Thursday, December 27, 2007

This...


Inside






Outside (not my legs BTW)


nearly freakin' killed me!


Good news on the cat enclosure, it will be completed in a week and a half. The cat flap is now in and even if it is slightly uneven, it works and that's the main thing right?

The bad thing was that I had to cut into Asbestos. I had all the safety gear - respirator and filter rated for asbestos, complete disposable overalls to cover head to toe and safety goggles.
It was like being in a sauna suit for 3 hours! Bearing in mind today was over 30 degrees C. It took me over an hour to be able to sit up and walk again, I was stuffed.

I superglued the stanley knife to my thumb (don't ask how I did that), I siliconed half my hand, The PVC glue didn't stick to the plastic, only to me (again, don't ask). I popped a seam -lots of seams actually, in the disposable overalls, Miss A said I had holes in it everywhere and the respirator made me sound like Darth Vader. Of course, now I will worry that I didn't use enough protection and imagine that I inhaled the asbestos and will certainly die from Mesothelioma. Time will tell.

I will be disposing of the pieces of asbestos according to regulations. ie: wrapped in 220 micron? thick black plastic, taped with silver duct tape and delivered to a waste collection point. Phew!

What's the bet the cats won't use it?


Wednesday, December 26, 2007

Christmas was almost cancelled!

I hope everyone had a good Christmas.

We nearly cancelled Xmas this year as 6 days beforehand one of our cats went missing for 4 nights!

Miss A and I were very upset as it was really unusual for her to just disappear like that.
To add to our worry was that it was very stormy - the most rainfall since April this year. Our cats are never going outside again let me tell ya. Those heartbreaking
4 days were it. I am not going to lose another cat again.


I have enlisted the aid of secureakat and we have decided to enclose the whole side of the house where the 2 rainwater tanks are. We don't use this side at all and it is currently gravelled, all i want to do is move the gravel so that a strip down the middle will be grassed. Unfortunately it won't be done until end of Jan early Feb.

Have you seen the price of cat play equipment?! I intend to make a lot of it myself (any excuse to purchase a power tool) A nice man at Bunnings has cut a sheet of wood into bits so that I can glue and screw and make boxes for the cats to sleep in. Miss A will be in charge of the colour/painting part.

After a trip out today, I think the cat problem is sorted temporarily. It is actually a large puppy enclosure but with a few cat toys it's a cat enclosure. I intend to put them in here for a bit at a time so that they are not stuck inside. Maybe feed them the good tinned stuff as a treat so that they look forward to it.....cos they hate it at the moment.


Infernal human un-imprison me!


Puddy (who was on the missing cat list) realised she was locked in straight away and wouldn't stop meowing. Andy and Kitty went in together (they do not get along with Puddy very well) and they were like "ooh there's food, ooh there's water, look over here, a scratching thing, look a kitty tray, hang on ... what's this wall here? How do we get out? I want out!" Took 'em 20 minutes to work it out.

What did Father Christmas bring you? ... I was lucky to get some yarny goodness that was unwrapped many days before Xmas - Dream In Color Smooshy sock yarn in Gothic Rose and Dusky Aurora, some blocking wires in preparation for my forays into lace knitting.
Couldn't resist the Tapestry Craft sale ( ummed and ahhed for many days before committing to buy) I've ordered some Auracania yarn in Ocean and for Miss A Jewels for shawls.
What is it that I have a hankering to knit shawls?? The triangle shawl from the Knitting Olympics of 2006- I think it was - kicked my ass and that was/is a very simple M1 one st in from each end and once in the middle. Reminds me, that needs to be frogged.

Now I am not only on a yarn diet, but a money diet too. Can't wait to get back to work and earn some money or I'm gonna send myself broke!




Wednesday, December 19, 2007

Long time no post!

Oops, when I first started this blog I was very keen and couldn't wait to add stuff. Especially through the breakup as it was a way of letting off steam.

Life has settled down now and I lead a very boring life of work/study/sleep/raise a family etc as I am sure a lot of you do too.

This does not mean to say that I have lost the knitting bug. I still look forward to knitting time, and it still calms me down. I just knit really slowly and progress is not as fast as my kntting time is limited due to studying at uni. And the fact that I decided to take on 3!! units during my Xmas holidays. Goose!

Anyway, I am on holidays now and have settled into an acceptable studying schedule. (study in the morning/knit in the afternoon/ bugger the housework)

So I know that I owe pictures of the Shawl Collar Jacket - that was a joy to knit and I need to knit something else in the Shadow Tweed. I still need a photo of this, but I will get to it I promise.


I have been wanting to try lace knitting for a while now. Ravelry is a great place to seek out patterns and check up on yarn and I have spent several days checking out lace projects to find out how difficult they are.

So I have settled on three patterns:
Forest canopy Shawl
Diamond Fantasy Shawl or
Flower Basket Shawl

I think it will be the one that has the edging knitted as you go, if I remember correctly, that's the Diamond Fantasy. As usual any advise is greatly accepted. What is the best project for a wannabe/beginner lace knitter?

I had my heart set on a variegated blue yarn but do you think I can find something here in Oz? Nup. I was looking at the Araucania, but at around $20 a ball for a first time lace project I don't think so. I did settle on some country prints in the blue/green/purple but it has been discontinued and there is none to be found.
I know that is not laceweight but I reckon if I try lace with a more chunky yarn it will be easier for me and I really wanted a chunky shawl anyway. I can envision myself chucking the mess of fairy floss across the room if I stuffed up with a finer yarn and that would be the end of lace knitting. I should really call it lacier knitting as, you know, it isn't wuite laceweight if that makes sense.

I've even ordered a lace blocking kit from here as well as some Cascade 220 to try.
And I have some Dream in Color on it's way in Gothic Rose and Dusky Aurora from here.

I am currently kniting a vest out of Bendigo Neon which is going well so far, but very slowly and one more pair of Fetchings.

I have received some great news workwise recently: I have been made permanent! with a payrise and upgrade woohoo. (hence the spurge on blocking wires/yarn etc.)
This is amazing in itself, as people in my line of work know that to be offered permanency is a rare thing, as well as at a time when my school is closing to make way for the Super school and the department had said no permanency was to be offered at this time. So that relieves a lot of financial pressure as I know I have a job as long as I want it.

I've rearranged my knitting room - taken out my study desk, moved my stash to the small room next to my knitting room, crammed in a sofa-bed (still have both recliners in there) and added a TV. It is just a great place to sit and knit, with the fantastic natural light during this time of year.

I doubt I will post again before Christmas. But I will endeavor to update fortnightly in the future.
Merry Christmas.