This is the finished Spring Bag from Lily/Sugar ‘n Cream that I was challenged to make by the Calling All Crocheters group on Ravelry. It’s pretty, especially in the Loops & Threads Chameleon yarn from  Michaels. I used almost the whole 100 gram ball and the colour changes were mostly different all the way through. I think I shall have to  make something next with the rest of the yarn and my new Tunisian hooks, something really simple that just shows off the yarn itself.

The yarn is 100% acrylic, soft and a little fluffy, and a bit thicker in places, and I only found one knot which thankfully was in one strand, not both, so the colour change wasn’t too obvious.

I didn’t have any beads so used a couple of large buttons instead.

This photo was taken this morning outside (it’s cloudy today) and the difference between this and the ones I took  last night in artificial light is huge. Much better colour definition.

We had clouds all day yesterday, but it was still in the 20s, and the forecast is for a few days of clouds and some rain. We are always grateful for rain here, as we live in what’s basically a desert. I know it doesn’t look like it, with our huge lake and numerous trees, but the non-irrigated parts are brown and dry every summer. We pay per litre for the water we use, so if Mother Nature sees fit to water my garden and I can turn off my underground sprinklers, then I’m thankful for that. We water as  minimally as we can, and at night as per the city rules (which of course make sense, as otherwise it would all evaporate too quickly).

We have had to be satisfied with a less than perfect lawn, which doesn’t bother me, but if it’s too dry then it affects fruit production in our apricot and cherry trees. Tai Chi Man recently attended a xeriscaping workshop, which teaches you which plants to landscape with that can survive without irrigation. Obviously, indigenous plants fare better than ones that have been brought in just because they look nice!

Our potatoes, beans and beets have been shooting out of the ground in the last week. We tried some bird scarer tape (shiny) around the vegetable patch but it didn’t keep the quails off. So now we have some added protection with a bit of chicken wire as well, as the quails like to run through the soil, dustbathing and pecking our fresh leaves down to the ground. I realise it’s a trade-off, as I’m sure the birds eat bugs that could also eat our plants, but when armies of quail babies meet tender green leaves the result is dead plants!

As I seem to be venturing into non-crochet territory this week, one of the lowlights of my week was that my car was broken into. I went walking in a fairly remote place with a friend. I parked my car without a thought and off we went for four hours (if you’d like to Google it, it’s the famous Kettle Valley trail, which runs, I believe, from Midway to Hope, BC). There is an access into Myra Canyon off McCullough Road. It involves a rather bumpy ride of about 10km on an unpaved road. I had no problem driving it with my Toyota Matrix so you don’t need a 4WD.

The hike itself is flat, because it used to be a railway. There are no rails  there any more, but there are many trestles to cross, which have been restored by dedicated volunteers to make them safe for hikers and bikers. It’s so peaceful there, as no motorised vehicles are allowed, and the air is fresh because you’re way out of town. In places you can see the city of Kelowna 3000 feet below. We went in the morning before it got too hot.

Unfortunately, because the parking lot is deserted much of the time, opportunists come and see what the pickings are. I found this out the hard way. When we returned to the car, we got in, had a snack and some coconut water, and as I was sitting there in the drivers seat it suddenly dawned on me that my dashcam was missing. I had the thought that maybe I’d forgotten to lock the car. I also wondered if my husband had taken it out of the car because I couldn’t remember whether it had been there on the drive up. Gradually the evidence came together – I found damage on the driver’s side showing that someone had inserted something metal around the edge of the door to reach the electronic lock button. A $10 bill was also missing from the little cash drawer.

It was interesting to note my reaction to all this. I felt a little disturbed that a stranger had been rummaging through my car. I felt a little bit invaded, and a little bit sorry for my car! But not too attached to the dashcam going missing. It would have probably been a different story if I’d left my wallet and iPad Mini in the car, as that would have created considerably more issues. There have been times when I have gone walking with just a water bottle, car keys and cellphone, and left the rest in the car. Just a couple of weeks ago in fact. I won’t be doing that again!

Well, I’ve probably waffled on enough for now. Time to get on with my day. I hope your day is wonderful. 🙂