Beef. It's what shouldn't have been for dinner. I hardly ever eat beef. I like it but it's too heavy for me. It is an occasional treat, not a regular feature in my diet. But my supermarket makes these great skewers of meat and zucchini and onion and such, and I was there and I was tired and hungry and it's a lovely evening and the grill was just sitting there and I had charcoal. It tasted great. My stomach isn't so sure it was a good idea, though.

Sod has been ordered for Monday delivery, and a voicemail was left for the Yard Boys. I can't wait until there is a real lawn in the backyard - it's pretty much been a dump since we bought this place 8 years ago, a bare patch of sunbaked bahia grass and weeds until my husband started working on it before he got sick. He had a vision of what he wanted, and it would have been great, but then Cancer Happened and the backyard went to hell with our finances and everything else. But the backyard bugged him. I know it bugged him, so it really matters to me to make it look good again. Now with the vegetable garden and the pond and the jasmine on the fence and next, a patio, it's going to be a place where I will actually spend time. There are baby tomatoes and baby peppers on the tomato and pepper plants! I hate supermarket tomatoes, if there's any vegetable I must grow myself, it's tomatoes. I have Romas and two varieties of beefsteak-named things, but the high winds of the past few weeks blew all my carefully-placed tags away. So now we have a bit of suspense as the tomatoes reach maturity. I can of course tell a Roma from a Beefsteak, but don't ask me what variety of beefsteak is superior, assuming they get to grow to maturity and aren't eaten by raccoons and possums in the night. There will be a new grill, new (cheap basic) patio furniture, and Murphy will be able to chase his downsized dog toys on nice grass in the fresh air, for the first time in his 4 years of existence. He will be beside himself. After he figures out that falling into the pond is not fun.

Book review for wannabe crocheters: Crocheting in Plain English. Buy this. I did, even though I learned to knit and crochet at the age of six and can't remember not knowing the basics. I had Maggie Righetti's knitting book and loved it, and suspected I'd get the same benefit from this. Oh yeah, even more so. She explains crocheting clearly and teaches a nice variety of skills, all with the same gentle humor and relaxed attitude that makes her knitting book so priceless. (How can you not love a knitting book with a chapter titled "Buttonholes are Bastards"?) I think she explains why crochet is so flexible and versatile better than I ever could. It's a pity that crochet designers lag behind knit designers, in the U.S., at least. I am the first to say that the crocheted garments in most publications are absolute atrocities, and too many of the household goods pictured belong in some "How to Make a Slipcover for the Rusting Double-wide Using Red Heart Yarn from Walmart" handbook. (Annie's Attic comes to mind.)

Yes, Crochet Can Be Crap. I'm the first to say so, but damn, I grew up with crocheting great-aunts and a Gram who could make art with a crochet hook. When my cousin came back from Okinawa in the late 60s she brought Gram a crochet book in Japanese. Gram definitely could not read Japanese - I don't think she had more than an 8th grade education - but she studied the patterns and knew crochet symbols and made the loveliest lace ever from a book she couldn't read. So I'm like, really, really frustrated that crocheted clothing patterns are either made overseas and sold in Spiegel catalogs, or look like absolute shit, like the stuff in the latest FCEK. The potential is there, and nobody's exploring it.

Knitting - working on that lovely "Coral Gables" Homespun cat/small dog blanket. Mindless as hell, but the color and texture and the repetition of the stitches is just mesmerizing. I will make a prayer shawl out of this yarn, in this color. I'm not sure where it will go, but it needs to be a shawl. It's so warm and rich and soft. I love this color - it's not pink, it's not orange, it's mango. The texture is luscious and even mindless garter looks like a million bucks. The dog or cat who parks a fanny on this will be a happy critter. Those who sneer at Lion Brand Homespun can kiss my crabby ass - this is nice stuff. I've paid a lot more for a lot less.