Last night Zach and I went ahead and celebrated my birthday because we just didn't feel like waiting. Normally we go to Appleby's but in the long run we always come away from there unsatisfied. It's expensive and the food doesn't equate to the expense. So I suggested Pizza Hut because I love their salad bar and we could split a pizza for a lot less than we would spend, even on the cheapest stuff at the big A. So we each got a one-trip salad bar and split a large pizza. Next time we'll opt for a medium pizza, although the difference is only $1, I think.
The food was great but for some reason the hostess crammed all the guests into a small area so we were next to each other while the dining room was largely empty. We were next to the kitchen as well and with the music playing it was hard to talk without being loud. And our conversations are generally not suitable for public consumption, especially in light of the family in the next booth talking about Bible study. We normally talk about spiritual things or gay rights or liberal stuff. Not wanting to attract attention, we talked about boring stuff but it was so hard to hear each other that it was a bit of a dampener on the evening. Still, the price was right for celebrations so from now on we'll give Appleby's a pass.
Although the server was less than satisfactory. We ended up being served by the hostess because we didn't see our server again until the bill needed to be paid. We started out with no plates and no silverware. Zach went up to the counter to ask for those. That's how we ended up with the hostess taking very good care of us. I normally tip 20% but in light of the lack of a server, I only tipped 15%. I would have tipped less if I knew for sure only the original server was going to get the money. In the end we had a different waitress who took care of the check.
I'm making progress on Zach's sweater. The stripes are much narrower because of the little balls of yarn I ended up with and while it's a bit tedious, I feel good knowing the yarn isn't going to waste. Which is an attitude I have to start taking. Tom is going up north next week, which will cost money, and with us having to buy a newer car next month, it's time to get back into super-duper tightwad mode. I have plenty of yarn to keep me occupied for the winter aside from wool for socks. I'm going to go ahead and get enough wool for 3 pair, which should keep me going all winter if I wash them out at least every third day. That gives me about 5 pair altogether. I'm no longer going to use Woolease because they only last a year before needing darning and two years before they are mostly darned socks. My wool socks are in their 3rd year without a single hole.
But they have to be washed by hand, which isn't really a problem but it does require effort. Which I need to start taking in super-duper tightwad mode.
I also need to get my singles dyed and get busy on scouring and carding my fleece so I can spin it this winter. Not sure if I will dye the Shetland wool. I like earth tones but it depends what it looks like after washing. If it's too gray I'll probably look for some brown dye. I'm practicing on kool-aid now but I plan on studying up on it so I can start doing more of this. It takes longer to spin on my kick spindle but I'm a process spinner as well as a process knitter so it's all about the experience. Plus I end up with wool and not acrylic. This is really the only way I can afford nicer wool yarn.
It's a lovely fall day today, even though fall doesn't get here until Friday. The temps are in the 60s with a lovely breeze and overcast skies. Really is my time of year.
I called my dad today to wish him a Happy Birthday. His birthday is the day before mine so I never forget it. He turned 80 today and still sounds good. He spent the morning with his high school alumni group. They get together once a month for lunch and have a good time.
Well, time to go hit the couch for more knitting. I'm just taking it easy today since I got very little sleep again. It took a while for the pain pills to kick in and for me to find a position that didn't hurt and when I did fall asleep Hannibal jumped up on the bed, landed on my bare leg and slid his claws in order to keep from falling off the bed. Woke me right up. He took off pretty quick when I woke up yelling. Later, after finally getting to sleep again, Professor went ape-shit over something outside and started barking hysterically, which woke up Tank, next door...the ROTTWEILLER who looks at Professor as if he were food. Tom was told that he's a gentle giant and will sit if you tell him to. All I know is he barks loudly and the cat is terrified of him and Professor thinks he can take him on.
He started barking frantically again this morning, waking up Tank again. I think it was a squirrel or something. I will be glad when the windows are all closed at night so he doesn't hear a chipmunk two blocks away. So, because I didn't get much sleep last night, I'm doing very little today. Stockinette stitch is pretty easy to work on and leaves few opportunities for mistakes so I'm working on Zach's sweater mostly to the exclusion of all else. I'll work on Tom's hat when he goes on vacation next week.
I should think of something for supper but I'm not really feeling like cooking. However, I do feel like eating so I should think of something soon.
TTFN
The food was great but for some reason the hostess crammed all the guests into a small area so we were next to each other while the dining room was largely empty. We were next to the kitchen as well and with the music playing it was hard to talk without being loud. And our conversations are generally not suitable for public consumption, especially in light of the family in the next booth talking about Bible study. We normally talk about spiritual things or gay rights or liberal stuff. Not wanting to attract attention, we talked about boring stuff but it was so hard to hear each other that it was a bit of a dampener on the evening. Still, the price was right for celebrations so from now on we'll give Appleby's a pass.
Although the server was less than satisfactory. We ended up being served by the hostess because we didn't see our server again until the bill needed to be paid. We started out with no plates and no silverware. Zach went up to the counter to ask for those. That's how we ended up with the hostess taking very good care of us. I normally tip 20% but in light of the lack of a server, I only tipped 15%. I would have tipped less if I knew for sure only the original server was going to get the money. In the end we had a different waitress who took care of the check.
I'm making progress on Zach's sweater. The stripes are much narrower because of the little balls of yarn I ended up with and while it's a bit tedious, I feel good knowing the yarn isn't going to waste. Which is an attitude I have to start taking. Tom is going up north next week, which will cost money, and with us having to buy a newer car next month, it's time to get back into super-duper tightwad mode. I have plenty of yarn to keep me occupied for the winter aside from wool for socks. I'm going to go ahead and get enough wool for 3 pair, which should keep me going all winter if I wash them out at least every third day. That gives me about 5 pair altogether. I'm no longer going to use Woolease because they only last a year before needing darning and two years before they are mostly darned socks. My wool socks are in their 3rd year without a single hole.
But they have to be washed by hand, which isn't really a problem but it does require effort. Which I need to start taking in super-duper tightwad mode.
I also need to get my singles dyed and get busy on scouring and carding my fleece so I can spin it this winter. Not sure if I will dye the Shetland wool. I like earth tones but it depends what it looks like after washing. If it's too gray I'll probably look for some brown dye. I'm practicing on kool-aid now but I plan on studying up on it so I can start doing more of this. It takes longer to spin on my kick spindle but I'm a process spinner as well as a process knitter so it's all about the experience. Plus I end up with wool and not acrylic. This is really the only way I can afford nicer wool yarn.
It's a lovely fall day today, even though fall doesn't get here until Friday. The temps are in the 60s with a lovely breeze and overcast skies. Really is my time of year.
I called my dad today to wish him a Happy Birthday. His birthday is the day before mine so I never forget it. He turned 80 today and still sounds good. He spent the morning with his high school alumni group. They get together once a month for lunch and have a good time.
Well, time to go hit the couch for more knitting. I'm just taking it easy today since I got very little sleep again. It took a while for the pain pills to kick in and for me to find a position that didn't hurt and when I did fall asleep Hannibal jumped up on the bed, landed on my bare leg and slid his claws in order to keep from falling off the bed. Woke me right up. He took off pretty quick when I woke up yelling. Later, after finally getting to sleep again, Professor went ape-shit over something outside and started barking hysterically, which woke up Tank, next door...the ROTTWEILLER who looks at Professor as if he were food. Tom was told that he's a gentle giant and will sit if you tell him to. All I know is he barks loudly and the cat is terrified of him and Professor thinks he can take him on.
He started barking frantically again this morning, waking up Tank again. I think it was a squirrel or something. I will be glad when the windows are all closed at night so he doesn't hear a chipmunk two blocks away. So, because I didn't get much sleep last night, I'm doing very little today. Stockinette stitch is pretty easy to work on and leaves few opportunities for mistakes so I'm working on Zach's sweater mostly to the exclusion of all else. I'll work on Tom's hat when he goes on vacation next week.
I should think of something for supper but I'm not really feeling like cooking. However, I do feel like eating so I should think of something soon.
TTFN
No comments:
Post a Comment