Heeeeeere's Joe!

I guess my hubby got a little tired of me writing an "us" blog from a "me" point of view. That, and all the knitting. So he finally got around to making his own. I'm lovin' the logo. Yay, Joe!

Joe's Making a Chair!

I'm sorry ladies, but I'm married to the handsomest, funniest, coolest man there is. Joe's Christmas present was a 6-day class in making Windsor chairs from a local couple we met at the Rhinebeck Crafts Fair.

He's making the chair you see in the background. On Saturday and Sunday he worked on the back, some spindles, and this is the seat.

After the course he brings home...a chair!

Yup - my husband is da bomb.

Sorry no knitting posts - what is currently on the needles is kind of a surprise and almost done. More on that later.

SP9 GOODIES!!!

OOOOOH! Today was a day filled with errands - go get cat food, take recyclables in, and pick up a package at the post office. We had been expecting something that we had ordered, so I just assumed...WRONG! Lookee-lookee!!!

Clockwise, starting from noonish:
- 2 bags of WW candies - in my FAVORITE flavors! My SP9 spoiler was very thoughtful in not giving me really tempting terrible things. I'm not a strong person when it comes to food, and she really paid attention to my blog, so THANK YOU!
- A copy of Knitting Under the Influence by Claire LaZebnik. I had seen this on Amazon, and it looks right up my alley. Another winner!
- A set of Knit Klips to help with seaming up my first sweater. How. Cool. I didn't know these existed (tells you how much I know), and I'm so glad these are now in my grubby little hands. They will definitely go to good use.
- An absolutely STUNNING set of ebony and sterling silver earrings from Berit Designs. They are simply exquisite - exactly the kind of thing I would want to treat myself with.
- 2 skeins of Lane Cervinia Forever Jacquard in beautiful jewel tones of reds, greens, and blues. These socks will be MINE! And machine washable!
- 2 skeins of Regia Jacquard in the most calming natural tans, grays, and blues. Again, socks for me. I ain't wastin' this on NOBODY else (said with a snap and a head tilt). :) Also machine washable!
- The blue velvety looking thing is a Turbo Pouch! For storing my circulars! Oh-boy-oh-boy how I need that! I have straight needle storage a-plenty, but my circulars are all over the place. Yay!
- A yummy giant candycane...and...
- Stitchmarkers. Gorgeous stitchmarkers. Lovely, yummy stitchmarkers...

...THAT SHE MADE HERSELF!!!

Edited to add: I totally omitted one great gift that she sent, because by then end of this post I was kind of on a yarn high. But I'm also getting a subscription to Interweave Knits! I have always wanted that holy-grail-of-knitting-magazines. I hear so many wonderful things about it, and I can't wait! Yay!!!

Thank you SOOO much, my dear Secret Pal. You definitely hit a homerun, and I'm very happy to know you. I know your holidays were more eventful than you'd like, but I hope 2007 brings you much peace, happiness, and....quiet time for knitting.

Again, thank you, from the bottom of my heart.

Pammy!!!

It's hard to believe that these numbers even come close to our age anymore. It seems like just yesterday you and Justin were announcing the impending arrival of your sweet little boy. You had just purchased a mini-van, and we were on the hill near Jane and Steven's house, all of us terribly suspicious during a drive to the lake when you finally made it known.

I had the honor of your standing up with me on a very special day that not only included the man of my dreams but margaritas and a hottie bartender named Raoul. Or Rafael. Or Raymundo.

I will forever treasure the times that we threw caution, directions, and limited-knowledge-of-manual-transmissions to the wind and found ourselves on the paradise that is Sapelo. Drunken bike rides, rum-induced confessions, and an infamous-and-lasting hookup were all just gravy on those amazing trips.

You even talked a younger and stupider version of myself into a very public performance that scared the beejeesus out of me.

How did we stay sane during these times? Oh, yeah. That's right. We giggled a lot.

Sometimes we didn't giggle. But we always had fun. Or at least we had music, and of course making fun of others.

It's overwhelming to think that all of this started thirty-ish years ago when all I remember is a tricycle with red wheels, digging to China, and a cute blond boy named Mitch.

Happy Birthday, Pam - even though this might not be your happiest of days this year, please know that you are wrapped in my love and admiration and respect. No one could have predicted that we would be close friends this long, but I certainly predict that when you're twice this age that I'll still be embarrassing you with old pictures. :)

(Pam on back right, me directly to her left, and our dearest Amy in the stunning red dress)

Much love and many obnoxious hugs to my dear friend on her special day.

Dear Idiot: We Hate You

Actually, I don't think hate is strong enough. Loathe. Abhor. Despise. Wish you nothing but pain and suffering for eternity. Of course, there's only one poor excuse for a human who would elicit such strong feelings: Cracolici - the turdface previous owner of our home.

Earlier this week, I noticed that some of our kitchen cabinets were leaning forward a bit. So we thought this would be a good weekend to see what's going on and correct the problem.

This is how our morning began. We took down one of the cabinets and found that the screws Mr. Bunghole used to install the cabinets were about an inch too short.

Between the drywall and the laths (slats that plaster is put on), 3 inch screws aren't long enough to sink into the studs. After 6 years of holding heavy plates and bowls, the cabinets started pulling away from the wall. Joe went into his shop, got some 4 inch screws, and went to work. The plan was to just replace all old screws with longer ones. Strange thing, though - we put the longer screws into this one cabinet, and it still wasn't holding. Meaning - THE SCREWS WEREN'T ANYWHERE CLOSE TO THE STUDS. The only thing to do, then, is take down all the cabinets, find the studs, and put them back up properly.

Here was a fun find - this glob is dried construction adhesive. Mr. Assmunch realized he had some problems, and he "fixed" it by filling some of the gaps with glue.

Here's a good look at what Joe has been doing today. Note the hole in the wall (was the stove vent) and the misc items we've had to take out of the cabinets.

And this is what my dining room looks like now. Boxes and piles of glasses, plates - some even overflowed into the living room. My house looks like a yard sale.

This is the way you find studs in an older home (studfinders generally don't work due to the extra crap in the walls): you cut a strip out of the wallboard, brush away the plaster crumblings, and you find your studs. I've marked in yellow where the studs are. The red circles are where the screws were. One out of every 6 or so screws was in line with a stud, but due to the short screws even THOSE weren't effective. Bad aim, or just not giving a shit? You be the judge.

And that, ladies and gentlemen, is the reason for this new level of hatred.

Happy New Year...ish

Yup - been a non-blogging kinda folk recently. Must have something to do with going back to work. Spent most of NY Day recovering from NY Eve with the Connors. Drank some beer, had lasagna, drank some wine, played some games, drank some wine, watched E pull out his tooth, drank some wine, watched Love, Actually, watched the ball drop, and drank some bubbly. Good times, good times.

I must say I've been pretty much on track since I returned to REALITY - only gained 2.2 over the past two-and-a-half weeks. So I'm back on track and working hard to stick to a schedule so I can (a) prepare healthy meals and (b) exercise. I won't be giving WW bloggy updates unless there's something universally celebratory, which I hope will happen more frequently now that I've got my chit back together.

And so, I leave you with this, another stolen blog subject from my Snarky friend...

5 Random ipod Shuffles:
Mr. Roboto - Styx
Dance Panels, ballet: Introduction - Moderato (Tempo di Valzer) Espressivo un poco rubato - Aaron Copeland
New Lace Sleeves - Elvis Costello
FM - Steely Dan
What I Be - Michael Franti & Spearhead

This could mean several things:
1) I'm neurotic
2) I really need to make playlists
3) I should never admit I put Styx on my ipod
4) All of the above

Holidays 2006 - Day Eight

Ah, yes. The end of 2006 and all the baggage that went with it. Tonight we are celebrating with our good friends, the Connors, who also happened to be the parents of the coolest kid we know. Games, movies, food, and wine will be had a-plenty.

Wishing you a noisy, fun, memorable New Year. Drive carefully, or better yet - not at all - there be CRAZY people on the roads tonight...

Holidays 2006 - Day Seven

Well, not much happening today. We are thoroughly unmotivated, sitting back with a few beers and watching Mega Builders on Discovery Channel and being thoroughly impressed at the amount of rebar used on a bridge project.

Knit-wise, I've started my sister-in-law's purple socks, as well as My First Sweater. I'm also finishing up my SP9 project, but I have a feeling that I'm going to keep it and make her a new one. Long story that I'll discuss after the secret is out. Let's just say sometimes my learning curve is a bit longer than normal.

In a little bit I'm going to make some sauce for the lasagna we're bringing over to the Connor house tomorrow night, but otherwise I'm just trying to savor this day. Actually, I'm surprised I'm even out of my pajamas.

Holidays 2006 - Day Six

Wow, working one day out of ten really takes a lot out on a gal. Bwah! Today was kind of a weird day, for a holiday. Had to take Coz to the vet (he's a snotty boy - literally - who needs some antibiotic help). Then I had to attend the wake of a coworker's wife. It was very, very sad. Now I'm back home and trying to focus on happy things. Like having some wine. And celebrating my new, clean Bastard Room!

Why is it called the Bastard Room, you ask? Well, it was billed as one of the five bedrooms in our house (uh, so was our closet). But it's barely big enough to hold maybe a single bed and one of those small kid desks. Maybe. I can ALMOST touch two opposing walls at the same time. Anyhow, when we moved in, since we have no closets, a lot of crap got shoved into this room. So it became the Bastard Room - the room that has just about everything in it. My goal for the holidays was to finish cleaning it out and make it a total craft-and-exercise room. Voila!


Clockwise, from noonish: a portrait of my great-great-great grandfather, a self-portrait of my mom, my DVD-TV Christmas present from Joe with Dead Like Me season two playing, misc cross-stitchings that have no other home, part of my treadmill, my stash which might look pathetic but is really too big (large basket is hidden), cabinetry from our laundry room while that room gets a new look (plus a select few stuffed animals that I can't put in the attic where they would surely suffer certain death), and - hmmm...what is that? Need a close-up?

Ahhh, yes. My new swift (courtesy of Joe) and ball winder (courtesy of Awesome Sharon). Took me a few tries to get it right, but here's my new sweater yarn, rapidly becoming ballish. Yay! Joe wasn't too thrilled - only because he was preoccupied - making beer. Or as we say - BEEEEYAH!
So now while Joe and his buds go to the beer supply store for stuff to finish the beer in the next week or so, I'm going up to the Bastard Room, winding and wining, and watching more of DLM s3. Life certainly does not suck.

Holidays 2006 - Day Five

Yes, I know...I'm a lucky SOB. Each year we get 12/24, 12/25, 12/26, 12/31, and 1/1 off for holidays. When those days fall on weekends, then the holidays are pushed into the work week. So the only day I have to go to work this week is tomorrow, then I don't go back until next Tuesday. That is a definite perk for someone with little vacation to spend.

Spent a goodly part of the evening at the House of Larson - one of my cool coworkers and his wife. We had a great time meeting their friends and family and were sitting back just having a lovely conversation when I totally lost focus and spied a cabled sweater knitting book. Turns out, his wife is an awesome knitter and is getting ready to start a knitting group in the area. Uh, YAY! Plus she's kind of toying with opening a yarn shop, since there aren't too many good ones close by. Let's just say I probably came on a bit too strong, but she's a trooper and wasn't totally weirded out by my excitement.

Random pic of the day:

My best friend Jeanine and I, circa 1983. I am the unfortunate-looking one. We Harris kids went through some really awkward phases. Jeanine is now a professor of environmental education at Western Kentucky University and is the mother of the cutest, brightest little girl. We practically lived at each other's homes from 1st grade until 7th, when her family moved to Oklahoma. I remember the day this picture was taken - one of the few "major" snow days in Georgia. She had these cool plastic sheets that we used for sliding down the neighborhood hills.

Holidays 2006 - Day Four

Happy Day After!

Yesterday was a wonderful day of calling family and drinking margaritas.

Yes - the fajitas and enchiladas were as delicious as they looked. We have leftovers for days! Today I've got to finally get going on my holiday to-do list, as my time off is almost half over. Gone are the days of cooking, drinking, and knitting all day. Drat.

Holidays 2006 - Day Three

Merry Christmas!

What a wonderful time we had with Russ, Roe, and their family and friends yesterday. Much food and wine (beer, bourbon, limoncello) was had by all. So much so that this morning I did a hilly 5K on the treadmill and feel bunches better.

Hey - I finished Joe's gloves! Not a great pic, but he was in the shop when I wanted to take a pic, so this is me with the camera on timer. Hence the baginess of the gloves. This was a great pattern - very easy to follow. I would just recommend, however, writing down how long the fingers are on the first glove. Even though I knit up the 2nd glove by CONSTANTLY comparing it to the first one, evidently I'm about a row short. In socks, it's not noticeable. In fingers, it's a little snug. I should rip them out and start over, but Joe won't have that. Maybe I can block an itsy bit of length out of the fingers...? Anyhow, I loved this pattern and already have requests from his cigar-loving friends. But that'll have to wait - I've got too many "required" objects right now, and knitting ceases to be fun for me when I have a deadline.

On today's agenda - FELIZ NAVIDAD FIESTA! As is tradition, when Joe and I aren't with family or friends on Christmas, we pull out the tequila and avocados and rock with some Mexican food. We went to the market for some awesome cheeses on Saturday, and our pals Russ and Roe gave us a fajita kit last night for Christmas (including that sizzly pan and the cute black bowls all the sides come in). We're so psyched. Chips, salsa, pico de gallo, guacamole, tequila chicken fajitas, spinach enchiladas with roasted tomato sauce, and many many margaritas and beer. Betcha wanna join us now, eh?

Merry Christmas to you and yours. Peace.

Holidays 2006 - Day Two

After much fun, cleaning, cooking, and beer yesterday, we ended up in bed by around 8. Didn't roll out of bed until about 12 hours later. Yaaaawwwnnn.

This was Christmas 3 years ago. I'm not complaining AT ALL about our current weather, but I wore short-sleeves outside yesterday. Just a weeee bit different this year.

A few things on the agenda today - bake the mac&cheese for the brunch, head over to the Hornbeck house for some Christmas Eve food and games, and pretty much nothing else. Except I HAVE to finish Joe's gloves. They are a Christmas present, after all. Next on the needles: a little sumpin' sumpin' for my SP9 pal for her final package, then I've been informed that size 8 purple socks are expected to be in Sarasota pretty soon. Because evidently "Beth will knit you some socks" came across as "you'll get socks for Christmas" to my sister-in-law, and someone was a bit disappointed. THEN I start on my first sweater. Finally.

Holidays 2006 - Day One

This is the moment to savor. That first morning when you lie in bed and realize that you don't HAVE to get up until you WANT to get up. Even if it's at your normal time - it's all about WANT. And then you realize that you have many, many more mornings like this just waiting in the wings. Day One. That's what it's all about.

Random pic of the day:

This is Dobby doing what he does best - being cute while sleeping. Joe installed some cabinets in our office a few years ago with nice halogen lights underneath. And they get WARM. Voila - the ultimate Dobby warm snoozy spot.

On the agenda today - beat the crowds to the grocery store, make some mac & cheese for tomorrow's brunch, hit the liquor store for Christmas Margarita fixins, and finish my ChriNew Year's cards. Cleaning the kitchen will be required for proper grocery restocking. Yup - that's my exciting (and wonderful!) Day One agenda. Sure you don't wanna come over and, say, wash some dishes?

Watch it. Now.

A musician's search for the human cost of war.

I don't care which "side" you're on. If you're human, you should watch this film.

Warning - Bah Humbugs Up Ahead...

This year, Christmas just ain't right...

We don’t have a tree or any decorations except for our normal “Welcome Wreath” on the kitchen door and a new fresh wreath from LLBean that we accidentally shipped to ourselves (was supposed to a present for someone else).

Joe got his bandsaw and chair-making class presents WELL before December, and his presents for me would seem kind of lonely without a place to be (like under a tree), so rather than wrap and open, I just got them out of the shopping bags when he came home with them last weekend.

I’ve only sent out 40 of the 100+ Christmas cards on my list – so the majority will now be New Year’s cards, since I don’t think I’ll even get to them until this weekend.

I haven’t done ANY baking. Each year I typically make enough dough between Thanksgiving and Christmas to make about 75 dozen cookies – most given out during the holidays, the others socked away (as dough) in the freezer for last minute take-along goodies throughout the year.

I haven’t been home on a weekend since Thanksgiving when my house was packed with friends and family. Since then I’ve traveled to GA, to DC, and to CT. Laundry and dishes barely get done, bills are paid but haphazardly so, and my office is one big mess.

I’m not complaining – merely stating that I need a break before *I* break. I need one good day to knit and watch chick movies and wind down. Then I need several days to finish cleaning up from Thanksgiving and the aftermath (yes, I know – I think I still have a bowl of leftover potatoes in the scary back of the fridge). Then I need to clean my office, catch up on paperwork, and actually file the things that are piled everywhere.

Then – and only then – can I begin the New Year with the following points of focus:

1) ME. Get off this weight loss plateau. Walk each morning. Track everything. Take the time to plan meals and buy groceries. Schedule my volunteer commitments so that my personal life does not become one spastic “have to” for everyone else. That just might include saying NO from time to time or even bowing out of current obligations. We’ll see. Knit more. Much more.
2) US. My wonderful hubby and I all too often work long hours and then veg with TV and take-out. That’s gotta stop. Not only have we lost ourselves, but we’ve been spending too much moolah. We know that when we focus we are unstoppable debt-reducers. What better time to start than now?
3) HOME. Since the Great Foundation and Porch Work of 2005-2006, we’ve shied away from interior improvements, mostly from burnout. That too must change. Half of our house still looks like it did when we moved here 6 years ago. We’ve gotta start taking care of this old gal and help her shine like we know she can. There is a tremendous amount of work we can do with very little money. It’s all about time and effort.

Well, that’s about it. May you and yours have a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. Me and Joe? We’ll be hangin’ out at home. Come on over.

Words Fail Me...

This evening, I left work, headed over to the Humane Society Prez's house for my biweekly gathering of info and paperwork, ran by Subway where my not-so-favorite person was behind the counter, giving me a wicked look for requesting all the veggies (including hot peppers) on my veggie sub and Joe's club (soooo sorry to interrupt your break beeyatch), then drove home, checked the mail (received endless Christmas cards which are wonderful but remind me how very late I am this year) and settled in for an evening in front of the PC working on shelter stuff.

Then, as I headed up the front stairs, I thought I'd turn on the porch light and see if there was anything on the porch.

There was. Actually, there WERE. Two boxes. One was the last of Joe's presents to me (Michael Franti & Spearhead Yell Fire! CD and his movie I Know I'm Not Alone). Yes, happy happy joy joy, it's what I wanted, but I was kind of expecting them since he had the Amazon confirmation sent to our joint email address (d'oh!).

Then there was THE OTHER ONE.

I knew by the address that Ms Snarkypants was the culprit. Maybe soap? I did mention soaps I like. Big box for soap, though. What could it be whatcoulditbe? Tossing the Amazon box aside, I grabbed the scissors and raced for the table (after getting a beer, of course - unwrapping usually requires adult beverages with which to savor the opening of goodies - in our house, at least).

Oooooooooooooooooooooh......

Working clockwise, from noon:

Not one, but TWO! hanks of Handspun in a lovely LOVELY mango merino/silk. Holy cow! How will I ever think of a project special enough for this beautiful yarn? It's soft and golden - it simply glows - and it's so fun to touch and love...

A ball winder (!!!) - a nice used one (that makes fine little funny balls!) that needed a new home. Now, this is from Idyllic Chick, who is simply amazing as well (though I've never met her). Dude - did you realize that when we went to DC and visited the LYS that Joe was totally buying me a swift and winder for xmas, but they had no more winders, so I just got a swift? This is THE BALL WINDER OF DESTINY!

2 CDs of MP3s - one each from Snark and Idyllic - which I will be listening to as soon as I'm done with this post.

Again from Idyllic - 2 skeins of Jawool superwash in a GAW-JUS deep burgandy/olive/indigo colorway. Yippee Skippee!

Also from Idyllic - a sweet set of Clover antique needle holder charms. How very cool! I now have knitting paraphenalia!

Snarky Soap - FOUR BARS! I'm not gonna tell you what scents, cuz I don't want you to be too jealous. But YUMMY.

A Snarky handknit bag from 100% corn fiber. It's so adorable - I want to carry it around with me and show it off - "Hello, person-on-the-street, my friend made this for me. From CORN."

Last but certainly not least - Snark's G-ma's Chex Mix. Must. Find. Place. To. Hide. From. Husband.

Tonight, my WW points don't count. I'm toasting a beer or two in salute of you, my wonderful online (and Snark - briefly in person) friends. It is simply too much. Thank you.

Six Weird Things About Me

Thanks a LOT, Snarky McSnarkypants... ;)

“THE RULES: Each player of this game starts with the ‘6 weird things about you.’ People who get tagged need to write a blog of their own 6 weird things as well as state this rule clearly. In the end, you need to choose 6 people to be tagged and list their names. Don’t forget to leave a comment that says ‘you are tagged’ in their comments and tell them to read your blog.”

Six weird things about me:
1. I have a set of lists for when I leave town for a week or more - locks and windows to be checked, appliances unplugged, etc. I cling to that list, because it's guaranteed that within 30 minutes of leaving for my trip I'll be POSITIVE I left something on, and this proves that I did everything.
2. I can't eat meat on the bone. Too many oogy parts.
3. I have a birthmark on the edge of my wrist that I didn't notice until the 2nd grade, when a CUTE substitute PE teacher was pulling us over this big canvas ball thingy. I thought he smudged some dirt on my hand, and I wasn't going to wash it off. Little did I know it was a freakin' birthmark.
4. I loved oregano so much growing up that I put some of it in a batch of St. Patrick's Day cookies (well, it's green).
5. I have really large, flat, ugly feet. With stubbly toenails.
6. I always tear up at the end of Mr. Holland's Opus, Love Acutally, Rent, and V for Vendetta.

As far as 6 people to tag, I don't think 6 people even read my blog. And of the few that do, only a couple have blogs. And those folks have already been tagged. SO...if you're reading this, leave a comment either directing to your blog and answers or respond in the comment itself.

Man. Is it Sunday night already? Bummer...

Home Again, Naturally

Took yesterday afternoon off to come home, change into sparkly clothes, then travel to Connecticut for Joe's office Christmas party. It was held at a lovely place called The Mill On the River, and we had a grand time. We stayed over in CT, drove back this morning, and I'm laying low today (due to having a grand time with the open bar last night) and struggling to get some things done. SP9 package #2 is mailed out, Mom's socks are drying, and I finished #1 of Joe's cigar gloves. Fun pattern that would knit up quickly if I actually worked on it all the time.

It's a bit big for me, but it fits Joe rather well. I was pleased at how the holes between the fingers were actually a function of the pattern (mentioned in the bind-off instructions) and not just due to my incompetency. I enjoy knitting, and I can do it, but sometimes I feel really inadequate. I need to get over my damn self.

Anyhow, just hangin' out with the kitties and going through about a week's worth of mail, getting a jump on the weekend, which will be a crazy time of catching up on shopping and chores.

Happy Friday!

I Was Going to be Good...

...but then I wasn't.

This weekend we went to Washington DC to see our neighbor Hal in the musical She Loves Me. So we planned an activity-filled weekend around the show.

Got to see our old Atlanta buddies (now residing in suburban DC) Regan, Susan, and their kids. Only spent a few precious hours with them, but it was wonderful. The show itself was just stupendous. It was performed in the round, and we were on the front row - I could have leaned over and touched the actors if I were so inclined. Such great talent in a sweet, classic musical. And Hal was awesome, as usual. We had Tex-Mex food, brew-pub beers, and a couple of pints at a great Irish pub (where the owners are actually Irish and not just Notre Dame fans). We went shopping in Old Alexandria and got a goodly bit of presents taken care of.

The clincher, though, was when we were in the hotel, getting ready for our morning out in Alexandria, when Joe said, "I'm surprised you didn't look up a yarn shop for the trip."

Me: "Nah, after the Sheep and Wool Fest I really don't need to buy anything else."

Joe: "Well, I see something online right here - it's right off the main street where we'll be."

Me: "Oh, okay. Maybe. If we have time."

Let's just say I made a bee-line for the shop as soon as the clock ticked past its 10:30 opening time. Knit Happens - a lovely store with lovely people (and a lovely class going on as I was fondling and playing with the yarns on the floor like a girl does her Barbie dolls). And so - even with the INTENTION of being good, and knowing full well that I could get these yarns online or in my LYS when I really needed them...

11 hanks of Debbie Bliss tweed for a (way far in the future) sweater for Joe and 3 skeins of Lorna's Laces Bullfrogs & Butterflies for I'm not sure what yet. In the store I was thinking maybe Clapotis, but I'm not sure that I got enough. Maybe a variation on it. Who knows. Now I really can't buy anything else for a while.

Oh. And this gorgeous basket? Got at a farmer's market that morning from a Ghanian (Ghanese?) woman. I took it with me shopping all day and got the best compliments on it! PERFECT stash basket. Perfect shopping basket. Perfect "I'm just out for a stroll with my lovely basket" basket.

We're back, we're tired, and I'm very behind on updating the gallery photos (way back to Thanksgiving). Give me a few days to catch up, and I'll resurface later.