July was quite the month! A lot of it was hot, really hot. I felt great for a part of the month due to a drug-induced power surge that carried me through lots of landscaping in the back yard. I read two books that were just exhausting. I went crazy for color and bought more yarn. I cooked, sewed, knitted and planted lots and lots of new plants in my gardens. A great month, July!
Today I drank my morning latte out on the deck and thought about everything that got done last month. There were new birds in the yard (blue jays!) and a small flight of honking geese flew over me as did my watering. Most of the baby bunnies have moved on, and the butterflies of July are gone. The flowering plants are recovering after a short break in the heat last week and I look forward to the late summer blooms. It is now August, but I can sense the looming presence of autumn just over the horizon.
In the yard this morning: a just bathed robin fluffed out and drying on the fence, the very first hydrangea bloom on my shrub, and a woodpecker (!) stabbing for insects in my freshly watered lawn.
So this was the month:
I read two books that were a handful. Black Leopard, Red Wolf is confusing, exhausting, and maybe the best book I have read this year. Think about the Lord of the Rings trilogy set in African antiquity, awash with magic and violence, and you would have this book. Hummingbird Salamander is a cliffhanging ecothriller that also chronicles the trainwreck of the main character along with the impending crash of the planet. Another good book, but one that I feel went too far down the climate change rabbit hole. Neither one of these books is uplifting. Nope, not at all. Worthy reads, but not good entertainment on a blistering hot day.
That’s it. In July I used up 4.75 skeins of yarn. I knitted one chemo hat and 5 PICC line covers. I finished a sweater and a pair of socks. You already know about the books.
I have cast on several new projects, and I’m still feeling pretty ambitious and getting things done, but the prednisone party is definitely over. In my new, dialed down state, I’m slowly knitting on a new cat, crocheting squares for a still undefined purpose, and sending my loom some regular side-eye. The spinning wheel has been put back into a corner but I’m hoping to return to it when the weather cools. I’ve pulled out a quilt project and I need to head on over to YouTube again to learn how to paper piece…
Bring it on, August. I’m ready for you!
Yarn, Books & Roses 
Your project bags are wonderful!!
Thanks! I found some patterns online, watched some videos and started sewing. I learned something new with each one and I’m really happy with the last zipper pouch one, but with such wonderful fabric is was hard to make one that I didn’t love. 🙂
Many congratters, old bean, for so positive a month !! – it’s all good. 🙂
Well, except that you can’t keep on with the prednisone. Sighhh ..
Them bags of various shapes all look wonderful; yes, the fabric helps, but you could’ve turned out boring things.
You’re lucky that the socks fit so PERFECTLY !
Autumn is my personal favourite, soI hope it turns out terrifically for you, Marilyn.
Autumn is my favorite time of the year, too. I get to wear my sweaters, the geese are flying in formations again, the COLORS are just wonderful, and the temperatures are kind to me. That sock fit is the result of knitting socks for my feet for more than 20 years! I have the pattern nailed to make them hug my feet really nicely at this point, and as soon as autumn arrives, I will be wearing them constantly. I’d have to be a really slow learner if they didn’t fit at this point, come to think of it….
That’s the spirit
Wow, such a productive month. I love all your projects, but especially your Salty Air tee. I’m going to look for that pattern!
That pattern was really well written and I breezed right through the knit.
Here’s to a great August! I love the socks and the sweater. I-cord bind offs really do look great. I need to remember to sub them in more often if I don’t like the BO as written.
I think that it works pretty well on the bottom of fingering weight ribbing to give it a little weight and a clean line.
Love your Salty Air tee and your project bags! Thanks for sharing the pics of your local flora and fauna 🙂 The books sound interesting and challenging. Hope it cools off there soon and August is as good for you as June was!