Sunshine

Happy Memorial Day! It's officially the start of summer, thank goodness, and I kicked it off with a perfect day at the lake with friends.

My dear friend Carrie (above) and I joined some other friends on Old Hickory Lake yesterday for some sunshine. (And SPF 50 sunblock).

I learned how to wear a diaper - not what you're thinking. If you wear a life jacket upside down in the water, you float effortlessly.


We drove around for a while getting sun, then stopped off at a restaurant - I would definitely recommend this place if I could remember the name - Anchor Something Or Other. They had a killer shrimp po-boy and a great selection of beer for a hot afternoon.


I'm still not posting a lot lately, and have had a lot going on, but just wanted to share some sunshine with the world. I'm so glad we got out yesterday because some storms are about to pass through, but after that I'm planning some pool time with friends and am thoroughly enjoying this holiday. It's been the perfect combination of good friends, sun (but not enough to burn my freaky pale skin), and laughter.

Just Like Heaven

The Hosts

Saturday night I went to my favorite getaway - the Lakehouse. Abbie and Benji's dad has a little lakehouse somewhere between here and Memphis. The drive is just long enough to feel like you're far away, but just short enough to go away for a night. Abbie and I have been spending weekends there since I turned 16, sometimes with her brother (a.k.a. my "otha-brotha"), sometimes with friends, and sometimes just to get away for a girl's weekend.

The Next Generation

There are certain Lakehouse rules. Some came from tradition, others from necessity, and some from, well, we might have been drinking when we made those up. It can't be a Lakehouse weekend without wine coolers (don't ask why - just drink your darn wine cooler and get on with it). We also have to play certain games - Connect Four, Uno, and gin. There's really nothing else to do there after dark but drink and play cards on the screen porch.

The Neighbors

Guests must have a smile on their face within 10 minutes of arrival, and if you're not having a good time, go home. You'd better be easily amused, because you're on your own for entertainment. You're not allowed to know what time it is. There are about 15 clocks in the 4 room cabin, and none of them work. It's either time to eat, time to go to bed, time to get up, or time to go fishing. Everyone must pitch in equally when it comes to groceries, cooking, cleaning, etc. We all go there to get away, so no one person should have to take care of everyone else. The most important rule is that you have to go home stinky. You can't go to the Lakehouse and drive home clean. That would be just silly.

Little Tay and Auntie Em

This past weekend was fairly typical. Abbie, her daughter, Benji, and a couple other friends arrived earlier, so I showed up just in time for dinner (working Saturdays isn't always fun, but at least I got out of dinner duty). Afterwards we put little Tater to bed and sat on the porch for a quiet, but fun night with friends. We went to bed at about dark-thirty, every little bed and couch full.

The Fish Whisperers

The next morning, Benji and his niece collected sticks to give to Mommy. It's funny how we all revert back to high school at the Lakehouse. It's like we're playing house. When we all lived with our parents, the Lakehouse was just that. It was our own special place to get away and feel like adults, but now we feel like teenagers there.

Baby Turtle

After a great day, we cleaned up, packed our gear and headed home. I was about an hour away from Nashville when my legs started to hurt a little. Abbie and I were so concerned with not letting Tater get too much sun that we might have forgotten to re-apply sunblock. My legs are fried. It hurts to bend them, touch them, or even wear pants. It looks like I'll be wearing long skirts all week.

Other than the burn, I came home rested, happy, and most importantly, stinky. And it's not even summer yet. There are many Lakehouse weekends to come.

Spoiled Rotten

I left work early yesterday to go on a mini-getaway to Monteagle. We stayed in the same place as last fall. While the trees aren't as pretty in the winter, it was still a blast and quite beautiful.

I'm teaching another sock class, so it's another excuse to make a sock. This one is out of Flat Feet, an interesting way of packaging sock yarn. The store should get a shipment in March. I'm almost done with the leg, and knitted a few inches in the car on the way.



As we were pulling up to the house, we almost ran over a deer.


His friends were not far away.


After a little hike, we ran across a waterfall and I took a bunch of pictures.



The view from the porch hasn't changed much - this was after it rained all day.


While it was pouring outside, we stayed in and watched tv. I turned the heel on the vacation socks from New Year's. The colors are matching up so well.


I feel like this post has been a really bad version of a 3rd grader's "What I did on vacation" report. I really should blog when I'm a little more awake and have a little more energy.

Tired Auntie

It's Monday, which is my favorite day of the week - I get to spend all day with the nephews. While it's always fun, I end up absolutely beat and the older (and bigger) they get, the more exhausted I am at the end of the day. My brother taught Hoss (the 2-year-old) to go up to pretty girls and say "What's happening hot stuff?". A friend of mine stopped by, who Hoss has a big crush on, and he didn't stop saying it. Little Buddha (who is now only 3 pounds shy of his big brother) is starting to put words together and is so excited about everything! It's great that he's talking, but he doesn't stop. It's nice to be home to peace and quiet.

Yesterday I had a wonderful adventure.


A friend took me sailing on Percy Priest. While it was frigid, it was great to be in the sun. January and February are so horrible - dark, cold, and all around dreary. It drives me crazy every year. So when I get the chance to be outside on a sunny afternoon, it is greatly appreciated.

As for knitting (and crochet) I finally picked colors for the Babette blanket.


It's all Cascade 220 - some regular, a few superwash. I love the colors. Blankets are great because you can pick colors that you don't work with much - while I can't wear that pretty gold in the top left of the basket, I can sure crochet squares with it.

I'm also working on a little weekend project that's a surprise for a couple of people. It's a bonnet from Itty Bitty Hats, pattern slightly altered (of course). I can't get enough seed stitch. It's my favorite.


It's just about knit o'clock, and my project for this evening is the Uncle Argyle Scarf from Son of Stitch 'N Bitch. It's so much fun to work on, but takes forever and ever and ever. I feel terrible that what was once a Christmas gift is now turning into a Valentine's gift. At least the recipient is patient. So far 18 pattern repeats are done, and the pattern calls for 23. If I get 3 done tonight, 2 tomorrow, then I can block it on Wednesday and give it away on Thursday. Hopefully.

NFL Week 10

Guess where I went today? Here's a hint:


Carrie has season tickets, and took me to the game! Woo Hoo! But we lost and that sucked. My throat hurts from screaming and my hands hurt from clapping but it was a really fun time. Carrie rocks!

The only thing that really made me mad (besides the way we played) was Princess Frostilocks (he's the one on the right).


I love to play Mullet Watch. This is Music City where mullets are everywhere and you keep thinking that it couldn't get worse, but it does. I wish this picture showed the white blond frosted tips in their full glory. He had a bleach blond soul patch on his chin, and the wife-beater tank was hanging out of the neck of his shirt. He talked on his phone throughout the game and I was waiting for him to tell me to hush while I was screaming at our defense. It just made me scream louder.

This was the only second of the game that his arm was not around his woman (and her hair was almost as bad as his). When he put his arm around her he blocked access to my drink holder and I must have said "Excuse me" about a million times. If he messed with my hot chocolate one more time I would have gone on a frosted-mullet-bashing tirade, but kept my cool and was kinda worried that his girlfriend would scratch me to death with her scary press-on-nails.

I had to take a picture - that's for you, Sassy. She's my hairdresser/ best friend/ cousin/ knitting buddy and appreciates a bad mullet more than anyone I know. I normally don't make fun of people this much, but this guy needs to be in the Mullet Hall of Fame and he really pissed me off.

So we're 6 -3, still have a good chance at the playoffs, but the Titans had better get their %#*! together if they're going to win any more games. I still love you, Vince, and I really do believe in you, but right now my favorites are Keith Bullock and Kyle Vanden Bosch. I really like the way Keith sports the bright red gloves. The man's got style. And Vanden Bosch had a few really nice plays today.

Next week we're playing the Denver Broncos on Monday Night Football! I do love Jay Cutler, but we'll be kickin some Bronco butt.

And Betty S. - thank you so much - I had the BEST coffee this morning and am enjoying another wonderful cup right now!

Why I Love Tennessee, Round 2

I left work early yesterday (sorry Alicia!) to head out with some friends for a tiny weekend getaway to Monteagle (A sleepy little mountaintop retreat with amazing views, as you can see). Sometimes all you need is to drive for an hour and a half and feel (mentally) halfway around the world. It was a beautiful mini-vacation!


Today we went on a hike in Fiery Gizzard (great name!) I went there with my family many many years ago, and remember the sheer cliffs, up and down trail, intense rocky overhangs and water everywhere. So today we brought swimsuits and were expecting to hear the powerful waterfalls, but there was hardly any water. Tennessee (and much of the south) has been dealing with a tough drought for what seems like forever, and it was so sad to see a rushing creek turn into a standstill. One member of our group trekked around a slick waterfall and jumped in where the water was deeper, but after putting my feet in, I decided to stay dry. It was cold!


I snapped some great pictures, wish I could show them all. Below is an enormous old hemlock tree that must have been 12 feet in diameter.


I did bring knitting, of course, and wanted to knit on the porch last night after dinner, but there was too much wine around and it's hard to knit while looking at the stars - there were a bunch of shooting stars. Sometimes you have to get out of the city to see just how much light pollution effects the starlight.


Here is a current sock while driving down the highway. I got a lot done, but didn't count my stitches until about a half inch past where this picture was taken, and I have 28 sts on one side (how it should be) and 30 on the other (whoops). I have no idea when or how this happened, and am too tired to figure it out tonight. It's late, I just now ate dinner, and my legs are killing me. It's time to settle down with a certain project (felted clogs) for a certain good friend (who took me to Monteagle).

And I almost forgot - the Titans played the Falcons today, and it took all of the patience I could muster to wait until the hike was over to call friends in Nashville and find out that WE WON 20-13! Haven't found out the details yet, but apparently our offense was off but our defense saved the day. We're 3-1!