The Sinister Scribe

I jogged on the dreadmill tonight. Not that I mind doing that. Derned glad to have it really. Don’t know why the boys don’t like it.  I like the control of it. I know its there… whenever I need exercise and it will tell me precisely how fast, how far and how long. It tells calories burned too (I like that!) but I have no idea how accurate that is.

Sorry, got off track… whatwuzitalkingbout? Oh yeah. I jogged tonight. Not really fast. 15 minute mile pace for the most part. Non stop. 33 minutes. 2-point-five miles.

I was listening to Bob’s spin cd too. Man’s got great taste in music. Anyway, 28 minutes into my jog a really great (and fast paced) song came on. So I upped the speed. It hurt. And I liked it.

Yup. Just sick.

Been meaning to post this for a while. Sam wrote this in response to a contest being run in National Geographic Kids. I was pretty impressed. He took this picture for it too.

No, I don’t want to even think about the possibility of what if he won.

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Things that I have discovered in my Backyard
By Sam Martin

I have discovered that there is more wildlife than I would have guessed. It is a shock to see so much wildlife in my gigantic backyard because where I used to live (which was California) didn’t house much wildlife. At the border of our backyard there is a forest that envelopes my neighborhood in a beautiful cloak of trees too numerous in variety to count. I see wildlife all around my house like squirrels and a wide variety of birds from chickadees to red-bellied woodpeckers to the eerie cackle of the pileated woodpecker deep within the woods.

I believe that animal diversity is good. They maintain the food chain by being in existence. For an example, the predators (Coyotes, foxes, hawks, vultures, owls, etc.) dispose of the deceased so the others of its species do not catch the illness of which it has. Another example is that bugs like bees pollinate flowers and sprouts so they can bloom.

There are several things I can do to help the environment in my backyard. I do not litter ANYWHERE .To help the food web of my area, I compost food scraps like apple cores, banana peels, etc. I recycle things like tin cans, glass bottles, and boxes can really benefit for wildlife. Another thing I do to help is to provide the animals in my area with food and shelter. For example I maintain feeders for birds. I do not cut trees down unnecessarily; it’s more than likely that it houses animals. Finally, I provide things like birdbaths and bird houses.

Week three of Wildflower Morning’s blog-a-long Found this at The Baldwin Project:

THE VIOLET
Down in a green and shady bed
A modest violet grew;
Its stalk was bent, it hung its head,
As if to hide from view.

And yet it was a lovely flower,
No colours bright and fair;
It might have graced a rosy bower,
Instead of hiding there.

Yet there it was content to bloom,
In modest tints arrayed;
And there diffused its sweet perfume,
Within the silent shade.

Then let me to the valley go,
This pretty flower to see;
That I may also learn to grow
In sweet humility.

~JANE TAYLOR~

Since Barb has got me thinking of Tuesday’s as sketch/art days, I decided to work on a scroll blank during quiet time today. The color copy is the inspiration for this one. I like this style because it is so much like doodling. Granted my versions are usually not as airy as the original piece. Which is okay, I like that chock-full-a-doodles look but I’d like to work on the light-and-airy look too. Maybe the next one.

But alas, QT is over and I must jump back into the thick of things. But do go over to Barb’s blog and check out this week’s Sketch Tuesday, Sam and I are in it. (we’re the first two listed)

Usually, I don’t do knitting swatches. Life’s too short sez I. But for this yarn I really want to make sure I get the pattern and stitch just right. First was just plain ol stockingette, nice but I wanted some texture. So then I tried a bamboo stitch (new one for me), pretty but maybe too much texture. This picture is my third swatch! And is from The Yarn Harlot’s One-Row Scarf.

The yarn is some of my most recent handspun and I (for once) am happy with how it came out. I drafted it so that there are long stretches of as-solid-as-possible color and then Navajo plied it to get gradual fades from one color to the next.

Now that I’m looking at all three swatches, I am (groan) leaning towards plain old stockingette. I like the longer color bands and that you can see the blends so well. But a stockingette scarf? Meh. In any case, I’ve knitted all I’ve spun up and can’t do much until I spin more.

The end result I’m going for is a neck-tube scarf that folds over in front, like this. But the color bands just weren’t long enough to go around and around.

We’re in week 2 of Wildflower Morning’s blog-a-thon (or would it be more aptly named a blog-a-long…?) Anyway. The assignment was to find a winter wildflower.

Given temperatures in the negatives after factoring for wind chill, I haven’t ventured very far in my search. Monday may bring an opportunity. Temps are forcasted for in the 50s. But just in case I don’t get a chance, here’s the closest I could come in the backyard woods.

I’m not really sure what plant it is from. I know in that general area I’ve found Pinkweed and Ironweed but I can’t find references to either of those having bright pink berries/fruit/seeds. Anyone know?

What do those things have in common? Well, they were all part of my day.. LOL!

Up late searching for adverb practice for Sam and came across Daily Grammar Lessons Archive. It’s FREE baby!

Part of the reason I’m up so late is that I went to Kaldi’s to knit tonight since no one piped up for the SnB at Coffee Zone. I like Kaldi’s so much better! Mebbe I can convince the group to migrate there…?!? Worked on a Norberta for Q (calling it Q-berta) using Red Heart Super Saver yarn. Yes, I hear you cringing. I was too while knitting with it. I sure hope it makes a great toy ‘coz it makes my hands ache. LOL!

The other part of the reason I’m up so late… white chocolate raspberry latte… mmmmmm!

Today Jessie asked me to read from Weather Mania: Discovering What’s Up and What’s Coming Down (got it at the library) and we ended up making a twirly snake for her fan (pictured). When I asked her if she knew why it was spinning, she looked at me and said, “Moooommm, it’s the wind. Duh!”

Wildflower Morning is sponsoring a themed blog-a-thon (I guess that’s the word for it) about wildflowers. This week’s subject is your favorite wildflower post. There are so many I took last year. Like this, and this, and this, and… I love them all! But here’s one that I can, at least, identify. I believe it is Yellow Sweet Clover (Meliotis Officinalis), a member of the pea family.

Thanks Barb for spreading the word.

Or is it catsup?

I’ve been threatening Sam with making his own ketchup for a long time. Finally, we ran out (we had a bit of a stockpile) and I had him do just that with this recipe. I was skeptical that he’d actually like it. The recipe calls for things like cloves, powdered mustard and nutmeg. Things at which he usually wrinkles his nose.

But he good-naturedly tried it and… LOVED IT! We all do. Huzzah!! Not only that, but every time he makes it he experiments with different spices and amounts. I’m gonna make a cook outta him yet. *VEG*

Been really watching the intake and making sure I exercise this past week. Last Wednesday: 170. Today: 166. Woot! I know I can’t keep up that kind of pace but still it is encouraging. This is the mumbledymunth time I’ve lost this same 10 pounds.