The Threadmill

My Friends are blogging...

2011-01-22T20:32:00.005-05:00

Well, my resolution to start posting more regularly hasn't happened yet. My mother passed away on January 6th and that had me in a spin for a while. She enjoyed a long, good life. We were all with her for her 90th birthday on December 29, and she kept talking about how great it was to reach 90. I think that was her goal. May she rest in peace.

Go look at the link---she's giving away some blogaversary goodies, but it ends tonight at midnight!

Here's the link to her blog:http://anartsoul.blogspot.com/

Going Buggy: WIN THE ENTIRE RANGE OF 148 PROMARKERS

2010-11-12T15:48:00.000-05:00

Going Buggy: WIN THE ENTIRE RANGE OF 148 PROMARKERS

Casino Night Centerpieces

2010-11-12T15:34:00.006-05:00

Over several weeks, I spent a lot of time designing, engineering and producing 16 centerpieces for a casino night fundraiser. Since there was no budget, I wanted to accomplish something attractive, easy to transport and assemble, and low-budget. This is the result.

I cut the letters and numbers with my Sizzix die cutter---boy, is that a tool I love---and covered cake circles with green felt for the base. The center fountain-like piece is a very inexpensive mylar party decoration from WalMart. The plastic base wasn't very sturdy, so I used construction adhesive to adhere the plastic to a ceramic tile. And of course, that needed to be covered with felt, too. I just made a square to lay over the tile. Simple. Easy. Portable. A little height was needed, so my local Home Depot had some PVC pipe in the right diameter. My DH cut them to length for me, and put a slit in the top edge of each. I had some metallic paper in the stash---so old that the price tag on it was in francs not euros---and I used the Xyron to make it adhesive. A large gold star, again from the WalMart party department, and we were done! They were well-received, and I was happy! Happy to have used so many of my tools, and some of the stash as well.

Win a set of ProMarkers!

2010-11-12T15:31:00.002-05:00

Here's a chance for you to win a complete set of ProMarkers. Wouldn't that be fun? More on my personal efforts soon.

Here I Am Again!

2009-03-14T13:46:00.004-04:00

Well, what a year it is turning out to be! I was away from home form 33 of the first 64 days of 2009. I have little time to do anything! I did make this pincushion for my friend Eileen. Isn't it adorable?

I'm very interested in paper at the moment. So much interesting work being done. My new Pazzles Inspiration cutter is not being utilized, but hopefully, there will be time in the future.

Along the lines of paper, here's a link to a very interesting site: http://countdown.tentwostudios.com/ There's a new download every day up to St. Patrick's Day---I'm downloading lots of these digital files lately, but I must admit I haven't printed anything yet!

More later....

June Capsule Contest Finished!

2008-06-24T21:59:00.003-04:00

Th
I did it! I completed the capsule. And oh, what a struggle it was at times. The closeup is of the jacket and the necklace. I bought the necklace in Paris a couple of years ago with the intention of taking it apart and using it on a sweater. But it does look good with these outfits. I think I've reached the stage where I need more accessories.
And the fit is so difficult! Oh, my. I've changed. We need to remove the excess weight, and get back into shape. Then it will be more fun to sew!

I'm buying a dress form to help, too. As soon as we are back from the Cape next week.

More about the trials and tribulations of the contest later.

Way too hot here!

2008-06-09T20:24:00.003-04:00

I am so blessed. The Threadmill is the entire third floor of our city townhouse---city because it is in the city, not because we have a country house, too!---and normally it is just heavenly up there. But the last couple of days it is just too hot. The A/C doesn't do that good a job unless we really crank it down and run it all the time. So no sewing for the last couple of days. I've done patterns though, and pre-washed fabrics. And shopped on the Internet!

Hopefully, it might be cool enough to sew early tomorrow as I am not working.

Just to keep us inspired---isn't this the most beautiful scarf? It is shibori and it just occurred to me that it might be my purchased item for the JCC, if I use the taupe printed linen. I'll check tomorrow.

June Capsule Contest

2008-06-03T22:27:00.003-04:00

Spent the day working in the yard---doing chores that should have been done earlier in the spring when we were in Paris. But it looks better---I'll pick up some flowers my father has been keeping for me when I go there on Father's Day weekend. So with some more effort---and lots of plants---my little garden will again look like this. (Photo is from last September.)

I decided on my fabric and basic pieces for the June Capsule Contest: the white silk denim. A great fabric---although it doesn't photograph well---and works well with so much else. I'm doing pants, jacket (the Lutterloh stand up collar that I like) a shell, and if I am brave, and have enough fabric, a skirt. I liked the one made from Simplicity 4188 Claire posted on her blog today. I haven't made (or worn) a casual skirt in far too long! I see so many cute ones, and I'm feeling left out.

More tomorrow, as I already up too late and have work tomorrow!

Another Finished Sweater

2008-06-02T21:49:00.006-04:00

I sent this sweater off to Mary Ann this morning. Hopefully, she will like it well enough to publish. Writing the patterns is difficult for me! I'd much rather just do it! Although I can imagine the thrill it would be to see someone wearing one of my garments! I get a big kick out of wearing them myself.

This sweater was inspired---very vaguely---by one in Interweave Knits this year. Personally, I like mine better. And the yarn---my favorite woolray---looks sooooo good in this style. Oh, how I love lace! I'm thinking of writing a book or an article on all the different ways to use lace to kick up a classic, simple sweater.

I also hemmed a pair of pants, and thought more about the June Capsule Contest. I'm going to make a jacket and pants of white silk denim, and a couple of tops. If the white woolray I have is a good shade with the denim, I'll make a lacey cardigan, too. I love knitting by machine! It opens so many possibilities!

Back to the Blog

2008-05-30T21:24:00.004-04:00

Well, after over a year of no posts to The Threadmill, I'm committing to posting regularly. Since that post, I've had my first knitting pattern published and completely renovated/improved our home! And we've spent two months in Paris. This is the official picture of my sweater on a model from www.knitwords.com!

I'm committed to the Great Coat Sew Along starting this summer, and I have several candidate fabrics I might use. There's some alpaca, some cashmere and perhaps some other coating fabrics I've forgotten. And of course, there is also the possibility of some new fabric!

In addition to the coat, I'm a member of the June Capsule Contest. Starting in June (obviously) and four garments need to be made---although one can be purchase. Also an accessory of some sort, and nothing black! Great incentive for some summer clothes---we have a trip to Cape Cod planned in late June, so I definitely need something. My ideas are not quite fixed yet.

Anyway, stayed tuned and wish me luck! I'm very happy to have some sewing/knitting goals in the immediate future.

Not Yet Back in the Swing of Things!

2007-01-12T10:59:00.000-05:00

Thank goodness, it is Friday. The week has been extra long---OK, it just seemed that way. I've been to the gym every day. I've been to work everyday. I've done the laundry. I've fixed dinner everyday. But I still haven't completely adjusted. Must be my age.

The candle was lit for Michael in Notre Dame de Paris. The picture was taken with my PDA but I couldn't email the pictures to myself until I returned to the States.

Last night, I did make it upstairs to The Threadmill. For those of you who don't know, The Threadmill is the two large bedrooms on the 3rd floor of our Baltimore townhouse. I'm truly blessed to have these two rooms pretty much exclusively for my fiber arts pursuits. When we do have guests (rarely), I put away as much as possible and my ironing room becomes the guest room. The front room also has a sofa bed that I can make available if necessary. The front room is home to my Brother 970 knitting machine, my Babylock Esante sewing machine, and my Bernina serger. Each of the rooms is about 20 x 20 so I am really lucky. A large walk-in closet in the front room is filled with yarn. (And there is yarn elsewhere in the house, too!) Yes, I should do some organizing but the creative part of me, just wants to do it! I refuse to apologize for something that gives me so much pleasure.

Last night, I just kinda futzed around. Jeff was to be out a networking event until 8:00 or 8:30, but he came home around 7:00! He's been really tired as well. We are going to New Jersey for Jane's 60th birthday party---she's the mother of Jeff's two children---and for Dahlia's first birthday! We're staying over Saturday night, so I have one more night away.

So officially, the new year is going to start on Monday! I resolve to:

go to the gym everyday

sew or knit everyday

do one small chore everyday---not normal chores like laundry, but something that needs to be done, and hasn't been done yet. For example, I replaced a couple of light bulbs on Tuesday evening. Not a big deal, but it required bringing the ladder up from the basement. In actuality, ten minutes and I was done. Why did it take me so long to do??

throw something away

eat fruit---with clementines in season, this is easy!

bar Ben and Jerry from the door.

Luckily, some of these are already habits. But they still count. Perhaps next week we have some finished objects to post. I'm dreaming about the AbFab afghan and can't wait to begin!

Home, Sweet Home

2007-01-09T13:14:00.000-05:00

So lovely to be home! The flight was long, and late---only by an hour or so---but a movie I really wanted to see was showing: Queen with Helen Mirren. Great flick! Ms. Mirren did a marvelous portrayal of Queen Elizabeth---in my opinion, the Academy Award for best actress is going to be a horse race between her role in this film, and Meryl Streep for The Devil Wore Prada. By the way, the Paris scene in Devil was filmed one block from our apartment. If we'd been in residence, we probably could've leaned out the window to watch. The scene I'm referring to is, of course, the romantic evening walk with Notre Dame in the background. Devil was a great movie, too.

Luckily, for a long flight, I had one book to finish (Red Gold by Alan Furst) and a second book to start: The Memory Keeper's Daughter. Great books both of them. Of course, I'm supposed to be reading Plum Bun for the book club, and I just don't want to read it!! So there!

What are the great things about being home? Well, let's see: my own pillow, my own bed, my own chair (Do I sound like Goldilocks?) my own shower with abundant hot water, and the water itself. The Paris water is SO HARD! My hair doesn't react well at all. Pretty much, it is one bad hair day after another. Luckily, we came home before I decided the only possible solution was to shave my head. The American keyboard---standard QWERTY format---cheered me significantly. Except, guess what? Three weeks is just enough time to form new habits, or so they say. I can confirm this. I spent much of the day yesterday backspacing to change q's to a's. Sigh.

And of course, the best thing about coming home is America. Truly the most wonderful country in the world. The drive from Dulles Airport to Baltimore is so much lovelier than the drive from center city Paris to Charles DeGaulle airport. Our industrial areas are just easier on the eyes. Or is it just the greater Washington area?

Everything was fine at home. We stopped for a hamburger on the way from the airport, so we just walked in the house, began unpacking, called family to report safe arrival, took a shower as soon as the water was hot, checked out the web world and our directDesk world, and went sound asleep by 7:00 pm. Of course, my wake up in Paris was at 11:00 pm Baltimore time. So after 20 hours, sleep was critially important.

I was vaguely aware of the rain all night, and it was still raining at 5:00 in the morning. Starbucks in the coffee pot. Yippee! There are Starbucks in Paris now---and they are always busy---but I've never even had the urge. Ditto for McDonald's. I suppose if I were very homesick, I could eat at McDonalds or Subway, have coffee at Starbucks, and dessert at Ben and Jerry's! Wonder how that would feel?

And I did go to the gym on Monday morning! Keeping in mind my age and fatigue level, I only did 33 minutes on the treadmill. My currect fitness goal is to do my own half marathon (on the treadmill by myself) by the end of April. There are several "train for a half marathon" programs on the web. One of my favorite blog writers (www.theshrinkingknitter.blogspot.com) is actually doing a helf marathon. So I'm unoffically training along with her. This morning was even better: 45 minutes, with the "Hill" settings, and all of it at greater than 4.0 miles per hour.

Work is fine. We continue to grow slowly, and I'm settling back in the groove. Since we are out-of-town this weekend, I'm making the official start of the new year as Monday, January 15th.

Will I have the energy to play in The Threadmill tonight? I hope so----lots of ideas ready to try! The Quick Cam isn't working yet. I can connect standalone, but when I try to make or answer a call, I have no video or audio feed. And my father took his computer into for a checkup. Neither Doug nor I was able to find anything wrong---we both checked for Spyware and Adware and viruses---but the system just labors over every task. I'm anxious to hear what they find. And maybe Dad will get DSL before my next visit. Late February or early March? Let's see what the winter brings.

Today it is sunny but cooler....lovely for January. This post is too long. Life will, however, now go back to normal and interesting days will not be so common.

Movies and Home!

2007-01-06T04:03:00.000-05:00

Yesterday, we visited Parc Monceau, a smaller (smaller than Luxembourg Gardens, that is)and the neighborhoods around there. Not much happening; I did buy a hand towel that looks like a Metro ticket. LOL, a fun remembrance. We walked around the area just north of the Arc de Triomphe, where we don't usually spend any time. Fun but nothing really earthshattering or new. Paris, like everywhere, has the same stores in every neighborhood. And apparently, there is a corporate window department: all the same. And they don't change often enough. Except for one store....

I don't even have the name, but something marina in the name. A chandelier candlestick in the window; Perhaps three feet high, holding a dozen 3" diameter candles. Massive. Beautiful. Expensive (2200€.)Impossible to get home. Did I mention the multitude of chandelier motifs this year? All over. Laser cut out ones for sticking on the windows, cardboard cutouts to hang, Christmas tree ornaments, wallpaper, lamps, candleholders. Beauçoup! They had a cashmere throw in a simple tuck stitch, and a brown cashmere cardigan with zippers and suede trim. Oh, la, la!

We rode the bus all the way to the peripherique, and then home. Nap. Dinner. And one last movie: A Good Year with Russell Crowe. Delightful. After the movie, we sat outside at Deux Magots for a quick drink and catching glimpses of the nearly full moon between the clouds. By then, it was well after 1:00 am but it was still active on the streets and perfectly safe to stroll the half mile or so home.

Today I pack. Shouldn't be a problem this trip. TLOML (The love of my life--Jeff) did not buy the volume of books and paper that he usually does. Nor did I buy much either. As a matter of fact, I still have two important items for Michael still to buy today.

Then tomorrow, we leave the apartment early and fly home to Dulles. No snow or bad weather to worry the travelers, so the trip should be uneventful!

How Do They Knit This?

2007-01-05T00:54:00.000-05:00

This scarf is all over Paris. Two years ago, I saw this type of knitting for the first time in, I believe, the Pierre Cardin window. At that time, I was puzzled about how it was produced. Especially because Jeff really would like a black cashmere scarf with a narrow red stripe. For him, I think I'll just leave a needle out of work, and then crochet up the ladder.

But this ubiquitous scarf! It almost appears to be woven with very narrow I-cords. They are available in cheap acrylic (20€) all the way up through cashmere (160€) And in many different color combinations: brights, pastels, shades of gray, earth tones, uglies. Just everything. Now that everyone has one---I think maybe I glimpsed similar at home before Christmas---I don't want one. But I am certainly curious about how they are made. The process may be "warp knitting" according to what I find on Google.

The last couple of days, we've walked all over Paris. Nicer weather (actually it has been rather nice the entire visit) and the realization that we are heading home soon both contributed. The fresh air and exercise also makes a good night's sleep, even without my own bed. We have the Temper-Pedic mattress---and have had for 10+ years---and there is nothing like it. I love the fact that I lie down, go to sleep, and sometimes never turn until morning! Very restful sleep. Every time I sleep on another mattress, I'm very much aware of tossing and turning all night!

Yesterday at lunch, we met some friends of friends who are living here. That is always fun. They are from California, living here for 10 years, and have a six year old daughter. The little girl is Elodie---what a perfect name. Hearing experiences of life with the French---you have to laugh.

Last night we had oysters at Le Dôme. Delicious oysters---they taste more of the sea than those from the Chesapeake Bay. Actually that makes sense because they are from the ocean, not the bay. And then we walked home. This distance can be walked in 25 minutes or so, if you walk and don't meander. Last night, we spend two hours detouring and wandering the streets of the VII arrondissment.

This may be my last post before we return the computer. That means "goodbye!" to the French keyboard. You really don't know how awful it is until you have experienced it for yourself. Picture this: I learned to type when I was 15 or 16. So for 42 years, every time I moved my fingers in a certain way, I received a little reward: The correct letter showed up on the paper or on the screen. Then suddenly, I am doing the exact same thing, and the "buzzer" sounds, I get an electric shock (so to speak) and the WRONG letter shows up. Pavlov is rolling in his grave! And you must use the "shift" key for numbers and the period. Such insanity.

Today is going to be another good day---already it is 50° but too early to tell if it is cloudy or clear. I want to buy one more thing---something special for Michael (my 10 year old nephew)---since he likes to cook and even dressed as a chef for Halloween. Can anyone guess what I have in mind?

Back home to paradise on Sunday. Currently I'm reading a "found" book: Red Gold by Alan Furst. I surrendered One Man's Bible. The style was too strange and dreamlike. I respect that this might be the only way he could express his political opinions but unfortunately, I no longer have the time---nor the inclination---to read everything! Red Gold is much more to my liking. A story of the French resistance set in Paris. Perfect. It is a short book, so I'll need to find something to read on the plane flight home.

Holidays Over!

2007-01-02T16:38:00.001-05:00

Even though the French Christmas celebration technically continues until the 6th of January, today seem more like the regular work-a-day world. I lazed around here this morning finishing Three Junes. I enjoyed how the author connected the players in the book in a most surprising, yet entirely believable, plot. I'm not sure I'd recommend the book to any one I know, but I did enjoy it. Next up on the reading pile is by the Nobel Prize winner from a couple of years ago: One Man's Bible by Gao Xingjian. Let's see if China is better than Turkey;

Jeff and I made plans to meet at Le Solferino so I worked my way up rue de Bac from Bon Marché. The weather was a bit bizarre. It would rain for a while, then the sun would come out, then rain, then sun. But better than all gray.

I returned to find out the designer of the embroidered coat. Dries Von Noten is the designer and he is out of Antwerp. Here is a photo of the coat from www.style.com but it really doesn't capture the beauty of the coat itself. Look carefully at the sleeves---this is very heavily embroidered in subtle metallic threads. Just beautiful---at least in my opinion.

We decided to lunch at Le Bonaparte. Jeff had chou farcie (stuffed cabbage)---he said it was the best he's ever had---and I had a chevre chaud (warm goat cheese salad.) Rode the bus home after stopping at the Monoprix for cookies, bought water and fresh bread to bring home.

I know you will all laugh; here we are in the gastronomical capital of the world and we had leftover chicken sandwiches at home again tonight! But that chicken is so good! And the bread is so good! Like no other chicken sandwich ever!

This evening we went to the movies: Casino Royale. One of the better recent Bond movies but I'm partial to Sean Connery and, especially, Roger Moore.

There's a full moon tonight and we walked home watching the beautiful moon and the clouds crossing over it.

A Quiet Day in Paris

2007-01-01T14:39:00.000-05:00

New Year's Day is always quiet. Here in Paris is no exception. However, lots of tourists (like us!) were out and about doing nothing. We were out of the apartment by noon, took the Metro to Pigalle----looks less like "pig alley" than in the past---and rode the little Monmartrebus up to the top of the hill. The day was very sunny, but windy, and everyone wanted to see the view on a clear day.

We walked down the steps and around the neighborhoods. Our friend, Roth, recommended a restaurant, Le Sancerre, so we found it and stopped in for late lunch. It wasn't anything special, but, you know, every meal can't be wonderful. We walked all the way to Opéra, caught the 27 bus to St. Michel and walked home.

I spoke with Michael and Doug using the Quick Cam---what astounding technology---and then read for a while.

The New Year's Eve chicken was the best chicken I've eaten in a long, long time. Absolutely delicious. Normally, I only eat fish or beef here in France because the chicken I've eaten before was awful. As tasteless as the others were, this was superb. So we enjoyed leftover chicken on fresh French bread. Yes, the bakeries are open. (They were open on Christmas Day, too.) No respectable Frenchman can be expected to do without fresh bread. I believe this was a lesson learned by Marie Antoinette many years ago.

Jeff wanted to go to the movies tonight, but last time we looked out it was raining again. And colder. I lost my umbrella last night, and I'm a bit like a cat anyway: I don't like getting wet. So I think we are chez nous tonight. I finished Snow and I'm now reading Three Junes by Julia Glass: an OK book, but I wouldn't recommend it to anyone.

A slow, lazy day. Home beckons but not for another few days.

Food, not fashion

2006-12-31T13:20:00.000-05:00

New Year's seems to be all about food in Paris. Oh, yes, and champagne. Even though today is Sunday, nearly all the specialty food boutiques were open in our neighborhood. We are eating chez nous tonight---too busy and too crowded to go out. The menu St. Sylvestre for us includes: paté, four or five different cheeses, roast chicken with roast potatoes, fresh green beans, lots of wonderful French bread, and la buche Keyser for dessert.

This little buchette is a delightful concoction of chocoate cake, chocolate mousse, and whipped cream. You might not be able to tell from the photo, but it is about 3" long and about 1.5" tall--not counting the garnish. Just enough for one or two.

We've already had the first course of paté and cheese. I'll heat up the chicken and potatoes, and cook the green beans in an hour or so.

Our current plan is to eat slowly and late (for us!) then go outside, walk up, and stand on one of the many bridges to watch the fireworks. However, we aren't 100% sure there will actually be fireworks. The Pariscope (clever name, eh?) lists nearly everything going on in town for the week but no mention of fireworks. Since we are located right on the river, it doesn't require too much effort for us to go out and watch. If nothing lights up the sky, we can be back home in minutes.

The weather is a bit iffy, too. The sun I hoped for today has been blown away for another day. If it is raining, we'll stay in. No promises about staying up until midnight either. You know, been there, done that.

May 2007 bring prosperity, happiness and good health to all!

Alas, the sun is gone.

2006-12-30T12:27:00.000-05:00

Yesterday's sun gave way to more typical Parisian showers this morning. Since we'd stayed out very late last night---we went to a 10:00 movie, walking home and arriving after midnight, we easily slept late this morning. What movie? An Israeli film about two girls in the army assigned to checking IDs and papers in Jerusalem. I don't have much tolerance when people don't take their jobs seriously. I'd only give it two stars out of five. (Une Jeunesse Comme Aucune Autre)

By 2:00 this afternoon, in just a light drizzle, I decided that I'd best get some fresh air and exercise. I miss my morning excursions to the gym more than I'd imagined. Next trip, I going to make arrangements to use a gym here. So I Metro'ed over to Sevres-Babylon for some snoop shopping in the 7th.

Rue Cherche-Midi yielded some interest, but nothing really notable. I ducked into Comptoir Richard for my special Parisian treat: almonds coated with chocolate and then dusted with cocoa. Even better, each is individually wrapped, providing some portion control.

Bon Marché was a treasure chest today! Firstly, I was able to see and touch a coat I'd seen in Vogue this fall. I'd torn the picture out---it's in the files at home---but I saw and touched it!!! I was so overwhelmed I've forgotten the designer but I'll go back and look again next week.

But the piece dé resistance today was cashmere. Lovely, lovely cashmere sweaters. Plaited cashmere in blue and white, giving the appearance of the ultimately soft faded denim. Cashmere and lurex looking like moonbeams. Cashmere lace embellished with tiny beads and sequins. But I think the best was a one-ply, medium gray, very loosely knit pullover. It practically floated on the shelf----four or five ounces maximum. Now I know we can knit these---especially my friends with the fine gauge machines---but the result was ethereal! www.colourmart.com, here I come. If I order tonight, the yarn will be at the office before I return.

This picture is taken with my new QuickCam. I played with it this morning---hoping the crowd from Waverly would sign on---and snapped this of the tulips I bought in the market on Tuesday. They are more attractive than the picture expresses. Tulips seems to be available most of the fall and winter anymore. I saw them at Whole Foods before we left Baltimore, too.

Tonight we are heading toward Jussieu, (to the east of our apartment) checking out a restaurant from a guide book. If we don't like the way it looks, we'll probably end up with either lasgna or pizza.

A Sunny Friday

2006-12-29T10:26:00.000-05:00

Woke this morning in Paris to sunshine! A real treat---sunny days are few and far in the winter. One year I could've saved luggage space by not packing my sunglasses. OK, maybe I wouldn't have saved much space but you get the idea. Today, we wasted no time caffeinating ourselves, showering and heading out the door.

Even though this apartment in the 5th arrondisement has been our home in Paris for the last 15 years, we still make discoveries. Our friend Roth (www.rothray.com) told us yesterday about a Viennese pastry shop just off the boulevard St. Michel. Today we found it: we must have walked past it a hundred times and never noticed. The original owner immigrated to Paris in the 1870's, opened this shop, and her family still owns and operates the business. The dining room is no more than 3 metres wide and perhaps 7 metres long, with seating for 25 or so. The atmosphere is straight out of 1870----some of the tables might be that old!

Such a total surprise, we were unprepared to order. But when in a Viennese pastry shop, order the classics. Non? A Linzer torte and a Sacher torte seemed right out of the story books. And they were delicious. Highly recommended---we'll probably go again this trip. (Patisserie Viennoise 8, rue de l'Ecole Medecine)

Then we hopped on a bus to save our little feet some wear and tear. (If you spend too much energy walking to your destination, you won't have the energy left to walk around.) In reality, the bus only took us about six blocks when we decided to jump off and stroll across the Pont des Arts in deference to the beautiful day.

From there, we walked through the courtyard of the Louvre---I think of all the people that have trod this ground, and all the intrigue that has taken place in this area. Across to the Bourse and through Les Halles (Mokuba ribbon www.mokubany.com (Paris store looks just like the NY store.) is closed until the 5th of January, so I might not visit this trip. Full of the world's most beautiful ribbons, the choices overwhelm me. Without a particular project in mind, I'm too indecisive.)

I took several pictures in the Marais today, and they are safely stored in my PDA until we return. In particular, one sweater in a very simple knitted lace pattern, with a four button sleeve trim caught my eye. In the same store window, a re-interpreted granny square pattern looked fresh and interesting: small squares (2" x 2"), black background and brightly multi-colored squares, and just a few gold sequins scattered over the entire surface. Overall, the clothes seem more colorful and more feminine than in recent memory.

I stopped in the Annie Blatt store and came out empty handed. I may return as there was a multicolored mohair mix that caught my eye---and that I keep thinking might be an acceptable addition to the stash.

Jeff's napping, the sun has disappeared, and the current temperature is 43.2° I'm going to read more Orhan Pamuk Snow www.orhanpamuk.net/ for a while before we head to the 14th for dinner. Oh, yes. We also bought bread and a EuroMillions lottery ticket. I can't begin to imagine the red tape involved in claiming a major prize, but Jeff assures me he'll gladly deal with it.