Tag Archives: cats

Knitting memories⤴

from

With a new great nephew due soon, I’ve been spending time knitting for him – a hap to wrap him in when he arrives

134/365 Hap
134/365 Hap flickr photo by NomadWarMachine shared under a Creative Commons (BY-NC-SA) license

A stripy jacket and jester hat from the same pattern I made for his big sister

136/365 Tiny Jester
136/365 Tiny Jester flickr photo by NomadWarMachine shared under a Creative Commons (BY-NC-SA) license

And then, as I was wrapping them carefully in tissue paper to post them to my niece, I remembered that I had picked up some old baby patterns last time I was down south at mum’s – I think this is from the 1960s. I knew Rosie would appreciate me knitting something with a connection to mum.

Knitting pattern
Knitting pattern flickr photo by NomadWarMachine shared under a Creative Commons (BY-NC-SA) license

I chose a pattern that I remembered making many years ago, looked out some pretty pale purple yarn and started knitting. When I copied the pattern (the original is very battered, and I didn’t think it would stand being carried around again), I noticed that it has some of mum’s notations.
Annotations
Annotations flickr photo by NomadWarMachine shared under a Creative Commons (BY-NC-SA) license

So as I’ve been knitting I’ve felt connected to mum. I’ve been remembering how I’d  sometimes get myself into a state when my knitting went wrong, and throw it down in a temper. How mum would raise an eyebrow and tell me to leave it for another day. And how, the next day, I’d find that she’d picked it up after I’d gone to bed and unpicked the mess I’d made so I could carry on. I started knitting this because I wanted to create a memory for Rosie, and in doing this I’ve spent some happy hours revisiting my own memories.

Thanks, mum. Cardigan all finished and sewn up with ‘vintage’ buttons from my button tin.

Baby Cardigan
Baby Cardigan flickr photo by NomadWarMachine shared under a Creative Commons (BY-NC-SA) license

I hope Baby Bridges is not allergic to cats, as when I turned around to pack this up, this is what I found.

Cat cardigan
Cat cardigan flickr photo by NomadWarMachine shared under a Creative Commons (BY-NC-SA) license

Knitting memories⤴

from

With a new great nephew due soon, I’ve been spending time knitting for him – a hap to wrap him in when he arrives

134/365 Hap
134/365 Hap flickr photo by NomadWarMachine shared under a Creative Commons (BY-NC-SA) license

A stripy jacket and jester hat from the same pattern I made for his big sister

136/365 Tiny Jester
136/365 Tiny Jester flickr photo by NomadWarMachine shared under a Creative Commons (BY-NC-SA) license

And then, as I was wrapping them carefully in tissue paper to post them to my niece, I remembered that I had picked up some old baby patterns last time I was down south at mum’s – I think this is from the 1960s. I knew Rosie would appreciate me knitting something with a connection to mum.

Knitting pattern
Knitting pattern flickr photo by NomadWarMachine shared under a Creative Commons (BY-NC-SA) license

I chose a pattern that I remembered making many years ago, looked out some pretty pale purple yarn and started knitting. When I copied the pattern (the original is very battered, and I didn’t think it would stand being carried around again), I noticed that it has some of mum’s notations.
Annotations
Annotations flickr photo by NomadWarMachine shared under a Creative Commons (BY-NC-SA) license

So as I’ve been knitting I’ve felt connected to mum. I’ve been remembering how I’d  sometimes get myself into a state when my knitting went wrong, and throw it down in a temper. How mum would raise an eyebrow and tell me to leave it for another day. And how, the next day, I’d find that she’d picked it up after I’d gone to bed and unpicked the mess I’d made so I could carry on. I started knitting this because I wanted to create a memory for Rosie, and in doing this I’ve spent some happy hours revisiting my own memories.

Thanks, mum. Cardigan all finished and sewn up with ‘vintage’ buttons from my button tin.

Baby Cardigan
Baby Cardigan flickr photo by NomadWarMachine shared under a Creative Commons (BY-NC-SA) license

I hope Baby Bridges is not allergic to cats, as when I turned around to pack this up, this is what I found.

Cat cardigan
Cat cardigan flickr photo by NomadWarMachine shared under a Creative Commons (BY-NC-SA) license

Use more cats!⤴

from

Bribery

“Bribery” flickr photo by NomadWarMachine shared under a Creative Commons (BY-NC-SA) license

Today in the Active Learning Network CPD session Isobel asks us to reflect on the sessions. The activity that I enjoyed the most was the session by Mark Wilsher called The Purr-fect Grade: How grading cats teaches us about student assessment.

What one thing will you take from the sessions?

  • Use more cats in my work
  • Use cats more in my work

What obstacles might you face?

  • Only having two cats
  • My cats not behaving when/as I want them to

How might you overcome these obstacles?

  • Get more cats!
  • Bribe/train my cats

What might you gain from this activity?

  • It would give me joy!

What might you miss if you didn’t do it?

  • The joy of talking about/stroking my cats when I should be working!

Happy birthday to me⤴

from

Prog Rock Cats
“Prog Rock Cats” flickr photo by NomadWarMachine shared under a Creative Commons (BY-NC-SA) license (Made by AI)

Today is my birthday. As I’m currently playing with AI with #ETMooc2, I asked ChatGPT to write me a poem. I also asked NightCafe for ” a birthday card with cats and prog rock”.

“Today is my birthday. I like cats and prog rock music. Could you write me a poem?”

On your special day, I’d love to convey

Wishes that brighten your world in every way

May your joys be plenty, and sorrows few

And may life bring all that’s wonderful to you

Let’s talk about cats, those lovely felines

Whose purring and meowing are music to our minds

With their soft fur and playful ways

They bring us smiles and joy each day

And then there’s the music you hold dear

Prog rock, with its complex rhythms and gear

The sounds of guitar, bass, and drums

Weaving together in intricate sums

So here’s a verse that combines the two

A poem that celebrates cats and prog rock, too

May your birthday be filled with cats and songs

And may your heart forever sing along

Happy birthday, dear one, may your day be sublime

Filled with love, laughter, and good times!

My Liminal Podcast: Open for good!⤴

from

Earlier in the summer, way back at the end of June, I had the very great pleasure of joining Puiyin Wong on her fabulous My Liminal Podcast. We had a really engaging and wide ranging discussion covering open education, OER, digital labour, knowledge equity, Wikimedia in the classroom, and perhaps most importantly, cats!  You can listen to Puiyin’s My Liminal Podcast on anchor.fm and Spotify, and follow on twitter at @MyLiminalPod.

Curtains⤴

from


Two years ago I bought the material to make a pair of curtains for my bedroom, but the holidays passed and the curtains didn’t get made.  The material sat around for a while with Lacey using it as a cushion, and then I packed it away in a bag and shoved it under the sofa. Not quite out of sight or out of mind. I could see the bag out of the corner of my eye, guilt-tripping me, but still they didn’t get made.

Finally, this year – almost two years to the day since I bought the material, I have new curtains. This holiday I have more energy (I have been boosting my B12, maybe that helped; I am happier at work, that definitely helped; a few little motivating things happened, I am sure they also helped).

So here they are. Please note that in order to make these curtains I had two apprentices – one to help with the linings, the other to help with the main material. They were diligent with their help and loyal to their chosen material. Note how cleverly each of them takes the smooth material and ruches it. It’s that attention to detail that I love.

cagney curtain

lacey curtain

And here they are, hanging at the windowsill at last.