less than two weeks should explain it

hello friends,

while i have been somewhat absent, i have not forgotten.

however, certain things are a little more important right now and blogging is somewhat impossible. don't even mention the knitting - it's practically non-existent and I keep starting little projects and then putting them down in various places all over the house.

I can't even stay on topic with the title of my blogpost!!

Less than two weeks until the wedding. Now do you understand?

Regular knitting and blogging will return shortly after October 6!!

i thought this was supposed to calm them down...

by "this" I mean that whole "neutering" thing you have to do to your puppy when they're around 6 months old. I mean, it wasn't much of a debate for us, there's all kinds of good reasons to have your dog neutered or spayed. I'm more sure, however, that, for us, the real reason we had Titus neutered was because we heard from several people that it supposedly calms them down a whole lot. Which, for us and Titus, was definitely a bonus, since Titus' regular daily adventures range from trying to wear my underwear (see previous post) to chewing every single one of D's flip flops to barking at his reflection in the patio door. If you get my drift, he's not exactly a calm dog sometimes and we were somewhat looking forward to having him a little more on the mellow side.

Until this:
This is what my side of the bed looked like last night after D. and I fell asleep in front of the TV and the "bub" (as he's affectionately called) was completely and totally unsupervised for about 15 minutes. My pile of books and magazines were completely destroyed; more specifically, the next book on my list to be read: The Birth House by Ami McKay. I was about ready to kill, as this is the only photo proof I have of how much of a PSYCHO Titus has been since he had his "hoo-hoos" cut off on Wednesday. I am not kidding you - the day he had his surgery, he went from giving us the cold shoulder for putting him through such a traumatic event to being a whirling dervish on a leash in less than two seconds. He flipped himself (literally somersaults in the air) for so long that D. and I just looked at each other - stunned. D. says, "But I thought...." Don't say it, honey; don't say it..... I thought so, too.

Anyway, back to Hurricane Titus in the bedroom. At least, as D. so nicely pointed out, he had the courtesy to stop ripping at the right spot:




Right at the beginning of Chapter One! Good Dog!


So since the "neutering" didn't do the job of calming Titus down (hardly worth the 400 bucks at this point!), today I returned to my old trick of taking him for a walk in the middle of a summer day - a one-way ticket to "calm and submissive dog". He enjoys walking, but he doesn't know how to pace himself; which means he strains at the end of the leash and pants like he's taking the last breaths of his life, appropriately enhanced by letting his tongue hang out so far that he'd put Gene Simmons to shame. So, I know that he's not close to death, or that he's not thirsty (because I just gave him a drink right out of a water bottle - how spoiled is that!) but that doesn't seem to stop at least two people per walk to tell me disapprovingly that he's clearly thirsty or tired, punctuated with a look that says, "Don't you know how to look after your dog, you imbecile?"

To respond: yes, I know how to look after my dog, people. I know how to look after my dog so well, that I'm completely concerned for his cultural well-being and today I brought him to the Ottawa River (see above) and the stone sculptures at Remics Rapids (see left). I'm pretty sure that if he wasn't so enthralled with the cultural experience, he'd be facing the camera and trying to eat it, or, more likely, scratching at the knapsack that's holding the water bottle so he could have a drink. So, I think I'm a pretty good dog parent, thank you very much, and I think he's going to be well-prepared for the demands of the world!



I don't think, however, that neither Titus nor I were prepared for this lovely vision:


To start, you have to fancy yourself quite the "hot tamale" to walk along the pathway by the Ottawa River in a string bikini and running shoes when the closest beach is a good 5 kilometres away. I know this is not a great picture, but I can assure you that this woman was not even close to my side of 40 (that would be the young side) and she was "digging her fine self" because she broke into a couple of dance-y "sashay" steps more than once along the way. I don't make it a practice to photograph women in bikinis, and I know it was 35 degrees today so a bikini is justified in the right venue, but this woman was so out of place here that she may as well have been naked in the middle of a convent, for God's sake. I'm sure all of those bike-riders, who almost rode their bikes into the river because their eyes were burned out by the sight of her, would whole-heartedly agree with me.

As our Pop Pottle would say, "Sacred Heart, woman, put some clothes on."

And on a final note... maybe Titus' operation DID work.

I don't even think he noticed her.

i'm supposed to be packing

this weekend (ie. at 5 a.m. tomorrow) we are heading to my friend Vanessa's wedding for the weekend. at this wedding, we will indulge in golfing, eating, drinking, sleeping and celebrating Vanessa's jump into matrimony, knowing full well that we will be in her exact footsteps in none other than 65 days (yes, i'm counting). And at this moment (11:45 pm), i am either supposed to be (a) packing or (b) asleep in bed. however, you can clearly see that I'm doing neither, because nothing soothes the urge to procrastinate than to do a little internet surfing, a little blogging, and a little picture taking. i could justify this post by saying that I have been negligent in my blogging duties (and I have) and therefore I need to post, but why bother? i'm procrastinating, plain and simple.

first up: the picture that starts this post is lovingly entitled "yarn cuddles." this is evidence of just two of my recent splurges on yarn and what better place to photograph it than on your bed? the yarn on the left is a mohair/alpaca mix I found in a wee little yarn store not 10 minutes from my school. it's a gorgeous mix of lavenders and pinks - all grown, spun, dyed, etc. etc on site. my lunch breaks will take on a new meaning next year - I can be there, buy yarn and back to school all within 40 minutes. the potential for crisis is huge here! the yarn on the right is Fleece Artist's "Goldielocks" - it's all pinks and dusty roses... gorgeous. and they look gorgeous together, but i will not be knitting them together. i have an idea for the alpaca/mohair mix but i'm clueless on the Goldielocks (I guess I should not admit at this point that I also have two other skeins of Goldielocks in other colorways - don't even ask me about it, I can only claim complete madness.)


in addition to buying yarn, i have actually been knitting. i'm working away on a little Argosy scarf - this is in Paton's Grace in "Tangelo." It's mercerized cotton, so it's a nice knitting project for the summer. i've said this before, but the Argosy pattern is super easy to memorize and that's what makes it so fun to knit. and while I enjoy being "in progress" with my knitting (seriously, when was the last time I posted a finished product?), I would like to finish this soon. That being said, I have no intention of wearing it when it's finished because orange looks hideous on me - i just look like a big pumpkin when I wear it, which is not exactly anyone's idea of glamour. so it will be gifted to someone who looks fabulous in orange. any takers?

this next picture is what my computer desk looks like at this exact moment. i'm sure many of you are thinking "Blessed God in heaven, the woman's a slob" and, I assure you, that while I have messy tendencies, I usually make a great effort to be clean and organized. I just have a lot going on right now and the desk demonstrates it perfectly. The box holds the ring box for my engagement ring, there's a returned thank you note that needs to be re-sent, a bank statement for an old savings account, even gum wrappers. Wait a second.... Blessed God in heaven, I AM a slob... but i like the angle and the lighting of the picture.


and, finally, what pet owner doesn't take/post/ send out/ email funny pictures of their pet? this is Titus in his latest clothing of choice - my thong underwear. I can just hear what you're thinking now, "Jay-sus, she photographs yarn in her bed, she's a slob and now she's dressing her dog up in her thong, and having the nerve to blame it on the poor animal!! She's cracked!" While I may protest the "cracked" label a little, I couldn't resist taking this picture. Titus found this underwear and started playing with it by flipping it up over his head. The next thing I knew, he had it wrapped around himself, and, I assure you, in less than 10 minutes, he had it on a million different ways, but never in the right way. Every time it changed, I forced him to look up at me so I could take a picture.... this picture is so priceless to me because he looks so irritated with me; i feel like he's saying to me -

"What do you mean by "I'm wearing it wrong?""

Oh, Titus, you're such a joy. I love you! Back to packing... or sleeping...

i can't find the camera

seriously.
i have no idea where the camera is. I'm betting that it's somewhere in the middle of all of the chaos around here - trying to plan a wedding, trying to keep the dog from chewing everything, trying to have a summer holiday, trying to do some house repairs before people come to stay with us in September. so the camera is somewhere amidst it all and I can't get pictures off of it until i find it, and, I think that even if I do find it, I will have to charge the batteries to get it working.

and so, i remain unblogged and incomplete, simply because I can't find the camera.

i've also bought LOTS and LOTS of yarn, but haven't found the time to do any knitting (well, not any knitting that would actually count for anything). on top of this, it's impossible to knit while Titus the super puppy is around because he thinks that yarn is really fun to chew. so the only time I can knit is at night when he goes into his crate, but by that time, after wedding planning, house renovating and puppy training... i couldn't care less about knitting.

whaaaaaaaaaaaat?

yes, it's true. i still have the urge to knit, but no desire to pick up needles.

blasphemy, i know.

this is me procrastinating...

i hate the month of June. hate it. abhor it. wish that it didn't exist, like, ever. wish we could go straight from May to July. wish that I could go to sleep on June 1 and wake up July 1, just in time to enjoy summer holidays.

only other teachers could possibly understand why I hate the month of June. It's the month where everyone else is saying, "Oh my God, it's summer, let's go eat on a patio..." "Oh my God, it's nice out, I think I'll work on my garden...." "Oh my God, the evening's are getting longer, summer must be on its way!!!" "Wow, some nice out! I think I'll go swimming..."

if this sounds like you, I can assure you that your friendly neighbourhood teacher is saying to themselves, "Crap, it's nice out, I should really mow the lawn, but I have to finish my marking..." or "Wow, it's 9:30 pm and it's still light out? Really? That means I still have time to do report cards..."

June is no fun when you're a teacher! Yes, I know that summer holidays come after June, but it's the "getting through June" part that is the equivalent to those people who are stranded in the desert but keep walking because they keep seeing the mirage of a palm tree and some water... I'm not kidding you! By the time you get to the end of June, you're just happy it's over and then you're ready to join your friends in their Summer madness, but by this time, they're like, "Meh... summer... yeah, we did all of that patio and swimming stuff, like, weeks ago!"

So, the other side of June is finding a cajillion creative ways to procrastinate! For example, right now I should be downstairs marking Grade 11 tests on The Crucible- which I plan on marking while keeping one eye on the hockey game (subliminal procrastinating), however, I"m upstairs imagining all of the ways I can write about procrastinating on my blog.

And while I've been sidetracked by talking about procrastinating, I really wanted to post to talk about my Argosy baby blanket (Bernat Cottontots in lilac) which I am trying to finish before Bridesmaid #1 has baby #2. So what has got me motivated a little bit (and is only making me procrastinate a little bit) is the fabulous Argosy knitalong set up by Katie. Check it out, it's way fun...

so, not bad... 6 paragraphs written when I really could have written one. this one goes down as some good procrastinating!

and now I'm off to mark those tests. and watch the hockey game. Go Sens Go!

i so don't deserve to have a blog...

I had great aspirations when I decided to start a blog. I had planned to spend an hour a week on my blog - a realistic amount of time that allowed me some time to knit, to work, to enjoy life and then reflect on those things using the glory of the internet. I was clearly living in a delusional state of mind back in those early days. What I wouldn't give to be back in that place of blissful ignorance!


Because now, all that this freaking blog brings me is massive amounts of guilt for never being able to find the time to post, to upload photos, to think of witty and amusing things to say, let alone find time to knit. Every time I sit down at my computer, the knitting blogs that I read for entertainment appear to be mocking me - "My blog owner can write at least ONE post a day, what the hell is wrong with you?"

Well, this is what's wrong with me... and this is where all of my time is going:

There is nothing like going from having ALL the time in the world to do whatever you want, to having absolutely no time to do anything because you are now responsible for the cutest thing in the universe. This is the reason that I find milkbones in the pockets of my dress pants, that I've hidden tennis balls away so that I not longer have to dig them out from underneath a chair, that I no longer have time to mark tests, or even better, that I now return tests with bite marks and rips because I left the tests in an accessible location. This is the reason that I've signed up for puppy classes, that my house constantly looks like a bomb hit it, that my side of the bed gets pooped on, that D. has hardly any fingers left because he keeps getting bitten and, finally, why I can't knit because yarn is fantastically fascinating when you're twelve weeks old and you're a puppy.

And no, I don't consider this training for a child because I know that being a mom is probably a cajillion times harder, and, when I'm ready to go there, I will. But I'm at least waiting until I'm no longer pulling milkbones out of my pockets in the middle of teaching a lesson on Macbeth.

However, the first picture should at least indicate that once in a while, when the "Tiny Titan of Terror" needs a time-out in his crate, the knitting does emerge from its "safe place" and something actually gets done. This is the silk scarf I started long ago, but I love it more and more with each inch that I knit and I'm so pleased with myself for choosing such a beautiful stitch pattern. I can't wait until I finish it, but I can at least say that finishing is a lot more likely in the near future. Just a few more inches to go.

Other than the knitting, and the puppy... the only other thing taking up my time is hockey playoffs. This is the year that the Ottawa Senators will take the Stanley Cup - I'm not afraid to say it because I feel it deep in my bones. So, put on your red shirts, tune in to Hockey Night in Canada and join with me and my future nephew in the cry of the Sens Army:

GO SENS GO!

Meet Titus!

This is our newest and latest addition. Meet Titus!
We picked up Titus yesterday in Niagara Falls. This was a whirlwind round trip that meant we drove down Friday night, picked him up Saturday morning and then turned around and came home. What a rush!

Titus is a miniature schnauzer. Right now he's only about 6 or 7 pounds. Yesterday in the car, he was quiet all the way home. We really didn't hear anything from him until we put him in his crate last night. And then he let us know all about who he is! He eventually quieted down and his cries became fewer as the night passed.

Here he is with his first squeakie toy. He loves this little rabbit that Mom gave him.

And here he is with D. First time on the furniture!

So yesterday in the car, I was even able to do more work on my silk scarf - which is coming along quite nicely! Titus just sat and watched me while I knitted away. I would post a picture but the scarf is downstairs and right now I'm typing with one hand because Titus is half on my lap, half on my chest and needs to be held in place!

But don't worry... we've already given him the conditions of being in the family. I told him yesterday,
"Okay, dude, this is the way it is. First, you have to like hockey. Then you have to like golf. And then, ultimately, you have to like knitting."

If yesterday's car ride is any indication, we're in great shape so far.