Well, bummer.

Mental note to self: Don't forget to prepare for your scheduled colonoscopy next week.

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See the first photo? You're looking down into the toe of a just-knitted-and-felted slipper.

And the aqua hook? That would be the knitting stitch marker which I left in the slipper by mistake. Didn't discover it, in fact, until the slipper was fully felted (and the stitch marker totally imbedded).

I've tugged, twisted, pulled, yanked, said a naughty word or two or ten, but I can't get the darned thing out of there. And I suspect the slipper recipient won't want to wear a slipper with a plastic hook sticking up from the sole.

The truth is, I accidentally left a stitch marker in EACH of the slippers of this pair. (See second photo for a good view of what the marker looks like when not imbedded in a slipper.) The knitting directions didn't call for placing a marker just about mid-point of the front sole, and now I understand why.

But I thought it would be a good idea, for some reason. So I put the safety-pin shaped markers in each slipper, then forgot they were there.

I was able to coax the marker out of one of the slippers. This gave me false hope that the other could be removed.

Not yet. Hasn't happened. Still yanking and pulling but having no luck.

I'll tell you one thing for certain: I'm NOT knitting a third slipper to replace the "hooked" one. Making felted slippers isn't hard work but oh, my word, is it ever tedious work. Typical instructions for a row read: K1, M1, K1, M1, K1, M1, K29, M1, K4, M1, K4, M1, K29, M1....and on, and on, with once in a while a "W&T" thrown in to put me over the edge. "W&T"? What the heck is "W&T"? Wrap and turn, as it so happens. Coulda fooled me.

I had to transfer the instructions, row by row, to my little knitting notebook, then carefully place a check mark after each completed row. Sometimes I had to place check marks within a row if the row directions were really, really detailed, because I'd lose track of whether I was at the first, second or third "K29" of that one row.

And I had to count out loud. Often. "13, 14, 15, 16, 17...," which is when Ken would suddenly launch into a story about a friend he once knew who owned a Model T carburetor that had once belonged to....

That would cause me to have to remove the row of stitches and start again. This time I would count out loud more loudly, so Ken would get the hint.

So these slippers didn't materialize easily. And now one has a stitch marker imbedded in its sole. And I've run out of ideas for removing it.

Maybe I should take it to the gastroenterologist next week. I bet he's got just the tool.

Addiction

Help. I'm addicted to knitting the February Lady Sweater.

I finished my 10th one a few minutes ago.

This one is a gift for a friend. I know she likes this color, because I've seen her wear it often. I hope this will be a gift she really enjoys.

I learn something new each time I make this sweater. For instance, I read on Ravelry a couple of weeks ago that one knitter adds a row of single crochet to the neck edge, to give it more stability.

I'm now doing that to the FLSes I knit, and I do like the effect.

Also, this time, rather than using embroidery floss of a matching color for sewing on the buttons, I simply cut a long strand of the actual yarn, peeled off two of the four twined threads, and used it to secure the buttons.

I used Lion Brand Cotton-Ease yarn, which is 50% cotton and 50% acrylic. I love this yarn. It's machine washable and dryable, and it's a soft yarn. I've tried knitting with 100% cotton yarn but have found it to be very heavy and "droopy" to work with. I've also knit this sweater in 100% wool, worsted weight, and that works well, too.

I checked Ravelry a little while ago and discovered there are now 8,856 February Lady Sweaters posted there by knitters across the country and across the world.

That's reassuring. I guess I'm not the only February Lady Sweater addict.

But I guess I need to set this pattern aside for awhile and knit some other things. My knitting for afghans for Afghans has been rather sparse lately, for starters.

Back by popular demand (i.e., I've had one request)

Recently I mentioned this taco soup to my niece Cheryl, and she commented that it would make a good recipe to share on my blog. I did a little research into the "archives" and discovered I did include this recipe the week I did my (as it turned out) "pre-memorial service" to my 35-year-old crock pot. In case you missed the recipe then, here it is again. It's what we're having for supper tonight, and I can hardly wait.

As I was throwing the ingredients into the crock pot this morning, I discovered I have no black beans, so I used chick peas instead. Hope they'll make a good substitute, although I'd have preferred the black beans. (That's my brand-spanking-new crock pot in the photo. I love it. I can't be without a crock pot for long.)

Taco Soup

1 lg. can crushed tomatoes

1 15 oz. can kidney beans, undrained

1 15 oz. can black beans, undrained

1 can corn, undrained

1 lb. hamburg, browned

1 onion, diced and sautéed

1 envelope Hidden Valley Ranch dressing mix

1 envelope taco seasoning

Put all ingredients into crock pot on high for about six hours.

Serve with Mexican cheese, sour cream, and tortilla chips.

(I have to admit that when my friend gave me this soup recipe last year, it didn't sound appealing. I love tacos, but taco soup? I decided to give it a try, and Ken and I both love it.)

Out with the cast iron, in with the soapstone

Big doin's here yesterday: it was the day the cast iron Vermont Castings wood stove moved out of our house and the Hearthstone soapstone wood stove moved in.

We've had the Defiant since we moved here in January 1999, and it's been a pretty good stove. We bought it for the catalytic converter, whatever that is, and that feature proved to be a disappointment.

A few years ago, while visiting our neighbors across the road, they mentioned how much they liked their soapstone wood stove. I particulary remember their saying how a soapstone stove can hold the heat for hours. That sounded really good to me.

Ken stopped at a wood stove sales shop in Portland one day last week and came home raving about the soapstone stove he'd checked out. I was in favor of it immediately. We went back to Portland the next morning so I could see the stove; we decided then and there to purchase it.

That was the easy part. Getting the new stove into the house, and the old stove out, took most of yesterday morning plus some clever figuring and some brute strength.

The soapstone stove weighs over 600 lbs., and the Defiant isn't exactly a lightweight, either.

Our good friend Jim, the guy who always shows up to help when there's serious work to be done, was here at 8:00 a.m., and the work began.

Soapstone is heavy but can be fragile. Every precaution to handle with care had to be taken.

By late morning the old stove was out and the new stove was in.

The new stove had to be "seasoned" correctly before a serious fire could be started. The seasoning involved building one small fire, letting the stove heat slightly, then returning the stove to room temperature before starting a second, identical fire.

This morning Ken built the first official fire, and the stove is working like magic. The soapstones heat up and can radiate heat for up to 12 hours after the fire goes out. That feature alone is music to my ears.

The new stove will create more heat with less wood; it burns the wood more completely. Additionally, the wood will burn more cleanly with less smoke, so the environment benefits from it, too.

Quite frankly, we think the soapstone is a beautiful stone. It resembles marble and, according to the brochure, it takes on more beauty as it ages.

We're looking forward to keeping comfy during our Maine winters with the new stove. It's not our only source of heat, since we also have an oil-burning furnace, but it's certainly our primary source of heat.

Some tips

I have nothing of importance to write about, but since that hasn't stopped me in the past, I won't let it stop me today, either.

I try to watch the Dr. Oz show as often as possible. It gives me an excuse to sit and knit for an hour while I learn all kinds of helpful tips about one's health.

Here are some of the tips I've learned:

For an ear infection: put a few drops of hydrogen peroxide into the ear OR put a garlic clove in the ear. I kid you not. The hydrogen peroxide doesn't surprise me, but the garlic clove does. Apparently garlic has the ability to kill bacteria. After inserting the clove, put a band-aid over the ear opening to keep the clove in place.

For a sore throat: Ditto with the garlic clove, except microwave a few cloves, mash them onto a cracker, and eat the cracker. Voila!

To remove a wart: Cut a small square of duct tape and place it on the wart. Leave it there several days. Since a wart is a virus and needs oxygen to survive, the duct tape with cut off the oxygen and kill the darned thing.

To get rid of hiccups: Stand on one foot and pinch your nose closed. Or, take a deep breath and hold it. I've been using method #2 for years. Sometimes it takes more than one deep breath to finally end the hiccups, but the key is to relax the diaphragm, which is having spasms and causing the hiccups.

To give your face a boost (giving you a glow and erasing some wrinkles) : Mix together 1/4 mashed banana, 1 t. honey and 1/4 c. yogurt. Spread on the face and leave for 15 minutes. Wash off with cold water and pat dry.

To remove a splinter: Smear some white glue (Elmer's, for instance) over the area where the splinter is lodged. Allow glue to dry thoroughly, then peel it off. Just like magic, the splinter will be removed with the dried glue.