Today is Election Day. I’m living in a town with some of the fastest growing COVID-19 infection rates in the nation (adjusted for population). I’m so lonely I could just absolutely bawl (have bawled). It’s Tuesday so let’s talk things.
Molly is not allowed on the furniture because those are the rules. Molly gives exactly zero figs for those rules. And she’s letting us know. Speaking of rules, I’m a firm believer in Christmas decorations not coming out until after Thanksgiving. Except for this year. This year, I am bringing out all the twinkle lights, piles of cozy winter quilts, and every ounce of jingle-jangle-holiday-merry I can find. Because I need it. (I commissioned someone to make me that winter quilt and it arrived, along with a cozy throw pillow gift, this week.)
Playing Yeti in Spaghetti with Abram made me really want a set of old fashioned pick-up-sticks.
I broke my yarn diet. I get one skein of gorgeously dyed sock yarn every month from The Sleeping Bear Yarn Club (which has been a present to myself every year for the last 5 years) and that’s all I’ve been allowing myself. Recently, it came out that Hobby Lobby (those bastions of Christianity) has been stealing/copying color ways from one of my favorite indie dyers and so I decided to purchase a few extra skeins. I need to knit faster.
Knitting: I’m still working on the scarf and the socks. I’m almost done with the second sock. The scarf is languishing.
Reading: I finished Caste. The most frustrating part about recommending this book is that the people who most need to read it are the ones least likely to bother. It’s hard and uncomfortable and important. Now I have to decided between Tribe of Fatherless Girls and Addie LaRue.
Watching: Violet and I celebrated Halloween with a viewing of The Poltergeist. Feeling overwhelmed and frustrated with the whole world and in need of mindless crap, I watched Holidate. It fit the bill. Has anyone watched Ratched? I can’t decide if I want to. I need something, but I want cotton candy.
Listening: Nice White Parents. a mellow happy little fall playlist, and my dance it out song right now.
Making: Kari’s romance waffles. A list of winter projects. And Christmas presents.
So that’s me. What are you -ing? Wishing you a safe and healthy and week!
I love that you are making my Grandma’s waffles. I made them this past week and threw bacon in the batter because it was THAT kind of week.
I am hoping today goes better than in 2016. I just don’t know how anyone would want another four years of this bullsh**.
I am sorry that your numbers are so high. Ours are rising fast. They just closed down our restaurants but I do know that our neighbors to the north are struggling. Sending you all a big hug.
Remember, I am because we are. I was serious about meeting at a forest preserve halfway. Your germs don’t scare me. 🙂
I think bacon in the batter sounds amazing and I might have to try that next.
I wish our community was doing something like closing restaurants. I’m frustrated because we’ve been so cautious and yet here we are. Even when our quarantine is over, I’m sure we’ll continue to follow recommendations. I wish we had more people doing that!
Also I’m so glad you shared your grandma’s recipe. They are super yummy!!
Hi Kate! I’m so glad to see a post from you today. I completely understand the loneliness, which I’m assuming is not because of lockdowns. The bafflement I often feel about human behaviour is a really difficult emotion to process, mostly, I think, because it’s so laced with frustration.
That quilt is beautiful! I love the way you support artists—the quiltmaker, the indie yarn dyer, and the painter who did your kids’ portraits a few years ago. My frugality (and my need for minimalism) always seems to get in the way of me doing this, even though I know how important it is.
My -ing is mostly the same as last week:
Knitting: I’m still working on my sweater and the baby booties for our niece, and every now and again I’ll knit a few rows on a sock.
Watching: We binged the Great British Baking Show, so now we have nothing to watch. This may be a good thing because it might just force me out of the awful TV-watching habit I fell into a couple of years ago.
Listening: Yesterday while cleaning I listened to this episode of CBC Ideas: https://www.cbc.ca/radio/ideas/from-climate-change-to-pandemics-we-can-fix-this-mess-together-argues-philosopher-1.5526117
Reading: I’m really enjoying Elizabeth Gaskell’s Wives and Daughters.
Planning: This week I started to try to figure out Christmas presents. (This means I’ve spent an awful lot of time researching which books to buy.)
Like many (all?) Canadians, I’m hoping your election goes smoothly.
Take care and stay safe, Kate.
Oh, Marian, I really appreciate you. Yes, the loneliness has much more to do with not understanding how people behave than the lockdown itself (though I do miss getting together with my friends).
I’m going to listen to that CBC Ideas this week because “We can fix this mess together” sounds like an idea I can get behind.
I hope it goes smoothly too. I’m avoiding news and social media today.
I have to give you a heads up about that CBC Ideas episode. Although the “we can fix this mess together” does sound hopeful, the episode is actually quite a tough listen. The person being interviewed is a philosopher who recently wrote a book entitled The Democracy of Suffering: Life on the Edge of Catastrophe, Philosophy in the Anthropocene. The synopsis on Goodreads —https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/44451549-the-democracy-of-suffering — does say he proposes a way forward, but in the Ideas episode he’s quite blunt about his belief that we won’t/can’t solve the mess within the confines of capitalism.
I’ve rapidly come to agreement with him in regards to capitalism, though I appreciate the heads up that it’s hard listening. I may forgo this week.
Our quarantine was extended and I’m feeling…a bit like I need some good news.
Molly on the sofa is wonderful. Her lack of concern for the rules charms me. Good doggo. I feel her attitude is a guiding light in today’s world.
I’m not doing much of anything other than holding my breath too often. I have to remind myself to keep breathing because I feel so. stuck. between a covid rock and an election hard place. So to speak
I picked up Uneducated to read this week so maybe I’ll just focus on it, a memoir that I suspect I’m going to like.
I so relate to the covid rock and election hard place and very much appreciate your turn of phrase. I hope you’ll let me know what your think of Uneducated. I ended up googling the whole family after I read it.
Oh, what a relief, Kate, that I’m not the only human that put away my Halloween decorations the day after and started putting up my Christmas decorations! I spoke with a neighbor over the telephone who told me that she was keeping her orange lights up for Autumn color until after Thanksgiving. Then she goes all out with tons of Christmas decorations. I did tell her that I had already taken down my Halloween, but I did not have the courage to admit that I was decorating for Christmas already!! I’m with you on voting for more twinkle in my day!!!
“I’m so lonely I could just absolutely bawl (have bawled).” Yes. To stop crying, I distracted myself by looking into Toy-size Australian Shepherds; and then spoke with a woman breeder in Texas about possibly reserving one of her puppies expecting in January/February. Don’t tell Yorkie because she’s getting used to being the boss of me! Your Molly is absolutely gorgeous and rules as a Queen!!! At 61, am I too old for another pup to raise? I’m asking all for advice and clarity on dog things…. Anyone have an opinion?
Your colorful pictures brightens my day and those long legs of yours gave me a really great laugh!
Watching minimum TV, reading some, daydreaming a lot of things, but mostly spending my days with Yorkie outside in our lovely (yet people lonely) backyard garden of grass and front yard oak trees with more leaves than anyone would be able to keep up with. Weather here is absolutely gorgeous!!!
It’s Tuesday so let’s talk things!! I love it!!!
I love the picture you paint of you and your doggo in your garden. I do not think you are too old for a puppy and everyone I know who gave into the COVID puppy trend is glad to have a puppy.. Have you had an Australian Shepard before? I know they’re really smart and active.
Stay well, TD, and enjoy your Christmas decorating.
Oh, there’s a COVID puppy thing trending? I didn’t know.
Yes, I’m very familiar with the Australian Shepherds standard size. A couple of years ago, I volunteered to do the finding and selecting of a new puppy for a young man acquaintance and his girlfriend. I actually drove to 10 hours to the breeder to select and bring the puppy back to her new owners. They were so happy that brought me much joy to watch. The girlfriend trained the pup to do incredible tricks and she was in love at first site. I was sent photos and videos of her growth.
I also went back to the same breeder to see another litter after my York-chon passed August 2018. The puppies were great and being able to visit with the generations was a great way to experience the breed. Once I was there that day to do the selection for myself, I knew it was too soon.
Now I know that it’s not soon, but concerned about my aging. Perhaps Ali might come up with a clever doggo puppy poll voting for my inquiry of aging concerns. Ali is so clever and I love her poll vote posts!
There’s also a Twitter that I pop on every now and then for Aussie wiggle butts that’s fun to help better my mood swings.
I just learned about the “Toy” size and the “Mini” size. So I’m excited to add a “Toy” size to my doggo family. It’s a commitment and responsibility that I take seriously, so I want to have the confidence that I will out live another dog. Thanks for your opinion as I value your smartness!
The scarf that you want to do is really a nice pattern. One of the variegated yarns that you show would be very elegant! Looking forward to that soon.
I think a lot of people who were confined to home anyway thought it would be a good time to get a dog. Quite a few people in my circle of friends adopted dogs since March. I’ve toyed with the idea myself, but Molly isn’t a dog dog as much a people dog and I can respect that.
I love Ally Bean’s posts too! I’m glad you’ve met!
You’ll have to keep me updated on what you do decide!
I completely understand what you mean about Molly isn’t a dog dog as much a people dog. Same with Yorkie, really. That’s something to consider too. I have not reserved one of the puppies as of yet. My personal goal is and most of my life has been to Keep It Simply Silly (KISS). Yorkie is Simple. So that may be the best for us both. Like Molly. Thanks for sharing that with me. Makes a lot of sense!
What am I -ing? Hoping, grieving, wailing (on the inside), plodding forward into another day that feels too damn heavy to carry.
I also watched Holidate, and I liked it and I don’t care that I liked it. It was rom-com candy, but it also had an edge to it. I’m in the mood for escapism with an edge.
And not that you need permission of any kind, but I wholly endorse ditching your yard diet and putting up all the damn twinkle lights you can find. And Molly. I endorse Molly. Hell, I want to BE Molly. She’s got great hair and appears to be living her best life. Going to work on keeping my figs, too.
Your first paragraph resonates. I spent most of the morning reading favorite blogs and cleaning. Now I’m going to sit down with knitting and watch a commentary.
I liked the edge of Holidate. I don’t think it would have been good without it.
And I agree with both you and Molly that following stupid arbitrary rules about things when instead you could be happy in 2020 is not worth it. Here’s to keeping the figs.