All is calm...

...for the first time in several weeks. Like nearly everyone else, I've been crazy busy with Christmas. But now, for the first time, it's quiet, calm and peaceful.

Santa really rocked my world this Christmas (or maybe I rocked his!! Ha!) I'd take photos of the ultimate gift, but my son stole all my AA batteries for his wireless xbox controller and didn't recharge the dead ones. Grr. I'm not going to tell what it is. Photos will be posted as soon as the red light changes to green on the charger. You'll have to see it to believe it.

Another totally awesome gift was a handmade niddy noddy from Zack and my dad. It also rocks! They worked on it over Thanksgiving when we visited. Zack sanded and sanded and sanded. It's as smooth as glass. The center is walnut and the arms are cyprus. It's 12" and nice and lightweight. Even signed! Again, photos as soon as I get a green light.

My sister gave me the Skacel felting kit. Totally cool. I had considered giving one to her if the socks didn't work out. How funny would that have been? However, the socks worked! She loves them and they fit perfectly. Yeah!

I'm also dealing with a bunch of other pesky issues. While Randy (my totally rockin' Santa hero) was under the house wiring Zack's room with cable/ethernet, he discovered a massive leaky pipe...the one that the washing machine drains into. Extremely nasty! So, I'll be getting some nice new PVC in the coming days. I don't mind spending money to fix up the house, but it irks the fire out of me when I have to spend money on something I'll never see. I also need a new clutch for my car. Anyone know a good (honest) transmission mechanic in Middle Tennessee? Randy can handle breaks, plugs, etc, but the clutch is more than we want to tackle. It's a pretty important part of the car....it would be best to not screw it up.

Come back later for photos. Trust me, they'll be worth it!

No More Titles

The first thing I do when I sit down to write is try to come up with a catchy title. Usually I end up sitting here, drawing a blank. I have the urge to write, but the title bogs me down. Today, I'm liberating myself from "Title:"! I feel better already.

Once again, it's after 11pm. I told myself that I would be in bed by 10, which has been a running joke for the past couple weeks. The things I can accomplish between 10 and midnight are astounding! I've made two batches of fudge, finished the classy slipup socks, wrapped gifts and shopped online. I'm highly sleep deprived, but I'm happy that things are getting done. This weekend will be the real test. My parents are coming to town on Sunday. That gives me approximately 86 hours to prepare. I'll tell you right now, there are just somethings that aren't going to get done. Actually, I should make a list of things that aren't going to get done so I can put it by the list of things that MUST get done. I like lists.

So...here are the Classy Slip Up Socks from the Knit Socks book. It's the book shaped like a sock. It's late and I don't feel like looking it up. Check my Ravelry page, it's listed there also.

Finished socks with all the other gifts, ready for shipping:

I'm particularly pleased with the grafting job on the toe.

The yarn is about the color of blueberries. It looks a little odd on the last part of the gussett, but I think it was just the angle of the camer. All the stitches are nice and uniform. This photo is going to bug me.

I Know Jack!

Today was the annual Christmas in Lynchburg, Tennessee. For those of you who may not be familiar with Lynchburg, it is the home of the Jack Daniel's distillery. I'd link you to the page, but their linking agreement is a bit wordy. I didn't want to read the agreement so you can figure it out (it's pretty easy) or click on the Christmas in Lynchburg link. But you gotta be 21 to enter!
Our adventure began this morning at Cracker Barrel in Franklin. We met up with some friends, had a great breakfast and all piled into the truck for the backroads trip to Lynchburg. We got to town in time to enjoy a bit of shopping (and some awesome homemade potato chips!) The Christmas parade was spectacular and lasted 18 minutes this year! That's up a couple minutes from last year. Then after the parade was the dog Christmas costume judging contest. Seventeen entries this year. The competition was staggering!

Once the festivities on the square died down a bit we walked over to the distillery for a tour. This is a "must do" for anyone in the area. I've been there 5 or 6 times and it's still fun, especially if you take people who have never been. The best part of the tour is smelling the charcoal "mellowing" vats. There is no describing how good it smells. It is mouth-watering! I swear that several guys in our tour group were breathing it in through their mouth, the pigs! (I wonder if it worked.)

Another neat thing about today is that it was the annual bottle signing by the Master Distiller and the Master Taster. The Master Distiller is the guy you see in the commercials. He holds the glass up to the light, evaluating, studying...the lucky blank-ity blank blank. The Master Taster is a character. He's a spitter not a swallower. (I kid you not!) What do you have to do to get either one of those jobs? I took a bottle of Single Barrel in for signing. I don't know when/if I'll open it. Right now I'm enjoying a simple shot of Gentleman Jack on the rocks. Tasty!

I'd love to sprinkle this post with photos, but I left my camera in Nashville. We'll go again next year and will make sure to get there early enough to go on the Home Tour and then eat dinner at Miss Mary Bobo's Boarding House.

We ended the day with a great Mexican dinner in Eagleville. No cervesas, but plenty of good food! Their chips were some of the best I've ever had.

I even got a bit of knitting done. I'm knitting the heel flap on the Classy Slip Up socks. PROGRESS! Well, I'm going to retire to my not-so-comfy sofa with my half-finished glass of Gentleman Jack, and he and I are going to ponder life. Jack is good. What a great day!