Less Trash and more Updates

More to recycle in Tucson = "Less Trash". Excellent!!

A year or so ago, our curbside recycling was expanded to handle rigid plastics like ice chests, 5-gallon tubs, and old plastic lawn chairs. Larger stuff that I'm Very tickled will not be laying about in the landfills for centuries.
A few weeks ago, we received a notice from the city that they were expanding the types of recyclables that could be handled via curbside recycling.
Excepting plastic bags, basically the new rule is "If it’s plastic, recycle it.".

Alllll recycle numbers of plastic are accepted now!


 Oh, plastic bags? A few years ago, several Grocery stores in Arizona began collecting all manner of plastic bags and shrink wrap.
I was pleased to find this website associated with our City Recycling that offers guidance on how to dispose of pretty much anything - via curbside recycling, hazardous waste, or donating reusable goods to various organizations.
We're doing better.

Updates: The Little Brother (Diabetes Update).
The Little Brother is also doing better! He's back to work, he's walking better, and slowly gaining strength. He has hair on his legs again {wry grin} - the body tends to shut down "unnecessary" systems when under stress. That his legs are hairy again is a very good thing. Recent doctor appointments indicate his eyes are responding well to the treatments and his endocrinologist recently lowered his insulin doses. Pret-ty darn good!

Updates: Los Gatos
The monster cats are doing well, although they seem to be putting on some (more) weight.

(Due to food-bowl grazing or are they preparing for winter??) {sigh}
We changed their food to the "7 years +" version (Gryphon still has access to the "under 7" version). They seem to have adapted well and are spending more time streaking around the house with kitty-happy-feet and then snoozing in very charming positions.

Mikale and Nikoli win paws down for sleeping in interesting positions. 

Gryphon, uh, testing how well this paper bag is constructed.

CooPurr...More happy-feet moments and several instances
 where he looks a lot like a cat-calendar model. ;-)

Updates:

Meself - health.
"Life Happens". The stuff found in the annual mammogram was removed this last week. It seems I did pretty well with anesthesia (no real nausea) so the biggest challenge was my profound fear that I wouldn't wake up and the DH would be left with a ridiculous amount of yarn and books to dispose of.   I'm a bit tender, still waiting for the final biopsy results, catching up on some stuff I taped last year, and doing some knitting.

Meself - knitting.
As previously noted, I had some challenges during the Ravellenic games.
The Little Brother's Tardis Socks are pending the arrival of the new yarn. {sigh}

I did earn a few Ravellenic Medals.
Also as previously noted, I did finish my first Ravellenic project, The Squishy Cowl.

My 3rd Ravellenic project was also completed - the Baby Surprise Jacket (BSJ) by Elizabeth Zimmerman.
Although, I must confess that for all the ripping/tinking I did on this project, I could have knit 3 jackets.
{wry grin} I would say the majority of the issues had to do with my ability to count...or to stop doing increases.
Here's how it looks when the knitting is done, before it is folded into the surprise:

And here's the folded version. Hence the "Surprise". After the above creative wavy bit of knitting  - it folds into a Baby jacket.

Buttons were chosen from the button stash and the shoulders seamed up (a few times).

I do have to confess (some more) the seaming up took me a couple of tries {sigh}.

Today's model is a ceramic cat finished by the DH's Grandmother.

This is a "Note to Self" picture I took so I could skip some of the un-seaming challenges the next time I make one of these jackets. (i.e. my interpretation of which stitch to use in the seaming technique suggested by the very nice ladies at City Knitting in their BSJ Knitting Nugget videos (also included in the Raverly BSJ Wiki page)).

The stitch marker is in the obvious stitch beneath the cast on row. However, when the
stitch where my needle is  positioned is used in the seaming, it leaves less of a seam-ridge.

The delays in finishing the BSJ didn't leave a great deal of time to work on the Tardis-stand-in project before the end of the Ravllenic games.

But I've been knitting on the Spacious Show and Tell Moebius Bag (designed by Cat Bordhi) list last week and it is nearly done. Actually, the bag is done. I'm knitting the pocket. There will be a fulling day in my future.

Meself - California Quilts and another Whaling wall.
And this last "update" is fodder for a blog post of it's own.
More a little later;-)