Everyone's Favorite Hat

Raul and I visited a yarn store yesterday, and he coveted this hat:


After some holding of yarn and hemming and hawing. A skein of bulky weight alpaca yarn was purchased, and after a brief tutorial,


Raul cast-on and was off to the races like a natural knitter! Check out his progress:


And this morning, we have a finished hat!


View from the top:


Specifications
Pattern: Everyone's Favorite Hat by Fibertrends
Yarn: Blue Sky Bulky weight, 50% Alpaca and 50% wool in a gray colorway.
Needles: Size 15 circulars
Comments: Raul is a knitting champ! The yarn is amazing - super soft and luscious. The pattern is simple and makes a very warm hat, and Raul's version looks just like the model in the store. What a guy.

Endpaper Mitts

Well, I took Step 2 of the US Medical Licensing Exam last Friday. 368 questions spread out over 8 hours. It was a good time that left me feeling thoroughly demoralized. But at least it's over. Hopefully. I will find out my score (and whether or not I passed) in 3 weeks. One of the test center proctors said, 'Well, hopefully we won't see you back," as I was signing out to leave at the end of the day. Thanks for the vote of confidence.

Here is a finished object that was my mom's Christmas present this year: a pair of Endpaper Mitts:





Specs:
Pattern: Endpaper Mitts by Eunny Jang
Yarn: Knit Picks Palette in colors sky and ash
Needles: Size 2 Addi turbo circulars
Comments: Excellent pattern (they fit!), excellent yarn. I really enjoy colorwork. My mom seemed very happy with them.

Slipped Stitch Dishcloths

Several years ago, my grandmother gave me a bag full of Lily Sugar & Cream yarn. At the time, I wasn't a huge fan of knitted dishcloths - I preferred disposable sponges because, well, I had the luxury of a mechanical dishwasher, and I did not handwash many dishes. And non-disposable dishcloths struck me an excellent breeding grounds for bacteria that I would not want touching my dishes or my hands. Since then several things have happened. First, I have moved and no longer have a dishwasher. Second, med school has desensitized me, and I no longer fear bacteria. Instead, I fear stroke. And third, I am tired of all the waste that disposable sponges/dishcloths create. Enter handknit dishcloths! I found the slipped stitch pattern in Mason Dixon Knitting, and I located the aforementioned bag of cotton yarn from my stash, and voilà! Handknit dishcloths!


Here are two of a variegated and light yellow yarns:


This one, I call 'Eggs Over Easy in Pepto-Bismol'. I suppose neglecting my studies on color theory has been a bad idea.


Specs:
Yarn: Lily Sugar & Cream in various colorways. 2 balls will yield about 2 dishcloths.
Needles: Size 7
Pattern: Very easy to follow and quick to knit. I have made 5 of these so far, and they take a couple hours each,

Self-Actualization: Achieved. Not!

Remember Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs? Where organisms must first satisfy basic physiological needs before they are able to achieve higher goals (ie self-actualization.) My experiences in the last month have prompted me to recall this theory, primarily because I feel that strive as I might, I am repeatedly kicked back to the base of Maslow's pyramid. While traveling, Raul and I seemed to find ourselves repeatedly stranded and at the mercy of American Airlines. Such situations required that our efforts be focused primarily on obtaining food, shelter and warmth. Who has time for self-actualization when you cannot get home and you do not know where you're going to sleep that night? Saying this, I realize that I am quite fortunate that I do not routinely have to worry about not having adequate shelter or food or warmth.

Another thing that I am happy to take for granted is electricity. An ice storm hit the Midwest this week, and our block was without power yesterday and today for about 20 hours. Raul was a super sport and volunteered to brave the ice-covered sidewalks to hunt and gather up our anniversary dinner (that he was able to procure from a local Thai restaurant.) We ate dinner in our headlamps surrounded by candles, and then thought about playing games (photo below) but decided that it was dark, and we were tired and went to bed. It was 6:45pm. People must have been well-rested in the pre-artificial light days.

Life is much better with hot water and heat! Here's to hoping for a steady supply of both in our lives (along with shelter and food) so that we may get on to bigger and better things, like climbing Maslow's pyramid.

Photo of ice covered street:


Close-up of ice covered tree:


Nothing says happy anniversary like a game of cribbage by light of headlamp!

New Spring in my Step

Admittedly, there was a time when I did not think that I would ever be able to leave Pittsburgh, but no worries - we eventually made it to Portland and had a wonderful time. I had an entire day there to myself while Raul was off interviewing, and I made the most of it. I visited a very cool fabric shop where I found this fabric:

to make a 'Follow the Lines Baby Quilt'. The floral print will be the front (the part that I will handquilt), and the more solid print will serve as both the backing and binding around the edges. Now I have a reason to use the beautiful quilting hoop that was recently gifted to me by my grandma.

Then I meandered down to a store that I was destined to find, Clogs and More. There I was able to find a pair of shoes that Raul will give me for Christmas. Lucky him (and me)! And while in the shop, the store clerk took my old Danskos off my feet and resoled them. Talk about service!

And then we finally made it back home, and we are reunited with the cat and dog. The dog is having some GI issues (per usual, poor guy). Because we are diligent med students (and slightly hypervigilant) we noted his urine output was poor and got some IV fluids from the vet and gave him a subcutaneous fluid bolus. He is much better now.

Finally, here is a picture of Raul doing exciting things with his facial hair:


PS - tomorrow is our one year wedding anniversary!

Cobblestone Pullover

Completed!

View from the front:


Back:


Close up of stockinette up the side of the body of the sweater and the yoke:


Specs:
Pattern: Cobblestone Pullover by Jaren Flood in IK knits (Fall 2007)
Yarn: Knit Picks Swish Superwash in color Lemongrass.
Needles: Size 7 circulars
Comments: My first sweater! The pattern was very easy to follow and quick to knit. And it is totally wearable! I made no modifications, and my sweater looks like the one in the magazine. Very excited. The yarn is very soft, 100% wool and machine washable and dryable. I have yet to wash and dry it, so we'll see how it goes. Raul is happy with it!

Update: American Airlines is not my hero

They caused me serious anxiety as they sent my bags with all my clothes (including my interview clothes) on a sightseeing trip of the Midwest. American did pony up $100 to allow us to buy undergarments, toiletries and other necessities yesterday after our bags had been MIA for over 24 hours. Their offer of $100 prompted a frantic shopping spree at Target late last night. No worries though - our bags arrived sometime in the night, and I was able to dress in my finest attire this morning. Though today during my interview day, many a resident and applicant looked me over and asked if I had bought my suit at Target. Thanks jerks.

Did you know the Pittsburgh airport has a mall inside of it? There is an overpriced Gap and two Ben & Jerry's ice cream shops.

Our flight is delayed. I hope we get home tonight. And off to Portland early tomorrow AM! Maybe I will go have a milkshake.

Goodnight and wish me luck!

American Airlines is my Hero

Well, not really because Raul is my hero, but American Airlines is a close second today. Want to hear our story - it's a good one! We have packed about 15 interviews into the month of December - it was fun to make the schedule, kind of like a game of Tetris. But it hasn't been so fun to be the person that has to stick to it. In the past week, I was in San Diego, LA and Sacramento. Good news is that I loved the programs in LA and Sacramento as did Raul, so there is a good chance that we are California bound. On Saturday, we were supposed to catch a flight from San Diego to home, and then on Sunday we were flying from home to Pittsburgh for interviews on Monday. An ice storm with freezing rain prevented us from going home, so we flew from San Diego to Pittsburgh. So, technically we missed our flight from home to Pittsburgh this morning - resulting in mass confusion among airline administrators that required 90 minutes on the phone and the help of a super genius from American Airlines to sort out. Thank you American Airlines.

Oh, and our bags have yet to make it to Pittsburgh.

And to add further insult to injury, we are scheduled to arrive home late Monday night, and we're leaving for Portland, OR on Tuesday morning. Note to self - perceiving interview scheduling like a game of Tetris is a bad idea.

Raul's sweater is finished and fits! I will post pictures once I am home and have access to a camera.

Happier Times

Thank you for the kind words and support re: the previous post. As I have been told in conversations with others about my experience, death is an inevitable part of life. And it is the duty of loved ones to provide the fanfare that I felt was lacking in my observation of a stranger's death. However, I am still struck by how fleeting and fragile life is. It would seem that if everyone had such an understanding then maybe life would be appreciated a little more and maybe the world would be better off. Who knows? But I am alive, and I am glad, and I am onto happier times.

Today I found a small slice of heaven in a nearby town famous for its large Amish population. Raul and I are enjoying the rare treat of vacation, and we took a trip today to this town for lunch (excellent!) and to see the sights. Raul is really a good sport - this town is also known as a quilters' paradise, and he volunteered in advance to accompany me to my fill of yardage shops. I found a yarn corner in one of these shops, and in this corner, there were some drop spindles and wool roving for handspinning wool. OK, so I read the blogs of several people that produce handspun yarn and maybe I have watched some online tutorials about how to spin yarn with a drop spindle, secretly hoping that one day, I would own my own spindle and spin my own yarn. Well, today was that day, people! When I expressed an interest in the drop spindle to the store clerk, a chain of events was initiated that resulted in my getting a private lesson in handspinning! Yes, I am making yarn! Very exciting, and here is a picture of me spinning at home and one of the roving and the spindle:





There is another project that I cannot seem to get out of my head lately. It is a quilt. Specifically, this quilt:


It is from Joelle Hoverson's Last Minute Patchwork and Quilted Gifts. Isn't it beautiful? I have yet to start quilting, but I think I may have to start so I can make this quilt! The author has a fabric store in NYC that sells the fabric to make the color wheel.

Any suggestions for any other time-consuming hobbies that I can obsess about?

So, I wrote the post below before rounds (where we go around and talk about the overnight course and current plan for every patient in the unit.) During rounds a patient coded - her heart rate was very slow and she eventually became asystolic (no heart beat.) Chest compressions were started when she did not respond to external pacing or medications. She continued to have no pulse, and she was pronounced dead. This was my first code and my first time seeing someone die. It was nothing like I thought it would be - there was all this excitement during the code. "I'm giving 1mg atropine!" "I'm pacing her at 160!" "1 mg epi now!" Then the chest compressions start. It goes on like this for minutes or hours, and if the patient does not improve, then everything stops, and it is quiet. And the patient looks exactly the same dead as they did a few moments ago when they were alive. The anti-climax is heartbreaking. It would seem that the end of life should be heralded by some sort of something. But there is nothing, and we must continue on with our rounds because the patient in the next room is doing poorly.

That was my morning. I spent the bulk of the day watching the autopsy of my patient that had died the previous night. It is very unsettling to see an autopsy performed on someone that you had seen alive less than 12 hours earlier. As with everything, death stops life for some, but for the rest of us, it continues on. Strange. I wonder if you ever get used to it.

Yeeeee-Haw!

Greetings from the interview trail! We are just starting out - Raul and I have had about two interviews each. I have interviewed here and at the University of Michigan, and next week, we are off to St. Louis. So far, so good. The program here is strong, and there are many perks - the low cost of living, the lack of overnight call for psych residents (hallelujah!), and everyone here, for the most part, is very nice. Michigan was great too - they have a very strong program with a good amount of training in general medicine, and they have some very exciting research projects that I could participate in. Exciting (and slightly stressful) times! I will be happy when the match comes in March and all this is settled.

I am finishing up 4 weeks in the Medical Intensive Care Unit (MICU). It has been pretty intense. Lots of long hours and very sick patients. One of my patients died last night. I am not cut out to be an intensivist - I prefer those interactions with patients that don't cause huge catecholamine releases. And, generally speaking, I like to know that my patients are going to be alive when I come in the next morning.

On the knitting front, I have been busy. Raul's birthday sweater is nearly finished. And good thing because he turns 30 on November 20th!!!

Raymond's Nut Brown Ale

My brother is becoming a brewster! He made some nut brown ale and was kind enough to pass along some of the yield. Here is the brew post-pour into frosty pint glasses (Angels lunchbag in background to mourn lack of Angels in WS):


Careful analysis of flavor profile:


Final analysis: a hoppy ale with a moderate amount of bitterness and no unpleasant notes or aftertastes. Remember people, I was trained in this sort of thing in my former life, and Raymond, I must say that you have a hit! Very excited to see/taste your future creations.

Cheers!

Where My Stitches At?

I am finally a member! Ravelry is like Facebook for knitters - you can post pictures and details of your finished objects, works in progress, yarn stash and much more. I have not uploaded my info up yet - I think that might take some time, but I have surfed other's projects and patterns, and I found some great stuff. Including a limited edition T-shirt that reads, 'Where my stitches at?' If you are interested, you should sign up for the waiting list for an invitation - or wait because soon it will be open to the general public, and you will be able to join without invitation.

In other news - I finished my 2 weeks on Anesthesia, and I am happy to report that my IV starting skills have improved dramatically. I was getting them on the first try with no mess! Not hard - just takes practice. And on Monday, I start 4 weeks in the Medical Intenstive Care Unit (MICU). And Raul and I have received many interview invitations (some even in CA!) We are very excited and will keep you posted!

Human Pretzel

I became a human pretzel in my yoga class tonight. We did this:

It was kind of painful.

Life is getting better on the IV-starting front. I got one on Friday on my second try - an on a conscious patient no less! Unfortunately, I managed to get blood everywhere - all over the floor, the IV tubing, the supply bucket, my scrubs, the patient's hand. Embarrassing, but an improvement nonetheless! And progress enough to spare Raul the joy of being a human pin cushion. Lucky guy.

On skin and general anesthesia

Thanks for all the kind words and well wishes for Myriam. She is doing much better - her pain is well controlled and she is off for a week of rehabilitation therapy at a fancy facility and then home! All is well.

A comment on my rotations - Last week I completed a two week rotation on dermatology. It is commonly referred to as "Derma-holiday" due to the short hours and supposed easy-ness of the rotation. Unfortunately, that was not my experience. Pain is watching some resident do skin exams over and over and over for 10 hours. I experienced the phenomenon of negative learning in which I turned my brain off, became a zombie and forgot things that I used to know. Fortunately for me, that experience is over, I passed the test for that rotation, and I never have to do it again. Yippee. Also, some of you members of the masses are a little nuts in the way you compulsively check your skin and come to the dermatologist demanding that every little mole and skin tag and pimple be evaluated and removed. Not that it's not good to keep tabs on your moles - just do it in moderation. And wear sunscreen.

Now I am on anesthesia. I have had to do loads of scary things that make me instantaneously break out in cold sweats. One for instance is starting IVs - the last time I attempted to start an IV was the very first week of my M3 year on a classmate - she cried. It was traumatic. Today, I tried to start an IV on a patient (thankfully under general anesthesia) five times. The last two were successful. My resident let me take home many an IV catheter and all IV starting supplies and my beloved husband has volunteered to be my human pin cushion when he returns home. That's love people. I also intubated someone the other day. Here is what I did - you take the laryngoscope (the L-shaped device) in your left hand and insert the blade into the mouth and pull the tongue and everything anteriorly as so:


Then you are able to visualize the larynx - see the vocal cords:


The intubation tube is then placed down between the vocal cords and into the lungs.




It actually takes quite a bit of muscle to visualize someone's cords. Especially if they have chubby cheeks, a short neck and a big tongue.

Think Happy Thoughts

Raul's mom, Myriam, fell and broke her leg last night and is having surgery today. I just dropped Raul off at the airport, and he will be with her to help out for the next week and a half. If you have the time, please send happy thoughts their way!

So it goes

One project off the needles:

It ended up a tad short - I ran out of yarn, but I hope it's future recipient will still like it.

Here is progress thus far on my Indigo Ripples Skirt (pattern by Kat Coyle in IK Spring 2007):

I think I might be about one third of the way done. I am using smaller needles, so my row gauge is way off and this yarn shrinks significantly when washed and dried. So, I am at the spot where I need to dig out my washed and dried swatch and figure out exactly how long I need to make this solid panel to achieve desired length. Well, that sounded complicated, so I decided to cast on for another project..

This is Raul's Cobblestone Pullover (pattern by Jared Flood in IK Fall 2007):

The yarn is Swish worsted weight in color lemongrass heather from Knit Picks. The yarn the pattern calls for is prohibitively expensive given our current budget, so we opted to go with Knit Picks, a yarn supplier known for their affordable prices, and I am happy to report this yarn is luscious! And it is machine washable and dryable. Heaven! You know, I am thinking that men's garments are much easier to knit - they require no shaping for hips or waists or breasts - you just knit a tube for the body, two smaller tubes for the arms and then shape the shoulders. Men have it so easy.

Much Better

This weekend I had a most excellent surprise - an unexpected visit from my favorite of favorites:

(He's holding a blenderful of homemade smoothies, dee-licious)

There was lots of dogwalking, handholding and happiness this weekend. This is his last week away, and I will be glad when he comes home for good.

Also much better is the outward appearance of our house. Here is evidence:

Home with old, peeling paint and gross, rusted, spider-web filled window awnings:


And here is same home after thorough peeling and several coats of new paint:


And here's the garage. For those of you that saw it pre-painting, can you believe that's the same door?


Quite a marked improvement, no? I still have some work to do (like paint the front door and pick up the 10 million paint chips that are scattered around the house), but it feels good to have the bulk of this project behind me. Also, it's quite nice to walk/drive up to a pretty house covered in non-peeling paint at the end of each day.

So, I have been thinking about knitting pretty much all the time, lately. It's an exciting life, I know. I bought some yarn this weekend to make Raul the Cobblestone Pullover (if you access the link, scroll all the way down.) As much as I might complain, I have more free time now than I have had in several years. And I have only 2 more rotations to go this semester - so most of November and all of December will be devoted to residency interviews and knitting and hanging out! Excellent!!

Scarves and Such

Greetings from the hot then cold then hot then stormy midwest! Oh weather - you make life so exciting.

So, I am recently returned from a visit to Raul up in Minneapolis. A very beautiful city. With a very beautiful Costco, and that Trader Joe's is really something to write home about. And the Mall of America...that was a little too much (Note from Raul: I wanted to ride the rides, but alas, there was no time). Oh, the wonders of the big city.

Now - onto knitting! No, I have not finished any projects, but I have started some new ones!

Hairy green scarf (a Christmas gift for a loved one that has previously enthused a love of hairy scarves and the color green.)


Chevron scarf - I may keep this one for myself. I am really liking it, but if my current pattern holds and I keep if for myself, I may be dooming this scarf to the pile of never finished objects. Sad. Anyways - what do you think of the color combo? Is it too much like your mom's 1970s kitchen?


Re: the residency application process (just because this is such a confusing and bizarre practice to those who have not recently suffered through nearly four years of medical school), I offer this update - I have a few interviews scheduled. No, none of the programs from CA have contacted me, yet, but it is still early in the game. Rest assured.

Love to you all! And welcome back to my globetrotting Grandma!

Rough Day

Aye carumba. Do you ever feel like the universe is conspiring against you? This single parent thing is rough (and my kids are the kind with four legs that eat dry food from Costco.) Raul has been on an away rotation for almost two weeks, and I am exhausted. Walking the dog twice a day, working 9-10 hours every day, driving up to see him on the weekends. Pobrecita Shannonita. And today, I locked myself out of the house while taking the dog outside to tether him, so I could get a few minutes peace (he whines incessantly from the moment I walk in the door until I take him for a walk.) I climbed in through a window - the cat was inside, trying to bite me and the dog was outside trying to climb up after me.

It's too much I tell you.

I have been knitting. I am in the process of making the Indigo Ripples Skirt by Kat Coyle, and I am about 1/4 of the way done. I am starting to hear the call of Christmas knitting, so I think this skirt may soon be relegated to the bin of unfinished projects (remember the storm water shawl and glee.) At least the skirt will be in good company. If any of you out there figure out how to eek a few more hours out of every day, please let me know!

Baby Baby

Raul's very good friend is expecting a baby in November. The following three posts detail handknits for their soon to be arriving little girl. Her father has a love of wood and interior design, and the baby is to be named Maple. I found the yarn at a wonderful yarn shop in San Francisco (as mentioned below). I set out looking for some wooden buttons, and Raul and I were very excited to find little wooden leaf-shaped buttons at JoAnn's fabric and craft store. The patterns for all the handknits below were very easy and straightforward - any questions, please ask!

February Baby Sweater

This is an Elizabeth Zimmerman classic from her Knitter's Almanac.

February Baby Sweater:


Button Detail:


Specs:
Pattern: February Baby Sweater by Elizabeth Zimmerman
Yarn: Louet Gems light worsted weight in color 'fern green'
Buttons: Falling leaves wooden buttons from JoAnn's. The buttons were sold in a multi-pack of normal leaf shapes (as used on sweater) and maple leaves (as used on hat.) Given the name of the baby, I would have loved to use the maple leaf shaped buttons on the sweater, but a test run proved them to be a nightmare to get in and out of the little knitted buttonholes. I think the others look cute, and they are much more functional.
Needles: Size 7 circular for the body and 4 size 7 double-pointed needles (dpns) for the sleeves
Comments:
First, the yarn was a dream to work with. It is very soft, and machine washable and dryable. And the best part - I was lucky enough to find it on sale at the best yarn shop ever. I would definitely recommend this yarn for baby knits or any other projects.
As has been done by other knitters previously, I made the pattern seamless by using dpns for the sleeves. As I am a devoted 2 circular needles type of girl for sock knitting, it as been a long time since I have had the need to use double-pointed needles. At first, I felt a little like Edward Scissorhands making these sleeves, but I quickly became comfortable using dpns again and all was well. Also, the pattern calls for a row of decreases before the rows of garter stitch at the bottom of the sweater. I accidentally left out the row of decreases and ended up with a sort of baby swing coat. A friend with children assured me that despite it's wideness, it would fit a baby's dimensions and could even be worn as a smock with a little summer dress by a 3 year old. Talk about versatility! Anyways, this was my first Elizabeth Zimmerman pattern, and I am in love. I have plans to make a couple other of her baby sweaters for other friends that are expecting, and her designs for adults are beautiful as well.

Hello Bonnet

I have been wanting to knit this pattern for some time, and I was quite excited to realize that I had enough yarn left over from the sweater (see above) for a little baby bonnet.

Specifications:
Pattern: Top Down Bonnet from Hello Yarn
Yarn: Louet Gems light worsted weight yarn in color 'fern green'
Needles 5 size 7 double-pointed needles
Comments: This was a very easy knit, and it's cute!

View from the front as modeled by iPal:


View from the side with Stay On Baby Booties:


Button detail:


Flynn modeling bonnet:

Stay On Baby Booties

Specs:
Pattern: Stay on Baby Booties purchased from local yarn shop. I was sold the pattern for $5 and then told a story about how the pattern was given in photo copy form to the shop owner, and they have no idea what book it is from. So, it is highly likely that they are selling a pattern they do not have permission to sell and that they got for free; I find this mildly annoying. Please email me if you want the pattern, and I will give it to you.
Yarn: The ever popular Cherry Tree Hill Supersock in color 'Life's a Beach.'
Needles: 2 size 2 Addi circulars

These booties are very easy to knit. They may be knit with 5 double-pointed needles or with 2 circulars, and by changing yarn and needle size, you could easily make them larger or smaller to fit various sizes of baby feet. I have been told these little booties actually stay on newborn/baby feet. I will have pass reports from the soon-to-be parents on to you if this really is the case.

long time no blog

I have been busy. Here is a recap of recent weeks in pictures:

First, I was home and it was hot - heat index 110 degrees. So, of course, I cranked up the oven and made a pie:



And no worries - I did not forget to update you on the house painting project. It is still ongoing. Below you will find photo documentation of serious injuries sustained during the grand home improvement effort:



Pobrecito Raulito, I know. It involved a 16' lap siding plank being dropped directly onto his great toe. Blood under the toenail is bad - it has no place to go, so it accumulates under the nail and causes extreme pain. For several days after the injury, Raul occupied a semi-permanent position on the couch with leg elevated. He would rise only to hop to the bathroom. I was in charge of all domestic endeavors during that time, and between the hobbled husband and a dog with sudden attacks of GI distress (I will spare you the details except to say that the most memorable event necessitated cleaning of the walls), I was quite happy when the time came for vacation to end and me to return to the hospital. Not to say that I would not happily wash every dish my husband uses while he is incapacitated, but both his recovery and a reprieve from the domestic duties were a welcome relief. Oh - and Raul ended up having to have two small holes cauterized in his toenail to let out the blood. All is well now. No worries.

And we went and did some campaigning with Physicians for a National Health Program at a local rally attended by leading candidates from the Democratic party. It was interesting to hear them speak, and I am hopeful for the next election. Here is a picture of Raul with some new friends he made at the rally:



I have knitting to show you. Maybe tomorrow.

Shannon's Slipper Shop is closed for the season

So, I was thinking back - this is my 10th pair of felted clogs. I was quite excited to make the first pair - a gift for my mother, and my first truly wearable finished object (scarves and hats excluded.) That excitement fueled the production of pairs #2 through #8. With the last two, the enthusiasm has waned a bit, and I need a bit of a break from the pattern. Though, I must say they make good gifts and are easy to make.

Anyways, you might remember that I made a red pair with fluffy trim for Hilary. They were well received, and she recently likened them to these:

Excellent!

So, when I heard HiK was going to be heading back to Afghanistan for another round of good works, I immediately thought the above footwear would make for the most appropriate gift. However, recent events have resulted in a condition that predisposes my friend to intolerance of cold climates. So, unfortunately, the above footwear with exposed toes and heels would not be practical. Enter felted clog version of high heeled feathered mule! So, HiK, you are getting possibly the very last pair of my felted clogs (unless one of my immediate family members call me out of retirement) to keep your tootsies warm during the cold months. Wear them in good health and happiness! And belated happy birthday!

Pictures of slippers:


Cute picture of dog wearing slippers: