy like the shape.
An aside for those who worry about this sort of thing. The cups have only been collecting for less than 24 hours and while the picure was loading to bloggger, I got rid of them and that juice bottle as well.

Well, I finished the poncho-- and I've worn it as well. It ended up with a bit of fringe. I have been trying some knew knitting technics on some socks- including mosaic knitting and knitting socks on two round needles.
I took Alexander to the eye doctor last week and then to Fielman for his first pair of glasses. I had made an appointment for myself at the eye Dr. as well. After writing Alexander's prescription he checked mine and laughed. They are practicly identical.
My husband called and asked me if I could find a couple of remote control boats to send him. He wanted something to play with in the flooded yard. I was just glad he didn't plan on useing them in the room he is living in. I managed to get a good price on a couple from ebay- it had to be at least two because as he said 'it's no fun playing by yourself!"
Yesterday, I ordered winter tires for my car. There is a new law in Germany that you must have winter tires in the winter. Now this sounds pretty obvious, but in tests, winter tires , unless they are very high quality (read expensive) rate very badly in rain. I hate to break it to people , but exept for in Southern Germany , you tend to have more rain than snow here. I needed new tires anyway ( of course, I'll need them again in the spring when the winter tires come off) so off I went to order the tires and get an appointment to have them put on. It was a madhouse. There were a bazillion people there , at ten in the morning, and they all wanted winter tires and they wanted them NOW.
I knew I would have to order, ( my car is fairly large and heavy for Europe) they never have the tires and rims I need in stock. So I wasn't disapointed to leave with no more than an order and an appointment for next week. However, I won't tell you how much those babys are going to cost. It would make you weep for the amount of stash that I will be driving around on!!
I learned that, not only are oil product prices are on the rise, but due to the growing economy in China, there is a steel shortage going on. And in all honesty- Californina girl that I am - when it snows and I have to go to town- I usually take the bus.

Poncho

Okay all you knitters out there - be kind!
This is the first thing I have knit other than socks and one scarf. I didn't have a chart and it was my first time knitting cables ,I taught myself out of a book. The neck is wider than I really wanted but the length is just right, the points come right to my waist. the edges are not quite even and strait ,but I guess that comes with practice. I hope. I think it needs some fringe or a crocheted edging or something but I can't quite decide- any ideas? Plus any knitting /blocking tips would be very welcome.

Ein Kleine Tropfen Wehmut

A little drop of melancholy- The translation doesn't sound as good as the original, but it describes the situation.
Michael Schumacher just drove in his last Formula One race.
I am a bit of a Formula One fan and have been for almost ten years. I have never had a "favorite " driver or team . I just like the exitement and the stratagy of the race- however. Schumacher is the most succesful F1 race car driver of all time and has been a large part of the sport for 16 years.
He is also a celebrity who has shown a lot of class over the years. He is married to his high school sweetheart and has never been "caught" with anyone else, he has kept his children and his private life, just that - private. He is always gracious in interviews and has nice things to say about the other F1 drivers.

Most of all he is an incredibly talented person who found his niche and filled it to the utmost and knew that the moment to make a change in his life had come. Respect.
F1 won't be the same with out him but I wish him the best.

Autumn

As some of you know I live on a farm. We have this harvest wreath hanging on one of the barns year round, and every two years it gets taken down and remade. This year was the year and the picture is of our farmer hanging the new wreath. The making of the wreath is a reason for a party and all of the family and neighbors get together to make the bunches of wheat. The farmers wife does the binding . when the new wreath is hung everyone celebrates with dinner and lots of beer as is the tradition in Germany.

You can see that I didn't get back to this yesterday and almost didn't make it today. My massage yesterday was medical and for my back which is still giving me a lot of trouble. Afterwards I took Alexander to Muenster- we needed a few things ,plus I had to pick op a box of books from customs. My sweet Papa sent a huge box, which we will have a wonderful time working our way through.
Then we had our tea at Starbuck's and did a little shopping.
Today I sent Michael a package with his Wellies . He called and said that the rainy season has begun in the Congo and as he wasn't planning on staying this long he wasn't prepared. It is raining both in and out of the house he is working and living in and he needed his rubber boots. I packed them up with a bunch of anis Fisherman's friends and took them to the post office. I hope he gets them soon.
The I had to give an extra english lesson and then take Patrick to the orthodontist. The good (bad) thing about going to the orthodontist is that there is a good yarn shop right next to his office. I have now started to knit a (don't laugh) poncho. They are pretty fashionable here right now and I have been trying to find a short one that I like . There was one hanging in the yarn shop that was the perfect size . So, now I am trying to recreate the size and knit cables for the first time and actually have no idea what I am doing so wish me luck!

Sloth

Here is a picture of Cheryl and I in Amsterdam. We are sitting in the outdoor seating from "Boom Chicago" on the Leidensplein. The weather was fantastic and we were having, as you can see, a great time.

Annemarie tagged me with what seven songs are you listening to right now. No Annemarie- I don't mind you tagging me as it gave me a kick in the behind to write at all!
I noticed recently that most of the(very few) cd's that I have purchased are from women . The only cd's that I purchased with men singing are copies of stuff that I have had on tape forever ,nothing new as far a music goes. I tend to listen to the same stuff year in and year out anyway.
1.Put your records on- Corrine Bailey Rae
2.Unwritten - Natasha Bedingfeld
3.Snakes and Ladders -Joss Stone
4.Ain't no other mann- Christina Aguiera
5. Things- Robbie Williams and Nichole Kiddman
6. When Doves Cry- Prince and the Revolution
7.Dancing in the Moonlight- Top Loader
oops- I just realized I have a massage in 20 minutes and I am still in my pj"s- gotta go but I am going to try- realy hard - to get back to this tday. I think I am supposed to tag some people to do this list as well but I am not sure how many so I am going to go with Cheryl, Bine,andMom for now.
Gotta run

Off to Amsterdam

I am off to Amsterdam for a few days- Meeting up with Cheryl, Barbara and Ashleigh. I hope to return with pictures and a clean soul. Tell you all about it when I return!

Ha!!! fixed the camera problem

With a little help from my husband and a huge expenditure of patients on my part ,I both fixed the camera and found most of the missing pix. While I was in the States my camera battery got really low ,and apparently the date went back to it's original setting- which was in 2004. So I can find the pix stored under a date two and a half years ago, and any new ones are now to be found in the correct place. How clever is that!

To celebrate- a few pix- My new opal stash. I couldn't decide which of the new Opal hundertwasser sock yarns to buy- so I got them all. Plus a couple of others- as long as I was ordering.And, a picture of of Annemarie's RR. I hope you can see the rain drops .

Okay- I was a dork and posted this at the "Neighborhood of Make belive" blog - so now that I have copied it here I have to go delete it there.


Well, here I am again- trying to think of a good excuse for why it has been so long since I have written. I am sure I could come up with something good and even something true, but one day you are all going to realize that I am lazy, procrastinating, scum who has NO (make that zero) affinity for the computer. The computer does so much to make my life better- and I just can't love it.

Anyway.... I am still having a problem with my computer eating photos from my camera ( see- see!!!) So no new pix. You can see my finish on Annemarie's Neighborhood RR by checking out our" Neighborhood of Make Belive" link. I also finished a pair and a half of socks. One a red/orange/yellow Lornas Lace's, and the singelton ,which I finished last night is a pink stripey Treking XXL . I will cast on the mate this evening. As if by saying it I will make it come true:-)

I am thinking hard about what I want to stitch on Carol's RR. I thought I had it figured out and then I bought a new chart which I love, but I am not sure Carol will - so I am still thinking.

Nothing new on the husband front. He is far away and bound to stay that way for quite awhile. Safety is all we ask.

I do have some lovely "to share" kind of news. On Wednesday - Cheryl is coming from Virginia- Yea! She is flying into Amsterdam and I am going to meet her-Yea! We are going to stay in Amsterdam four days-Yea! We are going to meet up with Barbara- Yea! and maybe Ashley ? Reserving my yea for a conformation from Ashley but it definitly merits a yea if she can come. Anyone else? If I didn't ask you ,but you would like to come please invite yourself!!! Cheryl is then going to stay another week at my house, so lots of girl time coming up.

I actually preshopped for food for my boys for next weekend. Turned on the extra freezer and am in the process of filling it with frozen pizzas and chicken wings and mini Magnums- they won't eat any vegetables if they have to fix them themselves, so I am just not going to worry about it. As a continuation of trying to get my life and house in order (which seems to be an epidemic among bloggers the last few months) I went to the dump this morning (again, they are starting to greet me by name) and threw away another load of self recorded video tapes. Anything that no one has watched for more than 10 years- no one is ever going to watch again. I also burned a load of paper and applied nail strengthener to my fingernails.

I am going to start letting you know what I am reading- mainly because I love to know what everyone else is reading and really appreciate it when other people say what they are reading and if they liked it or not. I read a book about every day or two ( see where all my time goes) and I am always looking for a good book or an author who I have never read before. Barbara mentioned that she was reading "Extremely Loud &Incredibly Close" a few days ago, so I promptly ordered it from Amazon . It came this morning and I have started on it. I am also reading two Amsterdam guide books- both "Eyewitness" even though I have been to Amsterdam bunches of times. You can never be too informed. Also on my reading list is " The Thirteenth Tale" by Diane Setterfield. I am rereading this. I read it for the first time last week ,but I really enjoyed it and so decided to read it again to see if I liked it as well the second time- I will let you know.
The other books I have read in the last week are- "Perfume" by Patrick Suskind. This has just been made into a movie and I always like to read a book before I see the movie. I am going to reread this and I will let you know what I think then. " The Historian" by Eilzabeth Kostova- This is an,eerie vampire story- not horrer- that was unexpected from the discription on the back of the book. " Delectable Mountains" by Earlene Fowler- This is one of her mystery quilting series. Fun ,but not requiring a brain.

Oops- my husband just called from The Congo- gotta go!

Mini Message

The picture is of a wonderful mailart I received this summer from Lilian. The theme was :"Initials" Unfortunatly I am having a software problem and am unable to find any new pictures. They download from my camera and I can see them in one place but not in another. I can't find them to upload them -so for the moment I will have to make do with slightly older pix. To bad because I have made some serious progress on Annemaries's Rr. Which is a good thing because it has to go into the mail on Friday!
I have also done some yarn stashing- Hundertwasser sock yarn from Opal- I couldnt decide what color so I bought all 8.
I have been a bit out of touch as I have a pinched nerve in my back. . My left arm and sometimes my right have "pins and needles" It doesn't hurt but it makes it uncomfortable to do anything. Type, knit, stitch, cook ,clean - you get the idea. I am having some massages but I think it is going to take a while to get rid of.
Some other news here is that Michael's tour in The Congo was extended- first until December and then within a few days again until February or April. He will get a couple of vacations though.
Am off to work on Annemarie's RR .

A new blow dryer

If you are thinking of buying a new blow dryer, go for one of those ion things. I have very dry , loosely curly hair and it always looks a little frizzy. After using my girlfriend ,Terri's, blow dryer in the states. I realised that mine just wasn't doing for me. Her's does not have the ion thing but did have a cold shot thingy and was just better than mine. So off I went shopping, and as long as I was spending that much money on a blow dryer, decided to try one with ion drying- one use and I am a convert- my hair both looks and feels better.

On the "handarbeits" front I have finished one "Lorna's Laces" sock . It turned out really nice . I love the colorway and the yarn and finished sock have a nice soft cushy feel. The second sock is cast on ,but will have to wait and be worked on in "between" times as I am commited to Annemarie's Neighborhood RR at the moment. It is my priority until it is finished and sent on it's way.

On the personal side I have had a tough week. Aside from all the usual business, Patrick got sick and had to be taken to the Dr. , medicated and pandered too. Plus the dog kept throwing up. One night I got up about 16 times between Patrick and Nala- I am not sure why I kept bothering to go back to bed ! Patrick is still home from school but should be able to go back on Monday and I think I figured what was making the dog sick- just as I was about to break down and take her to the Vet , she got better. The only thing I can figure out is that we had been feeding her the last of a bag of dog food from before we went on vacation and perhaps in the heat it had gone rancid. As soon as we started feeding her from a new bag - she quit throwing up. has this ever happened to anyone else? Or their dog? I also had to take the car to get an inspection - everything was fine except I need new brake pads in the front. They had to order them but I assume they will be here in a couple of days. It feels good to know the car has fresh oil and filters etc...
Wednesday evening I had to go to 2 parent teacher evenings. One in each of the kid' schools. Contrary to my intentions but definitly forseeable , I volunteered/ let my self be voted into some office in both classes. Neither of them horrible or a lot of work and just someone volunteering makes the whole evening be over so much quicker. Wednesday wasn't a complete loss though, while the car was at the inspection I had a pedicure. Makes it all worth it!

A vacation tidbit for thoes who are still interested. We did not manage to do some things that we typicly do on every trip- visit the Jelly Belly Factory or Marine World but we did visit the Bay Model - which I loved and the kids found BORING!!! It is a scale model of th eSan Francisco Bay and all of the water ways atatched to it. With it they can study the effects that almost anything might have on the water and it's surroundings. For instance a new bridge or digging a channel deeper. Very cool.
The picture is of my Dad and the kids at the San Francisco Bay Model in Sausalito CA.

The Birthday Boy

Alexander is the one with the sunburned shoulders ;-) The others are from left to right. Danell - a school friend of mine, who just became a step grandma. Alice,my stepdad's,brothers, ex wife who I hadn't seen since I was 9 years old. One of my Mom's best friend's Sharon and her daughter- the sweet Emily.

Sunday update.

Thank you for the "welcome homes" . It is nice to feel like someone noticesd when one has gone "missing"
The daily grind has set in. My big project for today was to vaccume and clean out the car. I thought I might not be able to do it as it has been raining (in August!) off and on since yesterday afternoon, but there was a break and I trundled my new "dustsucker" outside and cleaned up the car. It feels good to have it done- I have to admitt that:
1. The car is 2 years old and has never been vaccumed before.
2. It has to go in for an overdue inspection on Wednesday.
3. Michael and the kids took the two back seats out to take stuff to the dump - so it was easy to do the back.

Just so that no one gets the mistaken idea that I am a clever and tidy person who ,like my neighbor, cleans her car every weekend! It always impresses me but I just can't get into it.

I have rearranged my teaching schedual to better fit my needs and my least favorite student quit- I was obviously his least favorite tutor- so I am pretty happy with that situation.

We don't know when Michael will be home from the Congo so I am not thrillled with that situation ,but I can't change it so I am doing my best to ignore it.

I am going to try and write a little bit about our vacation in each of my mails for a while as I didn't manage to write much while I was away. Alexander turned 16 on July 3rd and my Mom threw a pool party for him. It was a great day with cake, swimming, presents, and a BBQ. These partys are always fun and interesting as my Mom invites peple that we havent seen in a while. I have a picture of Alexander blowing out his candles for this post but I can't find it so I am going to post this with picture to follow!

I am still alive

Hi all. Yes, I still alive. I am not quite back with the program ,but almost. I have my dog back and Michael was here and is gone again. School has started and I am working again. I am stitching and knitting and not cleaning enough as usual. I hope to get back to reading writing and commenting on blogs soon. I hope everyone had and is having a lovely sunny summer.