Just like today

Errands, Long Beach, housekeeping, knitting.

Just a typical day off, nothing special. Ho-hum.

I'd like all my days off to be days like today, please!

Random things that are rattling around in my head:

• Rhinebeck is just over three weeks away! Road trip with the girls!
• I have started doing some Christmas knitting and shopping, which is not at all like me.
• Yesterday's Ten on Tuesday was a wake-up call. What is sour milk doing taking up space in my fridge? And more important, why did I tell the world about it?
• There's a little house that I pass on my way to Sag Harbor that I have dreamed about living in since I moved here in 1993. It's tucked under the trees, right on Noyac Road. Why doesn't anyone live there? What is its story? Today I went as far as deciding that a few trees would need to come down so there would be more light inside. Edited to add: This is the house on Google Street View. Isn't it darling?
• Days off should last longer than 24 hours, especially if they are days like today.

Ten on Tuesday: Chilled

Ten Things in My Refrigerator Right Now:

1. Skim milk. I actually like skim milk.
2. Sour skim milk. I might like it, but I forget to drink it before the expiration date, and then I forget to throw it away.
3. Apples. I love this time of year, when the apples are fresh and sometimes even local.
4. Simply Limeade, which has become a staple in my fridge. One of these days I'll switch to something else, but right now it's all limeade all the time. I mix just a little into a glass of seltzer and I'm good.
5. Yogurt. Usually Greek style, but at the moment it's Stonyfield Farms Blueberry.
6. Leftover oven-roasted summer squash. It's tomorrow's dinner, over brown rice.
7. Extra-sharp cheddar cheese. Just a little, because otherwise I'd eat it all up!
8. Salad fixings: lettuce, tomatoes, vinaigrette, etc.
9. Half and half, just for my coffee.
10. Peanut butter. The natural kind that doesn't contain anything but ground peanuts.

All this food talk would make me hungry, but I just ate one of those apples.

Embracing opportunity

Summer's last flower

Time is flying! Summer ended this week, and I realized that I'm ready for a new start, a new season, new, new, new. Summer exhausts me, but Autumn energizes me. Time flies, but it is ripe for change, and (in my head, at least) I'm ready to embrace new things.

One thing I'm doing has until now been out of my comfort zone. At the gentle urging of one of my customers, I went to the monthly meeting of a new group — The Coalition for Women's Cancers at Southampton Hospital. It's a big name for a small but growing group of women who have or had or care about any cancers that affect women, not just breast cancer. I'm looking forward to being a part of this new community.

The CWC is having its first fundraiser this Thursday, and I've spent part of the weekend putting together some knitted things to donate to the raffle. A pair of Hedgerow socks, my Busy Bee and  Baktus scarves, and something I whipped up yesterday:

They're a pair of Maine Morning Mitts in some vintage Sundara Worsted (Briar Rose, picked up at the KR Retreat Stash Lounge a couple of years ago — thanks, Rosi!). Mitts always look so silly when they aren't filled with hands, don't they? Sort of like pantyhose without legs.

My monumental achievement for the weekend, though, was the finishing, washing, and blocking of my Arabian Nights sweater. To accomplish this I had to do two things that those who know my house and housekeeping "skills" will laugh at: wash all the dishes that were marinating in the sink so I could soak the sweater, and clear off my counter so I could arrange it there to dry. It's almost dry (I'm waiting on the sleeves) and then I can wear it and get somebody to take a picture and everything!

Summer's last waves

P. S. Our customer M, who I wrote about in February, died on September 10th. His wife told us that one of the last things he did was go to the beach, just a couple of days before he died. He'd been in the store many times during the summer, still reading, still exploring. I'll always remember our small, quiet conversations which helped me get through my own treatment, and I'm grateful to have shared a little of his journey with him. Rest well, Mike, and thank you.

Ten on Tuesday: Happy Birthday

Shadows one moment...

It's always somebody's birthday! In fact, this evening I'm heading over to Judy's house to help celebrate her mother's 96th birthday. Louise is my Other Mother, and I can't wait to give her a hug and a kiss, and the little box of rugalach I just picked up at the Blue Duck Bakery.

But ten ways to have a happy birthday? I tried, but I just can't improve on Carole's list. After all, it is her birthday today!

...and shadows the next.

Happy Birthday everyone, whenever it is!

Magic

Life is just a bowl of cherry tomatoes.

Two years ago this week I began chemotherapy, and this morning I had my sixth post-treatment checkup with Dr. Pearl. My exam and test results were so encouraging that we were both smiling, happy, laughing. We have done an excellent job.

I’m always anxious in the weeks leading up to each visit. First, about a week before my appointment, I must go in for my blood test. I have routines for this ten-minute non-event — small rituals, really — that I’m sure will make everything all right. They include predicting how low the number will go (this time I decided on 12, and I was spot on). Then I wait. Sometimes Fairy Godmother Nurse Sylvia has a chance to call me with the results before my appointment, sometimes not.

When the day arrives — always a Thursday — there are more routines and rituals. Leave at a certain time, wear my good-luck earrings, listen to happy music in the car, park in my favorite spot at the Cancer Center. If I practice this magic, then all will be well. Moment by moment, I settle in. Breathe deeply, relax while the blood pressure is being taken, get comfortable while I wait for Dr. Pearl.

All I am doing is preparing myself. I must be prepared. No matter how much time passes, no matter how well I feel or how good my blood test is, I must be prepared. I know the percentages for my case. I know what all the chances are, and what the time frame is, too. I’m not watching the calendar, but I'm aware of it. I understand my odds, and in order to thwart them, I must be prepared, and I must practice these small bits of magic.

What Dr. Pearl does is practice his own art. He is, I think, spectacularly capable of creating the treatment plan that will, along with my participation, make me healthy. I see him only every few months, but each time I do, I’m reminded of just how blessed I am to be in his care. His art and my magic are a powerful combination.

When the appointment is over, when he has congratulated me, and I have thanked him, I take my time getting dressed. I need time; I have time. I make my next appointment, and it will be in the future, and the nurse smiles, because I know she knows that I am thinking, “Wow, the future.”

The final ritual in this cycle isn’t magic, but it’s necessary. I go to my car, get in and close the door, and have a little cry. Then I give myself a pat on the back, and go forward.

Or maybe it's a loaf of cherry bread.

Ten on Tuesday: Summer's End

This week's ToT topic is "Ten Things to Do Before the End of Summer." For me, summer just ended. Labor Day weekend was it. Though on this half of the planet summer will last for a couple more weeks, my long, stressful season has passed. My thoughts are happily turning to the next one. Here's my list of some things I'd like to do:

1. Go to the ocean while the water and the sun are still warm. I can do that now that beach permits aren't needed and the crowds are gone. September is the best-kept secret about the East End of Long Island!
2. Clean. There are neglected corners in my apartment — at least four of them!
3. Sort the yarn stash. The Knitter's Review Retreat will be here before I know it, and I want to do a serious assessment of my yarn and fiber so I can take some worthy skeins to the Stash Lounge.
4. Take the big down comforter outside for some air while the days are still long enough, and before I need to get under it in a cold snap.
5. Once and for all, take the bags of unused clothes (that I sorted months ago!) to the donation drop-off.
6. Go out to dinner. At a restaurant. With other people. This is something I never have time to do in the summer, and all the restaurants are too crowded, anyway. I have a date with Judy and the R's this week, as a matter of fact!
7. Take the car to get an oil change and a check-up. It's time.
8. Speaking of check-ups, make an appointment for my annual mammogram. Have you had yours?
9. Relax and enjoy the turning of the season. I love the way fall arrives a little abruptly here. One day it will be warm and muggy, and the next it will be crisp and the leaves will have turned.
10. Open the sock drawer and see if there are any sad pairs that should be retired from the rotation. If there are, think about knitting more! — after all, the real name of the next season is Knitting Season!

Ten on Tuesday: Mood Lifters

This week's Ten on Tuesday is all about lightening your mood...

 1. Buy yourself a nice bouquet of flowers.

2. Get a little love from the cat. Even if she won't let you pick her up and give her a squeeze, she loves you.

3. Have some comfort food. One of my favorites is a nice bowl of Cream of Wheat, because my grandmother used to make it for us.

4. Enjoy a sunset by the water.

5. Watch a favorite movie. I like Meet Me in St. Louis, even when it's not Christmas time.

6. Listen to some good music that makes you smile. For me, that's The Weepies.

7. Rest. Don't climb into bed and never leave, just close your eyes for a little while. When I was sick I learned how to rest, and it's served me well. Our bodies and spirits need it, especially when we're overwhelmed or blue.

8. Look up.

9. Have a knitting-in-your-pajamas day.

10. Celebrate yourself. Don't ever forget to do that. ♥

Ten on Tuesday: College

Ten Things I'd Like to Have Known When I Started College

I went off to Moore College of Art in Philadelphia in September of 1972. Thirty-eight years ago. When I think of it that way, it feels like a long, long time ago! Looking back, I'd like to have known...

1. ... that homesickness was temporary. I wasn't sure I could make it to Thanksgiving.
2. ... that I could have brought more stuff with me. I had two cardboard boxes, a suitcase, and my quilt.
3. ... that I wasn't going to be the only person who felt like a fish out of water.
4. ... that studying art all the time was not the same as being one of the good students in Mr. Motovich's art class in high school.
5. ... that I could have switched majors and it wouldn't have been a crisis. To this day, I think a Textile degree would suit me better than an Art Ed degree.
6. ... that I was strong, stronger than I gave myself credit for.
7. ... that I really was creative and artistic, and that I could believe in that.
8. ... that I was attending a women's art school in a time near the beginning of the women's movement, and that I would be taught by many amazing women artists. I would have asked a lot more questions, and paid a lot closer attention.
9. ... that you can never have too many art supplies. Just as in knitting, the right tools are everything. And I would have liked to own a set of Dr. Ph Martin's Concentrated Watercolors.
10. ... that I would be assigned a roommate who would become my best friend, and I mean best friend forever. I would have been more myself, sooner (who knows, that could have backfired on me). By now, thirty-eight years later, Judy and I know each other well enough, I think.

Fiddling

It's in the air. I can feel it — summer is winding down. In just a few weeks it will be over. Are you sad? I'm not, much.

Because my job is so stressful during the summer, I always try to make a survival plan, but I rarely manage to carry it out. This year, though, I think it's working. I've been putting my feet up, getting plenty of sleep, and eating healthy summery foods. I've tried to keep my work hours on the normal side, and I take frequent breaks (even if I do still grab lunch while I'm working at my desk).

And, boy, have I been knitting! I don't knit every day; sometimes I come home, vegetate, and go to sleep just after dark. Sometimes I knit the evening away, and before I know it, it's past time to go to sleep. I have interesting projects going on, and lots of ideas, so knitting has kept me entertained all season.

After a few false starts and lots of grumbling, I settled on a pattern for my KBOW Woolalong project for this month. The August fiber is Shetland, so I ordered some DK Organic Shetland from Garthenor. I was a little impulsive about my choice, so I had a hard time finding a project that suited the yarn — I'll admit it, I was really cranky for a while on Thursday — but in the end I decided on Nora Gaughan's Here and There Scarf from Scarf Style (please excuse the cloudy day photo). So far, so good!

I also started a Stepping Stones Scarf in the same yarn I used for Herbivore. The leftover yarn was just sitting there, so what else was I supposed to do? I've been wanting to make another one of these for a long time, too. It will make a nice birthday/Christmas present for a friend.

I upgraded my blog's design this morning (you know, just because I thought it would be fun to spend a few hours tweaking CSS colors and bits of HTML code). I like it, but of course I'll find more to fiddle with. 

To make myself step away from the computer when I'd finished (but was still waffling on a few unimportant issues), I went into the kitchen and fiddled with a blueberry drop biscuit recipe. They turned out well. Baking with blueberries seems to be another part of my summer survival plan!

Ten on Tuesday: Bacon?

Ten Reasons to Love Bacon

1. It's salty.
2. It's crispy (at least that's the way I like it).
3. Bacon goes with eggs, and I love eggs.
4. It smells soooo good when it's cooking.
5. BLT's aren't possible without it.
6. Neither is Cobb salad.
7. They serve it at the Eveready Diner in Hyde Park, on the way to Rhinebeck.
8. If I'm going to eat meat, I may as well enjoy some bacon.
9. Since I don't eat bacon very often, when I do, it's a special occasion.
10. Where would this Ten on Tuesday be without bacon?

Ten on Tuesday: Road trip!

This week's Ten on Tuesday topic is "Ten Things to Take on Vacation." Vacation? I've almost forgotten what one is! No, not really, but my time off never happens at a "traditional" time of year, like Summer or Thanksgiving or Christmas. That's when I'm busiest at the bookstore. So I take my days when I can grab a few, usually in the Fall or early Spring. 

I love a good road trip. What do I pack?

1. Knitting. An easy-peasy project, plus one that requires a little more attention. And maybe one more, just in case.
2. My iPod and iPhone. There are always a few audiobooks on mine, along with my music.
3. A book to read, not just listen to. And a book of crossword puzzles to help me fall asleep at night.
4. The basics, like my toothbrush and toothpaste, and enough underwear.
5. My own pillow, if possible. If I'm staying in a hotel, the pillows are not always comfy enough.
6. My laptop. I like being connected. I just do.
7. My camera, along with the cord that connects it to the laptop, and a spare battery. I don't want to miss anything.
8. The GPS that Judy gave me for Christmas after I got lost in The Bronx on the way home from the KR Retreat last year. It's as much for her peace as it is for my peace of mind, since a panicked call to her office that ends up with a coworker giving me turn-by-turn directions to find my way out of there should happen only once.
9. Warm socks and gloves and an extra sweater. If I'm driving, what's an extra tote bag or two? I want to be warm enough. And if I get lost in The Bronx again, I won't freeze.
10. A little bag of trail mix, apples, crackers, and stuff like that. And water. See rationale behind #9, above. You just never know. 

All grown up

This is a picture of five of my many nieces, taken in July 1991. I found it stashed in a drawer, and it's been making me smile. 

They're all grown up now, in their twenties, and out in the wide world. One even has a family of her own. They're remarkable women, and when I look at this picture I see it in their little-girl faces. I'm proud to be their auntie!

I blocked Herbivore this morning — it's been perfect blocking weather, comfortable and breezy — and it dried in no time.

I think I'll wear this scarf a lot this winter.

The rest of my Sunday off was spent enjoying the weather, knitting on a little baby hat for a friend, and relaxing. The August People have arrived, and it's nothing but full-on intensity at the bookstore from now until Labor Day. I can handle it as long as I have lots of simple knitting at my fingertips. I'm thinking about a Ruffled Baktus...

... Or Hawthorne, from the new issue of Twist, but it might be a bit complicated for this time of year. Plus, I was sure I had the yarn called for in my stash, but I must have been dreaming. Oh well.

Wishing you a week of perfect weather and knitting that never frustrates!

Bouquet

I found more than fresh vegetables at the farm stand today.

My Wednesday was beautiful, fragrant, and restorative. I hope yours was, too!

Ten on Tuesday: TV-less

Ten Things to Do Instead of Watching TV:

1. Knit something complicated.
2. Knit something not too complicated and listen to an audiobook.
3. Bake a cake. A blueberry coffee cake, perhaps?
4. Chat on the phone.
5. Daydream. How about going back in time to Italy?
6. Listen to the night creatures through an open window.
7. Write an email — or even a letter — to a friend.
8. Take a nap, especially if it's Sunday afternoon.
9. Read a book, for goodness' sake.
10. Write a blog post, like this one.

Fruits of Summer

These are the prettiest apricots I've seen this year. And they're just delicious -- sweet, a little tart, and perfect in every way. They come from Red Jacket Orchards in Geneva, NY; not exactly local, but in the same state, at least.

So, I didn't begin another Baktus. Not this week, at least. This is Stephen West's Herbivore. The yarn is String Theory Selku, which is a 50/50 Merino and Silk blend. The color is called Earthquake. I have a couple of skeins that I got at last year's Knitters Review Retreat, and I don't think this scarf will take more than one. I know, I'll save the other one for a Baktus!

Waving

It's been a typical summer day. Blue sky, waves of heat, cicadas singing. It rained a little bit, and there was a thunderstorm somewhere, but most of the day has been just like this. I was on my way to the farm stand on the back road to get some blueberries, and the fields of corn were so beautiful that I had to stop. Though there wasn't any place to take a photo from a higher vantage point, I can tell you that I think there's something perfectly wonderful about a corn field, spreading out across acres, tassels waving in the breeze.

In another part of my world, today has not been typical. Barry Fraser, a blog friend and a wonderful writer, died yesterday. Reya has written a beautiful post (thank you, Sister), and others have as well, so I'll let their words speak for me. I'm deeply grateful to have encountered Barry when I was on my own cancer journey, and I'm also grateful to be one of the fortunate ones. I'll be here to wave him into the next world. I  just hope that my life and the way I live it honors him in some small way.

Ten on Tuesday: Camping

Ten Things to Bring on a Camping Trip:

That's easy. 1-10.:A hotel room. 

The last time I went camping was when I was eleven, and my mother (the Girl Scout leader) made me camp out in our back yard with the troop for the weekend, I think so she could convince me of the joys of being a Girl Scout. It didn't work. I don't remember much (it was 44 years ago), but I do remember wanting to go inside to read the Sunday comics, and she said No. The whole thing was weird, anyway, because we were so completely not an outdoorsy/camping kind of family in the first place. I'll bet my mom felt like an alien, out there in the wilds of Bethesda, thirty yards from the house.

Make cake

It was a long week. Summers are like this. If I think I'm busy enough, it gets busier. Just when I think I have a handle on it, I need to hang on tighter. The store is busier every day (as it should be) and we had a pretty big event yesterday (the bookstore hosted Jill Zarin, who is a local resident and author, as well as one of the Real Housewives of New York City), so I really needed to relax today.

So what did I do? Made cake! It's a delicious and simple Blueberry Coffee Cake from my ancient (1951) copy of the Woman's Home Companion Cook Book. My mother and grandmother did a lot of their cooking using this book — most of our family birthday cakes began with the Take It Easy Two-Egg Cake —and the splotchy pages show it. A little bit of baking makes me happy, and that's a good way to end the week.

While I was relaxing, I finished my latest Baktus. It's so soft and silky, and it drapes and folds just right.

I can't wait to block it, wrap it up, and send it on its way! And since it's off the needles, can I start another one? All this garter stitch seems to be keeping my brain from melting.

Ironing

I just ironed all my clean shirts. I hadn't planned to. I was knitting my Baktus (almost finished!) when the idea possessed me: "Iron your shirts."

Now, for a few days at least, I won't have to iron one when I'm in a hurry to get ready in the morning.

I feel like I should check the mirror to make sure I'm still me.

Ten on Tuesday: Where I Live

Ten things I like about where I live:


 1. My little home.

2. The beach at the ocean.

3. The beach on the bay.

4. Small-town-ness.

5. Friends nearby.

6. Local berries.

7. Big sky.

8. Beautiful light.

9. Inspiration.

10. All the seasons.