101 in 1001

Here's my list:

1. Bake a loaf of bread from scratch.

2. Try at least one new recipe every week for twelve weeks.

3. Donate a goat.

4. Complete a 1000 piece jigsaw puzzle. Completed March 11, 2010.

5. Have a picnic under a tree.

6. Get a pedicure.

7. Make homemade salsa.

8. Organise digital photos and files. Completed the Files (only) - December 18,2009.

9. Clear out basement, send lots to charity.

10. Stand out in the rain and get completely soaked. It was tempting to make this a "dance naked to the rites of spring", but Nigel blanched. Completed July 29, 2009.

11. Clean out closets and donate old clothes.

12. Buy a new wardrobe!!! Please see number 64.

13. Have a candlelit dinner.

14. Spend three days wandering Winnipeg taking pictures.

15. Plan a trip around seeing a concert in a different city.

16. See at least three exhibits at the WAG. Bugs Bunny - March 21, 2010

17. Visit three cities I've never been to before. Chicago this autumn. New York? Paris? Glory! Saw Chicago September 17-20, 2009. Very nice!

18. Read a book on manners. Try using a few.

19. Sign up for bookcrossing - drop five books.

20. Give blood. I'm borderline anemic - I'll have to eat a lot of spinach and liver in the weeks leading up to this.

21. Join bone marrow transplant list.

22. See one film a month at Cinematheque for one year.

23. Buy a little black dress.

24. Watch the sun rise.

25. Give up soda for six months. Started August 1, 2009. Completed January 31, 2010

26. Buy new glasses. OK, I know, I'll need them replaced before 1001 days are up anyway, but you know, I need some easy ones.

27. Buy prescription sunglasses.

28. Go to bed by 11 pm every night for a week.

29. Fast for 24 hours.

30. Learn how to use my camera flash.

31. Read 6 novels in three months. I use to read like a demon as a child, but almost never read fiction nowadays.

32. Read a book in the park.

33. Take one photo a day for one month.

34. Go one week without spending any money.

35. Paint a picture.

36. Make a donation to an art gallery.

37. Make a short animated film.

38. Go to the theatre.

39. Watch 6 films in 24 hours.

40. Watch five musicals I've never seen before.

41. Throw a party. Not in my nature - this will be a major achievement.

42. Attend a party. I DO get invited, but almost always jam out.

43. Watch a movie trilogy back to back.

44. Go 48 hours without touching a computer. It doesn't count if the computer is acting up.

45. Get my own laptop.

46. Fly a kite.

47. Climb a tree.

48. Spend all day in my jammies.

49. Buy a suit.

50. Talk to someone famous. I'm regretting not chatting with LeVar Burton when I had the chance. Fool.

51. Bake a pie from scratch.

52. Donate $5 for every goal not completed.

53. Knit a fairisle sweater.

54. Eat no refined sugar for one week. This must not coincide with numbers 51 or 78. Amazing! I did it! March 6 - March 18, 2010 (almost two weeks)!

55. Keep track of all finances for one month. I know, I know, it's shameful.

56. See 3 concerts.

57. Go to the ballet.

58. Go to the opera.

59. Go two weeks without using the credit card.

60. Catalogue all books and DVDs.

61. Bring my own shopping bags without fail, for six months. Started July 16, 2009. Completed January 16, 2010 (and have no intention of stopping).

62. Bring a travel mug to coffee houses without fail, for six months. Started July 16, 2009. Completed January 16, 2010, no problem!

63. Buy a piece of original art.

64. Drop a size. Starting from tomorrow - I've actually already dropped a size from last autumn. Could actually stand to drop a few sizes, but nevermind that.

65. Plant a tree.

66. Sew a tote bag.

67. Watch the sun set.

68. Buy a new bed. Completed December, 2009.

69. Learn beginner's conversational Norwegian. You'll have to trust me when I tell you this goal is completed.

70. Sew a quilt.

71. Finish the Asian Ladies cross-stitch. Begun a couple of years ago.

72. Take a road trip somewhere other than Fargo.

73. Learn to use a drop spindle. Purchased one July 29, 2009.

74. Sign up for TKGA Masters Knitting course.

75. Post everyday to the blog for two weeks.

76. Hike through Spirit Sands. Completed August 30, 2009.

77. Buy no new yarn for six months. I'd considered twelve months, then reconsidered. Started September 1, 2009. I did it! Completed February 28, 2010.

78. Bake cookies every Friday for eight weeks.

79. Design and knit a knitted object.

80. Upload a short film to Youtube.

81. Write a heartfelt note to someone. Not the sort of thing I would EVER do.

82. Make homemade jelly.

83. Buy fresh cut flowers every week for six weeks. I think, perhaps, in the dead of winter.

84. Stop swearing for six weeks. Damn it.

85. Make a collage.

86. Wear a Hallowe'en costume (on Hallowe'en).

87. Wear a different hat everyday for two weeks. I use to be known for my hat-wearing! What the hell happened? Oops - must stop swearing...

88. Bring Betsy out to visit.

89. Put together two emergency kits - one for home, one for auto. Gads! How long has THAT been on the "to do" list! One is in the trunk of the car as I type! - December, 2009

90. Buy a ukulele. I've always wanted one, and since they're popular right now... Completed August 26, 2009.

91. Sign up for a beginner ukulele class.

92. Watch Nigel's complete boxed set of Kubrick films.

93. Watch Nigel's complete boxed set of Herzog films. My Best Fiend - completed July 25, 2009.

94. Go one week without reading, watching or listening to the news. This will be hard for me.

95. Sleep under the stars.

96. Jump on a trampoline.

97. Sign up for a Pilate's class.

98. Visit Jane in Toronto.

99. Get another tattoo.

100. Overwinter an impatiens plant. Successfully.

101. Grow a pumpkin.

Some are seasonal, a few won't be considered until after the reno is finished, many I've done before, quite a few of them aren't really all that challenging just things I really should get around to, but the plan is to have the list completed by April 12, 2012 and that's starting as of tomorrow.

Wish me lykke til!.

...that's good luck in Norwegian...

Going By in a Blur

The summer, which seemed to take forever to start, is now going by at high speed.



Wednesday past was Canada Day as well as wee Ian's 13th birthday, and now he's off in Toronto on his first solo journey - to see his cousins. The trip seemed a long way away when I booked it back in March, but suddenly it was upon us. In the rush to get all things ready to go I neglected to give him his Auntie's phone number in Toronto. It was a tense moment while I waited for a call saying they'd recognised him at the airport (there's a big difference between last year's 12 year old and this year's teenager - in appearance only, his personality is still goofy as you can see in the snap). All ended well though, or rather, all began well. We'll have to wait and hear how things go.

I promised in the last post that I would weed the side bed (which I did!) and show off the lovely perennial garden that's been with the house for years; sadly, the one-two punch of the early spring thaw and late spring cold snap seems to have left little more than weeds (which I removed). I dashed out and bought and planted replacements for what I remembered had been there, but I'm afraid they don't look like much at the moment.

Here's an annual instead:



It's some kind of daisy, I'm not sure of the name. I think it should be called Mid-20th Century Daisy, as it's got that crazy sunburst/quasar thing going on.

One perennial that survived was this blue pelargonium:



a beautiful blue.

Our ceramic ducks survived.



To be fair though, they survived because I brought them in for the winter.

I was out thrift shopping earlier this week and came across two ceramic cookie jars.



One shaped like a wee cottage. Quite, quite adorable, but not vintage.



Also, this one. A true vintage one, Elly agreed that the deer eating the fruit was absolutely superior to the cottage, which, though very sweet, is a tad bland. Now sister Jane and brother Ian can correct me (since they're older and therefore have more childhood memories than me), but I'm certain we had a cookie jar identical to this growing up. Please confirm.

Everyone knows that the last thing I need is a new project, but I've only just heard about this one, which started sometime back in 2005. 101 goals in 1001 Days. The gist of it being, you set yourself 101 goals to be achieved in 1001 days - very straight forward. Since 1001 days is a little over two and a half years you're expected to set a few lofty goals as well as some easy ones. For example, someone might plan to run a marathon (not me) and also plan to read every Harry Potter book (already did that). Also popular choices are one's that challenge you to do things that are, perhaps, out of character, say, a shy person setting a goal to strike up conversations with three strangers.

As I turned this over in my mind, I thought it might be good to get some perspective on my weaknesses, so I asked Nigel, "What do you think is my worst quality?". After a long pause he said carefully, "...but you're perfect in every way." Since this wasn't the answer I was looking for I thought I'd put it to the kids. Immediately Ian chirped up, "I know! It's your temper!", to which Elly replied, "No, no. She's too fat!"

Ah, kids...good thing I didn't get mad, or I would've had to sit on them.

Bloomin' Fantastic

The peonies have finally bloomed. I won't show a long shot of the side garden because it's crowded (very, very badly) with weeds. If the rain stops tomorrow then I'll tidy up a wee bit and show off a lovely perennial bed that was here when we bought the house.



The garden beds at the front of the house are a tad more presentable. Look at these gorgeous Cheddar Pinks. I love this little perennial, it forms the most perfect mounds of fine blue-green grass-like leaves, then bursts into tons of these tiny cerise pink flowers which bloom for most of the summer. I should have planted nothing but these in the front beds.



Instead of PLANNING to make a new Tangled Yoke Cardigan with the pink Baby Alpaca I mentioned in the last post, I decided to ACTUALLY START the project.



Don't be fooled by the enormous number of stitches on the needle, that's for the back and both fronts. I'm not SO, SO big.

Here's a few obligatory reno shots:





with all the fuss and bother going on in the back garden (by the two big spruce trees) a Pine Sawyer Beetle was displaced and found it's way to the side of the garage. They must be fairly shy, because in all my years around these parts, I've never seen one. Though, to be fair, I'm not the most outdoorsy woman in the world.



Very "Tim Burton-esque", no?

Here's the wall before the concrete is poured:



and after, with the moulds removed.



This week there were frequent opportunities to take pictures of shirtless, sweaty young men, I can think of a few readers of the blog that would have enjoyed that, but opted instead for this:

Hooray for Concrete and Yarn

Can you believe it's nearly July and the peonies still haven't bloomed. That spring was truly dismal, cold and dark. Soon though....soon...

The reno continues. Our concrete boys were here earlier than I thought (fantastic!), though due to the aforementioned spring weather, they're madly running between a whole lot of jobs (poor things).



There were lots of chalk lines run between wooden stakes.



Then a great big auger came out and drove the piles that the new foundation will sit on. This photo was taken from the second story window.



That's a pile (of concrete)...



The boys left their Bobcat on the back lawn through the week-end. That's Ian having a go behind the controls - thankfully they didn't leave the keys in the ignition.

They're outside today building the plywood mould for the foundation walls. Tomorrow should see the final bit of concrete poured, and then we'll REALLY be off and running - framing, roofing, windows, doors, and then all the inside bits (the fun part).

I've been distracting myself with online shopping. Don't worry Nigel, I only buy bargains.

Little Knits out of Seattle was having a sale on two yarns I couldn't resist.



Rowan Baby Alpaca DK in soft petal pink. Normally this yarn would sell for about $100 for 10 skeins, but it was on for $25 for 10. Imagine! I bought 20 skeins. A cardigan or pullover should take about 13 or so. I'm very happy.



Also on for the same sale price (same regular price too) was Rowan Scottish Tweed DK. I bought the 14 skeins of the lavender colour. Oooo, very, very happy.

Hooray for happiness!

My Girl is Da Bomb

Elly has been back in town for a week and a half and she's making her presence felt. She's been complaining that she only packed "one" pair of shoes and is shipping the rest - however, the front entrance looks like a bomb's hit it. Those are all hers, people. She's like a nuclear explosion.



The reno has hit a standstill. After the de-construction of the old additions, the foundation and piles have to be poured before the re-construction can begin. Our concrete boys had another foundation booked this past week and we weren't scheduled for our work until late this week or early next. The weather has conspired against us though (rain through most of this week) and so the other job has no doubt been delayed, putting our work at late this week or early the following week. Must. Be. Patient.

I've been busying myself with knitting.

I bought some lovely Sublime Organic Cotton in pale, natural shades, and I've been knitting dishcloths (for my new kitchen, dontcha' know!) Cream, pale beige, cocoa brown and pale pink. They look like shades of gelato. Yummy.



Oh yes, and the Big Needle Wrap I mentioned in an earlier post, Ooooo, bad, bad, bad....I gave out bad instructions. It's not "increase one stitch each end, every OTHER row", it's "increase one stitch each end, EVERY row" Bah! It was knitting into a long skinny triangle. I had to rip it all out and start again. This "easy, peasy pattern", "takes only an evening or two to knit", has been going on now for weeks. Ack...

(looks pretty good now though).



I've also been distracting myself with knitting up a wee creature. This one is more of a, hmmm...let's call it a "work of art". Perhaps with the potential to become a "Work of Art". We shall see...

But I AM Knitting

Just in case you're getting a tad bored of the reno (I'm not!) I thought I'd let you know that I'm still knitting. I'm working on a replacement Big Needle Wrap that I shrank in the wash earlier this year. You can see the original here, on my 100th blog post. The colours on the new one are slightly different, but not by much. The original was a wee bit more violet-y purple, the new one is, hmmm...., grape-y?

I like it, that's all that matters.

The first wrap was knit up in a couple of evenings while in Dublin, this one is taking MUCH longer. Perhaps I'm distracted...



yesterday's view out the second story window...









Today marks a momentous occasion - the return of my first born. Elly's plane gets in tonight after the better part of a year in Dublin. In honour of her return to this city, and in particular, to the Dirty Old City Lot that is currently our home; The Pogues...

A Touch More Destruction

Aren't these tulips lovely? In the background of the shot you can see some reno rubble..



Andrea mentioned in the comments of the last post that the house looked as though it had been built in bits and pieces, which is absolutely true. Back in the '80's someone owned the house who thought they were quite the "Mr. Fixit", and added a little here and a little there, until finally the entire back section of the house was a sort of Frankenstein-ish monstrosity. Our contractor has told me that our house is considered a "bad" house according to our local land titles department due to all the work that's been done without permits. However, we're putting it all back to right.

Let's pick up where we left off, this is the house first thing this morning...

Below is the stove portion of the kitchen before today...





then windows gone...



and stove gone...



gas fireplace gone...



some fancy new plywood walls (who needs windows?).



These are just temporary...



A little al fresco dismantling...



and by the end of day, the little section where the stove was is all gone.



Tomorrow should see the end of the morning room.