California Girl in Oz

Success! This is almost my first sweater. When DS was five years old (when dinosaurs ruled the earth), I made a little raglan sweater for him, that turned out wonderfully well. He wore it till it wore out. And now, I've made one for myself, only a few decades later! Loved the pattern, loved the yarn, love the fact that it fits! And here's the first completed Monkey Sock. The second one is underway, but as I need to keep track of the pattern rows, this one will be a knit-at-home sock. I've also started a pair of socks to knit on the go, in a self-striping, almost-Fair Isle yarn, that's turning out to be really beautiful. Pics soon. This cold, clear morning deserved a photo, and can you believe the gorgeous protea on the right? I think this is a South African native plant...it seems to be thriving in the frost. The morning this was taken it was minus 3 degrees C. (about 28 degrees F. for your Northern Hemisphere types), so it's pretty impressive that this

So, the rain has stopped, though we've had more than 13 inches (332 mm) of rain in the last two weeks. It was clear this morning, with this stunning sunrise, though extremely windy and cold...2 degrees C., or 34 F....Brrrrrrr! Ross did a wonderful clear-out of the spillway, so the dam hasn't overflowed again. This morning it was so windy we nearly had whitecaps! The cats are absolutely loving being inside. Last night both the big grey fellows were on the bed with Ross, till I booted them out. They spend their nights in the bathroom, to avoid those incidents of World War III on the bed at 2AM! Wonder if Feliway would help them. I actually think it's too much testosterone, even though both brothers have been fixed, long since. The other five, comprised of three females and two males, get along much better and are able to spend the night peacefully in the laundry. The two fat old ladies rarely leave their little cupboard nests and seem happy as clams in there. And here's

As you can see, our dam is overflowing this morning. We're hoping the downhill side of the dam will hold, otherwise there's going to be a big flood of water cascading down our hill! Here's DH trudging out to attempt to improve the capacity of our spillway...my hero! We couldn't leave the cats in their little chicken coop and yard because it's just not weatherproof at all. You can actually see through the mortar holding the bricks together in places, and the roof is a joke. It was freezing, wet and mucky out there, and I wasn't sleeping for worrying about the cats. So, yesterday we moved them into the laundry in the house: During the day, those who want to venture outside have a staging area on this little porch outside the kitchen. As you can see, it isn't weather-proof either. Fortunately the house has remained dry, may THAT continue to be so! And here are the three fat ladies settled into the cupboard in the laundry room. They rarely venture out, p

Well, I've been among the missing for far too long...again...and no excuses, either. Just feeling a bit down and overloaded, as we now face the prospect of moving out of this house (that we only moved into last October) so we can begin the renovation project. I just can't seem to get myself in gear. No energy, no motivation to get myself going. It's hard to think of all that's necessary to bring this project to fruition: choosing a zillion things like stoves, fridges, bathtubs, shower surrounds, tiles, colors, flooring, etc. ad nauseum, when you don't know which suppliers are good, what brands to choose, where the showrooms are. Sigh. I know it's silly, because it will all be worth it when we're finished, but I just can't seem to get into it this time around. We've built two houses before this project, and loved doing them both. I think once we finally get going I'll get my house mojo going again, but for now I feel a bit paralyzed. And