Wednesday, August 30, 2006

Sleeping Ducklings

Here's something cute to get that last image out of your head.
Sleeping Ducklings
I felt restless last night, so J and I went for a walk before bed. There was a pond in a park, and ducks were sleeping along the edge. All of the ducklings, however, were in one adorable heap. :)

Click for biggy view... that last post was an ewwwy-doozy!

Stating The Obvious

Um, you know, getting drunk and then peeing by my basement bedroom window is totally *not* cool. Next time I'm grabbing my camera and posting a *very* embarrassing photo to the entire internet.

Well, assuming I'm willing to open the window again. It's not supposed to be too warm today and tomorrow... and the smell of urine never appealed to me that much. :P

I feel sorry for the nice-looking Chinese girl who'll be moving in here in a few days.

Tuesday, August 29, 2006

Sock Yarn Blanket

Sock Yarn Blanket
Another five squares done. :) Yep, I'm definitely back to working on this. It's *so* nice and relaxing... meditative almost. I can work on it while thinking big dissertation thoughts.

Unlike this other work in progress:
Lace
Hmmm... looks like boiled ass, so I guess I'm doing it right. This, however, takes too much thought... especially for a cold-addled brain trying to think dissertation thoughts.

Speaking of my cold... I'm feeling quite a bit better, but the draining continues.

Monday, August 28, 2006

Orange

Hello there... I was wondering if any of you can help me out? I'm looking for scraps of orange yarn. Any weight, fiber, or texture is fine, and a few meters (or less?) is fine.

See, I have a friend who likes orange. I want to knit her something for Christmas, but I was having trouble thinking of what. Then I got this really neat idea... I could knit a little stuffed orange cat, and if I changed yarn every few rows, it would look like a crazy orange stripped tabby. (I'd hold really skinny yarns together with a thicker one to prevent holes from appearing.) Do you think that would work? Would it look neat, or gawd-awful?

Problem is, I don't have a gazillion bits of leftover orange yarn in my stash. I'm not sure I want to buy balls, since I'll only be using short lengths of each.

Now, this is the second request I put on my blog recently. (I previously asked for sock yarn leftovers.) It's not nice of me to keep asking without offering something in return. I don't like being mean and selfish. So, if you have scraps you can send me, please let me know if I can send you something in return?

Hmmm... if I end up with enough scraps, maybe I can make two cats, and have a contest for the second where anyone who sends me yarn (either orange scraps or sock yarn leftovers) will be entered to win?

Sara

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How Cool Is That?

I got an e-mail from someone in a city manager's office asking for more information on the robotic watering truck. :)

Saturday, August 26, 2006

Coronet

Coronet
Coronet

Done.

Yeah, this is the same photo as before... but since you can't see the unwoven ends here, and it was getting dark when I finished weaving in the ends... well. I'm lazy. It could do with a washing and blocking, but I don't have the facilities to block here. I'm planning on washing Weasley when I'm in New York, so I'll wash and block this then too. I'll take a final final photo after the blocking. ;)

Not tagged, but who cares?

I just saw this over at Sara's blog. (The actual post has been removed... WordPress is annoying her again... stupid WordPress!) I've been tagged for this one previously, way back when, but it's so rare that I'm close to a single book. Since that's the case right now, I thought I'd participate again. :)

Pipe up and speak your mind. There is nothing you can't discuss in Canada when it comes to sex. You can call up strangers and say, "Hi! We're taking a survey and we want to talk to you about sex! Do you like sex? How much do you like sex? How often do you have sex?" --How To Be A Canadian by Will Ferguson and Ian Ferguson


(Heh, heh, heh... page 123 just happened to be in the "sealed for your protection" sex chapter. Funny book... I haven't gotten to the sex chapter yet.)

Book tag goes like this:
1. Grab the nearest book. Don’t think, just the nearest book…
2. Open the book to page 123.
3. Find the fifth sentence.
4. Post the text of the next 3 sentences on your blog (Please include the book and author) along with these instructions.
5. Don’t you dare dig for that “cool” or “intellectual” book in your closet! I know you were thinking about it! Just pick up whatever is closest.
6. Tag three people.

I tag Stacy, Susana, and Kari. I don't think they read my blog, but those are who Sara tagged in her missing post. So, I'm just making sure their tags don't disappear. ;)

Friday, August 25, 2006

Scrap Sock Yarn Blanket

(Look! A crafty post! Finally! More to come soon...)

My blanket from leftover sock yarn is progressing:
Blanket Progress
I'm really going through my sock yarn leftovers. Here's what's left:
Remaining Sock Yarn Scraps
Well, this is all of the superwash wool type. I have some more of non-superwash wool, or cotton blends, but not much of either of those. (Looking at this picture it looks like a lot, but it really isn't. All that stuff on the left? They'll maybe do a few rows of a square each. The ball with the band is partially used. Medium sized balls will do one square, larger ones will do two.)

Do you think I should include my cotton blends in the blanket? Or would those squares "feel" too different? Or wear too different? Hmmm... It's not like adding the cotton blends will actually give me that much more to work with, but I do have some pretty scraps.

I'll be getting some more sock yarn scraps from others too... The Heathen Housewife has offered to share some of her Harlot windfall, and Jess mentioned she might have some more leftovers kicking around. Hey, Jess... do you recognize the square made from a previous "left-over" gift you sent me? ;)

Speaking of gift yarn, there's also yarn there from Heather, Bethany, Josie, Kim, H, and my mom! Hmmm... have I missed anyone in that list? (Everyone has been *so* generous! Thanks again!!!)

I'm also wanting to finish up my current pair of red socks... I can't wait to add that to the mix! :)

However, if anyone else has leftover bits of superwash wool sock yarn burning holes in your stash, I'm happy to provide it a good home. :) (With or without nylon is fine... I'm already using both.)

Hmmm... what squares to add next...?
Blanket planning

Activity

Final Warning
Final Warning

I've been wondering... what do you suppose the dire consequences are?

In a wild burst of activity, not only did I shower, but I also put the laundry on (three very full loads), and took out the garbage and recycling.

I'm Bored

Is this a sign that I'm recovering, and will soon be able to do something besides nap? I think I'll take a shower, and see how I'm feeling then. (Woo, the excitement!)

Uh Oh...

J woke up with a sore throat this morning. :(

He's gone off to lunch with the group. I, however, continue to be camped out in bed. (Four days and counting...)

Since I can't actually see out the window from the bed, here's a more accurate idea of what I see when I choose to open my eyes:
View From Bed

Okie... back to bed for me. I'll get the energy to post some of my crafting endeavours eventually. (Not that they're progressing much at the moment, but I have some unblogged progress.)

Thursday, August 24, 2006

In Sickness

My cold/flu/whatever seems to be gradually getting better, although I'm pretty sure the lung bit has developed into a case of bronchitis. (One of the annoying things about my asthma... I have a tendency to get bronchitis.) My allergist prescribed me something to take to help with that, but it keeps expiring before I use much of it. My current puffer is expired, so I didn't bring it with me. My family doctor asked if I wanted a refill when I was in a month or so ago, but I figured I'd just wait until my allergist appointment in September, since it wasn't likely I'd need it before then. Heh. Murphy, you are a pain. If the bronchitis doesn't clear up in a few days, I'll go to a walk-in doc to get a prescription. Since I didn't bring the puffer, I also didn't bring the aerochamber, so I guess I'll have to shell out for a new one of those too. :P

Besides the drainage of sinuses and lungs, I was feeling pretty decent this morning. I got J to leave me the keys (only one set, and he's off to meet with his student) so I could do laundry and buy a few groceries (Cheerios, kleenex, orange juice, and plastic cups). However it seems that washing the few dishes so I could eat breakfast and then eating breakfast has tired me out. I guess I'll go have a nap, and consider laundry and groceries later.

I haven't left the apartment since Monday for lunch. This has been my view of the outside world:
Window

Okay... back to napping.

French

I basically do not speak French. Yes, I am a bilingual Canadian, but my second language is German. (I'll admit to atrocious grammar in German, but I do reasonably well with it.) I had 45 minutes a day of French in grades four, five, and six, but that was a *really* long time ago. Not that much has stuck with me.

However, just now I got to use some of the little French I *do* know. :)

Phone rings.
Me: Hello?
Lady: (no idea, but it sounded French)
Me: Um, je ne parle pas Francais. ("I do not speak French.")
Lady: Oh, sorry, is X there?
Me: I'm sorry, you have the wrong number.

Not bad, huh? (Just kidding.) Yeah, I'd like to learn French one day, I just haven't gotten around to it. Besides some miscellaneous words, here's most of the other phrases I know:

Est-que tu parle Anglais? ("Do you speak English?")
Est-que tu parle Allemande? ("Do you speak German?")
Ferme la bouche. ("Shut your mouth." The favourite phrase of our grade six French teacher.)
Quel age a tu? ("How old are you?" That one's been *real* useful, as you can guess.)

As you may be able to tell, just because I remember how to say them doesn't mean I also remember how to write them. ;)

Wednesday, August 23, 2006

Progressing

My clod/flu/whatever is progressing. Emptying of the sinus and lung cavities continues. Greenish-grayish yellow is not my favourite colour, but better out than in.

However, today I've been getting chills and near-sweats, and my skin is tender... all indicative of a low grade fever. I thought that when I started coughing stuff up, that meant I was near the end? What's up with these new symptoms that normally show up at the beginning?

In better news, I think I'll be able to sleep much better tonight... unless, of course, having slept nearly all day will mess that up.

I hope to get back to posting fun, non-disgusting stuff soon. I'd post something now, but I don't really have the energy.

Brrrrr!

I'm *cold* now too! :( Now that I'm done breakfast, I'm going to snuggle back into bed.

Still Sick

Ugh. Last night was one of those choices where you could lie down and have difficulty breathing, or sit up and have difficulty sleeping. Not that either position really made the other activity any easier. :P Now the eviction process begins... how do I convince my lungs that my throat can't handle it coming up in one solid chunk? *sigh*

Ow.

Whine.

Tuesday, August 22, 2006

Ugh.

Yes, it's me again. (Who else would it be?!?)

I now have muscle aches to go with my congestion.

Whine.

Ugh.

Yes, I'm whining again. So sue me. It's my blog. :P

My neck is stiff, and everything tastes like snot.

Okay. I'm done now. For now, at least. (You may wish to avoid my blog for the next little while just to be sure.)

Ugh.

Yep, still sick, and still complaining about it. My throat feels quite a bit better, but this head and chest congestion sucks. But not air. Sucking air is not the easiest at the moment. (It's not the worst it's been, but I'm not exactly enjoying myself.) I'm evicting green nose gremlins as well... hence this is an actual illness rather than allergies. (Allergies run clear.) Okay... TMI. I'll shut up now. I'm not sure the hot shower I had just now helped at all, but it was nice anyway.

Still Sick

Ugh... throat is feeling better, but I've got some major head & chest congestion going on. :P

Still Sick

Ugh. Yup, I'm sick or something. My throat still hurts (although not quite as much as last night... maybe something I'm doing is working, or maybe it's getting better), I'm congested in a funky back-of-the-nose way, my left ear feels funny, and my neck is a bit sore.

However, I have the bestest, most wonderfullest boyfriend possible!

Right now we're staying in his Montreal "apartment," where the "kitchen" consists of a dorm fridge, a sink, and two burners. Since it isn't exactly a cooking dream kitchen, previously the implements on hand consisted of a bottle opener and plastic cups. I added a 25 cent knife (to cut cheese), and then a dollar store mug yesterday for hot lemon and honey. I have my bowl and spoon with me, of course. (I travel with what I need for breakfast.) But basically, this is a place we eat out. Last night I didn't feel up to eating out.

S was calling to find out if J wanted to do something. I told J that he and S could go out, but I wanted to stay home... and that I didn't feel like trying to eat either. (I used skype, so I didn't have to talk, just type. S thought we were geeks. Heck, it works.) We discussed the take-out options that consisted of slippery food, and J, thinking of me, figured out why I would be allergic to each of them. Instead, he walked to the grocery store to buy some pasta (small, so easier to swallow), butter, salt and pepper, then biked to a friend's house to borrow a pot. He then cooked me some great slippery pasta that I could eat! He's *so* sweet and wonderful. I love him. :)

He's now off rescuing his car. Since he didn't go out last night, we forgot that the car needed to be moved for street cleaning. We heard the cleaner go by, and he rushed out. I hope he made it!

Monday, August 21, 2006

Ow.

I woke up with a sore throat today. Since then it's progressively gotten worse.

Grump.

Sunday, August 20, 2006

Table Dancing

Table Dancing
Table Dancing

However, once things got rolling, many didn't want it to end. (That's a professor up on that thar picnic table.)

Tango lessons anyone?

I may have been involved in a "chicken dance" and a "macarena" with two other people on that table, but we won't go there. (The chicken dance is much easier to "sing" than the macarena, though.)

Icebreaker

Icebreaker
Icebreaker

At the conference banquet, the dancing was a bit slow to get started. (J suspected it had something to do with the cash bar.) J and JOR did their best to coax people out, though.

(That's one of the conference organizers playing the guitar back there.)

Silly Humour

Sign
Sign

One of the things I have fun doing in Quebec is "mis-translating" the signs. Like this one, "L'Ancienne Poste." Could it mean "outdated snail-mail," or "our post service is so slow the mail is considered antique when it arrives?"

Well, according to the sign on the other side of the door, it's merely the "Old Post Office."

Back

I'm back. In Montreal, that is. The wedding was fantastic! Although, somehow, it feels like we've been gone for much longer than a day and a half. I have a few photos to blog about from last week, and then I'll upload and blog some more about the wedding with photos. :)

Friday, August 18, 2006

Toenail Clippers

Toenail Clippers
Toenail Clippers

When packing for this extended second date, I was trying to not over-pack. (After all, we needed to fit cabin, camping, conference, research, and wedding gear for two all in J's mini.) I clipped my toenails before I left. "I don't need to pack my toenail clippers," I thought, "my toenails don't grow that fast!"

Wrong.

Dollar store: no clippers.

Drug store: three options... a packaged pair for $4.79, a packaged pair with ugly red plastic thingy for $4.99, and the "jar o' clippers" for 2.99. (Blimey! These things aren't cheap around here! I could get the jar o' clippers type for 99 cents in Chapel Hill.)

I couldn't see any noticable difference between the packaged and jarred varieties (beyond the lack of excess packaging), so I went for the jarred clippers. They looked to meet nicely (granted, the Chapel Hill ones mostly didn't), and didn't have any nicks. Cheaper version wins.

I go to clip my nails.

Holey batman! These things are curved the other way! What's up with that?!? Will they work?

Answer: yes. Even for the big toes, which I normally have to use scissors for.

Cool.

Thursday, August 17, 2006

Planning

Hmmm... I just saw this on the Yarn Harlot's blog:
Saturday, September 16th I'll be at the Park Slope Barnes and Noble in Brooklyn at 7:30.

Sunday, September 17th I'm going to the Knit Out in Union Square (New York, New York ) from 11am to 5pm
Looking at my calendar, I have an appointment (in Winnipeg) with my allergist for September 20. Looks like the 18th or 19th may be a good time to head home for a week or two. (I need to finish unpacking and repacking so everything is safe for the winter, exchange tank tops and shorts for sweaters and pants, and I'd also like to visit with friends & family.) I'll have to check what J's calendar looks like.

Movie

Last night we went out to see a movie, "Bon Cop, Bad Cop." It was really funny (cultural humour, rather than slapstick-style), although some of the gruesome bits were a bit much for me. (I'm a wimp when it comes to movies.) The movie didn't start until 10:00, however, so it was quite late by the time we got home. (Hence all the sleeping.)

In Other News...

I may get to go to Begium for a year! If I can get all my dissertation stuff together so that I'm basically done by Christmas (actual graduation still in the spring), a friend can probably get me a post-doc position over there for the following academic year. :)

Mmmm... Belgian chocolate, plus fun research people to work with. J will likely have a sabbatical then too...

Knock, Knock!

Who's there?
Ivan.
Ivan who?
Ivan clean sheets.

We did laundry last week before CCCG, but there wasn't room for the sheets & towels. Today I decided I wanted clean sheets. (I don't think they had been slept in a huge amount, but crud blows in the window... it has no screen, and is at street level. Literally. J's Montreal basement studio sublet isn't nearly as nice as his New York apartment.) The grime around here also exceeded my tolerance for dirt, so I took a stab at remedying that too. I gathered all the "lights", and the clothes we had dirtied over CCCG were enough to combine with the sheets for a load. I didn't wash the towels... they're bright orange, and I don't feel like adding to my formerly-white-but-now-not selection of underwear, etc. (Not enough yet for a dark load.) My mason-dixon dishcloth/washrag was light enough, so I added that to the pile... after wiping the kitchenette and bathroom sinks and counters and the bathroom mirror. Laundry is now merrily becoming clean and sterile. :)

Then I exercised J's swiffer, and cleaned up some of the accumulated hair on the floor. Well, on the easily accessible floor, at least. (Tiny studio, with furnature and two people's stuff, doesn't leave much floor space accessible.)

Much better!

It'll be time to flip the load in about five minutes. I'll take the trash out then too.

What's J doing? Well, he fixed D's bike this morning (while I slept... and slept... and slept), and now he's off at the border applying for one of those passes that let you through easier. I hope he likes what I've "done with the place." ;) Or, perhaps the grime I didn't touch will be enough that he won't notice until he reads my blog. ;) (J: I'll understand if this is the case!) There's a lot of grime I didn't deal with... partially for lack of cleaning implements, and partially for lack of motivation. No matter what I do, this place will never be perfect... not without some minor rennovations, at least.

Okay... time to flip the laundry.

Wednesday, August 16, 2006

Back in Montreal

The conference was great! Not only did I get to see lots of old friends, but I also got a bunch of thinking and scribbling done on my dissertation! :)

Coronet

Coronet
Coronet

Unblocked and ends not woven in.

Knitting at Tam Tams

Knitting at Tam Tams
Knitting at Tam Tams

Hochelaga Inn

Hochelaga Inn
Hochelaga Inn

Crochet Socks

Crochet Socks
Crochet Socks

I'm loving this red yarn! (It's Regia.) This is Summer of Socks pair #5 in progress.

Monday, August 14, 2006

Kingston

Hello there... just a brief post before bed. I'm now in Kingston, ON, attending CCCG. J and I are staying in a cute B&B. The conference is fun so far.

On Sunday, before we left Montreal, we went to see the Tam Tams. I have photos... I may upload some eventually, but not tonight. The Tam Tams may claim to be the "drums of peace," but two people threw things at me, apparently merely because I was wearing my Canada hat. :P

On the way here Mini lied to us, and ran out of gas one block from the reception. Mini claimed to have another 28 miles of gas. (It has a display that says how much is left, and John has had it under 5 miles before.) We were somewhat peeved with Mini... especially since it ended up being hard to get a gas can late on a Sunday night. (We went after the reception... we were able to push Mini to a legal parking spot.) It took us three gas stations to find a container, and even then it was only a windshield washer fluid container from the back of the attendant's car. (And that gas station was even closing when we pulled up! J tipped the guy.) Getting the gas from the container into Mini was a bit messy, but got easier after I held the backflow valve open with the supplied conference pen.

I finished the coronet... just a few ends to weave in. I've started my red socks.

Time for bed... good night! I'll post photos another time. :)

Sunday, August 13, 2006

Ow.

Yesterday J and I joined a group that went over to a nearby island park for some fun. It involved at least two hours of walking, and three hours canoeing. We had lots of fun, but I'm now in pain. Ow. Especially my right shoulder. :(

Saturday, August 12, 2006

Finally

I finally got around to finishing the latest pair of man socks for J:
Man Socks
I meant to have a blue band at the top that matched the toe, but ran out of the pale blue. On the first sock I wasn't able to get the black line around the heel to meet, but I fixed that for the second foot. (I was too lazy to frog the whole heel on the first.)

And yup, he wears them!
Man Socks

Friday, August 11, 2006

Tagged!

Sara tagged me a few days ago, so I figured I should eventually get around to responding. ;)

6 weird things/habits meme.

(I guess that means I'm supposed to stop at six...)

1. I hate hair in my face.
2. I wear socks with sandals pretty much year-round. (For snow I'll wear boots or shoes, and I'll wear shoes or no socks for rain.)
3. I use a soy infant formula on my breakfast cereal. (See #4.)
4. I've got a gazillion allergies. I think the one people find the weirdest is my allergy to celery. (No, it's not just water.)
5. I'm pretty good at fixing toilets and other unusual things.
6. I knit/crochet in academic talks (and virtually everywhere else too).

I never know who to tag... except Kelly, who once upon a time complained that no one ever tagged her. ;) Anyone else who wants to be, consider yourself tagged.

The Story of Flin Flon's Name

Flin Flon is a mining town. Back before Flin Flon existed, a prospector was wandering around in the bush, looking for gold. Bizarrely, in the woods he found a copy of "The Sunless City" by J.E. Preston Muddock, a novel in which a character named Josiah Flintabbatey Flonatin travels by submarine down a deep lake into the center of the earth, finding a sunless city filled with gold and jewels. They named the town after the character in the book. For more fun information about Flin Flon, check out the Wikipedia page.

Sunset

Sunset
Sunset

J and I went for a lovely walk this afternoon/evening. :)

Given that we also climbed Mont Royal in the morning, we may actually have burned off most of the calories consumed as ice cream this evening. Or not... a Phish Food sundae with hot fudge and whipped cream...

(J and I had ice cream at the same Ben & Jerry's we ate at two years ago in Old Montreal.)

Coronet

If I ever happen to mention that I'm thinking of doing a project that involves kitchenering cables in black yarn... please fwap me.
Before Kitchenering

However, all's well that ends well.
After Kitchenering
Now on to picking up stitches...

(PS: Bron, this is some of the yarn you sent me. :) )

Neat Apartments

Neat Apartments
Neat Apartments

These look like some neat apartments to live in.

Robotic Watering Truck

Robotic Watering Truck
Robotic Watering Truck

Seen on the way back from lunch.

Goodies In Use

Goodies In Use
Goodies In Use

I thought maybe I should point out that I'm getting to use my new toys...

Tuesday, August 08, 2006

Catching Up

Okay... I think this is my last catch-up post. Here's J making pasta in New York:

J Making Pasta
Pasta Drying

I'm in Montreal until the end of the week, and then off to Ontario for a conference. This week should be quiet, so hopefully I'll make dissertation progress. ;) (I did some work on Sunday, but on a different problem.)

Flin Flon to New York

Just a lame photo-blog post.

Sock View
J With Sharptail Grouse
Alaska Plate
Sunset
socks on the road
Chicago Skyline
socks on the road
socks on the road

Flin Flon: Hike

In the middle of the peninsula that my family's cabin is on, there's a little lake. I had never been, and J was curious, so we paddled over to a closer access point and bush-whacked in. Here's some loons we saw on the way there:
Loons
And here's J with the lake:
J With View
After we found the lake, for the fun of it, we walked back to the cabin instead of paddling. (It's hard to get lost on a peninsula... possible, but hard.) Then, of course, we had to take a boat back to rescue the canoe. ;) It was a fun way to spend our last day at the lake.

Flin Flon: Town

Hmmm... I think I'm getting pretty close to being done with these Flin Flon posts. :) Here's some pictures I took when I showed J around Flin Flon.

Mini In Flin Flon

We walked all the way around Ross Lake, along the boardwalk and road.
Trail
Here's a view from the overlook above Ross Lake:
Flin Flon Overlook

J had never been to Saskatchewan, so we officially crossed the border:
J in Saskatchewan
(Flin Flon is right on the Manitoba-Saskatchewan border. The Saskatchewan side doesn't really look any different, though.)

I also showed J Bob's yield sign:
Bob's Yield Sign
The reason it's Bob's yield sign is that there didn't used to be one there before, and the intersection is a bit confusing to non-locals... so Bob wrote the town, and they put it there. It's looking rather overgrown... not too much longer, and you won't be able to see it anymore.

So yeah, our trip to town wasn't all that exciting. The main reason we went in was to help move the propane tank that needed refilling. Mom and Bob also did laundry and grocery shopping.

Ditto

Uphill Walk
Uphill Walk

Monday, August 07, 2006

Ballband Dishcloth

Ballband Dishcloth
Ballband Dishcloth

Problem: two small bachelor pads, neither with facecloths or dishcloths.

Solution: Mason-Dixon Knitting book, and cotton stash yarn. I'm glad I happened to pack both. :)

I had been wondering what the back looked like, and now I know:
Ballband Dishcloth (Back)

Yeah, the ends aren't woven in in these photos, but they are now. I actually finished the knitting in New York, but just used it (to wipe myself with cool water in this hot little apartment) now.

Flin Flon

Sunset
Sunset

A sunset as seen on the way to the drive-in.

Flin Flon: Fishing

Mom and Bob took me, J, JM, and V fishing one day at the lake. There were two boats, the boys' and the girls'. (I would have preferred to be with J, but Bob's a bit competitive when it comes to fishing.)

I hooked one only moments after I put my line in the water, but it spat the hook out after giving me a baleful glare. (We have to use barbless hooks now... better for catch and release, worse for catch and eat. Also, there's only one net, and it was in teh boys boat. We have to be quick and lucky to land them without a net and barbs.) After trolling for a bit, I caught another fish in the same spot. Here's mom with my fish on a stringer:
Mom With My Fish
Oh... we were fishing for jack fish... that's northern pike for non-locals. V caught something the same time as I did, but it was, um, not the same species:
Not A Fish
V did catch a jack a short while later, though.

After we had two fish in our boat (it didn't take long at all... maybe 10 minutes), we went to see how the boys were doing. (Mom hadn't caught anything yet, but we didn't want to catch more than we could eat.) The boys had one fish on the stringer, and J had nearly caught a monster-sized jack... but then the leader broke. Bummer!

We ladies went off to explore that corner of the lake for a bit so that J would have a chance to land a fish. (I'm not sure if J cared, but mom thought it would be nice if he got one.) Finally the boys had two more fish (JM caught two, J one), so we went back to the cabin... where the taking of serious photos commenced. (There were at least four cameras out.)
Photo Op
Here's J with the fish from the boys' boat:
J With Fish
Here's me with the girls' fish, plus my sock-in-progress:
Me, Fish, Sock

Those fish were good eating! They fed six that night, and four the next. (JM and V had to head home.) Yum!!! Fresh caught fish cooked on a wood stove. :)