:: I've just returned from another trip to Spokane, and I'm happy to report that my mom is back in her apartment and doing well. One of the things I miss the most about the area I grew up in is the amazing sunsets. This picture was taken from the back deck at my brother's home.
:: My apologies for the previous blog header. I knew it looked a bit blurry, but thought that might be because my reading glasses weren't strong enough. In between trips to Spokane I went to the eye doctor and got stronger reading glasses, and glasses for driving as my distance vision has also deteriorated. I was appalled when I put on the new glasses and saw the header was still blurry, but didn't have a chance to fix it until I got home.
::
This article about a man being attacked by a lion in Kenya caught my attention this morning, not because of the attack itself, but, rather, due to the fact it referred to the man as being elderly. He was 63. My eyes might be going downhill, but I hardly feel like I will be elderly in four more years. I would like to have a word or two with the young punk who wrote that article.

:: Jay asked me why I didn't have a picture of his cat Emily in my side bar. I told him his fondness for Emily reminded me of Hagrid's love for his pet dragon Norbert. He is totally blind to Emily's flaws. She once swiped Karsten with her paw and the infection that set in was so bad he had to go on a course of antibiotics. Her latest bad habit has been scratching the wood post at the top of the stairs. And in this picture she has been partying in a bag of CDs Jay checked out of the library, and has scattered the library tickets all over the floor. (Okay, honesty forces me to admit Fergus may have also been involved, but at least I am willing to own up to the flaws in my own pet.)
:: Fergus was at the vet last week for his vaccinations and a check-up. Apparently he is about two pounds over his ideal weight, so I've now got him on a strict diet. In his case this basically means keeping him from snacking on the cat's food all day long.
:: Ella Gordon has been named the Shetland Wool Week patron for 2016. I met Ella that wonderful day I visited the
Jamieson & Smith shop, and I'm sure she'll do a terrific job in her role as patron. Today she released her
Croofthouse Hat pattern, which I'm sure will be on many heads come this September.
:: The Edinburgh Yarn Festival is happening this weekend, and I'm feeling quite sorry for myself that I'm not attending. It feels like everyone else is there but me, but then I remind myself that actually most people don't even know what the Edinburgh Yarn Festival is. In fact, I'm guessing there are quite a few people who don't even know where Edinburgh is. If, like me, you feel like you are missing out on all the excitement, you can buy the
Wool Tribe magazine which has six knitting patterns in it.
:: I have a finished knitting project to show you, and a finished sewing project. However, having fired my in-house photographer the pictures will follow at a later date. Selfies are okay for socks, hats and mitts, but not so great for sweaters and tunics.
:: In lieu of a finished project picture I am posting this one of Lucy, texted to me last week. This is the Wowligan I knit her for Christmas. There's something special about seeing the handknits you've made being worn out in the wild.
:: I bought some chestnut flour because I kept seeing it pop up in gluten-free recipes, especially recipes out of the UK. Of course, now that I have the flour I can't remember which recipes I had been looking at that inspired me to buy it. If you have any good recipes using chestnut flour I would really appreciate it if you left a comment.
:: The sun is shining and I plan to hike Teapot Hill again today. I never get tired of the way the light filters through the trees.
:: Apologies for being absent from your blogs over much of the past month. I really need to start using Bloglovin because my current system of blog reading does not work on the iPad, which is what I use when I'm away from home.
:: Have a great weekend!