Wyoming Breezes

two bowl cozies  December 2022 Two friends came over on Monday, and we worked on a puzzle for a few hours. Pat commented on the bowl cozies I have next to the microwave and said she bought two at a recent holiday bazaar. Sue said, “I wish I had some.” I decided to make a set for Sue and her husband. It didn’t take long yesterday to sew the cozies, and I’ll give them to her this afternoon at dominoes.  Once in a while, wishes should come true! 

Every time a hand  reaches out  to help another -  that is Christmas every time someone  puts conflict aside and strives for understanding - that is Christmas every time people forget their differences and realize their love for each other - that is Christmas

Laramie is abuzz with Christmas cheer and activities. A local landscaping business decorated a section of a popular park with a walk-through display. Even though the temperatures are frigid, it’s well worth wandering among the displays. The senior center has hosted several concerts this month: a choir, a trio of university professors from the music department, and a group of 11 young cellists from a string academy.  Despite all the holiday activities, an extreme threat is on the horizon. Tonight an arctic air mass will settle over Wyoming plunging temperatures near -30° F.  Once the windchill is factored, temperatures could easily be near -45° to -65° F. Officials are warning frostbite and hypothermia can occur within mere minutes. I plan to hunker down at home and pray the electricity stays on because I have electric heat. The subzero temperatures are predicted through Saturday and possibly into next week.

Scrappy Silver Lining Hat reversible hat December 2022 Remember the old Doublemint commercials: “It’s two, two mints in one!” The Silver Lining hat is two hats in one. The pattern is straightforward and a mindless knit: it was once free but is now $5.99 at Valley Yarn. The popular Musselburgh hat is very similar, but the crown is knit differently.  My hat was knit with random balls of scrap, sock yarn. The darker section was knit with two different balls of leftover yarn; the colorful section, with multiple, small balls of scrap, sock yarn.  I’ve got a bag of sock yarn remnants, so I cast on another Silver Lining hat as soon as this one was off the needles. 

Upcycled Little Free Library West Laramie, WY Fall 2021 A creative person created a Little Free Library out of an old dorm refrigerator and placed it on a repurposed chair.  The small refrigerator is the perfect size to hold books and keeps them dry and secure during the Wyoming winter weather. 

Patriotic Star 61 x 72 inches Quilt of Valor #227 Patriotic Star started with a donation from a loyal blog reader who wanted to remain anonymous. This quilt used a panel and some of the fabric that she sent in support of Quilt of Valor.  I used a Villa Rosa Design pattern called "Movie Star" to make this quilt, but I added some extra width to the quilt to meet QOV requirements.  Patriotic Star was awarded November 10, 2023 Laramie, Wyoming

I started the Scrappy Silver Lining Hat in September from sock yarn remnants , and I'm still working on it during Sunday Face Time calls with my niece and sister. I'm almost to the final decreases.  This has been a wonderful, mindless knitting project, using two small balls of scrap yarn in random order, knitting helical stripes. The yarn is doing all the work, and I'm trying not to control the color order. So far, I've used about 10 small balls of sock yarn. The hat is reversible: one end is wild; the other, subdued.

Over the Thanksgiving weekend, the pendulum clock on the wall stopped because it required winding, and since I wasn't home, it sat idle until I returned and picked up the key. Like the clock, this blog sat idle for a long time: the most recent post was on Halloween. I could give you the excuse that I've been busy, but in actuality, I was not interested in blogging: I needed a break. During the last month, I've enjoyed listening to numerous audiobooks. I played endless games on my iPad, tried new recipes, visited with friends, played games at the senior center, read blogs and left comments. I posted about none of these activities, but I enjoyed them and enjoyed being in the moment.   Starting today, blog posts will be sporadic until I find a new rhythm.