I'm finally posting this

Here is the picture of the scarf I was working on that suddenly caused me to wax poetic a couple of weeks ago.

It is made from hand-spun wool yarn in rather circus-like colors and the hook is actually plated in 14kt gold (which I think was a gift-with-purchase since I wouldn't actually pay for such a thing).

The photo was taken by the Eldest Kidlet, who is working on her photography as well as several other projects for school.

A Poem

Arachne's magic, without the frame

Circus colors flow through my fingers and over the golden hook

Building warmth, the joy of creation.


What happens when the world is so heavy I can't breathe and this small shaping has been taken from me?

I don't know other's nightmares, but this is mine.

Already my hands stiffen quickly and the world seems dimmer,

And I'm still young.


For now though, the color still flows,

The warmth still builds,

And the world is not (yet) too heavy.

John would have been proud

This last weekend Middlest and Littlest Kidlets opened a lemonade stand.  It was entirely their own idea and I was very impressed at how they did their best to go about it in a business-like manner, such as paying Eldest Kidlet to track which flavor of drink was most popular and how much of the money they made was in tips.

John was always having entrepreneurial ideas and I'm very sure he would have been very supportive of the Kidlet's efforts.  I think he also would have been amused when, on the first day, Eldest Kidlet hired herself out to them as security for an equal share of the money saying she was sure I demanded she be there.  I have to admit that I was a little amused myself, but still made her give back some of the money as she'd attempted to use my authority without actually having it which is something I don't want to encourage at all.

Thank You

I want to extend  heartfelt thanks for those who gave their all, and those who continue knowing they may be called upon to do so, so that I have the liberty to go about my life in the way that I see fit.  I also want to thank all the Gold Star families who must continue to carry on after a loss. I am truly grateful that I and my children are free and safe.

Freedom of Speech post

Typically I keep my "political" blog stuff and "personal" blog stuff separate, although not very well if someone actually wanted to find me.  This is one of the rare times that I'm going to link to my other blog since being able to retain "internet anonymity" is the very issue that has brought a great deal of harassment and actual danger to several bloggers and journalists, not even just conservative ones, and the legal systems of their home states of CA and MD have refused to do anything to help.

There's this bird

And it keeps starting to sing after midnight.   It's a highly varied call and the tone is very clear and would probably be quite nice if  I weren't trying to get to sleep.  Eldest Kidlet swears it keeps waking her up as well and isn't amused at all.  I'd love to know what sort of bird it is, since we didn't have night-singing birds in CO.

Kitten Supposes...

Her toeses are roses?  No, Kitten supposes her roses are extracts (or at least getting close).  I traded out the older rose petals for a large number of fresh and topped of the vodka today.  Although the color is a very pretty pink, the scent is not nearly as strong as I'd hoped.  Part of this is that, although I've been putting in some fresh petals every day, the first big batch of petals went into the vodka in the late afternoon.  It turns out that there really is a big difference in scent strength between the morning and afternoon.

I'll try to get a picture posted later.