Flagel Knitting Files

It was one of the Noro viruses I had and unfortunately Paul got it as well, hitting him on December 18 just as his son arrived.  Paul was a trooper doing what he could while sick entertaining said son.  And then between us we give HIM the bug as well.  Apparently we weren't the only ones sick this holiday season according to the news. Through that we celebrated Xmas 2014 in Portland, Oregon, where Paul's son and partner live and work.  Portland is only a 5.5 to 6 hour drive from Vancouver, so the three of us headed there on Monday, December 22.  The home we stayed in was beautifully decorated (far better than the one here in the Lower Mainland) with lots of glitz and glamour for the season. Indeed a lava lamp was a gift shared this year Sorry to cut the top off, it was beautiful too. We enjoyed good conversation in front of a roaring fire watching, Portlandia, silently in the background. Relaxing after the gift opening frenzy And of course it wouldn't be

I am getting better, thank you.  The cold was a strong bug, but I was stronger and am now left with only the cough.  If I drink plenty of liquids (more than a liter) per day, even the cough is rather inconsequential. During the recuperation I have been knitting in the round.  This means using only the knit stitch going around and around and around and there's been a whole slew of this one simplistic stitch.  Perfect, mindless, calming and good for recuperating.  Having said that it is also boring, but the results are starting to show. First, the ¨O¨ scarf is nearing the end.  Paul and I decided to leave it as full of woolly goodness as the instructions require and if that means he wears it only in really cold climates, so be it.  However, he does not want it as long as the original.  That photo can be seen here. If you look closely at that original it is wrapped around the neck at least once and the ends are long, almost to the model's hips.  This is not what Paul wan

As usual my flights back to Vancouver were fine, except for about 2 minutes of turbulence an hour before arrival.  We were told this was due to the storms that caused all the rain along the West Coast on Thursday.  My few minutes of discomfort were nothing compared to homes sliding down hills or into the ocean. But I was suffering and still am from the cold Miss M shared.  When that girl shares she gives away only the good stuff.  And by good stuff I mean one nasty bug.  Thursday I got home at 3 pm and went to bed for 2 hours and fell asleep again at 8:30 pm.  After 11 hours in bed I got up yesterday only to repeat the same pattern.  It seems to have gone from drippy nose to full on cough.  I have been good though and as of yet, Paul is still healthy.  Both of us are keeping our fingers crossed. One of the puzzling things from my journey into the cold was that I didn't have a single woolen scarf or cowl with me. Say what?  How is it that after knitting dozens of them I didn'

Time left in the Twin Cities is short.  Dr. Seuss expresses it best for me: “How did it get so late so soon?  It's night before it's afternoon.  December is here before it's June.  My goodness how the time has flewn.  How did it get so late so soon?” Perhaps you are feeling this way about the impending holiday season or maybe even your holiday knitting.  It is common for knitters to be frantic this time of year.  I, at least for this year, am rather relaxed.   I determined about a month ago I wouldn't get a Xmas stocking completed for Miss M for Xmas and then just let the guilt go.  My stress took place as I planned this trip and now I am virtually holiday stress free.  It is a first. Before I leave there are a few parting thoughts to share. An all black cat is difficult to photograph I have lots of fans of the chunky yarn cowl made several times this year and last.  (See the second photograph in this post .)  While out and about with a fri

Since my last post there has been a trip to Wisconsin to visit family, an entire afternoon and evening with my grand daughter and just a very small amount of knitting. In Wisconsin I dropped in to see the twin boys my nephew and his wife had in late September.  They were so content and Mom was so calm and collected the stop was pure pleasure.  There I also checked on the knitted food I made a few years back.  It is clear the girls in the family are really using the pieces and to my amazement it all is holding up well, but I can see my hiding loose ends has to improve.  Lunch with one brother, dinner with another and his wife and time with Mom and Dad all made my visit fly by.  (Wondering about the knitted food, check out these links:  here , here , here and here for a few samples of what I've already made.  A set is on the 2015 knitting list for my own grand daughter.) I also took a couple of photos of sweaters Mom made in the past.  She thinks they are products of the 70'

The flights to the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul were flawless.  Somehow I almost always do have great luck with flying (I hope I haven't messed up that good karma now).  When I left Vancouver it was 42 degrees and it was 76 degrees when we landed in Phoenix.  Finally when I got to Minneapolis the temperature was 5 degrees.  (For those of you who need Celsius that is 5.5 to 24.5 to -15.)  Since I was dressed for the cold of Minnesota, in Phoenix I was uncomfortably hot but warm enough during the seven block walk from the light rail to the condo in downtown Minneapolis. Here's the one big reason for being here in this cold weather: Snacking on Friday, feeding herself Below is what my courtyard looks like in late November, and as I sit down to write this there is a light dusting of snow coming down.  It is as if the weatherman wants me to be constantly reminded where I am located. Not as appealing as it was this summer, but in the evening it changes into a