The Endless Knitted Cardi Shawl was casually hanging on the back of the door at My Sister’s Knits on Walden Parkway where the second half of this plot took place. I liked the shape and color but couldn’t find a pattern tag on it. Oh well, I thought, I’ll just search on Ravelry to add it to my favorites. I don’t need another project and I don’t need to buy any more yarn. I have enough to work with.

As my friends and I walked through the store, we didn’t see much and were gathering near the door. At that point, A headed back into the depths of the store to look at something. For some reason, I followed and asked the store owner what the mysterious cardigan’s name was. Here’s where it all went down hill. The pattern is thrust in my hand where it has time to linger. M suggests I try it on so we can see how it works. Everyone else compliments how nice the sweater looks on me, and oh isn’t it convenient that I’m trying on the right size for me.

I continue to have my doubts, since the ingenious nature of the Endless Knitted Cardi Shawl is the multiple ways it can be worn: right side up, upside down, backwards, shawl, cardigan with a cowl, cardigan with a floppy collar and more. I’m thinking to myself, “There’s no way this thing is going to look good every which way.” Well, I was wrong. Dead wrong. And I couldn’t walk away.

It didn’t help that the colorway of the yarn the cardi was knit up in was also in stock at the store. The stage was set for a purchase.

These little incidents where I tempt fate with my stashing restraint have gone well up until now. This year I have only bought yarn four other times: some yarn for a group project, some yarn bought while in Indianapolis to remember the trip that I used right away to make Ishbel, another bulk purchase for a bunch of gift projects I have planned (plus some sock yarn for me to reach the $50 free shipping cart total) and some yarn for existing projects that needed a little more yardage. That’s not bad considering how many times I have tempted myself during Cupcakes & Yarn outings—where we’ve created the tradition of sampling delicious cupcakes and perusing a new yarn store.

Luckily I can’t feel too guilty about my purchase; I’ve already cast it on and knit up about three inches on it. That’s pretty impressive since each row has about 391 stitches and the piece is knit as a long rectangle that becomes 90 inches long. I’m also loving the baby alpaca, enjoying the knit and looking forward to finishing the project. Let’s hope this enthusiasm remains.

This week, I increase my longest run by another 15 minutes, to the total of 60 minutes. This will be the longest and most likely the farthest I’ve ever run. I’m looking forward to it but I’m a little nervous too. I also have a busy Saturday so I need to get that the run over with pretty early in the day.

Schedule for Week 4:
Monday – Run 30 minutes
Tuesday – Run 2 miles
Wednesday – Off
Thursday – Run 35 minutes
Friday – Off
Saturday – Run 60 minutes
Sunday – Off

This weekend I was inspired by a show on the Food Network that I ran across by accident. A quick trip the store yielded all the ingredients I needed. For starters, I whipped up this caesar salad that’s a big hit with everyone who’s tried it.

Homemade Caesar Salad (see the full recipe at Pioneer Woman)

• 3 romaine hearts, separated into whole leaves
• Cherry tomatoes, halved
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 2 1/2 tablespoons mayonnaise
• 1/4 teaspoon Worcestershire
• 5 tablespoon pure olive oil
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• Ground black pepper to taste
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Place lettuce leaves and cherry tomatoes in a large bowl. Whisk lemon juice, mayonnaise, half the reserved garlic, Worcestershire and olive oil together in a small bowl. Salt and pepper to taste, and toss lightly with the lettuce leaves and tomatoes. Sprinkle Parmesan over greens and toss again.

Fresh Pea Ravioli with Crispy Prosciutto (from 5 Ingredient Fix)

• 2 tablespoons lemon-infused olive oil, plus more for drizzling (I added a little lemon juice to the olive oil.)
• 4 slices prosciutto, cut into thin strips
• 12 ounces fresh whole milk ricotta
• 1 1/2 cups fresh shelled English peas, plus more for garnish (I used frozen peas.)
• Kosher salt and freshly black pepper
• 24 to 36 square wonton wrappers

Drain the ricotta of excess moisture in a fine mesh sieve for 10 to 15 minutes. Heat  oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the prosciutto and cook until crisp. Remove and drain on paper towels. Set aside. Lightly oil a serving plate with some of the prosciutto crisping oil and put it in a warm oven until ready to serve. (This is important because the wontons will stick otherwise. It would help to lightly oil between ravioli layers.) Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over medium heat. Add peas and blanch until just tender, about 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer the peas to an ice water bath, to shock and stop the cooking and preserve the color. Keep the pot of hot water on the stove to cook the ravioli. Transfer the peas to a food processor and puree with the drained ricotta and salt and pepper, to taste. Put a teaspoon (or more depending on wonton size) of the pea mixture in the center of each wonton wrapper; avoid overfilling. Dampen the inside outer edges of wonton with water and fold, pinching around the borders to ensure that the ravioli is well sealed. Repeat with the remaining wonton wrappers and filling. Bring the pot of hot water to a boil over medium heat. Drop the ravioli, in batches, into the boiling water and cook until tender and the wrapper becomes slightly translucent, about 3 minutes. With a slotted spoon or skimmer, transfer the cooked ravioli to the lightly oiled serving plate. Drizzle with lemon infused olive oil and top with crispy prosciutto and a few peas. Serve immediately.

Here’s both the salad and ravioli plated for consumption. Nom nom!

I really enjoyed rereading the seventh book. This time, I could leisurely read as I had time and with more patience since I knew the ending already. I got to savor the moments and the events throughout the story without the panic I felt the first time around.

I also hope that I’ll remember enough of the details going into watching the movies. The back story and untold details in movies made from books always makes the story that much more vivid for the educated viewer.

Ironically, in reading the seventh book, I wanted to return to the first and read the series through again. Unfortunately I have so many other books on my shelf that haven’t had their binding’s cracked, that it would count as literary neglect if I read a bunch of books I’ve already read and ignored the forlorn.

Books of 2010 total: 5

About a month ago, my mom gave me a Picnic Backpack that she’s had for a number of years. What was once a well-intended Christmas gift, this present became a long lost relic in her under-the-stairs storage. As an urban dweller, the picnic bag would have better luck at being useful to me. Last night was just the opportunity the bag and I were waiting for. I was attending a little backyard BBQ that required plates, cutlery and glasses. Enter the Picnic Backpack.

The front features a couple of zippered pockets for keys and other miscellaneous objects. A separate compartment on the left will keep a bottle of wine insulated, cold and cushioned. Two straps are available for a rolled up blanket on the right (although I’m not sure what’s happened to that blanket at this point).

The bag features two compartments: one for all of your supplies and an insulated portion to carry your perishable food items.

The supplies section is neatly organized; just how I like it! You get a set of four: plates, wine glasses, napkins and cutlery. In addition, there also are salt and pepper shakers, a cutting board, knife, corkscrew and table cloth.

See how everything has a nice, neat place.

Everything locks down and makes finding things really easy. I can’t wait to get a Table in a Bag Low Portable Table and watch some concerts in the park.

Well I’m happy to report that by Saturday, with the help of some shin splint strengthening exercises and stretches, I barely felt the shin splint the entire time. I felt pretty strong throughout the run and even picked up speed the last 15 minutes. I ran about 4.3 miles in that time, which I think is pretty good considering I was battling a small injury all week and trying not to over do it.

Schedule for Week 3:
Monday – Run 40 minutes,
Tuesday – Run 3 miles
Wednesday – Off
Thursday – Run 40 minutes
Friday – Off
Saturday – Run 4 miles
Sunday – Off

My Charybdis socks have finally been knit up. It took me four months, which is pretty long for me and socks. I guess my heart wasn’t in it with these.

The pattern is pretty nice. It’s a simple angled ridge that wraps around the leg. The socks are mirror images of each other as well, so when worn, they have slope away from each other.

I used Fleece Artist Somoko in Nyoni, which I got for a Christmas gift.

I can’t tell if I knit the foot a little too long; I have to wear them around, but as it’s summer, it’ll have to wait until it cools off a bit. If I knit them up a little too long, they’ll become lounge socks.

Here’s a closeup shot of the angled ridge. Overall I like how the socks turned out.

stash knit down 2010 total: 9 projects

My intern at work had her last day yesterday and brought me a little goodbye gift. Of course, it really wasn’t for me at all. Instead, it was a little collar for Ethan. But this isn’t just your ordinary collar. It has style.

Check out the fancy gold bell.

The collar features some rhinestone bling and an engraved tag!

Ethan is pretty pleased that even when he has nothing to do with it, he still gets a gift.

Don’t be fooled. This is his collar!

My mom has been hunting for a digital camera, as the really really old digital camera I gave to her more than six years ago no longer works. She obviously didn’t want to spend too much and wanted to get a free SD card with it too. I have had my Canon PowerShot SD400 for six years and it still works pretty well. I came across the Canon PowerShot SD1300 on sale on Amazon with a free 4GB SD card. When I told my mom about it, she offered to buy the new camera for me and take my existing digital camera as her own, reasoning that she doesn’t need as much of a powerful camera as I would.

So my brand new camera has arrived and I’m already excited about it. I took these pictures with my old camera. Not bad, right? Now I have to start taking shots with the new camera.

I received my Envirosax Botanica pouch today! It contains five environmentally conscious designs in a neat little pouch that’s about the size of a small novel. Each bag rolls up into a compact, palm-sized shape that can easily be thrown into your purse or even your pocket. I have always lusted after the Envirosax, but at $10 a piece, I could never justify the price.

How then did I get a five-piece pouch? I discovered Woot.com, that’s how! Woot.com is another deal site where they have a special deal a day in five categories. The normal Woot, Kids.Woot, Wine.Woot, Sellout.Woot and Shirt.Woot. They’re pretty great deals and discounts on a bunch of random stuff. The Woot community also can contribute various deals they discover throughout the interwebs. Definitely worth checking out if you like a good deal now and again.