Out of Yarn

I envisioned this as a core dump, but there’s no pix of knitting.   (And, really, there is knitting.)

So, in no particular order:

The butterfly I did not quite capture in all his colorful glory.   (Darn!)   Red and blue and orange and yellow on the top/inside of his wings and the bottom/outside totally camouflaged against the dirt.

(Btw, you can click on any image to embiggen.)  (Personally, I think you should go check out the sunflower from the last entry.)

The fuzzy white girl dog – who wonders why she can’t go chasing squirrels; what was the point of cataract surgery anyway??

(She had her first forays back into the woods this weekend (since dental surgery – she had to stay out of the creek while healing.)  It was a bazillion degrees out and she thoroughly enjoyed romping in the water.)  (Yay! for healing dogs!)

Almost every morning, on the dog walk, we pass giant deep purple hibiscus.  Some are the size of dinner plates.  Each time I see them, I think:  I’ve got to plant some of those.  Oh,  I did.   (Yay me!)

In the garden:  we have watermelon blossoms!!!!   I threw some seeds in an open spot – between flowers that hadn’t grown in.   The vine is planning on taking over.   Dude so liked this idea that he made another giant bed, just for more watermelon.

(Also:  garden looks awesome.  I love planting giant leafy squashes.   Zukes, yellows, winters  – all look great.  Cukes are threatening to take over (again).  Catalopes look good.  Tomatoes!!!!  Herbs look good.   I’m all ready planning next year:  potatoes, corn, garlic …)

One of my favorite visitors has been by.   (Newfie)  Ned is no longer wooing her.  He is unafraid but also realizes she probably won’t chase him – which he would like.

So he snubbed us.

We’ve been seeing the area crepe myrtle’s flowering – white ones and purple ones and pink ones and …. (wait for them)… (wait) … red ones.   (Maybe next year I’ll remember that we planted a red one, instead of wondering what’s wrong with ours.)   (Don’t count on it.)

Nickie is still watching birds tv.  (The Evil Humans just make her stay inside with the Cold Wind instead of letting her multitask as a solar energy collector on the porch.)

Mostly he spends his time getting others to react:

Here he is (innocently) annoying all of us Nickie and I:

Nickie wants the box.

Ned won’t give it up.

Nickie wants us me to get it for her.  (She is mewing.  Plaintively.)

Dude is watching soccer.  (He can’t hear her.)

Aurora – well, Nickie wouldn’t bother Aurora.

(Ned is not above bothering Aurora.  Aurora barks at him.  And chases him.  And this gets the human attention.

Ned:  Score!  Aurora:  Score!

But Nickie is a scaredy cat.)

One could say that Nickie is annoying me, but I know better.

Ned figures that when I get tired of this, I will go do something interesting.  He will follow.  Nickie will get the box.

O.k. then.  Time to put that plan into action.

Never mind that I am out-witted by a cat.

Aurora is fine.

Amazingly fine.  (Makes me a twinge guilty that we didn’t try this first.  (But really there was no chance of that – blood work had to be completed before sedating her.)  (And – omg – are we getting good at sedating her!  (3 surgeries in 6 months=experience put to good use.))

Also – blood sugar not quite back to where it should be but she feels good.

(Oh, and now I get to tell her the part about no creeks for a week.  Maybe two.  What’s a dog to do without swimming in the summertime????)

But SunFlowers!

Remember last year?  When I put seeds in the ground and then had to cover them until they were no longer squirrel food?

This year, during the Big Snow, I tossed out the remaining heads of sunflowers as food for the birds.  I tossed them right out the front door – scattering seeds all over the top of the snow.

Some landed in the Yellow Garden and some landed on the lawn.  (On top of two-plus feet of snow.)

The seeds that were not eaten sprouted.  Those unfortunate enough to land on grass, were mowed.  Those that landed in the Yellow Garden grew.  Tall and mighty.  And not one was consumed by squirrels.

The Yellow Garden is only daffodils and sunflowers.  Squirrels don’t like daffodils.  (Why didn’t someone tell me this, years ago?)

Also, the tomatoes are coming!

I’m not usually together enough to play but I’ve always heard that there’s some rush to have home grown tomatoes by the fourth of July.  (Check!)

And another volunteer (hanging out in the shade of the sunflowers):

Dental work tomorrow – first up.

The plan is to sedate her, clean her teeth, take x-rays and (hopefully) find a cracked tooth to remove.   (Because an unseen infection could be enough to be causing her blood sugar issues.  If not, then (sad faces all around).)

She started antibiotics over the weekend.   (Kind of like humans with health issues – preventative antibiotics.)

Meanwhile, I have to (again) explain why I’m starving her (no food or insulin in the a.m.) and being mean (no treats).

I think she knows.   (sad face – me)

Half.   (“Half” looks funny every time I type it.  I keep thinking I’m spelling it wrong.  It has four letters.)

Too bad I don’t like it.  (Too small (too short, not wide enough).)

Too bad I didn’t listen to someone on Ravelry would said I’d have more than enough yarn to do an extra repeat.  (Sorry,  no picture; but she was right.   I don’t think an extra repeat would fix this – I think it also needs a looser gauge.)

Love the concept (Citron).  Love the yarn – the yin/yang of the black/white colors; the way the stripes change thickness without my intervention.
Ribbit

Well begun is half done.
Aristotle