Kitchen table activism, various

Today's about doing good stuff. It's all political, as most things are.

First the ruggy thing is coming along, and I already found a box to ship it in when it's done

Next I have another group of small squares to include.

That's practical activism, direct help to people. My crochet ministry.

And I messaged the office of the USAG at the DOJ.  Translation for furriners: the United States Attorney General, Merrick Garland, at the Department of Justice. I'm assured by people who have worked there that they read all the mail.

Full credit: I got the idea from a great indie podcast The Daily Beans, and acted on it.

I asked Garland to find a way to release the Jack Smith report to the public, and thanked him for his work. Nudge, nudge, wink, wink, let a leak happen.

This report is almost certainly the reason for the latest silly stuff about Panama and Greenland, so instead of watching that, we can give T something to really worry about. 

Anyone can do this kind of messaging. Probably better if you're a voting citizen. Just go to DOJ, to Contact us, to email. Done.

I also, since Z is removing fact checking from his platforms,  I wrote to the indie women owned, very good, publication Dame, talking up Spoutible. 

It's the only online platform  which has excellent fact checking, and the editor if Dame, Jennifer Reitman,  has now undertaken to make sure they have a presence there.  I'm active there, founding member, and I've seen fact checking in action. It works.

Moving along to taking care of people and being united, here's what I baked today.

Left, chocolate walnut cake fresh from the oven. Right, container of same now at Gary's house.

Now I'm going to read. I have plenty of material including the latest Jackson Brodie (Kate Atkinson), Mrs Miniver reissued, the whole of Peter Wimsey, the ongoing Forsytes and more. 

The baking was punctuated by a flying visit from Handsome Son to shower, there being a water emergency repair at his building,  water suddenly shut off, before rushing to work. We exchanged about three sentences in all.

Happy day everyone, do your bit, I will too. It's good for your spirits to do something to counter nonsense.

Snow, chocolate walnut cake and feta

 Measurable snow yesterday, about four inches.

Kids off to find a place to ski

At home, I started the car after digging a path -- just pushing snow ahead of me, mainly. I really enjoy a bit of digging and getting the car started, because I feel capable. Gary came out and dug more for me in case I needed to go anywhere. The roads are icy enough for police to beg people to stay off them unless it's vital.

He also asked me if I have cheese grater, and I offered him  choice, box or straight, whereupon he brought over a block of feta cheese, invited me to grate some for myself, and he would take the grater and cheese home to use as needed. 

Then he left, I realized he'd gone without the grater, now among the dishes, got the other and met him at the door coming back for the grater. Two absent minds thinking alike.

Later I baked a chocolate walnut cake, using whole wheat and chickpea flour

and took a couple of slices to him.

Knitting continues and here's the current state of the test underwear. You'll see that the cast on row doesn't match. That's because it's a provisional cast on. When I come to knit the front, I'll start here, remove this yarn, then picking up the live stitches means no seams in the crotch area. 

This is the good part of designing your own, you can go seamless using  provo cast on. This is knitted as a single piece, with just short side seams.  I'll line the crotch with linen or a scrap of. cotton knit fabric. So far so good.

Happy day, everyone from your fearless blogger, feeling much better since I dug snow. It's not everyone's happy place, I think!

Plenty to write about..

Plenty of material today, what with current reading of David Rosenfelt's  nonfiction about his real life, not the first person he writes from in his dog related detective fiction.

All about dog rescue, which leads me to my own long history of strays showing up and applying to live here, cats and dogs, birds who cross my path like the lovely Emily Hope, a lutino cockatiel, not this one but this is right idea

More about all that another day. I have a lot of stories, some very funny.

Meanwhile I did shop a little for spinning material

  and yes, this is the actual stuff on its way. After the  robe is done, and relating to the upcoming doll. More later.

But mainly this is part of the reason I can't write much right now

Handsome Son's birthday tomorrow, don't know when he's free to come over for a dinner, but the cake is ready. And in the freezer is a large dish of chicken cordon bleu, which I'll serve with pasta in red sauce

That's the good part.

But tomorrow is a complicated day, since it's also Handsome Partner's anniversary. Always a difficult day with so many memories and swirling emotions even after ten  years.

So, bear with me. I have all kinds of interesting stuff to tell you, and not quite enough bandwidth right now.

I shall return.