Thanks! A Decision made…
April 18, 2008 
Thank you, everyone, for your comments, suggestions and ideas on my second-guessing about “The Shores of Hawk Run Hollow”. I’ve come to a decision…
I sent an e-mail to Linda at House of Stitches this morning. I’m going to have her order a fat ½ of the 32ct. Vintage Autumn Gold linen. I’m still planning to stitch with DMC. I love silks, especially the overdyed ones, but I have very dry hands, and I find that the silk snags on my fingers often, so rather than having that frustration, I’ll just stick with the DMC.
Thanks again for continuing to read my blog, especially as my time is limited, and I have read very few blogs in the past month. I have a lot of catching up to do!
Kathy’s Neighbourhood RR
April 12, 2008 
I finished stitching my square on Kathy’s Neighbourhood RR in the middle of the week, and got it in the mail to Karin yesterday.
I stitched the school house square from “The Village of Hawk Run Hollow”. I used the recommended DMC thread.
Kathy chose a theme consisting of designers in the Carriage House Samplings genre. I think I was the fifth person to stitch on this piece – I know it’s going to be stunning when it’s finished.
I can’t wait to receive the next RR for this group!
Later this morning, I’m meeting up with my girlfriend, Holly, and we are taking a trip to House of Stitches in LaPorte. I want to pick up the NPI silks needed for the first square I plan to stitch on “The Shores of Hawk Run Hollow”. I’m not going to buy all the silks at once – I’ll just buy them as I get to each square. I also have to find some linen. I’ve definitely decided to forgo the challenge of stitching it on the recommended 40 ct. linen – I think I’ll probably stitch it on 32ct linen. House of Stitches always has a good collection of linen on hand, so I won’t specially order something – I’ll just choose a linen from what they have in stock. I’m going to be doing this as a SAL with Suzanne – we haven’t decided what day of the week we’re going to be stitching on this piece, but if you’re interested in joining us, feel free to do so!
On Thursday I got my final pay-check from my former company in the mail, and that included some accrued vacation time, so I have decided to have a little “splurge”. It’s been a while since I’ve “splurged”, so I might be dangerous. I doubt it, though – I feel guilty if I spend more than $50 on a visit to an LNS.
I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!
Happy Friday – November 23
November 23, 2007 
I went to the Kalamazoo Valley Museum a number of weeks back with DS and the in-laws. I took some pictures, but didn’t really look at them until this past weekend, when I found this one. I liked the composition, so thought I’d share.
You Are a Life Blogger! |
 Your blog is the story of your life – a living diary. If it happens, you blog it. And make it as entertaining as possible. |
And here’s a SBQ from last month:
Do you railroad?
No, I don’t. About the only time I consider railroading is when I do satin stitches, but even then, I don’t do it all the time. I guess I’m not that patient!
Happy Halloween!
I’ve password protected the rest of the post, because I don’t want to talk about my job or my health situation with the whole world. If you are a regular reader of my blog and would like to read the post, please send me an e-mail and I’ll be happy to give you the password.
A new shopping destination
Picture has nothing to do with today’s blog topic, but I found this cute one this morning, and had to share. Here’s my little paleontologist in training.
A new shopping mall (Southgate Market for my Chicago readers) has opened up near to where I live. It’s not your “typical” American mall – there aren’t boutiques etc. It’s a mall that’s grounded by 6 larger tenants – Petsmart, Linens & Things, Office Depot, DSW, Whole Foods, and World Market. In addition, there is a Panera Bread and a Starbucks.
The DSW store was the first tenant to open, and that was an eye opening experience. I’d never been to one before, so it was a novel experience to see all those shoes in one place. I confess to having been a shoeaholic in my younger, single days (I can recall finding a style that I loved, and buying one in every color, even if it was at $160 a pair. I could never imagine spending that much on a single pair of shoes these days!). These days, I pretty much buy shoes because I need them – you know, the sole wears out, etc. I read recently that the average American woman has 40 pairs of shoes in her closet. I have less than 10 pairs, and that includes 3 pairs of sneakers/running shoes, and 2 pairs of winter boots.
In the past couple of weeks, World Market and Whole Foods have opened. I’ve only recently discovered World Market. There is a store in Lincoln Park (on the north side of the city), and I have made a number of trips out there with one particular purpose – they sell Tim Tams (although here they are called “Arnott’s Original”), and English-made Cadbury Dairy Milk chocolate. I think I’m in trouble – now I can get both of these products within walking distance of home – definitely a big danger to my weight loss ambitions!
I’ve never been in a Whole Foods store until last week. What an experience. I’d heard that it was ridiculously over-priced, and maybe it is (I haven’t bought anything there), but oh, my – the bakery section and hot food area is to die for. The selection of cakes and pastries is nothing like I’ve seen locally, and the range of hot foods (for taking out or eating in-store) is amazing.
I can see that I’ll be visiting this shopping center on a regular basis…
30th Annual LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon
DS at the street corner, waiting for the first runners to hit the 13.1 mile marker
The Chicago Marathon is being run today. I feel sorry for the runners – today’s high is expected to be 88 degrees. Typically, the runners run in temperatures of 40 – 50 degrees.The half way point of the marathon is on our street corner, and each year, DS and I head out to cheer on the runners – we usually head out there right before the leading runners are due; we usually stay outside cheering for 20 or 30 minutes, and then head back indoors, and observe the throngs of runners from our living room window. It’s such an amazing sight!
Last year, I competed in a 1/2 marathon, and keep telling myself that one day I’ll train for a marathon. Hey, if I can do a 1/2 marathon with no training, how hard can a full marathon be?…
The first group of women runners, just past the 13.1 mile marker
*Updated to add: The marathon was cut short. 3.5 hours into the race, officials closed the course at the half way mark because of the heat. Over 300 people were hospitalized because of the heat, and at least one person died.
In other news, my beloved Chicago Cubs were eliminated from the playoffs. There’s always next year, right? Next year will mark the 100th anniversary since the Cubs last won the World Series. It’s going to be our year. (This eternal optimism is the hallmark of a true Cubbies fan).
Out to dinner
In celebration of the successful completion of a project, our team is going out for dinner tonight, compliments of one of our vendors. We got to choose the restaurant, and so after work tonight, we’re heading off to Fogo de Chao. I’ve only been once, but it was heavenly, and I’ve been looking forward to the opportunity to go again. There will be 14 of us from the office going – I’m the lone female. I won’t be eating lunch today; don’t want to ruin my appetite! Bonus – because it’s a steak restaurant, I can eat to my heart’s content without breaking my diet (Atkins!)
On another note – head over to Stitch Pink for a chance to win a Breast Cancer awareness scissors fob.
Cubs Clinch!
Cubs Magic Number is 0!!
The Cubs clinched the National League Central title tonight, when Milwaukee lost to the Padres. Earlier in the evening, the Cubs beat the Cincinnati Reds.
Go Cubbies!!
The Cubs Magic Number is now 11 (3 wins for the divisional title; 4 for the National League Championship Series, and 4 wins in the World Series). I don’t know how I’m going to handle the next few weeks!
While we’re talking Cubs…
As of the time of writing, the Chicago Cubs Magic Number is 4.What’s a magic number? Read here for how a magic number is calculated…
I went to my first Chicago Cubs game in August of 1988 (the week I got married, actually). I sat in the bleachers at Wrigley Field, enjoying the Chicago summer sun, enjoying the atmosphere, and savoring the win. I’ve been a fan ever since.
The last time the Cubs made it this far was in 2003. The Cubs were 5 outs from going to the World Series for the first time since 1945. Then, the team collapsed. Some blame it on Steve Bartman; others blame it on the goat. Still others lay the blame nowhere, but wonder what would life be like if the Cubs did, in fact win their first World Series in 1908. Would everything else in life be a let-down after that?
So many fans jump on “bandwagons”, and remain fans of the team as long as the team is winning. In the case of the Cubs, it’s obviously not true. The Cubs have one of the most loyal fan bases; fans who will cheer for them in winning seasons, or losing seasons (more likely losing seasons). They even have the nickname “The Lovable Losers”. Would they lose fans if they won the World Series?
Is this year “The Year”? This Cubs fan hopes so.
Playing tourist at home…
For the first time since April of 2006, I am taking a week off work. In the past 16 months, I’ve taken the occasional long weekend, but no “extended” time off work.
Next week, I’ll be off work all week. I don’t have any major plans, but it’s DS’s last week of school vacation, before he heads off to the second grade, so I decided to just take some time off work to hang out with him. We’re going to play tourist in our own home town.
Here is the list of things that DS would like to do on vacation.
- Ride a doubler-decker train. Chicago is serviced downtown by the CTA, (the “el” train). DS and I ride the CTA all the time. It’s a cheap, convenient way of getting around. Chicago’s suburbs are serviced by Metra, and all of their trains are double-deckers. Since we don’t have any need to travel out to the suburbs by public transportation, DS has never ridden one, and keeps asking to go on one.
- Ride on a double-decker bus: I’m a big fan of the double-decker bus, particularly the older ones in London. In Chicago, there are a number of tourist buses that have open upper decks. We rode on one a couple of years ago, and DS has wanted to ride one again.
- Take a boat tour: Tour boats either take a lakefront tour of the Chicago skyline, or an architectural tour down the Chicago River. We’ve taken the lakefront tour before, so I think this time, we’ll take the Chicago River tour.
- Ride on a water taxi: Water taxis are available from downtown (the departure point is right outside my office building), going to Navy Pier, or from Navy Pier across to the Museum Campus. I think we’ll take the downtown taxi ride. It’s a cheap excursion.
- Take a horse & carriage ride: These rides depart from North Michigan Avenue, and tour the main shopping area – I don’t think they look as much fun as taking a ride through Central Park in New York, so I haven’t been anxious to take one, but DS would like to, so I guess we’ll be doing this one day.
I think that’s probably enough to keep us busy for a week. What do you think?
Don’t be surprised if I don’t have a stitching finish next week – when am I going to find time to stitch with all this going on?
