The Adventures of RuthieD

Mustache Bag!

2012-01-26T19:43:00.002Z

I have a new bag and I love it! I bought it from Etsy with some of my Christmas money. LOVE :-)

New Years Resolutions

2012-01-12T20:40:00.001Z

One of my resolutions is to blog more. I promptly forgot this which is why we've got to the twelfth of January before this post. Today I downloaded the Blogger app in an attempt to encourage posting.

I have to use phone photos so forgive the quality ;-)

To start off, here is a picture of phill pretending to hold up a giant tree while we were in California for our honeymoon.

So Long, Channel 5!

2010-09-12T10:34:00.001+01:00

Recently, I have really got into CSI. The trouble is, the more I watch, the more I learn about the stories and the characters. But Channel 5 (and Five USA) insist on not only showing them out of order but also giving no indication what series the episode they are showing is from. Frustrating! Add to that the fact that most ads make me want to cut someone at the moment, I decided to bite the bullet and just buy them. So please, meet the newest additiong to my DVD collection:

Yep! 8 years worth of CSI (the original). Bring on the marathons!!

Back in Business

2010-09-11T10:05:00.003+01:00

Sorry for the long delay since I last posted. I've not really been feeling it over the summer but now I have lots to catch up on!

Starting with... Sheep!

In July, Phill and I went to the Rare Breeds Show in Singleton with my parents. It was held at the Weald and Downland Museum just north of Chi. What a fabulous place. It is basically a collection of buildings from around Sussex and the local area that were endangered before listing came in. The Rare Breeds show was a collection of pigs, sheep, cows and goats who were all judged a bit like Crufts but for farm animals!

This is my new favourite sheep:

He is a Grey faced Dartmoor and I think he looks like a teddy. He has beautiful curly wool and I would love to get my hands on some to have a go at spinning. I think it would probably be too course for clothing though.

There were also rabbits and alpacas which are beautiful! A craft tent with actual local craft people in selling their products which was refreshing as often these things are full of horrid mass produced crap and a stall selling olives and feta.

There was plenty for people of a crafty persuasion. P & M Woolcraft were there selling fibre and lots of sundries including plant dyes. I bought myself some Woad seeds for the garden. I also bought a new spindle from Ian Taite. It is tiny and made from Purple Heart and Sycamore wood. It spinds like a complete dream. Yum! There was also a tent where people had been able to enter their spinning and knitting for judging. Unfortunately, I didn't find out in time or I totally would have entered something. The piece that won first prize was just breathtaking.

Cake!

2010-07-11T22:09:00.003+01:00

I made a cake for Phill's birthday:

Pretty normal looking, huh?

Nope!

Inspired by The Omnomnicon I made rainbow cake!

It involved maths to work out how much I needed of each colour then fun measuring the right amount into little bowls to make the colours.

I found a little cake supplies shop round the corner from my house where I was able to buy the nice paste dyes which are nicer than the normal liquid food colourings. I got to play painter to make all the in between colours.

Once all the colours were mixed, I poured them one at a time into the tin, with each on top of the last to made nice concentric rings. I decided to just make one cake instead of the two in the original rainbow cake as I only have one tin and I'm impatient.

Try not to think about the e-numbers =)

Award Winning!

2010-06-22T15:59:00.000+01:00

When I was at university, I joined RAG. This is a society that fundraises for charity through running events or standing on a street corner waving a bucket at unsuspecting passers-by. Through RAG, I attended many events across the country organised by the charities for student fundraisers. At the events, I made many friends from RAGs at other universities.

After leaving university, RAG stopped but the desire to continue to collect cash for charity did not and I carried on attending these events, often by helping out by counting the money or supporting the collectors while they were out working hard.

The Ragabonds are a group of ex-Raggies. A RAG for those without a RAG. In the three years that we have been officially together, we have raised a stupid amount of money between us for many different charities across the UK. We also help out behind the scenes, working with the charities to help organise and run events.

This week we were awarded "RAG fundraiser of the year" by the Breast Cancer Campaign due to our effots for them last year. I myself raised nearly £2000 for BCC last year so I'm really excited that we have been recognised =)

Painted Kiwi

2010-06-21T15:56:00.001+01:00

I painted my Kiwi spinning wheel. The wheel itself I have painted with a colour wheel so that when it spins, it looks like a rainbow. This is the kiwi on the treadle. Don't look too closely at the mistakes!

The wheel is not perfect. The yellow is much brighter than the other colours so stands out a lot. I think I need to go and buy some purple to try and balance it out a bit! Also, I think it would have looked better with thinner stripes. I did 6 big blocks, one of each colour but if I were to do it again, I think I would do 12 or 18 stripes to see if I could get the colours to blend more.

New Look

2010-06-20T15:32:00.002+01:00

I have changed how my site looks. I like this one much better =) I was getting annoyed that my pictures were wider than the space available in the old layout so I looked for a wider layout and found this pretty pink one! I hope you like.

This has been partly inspired by my new camera. I get money for Christmas from my parents. This year, I decided to treat myself to a new camera. There was nothing really wrong with the old one except that it was a bit old. It used a memory card that seems to be hard to buy now and when we went to Chicago last year, I kept having to go and get the card emptied onto CD so I could take more pictures.

I found a lovely little camera, the Fuji Z35. It had 10 megapixels and a bunch of settings and featured that I wanted like face recognition, anti shake and automatically resizing for blog posting. I ordered mine from Jessops. It never came :( On the fourth of June I FINALLY got my refund after too many phonecalls; broken promises of call backs and that the refund had been processed and having to give them my card details at least three different times. I had to threaten legal action in the end but nevermind.

I went into town to spend my refund this week. Naturally the camera I wanted is no longer widely available so instead I have a beautiful Fujifilm Finepix AV180. It is shiney!

It is so much lighter than my old one. It has a massive screen. It has 14 (FOURTEEN!) megapixels although I'm not sure why anyone other than a professional photographer would need that many. It also automatically sets itself. It knows if it needs a flash or the macro setting. It has about 15 settings for light/dark/fireworks/landscape/panoramic/baby shots (!) etc. It uses a standard SD card that is widely available. I already have two 2GB ones that I bought in January for the original lost camera.

I'll be having a play with it to test the settings out.

Flowers

2010-06-19T15:07:00.002+01:00

For my birthday in May, I also received some flowers in the post from Phill's parents. I've never had flowers delivered before so it was very exciting!

They were most beautiful and lasted almost two weeks. I love lilies and roses and these were lovely ones.

I also received this planter from Anna and Joe. It's a giant teacup!

I have already planted some carrots in it. As it is very shallow, I was really pleased to find these little golf ball carrots. They have germinated and need thinning out. I will take some pictures of that soon.

Blogaversary!

2010-05-14T15:23:00.003+01:00

Today is one whole year since I started my blog. Hoorah!

Yesterday was my 28th birthday and once again, I spent it in London with beautiful Anna. Phill has college on Thursdays so I went up with him in the morning. That meant getting up at stupid o clock and catching a train at 6.15am. Ouch!

I spent an hour or so sitting in the park at the bottom of the London Eye. I had a coffee and my knitting and the sun was shining. It was lovely!

Anna and I spent most of the day hunting the elephants that are currently "on parade" around the centre of London. They are raising awareness of the plight of the Indian Elephant and they have a petition here

And here are some of my pictures from the day. Click to embiggen.

Scumbags :(

2010-05-02T08:52:00.002+01:00

This is what is left of the padlock on our shed. Someone has been in to our garden, cut off the lock and stolen Phill's bike. Just his bike! I'm actually quite impressed. Our garden is surrounded by 5 other gardens. The shed is flush against a wall that is at least 6 foot high and the other side of the wall is a garage. To get a bike out is actually quite an achievement!

When I went to get a new lock, I saw this and had to get it to make myself feel better!

Caturday

2010-04-24T07:58:00.002+01:00

Some kitty pics for you:

Mani helping with the washing

Mani's new friend. He makes a racket. Phill has given him food. Ooops! We don't know where he lives as he doesn't have a collar but I don't think he's a stray as he is a fatty with lovely fur! Mum and Phill have named him Felix. This will need to change =)

Darn It!

2010-03-28T19:43:00.003+01:00

Yesterday, I darned one of my socks. There was a hole appearing in the heel this was stopping me from wearing them as I was scared of wrecking my socks. They are so pretty and comfortable and I missed them. I thought I would practice that old adage of "a stitch in time saves 9" as the thought of darning an actual hole filled me with terror. It involves a sort of weaving and making new stitches where there are none. Doing it before the hole appears is easier as you just follow the path of the old stitches with the new thread.

Doesn't it look lovely!

The inside.

Iain

2010-03-27T12:00:00.003Z

My friend Iain passed away last night. He was 33. He will be missed by a huge number of people.

(Picture stolen from Facebook, taken by Emerson)

Spring!

2010-02-18T20:20:00.000Z

The first sign of spring... Daffs coming up on the road into town, hoorah!

A piss up in a brewery

2010-02-17T20:09:00.000Z

A couple of weekends ago was Big Dave's birthday. I headed up to Gloucester for the weekend and the first order of play was a trip to Prescott Brewery in Cheltenham. Prescott is a micro brewery which, we learned, means that they only supply beer to Cheltenham. This is sad as their beer was well good!

They showed us all their fancy brewing equipment (including vats of hot and cold liquer fnar fnar). They let us loose on their beer which we managed to pour all over the floor and after the tour, we sat in their office for hours drinking and chatting.

It was a fab afternoon and they even had a go trying on my sock that I had just finished. So it seems Dave can organise a piss up in a brewery. I fully reccommend Prescott Ales if you happen to be in Cheltenham.

Pancake Day!

2010-02-16T19:57:00.003Z

It's pancake day! And what could be better than pancakes than pancakes with bacon? Yum yum!

Cook your bacon. It needs to be crispy!

Chop half of it up into little bits.

Mix up your batter (I did 8oz flour, 1pt milk and 2 eggs as we want some for pud too)

Make the first, requisite crap pancake

Next one, put bacon in the middle of the pan and add a ladle of batter and spread it out

Make a couple and top with more bacon. Add ketchup or maple syrup and enjoy.

So long, Beautiful Chloe

2010-01-28T21:23:00.003Z

Beautiful Chloe has gone to the car park in the sky :( Last week she went for a service and it turned out it would cost twice as much to make her road worthy as she is actually worth. Chloe was my first car and I have had her for six years. I probably didn't look after her properly (note missing hubcaps and mismatched wing mirrors) but we did a lot together. She has done about 80000 miles with me, travelling the length of the country, from Edinburgh to Land's End, Swansea to Kent and Bangor to Newcastle. She has driven me to work and to interviews, to college and just to the shops or home to my parents and I will miss her.

The Knit Signal

2010-01-23T09:42:00.003Z

Knitters Without Borders is a fundraiser started by the Yarn Harlot. It is to raise money to support Medicine Sans Frontiers. From Stephanies blog:

Who is MSF/DWB?
MSF is a medical relief organization dedicated to bringing help to people in the worst circumstances in the world. MSF goes where other relief organizations (NGO's) will not. Where circumstances are the most desperate, the most dangerous and the most hopeless... you will find Médecins Sans Frontières. MSF is transparent and neutral without any political or religious affiliations, and does not accept donations from Pharmaceutical companies or companies that make Tobacco or Alcohol. Part of their job is to witness and report violations of human rights and dignity. MSF helps all persons who need them, regardless of their race, religion, politics or gender. MSF won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1999.

If you have some pennies to spare, please please consider sending some of them to MSF to support their work in Haiti. Their hospital there was badly damaged and they are now having to treat patients in the courtyard. And don't forget to Gift Aid if you can. Then, let Stephanie know through the link on her page (or via the button on my page). They are nearing $100000 CAD since starting this campaign.

A Saturday Together

2010-01-10T14:46:00.004Z

Phill normally works Saturdays and has a day off in the week instead. This week, though, his day off was Saturday! Hoorah! A whole weekend together =) Due to the snow and lack of past Christmas funds, we decided not to go anywhere but stay in Portsmouth.

We arranged to go and meet the events manager at HMS Warrior to discuss holding our wedding there. We walked into town and through Victoria Park where they have an aviary. Half of the aviary is actually a home for guinea pigs and rabbits. We wanted to check they weren't too cold. The rabbits were all snuggled together except for this one who had commandeed the hay! Most of the piggies were in their little houses.

We had already pretty much decided on Warrior for our wedding but it was good to talk to the events manager and hear how it would be set up etc. Now we are definitely having it there! We are provisionally booked and just need to check with the registrar now.

After lunch at Gun Wharf Quays, we went for a walk in the snow round the front to Southsea. It was nice to ahave another bit of an explore of our new city and Southsea is lovely. Nicer even that Portsmouth itself!

By the sea walls, there was a little inlet with had frozen over. There were some interesting giant circles of ice. Any science peeps know how that happens?

We walked along through Southsea Common where someone had built an igloo!

Further along the front we passed an steep area where people were sledding! We walked along the beach which had snow on too!

The Canoe lake was completely iced over and the little swan boats were locked at the center of the lake!

We had been recommended a cafe at the mini golf course, The Tenth Whole Cafe for its amazing cake. We didn't heed the warning about the size of the portions and had a piece each. This was an error as the pieces were HUGE!

For next time, one piece is enough for two! They had about 20 different types of cake to chose from so I see many return trips in my future to try the rest.

After a wander along Albert Street (which I mistakenly thought was the high street) we caught the bus home as it was getting dark. Albert Street is fabulous and I can see why it wins "Best Street" competitions. There were no chain stores (except local chains), just independent businesses. Next time we will try and find the center so that I can visit John Lewis for a habedashery fix. We did pass a shop called the Yarn Barn on the bus so I shall be checking that out too!

Meet Frosty!

2010-01-06T15:34:00.006Z

It snowed a whole lot yesterday, stopped overnight and then started again this morning. Unfortunately, it didn't really get going until after we had left for work, meaning that I was halfway there when I got the call to say not to come in. It was snowing very heavily in Chichester so I stuck my head in the door and got straight back on a train home. Snow Day!

Phill got sent home at lunchtime when the shopping center his branch is in was closed by management.

We spent this afternoon making a huuuge snowman in the garden. I reckon we had about 4 inches altogether! I don't think I've ever made a snowman this high, not here in the UK anyway.

Mani, however, was not so impressed...

He very carefully avoided touching the deep snow by walking down the edge of the path and in our footprints!

SNOW!!

2010-01-05T19:55:00.004Z

We finally have snow in Portsmouth!!

I just took this picture of our back garden. It is 8pm and I didn't use the flash! The snow is absolutely bucketing down and settling! Hoorah!

Update at 9pm - We now have about an inch of settled snow. The footprints I made earlier taking the tree out have completely gone. Here are some more pics, of my car and the garden, again taken without the flash!

New Years Day Out in London

2010-01-03T17:20:00.005Z

On New Years Day, Phill and I went to London for a day out. Every Christmas we go to the Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibit at the Natural History Museum. Normally we go before Christmas but this year what with the snow and all the travel, we went yesterday instead.

To make a day of it, we went up really early and walked from Waterloo through St James' Park to Buckingham Palace.

In the park we saw the Pelicans and then at the Palace we saw the changing of the guard and a bunch of people all dressed up with old fashioned bicycles. I love how random London is!

Then we walked along the Mall to Hyde Park Corner. We walked along the park through the Winter Wonderland. As it was so early, it was pretty much deserted, unlike the crowds we saw later in the day. I saw a singing moose head

(he was singing Driving home for Christmas!)

and had a go on the Helter Skelter. It was all fabulous in its tacky, fake German fairgroundness and I loved it!

Next was lunch at The Hare and The Tortoise in Kensington. Much yummy sushi and noodle soup was eaten.

The exhibition was fantastic. The best year for a while and it was hard to choose a favourite. The winners can be seen here. Which is your favourite? I liked Respect and Baboon Bonding.

After the Museum, we went for a wander on Oxford Street but quickly got tired and decided to go home.

Overall, a brilliant day, can't wait for next year.

Knitting of 2009

2010-01-01T00:33:00.008Z

Looking at my Ravelry Projects page, its seems that I have completed 31 projects in 2009. This includes 2 grown up jumpers, 2 little people cardigans, 12 hats, 8 pairs of socks, 4 pairs of mittens, 1 dish cloth, an ipod cozy and a shawl. Not all are pictured up there as I haven't taken the pictures yet but I am pretty pleased with that count!

I have also learned to spin on a wheel in 2009 and have taken up sewing again so a pretty crafty year for me!

Welcome, 2010!

2010-01-01T00:01:00.001Z

Well, another year is over. I always feel a little bit sad at this time of year, mainly at the thought of another year gone. As years go, 2009 has been pretty damn awesome! I know a lot of people have have really rather crappy years so I hope that 2010 is better for them.

As for me, this year I have been on two fabulous holidays (camping in the Lakes and an amazing week in Chicago)

Mani came to live with us

Phill's parents have left on their boat to follow their dream

Phill and I got engaged (and now I can say I'm getting married next year!). We have found a venue for the wedding and now we need to get on with organising it. I may need someone to sit me down and tell me to stop trying to knit the whole thing!

I finished my course and passed all my exams. And I got a job which I've started and I'm really looking forward to getting stuck into.

So all in all, a pretty fabulous year.

And as we are starting a new decade, lets have a round up!

2000 - I turned 18, passed my A Levels (just!), got into Bangor University and flew to Canada for a year abroad.
2001 - I came back from Canada and started at Bangor studying Psychology. I also joined RAG and my fate was sealed!
2002 - I got drunk and wrote essays!
2003 - ditto 2002 plus I had my heart broken and then I got better
2004 - I graduated from Bangor with a 2;1... Hoorah! I mistakenly thought that I wanted to be a teacher and started training at Oxford Brookes for my PGCE. I lasted a whole term! During this time, I learned about Speech Therapy.
2005 - I started work at Priors Court, a school for children with Autism. I moved to Reading into a house with Anna which was AMAZING! I miss living with Anna! Met Phill in a pub whilst very VERY drunk.
2006 - Anna had to move home so that she could go and train to be a nurse. I moved into a house filled with crazy people so I quickly moved out into a lovely little flat with Phill. I got to work for a while as a SaLTA while I tried to get a place on a course. I didn't get into Reading. Boo!
2007 - I got into UCL (and City and Newcastle)! The course started in August and to kill time before then and to avoid going back on a rubbish shift pattern, I worked for a while at Prudential, contacting pensioners to see if they were still alive. What fun! Phill and I got a pair of tiny hamsters, now sadly both departed.
2008 - Phill and I made the mistake of our lives by moving into a house managed by Romans in Reading. Thank God we are free of them now!
2009 - Well, see above!

So HAPPY NEW YEAR to all my readers! See you in 2010 =)

Christmas: Done!

2009-12-30T20:40:00.009Z

Sorry about the long radio silence. I started my new job a couple of weeks ago and I have been busy trying to stay awake in the evenings! Also, most of the knitting was for Christmas pressies and I didn't want to spoil any surprises!

So, first up, here are my Christmas hats:

Stripy hats for cousins Jonny and Christopher

Beaded hat for cousin Laura

Pink hat for cousin Lizzie

Black hat for SIL Jenny

The hats all seemed to be a hit as they were all put straight onto heads and worn for much of the day! Hoorah! I told Jonny I will gladly make him more hats if he wants them as he was so pleased with his.

Walking socks for Dad

Phill and I went back to Reading for Christmas. Naturally, the day before we planned to drive North, record breaking snow fell in Reading, causing total gridlock and impassable roads (well done, Reading Borough Council... leaving the footpaths ungritted for 4 days was genius!) This meant that if we wanted to get home as planned (and I did as it was the Sticks and Strings Christmas party on Tuesday) we had to get the train. This was an interesting experience as we had to travel separately from two different places, Phill from Portsmouth and me from Chichester. Phill had to take the cat with him! Several changes later as we were home.

Thanks to my secret Santa for my fabulous sewing and baking goodies!

On Wednesday, I went out to play in the snow but by that point it was just pretty ice and wouldn't be formed into anything other than a pile so no snowman for me :(. I cheered myself up by taking lots of pictures of the snow. Here are a few of my favourites!

My parents' back garden

Mum's gnome

Chilly bird house

The Red Kite flew into my view finder =)

We had a lovely Christmas. On the day itself we went to visit my Dad's family at my Grandparents house near Evesham. Then, on Boxing Day we drove down to Cornwall to visit Mum's family. It was very nice to see everyone.

I got some lovely presents including Christmas socks with bells on, loads of lovely chocolate and alcofrollic goodies and these button kits from Sue. I am looking forward to having a go at making my own buttons!!

In my "stocking", there was a box of Ferrero Rocher. As I was looking at them, I realised something was wrong... there were c ouple of missing! It turns out Santa got a little peckish during the wrapping process =)

I hope everyone had a lovely Christmas and I wish you all the best for 2010!

So Long, Pookiewoo

2009-12-09T23:06:00.002Z

What have I done?

2009-12-04T13:24:00.002Z

I have just registered for the Great North Swim. Along with Charlotte and Simon (and Dave for support), I will swim a mile along Lake Windemere next September. I will have to wear a wetsuit! And do some training. It fits in well with the whole weight loss resolution for next year which is good.

Charlotte is going to do all four of the swims (North, Scotland, East and London), Simon is going to do three of them and Dave and I will be doing just one. We are hoping to raise £2500 for Barnardo's, who work with children to help them realise their potential, no matter their background. We have a Just Giving page so if you would like to sponsor us, please click the link to donate and thank you!

You can also keep up with what we are doing on our fancy pants blog that Simon set up.

Random Thursday

2009-12-03T11:53:00.003Z

She's a princess! Anna came to visit us in our new house this week. We had a fabulous time involving the Spinnaker Tower, shopping, Chinese takeaway, wine, buttons, an enormous puddle (and associated wellies) and fancy toasted sandwiches in Chichester.

Remembering Andy

2009-11-30T10:56:00.003Z

Today would have been my friend Andy's birthday. He would have been 33. Unfortunately, he will remain 30 forever as he died suddenly in 2007 from a pulmonary embolism.

I am reminded of his birthday by Facebook. I still haven't removed him from my friends, nor will I. He is also still in my mobile phone address book, despite this being about the third phone since his death.

The Facebook message tells me to "write on his wall". I won't. Because he won't read it. But I am thinking of him today.

That's Andy on the left. This picture was taken on New Year's Eve about 5 years ago. We were in Edinburgh for Hogmonay and to collect money for Cancer Research. I wish I could remember what we were laughing at but this is how I like to remember him. He was a miserable old bastard with an excellently twisted sense of humour. He would be very angry at me for writing this post.

New House, New Life

2009-11-27T13:27:00.004Z

Last week, Phill, Mani, Moosey and I moved to Portsmouth in order for me to take up my new post as a Speech and Language Therapist in Chichester. It was a bit of a major operation as we were moving an entire house worth of stuff. It needed a truck and everything!

Our new house is fabulous. It's very similar to our old house except that it's actually been looked after and has sensible landlords. They sent us a card to welcome us!! They came over on Wednesday to fix something in the living room and it was really nice to meet them. They are nice and will actually do the things we need doing. There are no plug sockets hanging off the wall and no hole in the roof, unlike the house in Reading. Hoorah!

I've written a letter to Romans to let them know exactly what I think of them. Hopefully they will get the message and maybe not send prospective tenants round without warning the current ones next time =)

Radio Silence

2009-11-15T21:33:00.003Z

Tomorrow is the Big Move. Phill and I are moving to Portsmouth as I have a job in Chichester and he is transferring to Fareham branch of D&A. It is very exciting although I am al little worried about the big lorry trying to get down our road!

Tomorrow out internet will be turned off and won't be reconnected until Friday so please, entertain yourselves until then. I will try and take lots of pictures in an attempt to relax about the lorry situation!

Also, Mani has gone on his holidays to my parents house for the week so he is out of the way for the grand clean. He's only been gone an hour and I miss him already :(

Spinning Weekend

2009-11-12T17:36:00.006Z

Last weekend, I went with Felix and Liz to Beech Hill Farm in East Sussex. Beech Hill Farm is owned by Felix's friend Julia and we stayed in "The Studio", a converted barn with a lovely wood burning stove and cosy kitchen and bedrooms.

The Studio

The view up the lane to the road

We arrived in the dead of night on Friday so Liz and I did not know what the area around the farm looked like. It was also raining so we holed up in front of Autumn Watch and commenced the knitting.

Later, Felix needed something from the car and when she came back inside, she announced that there were stars. And boy, were there stars! The sky had completely cleared and as we were in the country, we could see many more stars than are visible in town. If the moon had not been so bright, we would have seen many more.

I was sad that I had left my star chart at home but I was able to identify the Plough, the North Star, the Seven Sisters (I think), Orion and Cassiopeia. There was also a very bright star and another which was slightly reddish which I wondered were planets or maybe satellites.

While were outside, we heard three Tawny Owls which we had just learned about from Autumn Watch. Later, Liz reported our 'hearings' to the Tawny Owl Survey.

The view from the studio

On Saturday, we woke to the sound of Sheep. Julia keeps a flock of Wensleydales which we met a couple of while they were being fed. After a breakfast of porridge made by Felix, we headed off to a local farm shop where we bought provisions for dinner, including sausages made on the farm.

A Wensleydale Lamb

The Wheels

In the afternoon, Wendy came to teach us to spin. While Liz and I are confident spinners with our own wheels, Felix had never used a wheel to spin before. Wendy brought some Black Romney fleece from another local farm and it was great to be able to experiment and not worry about how my yarn was turning out without using up any of my limited fibre stock at home. I managed to spin some fabulous thick yarn on a special wheel, the Country Spinner which has a weighted wheel and is designed for spinning thick yarn.

Country Spinner

It was difficult to get the hang of though so I went back to my own wheel and the finer yarn I am happier with. Felix very much got the spinning bug and in the evening after dinner, we all sat and span while watching the X Factor.

Felix learning to spin

On Sunday, after packing everything back into the car, we headed off to Lewes and after a wander around town in some fabulous shops, we stopped at the Needlemakers for lunch and a poke round the shop. Disappointingly, the fabric shop was closed but this was probably a good thing for my wallet! In the basement was an Alladin's Cave of bric a brack and antiques. There were books, clothes, niknaks, and best of all, haberdashery items.

Tins and packets from the 40s and 50s

I was a little worried to find items that I remembered from my childhood amongst the antiques. I could have quite happily spent the whole day down there poking around in all the nooks and crannies. I came away with an Enid Blyton book on tape (The Sea of Adventure which I read as a child), a pretty darning mushroom for my socks and a set of hideous patterns for knitting jumpers with giant Muppet faces on them.

Knitting goodies

It was fabulous to spend the weekend with Liz and Felix. It was very relaxed and much good food was eated in great company.

A carved seat covered in mushrooms

Random ... um... Friday... oops!

2009-11-06T13:07:00.004Z

Ferrets in a bucket!

Look At My Pumpkin

2009-10-30T13:05:00.003Z

Rugby avec Guiness

2009-10-25T00:22:00.003+01:00

Today, I went to help the BCC collection at the Madejski Stadium in Reading. London Irish were playing Leicester and I drank guinness from a plastic cup with a plastic lid through a straw. Classy am I! I have a picture but it is on my phone and my computer won't let me upload from my phone :( so I am stealing pictures from Simon's phone. Here is Jenny with our guinness:

Also, Jenny and I knitted at the game.

Also, I accidentally went on Etsy and bought fabric.

Also, tomorrow we are going to Tiggers and we are going to attept Bacon Jam and Bacon Cookies.

Also, I have had the best part of a bottle of wine =)

Random Thursday 4

2009-10-22T20:10:00.002+01:00

A London Bus on Westminster Bridge. Tonight I am off to London as tomorrow is Wear It Pink for the Breast Cancer Campaign and I will be stood in Holborn Underground station all day, dressed as a pink fairy, collecting cash. I hope to beat last year's £925. Wish me luck!

Oh I Do Like To Be Beside The Seaside

2009-10-19T11:52:00.005+01:00

Yesterday, Phill and I went down to the South coast to see where we will be living. We started off with a wander round Chichester where I will be working and then drove round Havant.

We stopped off at the beach at Hayling Island and had some delicious fish and chips and builder's tea in a caff on the beach.

It had a proper greasy spoon menu and I envisage a lot of time on the beach eating fried stuff with chips and tea!

(click me to zoom in)

We spent the afternoon in Portsmouth where it looks like we'll be moving to as it is much more affordable. The seafront has been redeveloped and the area around the Spinnaker and Gun Wharf Quays was really nice! I am quite looking forward to moving to live by the sea!

Random Thursday 3

2009-10-15T19:39:00.002+01:00

Give a cat a box, he will sit in it. No matter his size!

This is a black leopard in the Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago. He seems to like his box!

Excuse me...

2009-10-14T17:49:00.005+01:00

... Where did you get that bag?

What? This one?

With the little handle?

And the fabulous lining?

Well, it used to be this one: (picture by Ginger Rob)

But it was knackered. So I made it into something else. Anna bought me this bag and it has served me well for several years but the handles were splitting and the corners were wearing off so it was time for it to be replaced. I followed this tutorial with a couple of mods from here

And yes, I did make my own bias binding. =D

Yaaaarn!

2009-10-11T18:43:00.004+01:00

Here is my Chicago Yarn Haul. I went a bit mad in the shop but a bunch of it is for Christmas presents so it's not as bad as it looks.
The bag at the back was a gift from the shop, Loopy Yarns in Chicago for joining their mailing list.

Look what Felix brought me!

2009-10-11T18:33:00.003+01:00

This is soon to become many different pumpkin based yumminesses (new word!) including ravioli, stew, pilaf and pasta sauce. Nom nom nom!

Blocking Miracles

2009-10-01T14:51:00.003+01:00

I am back from Chicago and pics and news will follow once I have sorted through the pictures. I am sure you don't want to see all 200 odd!

I recently knitted a small shawl/scarf thingy. It is lace and lace looks like crap until you block it which opens up all the holes so you can see the pattern properly.

Here it is before it was blocked:

And here it is after (Mani is helping!)

The pattern is the Forest Canopy (Ravelry link).

Radio Silence

2009-09-21T22:01:00.004+01:00

I am off to Chicago for a week to get away and see Rachel. Hoorah!

Random Thursday 2

2009-09-17T09:39:00.002+01:00

Here is today's Random Thursday picture...

Me thinks they did not check this ad sufficiently before posting it on the back of a London bus. I hope the Mister in the picture is cervix savvy!!

In other news, I am off for an interview. Wish me luck!

Reasons to be Cheerful

2009-09-11T22:31:00.001+01:00

My dissertation have been handed in
I was offered an interview for a job in Salisbury
I was also offered an interview for a job in Worthing
I saw beautiful Anna for lunch
I saw the lovely Kate at the iKnit show and knit with some lovely people
I have finished my Forest Canopy shawl (pics when blocked)
I have bought some lovely shiny new wool
The sun was shining and the sky was blue and it wasn't too hot =)

FO Friday

2009-09-11T07:01:00.001+01:00

FO is Finished Object. Normally applied to knitting or spinning projects, today I am gong to use it to announce that ...

***My Dissertation Is Done***

I am off to get it bound and hand it in today and I plan to dance my way to the iKnit weekender after lunch with Anna.

Pic later!

Please continue with your normally scheduled Friday =)

Random Thursday 1

2009-09-10T13:08:00.007+01:00

From now on, Thursdays are Random! I am going to put up random pictures I have taken with my mobile so that they don't sit languishing on my hard drive for ever and ever. First up are these seagul footprints. I took this one on the Gower in February. Every year, Phill and his friends (The House of Trou!) meet up in Swansea where they went to uni and watch the England Wales 6 nations rugby match. I love Swansea. It has beach! I love the beach. One day I will get a job near a beach, hopefully this one, so I can walk on it whenever I want and draw pictures in the sand.

Fancy Tshirt

2009-09-04T12:52:00.002+01:00

My friend Simon found this and said it would be a perfect tshirt for me. I can think of several other people who would also love it so here it is:

Cat! I'm a Kitty Cat

2009-08-31T21:04:00.004+01:00

Yum Yum Chicken Recipe

2009-08-26T16:49:00.004+01:00

Here is the recipe for the delicious chicken.

One Pan Spanish Chicken (from Sainsbury's September 2009 issue)
Serve 4

2 tins of butter beans or cannellini beans, drained (I used one of each)
2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped into chunks
3 red peppers, seeded and chopped into chunks
about 250g chorizo, cut into chunks
1 bulb of garlic with the outside skin removed but left whole
200ml chicken stock
juice of a large orange plus extra oranges to chop into wedges, if you want them
2 tsp smoked paprika
8 chicken thighs with the skin on and the bone in
1 tbsp olive oil
sage leaves
salt (the big kind, not the pouring kind)

1. preheat the oven to 220C. Put the beans, sweet potatoes, peppers, chorizo and garlic in a big old roasting pan.

2. mix the stock, orange juice and 1tsp of the paprika and pour over the veg in the tin.

3. put the chicken thighs on top and sprinkle with a little teeny bit of salt to make the skin go mmmm crispy

4. put it in the oven and go do something esle for 40 minutes

5. mix the rest of the paprika with the olive oil and brush over the chicken skin. dip the sage leaves in a bit of oil and arrange them artfully over the top of the veg and chicken.

6. stick it all back in the oven for 10 minutes. I turned the heat right up here to make it go super crispy. Serve with a salad if you want something green. I did but it wasn't really necessary and there was a huuuge amount of food. I reckon if you plonked a bit more chieck on the top you could feed 6 as there is a lot of veg here!

7. enjoy =)

Yum Scrum

2009-08-24T19:57:00.005+01:00

Tonight I have cooked something new. I found a recipe in the Sainsbury's magazine for Spanish Roasted Chicken. And my goodness was it good!

It has peppers, sweet potato, various beans, chorizo and chicken with its skin on so it goes all crispy. I will find the recipe and right it up cos everyone should try this! Yum Yum! The recipe also has variations for French, Mexican and Italian Roasted Chicken by changing a few of the ingredients each time. They will all now be tried!

Pretty Socks

2009-08-23T13:38:00.002+01:00

Hmmm... I have been rubbish at updating. Unfortunately, Life has been a little dull recently. I am plugging away at my dissertation, trying to get it all done. I have, however, knitted a beautiful sock and have started the second. Here it is...
I have also taken a bunch of photos of stuff on my phone but the bluetooth wotsit for my computer has stopped working so the photos are stuck for a while. Rubbish!

Bon Voyage, Sue and Andy

2009-07-15T16:11:00.004+01:00

On July 4th, Phill's parents left for their great adventure, a round the world sailing "holiday". This is their retirement and something that has been planned for a long long time. I'm so excited for them that they are living out their dream. Phill wishes he were going to. And he will be joining them for their Atlantic crossing next winter. Both scary and exciting all at once!

There was, of course, a fabulous party to see them off with friends and family coming from all over the country, including friends from Ulverston that were not expected.

Alice cleaning the deck

The boat was dressed with flags (in the right order!) and the food was fabulous and included Nanny Scales' yummy cakes and jam tarts.

Cake made my Phill's Nanny

At around 7, they boarded the boat and sailed off in to the sunset. And we followed them! Phill, his two brother, Liz and the kids and I were very generously offered a ride in a fellow marina resident's cruiser. We went with them through the bridge and waved them off as they anchored up for the evening in Studland Bay (avoiding both seahorses and nudists).

Alice ready for her trip on the boat

Waiting for the bridge to open

Poole coat of arms

Andromeda on the open waves

My Mum and Dad waving us all off

They make Sun Seekers in Poole. This one must be destined for a rapper or drug dealer or something. Nina has 3 floors and those port holes down the black bit are the windows of a BALLROOM!

Beards across the generations

My Holiday...

2009-07-15T16:06:00.000+01:00

Summed up in one photo

Grizedale Forest

2009-07-13T17:09:00.003+01:00

On the Wednesday, Phill and I went to Grizdale Forest. They have a lot of sculptures in the woods and several trails that take you round the forest to see them. We took the white trail, described as "moderate". It wasn't too bad and was uphill to start with which meant it was downhill at the end. Very important! We barely saw another soul which was fabulous. All we heard was the sound of beards and insects. The sculptures were fab too.

At the top of the walk was a tarn. The water was so still, the reflections were amazing. It was so quiet, I could have stayed there all day but there was cake to eat and sculptures to see.

This is a reflection!!

Happy Campers

2009-07-13T15:48:00.006+01:00

Last week, Phill and I took a much needed break from work and dissertations and went up to the Lake District for a few days. We camped on the bank of Lake Windermere, at the northern end near Ambleside. This is the view from our tent.

Phill grew up in Ulverston. We visited on Tuesday, Phill to see how it had changed and me to see this place where the stories come from! One of my plans for the week was to have proper Cumberland sausage and we were recommended a pub in Ulverston. It was delicious! A big sausage ring on a pile of mash with black pudding and a roasted apple. Quite posh and very yummy.

We also went up to a local hill which was covered in sheep and I collected some wool off the ground. I also took a lot of photos of sheep!

On the way back to the tent we stopped off at Stott Park Bobbin Mill and had a tour round. They showed us how all the old machines used to work off the steam engine. I also bought a few tiny bobbins to use for my spindle yarn.

In the evening, we drank nice beer and Phill cooked me dinner!

We love the mooooooooooon

2009-07-12T11:16:00.004+01:00

Ages ago, Phill and I went up to Leeds to visit his uni friends Brendan and Abby. While we were there, we had a play with Brendan's fancy telescope. And it is properly fancy! It is automated so you calibrate it to some stars and then after that, just tell it what you want to see.

We saw stars and galaxies and SATURN! I am such a geek but this was amazing. It was very small and basically just a dot with a line across but it was SATURN!

We also took a picture of the moon which was very bright that night. We took a whole bunch of photos through the telescope and Brendan put them all together to produce this amazing image:

(click to see the big version ... it's worth it)

Round The World Hats

2009-07-11T21:31:00.005+01:00

Sue and Andy left for their sailing adventure last Saturday. There will be pics from the party soon but first, here are the hats I made them to keep their heads warm on the high seas.

First up is the Chakra Hat by Alysa Joaquin. This one is for Sue as it represents the head chakra. It is knit with Cascade 220 in Dark and Light Purple. This was my first Fair Isle and I love it. I am very pleased with how it came out nice and consistent and the back is almost as pretty as the front.

The second hat was for Andy and is Turn a Square (ravelry link) by Jared Flood. It is also lovely although a little big. This one is also knit with Cascade 220 in Navy Blue and Turquoise.

Fiberliscious

2009-06-26T20:59:00.001+01:00

Here is some beautiful fiber I bought when I should have been revising. Yummy!

First up is a superwash Merino/Nylon mix from The Thylacine called The Springs. It's beautiful greens and purples. Now all I need to do is work out how to spin it into beautiful sock yarn!

Next up is also from The Thylacine. This one is Meadowbank, a grey Merino/Alpaca mix. The grey is it's natural colour. This is going to be spun into a thickish single and will become mittens.

This final one comes from FeltStudioUK. It is a batt which I have never spun before. It is called Robin and is lovely robin egg colours. It's quite a mix of Merino, Corriedale & Romney lambs wool and Tencel. Yum!
Finally, a little Falkland sample from FeltStudioUK that came with my batt. What a lovely little suprise =)

We Are Sailing

2009-06-26T13:36:00.001+01:00

On Sunday, my Mum and Dad, Phill and I went to Poole to visit Phill's parents on their boat. They are off on their world trip in a week! How scary! Amazingly, in nearly four years, this was the first time that our parents met. Thankfully, everyone got on and a fabulous day was had by most out on the ocean waves. Dad wants to go on a sailing trip at some point so this was a great day for him to find out what it like. He had a fab day and Mum enjoyed it too. Here is Mum at the wheel with Dad in the background.

Here is Phill at the wheel.

This is me at the very front of the boat. I was king of the world for a short time before I had to go below decks and bring up my breakfast! Me and boats do not get on which is a real shame as I really do enjoy being out on the sea with the wind and the sunshine but it just makes me feel awful. :( I was alright in the bay though so was able to be sociable again once we got back into the calm.

We saw a tall ship! Very exciting!

Here is my Dad looking very at home on the boat. I think he has really got the bug now! He says he doesn't want his own boat though =)

Mum also had a good day and is now happier about the potential boating holiday.

Mogget Mirror

2009-06-23T11:28:00.000+01:00

Here is Mani with his friend, Across the Road Cat. Mani is not sure what to make of across the road cat. They are very similar looking except that Mani is smaller.

Alton Towers

2009-06-23T11:05:00.000+01:00

Every year, a bunch of us head off to Beautiful Vic's house for the weekend and spend the Saturday at Alton Towers. This is year four and the weekend was fabulous. The Friday morning, I had my very last exam and as soon as Anna and Joe got to mine, off we went up to Vic's. I was a little excited, not just because of the end of exams but also because there are people at the Alton Towers Weekended that I only get to see this time of year.

Saturday was also World Wind Knit In Public Day so I took up some needles and yarn and Kate, Anna, Jen and I knit little squares for a baby blanket. Anna works in the neonatal unit at Kings so I shall give it to her for her ward once it's done. We didn't get as many rollercoasters in as in previous years but that's ok. It was a fabulous day to be out and about with my friends. Hopefully now that I have more time I'll be able to be more sociable. Here are pictures from the day.

Knitting In Public

On the flume (Emerson took the second one)

On the River Rapids (Alton Towers took this one)

On the Pirate Galleons

Rachel

Meg, Kate, Rach and Alex

The four ages of Goose: Mummy Goose, nearly grown up goose, still quite young goose and baby goose. All spotted on the green by the lake.

Actual Finished Object!

2009-06-18T19:58:00.001+01:00

I am finally blogging Reid. I made Reid for Alice for her birthday. I ran behind so I was finishing in in the car on the way up to Manchester. I swear it nearly killed me. Cotton! Lace!! But it looks fab and was totally worth it. I also learned the benefits of blocking as it looked rubbish before I wet it and stretched it out.

Pattern: Reid from Knitty.com
Needles: 3.5mm
Yarn: Wendy Supreme Luxury Cotton DK in pale pink and white for the edging. Bought from Jackson's in Reading

Fairies and Pirates part 2

2009-06-18T18:54:00.000+01:00

Alice's party was Tinkerbell and Peter Pan themed. Here she is on the bouncy castle with Auntie Jenny

Here is baby Isaac with Great Grandma and Great Great Aunt!

Isaac in his frog sun hat

Tinkerbell on the bouncy castle

Yaaaaaaah!

This balloon kept Isaac happy for HOURS! Lucky Grandad!

Where's it gone?
Alice took this shot herself!

Pirate Isaac with Uncle Phill

The baddest baby on the high seas

Fairies and Pirates!

2009-06-18T18:41:00.001+01:00

In May we went up to Manchester to celebrate Phill's niece Alice's birthday. The theme was Tinkerbell and Peter Pan so there were pirates and fairies aplenty. Phill and I bought her some roller skates that she wears over her shoes and we tested them on a trip to the park. I also made her a little cardigan which fits lovely!

With Uncle Phill and Auntie Jenny

On the slide

On the swings with Uncle Phill

Uncle Phill on the slide

Photo Shortage

2009-06-18T18:05:00.001+01:00

I have lost the cord that connects my camera to my computer. So I can't upload any pictures now :(

To remind me, here is a list of stuff I need to blog

Alice's Birthday (done!)
Alton Towers
Shiney New Yarn and Fibre
Finished Object Pictures! (Done one but more to add)
Our Boat Trip
Mani

Soon, I promise =)

Priscilla

2009-06-16T15:57:00.000+01:00

Anna bought us tickets to go and see Priscilla, Queen of the Desert: The Musical for my birthday. To say I was excited is a little of an understatement! We went for a bit of a shop and dinner first. Dinner was Sushi at this amazing little place in Soho. We ate a LOT of fish for very little money which is always good.

The show was amazing. The costumes were fab and included the mystical Flip-Flop Dress from the show. They also had all the "Australiana" costumes at the end like the ostriches and the lizards with the pop up hood bits!

And the bus! The bus was amazing. It was covered in all tiny LEDs which changed colour. Mainly pink of course but during the songs it had all sorts of fun graphics. And of course, Jason Donovan! I relived a little bit of teenage fandom and after the show we stalked... I mean waited for him outside the stage door. We waited a looooong time and when he finally came out he didn't want to stick around but I got a picture of him with Anna!

In which Ruth does a joyful dance

2009-06-12T11:59:00.001+01:00

I have finished my exams! I don't know how I've done but hopefully enough to start. Today was my Viva which was pretty terrifying but thankfully my examiners were people I knew so I relaxed a little. Find out in three weeks if I've passed =)

In other news, I got a load of fibre in the post. It came during the week but I was out so this morning I went to the post office in time for opening. There was a queue!! at 7am! But my fibre is beautiful and I will take photos later.

This evening I am driving up to beautiful Vic's with Beautiful Anna and Hairy Joe for Alton Towers 4. There will be cheesy pop songs and bad singing. Tomorrow there will be roller coasters and also knitting as tomorrow in Worldwide Knit In Public Day.

Procrastination

2009-06-09T19:11:00.001+01:00

Things that I was meant to do today:

Revise

Things I actually did today:

Go back to bed
Play with the cat
Drink a LOT of tea
Cuddle the cat
Piss about on Facebook and Ravelry
Knit an Innocent Hat
Move the cat off my paper work
Decide I need cake to off to Tesco for eggs and chocolate drops
Make cake
Go to knitting group
Write a blog post about procrastination
Actual revision. Not enough!

The cake is good though!

Recipe = Cream 4oz butter and 4oz caster sugar. Beat in two eggs. Add 4oz flour and a bit of baking powder (or just use self raising flour). Add as much cocoa powder as you need to satisfy the chococravings. Add bag of choc chips. Beat. Divide into little cases and bake at 180 for about 20 minutes (check after 15). EAT! Yum! I iced them with chocolate fondant icing.

Exams :(

2009-06-07T20:03:00.001+01:00

Well, my finals start tomorrow. I'm thinking that only revising for about a week was a Very Bad Idea. I do not think that tomorrow is going to go well. Oh well, I refuse to pull an all nighter as that will just mean I am asleep in the exam. Who plans an exam for 10-1? Who thinks that anyone will function properly working through a meal time?

Tomorrow is B2 - Management of Acquired Communication Disorders.
Thursday is B3 - Disorders of the Vocal Tract.
Friday is my Professional Studies Viva.

Friday afternoon is journey to Stoke to see beautiful Vic and then Alton Towers on Saturday, Hoorah!

Wish me luck!

Here is Mani helping me with my revision:

Mogget!

2009-06-02T21:37:00.000+01:00

Well, I've only just started and already I'm being crap at posting. Maybe two weeks before my finals was not a good time to begin blogging. Here is a picture of Mani to keep you going:

Birthday Goodies

2009-05-16T14:47:00.000+01:00

Mot much has happened this week apart from boring old revision so here are some pictures of my lovely birthday gifts.

First up is the Wii Fit from Phill. I have wanted one of these for aaaages! I am trying to be good and do it every day.

Next is some super squishy Mirasol Miski from Sara. It it beautiful and turquoise and I have four skeins! I need some inspirations what to make with it.
Felix gave me this gorgeous, specially hand-dyed for me four ply BFL yarn. And also hand-dyed fibre and some lovely buttons from York!

Happy Birthday To Me!

2009-05-14T10:38:00.001+01:00

Yesterday was my 27th birthday. I feel like such an old lady! Mum says you know you are old when the policemen look young and the ones I saw yesterday did. Aaagh! They looked like teenagers! It's not all bad though as Mum says to her they look like children.

I had an awesome birthday. On Tuesday night I went for pie with people from Sticks and Strings, Phill, my brother Andy and my non-knitting friend Jenny. A good time was had by all I hope and the pie was, as ever, fabulous. Afterwards we went across the road to Dogma which has 1/2 price everything on Tuesday. I stuck to cocktails! Unfortunately I didn't take any pictures. Sad :(

Yesterday I went with Phill to London to meet up with Anna. We went for lunch in Soho:

Delicious Sushi

Then we caught the bus down to the Natural History Museum. I love that the museum is completely free. Hoorah! We looked at the shiny stones and the big blue whale and ate cake:

Yummy Cherry and Coconut Cake

We also saw some crazy monkey skeletons, swinging from the ceiling. I'm not sure if I liked them. I love monkeys but these looked like tiny little long-armed humans! There were about 15 of them:

Freaky Monkey Skeleton
Tiny Little Mouse!

Once we got home, Phill cooked me a delicious steak and we made homemade chips and pepper sauce and ate by candle light. It was a lovely ending to a fabulous day!

Oh, and Anna has bought us tickets to go to see Priscilla! To say I am excited is an understatement!

I also got some gorgeous yarn from Sara and Felix and a Wii Fit from the boy =) I need to take pictures still.

First!

2009-05-14T10:06:00.000+01:00

So, I keep taking pictures and I have nowhere to put them so I have decided to start a blog. It will be a little diary thing with knitting, food, kittens and adventures.

And to start with, here is Mani: