Two Days, Two Seasons

Well, that was a super weird weekend! On Saturday, it was a little damp from the rain overnight, but the sun soon came out and it warmed up -- a lot. We reached a high of 83ºF, and I got a bit sweaty walking Ruthie even though I was wearing shorts and a t-shirt. We actually had to turn the air conditioning on because it was so much warmer in the house and we'd had trouble sleeping because of it. Yesterday, I woke up to rain again, but it was about 40 degrees cooler -- I needed a jacket, a hat, and gloves to walk the dog! I felt really bad for the little girls out in their Easter dresses and the kids out hunting for eggs in the wet grass, but I guess this isn't all that unusual for early April in Western Pennsylvania.

Fortunately, it was comfortable inside the house, and while I didn't sleep as much as I would have liked, I at least got a fair amount of downtime. It was enough to finish the first pair of sister-in-law socks:

They aren't quite a perfect match, but they are good enough. I did wind off a little yarn to start the second sock in the same place in the stripe sequence, and you can really only tell that they're not exactly the same if you look at the toes. And they're done, which is the best part.

I spent a little bit of time going through my sock yarn bin and came out with this skein for my other sister-in-law:

This is Knit Picks Stroll Hand Painted, a 75/25 superwash Merino/nylon blend, in the colorway Home Movie. I expect this will pool and flash rather than stripe, especially at the 80-stitch circumference I'll need for this recipient's feet. But I am rather enjoying the patterning that happened when I wound it into a center-pull ball!

This week Molly is back at school (so her bad mood will likely be back as well) and the Mister has a work trip, so I will be doing a lot of chauffeuring. Ruthie also has an appointment at the vet this morning to get her rabies booster. She'll be mad at me for withholding breakfast this morning (which I always do before she has to go in the car), but I'm sure they'll give her treats there and I'll make it up to her later in the day. And the cold will be sticking around for a few days yet, so I guess my hand-knit socks will get a few more wears before they go into hibernation.

I hope you have an easy start to your week, and I'll see you back here on Wednesday with a big sweater update!

Good Friday, Indeed

It's been a busy week, so I am feeling happier than usual about the fact that we've reached the end of it -- though perhaps the fact that I am done with work at 2 p.m. this afternoon has something to do with it! 

It's been a wet start to the month. We woke up on Wednesday having gotten an inch of rain overnight, and on a walk, Ruthie and I discovered that a neighbor had a pond in their backyard.

Fortunately when it's rainy outside, I feel less guilty about staying inside to read and knit! And progress has been made on both projects since you last saw them.

I've finished the colorwork on the yoke of my sweater, though that wasn't until last night after dinner and I had to take the photo earlier in the day, so what you're seeing here is about a round and a half short of completion.

It's been quite interesting to see how both yarns have striped, though the main color is obviously more subtle than the contrast. I've been working with the smallest skein of the three I have for this section, but now I'll be alternating to blend the skeins and avoid very obviously lines. I've also noticed that the purple yarn is a bit more robust than the other yarn, so there's an added textural element to the colorwork. I'm hoping that blocking will help to even it out a bit.

I've also gotten to the gusset of the second sock in the current pair, which means I'm about 75% of the way done with them.

On my to-do list for this weekend will be to pull out my bin of sock yarn and pick something for my other sister-in-law. She has the biggest feet of the four recipients, so perhaps I shouldn't have left her for last, but at least there's still more than a month left before Mother's Day and that should be plenty of time.

We had some interesting Passover Seders this week (four kids under 6 the first night made for a rushed and noisy time of it!). My mother, as per usual, made about twice as much food as was needed, so I expect we'll be eating leftovers for a while. Meal planning will be a little difficult for next week without our go-to of pasta, but we have more options than we used to since the Reform movement ruled that a lot of things that Eastern European Jews used to avoid during Passover (like corn, rice, and legumes) are, in fact, permitted -- but those aren't necessarily things Molly will eat, so it's still complicated.

We've got another quiet weekend ahead, and that's just fine with me. Molly may be working tomorrow (I expect they'll be busy because it's supposed to be close to 80!), and I have a couple of errands to run, but we have no fixed plans. And Monday she goes back to school, so it's the last weekend of spring break.

I wish you a very happy Easter if you're celebrating this weekend!

Unraveled, Week 13/2026

It's Wednesday and the first day of April, so no fooling around -- time to link up with Kat and the Unravelers!

I've worked some more on both my sweater and the socks for my sister-in-law, and while I've made some progress since Monday, it's not enough to make it worth sharing an update so soon, so today I thought I'd share my most recent yarny acquisition. Now, we all know I don't need more yarn and have actively been trying to use up stash for a while. But I'm all about moderation, and that means that occasionally I feel it's acceptable to acquire some new yarn. In this case, it was done for a good reason. I think you all know that I am friends (in real life!) with Lisa of Fibernymph Dye Works. Earlier in March (on my birthday, actually), she had hip replacement surgery. I knew she was worried about it and wasn't sure how long she'd be out of commission as far as dyeing yarn is concerned, so I wanted to help her out a bit by making a purchase -- nothing huge, just a little business thrown her way to help while she's unable to work. So here's what I ordered:

On the far left is Bounce (fingering weight) in her 2024 anniversary colorway called A Legacy. It was inspired by a zig-zag crocheted blanket that Lisa's grandmother made, one she still has. I remember my grandparents had one in their den, though theirs was in peak 1970s colors (browns and oranges), and I like the colors of Lisa's much better. The other two skeins came in a mystery grab bag; I knew the bases but not the colorways when I ordered. The center skein is Beguiled, a DK superwash merino/nylon/sparkle, in the colorway Mountain House Autumn, and the one on the right is Strong DK (superwash merino/nylon) in the colorway Gnome Place Like Home. That last one obviously needs to be made into something for my brother, but what I will do with the other two skeins is still up for discussion.

It's been another productive week of reading, largely thanks to audiobooks (I used to listen almost exclusively to podcasts while running/walking, but a number I subscribed to have stopped production, so I find myself downloading more audiobooks than ever).

Private Rites is set in a version of England where climate change has caused the rain to be unceasing and the water levels to constantly be on the rise. Three sisters whose relationships with one another have always been fraught come together in the wake of the death of their father, a rigid and demanding man who was celebrated as an innovative architect. The moment causes all of them to reflect on their childhood days, the mystery of what happened to the mother of the two oldest girls, and the strange memories they could never make sense of. This is billed as a retelling of King Lear, but honestly I didn't see much of a connection other than three sisters and a father who is cruel to them. I thought the writing was great but the story was just so-so, and frankly I'm still not sure what happened in the climax at the end. I gave it 3 stars.

After my experience with Lincoln in the Bardo, I knew I wanted to listen to George Saunders's newest, Vigil, and I'll tell you up front that that was a great choice -- it's excellent on audio with its full cast. The vigil of the title refers to the role Jill is playing and has played several hundred times. After dying at a young age, her new job is to comfort those who are close to death. This time, her charge is a former oil company executive, a man so sure of how he has lived his life that he sees no need for comfort. But other spirits are visiting, too, trying to get the man to atone for her contributions to climate change, and in such a charged atmosphere, Jill finds her thoughts straying back to her own life and death. It's sad, it's funny, and it's completely original. There's no question that George Saunders has a fascinating mind, and he is perhaps the only writer who could take the idea of a dying man being visited by a spirit in such a creative and unusual direction. I gave it 4 stars.

I heard about The Art Spy on one of the few podcasts I still listen to and immediately put it on hold because it sounded right up my alley: narrative nonfiction about the Germans entering Paris in WWII, determined to plunder the art held by France's museums and private (predominantly Jewish) collectors and the efforts by the French museum staff and resistance to prevent it -- yes, please! The book focuses largely on Rose Valland, a highly educated French woman well qualified to work as a curator who was repeatedly blocked from advancing in her career by men in positions of power. But in the war, her unassuming figure and the fact that she had a near-photographic memory enabled her to work right under the Germans' noses to keep track of where plundered artwork was going. The book also follows the Rosenberg family: Paul Rosenberg was a prominent Paris art dealer who represented Picasso and Matisse. His family fled the Nazis and escaped to New York, while his son Alexandre went to England to join Charles de Gaulle and the Free French forces and would be in the military group that eventually liberated Paris. And of course the book focuses on the Germans who took any and all artwork they desired, whether it was for German museums, Hitler's own collection, or themselves. I certainly knew that the Nazis stole a great deal of valuable art from European Jews, but I wasn't aware of the scale of their operation or the efforts of those in the occupied zone to attempt to counteract it. In addition to covering the entirety of the war, the book provides a comprehensive accounting of efforts to recover the stolen art and Rose's large role in it. I highly recommend this one. I gave it 4 stars (frankly, it would have been 5 stars except that I kept getting annoyed with what looked like sloppy copyediting to me).

I bought A Well-Trained Wife on a whim when it was a Kindle deal; I've always found memoirs to be a great way to learn about lives that are very different from mine, and certainly the "Christian patriarchy" of the subtitle is about as different from my life as I can get. When Molly was a newborn and I'd lie down in the afternoon while she napped, I'd often turn on TLC. At the time, the Duggars were very popular, and I was strangely fascinated by them. In this book, the author gives her perspective on the fundamentalist Quiverfull movement, showing that there is a very dark side to the wholesome public appearance. In short, she was expected to be obedient, submissive, and silent. Her exposure to the outside world was limited, and she was physically "punished" if her husband felt she was not respecting him, not doing her duty, or generally not following all the rules of their restrictive religious teachings. I admire her for her honesty, but I found the book itself to be hard to read and follow at some times and frequently got overwhelmed by all the theology. Plus, now I think I have yet something else to worry about with respect to the future of this country (the fundamentalist view of how it should be run). I gave it 2.5 stars.

Finally, another memoir, this one a little more lighthearted: In Everything I Know About Love, Dolly Alderton writes primarily about her teens and 20s and her evolving understanding about relationships and what matters. As you would expect, she gets wiser as she gets older, but through it all she maintains a sense of humor. I think many of the references were lost on me because I'm not British and because I'm older than the author, but I could still identify with feelings about friendships and getting older. I also really enjoy it when an author reads their own work, particularly memoir, so it was enjoyable to listen to. I gave it 3 stars.

I'm still reading The Odyssey -- but I've passed 400 pages, so I'm in the home stretch -- and have just started John of John, Douglas Stuart's forthcoming third novel. April is National Poetry Month, so I'm going to prioritize reading some of the collections I've acquired in recent years this month, too!

Passover starts this evening, so tonight we'll be at my parents' with all the family, and then tomorrow it'll be just my side at my brother's for the leftovers. Today Molly and I will be making charoset and roasting potatoes. I will likely be complaining about the food in a couple of days, but this is my favorite Jewish holiday, so I'm looking forward to it!

Restorative Weekending

As I was hoping, it was a calm, relaxing weekend. I even slept in a little on Sunday when Ruthie didn't wake up until 6:20! It was colder but sunny, so I had the blinds of the family room open in the afternoons while Ruthie napped, and I noticed it was still a little light out when I took her out for her last potty break on Saturday evening.

So what did I do with my quiet weekend? I had a nice dinner with my side of the family on Friday. I got in two long walks on my own. I finished two library books. I finished the first sock of a pair (and started the second):

and I put in at least half a dozen rounds on my sweater, including the final increase round:

I snipped some daffodils from outside and put them in a vase on the kitchen counter. I took my time drinking my coffee in the mornings. I did the household chores that needed to be done but no more, and I snoozed a little in the afternoons when I was reading and my eyelids started to get heavy. I enjoyed the calm and quiet. It was exactly the weekend I needed, especially with a holiday week ahead!

Time to Rest

I'd planned for a quiet(ish) week, but I did not anticipate getting a migraine on Wednesday, with an aura that hit in the middle of my run. When this happens, it starts with a blurring in the middle of my visual field, much like a spot you see if you look directly at a bright light, and it gradually expands so that I lose all peripheral vision on my right side. It can be pretty scary, and I'm thankful that it's never happened to me while driving; in this case, it was a major inconvenience. I did get safely back home, took a quick shower, and then forced myself to eat some lunch so I'd have something in my stomach to go with my Tylenol. And though I'd prefer never to have a migraine, having one when Molly was home was ideal if I had to have one. She was able to entertain Ruthie while I ate and generally checked in on me all afternoon to see if I needed anything. I wore a hat and sunglasses to take Ruthie for a walk, and then we both curled up for the afternoon. The pain eventually went away and I went to bed before 10, sleeping until almost 6.

Yesterday I was better, though I did had that weird migraine hangover where it feels like my brain is sloshing around in my skull. That meant another quiet day was called for, and Ruthie was kind enough to oblige.

I can tell I'm on the mend if I can knit and read again!

Today I'll be trying to keep things calm again. I don't really know what triggers my migraines -- at one point I thought it was dehydration, so now I make sure to drink plenty during the day -- but in this case I'm choosing to blame looking at page after page of names for commencement. That is nearly done for this go-round, and I hope all I'll spend today reading is my current library book. Tonight we're having a family dinner with my side of the family, so I'll get some snuggles from my niece and nephew (well, my niece for sure). And the only thing I have planned for the weekend is going to get some fasting bloodwork done first thing tomorrow, so there will be even more resting in my future. I'm hoping this leads to a good long time before another migraine!

Molly and I were talking about going to No Kings rally tomorrow, but she is working and I'm not really interested in going alone, so I'll be supporting those of you protesting from home. It is supposed to be cold again tomorrow, so it'll be good opportunity to wear my Melt the ICE Hat while I'm walking Ruthie!  Whatever you have planned for this weekend, get some rest and be kind to yourself.

Unraveled, Week 12/2026

Although we had a return of winter here to start the week -- there were brief snow showers on and off on Monday, despite the fact that we hit a record high (84ºF) on Sunday -- it's been a nice start to the week. The combination of longer days and less running around because of spring break has meant that life is feeling a bit more leisurely. I spent much of Monday working my way through commencement lists, including the biggest one at 42 pages in Word, but by yesterday morning I'd gotten through all the lists I'd received and I had some time to myself again. As we've now made it to Wednesday, it's time to join Kat and the Unravelers to talk about my making and my reading.

The newest socks I've cast on seem to be flying off the needles; after starting them Sunday morning, I found myself starting the heel flap by Monday afternoon. I've now completed that, turned the heel picked up stitches, and begun the gusset.

I tried to take this photo on Ruthie for scale, but she objected.

My sweater also is moving right along. I am more than halfway through the chart and have just one increase round remaining, which means that there are a lot of stitches on the needles and each round takes a good amount of time. I'm able to get several rounds done most evenings. The circumference of the yoke is now larger than my 40 inch needle, so that's a good sign of progress!

As predicted, my reading time has been somewhat curtailed, but I still managed to finish three books this week.

The Paris Express is a fictionalized account of the real-life crash of a train at the Montparnasse station in Paris in 1895. The novel follows the course of the train throughout that day, focusing on members of the staff and passengers in turn. In many cases, the characters are people who existed and were on the train, though the author created many details of their personal lives for the purposes of the plot. It's an interesting premise for a novel, given that it's known how it will all end, but how it happens ends up being the source of the suspense. I'd picked this one up because I loved The Pull of the Stars and had heard an interesting description of this latest release, but I'll admit I was a bit disappointed. It wasn't as suspenseful as I was expecting and didn't quite capture my full attention. I gave it 3 stars.

I honestly can't remember how I first heard of This Is How You Lose the Time War, but it had been on my radar for a long time and I'd finally put it on hold at the library (but still had a long wait). Had it not been for that long wait and the fact that I was able to listen to it all in a day, this likely would have been a DNF for me. It's a science fiction novel in which two agents on opposing sides of a war write to each other in spite of their enemy status and somehow come to care for one another. My main problem was that I couldn't ground myself in the story; I just didn't understand the world in which this was taking place, who the opposing sides were, or why they were fighting. Perhaps reading with my ears was part of the problem, but I suspect this was just a bit too far outside my comfort zone. I gave it 2 stars.

I'd just heard of Kakigori Summer on a podcast last week and was happy to find it on Hoopla. This 2025 release follows three sisters, the children of a British father and a Japanese mother. Eldest Rei lives in London and works in finance, middle daughter Kiki is a single mother who lives in Tokyo and works in a nursing home, and youngest Ai is a singer in a J-pop group. When Ai becomes the focus of a scandal, her two older sisters come together to help her, and the three women (and Kiki's young son) escape to their childhood home next door to their 90-something great-grandmother. Being back in that quiet village leads all of them to reflect on their earlier lives: the effects of their parents' split, their mother's disappearance and presumed death, and how their "half-breed" status has meant perpetually feeling like outsiders no matter where they are. I thought this was a beautiful story about family and how your family can be your home when nowhere else feels like it. Although there's a fair amount of Japanese in the book, I could figure out most of it through context, and I had the benefit of a narrator who knew how to pronounce the terms. I will note that I had a bit of confusion early on, when I confused "Ai" with "I," but a reread of the synopsis cleared things up. I really enjoyed it and gave it 4 stars.

I'm still working my way through The Odyssey and am getting close to the halfway point. I've also started a memoir and a fascinating work of nonfiction about art in WWII.

What are you making and reading this week?

A Mixed Bag of a Weekend

How is it already Monday again? And why do weekends always go by so quickly, even when you're not doing much? (And why don't dogs understand that weekends are for sleeping in?)

My weekend started early -- at 4:50 a.m. on Saturday. Ruthie is still having some occasional tummy trouble, and I guess that's when she needed to go. (She's now getting daily probiotics and some pureed pumpkin with her meals. Things seem to be getting better.) It was a much earlier start to the day than I'd hope for, but there is something kind of fun about being the only one awake and having a slow start to the day, particularly if there's a puppy curled up next to you while you nurse your coffee. Because that first trip outside was so early and because Molly and I were going out to lunch with my mother, we got an extra walk in during the day, and I don't think Ruthie minded one bit!

Before I passed out early for the night on Saturday, I managed to finish up my mother-in-law's socks:

I used my usual sock recipe for these, worked over 68 stitches with a US 0/2.0 mm needle, but I worked the entire sole in 2x2 rib after picking up stitches for the gusset. Years ago I knit a sock pattern that had ribbing on the sole, and those socks always felt like a bit of a foot massage. My MIL has neuropathy in her feet, so I thought these might feel good. The yarn (Lorna's Laces Solemate) also uses an engineered fiber that's supposed to regulate temperature. It's exciting enough to have finished the socks, but do you know what's extra exciting? This skein was the last one from the stash enhancements that came home with me from SSK last summer. (We'll ignore the fact that I still have some yarn in my stash from my very first SSK in 2017, right?)

Now that I've got finished pairs of socks for both my mother and my mother-in-law and it's only mid-March, I though I'd knit two more pairs for my sisters-in-law so that all the moms in my family can have a new pair for Mother's Day. I've already cast on the next pair, using a skein of Fibernymph Dye Works that only recently came into the stash, as it was the "reward" skein for completing the FDW component of Lisa's make-along last year. The colorway is called Wishes for the Journey, and as you can see, it has an unusual stripe pattern.

These are such happy colors that feel so appropriate for the first days of official spring, just as flowers are starting to bloom and green is appearing on trees.

I've got a busy week ahead: It's the start of commencement season! I still plan to keep my usual blogging schedule, but I will likely spend much of this week reading lists of names rather than reading books. The upside is that Molly is on spring break this week and next, so I'll get a longer stretch of quiet time in the afternoon (while Ruthie naps) because I won't have to leave to pick her up at school. She's also promised to bake some cookies this week, so I can have a treat for finishing all that tedious work.

This weirdo hopes you have an easy start to your week!