Tryfan

I went on holiday with my family to North Wales last week. Dad decided we had to climb this mountain called Tryfan...

                                 

View overlooking the valley, from very near the summit. 

See these rocks? The last bit up is a scramble over seemingly endless boulders. The two stones that mark the summit can be seen in the background.

Me, sitting next to the stones. They're named Adam & Eve because they look like people from the bottom of the valley.

Why was there a seagull on the top of the mountain?!

Merry Christmas!!

And a happy new year! I hope you all have time to do something you like over Christmas :)

Yesterday was lovely. I had a sewing machine!! Well excited about that, does anyone know of any blogs with sewing tutorials on? I've not used one before so I'm looking forward to doing new projects and learning as I go. There is a dressmaking for beginners course run by the centre where I attend my knitting course, but it's 15 weeks long and it's going to be too difficult for me to rearrange all my shifts in work so that I can attend them all.

I also had a brilliant knitting solutions book (I'll get the proper name soon) which is written by an experienced knitter and is basically full of answers and solutions to problems knitters may come across. I've only had a quick flick through but it does look great - a brilliant Ravelry alternative if I can't get online as well!

I made a chocolate log yesterday, I'll post a picture soon. It looked pretty good (even if I say so myself!).

Unfortunately 3 out of the 4 of us are ill with something, but it's still nice to be home even if I am ill!

Merry Christmas xx

Lucky, Lucky Man

Morning,

My grandfather had a heart attack on Monday. He died three times. He was running for a train to go to a Ramblers meeting (he's a really fit man for his age) and had run up 2 flights of stairs, across a bridge and down 2 flights of stairs. He bought his ticket, sat down on a seat on the platform and keeled over.

Incredibly luckily there was an off duty policewoman and an asian student also on the platform. Someone noticed Dat had collapsed and they both knew first aid and went to help. They did CPR on him for 20 minutes until the ambulance came. He had another heart attack on the platform during the CPR, and another inside the ambulance where they used a defibrillator and brought him back again.

This all happened at 9am. I turned up at the same train station at 10.30am, got my train from the same platform quite happily and went home. There were no signs of anything having happened.

I then had a text from Mam at 3.30pm to say that he'd collapsed and she'd be in touch. Over the next half hour or so she told me what had happened.

He's currently in Coronary Care which is basically intensive care. They're hoping to move him onto a normal ward soon, if not already, as his blood pressure and heart rhythm are stable now. We're waiting for a bed to become available at a larger, specialised hospital. They rushed him to the nearest available one when he collapsed, but it doesn't have the necessary equipment to see whether he needs a stent or a bypass operation. He'll be moved to the larger hospital to have the tests and the operations if needed.

He doesn't remember anything from Monday. The off duty policewoman turned up at the hospital afterwards to return his rucksack which had been left on the platform in all the fuss. It had his car keys etc in it, so when Dat had come around he'd been fussing over it. This incredibly nice, good person went to the hospital and asked around to track him down and return the rucksack. She met Dat and my Auntie who was with him, and they got to say thanks personally to her for saving his life, which is an awesome thing. They are going to try to track down the Asian student to thank as well.

He was very, very, lucky.

xx

Manic Weekend!

Evening,

I wanted to post yesterday but life got in the way :)

I came home on Saturday morning to help decorate my brothers bedroom as a surprise for his 17th birthday. He's currently in Canada for the next week with school, and has no idea it's being done. The old Manchester United stuff has been binned, and the new stuff is coming in!

Mam first mentioned it when I asked what she'd like for her birthday two weeks ago. She replied that she didn't want anything, but it would be a big help if I could do the painting for Daniels room if they decided to do it. Based on this I assumed that I'd be spending Saturday afternoon painting!

Nope.

I got off the train and went straight up to see my Grandparents to collect Mam who was looking after Gu (she needs a carer). Neither Dadcu or Mam could decide quite how the wood of the new furniture they'd bought on Thursday looked, so Dadcu and I went to the furniture store to see it. They both remembered it as being quite dark, almost black.

Does this look almost black to you?!

(The dresser, not the chest of drawers!!)

This is the floor in his room at the moment. We were trying to match it which proved a little difficult. We figured with a red tinge (the furniture is rubber wood that has then been treated and originally looks more like pine) that a dark floor and white walls would go well.

Once we got to B&Q we decided that the walnut was the best as the mahogany would have too much red in it. Except that the mahogany has been discontinued. That's pretty much where Saturday ended.

This morning we went looking again. We eventually found a shop with the 2.5 ltr tub of varnish in stock, but he sticker for dark oak was lighter than the medium oak! So we befriended a man in Focus who made a deal with us: We could have the 2.5 ltr tub of dark oak (which was £47.99!!!) and take it home with us and test a patch. If it wasn't what we wanted we could refund it, even though we'd opened and used it. That was really kind of them, so that's what we did.

We decided that it should be okay, and tbh Mam and I were not really in the mood for any more driving! Instead we emptied and sorted through everything in the room. We hoovered and washed the floor. Then I got rid of all the blu tac off the walls, and we tackled these things while waiting for the varnish to dry:

The theme used to be football, so there are a lot of football stickers on the wall! Or used to be :)

Unfortunately taking off those pulled some of the paint off. Bit annoying but no big worry.

My foot and my painting jeans :) It's been quite hard getting my camera to pick up an accurate colour, quite frustrating.

Once the varnish was properly dry, we then started re-arranging everything so that we could clear half the room to start varnishing the floor.

We took a break to top up on some liquids! (The rose was mine :) )

And then it was time to varnish! The tub came with it's own pad-on-a-pole that we used.

It came out a lot darker using that. We did the patch using a brush because if we'd used the pad and the colour hadn't been right, there's no way we would have been able to refund it.

By this time it was 6pm and I had to leave to go and look after Gu while Dadcu went to Choir practise. Mam finished off the half, and when I came back it looks like this:

Dark oak did indeed turn out to be dark in the end!

xx

Shawl Update

Morning,

The shawl is coming along nicely. I've done up to the 4th increase which means it's grown from 13 to 121 stitches which is pretty time consuming. I've been knitting for about 6-7 hours today, it's time to go to bed soon!

It's now long enough that it sits on my shoulders and is about 8 inches in length. That'll get longer after blocking which I haven't decided quite how to do yet. I know I'll probably end up taking it home on Saturday and blocking it there with Mam's help, and hopefully it will dry by Sunday or Monday morning and I can give it to Gu. If not, I can leave it in Mam's capable hands and she'll deliver it for me when it's ready.

I reckon I'm about 40% through now. The pattern states that a shawlette will probably reach increase row 8 or 9, and I'm halfway between increase rows 4 and 5 at the moment so I'm halfway technically. However seeing as it still needs to increase from 121 to 241 stitches the slowest part is still to come. Each row is taking me about 10 minutes to knit or purl. I've watched 6 episodes of Merlin and 1 episode of Mock the Week today! I have to have something on to watch or I just get bored and put the knitting down. I think it's the sheer amount of stitches per row which are putting me off slightly, I loved making my scarf!

It's 2.30am so definitely time for bed now, night!

xx

My Blanket

It was my Mams birthday yesterday so I'm back home for a few days. I took my knitting with me to show Mam seeing as she was the one who introduced me to it.

Mam has a needle case with about 20 needles in it that she's given me! It's got straight, double pointed, cable and circular needles. I'm hoping I can get her to keep some of the duplicates and get her back into knitting. Probably wishful thinking though.

While looking for the case in the attic, she found my baby blanket that Gu made me. I'm the only one of the grandchildren to have one, I was the first of 4. The blanket is gorgeous. It's made in a cream baby wool, and in an intricate leaf lace pattern. It must have taken months to complete! She was a really talented knitter. It's taller and wider than I am 23 years on so I snuggled up under it last night while watching the tv feeling loved and cosy.

For the time being it's going to stay at home safe, but when I get a house of my own its going to have pride of place.

xx

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Mam Knows Best

Evening,

Not long got home from work so just a quick update.

I saw this pop up on a friends Facebook this evening. Not quite a poem but I still like it:

At the age of 4: Mum knows everything!
At 8: Mum knows a lot!
At 12: Mum doesn't know everything.
At 14: Mum doesn't know anything.
At 16: Mum doesn't exist.
At 18: She's old fashioned.
At 25: Mum does know about this!
At 35: Before we decide, let's ask Mum.
At 45: I wonder what Mum thinks about this?
At 75: I wish I could ask my Mum!

Simple enough, but it does sound fairly familiar!

Knitting update: Last night we unravelled the piece Mam started in order to teach me with. This morning on the train I started anew with 30 stitches. It now seems to progressing well, and I have rashly suggested I might make a scarf for someone, to which two people have put their names down! Oh dear!!

xx

I can Knit! (Badly)

Evening,

In a related reprise of I can Crochet! (Badly). This week I bought a Let's Get Crafting Knitting & Crochet special issue. I brought it on the train home with me (intending to do it, and putting it off) and showed it to Mam while discussing the fact that I'd also brought home 2 dresses for alterations with me.

I bought a navy and white dress last week that I love the style and pattern of, but I'm not sure about it. The wide straps have button holes and attach to the dress via buttons so that the length is adjustable. I've only a small chest so it needs taking in again. However the dress also seems like it's straining at the front (it has an elasticated back), where there are 4 buttons down the chest. I don't want the top one popping open, but the fabric wrinkles and appears to be strained when all buttons are done up. So I'm not sure whether to keep it and alter it (and hope for the best, because the buttons would have to be stitched which would affect the way the dress sits) or to return it. It was £19.99.

I also have another dress I bought for my birthday. The adjustable strap plastic piece has snapped on one end, so it doesn't hold it's position any more. It's the same piece you get on bra straps, so I'm hoping it will be relatively easy to track down a replacement.

So this evening Mam and I sat down to go through the dresses and alter them. Out came her stash, and away it went when we realised that we couldn't actually make any headway on either. Then I remembered the magazine, and Mam started showing me how to knit. She has never been able to crochet (she says) so the extent of my crochet skills (casting on and the foundation chain) is more than she can do.

However Mam used to be able to knit, and she has lots of cardigans etc that she knitted for me when I was a baby. My Gran used to knit a lot, as did her Grandmother. Sadly my Gran's health isn't very good any more, and she's unable to knit or craft.

After saying she was rusty and unable to remember clearly, Mam picked up the wool and needles and started knitting away like a pro! So she showed me how to cast on, then how to knit and after a few rows how to purl. I've ended up with what looks like a misshapen flag due to my mysterious skill in adding extra stitches! It was 12 to begin with, and at one point was 16...

I really enjoyed it, and more importantly Mam did too. We even stayed up until 11.30pm doing it, which is REALLY late for Mam. She's normally in bed by 9pm and then watches tv until she nods off. I'm glad she enjoyed it, although she did say she probably wouldn't take it up again properly.

Hope you've all had a lovely Sunday like me :)

xx

The Simple Woman's Day Post

Outside my window… is another house. I live in a street of terraced houses. Not very inspiring, but at the bottom of the road is the Thames river, and on a sunny day it's gorgeous.

I am thankful for… having seen my Dad today. The older I get the better we get on, and he popped in today to take me to lunch (tapas) and a catch up.

I am wearing… a 'new' jumper that I picked up for 50p last year but never wore. I decided that I do like it after all, even though my BF said he didn't like it.

I am remembering… that I really need to take my library books back!

A few plans for the week… several trips to the gym, and some more crafting.

I am currently reading… nothing, but I intend to pick up more books from the library after work on Tuesday.

I am hoping… that the pictures I have taken on my new film camera will come out okay.

On my mind… that I need to sort out my bank account and ISA, and each day I delay it hurts me in the long run.

Hearing… old songs from 1956. I grew up listening to all kinds of music in the car with my parents, which means I have a rather eclectic taste.

I am praying that… that my Dad doesn't get made redundant as he fears he might.

From the kitchen… nothing today! I had a late lunch and then had some malteasers in the evening. My lunch filled me up. I intend to make a home made pizza this week though.

Around the house… several bugs are flying, they don't normally bother me though. I'd rather have the windows open than bake.

One of my favorite things… sushi, I could quite happily eat sushi every day for the rest of my life. And at some point I intend to try!

From my picture journal…



http://thesimplewomansdaybook.blogspot.com/

xx

Anniversary

Morning,

It was my parent's anniversary a few weeks ago. Their 24th anniversary was on the 14th of June, and my birthday was on the 17th. My Uncle also has his birthday on the 14th of June. My family mostly has birthdays in June and October, with one in February and 3 in December. Odd how it's all clustered.

The week before I'd gone to visit Hobbycraft. It's only the second time I've been as I find it expensive and I don't have a car. It's about a 15-20 minute walk away, which if you've got a lot of stuff is a long way to carry a hefty stash!

I made this card out of two number toppers I bought there. The cardstock and papers have been in my stash for 2 years now. I originally bought the papers in a huge lot off Ebay so I can't say who made them sorry.



xx