Life in Suburbia

This Week: Saturday 9th February 2013

The weather ... wet, cold and grey. However bad it is I am pleased to say I made it out today to the High Street for the newspaper, prescriptions and a coffee morning. Even more delighted when I spotted a Filofax cover on the bring and buy stall. Ian uses these for his maths. notes, we have scoured the charity shops, this cover will hold lots of writings on mathematical modelling. Big thank you to Anon for donating it.

I am wearing ...  navy blue jeans style trousers, navy blue crew clothing cable jumper, warm cream blouse and the pink cowl.

I am reading ...  today's newspaper, have finished and enjoyed The vanishing act of Esme Lennox, so much that I may re-read it before the book group meet.

I am creating ...  another cowl in linen coloured Rowan big wool, will be deeper and squishier than pink Spud and Chloe version as it's already more than 29cm long.

I am watching .. plenty of TV programmes about trains, so enjoyable that I fancy train trips around the country when the warmer weather appears.

I am enjoying ... the benefits of Ian's membership of the Royal Academy. With a friend the two of us went to Town on Wednesday last to see the exhibition about landscape. Slightly disappointed, had expected more paintings rather than prints, felt the latter needed more explanation, especially the difference between etching and engraving. Even after consulting Wiki I am not too sure.  More important, can recommend the cakes consumed in the Members' Room before we went to look at electronic toys at JLP and Ian went off for an OU tutorial.

Much knitting was done on the train and tube.

From the learning rooms ...  the last couple of times I have helped at Richmond local studies the work has involved listing information from black and white photographs taken of productions at Richmond Theatre in the early 1950s. I suspect these were publicity shots. If I'd known, I'd forgotten the theatre had it's own repertory company so the same names occur throughout the years, including one Margot Boyd, who became well known when she played Marjorie Antrobus in The Archers. None of the online biographies mention her time in rep at Richmond so the work recording these names in the archive is so worth while for future researchers.

On the menu ...  chicken for supper this evening, not sure how it will be cooked yet.

On the calendar ... collection of our ancient fridge and freezer, we had advertised them on Freecycle and they are off to be spares for another family. The fridge was Ian's Mum's; the freezer was from my Mum so we have had the latter for twenty years. Now it's just the two of us, we can shop daily for fresh foods so the capacity is no longer required. All part of the decluttering ready for transforming the cloakroom into a shower room later this year.

A picture (or two) from last week ...

Started again with the multicoloured yarn, the 'yo' holes can be seen, also a picture of the blue shawl, this completes 31 non consecutive days of blogging about knitting. Readers may be pleased to know I may not attempt any more of these kinds of challenges!

The shawls have been neglected in favour of the quick knit cowl given the cold weather.

Off to have tea and Ian's home made bread pudding, comfort food.

Today on Christmas Eve, whilst listening to a Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols from Kings,  I would like to send Christmas Greetings and my best wishes for 2013 to all who read this blog. Thank you to all who respond, to those whose format, ideas and thoughts that I may have used and my apologies to anyone that has been upset, angered or annoyed by my writings.

Just a quick update, an appointment came through for me to see a musculoskeletal physiotherapist about my painful shoulder, apparently a rotator cuff tear. Yvonne the physiotherapist gave me exercises to do thrice daily, these have been much help, although there are movements that are impossible or very painful.    I see Yvonne again in the new year, if she has the results from the x-ray by then it can be determined if I have a partial or full thickness injury. Rapped over knuckles for not going to see GP immediately after I fell, paracetamol and time were never going to repair the damage from this simple fall.

Good news on the knitting front, this be day 26 and since I last wrote I have made a cowl for myself. Have not worn it yet, it requires steam pressing but will do so as I wish to wear it tomorrow. The pattern, Rivulet Cowl was bought through Ravelry, the yarn is Spud and Chloe it is super bulky wool and organic cotton so size 10mm circular needles, such a contrast from 2.5mm size that I used for the socks.

 Photos were taken using my iPad rather than my Canon camera, will try to be photographed wearing the cowl.

Now to decide what to make next, maybe I will continue with the hexipuffs, 161 completed and not start anything else but I have yarn specifically for cushion covers, plus loads of wool to use. Was very satisfying to complete something in a few days so maybe more big needles and chunky wool