Buckwheat

It was finally time for the Buckwheat Festival - and the day of course dawned Dark and Gloomy with Intermittent Spats Of Rain. The temp has dropped down so much we have the heat on, but I'm certainly grateful I HAVE heat now! We parked at the church - $5 a car and then headed in for buckwheat pancakes. All of the churches, firehouses, etc charge for parking and it goes to that facility so you don't mind paying. The breakfast is all you can eat but if you've ever had a buckwheat pancake you can't eat much so they make out well with that. It was fun walking around the fair grounds, looking at the 4-H farm animals and seeing who won a prize for the best in show, etc.  4-H is pretty big around here and the way it's done is you get two animals, one to raise as your show animal and the other to raise and give back to 4-H. They sell it and buy more animals for other 4-H kids to raise, at least that's the way it was explained to me years ago. I bought buckwheat flour for Ray and Ramp Wine for myself - I'm very curious about how it will taste! I saw the knitting exhibits and  I have to say I could have won it hands down! Next year I will win it - the entries had to be in by the end of April so it was too late for me but it's on my list for next year.  I did manage to stay on my diet, I've lost over 25 pounds so far and have only about 5 (or so) to go. The last few pounds are the hardest - before it was sliding off, now it's going ounce by ounce. I guess however it goes is okay - as long as it goes. On the way back we stopped at one of my favorite farm stands, when I was a visit nurse I was there every other week at least. It's so inexpensive and you can buy all sorts of stuff! We just sort of meandered home after that, a little here, a little there. I did some knitting in the car, I'm almost halfway thru sock number two and am sort of plotting what my next project will be. I have some wonderful blue yarn I'd like to knit a shawl with - I know I have 900 meters so I have to sort of match the yarn to a pattern because I know I can't get anymore of it. Pearl is still mourning her friend Gabe - she doesn't know what happened to him of course and that makes it harder. When we go outside she stands and stares at his back porch as if she can will him to come out. She snuck over there this morning and was looking for him, he had a favorite spot under the porch. She has not quite realized he won't be coming back, I guess it takes awhile. We are playing around again with the idea of getting another dog but we're going to wait until we can think clearly. I know Gabe was not ours, but we saw him everyday since we've moved in - if he wasn't on my back porch peeking in and wagging his tail waiting for his friend to come out, Pearl was over there on his back porch. He will be greatly missed.