Out There Having Fun

In the warm California sun. Ahh... San Diego. So much to do! San Diego is a wonderful place to visit. Great weather & lots of activities for the whole family to enjoy. My husband's family is originally from San Diego and he and I graduated from U.C.S.D. so we find ourselves down here almost every summer. I can't imagine trying to enjoy all San Diego has to offer in one visit.

Let's see - since my last post, what have we done? We've been to the beach. No photos - I was worried about getting sand in the camera. I just hung out on the sand watching the kids play & enjoying the "scenery" - use your imagination here. :-)
I've done a bit of knitting. I finished Jaywalker #1. I don't think the Jaywalker & I will have a long term relationship. In fact, I think we need a break. Sure - I'll come back for a visit. We just weren't meant to be. On the other hand, I did find another love. Remember the "Tulip Sweater" Stephanie blogged about June 5th? Remember how she just couldn't stop knitting it? Well - I jumped on the sweater bandwagon & immediately fell under its spell. The yarn! Dream in Color yarn! OMG!!! It is sooooo soft, the colors so rich. I just couldn't take my eyes and hands off of this yarn. While I was knitting this sweater, I kept fantasizing about what other projects could benefit from this yarn. I mean - knitting this sweater almost made me want to have another baby so I could knit more sweaters! Wade is relieved that those thoughts quickly passed. My sister is expecting a baby at the end of August, so I'll just have to knit for him/her (the gender is yet unknown). If you would like to fall under the spell of this sweater, please visit Coldwater Collaborative . All babies should have this sweater! Have a peek of where I am thus far: Only the sleeves to go. Did I mention there is NO SEAMING involved? Anyone who knows me well (Hi Margaret!) knows I avoid seaming like the plague. However- I've vowed to turn over a new leaf & pick up that needle & actually finish some projects that are sitting at home in my closet waiting to come together.

The Lower 48 Yarn Crawl has continued. While here I've visited "Common Threads" and "The Black Sheep" both located off S. Coast Hwy 101 in Encinitas. Both fabulous stores. No new yarn - a couple of books (including a finishing book). I'm waiting to find some STR yarn when I get up to the Pac Northwest.
Today we went to the Wild Animal Park. I haven't been there since I was in college (14 years ago!) so it was nice to return. Nice day - not too hot thankfully. Here's some photos of what you can find in the park:











Tomorrow is my birthday - I'll leave it that my age contains two of my favorite digits & that my favorite band is Duran Duran. Nothing planned thus far - hopefully dinner out & getting together with a college friend. I'm sure some knitting and coffee will also be on tap. I've cast on a Monkey Sock using my new Lorna's Laces yarn in colorway "Somerset".

Ciao~

Take Me Out To the Ball Game...

We've arrived at Wade's brother's house in San Diego. Okay - technically he lives in Carlsbad, which is north of S.D. But - when you've driven almost 5000 miles, it's close enough.

Today we went to Petco Park to watch the San Diego Padres take on the Florida Marlins. Let's cut to the chase - the Padres lost. Not much of an exciting game - 3 up, 3 down. Great pitching by the Pads, but horrible hitting. Apparently they forgot that in order to score - you have to get on base. In order to get on base, it's usually easier to hit the ball really far & run. Relying on the opposing pitcher to throw balls or hit you with a pitch is really a poor strategy. See - I don't even play baseball & I can figure that out!

As I mentioned in a previous post, I had the opportunity to go to Germany last summer & attend a World Cup Soccer match. My friend Lisa & I went to the U.S. vs. Ghana game. The U.S. lost, but that didn't matter - it was the atmosphere & experience which made for an unforgettable time. During the excitement - I had time to ponder the striking differences between watching a soccer game vs. watching a baseball game.

Going to a game is a fun outing for the family. We sat on the third base line in row 11. A few foul balls were hit our way - that certainly gets your attention. I'm not a great baseball player by any stretch of the imagination & I was a bit worried about a ball bouncing off the tops of our heads. Fortunately we didn't have to worry this time. The fact that complete strangers can get together & celebrate a double play and commiserate a missed opportunity is fascinating. It's a great time to forget about the horrible things happening in the world. It's an opportunity for hope. Perhaps the World's leaders need to forget this war thing & agree to duke it out on the futbol pitch or baseball field. Again - just a thought.

Of course - another fun thing about a baseball game, is it provides great opportunities for knitting! :0)

Tuscon - The Roaches Have Landed...

Captain's Log, stardate June 27 - day 13 (??) of our road trip to California via several National Parks & visits with friends. We have arrived in the hotness of Tuscon, AZ. It was 109°F (egads!) when we arrived. I'm certain there are several charming reasons to live here - otherwise, how could people endure this heat? As Alaskans, this heat is totally unreasonable. Thank God for air conditioning!

I must first provide the wildlife update. The most pressing news to report is the sighting of the Arizona Flamingo Frog. Never heard of it? Perhaps a photo might help: Yeah - what used to be a lovely, Flamingo stripe Jaywalker sock, has been reduced to an untidy ball of yarn. Arghh - painful transformation that was. Apparently I misread the instructions and after completing the gusset continued to slip stitches every row, instead of every other row. Big difference I guess. At least, I hope that was the problem. After I'd knit a few rows, which on size 1 needles takes a while don't you know, I'd notice this very large slipped stitch emerging from several rows below. It was a total freak of knitting nature - I just can't explain it. After carefully watching every stitch I knit, I decided it wasn't that I was just dropping that same stitch at random occasions. So - I decided to bite the knitting bullet & let er rip. It did help to ease the pain realizing I would then have the opportunity to reknit the sock & make it a tad larger so it would be easier to pull over my large feet. (See earlier post when I comment on how tight the sock is). Let's remember the good times the sock had in it's earlier life:

It saw the wonders of the Hoodoos in Bryce Canyon:
It enjoyed riding in the car:

It observed several weather patterns:


It marveled at the intensity of the Athabasca Waterfall:


It enjoyed the beautiful Canadian Rockies between Jasper and Banff:

Ah well, the life of a knitter. I blame the heat... (Really - what else could it be? Let's not mention swatches or any other such crazy talk. Shhhh)

Okay - since some of you may actually be interested in our trip, here's the lowdown: We've been on the crazy National Park tour. We've seen Yellowstone NP, Bryce NP, Zion NP, Glen Canyon NP, the Grand Canyon NP, and the Goblin Valley State Park. Wow! - Busy bee's we've been.

Since it's late, and uh - HOT!, I'll give just a taste. I'll work on posting more photo albums tomorrow since I'll have some more relaxed time.

Here's a quick glimpse of the Hoodoos in Bryce Canyon, Utah:

The requisite family photo at the Bryce Canyon sign:

Does it look like we've been on the road for too long? (Orion took this photo)

I'll leave with the moon over Zion. I'm tired.

Ciao ~