Monday, September 25, 2017

Ol'Blue--AKA Carraig-Fhada Vest & Knitting Trolls

I do this all the time . . . I get knitting on some rather large or complicated project and then PROCRASTINATION hits.  This procrastination usually strikes when I am getting close to a rather complicated part of the project. Say steeking, or some complicated decrease section. The Fair Isle vest I am presently knitting just had a procrastination lull.  I knitted 3 pairs of mittens and joined a test knit on a very interesting hat pattern soon to be released.  Ol'Blue was set aside and let me tell you Ol'Blue was not happy about this lull in his becoming a vest!  Ol'Blue called out the damn Knitting Trolls.  Some of you may have Knitting Gnomes, of Nast Knitting Fairies  . . . I have Knitting Trolls.  These little buggers love to get into your knitting and reek havoc at all cost!  Basically, it is payback time for ignoring Ol'Blue!  He called the Trolls in and I will admit I most likely deserved it! 

I am all set, Ol'Blue, color chart, good light and off I go knitting around and around.  Thinking to myself, "Wow I am making killer progress!"  Here is the first mistake I wasn't humble!  I think I sent a text and posted a tweet saying how great I am doing and I am kicking butt!

In the back of my mind, I kept thinking I am sure I held the blue in my right hand and the gray in my left.  I am sure I was carrying my yarn this way. I knitted on, stopped, got some dark chocolate and picked up my knitting . . . WHAT!?



Can you see what the Knitting Trolls did to me!  They led me off into the land of total Trolldom!  What the heck had I done . . . those Knitting Trolls tricked me into believing I had the yarn in the correct hands.  See the top rounds?  This is what happens when you switch how you are holding your color work!  Believe me, you will have a totally different looking project!
Just in case you didn't see it the first time look at the top.
I frogged out several rounds (like 10 at least) of 252 sts.  Put the blue in my left hand and the gray in my right hand and started knitting again. The damn Knitting Trolls scampered away into some far dark corner of our house to lay waiting for the next golden moment to toss my knitting around and reek total havoc.

Saturday, September 23, 2017

FOOD!

Who doesn't love FOOD!  I am often asked how do you get food living 400 air miles from any major stores.  We do buy food before we come out to the village and ship it out to ourselves.  This food tends to be the staples.  We also order food on Amazon often throughout the year.  We stopped eating wheat 3 years ago. We do need to order items that will never ever be stocked in our two small stores here in the village.  

We just switched to a new produce vendor.  I am very happy with their produce, shipping rates and packaging.  Alaska Food NetWork is proving to be a great new company here in Alaska.

Last weekends Maple Walnut Scones made with almond flour.

Bee's Wrap is another great new discovery!  So far everything I have used Bee's Wrap on has stored great!

The heat from your hands helps to seal the wrap. 

Scones were fine for the few days they lasted!

The wraps come in a variety of sizes.  Under this wrap is a nice organic apple crisp.

Melon stored well in the frig with Bee's Wrap and no discoloring.


I am always after the perfect crisp cookie!  These came out pretty good but I think I could work with the recipe a bit more.  Almond flour, crystallized ginger, ginger snap.  I scooped out the dough and then flattened them with parchment paper.  I did this to have a flat, crisper cookie.





Our first box from Alaska Food NetWork and it was a treat!  Everything we ordered was int he box, items were packed well, and nothing was damaged.

Look at this fresh produce yummy!

This was a medium size organic box.  I did add a few more items to our box.  You can pick Alaska Grown produce, organic, or regular grocery store items.


Meat!  It is moose season and there were 34 moose up for the hunt this year.  The moose population here was hunted to very low numbers 12 years ago and there was no moose hunting.  They let the numbers return and slowly have been increasing the amount each year.  Our neighbour across from us is one of the hardest working people I know.  He is in constant motion whether he is fishing, hunting, getting his family out into the country he just goes from sun up to sun down.

Moose meat hanging.

Here is a nice piece we were given which is the village thing to do is to share your kills.  This will become a moose stew today.


I just love this note!  In my class, I always tell parents:  "Please don't let school get in the way of your child's education!" If something has come up just write a note and it is fine to miss out on homework.  One of the families who ski with us wrote this note for their son who is in my class this year.  The dad skis and his two kids.
The kids brought this by our house the other night.  Fresh veggies from their garden and a beautiful piece of moose meat.  All of this will be heading into the moose stew I will be making today! 

Never worry we are not starving out here on the tundra living 400 air miles from a wide variety of shopping options.  I have become interested in better quality food, and where my food comes from.  I look forward to the time in the kitchen creating healthier meals and treats for us here on the tundra.


Friday, September 22, 2017

Knitting for "The Knit Girls"

I have a crew of girls I knit for and they are awesome young gals!  I love to knit for them for several reasons.  They wear what I knit to the point of wearing the items out.  This is not because they are rough they just use what I knit!  Like one of them says, "Wool keeps me the warmest!"  Many people never ever learn this simple truth!  They come up with it itches, it is too hot, it is too difficult to wash . . . like EZ would state (rephrased): "Be glad you weren't born in the middle ages you would never have made it to adulthood!"  To me, there is wool and only 100% wool!  The girls needed mittens and in about 10 days I knitted up 3 pairs of mittens!  I am now pretty sure I have this pattern memorized and could knit a pair of mittens up pretty darn fast if needed.


Up to the stash for some great Bartlett 100% wool. A small pot f tea, cast-on and time to knit away!

Pair #1 . . .

Done!

Pair #2

Knit Girls at the end of the summer vacation party with fiddles in hand.

Solar eclipse in Oregon
Pair three I guess I didn't take any photos of you!  Sorry and the 4th pair I had knitted years ago and never wore them so they went to their equally wonderful mom!   Mittens---done & thank you for helping me procrastinate over the Faire Isle Vest I have named Ol'Blue!

Sunday, September 17, 2017

Tundra Time and The Knee

We are of course all the way back up north for another school year. Classes have started up in full force. We (as in us and the village) are all back to the school routines.

I am up five days a week at 5:00 a.m. to take the dogs out, enjoy that precious first cup of coffee, check email and then off to "The Refugio" as I call the waxroom this time of the year.  The village is usually silent at this early hour. I love greeting my day in peace and quiet.  We have had some northern lights when we were first back. HOWEVER, major bummer since being back almost every morning our skies have been cloudy. Even with all the solar flares which give us great northern lights due to the clouds, I was not able to view the lights!

I am now at week 8 after knee surgery.  I am really doing very well and I have learned to be patient, to go easy when my knee is feeling a bit rough, to push myself with my PT routines, and that time is the major factor in recovery.  Some weeks were painful with a good dose of discomfort, other weeks my knee felt great.  I can say both of my legs are now in far better shape and have equal strength.  I am thrilled that Whitefish Therapy & Sprot Center is willing to help me through emails as I really needed a bit more support and new goals being out here 400 air miles from anything!

Tally and her boy back on the tundra.

A bit buggy back in Aug. I am not using poles as I forgot them. I now always take ski poles with me to help with the rough tundra surface.

Since we got back a bit later the fireweed was over flowering but thick as can be this year.

The traditional tea break on the tundra.  We were out picking blueberries.

Miss Sadie who loves to be outside even more than me!

She also enjoys a great rest once back home.

Sweet Peas from the beach.

Nice cappuccino and dark chocolate . . . really who could ask for more!

The SkiErg and The Refugio my mornings five days a week.

My workout partner who is patiently waiting for the walk back home.

I can now walk on the uneven beach surface.  I don't go there often as I am waiting for all the dead fish that litters the beach to go out to sea.  Dogs roll in and eating dead salmon is a rather gross affair either we stink or puke!


Tundra Gal

Soon we will be skiing on that hillside!

Tundra blues with a few cranberries tossed into the mix.

Here is how I kept track of wall sits for my knee rehab---rocks for counting out how many . . . I had to do something!  I am of the theory if you screw up counting you have to start from the beginning!

Yet more time in The Refugio

Ground cover has changed fast this year however the temps are fairly warm still which seems kind of strange!

Cotton Grass and this always makes me think of the Jan Brett book: Trouble With Trolls, Jan is one of my favorite kids' authors and illustrators.

Hiking with poles and look at that color!  One of the things I will miss when our time on the tundra is done.

Nice colors to make the black dog show up!  Tally loves a log not a stick!

Fall colors dance across the tundra . . .

Fall Invitational running race and my WolfPup runners!



Monday, September 4, 2017

Montana WildFires: Sperry Chalet Updated

The fire season is raging in Montana with devasting results an absolute shame.  I know fires are a part of a forest's life.  Many forest fires are not man started, but rather started by lightning strikes.  There is global warming for our dynamic changing planet.  We are heating up and right now Montana and other western states are burning up!

Last week a place that I have loved for years has burned to the ground!  It breaks my heart to see that Sperry Chalet is gone.  I have hiked to Sperry several times and never have I stayed the night at the Chalet.  I was hoping to try to get a night there this summer or next . . . I am hoping that the Chalet will be rebuilt and I for one would love to volunteer to rebuilt Sperry if at all possible!


Last year I read this book about Sperry:  Welcome to Sperry Chalet  I can recommend this light read for several reasons.  I for one love to look into someone's unique life experiences.  I love Glacier Park and the Chalets have always intrigued me for years.  Sperry is a wonderful place full of stories/history.  Sperry is/was an iconic lodge . . . gone but will live in hearts forever!  The author of the book Beth Dunagan lives right up the street from us.  I thanked her several times for sharing her Sperry story. If you are interested in what made Sperry so special have a read!

Sperry is/was an iconic lodge . . . gone but will live in hearts forever!
News Articles:

http://www.hungryhorsenews.com/article/20170901/ARTICLE/170909997

http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2017/sep/01/heartbreaking-loss-of-glacier-national-parks-histo/#/0

http://www.greatfallstribune.com/story/outdoors/2017/09/01/remembering-sperry-chalet/625601001/

A wonderful collection of historical Sperry Chalet photos:  http://flatheadbeacon.com/galleries/photos-historic-images-sperry-chalet/