Time To Trek the Cascade Loop - Newest Pattern Info.

Hi Folks -
  I have just published my latest pattern on Ravelry - Cascade Loop Scarf or Cowl (both patterns come in the download.) This pattern sells for 5.00$ US. Part of the proceeds of the sales will go to St. Jude Children's Hospital.
Here is the link to St Jude's if you are interested in knowing more about their work. http://www.stjude.org/
If you wish to purchase this pattern and you do not have a Ravelry account, please let me know and I can send the pattern via e-mail.
I hope you will enjoy making and wearing these projects as much as I have.

Peace and joy to you all...
The Green Girl.

 Cascade Loop

The Cascade Loop design is part of Oz Dust Designs, Autumn 2010 Northwest Trek design series. The Cascade Loop is a 400 mile scenic drive starting just north of Seattle, WA and leisurely winds through the Cascade Mountains, the Columbia River Valley, and the Wild West Territory of the Methow Valley. My husband and I made this an annual summer trip when we lived in Seattle. Along the drive you will discover the beauty of the forest, the grandeur, and ingenuity of the Grand Coulee Dam, the vineyards, and orchards of the Inland Empire and many other glorious natural formations along the Columbia River Valley. This makes a lovely 4-5 day driving vacation and I highly recommend it to everyone.

Do the Funky Chicken....

Morning everyone - at least it is morning here in my humble abode and the furnace just kicked on (yes we broke down.) There's a mighty chill in the air today - only 36F on the outside thermometer. Brrr..... Quite crisp! The sun also seems to have decided to stay inside and be warm today, so it is a bit overcast and gray at the moment. Lots to do today, but I wanted to share a little fun from yesterday before I get started and "THE LIST." I'm sure you all have one so, good luck to you...


Yesterday was election day for the mid-term political races here in the United States. Lots of last minute political bantering going on and on and on..... Some people woke this morning and are happy, some are sad and in the end, as DH always reminds me, we made governmental changes without guns being fired or blood being spilled. For that we should all be thankful.

Moving on... (I said this was fun so no more politics.) DH and I had an errand to run and decided to treat ourselves to lunch at the Grand Opening of Chick-fil-A. For all of you that live in the southern part of the U.S. you will instantly understand the draw this chicken restaurant has on all humans that have eaten there over the years. DH and I use to eat there when we lived in Pensacola almost three decades ago. It was worth the wait. The new restaurant opened about 3-5 days ago and we thought we would be safe to go without running the chance of long lines. OK- that was just wrong thinking - little did we know that the place had acted like a magnet for every person that had ever eaten at a Chick-fil-A. There weren't lines, there were LINES, two outside tents for the overflow to have a place to sit, and children that were off from school because of the election (when did that start by the way - we never got to miss school because of elections) and traffic wardens  guiding the hundreds of cars to parking spaces and areas off the property. Holy Chicken (notice I didn't say cow, wouldn't want to offend the Chick!!!) For a second I thought we were in line to see, oh I don't know, you pick a celebrity that you would wait in a line for and insert here_________.

However, I must say the employees had it going on - the place was working like my knitting needles when I'm in the zone - flash, flash, flash - done, thank you, out the door...next! Best of all, it was worth the 25+ year wait to eat that chicken. It's not a heavy breading, or a huge bunch of crunchy stuff, it's light and real honest to goodness chicken and then there are the mouth watering, lip smacking waffle fries. Oh heavenly lord and all his saints and angels - those fries are a work of pure genius. Again, like the chicken, light and fluffy on the inside, crisp on the outside. It's really a good thing that we will have to drive a good distance to get there, or I'd gain weight by the potato wagon. In the end we took our pictures to commemorate the day and had a lovely ride home. Truly the nicest part of the day was spending the time with Dave. What can I say, I love him.

So, go forth, do the funky chicken and enjoy eating one of your favorite treats - then get back to the holiday knitting. Time - it be a ticking.....

Peace and joy to you all.....
The Green Girl.

Trick or Treat and Kitchen Shears....

Well, it is officially Halloween here in the Midwestern section of the Untied States. Later this afternoon children from all over the neighborhood will descend upon our front door in their sweet, strange, scary and funny costumes. I love to see the littlest ones - perhaps it is their first official "trick or treat" outing - they look confused and a bit frightened - I gently speak to them, offer them a candy and snicker inwardly to myself as I know that mom and dad will have a child climbing the walls due to the upcoming sugar rush that will possess their little darling in a few short hours. Perhaps that is the "trick" of the evening. 

Regardless of the effect on the local children, I have my sweet treats ready for passing out when their pilgrimage brings them to my door.  I have such fond memories of Halloween when I was a child. There was always a party at school, we would all dress in costume, the room mother's would bring cupcakes and we would all bring candy to pass out to each other and then we would all vote on best costume. Then later after dinner, we would grab our plastic pumpkins or brown paper market bags and out we'd go to greedily beg sweets from every house in the neighborhood and the adjoining neighborhood if we were brave enough to wander into places unfamiliar by day and even more so by night. Then we would shuffle home and start the gorging. Anything homemade was checked over, for even in the good old days there were tales of razor blades in the popcorn balls and drugs in the candied apples. However, all pre-wrapped candy and gum was open season. 

Now, please don't think that we just poured our loot out onto the table and had at it, oh no - this was a synchronized maneuver. Candy bars in a pile to the left, suckers to the right, gum in the middle, etc... The candy we knew we'd never eat had a special pile all its own to be given sweetly to dear old dad the next day (for as we know, dad's will eat just about any sweet, at least mine would.) Then the candy eating frenzy would begin in earnest. First the chocolate, then the fruity bits and on and on until someone would say, "I have a stomach ache." Or as happened to me when I was eight... my best friend and I had a sleep over at my house, we had devoured the chocolate and so forth and had started to stuff the gum into our mouths until our cheeks were ready to split - the old "how much can you fit and chew" scheme. Then for some odd reason we fell asleep (must have been the temporary sugar coma,) but wait it gets better because we woke back up and guess who had the biggest sickly pink wad of gum stuck in her hair - her hair that had over the year grown out of its pixie cut and into the long and lovely Marcia Brady silky swing - yep - you got it - no pulling the wool (haha - knitters should get this reference) over your eyes, it was ME!!!


We tried every home remedy known to man - peanut butter - rubbing alcohol - regular old baby shampoo - ice - you name it we tried it and then horror of horrors my dad walks in with the kitchen shears. Long, sharp silver blades ready to slice away my rich brown locks that I had been growing for a year. It was trick time for me - I went right back to that ugly short pixie cut - there was no saving any of the length that I had waited so long for it to grow. Let's just say there were tears - not minutes mind - days and days of tears and no sympathy from the parental units, not one bit. However, it must be said that my friend was completely supportive throughout the entire ordeal. By the end of that upcoming summer, my hair had grown back quite a bit and as with many things the trauma of the Halloween gum trick was fading from memory.


So, here's to all the fun to be had later this evening. Just give a listen and take this advice - Save the gum treats for tomorrow during the daylight hours. You'll be glad you did.


Tricks and Treats to you all....
The Green Girl

Autumn Surprises.....

Well, what an interesting day in that old Chinese curse kind of way. Woke up this morning to blaring sirens, tornado sirens that is. Didn't anyone tell the folks at the National Weather Center that it's October for goodness sakes. The skies were dark and grey - clouds were very ominous looking and it was pouring rain. TV reports that one tornado was ten miles from us and moving our way, a second tornado was 12 miles from us and moving our way. What? Are we the bulls-eye of the target or something. We remain under a watch for another 2 hours. Under normal circumstances it would make for a quite  time to sit in the hallway (safe zone) and knit away the hours, but not today. Things are afoot today - praying for a positive outcome, but only time will tell.


These are my Spring Rhododendrons. Lovely little purple flowers, reminds me of Seattle, very nice. However, it is October!!! Leaves should be changing colors and dropping off, not blooming and changing and dropping. What in the world!!! Yep, they are in bloom again.

 

See the whole Chinese curse thing in action - it's a sign - what of, I have no idea, but it is definitely a sign. I have decided to make it good sign. Purple, reddish brown, green, nature obviously thinks this is a good combo. So, one of my next projects, I will take nature's example and put these colors together and see what happens. For now, I will have to ponder this whole blooming in Autumn thing. Very Strange indeed!!!

Peace and joy to you all...
The Green Girl.

Scarf -A- Thon....

Yarn: Stella by:TAMM - Pattern: A modified version of the "Glass Bottle Scarf" from BoHoKNits

OK - I'll come right out with it - I am the world's worst daughter!!! Yep - no doubt about it - I'm bad, bad, bad. It is my mother's birthday on Saturday and I completely forgot to make her birthday scarf. I've had the yarn, needles, pattern for at least six months, but until last night at about 10:30pm I had completely forgot to make said gift. Once again I ask, where are my freaking little helper mice, like Cinderella's?

I started this scarf about four times before I figured out what I wanted it to be, because you see I have changed the pattern as I always do - just cannot leave well enough alone. In this case, my mom would never wear the original pattern as it is a little too BoHo for her tastes (I love the original for myself.) However, I love the stitch pattern and with a little change here and there, my mom will like it as well. I so desperately hope!!!

The yarn is really lovely and has a sparkle thread running through it, but you cannot see it in the picture. My mother has a brown coat for the winter, so this should go nicely.   

So, today is a scarf-a-thon no matter where I am or what I'm doing I have to knit, knit, knit so that I can get this blocked tonight in order to give the gift by Saturday.

Peace and joy to you all...
The Green Girl (aka - The Bad Daughter)

Bringing in the Skeins...

This picture says it all - it is time for the harvest. Bringing in the corn, beans, wheat and rye. This picture tells me that it is time for harvest festivals, apple cider, bonfires, little globblins and ghouls, and knitting. This picture also got me to thinking that like the little mice of the fields and other woodland creatures it is time to harvest and stash to prepare for the long dark days of Winter that are heading our way. The lovely sunshine of Autumn has a way of fooling us into false hope that life will remain idyllic and peaceful. Ha! Trust me, the long dark days are coming sooner than we would like to think. You've now been warned!!!
So, last night while waiting for sleep to come into my room and sprinkle it's magic dust upon me, (aka - I had insomnia for the 14th day running - Oh Yeah - Let's celebrate this!) the muse and I got our heads together and decided to do a little harvesting of our own . The doors to he stash closet were flung open - the bins were taken from their shelves and placed on the floor and we went to work picking out lovely warm yarns to be made into gifts. Some camouflage yarn in green, blue and pink for hats and scarves for the nephews and niece -  a lovely soft rosy pink wool/acrylic blend for a scarf for SIL - ball after ball put aside for the many pairs of socks and slippers - and oodles of soft wool for a new family room blanket for those cozy nights in front of the fireplace. That brought the stash down, well by one bin - honestly who are we kidding -that didn't really put a dent in the stash, but in my mind and that of the muse we now have room to harvest new yarn from all the Autumn sales that are going on at the stores. Let's remember that the stash is a layered affair - some of it  is for inspiration only and will never be used. The stuff that was taken out last night was always meant to be a gift so it came from gift assortment. All in all it felt like a productive way to spend my sleepless night. Whether or not that would really pass muster with anyone else - is well - really not my concern - it's my stash - mine all mine!!!! Ha Hahahahahaha!!!!!!

I also want to post a little plea for everyone to try and do a little charity knitting in the next couple months. Lots of folks are in need these days - seems like even more than in years past. Knit a square or two for Warm Up America-- knit a hat or two or three for folks at the local soup kitchen - perhaps a blanket for a new mom in need. Every piece that we knit from our stash for someone in need will come back to us many times over. I believe this, my life has been so enriched by knitting for others and this is the best time of year for helping. The smallest actions can have the largest results.

Peace and joy to you all as you harvest and stash your way through the season....
The Green Girl

Creatvity In Motion...

Well, the sun has left and clouds have arrived, along with a light rain - it must be Monday. The weekend really was so beautiful. As I needed a little trip away from home yesterday - I got to drive through the lovely back roads and see Autumn in all her glory - v. nice way to spend a bit of time. And it seems that while I was away, the muse decided to play....

Note to self: Never leave the house without having a plan for the muse or you'll be sorry.....

Not that the muse was technically bad, but boy did she work her magic when I walked through the door. She decided that I should change my entire game plan for my October Baker's Dozen square and had ripped out all the work I'd already done. Right down to the last stitch! She thought it would a good idea to try my hand at an old skill (Tunisian Crochet - crochet that looks more like knitting) in order to get myself all prepped for the November knit/crochet challenge.  I lost three hours before I realized that the stripes were not going to come out in the right repeated order. Then, Muse whispers those words that most knitters dread, "Take the scissors to the bottom four rows and get rid of them and then recast that part in another color." Scissors, really? Really??? This is like watching your sweet child take the scissors to her long lovely hair and end up looking like Sid Vicious. It's just not a pretty sight and can fill your belly with terror in about 2 seconds flat. Oh I know there are steekers out there, but honestly they must be on meds in order to practice this habit of knitty desecration. The muse just would not let this go, "If you don't do it, you'll have to rip out the whole square again and you won't like it..." Just taunting me to no end. So like any good manipulator she finally got me to pick up the scissors and cut away a base chain that would only take off the bottom section. And I'll be hog tied - it worked and left a smooth set of stitches easily available for re-working. Of course, Muse was dancing around the house singing "Nanny nanny boo boo - I told you..." Honestly! DH walked in, looked at the scene and said, "Creativity in motion?" and then he walked away. He just knows when not to go there. If my Baker's Dozen group only knew the crazy stuff I do get their squares just right - they'd realize what a nut I am, but they are all so worth the crazy!!!

Then the muse says she wants to show me that she can be "green" too and proceeds to show me her newest little recycling effort. We have a lot of old home movies that we have been transferring and editing to dvd, so we have lots of those dvd holders that come with 100 blank dvds on them. We've just been piling them up in the corner figuring we'd recycle the plastic. However, the muse had this idea - Use the spindle as a yarn holder. The yarn comes off evenly and without rolling around on the floor like a crazy exotic, wildly colored tribble from Star Trek. The lid can be used to hold the extra skein and do-dads for the project. Pretty good, Muse, pretty good. We shall give it a whorl, now go away and let me deal with the havoc you've played on my square. Scissors, well I never.. well I guess I have now actually. It wasn't the end of the world, but I still think much wine should be consumed before trying this. If disaster strikes you need to be a bit mellow.

Peace and joy to you all...
The Green Girl.