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The idea of having only one WIP when everyone else has so many drove me to start Scarf IV, aka Nebuchadnezzar’s Beard: it reminds me of the stylized beards on Mesopotamian statues. It’s a brioche stitch in chunky alpaca charcoal grey, with a few whitish grey fibers, which is what put me in mind of a beard. This one is for someone in my family, but I haven’t decide which one yet.

I love the brioche–no purls and no k2tog’s– and still textured.

I made chili for dinner tonight, thickened only with the chili puree: a quarter onion, four cloves of garlic, three anchos, two mulattos, two pasillos, two guajillos and three small arbols. Ground my own beef while I was at it. It was some of the best chili I’ve made in ages.

Then I made a chili sauce for cheese enchiladas for tomorrow’s Valentine’s dinner.

My brother gave us a history of Tex-Mex cooking (with recipes) for the holidays, and as much as I love Tex-Mex and would have no compunction ordering such in a Tex-Mex restaurant in Texas, there is no way I can bring myself to make enchiladas with Velveeta. Sadly, I can’t even say the idea repels me. There’s really nothing like Velveeta and Ro-tel tomatoes melted together, but the cholesterol, the fat, the whatever.

Currently listening to: Frou Frou

As requested, here’s a shot of Hat I, the only WIP I have right now.

The orange is a provisional cast-on and will be removed when I start the inner portion of the hat.

I’ve also completed a second gearshift knob mitten for my sister’s expensive car:

The one on the left is probably too small, but I wanted it to fit snugly. This item is lovingly photographed on an inverted Tyrconnel Irish Whiskey shotglass. The one on the right was a practice at lace, using the Pine Tree pattern mentioned below. It is also lovingly photog’ed on a silver candlestick, stuffed with a white paper towel to show the yarnover holes.

For more details see my Knitting page.

Currently listening to: the dryer