Remembering Elvis

Happy Sunday, all! First of all, in answer to a couple of questions I received about my banner photo: the name of the piece is "Alphabetissimo," by Papillon Creations.

I mentioned in my last post that I had injured my knee and that I'd be undergoing surgery for it. Sure enough, I accomplished that on August 1. I'll be off my feet and off work for 2-3 weeks total with a total recovery time of about 12 weeks. The surgery went well, but the news wasn't particularly inspiring: I'll have to work hard to get back about 80% of my knee's function, and there will be a knee replacement in my future most likely, and no running. I'm grateful that I've got as much function as I do though, and that I feel better and stronger every day and that I had strengthened my knee going into surgery with two months of physical therapy. And that I like to stitch, because I have been passing the time very nicely with needle in hand, leg up on the sofa/recliner/bed. I've read some also, but mostly stitched. The first few days after surgery, while post-anesthesia and under the influence of pain pills, I stitched small designs on 32 count. When I ditched the pills, I decided to commemorate the time off my feet--so that I'd have a "souvenir" of my surgery (other than the medical bills). So I chose something from my stash that I really liked, had already started but hadn't made a lot of progress on, and would normally take me a year or more to stitch. I'd like to finish it no later than Labor Day weekend. That's a LOT of stitching between now and then, but it gives me something more useful to do than eat carton after carton of Yeungling Ice Cream (if you live in PA, you know what I mean).
One week down, and this is where I stand so far. Jane Clarkson 1856, by Samplers Revisited. I'm stitching her on 40 count Lakeside in Maritime White, using the recommended NPI silks.

Here's a closeup of the house:

And a shot of the finished sampler from the Samplers Revisited trunk show that was at In Stitches several months ago.

Sadly, since my last post, I lost darling little Elvis, to a stroke. He was the best bunny ever. He was a lionhead with a giant heart in his little three pound body. I adopted him from the Alexandria, VA animal shelter. He hated being in a cage, particulary since he was alone. The first time I saw him, I fetched him out of the cage and he licked my nose like a puppy. He loved being petted and cuddled.

He was alone until we got first Pink, and then Peaches. How he loved to cuddle with other rabbits. Here he is with Peaches.

And with Pink.

Even better if he could cuddle with everyone at once. He'd squeeze himself in between the two bunnies. Unfortunately, Peaches and Pink bonded separately, and the other two would no longer accept him. He was beside himself with grief at being excluded. It was terrible seeing his pain.

So we allowed him to choose a new mate, Elizabeth. I didn't particularly want Elizabeth, but he fell in love with her, so we brought her home. They doted on each other to the end. She seems to miss him, but she's ok alone, fortunately. Had he been the one to survive, we would have had to find him another bunny. Some bunnies just aren't meant to be alone.

As we get older ourselves, we try not to replace our pets as they pass away. That makes each death even more poignant, but it seems the responsible thing to do, even if we are terribly sad at the passing of each furry family member.
Best wishes to all for a wonderful week ahead.