Surviving Spring Break

So here it is Spring Break. There are all sorts of college students on the loose, getting loaded and hitting the local beaches. It is a good idea to either get out of town or do the lockdown thing and wait for it to be over. We chose the latter because Jerry has to work and I wasn't creative enough to come up with some sort of teen plan. But I joined Facebook, and it is a great way to amuse myself while the kids are at each other's throats. Great strategy huh?!? So I have been getting in touch with my home town of Bethpage, New York and friends that I've met throughout the years. Being a nomadic Coast Guard family makes it extra fun because we've done at least eight duty station moves in the last 21 years. So... since I am in the black hole of Facecrack and Spring Break, nothing new is getting started or completed.

But I did complete a bunch of things before this hiatus. I'll give a quick review:

I finished this tote bag. I enjoyed the pattern drafting and it felt good that I still have it in me.

Here's a view of the tote's innards. I only had to do some minimal edge binding because the lining gave the bag a pretty clean finish. I also gave it an inner zippered security pocket and a key clasp. I would have added racing stripes if I could have. It was good to have a change of pace and drag out the sewing machine.

For my next trick I want to make this quirky retro apron. The fabric reminds me of the curtains from the 'Sound of Music' that Maria Von Trapp sewed into childrens' play clothes. I may have to yodel and twirl!

I finished these socks. The yarn was a gift from Woolydaisy and Rhodi. The stripes spiral fairly evenly around, except near the heel which tends to shift the color pooling. They are squishy soft and super comfy. Thanks gurls!

I also finished some spinning. I'm not entirely sure of how I feel about the results. I was going to use the celery green and ply it with the snapdragon singles from my previous post. But when I tried that, it was looking a little too washed out and Easter-ish (center photo). So I stopped what I was doing and plied the single onto themselves Andean style (left photo). The colors are a bit darker and more to my liking. I'll use the celery singles somewhere else. Nice experiment though.

Not fiber related but just for fun, here is the big finish. This is a photo of our Direct TV dish. Our television screen kept freezing up so we called in a work order for a service call. I was busy with the kids so I didn't bother watching him work. But after he left I noticed this masterpiece on the side yard. A cinder block wrapped with wire dangling pendulum style in the center of the tripod. What a masterpiece. I believe the service call bill was $50. I am still amazed at how he steadied our signal. Totally speechless here.