Thank you, Secret Pal!

I had to drop you all a quick note to say "thank you", once again,
to my Secret Pal. She left a nice package at the front door
containing a note, adorable (and delicious) bunny-shaped sugar
cookies as well as Irish Potatoes. Sugar cookies are way up on
my list of favorite foods and the Irish Potatoes were good, as
well. I'd heard of Irish Potatoes but never before tried them.
Like most sweet things, I can now claim that I do like them. :)

Quite some time ago we talked about guessing our SP's identity.
While I don't know who mine is, I do know a few things about her.
They include:
1. She's an excellent cook.
2. She and I don't work together in my office. This one is an
observation from the five-year old and is an easy one since I
don't work with any of you!
3. I know her from knitting. Again, a point made by the shortest
part of the family. This one, too, makes me giggle since I know
all the potential candidates through knitting.
4. She's considerate and thoughtful, thinking of more than just
me. The five year old is looking forward to knowing who she
is almost as much as I am!

The list, above, could apply to the whole group, I believe. In
other words, I have no good ideas yet. Looking forward to saying
"thank you" in person tomorrow night!

MY SP Wants to Know

My secret pal really gets around (and changes handwriting from town to town -- hmmmm. . .). Postmarks so far from San Francisco, Minneapolis, and Boston. . . I'm waiting for Duluth, or how about my favorite town, Durand, Wisconsin? Oh, but where was I . . . right. SP wants to know "What are your three favorite things you've ever knit?" I've been mulling this over, and I'm not sure I can answer. My current favorite is the big purple mitered square blanket, appearing here. After that, I really don't know. . . maybe the Norwegian sweater, with an all-over pattern of stars, that I knit for my boyfriend the fall after I graduated from college. Having never done colorwork before. I loved that project. No one told me it might be hard, and it was just beautiful. And then. . . well, I just don't know. Possibly Bill's "elf" hat -- navy blue with 1-inch stripes in all the colors of the rainbow. He won't wear wool, and my hands don't like working with cotton (ouch) or acrylic (squeak squeak squeak) so it's the only thing I've made for him. I gave it to him for Christmas 2005, and he wore it all day, and he's worn it every day from November through March since then (not at work, just while getting there and back). I think he might get a new one next year. It's more about matching the project to the recipient for me than about virtuoso knitting. And since a good deal of my knitting time comes late at night, autopilot is usually the best kind. Not to say I don't have ideas about magnificent, complex achievements -- just maybe not this year.

A visit from my secret groundhog pal

Even though yesterday's Groundhog Day party got canceled--and even though Phil says we've got six more weeks of winter--I still managed to have a great Groundhog Day.

Jan, Sylvia, and I went out to lunch with an old friend (whom we haven't seen in six years because he now lives in Yakima). When we returned, I checked our mailbox and found another gift from my secret pal. A beautiful card (with a woodcut that reminds me a lot of some of the woodcut art I've seen in Vermont and really adore) wished me a happy Groundhog Day. Accompanying it was a book that's been on my wish list for a long time (I think my secret pal is a mind reader!): Rowan Babies, by Kim Hargreaves. The designs in here are adorable--I am really looking forward to knitting them up!

Thank you, secret pal!

Another Question for Pals

So what is your absolute, most- favorite knitting book? And which, if any, would you like to own someday?

Thanks, Secret Pal!

Just wanted to say thank you to my Secret Swapper for the lovely bunch of blank notecards that I received in the mail today! As you can see, they are all different shapes and sizes and really pretty!

These will come in handy! Thanks so much!

Questions about beverages

A few of us have mentioned being fond of coffee or tea, and I figured it would be nice to have all of our preferences in one place to make things easier for our secret pals. :)

Please answer (in the comments to this post) the following questions:

What kind of coffee do you like? (Fully loaded or decaf? Flavored or unflavored? Any particular roasts?)

What kind of tea do you like? (Fully loaded or decaf? Black or herbal? Any particular varieties?)

And not to assume that everyone here is keen on coffee or tea...

Are you especially fond of any non-coffee/non-tea beverages? (Hot chocolate? Certain beers? Particular wine varieties? Juices? Sparkling waters?)

Thanks Secret Pal!!!

When I came home today from picking up my girl from school, I found these lovely plants and a sweet card. There's a crocus for me and an African violet for Buttons (as I call her on my other blog). On a snowy day, a few flowers really help to cure the wintertime blues. What a thoughtful and warm gift. Thanks Secret Pal!

Info for my secret pal

I can't seem to think creatively today so will use Marsha's two older questionnaires as guidelines about my likes and dislikes.

Non-knitting first:
At home I usually drink decaf coffee black (though will sometimes have high test before 2 p.m.). When I'm out, sometimes add Splenda and nonfat milk. At home I drink unflavored coffee. At Wawa, I often get Hazelnut if I'm adding Spenda and milk.

I also drink tea, but have enough for quite a few years to come.

I'm not into candles, bath products, etc.

My favorite music is classical, folk and "oldies but goodies."

I don't wear many scarves or hats, but do wear gloves and mittens.

I don't have an ongoing sweet tooth (only an occasional craving), but do love ice cream. I like my ice cream and other foods plain. I do like salty snacks such as chips and pretzels.

I like to wear fun earrings and rings.

I have two cats (Inky is 18 and Jessica is closing in on 15).

My birthday is in August (am a Leo).

Knitting related:
I posted my favorite colors as a comment to Marsha's question.

Except when I'm knitting for children, I prefer natural fibers like wool, silk, alpaca. My favorite yarn is Koigu and I like to blend their colors (like with mill ends).

I don't have a favorite thing to knit. Like most things in my life, I like variety. Since I'm on the go a lot, I like to take small things (such as socks) when traveling.

I don't like straight needles, only circulars or double-pointed. I have a hanging canvas gizmo for the circulars and keep the double pointed ones in three-hole punched plastic bags in a loose leaf binder.

There's nothing I have a burning desire for right now.

Hopefully, this will help my secret pal.

Ruth S.

Another question for our swap!

What is your favorite yarn to work with and are there any yarns in particular that you've been dying to try?

more than you wanted to know about Elizabeth

Hmmmm. . . no camera capability yet, so I can't do an appealing artsy shot like Pat's. (I think I'd need a few years of practice anyway, so that's just as well.)

OK, secret pal, here are answers to questions. You all know I like knitting! And I have a lot of stuff, and plenty to share, but that doesn't mean I don't like new things. . . I confess to serial abuse of my Jo-Ann Fabric coupons in the book section, so I already have pretty much everything that I want, so I'd advise steering clear of that. I like smooth yarns more than textured or fluffy yarns (although KidSilk Haze is highly acceptable). And, like Marsha, I'd never reject Koigu. . .Natural fibers. And please! No sock yarn, unless it's something new and wonderful. Lantern Moon straight single-pointed needles, 10-inch length, ebony preferred, sizes 4 and 7, are high on my list of wants. . .

I don't collect anything.

Favorite colors? I'm hopelessly out of style. I love virtually all shades of red, green, and blue; most purples; and nearly all grays. Cannot abide mustard tones. Take them away!!!! I prefer clear and "jewel" tones rather than spice tones, but I do recommend that all of you get a good look at Kristin Knits, by Kristin Nicholas (I'll try to bring it on Thursday). If I could start with an empty house, I'd design it to look a lot like Carl Larsson -- or maybe Simon Pearce -- had drawn it.

I love to read. Favorite book is The Bean Trees, by Barbara Kingsolver. I'm a good cook, but I find that the kind of cooking you have to do every single day is very wearing. I own loads of cookbooks.

Favorite music? Bach, hands down. Also, Cuban, Cajun, Celtic, Franco-American, folk in general; Renaissance [the era], lots of jazz but not the Sun Ra kind, um. . . . Self-indulgent singer songwriters? uh-uh. I like to sit at folk festivals and knit.

Favorite place to be? On the beach, preferably in Maine but any beach will do, especially in the winter.

I like most teas, and I love coffee. But never, ever dark roast. And not flavored -- cinnamon coffee makes me feel like I have dirt in my mouth, and all the others are just too sweet. Yup, I drink it black. I like mild, full coffee flavors. Ground for a Melitta drip filter.

Preferred chocolate? I know I'm "supposed" to express a preference for dark chocolate, but alas, I like milk chocolate better. I know, I'm terminally unhip. Best? One dark Wilbur bud and one milk chocolate Wilbur bud, eaten at the same time.

Fragrances? Can't use scented candles -- Bill is highly allergic. I do buy handmade soaps to fulfill my need for things that smell good. Favorite types of scents would be in the lavender/rosemary/lemon range. I loathe patchouli. The only floral scent I like -- and I love it -- is rose.

Gina, forgive me, but I'm not fond of cats. . .

If I were to pick the animals on my totem pole, they'd be elephant, penguin, flamingo, polar bear, frog, and rabbit. I'm sure this says something very odd about me.

Enough, already, Elizabeth -- how long do you think these people are going to keep reading??

P.S. One more thing -- if you are my giftee, you know I live in a different area. How shall I surprise you without revealing my zip code? I work during the day, and Bill's not home until late at night, so sneaking out to leave things on your doorstep isn't gonna work for me. . .