Kevin's Watch

rdhopeca wrote: When's the last time kids were left home "unannounced" and didn't try to multiply?

Excellent point. I am a bad mom.

aliantha wrote:
Sorus, you might be surprised. Neither of our cats is particularly interested in yarn, even when it's moving. You can also put a hole in the top of a margarine tub and stick the end of your yarn through a hole in the top. The cats might still play with the string, but at least they can't chase your ball of yarn across the room.

Ah, you underestimate my youngest, who isn't above hopping into my lap and pretending she just wants to snuggle, when it's all a ploy to play with my headphones. Anything even vaguely string-like exists only to amuse her.

aliantha wrote:The rest, I can't help you with. Although once you've learned how to knit and purl, knitting can be quite calming and meditative.

That was my thought. I'm trying to find something of a meditative nature, as panic attacks seem to be my default state these days. It's the stress level at work at this time of year. This is the third year in a row, and I'm in danger of starting to think it's normal. It's not normal, and it's not necessary, but it's out of my hands and I need to find a way to cope with it. Or get a new job, but that goal remains elusive.

Well, give it a try. Start with cheap yarn. Then you're only out a couple of bucks if the cats take off with the skein.

I could have sworn that my local Walgreens carried yarn, but apparently they no longer do. I should just wait and take the class - they supply all the materials, and all the stuff that's made (mainly blankets) is sold to benefit the shelter.

I've never been good at that sort of art. I always picture the finished product and don't have patience for all the little stitches and whatnot. I'd say that's why I prefer writing, since the end of a story sometimes means less than all the little stitches along the way.

Still, it would be nice to create something tangible.

That's one of the reasons I knit -- I get something nice to wear at the end of the project.

poor helldog is feeling the heat so badly. I would shave her down but she would have to be tranquilized first. We went outside for 10 minutes to deal with the zucchinifest and she started scratching at the door to get inside.

We are just about touching 20 centigrade at the moment, but Sammy is also bothered by the heat. He likes to get under the bushes at the back of the flower border where he digs a shallow hole to sit in! Next door's cat sits on the grass opposite him staring. When Sammy vacates the hole the cat gets in it!

Don't know how amenable Helldog is to brushing, but I got one of those Furminator brushes for my long-haired cat, and I was surprised at how well it works. I could make a sweater with the amount of fur I've collected, though I think I'd prefer to hold off that level of crazy cat lady for at least a few more years.

Sorus wrote:Don't know how amenable Helldog is to brushing, but I got one of those Furminator brushes for my long-haired cat, and I was surprised at how well it works. I could make a sweater with the amount of fur I've collected, though I think I'd prefer to hold off that level of crazy cat lady for at least a few more years.

She gets the brush and shedding blade 3x a day since she is blowing her husky coat. Its just so humid and oppressive here. The Gods are telling me something.

Move to the West Coast?

The only reason I still live in this ridiculous city is the lack of actual Weather.

Sorus wrote:Move to the West Coast?

The only reason I still live in this ridiculous city is the lack of actual Weather.

Move but not sure about the West Coast. Im skittish about shorelines and I think I need to avoid big city mentality. I am a small town girl stuck in big cities all my life. Taos seems to be calling me.

Sounds hot too. Maybe less humid, though.

woof (Taos)

Taos is at 7.000 feet, so it is somewhat cooler than ABQ, Santa Fe, or other NM communities. There is no question that it has a deep artist community. Still, I have long made a case to lorin similar to what Sorus is saying...that she belongs further West.

lorin was given information a few months ago on a fairly substantial number of Northwest communities that are not exposed to open ocean, are well-below the size of big cities, and that have active artist communities/enclaves where she can get studio space or at least meet lots of like-minded people.

She has been led to the (non-coastal) water...whether she drinks is up to her. There are limits to advocacy!

Seemed to me like Taos was hotter than Santa Fe, the day we were up there. I liked Santa Fe a lot. What can I say? I'm a sucker for a town square with trees.... Now the question is whether I can afford to buy a house there. I took a quick look at real estate prices the other day, and there's no way I could afford anything within walking distance of that plaza. Of course, the good news is that Santa Fe's downtown traffic is still navigable. Unlike, say, DC, where only an idiot would drive to the National Mall.

aliantha wrote:Seemed to me like Taos was hotter than Santa Fe, the day we were up there. I liked Santa Fe a lot. What can I say? I'm a sucker for a town square with trees.... Now the question is whether I can afford to buy a house there. I took a quick look at real estate prices the other day, and there's no way I could afford anything within walking distance of that plaza. Of course, the good news is that Santa Fe's downtown traffic is still navigable. Unlike, say, DC, where only an idiot would drive to the National Mall.

yeah, it did seem that Taos was hotter then SF. 1 hour north and significantly hotter than SF. In looking at real estate there is definitely more options in SF than Taos but I think the chances of ending up in a bad area are also significantly higher in SF. Personally though, I liked the small town feel of Taos better than SF. Guess it comes down to what you are looking for. And they are close enough to each other that you can stay in one and visit the other.

Hey Ali, remember Chimayo? Take a look at this
santafe.craigslist.org/reb/4500978084.html

Savor Dam wrote: lorin was given information a few months ago on a fairly substantial number of Northwest communities that are not exposed to open ocean, are well-below the size of big cities, and that have active artist communities/enclaves where she can get studio space or at least meet lots of like-minded people.

She has been led to the (non-coastal) water...whether she drinks is up to her. There are limits to advocacy!

I understand what you are saying but there are other factors involved in my decision process.

First and foremost is that I am a single woman starting over (again). I have no family or and limited people I know in the area of Seattle. I would have a significant group of people that I could fall back on in an emergency in I moved to the southwest. I have had some real health issues recently and the prospect of being isolated is hard for me.

The weather (rain) concerns me as I do believe I suffer from SAD and am very vulnerable to depression.

The real estate is waaaay toooooo expensive up there so the prospect of getting back on my feet is more daunting.

I hate humidity.

There is a large writers community in Northern New Mexico.

and lastly, I have gotten very involved in the glass art community. The center of this community is Santa Fe and there are a lot of glass artists there. There are also many classes and the chance to learn. The people in the company Bullseye have already invited me to many events which I have had to decline.

I was gonna say, SD -- if you've been pestering her for six years and she hasn't taken you up on it by now, it sounds to me like it's time for you to give up. Just sayin'.

lorin wrote:Hey Ali, remember Chimayo? Take a look at this
santafe.craigslist.org/reb/4500978084.html

Wow, that's cheap. But it's about an hour out of town, right? So it's *really* not walking distance to the plaza.

I dunno about this "bad areas" of Santa Fe bidness. You and I are both coming from major metropolitan areas that have *really* bad neighborhoods -- is anything in Santa Fe that bad? But seriously, I need to look into that... And I still haven't given up on Colorado. I was looking at some info on Kiplinger's website this morning, in fact, and it looks like CO's tax structure for retirees is more favorable than NM's. But my dollars would undoubtedly go farther in NM. Decisions, decisions....

Damelon, are you here? What did you think of Mountainaire?

aliantha wrote:But it's about an hour out of town, right? So it's *really* not walking distance to the plaza.

mid point - 1/2 hr to SF and 1/2 hr to Taos

lorin wrote:

aliantha wrote:But it's about an hour out of town, right? So it's *really* not walking distance to the plaza.

mid point - 1/2 hr to SF and 1/2 hr to Taos

...and a whole lot of desert in between.

Either way, you ladies and YOU TOO "Uncle John Duncan" need to get your butts moved to New Mexico. And yes, I agree with Ali, SD you seem to be beating a dead horse at this point. I will be the one assimilating Lorin instead of you so just give it up... She's my preciiiouussssss...