Why hello there . . .

Posts have been few and far between this summer and I apologize for that. I had every intention of being an avid blogger during the summer but . . . well, clearly that hasn't happened. Between the move, work, the lack of internet at my place, and kicking back in general I haven't been up to a whole lot. I have however turned into a knitting superstar. The lack of internet and television at my apartment means that I spend a lot of evenings reading or watching movies on my laptop and knitting. I've gotten through a pair of fingerless gloves, a hat, a skirt, a pair of socks, and I'm in the midst of a bag. All of that in the past 2 weeks, isn't that a little superstar-ish? I feel like I'm in training for the Knitting Olympics.

At the moment I'm in a coffee shop surfing the web but also doing some work on-line. It's a nice coffee shop and I enjoy being here but the music is so loud I feel like I can barely hear myself think. On one hand it does drown out the conversations of the people at tables nearby but I definitely couldn't listen to my own music if I wanted to . . . too much clashing and competing noise. Maybe I should bring earplugs instead of earphones next time. I must admit though that it is very fun to people watch.

In the foreground of my lovely view of Mt Rainier from the living room is a dying (or perhaps already dead) cedar tree. There are a pair of hummingbirds that like to zoom about the top of it. I suspect that they have a nest there but I can't see it. Every once in a while I'll catch a glimpse of them sitting on a branch before they start zooming about and it strikes me as odd. I mean obviously they should be able to perch there but whenever you see them hovering you don't see their legs so I start to think of them as being without legs. Poor things, I've mentally turned them into amputees. Anyway, that's my random though for the day.

August in Seattle

August in Seattle ushers in the season of blackberries. They can be found everywhere, lining roads and sidewalks. The Burke-Gilman Trail is lined with an especially prolific population of blackberry bushes. There is nothing more enjoyable than going for a leisurely stroll along the trail, stopping here and there for a snack of freshly picked berries. Equally enjoyable is watching other people stop to munch on berries. Everyone from serious cyclists, decked out in their spandex gear standing astride their bikes reaching for a cluster of berries, to businessmen in suits and ties out on their lunch break, gingerly leaning over the bushes to pick berries without getting their apparel stained or snagged by the bushes, can be seen along the trail.

For myself, August has brought a new apartment and soon a new roommate. The moving process was spread out over several days but now it is finally finished and I'm settled (more or less) in my new apartment, although not in my own room since someone is still living in it. To settle into my own room I'll have to wait a couple more weeks. Actually to do any unpacking at all I'll have to wait a couple more weeks. Until then I'm living out of luggage and boxes, which I should be used to by now with all the traveling I do but somehow it's different. When you only have one piece of luggage with a limited number of things in it you can resolve yourself to those items, but when you have all of your belongings in luggage with you and theoretically available to you it is intensely frustrating because really they're not available to you unless you know exactly where you've packed everything - which I don't. It takes me 20 minutes to find any one piece of clothing I'd like to wear and really that's not a very efficient way of getting dressed. I should really just content myself with what is most easily accessible but what's the point of having your entire wardrobe packed and within reach if you can't wear it?

On the upside my new apartment has a fantastic view of Mt Rainier from the living room, the balcony, and my bedroom - I'm thrilled!