Back in Munich!

So the Germans are also a bit puzzled as to why Obama got the Nobel Peace Prize. Greg and I got a kick out of this front page picture in the paper. The headline reads: "Obama Is Not the Only One Surprised by the Nobel Peace Prize."

We took a beautiful walk through the city today, partially to help us both overcome our jet lag. It's still very green here and there are lots of flowers.



The trees are just beginning to change colors.



We discovered some interesting statues as well.



Soon I'll post a picture of the sweater I finished before returning to Munich--it's actually the one I have wrapped around my waist above.

An Odd Assortment of Books

Book news:

Shakespeare dringend gesucht, by Heinar Kipphardt, 1953. A satirical play about a theater director who is looking for the next Shakespeare. The play was a huge success in socialist East Germany in the 1950s in spite of its, or because of its, palatable social criticism. It's actually quite funny.

Black Elk Speaks, as told to John G. Neihardt, 1932. Even though I already knew that the European-Americans completely wiped out the American Indians, reading this book felt like learning about that fact for the first time. It's devastating to read, but very worthwhile.

Ehen in Philippsburg, by Martin Walser, 1957. Walser's first novel is about a young man who establishes himself in the prosperous German society of the 1950s. All the relationships, including his own, are unhealthy, to put it mildly. Walser's skill in writing ironic prose is fantastic.

An Introduction to English Sentence Structure by Andrew Radford, 2009. This sounds like it's easy to read--after all, it's an introduction. Well, it was very difficult as it is actually about Chomsky's Mimimalism. I learned a lot!

Labor Day and Some News

This cell-phone picture was taken of Karen and me over the Labor Day Weekend. Karen came for a visit from Butte, and we did some touristy things in Spokane, including attending the annual "Pig Out in the Park" held in our beautiful park downtown.

It occured to me that I don't actually post very much real "family news" here, so I am going to remedy that today. I wanted to let everyone know that Greg has quit his job at the VA, and he is planning to work in New Zealand from this coming December until next September. He will be employed by a hospital in Auckland.

Greg got the idea of working temporarily in New Zealand years ago from a colleague who had done this kind of work and who had a wonderful time. And I'm sure he's intrigued by the idea of getting to know New Zealand...who has ever heard anything bad about it? Probably the fact that it is an island and there are unlimited sailing opportunities adds to the appeal.

I will return in early October to teach again at the University of Munich. We plan to get a house sitter to take care of the pets and house while we're gone. Anyone interested?

No More Hats!

Well, this crazy beanie and hat knitting project is finally coming to an end. I'm ready to move on to something else for a while--like finishing several WIPs started long ago. Below are a few pictures of my latest frenzy.

Here are all the beanies and an ear-flap hat knitted for Greg. There's one beanie in the bunch that I haven't yet described--it's the one in the middle made of a purplish varigated all wool yarn called "Rhythm." The caps are being blocked on balloons, a technique I read about on another knitter's blog. They look like little balloon people, sitting there so nicely.



This is Greg's ear-flap hat knitted from a worsted weight blend that self stripes. It's called "Classic Worsted Tapestry" and was purchased at the yarn store (Ana-Cross Stich) in Anacortes on our recent vacation to Guemes Island. The pattern was written by one of the women who works in the shop, Fran Jepperson.



I know, I look kinda scary, but the picture shows the hat well!

Beanie Mania

I've been making quick and easy beanie caps during this vacation on Guemes. In fact, I've been quite obsessed with them--they are the perfect carry-along and instant gratification project. It's also interesting from a knitter's perspective to see how the different yarns work up using the same pattern and same needle size.

The yarns, Plymouth Encore (tan), Berroco Comfort (cream), and Caron Country (aqua), are all worsted weight blends; needles are size 8 and the pattern is from Kody May Knits and is called "KMay's Eyelet Lace Elegance Hat."

Guemes Island Vacation

We're on Guemes Island in the San Juans this week, enjoying our annual vacation with Greg's family. Here we are in Seattle where we stopped to pick up Conrad and give the dogs a break and a drink.



Our first evening:



Chris is displaying the crabs they caught for dinner!



I'm enjoying a boat ride in the Bellingham Channel:



And Conrad perfected his mojito recipe for Happy Hour:



More vacation pictures are here.

Fred the Wonder Cat

Our cat Fred had to be euthanized this past weekend, and I wanted to pay tribute to him. I think what we all liked most about him was his free spirit and his ability to get out of difficult scrapes. We had had him de-clawed as a kitten because he was supposed to be an indoor cat, but he loved to roam outside and hunt, and he was able to do everything a cat with claws would do, including climb trees and catch rabbits. Fred would come when called and was never grumpy and certainly not a complainer. He'd turn up after being gone for days, and we once even saw signs posted around the neighborhood declaring that he had been found by a concerned family who wanted to return him to his home. We knew Fred was just visiting them and always intended to come back to us, which of course he did.

For all the times I worried about him, I see now that it wasn't necessary. He would have outlasted us all. We miss you, Freddy.