Thursday, July 07, 2005

Attack of the Leisure Zombies

Who sneaked in and stole my vacation while I wasn't looking? It's Thursday already, and I don't have much to show for my week of leisure -- not that it's even been all that leisurely. It seems as though we've spent the entire week in the car, getting from Point A to Point B to Point Infinity.

My twin niece and nephew turned 5 on the 4th and 5th of July (one on each side of midnight), and my brother and sister-in-law threw their annual barbecue/birthday extravaganza. We ended up trucking all the way down to my home town for that one and then trucking all the way back that same night. In between the long drives, we feasted on barbecue from The Memphis Roadhouse, watched the kids burrow wildly into their mounds of presents, bummed rides on my brother's Harley, and drank beer in the sunshine. Sweeeeeet.

Max, my nephew, is deeply into "Star Wars." Greg and I picked out a talking Darth Vader helmet/mask that comes with a few preset pushbutton phrases ("Welcome to Verizon 411. What city and state?"), plus a little synthesizer that changes your voice when you wear the mask and speak into the microphone. That turned out to be such a huge hit with the adults that it'll be a miracle if Max ever gets to play with it himself. He allowed us to co-opt his toy and jabber and sing through it until we all ended up doubled over and wheezing with laughter, but he refused to let go of his light saber just in case.

Biscuit Breath Business

Little Seamus continues to improve in the obedience department, though he's a mighty long way from ever being able to go anywhere off-lead. He has managed to connect "wait" in obedience class with "wait" while I fetch the mail, so he doesn't rush the front door as much as he used to. (He still gives it his best shot when we try to leave through the garage door, though. He knows when he's missing out on a car ride.)

Yarn Stuff

Donna emailed me that she's made it to the hood of her Fletcher sweater. She has the shoulder seams stitched, and she's picked up the stitches along the back of the neck to attach the hood.

For my part, I've made it about two-thirds of the way up the second sleeve. If I can dedicate enough of my remaining vacation hours to knitting, I might be able to get to the hood myself this week.

I haven't yet decided what my next big project will be once this Fletcher has been sewn, blocked, and given pride of place in my closet till the colder weather comes back. Projects have a way of just appearing and insisting that they be done, so I'm not overly concerned about not having plans just yet. The yarn really does need to come from my stash, though. The stuff in there keeps multiplying when I'm not looking. (There's that ball of sock yarn just waiting...)

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