Peas and Socks

I am working for Smith Frozen Foods
this summer as a shuttle driver for peas. The combines harvest the peas, a loader in the field drives the truck around to each combine to fill it and I am one of several drivers that shuttle the peas back to the processing plant. It has been quite the challenge to relearn to drive truck. I got my Class A CDL two years ago, but have not driven truck since then. I am getting better. The trucks are old and sometimes hard to shift with or without using the clutch. Early in the season (June) I got my truck stuck in the wet, soft sand when we were harvesting along the Columbia River in Irrigon, Oregon. Today, we are closer to the Blue Mountains. One of the combines got stuck in the soft mud of a "dry" creek bed. It was dry on top and there was peas to harvest. It was NOT dry underneath. It had the consistency of chocolate pudding. 30 tons of combine mired up to it's axle!!!! When I left for the day, Little (the combine's name) was still mired. Rumor has it that a crane will have to be brought out to pull her out of the mud.



I am learning to knit socks!!! I have only been knitting for 3 years. I learned from a book by Leisure Arts: "10-20-30-minutes-to-learn-to-knit " I have made the dishcloths and the baby blanket from that book. I have been following Judy L at Patchwork Times for several years now. She knits beautiful socks and waves them in front of our collective faces. Finally, I couldn't stand it any longer and when I was at the Sewing & Stitchery Expo in Puyallup, WA this year, I bought two skeins of really pretty sock yard in a purple variegated heather that is self striping and needles. It took me several months to find an instruction book. I finally found 3: American School of Needlework's "Learn to Knit Socks" by Edie Eckman; House of White Birches' "Learn to Knit Socks -- Three Easy Methods" also by Edie Eckman; Leisure Arts' "I can't believe I'm knitting socks" by Cindy Guggemos. Mostly I am using "I can't believe I'm Knitting Socks" with reference to the other two books when I get stuck. This teaches using 5 dpns. I am using Clover bamboo size 5 which is 3.75mm I also got a book on crocheting socks. I think I am set for awhile. There is some minor laddering at the junction of each set of needles, but at this point, I can live with it. After all this IS my first pair! I also picked up a book on crocheting socks. I have had several offers from various people I come across in the community who said they could help me when I get stuck. Even struck up a conversation with another grandmother waiting for her grandson at karate. LOL