Episode 151: Holidays, Snowdays

Please go to our Ravelry group or to www.cogknitivepodcast.blogspot.com for show notes.

Check out this episode!

Episode 151: Holidays, Snowdays

Suddenly, SNOW! My son doesn't quite know what to make of it....while I realize with horror that he has no mittens or scarves! (He has always refused them, until he just asked for them a minute ago...)



Celebrating our listeners who have joined the CogKnitive 25 – , 50 –, and 75 – Bear Clubs for MBP. You can see who they all are right here. Great work!

Have YOU completed 25, 50, or 75 bears for Mother Bear Project? Send me your snail and a link to your Ravelry projects page, and CogKnitive will send you a special wristband to celebrate with you.

Add yourself to our CogKNITive Listeners Map.

We have a website at http://www.cogknitive.com/. You can find older episodes there.

You can now subscribe to the BLOG on your Kindle or Kindle app.

I am gemmadw on  Twitter and DrGemma on Plurk.

The Annual CogKnitive Mother Bear project CAL/KAL will run from Jan1, 2013 until I get to Stitches West in late February. Get your materials ready!

What's On My Hook/Needles/Spindle:

Still in Progress:

The Tehachapi Project Shawl. Almost to the D chart section!.

The 3rd and 4th Scraptacular Blankets come out of hibernation to support stash reduction. Their big sister is hanging over the back of the chair.



My Hitchin' a Ride Shawl in crochet, finally sent to hibernation, probably on way to The Pond.

Finished:
The second Calm Cowl....from my handspun silk/merino in the Jasper colorway from Sunshine Yarns.



Dizzy Blondes:

Finishing the bright yellow singles in SWM/alpaca. About 300 yards.

Started 50/50 silk/SFMerino from Red Fish Dyeworks on my Jensen.



Strategy:
Get feedback from someone you trust. Cultivate a mentor or advisor.

Something I Really Like:
Myfax--email faxing service for $10 per month.
Dragonvale update.

Put A  Lid On It:
Crisp Pickle Controversy.

Blather:
Snow on the farm, Mother Bear CAL/KAL starts on Tuesday, Jan 1st., looking forward to Stitches West, Windows 8.

And there's nothing like hot chocolate, peanut butter, and Star Trek while wrapped in a Scraptacular blanket, after a cold hour in the snow with alpacas and Newfie dogs.

Episode 150: Lex Lends a Hand

Please see our group on Ravelry or www.cogknitivepodcast.blogspot.com for show notes.

Check out this episode!

Episode 150 Lex Lends a Hand

Yep, I spent an afternoon with Lex, who helped record this episode, but totally forgot to take any pix! So here is an older one of her, from Stitches West last year.

Celebrating our listeners who have joined the CogKnitive 25 – , 50 –, and 75 – Bear Clubs for MBP. You can see who they all are right here. Great work!

Have YOU completed 25, 50, or 75 bears for Mother Bear Project? Send me your snail and a link to your Ravelry projects page, and CogKnitive will send you a special wristband to celebrate with you.

Add yourself to our CogKNITive Listeners Map.

We have a website at http://www.cogknitive.com/. You can find older episodes there.

You can now subscribe to the BLOG on your Kindle or Kindle app.

I am gemmadw on  Twitter and DrGemma on Plurk.

The Annual CogKnitive Mother Bear project CAL/KAL will run from Jan1, 2013 until I get to Stitches West in late February. Get your materials ready!

What's On My Hook/Needles/Spindle:

Still in Progress:

The Tehachapi Project Shawl. Onto the second B chart section!.

My Hitchin' a Ride Shawl in crochet, not worked on this week.

Random sets of bear legs were passed off as pants for his own bear to my son, who did not buy it...

Finished:
Yet another Calm Cowl....

 

 

Bertha's Mad Mobius Cowl.

Dizzy Blondes:

The SpinOLution Bee Wheel as spun upon by our Lexicom. The Sidekick by Schacht.

Lexi with Babette, her 19th-century Czech wheel:



Plying the cream alpaca into the bright yellow singles in SWM. About 300 yards.

Strategy:
Don't talk to Dr. Gemma about guns right now, unless you want to hear the rant against firearms. Real strategy next episode...

Something I Really Like:
Tunisian Crochet and the Sunset Ruana and 2 weeks in a row of 3 working days...hanging out in a café with a good buddy

Put A  Lid On It:
Oranges in Cointreau from the Ball Canning Book. Lovely and tasty for the holidays. And don't forget the Orange Slices in Honey, Orange Marmalade, the Pickled Lemons, the Pear Pickles, Ginger-Pear Jelly...
The Perfect Scoop for sherbets, etc.
Aunt Mim's Bitter Chocolate Cake with Cream Cheese Icing (see recipe a few entries back here for the recipe)

Blather:
Weather chat, plans for days off, looking forward to attending Stitches West, Knit Knit Café, friends up in northern CA. Memories of Valley Gurlz..
Dharma Trading Co.
Field of Dreams Alpacas

And here is my Little Guy hiding in his closet to eat the Forbidden Lollipop before breakfast....Merry Christmas, one and all!!

Episode 149: Girl Buys Computer

Please see the show notes at www.cogknitivepodcast.blogspot.com or on our group on Ravelry. Thanks!

Check out this episode!

Episode 149

Rasheda sends holiday greetings!

Celebrating our listeners who have joined the CogKnitive 25 – , 50 –, and 75 – Bear Clubs for MBP. You can see who they all are right here. Great work!

Have YOU completed 25, 50, or 75 bears for Mother Bear Project? Send me your snail and a link to your Ravelry projects page, and CogKnitive will send you a special wristband to celebrate with you.

Add yourself to our CogKNITive Listeners Map.

We have a website at http://www.cogknitive.com/. You can find older episodes there.

You can now subscribe to the BLOG on your Kindle or Kindle app.

The Annual CogKnitive Mother Bear project CAL/KAL will run from Jan1, 2013 until I get to Stitches West in late February. Get your materials ready!

What's On My Hook/Needles/Spindle:


Still in Progress:

The Tehachapi Project Shawl. Patience overcomes tragedy, and the shawl is restored to WIP status.

My Hitchin' a Ride Shawl in crochet, not worked on this week.

Random sets of bear legs were joined with pants....



Dizzy Blondes:

Working on the cream alpaca to ply into the bright yellow singles in SWM.



Strategy:
Hypersensitivity:  Impulsivity versus hypersensitive response--learn to resist the passionate response: STEP BACK.

Something I Really Like: Plurk! Come join the crowd--I am DrGemma there.

Put A  Lid On It:
Pomegranates again. Clearing out the freezer and combining juices for jellies. Low prices on freezer containers happen NOW, thanks to holiday sales.

Blather:
Please go contribute to Knitting Brooklyn's CAL/KAL for Hurricane Sandy survivors.
More about teaching myself to do evaluations as a psychologist.
Buying my first tablet computer as a woman. It's an ASUS Infinity and I LOVE it!

www.cogknitive.com is our site!

I am gemmadw on  Twitter and DrGemma on Plurk.

And here is my son's first gingerbread house, assembled with Dad's help.

Here it is, peeps: my best guess for Aunt Mim's dark chocolate cake with cream cheese frosting:

Frosting:
8 oz brick of cream cheese, very soft
1 stick butter, very soft
1/2 bag confectioners sugar
1 tsp lemon juice ( optional)

Cake:
1 box devils food cake mix or a home recipe to make a 13 by 9 inch cake
Fresh coffee to replace the water used to make the mix
3 eggs for mix or however many the box suggests
1 Tblsp vanilla

Make cake while frosting ingredients are softening.

Make cake according to box directions, but replace water with coffee.
Bake and cool.
Make frosting as cake cools. Beat the frosting ingredients together in a big bowl until creamy. Adjust sugar to taste,but it takes a lot. You can add a dash of lemon juice to frosting for a little zing, if you like. Spread over cake. Enjoy.

Episode 148: Foggy Drive

Please find the show notes at www.cogknitivepodcast.blogspot.com or on our group at Ravelry.

Check out this episode!

Episode 148

The Calm Cowl, close up. Celebrating our listeners who have joined the CogKnitive 25 – , 50 –, and 75 – Bear Clubs for MBP. You can see who they all are right here. Great work!

Have YOU completed 25, 50, or 75 bears for Mother Bear Project? Send me your snail and a link to your Ravelry projects page, and CogKnitive will send you a special wristband to celebrate with you.

Add yourself to our CogKNITive Listeners Map.

We have a website at http://www.cogknitive.com/. You can find older episodes there.

You can now subscribe to the BLOG on your Kindle or Kindle app.

The Annual CogKnitive Mother Bear project CAL/KAL will run from Jan1, 2013 until I get to Stitches West in late February. Get your materials ready!

What's On My Hook/Needles/Spindle:

Finished:

The Calm Cowl! What a great use for handspun! What a useful cowl! Easy and fun.



Still in Progress:

The Tehachapi Project Shawl. Lo, Tragedy strikes....



My Hitchin' a Ride Shawl in crochet, not worked on this week.
Random sets of bear legs were joined with pants....

Dizzy Blondes:

Finished 2 bobbins of 4 oz each of Merino yellow by Freckle Face Fibers and working on the cream alpaca to ply into these 2...

50 Shades of Teal Shawl pattern by Brenda Castiel
Bertha's Mad Moebius by Ericah64, aka Erica Hernandez
The White Wool by Ericah64, aka Erica Hernandez

Strategy:
Hypersensitivity: Tolerating pain and the odd stray sensation insde our bodies.

Something I Really Like: Manicures! Deluxe, lots o' painted coatings, arm and hand massage

Put A  Lid On It:
Buying in bulk and using your empty jars for storage.

Easy lentil stew:
Big ole stew pot
2 c. red lentils
4 c. water
1 chopped onion
1 Tblsp garlic or garlic paste
handful of parsley
--------------------------
2 Tblsp soy sauce
1/4 c. nutritional yeast (optional)
1 jar of tomato sauce from Trader Joe's
4 c. water and a pound of pasta you like

Cook the first set of ingredients up to dashed line for about 40 minutes on very low simmer. Stir and watch so it does not burn onto bottom of pot. Add the remaining stuff and cook gently for about 15 minutes.
Hearty winter dinner.

Tabouli from mix:
Follow directions on mix, but add fresh or dried mint, chopped fresh tomatos, and chopped black olives

The Joy of Pickling. You want this for a present under the tree!

The Perfect Scoop in ebook format.

Blather:
The 68 bears collected at CFR2012 have finally been mailed!

Please go contribute to Knitting Brooklyn's CAL/KAL for Hurricane Sandy survivors.

The terror of psych evaluations rock my world.

www.cogknitive.com is our site!

I am gemmadw on  Twitter and DrGemma on Plurk.

Episode 147: late Thanksgiving

Please see shownotes at www.cogknitivepodcast.blogspot.com or at the group on Ravelry.

Check out this episode!

Episode 147

The Boys made apple pie for our Thanksgiving.

Celebrating our listeners who have joined the CogKnitive 25 – , 50 –, and 75 – Bear Clubs for MBP. You can see who they all are right here. Great work!

Welcome FlashyGranny to the 25 Bear Club!!

Have YOU completed 25, 50, or 75 bears for Mother Bear Project? Send me your snail and a link to your Ravelry projects page, and CogKnitive will send you a special wristband to celebrate with you.

Add yourself to our CogKNITive Listeners Map.

We have a website at http://www.cogknitive.com/. You can find older episodes there.

You can now subscribe to the BLOG on your Kindle or Kindle app.

The Annual CogKnitive Mother Bear project CAL/KAL will run from Jan1, 2013 until I get to Stitches West in late February. Get your materials ready!

What's On My Hook/Needles/Spindle:

Finished:

13 sets of bear's feet for the 13 Bears in 2013 project that I plan.

Still in Progress:

The Tehachapi Project Shawl. Lovin' it!



My Hitchin' a Ride Shawl in crochet, not worked on this week.

Dizzy Blondes:

Fitted Knits by Stefanie Japel

I am plying my singles from the cinnamon alpaca. My first true triple ply (i.e. not N-plied).



Fiber in BFL/Tussah from Red Fish Dye Works:



Spinning singles from the Freckle-Face Fibers bright yellow SWM.



50 Shades of Teal Shawl pattern by Brenda Castiel

Strategy:
Hypersensitivity: Accept that you actually need more private, quiet time for recovery than the rest of the world.

Something I Really Like: Chestnuts! Roast them (find instructions in The Joy of Cooking.) And use them in your baked, stuffed pumpkin.
The High Road to Health--Lindsey Wagner's bionic, vegan cookbook.

Put A  Lid On It:
Get your jars back! Inspect them carefully before reuse.

It's time to make citrus pickles and start planning the marmalades. Use organic fruits for these to avoid eating pesticide.

Dried lemons! Easy and soooo useful!

The Joy of Pickling. You want this for a present under the tree!

The Perfect Scoop in ebook format.

Blather:
I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving!
Please go contribute to Knitting Brooklyn's CAL/KAL for Hurricane Sandy survivors.

Thomas the Tank Engine came to Perris, CA!



My son proves the old truth: Trains are in the blood if you are related to me!

A sad day in knitting podcast land

We lost KnitPurlGurl. We lost her wonderful podcast, and we lost her kindness, warmth, wit, and generosity.

Karrie supported the RAP or Random Acts of Pattern: you gift a pattern to a pal on Ravelry, especially on Tuesdays. Just because. Let us not lose that.

Thanks, Karrie. Job well done! May you have peace and experience how much happiness you have given all the rest of us.

Literally, you are mourned by thousands of us. Not bad, for a life so tragically brief. But you certainly made a difference for the rest of us and for the better.

Job well done. Rest in peace.

At last...Christmas!

My son looked up at me one day in October and said, "Merry Christmas?"

I replied, "No, Honey, Halloween comes first."

He awoke the morning after trick-or-treating, and said, "Merry Christmas?"

I answered, "No. Now we have Thanksgiving."

This morning, he looked up hopefully and said, "Christmas?"

And I said, "Actually, we could put up the tree..."

And here it is. The second it was up, he grinned broadly and announced, "Presents."

Not yet, kid.

I AM THE DOCTOR!

I finished my first evaluation report in six years. I feel somewhere between awesome and astonished.

I had forgotten how much I love doing these.

Bring on the chocolate!

Happy Thanksgiving!

The boys and I celebrated with a 2- hour hike into (& out of) Vasquez Canyon.

Then the boys made a pie from the apples I prepped this morning.

And, meanwhile, I zoomed right along on the crocheted Calm Cowl because I need something to match a few of my tops for work.

I hope everyone has had a great day!

In the Blood

In the 1930's, my father and his brothers laid tracks for the train lines in the northeast corridor of the US. Today, my son helped drive a small train on a local rail museum's grounds. He loved it.

As my paternal grandmother would say with a shake of her head: "He can't help it, Honey. Trains are in his blood."

Episode 146 Show Notes at Last!

Yep, I finally got my chance to spin on a Babe wheel.

Celebrating our listeners who have joined the CogKnitive 25 – , 50 –, and 75 – Bear Clubs for MBP. You can see who they all are right here. Great work!

Have YOU completed 25, 50, or 75 bears for Mother Bear Project? Send me your snail and a link to your Ravelry projects page, and CogKnitive will send you a special wristband to celebrate with you.

Add yourself to our CogKNITive Listeners Map.

We have a website at http://www.cogknitive.com/. You can find older episodes there.

You can now subscribe to the BLOG on your Kindle or Kindle app.

What's On My Hook/Needles/Spindle:

Finished:

Traveling Woman is done!



Still in Progress:

My Hitchin' a Ride Shawl in crochet, not worked on this week.

13 Bears in 2012 bear feet for Mother Bear Project. Ten pairs of feet are done...

RKS Mom on Etsy

Dizzy Blondes:

I finished the Jacob wool as a 3-ply. Love it. It taught me to be comfy with my Jensen Minerva.

I am wildly spinning the singles from a cinnamon alpaca.



Fiber in BFL/Tussah from Red Fish Dye Works:



Strategy:
Hypersensitivity: Accept your place in the 16% with pride. You are who you are. Now you have to cope.

Understanding the bell curve.

Something I Really Like: Seasonal foods at drive-throughs. Yes, I confess: I am a sucker for peppermint syrup in any warm drink. But take time to enjoy also the little pleasures that accompany the changes of the seasons.

Put A  Lid On It: Time to start using those jars as hostess gifts in the holiday season! Also, keep the unsweetened white grape juice to stretch your juice to the amount needed for jelly. And food coloring is also a great thing to have around to make the jellies look the way the recipient expects. BTW, you can get juice from the fruit you defrost for jam. Use the juice for jelly! Twice the bargain. And get going on the fruit butters and the applesauce, apple pie filling, and apple butters.

Warm the unsweetened apple sauce and add it to cereal with almond milk, in place of cow's milk.

And try making some easy sorbets from your juices. Splends to sugar: slightly under one half to one.

The Perfect Scoop in ebook format.

Freeze fresh herbs in olive oil in ice cube trays. Perfect for frying later.

Blather: Torrance again! The Southern CA Handweavers' Guild Show never fails to please. It's like CFR, Part 2, as so many attendees go to this also.

Alpenglow Yarns sold me this gorgeous skein!



Baah! Yarns

Farm day!

Morning on the farm: cleaned kitchen, made brekkers for son from homemade jelly and toast and PB plus tea from home-dried herbs.
Plied alpaca wool from my own herd (see the pic).
Brushed Newfie.
Made stew and put in crockpot.
Spun BFL dyed by my local friends at Red Fish Dye Works.
Still only 10:30 AM!

Episode 146 and then some

I have posted episode 146, no notes yet. I have been working on the Tehachapi Project shawl by Michelle Miller, and it was absorbing my attention as I edited and processed and uploaded the episode.

The upshot: I have finished Chart A and the first run of Chart B. With 3 rows to go on B, the color neatly shifted from royal purple to inky blue.

On to Chart C! Notes for the episode will follow soon, I expect. Meanwhile, the yarn I am using from Desert Vista Dyeworks--CFR2012 color way in SW Merino-- is lovely. Slightly splitty, but a simply gorgeous hand.

Episode 146

Please see the show notes at the group on Ravelry or at www.cogknitivepodcast.blogspot.com.

Check out this episode!

New Shawl In Progress

Today I started working on the Tehachapi Project Shawl, the shawl designed for the 2012 CogKnitive Fiber Retreat. It was created to take advantage of the yarn color way, CFR2012, dyed by Desert Vista Dyeworks. The shawl was by Michelle Miller, alias FickleKnitter.

I am only on the first color of the gradient--a clear purple with a minor undertone of indigo. Knitting this project feels heavenly: a shawl I commissioned in a color way I commissioned for the retreat I create each year...it just feels really special and amazing. And my retreat buddies are all knitting too!

I keep telling people who ask: My friend Michelle designed this for my fiber retreat. My friend Susan dyed it in my favorite colors. Isn't it gorgeous?

I love being part of the fiber community. My participation just keep creating friendships and new sources of joy.

Episode 145

Please see the shownotes on our group on Ravelry or at www.cogknitivepodcast.blogspot.com.

Check out this episode!

Episode 145

Halloween is over, and the Mommy Shawl is my son's last outfit for the evening. Nothing beats a good Mommy Shawl; my son has loved on mine and been wrapped in it since his birth.

Celebrating our listeners who have joined the CogKnitive 25 – , 50 –, and 75 – Bear Clubs for MBP. You can see who they all are right here. Great work!

Have YOU completed 25, 50, or 75 bears for Mother Bear Project? Send me your snail and a link to your Ravelry projects page, and CogKnitive will send you a special wristband to celebrate with you.

Add yourself to our CogKNITive Listeners Map.

We have a website at http://www.cogknitive.com/. You can find older episodes there.

You can now subscribe to the BLOG on your Kindle or Kindle app.

What's On My Hook/Needles/Spindle:

Finished:

The Pivot Shawl by FickleKnitter (Michelle Miller). It still needs blocking.

Don't miss Michelle's newest pattern in honor of our retreat: The Tehachapi Project Shawl.



The Holly Holiday Stocking for my twin:



Still in Progress:

My Hitchin' a Ride Shawl in crochet, not worked on this week.

Traveling Woman --on the last knitted row!

13 Bears in 2012 bear feet for Mother Bear Project.



Dizzy Blondes:

Some plied jacob wool from Minerva the Jensen, triple-plied.:




Strategy:
Declare a "Free Yourself from Useless Clutter" Day, with the help of dark, heavy trashbags and a good dumpster.

Something I Really Like: Canning jars for crafts and canning.

Put A  Lid On It: Empty the freezer and make apple/fruit sauces. Apple-fruit sauces in the crock pot overnight. Use apples, pears, apricots, nectarines, peaches, plums.--anything frozen over the summer. In any combination. Recipe below.

Crock pot, 1 Tablsp cinnamon, 1 tsp. clove, 1/2 tsp ginger, 1/2 tsp nutmeg, lots of fruit. One slice lemon or fresh orange, or 1/4 cup of either. Cook overnight and into sterilized, hot jars. Eat on cereal or oatmeal with milk/almond milk.

Blather:

CFR 2013 news--vaguely. Love to everyone surviving the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy.

Operation: freedom from!

I am freeing myself today from 7 garbage bags + of broken, old, or unused stuff! And you cannot even see the difference in my cluttered world...

13 Bears in 2013 kicks off--literally

Project "13 Bears in 2013" for Mother Bear Project has begun! The first 7 sets of feet for the 13 bears I am crocheting in 2013 for my pet charity are awaiting legs. Mother Bear Project sends these bears, made by crocheters and knitters, to kids in 3rd-world countries who have been impacted by AIDS/HIV. I am hoping to complete my own bears number 27-39 in 2013.