Tuesday afternoon it was 47 degrees here, and pouring down rain.The forecast for Tuesday night, however, called for a sudden drop in temperature, snow, high winds and below zero wind chills.

The meteorologists were having a field day with this incoming band of dread. With each forecast update, there was chest beating, gong banging and foaming of the orifices.

And what was the cause of this above average weatherpeeps hyperfest?

A heavy coat of freshly fallen vernacular: Flash Freeze Warning.

I had never heard of this Thing Called Flash Freeze, and initially it brought to mind a vague, childhood memory of an instant coffee commercial.

Anyway. Because it was fairly warm, Bella had been in and out of the house all day Tuesday,likely to poop under the porch and look for other signs of spring, such as baby bunnies and bikini waxes. At 10:30 p.m., with a stunned look on her fur and artic winds at her ass, Bella darted into the house after Cheddar's last call.

That night I did not sleep well. The wind rattled the house and wracked windows with branches. When I did sleep, I was haunted by dreams of Flash Frozen Bellas, stuck on the lawn, like tiny Sphinxes on an Egyptian Tundra. Well, if the Egyptians had such a thing.

In one dream she was only semi-frozen, so could still meow a little. A couple of times I woke up with racing heart and the momentary belief that I had left my L'il Fluffinator outside to die. Once awake, I'd remember that she was indeed safe. Eventually I’d fall back to sleep, for another round of Fargo Bella.

Wednesday we had a snow day. Snow Day is Good. Usually. But a second Snow Day in a one week period? Not so good. At least for me. As I've said before, legally mandated timelines and deadlines do not know the Snow Day.

Tonight we're supposed to get up to 10 inches of new snow. And if another Snow Day is called,it will definitely be too much of a good thing.

Sometimes Too Much of a Good Thing is Just Right


Thank you Robbyn and Kat With a K, for the nominations.

Not only am I honored by the honor itself, but also by the mere association with such distinguished company of the other nominees. Thank you, again.

I'm still working on my list of nominations. It should be a simple thing to do, but I kind of like things complicated, ya know?

I just met Kat at the Franklin event, last Saturday. Distracted by the news of our local tragedy, I neglected to mention her in my last post. And Sharon. ::waving.:: And Eweniss ::Nice to meet you! And I'm really sorry I swore in front of your children. Really. ::

When it Rains, it Snows. When it Snows, I Knits.
I finished the back of Cakers Willams Step-Bro sweater. I hope to get sleeves done this weekend. It will be good to knock this one off my Mission Possible list.



This project has been like an annoying wad of toilet paper,in the sewage system of my mind. ::shut up.:: It starts off as a fairly innocuous slowdown. But pretty soon the other innocuous stuff backs up behind it, and, well,let's just say I'm looking forward to this particular dance with the plunger. And I apologize for the scary imagery of the inside of my mind.

Friday Morning Update: No Snow Day. Yay. I just hope Sharon can get off the ground today, for her trip to Cancun. I couldn't post this last night because Blogger was being a Booger.

Labels: MEME, Missionary Style '08, Snow Day, Yarn Yang

A Contest
First of all, please excuse the filthy appearance of my knife and related surroundings. I took the picture while in the middle of a Snow Day Soup Creation. And that's parsley on the counter. Not rat shit.



k. The contest.

I've owned this steak knife for over 20 years. I was married to another man, when I bought this knife through a catalog vendor. I had ordered a cheap-ass, flatware set, which included a free set of steak knives, as a bonus. The flatware had the same wooden handles as this knife, which caused the pieces to roll onto their sides when placed on the table. The bowls on the t-spoons were flat as a spatula, which rendered them useless for eating cereal, but quite handy for squashing ants, two at a time. The fork prongs bent if you looked at'em sideways.

Long story moderately shorter, I gave/threw away the flatware,but the steak knives became my main kitchen squeeze. Then, one-by-one,the knives warped,splintered or otherwise degraded themselves out of my life.

All but this little guy. My kitchen soul survivor, who single-bladedly serrated me through a marriage, the birthin' of baby boy, graduate school, a divorce and relocation, a new beau, a dumped beau, another new beau, another marriage, another birthin' of a baby and two more relocations. And two cats. And a dog. ::I really had intended on this presentation being a bit more on the clever side. But I'm tired. And damn, if clever don't hurt on a day like this.::

So, back to the contest:
1) In what year did I buy this knife? ::I'm not sure of the exact year, because I only remember where I was living when I bought the set. And I only lived in this particular apartment for one 12-month period, in 19-blahblah and 19-blahsieblah. So yes, what I'm telling you is that the correct answer will be one out of two possible.::

Hints for the time frame:

I was doing her.....



I was making these....




On the radio I heard....Donna Summer, Eurythmics, Police, Men at Work, Prince, Duran Duran, Violent Femmes, David Bowie.

On TV I watched....St. Elsewhere, Hillstreet Blues, Falcon Crest, M*A*S*H (for a little while, anyway.)

2) From what mail order catalog did I purchase the flatware and steak knives?

Hints: The mail order catalog is still around today. Of course, they have a website. On a given Sunday, you might see them in a Parade. Back in 19-Blahblah or 19-blahsieblah, this company sold everything on "time," or credit. I paid about $4.99 a month for this stack of shit (not talking 'bout the steak knives, of course), over the course of a year. Interest was about 20%. Gave me a good credit rating, though. And a really pissed off anal-retentive-control-fuck hubby ::Is steak knife supposed to be a compound word? It seems like it should be, but all those K's together, in the middle, kind of scare me.::

The Prize: Two skeins of Wool-Pak, 8-Ply in Periwinkle. 250 grams and 525 yards a piece. ::Yes, there is only one skein featured. I have another. No, really.::



A review: To win, you must correctly identify, in comments, one out of the two possible years in which I bought the knife set, and the mail order catalog/company I purchased it from. In the event of a tie, I will draw names from a cat.

Again, submit your answer in comments. Contest deadline is Wednesday, December 14, 11:59 p.m. EST

Labels: Contest, Snow Day