Sesquicentennial.

I spent all day knitting. Took a break to grocery shop and cook dinner, but basically I spent my day with my yarn and needles (and NPR). I knit continental, and I think I feel the early onset of arthritis... or I suppose what WILL be arthritis in my left index finger if I keep knitting (a good bet). I can only blame myself- as my father told me repeatedly to not pop my knuckles as a child (and I still do... oh so satisfying). There's something deeply troubling in an acute ache- just one more indicator that my body will fail me (and has).

And so I knit through the pain and ended up with these wonderfully textural mitts- a gift... but I'll probably wear them to work tomorrow... for quality assurance purposes.

Nic gifted me Vogue Knitting's Stitchionary: Knit & Purl directly after which I spent attempting to knit lace. It's really incredible how different stitches and textures can open up a world of new knitting possibilities. I'm definitly hooked, if I wasn't before.

Yesterday was Valentine's Day. As I like to think that I'm not all that much of a sap when it comes to romantic holidays, I told Nic that we were celebrating Oregon's Sesquicentennial. Which was great. We appreciated Oregon's 150th birthday by going to the Chinese gardens and eating Washington farmed mussels cooked in butter and wine for dinner (new favorite food), and then lemon cupcakes for dessert. Yum!



On the Scrabble front- I think I'm getting better. Nic is all about strategy and points. While I'm fully aware that that is the point of Scrabble, I'm also concerned with aesthetics and symmetry- sometimes to my detriment. I like to open the board up, even if it opens up a triple word square for my opponent. Still, I beat Nic 252-222. I made a 60 point play by playing 'quiver' over a triple word score.