“We’re praying for rain and snow and anything else that can cause a problem.” ~ Andrew Brenner

There has been much in the news this week about 9/11 as we approach the 9th anniversary of that tragedy. However, apparently, prejudice and hatred is not a lesson we learned.

Lest you think that not true, the pastor (and I use the term loosely) from an evangelical fundamentalist church in Gainesville Florida is here to prove us all wrong.

On Saturday, he and his congregants will set some 200 copies of the Qur’an on fire to honor the 2,996 people who died that day. Perhaps this misguided pastor needs a reminder that the deceased represented more than 90 countries, some of whom were Muslim.

I truly wonder what Bible this church is using in their worship practices, because the one that I use calls for us to be “a light shining on a hill” and encourages us to “love our enemies and to pray for those who persecute us.” I do not believe that setting the Qur’an on fire is the kind of light Jesus was speaking about nor does that act show any love, mercy, or concern for anyone.

This is, I suppose, what happens when we allow the Glenn Beck’s and Rush Limbaugh’s of the world to spew their brand of filth and lies. Oh, yes, I know we all have the glorious right of “freedom of speech” yet I do not believe that freedom should come at the expense of others. Freedom of speech and freedom of religion go hand in hand, you cannot have one without the other. If you limit one, all should be limited.

We now have a nation with growing factions who believe the doubts about President Obama’s citizenship and they likewise question his faith. The adage of a “sucker being born every minute” never has been more true than it is today in America.

It is my hope to see people of every faith, creed, and color in our great nation join in unity as we all pause and remember those who died on 9/11 and I do not know about you, but I am praying for a monsoon to pour a little water on Gainesville on Saturday.

DSCF2433, originally uploaded by As Kat Knits.

An army of these beauties greeted my morning yesterday as I was heading off to work.

I have completed my first week of work and I really love it. There is a lot to learn, but I feel energized and excited to learn it all!

In case you are wondering what I am doing, I am spending my work hours at my veterinarian’s office… working where I have spent lots of time over the years and I absolutely love it.

On the knitting front, I have cast on a sweater from the latest Knitty and the weather was nice and cooperated with my efforts with a lovely cool down and relief from the recent and prolonged Triple H weather we have been experiencing! I have the body of the sweater done, and have started on the sleeves. I expect to have it done long before I need it to ward of the crisp chill of autumn.

I also have one last hurrah of summer to finish with this little number from Knitty as well. Moreover, this one has the added benefit of no sleeves, so I expect to complete my Emmaline shortly and I will cast on later today!

Have a great Tuesday everyone! Get out there and do something you enjoy doing!!

Celebrating me, originally uploaded by As Kat Knits.

Once in a while a girl can buy herself flowers. These beauties came from the sale bin at Meijer’s.

In case you are wondering what the occasion might be…. I am very happy to announce that I have, at long last, found one single full time job!!

WOOT!!

Have a nice night everyone!

Canned Summer…, originally uploaded by As Kat Knits.

As the temperatures climb back into the 90’s with a heat index to match, I am longing for some cooler weather.

However, I know that will not always be the case. Come about January 1 when it is cold and grey, summer will be a long forgotten memory.

Until I open some of this jam, that is. The warmth of summer will all come flooding back.

DSCF2332, originally uploaded by As Kat Knits.

It is kind of nice when the reflecting rays illuminate the mendacity of life. I just love when my housekeeping skills are so brilliantly showcased!

Here is to a great weekend with perhaps a splash of cleaning on top!

Currently, there is not a 12-step program for addicts to fossil fuels but perhaps there should be.

Living in Michigan, I thought us immune to the danger of a catastrophe similar to the likes of the one that is decimating the Gulf of Mexico right now. Nor did I ever think that we needed to worry about an Exxon Valdez type calamity ever washing up on the shores of any of the Great Lakes.

Who knew that in my own back yard, an oil disaster was brewing?

Sometime earlier this week, an underground pipeline owned by Enbridge Energy Partners released into Talmadge Creek some 840,000 gallons of oil. A drop in the bucket in comparison to the amount that spewed into the Gulf over the past months, however it is devastating to the fragile water Eco-system of West Michigan. This morning, Michigan Radio reported that already at least 50 geese have died and that the EPA is monitoring the toxicity of the area.

The oil has already made its way to the Kalamazoo River, which in turn feeds into Lake Michigan.

The realities of what the inhabitants who live on the Gulf Shores have been and are still experiencing arrived this week to my neighborhood in a most unwelcome manner.

Well, you might say, it is not my fault that these calamities are occurring, after all, I am not the one drilling holes in the earth to find oil!

Ah, yes… but I am a consumer of that oil!

We as a nation need to all take a step back and examine our dependence on fossil fuels, and we need to do so quickly. We need to demand viable solutions that are cost efficient as well. I would love to support Chevrolet by purchasing their new technology soon to be available in the Chevy Volt; however, with a $41,000 price tag; it is not likely that my budget will support that anytime soon.

What is the answer then that makes sense, reduces our dependence on fossil fuels, is affordable, and will find most Americans excited to support?

That is the million-dollar question, to be sure!

For starters, I would gladly support through tax dollars would be a transit system that encompassed all of West Michigan. Not only would I support it, I would use it! I drive 20 miles one-way to work, and if I had the option of taking rapid transit, I would! Yes, it might make my commute longer than the 20 or so minutes it is now, but the time would be well-spent knitting or reading. I would embrace a system that gave me alternatives to what I have today. While Holland has a version of “mass transit,” it does not function for the working crowd at all, it has limited hours and routes. Add to that the fact that it makes its last run at 6 o’clock at night and you can see the frustration many have with it.

My source of electricity uses coal for production that I find to be an archaic source, albeit effective. However, West Michigan has an abundance of wind energy that we are not effectively harnessing for our use. If we could utilize some wind turbines and use coal fired power as a backup, we could reduce our carbon footprint significantly! To those naysayers who fear a noise increase due to the turbines turning in the breeze, I offer that your lawn mower makes more noise! It seems that in a community boasting of the ownership of a windmill that they would be first on the block to be sporting some new and shiny wind turbines!

While I do not profess to have all the answers, I do indeed see that my dependency on fossil fuels is in need of some drastic alteration; perhaps I can convince Ralph Nader to start Fossil Fuels Anonymous…

A Warm Golden Glow…, originally uploaded by As Kat Knits.

After receiving a deluge of rain last night, this was the sunset that ended the day.

More rain is expected tonight, but for these few brief moments I will just bask in the glory of the setting sun.

Have a great weekend everyone.

A little light dispels a lot of darkness – Rabbi Schneur Zalman

If you have not heard of Mark Williams, I am about to introduce you to him, and while it is not a pleasant introduction I believe it is necessary.

Mr. Williams’s infamy is growing, specifically surrounding some statements he made recently. He is not only a member of the Tea Party movement but apparently a leader as well, and personally, if I were ever so inclined to become a member of this organization, which is highly unlikely, this would make me resign.

Mr. Williams is obviously a blind and ignorant bigot, but what surprises me is the lack of outcry from fellow Tea Partiers about his disgusting statements. While many bloggers, pundits, and reporters have shed some light on Mr. Williams and his comments there has been very little, if any, protest from the people who classify themselves as Tea Party Movement Members.

It causes one to believe that all Tea Partiers are of like mind, does it not? What is it that they say about birds of a feather…?

I believe that this kind of behavior just builds bigger walls keeping us separate and creates a chasm that is almost impossible to negotiate. These people do not want anyone or anything to change, for better or worse. They fear change because they are ignorant. Apparently, differences are not something to embrace, and rather they prefer a mirror image version of America that reflects their small mindedness and bigotry.

I understand people disagreeing with the current administration, honestly I do. I myself found a great deal with which to disagree in the former administration’s policies; however, I did not think that name-calling and bigotry were necessary then, nor are they now. This is not about disagreeing with the current administration…it is about the manner in which people disagree.

I do not believe that our founding fathers ever intended that our tenant of free speech to be used for name calling and tearing down others. How much longer are we going to stand by quietly and allow this kind of behavior to continue? It is wrong, it is evil, and it needs to stop. How do we ever expect to succeed as a nation if this is how we think? We need to stand together, unified, against bigotry in all of its forms.

We all need to look beyond the color of someone’s skin and look deeper than that. MLK Jr. said it best; we need to look at the content of their character. A shallow character uses ugly, degrading language. Mr. Williams’ character content is sorely lacking and has a level of bigotry that makes Archie Bunker appear tolerant and open-minded!

There are, I am sure, many who give lip service to how wrong it is to be a bigot, however they align themselves with this movement, and in doing so, their actions cause their words to ring hollow.

Perhaps no amount of light will fix the problem. However, in the bright light we can clearly see how unattractive bigotry really is.

I have signed up to do some test knitting for Rosemary Hill of Designs By Romi, and it was the smartest thing I have done in a good long while.

It is stretching my knitting skills in new directions. I am double-checking my work, comparing charts to written directions, counting stitches, and elevating my knitting skills in positive ways.

Maia is pattern #2 in Romi’s latest series, 7 Small Shawls to Knit. It is unique and brilliant in its design. Romi has definitely designed a hit with this pattern. You can find the pattern for purchase here, and trust me when I say this definitely needs to be on your Must Knit List!

My specs:

Yarn: Handmaiden Fine Yarns Sea Silk, Origin color way. I used all but a scant yard of my yarn, once again, thanks to the genius writing of the pattern. I did two repeats of the last chart section to use almost all my yarn.

Needle size: I knit it with a size 4/3.5mm Addi Turbo.

Beads: I combined two different beads that I got from the Bead Wrangler. I used 6° glass beads in the following color ways, #501, and #533.

As you can see from the photos, I blocked rigorously, which gave me the following dimensions: 42 inches wide and 22 inches long.

There has been sadly little in the news recently on education.

However, unemployment makes the headlines daily, and with good reason as a large portion of our citizenry is either unemployed or under-employed.

How little we think of unemployment and education being vitally important to each other…and then last week I came across an article about employment and a company’s woes as it tried to hire some 1300 people and their lament of only being able to find less than a hundred whom they could employ. Why, you ask? It is easy, less than 100 applicants could pass the simple 9th grade mathematics exam for employment! That is correct, Gentle Reader, they have some 1300 positions they are trying to fill but cannot find workers who are capable of doing the work because they cannot do 9th grade math!

Yet state and local governments everywhere are more than contemplating cutting education budgets, they are doing it.

For years, teachers all over this nation have suffered with declining budgets and increased student to teacher ratios, all of which is taking its toll on our nation.

Too many parents believe that schools are a “free daycare provider” for their children. They complain about homework, and I know this first hand, because there were plenty of days where I wished we had something else to do besides the volume of homework my children brought home. However, for as many days that I rued homework, there were ten times as many that I was thankful for it. It opened the door for intelligent conversation between my children and me and I was able to show them that I liked learning new things and that I did not know everything!

All that being said, do I believe that it is all on the hands of our elected leaders or the teachers to solve the dilemma that educating our youth is?

Absolutely not!

As you can imagine, I am a vocal advocate of public education. I believe that education is a basic right of every citizen. I am not a fan of private or charter schools at all, and believe that the diversity offered at public schools create an atmosphere where more than “book learning” can take place.

Therefore, I want to challenge all of you, Gentle Readers, to venture out and get involved with your local public school. Go, volunteer, and spend some time there! You do not need to have a student in the schools to volunteer your time there!

Do not limit your voice and actions to your local school, though – write a letter to your representatives and let them know how vitally important you believe education is!

Help turn America around from one that does not value education, to one that does. The statistics speak for themselves, if you do not believe me, you can see for yourself here. We are dead last in reading, in the bottom third in mathematics and science.

Statistics that sadly speak for themselves on where we place the importance of education…