Books

I don't talk much about books here on the blog, though I'm an avid reader.

Spent the day running errands, returning muzzles that didn't fit the rock eater (A.k.a Scrat the brat). So I had him with me today so I could make sure I got the right size.

Of course he hates them and does his best to master the 'Oh woe is me' look when he has it on, but I'm tired of forking over hundreds of dollars to get them out of his system. And it doesn't hurt him. And trust me, ruptured bowels would be worse and we have been lucky so far and haven't had to cut him open to remove any and I don't want to have to. They rarely survive that. Not taking any chances.

I picked up two new books today by Dean Koontz: The Darkest Night of the Year (I'm already up to page 200 and something) and Sole Survivor.

Now I'm going to go into the house and color my hair, read some more and probably work on the necklace I'm making for a friend for Christmas. Or knit. Or finish the laundry (oh that's funny). Or just veg.

Circumvention in the New Year

I am on a very well deserved yarn diet.

Hubby and I are trying to clear our debt from Operation Shop last year. Therefore I have to find a way to use the yarn I have without bringing more yarn into my house that was purchased by me (isn't that a nice disclaimer?).

This is not an easy feat. I love yarn and I love to shop and I spend a majority of my Saturday mornings knitting in a very nice LYS.

So I depend on the mercy of my friends that will swap with me, or gift me with yarn ( MUST post the stuff a friend brought me from Argentina ), or the occasional "we have something extra go to the yarn shop darling" from Hubby (that's how I ended up with some Sockotta sock yarn and one skein of Noro Silk Garden last September- woo hoo).

Other times a nice random moment which prompts a random comment on a blog I happen to enjoy means a long distance swap is in the works.

This is what I'm sending to her:

That is two skeins of Karen at Royale Hare's Hand Painted Superwash Merino Wool in the Mt Tam Moss colorway. One skein is 140 yards of variegated loveliness. A bonus is it's local to me so her shops don't carry it.

I am making my first pair of socks out of the Sonoma Coast Ice Plant color way in the same yarn and having a blast with it - when not suffering from second sock syndrome.

So what am I getting in return? A yarn that I have never seen in person (as in I haven't touched any of it) and don't think I can even get here, in a WAY LOUD colorway that I just absolutely love and the current owner doesn't.

I'm thinking win-win and I'll post a pic and more info when it arrives.

On other knitting news...

I have just added the following tomes to my knitting library.

• Debbie Stoller's Son of S&B and S&B Nation (those mice are too cute)
• EZ Knitting Without Tears (turns out that two color hat I'm making is right)
• The Ultimate Knitter's Book of Yarn
• Joelle Hoverson's Last Minute Knitted Gifts - LOVE the little drawstring bag on the cover.
  
• The Best of Interweave Knits - those wrist warmers are mine

In keeping with the yarn diet is actually a general craft diet, but the books were purchased through an incentive program at work and didn't cost me a dime.