Who says you can't teach an old dog new tricks?

I have been mesmerized working on the Vortex shawl in Kauni. The colour changes are amazing and the pattern is easy but elegant. I am up to over 360 stitches right now and still going strong.

I have been an English knitter for over 40 years. I was self taught and didn't know there was another way to knit until I joined several groups on the internet. Continental knitting was mentioned and it intrigued me, but I found I couldn't get tension and gave up in frustration.

Yesterday I browsed YouTube for some videos and found an excellent one that showed how to tension yarn in the left hand. And I was off. I am in love with this technique and will likely switch over to it. I am only using it on the Vortex shawl right now, but I am happy with my tension.

Waiting in the wings, temporarily on hold is the Irish Diamond shawl by Cheryl Oberle from Folk Shawls. Make a note that there is lots of errata for this book, a bit of a disappointment when there are so many mistakes given the cost of the book. This is the replacement shawl for the two I lost and I am in love with the angora blend from Colourmart. It blooms wonderfully and this is going to be my favourite comfort shawl.

I am finding that lace is my comfort knitting right now. I have been going through my rather bad stash trying to make some tops for myself, only to find out that my son took out parts of yarn. I always bought with lots of extra and I am finding for each lot that I am missing 5-10 balls. This wouldn't be so bad if I was tiny like I used to be, but medication has put weight on me and now I just don't have enough. Another wave of grief and mourning has been overwhelming me each time I find something I like, only to realize there isn't enough anymore. I am almost to the point where I just want to throw everything out and start over again so I can avoid the hurt and disappointment each search brings.

The glory of lace

I just realized that I have forgotten to post finished pictures of Alita. Well here she is in all her glory! The edging turned out more ruffled than I would like, but she sure is a beauty.

Alita, size 10 thread, size 1 US needles

  

   

It has been a while

I don't know where the time went. Things have been chaotic and there has been a lot of self discovery over the past few months.

I started on a new medication for my sleep in May. While it hasn't "fixed" the problem, I am definitely doing better and Dakota isn't alerting as much. The poor thing went through withdrawal, going from alerting almost constantly to alerting a few times maybe every five days. I had to do some retraining because he just didn't know what to do with himself and he is doing better now.

I have been doing a lot of healing as well. It has been two years since I left my abusive son who took advantage of my disability. He took a lot of things from me, some of which can never be replaced. I got 10 hand knit socks, each missing its mate. He took my two favourite shawls - the Irish Diamond shawl which I love dearly. I lost about $500 worth of fibre, knitting machines and the list goes on.

I have spent much of the past two years trying to replace my socks, since I only wear hand knit. I finally tackled trying them on the knitting machine and am quite pleased with the results. I will post pictures another day. These definitely are a labour of love, but they work and are quicker than I can knit :)

Now that socks are taken care of I decided it was time to replace my shawl. I have some angora/merino/nylon blend that I got from Colourmart and have started another Irish Diamond shawl. I also have yarn for two more shawls from some Kauni and I can't wait to get started on those. I love wrapping myself in a shawl, especially when my pain is bad or I am so tired that I am freezing. It is like giving myself a hug, and nothing beats it on those bad days.

The hurt of what my son did runs deep. He doesn't talk to me and that I can handle, but it is what he did after I left that has left its mark. I know that hurt will never go away, but I have finally taken the first step to healing and I am proud of myself for that.

Service Dogs

Dakota went in and was neutered on Thursday. We did him early as the vet didn't want to risk the chance of his hormones kicking in and him not listening to me. I was very lucky and the Lion's Club in the area paid for Dakota's vet bill! I had applied for assistance but didn't find out until after the surgery so this was a nice surprise. In return, the vet is making a donation to the Lion's Club - awesome! Dakota and I seem to be touching lives everywhere here. The people at the bank went out and got a treat jar and treats just for Dakota. They surprised me when they offered me a treat to give to Dakota later :) They even commented on how far he has come in the last few months and are very impressed.

I am actually surprised at how well Dakota is being accepted here. This is a very small town and I expected some problems, but everyone has been very accepting and I haven't had one problem. Right now I am working on manners with Dakota, so that the public can pet him. The amazing thing is that people are eager to hear about my disorder and what they can expect from Dakota when he is alerting and how they can help.

I was thinking about it today and Dakota has honestly given me my life back. Yes, I am still severely disabled, but I feel more in control now thanks to him. I liken my sleep intrusions to petit mal seizures and it helps to explain to people what is occurring. The symptoms are very similar, as are the number of seizures/intrusions that you can get per day. I feel like a huge weight has been lifted off me and I missed Dakota so much when he was at the vet. I really have come to depend on him to tell me where I am at. The number of alerts he gave per day were scary initially but now I really need Dakota to be there by my side.

I have also been working on trying to get him to settle once he alerts. Because there isn't much I can do to "make it better" there are times when Dakota will alert for hours on end. At home he is learning to settle and I will thank him for the alert and tell him to play with his teddy. When we are out he gets quite vigorous in his alert because he wants me home. The funny thing is that I initially was using the command "stop", which he wouldn't listen to. Now I use the command "settle" and he has taken to that. He knows what "stop" means, but refused to stop alerting.  I realized yesterday that Dakota doesn't play with me in the typical hyper puppy way. That is the way he alerts when I am out and he is adamant that I get home. To others it looks like he is playing but I know what he is telling me. This big boy was born just for this purpose and he won't give it up at all. I have definitely been blessed.

Dakota is labeled a "service dog" and he performs an invaluable service to me. He doesn't like being without me - the vet will tell you how much he misses his human :) I had to pick him up early because he was putting up such a ruckus. This morning he shocked me when I jokingly told him to put the pillow on the couch and he did it! So we did 3 other pillows (he knocks them off) and he picked up all of those as well - wow! I was astounded that he did this so easily and there is definite potential for a lot more for him to do. So now I clamp down on the obedience training and start putting him through his paces. I am eager to see where Dakota will take me.

Alita continues

I am still working on the doily, Alita. It was on hold until I could get some longer circulars, but she is back up and going now. I am on round 112 with a whopping 700 stitches per round! No wonder it is taking forever for me to get a round done!

It is hard to get a good picture while she is all scrunched up on the needles, but here are a few pictures. She really is a beauty and I can't wait to finish her and get her blocked. So far I have only made one small mistake, which I figure isn't bad for size 10 thread and US 1 needles.

Inexperienced Vets

Okay, I just need to get it out and I figured most of you would understand:) Dakota has been through his "terrible twos" and is even more attentive and alerting to me now. I tell you, this is one dog that knows he was born for a purpose and he takes it seriously. So far I have had 3 very bad days where he keeps alerting and nothing will stop him. Sunday was one, so out of curiousity I thought I would take him for a walk. He wouldn't even let me go a block. He guided me back toward home and nipped me when I ignored him and was chatting with some kids. I am fine with that. There obviously is something very wrong on those days and he is bound and determined that I be safe in bed. He has made me feel so safe and secure, and I feel very blessed. God may have messed up my brain, but he has brought me Dakota to help.

Monday. I am exhausted after these bad days and I had to take Dakota in for his last boosters. I can take him into stores no problem, but he acts up at the vet. I realized  that it is because the other doctor gave him treats, which also explains why Dakota has been trying to climb up on counters that look like the examining counter . Had a new doctor today, female, who constantly told me that all of Dakota's behaviours were "puppy" things and that he wasn't alerting at all. I really didn't need to hear this, from a professional, the day after I sat and listened to him alert for 6 hours straight! Her response was that he wanted attention. Can we say NOT!

 When I got home I called the vet and was just in tears, nearing hysterics. Later on  I talked to the owner about another matter and addressed this issue as well. I told him that this doctor needs a lesson in tact, diplomacy, respecting severely disabled people, and understanding alert dogs. Boy did that ever feel good :) We have agreed that I will take Dakota to the first doctor that works at the clinic, whom I really like.

 In the meanwhile, I have enjoyed going out almost daily with Dakota. He has been well tolerated at the Dollar Store, pet store, pharmacy, and the bank, even by a lady who doesn't like dogs and whom Dakota thought he would show how cute he was by trying to climb over the low counter :) We are working on that bad habit. Since he has gotten his vest, people have been very respectful of him, asking to pet him, keeping their distance, and just loving how well behaved he is when he does behave (95% of the time). He now weighs 34 pounds and the vet estimates he will be close to 60 when he is done growing. Since he is such a big breed, I will have to wait until he is a year old and his growth plates are done growing to put him in a mobility harness.

I think spring has sprung

The weather the last few days has been absolutely beautiful. I am hoping that this is the beginning of spring and that the cold weather is gone for this year. I don't do as well in the cold and find it very difficult to walk, not only from the pain, but also because I lose my footing very easily. Dakota should be in his harness for next winter and that should help give me some added stability.

Dakota and I have been taking advantage of the nice weather and have had several short outings. We are really working on manners right now because he is going through his "terrible two's" and thinks that everyone should love and pet him. Of course, I think that he knows he is special, which isn't helping his ego trip any :) He has learned to jump up on counters so he can see the person behind it - big no, no so we have been addressing that. People have been very accommodating. He has been well tolerated in all the stores we have been in and now that he has his vest, people are being quite courteous and asking if they can pet him. Right now he is on a no petting rule until he gets used to people not gushing over him.

It is hard to believe that he is only 4 months old. His training is going very well and he knows all the basic commands. Yesterday we started on him taking the stairs one at a time and now he makes sure he watches my feet before he proceeds to the next step. We have started the "brace" command, just so he knows it. I can't actually put much weight on him until his growth plates are set, but at least he will know what to do when the time comes. He seems to love helping me and we will start on teaching him to open doors, etc. probably in the next few months.

Dakota has become more pronounced in his alerts and I now introduce him as a medical alert dog. He is very good at knowing where I am at and what I need. I have had him tug me by the pants to get me to come home, guide me along a railing so I can hold onto it and quite a few other things. He alerts pretty much daily, which I hoped for given the severity of my sleep disorder. It does get annoying on my really bad days though because he won't stop alerting and there isn't anything I can do to make it better. Annoying or not, I am glad I have him and wouldn't give him up for the world. He really has changed my life for the better.