When the rains came...

...I thought you'd leave, cos I knew how much you loved the sun...

We've been playing old Rod Stewart tracks in the car :) Today we sat in it, parked at the sea front, eating ice cream. We couldn't get out as the wind was whipping sand off the beach onto the car park and sandblasting the cars. Not good for a metallic black paint finish. But the rain had stopped for a short while - it's Bank Holiday, what else would the weather do?



The garden says thank you for the rain, though. Roses are coming into bloom all along the path.







And the late spring/early summer bulbs and siberian irises are coming into their own.

On the knitting front: still working on the Krista T. Hope to have it finished by the end of the week.

Oh boy...

... do I hurt today!

Bit of a flare coupled with sitting in a low chair all day yesterday for a 7 hour briefing on Child Protection legislation and a visit here



today with 41 six year olds.

It's Raby Castle. We're learning about castles as part of our project on structures this term and we're lucky, because in this part of the world castles are quite plentiful.

We met a couple from Australia today who were more excited than our children. It was lovely! They were so impressed when we could tell them all about murder holes and curtain walls and moats. I guess we take our heritage for granted a bit as, on the bus on the way home, the best bits were voted to be eating our picnic in the walled garden and going on the adventure playground.

SATisfaction

Now they're finished... the Key Stage 2 SATs that is. Anyone in Primary Schools this week has had their life on hold, focused intensively on getting the Year 6 students through this. It's a terrible thing to do to an 11 year old. A while ago the 'average' score goalposts were moved to 80%. Now, it seems that old Gordy has moved the 'average' to 100%. It still doesn't add up...

Nevertheless. Progress on the knitting front:



This is the Mia Shrug in Rialto. Excuse the slightly stunned just-back-from-11-hours-at-work look.



and the back



My new project - Krista from the wonderful Joan McGowan-Michael. Also in Rialto, which is a departure from the cotton specified in the pattern, but I'm really into merino at the moment.

The numbers don't add up

How dare he?

...and I voted for these people...

Into every life a little rain must fall

but when?

The forecast keeps promising 3 days of rain to come, but it keeps being pushed back further and further. What was supposed to come and revitalise our garden on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday is now earmarked for Thursday onwards.



J is having to use the hosepipe.

Knitting content: I'm making good progress on my Mia shrug, but no more pictures until it's sewn up as one long rectangle looks much the same as the earlier picture.

Have you seen the latest Stitch Diva newsletter? I wasn't taken by their pattern for Sahara, but the photos of Jenifer Hansen's mum modelling it in cerise in the newsletter have converted me. It's on the to do list for Summer with short sleeves in a bright colour.

I must confess, no offense intended, that I'm a bit disappointed by the latest issue of Yarn Forward magazine, which arrived this week. The production is just a little odd - some of the diagrams have reproduced badly when resized and the garments are unseasonal and, frankly, unappealing. It seems poor value for money at GBP4.40 an issue (more than Interweave Knits?). Maybe things will pick up. I hope so...I have a subscription.

No retreat, baby, no surrender.

Much discussion in the staffroom today about last night's Channel 5 documentary - the last in the wonderful Hidden Lives series: Obedient Wives. Put your hand up if you think becoming a Surrendered Wife would improve your marriage. Not me. Nor any of my colleagues.
We don't want our men to:
choose our clothes and hairstyles,
make all the decisions,
control our money,
expect us to do all the household chores,
expect us to be 'available' for sex at least once a week regardless of how we feel about it
and to keep our mouths shut whenever we feel a challenging or disagreeing thought surfacing.

I watched it with J and j. Afterwards I said "I'll just pop into the kitchen and make tomorrow's packed lunches while you put my clothes out for work in the morning..."
Much hilarity all round.


On your bike Laura Doyle.

Tightly coiled

Things have been fairly tense on the knitting front lately.
Understatement.
Let me tell you the story of Boobalicious:
I knit the front.
It was too small.
I blocked it larger.
The tension looked all over the place.



I frogged it.
I reknit it in a bigger size.
I finished it off.
I tried it on.
The fit was ok round the boobs but the shoulders were hideous.
The colour looked hideous on me too.
I dyed it purple.
The colour was lovely but no amount of purple was disguising the horribleness of the shoulder straps.



I felted it.
It's about to become the most expensive and labour intensive make up bag I've ever had.

I sought peace and relaxation by joining J on a drive across to Fryup Dale, near Danby.



and starting my Mia shrug.



The yarn (100% merino dk in a creamy colour) is a joy to work with (but I can't help feeling that it looks a bit like an acrylic!!! )The easy lace pattern is soothing and effective. Just what I need on the needles right now!

The garden is desperate for some rain. The weather folk keep promising it, but no show so far - even with the added temptation of a Bank Holiday to ruin.