Welcome to the Winter Wonderland!
...but Spring is just around the corner!
Merry Christmas to all!

Something Fishy...
My little fishies are done. They measure about 6" long and 4" across. You can find the pattern here: Fish Afghan . Several of us are knitting them, and they'll be sewn together to make a gift for a special someone. I can hardly wait to see the finished blanket!
Now I get to knit something for me. What shall it be? Some of my ever-expanding Opal stash? The yummy alpaca I bought at the alpaca shop? Decisions...decisions... oh, yeah, I still need to knit some little red sweaters for the art installation (see my crappy self-designed button at right).

South Park Me!
This is fun...I found it at Rose-Kim Knits
I'm not a big South Park fan, but I do like the picture. You can make your own South Park character HERE . I may have to change the picture in my profile.

I'm knitting some little fishies from Red Heart Fiesta for a baby blanket -- very cute. Will post a pic when they're done. Only a few more rows to finish them up.

Hi, Kate!
Just checking the comments and found this one from 'Kate'.
Kate F. said...
Just found your blog! I laughed so hard my kids thought I was crying! Those were some funny sites...I especially liked the ebay add --- someone needs to hire that guy! Any chance you'd explain how you did the rolled cuff on your socks? They are beautiful! I want some too! Kate/Massachusetts
Thanks for the kind words, Kate. I'm glad you stopped by. A rolled cuff is easy: you just knit every stitch for as many rounds as you like. The top will automatically roll. Check out the link in the December 1 post to the Sockie and Bob pattern I used as the inspiration for my socks. There are lots of nice patterns there, and Sockie and Bob is very well written, with several variations to choose from.

There has been knitting, but not a lot. I just have a few more rows to finish thesock-of-the-month pattern I've been working on, and it's turning out very well! I need to knit several fish for a baby blanket this week, and want to knit some tiny red sweaters for the art installation (click on the 'red sweaters' button at right to learn more). Then I think I'll knit for me me ME!
Cheers!

...and an Angel of the Lord came unto her...
Oh, I forgot to tell about this! Rich's Christmas office party was Wednesday evening. His boss took all the office staff and their spouses/SOs to the Blue Gate Restaurant (voted the third-best restroom in the U.S., I've been told. I find that oddly amusing. I mean, I used them, they're nice enough, but...???) in Shipshewana, Indiana, the town where I work. We had a family-style dinner and then saw a play called "Dove Tale," by Ted and Lee, a contemporary re-telling of the Christmas story. It's very cleverly written, with only three actors, a handful of props, and inventive set and costume changes throughout.
The guy who played Joseph and Zechariah and a shepherd who spoke, rather disconcertingly, with an odd Irish accent, reminded me of Jerry, a good friend of ours who moved to Texas last year, although Jerry doesn't have the accent. The actor who played the archangel Gabriel is very tall and wore the most wonderful bright-yellow canvas high-topped tennis shoes.
So Thursday afternoon I was at work in the shop, and I looked up and there stood Gabriel...well, there stood the guy who portrays Gabriel...and I thought, "Crap! I hope he's not here to tell me I'm pregnant!" (He wasn't, in case you're wondering. He was just looking around.)
There was knitting in the play...well, the "shepherds" brandished knitting needles and yarn and pretended to knit.

A Dollar for Christmas (and Tripping Down Memory Lane with Ghosts of Christmases Past)
I get a weekly newsletter called "NeatNew and exLibris," written by Marylaine Block. I think I've mentioned it here before. Today's issue had a link to this essay: The Present Value of One. Ms. Block has written about the many and varied things we can still buy for kids with one lowly dollar bill. It's worth a read.
Now, I can remember a time when my mom would drive me to the grocery store, hand me a dollar, and send me in for three pounds of hamburger. AND I got change back. I don't know what the minimum wage was forty-odd years ago, but I know those dollars came as a result of many hours of hard work on our farm.
On one memorable occasion, probably in the early-to-mid-1960s, Mom spent, like, $45.00 on groceries. As I recall, the cash register tape was about three or four feet long. Bear in mind that we raised our own beef, had our own dairy herd for milk, and canned or froze a lot of our vegetables and fruits, so this was probably for other stuff, like cleaning supplies and sugar and flour and other staples. Dad hit the roof.
"How did you manage to spend that much money on groceries?" A, umm, "discussion" ensued. I seem to recall that the receipt ended up being taped to the wall beside Dad's chair at the kitchen table, and Mom checked off the items as she used them, until Dad got the message and threw it away.

As a child, one of my favorite Christmas songs was this one, from an album (yes a VINYL ALBUM, jeeze I'm old!) called Christmas is for Children.

I've Got Eighteen Cents
I've got eighteen cents to spend for Christmas:
Don't know what to do.
Must buy gifts for Mom and Dad
And Sister and Teacher and Rover, too.

I'll get Daddy two big books of matches
For when he wants to smoke
Mommy'll get a new ashtray
Just like the one I kinda broke!

A penny for the matches, a nickel for the tray
That leaves twelve whole cents!
And Rover gets a soupbone the butcher gives away
And Teacher gets a ruler to take measurements.

That will leave ten cents to spend for Christmas
Sis gets a candy bar.
Then I'll still have five cents left
To buy our tree a silver star

Sorry, I don't know the artist or composer, and am writing the words from memory. Call me and I'll sing a few bars for you. I guess it's not so PC these days to talk about buying smoking-related gifts for one's parents, but you must know that in those days, even hospitals and bank lobbies had ashtrays. Indoors.
The album also had "The Little Christmas Stocking with the Hole in the Toe" and a song about a place called, I think, "Tinkertown" where the "folks are no different from us, but their voices they can't control. When Tinkertown folks all start to sing, it sounds like they're standing in a hole." Of course a Christmas carol fixed that little problem and there was a happy ending.
That record and Fred Waring (of blender fame) and the Pennsylvanians' Twas the Night Before Christmas ("Rudolph, you crazy, mixed-up reindeer!") were the soundtrack of many childhood Christmases. I know you remember, Cherryl!
So here I sit beside a Christmas tree with lights and a few ornaments on it. Guess I should get away from this keyboard and add a few baubles and bangles. Happy childhood memories, and, 'God bless us, every one.'

My Day Off Was A Bust...but there was laughter!
Not much that I had planned got done today, but I did have a couple of incidents of uncontrollable giggling that I, being the generous chickie that I am, will share with you here.

Check out this wonderful Ebay ad: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=8335653541 Don't forget to read the Q & A that follows.

The Yarn Harlot had a bad (but funny) day: http://www.yarnharlot.ca/blog/ If you're reading this on a day that is NOT December 6th (or Sunday, read my previous post if you don't already know what that's about), be sure to look for the December 6th post re: goat hair.

And then there's this: http://www.banterist.com/archivefiles/000300.html which I found through the Ebay ad.

For your own (and your computer's) safety, do not drink while reading these sites. It is my purpose in life to amuse you...sometimes I even do it intentionally!

Yeah, yeah, yeah...
Anyone who knows me well knows that I cannot be trusted with a calendar (or with any sort of hand tool, if you plan on ever finding it again). Yes, Sunday fell on December 4th, not the 6th. I will defend my decision to go ahead with the drawing Monday morning by saying Sunday is Sunday, and since the word 'Sunday' in this case preceeded the phrase 'December 6th,' I stuck with Sunday. I apologize for any confusion or disappointment I caused. :D

That said, Pat's bag is in the mail and on its way to her. Hope you like it, Pat, and thanks again for visiting Sunnybook's Yarns!

This is my day off. I had big plans for it. sigh.

...and we have a winner!
I had four people comment on the blog; two at the site, and two via email. Since I didn't specify that the comments had to be left in the comments spot, and this is an autocracy and not a democracy, I'm not disqualifying any of you. You all have a really, really good chance to win, though!
Soooo, Cherryl, and Fran, and Kathy , and Pat (the librarian in me made me line you up in alphabetical order by first name. sigh), I'm putting names on little slips of paper, folding them neatly...and tossing them into the air.

************************
The one that landed on my lap was Pat Collins from just outside Toledo, Ohio.
Congrats, Pat! As for the rest of you, I'm sorry I couldn't afford to send you all one. Keep checking back. I'll have another drawing one day, and the next time it just might be you!
Pat, email me with your address and I'll mail out your bag tomorrow on my day off work.

Liz and Frankie, finished at last!
I finished these Sunday. They're my adaptation of "Liz and Frankie" in the Sockie and Bob and a Few of Their Friends pattern. It's available from Sunshine Knit Designs and I'd been coveting it, but I got my copy as a gift in my last Bottle Swap -- Thanks again, Tina!. There are several designs in the pattern. This one has a pretty, simple three-stitch twist down the leg.
I made a few changes: 2x2 rib after rolled edge, lengthened leg, skipped some color changes, and Eye of Partridge stitch for the heel flap.
I used Opal Uni-Solid for the cuff and toe, and Cervinia Calzetteria for the leg. The blue is slightly heavier than the Opal and not quite as soft, but very pretty, heathery yarn, and it worked nicely with Opal.
Both socks were knit at one time on 2 size 0 circs, using both ends of the balls of yarn, and I had just a few inches of the blue left over when the socks were finished.

I bought several of these little bags in various fabrics at the shop next to mine this week. They're the perfect sock-knitting project size, have two main compartments big enough for yarn and work-in-progress, plus a place to hold a water bottle, a little pocket on the front for scissors, stitch markers, tape measure, etc., and a small zippered pocket on the back, too. They have a carrying handle on the top and a detachable shoulder strap -- I've detached mine, and now I can't find it, LOL! Very cute bags, and they'll make great gifties. There will be one in my December Bottle Swap package. Would you like one? Leave a comment on my blog between now and, oh, let's say Sunday, December 6th. I'll hold a drawing and someone will get a nifty little bag, my choice of fabric!
Yes, those are Kermit the Frog's toes just visible at the top of the pictures. He lives on my DVD/VHS shelf during the year, but has a place of honor on every Christmas tree. I was a huge fan of the amazingly talented and imaginative Jim Henson. You know, everyone has their impossible fantasy jobs that they know they'll never get, but dream about anyhow? Well, my three fantasy jobs were these: singing backup for James Taylor, going up in the Space Shuttle, and working for Jim Henson. Henson died far too young and I think maybe I'm too old and fat now for NASA, and so I guess that just leaves the singing gig...James? are you out there? I'm willing to travel...
Time to go back to bed and get a few more hours of sleep before I have to get up and go to work. I'm hopeful that I won't have to unload and unbox another truckfull of furniture today...yesterday was enough for this old, fat lady!

Red Sweaters
My friend, Jill sent me a link to this site: RedSweaters . I shall begin knitting tiny red sweaters in honor of our daughter-in-law's brother, who will be going to Iraq soon.

In other news...

I'm off work today. I plan to begin hauling Christmas frippery down from the attic. Hope to get the tree up and at least partially decorated before a very important appointment this afternoon. It might also be a good idea to put away the rest of the camping gear that's still heaped in the dining room from our last campout in early October. No sense rushing into these things.

Big Changes at Sunnybook Yarns!
I was tired of the look of the old blog, too dark, too Victorian, too...not me. So I've changed my template to this brighter, cleaner, roomier one. Hope you like it! I've added a button you can steal if you so desire and have the know-how to do so. I know barely enough to create it and then to get it into the template, so you're on your own!
There has been some knitting. I'm past the gusset decreases on my adapted Liz & Frankie socks, and I'm loving them. Pictures to come.
I am home sick from work today...the Crud of the Week continues. sigh. I am sick and tired of feeling sick and tired. It's cold and snowy and the roads are slick, nevertheless I must haul myself over to the license branch to renew plates and driver's license, since they expire tomorrow on my birthday. Had planned to do it tonight after work, but might as well get it over with and come home to hunker down against the weather.
Thanksgiving tomorrow. I am truly thankful for all that I have, for my family, friends, and home, and for knitting!

This is too funny, and not for the humor-challenged!
Go to this link to read my blog 'translated' into a Cockney dialect: http://rinkworks.com/dialect/dialectp.cgi?dialect=cockney&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.sunnybookyarns.blogspot.com ! It helps to know that some Cockney words are derived from rhyming, so "I 'ave a new Uncle Bob" means "I have a new job" (job rhymes with Bob, you see). Heeheehee!
You can translate into other dialects, too, by going here: http://rinkworks.com/dialect/. Select the dialect you want to try ("Swedish Chef" is funny, too, "Hurty flurty schnipp schnipp!"), and type the URL you want to translate into the box.
So, go have some fun!

Oh, and this site is called "Really Bad Jokes"...http://www.rinkworks.com/jokes/ . Don't say I didn't warn you!

Harlot!

So, back in September I was at my knitting guild meeting at the not-so-local yarn shop. Jack, the owner of the shop was telling us about some author who was coming to the store. He asked us if there was anyone we'd like to see there.

Now, we're not a quiet group, and it was an especially noisy meeting, so I called out, "Can you get the Yarn Harlot?"

Jack replied, "I can get anyone I want!" We all scoffed, and that was the end of it...or so we thought.

Next thing I knew, in just a couple of days there was an email to the group from Jack, announcing that the Yarn Harlot would be at his shop in, like, a week and a half! Jack had pulled some strings, ordered a bajillion copies of the bookbookbook, and got Stepanie Pearl-MacPhee to shoehorn in a stop at his shop in between a couple of other appearances.

As luck would have it, we were scheduled to be out of town the day she was at the shop, so I emailed my sister and begged her to go to the Big Event and get a copy of the bookbookbook autographed for me. She is SUCH a good sister!

Steph and Cherryl, hangin' at the shop...

How Cute!
I bought these adorable little sock purses at the shop next to the one where I work. Some will be gifts, but one or two will be for mememe!
Guess which one I picked first?
Notice: NO purple!
I love the little kissing bees. They're attached by a wound-up string. When you pull them apart, they make big smooching sounds and they say, "I LOVE you! I LOVE you!"
Oops! Time for CBS Sunday Morning -- my favorite show of the week! Later...

Your Birthdate: November 24

You understand people well and are a natural born therapist. A peacemaker, people always seem to get along when you are around. You tend to be a father or mother figure to friends, even to those older than you. You enjoy your role, and you find that you are close to many people. Your strength: Your devotion Your weakness: Reliance on others for happiness Your power color: Lilac Your power symbol: Heart Your power month: June

What Does Your Birth Date Mean?

My 'power color' is lilac??? Bwahhhhaaahaaaahaahaaa.

Haahaahahaaa. Heeheehee...hah.

Apparently this device does not understand my work-related aversion to anything purple! Everything else is pretty accurate, though. I am a pearl beyond price...heeheehee...

Rich's Boring Navy Blue Opals
They're done! I Kitchenered the toes while watching Everwood last night, washed them today and here they are! Boring, huh? They did turn out well, though, and they fit, and he's wearing them right now. I do love this yarn!
Now on to something more interesting...

Since I had the day off today I decided to run some errands. My birthday is fast approaching, as is the expiration date on my driver's license and the plates on my car. I went to the license branch...closed for Veteran's Day. sigh... Happy day, Veterans, and thank you! You deserve this special day.

Nothing to see here...
Working is cutting seriously into my knitting time, so I have nothing to report but I didn't want the blog to feel neglected. I am just a few rows from beginning the toe decreases on Rich's boring navy blue Opal socks. There's a shop that sells all sorts of alpaca stuff just across the hall from the shop where I've been working. They have YARN! They're talking about expanding into a full-service yarn shop, which would be disastrous to my budget. I picked up a little finger puppet shaped like an alpaca for my Bottle Swap partner and a couple of skeins of yarn in a pretty, dark green to try out.
Upstairs from our store is a wonderful chocolate shop, and a puppet theater/shop. I bought two sheep puppets there, one for me and one for the lucky partner. I hope she likes puppets! I suspect there will be chocolate in the bottle, too...and probably a skein or two of alpaca yarn.
Nothing else to tell right now. I shall go knit, and maybe have something to show next time.

I Belong in Gryffindor!

GRYFFINDOR! You scored 20% Slytherin, 16% Ravenclaw, 56% Gryffindor, and 32% Hufflepuff!

You might belong in Gryffindor, Where dwell the brave at heart, Their daring, nerve, and chivalry Set Gryffindors apart. Gryffindors are known for their courage, audacity, and devotion to what is good and honest.

Link: leeannslytherin on The Sorting Hat Test written by Ok Cupid, home of the 32-Type Dating Test

Tiny Socks!
These are for my friend, Peggy's, new granddaughter. Quick, easy, and so sweet! I knit them up the other day while midwifing the cat. I used the Basic Sock pattern from Edie Eckman's book, Knit a Dozen Baby Socks. The yarn is, I think, Carnation by LynnH . It was a gift from a friend (Thanks, Laura), and came without a label. That's a quarter there with them, so you can see how tiny they are!

Oh, mama cat and babies are doing well. The midwifing job consists of sitting in the bathroom, and making sure the cat stays in the basket in the closet until the first baby is born, and then just waiting and watching for the rest to come, as she's too busy after that to wander the house. Mama kitty, also known as Callie, the Escape Artist Slutty Cat, is very good at slipping out JUST before each litter of kittens is fully weaned and running off with our wild tomcat. ONE of these days we're going to get her to the vet before she makes her escape. She had four babies this time, two black and two white. She is a very good mommy, though, and always raises beautiful kittens. Anyone looking for a Christmas gift?

Dash and Hershey

Hershey is one of Callie's babies from a previous litter, and Dash (the white one) is Hershey's great-uncle (and the new babies' as well).

The first day at the new job went well, I think. The store is going to be very nice, and will open soon. The owners have a suite of shops, all connected, at the newly rebuilt Davis Mercantile in Shipshewana, Indiana. My shop is called "Back Home Again." Stop in and say hello when you're in town!