Bells and Whistles

  We're all different from each other. We have different tastes, likes, turn offs. That's why we are INDIVIDUALS. I can see this nowhere as clear as on Goodreads where I often go for book recommendations. Of course the synopsis is the first I turn to. Then I go down and read the reviews. And that's where my troubles begin. Oftentimes I grab the title that most people gush about, sending my precious money to Amazon for the Kindle version. A third or halfway through the book I just want to send evil dart stares at these people whose faceless voices egged me over the cliff.   The Death of Mrs. Westaway is one such novel. I was a bit nervous starting it because I just came from skipping and skimming a James Patterson book (total trash, I should've listened to my own voice and not be fooled by Patterson's 'writing' again. But 'they' said it was good. Bah!), as a few reviewers gave the Ruth Ware novel thumbs down. Well, well. I enjoyed The Death of Mrs. We...

  That 70s Tee ( https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/that-70s-tee ) is one of my most well-loved finishes ever.    To this day I don't know what made me do it the first time and if I will ever do it again. I watched the designer Janine McCarty's podcast before and I guess I was convinced that having it in my wardrobe was good for my well-being. Well, knitting the different parts and piecing them like a puzzle was challenging, to say the least, and there were stretches of time where I thought I would lose my mind. 3 years after I bound off, I decided I wanted it shorter so I frogged and knit it to a cropped length. The variegated yellow yarn pooled in some places but I don't really care because the experience was a true testament to how patient I can get when I put my mind to the task at hand. And I really love the fit!    

More than a year into the pandemic that upended everything and brought the world to its knees, I'm still here. We're still here. Of course, the same can't be said of those who fell and succumbed to the virus. To them we say a silent prayer. But for the rest of us who are fortunate to have been spared, we marvel at how different life has become. That we are a long ways from defeating coronavirus is an understatement but as long as we breathe, we hope to see this trial to its end.  (Originally written in January 2021) ...