October 2011 Archives - Barbara Delinsky

October 28, 2011

Writing in snow

We woke up this morning with a dusting of snow on the ground. It wasn’t a surprise. The weather guy has been forecasting it all week, and people have been talking, most with moans and groans.

Not me. I’m ready. The trees are already half-bare; pine needles cover the yard. A coating of snow pretties things up. The first snow of the season always does. Besides, it won’t snarl traffic. The roads are too warm for much to stick, and here in Boston’s MetroWest, we didn’t get more than an inch.

But it’s a harbinger.

October 26, 2011

When good knitters do bad things

I messed up big time. Talk about a knitter’s nightmare? I made one of those mistakes that you don’t see until the project is done, at which point, of course, it’s too late to fix it!

I’m talking about Evie’s socks – the pair I was knitting to and from Houston when I ran out of yarn at the very, very end. Remember the Houston blog? The good news was that the dye lot of the new yarn I ordered was close enough so that you couldn’t see any difference. I was so pleased about that, that I didn’t mind weaving in the ends and sewing the picot edge under, all afterwork that I usually hate. I mean, we’re talking itty bitty socks without a whole lot of give, so it was a little dicey repeatedly turning the socks in and out to make sure none of my stitching showed. But I did it. Success! Then came blocking.

October 24, 2011

Lake news

We were at the lake this weekend, and it was amazing. The foliage is past peak, but there were still a few brilliant shots. The lake water is colder now, so you don’t get the mist rising as it did in September when the water was warmer than the air. And the water is very still — I mean, it doesn’t move. I’m always struck by that in fall.

October 20, 2011

Big damage at a book signing

I kid you not. It happened yesterday in West Hartford, Connecticut, where I did an UPLIFT signing at Lyn Evans Potpourri Designs.

Don’t know the name? If you live in New England, you likely do. There are eight of these stores in Massachusetts and Connecticut; they are specialty boutiques that carry chic clothes for women of all ages. I‘ve bought many things over the years in my local Potpourri, but had never been to the West Hartford one. Nor did I know that Lyn Evans, the owner, is devoted to doing charity events – in the case of UPLIFT, in celebration of Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

October 15, 2011

Houston Keynote for Breast Cancer Awareness Month

Talk about airport projects, I had tons of knitting time getting to Houston and back. Since there were no direct flights where the times worked for me, I had to go through Charlotte. Throw in a little extra time there, both in the terminal and in the air, and I might have gone nuts if it hadn’t been for my knitting.

But Houston was great! I love doing breast cancer events, and the timing of this one was perfect, what with the 10^th Anniversary Edition of UPLIFT hot off the press.

October 11, 2011

Knitting through the pain

Dentist appointment today. Though I don’t loathe them like some people do, there’s still enough annoying … digging … that I need my pacifier – i.e., my knitting. I was working on socks once while waiting for the novacaine to take effect, and my dentist said, “You’re going at that pretty hard. Nervous, are you?”

Today, the assistants in the office asked right off where my knitting was. And oh yeah, I did bring it along – this time the old no-brainer scrap sock yarn blanket.

October 6, 2011

One of the perks of being a writer is …

… meeting other authors. Today was a perfect example. I was one of three authors at a book and author brunch at the Perkins School for the Blind in Watertown, Massachusetts. Perkins is world-renowned, and the event itself was amazing. The men and women who attended (many with guide dogs) were fascinating to me; I could have talked with them the whole time.

October 4, 2011

The junk man cometh

I’ve decided that the next best thing to steam-in-the-bag veggies is the junk man – you know, the guy with the 800 number and the truck, who comes on a day’s notice and picks up all the stuff you don’t even want to touch. Seriously. I have no idea what dead things lie in and around those boxes, carpet remnants, extension cords, and such.

We use our basement a lot. I work out there nearly every morning, and my books are all neatly arranged, chronologically, on shelves. Near the foot of the stairs are weekend things – highchairs, potty seats, the Pack ‘n Play.