The postillion was struck by lightning

Today I gave myself a day off. And so did everybody else. Hooray! I think I earned it, since the last couple weeks haven't been anything but cursing. (And moving cattle. Which was really just more cursing, now that I stop and think about it.) So today I slept in and took a nap. Good combination, since my family now seems to be made up of human beings rather than demons.

The weather continues cold and rainy, which is great. No, really! It is. This means that my rutabagas will be storing up lots of energy for winter and getting hyooge. They are already heading toward baseball size, so by the first frost, they should be softball size. I thinned the row out a couple weeks ago, and they're delicious. After the first frost, they should be really sweet and at the height of their rutabaga perfection.

Unfortunately, all this rain also means that my tomatoes are splitting on the vine. So sad. They have to be thrown out, because the cracks invite bacterial and fungal growth. Bleh.

And now, some lists.

Wedding Stuff Left To Do

1. Put the zipper in my dress and hem it.
2. Wash and frame Rachel and Bubba's wedding gift, and knit potholders to match.*
3. Make ringbearer's pillow. Very simple. I could do this tonight and do the finishing while watching Mad Men and True Blood.
4. Make two or three little bags for the bridesmaids to put lipstick, ID, etc. into. I might not make one for myself, because I'm a rebel like that.
5. Wax my upper lip! Cannot forget to do this! I'd hate for Rachel and Bubba's kids to be looking through her wedding album and say, "Mommy, I didn't you had three brothers. Why is one of them wearing a dress?"

Crafting/Sewing/Blahdiblah To Do After Wedding

1. Start Mom's Christmas present. Must find a different verse to plop in the middle, since we are not at all religious and she doesn't like it.
2. Take measurements for chargirlgenius's FGD flat pattern-making exercise.
3. Make super-awesome black and white striped shirt that I do not have a pattern for, because apparently there are no patterns for what I'm planning. Three-quarter length sleeves, boat neck raglan fitted through the body. The fabric I have is knit, and I haven't decided if I want to do a contrasting collar band yet or not. I'm aiming for apache dancer or casual Jackie O. Neckline like this but fitted through the body and sleeves.

I have a couple knitting designs and some plans for a steampunk costume and a George Sand costume floating around, but nothing concrete. I wanted to wear the steampunk outfit to GeekCon in Madison, for my first con evar. I thought it was in October though, and discovered last week that it is the week after Rachel's wedding. So out of the question! I'm going to spend that weekend . . . sleeping. Not driving anywhere or doing anything more strenuous than cleaning or writing or knitting.

_{*At the beginning of the summer, I was all, "I'm going to knit them an afghan!" except I forgot what knitting afghans in 90-degree temps was like. No way! I don't love anybody to the point of heat exhaustion. The butterfly thingy matches their kitchen and Rach has five separate entries for potholders/dish towels on her registry, so I feel safe about these choices. I'm subbing three days this week, so I know I have time to knit some domino and/or entrelac potholders. Double knitting, maybe?}

So, I'm trapped inside today because I was running a fever last night, and I decided I'd better stick to the house this morning and rest. We'll see how I'm feeling when Mom gets home from work, because we're supposed to plant the garden before chores, and I really want to get out in the dirt and dig. But right now it's just me and my can of diet Dr. Pepper and a pad of graph paper.

Pad of graph paper? What are you going to do with that, Sarah? I hear you ask. Well, I will tell you, friends.

I am mapping out the garden plot, so we know where to plant what and what we've planted where, on the off chance our markers are destroyed. We'll also be able to figure out what to plop in the overflow plot that is going in our backyard. (The current garden plot is in the backyard of our old house, which we still don't know what will happen to. It will probably be torn down sometime in the next year . . . I think.) I think all the early stuff will be going in the first plot -- lettuce, radishes, etc. Peppers are being potted. The stuff that needs more maintenance -- tomatoes and squash, for example -- will be going in the overflow plot.

Wish me luck, folks! I've got a lot of seeds to cram into a 7' by 12'rectangle.