space and time

This is what my laptop screen has looked like lately:

Like hundreds of thousands of people, I've been following International Space Station Commander Chris Hadfield for months, as he has posted image after unbelievable image on Twitter: @Cmdr_Hadfield

On Saturday, I watched NASA's realtime video stream of Flight Engineers Tom Marshburn and Chris Cassidy making repairs outside the International Space Station.  The spacewalk lasted over five hours, through multiple day/night sequences.

I found it absolutely riveting.

And speaking of rivets, I may never again use my power drill to drive screws without picturing - if just for a moment - those giant white astronaut gloves using a similar tool for a similar task.

I have reason to believe this will make my tasks seem much simpler.

~~~

The livefeed from the NASA website is the center window on my screenshot above.  When it is not showing the interior of the spacecraft (or the sudden solid bluescreen which makes me go "Oh nooooo!" every time it appears) it is the view from the space station.  I have been following that view in tandem with the live map of the ISS location (upper left window on the screenshot).  

It has been breathtakingly wonderful to watch (amazing!) Here from (magical!) There from (comfortable!) Here.  Last night I was watching, mesmerized, as the blue and white of sea and clouds moved smoothly past beneath the ISS.  Suddenly I recognized the Red Sea! and central Saudi Arabia! and the edge of the Persian Gulf!  Then the NASA screen went solid blue again...oh nooooo! 

~~~

Yesterday there was a Change of Command ceremony, in which Commander Hadfield handed over the keys (I'm paraphrasing) to Commander Pavel Vinogradov.  As Commander Hadfield repeatedly gestured with both hands, each time leaving his wireless microphone floating in place, I had to wonder:

how many things will he drop on his first days back on Earth?*

Because today, Chris Hadfield is one of three ISS astronauts preparing for their return to Earth.  After 146 days in orbit, Hadfield, Marshburn, and Flight Engineer Roman Romanenko will be boarding the Soyuz module and waving farewell to the crew on the ISS.  The return trip in the Soyuz, from departing the ISS to landing in Kazakhstan, is expected to take less than three and a half hours.

Can you imagine?

When was the last time ANY air travel took you only 3.5 hours?

~~~

I expect to be staying close to my laptop til late tonight.  I don't know how much NASA will stream live, but my fingers are crossed.  There is nothing quite like this real-time visual stuff.  I won't say "riveting" again, but, well.
(It is.)

Anyone else following the International Space Station?

~~~

*If he keeps tweeting from Earth, maybe I'll find out.

~~~~~

May Giveaway!

In just a few days it will be 4 months since my first blog post, and I'm having a lot of fun so far!  I enjoy reading every comment, in fact I'm tickled to bits when you find my posts and pictures interesting enough (or silly enough) to comment about!  Thank you so very much. 

Since January, readers have visited from places that stir my imagination: from Brazil and Romania, from Australia and Pakistan, from Portugal, South Africa, Ireland, Russia, from all over the UK...the list goes on and on.

Places I have visited in years past, and places I would love to visit.

Places I've learned at least a little bit more about, thanks to readers' comments, and their blogs.  It makes the world seem smaller.  And friendlier.

This morning I noticed that there have been 6,897 separate "pageviews" here, which simply staggers me.  Thank you for sharing my tiny bit of this smaller, friendlier world!
~~~

So, what do you think? Time for a celebratory giveaway???

I'm thinking yarn...

First idea: a skein of the yarn so many people commented on back in January.  The yarn that turned into these socks, which you've probably forgotten:

I know, anything so bland and dull is easy to forget, right?

Off I go!  To market, to market...

Oh dear.  This jolly yarn, it turns out, is no longer available!  This particular Opal is discontinued.  Out of print, so to speak.

Sorry!

I'll have to think of something else for the giveaway.
~~~

How about we give away those 'adorable' baby goats?   I am SO sick of everyone making a fuss over those little paddock-rats.

Oh, erm...did I say that out loud?  No, wait - I'm a dog!
Whew. That was close!

~~~
Oh, no, Piper, I can hear your thoughts on the baby goats loud and clear, every day.  And those adorable little goats are staying right where they are.  Here, have another chewy beef treat.
And maybe one more.
Good dog.
~~~

But in other news, whilst going through one of my big plastic storage boxes of yarn...look what I discovered!

Gosh, it actually DOES look bland and dull in that picture, doesn't it?  Let's take it outside in the natural light.

THAT'S more like it!

Now, as you can see, the ballband has been removed and a few yards of the yarn were unwound and then rewound loosely around the skein before being stored in this ziplock bag.  The unwound yarn suggested that some of the yarn had been used, and my initial excitement at finding the Actual Yarn of my Giveaway Dreams turned to disappointment.

But...

I couldn't remember ever knitting with any yarn from this skein.  I think after making the first pair of socks, I may have unravelled a bit of this second skein to try to figure out if it would be possible to duplicate this kind of self-patterning yarn as one of my dyeing projects.  (The answer, as you may have guessed from a closer look at this yarn, is NOT VERY LIKELY!)

So, could it be a complete skein, suitable for giveawaying?  Could it?  Just to be on the safe side, I weighed the yarn.  It came it at just a whisper over 100 grams, so it seems safe to call this a complete skein.

YAY!

One skein.

Enough for a pair of these:

These adult woman-sized socks are knitted quite high - easily midcalf.  And even with the few yards sacrificed in order to start the second sock at the same point in the yarn pattern as the first (to make them so matchy-matchy), there was plenty of yarn in one skein: 465 yards per 100-gram skein.  That's what I call a generous skein of sock yarn!  Thank you, Zwerger Garn!!

Opal Zirkus/Circus

by Zwerger Garn

Fingering / 4 ply

75% Superwash Wool, 25% Nylon

465 yards / 100 grams

Colorway #2005

~~~

If you would like to win this skein and knit a nifty pair of socks that will enchant your friends - oh, go on, you know you want to! - just leave a comment on this post.

Easiest socks ever. The yarn is doing all the work!

Or...you could make multiple pairs of darling little child-sized socks!  Or some other project entirely - a hat?  a cowl?  the pockets and trim on a grey sweater?  Oh, I can't wait to see what the winner will decide to do with this yarn!

Nuts and bolts: 

• Leave a comment, right here, do!
• Make sure I will know how to reach you if you win.
• Enter by midnight (EST), Tuesday 21 May.
• Drawing will be done after morning chores (aw, those adorable goats!) on Wednesday the 22nd.
• I will post the winner's name here, so please check back, just in case an email or Ravelry PM or whatever is delayed through the mysterious workings of the internet!
• If for some reason I don't hear back within 48 hours of posting the winner's name here, I will draw another name.

Three bits of good news:

1. This giveaway is open to everyone, everywhere!  
2. You are very welcome to share the giveaway or link to this post or whatever you like, but you don't have to follow this blog or tweet the giveaway or pin it on Pinterest or like it on FB or anything.  (I like simple, don't you?)
3. I will happily mail the yarn to the winner at any address on the planet.

Good luck!

~~~~~

fresh greens

Fresh greens, and lots of them!

I've been going out in the early morning, after chores, to photograph the greens.

Don't you love watching the new growth on trees?
The buds and flowers and foliage?

The initial fragility of the leaves and needles that will be relied upon to support the tree never fails to amaze me.

Every year, it amazes me.

Here in New England, there are shapes, colors and textures that appear for only a very short time each year - weeks, or even days.

Would you like to see some?

I winnowed down from about 80 images, because you may have other things to do besides looking at pictures of leaves.
And needles.

But do you have time for just seven?

White Birch (Betula papyrifera)

Balsam Fir (Abies balsamea)

North American Beech (Fagus grandifolia)

White Ash (Fraxinus americana)

 Sugar Maple (Acer saccharum)

Black birch (Betula nigra)

 Eastern Hemlock (Tsuga canadensis)

~~~

Ahhhhhh.  Isn't that a breath of cool morning air, after chores?
~~~

Coming soon: 
goat updates (and names to be chosen!)
a handy (yet unlikely) kitchen tip
and a special yarny giveaway!

~~~~~

not-so-wildflowers

It wasn't exactly a "New Year's Resolution," but this year I have been making an effort to have a few fresh flowers in the house at all times.

An occasional trip to the local florist shop has provided colorful carnations and aromatic hyacinths:

But now the flowers are homegrown.

And glorious!

For many years I did not like to cut flowers, especially as the survival rate for my plantings is very low.  (It's a combination of poor soils, low light, and my not-green-at-all thumb.)

Then I realized something.  The hardy survivors, these scattered clumps of healthy, flowering plants are usually seen - at most - once daily.

In fact, there have been years when the short-lived blooms had already come and gone before I thought to look for them!

Argh.

But this Spring, when I cut flowers and bring them into the house, they are seen and truly appreciated.

Dozens of times.

Every day.

Seems like a good idea!

~~~

I wonder how many of my other routines could do with a re-think.

Hmmm.

How about you?  Are there any routine things you have begun to do in a different way, and found it to be a wonderful improvement?  I'd love to hear about it!

~~~~~

wordless wednesday