New tradition

We started a new tradition today.

Most of us that work here enjoy cooking, and we frequently talk about what we made for dinner, what we ate at a restaurant, or what we saw at the food co-op that looked good.

So we decided to have a potluck lunch under the guise of, "Hey, wouldn't it be fun if..." But really, it was a cooking contest to see who could out-Potluck everyone else.

I didn't make a quiche, oh no. You can't win a contest with a "quiche."

I made an egg strata with caramelized onions, wilted spinach, crispy bacon, and a trio of cheeses.

Ms. Dancer didn't make a cucumber salad.

She made a Mediterranean melange of vine ripened grape tomatoes, English cucumbers, aged balsamic, and imported feta cheese. (DUDE. I love this salad.)

Mrs. Domesticity didn't bring bread and dip, she brought hand made wheat loaf topped with a spread of capers and Italian olives.

Boy Aaron didn't bring rice and squash, he brought a sugar pumpkin stuffed with threshed wild rice, sausage, and fresh cream.

And Ms. English Major made the most adorable cupcakes.

Bellini cupcakes, made with champagne, peaches, and candied ginger. They had a delicate crumb and a moist texture. They also happened to be gluten and dairy free, which made the fact that they were both adorable and delicious that much better.

We invited all of our spouses, and had so much fun with our potluck that we've decided to designate the second Friday of every month as Potluck Lunch Day.

Sometimes it's good to be the boss. I don't need to consult the Party Planning Committee or submit a requisition request. If we want to feast every second Friday of the month, we're going to do it.

So there.

Any good potluck dish ideas for me? I've got to start thinking about how to beat out the competition in October...

someone help

Clearly.

That is all.

Thank you, and good night.

Except I really do need help, so don't leave yet.

I have taken to doing something in the past two weeks that I have not done in ten years. More than ten years. Maybe decades.

I am wearing a fleece jacket.

There, in the picture, is my leafy green fleece jacket that I purchased recently.

I'm still trying to wrap my brain around it.

Ten years of East Coast dwelling made me Mrs. FashionablePants. Now I work in a yarn studio and wear stained clothing and Crocs all day long. Might as well add a fleece jacket, I told myself. Press order, I told myself.

Should I even be listening to myself?

Today, I am wearing -- and I swear I am not making this up -- pink velour pants held up with a safety pin because they are too big. (Please do not ask me why I own pink velour pants. I do not know the answer.) My husband's socks. Grey Crocs. A stained navy blue T-shirt -- three sizes too big -- and a fleece jacket. Now I look like Mrs. HomelessPants.

Only foolishness would send you into battle with the yarn and the dye in your good clothes. But the fleece jacket? Even when Yarnista-ing on the Right Coast, I wore my chocolate brown wool coat to and from the studio. Never fleece. I had standards.

Now the cold has won. Fine, it's 45 degrees outside, it's raining, I work at a dirty job, and I can throw my fleece jacket in the wash.

And I now realize that my family is woefully lacking in the mitten department. I would like to make my family a family of mittens before the snow flies. What kind of Yarnista, no, what kind of MOTHER, lets her family go mittenless in the vast Arctic Wilderness of Northern Minnesota? How can we build our igloos and travel by dogsled without mittens?

So in an effort to help my family retain their limbs this winter, what are your favorite mitten patterns?

P.S. Please don't hate me because I'm wearing fleece. I'm still the same person on the inside!

Mostly.

Unless the fleece has done something to my brain. In which case, send help.

New Awesome Retailer!

I always love adding a new Awesome Retailer. Not only do I get to make new LYS friends, it means that more of you get to visit our yarns in person.

Our newest Awesome Retailer is in Kirkland, Washingon -- Serial Knitters!

Our big ol' shipment of yummy yarn just arrived, and we're anxious for you to stop by and check it out! Glenhaven Cashmerino! Lindon Merino! Adorn Sock!

I haven't had the chance to visit in person yet, but several of my friends have, and I've heard it's a pretty nifty place to shop!

Here are the deets:

Serial Knitters Yarn Shop

8427 122nd Ave NE

Kirkland, WA 98033

425-242-0086

serialknitter@live.com

Go see them!

And buy yarn.

And say please and thank you.

Please. And thank you.

This is how we do it.

We only have three nice weekends a year here in Minnesota.

This is how we spend them.

Everyone knows someone with a cabin. And if you don't, you rent one. Preferably one with high speed wireless internet.

When you go to these cabins, you typically hike, fish, kayak, canoe, stare at the lake, stare at the fire, stare at the sun until you go blind, read, and knit.

Sometimes cabins even have a special fish cleaning building, so as not to sully your otherwise pristine lakefront property.

Sometimes, if you're lucky, cabins even come with beautiful water views straight from the front door.

Just to prove my trustworthiness, I did not move the child's shoes and socks that cluttered this photo.

I'll be spending the entire evening here, thank you very much.

Maybe doing a little of this:

Until this happens involuntarily and your husband secretly takes your picture and you discover it on your hard drive when you're uploading your photos.

Tomorrow, I intend to try my hand at a little fishing.

Because there are so many lakes in this fine state, the fish practically beg to be caught. Even the fish are Minnesota Nice.

In fact, fishing here is much like this:

I'll let you know how many I snag.

Funny things.

Item #1: Remember the anatomically correct alien butterflies in the empty space next door to me?

Or, maybe you don't remember, and this is your first nightmare.

They're glow in the dark.

Sadly, they were a deterrent to new tenants. The walls now look like this:

A bit of an improvement, if anatomically correct alien beings are not your cup of Earl Grey.

This space has now been rented by a political party for use until the November elections are over. They probably think everything is A-OK, but I know the truth.

The anatomically correct alien butterflies are just trapped underneath some primer, waiting to hatch.

Should I tell them? What do you think?

And in other Yarnista Oddities, look what a friend found for me at an antique store:

A lovely 1960s-era holiday card, featuring three children and a puppy in a sleigh with a granny square afghan and some faux balsam. The caption reads, "It is more blessed to give than to receive."

Aww.

I would've loved to receive this card. Especially after I flipped it over and saw this:

The Aztec Indian Calendar! The World's Biggest and Heaviest Calendar!

I love how it says at the top, "Diameter?" "Weight?"

These are very important things to know about one's Christmas card.

Front -- children in sleigh.

Back -- Aztec Calendar.

Did you know that the story of the calendar is as old as man himself? It says so right on this Christmas Card.

By the way, Merry Christmas.

And Shana Tova!

Don't say I never wished ya nothin'! Or dyed you any yarn!