Summer Blah's

On Saturday night DH and I went to see Pirates of the Caribbean. I enjoyed it and I’m sure that I’ll see the next one as well but I was a little disappointed. I’m not sure that it’s anything that I can put my finger on besides resenting the obvious set up for the sequel. It just wasn’t “all that.” I think that Cars (which we saw last week) was better. It was familiar but in a good way.

I also finished reading “Possible Side Effects” by Augusten Burroughs recently. It was good and I’m glad that I read it but I had a little feeling of déjà vu as I read it. Many of the themes were ones that he’s covered before and many if the stories were very familiar.

Am I becoming jaded? Aside from knitting so many things just seem so blah. Maybe it’s the summer heat that’s addled my brain. I need a little excitement.

On Saturday we went to the pool as usual and the water was wonderful. It’s been so warm lately that the pool never really cools down much. I love the pool and can never get enough but the family needed a break so, on Sunday, I took Stink and her friend bowling. We all had fun and it was a nice change of pace. I even managed to do my signature shot - flinging the ball backwards towards the seating area. I am just that talented! At right is a shot of the score from our last game. Yeah – I suck at bowling. The “D’s” are Stink and her buddy. As you can see, I lost to two 7-year-olds. Go me!

Here is a picture of the Log Cabin Blankie as it appeared last night. I didn’t get as much work done on it as I expected since I cast on for another sock on Saturday. I just couldn’t help myself. I had 2 balls of Elann Esprit in purple that were begging to be knit. Blame it on Project Spectrum. Blame it on the soft squishiness of the yarn. I started them while I was getting my toes done and they are marvelous. The sock will belong to Stinkerbelle when they’re done and when she stuck her toes in them last night to check the size she said that they feel really good. I’m almost at the heel of the first sock so I need to work out a plan for the leg pattern quickly.

By the way, for anyone who cares, DQ has been away for 2 weeks now. I miss her and her tween certainty that she knows more than I do. I went shoe shopping recently and found myself unable to make a purchase without her constant commentary on the relative “trendiness” of the shoes I admired. Woe is me!

All that aside I should admit that I am plotting ways to express my extreme annoyance upon her return. Why? Lack of correspondence WITH ANYONE! I have received exactly 2 terse e-mails with demands for goggles, better headphones, stamps etc. I probably shouldn’t be so shocked but she has 8 more e-mail forms with which she could send me hearts, flowers and love. That is on top of the FOURTY stamps (very cute ones) that I sent to camp with her. We carefully placed them in a drawer after I advised her for the eleventy-millionth time that I expected her to write to everyone. I even sent her a second batch of stamps this past Monday (at her request). You’d think that somebody would’ve received a letter from her.

Unless her hand has been broken (again) or all the pens and pencils at camp mysteriously disappeared she has no plausible excuse.

Here’s my final thought on the matter. We will be taking her directly from camp to a cabin in the woods with no TV or telephone. This retreat was planned as a family get-away but this could easily become the perfect place for DQ torture. I envision chaining her to a table while she churns out letters to all those who have written to her at camp. Of course this would be done while horses trot by without her (she loves horses) and the rest of the family would giggle and frolic about in the bright sunshine outside.

I must keep reminding myself that I love DQ very much and there is a rational excuse beyond general tween orneriness to explain this.