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Tuesday, July 27, 2010

Post-it from the edge

Greetings! Quimbys are on holiday, and I'm just taking a quick break from the sunning, singing, swimming, sipping & snacking to say hi. Hi! Also, now that I no longer need to keep it secret, I thought I'd show off the reason for the absence of bloggable knitting over the last 3 months (and, honestly, the reason for much of my radio silence in general!) Been knit-knit-knitting to finish this for my Pa before this trip. Didn't quite make it, but I managed to get the last bit done yesterday - we're leaving tomorrow - close enough!

Specs: Jo Sharp's Fisherman's Gansey in Miss Babs pewter Yowza! - which, by the by, knits up like a dream!

Here it is, being modelled by the recipient. (First pic is closer to the real colour.)




Thursday, July 15, 2010

Still kickin'

Been very busy chez Q, yet oddly, not much of note. Can't complain, since all is well - but doesn't make for much blogging! A few bits & bobs...

Summer has finally arrived, and with it: martini season! I'm going with last season's favourite, the Lemon Drop. Most refreshing, though I've got a bit lazy & instead of lemon juice, I'm using Absolut Citron. It does the trick! Not having a martini shaker might be a bit of a hindrance, but it turns out that a stainless steel travel mug does the job quite nicely.

I've had a bit of a rough time sleeping the last couple weeks, and was actually kind of getting worried about it. (Well, more worried about the safety of those around me, as there was the possibility of Biting Heads Off. Or at least, general biting.) I finally realized, though, that it was because of the construction going on across the way...They're getting ready to put in a new condo complex (there goes the view, but that's a story for another day) and in the process, they have completely excavated the rather large embankment. Which, it turns out, did a much better job than we knew of muffling the sound of the trains coming in and out of the port, just a few hundred yards from our place.

Apparently there's a pretty regular train daily at about 3:30 a.m. Oy. I've been sleeping a lot better since I figured out what the problem was. It was quite a relief to realize that it wasn't a brain tumor or nightly alien abductions! (No, no melodrama here at all, why do you ask?)

Mr.Q's been working a ton of overtime the last few weeks. This makes for not so much Quimby time, but I'm not about to argue. Coz I seem to have booked myself a flight in October to points East. And after that, I'll head north for a few days, to spend my birthday in La Belle Province. Specifically, Montreal. I'm more than a little stoked! I've been itching to do a wee bit of solo travelling, and this should scratch the itch. Temporarily at least!

And that's been a catalyst for something else I'd been meaning to do for awhile. (If, by "awhile" you understand that I mean "about 15 years"!) I seem to have found myself a French tutor, and am having fun trying to see if I can excavate a few bits of my old high school language skills. I don't actually think I'll remember enough to use efficiently by the fall, but I'm having a hoot in the meantime!

No knitting to speak of - I am working on a sock, v-e-r-y s-l-o-w-l-y, but since it's sexy yarn, I don't mind that it's taking awhile. It's some Sanguine Gryphon Little Traveller that I picked up at Sock Summit last year. I don't remember the name of the colourway, but it's blue. Go figure. And it's really, really nice to work with!

Awesome random moment downtown - walking (more like stumbling!) to the coffee shop one morning a week or two ago - school had just finished a few days earlier, so there were (are!) hordes of teens wandering around downtown. A group of 3 or 4 a few feet behind me spontaneously - clearly, completely unselfconsciously - burst into song. Specifically, "Gee, Officer Krupke" from West Side Story. They started at about 3:00 here. Sadly, I think I was the only person on the street at the moment, so no one else got to enjoy it. They were pretty good!

And that's about it for now. Will be back soon! Hope y'all are fantabulous in the meantime.

Thursday, July 1, 2010

I am far too Canadian!

How's it goin', eh? Here at Chez Q, we're enjoying a mini-weekend, thanks to Canada Day! Being a good, patriotic Canuck, I thought it fitting to pay tribute by way of some iconic Canadian symbols. So. I give you:

Snow:
Canada Geese (nasty mofos that they are!):

Funny money (yes, it's "real" currency!)

Fine traditional cuisine:

Hockey:

Beer (and, may I say, a fabulous choice for a national animal!)

And a toque, in the colours of a hockey team:

I hope you hosers are all sitting back with a beer and enjoying this fine day! Here's my favourite alternate to our national anthem for you to listen to while you sip your bevvie: