Promised pics and bonus pics..

The sweater I'm doing and seaming at the same time:
Back then front






Took outdoor pictures, sun "washes out" the cables a bit...Showing the seams:











Bonus pictures: Wednesday, almost two weeks ago, I had my GD over for a day to help around the house... One of the things we did was to take the dogs for a walk. I had to go and trip...Took some pics on the Friday morning two days after it happened...

Knee:
Face: (got glasses fixed - they had been mangled, comes from using your face to break your fall... all things considered, my face was the least damaged)And hands.... First, the right hand, for comparison to "normal", then how the left hand looked....









And that is why I took the pictures. Actually, it was more swollen on the Thursday. But by Friday, it was really hurting, so I figured I should get it looked at. Oh, and there was a nice bruise on the palm, and a tiny hole where I guess a stone got driven into the hand.
So, it was off to a clinic, where they gave me this:









I've had it for just over a week now... And I can hardly wait to have it GONE!!!!! I go again this coming Friday, for a follow-up X-ray. What I know from broken bones is a minimum of 6 weeks to heal, so, I'm not going to hold my breath that I won't be coming home without the cast for a while. Oh, right, when typing one handed, I tend to forget to type in complete thoughts, lol...

I broke two bones in my hand. Those long skinny ones that connect your fingers to your wrist - the ones from the baby and ring fingers, at the base or wrist end....

Never mind one handed typing - - one handed *anything* isn't fun. Oh, well... I am sure it could have been worse. And, at least it is PINK :)

Picture laziness...

I keep forgetting to take a picture of what I'm knitting right now. It isn't what I *should* be knitting, but anyway...

I'm working on a sweater, from Patons website - Pure Cable Cardi I think is the title. Of course, the yarn isn't available, so I'm subbing. It is coming along nicely, especially as I've discovered my knitting skills have improved to the point that I can knit this (well, OK, simple) aran type sweater without looking at the pattern directions constantly. I can simply look at what I've knit so far, and know what comes next!!

Ok, I'm going to have to go back to the pattern when I get to the arm hole shaping, etc. But still...

Makes me happy :)

Another thing I'm doing... I don't know what exactly inspired me to do it, other than convenience and experimentation. It was a bit of a slow start - I cast on a total of four times, and ripped three (was that last bit obvious?). But, once I kept straight in my head what I was doing, I had cast on to one long circular the right front, back, and left front in order. I began knitting on all three pieces at the same time. Then, mostly because the tails were annoying me, and after I was sure I'd gotten it right finally ;) and because I was tired of chasing each piece around the circ cord, I started sewing up the seams. So, I knit four or six rows, then I seam a few. I do not sew all the way to the "top", but leave a space still between parts. You'll see when I remember to take the picture.

I usually try to work on it in the late afternoon, while doing my quality time outside with the puppies. They like to play catch/fetch with a ball, but they also like to "fight" over who brings it back. So, rather than standing there or sitting there waiting for them, I knit between tosses. Then, I try to spend some more time in the evenings knitting, too. Depending on what is on TV.

So, I'll try to take a picture during today's outdoor session. I keep hoping to get a shot of the dogs when they are doing something extra cute, but I know if I have a camera handy, they won't do it... It involves Delko "hogging" the ball, and Lady using her paw...

Healthy Eating? Bandwagons?

I like to listen to bands. Though from the comfort of my own home, usually on the TV or a CD or something. Wagons are useful items - great for playing when you are a kid, or for hauling things when you are older. But "Bandwagons"? Usually more trouble than not. Everyone jumps on the latest bandwagon. Everyone wants to be a part of what everyone else is doing. No one thinks for themselves much anymore... In my opinion.

Sure, sometimes, I agree with whatever the cause-du-jour is. But, I don't just blindly jump on like everyone else. I sit back, do whatever research, then make an informed decision and choice.

Healthy eating, for example. There tend to be a lot of knee-jerk reactions to food. Eat this, it is good for you. Wait, no, don't eat it, turns out it's bad for you. Here, take this vitamin supplement instead, to replace what you miss by not eating it.... So many people when on the NO FAT bandwagon, that they stopped getting essential fatty acids. And the cholesterol thing - there is good and bad cholesterol - Yes, I did the research, no I can't quote the sources. Back in the day, I did everything with footnotes etc. etc. However, now I just look stuff up for myself. And I look at several sources, to ensure getting good info, rather than self-serving guided testing results. If you want to know details, just google. Anyway, I am amazed at the number of people who buy one brand of product over another because it says "no cholesterol" or "cholesterol free" - - french fries. Of course potatoes don't have cholesterol. It is in the cooking method....

Now the buzzword is omega3. I don't have a clue what it is. But I'm pretty sure that it was always there in food, so I really don't care. I'm just tired of hearing I should buy one brand over another because of the omega3 and psyllium (hope I spelled that one right).

Anyway - I have made a decision to avoid "healthy eating". I refer to salad as "rabbit food". I try to avoid buying anything that has "low fat" or "low salt" labelling at the store. I stopped eating cottage cheese several years ago, because I can no longer find the kind marked 4%. I am not just spiting myself here, I just don't like the taste of the 2%. Too watery, not creamy at all. I finally broke down a couple months ago, and ate some. Still watery....

I don't go around eating junk food. Well, not regularly, anyway ;). But, what I do, is eat everything in moderation. I've been known to indulge in rabbit food now and again. Even enjoy it. When I can find it in the store, I'll sometimes indulge in a bag of my favourite tortilla chips, and a jar of jalapeno cheese dip, and I'll put a few handfulls of chips in a bowl, melt the cheese, pour it over like milk on cereal, and eat that for lunch. I haven't done that for a few years now. Can't seem to find the right cheese stuff... (Kraft used to make a jalapeno cheese that was soogood! Part of their Cheez Whiz line)

I'm thinking about this kind of thing, today, because last night DH and I had one of our hot-weather treat suppers. We do sandwiches and salad. I buy the salad stuff, and buns for him/bread for me (normally), and a few different luncheon meats. Then, we build our own meal. Well, last night, we included some fresh lettuce from the garden, chives from the garden, and a few strawberries from the garden. And, I actually ate two sandwiches, and I used buns. Healthy buns, even!! While I was picking out the buns for him, I saw these "whole grain" buns. They had a dusting on top that included rolled oats, sunflower sees, some grains, and a few other seeds that I don't know all the names of (yeah, yeah, I'm sure that there is a lovely illustrated list somewhere on that bandwagon). They actually looked good. I bought two of them, in case DH wanted to try one, too. He didn't ;) so I got to eat them both. They were quite good!!

I also tried an experiment yesterday. See, I'm not on the "healthy eating" bandwagon, in terms of I don't go around reading labels on food, trying to pick the lowest fat highest protein or whatever the current good thing is. But, I am finding that I am preferring home made food rather than ready made in a lot of areas. I am eliminating certain foods from my diet because I just plain don't like them (I blogged about dropping coffee from my diet a while ago - though I'll still enjoy the odd cup (?) of espresso now and again) or because they actually make me physically ill. I didn't come up with anything more than a mild reaction to oranges and walnuts when I got some allergy testing done, but I've begun to notice a distinct difference in things like upset tummy when I consume certain ready made products. And I've never been able to eat (or even stand the smell of) parmesan cheese. You know, that powder that comes in a can, that you sprinkle on pizza and stuff? Well, I'm beginning to believe that it isn't the food itself. I mean, I tried an experiment recently. I bought a small "brick" of real parmesan cheese.

So, in that last sentence is a key word. Real.

Anyway, back to my experiment: I've always known about oil and vinegar dressings. But never bothered before. DH didn't care for the one I made... But I love it :) Olive oil, malt vinegar, regular vinegar, and some herbs and seasonings. Interestingly - I put the seasonings in first, then the malt vinegar, then some white vinegar, and let it stand for an hour so the flavours could "mingle". Then, when I poured on the oil (side note: I cannot eat anything made with or cooked in canola oil, or I become very nauseous), the herbs all migrated out of the vinegar and took up residence in the oil! Kinda cool....

So, I'm making more and more real food. No added preservatives, no added additives. Just what I put in from my own kitchen. I've been making my own sausages for a while now. They just taste better....

I'm still restricted in my quest to make everything from scratch. Have to buy some raw materials from the store... but I am careful what brands I buy -- not because they say anything special on the ingredient label, but because I know I can eat them without feeling ill aftewards.

Since I've reduced or eliminated many of these pre-prepared items from my diet, I've been feeling healthier in general...

So, no bandwagon for me. Just real food. And the odd indulgence now and again in prepackaged safe foods :)

(I can devote a few tiny corners of my city yard to garden, but if I could only figure out how to add a pig, a cow, a couple chickens.... and of course an alpaca and a sheep or two, lol)