Friday, May 25, 2007

A Relaxing Weekend (Hopefully)

Last weekend was definitely not relaxing. We arranged for a tow truck to meet us at Union Station on Sunday morning and tow Daniel's car back to our house.

Cost of a tow from Union Station to Leesburg? $207.00
Not having to worry about Daniel breaking down? Priceless

I drove Daniel and his girlfriend back to Poquoson Sunday afternoon and spent the night with my parents. It was good to see them again, even though it was a really quick trip. We had dinner at Captain Chuck-a-Muck's and Mom and I both got the crab cake. It was a pretty good crab cake; a little on the gummy side, but a nice taste. Dad got the fried oysters. There was a lot of food for the price; we all walked away stuffed! I did not however, drink the Jamaican Jet Fuel. I'll save that for another day.

I drove back Monday (and picked up the most delicious strawberries on the way) and the rest of the week was spent at work. I managed to get a little knitting in while watching the Food Network with Tom. The first simple stockinette sock is growing and should soon be done. That's about all I feel like knitting--simple stockinette socks. Unfortunately, the nieces are not going to stop growing and if I don't get my act together real soon, the Sweaters of Frustration will fit only their baby dolls. Or their baby brother. Given that these sweaters are a bit on the girly side, I don't think my brother would appreciate the gift.

Weekend Plans
We gave up traveling on Memorial Day weekend a while ago. There are just too many people on the road. So this long weekend will be spent working around the house. That includes a trip to the local farmers market, housecleaning, and with any luck, knitting and (gasp!) spinning.

My recent attempts at spinning have been frustrating and somewhat physically painful. For the life of me I could not treadle slowly without the wheel stopping at the top of each revolution. A couple of weeks ago, I solved the problem by using a lower seat. Standard chair seats are 18 inches high. Spinning stools are about 17 inches high. My new seat (my old adjustable harp bench) is 16 inches high. Given that I'm short, that should be just about perfect! I'm anxious to try it out. Since Tom is running 19 hilly miles tomorrow, I'll spin while he's in recovery mode.

What's that you say? What do I mean by harp bench? I used to play the Celtic harp and for a brief period, was learning to play the pedal harp. Unfortunately, I couldn't take my harps with me when I moved to Paris (France) and my musical career (such that it was) came to a screeching halt. Maybe one day I'll pick it up again. I still have my small harp; I sold my pedal harp to a promising young student. I hope it still has a good home. It was such a beautiful, sweet harp.

3 comments:

Sheepish Annie said...

How neat that you could find a good use for the harp bench! I'm always interested in where people park for spinning. I use my grandmother's old sewing chair. I've seen other people spin from the sofa... It really does make a difference in how the wheel functions for the spinner. Who knew????

PurlingPirate said...

There is so much I don't know about you!! Paris and the harp?!?!
My parents are coming for the long weekend. Sunday will be hectic but I'm looking forward to a quiet restful Monday!

Mia said...

Interesting note about the height of seats for spinning. But you really aren't that short since you are a little bit taller than I am.

And why am I not surprised by the towing bill? They seem to charge quite bit for towing.