Fridays in May

Hello, Mrs. 4444 and you happy band of Friday Fragmenters.  It's nice to hang out with you once again.  (You too can deposit your flotsam and jetsam of "not quite enough for a post" ideas here with this like-minded and kind-hearted group.)  Just click here to link up.

In this neck of the woods we have been greeting one another with comments about the weather for many long months.  It has been a pleasure to hear folks say (at last), "Isn't this a gorgeous day?"
Today is a bit chilly, but the sun is shining so it's gorgeous anyway.

Once it is warm again, the cats recall that wonderful day that they got outdoors and ate grass, saw a chipmunk, ran under the porch when a car started across the street.....  Ah, the life of adventure!  Only one of them goes outdoors to patrol the bird seed bag and terrorize the chipmunks.  The two we got from the shelter are indoor cats 99.9% of the time.  Occasionally they're faster than I and sneak out.  (Very, very seldom.)

My grandson is happy that there has been more pleasant weather for track events.  It's hard to do some things indoors, and he's a shot putter.  When I think of being a spectator at track events I mostly shiver.  That's how I remember them, even in nice weather years.

Our travels have taken us to two wonderful European cities, which I won't pretend is only a 'fragment' of a post.  But it was apparent to me that both were very conscious of energy conservation issues.  Hallways in hotels had motion sensor lights rather than be illuminated all the time, we had a hotel room where the lights went off automatically when you took your key out of a special holder to leave and lock the door.

I think the "engineering" in my home is far from cutting edge.  Just sayin'...

My daughter and I breezed through completing a 500 piece jigsaw puzzle a couple of weeks ago.  In a fit of confidence, I borrowed a 1000 piece puzzle from Saint Beverly, but this one will take us ten times longer to do.  There are multiple pieces that are cut the same shape----(sigh).

I took only one project to knit when we were away, thinking I'd have to stick to it and master lace knitting.  I was one frustrated knitter when I returned with needles and a ball of yarn.  The yarn was really good and strong though.  It still is lovely after being used and undone a dozen times.

But I wasn't a quitter, and I signed up for a lace knitting class online, through Craftsy.  I hope you can get to the site; my cookies take me to my own projects which isn't where you'd need to be.  Anyway, I paid for an excellent class which taught me a great deal.  Including patience.

About time.  So I'll give you fair warning.  If you want to make a lace shawl, get yourself a mess of stitch markers and be prepared to count, count, count.  Don't try to do it when you are tired or will be distracted, or when you're drinking wine, or watching a baseball game when the closer is screwing up.  Ask me how I know.

Well, this isn't a lot, but I have to get my Fragment Feet wet gradually.

And there are lots of other folks to visit.  Thanks Mrs. 4444, you're an angel.  But you still have that mischievous twinkle in your eye!

Happy Mothers' Day, all of you who qualify!  May you hear from all your beloved children.