"I'll push him around"

Ron and I were talking about a fun trip. We'd like to go to the petting zoo, at the zoo. We enjoy petting my fibers as they arrive in the mail and imagining what the animals themselves look and feel like. I think it would be a blast to actually pet a little lamb or an alpaca (even an angora goat - from whence mohair comes).

I told him we'd probably want to take the wheelchair. The last time we went to the zoo, about 9 years ago, we did a whole lotta walking! Even "before" (the accident) he hated all the walking. These days he can walk but it ain't pretty. He's good for up to about 1000 steps a day but anything more just wipes him out. He was thrilled to hear I'd push him around! So, we take the wheelchair.

"Just think, you won't be 'sardines' in the backseat with someone wearing too much cologne, either." Ron loves that. Wheelchair riders get to sit in about 8 square feet in the back cargo area of the Ford Windstar or Dodge Ram SR5. That's more room than anyone else! He likes it - a lot. I'll do some zoo research but I think we'd have a blast. He always loves my descriptions of the animals when we go to a zoo. He said I was the best narrator he'd ever had [Heather puffs with pride].

We may get the child molester treatment. People tend to get weird about older childless couples hanging around children. They'll live. We're there for the 4 leggeds, not 2.

Obviously I'm a lot sharper than in my last post. Oddly enough, it wasn't until I took Lithium #3 at dinnertime that I felt sharper. Go figure. I'm just happy I have a mood stabilizer.

Oh, when Dad comes out to visit next year he says he'd love to do out attic insulation. Ron doesn't believe me. It'll be fun seeing who can out stubborn who. I told Ron to think of other projects that he would like. Hey, the shelves in the garage. I like it.

I'm having lots of fun petting my fibers and organizing them. I plan to - well, I don't know what I'm planning.

I've got half a pound of hand-dyed superwash wool with some nylon in it. (Ron's surprise)
Another half pound of a glamorous gray alpaca-superwash wool blend.
And last but not least, some "Spinning fiber clouds" that are just that - 25% mohair and 75% soft white wool. Glamorous, dyeable, fluffy, and silky. Hmmmmm.

Where do I start? It's all so gorgeous and glamorous. I also got 3 knitting patterns that look VERY interesting. Vest patterns galore, I really can see myself in a trademark knitted vest. They're all different, yet unique and stylish. But who do I make first?

Let's not forget my 5 skeins of good old faithful Red Heart acrylic yarn in the white-gray-black colorway (I love that word). Tasty. I just want to mention that I've noticed the Red Heart is getting a lot softer. It's popular to bash the yarn, but it's very durable and affordable at it's worst. At it's best, it's a vital tool. My own experience? Even if the yarn feels like that jute twine, washing it in warm water with lots of fabric softener changes it into something you hate to give away.

Plenty of fun money from Mom and Dad, too. Sue sent me a perfect needlepoint pillow, some clothes, and a mug for my ever-growing collection!

Oh, I finally remembered what I've been forgetting this whole blog. The shower chair. I love our shower chair. After Ron's accident, I bought it from Memorial-Hermann Home Health service. It's a plastic bench, about 2 feet wide, with a back. It's got holes in it to drain off all the water and rubber feet. It cost me $40, delivered, fully assembled. For a while, it languished in the garage, but we both love it now. We both need it now. Ron's needed it since his accident but now he knows I use it too. I get AWFULLY dizzy in the shower, I end up turning the water down to "Arctic" and still feeling flushed and dizzy. I sit down in my trusty chair and boom - I feel a lot better. That thing has probably saved me from passing out at least a couple of times.

Now, my pills do warn "Don't get overheated" in bold print. I like hot showers, but they never used to affect me that way. So, I'm glad I have it, I love it, and you couldn't pay me to take it out of the shower. Ron always comments on how much he likes it when he takes a shower and I'm talking to him. I never leave the poor man alone, yak yak.

Which reminds me, I have yak fiber too. Mmmmm.