Crochet Time

The house is so quiet it is almost weird. I have a small pile of Ducky's things, beds and such that need to be laundered. I also took the window ledges out and the curtains are hanging normally for the first time in ages. 

It got very warm this week, record temperatures. All of the snow in my yard melted. The parking lot piles are still there. The dirty piles of snow. Although we may be getting a little bit of snow over the next few days. 

I'm not planning on quitting blogging. Still do the books and blankets. Not sure how or if I will change the header on the blog. Nothing that has to be changed for the time being. I have to think on this a while.  

I have been falling behind on showing my finished crochet items. Time to catch up

Red Heart Yarn, Jeweltone this was the first lap robe finished this year. The items you will see this week and next have all been completed this year. 

Red Heart Yarn, Soft Navy Speckle, I like these speckle yarns. A nice background color with a flecks of accent colors to give some interest other than a solid color. I prefer to NOT work with plain solid colors. 

 I came across this picture on the internet recently. This is for all of you who think I have a large stash of yarn. The far wall is full, then there are back to back sets in the middle, plus another set of six columns on the far right. This was a whole room in a house somewhere. 

I don't have that bad of a yarn problem and this has to be several thousand dollars worth of yarn. I probably spend maybe $500 a year on yarn which I can deduct on my taxes since I donate the finished products. 

I've been getting more yarn babies lately. It isn't that bad but I am happy when I get pull skeins that actually pull properly.  

I am sure I make mistakes in my work, things I don't actually see or they are so minor they don't matter.                                                              

 Happy Weekend. 

Wonderful Wordy Wednesday

Well it has been an interesting week so far. Missing Ducky and just letting things go for a bit. Trying to keep myself busy with anything other than picking up Ducky's stuff. 

One of my friends, and sometime cat sitter Kellie sent me some flowers. I can actually leave them out and enjoy them. Both Derby and Ducky liked to chew on flowers. Ducky would even chew on silk flowers! 

I'm doing OK, adjusting to a quiet house, no feline invading my lap or getting on things and sneezing snot all over the place! My laptop screen has stayed clean all day!

Monday my trivia gang had agreed to meet early and do dinner for my birthday. So that helped distract me for a few hours. Plus we ended up getting second place. Two of my three gang have been pet parents, so they know the heart ache of losing a fur kid.   

I was getting too big of a gap between when I actually checked out and read the books, to when you saw the post. Usually about three months. So this week I am putting all the books I checked out at one time in the same post. Versus making this two if not three posts.  

Fonduing Fathers - White House chef Ollie is off to visit her mom in Chicago. Mom shares info with Ollie on her Dad's death and the fact that documents show he was dishonorably discharged from the Army. Ollie knows that doesn't make sense as her Dad in buried in Arlington Cemetery. She starts to investigate and crazy things start to happen. 

Before the Coffee Gets Cold - is set in a small, out of the way cafe in Toyko. Legend is that you can go back in time here. Lots of rules and if you go back it won't change the present. "If you could go back, who would you want to me?" Cute little book. 

The Secret War of Julia Child is historical fiction of one Julia McWilliams. During World War 2 she takes a job at the OSS, handling top secret information. Her skills are needed outside of Washington DC and she ends up in Asia, Ceylon, India and China. The work is one thing but she meets fellow OSS officer Paul Child whom she later marries. 

Propaganda Girls: The Secret War of the Women in the OSS - The OSS was the precursor to the CIA. During World War 2 it provided dis-information to aid the Allies during the War. Book follows four women, before, during and after the war. How they were suitable for the jobs they were to do, how they did them and how they fared during their later lives. 

 

The English Chemist is a historical fiction based on the life of Rosalind Franklin who was a major researcher who with X-ray diffraction studies on DNA which revealed the double helix structure. Franklin die of ovarian cancer before any Nobel prizes were awarded for this discovery. 

Miss Dior the true story of Catherine Dior, the younger sister of designer Christian Dior. She was active in the French resistance in World War II and was held prisoner for a time. The book isn't just about her life, but of the French resistance, the aftermath of the war and fashion couture. 

Becoming Madam Secretary, historical fiction based upon the life of Frances Perkins who was Franklin Roosevelt's Secretary of Labor during his presidency. Book covers more of her life prior to being secretary, her life, marriage and child. Her husband suffered from mental illness and was in a facility for much of his life.  

Wicked, the movie watched this just before the next film came out which I haven't seen yet. 

 Happy Reading 

Ducky is Gone

 Just a quick post to let all know that Ducky went to The Bridge this morning. When I got up he was having a seizure. Called vet and they said to come in as soon as I could get there. 

My regular vet saw him rather than the on call vet. She thought he might have had a stroke. Rather than move him from the back treatment area to an exam room for me to be present they let me to come back into the treatment area. They gave me some alone time with him, then it was time. He quietly slipped away.  

 I will do a more lengthy tribute in the near future. Farewell Sweet Boy. 

 

Sweet Sixteen Gotcha Day

Skipping the crochet this week to celebrate my sweet little mancat Ducky. Today is his 16th Gotchaversary! WhooHoo. 

This first pic is one of my favorites of Ducky, he was sitting on the ledge in the front window. My most handsome lad.  

This is one of the pictures that I took when I first got him home from the shelter. It was a Saturday, picked him up as soon as the shelter hours allowed. Got the paperwork done and we came on home. 

He had a brief meeting with Derby, then into his own suite with me in my bedroom. His first spot was under the bed, but he came out when I laid down on the floor to just talk with him.  

The year was 2010, during the Olympics and we bonded over cuddling on the bed and watching TV. 
 

My lap cat!. He loves to sit on my lap, unlike Derby who was not a lap cat at all. 

While I celebrate this day unfortunately things are happening that make me feel that Ducky won't be here for an extended period of time. He doesn't play anymore, he just sleeps, eats, pees and poops. He has to visit the vet soon for his rabies vaccination and we will discuss the way forward. 

Love you little guy.  

Happy Weekend 

Wonderful Wordy Wednesday

Several days with above average temperatures. We don't have much snow on the ground and it is melting. Sun is now rising before 7 AM and setting after 5 PM, so it makes it nicer to have more daylight hours. Plus the sun is now shining into the back windows on the house again. Plus daylight saving time starts in less than a month. 

Football season is over. I had the game on, watched the game and commercials and it was ok, nothing really bowled me over. I didn't really watch the half time show, was getting my dinner together and then cleaning up the kitchen. I learned the story of the half time show afterwards from various sources.  

Watching some of the Olympics, at least those parts that interest me. With the time difference between where I am an Italy many things happen in the very early morning. I record them and then watch them when I get up. I don't check the web to see how things ended up. So on Sunday I was watching the women's skiing to see the US win gold and Lindsay Vonn take her fall. Also into the US Women's Hockey team. 

The Many Lives of Anne Frank, the author splits her life into sections based on age. Child, Refugee, Target, Witness, Lover, Artist, Prisoner and Corpse. While I read the original diary Anne wrote many years ago, I was not aware that there are multiple versions of that book. The original, her edited edition, the first published edition which had been edited by her father. Later more critical editions which included sections her father left out. 

Includes how the family lived prior to them going into hiding. Then the after story of the father, Otto, and his journey to get the book edited, published, movies etc. 

 

 Happy Reading 

Crochet Time - Donation

 It is time to clear the decks again. Like I mentioned last week the closet getting stuffed with finished blankets and not sure where to go with any more completed projects. Doing a mid-year donation works out well, so need to do this again in future years. 

Here are the eighteen, yes 18, blankets finished since early September. Five months, so just over three per month. Which is about right, it takes 7-10 days to do these.  

You may be seeing a few blankets which I have shown you yet all on their own here in the blog. Don't worry, I will get to them over the next few weeks.  

 Closet before and after. I need to work on getting the lower area in a better shape for holding more finished blankets. One of those bigger boxes on the left needs to go. 

  

State of the yarn stash as of February 4, 2026. This should be enough at my typical pace to keep me going for the rest of the winter crochet season. Using up what is stored on the right hand side first. 

I may need to actually go yarn shopping soon! I do get a catalog every month and I check out the deals. 

I had a special visitor on Wednesday afternoon. Polly Possum showed up to eat some of the bird seed that gets spilled by my feathered friends. I also saw the possum on Thursday when I went out to move the garbage bin back from the street.  

 Happy Weekend. 

 

Wonderful Wordy Wednesday

Had to wait until the Westminster Dog show ended tonight before getting this written. I was super happy with the results with the Doberman Pinscher winning. I am not into small, fluffy dogs. I also noticed a number of dogs from Wisconsin that made the group judging. They didn't make the final seven, but still. Lots of lovely looking dogs. 

Now that we are in February things are improving weather wise, we actually might get above freezing in the next few days. First time in about three weeks. Plus now that the sun is slowly moving north, the days are longer and the sun is actually starting to hit the back side of my house. When I wake up I can even tell the sunrise is getting earlier too. My frame of mind is that I don't need to rise and shine until the sun actually does too! 

Little Black Book - Brooklyn and Derek are off on an adventure after an old colleague sends HIM an old book. A book with coded messages inside. The adventure takes them to Scotland and a castle on Loch Ness. 

Loose Lips  is - the second book in the Ghostwriter Mystery series. In this one is a classic closed room murder, or rather murders. All occurs on a special cruise for writers. All female guests, speakers and boat staff. Well, except the chef, the main speaker's ex and her assistant. I didn't see this ending coming!

Fortune Favors the Dead -  first of a short series based on a female private detective and her female partner. They are brought in by a family who wants to determine who killed their matriarch. Story set in the 1940s and reminded me of some of the old movies of that era. I wasn't that taken with the characters so won't be reading the rest of the books. 

Dead Money - a tech company CEO is murdered in his own office. An area that you have to use a security badge to get into. The CEO altered his will adding a dead money clause. All the company assets are frozen until the crime is solved. The FBI is called in but a major investor wants his investigator to be involved. Between the two of them they find some interesting fellow executives who might have an ax to grind. 

 

 

Happy Reading

 

Crochet Time

It is slowly warming up. Thursday even the wind chill temperature was above zero for a while. I get out when I need to, appointments, groceries, trivia and the like. Must go out pretty much every day to refill bird feeders and water bath. Those little guys eat a lot during the cold. 

My family is scattered and they managed to get the big snow storm last week while I was in the cold. Grew up in snowy Wisconsin, so they know how to shovel and clear snow. Thankfully they didn't get ice or lose power during the storm either. Only thing is that they don't have the equipment to plow every street so the side streets are a mess until it melts. 

 I wish that could be true, but it is a nice thought. Plus as I get older I do enjoy just being at home. 

I sent an email to the food pantry director asking to drop off the blankets I have made since September. With the cold weather they might come in handy for someone. Hopefully I can drop them off next week sometime.  

Lots to keep me busy including the crochet projects. This one is made from Red Heart Yarn, color is Jeweltone. Nice bright stripey for a cheerful lap full of yarn. Like most of these stripey things I don't overly worry about keeping the color rotation intact if I switch from one skein to the next.  

 

Happy Weekend 

Wonderful Wordy Wednesday

While it is still cold, below typical temperatures, it isn't as cold as it was last week. Still colder than I prefer for my old bones so hoping it gets warmer soon, at least back to more typical normal temperatures. The only good thing is that when it get this cold we get very little snow or that snow is super light and fluffy. 

In spite of the cold we met for trivia on Monday, did OK with one of our better scoring games. However we still ended up in third place out of four teams. Point spread between first and last place was only nine points. We had a sub moderator again, our regular person will be back next time. 

Since we had paid our entry fee for the trivia last time they held on to the cash and we didn't have to repay. It's only $1 per person to play.  

Our favorite wait staff person was on duty, we could catch up with what he was doing since Christmas, including a hunting trip to Texas and ice fishing in northern Wisconsin. School is back in session for him, so he is busy. 

The restaurant has a special menu for Mardi Gras season. Gumbo, jambalaya, po' boy and our favorite beignets. We had two orders of beignets, oh so good and gooey. This seasonal menu lasts through actual Mardi Gras, then they will switch to a St. Patrick's for a month.  

Affairs of Steak installment of the White House Chef mysteries. Due to staff being unavailable, Ollie is assigned to help plan an off-site party for the Secretary of State. A couple of dead bodies that have links to the White House are found at one of the possible locations. Lots of twists and turns to find the who done it. 

Ambition is an eight part series that has to do with equestrian eventing, horse farms, and romance. I read the last chapter of the book, didn't really care about it and my library only has the first two books. So why really get into the story I won't know the end!

The Price of Power a biography of Senator Mitch McConnell. I was primarily interested in his early life and early career. I'm old enough to have lived through his life during the last few decades. This is an authorized biography, author was given access to the subject, friends and documents. 

The Elements of Marie Curie a lovely biography of Marie Curie. She was a pioneer for women in science and a mentor to many. She was the first woman to be awarded a Nobel Prize shared with her husband in Physics in 1903. Then in 1911 she won another Nobel in Chemistry. First woman to receive a Nobel and the first two win two! Also the only person to be awarded Nobel's in two distinct sciences. 

 

Or prevent frost bite! Stay inside, be warm, be cool, be safe. Enjoy. 

 

 Happy Reading