Hello Summer, Good-bye

Spring in the Chicago area is always a gamble. Sometimes it snows in April and sometimes, like this past weekend, it hits the 80 degree mark and above. It’s kind of like April doesn’t know what it wants to be when it grows up, so it’s trying out a few different things.

I’ve been looking forward to the weather warm-up so I can get back on my Harley and do some riding with my Dad. This weekend, warm as it was, just didn’t pan out for riding. My godson’s big birthday blow-out party was Saturday—equipped with an animal balloon maker, a glitter tattoo artist, a decorate-your-own-mylar-balloon station, one of those blow-up jumpy castle things and a magician.  It all went well until it came time to open presents, at which point every child in attendance went out of his/her mind hopped up on sugar eager to see what the birthday boy received. There was running and screaming and falling and crying and wrapping paper flying around. Complete madness.

By the time that party was over, we had to rush home to get ready for a wedding. As we were driving back to my house and getting passed by motorcycle after motorcycle, I just kept saying out loud “what a good day to be out on the bike” followed by a sigh. The following day was even warmer but super windy. I’ve been out on the bike once on one of those kinds of days and it was incredibly scary. I took a ride out to Rockford (about an hour or so northwest) with my parents on a really nice warm day last summer. We had lunch at the Kegel Harley Davidson diner and then turned around to go back home. On the way home, the wind totally picked up and I was “this close” to pulling my bike over on the side of the road and crying. Doing 70+ miles an hour on an open highway with sideways wind gusts trying to knock you over was a truly frightening experience. I was completely exhausted by the time I got home. I don’t want to go through that again if I can help it. 

In knitting news, I’ve started working on Cecily Glowik MacDonald’s Streamside short-sleeve cardigan. It has pockets. I love me some pockets. What I also love is that it's knit from the top down and it's seamless. No seams ... woo and hoo!!

Spring has sprung.