Improvisation

See this? It's a lucet cord!

No, I don't have a lucet, but after my sister sent me this picture (thanks Gloria!), I had a flash of inspiration. As much as I like Gloria's idea of two Bic pens, an eraser and packing tape, I realized that I had something at hand that could be even better.

It's a hairpin lace maker (what's it's technical name anyway??)! Moving the cross pieces close to the top gives me a slot to thread the cord through and it has two prongs, which is necessary for a lucet. I can prop it on my leg while I'm sitting in the recliner and it's easy enough to hold on to.

That bit of cord you see there took me about half an hour to make. The challenge in making a lucet cord, I'm finding, is tension. It really needs to be consistent and that, I'm sure, is just a matter of practice.

The yarn, incidentally, is just some scrap acrylic "kiddy" yarn that's been in my odds and ends stash for a long time. I think I used this to make a baby hat way back (five or six years maybe?).

Oh, before I take myself off to bed, John informed me today that his dad will be released from the hospital tomorrow! That's the good news. The bad news? Well, his big toe IS a problem; it's indicative that there's a major circulation problem. If he were younger, they might consider vascular surgery, but at his age (90), the risks far outweigh the benefit. If the toe doesn't improve, they may consider amputation; he's on morphine for the pain and John's been out hunting for a shoe that won't hurt the toe toooooooo much. Ideally, he'd like to get Tony some Birkenstocks but he doesn't think Tony will be up to going shoe shopping, so for now, it's summer sandals, which are just fine if you stay indoors.

Now, I'm off to bed!