Today is one of those days when I am really missing the West. Last winter we were living in Colorado, just west of Boulder, courtesy of my husband's journalism fellowship. During our nine months there, I fell in love with the Southwest, particularly New Mexico. I have regular fantasies about moving to Santa Fe. Today I am nursing those fantasies by crocheting the mosaic afghan from the yarn I picked up last March at Tierra Wools and I'm burning some Southwestern incense in a little earthenware kiva. Tonight I will make green chile for dinner.

Here is the finished "Incan Figures" bag, front:



and back:



I also stitched in a lining and zipper, which the ever-curious Dani inspects here:



I've made some more progress on the front of Fjalar and I've started the third repeat of Donegal. My mindless take-away knitting is The Rebozo shawl, but as I'm slowly working my way off of boards that have a lot of meetings, progress on that is slowing down.

No finished objects to show today, but I've made some progress on Donegal:




I've also cast on for a bag, "Incan Figures" from Folk Bags. One of these days I'm going to figure out how to make a nifty "current projects" link on this blog, but in the meantime, my WIPs include the mosaic afghan, "The Rebozo" shawl from Cheryl Oberle's Folk Shawls and the Fjalar pullover. Plus, I've swatched a couple of things for Level 1 in the TKGA master knitting course.

This blogger would like to congratulate John Kerry for securing the Democratic presidential nomination. Although I did not vote for him in my state caucus, I admire him and will be thrilled to cast my ballot for him in November. Godspeed, John Kerry.

The outrage of the week, or of last week more precisely, is the Resident's cynical endorsement of the proposed constitutional amendment -- you know the one. I wish someone would explain to me, in simple terms that I can understand, how a same-sex marriage threatens my heterosexual marriage? Sorry, I just don't get it! Personally, I don't need the help of the religious right to defend my marriage. May I be so bold as to offer my gay and lesbian friends this response to those meddling self-righteous villains, in the immortal words of Elizabeth Bennett when confronted with the demands of the imperious Lady Catherine de Bourgh that she promise to not enter into an engagement with Mr. Darcy: "I am resolved to act in that manner, which will, in my own opinion, constitute my happiness, without reference to you, or to any person so wholly unconnected with me." Much more eloquent than my generation's "mind your own damn business."