Wednesday, February 20, 2008

If it's Perjantai, This Must Be Finland

Uh oh. What day is this? Is it Perjantai? Or is it Lauantai? Because if it's Perjantai, I gotta get down to the post office and mail "ladydi's" prize to her.

I can see by looking at my calendar that my friend Anne sent me from Finland that it's indeed Perjantai. And it's almost Maauskuu! Where did all of Helmikuu go?


No, I don't speak Finnish. But I love this calendar. There seems to be an special occasion printed on every day! There's something that looks like "Valentine's Day" on February 14th, but I have no idea what all these other special occasions are. The Finnish must celebrate a lot. Maybe it has something to do with that mysterious white fluffy stuff that's covering most everything from Marraskuu to Maaliskuu; I haven't a clue. It sure is pretty, though.


Before we leave for the post office, let's check out my pillowcases I finished:


No, I didn't do the embroidery, although I've got the bug to do a little bit of embroidery right now. I bought these pillowcases from ebay and decided they needed a nice crocheted edging. I put the color choice up for a vote (thanks for voting) and blue won! What do you think?


I actually started a couple of more intricate crochet patterns, but they were too fussy and I frogged them. I like simple edgings that don't entangle your fingers in in the middle of the night, so I ended up with this pattern.


After I knit for a while, it always surprises me when I pick up a crochet hook again. Crochet is so fast compared to knitting! I like both, though. Crochet comes a lot more naturally to me, since I've been crocheting since I was a little girl. I just learned to knit last year and it's still a struggle.


Ready to head to the post office? Let's go!


The Kapaa post office is NOT an architectural marvel, so I'll spare you the front end view. It's got a slightly rusty tin roof, wood rot and a perpetually broken front door, so it fits in perfectly with the rest of the beach town. The tropical weather, especially down near the ocean, is not kind to structures of any sort. It's also not kind to cars, appliances, houses, etc. Besides, a hurricane comes along every ten years or so and knocks everything down anyway, so why bother building a monument? No worries.


The view from the side of the post office is much prettier to look at. The ocean is to our left. The mountain straight ahead is Sleeping Giant, but this is not his best side. You can still make him out, though. His head is the tallest lump and his feet are pointed toward the building, almost to the tree. Do you see him?




This is Blaine waving hello, who works at the post office and is so very nice. All the Kapaa post office staff are wonderful. If you win the next drawing, Blaine will probably be stamping your package "Do Not Bend."


Thanks for tagging along, I enjoyed your company. Perhaps next time, I can take you to somewhere else more exciting, like the Wailua Mini-Mart or the Kauai DMV! Hee hee...and you thought Kauai was just all beaches and breathtaking vistas....


17 comments:

Sally said...

The trip to the post office is probably my only foray outside today. Ice again...up to an inch. That leaves more time for knitting and quilting! Thanks for taking us along on your errands today. The sun and pretty green was conforting to a cold, rainy, sleety, ice soul.

Elaine Adair said...

Thanks for the lovely WARM tour. Gosh, I forgot what GREEN looks like! I've been enjoying your blog for a while. Thanks for your lovely photos and ideas, and sense of humor.

CONNIE W said...

Love those pillowcases, especially with the gorgeous blue embroidered edging. I haven't crocheted in years and don't know if my eyes and hands can handle it anymore but your project is tempting me to give it a go. That means I'll have to shop for the supplies as I probably tossed out my hooks long ago. They are really pretty!
Got one quilt longarmed and delivered last night. Today another one goes on. Cheer me on every now & then, as I tend to feel laziness creep up and want to stop working and veg out on the net on blogs. Good day to ya'.
Aloha!

Lisa said...

Wow! your crocheted edges are beautiful!
If I could look at that scene when I went to the post office today, I wouldn't mind!!! 10 degrees out... makes me want to stay in all day.

Anonymous said...

Your posts and photos of Kauai make me smile and remember our 2 vacations there. I wanna go back!
- Ellen

Anonymous said...

I'm on Oahu and my day to day life does not include the beautiful beaches or the fabulous vistas either. If you followed me around, I'd probably be going to the same kinds of places that you are. Kauai is much more scenic than Oahu, so the vista behind my post office doesn't look as beautiful as yours. I love how you finished your pillowcases. The scalloped edges really do make it very special.
Aloha!

Anonymous said...

Hi Lisa! It is not yet perjantai but torstai! Those other funny words are names. We do celebrate namedays in Scandinavia!!! A lot of parties and cakes!! Your pillowcases look very nice. I made a real find today: good sewing threads at low price.

Suzy said...

The pillowcases are beautiful and the blue for the crocheted border is perfect! :o)

Opal said...

I adore that crocheted edging! It's just perfect.

Cathie said...

That blue edging is the perfect complement to those pillow slips, Lisa! I love it! So bright and pretty, like summer!

I saw the Sleeping Giant. Thanks for pointing it out; that was cool. *grin*

I have a blog now! I don't know if my addy will link here, so I'll just post it for you. http://dreambit1.blogspot.com/

I linked to you in the first two posts.

Well, okay. I linked to you in ALL my posts. *bats eyelashes* all two of them. *lol*

Take care! Can't wait to see your next project!

Cath

Anonymous said...

What a fun field trip! Lisa... only YOU can make this an adventure. Thanks for taking us along! I look forward to the Kapa'a DMV. But don't you think you need to get a bowl of Saimin first? I would love to tag along on a field trip to Hamura's. Just saying. :o)

From now on when I mail you something I'm going to mark it with a big "HI BLAINE" on it. Do you think your billbox carrier would be upset?

ladydi said...

A post office in paradise! Thank you ever so much for the field trip, especially since I am the very fortunate beneficiary. Thanks for sharing the sleeping giant. Pretty cool.

Love those pillow cases. I have found that the most fun thing to embroider is miniature quilts in counted cross stitch. They come out so cute and don't take long to make. A six inch square "quilting" project is very portable.

Cheryl said...

Wonderful pillowcases and the blue crocheted edge is just perfect.

Anonymous said...

I never realized you had a blog, or if I did, I forgot. Seeing your pictures brought back fond memories of our trip last month, actually, we got back a month ago yesterday. It was nice to read your blog, I'm bookmarking you, if that's ok.

PS. I'm the one who was asking a few months ago about yarn shops on Kauai on Ravelry, and I did find Strings and Things which was great!

Mom IsAmagpie said...

Your edging is beautiful, and I loved your field trip. It reminds me of Mr. Rogers for grown ups, and somehow makes me miss Alaska more. Probably because you have amazing view in there like we did AK. Now I'm pretty sure I could hand my neighbor a cup of sugar by just opening the window. Very different view.

Mokihana said...

Love the views from the PO... I love Oregon because it's so green, but I sure miss the balmy weather. That's what makes me homesick!

Mahalo nui for all the local kine photos!

Wendy said...

The blue crochet on the pillow cases is prefect. I've just learned to crochet and love it. Thanks for sharing the fun trip to the post office...that was so cute.