I am a A Copper Dragon!

Hey, I took the http://dragonhame.com online Inner Dragon quiz and found out I am a Copper Dragon on the inside.

In the war between good and evil, Copper Dragons take the side of the noble and good....
When it comes to the powers of Chaos vs. those of Law and Order, your inner dragon walks a fine line between Law and Chaos....
As far as magical tendancies, Magical spells come as natural to the Copper Dragon as breathe from it's body....
During combat situations, whether by spells or by claw, your inner dragon will do whatever it takes to get the job done....
Copper Dragons make their homes on wooded hillsides, preferably close to a spring or river. They are fond of the Irish and typically speak with a soft Irish accent.'
At birth, the Copper Dragon's body is covered in semi-reflective copper scales. As the dragon matures into it's young adult stages these scales become more polished and highly reflective.'
As the dragon grows older and moves to the elder stages of life, it's scales begin to tarnish and mature into a bright greenish brown color. Copper dragons spend little time among humans, but can be often found among the elves and other magical folk.
'
This Dragons favorite elements are: Copper, Emeralds, and Laughter

http://Dragonhame.Com

Olympic Gold!!

Whew!! I did it!! The magic shawl is done. I didn't think I would do it, but a couple of long nights of knitting finally pulled me through. Unfortunately, Tony has taken my camera with him to Texas, so no photos are avaliable just now.

Why is Tony in Texas? Well, Randa, our neice who was due to deliver on March 17th went into labor early on Friday. I guess her baby decided to come out and see the world early. Unfortunately, too early. Little miss Tynlee, born 4 weeks early, is having major breathing troubles. The lower lobes of her lungs are not inflating. So, she had to be med flighted to the med center at Lubbock, Tx. There was a delay in getting her to Lubbock because the night they wanted to fly her, a big thunderstorm moved in and the chopper couldn't fly and the incubator thing is too big to fit into most ambulances. So, they had to wait until either the storm blew over or they could locate a special ambulance that could handle such a big incubator PLUS the crew of nurses that had to go with her.

Anyway, the phone was ringing off the hook with seemingly hourly updates and Tony was literally walking the floor. All this is just horrible for Randa. 4 years ago she gave birth to a son, Jordy, and he lived 2 days but then he died. They found out after he was born that his umbilical cord was too short and the placenta tore and he was oxygen starved during the birth. If Randa loses this baby, I believe she would literally grieve herself to death. Tony couldn't stand NOT being there for Randa and I couldn't stand seeing him fret so badly just waiting for the phone to ring. When he said that he felt like he needed to go to Texas to be with the family I thought that he should go. After we lost the girls in '04, family is so precious and nothing is more important.

So anyway, he's got my camera. And, the greatest news of all is that he calls and reports that the doctor says that he thinks that Tynlee is turning the corner and getting some better. Tony said she is so tiny and so beautiful and has a headfull of hair. He said when the nurses mess with her she gets mad and just cries so she is a fighter! I told him that the crying is probably good for her and it strengthens her little lungs.

I already miss him and I'll be ready for him to be home. I'm praying for Randa and the baby so much that I know that when the phone rings up there in heaven that God already knows who it is on the line before he picks it up.

Olympic-ness

Well, I'm making great progress on my shawl. I'm at the halfway point. Halfway, that is if I stop at the medium size. If I choose to continue on to make the large size, I'm 1/3rd of the way done - minus the edging. I read ahead to the edging part of the pattern and it immediately freaked me out so I stopped reading. I hope Alissa stays close to home so I can get her on the speed dial when I get to that point in the pattern cuz it looks like total greek to me right now. It's probably clear as a bell, but right now it's clear as mud. But, as Ms. Twig says....trust the pattern, trust the pattern, trust the pattern. Yes ma'am, I know!
For the last two days I have been glued to the TV watching curling. At first I was like what the heck are they doing? What is the point here?? It looks like a combination of bowling, pool, darts and marbles. So I had to look it up on the web. Now that I understand the game, I am totally into it and think that it is a very cool game. I just wonder where in the world do these people practice?
So far, the US Olympic skaters haven't impressed me very much. I just don't think that they are skating with very much heart like they have in past years. But boy I tell you what, that poor Chinese girl who fell SO hard last night, and went on to finish her program.....now THAT is heart. Bless her, I know she was just in agony, but like a true champion, she sucked it up and finished her routine. Today, I bet her knee is swelled up the size of a basketball and black and blue, but I bet she feels pretty darn good about herself. She can be awful proud. She made me think of little Keri Scruggs a few years ago, when she hurt her ankle so bad on the vault but went on ahead and vaulted anyway and won herself that gold medal. The epitomy of the Olympic spirit, the heart of a champion.
In other news around chez Englant, Tony's got the flu and is grumpy as an old bear. He STILL hasn't been released to return to work by the doctors, which isn't helping his mood in the least. He goes in for another epidural steroid shot on Thursday, so he'll be feeling like hammered crap after that even worse than he does now. Oh joy! I need to cook all his favorite foods I guess, to try to appease the savage beast. He is getting depressed with all of this and I can't say that I blame him one bit, since I'm not liking it either. He craves sweets when he gets down and depressed so I need to go on a baking marathon. I definately see the need to fix him a batch of chocolate gravy and biscuits and a cherry cream pie and some no bake cookies. If that won't cheer him up, nothing will.

Hearts Abound!!

My SP7 struck yet again!!  Look at all the Valentine's Day loveliness she sent me!  Just fabulous!  Hearts, hearts, everywhere I look.  Heart dishcloth patterns, heart sock pattern, heart chocolates, and even a heart greeting card.  That pal 'o mine, she is one creative gal.  I've got LOTS of great cotton thread now for my dishcloths, which is great.  And I'm loving that Cascade yarn she sent for the socks.  That colorway is fantastic!  I have never seen that kind of yarn before so I'm anxious to try it.  I'm wondering how she knew my weakness for Dove's?  My husband got me hooked on Dove's a couple of years ago, on Valentine's Day, as a matter of fact.  They have been my special stash chocolate ever since.  You did GREAT again my sweetest pal!!  Thank you ever so much!!

Tick-Tock Tick-Tock

That is the sound of the Olympic Knitters clock running down on the 3900 or so knitters who have signed up to do a project to completion by end of this years Winter Olympics. Who would have ever thought that there would be so many??!?? Amazing......truly amazing! I am among the brave souls who stepped up to the challenge.
At first I said I was going to do a Kiri Shawl, but have since changed my mind. I have found a different shawl pattern that I like better. It isn't as intricate as the Kiri and since I'm not an experienced lace knitter, I think it's a more appropriate project. It is called the Magic Shawl and it is designed by the Knitting Fairy. The pattern is very versatile, you can knit it is three different sizes. I'm going for the medium 60" size to start with. The large is 80" just to give you an idea. I picked out a medium weight worsted merino wool in a light denim blue. I think it will be nice. I'm thinking that if I like this pattern as much as I think I might that I might make one for Patricia too. She would love it for work.
We had more snow yesterday, and they are calling for more possibly tomorrow or the next day. I'd like to see a decent snow. If it isn't going to get cold and stay cold this winter, we are going to have a horrible summer for bugs.