A year in review - or lousy excuses for not keeping up with my blog

I made the scarves in blue, maroon,
purple, rose and red.

I noticed I did only two entries all that year. Not too good if I want to continue writing a blog, but it has been  a good year for my family and me

So I'll try to cover some of the highlights just so you know. And I hope to do better next year. In that light, I will write New Year's Resolutions tomorrow. Stay tuned.

Knitting
In some ways, I have lost some of my knitting mojo. I still knit but not at the frantic pace I did in preview years, especially the year after I retired. . I think it is because I have had so little success with selling that I just didn't build up my inventory. Even on Etsy, I have sold only a couple of items. I do better with patterns though. I think I will dedicate the next year to knitting for charity instead.  I did make a hat for my son and husband for Christmas and I completed lace scarves for my Divas (my women's group). I will include the pattern for the scarves in the next few days on this blog.

A before and after
of my personal journal

Writing

Even if I haven't kept up on my blog, I do keep up on my personal written journal. In addition to the writing, I print out pictures on full-sheet sticker paper and stick them into my journal. I did notice of the past year that I fill the pages more and more with stickers and less writing. I don't know what that means, but I hope I can do better there too.

Travelling
In June, Ken and I took a month-long trip, but not just any trip -- probably the trip of a lifetime. We went to Europe. It was not only sight-seeing, we visited family. We went to Swedish, Denmark, and Germany, with a short stay in Iceland and England. We also spent a week in Washington D.C. to attend Sophie's wedding. She is the daughter of my best friend Sheila. I will write most about these adventures in other blog entries.

Health
In October I had the bane of the female gender -- I had a hysterectomy, and it was one of the best things I even did. I feel so much better and I can't even describe why. But since then, I have lost 20 pounds and will continue to the future.

My son Lorne
My oldest son now lives in Los Angeles and works in Hollywood as a film editor. Late year, he got a job with BuzzFeed and he loves  it. I guess this means he won't be coming home to live anytime soon. I hate it when you raise independent children and they leave you. Alas.
If you want to see some of his work, you can go to YouTube and enter BuzzFeed Unsolved and Worth It.

My Son Dane

Dane modeling the hat I made for him.
The scarf came with the coat.

With an undergrad degree in classic guitar, Dane decided to pursue his other talent in Mathematics. (Funny, just not too many job opening for classical guitarist on Craiglist.) So he went back to school and will complete his masters in accounting this spring. He got an intern job at an accounting firm during tax season, and at the end of the flurry of returns, they offered him a full time job. So he is fully employed with a good salary even before he finishes his degree. CSU (Colorado State University) told him that they had a 100% employment rate out of this program. Guess they were not kidding.

And finally my kitties

We have had Omi and Wookie for a little over a year now, and I am passionately in love with this two little creatures. Omi is the perfect cat and Wookie is the magic cat. Omi (the black kitty) is loving and affectionate. She has to be next to me almost constantly. If I sit down, she is on my lap and will even crawl up to shoulder to get closer. Wookie is a tortie, but she is entirely and completely my cat. She doesn't like anyone else to touch her and hides even from Ken. But if I am sick, she won't leave my side, purring constantly as if her purrs will cure me. And I have always gotten better, so maybe she has something there.

Aggressive Kittying

I know. I have been horrible about keeping up on my blog. I have been enjoying retirement just too much. More than that, I have been enjoying my kitties! We have had Omi and Wookie for about seven months now and I am just nuts over these two. They both engage
in what Ken calls "Aggressive Kittying" which means they love people and have to be with us at all times, usually cuddling, rubbing, purring and such. They are just wonderful!

Omi was originally named Omen, but after a few days, she just renamed herself to Omi. It does fit better so she knew what she was doing. I call her the nearly perfect cat. She is loving and sweet and has to be within 6 feet of me at all times. As I sit in my lounger, she usually makes herself at home by laying across my chest, making knitting a little difficult. I read somewhere that cats like sitting on your chest to hear your heart beat. I think she just loves the constant human contact.

Wookie is my magic cat. She is a bit skittish, but she is a rubbing lover of a cat. She has to rub your arm, your leg, your neck, but if she gets close to your face, she will lick you within an inch of your life! Like I said, aggressive kittying. I would stop her, but I could use the exfoliation.

Anyway, I am loving being the cat owner of two loving and adorable kitties. Omi is laying on my chest right now which makes it very hard to type. So I am going back to cuddling my ladies.

Debating the Temperature Blanket

I started a temperature blanket this month. I have a heap of stash so I should be able to make it without having to buy anything. I used worsted yarns and a size 9 circular needle. (I like using circular needles even if the item is not in the round. That way, I never lose the other needle in the sofa) I cast on 250 stitches and worked the first two colors in garter stitch. I am going to use knitting pattern that is more fun after the border, but still debating it. I am considering a daisy stitch.

I noticed on Facebook that there is some criticism on why this is popular and why on earth would people would want to do it. A row a day? Work on it for a year? 

These questions crossed my mind too, but there is a part of my personality that loves lists and charts, and this blanket would fit in well. I record my knitting projects daily in my journal along with the color of the day, phase of the moon, and the writing prompt of the day. 

I will let you know how it goes. 

Here are my thoughts on it:

1. I recorded the high and low temperature in my daily calendar even though I hadn't started. I go to a website and record several days at a time. 

http://www.wunderground.com/

2. The mid-range temperatures are in green, so I changed the colors to match my purples and blues. -- because I like blues and purples best and I have more of these colors in my stash.

3. I don't feel obligated to do a row a day. I usually have several projects going at one time from complicated patterns to simple. If I want to do some mindless knitting, I can pick up the blanket and do a few rows. I have yet to change up to today.

4. I like seeing the results everyone is getting on their blankets, so I am glad to be on a Temperature Blanket Facebook page.

5. Not everyone is marking the temperatures from January 1. Some are using the first year of a child/grandchild or a year from another special date.

6. There are really no rules, so enjoy it.

7. It is rather addictive like so many other types of knitting.

8. If you don't see the reason to make temperature blanket, just don't do one. If you get tired of it, frog it.

9. You don't have to participate in making a blanket to enjoy the progress of others.