Mamascrapalota-Blogga

I'm back from New York

We had a great time!  In fact, it was amazing!  We saw amazing sites, awesome shows, and I bought some outrageous yarn.  I can't wait to show some pictures off, but I can't download anything to this computer.  It's completely full.  I'm on the little 12 in. Mac that is about 5 years old and had been dropped on the kitchen floor so the screen is very dark. Plus it only has 40 gigs and is full of programs.  I can go on and on. 

But, the one with the water damage was the new one.  17 in. PowerMac. Bummer. It had everything on there. The guys at the "Genius Bar" at the Mac store did a little try-out, check-out, what-ever diagnosis and said that he was 99% sure that the interior was fried.  Water damage is the very worst thing that can happen to laptops.  I've found out the hard way.  Bummer. Now we just have to find the money to buy a new computer. Great. 

What's new around here?

1. Two new kitties... Morris, and Floyd, both males
2.  New yarns coming in from my buying trip to New York.  Imported from Italy y'all!!!
3.  A new web-site coming soon.  Check here = www.redrocksfiberworks.com, you can see the front page. (I'll let you know when it goes live.)
4. And, it's good to be home.

Wish me luck in talking the man into a new computer.  Could be bad...

That's all she wrote!

Water+Computer equals disaster

One of the kiddos tripped and fell with a full glass of water, which landed on my laptop. ZZZZTTTT!!!! And it was gone. The man got the phone call that it happened and decided not to tell me. So I'm on the blackberry for who knows how long now. We are on our way home so I'll have more news later. I did a huge yarn buying trip for so stay tuned for that update!

here in New York

But I'm on my Blackberry so no pictures. We are off today for a "day of remembrance." Off to ground zero, Ellis Island, etc. But to lighten the mood a little I'll be reporting on School Products later on. Ciao!

Lotsa Things. WARNING: Heavy amount of photos in this post.

First some knitting content....

I finished my first sock.  Yep,  you can clap now.  I'm that good. (said very sarcastically) The second sock is in waiting and calling to me desperately, and I'm dying to knit it, but  the problem is, now I need to knit with my own yarn.  And, that's not mine.  So, time to start something my own yarn, eh? Now, as you may already know, I haven't been able to knit a sock to save my life.  But, I researched the words, "Turkish cast on." "Toe-up sock," "short-row heel" and I've been reading, "Sensational Knitted Socks" and I did it.  Of course, I had huge help from the ladies over at Ravelry on the Up With Toes group who really helped out. I hate to even mention Ravelry here, but they are THIS close to letting everyone on.

Here are some new yarn colors:

These are 370 yard 100% Merino Superwash,  Fingering weight, and can be found at Colorful Yarns in Centenial, CO. 

Phone # 303-798-2299

Buffalo Beach

And, here is Honeymoon:

This one is Avalon:

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

These next four are up at Knit Knack in Arvada, CO Phone # 303-456-2021
This yarn is 400 yards of lace weight, to fingering weight of Merino/Tencel 50%/50%.
Click on pictures for big.

Red Hot

 

Pomaire

Arvada Nights

Old World

Weather and Rainbows- if this stuff bores you, it's time to move on...

Two days last week during the storms here in Denver, we had amazing rainbows in our little valley.  This one was a very low arc, with a beginning and an end.  This side was right on top of our friend's house, the Weeks (who have 7 little Saint Bernard's, 6 weeks old.  Want one?)

And, this one was the most spectacular.I had to put it in a photoshop doc. so that I could somehow paste them together so you could see that we could see it all.  There was actually a second rainbow right on top of this one.  Outrageous.  I've never in my life seen anything like this at all.

Here are the close up's:

Talk about cool weather!

So, tomorrow The Man and I are off to NEW YORK CITY!  Yippee!  Remember my birthday in May when I turned (gasp)  40 yarns old (yarns, or years?, har...) well, this is my birthday present from The Man.  Our best friends from San Diego are meeting us there and we are off to shows and shopping. Since I'm not much of a clothes shopper, we'll be watching our friends on 5th ave.  But, I'll be scoping out School Products  home of Karabella.  Can't wait!

Ok, folks, that's all she wrote.  Maybe I'll get to blog in New York!

Totally Funny!!!!

..... well to me it was, when I had discovered what I had done.  That last post was supposed to have been saved as a draft, and not saved as an actual post for you to read until I had finished it, by finding out the winner. 

Sorry to leave you hanging....

So, without further adoooooooo.  The winner is------

Marnie MacLean

Marnie,
Email me your address and the colors you would like and I'll send you your yarnage!  We leave for New York on Thursday in the AM, so if I don't get it done this week, I'll have it for you by the end of next week or so.

OK folks, that's it for today.  I still haven't emptied my hard-drive, so my pictures are building up in my camera, and I've got to do that before we leave.  I'll be taking pictures of the Pretty Lady on the sea, and Ellis Island and I've GOT to have my camera emptied and my hard-drive ready to go....

Talk to you soon!

And, for today, that's all she wrote.

Contest Over

Thanks everyone for the great notes and for the wonderful stories of all your animals.  Really, animals are amazing and you can tell they were put here for our amusement!

Ok, so I let the contest go an extra 35 minutes, since we had some visitors and I couldn't actually be rude and walk away to write this post.  haha.

The Winner is........

Wow, a new post!

OK folks.... I have a confession to make.  I have not been all that motivated to post lately.  I keep thinking of great things to put on here, but what's a post without pictures?  I hate that.  A lot. 

My camera is fine, but my computer's hard-drive is full and for me to un-full it, I need to transfer stuff to my external.  That takes time.  Time I don't have right now.... So, for now, here is what I'm going to do, I'm going to list the things that have happened since I returned home from San Diego and you'll have to imagine some great pics to go along with it.  Later when I've un-fulled my hard-drive, I'll try to remember to post some GREAT pics I've done.

1.  We returned home from S.D. and school started the next day.

2.  I promptly got some sort of bug that knocked me out about two weeks. Then I was so generous that I gave it to all my family.

3.  I have the girls signed up for band, tap/jazz, more riding lessons, tie-kwan-dough, AWANAS, running club, and art lessons.  I'm tired already.... BUT, they are ecstatic!

4. I've been dying like a mad woman, with a huge amount of wholesale in the hopper right now.  Gotta get busy.

5.  I'm working a little cool idea/deal with one of my favorite store owners EVER (and VERY good friend) and we are sure hoping it will work out.  More on that later. You know it baby...

6.  For the past two days we have had FULL RAINBOWS that reach from one end of our valley to the other, and we can see the whole thing.  And, there has been copy-cat rainbows right above the main one.  Very cool.

But the very worst thing has happened and I am really stunned still.

7.  Our beautiful, amazing, sweet, smart, loving, cat Roxy, got out of the house when the big Morrison winds blew open the door and she got away two nights ago.  I had a funny feeling that the door flung open, so I quickly ran outside.  She has always been a door-dasher, and usually she would get outside and freeze in place.  This time she was gone, out of site.  No matter how much I called her she wouldn't answer, something she does immediately when you say her name, she meows.  After about 30 minutes of walking around the house in the dark, and another 20 sitting on the porch waiting to see if she would come to me, I decided to go in.  The next morning, we found her collar, and large tufts of fur.  We have VERY large owls, several hawks, and about a 20 member coyote pack in our area.  I can't stand the thought.

I'm not really a cat lover.  At all.  I've been allergic all my life and I've often found their, "take ya, or leave ya" attitude less than desired.  But this cat was one in a million.  She followed me around like a dog.  When I got up, she would also, and go where I went.  She played fetch with very small things.  One of her favorite things to play with was a milk container lid, or the thing you pulled to get the lid off.  She would "hide" and pretend pounce, always keeping her claws pulled in.  But, my very favorite thing she would do?  Lay on the ground, legs all akimbo, and look at me with those striking blue eyes and insist I rub her tummy.  She could do that forever, and if I stopped, she would capture my hand back with her paws and hold on, as if to say, "don't stop!"

My girls seem OK with it all.  They had their cry, but as it is with kids, they've moved on. It's me who is so very sad.  I am surprised at how attached I became to her in the 9 months she was here.  Actually, I'm pretty ANGRY right now about it all.  (Boy, did I want to say another word there for "angry")

Moving on.........

It's time for a contest! (Or, Mary-Kay needs a good story to get out of the blues)

Post a comment about your favorite pet.  Something funny he/she can do, or did, or could, or would. Or, something about him/her that you just LOVED.

Your name will go into a hat for a skein of 400 yards of Merino/Tencel fingering weight yarn.  I'd post a picture of an example, but remember, I have to un-full my hard drive to do that.  Not going to happen just yet.

Even better, you get to choose the color hand-dyed by me.  How's that?

You have until Saturday Sept. 9th, at noon Mountain Standard Time to do so.  Can't wait to hear some good stories.  Help me out here guys....

And, THAT, is all she wrote....