Technicolor Dreamcoat

I just don't know what came over me, when I decided to crochet a Hexagon Cardigan. As a inveterate fiber artist, I endlessly peruse crochet patterns, on the Internet, and almost immediately come to the conclusion that they are too complicated, too busy or in the matter of most "granny square patterns", just too stupid looking, to waste my time replicating.

But this time, it was like I became possessed by the Crochet Devil. I had to make this strange-looking sweater. They were everywhere on my Crochet Sites! Actors, Jack Black and Jason Momoa, were wearing them. So, I did. Well, I told myself, I had recently purchased these two skeins of vibrant jewel-toned, multicolored yarn and I just had to make something.  Why not a Hexagon Cardigan?

I'll tell you why not. First of all, I had to purchase 2 more skeins of a solid color, to tone down ALL of the COLOR from the original skeins. Stupidly, I then chose the scourge color, of all yarn artists......Black. Black and most other dark colors are terribly difficult to work with. But, by the time I made that choice, I had invested countless hours and quite a bit of money in my quest. Black goes with anything, I reasoned. Black would tie all of those rainbow colors together.

 (In case you might be wondering,......make two hexagons, fold them to make each to make a sleeve and half of a body of a sweater. Imagine two, upside down L shapes, with the center of each hexagon, being the armpit. Then you sew the back seams together to create a cardigan.)

Well, the damn thing is finished. It fits me. The 2 sleeves are the approximately the same length, PTL and the colors on both sides match. Neither of those accomplishments was an easy fete. Now, I'm wondering will I ever wear it? Probably once, maybe. But, I may have a hard time finding the appropriate occasion.

Wait a minute. If my church ever has a "Coat of Many Colors" celebration, I have the perfect costume.

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 O Lord. Save us from our foolishness. Great is Thy Faithfulness. 

 

"...Guess what you will spy? Jack-o-lanterns dancing. Witches in the Sky."

ATTENTION: 

Of all the Autumn Holidays, and there are quite a few, Halloween is my least favorite. I love the autumn season. The colors of the changing leaves and the quirky hot/cold/just right weather here in middle America, are my things. Decorating for Fall, without a doubt, is one of my passions. So far this season, I have crocheted about 2 dozen pumpkins, and given them all away! My home has, for years, sported decorations of pumpkins and colorful leaves....from September 1, through the last Thursday, in November. I love hosting a good old, fashioned Thanksgiving Dinner. I give away poppies on Veterans Day and whoever you celebrate on October 12th, I am in favor of it. I am just not keen on jack-o-lanterns, skeletons, goblins and more than anything else.......anything scary. 

I've made and purchased my share of Halloween costumes. The most noteworthy being a brilliantly creative Storm Trooper made from poster board and brass brads. Oh, and I made a Pink Panther costume that eventually disintegrated, from constant year-round wear. Over the years, I've passed out enough candy (and eaten the leftovers) to cause a spike in Hershey stock prices and raise my A1C levels. I've done it all, but I just haven't enjoyed much of it.

I'm not knowingly going to visit a Haunted House, or decorate with sheets and spiderwebs. And, no more cleaning up the pumpkin snot, after the shell has been carefully carved. The history and meaning of All Hallows Eve and Dia de los Muertos, are not lost on me. Noteworthy religiously and perhaps historically, but I really don't care. 

If anyone could be called a Scrooge, on October Thirty-One, it would be me. Boo Humbug.

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Great and All-Knowing God. Thank you for the adventures of life. This journey is awesome and wondrous. We praise Your Grace and Goodness. 

"Play it again, Sam"

     

 

 Have you seen any great movies lately? I must admit that I haven't been to an actual movie theater in ages. By ages, I really mean, maybe in more than a decade.  However, I often enjoy old movies that are replayed on U Tube or other television sites. 

My viewing preferences are mysteries, happy endings and comedy.  I've posted before, many times about my favs. I am always up for watching any Jane Austen adaptation and of course "Blazing Saddles", "The Three Amigos", or "Princess Bride". You might find me watching a couple of reruns of Poirot, or Midsommer Murders, in one evening. However, too much realism or scary stuff, is not my bag.

Scary, for me, means any thriller by Alfred Hitchcock. You can't tell me that anyone over 70, doesn't get weirded out, just thinking about "The Birds" or "Psycho". Anthony Perkins was just the most benign yet creepiest villain, of all time. And, thankfully all the blood in "Psycho", ended up in the bathtub!!!!! That's about the most action this old lady can take! That's just scary enough, for me.

I realize that I am a bit old-fashioned and admittedly tastes in movies have changed. Today, folks want constant action and in-your-face blood and guts. Just recently, I foolishly suggested, to a couple of my age-contemporaries, that we watch "Rear Window". Not a good idea. While I was oohing and awing over Grace Kelly's stunning clothes and the scary, silent scenes, my polite hosts were bored stiff.  I apologized, of course. I sincerely felt really awful about putting them through what was probably their most boring evening ever.  

Having confessed and admitted this, a Cardinal Sin of House Guests, I still believe that Raymond Burr, makes a terrific villain....even without saying a word!

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Oh Lord. Differences make life a blessing and a challenge. We all have our likes and dislikes. But, we are all united in our thankfulness to You. Forgive us our trespasses. We praise your Holy Name.

 

CHEATERS

 Like many of my fellow septuagenarians, I have had cataract surgery. So, with this corrective surgery, my distance vision is 20/20, and my close-up vision isn't horrible, but it's not great. Therefore, like most of my old-lady colleagues, I use "readers or cheater glasses". 

Prescription glasses have been part of my insightful life, since my teen years. I wore them constantly, because I couldn't see correctly without them. As I aged, I switched to bifocals and finally trifocals. Since having eye surgery, I have discarded prescription glasses for cheapo cheaters, in order to read printed material. 

But, cheaters are a problem. Because, although I have 6 pair (I think), I can never find them. Yesterday, for example, I needed to read a label on a pill bottle. I looked for my glasses and couldn't find them. After several minutes of searching, I noticed the pair that was sitting on top of my head. Great. Then, shortly thereafter, I discovered the pair that was hanging from the neckline of my shirt. Then, when I got in my car, there were three pair, on the dashboard of my car.

I know I'm not the only person who does this. My good friend, Judy, wears two pair of glasses all the time. One pair of sunglasses and her needed cheaters. She deftly shifts, from one to the other, when she needs to. That's a skill, folks. I'm striving for that ability. If ever there was "both a curse and a blessing", it's Grandma's readers!!!!!!!!

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Holy God: Good Vision is a blessing. Like many things we don't appreciate it enough. "Open my eyes that I may see, glimpses of truth Thou hast for me."

 

 

Nancy Does Dallas

Your indefatigable blogger lady has completed yet another excellent adventure. This time, it was a solo automobile trip, from the City of Fountains to the metro area of Big D. Here are a few of my observations.

• Traveling across the State of Kansas, by Interstate Highway, is long and incredibly boring. Kansas however is not nearly as flat, as advertised. There are rolling hills the entire way, which necessitates a monotony of passing struggling semis, going up hill, and being passed by the same, very fast semis, going downhill.
• Oklahoma has gambling casinos. Texas does not. 
• Oklahoma has mountains. Not very high mountains, but hills high enough to require a couple of "slow traffic" passing lanes.
• There are not enough rest stops on Turnpikes for old, incontinent people.
• Dallas must have at least one expansive "fly over", per 1,000 residents. The highway system, in the Dallas/Ft. Worth, area is crazy! And, the traffic is unbelievable. Thank the Lord, I didn't have to drive in the city traffic. I had a steady and patient driver.
•  Each and every elevated strip of pavement, in Texas, over space or water (gully, ditch, creek pond or river) has a sign that says "pavement on bridges freezes before the regular roadway" or something like that. I hope everyone slows down BEFORE they read those signs.
• Driving through Picher, Oklahoma, always makes me sad. It makes me question the intelligence of bureaucratic government. Then I giggle, when I think of the thousands of folks who have lived long and healthy lives, with a piece or pieces of deadly, lead-tainted chat, embedded forever, in their palms or knees.

Travel enriches our lives. Visits with friends and relatives reminds us that relationships are precious.

Safe Travels to all.

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 Dead Lord: We are thankful for our beautiful planet. Thank You for bringing us safely back home, after  our adventures. Remind us to enjoy each moment of our travels. We ask these things in Your Name.

"Call Me AL"

 Name calling is not a good thing. I don't know about you, but I tried to correct my four children, every time they called one of their siblings or playmates a name (other than their given one). It's just not nice. That's one of the things, that I hope they learned at a very early age. 

When they got to be school age, the same suggestions of social appropriateness applied. And, I know as a teacher, there were consequences for "calling names" in the classroom. I am not naive enough to expect that it wasn't done, but I'm sure they were pretty discrete about doing it. 

The first time, that I can recall hearing a person called a derogatory name, my maternal grandmother labeled one of her sisters-in-law..... A Hussy. At the time, I certainly did not know the meaning of Hussy, and I'm still confused about why the woman in question was a Hussy, but I did realize from that very moment, all those years ago, that it was not a nice name. 

If the practice of Labeling and Name-Calling is bad, then why has it become so prevalent today? It seems that anyone, and I really mean Anyone can label whoever they choose a Whatever! No rules of decency apply. Any label is fair game. And, it's often the case that the actual truth be damned.

I don't like it. If asked, my opinion would be to return to civility and decency. I would say, please go back to using given names and titles. After all, although you have every right to disagree about issues, name calling is not appropriate.

Remember the time, when one sign of intelligence and civility was choosing appropriate words when writing or speaking. Name calling, shows the inability to research the truth and label it as such. I see name calling and, as a sign of ignorance, poor judgement and pre-school mentality.

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All Knowing God. Our limitations are boundless. We need You and we need each other.  Grant us the power to be strong in our convictions, but remind us that everyone deserves respect. We are all your children. 

"Those who do not complain are never pitied" Mrs. Bennett (Pride and Predjudice)

 I read where the Princess Kate and Prince William were hosting a Garden Party today. They and other members of the English Royal Family host numerous Garden Parties, every Spring, Summer and Autumn.

We are getting ready to host a picnic. This will be our third large outdoor event of the the warm season, here in Kansas City. Earlier this summer, we hosted the Stilwell UM Church Choir and their families and then we had another party for the past and present members of the Kansas City Grotto Club (Cavers). Gardens in the UK are similar to our lawns, so we have a lot in common with the Royals, when we have a party in our yard. In fact, tomorrow will be a costume/garden party. If the guests choose they may come in casual attire or if they fancy a more formal event, they may come in Regency clothing. That would be high-waisted gowns with long skirts and bonnets, for the ladies, and cut-away coats and top-hats, for the men. Regency Attire is clothing from the very late 18th and early 19th centuries.

Tomorrow, is the annual Box Hill Picnic for the KC Area Chapter of the Jane Austen Society of North American. (JASNA for short.) We are hoping for lovely outdoorsy type of weather, but any activity occurring tomorrow, will be, no matter what the weather, very gentile! Our back lawn will feature Croquet. Food, an assortment of cold meats, salads and tea sandwiches, tea and lemonade will be served on our two back decks.There may be country dancing and a Janite Trivia contest. Guests may also wander the vast garden (think lawn) or perhaps partake in a leisurely boat ride, not on the Thames, but on our pond.

In Jane Austen's lifetime, picnics were quite common. Well, the common folk didn't have them, but the gentry and wealthy folks had them. The servants transported chairs and dining room tables out to the countryside and served the Lords and Ladies, just like they would have in their homes or manor houses. Bone China, silverware and cloth napkins were all toted outside. The term picnic comes from "pick a place" to have outdoor dining. In Austen's novel EMMA, Emma and her friends participate in the Box Hill Picnic. So, we are recreating that event, in a 21st Century suburban setting. We may have a few surprise guests attend the gathering. Perhaps, some characters from other Austen novels......Mr. Darcy maybe. 

Unfortunately, the forecast is calling for a shower or two, tomorrow afternoon. We'll picnic in the house, then. A splendid festive time will, no doubt, be had by all.

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 Dearest Lord. Pride and Prejudice are constant issues for all of us. Patience is difficult to practice. Sense and the ability to practice Sensibility we struggle with daily. We have so many blessings, though. Too many to complain about, too much. We are blessed.