Music and a monsoon.

I've spent a week in New Mexico, mostly for the Santa Fe Opera but also visiting family in Albuquerque.  Somebody asked whether we were making a left turn, and I shared this photo from the place we ate breakfast:

I was too busy enjoying events, family, friends, and driving to take photos, but I made sure to snap one of the set for Madama Butterfly, because it really took advantage of the scenery:

And I took a yoga class, which was at the top of our hotel in the Bell Tower Lounge:

Some knitting happened, but no yarn acquisition, in part because of timing (I worked days and then spent the evening at the opera), in part because I haven't used all the yarn I purchased last year, and in part because DFW Fiber Fest occurs the coming weekend and I know I'll buy yarn there!

As for the monsoon: the first opera we were seeing had just begun when lightning flashed in the distance.  We watched the ominous clouds with trepidation.  On the one hand, New Mexico has been extremely dry and they desperately need water.  On the other hand, the Crosby Theater is open to the elements, as the photo of Madama Butterfly's set shows.

The performance continued, and the sky darkened with more than just dusk.  Then the lightning came closer, and thunder rolled, and we had a sprinkle - followed quickly by a deluge.  People pulled on jackets, then scrambled to more sheltered areas because the rain was blowing horizontally through the theater.  My mother and I stayed put, because she doesn't walk well and cannot do stairs, so we would have to cross an open and now-dangerous plaza.  I noticed a couple people across the aisle had umbrellas open, but kept low.  I looked around and we were the only people in our part of the section, except for one couple behind us and over a few seats, who were under an umbrella.  I pulled out one of ours, and my mother and I - now bundled in the sweatshirts we'd brought for the late-night chill, plus a wool shawl I happened to bring - huddled under it.  To their credit and our amazement, the orchestra and performers continued.  We saw some black-clad stage crew crawl onstage between scenes with towels to mop.

By the end of the act, the rains had slackened enough that staff came out with push brooms to move water off the walkways, and towels to dry seats.  Eventually other patrons returned.  The opera wound to its conclusion, with standing ovations and cheers to the performers and orchestra for persevering.*  We went to the hotel with the car seat heaters engaged, spread wet clothing everywhere in the room, had hot showers and cocoa (tea for me) and got into our dry pajamas and warm beds.

Luckily the other nights were drier (just some sprinkles, one of them, and another had rains beginning as we left) so we enjoyed the performances without peering around the edge of an umbrella.

*We later learned that they had almost cancelled the performance due to air quality because of the smoke from wildfires, but the storm cleaned the air quite well and it wasn't an issue the rest of the week.

I have a heart! (But lost at yarn chicken)

A friend announced that she would become a grandmother (or "Gigi", as she chooses to be called) this year, and I decided to make a blanket for her to have at home for when the wee one visits.  I thought he was due in September, but it was July, so I am behind getting the gift to her.*

I began work, decided not to take it traveling as the pattern is a bit complicated, and when I worked on it upon return, learned that I have miscalculated on the yarn needed:

Another ball of the purple is on order.
Sparkle yarn and these colours suit the grandmother.

Because I have never done a C2C (corner-to-corner, usually crocheted) anything with a design worked into it, and because I used the free version which does not contain a diagram, I worked this on faith.  I added the two-square border to use less of the purple (and also thought about doing a purple heart on red, but decided I prefer it the other way) so for most of this I was working with five ends of yarn.

For the other C2C project I am working on, I've sewn the strips together.  I added to the two short ones and all six matched, but somehow, when I sewed the strips together:

Bottom left corner - I thought a corner would
be easier to infill and less obtrusive.

Yep, one strip is shorter than the others.  And that is the starting edge, so I couldn't just unravel it and add more.  Instead, I worked a small panel into that corner, so texture-wise it matches, even if the colour pattern (more accurate in the photo above) goes a bit wonky:

Now a row of double crochet around the edge, which you can see starting along the righthand side, and done.  

* In my religion, you don't give gifts before the baby is born.  I have attended a couple of pre-birth baby showers for people of other faiths, but one of the babies attended as he was born a couple of months early.  So I believe in superstition.

"Poppies... Poppies......"

For once, I didn't skid to the last day of the month before finishing the monthly puzzle:

Yes, the table is getting crowded.
This month the pieces include a dragonfly,
a butterfly, a bee. and several flowers.

When I saw what the flower of the month is, I kept hearing Margaret Hamilton's voice.  Did you?

Moon rising.

I took these photos when we attended the White Sox game a couple Mondays ago:

The White Sox lost but otherwise it was a good game, just fun to be in the ballpark and eat ballpark food.  There had been terrible rainstorms earlier in the day, with thunder and about four inches total rainfall, but the grounds crew are amazing and there was just a bit of rain delay before the first pitch.  We did not make it through in time to get the commemorative snow globe for "Christmas in July", but enjoyed the trivia.

In other news, I have almost finished the strips for a blanket I plan to donate to Warm Up, America! at DFW Fiber Fest at the end of the month.  It's been something planned for a long time, and I finally got around to making the strips.  I calculated that six strips would make a good-sized blanket and allow for a border (nothing fancy, just to make the edges even), and after finishing the sixth strip this morning I laid them out to check lengths and prepare to sew:

I want to make chevrons - obviously the two
strips on the right need to be swapped.

As you can see, even though I measured the strips against each other as I crocheted, two of them need to have a bit of additional length:

Back to it!  I think I can match the colours for those bits, and if I cut off anything from the cakes, I'll use those bits in the border.  The strips measure about 40"x60", which is between the Child and Adult blanket sizes on the Warm Up, America! site.  I'll let them decide who is the recipient.  Or I might have enough yarn to make a seventh strip - should I?

Another cake for history.

For the final presentation of the History SIG (Special Interest Group), I decided to make a pecan cake based upon this recipe:

The substitution is simple:  10oz of slightly toasted pecan pieces in place of the black walnuts.  I think that pecans must be lighter than black walnuts, because that is a LOT of nuts in the batter.  It resulted in two pretty cakes, plenty for whoever is at our closing session.

And once again, I didn't stop for photographs, although I took one of the circular cake after it cooled:

My mother and I went to Chicago for a week, spending time seeing relatives and old friends (including all three of my remaining godparents), and I was too busy enjoying people to photograph the food.  Except this, my dessert one night:

The "Amarena Cherry Panna Cotta" - 
vanilla panna cotta, amarena cherry gelee,
compressed cherry (a bit alcoholic), pistachio

Of course we ate plenty of Chicago specialties, such as deep dish pizza, Chicago-style hot dog (my mother and I split a footlong at a White Sox game, which they sadly and badly lost to the d@mn Yankees, but ended up splitting the series with them - then the Cubs began a series with a close loss and a solid win, before another close loss), Irish soda bread from the Hearts & Flour Bakery tent at the Daley Center Farmers Market, true bagels and lox at a family brunch, and lots of excellent meals at friends' favourite restaurants around the city.  We brought local chocolates to the neighbors and are still nibbling our way through the cookies a friend gave to my mother.

Waterlilies for July.

This month's puzzle is finished with some days of the month to go!

I decided to finish the frame first this month.

Scarves and other uses.

Earlier this week I had to park outside for an extended period on a very sunny day, and my steering wheel was very hot when I got into the car.  Quickly I threw my "car scarf" over the steering wheel and I was able to drive safely.  The "car scarf" is a simple garter stitch project that I can pick up and put down quickly, and easily take with me when I might have a waiting period.

Yarn is Red Heart Super Saver in "Americana".

I've finished some others, a scarf and hat of "Flower Power" yarn, mostly used as a colourway with just three actual flower squares:

I also made a scarf with single crochet stripes out of bits of yarn a friend gave me.  I sorted the yarn into two sets, one of navy and cadet blues, and one of the other blues and greens.  Then I worked until I ran out, adding a bit of dark green at the end so it would be longer:

The bits are all different lengths.
Two-row stripes make carrying the yarn tidier.

I think the yarn is Caron Simply Soft and Simply Soft Paints.

As one ball ran out, I added the next colour from that side, with the last bit of cadet blue switching sides because of the dark green I added.  The scarf looks a bit pulled in at that point but should relax to the required width once washed.