Updates and some new stuff

My first pileated woodpecker, spotted in the back yard recently.

My gosh, it’s November and I only wrote ONE post in October. Time sure does fly lately, just like the falling leaves being tossed on the brisk northerly winds. October is always a busy month, with all the leaf cleanup, bringing in or covering the outside furniture, garden cleanup, and other seasonal chores. But after a couple people wrote wondering why I hadn’t written lately, I’ve been gently nudged to write. So here’s a quick update to some of the things I’ve told you about in recent posts, and some new stuff. And yes, there IS knitting content in this one! (This is a little long, but I’ve put in section headings in case you want to skip over some stuff…you’re welcome!)

Chiropractor.  I finally forced myself to go see a chiropractor in the first week of September, and I’m SO glad I did. She took x-rays of my spine and discovered several areas where I was seriously misaligned. My severe lower back pain was virtually eliminated after the first adjustment. Unbelievable! Over the past couple of years that I’d been in such pain, I’d convinced myself that I had bone cancer or something horrible like that. I guess the pain became worse than the fear finally, and I took action. I can’t believe I let it go so long.

Camera. After discovering that my camera wasn’t broken after all (user error, duh), I postponed shopping for the DSLR I hope to eventually get. Instead I got a new smaller laptop — a Toshiba Portege 705 – to replace my heavy and 5-years-old Dell. So far I really like this one, with only a couple of minor complaints. The fan is louder than any laptop I’ve ever had, and if I let myself pay attention to it I might have to walk away for a few minutes. Yes, it’s that loud. But I’d read that in reviews on CNET before I purchased it, so it’s no surprise. And the other weird thing about this computer is that if I stop typing for a few seconds the cursor jumps up several lines for no reason that I can figure out. So I find myself often in the middle of a previous paragraph when I resume typing after a sip of coffee. Irritating. But I’m adjusting to Windows 7 more easily than I expected, so that’s good.

Ok, those are the updates. Here’s the new stuff:

Waiting for the game to start

I had a busy October. Aside from the seasonal chores I mentioned above, I traveled to Ohio twice last month. First time was to Columbus for a friend’s wedding and a Buckeye football game. I graduated from Ohio State in 1983 and have only been able to attend a handful of games in all the time since then, so this was a very big deal for me. I still get chills walking on the campus and into that stadium and a sea of scarlet and gray fans. I used my phone to take video of the band doing their famous Script Ohio formation and have watched it many times in the past few weeks to re-live the feeling of being there.

Ready and waiting!

The second trip to Ohio was this past weekend, when I went down to see my family. I particularly wanted to see my niece Amber while she’s pregnant with her first child. She posts pictures of her belly on Facebook every month, but I wanted to see her in person in case she has the baby before I go home for Christmas (her due date is January 6). So my sister is going to be a Grandma…that’s weird for me (she’s 2 years younger than me), so I can’t imagine how strange it must feel to her. Now that’s a life milestone, for sure!  It’s funny, she’s already telling people not to call her “meemaw” — it drives her crazy. So of course I have to keep calling her that. (If she hadn’t mentioned it, I never would have even thought of meemaw myself…maybe granny though..LOL.) But I guess the joke’s on me, I’ll always be older than her.

I also got a chance to spend a rare couple of hours with my friend Rebecca as I drove back up through northern Ohio.  It was such fun to watch her sweet daughter Emma take a ballet & tap class, and her son Sam has turned into such a grown-up 7-year-old.  I had a wonderful time reconnecting with them all. (By the way, if you ever get a chance to drive I-77 on the eastern side of Ohio, especially in the autumn, do it. I grew up in southeastern Ohio and am a bit biased, but there’s some really pretty scenery in the foothills of the Appalachians.)

KNITTING NEWS — hah, imagine that, on a blog called “Knitting Matters”….

If you read this blog because of my knitting designs, you’ve probably already noticed that I haven’t published much this year. But while I’m figuring out how to get my designing mojo back I’ve been busy knitting other stuff. (If you’re a Ravelry member, here’s a link to my project page.) And here are pictures for the non-Rav members: (click to enlarge them)

Bentley's first booties

Charity hat #1 for KRR retreat

Improvised cardi for me, using Briar Rose "Charity" yarn

Knitter’s Review Retreat 2010!  Next weekend I’m heading off to Williamstown, Massachusetts, for the Knitter’s Review Retreat hosted by Clara Parkes. I wrote about my first time there last year, and am very much looking forward to reconnecting with the new friends I met there. I’ve bought a travel humidifier to combat the extremely dry air in the hotel, so I won’t have a repeat of the sinus migraine that hit me last time. (I’m testing it right now to make sure it works!) And I’m finally going to knit something with my precious quiviut yarn! You know how you get a yarn that’s so gorgeous you just hate to use it? This is one of those yarns for me. But it’s not making me happy just sitting in my stash, is it? So it’s time to let it out. I can’t wait.

Ok, this is long enough. I’ll write about the Knitter’s Review Retreat after I get home, so check back if you want some armchair travel reading!

P.S.  Thanks for being here.

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