Finished bookmark

I finished the *mumble mumble* without Jacey's help...and got pictures of it tonight. I have a hard time getting the proper color on photographs, and this one is close but not exact:

Greyhound-to-be

I've ordered "cornmeal" colored yarn to make a crocheted greyhound. And I've already bought 40 ounces of fiberfill for the stuffing. I'll take a picture of Sam with the "ingredients" so you can see just how much 40 ounces of fiberfill really is. (20 ounces is about the size of one bed pillow.)

The bear is done...and has clothes!

I was off from work today. I've crocheted since 6 am (it's 10:30 pm now) and finally finished the bear for KT's niece, Creeklyn. KT works tomorrow, as do I, and I'll give her the bear then. I'll hope to hear some good news about Creeklyn's condition.

Barnaby Bear Notes

Crochet notes

Note: After wrestling with a skinny C hook yesterday, I broke down and bought one of the fat (and expensive) Clover hooks. It's lovely, and much easier to work with. But the book with the bear pattern translated a 3.0mm hook as a C hook. This Clover hook is labeled "2.5 mm." I'll keep using this hook for this bear, but I may get a D hook for future bears; slightly bigger stitches will be slightly looser and easier to work. But it'd be nice if everyone would get on the same page regarding hook sizes. (Clover hooks here. Ooh! I may have to get this whole set; cheaper to get the set than to buy them one at a time for $6 each.)

Have I started crocheting aliens from Roswell?



Well, not exactly. The "eye slits" actually are where the ears will go on the teddy bear I'm crocheting. But this is the tiny opening through which the pattern maker expected me to attach the stuffed muzzle, embroider the eyes, and attach the ears:



Ridiculous! Anyway, I unraveled all the decreasing rows, did all the facial features, then reworked the decreasing rows, stuffed the head, and closed it off.



(That's a troll from The Return of the King on the television in the background.)



Now I just have to finish the bear's body {grin}; it's only taken me two days to get through the head! Meanwhile, I've picked up some yarn to make another bear. Sam's napping on it in this picture:




The bear is for coworker KT's infant niece, Creeklyn, who landed in ICU Sunday with breathing difficulties. KT only works at our store on weekends, and we haven't heard anything from her this week. If I don't hear from her Wednesday, I'll give her a call on Thursday and see if there's any news. Your continued vibes are very welcome.

Both dogs get into the act

Some crochet notes (documented here so I'll have notes for the next time I work one of these):
I'm working on a teddy bear from this source: Adorable Crochet for Babies and Toddlers by Lesley Stanfield. The book is British crochet instructions, so their "dc" is our "sc." I'm having to concentrate to keep from misreading an instruction. (It's also a bound book, rather than a stitched/stapled one, so it doesn't stay open at the page with the instructions...a real nuisance.)

And the bear is tiny. The head is not much larger than the size of my fist; finished, the bear will be about 10 inches. This is okay, except that they don't give very logical instructions. You finish crocheting the head, leaving a hole the diameter of a nickel; then you're supposed to stuff and attach the muzzle, embroider the nose and eyes, and attach the ears--all of which require you to be able to get inside the head through that nickel-sized hole. No thank you. Tomorrow I'll unravel the whole decreasing-size section of the head (about six rows), do the muzzle, embroidery, and attach the ears (at that point, the opening into the head will be about four inches wide); then I'll rework the decreasing-size part back down to the nickel-sized hole. And, knowing what I now know about the book's instructions, I'll make sure I don't run into the same tiny-opening problems on other parts of the bear's anatomy.

I'm working this in Caron Perfect Match 4-ply knitting worsted, colors "lace" and "winter white," using a C hook (the book calls for DK yarn and a 3.00mm hook). This weight of yarn crocheted with such a tiny hook makes a very tight, firm piece--fine for a stuffed animal, but it would be hell for clothing or a blanket.

While I was working on this crocheting today, Sam and Jacey got into the crochet thread. Jacey took a ball of thread over to her dog bed; Sam came and stole it away from her...but a bit of the thread was stuck to her foot, so the thread unrolled as Sam ran with it. Maybe I need to get these two their own craft supplies.

A Jacey update

We're still having housebreaking issues, and I try not to let her out of my sight. She's good in the crate when I'm not home, though, so that's a relief.

I'm starting to wean her off the clomipramine. (She came off the Valium in June.) She'll be on a 75% dosage for a week, then 50% for two weeks, then 25% until this batch of pills is gone. It took two weeks for the drug to get to "working strength" in her system, so I'm assuming it'll take about as long before I see any signs of stress as she comes off the pills. But I'd be happy to have her off the pills (for a variety of reasons, including that I could find something else to do with that $60/month), so I'm hoping this goes well. The surest--and easiest to spot--sign of stress with her will be if she starts irritating her feet by pawing at the crate when I'm not home. That was the first sign I noticed--before I even knew she was stressing out.

Craft-y stuff

I'm going to try to post more often, but that means more boring day-to-day stuff, since things are usually not hopping here at Chez Fido. (Hey, I like having an uneventful life.)

Deliveries have kept UPS and the USPS busy today. The letter carrier brought two packages: one from Overstock-dot-com carried the extended version of Return of the King (which I'm watching now) and a book, When Crickets Cry. The other package contained two balls of crochet thread (peach and ecru) that had been on backorder from Herrschners.

And UPS delivered a new order from Herrschners that included a lamp.

Now I'm, um, thrifty. I won't spend $50 on a lamp just because it looks good, if I can find a less expensive lamp that will do. But the new lamp is for craft work, and it's wonderful. It simulates daylight, which is best for sorting thread colors for embroidery, and it's been lovely, just this afternoon, to be working on the mumble-mumble and be able to see it so clearly. And the lamp doesn't burn hot and can be angled to light my work without glaring on my laptop screen or the television (where Return of the King is still running...and running...and running {grin}). Crafters (and readers): Take a look at this. The part that's extended horizontally is the part with the bulb, and it can be at the angle shown in the picture or extended completely straight up. The part that's extended also is the "on" switch; the bulb lights up when the arm is extended, goes off when the arm is collapsed. (The other items from Herrschners: water color pencils for my mother for Christmas, perforated (cream) paper and perforated (clear) plastic for counted cross-stitch. And there's another Herrschners order on its way to me. And I bought some yarn last week at Joann's. I need to shut down that credit card for a while.)

Oh, and I've ordered two new greyhounds. Before you faint--or question my sanity--they're statues. At 63 pounds, they'll weigh about what Sam does--and the size appears to match Sam, too. I'm thinking I might put them on either side of my fireplace. (Yeah, I know: I'm "thrifty"--and I just bought two greyhound statues. But I've wanted a pair of these things for years, this is a terrific sale price [they're often $75 each], and it's a fundraiser for SEGA. But I'm going to have to haul them home when they arrive...)

Jacey takes up crochet...

Literally.

I took a break from the afghan for Shari's baby to work on a mumble-mumble I'm making as a present for mumble-mumble. I paused long enough to go on-line to Papa John's to order a pizza ("perfect pan" with pepperoni, bacon, mushrooms, onions, and green peppers). The delivery guy called to say he was lost (not unusual in a condo complex where every street name begins with "Cedar," but there are street signs). I put down the crocheting and went out to flag the guy down if he cruised past my street. While I was outside, Jacey picked up my crocheting and went to the door to wait for me. She did not, however, pick up the ball of crochet thread. I found about 10 yards of lavender crochet thread stretched across the living room and into the foyer. And this wasn't new thread unraveled from the ball. My crocheted piece was about 10 yards' worth smaller than when I left it.

Baby Afghans

I got a lot of crocheting done today. The MartiP grandbaby afghan will be heading to Charleston as soon as I get some pictures. And I've started an afghan for my cousin Shari's baby. The afghan for Shari's baby will be the fifth baby afghan I've made this year.

Jacey learns squeaky toys

Jacey is learning the joys of squeaky toys.



My employer has "Associate Shopping Days" twice a year, when employees can double their normal 15% discount. I shopped yesterday ($156US after the discount): four 40-pound bags of dog food (all I could fit in my car), two 4-pound boxes of treats, two new leashes, and a couple of toys. Since she's been here, Jacey hasn't had any toys that squeak because Sam's killed any squeakers. (Oreo's old gorilla at the bottom of the picture was de-squeaked years ago.) So Jacey got a toy--a reindeer--and I've put it in her ex-pen so Sam can't get it. (He's tried lifting the ex-pen to steal the reindeer out from under it. He's very determined.) The ex-pen is where Jacey retreats to eat, enjoy a Kong, or play with toys without interference from Sam. The throws draped over the sides of the pen are there to give her some privacy and prevent her from being intimidated by the sight of Sam looming over her and drooling.

Of course, Sam got a new toy, too.



It's a miniature fishing creel (I only know that because there's a fish appliqued on the top), super-stuffed and with a squeaker. Five minutes after I took this picture, he'd ripped off a corner so he could get some of the stuffing out. That makes it easier to squeeze to make it squeak. So far, he hasn't killed the squeaker; he's far more interested in getting his teeth on Jacey's toy (the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence--or ex-pen).

Sam's collar--and new leash--have reflective paint designed to help make the dog more visible outside at night. I don't know how well they'll reflect headlights, but they do a bang-up job with camera flashes. Jacey's got a matching set in red.

Yarns from Georgia (lots of photos)

A fellow greyhound owner has had her first baby, a girl named Lauren Avery S. This afghan, in a pattern called "Spiderweb," is for her.


Closeup


MartiP's son is going to be a father. And this afghan is in the works--about 35 percent done.


Closeup


I posted a while back about the bedspread/afghan I intend to make, based on a log cabin quilt pattern tile. This is the bed the afghan is intended for.



(Picture Sam sleeping right where he is, with me clinging to the side of the bed, and Jacey hanging on at the foot. Oh, and I Photoshop'd out my bad housekeeping. {*grin*})

The yarn for the afghan/bedspread has arrived:


Sam's pissed that he lost his spot on the bed to a bunch of yarn (that I won't let him play with).


There are more pictures in my Yarns set on Flickr. Also, details about yarns and patterns are in the captions on Flickr.

Happy birthday!

The new girl's three years old today.

And she spent too much of the day in a crate--mom had a long work day.

But she did very well in the crate. Yay!

Happy birthday, Jacey.

Someone had a bad day...

I had a nice one, though. Bathed the dogs (thus, their outrage in this picture), took some pictures of views outside my condo (same set as the dog pictures), worked on a baby afghan, watched some movies on TCM (watching Tarzan right now, The Old Maid and Elizabeth and Essex later tonight).

Flickr has redone their site today. The new version isn't bad, but I haven't used Flickr all that much and I was just getting used to the old format.

The letter carrier arrived today.

Instead of parking at the end of the block and walking, as he usually does (my street's too narrow and there's no place to turn around), he drove down to my place to drop off a parcel.

The Contents: Details
Originally uploaded by KF-in-Georgia.

Part of the contents of the Hug Basket.

More photos here.

Thank you very much Alrescate, Deenbat, Texaswren, Bookczuk, Shadie, and Buffra. I'm not entirely certain who sent what. (Alrescate sent BookCrossed books, and Buffra sent a book with a card. And I can make a good guess about the t-shirt.)

The castles in the book from Buffra are beautiful. The photos in Prince And Other Dogs; 1850-1940 have made me teary. (Hey, there's a greyhound on page 25! And there's one grim-faced lady on page 90...pictured with her ancient, stiff-legged, white-faced old dog; the two are sitting about a foot apart, each ignoring the other in favor of the camera, but you know that each of them is completely aware of the other. It's lovely.) The Friends Forever book is charming and a lovely reminder of the friends I've made on-line.

Thank you so much for your kind thoughts. I value your friendship so much.

There but for the grace of god...

From today's Atlanta Journal-Constitution, on-line version:

Alleged serial yarn thief leaves owners tangled

By JEFFRY SCOTT
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Published on: 05/12/06

There are a million yarns in the big city.

This one comes with knitting needles.

A 68-year-old woman, described as a serial yarn thief, is facing a felony shoplifting charge in Fulton County Superior Court after what yarn store owners claim has been a long skein of stealing from knitting stores from Cherokee County to Dunwoody to Buckhead.

Audrey Yandel pulled the wool over shopkeepers' eyes for so long because she looked exactly like the average yarn store customer: "A sweet old lady — harmless," said Julie Elledge, the owner of the Dunwoody Yarn Shop who collared Yandel and turned her into police May 1.

She said she recognized Yandel from a photo another shop owner had circulated on the Internet the week before. "I saw her sticking knitting needles in her Louis Vuitton bag," said Elledge.

"They were all double point needles. I guess she planned to knit socks."

Monica Champion, the owner of Why Knot Knit in Buckhead, circulated the photograph of Yandel after Champion said she caught her on April 23 shoplifting $150 worth of ebony wood needles and skeins of hand-dyed wool from her store.

"It's outrageous," said Champion. "I think she has about $2,000 worth of knitting goods from my store alone. She told me 'I have them stacked up to the wall at home.' But police haven't gotten a warrant to search the place."

Yandel's court date has not been scheduled, according to Erik Friedly, spokesman for the Fulton County district attorney's office, who said she was charged with a felony because there's more than one incident.

Yandel could not be reached for comment Thursday.

Elledge said she's not certain what a search of Yandel's home will prove because the woman — whom she described as "looking like my entire client base" — was not just a shoplifter, she was also a devoted customer to her store, and others.

"How will we know what she stole, and what she bought?" asked Elledge.

The birthday boy

Sam is 6 today.

We've had a lazy, wet day. I was off work, Jacey has been a nightmare, but Sam got to meet a workman at my neighbor's and got petted and fussed over.

We spent a long time out in the rain waiting for Jacey to pee (which she stubbornly refused to do), so a soggy Sam is now curled up on the sofa next to me.

Happy birthday, sweet boy!

I'll strangle her...

...if she doesn't choke herself first.

I went upstairs to do some chores. Jacey, in full-on don't-lose-sight-of-mom mode, followed. She settled on the dog bed to watch me put sheets on my bed. Then I got out the vacuum cleaner.

Not being totally crazy, I got her off the dog bed and up onto my bed. (I needed to move the dog bed, anyway.) But when I started the vacuum, Jacey decided the bed wasn't safe enough, and she fled from upstairs. I didn't give that a second thought. (My bad.) Almost immediately, Sam came upstairs and bravely stood there and watched me vacuum. I wondered if he'd come upstairs because he was worried when Jacey came down.

No. He was establishing an alibi.

When I came down, I saw evidence that Sam had been in the kitchen. He's dumb enough to take his stolen treasures to his favorite bed--the bed Jacey never goes near. I collected his loot--all items from the trash can--and went in to tidy up the kitchen, right the trash can, get up bits of cellophane. And I went through the kitchen into the breakfast room.

There was Jacey, frantically trying to finish the entire loaf of bread before I caught her. I snatched bits of the last six slices right out of her mouth. I yelled--and the dog couldn't get her legs under her fast enough to flee...

So she went into the crate, and I went out into Saturday afternoon grocery store traffic to buy a replacement loaf. (I just bought the damned thing last night, and it was supposed to be used for sandwiches for lunch starting tomorrow.)

I'm back home. The glutton is sleeping on the dog bed--and I have to watch her for stomach trouble, now. (She could bloat.) I'm sure she's going to be uncomfortable. And she won't be getting much dinner. (I have to give her something because she has more pills to take tonight.)

Let's just say the Valium and Clomicalm aren't leaving her too sedated...

I have lost my ever-lovin' mind...

I had a coupon from Herrschners for free shipping--coupon due to expire on 31 May.

So I took a favorite afghan pattern of mine--one that's based on a log-cabin quilt pattern--and figured out how much yarn it would take to make a bedspread. The sucker'll weigh 20+ pounds--nearly 9 kilos!--but at least you crochet individual tiles, then assemble them, so you're not holding all that weight for most of the work. I ordered the yarn today. Some of the yarn is out of stock until early June, but that's fine. I've still got a baby afghan to finish.

The yarn is Red Heart knitting worsted--nothing fancy. (For this much yarn, who could afford fancy?) The colors are Soft Navy, Country Blues, Dark Sage, Light Sage, Medium Brown, Warm Brown, and Buff, and they're pretty accurately represented in this sample of an individual tile:

Quilt Tile An individual tile in the bedspread-to-be

There are a few variations in how you can assemble the tiles; you get different patterns depending on how you rotate the pieces. I think this is the one I'm going for:

Quilt-like Bedspread-to-be The spread will be finished with border stripes outside the patterned squares.

I've guessed at the number of squares I'll need to make (168!); the actual count will depend on the size they turn out when I make them. I'm usually off on the gauge, but I'm not sure I want to increase the hook size too much to hit the correct gauge, because I'm not sure I want stitches that large. (The pattern calls for a J hook--6.5mm.) I estimated 8-inch squares, where the pattern calls for 9.5-inch squares. I'm likely to have a lot of yarn left over, but these are good, standard colors, and I can make something else with them--maybe a mini-version of the afghan.

Day 7

Day 7: NO BATH! She peed a very little bit in the crate, and it was soaked up by the shredded puppy pad. And she was certainly in a hurry to get outside to pee.

Two Valium, one Clomicalm at breakfast; one Valium, one Clomicalm at dinner. A short day: 10am-7:30pm (9.5 hours).

She's still not using the water bottle, despite another dollop of peanut butter on the nozzle today.

Another day...

I finally wrote the letter to the vet insurance company about Oreo. The bills totalled nearly $2300 (not counting the cremation); wonder how much they'll pay.

I was off today, so Jacey stayed uncrated. The poor girl gets baths, now, almost every night. She's starting to dread having Mom come home--maybe that will help reduce the separation anxiety? But I work 11am-7pm tomorrow; I won't get home until nearly 8pm, and that's too late for a bath. (And I work the same shift Friday.) So she'll be able to avoid baths for two nights. I just wonder if I can make her smell clean enough that I'll let her in my bed. (Hint: Rub and wipe her down with a damp paper towel. Then repeat with a damp paper towel that has Listerine on it. The Listerine helps kill any remaining smell, does not leave a strong smell of its own, and isn't toxic if she licks at it. And it's much cheaper than those waterless shampoos...)

Jacey and Sam are enjoying their Kongs, but I've modified the "recipe." If I just mix the cottage cheese and kibble, then freeze it, the mix sometimes packs too tightly in the Kong, making for a pair of frustrated dogs. So now I'm filling the Kong two-thirds of the way with kibble, then just topping it off with cottage cheese, then freezing. (Another hint: Stand the Kong in a coffee cup while you fill it and put cup and all in the freezer...keeps the goodies from falling out of the Kong.) So the dogs get to lick the frozen cottage cheese (which is on the end of the Kong with the bigger hole); then they roll the Kong around to spill the kibble out. Sam's Kong got away from him while we were outside this afternoon (we were outside keeping the birds out of the carport). He was tethered and couldn't chase the Kong, and he was really worried until I went and fetched it back for him. (Sam's the bright spot in the situation with Jacey: he's nice to her--though he sometimes sleeps half on her, and he's behaving himself very well at home just now. Although that praise is probably the kiss of death: he's liable to eat the front door tomorrow.)

Oh, re Jacey: The vet had warned that Valium is a mood altering drug...and that I might not get the mood I wanted. She hasn't turned snappish, or anything like that. But I think I've lost the smiles. She used to come over to me, wagging her tail and smiling--not all the time, but sometimes, in the evenings. That hasn't happened in a while: maybe the Valium, maybe just that she's not feeling like smiling at the woman who keeps subjecting her to baths all the time.