Rain, Rain, Go Away

They don't call it the "Wet Coast" for nothing. On the heels of Sunday's snowstorm came the "Pineapple Express", a tropical weather system that dumped buckets of rain on our region yesterday. It did not help that many sewer drains were blocked by unmelted snow, causing lakes to form where they do not naturally occur, like in parking lots and at the end of our driveway.

Despite the fact that we west coasters accept rain as a fact of life, many of us rarely wear boots or carry umbrellas as you might expect. Unless someone spends a considerable amount of time outdoors, shoes and hooded jackets provide all the protection we need as we run from house to car or car to store. We are even less likely to own a pair of snowboots, considering that we might see significant snowfall only once every few years. Thus explains the lack of adequate footwear in our house for yesterday's weather conditions.

In the morning my husband, Cameron, and younger son, Colin, got soaked through as they dug the delivery vehicles of the auto parts company they both work for out of a flooded, slushy parking lot. This necessitated a trip home to change clothes and attempt to warm their cold feet in a hot tub. Colin never did return to work; he was chilled through and by all appearances seemed to suffer mild cases of frostbite and hypothermia (he was much better by evening). Cameron, on the other hand, headed back out into the deluge to deal with a leaky roof at one of the stores he oversees. He got soaked yet again as he shoveled snow and cleared the drains on the store's roof. And so my morning was spent running baths, making hot drinks, and dealing with piles of sopping wet clothing and footwear.

Luckily, things settled down by afternoon and I was able to get some knitting done, after all.
















I completed and blocked Mr. Greenjeans. All it needs is a button. I am very pleased with how this sweater turned out and am even considering making one for myself, though I rarely knit anything more than once.

Which leads me to these:
















Matt's felted clogs. Once they're dry I'll give them a shave, then they'll be done too. I think I have now knit this pattern seven times, have plans to make another pair for my son-in-law's birthday in January, and will probably knit more in the years to come. However, as much as I love the finished product, I really don't enjoy knitting this pattern anymore. Once was fun, the second time was okay, and now I just find it tedious. A confirmed process knitter, this is one of the few things I knit strictly for the product.

Last night, with most of my Christmas knitting out of the way, I knit a few more inches of Auburn Mist. Only a ball into it, I am already beginning to fear that I am not going to have enough yarn. Oh well, I can make shorter sleeves, if necessary. This morning, as I sipped my first cup of tea, I began the heel of my mom's sock and got as far as the gusset. Now that I have passed the stage where I need to concentrate I will work on the sock in bits and pieces, while watching tv, talking on the phone, or riding in the car.

It is raining again today but the worst seems to have passed. Looks like I have another cozy day of knitting ahead of me before I head out for a very special shopping trip this evening...