Saturday, February 28, 2009

Hmmm....I can see that I'm NOT very good at the picture lay-out thing, in fact, I have no clue how to place them where I want them. BUT they are there. I hope you enjoy them. We saw soooo many things in our two weeks in France. We didn't have a guide in Paris and I think we enjoyed that. I know we missed a lot of things, but how could you not in only 1 week?? We DID see a lot of things however that we wouldn't have IF we had been on a tour. We got pretty good at finding our way on the Metro--after the first try where we sorta did a Laurel and Hardy routine of getting on the Metro and then discovering we were going the wrong way and then getting off and TRYING to figure out which way we really wanted to go--this included running up and down the platform and UP and DOWN steep stairs SEVERAL times and trying to figure out the schedule. FINALLY we realized that we needed to go towards the END result--which is what people had TOLD us but we didn't quite get at first. When we did get really good at it--it was time to go home. OH, well. BUT first we went to the south of France and met up with a group of knitters--well, mostly knitters. This was a great group to join. Generally very flexible. We knitted 3 mornings with a pretty well-known designer from England, Louisa Harding, who was designing for her latest book. That was really interesting to watch. Then in the afternoons we toured the south of France--we sorta had a schedule but if we wanted to do something else, we did. We heard about a woollen mill up in the hills one day so we took off for there, it was quite interesting, we bought yarn by the pound from a little man who really did speak no English, but was quite helpful anyway. Then after that, we went to the Mediterranean Sea--close to where we were staying. Oh, my first glimpse of the MED!! LOVED IT!! It was Sept so it was a little chilly but I still got in up to my knees or so. We had Flat Stanley with us--that will be another post but I will just say, water and wind is a dangerous thing for Flat Stanley!! But he did ok. Our guides and hosts for the south of France were Phil and Kristeen and their son Deva--Kristeen is also a knitting designer and has a new book out--French Girl Knits--and the name of this part of our trip was the French Girl Knits Tour. There is a picture SOMEWHERE on my blog of Phil and Deva. I have to say also, that Deva and Phil coped quite well with all of us 40ish-50ish women and toted us wherever we wanted to go. THANKS SO MUCH!! This was really where being with a group was great, we saw things here that we wouldn't have if we had been by ourselves. I STILL have great dreams of France. I hope that I can someday go on another French Girl Knits Tour. Well, enough for now of France, VIVA LA FRANCE!!! Oh, I do have to say, the French people were very nice to us--even in Paris where the pace is faster. Roz

Friday, February 27, 2009

Ahh, the pictures are at the BOTTOM of the page, at least a couple of them are. So scroll on down, WAY down. Roz
Well, I've been thinking of France and my trip there last Sept. I just found out that Frenchgirlknits is not going to do the south of France knitting retreat this year--because of the economy--ICK!! I hate that--both that they are not going to be able to do it this year and "because of the economy". I wasn't planning on going this year, but it was fun to THINK about going. And "because of the economy", well, I just don't like that phrase, I guess maybe I just want to stick my head in the sand (preferably the MEDITERRANEAN sand in the south of France) and I KNOW deep down in my heart that ignoring the economy won't make it go away, but I'm going to try. I THINK I've posted some pictures I took in France, I don't think they are WHERE I wanted them, but they're there somewhere.

Sunday, February 22, 2009

This and That

Sometimes I just have some quick random things that I want to rant about. One of them is plastic parts in plumbing etc. Why can't plumbing parts be made like they "used" to be long long ago so they don't wear out?? Why do the moving parts have to be plastic so that every few years you have to have someone come replace the plastic valve that no longer works and really is no longer made so you have to buy the "new and improved" as well as the "adaptor kit" so it will work new and improved???!!! My parents lived in an old house built in the 30's in midtown Tulsa, they NEVER had to have some plastic part replaced on their tub--sure they did have "other issues" with plumbing but I have those issues too. Well, that's one rant.

Here's the other. Estate Sales. I know the goal is to make as much money as possible BUT when people are leaving an estate sale with nothing in their hands by droves, something is amiss. Many people wait till the 3rd or 4th day of an estate sale to even go. Many estate sales I've been to lately could be mostly completed in ONE day if the prices were reasonable to begin with and if offers would be considered close to the end of the day. To me, it's a waste of time AND money to have an estate sale last 3-5 days UNLESS it's a HUGE sale. I know there is a HUGE amount of work getting an estate sale ready so why not get the actual sale over and done and stuff out the door on the FIRST day??

These are just a couple of my peeves that have popped up lately.

Tuesday, February 17, 2009

library things

Well, I figured it was time to get to the "library things" of my blog. Oh, how stoopid we are when we are young and don't listen to our elders!! I'm experiencing that with my 18 year old daughter now. I got a degree in English Education--which was quite all right. Then I went back for my Master degree. Hmmm... I LOVE reading and Reading Specialist was supposed to be quite the coming thing back in 1977--so that's what I went for. I was also getting certified in Elementary Education sorta to cover all bases so I had to take Children's Literature in the Library Sciences section. My professor, Polly Clark, tried so hard to convince me to change my Master major to Library Science, but NNNOOOOOOOOO, I wouldn't listen. And I have somewhat regretted it ever since. Although I LOVE reading I didn't like teaching Remedial Reading. I LOVED teaching Literature and LOVED taking my students to the library. I LOVED reading children's books, juvenile books and young adult books. I LOVED matching my students up to a book that I was sure that they would love. Well, I did a pretty good job at teaching I think, I hope, I mainly taught Literature and then Social Studies which I also loved and we used the school library a good deal. So I retired a couple of years ago after 29 years of teaching. I subbed in a small school system last year and really liked that. I had planned to do that again this year but in checking the TCCL job openings I noticed a JOB in the little town where I live and applied for it. AND GOT IT!! WOOHOO!!! I'm now the "Teen Library Associate" at my branch--about a mile from my house!! Another WOOHOO!! I love still working with kids and I LOVE LOVE LOVE my job!! Everytime my husband and I drive by the library I have a phrase that I say--"There's my library, I LOVE my job!!). Now he just points at it and waits.

As for my daughter listening to her elders, well, I know that is a rite of passage, we'll still keep flinging advice at her in the hopes that some of it sticks. I also know that she is probably going to major in what she wants to right now, and in a few years, she may do a career change too. That way she can have the best of both worlds, which is what I think I had/have!!! WOOHOO!!! Plus, I have to say, the library system has EXCELLENT books on KNITTING!!! Roz

Wednesday, February 11, 2009

Next Topic--Knitting and how it took me to France!!


Well, this picture is rather shameful, I think!! It's a partial view of my knitting "stash". You can't see all the drawers under this stuff of yarn and needles and totes full of yarn etc. Not to mention the closet behind it!! ICK! Anyway, my fascination with knitting started out with a book--what else??!! It was called the Mary Frances Knitting Book and was a reprint of a book from the early 1900's of patterns teaching girls to knit for their dolls. Then I moved on to REAL knitting stuff. I got 3 of my friends hooked on knitting also and we started having knitting weekends--which were more exciting than they sound. One friend has her grandparents' old farmhouse (it actually belongs to her sister but we borrow it). It was built from a Sear's kit in 1904 and we often go there for an overnight or sometimes even a weekend. It's a really neat place semi-out in the country. We have a campfire and hear the coyotes howl (and we even howl back!) and we knit. Among other things. We also sample some really good wine and food. We've gone on knitting retreats that one of the yarn shops puts on, those are a lot of fun too. Then one time I was looking on the web for a "knitting retreat" a little further afield. I found one in Canada which sounded really great and one in Wisconsin and then the one in FRANCE!! OOLALA!!! So...I put it out there for my friends, just really joking at first, I didn't think they would really take it seriously, but one did! She mulled it over, and we got the details and checked on airline tickets, and another of us told us about a really great hotel she'd stayed at in Paris, one that Rick Steves likes and we thought "PARIS!!!". We could do PARIS too!!! So we leaped and did it. We had all kinds of adventures, Charles de Gaulle airport was on lockdown, and the train into Paris was emptied by the garda (yes, the one we were on!!!) and then the Pope was in Paris so we went to his Mass and SAW him--he passed RIGHT in front of us!!. We almost got scammed but my friend had read about this scam in Rick Steves' book so that saved us. We bought French perfume and saw all kinds of wonderful things!! Then we went to the south of France for a week on the knitting retreat--just knitted in the morning with Louisa Harding who is a designer from England--and then toured all around in the afternoons and saw all kinds of wonderful things. Ate tons of good food ( and some that was quite different!!), swam in the Mediterranean Sea and met lots of wonderful people. The French people were very kind to us and very helpful whenever we needed directions or any kind of help, and we often needed directions! It also turned out that I said Je T'aime to a man who was helping me in a street market when what I REALLY wanted to say was that I appreciated him for helping me, not that I loved him!!! Well, I think he got the general idea eventually but he did turn all kinds of red before that!!! I had no idea that a simple little passion for knitting would lead me several thousand miles away--most likely I would never have gone to France without this "excuse". And I think I forgot to mention the best thing of all about France--the incredible chocolate!!! OOLALA!!! Roz

Saturday, February 7, 2009

Saturday and NOT in the park!!


Since my blog is called corgis, knitting and library things, I'm going to start with the corgi. This is a picture of Amos, the tri-color Welsh Pembroke Corgi that I got after my trip to Wales and to France. My friend Susie has a corgi that I just loved, and my husband and I went to Wales--and the rest of the British Isles--and we actually went to Pembroke, so I was pretty sure I wanted a corgi. Then after my trip to France where EVERYONE had dogs and walked them, I decided I HAD to have a dog of my own. We'd had the kids' dogs etc but it'd been a long time since I'd had my own. I didn't really want a puppy--they are too much work and I'm not good at training a dog so I happened upon a wonderful lady in Broken Arrow who shows Corgis and breeds once a year (responsible breeder!!!!) and she had an adult dog who needed to be an "only" dog. This is the perfect dog for me, he's lazy, does not like to walk but will go if you show him a FULL bag of "cookies" and shake them at him every once in a while. Very laid back. He's not a herder like some corgis and he gets along with my cat. He even knows some tricks, he can "whisper", sit, lie down, and I'm working on teaching him to howl. He's a little hesitant about that but we're working on it. So Amos is why I've included corgis in my blog. Next up--knitting!!!! But that's another day.

Friday, February 6, 2009

blogging and other things!

Well, here is my first attempt at a blog, and my first post. I was amazed at how easy it was to set it up! I have to say, I've learned soooooo much in the first 6 months of working in a library.

Let me tell you a little about myself. I was a teacher for almost 30 years and retired from that. I'm not a "stay at home" person so I substituted the first year I was retired and then this job came open at the library. I've wanted to work at a library for such a long time, should've been a librarian in the first place but...now I am--well, really a library associate which is great!! I also never travelled the first 50 years of my life but I'm making up for it now. My husband and I have driven to California twice--and had fabulous trips. Stayed on the Queen Mary in Long Beach and went to Catalina Island. I've taken 3 cruises, one with my daughter, one with my daughter and 3 of my teacher friends and 1 with my husband, daughter and step-daughter. All were fabulous. My husband and I also went to England, Ireland, Wales and Scotland in 2007 and then I went to France in 2008 for 2 weeks with a girlfriend, so I'm making up for lost travel time!!

I have 4 children--2 boys who are 34 and 33, a daughter who is 18 and a step-daughter who is 25. I also have 4 grands--2 naturals and 2 steps--all boys between the ages of 6 and 9. YIKES!!
I have a darling little Corgi named Amos. My favorite hobby besides reading is knitting. A day without knitting is like a day without chocolate.

My husband and I have also opened a little antique/junque shop in Tulsa called Heebie Jeebies, because all the glass and pottery gave me the heebie jeebies when we were moving it in. We decided that was the perfect name for our shop. I ran it for a while until I got hired at the library and then my husband "retired" and started running the shop. We both love our jobs now!!

Well, I guess that's it for today!! WOOHOO, I'm a blogger!!!