|
|
 |
|
|
Britney Spears is in Costa Rica. With Mel Gibson. There goes the neighborhood!
Fortunately, they are reporting that she and Mel are staying in Playa Samara which is far, far, far away from here. Thank goodness for small miracles. Now back to my regularly scheduled knitting.......
Tha
I finally finished what is destined to become my beloved-bee-gorgeous Tea Rose Halter only to discover that it was at least two sizes too big. I had a sneaking suspicion, based on the look of the lace and the stretchy nature of Cotton Fleece, that I was knitting a big red lacy sack.
Of course, this is the same voice that encourages me not to enjoy potato crisps as snacks, have more than one glass of wine before dinner or not run yellow lights. It is the voice of reason and I have become quite adept at reducing it white noise. It doesn't carry the same clout as the voice that recently convinced me to spend $250 on shoes at Piperlime. The same voice also told me to tell the hubby I got everything for $150.
Recently, the voice prompted me to go fiber bonkers at Jimmy Bean's Wool. I love that voice even though it sometimes get me in trouble.
When I thought the Tea Rose Halter looked big it said, "eh, keep knitting so you can finish." And so my needles kept on clacking and now I am having to do it all over again! I guess I'll never learn but at least have some gorgeous shoes!
As I reach the one year mark of my weight loss, I am slowly shedding the security blanket of my "chubby" clothes. Store bought items are easy to part with but I hoard my hand knit items, even if they don't fit.
So I finally bit the bullet and frogged my first completed garment to cast on the Tea Rose Halter. Perhaps it is more accurate to say that I decided to knit one garment from the other......literally. Rather then frog and hand wind a ball I knitting directly from my Ballet Tee as my Tea Rose Halter takes shape.
Unfortunately that shape may be a wee bit too large. I may be smaller and yet I continue to knit for the old me. So I may need to frog again.....thank goodness Cotton Fleece is hearty and can take abuse.
And just for poops and giggles here is a pic of my Dad and his dog at the vet's office. His precious Coco may be 7 pounds but she is pure evil when someone tried to take her temperature the old fashioned way. So Coco was fixed up like Hannibal Lecter.
I still remember sitting in Mrs. Garvey's English class passing notes with Jennifer Prude about our beloved Duran Duran. She loved Nick Rhodes and I favored the drummer, Roger Taylor. This meant we could easily be friends since there would be no fighting over our respective but clearly out of our jailbait league men. We believed this despite living in El Paso, Texas and not having even a slim chance of meeting them in person let alone going to a concert.
Nonetheless, from age 11 to 15 my bedroom walls were plastered with Duran Duran posters I bought at Spencers or got out of Tigerbeat with a maniacal devotion that makes Squeaky Frome look like a slacker. Sure the occasional OMD and Howard Jones was mixed in but Duran Duran was the clear favorite even after the departure of my beloved Roger. By the way, when he was arrested for marijuana possession Jennifer and I felt very strongly that his new wife was the culprit. We were certain this kind of thing would never happen under our watch.
As time passed my Duran Duran t-shirts gave way to vintage clothes, black hair and once I could wear make-up my signature red lipstick. I fancied myself some kind of new wavey-goth gal and Duran Duran took a backseat to Depeche Mode, The Cure, The B-52s and Love and Rockets. But I never forgot my first true musical love.
Even though I am now in my mid-30s, a Duran Duran tune will get me up our of my seat dancing and singing. I may be older, a little chubbier (thank g-d not wrinklier) but I am still essentially the same little giggly nerd I was back then. So I am beyond excited to FINALLY be seeing Duran Duran in concert!
Today I'll finally be listening to all my faves, including their new single Skindiver,in person. It is 12 year old Bonnie's dream come true! And while I am already married and certainly not looking for a new hubby, I am still making sure I look cute just in case. Roger should really know what he missed out on.
There are some "pleasures" you cannot skip simply by moving to another country. That includes paying income tax to the US government or having to renew your drivers license. This week Van and I had the pleasure of doing both. Taxes, schmaxes......same as usual. But the Costa Rican DMV is another story all together.
Our trip to COSEVI (aka Costa Rican DMV) provided proof of something I have long suspected, pure evil in the guise of a paper pushing, line loving bureaucrat resides inside those taupe walls. Like a clown with it's hideous make-up and never ending smile, DMV employees sit behind their counter on their vinyl upholstered thrones with unchanging facial expressions waiting to punish you for nothing more than being than being you. It isn't easy to look annoyed, bored and inconvenienced with a hint of smirk all at the same time but I assure it is a talent found universally among those that issue drivers licenses. And yes, they all demand smiles for your picture knowing full well that nothing short of Julia Robert's re-toucher could make you look even slightly human.
I think going to renew or replace a lost license was like the karmic equivalent of the "take a penny tray." Everyone has to put in a penny eventually, especially if you have ever taken a penny. It all comes around and evens out over time. Sure you may have to waste three hours of your life waiting for someone to call number B-47 at Window D. Eventually you will be rewarded with a good parking spot at the mall or an extra order of fries at a drive through window. Someday........
So today was my turn to put in a karmic penny at Photo Booth #3 where my smile demanding photo taker had "6-6-6" tattooed in prison sheik style his forearm. All I could think was, FINALLY someone at the DMV admits it! It was like he was saying "of course, I am evil now smile damn it or I will fill out a requisition form to steal your soul."
Van got stuck with a lecturing mumbler which I assume is a lesser demon. He doesn't suck out souls but does drive you mad with lectures and nagging. First, he feathers got ruffled over Van's height being listed at 1.88 meters. Neither one of us is really sure what that was about aside from the demon in Camera Booth #2 being irked. Next he mumbled at Van and in rapid Spanish then lectured him for not understanding. He went as far as telling Van that if he plans to live in Costa Rica he needs to learn Spanish. For the record, Van is fairly fluent but has trouble with the Costa Rican mushmouth dialect. Something I think he should have expressed with a few choice words. Of course, Van said nothing because he knows better than to challenge evil in it's own lair. We watched enough Buffy to know that. Beelzebub Junior also demanded a smile.
In the end we escaped with our lives and truely awful pictures. I look like a very pale tarted up whore for clowns and Van eyes are rolled up so he looks like Valley Girl being told leg warmers aren't the shiz. Above all we paid our dues to karmic take a penny tray and got confirmation that ALL DMVs are a playground for evil. At least we don't have to go back for another five years!
If you've been a long time reader of my blog you have likely noticed that there has been very little Koshka news the last six months. I have been mum on the subject because she has been sick and struggling with recurring health issues. Since we may finally be on the way to a full recovery/maintenance mode, I thought I would share our experience in the hope that it may help other dog owners.
Koshka has been diagnosed with hypothyroidism. We had her on medication but it seems her dosage was too low and it caused an inbalance that lead to mange, a skin infection, a foot/paw fungus and very high fever. The mange caused her to break out in horrible bumps, smell terrible and lose almost all her fur. It was heartbreaking and a few times I had to find a quiet corner to cry so that i could put on a happy face for her. She was uncomfortable and as strange as it sounds I firmly believe embarrassed about her patchy appearance. We bought her an Old Navy dog polo and this seemed to lift her spirits.
We changed vets and have been able to get the skin issues under control though not entirely eradicated yet. Everyday we are gaining ground and she is improving with the occasional setback. There was a small one yesterday that freaked me but didn't worry the vet as much.
In the midst of treatment she had a lung infection which required hospitalization and a very serious eye infection. Fortunately, both of these issues seem to have cleared up. But we aren't out of the woods yet and I worry about her every single day. We have also been battling recurrent ear infections and a paw fungus.
I cannot explain the mix of joy and relief that I feel when I see her get excited to "go walkies" or jump for a treat. To see her be vibrant gives me hope that there will be a light at the end of the tunnel. Not for me but for her.
To know me is to know that I love my precious furry baby with all my heart. So if you have a moment send some positive vibes her way.
Symptoms of Hypothyroidism in Dogs
Lethargy
Cold Intolerance
Dry hair coat/excessive shedding
Weight gain (and loss)
Mange (this occurs when there is a very serious imbalance)
Koshka also experienced recurrent ear infections.
Despite spotty posting I have been keeping myself busy with work and craft y endeavors.
Jewelry making has been keeping my dance card full. I had a make up class on Friday and an all day class Saturday. It was fantastic to have so much time working on my projects. But I have to confess that it is physical work that can be very tiring. I was so exhausted on Saturday night that I went to sleep before 10!
I also finally finished the cable cast on. A few rounds into my project I realized
the uneven stitches weren't going away and likely wouldn't be blocked
out either. So I frogged that puppy and have yet to cast on again.
Sometime this week when I get a few free minutes and I'll cast on again (this
time long tail). I hope!
I say "I hope" because today a small remodeling project will get going. We plan to replace the clear roof on our exercise room/home office. The clear roof provides lots of light but is damn hot. So the room can only be used before 9 am and after 4:30 pm. But no remodeling project is ever simple and the thought of having the roof taken off freaks me out!!! Things never go as planned and always take longer. And time is not on our side.
We are supposed to be a month away from the start of the rainy season. However, Saturday's paper featured a story La Nina bringing heavier rains two weeks early! So our two week cushion is gone gone gone! So long, farewell, aufedersein, good night! Keep your fingers crossed and send umbrellas. Of course, I think meteorology is on par with astrology as far as exact sciences go. Which means the rainy season could start next month or evil dark storm clouds could be rolling my way as we speak.
So my remodeling project is as big a gamble as new kelly green shorts. Hopefully the remodeling turns out better.
For those of you who don't speak Spanish castigada means to be punished. That is exactly how I feel as a cable cast on 120 stitches for my newest project, the Tea Rose Halter from Interweave Knits Spring 2007.
I am using left over Cotton Fleece instead of the original uber expensive Twinkle Cruise yarn. Plus I like the bright barn red better than the low key peachy-rose color of the original.
Pics soon I promise.
I finally realized that while I had yet to post a pic of myself modeling my Tutti Frutti Clapotis.
The colorway is amazing and strangely goes with just about everything. It looks as striking with a purple and brown outfit as it does with French Blue winter coat. And even looked phenomenal with my fav kelly green sweater. Noro colorways just have a way of rockin' the kasbah that way.
And speaking of rockin' the kasbah, today is a knitting meet-up in Heredia. I am excited because I planned it and it looks like we'll have more than three people (which is a great turn out for us!).
What I most enjoy about travel are the surprises that add color. A funny sign or interesting statue that catches your eye and happily implants itself in your memory. There is no rhyme or reason beyond pure happenstance. It can happen at any moment even as your plane lands at home and you inhale those precious first few breaths of home. The unpredictable nature is what makes capturing these special remembrances on film so damn hard. But every once in a while the stars align and the travel g-ds bless you with a golden opportunity to memorialize the moment and capture the color of travel.
My stroke of luck was Ed Force One, also known as Iron Maiden's plane. Yes, Iron Maiden has their very own plane. Apparently, rocking it out and banging your head well into retirement age pays well. Either that or these boys are pulling down some serious Social Security checks! Either way my Ed Force One sighting tickled the funny bone and reminded me how much I love the quirks of Costa Rica. You never know what you are going to come across.
Which brings me back to my original point. Suddenly, I feel the urge to scour Travelocity for a deal to Vancouver or Buenos Aires. Or maybe I could follow Ed Force One like a modern version of the VW buses that followed the Grateful Dead and now Phish (or so I assume). I just want to keep traveling.
Click here to read the story of how Ed Force One got its name.
