Our 500th post!

Greetings, and Dear Cynthia,

WOW -- 500 posts? Since I feel like I post maybe once every two months, it doesn't seem possible. It is fun to look back over the past couple of years and recall different knitting projects from different times of our lives...

I'm on Spring Break! So far today, I sewed almost a whole bathrobe for myself (only hems and tie belt remain -- may finish this afternoon), pictures to follow tomorrow (yes -- brace yourself, but I'm going to try to post **two days in a row**), ran three miles, went to the hardware store, and started looking at the STATE OF THE HOUSE, which after months of neglect, is not good.

My, er, very exciting hardware store purchases:
Clear duct tape (which seems to be a contradiction all by itself): so that I may try to fix up the little plastic thing which our wheeled computer chair rolls on, which has multiple cracks. Not sure it's going to work, but I figured it's a cheap option to try first, before replacing the thing.

Super Glue: to fix one of the black bishops in my eight year old's chess set. I really don't know how these things get broken...

1/2" six-point socket having 1/4" mounting: My socket set, which I got free for opening a bank account 20 years ago, only went up to 3/8", but my son's bike seat thingy required something larger, and an adjustable wrench was clearly not going to work. So, I eye-balled the thingy, and then stood in front of all of the sockets at the hardware store for about five minutes. There are 6-point, 8-point, 12-point, metric, English, various mounting sizes, etc., so I grabbed one which looked like it might work, and I can't believe it myself, but IT FITS, not only the hardware thingy on the bike, but also the handle which I had. I wish knitting worked as well sometimes...

I also want to clean out the basement this week. Here's a "before" snap:Perhaps tomorrow? I'll have an "after" picture to share?

In the category of "How much of an idiot can I be?," here's the humidifier which leaked all over the basement floor, leading to a water depth on parts of the floor of about 1/4" to 1/2" before it was discovered, though since I'm a bit of a fanatic about not keeping things which I don't want to get wet on the floor, the damage wasn't too bad, except for some empty boxes, which I didn't mind putting out for recycling: When I changed the "pad" for the humidifier last fall, I noticed the drain tube (see clear tube exiting bottom of humidifier in photo) had a lot of lime deposits in it, so I disassembled the thing, cleaned it out really good, and put it all back together, feeling very proud of myself. What I *didn't* clean out was the hole just above where the tube attaches, at the very bottom of the humidifier unit, and that is what clogged up. AAUGH!

And, continued progress on my Basic Chic Hoodie:
I love the buttons! Here's a pocket:Just the rest of the left sleeve and the front bands (and the left pocket liner) left to go:
Well, lots more work around the house, so that's it for now. More tomorrow, I think...

Happy 500th!
Laura (YarnThrower)