Not Everyone Can Be Number One.

I finally got my shawls back - after a week of calling.  The person in charge of the contest as I have said does not answer her phone nor does she have an answering machine. Since I was out seeing patients in that area all week it would have been easy for me to swing by and pick the shawls up, especially since I was literally right down the road on a couple of occasions. I tried calling at night, in the morning, putting the phone on speaker and letting it ring. She finally called back last night (after I called the festival committee)  and asked me to call before coming this morning so she could make sure nothing happened to my stuff. I called. Called again. Finally gave up and on our way to Washington we stopped by and I banged shamelessly on the door because she was indeed home and apparently doing everything but answering the phone.  I have no idea.  She gave me back my shawls and was very nice - she also threw in a pair of gardening gloves. I have no idea but could use them. While digging in the bag I discovered I won second place which was a pleasant surprise. The shawls will be traveling to Mannington in August to compete there - I am also considering the Buckwheat Festival. We shall see what I have time for. But I did appreciate the ribbon and the garden gloves as we all know I can use! - my hands are an incredible mess right now. The cortisone shot dried the poison ivy  up but due to all the blistering and extreme swelling my skin has been sloughing off for the past couple of days - Eww. Hopefully I'll have new skin soon and the open areas will heal closed. I still have huge red blistery patches on my sides and arms, it itches a bit more but is manageable so I'm still not taking the prednisone and will not if I can avoid it. My knitting has Suffered Greatly - I managed to start turning the heel of the second sock and hopefully will get most of it done this weekend. I feel like I've been knitting it forever! I am planning on another shawl after that, then maybe a sweater. We went out today to Washington just for fun shopping - we did the Tanger Outlet, Bloomin Yarns and Gander Mountain for a new collar for Reuben. He needed a bright orange one because one of the reason is Vizsla's are that lovely russet color is because they blend so well into the fields - Reuben virtually disappears in the hedgerow - now you see him now you don't. A little disconcerting to put it mildly! David rototilled the half of the garden I haven't planted yet so I'm making rows and will be making a second attempt at it - the dogs enjoy the garden very much. Chasing each other and rolling in the dirt, digging holes and eating roots - can't imagine why it's so hard to grow anything besides poison ivy. I am off on Monday and off call so I'm very much enjoying just laying around doing nothing much.