Monday 17 October 2016

Memorandum Monday: You Need a Bigger Stick

Monday: you've brought us some bright sky here. At last. It has been a watery kind of a weekend; but as the patient here at last has a diagnosis, we were happy to splash through a few puddles.

The Aftur Sweater, from a free pattern by Vedis Jonsdottir, on Ravelry and the Istex Lopi wool site


Took a call from Little E, early Saturday morning. I say early: clearly Little E had been up for hours. We, on the other hand were still in our pyjamas. I hit the button quick smart and his grinning, wide awake face appeared.

"Come see my fish tank!" he said.

And then the screen went blank. His uncle and I looked at each other.

"He's dropped the phone into the fish tank, hasn't he?" we both said at once.

But we were both wrong. The screen flickered back to life.

"Ta - Da!" said Little E

(he's such a showman) and he revealed a brand new model bridge, freshly installed in his fish tank, so that now his fish can get from one side of the tank to the other without getting their feet wet.

At lunchtime the phone rang again. Not my phone, this time, so I didn't take much notice until I heard the words ...

"...just what exactly are you bailing with?"

purposefully followed by

"...you need a bigger stick.."

Flood in Studentland! The extremely heavy rain which had been falling into the little back yard for the previous twelve hours was lying because the drain was blocked. It's hard for a Dad to resist a call like that. 

"Didn't the doctor specifically say NO Landlording" I asked.

"That was a joke. Honestly. I won't be long," he replied, heading off with his wellies. And a bigger stick. 



He was indeed back soon; and he fell back into bed, to sleep for most of the rest of the weekend. Which is why I have another completed woollen to show you. I have never knitted a sweater in two weeks before. And I learned a new stretch bind off (to ensure maximum pull-over-the-head-ability). Oh, and a bought a rice cooker. That's my memo!

So, how about you? Anything new? Anything you learned that you didn't know before? Maybe a memo is in order? We'd love to hear it! Last week Alexandra, Deb, Helena, Linda, Mitra, Mary-Lou, Karen, Maggie, Alexa, Ladkyis, Fiona, Jane, Barbara and Susanne made their notes and were kind enough to share. Go on: give 'em a wave. There's some sad news in among the fun in there: Ladkyis, we're thinking about you.





The best of weeks to you. I'll be back soon.

23 comments:

Susan said...

Your "dad to the rescue" story made me smile, as we've received plenty of calls/texts from our girls while at college seeking advice about car troubles, broken water heaters and the like. And, like your husband, mine is always ready with advice and assistance. Beautiful sweater - love the purple!

Ruth said...

That jumper is gorgeous!
I don't know whether to be cross with TA for going out to help them or to be cheering him on! I do hope that he didn't overdo it though?

Julie Kirk said...

Good to hear - although you might have to keep that big stick handy if he tries to do too much more landlording.

Amazing how anxiety focuses the mind isn't it? At least your energy ended up in a beautiful jumper knitted with love.

Wishing you all a restful, gentle week. x

Ali said...

Love the jumper - its gorgeous!! Hope you hubby is ok and back to 100% soon. Good luck with the rice cooker - I bought one tried it 3 times (not sure if it was because it was a cheap one) but we had bubbling over, hard rice & not enough rice which still wasnt cooked properly - back to the steamer for me lol. Enjoy the rest of your week x

Maggie said...

What a dedicated landlord/dad. Hope he is none the worse for it

Jane said...

good old dad. The jumper is gorgeous.

Fiona@Staring at the Sea said...

Gorgeous jumper. Glad you have a diagnosis at last and hopefully a course of treatment to get him well.

helena said...

fabulous jumper and super quick - hope he is on the mend now after dashing to the rescue with his big stick. Have a good week

alexandra s.m. said...

As soon as I saw the beautiful jumper I thought "already?!"
It is fabulous Sian! You must be very proud! Would love to see it on ;)
Have a great DRY week!
xx

Jennifer Shaw said...

Such a beautiful sweater. That was fast! Glad to hear that your husband has a diagnosis. Hope he is feeling better soon. :)

Linda said...

Love the sweater! Lol at Little E's fish bridge! Glad to hear that your husband has a diagnosis, hope he feels better soon!

Barbara said...

Oh what a beautiful jumper! and you finished it in two weeks, well done. I hope your husband will be feeling much better soon.

alexa said...

So glad to read that The Accountant is able to be up and about in rescue mode, even if he needs lots of R and R. You've made a stunning job of that jumper. Any way of avoiding the too tight neck hole has to be a winner. Lost in admiration for your knitting and styling abilities!

Sandra said...

When in doubt a Dad can fix anything. I hope he's better soon, poor chap, he really must have had enough of this by now.

You know I'm in awe of your knitting xxx

KraftyKaren said...

Even at 52 a girl still needs her Dad to come to the rescue - I am so glad he only lives 10 minutes down the road from me now.

Fabulous jumper - it looks so warm and cosy, well done on getting it knitted so quickly.

Have a great week x

Mitralee said...

Goodness, it's like my oak leaves are over there in your yard...how did you do that? ;-) Mine get placed into my photos too because they are awesome. Wet or not, it's hard not to like fall. Grass grows well here this time of year finally. Glad to hear the drain got cleared out, nobody likes standing water! And beautiful job on your sweater!

Karen said...

The sweater is just as beautiful as I expected it would be, and I'm happy to hear that The Accountant felt well enough to go to the rescue. I hope he didn't do himself in!

Lizzy Hill said...

Soooo glad he's feeling well enough to tackle a blocked drain. Even if that was the end of the day! And to know WHAT'S going on is a great:) LOOOOOVE your sweater. Despite that it involves knitting and purple. It really is quite The Thing! WELL DONE you:):)

debs14 said...

I do hope he's recovered from his 'landlording ' expedition. What an absolutely gorgeous sweater, here's hoping that next week's post brings news of a full recovery.

Missus Wookie said...

Ah - the Dad to the rescue story sounded familiar, although Wookie hasn't had to visit Princess as she's too far away. But over the phone advice and instructions have happened. Hope he's feeling better soon.

That is a gorgeous sweater.

Jo said...

That is a lovely sweater. I'm glad you've got a diagnosis and dad could leave his sick bed just long enough to save the day!

Patio Postcards said...

Glad that TA has a name to what is ailing him which we hope equals a quicker recovery. Your knitted sweater is lovely, the purples are so rich.

Melissa said...

What a lovely sweater! And a bummer to have some "landlording" during an illness!

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