Fortune Cookies and Other Delights

On my refrigerator is a fortune that I saved from a fortune cookie two or four years ago.  It says “You believe in the goodness of mankind.”  I wrote “yes I do” on the edge and stuck it on my frig.  That IS what I believe, and I’m sticking to it.  I am finishing a rough week, one that began with a hospital stay and is ending with uncertainty, but people have been my anchors.  I have seen such overflowing kindness and consideration and love, and the best part is that it isn’t a surprise.  I’ve been blessed with the ability to see the good in almost anyone, and I am in awe that it is so universal.  One reason I have trouble in church is that sometimes that “we are all sinners” stuff is in the forefront, overshadowing the fact that most people do awfully well for living in such a difficult world.  The ways people find to convey good wishes and offer their best to you are overwhelming.  I am blessed and thankful. 

 

For a sick day, this wasn’t so bad.  My chest feels a little more comfortable with the Aspercreme I’ve been slapping on it, and my sciatica is about gone, and this evening I just felt a little more energetic.  The massive swelling in my legs has diminished.  My calves are usually pretty skinny, the legacy of my dad, and right now I have just enough swelling for them to be kind of pleasingly curvy.  (A digression:  When I was a teen my sister and I would implore Daddy to wear long pants to mow the lawn, as his legs were skinny and white and rather bowed.) 

 

I rolled on my stool in the kitchen and concocted Essie-style health food.  In a nonstick skillet I put two cans of low-salt diced tomatoes, a 10-ounce bag of frozen corn, and two crumbled Boca Burgers.  Seasoned with sliced fresh garlic, chili powder and cilantro, this simmered for a while.  It made a delicious one-pot supper, with leftovers for tomorrow.  For dessert I emptied two cups of leftover brown rice, two little-kid servings of fruit cocktail, a cup of milk and a few dots of Smart Balance into an oil-sprayed casserole dish.  I cut up my last four prunes (go ahead and laugh, it’s old people food) and put them in, too.  This cooked at 350 for about an hour.  Delicious makeshift rice pudding.

 

My mat reached 36 x 36 inches today and I decided it was time to felt it.  I put it in a net bag in my washer, added a little detergent, and put it on for a vigorous hot wash.  I let it agitate for about 15 minutes, then stopped it and took it out.  This was possibly the mistake of the day, as I wasn’t quite ready to deal with the weight of a soaking wet, giant piece of knitting.  It had felted nicely, however, and I was able to roll it in some towels and get the excess water out without manhandling it.  After a little pulling and straightening, I put it on a board atop my ironing board and I’ll let it dry there.     

  Yaaayyy, we now have a medium size choice between the thumbnail and the taking-over-the-world size.

Here’s one more view:

  I love the fuzzy softening of the pattern, and the ridging you get with felted garter stitch. 

 

You will laugh at the little project I’ve just started.  Photos of Beyonce Knowles and Jay Z, who just married, are all over the internet, and I saw one where Beyonce was wearing a sort of modern snood.  I fell in love with it, and I’m starting the ribbing for it.  I’ll have to work out an eyelet pattern and the necessary increases to make it drape properly.  Nice little problem.  I’ll show you as it develops.  I’m not announcing the yarn yet, it’s just too delicious.  By the way, Mary Z suggested that I knit a cover for my urine collection bottle.  If it didn’t have to be turned in Monday, I might just do that.  Almost anything can be enhanced by a nice piece of knitting!

 

Peace.