Listening to: Take Me to the Beach

Yesterday, Mom and I went to the movie theater, but not to see a regular movie: we were seeing the recording one of her favorite bands, Imagine Dragons, live at the Hollywood Bowl. (She actually didn't love it, but as she said, that's how you know, you try things.) I enjoyed it, though two hours of the flashing lights were a bit much for my head, but here's how shallow I am, the lead singer has a very nice body and watching him move around, without a shirt for most of the show, was very nice.

Meanwhile, I only knew about half the songs, but they played a new-to-me song that I loved, Take Me to the Beach.

I love the beat, but also the sentiment, because come on:

You take the snow
It's way too cold...
I'll take the beach

Doesn't that have my name all over it?

Some Random Things

I had my annual skin check today, nothing bad found, but considering the words rosacea and eczema were used, you can rest assured that I am keeping up my usual levels of glamor here. Don't hate me because I'm beautiful*.
*If you remember this commercial, it's time to schedule your colonoscopy.

From there, I went by the local farmer's market, where the cat organization that helped me find Maggie had a booth, to drop off the cat food I had left over when she died (they were very nice about it, but it was a sad moment all the same). On the way in, I saw the 1969 Caddy that I've seen before in the area! They were driving out, so I was able to call over that I loved the car and used to have one the same year. The farmer's market is bigger than I remembered, not having been for a while; I should take some time off work one day and swing by for a real visit before they stop for the season. Or I can go in the fall, when they start up again.

When I was out yesterday, I had to wait at a stop sign for the cross traffic to clear.

He was paying no attention to me: he had his eye on another iguana, down the street.

A little farther on, this fella was by the side of the road.

Talk about scenes not seen in Massachusetts. At least, not where I lived.

I ran across this graphic recently and boy, did I need the reminder.

Here's one for the dog lovers: a neighbor's dog, snoozing in a stroller.

She's getting over surgery, so they can't leave her alone right now: don't want her to jump and tear out stitches.

A recent day's sky, looking very fake and scenic.

I mean, the clouds are clearly painted on, right?

Time to Sit, I Tell Myself

It's time to move an item up the to-do list that I've largely been ignoring in favor of escapist reading.

I wrote about my office chair situation back in January; I knew I would need to get a new chair sometime, but it wasn't a constant annoyance, and what with one thing and another, I didn't do anything about it. But this last week, it started sinking again, and oh hell no you are not.

I checked the archives (time #4087 that the blog has come in handy this way) and found that I got the chair in August of 2020. Which seems like not long enough ago for it to be failing, but I do spend a lot of time in the chair, so fine, whatever. Perhaps this will encourage me to spend more money on a better chair that might last longer. 

Any suggestions for a good office chair? I'm looking for a comfortably wide seat and no arms (I tend to lean sideways on the arms if they're there, which throws me out of alignment).

I'd rather be reading. But the interim chair I'm using is Not Comfortable.

What I Brought Home from Curacao

As a final note on my trip to Curacao (Part One; Part Two; related knitting), here's what I brought home with me, other than the memories and a ton of photos.

A passport stamp: I haven't had one in a long time!

A couple of coins.

A present for my mother! She has a much-loved shirt that is on its last legs:

So when I saw this one, I knew I had to get it for her:

Then there's this lovely bowl, which is made from a coconut shell, and lined with something pretty.

I didn't ask if it's actually made in Curacao.

I like it whether it was or wasn't.

At the ostrich farm, I picked up a magnet for the fridge:

Oh, and also a painted ostrich egg. As you do.

Yes, ostrich eggs are big! A literal handful. It came in its own box.

Safely cushioned.

And it's painted on all sides. Those pretty houses on the harbor:

The floating bridge:

A palm tree:

Dushi! 

All in all, a perfect reminder of my trip.

Do you like to bring home something to remind you of a trip? Are you an organized collector who always gets the same kind of thing (fridge magnet, shot glass, etc.), or do you pick something different each time?

Regarding Knitting, and Yarn, in Curacao

A couple of people commented on the picture of my knitting with the water background:

I did in fact pick the particular yarns for this project with the idea of it reminding me of the Caribbean waters! The pattern is even called Across the Waters (Ravelry link), and I've made it before. I wear that one a lot, for someone who owns as many shawls as I do, so I figured that it would be a good candidate for making another one to be my trip knitting for Curacao.

The teal yarn is Tosh Sock from Madeline Tosh, in the colorway Baltic, and the multicolored yarn in between teal wedges is a "potluck" colorway (meaning non-repeatable) of Merino DK from Hedgehog Fibres. Not only does it suit the waters I saw in Curacao, but it also reminds me of this art I have up on the wall.

The project is coming along well, and I'm getting closer to the end. I put it on longer cords recently so I could see how it looks when it isn't all scrunched up on the working needle. And the answer is, pretty good!

Ignore the waving at the bottom where the cord wouldn't go flat.

Here it is on top of the finished one.

I have enough yarn for a couple more wedges.

In related news, while I was on the trip, I got an email about a quick yarn sale, and naturally, this one caught my eye:

Primarily because of this picture that I had taken two days earlier:

I decided that yeah, I want to make a project that reminds me of this water, so I got one skein of the above and one of a dark blue. They arrived after I got back:

Perfection. They are soft enough to die for, and I love the colors.

So I'm going to find a pattern to work them in, in a way that reminds me of the water. Right now, I'm inclining towards Stole Dunes, and thinking I could alternate the skeins to get the effect I want. We'll see how I feel when the time comes.

Curacao, Part Two

One thing I didn't spell out before (in part one, here) is that this trip was with the Newcomers Club, which I have been a member of until this month (membership is limited to five years, though we got extra to make up for covid). There were 65 women on the trip, and some I knew well, others not at all, and everything in between.

Now, time for part two and it's off to the ostrich farm! Because you know that if I'm half an hour from an ostrich farm, I have to go, even if the group isn't going.

Little lizard on the way to breakfast Wednesday.

Some more time looking at the water.

Always look up!

I went to the ostrich farm on my own, not as part of the group. A few people thought they might, or said after they thought about it, but no one wanted to tear themselves away at the time, which is fine. They actually will come and get you, for a fee of course, so I called (I made a phone call! In a foreign country! This is how much I wanted to go) and set up a pickup. A nice woman came and got me and drove me there (it was about a half hour away).

They had some really interesting pieces around by the gift shop.

Waiting for the tour to begin.

Heard a bloodcurdling scream, and oh, look, a peacock!

Tour time, and we got on an open bus, me and a family with three adults and two kids. The guide did the whole tour first in the local language, Papiamentu, and then in English for me.

Ostrich!

They also had some emus.  

They're slightly smaller, from Australia rather than Africa, and have three toes versus the two of an ostrich. Now you know as much as I do about them. Oh, and they both kick to defend themselves.

Back to the ostriches.

Reptile in the grass.

Those feathers were sooo tempting. I badly wanted to stick a hand in there.

I mean, look how fluffy!

The "babies" were three months old, so not as tiny as I was hoping to see.

But still cute!

There was one large pig in a pen, and a bunch of piglets running loose, cleaning up the area where they let you feed the ostriches (now that was an experience---they aren't aggressive, but they are powerful in their interest in the bowl of food).

They also have a couple of crocs, for cleanup. Handy, right?

And at the end of the tour, you can stand on an ostrich egg! It kind of looks like my other foot is on the ground, but it isn't, it's in the air. Whee!

I'm really glad that I made the extra effort (for an introvert) to get myself to the ostrich farm; it was very cool.

Saw this on the way back: it's a cemetery! Pretty cool.

One last sunset.

We had dinner on the beach, the whole group of us, and to my surprise, fire dancers performed!

I was, honestly, a little unsteady walking barefoot on the sand, so watching how well this performer did, on stilts, while juggling fire, was something else.

It was quite a way to end the trip.

The next day, it was back to the airport and on our way. I was amused to note this Bruin beer! 

I didn't try it, but someone I know who once lived over there said it's actually quite good.

If you have any questions, ask away! I'll be back with more on related purchases and knitting on the trip. You know, the important stuff.