Archives for May 2008

And the winner of the AIDS Lifecycle Sock Raffle is……

Carol!

Which is great, because she has ridden the AIDS Lifecycle before! She was one of the first people to really get a chance to tell Lala about what the ride would be like, and I know she was one of the first people to help Lala believe she’ll be able to make it. So she deserves a nice pair of hand-knit socks. (I’m sorry if you wanted to win and didn’t…. everyone deserves nice pairs of hand-knit socks. Next time?)

But you people! Lala’s goal was $3,000, and she’s almost to the $5,000 mark! Seriously! Is that AMAZING or what? Thank you, THANK you for all the knitterly, loving help. I’m so happy for her, and I’m so excited that she’s almost on the road — she’ll be hitting the pedals bright and early Sunday morning. Her 40th birthday is on Monday, and she’ll be doing the longest ride that day, more than a hundred miles from Santa Cruz to King City. I’ll get to see her that night, barring any unforeseen circumstances, and I’ll check her into a hotel for her birthday. A bath will be in order, I think. With epsom salts.

Me, I’m still with Mom. We took her home today, and the lovely Hospice helpers came this afternoon. Dad and we three girls are by her side. Just had a nice chicken dinner, and I’m making broth now. I can hear Christy and Bethany laughing in her room. It’s good to be home. It’s good that she’s home.

(Have I told you how amazing you were in that last round of comments? We can feel the peace here. Thank you. All love to you.)

This is tough, yo. Mom’s not doing well: possible multiple myeloma, pretty far along, or a flare-up of her sarcoidosis, but whatever mysterious ailment it is has her really sick. Heart, lung, kidney, stomach, blood sick. We’re about six tranfusions in so far, and she’s still, two weeks later, in the hospital.

She’s the best little mama anyone ever had, and I really believe that. No one could be better.

We took her cat to her today in the hospital. With the blessing of the vet and the staff and a bill-of-health fax, we surprised her with Bailey. She liked that. But she worried what she’d do with a cat in the hospital until we assured her we’d take Bailey home for her, it was just a visit — just give him a little pat now, Mom. He put his big paw on her little one. She liked that.

So if everyone who comes here thinks a good thought for her, a thought of peace, and tranquility, and more PEACE, we’d sure appreciate it. Just for a second, think a thought for Janette Herron. Thanks. My love to you. Now go give someone a kiss, or a hug, or a phone call. I mean it. Then tell me in comments what you did or are going to do (but mean it, really mean it). All that love being spread around the world in Mom’s name. It has to do her good, right?

Peace. And health. But mostly peace.

Finally, pictures!

The backstory: I grew up with a sweater just like this. My mom had it made for her in a small Norwegian town in the sixties. She wore it ALL the time while I was growing up. I’ve wanted to copy it for years, even took it home with me a couple of times, but always had to give it back when she nagged me to — she was cold, and it was just sitting on my shelf. A couple of months ago, while I was home with her, I took it out and made about a billion notes. I ordered yarn, and then made it without the original in front of me, but it worked. It really worked! This is it! The only difference is that I left one peerie off the edge of the sleeves on accident and the button-band is worked horizontally instead of her crazy-ass vertical one.

I love it. I love it so much I think I might cast on for another one. That might be my comfort knitting (although I did throw some weird acrylic (how did it get into my house?) on the needles last night for a quick cardi — desperate times, desperate measures).

SPECS:
Pattern: My own copy of mom’s 60s Norwegian sweater.
Yarn: Jamieson’s Spindrift, 11 balls Olive, 4 balls Natural White
Needles: US 2
Gauge: 6st/inch
Buttons: 11, pewter, bought at Stitches, can’t remember vendor

Closer look! Hello! (That lipstick? Seriously? Wet’n’Wild, 508A. Can you believe it?)

Lala wanted to say hi.

Miss Idaho kept flying by and messing up the shot.

Mwah! I am off to wear it for fun times with dogs and La right NOW. 

I want comfort knitting. I want US7 needles and something with cashmere. I want enough of it to make a simple sweater, fast. I’ve been working on a prayer shawl for Mom, but I don’t like it. Isn’t that horrible? I don’t like the pattern I chose, and the yarn isn’t working for it. I think one has to love a prayer shawl for it to be effective, and everything I knit incorporates prayer right now, anyway.

Or maybe I want a merino sleeve, all cables, far enough up that I know the pattern by heart and feel each cable coming before I get to it.

I want easy colorwork. I started Venezia yesterday and the chart-reading is kicking my ass. It is not comfortable. I’m not convinced I’ll ever learn the pattern enough to go without it.

I want ice cream. Even with no appetite (this is new, and very, very novel), I want ice cream. The other night for dinner, I had two glasses of wine and ice cream. Don’t worry, I won’t make a habit of it. I’ve lost ten pounds this month without trying.

I want more sleep.

I want to lie on the couch and watch Gray’s Anatomy.

I want a beach. A big, long one. With a bonfire burning at the end of it. The smell of char in my beach-tangled hair.

But mostly I want comfort knitting. Don’t have any. Must change that.

Don’t really know what to write about. Mom’s still in the hospital, and they’re still trying to figure out what’s going on with her. We are sad. Sometimes my chest just hurts with all the sad and worry. You know? Even sadder, I had bronchitis this past weekend, so I couldn’t go to see her this week, couldn’t risk exposing her. I hated being so far away from her. But I rested as well as I know how, and now it’s back to my work week. I’ll get to go see her this weekend for at least three days, so that will be something.

So frustrating. I know they’re doing all they can, but the wheels move so slowly, don’t they? There are so many things in life we can cantrol. And so many we can’t.

Meantime, though, here’s a tiny dog on the floorboard of my car:

There could be one on your floorboard. You should check. They’re easy to miss (Miss IDAHO, that is!).