Tomorrow is the Big Day −− Stage I of the Tour. Since I’m on the West Coast of the US, if I want to see the race live I’ll have to get up at 5:30 a.m.; otherwise I can watch the replays at various times throughout the day on Versus.

My plan is to videotape the live broadcast, because that’s the way I’ve gotten used to doing it in years past. On the weekends it’s no big deal, but during the week when the Big Guy is working he likes to come home in the evening and watch the stage sans commercials. We also enjoy hearing the commentary of Phil Liggett and Paul Sherwin; in fact, for me it just wouldn’t be Le Tour without the sound of Phil Liggett’s voice.

Of course I’ll also be casting on my Simple Knitted Bodice. I’m going to be using a Size 6 Susan Bates circular needle, since my Size 6 Options circ is broken and I haven’t gotten round to trying to replace it. I did have the brilliant idea today of driving over to Babetta’s (my LYS) in the hopes of finding the right size Addi Turbo needle −− but of course they were closed today . . . and if I’d had the sense to phone ahead I would have known that!

It’s not a disaster to have to use the Susan Bates needle, but I’m still going to try to get hold of the Addi just because I’m a bit spoiled.

In other news, we’ve got a Big Lots store that just opened up down the street from our house, so we’re planning on heading over there tomorrow to see if we can find anything exciting. The space it’s occupying has been empty for about two years (maybe more, I can’t recall right now) so it’s good to see something finally going in there.

Way back about 20 years ago when I first moved to this neighborhood, that space was a supermarket, an Albertson’s. I used to buy nearly all my groceries there and it was really great to have it so close by −− walking distance.

I wasn’t very happy when the store changed hands and became a Ralph’s supermarket. For reasons I won’t go into I’ve never liked Ralph’s, and their taking over “my” Albertson’s didn’t help any. I refused to even walk through the door for years −− but I finally broke down and began using it on rare occasions, mostly for emergencies, like when I was in the middle of making supper and found I was missing an essential ingredient.

And then suddenly one day the Ralph’s was gone . . . and the place has been standing empty ever since, until now. I’m not a regular Big Lots shopper, but I’m interested to check it out. From their TV commercials it seems that it might be a good place for bargains −− and bargains is one of the favorite things in our household.

Oh — of course today we’re celebrating the Fourth of July. The Big Guy and I are celebrating by watching a Twilight Zone marathon, and tonight we’ll listen to our neighbors set off their fireworks . . . and hopefully nothing else will be set off.

Tomorrow, besides being the Tour kick-off, is also Pinkie’s birthday! She’ll be 12 years old, and I swear it seems like only yesterday when she and her nine brothers and sisters were born. I’ll never forget that day, partly because it was the Big Guy’s first day back at work after he was laid off for several months. I’ll also never forget the mini horde of puppies (and both their parents) scrambling around our small house. Raising those pups was both one of the hardest and one of the most rewarding things I’ve ever done. It was a once in a lifetime experience for us because we never planned to be dog breeders. Maybe I’ll write more about this tomorrow; I still miss every one of those furry little bundles of love.