I went to the "Woolapalooza" and all I came home with is wool

Yup, Mr Yarn and I headed over to the Woolapalooza on Saturday. It was sheep shearing time. The National Audubon Society sanctuary (Drumlin Farm Wildlife Sanctuary) a beautiful place right near our house and this was an event there.



So some old hippy guy was shearing the sheep with these big ole scissors. I must say that I felt like he was manhandling that poor sheep a bit and I felt sorry for the poor thing (the sheep not the man).



Next, we went to go see the Nubian goats. This is MY personal favorite. We got to see a baby. Awwww.



About 15 minutes before we got into the barn this cutie was born. Doesn't get much cuter than that (shhhh, I liked the Nubian goat better but don't tell anyone because goats aren't as cool as sheep in knitting circles, but you can make goat cheese out of their milk)



This sheep looked like someone sheared it with a Flowbee. I couldn't stop myself from yelling to it "Hey baldie, looks like you were sheared with kitchen scissors"



We watched the dog boss the sheep around. Those sheep sure knew that the dog meant business. He had them running one way, and then the other and all around and everywhere. I heard one sheep say to the other "Man this dog is a tyrant, I need a drink".



Just because I am a bit odd I took a picture of a chicken. I love chickens. I want to own chickens (Mr. Yarn said that is all good and fine with him but what the hell are we going to do with them in the winter...he won't let me waste electricity heating the coop).

Ok, so that was my Audubon experience and we even became members. Stay tuned for my bird watching adventures (that is after I take up Kayaking and juggling).

More fun with food and snow

So as promised I took a picture of me playing with food.



Here I am wrapping potato strips around a cucumber. Not as easy as it looks. Do not try this in your own home.



Frying it up (have more than one cucumber on hand if you want to do these stupid baskets.

What this basket looks like after you have suffered through making them




NOT worth it. The little morsels that go inside were well worth it though.



The short ribs were fantastic and the meal was a success. Just don't bother making little baskets out of potato strips and you will be fine. Note to self: Don't play with your food...simple is best.

Oh, and while we were cooking and drinking wine on this lovely 50 degree SPRING day, Denis yelled over Neil Young on my iPod: "It is SNOWING". Yup...I thought he was messing with my head but Noooooo

Obsessed in the kitchen...

I just got this cookbook and I want to make everything that is in it. So, I have really obsessed with the potato recipes. This is the one that I am going for first



It is little potato baskets that you make by slicing a potato on a Japanese slicer (makes long long threads) and you wrap the long thread around a cucumber. Then you fry it up in a fryer and slip it off the cucumber. You have a basket. The basket is filled with potato balls that are glazed in a homemade stock that has been reduced to nothing.



So, I made the stock and I fried up the little balls today. You have to fry them a second time but since we can't do this all at the last second you can fry them the first time and freeze them.



This is going to go with Short ribs with mushroom Jam (or something that sounds stupid like that in the recipe). We got that recipe at a cooking class that was given by the chef of a local restaurant. A dinner that we will test out on our neighbor Denis. He is game for anything (as long as there is good wine to go with it).

The new dog in town

ZEPHYR. from Evan Lane on Vimeo.

Evan's girlfriend Lauren just got a new puppy. Evan shot this video.

Flowers and Spring and Whiskers on kittens

Really, I was going to blog about how nice it was yesterday and how my bulbs are coming up. I was going to take a picture of the little green sprout coming out of the ground. I was going to say how it felt like spring was near and 50 degrees felt wonderful. But....



The flakes are the size of boulders.

I still love you California

We are back from our trip to California. Besides the fact that I was sick as a dog with bronchitis and ended up in urgent care, the trip was great. I was on every medication known to man but still was back "home" and happy to be with Annie and Tim and we got to see Evan and my mom and sister and brother. We also got to have dinner with our pals. I miss them all more than words can describe.

So, I took pictures. Lots of em.

First off is my Granddogs



This is Dahlia. I got to meet her for the first time and she is the best. I wanted to sneak both of these guys home in my suitcase but Annie wouldn't let me.

This is Ricky



I didn't get a really good picture of him. He is also the cutest dog in the world (besides Esther).



We drove down 101 to L.A. and I got to see my perfect ocean. Not the fake ocean that I live near now. This is the REAL ocean.



Check out that sky.



How could I ever have taken this for granted? This is Marina Del Rey at its normal. I forgot how beautiful L.A. could be.



Ok, the traffic sucks in L.A. and this is at 9:30 in the morning on a Thursday.

On the way back to the Bay Area





Things I miss about Oakland







It is called DIVERSITY.

Ah yes, and these were sitting outside the Longs Drugstore in February



Back to Annie and Tim's and ready for party time



Birthday girl

Tim built Annie a birthday cake. She is the cupcake queen so this was appropriate



And just in time we made it back home before the storm hit. We are lucky to have the best neighbors in the whole world.



Back to reality

I am not dead even though it feels like I am

Here is a picture of the snow melting. It is practically GONE. Um, still looks like it is there to me but everyone in the know seems to think that we are on a warming up trend. Yeah, I will believe it when I see it...

So, I have my 30th cold in a row. I never have gotten better since I moved here. I think I am better and then WHAM another cold. This time it is like an elephant is sitting on my chest. Wheeeee, how much fun flying to California on Saturday. That should be swell. Not to mention that it will probably rain there too despite all the "Oh, it is so hot here" comments I have gotten all winter.

So, here is something embarrassing that I will share with you...
I hate Valentines day. It is stupid and contrived and it has always bugged me. So on that special day Mr Yarn and I usually play it down. I ask for cheap chocolate made out nothing found in real life. You know the chemical type that you find at the drug store. The ones that all the pathetic men are buying at the last minute because they forgot what a "special" day this is. *I* usually buy Mr. Yarn a cheesy pair of boxer shorts that I buy at the drug store. The ones with hearts and stupid stuff on them. This year Mr. Yarn came home from a trip to India on Valentines day. He had beautiful flowers delivered to me in the morning (breaking protocol but they were beautiful) and when he came home he had bought me perfume that he knew I had wanted. He went all out. I kept to the routine of boxer shorts. However, this time I ordered them online because for some reason New England doesn't go for cheesy drug store boxer shorts the same way that California does. So, I pick what I can and have the damn things monogramed. They were suppose to read " I (heart) Janis" Cheesy enough, yes?

The morons took it upon themselves to bump it up a notch in case the Mr. has more than one Janis in his life




Ohhhh p.s. (I am writing this a couple of hours later)



It is snowing.

Knitting and such

I am working on the Large Lace Collar Bohus. We are talking size 0 needles here. I did just finish another sweater that I am doing for a designer that I can't post. I swear that I finished it and blocked it this morning.

In other news...



Nikko is getting obese because she can't prowl outside in the snow. I think I better have her start doing the Wii Fit.

Dirty snow

When I found out that I was moving somewhere that it snowed all the time I was like a little kid with dreams. Dreams of the white fluffy stuff that I could tromp in and throw and play in. Little did I know that over the season the snow never goes away and melts. It sits there and collects dirt. It collects salt. It is just something that you start to ignore as if it weren't there at all. The other day driving home I noticed that it is downright ugly.

just wanted you to know

It is still winter here and has been snowing. Dear friends and family in California you can stop calling me to tell me how balmy and summer like it is there. I still love you though.



I never really posted the new colors of the den (it really isn't THAT red) and I know you wanted to see it mom.

I am thinking about painting the rest of the stuff that needs painting (I am waiting until spring to do it but HEY SPRING IS JUST AROUND THE CORNER!!!....shut up...it IS.



Any suggestions on colors?

Last but not least...
I was sent this picture from a time when I was not pale and ghost like and my hair actually was faded from the sun. It is amazing how pale and scary you become when you move to the tundra.

Bored

I am finally done with Mr Yarn's sweater. It is an Alice Starmore's Na Craga. Took forever because I kept putting it down to do something else. When it got so cold here that I noticed that even Mr. Yarn was cold, I finished it.



The cat is bored.



The dog is bored.

I am bored out of my mind but I am not going out in 10 degrees.

Change (and playing with a new camera)

If it doesn't work go to:

Change

4 Degrees of Cold

Ok, I caught on to the dress code in New England. It is 4 degrees today and I finally think I got it down on how to keep warm. I have on a thermal shirt and a sweatshirt under that jacket. I also am wearing two pairs of long underwear (one didn't work). Nice look for the thighs and legs that now look like sausages. That isn't to mention the down jacket under the jacket and a damn face mask so that my nose doesn't fall off. Sad part is that I know it is going to get colder than this and I am all out of arsenal.

Not only that but who knew that snow actually blows around and pelts you in the face and makes you feel like you can't breathe...oh wait, I couldn't breathe because my nose was covered by the synthetic material.

Happy New Year

It is snowing and I am starting to feel like I live inside a marshmallow. It really isn't pretty after a while.



Niko hasn't been able to go outside in a long time. She is even grumpier than usual. She wishes you a Happy New Year too.

I am knitting. I am still working on Morrocan days whatever shawl. I put it down and now picked it up again. The picture is better if you click on the image.



I am still working on Mr Yarn's sweater. He will freeze to death before I finish it.



That is all. Have a good one!

Oh Jules!!!!

Look at us! I found this picture and you still make me smile. I can still remember taking that picture and I still remember how much you meant to me. You still do. You still make me laugh. I was the ugly girl and you were the pretty girl but you always let me wear the rabbit coat.

Boy am **I** glad Xmas is over. I got great gifts and all but there is something so creepy about no stores being open and feeling like everyone has fallen off the face of the planet.



We got this tree ornament that I LOVE from Kim and Denis. It looks just like our houses and I love it so so much. I also got a new digital camera that I took the picture with from Mr Yarn and it is awesome.

Esther had a good day. It was our first Xmas with her.