Yarns . . .

Two years!

2010-09-15T11:44:00.003-06:00

Well, it's been two years since I posted on this blog. Time flies when you're having fun, but also when you're busy!

For the first time since I've been in Tennessee (and that's been 9 years!), my best friend since grade school, Sandy, came to visit for a couple of days in August. She brought her mom with her. Long trip from Pennsylvania (about 13 hours) and they took two days in which to do it. Sandy's mom, Pearl, and my mother have been friends for 56 years (they're both in their 80s) and cried when they saw each other. So sweet! They'd not seen each other for about 7 years, which was when my parents also moved to Tennessee.

Anyway we all had a blast! Pearl barely got in my door when she started asking when she would see my parents. So rather than waiting until the next day (and giving Sandy & Pearl a chance to rest) we drove over and picked up my parents and brought them back for the afternoon and an early dinner.

It was great to spend time with them. The entire visit was far too short - I think they were on the road more hours than they were here - so we plan to do this again but they'll stay for a longer visit next time! Can't wait!

The pool has been a blessing this summer. Having 72 days (and counting) with temperatures above 90 degrees makes for crabby Tennesseans. Usually we have only 30 or so days that are that hot. The tomato crops are non-existent here - too wet for them in the spring and too hot in the summer. And the 90 degree heat continues. Yesterday was 91, today it's supposed to get to 93, and it will be in the 90s again tomorrow before a cold front moves through and gives us some relief.

Currently (when I'm not in the pool!) I'm in the process of moving the contents of The Busy Needle's brick and mortar shop to the online store. What a job! The shop's last day open to the public was August 31st and with all the people that came in I thought we were having a wake. It was all I could do to keep friends and customers from crying. Good grief people, we're not closing - we're moving to a much larger space!

I finally wrapped up the plans for The Busy Needle Fall Retreat. At the moment we have 9 people going, with room for 6 more. We had to get a second lodging facility to accommodate all of us. No classes at this one - a retreat only for knitters and stitchers to get some work done on their Christmas gifts or WIPs. I'll be posting more information about the retreat on The Busy Needle's website later this week. www.TheBusyNeedleWebsite.com

Friends (Lorie and Gregg) asked us to join them bowling a couple of weeks ago. Bowling, hmmm.... haven't done that since... well... before I had children (and my oldest is 36!) The first time out was a bit of a shock when I realized I'd not been using my 'bowling muscles' for - uh - at least 36 years! My knee revolted. Took 10 days for me to walk without limping. Much better now. Anyway we've gone 3 times now and I'm just getting back in the swing of things (not counting those 8 gutter balls in a row last time out. We aren't going to talk about them!) Now if our friends will just get their act together and make this a regular weekly thing I think we'll all be in better shape!

Thanksgiving Friday

2009-11-24T13:44:00.002-06:00

The Busy Needle will be closed on Thanksgiving Friday. I'm looking forward to spending some time with my oldest son, Gavin. I'll reopen it again 10-ish on Saturday morning. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Berroco Trunk Show

2009-11-24T13:42:00.002-06:00

The Berroco Women's Sweater trunk show has arrived at the shop. Gorgeous sweaters! These are from the Men's Collection, but with shortened sleeves and in "ladies' colors." They'll be here only through Saturday afternoon, when they'll be packed and sent off to another shop.

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2009-01-23T13:57:00.000-06:00

Darlene is hard at work on her new red sweater this afternoon.

2008-10-22T18:29:00.003-06:00

Home Thursday night. Caught up with the girls at De La Paz - our local (real) Mexican restaurant - for about 15 minutes, then back home to unpack and sort laundry.

Frank and I both came home with a cagey little cold bug which attacked on Friday morning. Imagine having a wonderful 2 week vacation and then waking up after the first night in your own bed... with a cold. Yech. Mine was very short-lived (thanks, I think, to daily vitamins) and I'm over it now... Frank's has held on and he's now coughing and sneezing. I've threatened to start referring to him as the eighth dwarf - Wheezy - if he doesn't start taking some medicine to get rid of the symptoms.

2008-10-21T15:37:00.004-06:00

We left Savannah and spent Wednesday night in Spartanburg, SC. Thursday morning we decided to go over the Smokies instead of up I-40... to see a little fall color.

I'd forgotten just how steep the hills were going over toward Cherokee, NC. Steep, very steep. Needed to use lower gears so I wouldn't burn out my brakes! Cherokee has grown so much in 12 years. Those indians have not only learned marketing, but are doing a darned good job at it. The museum has doubled in size and is undergoing another expansion. The casino parking lot was full. Shops were crowded. Parking was terrible.

On to Gatlinburg... which wasn't much better. I think the Cherokees used Gatlinburg as their "model town" as the same problems - no parking, crowded streets, narrow walkways, etc. - plagued both tourist traps. Don't need to go back.

Pigeon Forge was a bit more wide open - four lane highway ran through it - but even it had it's share of touristy stuff. Dollywood, music halls, etc... much as I think Branson, MO, would be as my parents described it. And for all this... very very little fall color! Rats! So much for a plan!

Paula Deen's restaurant and Mrs. Wilkes

2008-10-21T15:34:00.002-06:00

Had dinner Tuesday evening at Paula Deen's restaurant, "The Lady and Sons."

Rich food, saltier than I like it but I'm not used to a lot of salt on my food any more. Very rich food. The crab soup was a meal in itself. Bacon-wrapped crab-filled shrimp with a very rich sauce just about did me in. Dessert was very very rich. OMG, I think I had more calories in this one meal than all the food combined on the cruise.

Wednesday morning we slept in and then packed. Lunch Wednesday was at Mrs. Wilkes. This restaurant used to be part of a boardinghouse. I met Mrs. Wilkes the last time we were in Savannah, about 12 years ago, and we both wanted to go back again to her restaurant. Mrs. Wilkes passed about seven years ago, but the family still keeps the restaurant going. Great food served family style. I counted 22 dishes on the table and while I can't name them all, here's a start....

Meat loaf, barbequed pork, fried chicken, mashed potatoes, sweet potato casserole, corn, lima beans, squash, rutabaga, okra, tomato salad, potato salad, baked beans, turnip greens, freshly baked rolls, cornbread, okay, I'm running out and that's only 16. There was another meat and several more vegetables. Sweet tea was served (which I immediately traded for unsweet.) Sweet tea in the South is like adding a cup of hot tea to 6 cups of sugar and then adding a little ice. Enough sugar to induce a diabetic coma in 3.9 seconds flat.

Banana pudding or peach cobbler were our dessert choices. (Who needed dessert!?!) The peach cobbler was good. Frank said the banana pudding was every bit as good as Paula Deen's. This was our only meal on Wednesday.... we were still too stuffed to eat dinner!

2008-10-21T15:31:00.003-06:00

Once back on dry land last Sunday morning, I drove to within 50 miles of Savannah, where we spent the night. Monday morning I drove on in and we had lunch on the River Walk at the Boar's Head, then did about half the River Walk. Monday night we drove out to Tybee Island to the Crab Shack and had crab legs and peel-and-eat shrimp.

We got on the Crab Shack's webacm and waived to all. Will post a webcam pic soon.

Tuesday morning we drove the town and took photographs. Lunch Tuesday was at the Wright Square Cafe. Cute place; bought the cookbook featuring all the "cute places" in town and had them autograph their page. Tuesday afternoon we "did" the rest of the River Walk, then went back to our hotel to get ready for dinner.

Grand Cayman

2008-10-21T15:18:00.004-06:00

From Jamaica we went on to Grand Cayman, where we took a tour. I can honestly say I've now been to Hell and back (and they didn't even have handbaskets there!) Hell is a part of the island that was once underwater. As the seas receded, the coral was exposed and died. So here you have black jagged upthrusts of coral out of what looks like a marsh. Could be Hell... sure looked like it could have been Hell.

Anyway, I took photos and then we took off for a rum factory. Mmmm... good stuff. Our driver gave me a glass of fruit punch and then laced it with both coconut and vanilla rums. Oh my. This may be the hit of my first summer party next year. I think the rum cake was good, too, but probably should have tasted the cake before drinking the punch. Back to the ship's dock for a little more shopping, then aboard for Saturday at sea.

After getting our little cruise map of our travels, we realized we actually island-hopped around Cuba.

Jamaica

2008-10-21T15:11:00.001-06:00

We also watched a woman rolling cigars and bought one for Gavin. "Jamaican cigars?" he asked. "I hope they're smoke-able!" Well, so do I. I videotaped the process so he'll get a cd along with the cigar.

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2008-10-21T15:06:00.003-06:00

Glad we changed course as Omar the Hurricane hit directly on St. Thomas and St. Maarten, two of our original stops, and the going was a bit bumpy until the "powers that be" gave permission to visit alternative islands.

Bumpy, you say? Well, we looked like a bunch of drunks hugging walls to get where we needed to go without falling down. Would you believe choreographed drunks (as we did everything in unison)? or how about Synchronized Lurching - perhaps a new Olympic sport.

Fortunately the "bumpiness" only lasted about 3 hours... and most of that time I was sitting down eating dinner, lurching only to get from one end of the ship to the other to watch a show. No, fortunately, I don't get seasick... but there were a lot of people on the ship with little patches behind their ears.

We had already visited Princess Cays - the Princess Cruise Line's private island at the tip of Eleuthera - and had passed Grand Turk before we turned back. Grand Turk was to have been our last island stop. Instead it because our second stop. Small, clean, nice shops though damage was still visible from Ike. Not enough time there for a tour but I'd go back to do that.

A full day in Jamaica was next. We had not scheduled a tour there but if I ever have to go back (note that it would not be by choice, but perhaps by hurricane avoidance) I would definitely schedule a tour. Better that than trying to run the line of hawkers outside the very small port area. The razor wire should have been a dead give-away.

We did walk to the closest shopping area. GREAT prices on hard liquor, but we only bought a very small bottle of rum for Matt. Our liquor cabinet is quite full as we rarely touch it, preferring wine instead. After a Margarita (can't go to Jamaica without having a Margarita) we headed back to the ship. Three hours would have been sufficient, as opposed to our actual stay of seven.

This photo was taken in Jamaica. I have no idea what kind of tree this is but it is certainly unique.

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2008-10-21T15:03:00.001-06:00

Biggest darned passenger ship I've been on so far... 3100 passengers; 1700 crew. It's almost as populated as the town I grew up in!

trip

2008-10-21T14:54:00.000-06:00

Yes... it's a frog on the windshield. Where else but in Florida!

Heading Out!

2008-10-11T19:46:00.002-06:00

After a arduous, boring, back-jarring, derriere-numbing, 18-hour drive to Florida, we have finally arrived at our first destination - Sebring.

Frank and I met my cousin, Ella Jayne, at her local Olive Garden and we talked and talked! It was really great to see her again after 4 years. Her daughter, Christy, unfortunately couldn't join us and was sorely missed.

After a scrumptious lunch, I brought out the yarn and started Ella Jayne on a gauge swatch for a hat. Her first task, now, is to knit in the round for several inches - something she has not done in quite a while (I think she said 40 years, but I can't imagine anyone NOT knitting for 40 years, so it must have been shorter than that!)

She picked a lovely rust yarn in Berroco's Comfort, which makes up into a gorgeous hat. Hopefully she'll embroider dragonflies or butterflies on it and it will be truly spectacular!

While she generously invited us to stay with her, we'd already checked in to a hotel as I had a LOT of computer work to do tonight, along with finishing the TN quarterly sales taxes and paying a few bills. We were sorry to leave her, but I promised videos of techniques if she gets stumped.

Tomorrow we leave for Ft. Lauderdale and a seven day Caribbean cruise. Hopefully those two storms off in the Atlantic won't strengthen! More later.

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2008-09-28T21:00:00.000-06:00

Birthday boy at the pumpkin patch.

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2008-09-26T15:26:00.001-06:00

Lisa loved her Secret Pal gift.

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2008-09-13T14:06:00.000-06:00

Attending class at TNNA taught by Tink Boord-Dill.

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2008-07-30T09:56:00.000-06:00

Patti has finished the tenth block on her cross stitch piece, 'Chrysella'.

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2008-07-23T12:11:00.001-06:00

Elizabeth has finished her socks!

Working on the Class Schedule

2008-07-07T12:15:00.004-06:00

Okay, okay.... I'm working on the July-August class schedule as fast as a I can! Hopefully I'll have it posted by Monday, July 14. I promise I'll send out an email as soon as it posts.

Just to keep you appeased (somewhat!) here's a sneak peak of a couple of classes:

Children's Hats - They make great Christmas presents and we have a new teacher who has made dozens of cute designs from one basic pattern.

Lace Shawl - That new merino/silk blend yarn will be featured in this class. Only two skeins needed for this project! I'm working on the model as fast as I can!

Hardanger II - Bookmarks or Christmas ornaments? Jackie has the bookmark model done, but we have a customer who wants to do Hardanger Christmas ornaments. Which would YOU prefer?

Coming in September - A Man's Sweater - Great for Christmas, and you have time to get this one done!

Coming in October (we hope!) - The Norah Gaughan Collection from Volume 3 - including the Eastlake sweater on which we'll do a class in November, and the Violette-le-duc Sweater shown on the cover. Can't wait to finalize the details with Berroco!

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2008-06-29T10:13:00.001-06:00

Water play today!

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2008-06-27T10:09:00.001-06:00

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2008-06-27T10:07:00.001-06:00

Bernie has finished his quilt tops! Gorgeous!

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2008-06-12T16:12:00.001-06:00

Gale just finished her socks! LOVE the handpainted yarn.

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2008-05-31T12:43:00.001-06:00

Audrey's dance recital... Audrey and family! Great show!

Sunday

2008-05-25T14:50:00.002-06:00

Berea was lovely but it was graduation weekend. Yikes! Didn't do much shopping, but did check out the Log House which is the outlet for the students' work. Wonderful items this year. Can't wait to go back when school is in session.

Home now (whew! Long trip!) Cats are fine but won't get off my lap. Flowers are in bloom by the back door and the perfume is so heady I can smell it at the other end of the house.

Still unpacking and doing laundry. Will update the website (hopefully!) today, tomorrow and Tuesday with photos of the trip. Have all pics now downloaded from camera and uploaded on a memory stick, so I'm ready to start.

Friday

2008-05-23T13:54:00.001-06:00

Heading for Berea, Ky. after a quiet 2 days at Gavin's resting and doing laundry.

London

2008-05-20T10:47:00.001-06:00

Just arrived London Heathrow. Will be back in DC very late tonight. Look for trip updates and photos starting Thurs.

Tues Afternoon

2008-05-20T05:29:00.001-06:00

Leaving Athens for London shortly. First leg of the journey home.

Monday

2008-05-19T03:37:00.001-06:00

Leaving Crete this afternoon... Heading back to Athens. Nice slow day.

Sunday

2008-05-17T23:34:00.001-06:00

Palace of Knossos

Saturday #2

2008-05-17T07:18:00.001-06:00

Rethymnon

Saturday

2008-05-17T07:15:00.001-06:00

Chania

Crete - Day 1 + 1 Hr

2008-05-16T04:10:00.001-06:00

Walking the half block from the airport bus to our hotel we ran into someone from Greenbrier. This is now a little wierd.

Crete - Day 1

2008-05-16T04:05:00.001-06:00

Our guide in Crete was an exchange student, living and attending school in Lebanon, Tn. Small world!

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2008-05-14T21:36:00.001-06:00

Sunrise, last morning on the boat.

Wednesday

2008-05-13T23:10:00.001-06:00

Paros this morning, then cruising back to Athens to arrive late tonight.

Arriving Paros

2008-05-13T13:13:00.001-06:00

Arrive Paros tonight with tour tomorrow.

2008-05-13T13:09:00.001-06:00

Fun stuff today... The wind ripped and we lost a sail! Some damage to boat, no one hurt. Took pics, will post later.

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2008-05-13T04:12:00.001-06:00

Leaving Santorini.

Oia

2008-05-12T08:24:00.001-06:00

Oia for dinner and sunset.

Monday

2008-05-12T08:23:00.001-06:00

Santorini all day today.

Monday

2008-05-12T08:22:00.001-06:00

Santorini all day.

Fri Evening Lecture

2008-05-09T08:30:00.001-06:00

Lecture on bargaining in Turkey.

Friday Evening

2008-05-09T04:15:00.001-06:00

Friday evening. These entries are place holders. No wifi onboard the yacht.

Friday Afternoom

2008-05-09T04:11:00.001-06:00

Mykonos in the afternoon.

Friday

2008-05-09T04:09:00.003-06:00

Lunch aboard

Friday - Delos

2008-05-09T04:09:00.001-06:00

Delos -

S/C Pantheon

2008-05-08T08:39:00.001-06:00

Large yacht. Sailing soon, 5:45 pm now.

Thurs

2008-05-08T01:37:00.001-06:00

Suspension bridge to Peloponese

Thursday #2

2008-05-08T01:33:00.001-06:00

Worry beads and smoking.

Thursday

2008-05-07T22:36:00.001-06:00

Early morning. Off to Mycenae.

Wednesday Lunch

2008-05-07T05:44:00.001-06:00

Lunch at a taverna in Itea today. Itea is on the Bay of Corinth. Beautiful view of the water. Thunderstorm during lunch.

Wednesday

2008-05-07T05:43:00.001-06:00

Lunch at a taverna in Itea today, on the Bay of Corinth. Beautiful view of the water. Thunderstorm during lunch. Drank more wine!

Delphi - Wednesday

2008-05-07T03:05:00.001-06:00

Frank is off exploring the ruins this morning. Free time for me. Actually get to read a book!

Delphi, Tuesday

2008-05-07T03:00:00.001-06:00

Delphi is a tiny town. Ruins are impressive. Museum - Tuesday - was extensive.

Final comments on Mon, May 5

2008-05-05T12:20:00.002-06:00

Tomorrow we check out of the Ledra Marriott and travel to Delphi (where the Oracle of Delphi was given.) Because I have no idea whether the next hotel (a "boutique" hotel in Delphi) will have computer internet interface, this may be the last lengthy post for a couple of days.

One bit of good news is that Greece does, indeed, have digital service on their cell phones, so I may be able to post photos, but they'll have very little verbiage. Check back, as I'll add dialog to those photos as soon again as I'm able to do so.

The group spends two nights in Delphi, and then it's on to Pireaus to board the yacht on which we'll reside for the next 8 days. As in Delphi, I have no idea what sort of WiFi I may (or may not!) encounter. If I have no interconnect, I'll at least try to post photos and fill in the explanations as soon as I'm able.

Monday, May 5 - Cape Sounion, cont.

2008-05-05T12:00:00.004-06:00

This is the Temple of Poseidon at the tip of the European landmass, Cape Sounion.

Another photo of the Temple of Poseidon. On the square column at the far right of the photo, the second block from the bottom, Lord Byron "signed" his name.... Graffiti from someone who should have known better!

This is a photo taken from the Temple looking toward the beach below. While it is a bit difficult to see, the Aegeon Hotel is just to the right of dead center in the photo. Here's a closeup. It's the low building on the right.

And here's the view just outside the dining room looking back toward the Temple of Poseidon.

Frank at the Parthenon on Sunday May 4th

2008-05-05T07:03:00.004-06:00

Frank is quite reluctant to have me take his photo, but I was able to snap this one at the Parthenon as he waited next to an upper portion of one of the marble columns that had been turned on its side. The photo gives you a good sense of the diameter of the columns.

This photo gives you a good idea of the downtown Athenian neighborhoods... narrow streets lined with apartment buildings, all of which have balconies! We went past block after block like this. Because parking is street-only (in building underground garages they always seem to run into archeological findings, negating any further excavation) the car size is quite small. The latest rage in cars here is the new "SMART" - a joint effort between Mercedes Benz and Swatch (yes, the watch people - who would have thought?!)

Monday, May 5 - Cinco de Mayo!

2008-05-05T03:41:00.003-06:00

Today we traveled an hour-and-a-half south to Cape Sounion, the southernmost point in the European landmass. We visited the temple of Poseidon, constructed 448-440 BC. Built on a bluff [Why did the Greeks do that? I'll answer in a moment.) we again walked up (again, thanks to John Caldera for the warning!) to see and photograph the temple.

Why up on a bluff? In this case, it was a defensive outpost for the city of Athens... standing in the Aegean Sea at the mouth of the Bay of Saronikos across from the uninhabited island of St. George.

The Aegean is as beautiful as all the photos you've ever seen depict it. Crystal clear blue-green water in which you can see to the bottom.

Lunch today was at the Aegeon Hotel and it was delicious. A pasta course (ziti with sun dried tomatoes,) a salad course (consisting of tomatoes, red onions, cucumbers, green peppers and a slice of feta cheese in a light olive oil dressing,) a fish course (which was the most wonderful piece of perce I've ever eaten), and dessert (homemade pistachio and dried fruit ice cream - very rich, the richest ice cream I've ever tasted - and pound cake laced with a light sweet wine.) White wine (quite nice) and water were served with the meal.

The photo above was our lunchen view out the large panoramic window. This is a lovely hotel. The brochure reads, "At the most beautiful spot of Europe... At the magnificent Cape Sounio... Below the Temple of Poseidon... Where the ancient Greeks worshiped the God of the Sea... Where the soul rests... Where you can enjoy the legendary 'sunset of Sounio'... You can find the Aegeon Hotel!"

As soon as the photographs are uploaded to the computer (tonight?) I'll post pics of the Temple of Poseidon and, from the bluff, a telephoto of the Aegeon Hotel below.

Sunday, May 4 - Remember Yanni?

2008-05-04T15:20:00.003-06:00

Do you remember Yanni of new age music? A couple of years ago he gave a concert at night at the Acropolis. Periodically PBS still runs it and I saw it about 2 years ago... which is why I was thrilled to get a look at the venue during the day. Frank took this photo of the amphitheater. If you haven't seen the concert footage, imagine the grand piano on the center half-moon stage, with the ruins behind lit from within. Concealed low-level lighting dramatically lit the ruin's facade. Spectacular.

Still touring on Sunday, May 4

2008-05-04T15:01:00.006-06:00

The tour did not begin and end with the Acropolis. We also made stops at the old Olympic stadium, built in the late 1800's and the site of the first "new" Olympic games.

And here's a shot of me with the Acropolis behind me. This photo was taken in front of the Olympic Stadium.

Additionally, we drove past Hadrian's Gate. Hadrian was the head of Rome but had been born in Athens so he sent a lot of Roman coins to Athens for the building of public works. On the Acropolis I did get a shot of Hadrian's gate and the ruins beyond. Please be aware that I used a telephoto lens on that second shot and the cropped and enhanced it. It's nowhere NEAR that close!

Here is the original telephoto shot:

I just love a computer's photo enhancement capabilities!

Sunday, May 4

2008-05-04T14:19:00.005-06:00

They tried to walk my feet off. The trek up to the Acropolis was almost the end of me! Steep hill about 1/2 mile almost straight up... with steps every 10 feet. OMG. John Caldera (husband of Nan of "Just Nan" design house) warned me that if I did nothing else, I was to spend a month on the stair stepper before I left the States. He was right! But I didn't do enough of it!

Fortunately the view from the top was well worth it. Fantastic. It's the highest point in the city and there are no skyscrapers allowed so as not to block the view of it. Not that they could. The outcropping that the Acropolis and Parthenon sit on is so far above the city that I didn't come close to imagining it from guide book photos. Here are some of the photos I took while up there, starting with the approach to the Acropolis:

And some of the Parthenon:

All of the Acropolis is being renovated. The Greeks believe that the new should be distinguished from the original, so you can see all the new pieces in a lighter marble. This marble ages and in another 300 years or so will be the same color as the original, so all replacement pieces are numbered and dates as well. "But then, this is a very seizmic area so all may again fall down and have to be rebuilt again," said our guide, Myrtos, with a shoulder shrug!

WHAT time is it??????

2008-05-04T13:59:00.004-06:00

Yesterday (Saturday) we arrived in Athens after a VERY long 7+ hr flight to London, a 3.5 hr layover, and another 4 hour flight to Greece. I was so tired that it hardly felt like it was 7:30 in the morning... that would be somewhere around 11:30 pm or so in the States. I think I ate 6 meals in a 24 hr time frame... picking more than eating 'cause who can just eat and sit for that long!?

Was picked up by a car service... checked into the Ladro Marriott... quite nice... 5 star... lots of space and loads of amenities.. but by then it was early afternoon and I was quite tired. Took a short nap and then showered, dressed, and went to the rooftop for cocktails and h'ors doeuvres.

Now I must tell you that the rooftop has a spectacular view of the city and the Acropolis (centered in the distance.)

After cocktails Frank and I went down the dining room and split Mezzas - small plates - of shrimp (with heads and tails) in a tomato sauce, Greek grilled sausages, eggplant salad, and ate olive paste tapanade, a yogurt and olive spread, and a baked cheese spread (which had the consistency of dry shredded chicken... definitely different.) Even with splitting the mezzas, we couldn't finish it all. (The waitress asked if we didn't like it! We just didn't have room for all of it!)

Afterward we just crashed and almost slept through my alarm for breakfast.

No Vogue sweater for the trip

2008-05-02T13:29:00.002-06:00

Okay all you Busy Needle people. Here's the bad news.....

Because I added length to the sleeves and body of the sweater on the cover of the Spring/Summer Vogue Knitting magazine, I have run out of yarn AND DIDN'T BRING AN EXTRA BALL 'JUST IN CASE'. Yikes.

I was so ticked at myself! I've actually done some of the shoulder bind-off rows and am SO CLOSE that it hurts to leave it at Gavin's. Fish and bread may multiply to feed the masses, but the yarn just didn't stretch far enough to finish. And I had plenty of time to finish and block it, too... running out of yarn late yesterday morning. RATS!

So here's the news..... the largest size with added length to the body and sleeves takes 11 balls of yarn, not 10. I suppose every cloud has a silver lining. Better this happen to me so we know the correct amounts before we order your yarn for the class.

3.5 Hours to the flight

2008-05-02T13:23:00.002-06:00

Everything is repacked and ready to go. Gavin should be back from work in about a half-hour and will take us to the airport.

Not looking forward to these flights. Ours leaves Dulles International at 6:55 pm and arrives at Heathrow at 7:30 am. (Just remember the time difference... We'll actually be arriving in the wee hours of the morning according to our body clocks!) From Heathrow we catch a flight for Athens 3.5 hrs later - about 10:00 am London time - arriving in Athens at 4:30 pm Saturday. Again, there are time differences! I know we'll be quite tired. I just hope I can sleep on the flight over.

More when we get to another WiFi connection. Hopefully we'll have pictures for the next post!

Thursday dinner and Friday lunch

2008-05-02T13:00:00.002-06:00

After all the good news Thursday afternoon about Mojo, we headed back to our old neighborhood. Much has changed. Tysons Corner has grown quite a bit. Several houses in our old neighborhood have changed dramatically, with substantial new additions, the addition of new garages, new paint colors, etc. I suspect the new Architectural Review Board has been either quite busy... or quite lax.

Our old house hasn't seen any changes. The new owner is about 35 yrs old and this is, obviously, his first house. Still the same color, still the same entry, etc., but the photenia bushes are overgrown, there is ivy growing up one side of the house, and the bushes in the back look like they haven't been touched in 7 years. Oh.. and my sheers are still hanging in the two-story glass entry. It's almost as though he's moved in and hasn't done anything! It was almost sad.

But that's not my problem anymore! Yea! So we drove over to Patty & Bobby's - good friends of ours and Scouting parents from the boys' old troop. They drove to dinner by way of more new construction - incredible growth around there. We went to Chevy's, one of our favorite Tex-Mex restaurants. Had a great dinner. Good food, wonderful company.

Last week Patty asked us whether we wanted to join them on their next cruise. We checked it out and decided over dinner that we would! Frank has already booked it. We'll be leaving from Ft. Lauderdale on October 12 on the Crown Princess for a week in the Eastern Caribbean.... Princess Cays (the cruise line's private island), St. Thomas (USVI), St. Maarten (BVI), and Grand Turk. We all had such a blast the last time we went together that I'm really looking forward to cruising with them again.

Today I had lunch with a friend I worked with 30 years ago at Motorola. We've kept in touch through a lot - moves, job changes, losing friends and parents - yet we're still pretty much the same people. His favorite adage, "We are where we are," was much in evidence at lunch as we caught up since we saw each other last, 4 years ago. He'll probably retire in the next 2 years and he and his wife of 42 years are thinking of returning to Europe. While we talk only occasionally, and rarely email, I shall miss the contact.

Wednesday and Thursday afternoon in DC

2008-05-02T08:39:00.002-06:00

After a wonderful lunch with Len (a former boss and good friend) at Firestorm(?) in the Tysons Galleria on Wednesday, I headed back to Gavin's condo in Reston.

Frank and I had dinner with Sandy and Dick Hentz at the 4 Provinces, our favorite Irish restaurant in Falls Church. Fabulous dinner... lots of catching up on family and friends. Didn't know their daughter Carrie is working as a teacher at a preschool, but it fits her. And Dave is married and has a child! (I obviously need to keep in touch more often!) Photos of Steve and Sharon's daughter Olivia, are adorable. And Jonathan... well... what can I say about how much he looks like Steve (but I'm still not sure about taking him on the roof to watch the Blue Angels!)

Yesterday Frank and I stayed at Gavin's, going out only to Chili's at lunch. Gavin's dog, Mojo (my granddog), is having a rough time of it. What was originally diagnosed as an enlarged prostate and urinary tract infection, turned out to be cancer of the prostate and blood in the urine. Not good. Mojo stayed with us for almost a year while we were living in DC and I'm quite attached to him. I truly believed when he left with Gavin yesterday morning that I wouldn't see him again.

Gavin took him to the surgeon's to see what could be done. The surgeon referred him to a veterinary oncologist (who was apparently quite hot, but that's another story!) The oncologist suggested 5 chemo treatments which start next Friday.

So the worst did not happen yesterday, but Mojo still only has 9-12 months. I know that when I say goodbye to him on upon our return from Greece, it will be the last time I see him. Just the thought of it brings tears to my eyes. I can't imagine what Gavin is going through. Mojo has been his constant companion since his last year in college, and Gavin celebrates is 35th birthday in early June. If I could take away his sorrow I would move heaven and earth to do so.

More later, if I can get back into the blog. This morning I had a great deal of difficulty loggin in.

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2008-04-29T18:18:00.001-06:00

Gavin, just relaxing tonight.

Dinner Tuesday

2008-04-29T16:38:00.001-06:00

Having pizza sent in tonight. Finally! Decent pizza!

Arrived In DC

2008-04-29T16:37:00.001-06:00

Barely made it beyond Knoxville on Monday... Didn't leave until almost 2. But arrived at Gavin's today about 5:30.

Leaving on Vacation TODAY! WooHoo!

2008-04-28T08:01:00.003-06:00

Most of you already know that Frank and I are headed for Greece and will be updating this blog with all the trip info and photos.

First off, here's a teaser - a photo of the yacht on which we'll be island hopping... Mykonos, Delos, Paros, etc.

Second, we just found that there is no text messaging in Greece (a little behind the times, huh?) so my normal method of posting from the camera phone will have to be replaced by uploading photos to the laptop, then posting in the hotels with WiFi. Not a perfect world, but it will have to do.

One little problem with that method of posting.... no WiFi on the yacht.... so that week will have to be posted when we get back into port at Athens. Sorry.

It's already 9:00 am and I haven't finished packing yet. Must run some stuff to the shop, too, as well as pay ahead on the electric and sewer bills (which have not come in yet, but are usually due on the 20th.) Who knew being gone a month had so much stuff to do associated with it!?!

At this rate, I'll be lucky if we leave by 2:oo!

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2008-04-26T15:53:00.001-06:00

Two newly finished socks! Great job Gale and Darlene!

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2008-03-23T14:37:00.001-06:00

Matt and Sarah bought Thomas a kite for Easter. But it was Gavin who rescued the kite from the tree.

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2008-03-09T12:54:00.001-06:00

Checking out his tongue.

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2008-03-09T12:53:00.000-06:00

Playing in the fort with a sticker.

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2008-03-08T13:55:00.000-06:00

View from the porch this morning.

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2008-03-08T12:24:00.000-06:00

It's now 12:30 and I still can't see my car...

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2008-03-08T12:21:00.000-06:00

...or my driveway!

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2008-03-08T11:40:00.000-06:00

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2008-02-18T16:00:00.001-06:00

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2008-02-18T15:44:00.001-06:00

Lots of fun babysitting today.

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2007-12-27T12:43:00.000-06:00

Sydney finally finished the baby blanket!

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2007-12-02T10:12:00.001-06:00

Lazy Sunday morning.

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2007-11-29T16:25:00.003-06:00

Taking up space.

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2007-11-29T16:25:00.001-06:00

Visiting for a week while Mom and Dad are out of town.

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2007-10-29T20:06:00.001-06:00

Jagger and Princess have discovered the ottoman.

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2007-10-26T13:32:00.001-06:00

Darlene just showed Jackie how to "spit" to felt two ends of yarn together. Now she's doing her "Snoopy Dance" because she's so happy because Jackie "got it."

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2007-10-24T09:53:00.000-06:00

Darlene has finished her ruana! Gorgeous!

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2007-10-17T10:09:00.000-06:00

Patti finished her scarf today!

Photos from Mexico....

2007-10-09T06:24:00.000-06:00

The photos I took while on vacation and on the cruise to Cancun and Cozumel are finally in the blog! Go to the older posts - you'll find them at the beginning of August - Days 1-7.

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2007-10-09T05:11:00.001-06:00

I was finally able to upload the video of Thomas trying out his new golf clubs! The quality is not as good as I'd hoped, but what can one expect from a cell phone?

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2007-10-07T10:36:00.001-06:00

Well, this was fun. Matt sent me a photo of him and Thomas in their "Go Skins" outfits... ready for the game! Aren't they just the cutest?! BTW, this is the first pic I have of Matt sporting his new facial growth... never saw him with a full beard before. Don't know if I'm used to it yet.

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2007-09-25T15:48:00.001-06:00

Matt came over Sunday to help paint my "back room" at the house. It's now the most gorgeous shade of aqua! I plan to put a small tv in there along with some of my craft supplies. The room gets a lot of morning light and will be perfect for card-making and scrapbook projects.

Matt brought Thomas with him so I could have some "grandchild" time while Matt painted. Gavin sent a set of child-size golf clubs to Thomas for his birthday and we tried them out here at the house. I'll try to upload the video, though don't expect miracles!

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2007-09-25T15:46:00.001-06:00

Here's Thomas trying out his new set of golf clubs from Uncle Gavin. He didn't do too badly for a 2-yr. old! Still working on uploading the video....

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2007-09-22T10:35:00.001-06:00

This morning I was crowned Queen of the White House Knitting & Stitching Brigade. LOL!

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2007-09-08T07:00:00.001-06:00

It's a mob scene!

Too Early To Think

2007-09-08T05:09:00.001-06:00

OMG, I can't believe I'm up and dressed before 7 am. At least I think I'm dressed. Did I...? Uh, never mind.

Faces At Dinner

2007-09-07T19:48:00.001-06:00

It's a Stampin' Up regional meeting! Actually it's our upline's pre-meeting dinner. Lots of new faces. More tomorrow!

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2007-09-07T19:40:00.001-06:00

Who are these people and what am I doing in Kentucky?!?