Sisu in the new apartment

This is a pretty picture heavy post so I will apologise in advance if it takes you a while to load. This is our new place in Anchorage, complete with a final picture of a new neighbor who came over while I was washing dishes. Sisu just stared out the window.

Little, homey touches...ignore the clutter.

The hallway leads back to 2 doors on the right and 2 on the left. The one you can see there on the L is a storage closet which is pretty darn big. It could have been a 3rd room if someone was thinking clearly…see the next photo for more of an explaination.

1/2 the bathroom. I am standing about 8' away from counter and there is about 5' to my left! This is a HUGE, freakishly and needlessly so, bathroom

Yes, it is HUGE. You could honestly fit another tub/shower in there with ease. Possibly the argument could be made for handicap accessibility but there are no fittings anywhere and the toilet doesnt have the clearance. Even a new underling who stopped by today made the comment that it was huge. They could have brought the wall shared with the storage room forward about 6′ and created a room, granted, it wouldnt have windows but still. Or they could give me a hot-tub. Just sayin’

This is the room right across from the bathroom and its the perfect size. And it has a big girl bed!

There is a closet without doors off to the left too. Another bedroom, the same size or a bit smaller is off to the right. No need to see a bare mattress and empty dressers!

The perfect place to sit and knit on...

Can someone PLEASE tell me how to rotate these darn pictures in WordPress? They are right-side up in my iPhoto and this is driving me crazy! Either way, I have this beautiful set-up here and I am 1.75″ into the ribbing on my Vail sweater.

...my Vail sweater Swatch. Hooray that I will be knitting on 4's not 1's!! I also get to...

...watch the wildlife go by. Really.

He came by the other evening and I was washing dishes and saw something out of the corner of my eye and I almost dropped my plate. He was RIGHTTHERE next my window eating the tall grass you can see close to the front of the frame. By the time I dried my hands and came around the bar, he was already moving off and this was the best shot that I got of him. Where was Sisu? Looking out the window, not making a sound. She was as baffled as I was. My first moose!

Hopefully soon I will have some more pictures of our new life here in Anchorage. I want to get some shots of Sisu playing at the dog park. She has such fun there and then always sleeps well that night. Hopefully too I can have some pictures of more progress with my Vail sweater as well as something else that I swatched for.

I made a new stalker friend and went over to her house for a knitting group on Wednesday and I had so much FUN! Thank you so much for inviting me and I cant wait for the next one. As much as I miss my knitting group friends back in Pelican, I know that this is going to be a great group of friends too. I cant wait to get to know them all better.

Off the knitting notes…Thanks to not having a car, having a bike is great for my legs and waistline! I can already feel my legs being and getting stronger. It also helps that the dog park is right across the street and Sisu wants to spend every spare moment there. I am challenging myself to 8 miles a day on the bike (has been more every day since I got it…more like 10-12) and 2 miles at the dog park (simple because 1 lap is about 1.25 miles). Add to that the fresh fruit and veggies that I can get at the farm stands and natural market about 3 miles away and I should have to buy some new clothes again in about a month or so.

Darn.

It.

All.

For a little break from the world of the boardwalk, I decided to take a trip into Juneau.  Well, that and I wanted to take Sisu to the vet, get her up to date on her shots and get spayed.  Please, if you have comments about the cruelty about a spay, ie removing organs and the necessity of all animals to be able to reproduce, keep them to yourself.  I would rather not lose her during whelping because of lack of a vet if something went wrong.  Anyway, here I am and here I may be staying for a bit longer.  There are plenty of crazy people who want to get from Juneau to Pelican and because I fly for free, I get bumped for paying customers (Of course!).  Its just fine by me because it gives me more time to enjoy the view from R and C’s living room, Sisu more time to recover before getting on the plane and, naturally, I can enjoy more time knitting…while watching the Food Network!!  I love the Food Network and I could watch all day long because of the mad varitey of shows that they play.  Its not all recipies but also entertaining, history and challenges with the added tang of different presenters personality.  I swear, if I had cable at home, I would be stuck between Discovery and Food all the time.  My only downside to cable is that they dont have PBS and if I could have those and NBC, ABC, FOX and CBS, TV would be perfect.  I dont need all those other channels.  Heck, if I could have PBS only all the time TV life would be perfect.

I’ve been working on my second sock of the Cherry Blossom socks that you can see in a previous post and they really do go up fast.  I like working in DK/sport because of that and the fact that its just so nice to have thick squishy socks.  I know that some people dont like wearing thick socks because their shoes arnt fit for them.  Me?  I wear welly-like boots nearly all the time and they need all the comfort help that I can give them.  The extra cushion is perfect and, to me, cute socks are like cute panties; only certain people see you in them but you feel special and good all day wearing them!

 Speaking of yarn (and when do I not?), I found some Malibrigo Chunky on sale at the LYS here in Juneau and just fell in love.  It is so pretty and as soon as I get home and can take pictures of it, you can see it too.  I bought 12 skeins of handpain in all different colours and plan on making a blanket.  My plan is to make squares with garter stitch edging and then plain stockingette centres.  I want to alternate K, P, K sides “out” on the first row, then P, K, P on the second, repeating for the 3rd and 4th, so that there is no “wrong” side of the blanket, just alternated.  Pretty smart if you ask me   I cant wait to show you all so you can drool too!!!

I love re-reading books. My copy(ies) of “To the Hilt” by Dick Francis have all been well loved (I’m on my 3rd copy) and though my copy of Jurassic Park has yet to be replaced, it is sorely missed and the library would like to have someone ELSE be able to check it out one of these months. I give them a week lag time between checkouts, more than enough time! I have read the Little House series so many times that the covers are falling off my copies at home and I have checked them all out at least twice each from the library here. Cave Bear series by Auel is the same way, as is the Redwall series by Jacques My family cant understand why I do this because “You know what will happen!” but to me, thats part of the appeal. You know what will happen and it is a comforter. I can open these books to any page and know the story up to then and after. Its like watching a movie over and over. I fully admit to knowing Finding Nemo by heart. It comes from working with children and just plain loving that movie.  Why talk about re-reading on a knitting blog?  Because I just finished being laughed at by the volunteer librarian sub for being the only person on the checkout card of a book and having to start a new card.  It sat before I borrowed it the first time, sat all winter and for the months that I was our fishing without ANYONE else checking it out.  Sad but true.  The book?  The Tightwad Gazette.  Its a fantastic collection about saving money and savings ideas without making yourself or your family “poor”.

I have tried for the past 3 days to post this post without luck so I am taking advantage of the quiet time here on Sunday morning when I am the only one awake and finishing my thoughts!  Even Sisu is sleeping again on the couch as she is not a morning dog like her Mum and strangely, she is not a night dog like her Dad either…more of a noon energy dog    Anyway, this week was an excellent mail week for me.  Highly concentrated around one day, I received 3  boxes in one day!  One from my Mum and sister, one from KnitPicks and one from my eye doctor.  I cant tell you all how excited I was.  I knew that the box from my Mum and sister would be good but it was perfect.  The Knitpicks was chock full of everything that I need for Christmas gifts and for 2 swatches and then the eye doctor sent me my first new pair of glasses in about 7 years and I DONT look like a bug!  Yay!  See? 

You can also see the closeup of Sisu in her new sweatshirt, Love Cookies, my swatch yarn and Christmas-yarn-to-be-gifts
Dont peek at the yarn if you expect a Christmas gift from me…you will spoil your own surprise!!

So I am busy at work knitting that mass o’ yarn into tangable Christmas gifts for loved ones and am happy to do so.  I have worn glasses now for more hours in the past 4 days than I have all year long and loving giving my eyes a break from contacts while still being able to see clearly.  In fact, I can see better than with my original contacts because my eyes changed (always for the worse) and my glasses reflect my new prescription.  Though they are not the ones I asked for (purple around edges instead of pink), I love them and am perfectly happy.

Somehow, for some reason, the most searched term that brought people to my blog was the phrase “Frosted Window” Since I dont remember typing those words together or posting about a frosted window, I will now and satisfy all those searchers! The picture above is one that I took I think in 2005 or 06 and was the main window in my dorm flat. While the entire thing was frosted over, this section here was the part where Jack Frost did all his detailed work. Though I have seen other frosted windows since then, I have never seen one so pretty again.

Why has it been over a week since my last post? Well friends, its because of travelling and shopping and seeing and moving and settling. I went to Sitka with J and Sisu on Thursday, got there Friday morning, 1 am and then went about our days gathering my things from storage to move them to Pelican because there were few things that I held dear in that unit and there was no way I was going to pay $80 a month to keep them there when I have plenty of room here at the house. Sadly, because of the mass departures from Sitka because of the closing of Sheldon Jackson College (my almost place of employment), the second-hand shops there are over whelmed with supply and without new college students to demand, they are not accepting donations. Anywhere. So I had to trash a lot of things that were perfectly good but had no place in an already full home or things that I just didnt need or want anymore. I am very good about sorting and trashing when I move…lots of practice you know. Have no fear though, I donated a good deal to my old place of employ and the students there will like having dishes and tools to make their Ramen with!

J and I shopped for groceries and you would think that we were the only people who ever went to SeaMart and bought a winters worth of groceries. Yes, I know there are 4 full huge carts. Yes, there are only two of us but it needs to last until Christmas at the very least. Oh, its just over $1,000 and we get a tax break for spending that much all at once? Fantastic! I also got to visit with P and talking with him really helped with various things on my mind…it always does and thats the best part of having friends.

Part of my visit too was seeing the opthomologist and hearing that I needed only a slight change in my contacts but holy cow, how do you see out of these glasses? Sisu got a hold of my already 4 years out of date glasses her first night on the boat and chewed on them quite thoroughly. They are scratched on one lens really badly and have 4 definitive bite marks on the other, not to mention that she loved the give on the plastic ear pieces and I had to boil and file one to make it even wearable for the plastic poking into my ear and head! I have very poor uncorrected vision, an understatement really, because without glasses or contacts anything that isnt 6″ in from of my eyes is quite out of focus. Because of this, my glasses, which I have had since I was 5, have always had to be rather thick and heavy and reasonably, so have my frames. Over the years they have gotten much thinner and lighter but I was never able to get the thin wire frames that I have always coveted. Until now. Imagine my surprise when I was talking to the office manager and she said that they could fit any lens into any frame, no matter the prescription. I made her check because it seemed too good to be true and lo! and behold…it was! I have some fantastic glasses on their way, just made a new order of contacts online and gosh am I glad to have a steady job to be able to pay for all this.

The past 2 days have been all about moving stuff and settling back in so I wont bore you with details but gosh does it feel good to have a freezer full and a well stocked pantry shelf.

Knitting wise? Though I took socks with me, I really didnt knit on them at all. We really didnt spend too much time just sitting or waiting anywhere though so I dont feel bad about wasting any time. I do feel badly that my sisters socks are still 2″ away from being done but those are getting worked on just as soon as I stop typing!

I’ve frogged my Waterfall socks that were part of the Woolgirl Sock Club first shipment because the pattern was just not doing it for me. I like me some tall socks and dont mind buying more yarn (ha!) but when a pattern is written for a specific skein and then leaves a good bit of leftover (some people have like tennis ball sized leftovers!)…well, lets just say that I dont like waste or leftover when I do my socks.  I even have no problem making a mis-matched toe but have only had to do that once because I am a very good judge (knock on wood).  Either way, I love, love, love the Miss Babs yarn and the colours make me happy and the yarn is so soft and lovely to work with.

I am lucky enough to have spinner friends and there is a couple who lives off the grid just outside of town who raise sheep!  They have for years and have more roving than they know what to do with and I cant tell you how happy it makes me and how lucky that I feel to know them and them wanting to give me/get rid of some roving.  There will be cookies involved in the exchange…maybe even a pie!  I want to spin enough to make felted slippers and because my spinning right now is at the level of thinner singles, most of the time, I would welcome something to felt away my mistakes!  It will take a while but with all the other projects on the needles and in my head, this is a good thing.

As of today, this is my WIP list:

Re-Knitting Rogue (still frogging and re-knitting)

Hat #1 (Noro and Swish in a stranded pattern of my own)

Hat #2 (LS Fat Bunny, just started because I love the hand to this)

Sisters Socks (2″ from end)

Waterfall somethings (I left the cuff…maybe I’ll make true fingerless gloves or maybe socks again)

PNW Shawl (yes, still.  And I still might give it to someone else to finish!  But I still love it and want to work on it)

Work Socks (in the desk at work, only worked on during slow times at work, gen while waiting for a plane)

Walk in the garden socks (own design, last of 3 for Mum)

What I need to start and finish before December 8th?  At least 5 more Stranded hats, 2 Fat Bunny ones and my Rogue.  There is a craft fair here in town that people come out from Juneau for and I would love to sell my work there, in addition to sending some hats to Mum and Jinny so they can sell them to friends/co-workers for me!  I just need to buckle down and give myself a schedule and all will be good.

That, in fact, is my chore for today; to create a schedule for myself that will let me be the domestic goddess that I want to be, not make me a house elf, have guilt-free knitting time and spin to my hearts desire and still get out and up the mountains with J every chance we get.  Wish me Luck and I promise to post more often, much easier now that I will have a routine for day to day!

Emily of tattva1knits is the winner of my blog contest and of 2 skeins of Online Sock yarn and some goodies from Pelican, AK. Congrats Emily! I sent you an email asking for your address so I can get your goodies out to you ASAP. Depending on the weather it might be tomorrow or next spring. Why? Because we havent had planes for 2 days now. Not good at all. It means that my Options Needles, Loopy Ewe order, dog toys and surprise box are STILL out of my reach! Now that sucks. I so want all of them now and I want to know what that surprise is too!

In my knitting world, I finished the first of the Fat Bunny hats and though I LOVE the yarn, I really dont like the pattern too much. So I will be playing with that a bit as soon as my needles and yarn come in and working on my other hats in the meantime.

Yesterday I posted about my awe over the Harmony needles and after careful consideration, I will pare my order down and not get as excited over them as I initially was. Why? Because I generally dont knit with wooden needles and I am not sure that I would really love them. I dont use them because I dont have them so it kind of cancels each other out so I will get the needles that I know will get used. DPN’s. For my socks. Because God knows that despite my reorganising of my time and schedule to housetrain and get into a new job, I have carved out plenty of time to work on socks. If my KP’s package would get here then I could finally work on my Rogue sweater…ARGH! So much to knit, so little time!

That and I havent even started on my Christmas knitting. Maybe everyone will get frozen or canned King Salmon with a pretty lable instead. I dont know anyone who would object really

Thru observation, I have realised that life is so much better when you focus on the good things. For instance, I noticed that Sisu is now 1 week older so now I can tell people that she is 11 not 10 and she is actually almost 12…a whole 3 months!

I noticed that my order from Knitpicks changed from pending to shipped (!!!) so I should have my new needles and yarn for my hats on Saturday or Monday. I cant wait for those Options needles. I really want to cast on for the Rogue but have to wait for the smaller needles (Yes, I have decided to sallyforth with my gauge too big, I will just do the smaller size.)

I noticed that my Loopy Ewe order shipped too and that should be here first (Friday hopefully!) I cant wait to show it off to you all, there is some really, really pretty yarns in there. Of course, I mean, would Sheri carry icky yarns? No way.

I noticed that it was Wednesday yesterday and that means Stitch N Bitch with some of my friends. It was fantastic and we had a great time together and made new friends (new to the neighborhood). I love going because of all these older women there, I have the most experiance and I love being asked for help or my opinion. Its a good thing for me, I like helping.

I noticed that my rain coat doent leak and considering the amount of rain we have had over the past 3 days, that is such a good thing, you cant even imagine. Unless you live in a place where it could and has rained for 3 days (or more) straight, you can only imagine.

I noticed that using Lush products again do two things to me. A) Increased my shower time and B)reminds me of why I was so addicted and bought more of than then yarn. My experiance can be likened to an alcoholic going into a bar and getting that first whiff. With my first scent of the items that my Mum sent me (I had leftovers that I couldnt pack on my trip from Seattle to Sitka), it brought back memories and on using them in the shower…Oh.My.Gosh. I was back on the website as soon as I recovered from the experiance. The downside of Lush is that they think it necessary to charge such extreme shipping that I can never order from their US site whilst living in Alaska. Its thru the roof and I can honestly ship from the UK for less. Now that is obscene. Oh but the goodies that I crave from them…it would almost be worth it. The upside is that there is one in Bellevue, WA and one at a mall near my Mum and I think that if I beg and plead pretty hard, I may convince her to drive down to that fancy-pants mall that we always go to admire the Christmas decorations to go shopping for me It would still cost less, adding in fuel and USPS shipping.

If you have never experianced Lush, let me give you some info. They are animal friendly and use no animal testing at all. Most of their products are vegetarian and many are vegan friendly too. The focus is on Fresh items and most products have an expiration date and could possibly go off if not used up in time. I have never had a problem with them being bad but their customer service is awesome if you have a problem. I once had a bottle of shower gel explode all over my order and they not only replaced the bottle that spilled but most of the items in the order too because the butcher paper they were wrapped in was soaked too. I know of people who have had mold on a soap and it was replaced with a bigger cutting. They make their soap like cheese; a big wheel most of the time, sometimes a shape, rarely a block and holy cow, the scents that they use…All natural with very few chemicals ever.

Solid Shampoo bars are one of my staples and I swear that it was the switch from commercial shampoo to this solid, largely chemical free Lush brand that stopped my head from itching and got rid of my dandruff permanently. I stopped using for a while and switched to Pert (because I am cheap and wanted to conserve my last bar) and they came back almost right away. There is nothing better and I have never had a bar run out before 2 months of use. You lather it in your hands like a bar of soap and then run your hands thru your hair (for short hair) or rub the bar on your head and on your hair (if its long). My hair is past my shoulder a good 4″ and I still have enough if I lather in my hands. A little bit goes a long way. I love Tricomainia is a staple for me because I like the smell that it leaves in my hair…a sunny coconutty warm smell. Reincarnate too because it reminds me of Singapore with its green, henna-y smell. Makes my hair shiny and bright too.

I could go on and on about Lush products. The Bubble bars are so nice, way nicer than the bath bombs I think. Hair Hennas just make your hair shiny and glow and so good smelling (they dye it too!) T for toes saved my life and lots of shoes and Silky Underwear make me happy to powder myself Go check it out!

Though I havent fallen off the edge of the ocean, I have fallen in love. She is black and white and has a cold nose. J came in last night and met her for the first time and already loves her too. She slept with us on the boat and I think that that sleeping together made his bond with her stronger already because she has been responding to him already. She comes to work with me and is so good about staying by my feet by the desk.

I got a job, more for the little extra money for kibble and yarn than anything else. Well, maybe not, maybe more for the need to get away from the house on Saturday and Sundays and noon and mornings and early evenings so I didnt kill a certain 13 year old niece who lives with us. She is a nice girl most of the time but there are attitude issues and lying problems and I certainly regret being such a PITA to my family if I was half as ‘bad’ as she is. Just ugh. Anyway, I loved being home for the hours that she was at school in the morning and after lunch but it was way too short. My job at the Alaska Seaplanes lets me bring Sisu with me, is only 6-7 hours a day and is spaced out so I can come home and go back, walk with Sisu and play out on the tidal flats with her too. As Martha Stewart would say, Its a good thing.

Knitting Front: There was a very, very full packing bag from Lisa Souza and I have wound the skeins of both Fat Bunny and the Superwash Merino into balls with a borrowed ball winder for which I am most greatful. Those skeins are huge 560 yarders and the yarn cakes are really big. I did one swatch for Rogue and will have to wait until my KP’s options come in before I can swatch again. I think that I might go with the instructions for a smaller sweater and have my gauge be a bit off (1 row and 1/2 stitch…I’m getting 5 and 7 versus 4.5 and 6) The smaller sweater is more shape hugging with the correct gauge but if I tried to do the larger one it would be way too large with the gauge being off and I dont think that I would like the fabric resulting in the right gauge because the yarn is more like a thin worsted-not yet sport. We shall see what happens but I want to swatch with the KP’s before deciding. That order is still pending though for some reason. Ive never had an order “pending” for so long, even before a holiday weekend and I even placed my order on Monday! Oh well, it will get here soon…along with my Birthday Box from my Mum, Sisu’s toys, Sisu’s collar and tag, Loopy Ewe order (also still pending because apparently I got in on the Sneak Up and got lucky with some birthday money and Shibui Knits ), and I think something else because I was given a warning that there would be something nice coming my way soon! Can you understand now why I stalk the maillady? Whats funny about this is that now I am the person who delivers the mail to the Post Office . Lifes little quirks

Never would I have believed on my 16th birthday that in 10 years…

…I would be 2 sizes and over 25lbs thinner than I was then and still dropping (Yeah, from a 16/18 and 200 to a 12 and 175…never woulda thunk).

…that I would be conventionally unemployed but happy (I was going to teach and love it and always do it…too bad I didnt really like conventional teaching).

…that my life would revolve around fish and boats (Um, no).

…that I would be living in the Pacific Northwest again (Born out here, raised in the mid-west, thought I wanted to live on the east coast)

…that I would have travelled and gotten as many stamps in my passport as I have now (London, yes, Singapore and China, no)

…that I would be engaged with a brand-new puppy (because I thought that I would be married and have a child or at least be pregnant).

…that I would be living with “parents” (I thought that I would have my own apartment, beautifully decorated of course!)

…that I wouldnt have a car (No roads will kinda negate the need for one)

…that I would live in a place with no roads and be generally cut off from general population (but I like the solitutde and lack of a rat-race)

…that I would be hunting and fishing and gathering the majority of my daily food (the Little House lifestyle always did appeal to me)

…that I would continue to read so voraciously that I would never consider living in a place without a steady book supply and have library cards to 4 different libraries in my wallet and belong to one what doesnt issue a card all at the same time (this one I should have guess though because even then I read all the time).

…that I would be learning to spin my own yarn (I didnt think that it was possible for ‘normal’ people for a long time, just for the people at Greenfield Village or other historic places…good think that I learned otherwise!)

…that I would be knitting at the level that I do (but considering my genetic background, it had to be there)

…that I would consume yarn so voraciously and desire new pretties so strongly (again, considering the family, it makes sense)

…that I would be so happy and content with where I am in life and where I think that I am going that I would consider myself quite fulfilled and satisfied that I really couldnt ask for anything more; that I would be healthy and strong and have a better self image now than I did then when I forced myself to think that my fat was OK; that I would be loved so much by so many people; that I would continue to be “a loner” but come to understand better the value it holds in never really feeling ‘alone’; that I would be engaged to someone who loves being a homebody too but who brings me out of my shell to socialise with his friends who are quickly becoming my friends too…

There is so much in my life that is normal now that I wouldnt have believed on that day. I still remember my party too…I had an ice-cream cake from Dairy Queen with Garfield on it and friends from school and church there and then the girls slept over. It was fantastic, Thanks again Mum and Jinny! I wouldnt have thought that my life would be so different from what I had loosly planned but I was open to anything and its gotten me here…

…10 years and a tonne of ‘life changes’ later, on my 26th Birthday, I am still open to anything and I know that I have the skills and fortitude to handle whatever comes forth. One would say I have ’sisu’…both literally and figurativly Happy Birthday Me!

SISU!Sisu and Tasha Please ignore the scary looking, very excited new fur-babies mommy! I obviously didnt fix my hair before the photo

Her name is Sisu (si- like you are saying “sit” without the ‘t’, su – like sue) It means Determination in Finnish and Intestinal fortitude (guts) in Norwegian. I think that any dog less than 4′ tall that has the breeding to go after a bear, has chased with adult dogs after a mountain lion and who plays in the backyard very close to an orchard with black bears and knows their scent and shown that she was on alert when they were there has both guts and determination. My sister gets the credit for this name, not because it was in her comments post with other names (Thanks Jinny!), but because she gave this name/word to me when she got married back in March 06. It was on a bumpersticker and I still have it. J and I had tossed up naming a boat Sisu but I claimed it for a dog. Better than for a child!

She is just what I wanted and I couldnt be happier with her. She is very friendly and interested in everything but not timid. Already she is great friends with Yeti (1 year) and while Chewie (8+ years) couldnt be bothered with her, Yeti keeps her playing and they rough and tumble all over the place. She likes walkies on the leash but free time to run and sniff on the flats already seems to be the winning choice. Sisu listens well and is mostly crate trained and, the joy for all parents, sleeps thru the night!

CONTEST UPDATE: I dont think that there will be lots of knitting today but thanks to everyone who has already posted a comment with their favourite patterns! Keep ‘em coming and on the 9th I will announce the winner of the contest! Remember, all you need to do is post a comment telling me your favourite pattern, free or not, and you could win 2 skeins of Online Sock yarn plus Pelican goodies!