I opened the curtains several days ago to a sight that has rarely been seen for the past month – wall-to-wall sunshine. As well as the glorious brightness, the wind had dropped too. Although it had shifted to a northerly, there was some warmth in the sun. Crocuses have started to pop up alongside the snowdrops, and the yellow blooms of winter aconite are nodding above their Kermit-like collars. Knowing how fickle weather can be, I’ve got my fingers crossed – sleet and ice are in the forecast. At least the hope of Spring is out there.
Snowdrops and crocus
Except on Friday, when I opened the curtains to a blizzard. It was quite exciting for a few moments. It soon tailed off, and by the time I went out for a walk, the snow had disappeared except in shaded, sheltered nooks. Having grown up in New England, the winters here always seem half-hearted. A few inches here or there, and the snow has usually melted within a few days. Hence the excitement when it looked like it might actually accumulate.
No raindrops on the window this week
Later that morning, being sleep deprived, I did something very stupid. I forgot to put the water in the bottom of my little moka coffee pot, something that happens occasionally. Thinking I could quickly open and fill it, I unclipped the top while it was on the burner. Silly me, I’d completely overlooked that the contents were under pressure. Water and coffee grounds exploded everywhere – the stove, the floor, me. I was lucky to avoid being scalded. After a quick mop-up of the stove and a trip to the washing machine, coffee was made successfully. I’ll be more careful next time.
Curious
St Valentine’s Day rolled around last week. Like Christmas, birthdays, and anniversaries, it’s one of those days where you reflect on what you had and what you’ve lost. Going around the supermarket with all its heart-laden displays still makes my heart heavy. I decided to celebrate instead of pine, and bought a box of chocolates, choosing one of Gordon’s favourites.
Between extra online meetings and orchestra practice, I’ve had limited knitting time this week. I try to catch up when I can by having longer sessions with a talking book. The shoulder straps have been completed and there’s only a few rows to go on the neck. The original plan for the straps had been to repeat the yoke patterning. I was two-thirds done the first shoulder strap when I decided that it just wasn’t working. The moss and diamonds were too large to fit neatly on the strap’s width and length. For the second attempt, I used only moss stitch. While it isn’t like the original photo, moss stitch shoulders appear in other gansey photos.
Approaching flurry
I agree, extra diamonds on the shoulders would have looked misplaced.
I’m glad you found some solace in the chocolates on Valentine’s Day. Of course, Gordon will be with you always.
Perhaps you know, but I get a message when I try to come to your blog that it’s unsecure and dangerous. I can forge on and get here but there might some issue with the provider. This has been the case for several weeks.
I do enjoy how you share your days and look forward to hearing how things are going with the orchestra and the ganseys.
Hi Ellie
Thanks for the heads up re the ‘insecure and dangerous’ message. I didn’t know about it but I’m not surprised. I think it’s because there’s no SSL set up for the site. It’s a bit of software that lets your browser know a website is ‘safe’. I haven’t looked at getting it recently; in the past most providers charged for it.